Ideas needed for new Nikon Historical Society format

[splitimageview]

Wordpress can work, there is a great variety of software add-ons to develop almost anything, but it really takes someone who is an expert in Wordpress to make it look good. There are many software packages that claim you can get a site up and running in minutes, that's not really the case for the vast majority of people unless one is happy with a bare-bones basic site. So unless a volunteer with such experience could be located, someone experienced with Wordpress would be an up-front (and on-going) expense. Some of that could be offset with affiliate ads, which would take a while to generate income, and may not ultimately cover the continuing expenses. Add the expense of any software plug-ins, not to mention ongoing host expense.

NHS can be done here very simply/easily for no incremental costs.

 

[Dralowid]

Back to the point...who is going to organise the supply of content? Who is going to edit? Is Bob Rotoloni retiring or does he just need assistance?

Producing something good looking and interesting for any platform/format is pretty straightforward, getting the content right isn't and if it isn't right it won't generate any interest or income.

 

[CameraQuest]

Back to the point...who is going to organise the supply of content? Who is going to edit? Is Bob Rotoloni retiring or does he just need assistance?

Producing something good looking and interesting for any platform/format is pretty straightforward, getting the content right isn't and if it isn't right it won't generate any interest or income.

Bob need assistance.

 

[splitimageview]

Can he round up a posse of contributors? He’s probably the most well-connected to do so.

 

[CameraQuest]

Can he round up a posse of contributors? He’s probably the most well-connected to do so.

yep, Bob has been doing that for 40 years

as the first post explains,
the issue at hand is to find the easiest quickest way for NHS to stay alive and keep digitally publishing quarterly issues
hard copies might be a future way to go, but looks out of reach for here and now

 

[JeffS7444]

Although the thought makes me cringe, the quickest and easiest way is to continue (for now) using PageMaker 7, and simply do a "print to PDF". 150 DPI ought to be adequate for viewing on a screen, and 300 DPI would allow for good quality prints too. If the file sizes can be kept small (say under 2 megabytes), and the subscriber base is say 500 or less, it may be possible to distribute as email attachments via a service like Mailchimp. But yes, it's 100% guaranteed that there will be at least One Person who won't be able to receive them because of a chronically full mailbox, and I for one would not want to be dragged into providing tech support for someone's personal computer or email account.

 

[UV76]

PageMaker 7, pdf print, store pdf on shared drive such as Google drive where only subscribers with verified email addresses be given access to the folder. The shortfall is that you will be giving access to archived old journals for the new joiners if kept in one folder, otherwise need to create many sub folders broken down in different quarters/years where subscribers for specified period will be granted access.

 

[splitimageview]

Hosting a special section of RFF for the NHS forum here is quite easy.

Uploading articles is simply posting a thread.

The NHS URL could redirect straight to the special forum, which could have special NHS branding/logo/design.

Assuming Rotoloni is good with this, the incremental cost is zero and the member interaction and replies to articles are infinitely superior to a static pdf.

@CameraQuest did you look at the sample forum yet?

 

[JeffS7444]

Of course, a password-protected PDF could be freely posted to any existing forum...

 

[splitimageview]

Sure!

 

[CatKetch]

Hi to Wes Loder & Stephen Gandy ... Ryck Lent from PHSNE (Photographic Historical Society of New England), former editor of the annual PHSNE Journal. For more info about how we produce our various products: Photographic Historical Society of New England - PHSNE

Having run a local alternative newspaper in the 70s & 80s, and later worked with Ziff-Davis and other media startups, there's a lot of ground to cover.
1) Bob Rotoloni and I discussed ways to keep NHS going during the pandemic. He ended up putting back and current Nikon Journal issues on eBay - you can still find copies now.
2) I was very upset to learn that Bob had both health and monetary issues in his farewell letter. I do not know how many active NHS members are out in the world; but most of the NHS content was created by a small but world-wide cadre of Nikon RF enthusiasts.
3) NHS could continue as a non-profit entity, same as PHSNE, with membership dues and other activities, such as the NHS conferences.
4) As social media has evolved since the 90s, most niche platforms are short. Organizations like PHSNE have a variety of contributors and helpers to keep things going: monthly newsletters (online), digital meetings (Zoom), seeding content from PHSNE resources to X, pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and other platforms.
5) PHSNE embraces photography in all its forms; but the big event is our annual Photographica show for dealers and buyers of all things photographic in New England. NHS has done this for many years around the world.

Rangefinder Forum has a very successful platform. But who will step up to keep NHS going now?

Let me know if you have ideas and/or suggestions.

 

[NIKON KIU]

I don’t see any posts from Bob yet.
Stephen!
Getting Bob to post will be the first step, we have to have other members join and contribute, that will be the more difficult step.
BTW!
I am the one listing NHS back issues on eBay, this has been going on for 7-8 years!
At the beginning it was mainly to have a presence and advertise the society, it has lately expanded into trying to liquidate the rest of the stock.

The issue is not the software here or compatibility! We need participation.

Kiu

 

[CameraQuest]

Bob and I are working on the mechanics of NHS on RFF.

We will announce when details are worked out.

Stephen