Non-delivery of ON, and non-response

[deancox]

No, I didn't let my membership expire.

I didn't get this month's edition - the Garage Widow one, apparently.

Sent email to the staff at ON....no response.

Anyone know how I go about getting a copy? I guess I will call them on Monday.

[Stuff2C]

I've had mine a couple weeks now...you can have it. :stick

[kbasa]

No, I didn't let my membership expire.

I didn't get this month's edition - the Garage Widow one, apparently.

Sent email to the staff at ON....no response.

Anyone know how I go about getting a copy? I guess I will call them on Monday.

Yep. They'll hook you right up.

[Polarbear]

Clovis, CA seems to be late on the list for delivery, too. I just got mine. I think the mail service is probably to blame here, but not sure whats up! I would assume the mags are all delivered, or shipped same day. I think our mail service lacks luster in so many ways. Anybody know where the BMWON is shipped from? Where is it put together? This would be neat article for one future mag; just the process with pics! I'm a 30 year member and no very little about the publisher, etc.. Of course we all know Sandy C., from her brilliant results. Hope the new guy gets a grip on it. :bikes

[basketcase]

Consistent postal service may be an oxymoron, or whateveritiscalled.

Mine came two weeks ago and I've barely had time to thumb through it...

[MCohen]

Polarbear,

I like the idea of the process in pics but I'm not sure people outside the biz would find it interesting (it's mostly people sitting around computer screens now :D ). Here's a quick snapshot of BMW ON publishing. Articles, as you would expect, come from members all around the world. It's collected and edited in St. Louis, MO and sent to me in Denver, CO for design and layout (along with advertising materials which come from Birmingham, Alabama). From there it's sent to Effingham, Illinois where it is printed and then mailed for US delivery by the USPS. It's all mailed five days before the first of the month (not including Sunday).

The postal service used to say it would take three to five days for Periodicals Class (magazines, etc.) mail to reach all parts of the continental US. Which means you should get your issue by the first of the month. There have always been exceptions but overall the delivery times have increased all over the US this year. It's funny, I can't find a reference to delivery times in the current postal guide. If you think delivery of your magazine is taking longer than it should, I suggest giving your local postal office a call and filing a complaint. If enough customers complain perhaps the USPS will take notice.

Michael Cohen
Art Director, BMW ON

[stan]

I'm in upstate NY, 200mi due north of NYC. I received my copy a full two weeks after everyone started talking about it on the forum. I figured I must have gotten it and misplaced it. Of course I blamed the wife (bad move) and tore the house apart looking for it. Then one day it appeared in the mailbox?? Postal service, or were they not all mailed on the same day??

[Mika]

Consistent postal service may be an oxymoron, or whateveritiscalled.


March came on the 1st, April on the 10th. I wonder what the USPS progression will be for May. :brow

[wdfifteen]

Periodical mail is all processed and entered into the mail stream on the same day. If the mailing list has been CAAS certified (and on a publication this size it certainly should be), uneven delivery is 100% the USPS's responsibility.
I enjoy BMW ON for the content, but its production values don't do justice to the subject matter. Quality typography, editing, and grammar do not seem to be of concern. The last issue had a widow and an orphan in the same, one-sentence paragraph and too many grammatical errors to count. I know this doesn't mean much to most BMW ON readers, but to an old publisher who is a BMW owner because he appreciates craftsmanship, it seems a shame.

[Mika]

Quality typography, editing, and grammar do not seem to be of concern. The last issue had a widow and an orphan in the same, one-sentence paragraph and too many grammatical errors to count. I know this doesn't mean much to most BMW ON readers, but to an old publisher who is a BMW owner because he appreciates craftsmanship, it seems a shame.

I am not a publisher and so I may only guess at the jargon's meaning. Can you be more specific, I like to learn.

[MCohen]

I am not a publisher and so I may only guess at the jargon's meaning. Can you be more specific, I like to learn.
Everyone doesn't agree on a definition for widows and orphans, but generally a widow is the last line of a paragraph appearing at the top of the page while an orphan is the first line of paragraph which appears at the bottom of the page. It is also used to refer to a very short last line of a paragraph--one or a couple of words.

And yes, the mailing list is CAAS certified.

Michael Cohen
Art Director, BMW ON

[Mika]

Thank you Michael, I was wondering now I better understand.

[wdfifteen]

I am not a publisher and so I may only guess at the jargon's meaning. Can you be more specific, I like to learn.

A "widow" is the last line of a paragraph that appears alone at the top of the next column or page, and an "orphan" is the first line of a paragraph that appears alone at the bottom of a column or page. It doesn't mean much to most people, but to publishers these mistakes stick out like a H*rley at a BMW rally.
Since you like to learn - typography, the art of putting words on pages, used to be carefully practiced craft. It has been largely abandoned with the advent of electronic publishing. My comment is to some extent a bemoaning of the passing of what used to be a proudly practiced craft.
Take a look at page 38 of the April 2006 issue. Every column has a no-no. These aren't critical mistakes, but they mark the difference between craftsmanship and just getting the job done. I like craftsmanship. That's why I own a BMW.
This article could also have used a work-over by a good copy editor.
I'm not complaining. I enjoy BMW ON and look forward to every issue. I just notice these things because I'm a publisher and work with them every day.

[Mika]

I am going to continue my hijack of a USPS delivery thread and ask some more publishing questions. We have a couple people that have responded to the thread with varied experience and I continue to be curious.

In the observations about typography, is the April issue really different than previous issues? If I am interpreting earlier posts correctly the Art Directory of ON does the layout. This position has not changed, so how has the quality changed. Is there a change in process? There is a change in personnel in the form of the editor. Does the working relationship between editor and others, such as the Art Director, take time to develop before they lay down on the page what they would consider their best work?

On editing, I am curious in a difference between a “professional publication” and an association publication such as ON. I ask this from the perspective of a youth coach in various sports. The professional coach can send the players to specialized coaches for training or even trade players to arrive at the team they want to field. As a youth coach I worked with what the players brought and fielded the best team I possibly could. The expectation of fans of both teams was a well played game leading to a win for the team. A professional paper or magazine hires writers and the editor can send a submission back to the writer for a rewrite or send it off to another writer for rework and polishing. I am wondering about the publication of something like ON. My assumption is that it is closer to my youth soccer teams than it is to Manchester United in analogy. I am wonder what the observations of others is on this?

Bringing this post back to the thread topic, does the association need to look at the delivery process and either bring it in line with member expectations for timely delivery or teach members what can reasonably be expected for what we expend in the current delivery system.

If we are a home for widows and orphans I want us to be the best one possible. I want to get those widows and orphans to their new homes in the timeliest manner possible. As I stated in an ealier post, I am not a professional in this area so I am just wondering out loud.

[robsryder]

... these mistakes stick out like a H*rley at a BMW rally...

My response isn't directed to the thread topic, but rather to the attitude represented in the quotes above.

I have a number of bikes representing various marques. I have ridden a Harley to a BMW rally. I didn't have any problems. I saw the same group of good folks and had the same good time. I did NOT feel out of place.

I have also ridden a Triumph to a BMW rally, same result. At one of the Airhead rallys that I attended a guy with a Triumph dealership (on the other side of the state from which the rally was held) showed up with a couple of Triumph demo bikes. As far as I could see no one objected.

Although the BMW rallys are primarily for riders on BMW bikes, I really don't think that anyone cares what you ride. Just have a good time and respect others.

[wdfifteen]

My response isn't directed to the thread topic, but rather to the attitude represented in the quotes above.

Although the BMW rallys are primarily for riders on BMW bikes, I really don't think that anyone cares what you ride.

Your last sentence makes my point. If it's a BMW rally anything else there is obvious. You notice it right away. You can make your own judgement about whether that is good or bad.

[wdfifteen]

In the observations about typography, is the April issue really different than previous issues? If I am interpreting earlier posts correctly the Art Directory of ON does the layout. This position has not changed, so how has the quality changed. Is there a change in process?

I started getting the magazine in November and it seems consistent to me.

Does the working relationship between editor and others, such as the Art Director, take time to develop before they lay down on the page what they would consider their best work?

I'm sure there can be work flow issues that come up and make things difficult until they are ironed out.

On editing, I am curious in a difference between a “professional publication” and an association publication such as ON.

I can talk to you off line about that if you wish.

Bringing this post back to the thread topic, does the association need to look at the delivery process and either bring it in line with member expectations for timely delivery or teach members what can reasonably be expected for what we expend in the current delivery system.

This has been a problem since I started in the publishing industry over 20 years ago. I am on a Publishers Task Force whose job is to put pressure on the USPS to do a better job with periodical mail. There were significant improvements about 5-6 years ago, but they seem to have hit a plateau. There are big changes coming with co-mingling requirements and so on, so hold onto your hats things could get worse.
Mailing by first class mail is an option. BUT - I'm on my own mailing lists as both a first class and a periodical mail customer and 11 of 12 months a year I get them both on the same day.

[MCohen]

In the observations about typography, is the April issue really different than previous issues? If I am interpreting earlier posts correctly the Art Directory of ON does the layout. This position has not changed, so how has the quality changed. Is there a change in process? There is a change in personnel in the form of the editor. Does the working relationship between editor and others, such as the Art Director, take time to develop before they lay down on the page what they would consider their best work?
M1ka,

The Art Director does the layout but doesn't work in a vacuum. The Editor and I discuss his or her "vision" and work together to come up with a design "template" and layout "rules" to be followed. The layout gets done with as much or as few instructions as the Editor wishes and the final product is reviewed and adjusted until the Editor is happy and signs off on it. There's an adjustment period with a new Editor but the additional work happens behind the scenes with meetings, extra calls/emails/IMs and more proofs than usual.

Michael Cohen
Art Director, BMW ON

[deancox]

No, I didn't let my membership expire.

I didn't get this month's edition - the Garage Widow one, apparently.

Sent email to the staff at ON....no response.

Anyone know how I go about getting a copy? I guess I will call them on Monday.

Becky Weber emailed me today and said she would send another issue. Thanks!

[Mika]

Dean I am please you received your issue. I think you will find it a quality effort that speaks well of what we have to look forward to in the future as experience develops an even better working relationship in all the players.
A left handed way of saying I like your work Michael. Wdfifteen I will think a bit more and may take you up on your offer of a pm discussion.