MEW, would less be more?

[Sub MandrelParticipant @submandrel]

Returning to the original topic, personally i’d like to see a third publication to feed my ME addiction in week 4 of the cycle!

 

Neil

[martin perman 1Participant @martinperman1]

Gentlemen,

 

Is there an electronic index to all of the MEW Database.

 

Martin P

[AndyPParticipant @andyp13730]

There is a full index of MEW here and also one on Harold Hall’s most excellent site here

[martin perman 1Participant @martinperman1]

Thank you, very interesting.

 

Martin P

[martin perman 1Participant @martinperman1]

Thank you, very interesting.

 

Martin P

[DerryUKParticipant @derryuk]

If you want a spreadsheet version of an MEW index there is mine

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AlJR4IC3eMhZdE1tTVBPZklPN1hXLTNYSHNmcjA2NXc&hl=en_GB#gid=0

 

In my comment column I have added any paragraph headings used for a bit more detail and helps to refine any searches. Latterly though writers tend not to use them (paragraph headings) which is a shame.

[BERTOParticipant @berto]

When i was buying the hard copy it wouldn’t have mattered if it was a weekly as i would have still purchased it !

I now subscribe to the digital version which ensures i get every editon new and old and can read them at leisure , Although i do mss taking them to work to read during my smoko break!

I suppose i could take a laptop and my mobile broadband instead and that way i would have all of them at my fingertips !

 

As for magazine content i have no compliants and it wouldn’t matter one bit if David changed the content to suit what some readers may want as there will always be others who would complain .

I think that David and his team do an astonishing job of putting together MEW &ME and manage to keep the contents interesting to the majority of readers .

One needs to understand that he doesn’t have a bottomless pool of articles to pick from and the content of thesearticles is a lottery !

If there are certain types of articles a reader want’s to see then let him know as he may have something on the backburner waiting for others to fit in with it .

 

As for advertising it is of little use to me as i live on the other side of the planet and would not purchase from these retailers as the cost of freight is a killer .

That said i still have a look at what they are selling as sometimes there will be a new item that interest me , all i have to do is wait for it to hit these shores probably a year later !

 

Regards ..

Ian

[steamdaveParticipant @steamdave]

Gave up ME soon after I moved to Ireland, but kept on MEW. If it was possible to get the two magazines in one wrapper (to reduce postage charges), I might consider returning.

Dave

The Emerald Isle

[StovepipeParticipant @stovepipe]

I’m happy wiith things as they are (says he wearing his tin hat). I’m reading Mick Knight’s article for beginners with interest because I might learn something.

 

Two other points – If you aren’t happy with the content, then get and pen some articles yourselves, instead of keyboarding moaning about it.

 

Also – For them as can read, a cheer for Diane Carney please, who has put 3 of the issues together, which some of you may have noticed.

 

Dennis

[Billy MillsParticipant @billymills]

John Coleman, Thanks for your comment. Martin was talking about MEW not ME so my comment was specifically about MEW. It would seem that not all MEW subscribers know that they have access to all of the back numbers just as some readers of this forum post without reading what has already been said.

 

The back number archive is something that I enjoy using. It is interesting to follow the evolution of MEW. I think that DC1 and DC2 do a great job, the magazines can only reflect what the Authors are writing, that has changed through the volumes just as the rest of life has changed, how could it be any different?

 

Billy.

[mgnbukParticipant @mgnbuk]

If you aren’t happy with the content, then get and pen some articles yourselves, instead of keyboarding moaning about it.

 

I have never understood this attitude – how does my writing my own articles improve the magazine from my point of view ? I would have already read that article as I wrote it !

 

ME and MEW are not “Club” magazines, they are a commercial venture. ME used to employ staff writers – doesn’t seem to be the case these days.

 

£0.02

 

Nigel B.

[Sub MandrelParticipant @submandrel]

> how does my writing my own articles improve the magazine from my point of view ?

 

If everyone thought that, there would be no magazine.

 

If you think it could be better, help make it so.

 

Neil

[Lawrie Alush-JaggsParticipant @lawriealush-jaggs50843]

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Diane Carney.

Three cheers. Hip hip….

Hooray

Hip hip….

Hooray

Hip hip….

Hooray

 

places everyone.

Nigel. What a strange comment, however given inflation you managed to get quite a lot in for 2p.

ME and MEW are not club magazines, true, but they do form the locii of Special Interest Groups. The days of Sam Brown and Popular Mechanics are well behind us I think. I don’t take ME in paper, digitally or intravenously, but I do subscribe to MEW.

There three broard ways in which the mags could be put together.

1 By a staff of writers

2 By commission from the Editor

3 By submission.

We happen to rely on 3 which means that those of the readership who take time to write articles get to see their name carved gloriously in the granite of our times, paper, for all posterity (or about 13,000 readers anyway) to see. The fact that readers submit articles suggests that the stuff that is being published is of interest to at least the people who write the articles and that is not too bad.

Neither of the magazines runs to themes other than that stated in the name. We don’t have an eyeshadow for drill chucks or breast reduction therapy excercises for tailstock turrets. Our esteemed editor (and euqally esteemed deputy editor) have to find enough to fit the pages and give some sort of balance.

All of this of course is a load of waffle and old cobblers.

 

” I have never understood this attitude – how does my writing my own articles improve the magazine from my point of view ? I would have already read that article as I wrote it !”

 

This suggests that articles written by you are going to appear regularly. Would that be the case?

Secondly, it doesn’t really matter if you don’t understand the attitude so lolng as you buy the mag.

Blah blah blah. I must get some work done.

[Gone AwayParticipant @goneaway]

Posted by Stovepipe on 04/12/2011 19:57:51:

If you aren’t happy with the content, then get and pen some articles yourselves, instead of keyboarding moaning about it.

 

So … instead of moaning, write some articles?

 

Who then does get to “moan” ?

 

– Nobody?

– Only those that write articles?

 

Don’t see the logic. Anyone who shells out the cover price has a right to comment (or “moan” if you like) if he doesn’t like what he gets for his money whether or not he chooses to ‘do better’ (or is even capable).

[BERTOParticipant @berto]

Posted by Nigel Barraclough on 05/12/2011 07:53:24:

If you aren’t happy with the content, then get and pen some articles yourselves, instead of keyboarding moaning about it.

 

I have never understood this attitude – how does my writing my own articles improve the magazine from my point of view ? I would have already read that article as I wrote it !

 

 

By writing your own articles you will improve the Magazine not only for yourself but also others as your ideas could start a new train of thought on something and encourage others to add their ideas.

Oddly enough you could gain a greater knowledge or understanding from the feedback of others because of an idea you started !

This is as how i see that MEW has evolved since its inception(read most of everything since issue 1 as i subscribe to the digital version and can highly recommend it ).

Say that someone has submitted an article about something and some readers may have have modified it to suit thier needs then later submitted thier modified version of the original idea with some new gizmo on it and i’m sure the Author of the original wondered why they never thought of that !

The idea is that we teach each other as no one knows everything about Model engineering or machining !

 

I have stated before elsewhere in this string that if you are going to moan about magazine content send it to the Editor (sorry David !) as that is who is in charge of that department !

Forums are supposed to be for the sharing of information – not complaints or so i’m led to believe anyhow .

 

Berto

AKA. .001

 

 

 

[David HanlonParticipant @davidhanlon38496]

I am the only one who remembers the reader survey that we recently completed ? I would have thought that that would be the ideal source of info re MEW current and future views. David, I know you have been ill so this is not a criticism, but do you have an updated schedule for publishing the results? Maybe that would be a better source of information regarding this debate.

 

Best Regards

 

Dave

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

Waggon wheel used to be bigger in the past too. Seriously if you are talking about content I would not mind seeing some ancient articles, perhaps recycled from Model Engineer, describing some of the ingenuity used in ancient times before access to CNC, milling machines and all the other flash equipment we take for granted these days. People really did flute connecting rods using cold chisels and files. We may not employ such techniques these days but the fascination of model engineering is about problem solving as much as production and the old guys help you think outside the ‘box’.

Martin K

[JouniPParticipant @jounip]

When I opened this this discussion, one of my thoughts which I did not mention was about writing articles. I would like to write one to MEW, and I have taken photographs for that. But as You have notised, English is not my mother language. If I write an article, it would not need just some editing, it would need major rewriting by editor. I think Mr Clark’s schelude is far too busy for that. Only If there were fewer MEWs and if Mr Clark has more time for one magazine…

Yours

Jouni

[StovepipeParticipant @stovepipe]

Posted by JouniP on 07/12/2011 17:28:03:

When I opened this this discussion, one of my thoughts which I did not mention was about writing articles. I would like to write one to MEW, and I have taken photographs for that. But as You have notised, English is not my mother language. If I write an article, it would not need just some editing, it would need major rewriting by editor. I think Mr Clark’s schelude is far too busy for that. Only If there were fewer MEWs and if Mr Clark has more time for one magazine…

Yours

Jouni

 

Do not regard your command of the English language as inferior. I come across examples of English usage inferior to yours, written by people whose mother tongue is supposed to be English. Any article you write might need tidying up, but probably not a major rewrite. After all, we do not know the standard of English used in the articles that the editor actually receives.

 

Dennis

Edited By Stovepipe on 07/12/2011 19:20:37

[mgnbukParticipant @mgnbuk]

it doesn’t really matter if you don’t understand the attitude so lolng as you buy the mag.

Ah, but I don’t any more. I think Issue 184 was my last, having subscribed since around Issue 8. Finally got unhappy enough with 13 shallow issues a year to ring up & cancel the DD.

if you are going to moan about magazine content send it to the Editor

 

Tried that – not going to change anything any time soon, I think. Hence my decision to drop out.

If everyone thought that, there would be no magazine. If you think it could be better, help make it so.

 

I reiterate – this is a commercial venture, not a club magazine. While the motorcycle magazine I subscribe to has submissions from readers, the content it is primary written by the magazine staff. This no longer appears to happen with MEW, probably due to the current Editor also being responsible for ME as well. Which brings us back to the original question posed at the head of this discussion….

 

I have, in the past, edited & layed out a national motorcycle club magazine (1200 or so members), so I can sympathise with DC1 & realise that you cannot please all of the readers all of the time. A club magazine is reliant mainly on submissions from members to fill it (and 64 pages in A5 format, bi-monthly take some filling – very few adverts !).

 

But when short of articles, or when the balance appeared a bit one-sided for the next issue, I sat down & wrote something. Or perused my photo collection for something a bit different. Or set out & took suitable pictures of my bikes or events – anything to fill the space with something relevant & varied. Only once, early on, did I make the mistake of “just putting in the stuff to hand, as supplied” to fill the space. Grapevine reports (rarely was anything mentioned directly) suggested (quite strongly !) that was not the way to go, hence the change of direction.

 

Yet comments about the content of articles in MEW seem usually to elicit the reply “that is how it was submitted”. There doesn’t seem to be any “Editing” ? Just assembling “the stuff to hand, as supplied” ?

 

I appear to be somewhat out of step with the general concensus about the frequency & content of MEW. I have voted with my feet, so to speak, and so will make no further comment on either topic.

 

Regards,

 

Nigel B.

[SkarvenParticipant @skarven]

I get both the MEW and ME and although I like both, I must admit that I am more of a MEW type. I’m amazed by the ME articles and admire them, but in the end I find more lasting interest in the MEW.

 

But I do not want to wait any longer for any of them. They make me happy, just coming out of the mailbox, and I look forward to get them. As a beginner, I might find more than most in the two magazines. But I also feel that it is interesting, not only to read the things that I find interesting, but what other people with similar interest do and like.

 

Keep them coming!

[Diane CarneyModerator @dianecarney30678]

Posted by Nigel Barraclough on 07/12/2011 20:06:11:

 

Yet comments about the content of articles in MEW seem usually to elicit the reply “that is how it was submitted”. There doesn’t seem to be any “Editing” ? Just assembling “the stuff to hand, as supplied” ?

On the whole the articles we receive are of good quality and usually reasonably well written, indeed often very well written requiring little or no editing. There are two parts to the job of editing, I think: technical correction and English language and in that I think David and I complement each other fairly well. We usually both read an article before it is typeset. We do not believe it is our job to radically change the script. We will often leave the style of writing very much as it is as this is what adds ‘colour’ to the magazine. We do have to remove anything that may be offensive, construed as blatant advertising, too colloquial or obviously incorrect (if we spot it!) but we do not change, for example, an author’s method or choice of material or anything that may seem an odd thing to do. In that respect, yes, we do print ‘how it was submitted’.

That said, there is a good deal of editing goes on and ‘stuff’ is not just merely assembled. I promise you!

Hope this helps.

 

Diane

 

Edited By Diane Carney on 07/12/2011 20:35:40

[Peter G. ShawParticipant @peterg-shaw75338]

Just another comment, this time about submission of articles.

 

I have submitted a small number, of which two or three have been published. But, and this is the biggy for me, I have not had any acknowledgement as to whether or not they have been received, or that they are suitable.

 

As it happens, my earliest attempt has not been published – and I suspect I know why, and if my guess is correct then I can understand why. However, as I had heard nothing, I resubmitted, but this time following the latest guidelines just in case. I used a CD, and included other items for submission, one of which has appeared which does suggest that the CD has indeed been received. But nothing at all about the other three items.

 

I do think it would be helpful to acknowledge receipt of articles,and would also like to know why some are being rejected. As it is, the lack of feedback does not persuade me to continue submitting articles, not that I have many to contribute, but if I knew that I would get feedback, then I could be persuaded to produce more. After all, how much time does it take to email the author saying, eg. “CD received. Article on XYZ not considered suitable as being too dangerous/complex/simple whatever”?

 

Regards,

 

Peter G. Shaw

[Les Jones 1Participant @lesjones1]

I totally agree with Peters comments about acknowledgement of receipt of articles and a reason given if they are rejected. At least then the article could be corrected in some cases and the author would be able to avoid the same mistakes in future articles.

 

Les.

[NJHParticipant @njh]

Peter

 

I’m amazed – the actions you quote as “helpful” should be a matter of common courtesy I would have thought .

 

Regards

 

Norman

[Author]

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