Fun With Language

Keeping it clean (selection of words can be very important!)

A sign on the wall of a laundromat:

    Customers may remove their clothes when the machine stops.

Quote of the Week

I thought this quote was appropriate in light of the fact that the Church of Scientology is currently spending megabucks on TV commercials promoting his life!

“Writing for a penny a word is ridiculous. If a man wanted to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion.” – L. Ron Hubbard

Is Print Dead – the debate continues

Many magazines are losing money on their print edition. Some, like Newsweek, have decided to go all digital, others are cutting back on the number of pages, others folding. A few offer both print and online with the online content making special features available to their readers not found in the printed version. Vogue is one such example. However, with the proliferation of tablets and digital readers, many people have become interested in subscribing to only the online versions as it is easier to carry these devices around and they hold more than one magazine. 

I subscribe to a high end glossy magazine for the art & craft of personal adornment. Ornament magazine reports on art clothing, jewelry and the historical backgrounds on both. The issues are full of beautiful photographs, both in the articles and the advertisements. Over the last year they have given the reader the option of subscribing to the digital version. Here are a few letters to the editor regarding the digital version:

“I used to have a paper subscription and I am thrilled to discover you have gone digital. It is cheaper and more quickly received for someone living in France” Claire Bangma, issue 35.4.2012

“…as a child of the 1960’s, I am happier diving into the print version. The photographs in the print version are so wonderful, no screen can do them justice.” Michele Owsley, 35.4.2012

“…I want to cuddle up with Ornament in a comfy chair, with a cookie, a notepad and a Dr. Pepper, not try to read on the computer…” Barbara Ward, 35.5.2012

I for one would not give up my printed version. In fact, I have over 20 years of back issues that I refer to when I need to do research on various ornament topics (or for ideas in creating my own jewelry or clothing). There is nothing like holding those glossy pages, putting stickies with notes on a page, and being able to pull these referenced issues quickly and easily for access.

And I leave you with this comment about going digital:

From Taking the Guilt out of Paper – Sapi Papers

“…carbon footprint of the magazine (National Geographic) is something he (Hans Wegner) can quantify, unlike the impact of the online version…”
“ ‘We don’t know the environmental impact of saving a document on a server for ten years or more’, Wegner says. ‘And we have no idea of the impact of extracting finite resources to make electronic devices that cannot easily be recycled safely and practically’. ”

Paper can be recycled but our landfills are being polluted with our castoff electronics. So which is better: Paper or pixels? Something to think about!

Quote of the Week

“It is good to have an end to journey towards; but it is the journey that matters in the end.” – Ursula K. LeGuin

Communications – don’t be misunderstood!

Quote of the Week

“Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” –  E. L. Doctorow

Quote of the Week

“To make real progress in your life, you can either make your doubts smaller or make your dreams larger” – anonymous

Fun With Language

Watch how you abbreviate your link’s titles!

Ass. to the Editor in Chief, Town & Country – Hearst Magazines (job opening posted on Mediabistro jobs website)

Quote of the Week

“I’ve been absolutely terrified every moment of my life – and I’ve never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.” – Georgia O’Keeffe