United States Coast Guard Auxiliary 7th District Breeze - USCGAUX ...

Volume LVIII Issue 1 Spring 2012 13
do not wish to inadvertently download games and
applications built into many confirmations and
requests.
• Many of our members do not have Facebook and
Twitter accounts and don’t want one.
• News and information is fragmented. One must
follow links to various sites to read posts and
articles.
Pages like Facebook and Twitter may be the wave of the
future; but this is now, and who knows what the future
holds Remember “Myspace” Once the leading social
media/blog site, Myspace was the rage until Facebook
completely supplanted it. We cannot begin to guess
what will eventually replace Facebook, but given the
dynamic history of the Internet, eventually something
will.
Currently, most members have computers, but, make
no mistake, we still have a large number of members
without computers or email addresses. Our members’
computer proficiencies range from beginner to expert,
with most in the intermediate user range. These
members can read and respond to emails, create and
send simple documents, perform web searches and
open PDF files. That is advantageous for Auxiliary
newsletters, most of which are now published and
distributed as PDF files. A few are released as Word
files, but, both are delivered right into the members’
e-mailbox. There are other advantages to newsletters
published and distributed in PDF format:
• PDF is the preferred format worldwide because of
the ease with which it can be “ported” and read
anywhere, on any platform.
• The news published in unit newsletters is by and
about the members of those units, and has local
relevance. The names and faces are familiar. Staff
reports provide program updates, activity reports,
and schedules of future events, all within a single
document—no surfing the web to stay abreast of
your unit’s activities!
• Newsletters acknowledge the members’ efforts
and provide historical records.
Because newsletters are edited and laid out by
volunteer members, most of whom have no writing,
editing, graphic design, or publishing experience, the
negatives are as real as the positives:
• Newsletters are often edited and published by
members who use poor grammar and/or do not
adhere to Auxiliary guidelines as outlined in the
Publication Officer’s Guide and Auxiliary Manual.
• Newsletters can be so poorly designed that they
may be difficult to read or fail to hold the reader’s
attention.
• Months between publication dates can reduce
the relevance and worth of the articles published.
Newsletters published infrequently lack all
claims to immediacy and contribute strongly to the
argument that newsletters are obsolete.
The advantages and disadvantages of both web news
and PDF-based newsletters are numerous, even
without getting into related areas, such as software
requirements and costs, electronic reading devices, etc.
News via Facebook and Twitter For flotilla and
division news, it may be the future, but we are not
there yet. That does not relieve Publications officers
from learning, improving and publishing interesting,
relevant newsletters today. It also behooves us to learn
more about digital media, including social media pages
and blogs. Test the waters; publish occasional articles
of interest or schedules of upcoming Recreational
Boating Safety events on your flotilla’s Facebook or
other social media page. Ω
Oops!
The capon for the cover image our 2011
Fall issue was so completely wrong that we
must correct it. The member pictured on
the cover is Reynaldo (Rey) Rivera-Rosado
aboard the Auxiliary facility Kamstar1 owned
by Ken Morningstar. The photographer is
John Sanchez. All are members of Flolla 74
Brandon, Fla.