[pianotech] shades of gray

Piano Boutique pianoboutique at comcast.net
Fri Aug 13 08:52:37 MDT 2010


Wally,

It was about that time they threw out the editor and started using a new 
person.  I noticed immediately that the journal became thinner with fewer 
advertisers and cheaper.  I don't have the clout to make a difference, but 
if a blind man can see it, must be obvious to anyone who wants to see.

William



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Wally Scherer" <afinetune at yahoo.com>
To: <pianotech at ptg.org>
Sent: Thursday, August 12, 2010 10:28 PM
Subject: [pianotech] shades of gray


> My wife and I got home from a meeting tonight at 9:20 PM. She wanted to 
> watch her favorite TV program, so I, seeing my Piano Technicians Journal 
> sitting unopened on the coffee table, decided to take a few minutes to 
> catch up on the latest PT news and information. I eagerly ripped open the 
> wrapper and opened it to the first, then the second page. On seeing Ed 
> Sutton's "Editorial Perspective" I became immediately discouraged. I 
> turned up the lamp one step brighter, but it was no use.
>
> I first started to notice a few years ago that I was not reading the 
> Journal as much as I did in the late 1990's after I had first joined the 
> PTG. I reasoned that perhaps I had learned so much in the first few years 
> that the reading was not as interesting any more.  But whenever I did take 
> the time to sit down and read through an issue, I found it extremely 
> interesting and useful.
>
> Or maybe it was that I was so busy with work and life in general that I 
> just didn't have the time to read the Journal. But I had time to watch TV 
> shows, so that was not the reason.
>
> Then one day I picked up a journal from another field of endeavor and 
> found out that it was easier to read than the PT Journal. Why? As I 
> examined the latest Journal I began to notice that since mid 2000, the 
> type had changed. Before, the print was a dark black ink against a white 
> paper. Now, the Journal was using varying shades of gray, making the print 
> harder to read. I went to the public library and picked up journals from 
> several professions. In each case the print was a dark black against a 
> white paper. None of them used shades of gray!
>
> WHY DO THEY FORCE ME TO STRUGGLE TO READ THEIR INTERESTING ARTICLES?
>
> This is now the tenth year since the Journal articles and other useful 
> information has been printed with shades of gray ink, rather than black 
> ink. Just look at Ed Sutton's article on page 2 of the August 2010 issue 
> and compare it to the Randy Potter advertisement on page 3. Which is 
> easier to read?
>
> Flip through the Journal and look at just about ANY advertisement - page 
> 7, page 9, page 35, and page 38. Now compare the readability of the ads 
> with the text of articles. Why is it that the ads are easier to read. Is 
> it only the advertisers who want their printed material to be read with 
> ease? Why can't the articles be easy to read also?
>
> I discussed this briefly with a former Journal editor and a PTG President 
> last year at a convention. Their answers were a bit vague and 
> unsatisfying.
>
> It can't be that I am the only person out of over 3000 members who would 
> benefit from a return to black print! Why can't someone do a survey among 
> those who still have copies of the Journal dating from before July 2000 
> and ask them if the Journal articles of today are easier, the same, or 
> harder to read?
>
> Perhaps my near age 65 vision is part of the problem. Yes, I realize that 
> I now have to use my glasses ALL the time to read. But that's no excuse 
> for making it hard on me and many other PTG members in my age group. 
> Actually, I still have relatively good vision.
>
> I'm all for innovation and use of modern graphic design ideas, but not at 
> the expense of readability!
>
> Wally Scherer
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