Members UstadKhanAli Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by Ernest Buckley Is it expecting too much to expect proper English and grammer from one of the trades finest mags? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jimbroni Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Whats wrong with Cheezy girls, booze, cigarettes, and monster cables? I mean the possibilities are endless.somebody had to say it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anderton Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Hey, forget about boots. There are quite a few advertisers who are missing out on the ideal demographic of a musician's magazine: Bankruptcy lawyersExcedrin PMPizza delivery servicesDivorce lawyersTylenol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Lee Flier Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by Anderton Pizza delivery services Yeah, they should advertise employment opportunities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gearmike Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Actually Craig, I think you just might have given me a great idea. What if the readers actually suggested what kind of products they would like to see advertised? You could then focus the advertising to an audience that has already told you what they were interested in... Divorce lawyers... Entertainment lawyers... Cheap hotels... Cheap booze... Car repair... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brittanylips Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Jeff, I understand where you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by Brittanylips I understand where you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brittanylips Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by Jeff da Weasel Just one of many possibilities. Background and influence on the voice, written or spoken, can be completely independent from skin color and eye shape, et cetera. I look forward to the day when people can suck no matter what color they are!-Peace, Love, and Brittanylips Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by Brittanylips I look forward to the day when people can suck no matter what color they are! Ah, Kemosabe, now we need to define "suck". It's that whole subjective monster, like profanity.What doth sucketh to you might be music to my eyes, or some other mixed metaphor. - Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted October 18, 2005 Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by nursers I gotta agree there too - I'd just presumed it was a cultural difference... Aussies have culture? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted October 18, 2005 Share Posted October 18, 2005 I think Jeff may be on to something. I admit to having a few head scratching moments while reading some of Eugene's editorials, but I've spoken with the man on the phone and met him in person, and I find him to be a pretty intelligent guy... I personally think that he's going for a "slightly hipper vibe / rap" (to quote a line from the movie "Air America"). Of course, deciding if that approach is appropriate and working or not is up to the individual readers. I just try to be myself when I write. IMHO, I'm fairly eloquent and have a decent vocabulary, but I try not to "speak down" to people, nor do I try to "dumb down" for people either. IMO, both of those approaches would sound "forced" if I used them... so I just try to be myself and write in a manner that approximates my normal speech. I don't have an English degree, and I have a genetic disability insofar as spelling goes (thanks mom! ), so I'm sure I make my share of mistakes with my writing... but hopefully the editors will catch and fix that sort of thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gearmike Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by Phil O'Keefe ... but hopefully the editors will catch and fix that sort of thing. And there-in lies my point.If you have an EDITOR that's more concerned about sounding "hip / youth / street" than about correct grammar...If the editorial direction uses incorrect grammar and reads like its full of mistakes, who's there to catch the actual mistakes?Who's driving the bus? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by gearmike If the editorial direction uses incorrect grammar and reads like its full of mistakes, who's there to catch the actual mistakes? "Its"? :D - Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gearmike Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Jeff, you'd make a great editor! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by gearmike Jeff, you'd make a great editor! Man, that's a TOUGH job. Too tough for me, anyway. I'd go nuts. By the way: in smaller industries, "editors" do a huge amount of the writing in a magazine. The "editor" title denotes someone who is a major, regular contributor, as opposed to someone who just proofs other peoples' work. That job, by the way, is called "copy editor". The editor is also responsible for deciding on content, so that person chooses what gear will be reviewed, what features are going to run and so on. - Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 Originally posted by Jimbroni Whats wrong with Cheezy girls, booze, cigarettes, and monster cables? I mean the possibilities are endless. Okay, there's girls, booze, cigarettes, and even advertising sex tours in Thailand, but Monster Cable? That's sinking a little *too* low!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anderton Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 > Jeff, you already are nuts, and therefore highly qualified! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nursers Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 Originally posted by Phil O'Keefe Aussies have culture? You obviously haven't watched Crocodile Dundee :mad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted October 19, 2005 Share Posted October 19, 2005 Originally posted by nursers You obviously haven't watched Crocodile Dundee :mad: Sure I did... I do think his tastes in knives is a bit overblown... he needs a good Ka-Bar. And don't forget that other classic Aussie contribution to the world of culture.... Steve Irwin:"This is the Australian Taipan snake - one of the most deadly snakes in the world! Isn't he a beaut? I think I'll just bend down here and give the little fella a big smooch!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members robmix Posted October 20, 2005 Members Share Posted October 20, 2005 Last time I criticized a CMP publication I was personally attacked on a public forum by one of their writers. So I'll just say I won't be renewing my subscriptions as the editorial content no longer represents my interests. It's actually sad for me as I've been reading these mag's since I was 10. I've actually been featured in a few of them, and have written articles for them. Thank god for Tape Op !!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators MrKnobs Posted October 20, 2005 Moderators Share Posted October 20, 2005 I produce a lot of verbiage every year at my day job, technical stuff. Thousands and thousands of pages per year, God help me.Of course we have editors. I hate editors, they are the natural enemy of writers. Our editors are so bad, and so slow, that one can turn in a perfectly good, 400 page technical report to them and not expect it to reach the sponsor for maybe nine months. And I'm not talking about a report written by someone whose native language isn't English, that's a different matter.I'm talking about a beautifully formatted, well written report with maybe half a dozen grammatical errors in it at most. Hey, nobody's perfect, and if you don't leave them a spelling error or grammar error to find, they're going to start dicking with your style, and you don't want that, for God's sake. Anyway, we have a new rule. The author of the report can check a box that says "Refused all edits, submit as is immediately."Praise be, there is a God. Recently I submitted a large technical report and checked that box. The editing staff (which has grown like a cancer, meaning it has expanded into every nook and cranny forcing out the good cells and performing no useful function) tried to talk me out of it. I was steadfast. They reproduced the requisite number of copies and submitted it to the sponsor. A couple of days later, I got an irate call complaining how terrible the report was and how difficult it was to read. Huh?I got off the phone with the angry sponsor and went to find a copy. To my horror, every figure in two of the chapters, which were screen captures with overlaid annotation, had been butchered. The text had been doublespaced, which had somehow caused the overlaid text to float all over the pages, in some cases even into different chapters. It was a complete mess. I confronted the head of our publication department and asked what the hell had happened. Here is her reply, verbatim as best I can recall, which deserves to be enshrined in the state worker hall of fame:Her: I realize you checked the no edit box, but that does not mean no format. The text had to be double spaced in case the reviewers wanted to write in some comments.Me: Our sponsors haven't "written" any comments in years, they turn on "track changes" and type in comments.Her: That may be so, but the rules have not changed. Double spaced it is until we receive written notice otherwise.Me: OK, that's crazy, but OK. Still, why are pictures floating on top of text and vice versa all over the document, it wasn't that way when I gave it to you?Her: You used a PC to write the document. Our department uses Macs to process documents. MS Word is supposed to be consistent across platforms, but sometimes there are problems. You might consider buying a Mac to minimize this difficulty.Me (doing a slow burn): FINE. But wasn't your staff a little disturbed at the resulting MESS when you printed the document? Mightn't they have thought, wow, maybe we should fix that?Her: Terry, we don't have time to LOOK at every page of every document that comes through our department, we have a high volume of work. That is the author's responsibility.Me: (completely losing it) C****, I had time to WRITE every page of the {censored}ing thing! It takes a little longer to create something from BLANK {censored}ING PAPER than it does to just look at it for a moment and screw it up beyond recognition, you know!!! Her: Please watch your language, this is a professional workplace. For your future information, we don't do any editing here, per se. Me: (stunned into defeat) But.... then..... what do you do?Her: We facilitate editing. We manage document flow. We track versions, we verify compliance. We don't have the staff to edit and do all the rest.Me: But, there are dozens of you guys. You've taken over the entire floor. There are more editors than researchers! Who does the editing, then?Her: We sub it out to contractors.Me: What? You don't have enough budget for your own staff and you're hiring private contractors? Her: We are always short on money. We economize by using students for editors, and pay them minimum wage. Mostly first year liberal arts students.Me: Dear God. *shoots self in head while "editing staff" look on in indifference*Terry D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ernest Buckley Posted October 20, 2005 Author Members Share Posted October 20, 2005 Thats frustrating. I have no problem with a writer letting a part of their heritage into their work. However there must be (at least in my head) some sort of higher standard for an Editor of a major trade magazine such as EQ. Whatever the case may be... I wonder how many people that read EQ honestly know what the heck the Editor is talking about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members maravich Posted October 20, 2005 Members Share Posted October 20, 2005 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members robmix Posted October 21, 2005 Members Share Posted October 21, 2005 You know, it's interesting that 3 pages of posting has turned up here about the fate of EQ yet on the EQ board there's just two people talking about it. It's sad really, it used to be my favorite magazine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted October 21, 2005 Members Share Posted October 21, 2005 Originally posted by robmix You know, it's interesting that 3 pages of posting has turned up here about the fate of EQ yet on the EQ board there's just two people talking about it. It's sad really, it used to be my favorite magazine. Even sadder is that at least one person is just using the discussion as an occasion to rip on Harmony Central and the people who post here. Ah well, I guess complaining is what some people do best.- Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.