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lifeline.txt
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2006-10-19
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.IF DSK1.C3
.CE 5
*IMPACT/99*
^^^^^^^^^by JACK SUGHRUE
^^^^^^^^^Box 459
^^^^^^^^^East Douglas, MA 01516
OUR 99er LIFELINES
QUESTION: What's the most important
part of the TI/99-4A computer?
ANSWER: The monthly newsletters
written about, on, by, for, with, to,
and from the 99 and/or 99ers. They
are THE lifelines of our machines.
This massive newsletter link keeps us
an entity, a community.
There are lots of hardworking BBS
activists who are as important to the
worldwide TI community as the
newsletter editors but their final
impact is different. There are about
1800 non-modemed, active,
newsletter-reading 99ers for each
active modemed BBSer. So, to begin
with, the newsletter readers
worldwide are a gigantic portion of
99ers whose only enhanced experiences
are through the newsletters.
Most newsletters do reprints from
other newsletters, which is a good
thing. Almost all user groups
exchange newsletters, and we all
learn from these exchanges. We learn
what new products are coming out.
Where and when the next TI faires
will take place. How to use a new
piece of software (like TI-BASE).
What to do when something doesn't
work. How users feel about a given
product. There are also some
wonderful teachers (like Jim
Peterson, Chick De Marti, Anne Dhein,
Martin Smoley, Harry Brashear, Bill
Gaskill, Tom Arnold, Deanna Sheridan,
Syles Bazerman, Tony McGovern, Jim
Swedlow, Mickey Schmitt, Charles
Good, John Willforth, to name too
few.)
Because each newsletter is SO
distinctive, each gives options
that couldn't be provided in any
other way. There are some that are
controversial and cantankerous (and
badly needed to keep us on our
collective toes). Some that are
TOTALLY original; others that are
very serious; still others that are
very funny; and more that are quite
eclectic - all reflecting the needs,
desires, and abilities of the userss:
emphasizing hardware or graphics or
utiliites almost exclusively.
I'm often asked what the best
newsletter in the world is. I don't
think there is any such thing.
For those people who like to type
in programs, the newsletters that
have them wins out. For the fearless
who love to rip apart things and
solder all over the place, the
hardware newsletters are best. For
those who like the profoundly
esoteric and philosophic the
newsletters carrying IMPACT/99 are
the best.
Personally, I the variety of
the newsletters. I get about 75 a
month and can honestly say that
Canada and Australia certainly give
America, the home of TI, a run for
its money. There is something to
suit everybody in the TI World, and
I wouldn't presume to pick the
World's Best.
However...
There are lots of ways to improve
weak newsletters; ways that are
discussed often by user/readers.
1) Because so many newsletters now
exchange, LIMIT the amount of low
interest matericals. If your
newsletter devotes a large amount of
space to the business meeting and
treasurer's report and time and place
of the next meeting you can count on
a drastic drop in readership and
membership. Rightly so. Put that
stuff on a single page insert or,
better still, announce at the
meeting. Don't waste valuable space,
energy, time, printing costs with
boring info.
2) Add some graphics. The TI (with
MAX-RLE, GRAPH-X, TI-ARTIST, CONVERT,
PICTURE IT, PICASSO, CSGD, etc. has a
wealth of wonderful stuff. There are
so many programs that can even INSERT
stuff into text, if you don't want to
paste up, that it seems foolish not
to grab someone's attention with
graphics.
3) List your library, even in
pieces. This month: Music; next
month: Games. Whatever. This is
important for members and exchanges.
Be sure to put it on disk, too.
4) Use people's talents. If someone
is good at assembly, encourage
her/him to write an article(s) about
assembly. If someone got a new
program off the BBS, have him/her
demo it and write about it. Be sure
to write about all the people who
demo or in any way share with the
club. These people don't get paid.
They need and deserve the reward of
recognition in their own
newsletters.
5) Gripe! By having alittlegripe
column, the TI World will change.
It's as important to have a
legitimate gripe as it is to have
legitimate praise.
6) Thus, praise. If someone has
found a program they like or love,
encourage them to write about it.
Or, because you are editor or writer,
encourage them to demo it and YOU
write it up for the newsletter.
7) Look through other newsletters.
If an article interests YOU it'll
probably interest your readers.
8) But be careful. Very few people
have RAMdisks, Geneves, Triple-Tech
Cards, or whatever. Most TI owners
don't even have disk drives. Try to
encourage them to get drives but
don't overlook them. (You might write
about options - add-on printers, 32K,
etc.)
9) GET A DECENT ORIGINAL COPY!
Change your ribbon or get someone
else to make the original or go to
another printer. There are lots of
yucky, hard-to-read newsletters out
there. Do something about it.
10) Sneak. Find someone who has easy
access to a copier. Then make one
picture-perfect copy (THAT IS THE BIG
THING!) even if it costs you, and
then have your friend make the
copies. Now, user groups are getting
smaller and smaller - BUT cleverer
and cleverer and stronger and
stronger. Let's exhibit these ideal
characteristics in our newsletters.
11) Find out the maximum pages you
can send through the mail for $.25 or
(the next step) $.45 by going to the
post office and having them EXACTLY
weigh the number of pieces of paper
of the kind you use. Then do
EVERYTHING based on that specific.
Including reproducing, reducing,
pasting in graphics, and so on.
Remember to eliminate all the local
garbage. Nobody reads it, including
the locals. And you can really get
some good stuff into the expanded
package.
12) Set goals. Make a club goal each
year. Then work towards it
andpublicizeit. Some clubs (like
Connecticut's tiny NUTMEG 99er group
create original programs and TI
artifacts for faire sales each year).
Though it's a good fundraising idea,
it is more important that the WHOLE
club work actively toward these
newsletter-encouraged goals and share
them with the whole TI community.
13) Finally, praise the heroic
efforts of your newsletter editor
publicly and often.
TIs are on their last 8 or 10
years. It's too short a time to have
squabbles and to complain about who
does more work at meetings. We're
all smallifying, and it is not a
comfortable feeling. Let's pull
together as tightly as we can for as
long a time as we've got.
The 4A is still a remarkable
computer. There are still remarkable
things being done to and for it.
Let our readers know.
[If you reprint these articles please
place the author on your newsletter
mailing list. Thank you. J.S.]
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