[AISdiscuss] a few topics for the Board Meeting

[bfilardi@comcast.net]

A few things to keep in mind for discussion at the Spring Board Meeting...

1. I need direction from the Board on how we are planning to prepare the Symposium Ballot this year.  The popular idea seems to be to print the actual list of eligibles in the Bulletin itself [not as a separate "ballot"] and then to have one page, or possibly a separate card, for members to mail to their RVPs, on which members will have filled in 25 NUMBERS (not cultivar names) for their votes[or 50 numbers in the case of a dual membership household].  This will save the cost [about $750] of printing a separate ballot insert, but we will still have the cost of printing a separate postcard or send-in-sheet-with-numbers or whatever method we choose, as well as the cost of binding a card into the Bulletin, if we decide to do that.  I will try to get some info on the costs involved.

2. I apologize for not bringing this up to Judy and Roy before more widely, but I'm a little rushed right now.  I think the Board needs to re-examine the decision to change the requirements re judges' credits/hours to require that some be in garden and some be in classroom.  Personally, I feel that the change is a good one.  However, we have to be aware that I have received some very negative input that the new rule is "unfair" to older members who have trouble getting around to gardens for outdoor judging.  My answer to that is that if they aren't getting out to gardens, then how are they voting intelligently!  Anyway, I support the change as it has been made, but we may want to discuss whether exceptions can be made on basis of health or whatever...

Thanks,
Bruce

-------------- Original message -------------- 
From: Terry Aitken <terry@flowerfantasy.net> 

> It seems to me that there is an index in each bulletin and that, by 
> clicking on it, you could pick up specific articles. If the annual ads 
> and the masthead are somewhere else on the web with little revision 
> quarterly, the size of the bulletin becomes much more manageable. I dont 
> know how you would deal with pictures. Maybe there is a picture index? 
> -or pictures are embedded in the articles? I would bet that Erica would 
> be really good at this and a natural to set up this work since she sets 
> up the Bulletin in the first place. She does not do websites so that is 
> another step and another person..She could certainly isolate an index 
> and a series of articles/pictures and forward them to the webmaster. 
> This sounds pretty reasonable to me. 
> Restricted access for e-members or regular members is an interesting 
> concept. I like it. 
> Terry 
> 
> Robt R Pries wrote: 
> 
> >If we are going to offer an e-membership I would 
> >assume that the articles of the current bulletin would 
> >appear there during the quarter that that bulletin is 
> >active. I dont think the bulletin could possibly be 
> >one file, but a file for each article. I would assume 
> >that such an arrangement would add considerably to the 
> >work of a web-master and that it may incur additional 
> >server costs. I believe a web membership should 
> >provide something similar to a print subscription 
> >membership with other possible options that might 
> >attract members. I would not expect our present staff 
> >to do this alone, or without compensation. A virtual 
> >member might be lower cost to service, but not without 
> >cost. We need to think about what we would want to 
> >provide and how much it would cost to service this. 
> >Just like the online registry there are immense 
> >opportunities here, but nothing is totally free. I 
> >would think if we do our job well, regular members 
> >might want to pay extra, to be virtual members also. 
> >Although I would expect considerable overlap. I do not 
> >think we should think in terms of just replacing one 
> >with the other. 
> > 
> >--- John I Jones wrote: 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> >>If you are talking about a specific bulletin, I am 
> >>not sure that it is 
> >>ever assembled in a single program file. It may be 
> >>that it is laid out 
> >>in Quark with space reserved for the pictures. Then 
> >>once it is ripped 
> >>and paged out for the press, that the pictures are 
> >>added. I don't know, 
> >>but we can find out. 
> >> 
> >>My understanding is that each Bulletin edition takes 
> >>up two CDs. That 
> >>means that it could be as much as 1.4 Gigabytes. 
> >>Anyone interested in 
> >>downloading a PDF that big? Remember that for print 
> >>the minimum 
> >>resolution is 300dpi. That means that a 4 X 4 
> >>picture is about 2.5 
> >>Megabytes. 
> >> 
> >>Sure we can break it into separate articles fit the 
> >>graphics, lower the 
> >>resolution of the pictures and create "PDF pieces", 
> >>but who is going to 
> >>do that? 
> >> 
> >>I am not trying to be negative, but some things, 
> >>even with todays' 
> >>computer techniques, are just not there yet. 
> >> 
> >>I really hope I am wrong about this. 
> >> 
> >>John 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>On Mar 30, 2006, at 2:43 PM, Robt R Pries wrote: 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>I would suggest that articles, bulletins etc, be 
> >>>available so that they can be read by adobe reader 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>on 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>the user end. It seems to be the standard for web 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>info 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>and the reader is automatically download once and 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>fro 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>then you can read most sites. Since Quark is owned 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>by 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>Adobe conversion should be easy.In-Design is newr 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>but 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>I would bet Adobe reader compatible. 
> >>> 
> >>>--- Terry Aitken wrote: 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>>>Hi All 
> >>>>Most of our bulletins are on CD's going back 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>about 8 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>years (Since 
> >>>>"perfect bind"). There may be problems with 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>obsolete 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>publishing 
> >>>>programs( IN-DESIGN). Erica is using QUARK-6??. 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>-or 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>some different 
> >>>>version of Quark for 5 years. I have no idea how 
> >>>>compatible these are 
> >>>>for current recycling. I suspect that text files 
> >>>>will be easier to 
> >>>>salvage than "flattened" picture files. We used 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>ZIP 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>discs for a short 
> >>>>time before CD's and we have a ZIP drive on the 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>AIS 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>computer mainly to 
> >>>>deal with advertizers. 
> >>>>I will ask the question of Scott and Erica. 
> >>>>Terry 
> >>>> 
> >>>>Loberg wrote: 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>Just curious, are many of the past AIS bulletins 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>stored in electronic 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>format, or have they been generated into a .pdf 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>format? 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>My local town paper has recently started to 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>publish their entire paper 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>on their web page, in .pdf format, in color, at 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>no 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>cost to viewers. I 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>cancelled my subscription, it sure is nice to 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>not 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>have all the 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>newspaper around the house and bothering to 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>recycle. I can read the 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>paper on line, and print any page of interest. 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>Some of the issues 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>are a bit long to download, even with high speed 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>internet, however, I 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>can store any issue if I wish. How many of 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>you 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>can get their 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>newspapers entirely on line? 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>>More and more publications are going this route. 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>I don't know how 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>many people would want the AIS bulletin in .pdf 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>format, as I want to 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>keep getting the hard copy in my house, as I 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>have 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>>kept all issues as 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>far back as I have received them. But it sure 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>would be nice to be 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>able to go on line and view any issue I wanted; 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>searching should be 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>faster. 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>>To have this service as a low cost, add on 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>service, or an additional 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>e-membership service, isn't a bad idea. I think 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>there is a whole lot 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>in the future that we'll be seeing on line. 
> >>>>>Kitty Loberg 
> >>>>>Calif. 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >--------------------------------------------------------------------- 
> > 
> > 
> >>>>>To sign-off this list, send email to the AIS 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>Secretary 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>>>aissecjill@earthlink.net. 
> >>>>> 
> >>>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >--------------------------------------------------------------------- 
> > 
> > 
> >>>>To sign-off this list, send email to the AIS 
> >>>>Secretary 
> >>>>aissecjill@earthlink.net. 
> >>>> 
> >>>> 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >--------------------------------------------------------------------- 
> > 
> > 
> >>>To sign-off this list, send email to the AIS 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>Secretary 
> >> 
> >> 
> >>>aissecjill@earthlink.net. 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>> 
> >>John | "There be dragons here" 
> >> | Annotation used by 
> >>ancient cartographers 
> >> | to indicate the edge of 
> >>the known world. 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >--------------------------------------------------------------------- 
> > 
> > 
> >>To sign-off this list, send email to the AIS 
> >>Secretary 
> >>aissecjill@earthlink.net. 
> >> 
> >> 
> > 
> >--------------------------------------------------------------------- 
> >To sign-off this list, send email to the AIS Secretary 
> >aissecjill@earthlink.net. 
> 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------- 
> To sign-off this list, send email to the AIS Secretary 
> aissecjill@earthlink.net. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to the AIS Secretary
aissecjill@earthlink.net.