Re: [APML]: Magazine Reviews

["Joseph O'Neil" <joneil@multiboard.com>]

The Astro-Photography Mailing List
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At 16:36 14/07/98 -0500, you wrote:
-stuff snipped-
>The problem, as far as I am concerned, is the lack of quality reviewers.
>Whether there is a conscious strategy on the part of magazine editors to
>commission those who may be more sensitive to their advertising
>concerns, is a question open for debate...
>Charles

        I think the real concern has been the overall "tone" in product reveiws
over the past couple of years as opposed to say the past ten years.
        Example - the recent review of the Cannon IS binoculars was pretty
positive, with no real negatives.  next month, a great big, one page ad in
S&T by Cannon IS binoculars.  
        By comparison, if you ever follow sci.astro.amature, Todd Gross write
equipment reviews on his web page.  I don't know if his reviews are the
best in the world, but his review of the same Cannon binocs, while also
very positive, touched upon some drawbacks of the binoculars, and these
drawbacks were either never mentioned or very lightly glossed over in the
S&T review.
        Again, looking over past articles from 10-20 years, things are pretty even
handed, but somethign I cannot put my finger on *seems* to have happened in
both S&T and Astronomy, and equipment reviews are like a can of soda pop
left open overnight - flat and lacking vitality.
        To bring this a little back on topic, where i have problems being a dealer
(and I am pretty small potatoes stuff, hate to think what is is like for
the well known dealers), is people read some of these "reviews", and see
some of these ads, and they really don't seem to appreciate my pointing out
flaws in some equipment, or specifically why that $300 equitoral mount made
in China will not produce the same results as say a Losmandy G8.
        The werid thing from my perspective is before I started sellign scopes, if
I had a negative comment aobut some piece of equipment, people put some
value to my opinion.   But now that I am selling, I run into a bit of
wariness about my negative comments on some things, as if I were looking
for an excuse to sell soembody a larger model or as if I were putting down
a competing brand that I do not sell.
        I know this sort of thing comes with the territory, but I find overly
glossy magazine reviews and / or unrealistic advertisments make things
harder for me, not easier.  (For example, although I do not sell Meade, I
would like to hang the idiot who decided to first advertise th ETX with a
camera attached to the back, sittin on it's tiny little three legs.  Now
how realistic is that?)
        I not "dislike" S&T or Astronomy, I just find they seem to have fallen
victim to some sort of trend that is seen in other magazines.  Somewhere
along the way, when I wasn't looking , a hard edge has been replaced with
somethign more soft & mushy.  I wish I had the wherewithall to describe
what I see and feel in terms more litterate than these, but I do not.
        All I can say is it seems every person who buys a new telescope,
especiallya first telescope, wants to do astro-photography, and while
educating people can be an uphill battle even at the best of times, what is
happening out there with product reveiws and advertisments in general is
hindering more than helping.
joe

http://www.multiboard.com/~joneil
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