Ok we've crabbed enough about the lack of "true" expertese put to print by people sticking their heads in "dark places"... Time to vote gentlemen.... should Duke write a book....

 

I'm afraid to vote YES in case there is such an overwhelming demand that we scare him away. :jester

 

I voted yes because I'd like to read it. Same for any book JohnZ writes. Trouble is, they'd have a hard time getting anyone to publish it. Most car books aren't bibles of information, they're just collections of purty pitchers. I wonder what Noland Adams' experiences were. Did he make any real money? I hope so, but this is sure a small market.

 

I voted yes, and I'll buy two copies, one to read the other to save.

 

I voted yes, I'd read it.

 

Excellent points. I've talked to Noland, and I would surmise that he's not getting rich off his books, but his books are definitely worth having for the serious enthusiast. He does it for the love of the marque!

In order to successfully author a book, one has to have connections in the publishing business - be a known quantity so to speak. From what I've seen, publishers could care less if your books are accurate or educational. The important thing from a marketing standpoint is that the books are entertaining, so they sell. They could care less about anything else, and they are loathe to invest in an author that doesn't have a track record.

Back in the mid-nineties I put together a 250K word portfolio (The average published novel is 120K words) on the history and technology of the Cosworth Vega. I published it through our Club in the form of newletters I published as a regional director, and the Club now sells the portfolio. A few recommended that I try to get it published, but I wasn't interested in getting involved with commercial publishers. I felt it was important to get this infomation out to CV enthusiasts (our Club has about 300 members, worldwide), but it really wasn't a commercially viable deal due to the narrow interest, so I spent a good man-year of effort (over about five years) on it and just published it through the Club.

Our own John Z is now making significant contributions in the form of articles for our national magazine being as how he was a production engineer at the Lordstown plant and the Launch Manager for the Cosworth Vega.

The other reason I refuse to write commercially is taxes. If I do everything legally I have to pay both FICA parts (15.3%) my federal marginal tax rate (27.5%) and my CA marginal tax rate (9.3%). That totals 52.1 percent! Ridiculous! I'd rather give it away than pay half of what I might earn so bozos like Tom Daschle will have more money to **** away on pork barrel programs and transfer payments!

So I'll continue to set the record straight through vehicles such as the Corvette Forum, NCRS Discussion Board, and The Corvette Restorer magazine published by NCRS. I can't afford to mess up my hobby by turning it into a business.

Duke




[Modified by SWCDuke, 6:50 PM 6/17/2002]

 

Duke, You and John Hinkley are certainly among the most knowledgable folks contributing to this forum and to the NCRS board. It occurs to me that there are a lot of the same questions that come up over and over. Certainly there are answers to most buried in the archives. A lot of those raising the questions don't know how to search the archives, or simply don't come up with the right information. Wonder if it would be feasible for some of you "experts" (like you and John) to come up with a FAQ list from the forum and then edit the CORRECT responses already available. Many times when a question is asked, there is a wide range of answers and some are incorrect or poorly worded. That would be a lot easier than writing a book, just as entertaining, and would cheat the government out of any potential tax revenue!

 

A FAQ section would be a good idea, but it would have to be done with the approval of the Forum.

Lots of forums have FAQ sections. Unfortunately, I don't think many read them before posting a question, so you end up where you started.

Duke

 

You're right, that's the last place a lot of people look, sort of like the archives.
A successful FAQ section would have to be well organized and well advertised.

 

I voted yes here too,.from what I've seen here on the C2 Forum during my short time,..Duke has brought forth some very good detailed background in his post answers of the how's and why's of vette technicals etc. I would also vote for a FAQ section as there are so many redundant questions that would seem appropriate to be put in a FAQ section. :chevy Save The Wave!!! :cheers:

 

Thanks to all who take the time and effort to set the record straight with their knowledge and experience .. Very much appreciated .. :cheers:
mrg

 

In my opinion, a FAQ list would be a great asset and resource. It shouldn't be too hard to organize as the topic matter is easily subdividable so cross-referencing would be a snap- year, model, subsystem, componant. Much of the information is readily available and, with guys like Duke and JohnZ around to keep things honest, it would be accurate and therefore more valuable to those legitimately interesting in researching and finding answers.

Too often, FAQ searches become impractical unless you have a list of criteria ready to enter as parametres for the search. A general query like 'electrical' could lead you anywhere, but 'wiper, electrical' will pretty much nail down a specific area. Add a year to that and you've got it all!

Back to the main topic, I've read and enjoyed Duke's commentarys and corrections and it's definitely been an educating and enjoyable experience. A book would be 'over the top'.

 

...i can certainly understand your reluctance to get into the commercial side of the business...but if you have the interest, rather than go to a FAQ, "publish" your tales of advice in whatever form you choose to, and i for one, would be happy to make your suggested donation to the charity of your choice - maybe administer that through one of the associations/clubs you belong to as long as they don't start sounding like the "police benevolent association" calls i get right at dinner time...........

...i'm not interested in funding another bloated bureacracy like NCRS but would be happy to donate to a worthy cause if it gets you motivated to put fingers to keys.........your advice has been invaluable to me...


...if i could help in any way (you never know), please send me mail, but if i were you , i'd check my references VERY carefully :rolleyes:


[Modified by Kid_Again, 8:28 AM 6/18/2002]

 

A FAQ is an outstanding idea. I have searched the archives several times for info but there are some questions that it seems show up over and over again, e.g. Lead sustitutes and octane questions, max tire size, deltas between 300 and 350 HP engines, engine block numbers to name a few. It would also be helpful to get the correct info without having to read through 20 or 30 replies. Certainly there are a set of Most FAQ that could be posted.

Whether it gets done or not, I find this forum an invaluable resource. Don't know what I would do without it. Thanks to all of you who freely give your time to consistently set the record straight and help us newcomers out :flag

 

Duke,

You certainly make valid points about getting into the book business. Your reasoning is, as usual, well thought out and on point. Often, trying to turn a hobby into a business takes the fun out of it and I know none of us would want to see that happen.

Nevertheless, some place to collect this information, such as the FAQ suggestion, would be a great way to capture these thoughts and information without the negatives you mentioned.

Thanks for all the help you have provided to many, many folks on the Forum.

Rich Lagasse

 

Do a web based Internet book. The subscribers pay using Paypal and get passwords to the site. If they need a hardcopy they just print it.

 

...yup, forget the FAQ...those who really want to know will pony up the bucks for the internet book

 

"I'd rather give it away than pay half of what I might earn so bozos like Tom Daschle will have more money to **** away on pork barrel programs and transfer payments!"


Don't hold back man it is not good for you!!!. Ya gotta let it go get it off your chest.

Dashole has to be one of the worst we ever had. He is not alone but he is in a class by himself! I WILLNOT look at klintons face on TV I immediately change the channel Same with Dashole

 

I am kinda 50/50 on this FAQ point. In theory it is good but people want answers to Their Question" and often have uncontrollable urges to ask the question their way.

We did something like this at work for sharing technical experience gained during client engagements. There was endless reshaping of the data, endless discussion of how to organize and label the data and it just was a very top heavy operation. I gotta add management wanted the capability, demanded that it be implemented in Lotus Notes and demanded that all the engineers "publish or perish". Result: Publish or Perish...put something in there just so the big guys see your name; Lotus Notes Disaster Disaster Disaster due to the very nature of Lotus Notes

We would not have the publish or perish here cause we would have only a few select folks in the barrel doing this work so that knocks off one of my comments. We don't have Lotus Notes which was the biggest PIA in the world. On the other hand just the other day I wanted data about solid state voltage regulators. I did a few quick searches and had what I needed.

I think we have the tools we need already. Might be that we should move some of the existing threads to a FAQ section and "suggest" that "People with inquiring minds" search there first. That would speed the server up for the other users by limiting the places the software had to chase for an answer / similar post. On the other hand we do limit the search to one forum or another in the slect criteria when we put in a search.

I keep talking myself out of this. Just my .02

 

"...i'm not interested in funding another bloated bureacracy like NCRS"

You and I need to attend Dale Carnegie on this topic Kid!!!! Want me to sign us up????