12:20:36am
Anyone who wishes to put together a 1 Page Exhibit on any topic - be it a topical collection, country, whatever comes to mind, I would be very pleased to include it in future Rambler Newsletters.
What a wonderful way to learn about a philatelic area that others collect.
A great example would be one cover with a write up on it. We've had so many discussions on military mail online here.
If you personally do not have the time to put an exhibit together but would like to see one from a topic we've discussed, please feel free to send me a message with the thread that you think would be very interesting for others to read and I will put it together into an exhibit for the Rambler.
Kelly
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Hello Kelly (and Ross),
I appreciate your efforts to revive the Rambler, but I believe it is necessary that you manage your expectations. You are the editors, and should unfortunately go under the assumption that you will have to write the whole thing on an ongoing basis. (I have been there.) If other members contribute articles, the better, but if not, the burden of sustaining the project will be on you alone. Such is the nature of volunteering.
To be honest, I am pessimistic that a new Rambler will be sustainable, because from all discussions it did not appear that a sufficient minority of the membership actually cares. See here for the original discussion.
There was much support however for an infrequent, but regular, "no frills" email communication highlighting new developments on Stamporama intended to bring our inactive members back into the fold. It is my impression that this targeted and comparably small project is being somewhat held hostage by the much more ambitious plan of a multi-page online journal with original content.
Please, do not misunderstand me, I wish nothing but the best for a new Rambler, which could be a nice feature to have, but I do propose that we disentangle these two issues.
Specifically, I am in favor of moving forward with a brief email newsletter, which simply highlights new developments and website news, and which will appear at regular, yet infrequent, intervals. Because such email will appear as official Stamporama communication, responsibility for content and authorship might best be placed in the VC. There is a tremendous potential -- with respect to activity on the discussion board, trading partners, auction participation -- in bringing inactive members back into the fold.
In addition, as an additional service to the membership, we can revive a Stamporama online journal that features original content (one-page exhibits etc.). Given the ebb and flow of contributions, this publication will likely appear at infrequent intervals and responsibility for content and authorship is placed in the editors. This will take the burden off of you to produce a newsletter on a regular schedule.
I believe in this fashion we get the best of both worlds.
Arno
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10:51:22am
Arno,
I hesitate even to respond to this post of yours. Considering the fact that you do not know the details of the project being worked on, who has volunteered, who has submitted completed articles or the frequency of how often it would be available, perhaps you are not in the correct position to criticise the project. If you want a brief monthly email newsletter, by all means, go ahead and create it yourself under VC. This is not the intent of the Rambler. Perhaps if you weren't so quick to judge a project you know nothing about except for it's existence, perhaps you would find out that the exact "proposal" of an online journal is in fact closer to the point of the project. Additionally, DO NOT tell me what I must expect or what I must do. Find out more information before posting what you wrote. But thank you again for telling me that Ross and myself are wasting our time on this project. And thank you for telling the others who have enthusiastically contributed to this project that they have wasted their time as well.
Since you have made yourself the unofficial judge and jury on this point, I suppose you may as well close this thread as you have told the rest of the members who might be interested in this project of which you have no knowledge of, not to even think about my request.
In the future, do not presume you speak for the entire SOR membership. You certainly have never spoken for me!
Kelly
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Hi Kelly,
The only information available about the Rambler project is the original discussion, initiated by Ross, titled, "Is there a SOR Type Newsletter???" and your follow-up thread titled "The Rambler Will Ride Again - Update on the SOR Newsletter." The sequence of these topics suggests that the solution to the need for regular member information appeared to be the proposed revival of the Rambler in an online format. If you read these two topics, you will see what I mean.
You clarify now that a regular email newsletter is NOT the intent of the new Rambler, but that the new Rambler is an online journal. So, in essence it would have been sufficient to simply agree with me that these two issues are separate things, and that the question/project/need of/for regular member information is not met by the new Rambler and still needs addressing. This was exactly my point. Thank you.
I am happy to hear that you are off to a good start reviving the Rambler and that you have already solicited some submissions. As stated above, I have been the editor of publications, and it is a pain. All the more I appreciate your volunteering and wish nothing but the best for this project.
Please calm down and don't see divisiveness where there is none.
Arno
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12:34:43pm
I did not confirm anything you said. I said the current Rambler in the making is similar to your idea of an online journal.
I'm not the one looking for divisiveness. I don't appreciate anything you said in your original post about the new Rambler when you know nothing about how it has evolved over the past two months. Your second post is based on two threads that were written over two months ago - I don't have time to go back to those threads on my phone, but I'm going on a timeline of two months since I know I have not been active since mid-August.
You've taken a simple thread mentioning the point of one page exhibits to once again tell us you think the Rambler is a waste of time. How involved have you been in the discussion on the Rambler? How many pages will it contain? How often will it be distributed? What method of distribution will be used? What type of articles will be included? You have no answer to any of these questions. Are you basing your knowledge of the new Rambler on those in the archives, the great work of Jerry Abern? Then you certainly have no idea what the current plan of action is for this project.
Please don't tell me to calm down. You're the one that came out shooting down a project you know nothing about. That is wonderful you have a lot of experience in editing newsletters, journals, etc. You don't know me, my profession or experience and all I see from your post is condescending comments.
**********************
My sincerest apologies to all the members who have had to read these posts. I don't take kindly to people who judge what they do not know.
Having had to endure this "discussion" between Arno and myself, my original inquiry still stands. If you are interested in one page exhibits for the Rambler, please feel free to contact me.
Kelly
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03:49:33pm
Well, after a quick scan, I skipped most of the proceeding posts, Kelly, as most speed readers do anyway, so no need to apologize for me having to spend an inordinate time reading it through.
I want to wish you luck with it and I hope to be able to contribute a few thoughts now and then myself.
Arno's pessimism seems to be based on previous personal experience but should not be decisive as times and interests change. He may be spot on.
The one thing I do know is what I have explained to my sons and daughters as they were growing up and that is the song I am now singing to my grand children (Successfully I might add);
"You will never know if you do not try."
and,
"Even failure, the essence of experience, is worthy, if we are to learn anything new."
This is usually followed by the traditional homily about how many failed experiments Thomas Edison attempted before he stumbled onto the qualities of tungsten.
So let's give it our best shot and good luck with the result.
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05:05:32pm
Thank you Charlie, I appreciate your response. Ross and I have been excited (as have the current contributors) on this project. While maintaining the Rambler name, we have taken it away from the traditionalism of the original Rambler and the long involved content that the original Rambler contained.
With the new format and content, I can see people who don't have the opportunity to visit the discussion board, come away with some awesome philatelic information in a nutshell.
I've never been fond of people who make negative comments and assumptions on issues that they know nothing about, which is what caused my earlier responses to Arno.
The idea of the one page exhibits is actually completely in line with what we are looking for in the new Rambler. In fact in my previous thread on this, I said that everyone of us already has a one page exhibit in our albums. We could open any album page that we've jotted down notes or created a small write up for and voila, there it is! The perfect submission for the Rambler! And that is exactly what a 1 page exhibit is all about. Hence the idea of merging the two suggestions 
Kelly
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I think one page exhibits are great. I'm already thinking what I could do. Sounds like fun. I hope lots of people will do the same.
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Dear Arno & Kelly,
Your passion speaks eloquently for you both. Your desire to improve SOR is apparent. You have both done well and are doing well.A brother/sister spat is perfect-brings out the best in us all.No apologies or second thoughts needed. We are a family and we behave as such. Excellent.
Dan C.
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A Service Dog gives a person with a disability independence. Never approach, distract or pet a working dog, especially when (s)he is in harness. Never be afraid to ask questions to the handler (parent).
04 Oct 2013
12:20:36am
As many of you know, we are working on resurrecting The Rambler Newsletter. As the discussion came about regarding 1 Page Exhibits, it came to mind that this would be an awesome contribution to the Rambler Newsletter.
Anyone who wishes to put together a 1 Page Exhibit on any topic - be it a topical collection, country, whatever comes to mind, I would be very pleased to include it in future Rambler Newsletters.
What a wonderful way to learn about a philatelic area that others collect.
A great example would be one cover with a write up on it. We've had so many discussions on military mail online here.
If you personally do not have the time to put an exhibit together but would like to see one from a topic we've discussed, please feel free to send me a message with the thread that you think would be very interesting for others to read and I will put it together into an exhibit for the Rambler.
Kelly
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this post
re: Proposal for 1 Page Exhibits for the Rambler Newsletter
Hello Kelly (and Ross),
I appreciate your efforts to revive the Rambler, but I believe it is necessary that you manage your expectations. You are the editors, and should unfortunately go under the assumption that you will have to write the whole thing on an ongoing basis. (I have been there.) If other members contribute articles, the better, but if not, the burden of sustaining the project will be on you alone. Such is the nature of volunteering.
To be honest, I am pessimistic that a new Rambler will be sustainable, because from all discussions it did not appear that a sufficient minority of the membership actually cares. See here for the original discussion.
There was much support however for an infrequent, but regular, "no frills" email communication highlighting new developments on Stamporama intended to bring our inactive members back into the fold. It is my impression that this targeted and comparably small project is being somewhat held hostage by the much more ambitious plan of a multi-page online journal with original content.
Please, do not misunderstand me, I wish nothing but the best for a new Rambler, which could be a nice feature to have, but I do propose that we disentangle these two issues.
Specifically, I am in favor of moving forward with a brief email newsletter, which simply highlights new developments and website news, and which will appear at regular, yet infrequent, intervals. Because such email will appear as official Stamporama communication, responsibility for content and authorship might best be placed in the VC. There is a tremendous potential -- with respect to activity on the discussion board, trading partners, auction participation -- in bringing inactive members back into the fold.
In addition, as an additional service to the membership, we can revive a Stamporama online journal that features original content (one-page exhibits etc.). Given the ebb and flow of contributions, this publication will likely appear at infrequent intervals and responsibility for content and authorship is placed in the editors. This will take the burden off of you to produce a newsletter on a regular schedule.
I believe in this fashion we get the best of both worlds.
Arno
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A Service Dog gives a person with a disability independence. Never approach, distract or pet a working dog, especially when (s)he is in harness. Never be afraid to ask questions to the handler (parent).
04 Oct 2013
10:51:22am
re: Proposal for 1 Page Exhibits for the Rambler Newsletter
Arno,
I hesitate even to respond to this post of yours. Considering the fact that you do not know the details of the project being worked on, who has volunteered, who has submitted completed articles or the frequency of how often it would be available, perhaps you are not in the correct position to criticise the project. If you want a brief monthly email newsletter, by all means, go ahead and create it yourself under VC. This is not the intent of the Rambler. Perhaps if you weren't so quick to judge a project you know nothing about except for it's existence, perhaps you would find out that the exact "proposal" of an online journal is in fact closer to the point of the project. Additionally, DO NOT tell me what I must expect or what I must do. Find out more information before posting what you wrote. But thank you again for telling me that Ross and myself are wasting our time on this project. And thank you for telling the others who have enthusiastically contributed to this project that they have wasted their time as well.
Since you have made yourself the unofficial judge and jury on this point, I suppose you may as well close this thread as you have told the rest of the members who might be interested in this project of which you have no knowledge of, not to even think about my request.
In the future, do not presume you speak for the entire SOR membership. You certainly have never spoken for me!
Kelly
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re: Proposal for 1 Page Exhibits for the Rambler Newsletter
Hi Kelly,
The only information available about the Rambler project is the original discussion, initiated by Ross, titled, "Is there a SOR Type Newsletter???" and your follow-up thread titled "The Rambler Will Ride Again - Update on the SOR Newsletter." The sequence of these topics suggests that the solution to the need for regular member information appeared to be the proposed revival of the Rambler in an online format. If you read these two topics, you will see what I mean.
You clarify now that a regular email newsletter is NOT the intent of the new Rambler, but that the new Rambler is an online journal. So, in essence it would have been sufficient to simply agree with me that these two issues are separate things, and that the question/project/need of/for regular member information is not met by the new Rambler and still needs addressing. This was exactly my point. Thank you.
I am happy to hear that you are off to a good start reviving the Rambler and that you have already solicited some submissions. As stated above, I have been the editor of publications, and it is a pain. All the more I appreciate your volunteering and wish nothing but the best for this project.
Please calm down and don't see divisiveness where there is none.
Arno
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A Service Dog gives a person with a disability independence. Never approach, distract or pet a working dog, especially when (s)he is in harness. Never be afraid to ask questions to the handler (parent).
04 Oct 2013
12:34:43pm
re: Proposal for 1 Page Exhibits for the Rambler Newsletter
I did not confirm anything you said. I said the current Rambler in the making is similar to your idea of an online journal.
I'm not the one looking for divisiveness. I don't appreciate anything you said in your original post about the new Rambler when you know nothing about how it has evolved over the past two months. Your second post is based on two threads that were written over two months ago - I don't have time to go back to those threads on my phone, but I'm going on a timeline of two months since I know I have not been active since mid-August.
You've taken a simple thread mentioning the point of one page exhibits to once again tell us you think the Rambler is a waste of time. How involved have you been in the discussion on the Rambler? How many pages will it contain? How often will it be distributed? What method of distribution will be used? What type of articles will be included? You have no answer to any of these questions. Are you basing your knowledge of the new Rambler on those in the archives, the great work of Jerry Abern? Then you certainly have no idea what the current plan of action is for this project.
Please don't tell me to calm down. You're the one that came out shooting down a project you know nothing about. That is wonderful you have a lot of experience in editing newsletters, journals, etc. You don't know me, my profession or experience and all I see from your post is condescending comments.
**********************
My sincerest apologies to all the members who have had to read these posts. I don't take kindly to people who judge what they do not know.
Having had to endure this "discussion" between Arno and myself, my original inquiry still stands. If you are interested in one page exhibits for the Rambler, please feel free to contact me.
Kelly
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likes this post.
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Silence in the face of adversity is the father of complicity and collusion, the first cousins of conspiracy..
04 Oct 2013
03:49:33pm
re: Proposal for 1 Page Exhibits for the Rambler Newsletter
Well, after a quick scan, I skipped most of the proceeding posts, Kelly, as most speed readers do anyway, so no need to apologize for me having to spend an inordinate time reading it through.
I want to wish you luck with it and I hope to be able to contribute a few thoughts now and then myself.
Arno's pessimism seems to be based on previous personal experience but should not be decisive as times and interests change. He may be spot on.
The one thing I do know is what I have explained to my sons and daughters as they were growing up and that is the song I am now singing to my grand children (Successfully I might add);
"You will never know if you do not try."
and,
"Even failure, the essence of experience, is worthy, if we are to learn anything new."
This is usually followed by the traditional homily about how many failed experiments Thomas Edison attempted before he stumbled onto the qualities of tungsten.
So let's give it our best shot and good luck with the result.
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
A Service Dog gives a person with a disability independence. Never approach, distract or pet a working dog, especially when (s)he is in harness. Never be afraid to ask questions to the handler (parent).
04 Oct 2013
05:05:32pm
re: Proposal for 1 Page Exhibits for the Rambler Newsletter
Thank you Charlie, I appreciate your response. Ross and I have been excited (as have the current contributors) on this project. While maintaining the Rambler name, we have taken it away from the traditionalism of the original Rambler and the long involved content that the original Rambler contained.
With the new format and content, I can see people who don't have the opportunity to visit the discussion board, come away with some awesome philatelic information in a nutshell.
I've never been fond of people who make negative comments and assumptions on issues that they know nothing about, which is what caused my earlier responses to Arno.
The idea of the one page exhibits is actually completely in line with what we are looking for in the new Rambler. In fact in my previous thread on this, I said that everyone of us already has a one page exhibit in our albums. We could open any album page that we've jotted down notes or created a small write up for and voila, there it is! The perfect submission for the Rambler! And that is exactly what a 1 page exhibit is all about. Hence the idea of merging the two suggestions
Kelly
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re: Proposal for 1 Page Exhibits for the Rambler Newsletter
I think one page exhibits are great. I'm already thinking what I could do. Sounds like fun. I hope lots of people will do the same.
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re: Proposal for 1 Page Exhibits for the Rambler Newsletter
Dear Arno & Kelly,
Your passion speaks eloquently for you both. Your desire to improve SOR is apparent. You have both done well and are doing well.A brother/sister spat is perfect-brings out the best in us all.No apologies or second thoughts needed. We are a family and we behave as such. Excellent.
Dan C.
3 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.