[61-63]

Don't know if this has already been posted in this thread but the Walter P. Chrysler club, one of the the major MOPAR clubs, is doing what POCI should do imo regarding paper versus digital. They have several membership rates based upon how you want to receive their magazine; digital, regular mail, first class, etc., etc. including several outside USA options

https://chryslerclub.org/join-our-club/

[Stuart]

POCI does have separate rates - $25/year and you only get the electronic version of the Smoke Signals, $45/year for the print version. $74/year for members outside the US.

[unruhjonny]

I’m just going to leave this here…

[Rachelsdad]

I've been catching up on my reading. I left off with the November issue (I subscribed most recently for digital delivery only, but was going to change back to print). I wanted to read the explanation in the December issue before sticking my foot in my mouth.

I joined POCI in 1978. I am member #3596. My first convention was Gettysburg in 1980, the summer before my 20th birthday. I had a decade (or so) hiatus before returning to the club in '20 or '21. When I rejoined, I opted for digital only. I was going to switch to paper this coming renewal, too.

Obviously, there are challenges to maintaining a print presence in a society headed toward a paperless existence. In real life, I run across "kids" (and Europeans - LOL) who either don't know how to write paper checks or who no longer do (open a "checking" account in Germany or The Netherlands sometime...you don't even get starter checks and instead, when you want to use paper, there's a fee for it).

While clearly the digital vs domestic print vs foreign print membership dues for POCI require revamping to stay relevant (mailing to Canada or Mexico is surely not like sending to Australia from the continental US), it seems to me that a number of clubs could come together to have their printing done by the same larger publisher, much like the club apparel is all available from the same source.

IAC, it's the "surprise" of it which would annoy me had I paid for a print subscription expecting 12 issues, only to find that two months before the first digital-only issue, I would only be receiving 9 magazines (not much advance notice there).

The arguments for and against including GMC (and Oakland?) are discussions for another topic (and honestly, both those ships have sailed - Oakland a long, long rime ago).

[mgarblik]

Just going to throw this out there. I fully understand that everything is more and more expensive and print magazines are eventually going away. Heck a Big Mac that has 2 hamburger patties on it each about the size of the pickle on it cost $5.99. However, at the PRI show, (Performance Racing Industry), just 2 months ago, hundreds and hundreds of vendors had full color high quality, slick paper catalogs in the booths free give away. Some were 300-400 pages. Thousands of them. So where in the heck are they getting them printed and at a cost they can afford to give thousands of them away over a three day show? I think it's a little lazy to just say printing is expensive and throwing stuff on-line isn't so we just give up. Much like blaming every screw-up in business on COVID 4 years after the fact. I could be completely wrong but is all printing in the world too expensive to stay in business?

[mlewisariz]

Re PRI show, I would think that many vendors would have ties to the large corporate sponsors that organize the events who make printing services available to their dealers. Usually their catalogs seem similar in layout and presentation, plus they print large quantities. When you get to a business or club publication that doesn't print huge quantities for mailing (another big cost increase} then they are faced with projected cost over runs. So, they need to ease expenses. In POCI's case the Smoke Signals is probably the largest expense in their budget. Also, many car clubs are faced with declining membership in most cases which means even smaller runs of publications. Many cottage vendors that sell reproduction parts have quit printing catalogs. It's the future unfortunately.

[prd1955]

Originally Posted by Stuart

I have a spare room filled with old car and motorcycle magazines, and I don't know what to do with them. It would be a shame to just toss them out, but there's pretty much zero resale value even if I could find someone that wanted them.

I still subscribe to my local newspaper but I did switch to electronic copies several years ago. I got tired of sketchy delivery (the delivery guy seemed to miss me once or twice a week, and when he did deliver the paper he was likely to toss it into a rain puddle instead of on my front step) as well as consuming all that paper just to toss it in the recycling bin. Fortunately their electronic version is easy to read on my computer or on my phone.

Stuart, I donate mine to the local prison. They are happy to get them and feel it’s good reading for the inmates.

[prd1955]

Originally Posted by Stuart

I have a spare room filled with old car and motorcycle magazines, and I don't know what to do with them. It would be a shame to just toss them out, but there's pretty much zero resale value even if I could find someone that wanted them.

I still subscribe to my local newspaper but I did switch to electronic copies several years ago. I got tired of sketchy delivery (the delivery guy seemed to miss me once or twice a week, and when he did deliver the paper he was likely to toss it into a rain puddle instead of on my front step) as well as consuming all that paper just to toss it in the recycling bin. Fortunately their electronic version is easy to read on my computer or on my phone.

Stuart, I donate mine to the local prison. They are happy to get them and feel it’s good reading for the inmates.

[eric65]

Am in POCI would happily pay more for the delivered magazine. Likely would not look at the on-line one.



Use to get PP but could not figure how to re-subscribe so left it go



sad to see changes as nothing seems to ever change for the better

[burd]

Thank you Don for the back issues of PP.

[Heybuck]

Originally Posted by prd1955

Stuart, I donate mine to the local prison. They are happy to get them and feel it’s good reading for the inmates.

That's a really good suggestion to which a friend of mine in Sydney does exactly that. He's a subscriber/buyer of all sorts of car, railway, aircraft, home renovation type magazines and he regularly drops the recently read issues off at the major prison which is fairly local to him.

I might add that he has to make an appointment to do so as the guards have to thumb through every page to check for illicit items which might be inserted between the pages.

Apparently they are always well received. Better than tossing them in the recycling bin.