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Aviatik · 26 March 2002, 11:35 AM

John G

"Cost per column inch?" You must be an accountant.

We print what is submitted. It is required that each article is submitted with a bio. There are many newcomers to OTF and this is for them, and no apologies are made for including them. Their effect on space is minimal, they don't take up that much space, maybe 1/8th of a page at the most. It assigns a face to a name and gives you some personal information about them, their careers, families, etc. Something that we feel is important, because it is, after all, them who are volunteering their time and research efforts. Why not give them a little bit of the limelight, eh?

Now, about the publication. Although similar in layout to our cousin across the water in the UK, there are some approaches in OTF that, yes differ, but, for good reason. As a graphic design principle it is important to use white space in order to not fatigue the eye and also give the reader some visual breathing space, and a nice experience. White space, (I assume you mean leading? or the breaks between body text and quotations?) is very important. A few years ago in OTF there was a big problem with readibility. The person doing the layout at that time used a very dense typeface, and just as dense leading. They also used a justified alignment column style, or "the block" as we refer to it. The combination of the two had the effect that you would often lose your place while reading. Not a good thing.

We use ragged right now, because it aids the reader and they won't lose their place. Again, a design/typographic consideration, not a whim. If we were a newspaper or some textbook where space was an issue and we didn't use photographs, then we'd use the "block." We aren't, so we do not!

The layout artist for OTF a few years ago for example, layed out an article on the Combat Log of Hermann Göring. A fascinating piece of research by Frank Olynk, I believe. But, it was so dense, and also full of heavy horizontal lines that it was very difficult to read. A shame. Why, because they had a rudimentary knowledge of desktop publishing, but no design skills. I'd like to see it republished in the new OTF house style with also better photographic reproduction technology.

Also, another emphasis at OTF is the best photo quality possible. Also, when necessary we will print photos larger than the two column or one column width. For example, a recent issue, (Spring 2000) had supplied two photographic prints of a Jasta 28 lineup. Upon studying the photographs closely it became apparent that they had once been part of a wide panoramic view of the airfield with at least 9 Albatros D.III and D.V aircraft lined up, but had been torn in half to fit in the original album. What did we do? The photo was restored and ran full 17 inch width. No where else does that photo exist, except right there. Also, at OTF photos are run at a larger size when important details are inherent in the photo and can aid a researcher or a modeller. That is what we are about. We also use paper with a higher clay content for better photographic reproduction.

continued...

26 March 2002, 11:35 AM	#26 (permalink)
Aviatik Two-seater Pilot Join Date: Dec 2001 Posts: 125	John G "Cost per column inch?" You must be an accountant. We print what is submitted. It is required that each article is submitted with a bio. There are many newcomers to OTF and this is for them, and no apologies are made for including them. Their effect on space is minimal, they don't take up that much space, maybe 1/8th of a page at the most. It assigns a face to a name and gives you some personal information about them, their careers, families, etc. Something that we feel is important, because it is, after all, them who are volunteering their time and research efforts. Why not give them a little bit of the limelight, eh? Now, about the publication. Although similar in layout to our cousin across the water in the UK, there are some approaches in OTF that, yes differ, but, for good reason. As a graphic design principle it is important to use white space in order to not fatigue the eye and also give the reader some visual breathing space, and a nice experience. White space, (I assume you mean leading? or the breaks between body text and quotations?) is very important. A few years ago in OTF there was a big problem with readibility. The person doing the layout at that time used a very dense typeface, and just as dense leading. They also used a justified alignment column style, or "the block" as we refer to it. The combination of the two had the effect that you would often lose your place while reading. Not a good thing. We use ragged right now, because it aids the reader and they won't lose their place. Again, a design/typographic consideration, not a whim. If we were a newspaper or some textbook where space was an issue and we didn't use photographs, then we'd use the "block." We aren't, so we do not! The layout artist for OTF a few years ago for example, layed out an article on the Combat Log of Hermann Göring. A fascinating piece of research by Frank Olynk, I believe. But, it was so dense, and also full of heavy horizontal lines that it was very difficult to read. A shame. Why, because they had a rudimentary knowledge of desktop publishing, but no design skills. I'd like to see it republished in the new OTF house style with also better photographic reproduction technology. Also, another emphasis at OTF is the best photo quality possible. Also, when necessary we will print photos larger than the two column or one column width. For example, a recent issue, (Spring 2000) had supplied two photographic prints of a Jasta 28 lineup. Upon studying the photographs closely it became apparent that they had once been part of a wide panoramic view of the airfield with at least 9 Albatros D.III and D.V aircraft lined up, but had been torn in half to fit in the original album. What did we do? The photo was restored and ran full 17 inch width. No where else does that photo exist, except right there. Also, at OTF photos are run at a larger size when important details are inherent in the photo and can aid a researcher or a modeller. That is what we are about. We also use paper with a higher clay content for better photographic reproduction. continued...