An Open Suggestion To Kit Manufacturers

[ManfredL]

Bonjour Phillippe,

the ability to listen to your customers and discuss makes you very sympathic in my books .

Thanks for providing a view "from the other side".

[Dan_San_Abbott]

Philippe Jourdan:
Several have suggested to me I should learn CAD. I asked; "About how long would take me to learn how to do it on a computer?" His answer was, "About 3 or 4 years!" I laughed, "At 82, I don't have 3 or 4 years to learn something that complicated. Also, it is more difficult to learn at 82 or whatever. At 82the brain does not soak up complex ideas as it would have at 10!
Blue skies,
Dan-San

[drIace]

To Dan and Phillipe, THANK YOU for all your contributions !!!

[buzz1941]

Well, ding hao, Dan-San! My dad is 82 and he's learning HTML programming. Pretty amazing for an old fighter pilot. (As the saying goes, you can always tell a fighter pilot -- but you can't tell 'em much)

He says the hardest thing for older people to grasp is the principle of "dynamic" or "fluid" compositions. That is, the notion that something like a Web page ISN'T a completed, designed and laid-out page simply made electronic for viewing, but a programmed composition that shifts itself around, reassembling itself completely for each viewer. Good Web design takes that into account. If you want people to see what a printed page looks like, use .pdf files.

Phillippe, one thing we can surely aid you with is in proofreading your instructions so that they are in the proper English. That will help in clarity. In my "real" job I am a writer, critic and editor, and I can say that this forum has the best spelling of any online forum I've seen. Except those Off-Topic posters.

[StephenLawson]

Originally Posted by buzz1941

"...Speaking of intangible communities, Stephen -- are you giving these companies discount coupons for your review/how-tos to insert in their kit boxes? It creates "value added" to the product at no cost to them....

I have made the proposal, there is one company that says the actual disc maybe more palatable as an inclusion. We will see.

[Philippe JOURDAN]

Yes... Dan-San, you said true, and I am only 58.... but I am always working... also, if, I would be able to give 1/4 of my day to learn CAD
.... It will takes me 4 x 4 = 16 years to learn... and 58 + 16 = a lot.......

About good translation, and good english, yes, it is possible... I must only take some extra time before to place products on market....

As you may understand, my ennemy, is the time......

I want come back on major Cies.... their problems, I think, are that they don't have modeler at head-management... or business take a priority step on modeling enthusiast..... priority, begin "return on investment" Also the only way is to try to give the best average value between business and model....
Also other problem.. are customers, qty is down.... our hobby is an hobby for adults, "old adults".... and modeling business is not a good investment for banks and other.....

Please, just one minute of silence.... for dead and dying Cies...

Please don't speak about eastern Cies or chinese. or corean..... they are eating their "white bread".... wait....

Where are Cies in major countries.... ( Yes I know... Revell..., but Revell is the exeption..., we may speak about... but it isan other thread....)

In conclusion.... I hope to give you again some models.... with better instructions-leaflet possible....

[Philippe JOURDAN]

....That would be interesting to find in instruction leaflet, would be list of materials, drawings, magazines, technical notices etc...

As you know, I try to give one in all my instructions... but they are coming from my personnal "library" and not always available for modelers....
Sometime, it is better to see a good picture of real model or parts that a long comments.......

In "complement of "great Buzz idea" may be such copies of main materials, available somewhere... would be intresting....

But copy = copyright.....
I don't know exactly laws about... but exeption of own artist-drawings or writte articles ( intelectual property), it seems me, according my "know how" of European laws.... that proprietor of copyright photo, by exemple, is the man who is able to provide the "original negativ", proof of property.... photo, alone is not enought.... For technical materials as original/copy after 25 or 30 years, they are "fallen" in the "public area" exeption for company name... if this is always in activity.... or property of other company.... exemple AEG is always in activity, with domestic products... after bpomber... or BUGATTI, not in business is property of HISPANO-MESSIER a french company for planes undercarriages....
All this long developpement to say... that may be, a bank of pictures, drawings etc... would be great also....
( I am thinking to ROSEBUD......)

Cheers
Philippe

[buzz1941]

My feeling is that it's best to keep the instruction sheets themselves as simple as possible. Leave the reference materials to folks like Albatros. But you can surely GUIDE people to other reference materials. The Web site should be an addition and update to the instruction sheet, not a replacement for it. It's also a good place to run all those reference snapshots.

I was just going over Phillippe's instructions for his Breguet A2 kit, and actually they're pretty good. The only real goof is recycling the lower wing drawing from the B2 kit, which might confuse people. (That could be explained by an entry on a Web page devoted to this kit.) He approaches the instructions from the builder's perspective, instead of as an afterthought. It makes a world of difference.

[RAGIII]

Originally Posted by Philippe JOURDAN

That is the question....

I am ready to send two or three free kits at modeler able to do this building.... and step by step......
In fact, I am open to all assistance...
It will be a great help for me...
Philippe

I am not Fast, nor the best builder on this forum. I do feel I can write an effective description of my builds and techniques. If I can be of assistance, I would be Honored to help.
RAGIII
PS: Phillipe, thanks for the New Years greeting Letter, and the same to you!

[buzz1941]

This other thread that concerns the Hi-Tech AEG kit:

http://www.theaerodrome.com/forum/sh...ad.php?t=24029

is just the sort of thing that a manufacturer would link to off a web site for the kit.