Why do all of the MV magazines suck?

[pfarber]

I've been looking for new ways to learn more about my MVs. So far I've tried all the usual suspects (MVPA, MV Magazine, G503, CCKW.org) and I am suprised that with all this modern technology that MV collectors still have not figured out a way to share information.

Take the G503.com web site, or even CCKW.org. These are very Vehicle specific sites that have probably answered every question at least once. Yet when you go to them for information you are left with two options: post or search. Most web sites use a free software program that has less than stellar abilities to search text for what you want. They simply return posts that have the word you are looking for. But is it spelled correctly? Is it in the context of what you are asking? The other is to post... and that generally gives a response.. even if its to 'use the search'. More and more the generic questions are simply ignored as the people that have answered it 10xe1000 times before do not want to type it N+1 more times.

I know that most web sites are really not the owners primary job. But neither do I see them looking for recruits who would do the job. Power mongering is alive and well in cyberspace... just like it is in real life (for example the MVPA, G503.com, steelsoldiers.com etc etc).

Back to the magazines. A recent issue of Military Vehicles Magazine had an article about painting. It was maybe 3 pages. Really. I can spend 3 pages easy on the types of paint guns, air compressor, proper mixing of paint... and that's before you even open the can of paint. Epoxy and bondo on an MV? NO! Where are the articles about making and forming panels? All to often the article is little more than the most general overview or defaults to 'buy a new one from a vendor. Is that learning about MV maintenance and repair? For newer MVs that may be an option. But what about WWI, WWII or MVs that have no vendor? Wood was used quite regularly till Korea.. what good are MV magazines that tell you to buy from a vendor for those items?

I can recall the early PC newsletters from the mid 80's. THOSE were information packed detail oriented newsletters (2-4 xeroxed pages MAILED to your home by the club that made them) and you would spend days rereading them to make sure you wrung out every last bit of information.

Maybe the local MV groups have such quality. Of the few I have seen online (in PDF) that was not the case. One went over a cookout they had. If you were at the cookout, why would you want to read about it? And if you were not at the cookout why would you want to read about it? You chose NOT to go in the first place!

Its my general opinion that the really good informational newsletter or magazines are dead. Either due to commercial advertising needs (vendors have to sell stuff to afford the ad space). The lack of the 'old timers' will to record the knowledge they have in print or digital form, or the unwillingness to share because of the power that the knowledge brings. What do I mean by 'power'? Simply that if person A has a manual or part that would be of great interest to the MV in question (say jeeps) they put onerous restrictions on it. Look at Jeepdraw. I don't use their drawing because of reading their terms of use. Not that I am a commercial entity... but the fact that they fear sharing information. I mean really, nothing in jeepdraw is rare or made of unobtanium. Yet the power they derive from people wanting to make their own parts is beyond any reasonable belief. I mean really, how could they legally prove that you broke their terms or use? I COMPLETELY AGREE that it is their right to make such terms. I also think they are nuts for thinking the way they do.

Back to what I would like to see in a quality MV magazine. First, it must be vehicle specific. Yeah, that's self serving, but I could care less of the M-xyzpdq in Vietnam unless I had one to restore. If I wanted some light reading material.. ok, but most commercial MV magazines give you little or no control over what THEY print. It must be profusely illustrated. There is an old training seminar exercise where one person tells another what to build/draw when only the reader can see the finished item. Its a tough thing to do. Yet MV magazines try it all the time. Try explaining the defects in a painted surface. Or the bends in a multi angled part. Its is tiring to read and error prone to understand. A few dozen picture can replace several thousand words... but words are cheaper to print that pictures.

My last item is concerning the 'MV Events' that groups submit and pay for. I brought this up on G503.com when the Red Ball MTA swap meet was advertising their event... no dates, no times, just show up! When the one year it was canceled they never even updated their web site. How many people drove 1+ hours to see a muddy field? I did. One letter to the editor in MV Magazine echoed my same concern. If you are putting out a flyer.. two *really* important bits are : WHEN AND WHERE. Some do not even list the State they are in. I guess you are either in the know or are supposed to drive around randomly till you find it. Any wonder why turnouts are so low? NO ONE KNOWS WHERE THE EVENT IS LOCATED.

To the event organizers, article authors and newsletters/magazines who DO IT RIGHT, THANK YOU. You are a dying breed in this modern world. I cannot think of any off the top of my.. and that is a sad statement to make.

This should all be some basic stuff. I don't know why so many efforts fail so miserably when the solution is obvious. Yes it time consuming. Yes it a little more difficult. But how can you be the best at what you do when you (ie the publication or web site) fails to put forth the effort to be the best.

[WWII TRUCK]

The forums are excellent as well as the magazines. It takes time, to catch on to the true history and finer detais of 65 year old trucks. You will not get it instantly by demanding something for nothing. No one holds back, most are willing to share. You have tolearn hold your breath and count to ten after you read what they say, if you critique every article, they will just stand back and let you rant on and you will never learn.

[pfarber]

Well, there is more than enough evidence that even biding your time will not work. Take the MVPA's Army Motors. Every once in a blue moon you get some real gems.. like the CCKW articles from the mid 90's. It started the almost de facto CCKW 'series' groupings that we use today. Other than that, I got 3 years worth of AM and never read it. Supply line was the same way. All of the clubs money going into a rag that never really changes. The MVPA has yet to preserve a single vehicle in its name, and has yet, after 3 years, to provide members with access to 'The Archives'. They have a few drawings for sale. But the MVPA members should get a few free drawings every issue of AM. Its THEIR Membership that allows things to happen.. yet the membership never gets a return on their investment.

I could go on and on but since I am not a member anymore, no amount of sense I make will lead to any change.

[WWII TRUCK]

The MVPA does produce, the latest AM article on the M-38 is a gem. It is proof that they do have the capability, but willing experts to do such articles are scarce. AM is an excellent publication.

[pfarber]

Why do they not put the articles on the web page for members? They will SELL you a CD of issues you already paid for.. OK. A CD costs less than $.50.. how much to they charge for the magazines you already paid for?

Heck why do they not put articles on the web page for free? They do not send complimentary issues, and even if they did the odds that you get a dud issue are so great its not funny.

Again, the MVPA is run by people who have no idea of the technology at their disposal. How many newspapers and magazines are online only because its better, cheaper, and more efficient? If you want a hard copy, pay the extra for it... let authors illustrate articles and use as many words as they like. What is the average age of the BoD? 50? 60? 70? The BoD is supposed to guide the club into the future... but all the membership gets is nepotism, favoritism and a poor product for their dues. Look at the voting turnout.. one in 100 is great return on ballots.

But as already pointed out.. the MVPA is not for the membership. Its for the old guard and the useless annual meets/conventions. Most local annual events have better turnouts than the MVPA conventions. And out of that its nothing more than a jeep judging contest.

And where is the MVPA archives????

[WWII TRUCK]

You are expecting too much for nothing. They have operating expense and payroll. Maybe Obama will buy you a Jeep to drive in his new national security force. He has plenty of money.

[pfarber]

I expect to much? Hmmm... the MVPA bills itself as one of the premier MV clubs with an active membership of around 8k. I have yet in my 3 years of membership and 5 years of knowing of the club to see it do anything of significance to preserve ANYTHING in the name of its membership.

The archives are 3+ years old and only 5 or 6 drawings have surfaced?

The MVPA has not preserved one single vehicle. Nor does it have any facilities to preserve anything. Yet is has 8 or 10 people on the BoD who are taking stipends against bylaws? It refuses to audit its own books (A HUGE RED FLAG). Its online presence is that of a mediocre high school freshman's mid-term project. It magazine is boring and stale? I have not gotten a copy of AM/SL in 3 years, but I bet I can tell you who's in it and what page their ad is on.

None of the MVPA's activities are put up for bid (who picked the company to design the web site? Hint: They know someone on the Bod. No bidding or even RFP's were sent out. I would like to know what they are paying each month for that turd of a web site.

MV Magazine has a much better magazine, but their online presence is slightly better than the MVPA's. The lack of any serious effort on MV Mag's part is obvious... but a least I can read parts of the magazine online with my subscription. The MVPA has yet to provide this service.

I do not want anything for free. I know to well that if something if FREE, people give it no VALUE. I am more than happy to pay for content and something of use. If the MVPA would put the archives online, GREAT. I might rejoin. If AM and SL were free online but extra for a mailed copy that would free up more capital for projects that actually increased the MVPAs legitimacy.

My posts here are nothing but constructive criticism that can only BENEFIT MV clubs.

But moving forward means leaving the old ways behind. There is no way the BoD or long time members will tolerate any change. They know that change will make them insignificant as they know that their old, stale ideas are just that. No one will give up power without the promise of equal or more power.

And that is why the MVPA will be nothing more than is has been.

[WWII TRUCK]

Prior to the MVPA, MVCC, including you, there was no worldwide organization of military vehicle collectors or coordination of collectors clubs into the network it has become. As for archives, get off your butt and volunteed to travel to the location of the files, catalog, and set up a system to retrieve the thousands of prints for MVPA members to have copies of.

[pfarber]

I did volunteer. I was told they had enough people and that they needed equipment. Being cash poor and time rich I offered what I could.

Same thing about the MVPA's web site. At the time the nephew of a Director was doing it... FOR PAY. I told them I would submit a new site for review. I was told that they would not change no matter what.

So I speak from experience when I criticize the MVPA. I have volunteered, I have offered. To the detriment of the MVPA they refused.. and look at where they are now. No ideas, no new services to the membership, no new ideas for the future. Its sad to watch a sinking ship.

[WWII TRUCK]

Three years is a too short a time to crave recognition. It takes years of building credibility and many many contacts. You will know when you have made it. They will come to you.