Re: digital SIGNA bulletin?

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I agree fully with Dennis, people join for the exchange of seed, as well as information, with seed being a priority. (it was for me, but I do love this group, which is a bonus!)  Also, I am not a fan of selling knowledge that should be generally available.  knowledge should excite and inspire people, not be locked away to those that can afford it.   I would become a member fo quite a few more specialist societies, if it were not for the expense, especially as I am generally an overseas member for English language groups and often pay a heavy 'fine' for being out of the general postage areas!  Membership could be made much more affordable and memberships would increase.

As an example, I belong to about 10 societies and spend well over €500 on membership and donations per annum.  I would rather join a few more and get electronic newletters.  I believe any serious member will regularly offer a donation when required and within their means.  We generally need to move away from money being a main focus for many groups.  The need for money will not dissapear by any means, but better budgeting can allow more for the $/€.

An on-line publication would be be an ineresting possibility, with the PDF in a members only area, which could be perused on-line or downloaded and printed.  Many of us do have colour printers on our computers, plus, it is easy to download to a CD and then take this to a print shop for a quality hard copy.

I think we are only at the beginning of the possibilites for electronic newletters and many more options will be possible in the near future.  It is certainly the way of the future and saves a great deal on resources, including money.  it will be the programming and ability to browse a newletter resource that will make it particularly valuable.

Jamie V.
Cologne

Dennis Kramb schrieb:

At first I thought NO WAY!!!  I want my hard copy of the bulletin!  But now that I think back to how many of my bulletins have been shredded up by my cats... or had hairballs coughed up upon them... well... maybe a digital PDF is a good idea.  Plus I could use it to search quickly for comments on my favorite species like tridentata and fulva.

So yeah... I think I'd be happy to give that a go!  But seeing as how I'm a life member already, there's not much financial motivation for me regarding a reduction in membership dues.  :-)

Anyone interested in iris species will join SIGNA just for the seed exchange alone.  I don't think "free bulletins" floating around the internet are going to cause us to lose membership.

On Fri, Jan 8, 2010 at 11:08 AM, Rodney Barton <rbartontx@yahoo.com> wrote:

Hi Sean,

We HAVE talked about pdf distribution, and I'd be interested in hearing other's thoughts on the subject. SPCNI is now offering a reduced rate membership to those that receive their Almanac in pdf format. At some point we'll likely follow suit. For now, streamlining what we do has been a priority. I have email addresses for only just over half of our members.

Rodney

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Jamie V.

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Köln (Cologne)
Germany
Zone 8