Myron Beaumont Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 More and more concentration on drones/cameras in our mag .Not for me ! Call me old fashioned if you like . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyB Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Times change. People said exactly the same when "non-kit" radio sets came out, and ARTFs, and 2.4, and BNF foamies... I understand and have sympathy for those who would prefer everyone built from scratch from balsa, but let's be realistic - the hobby would be on it's death bed by now if we hadn't evolved rom that position. It's going to change even more dramatically in the next 5-10 years, and if the likes of RCM&E don't evolve to reflect those changes their advertising revenue and they themselves will become extinct. Just look at the modelling titles that have gone to the wall recently like Q&EFI for evidence... Edited By MattyB on 08/01/2016 16:05:14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken anderson. Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 2016......and myron's back firing on all cylinder's.... happy new year myron....i'm afraid that the "drone's"are currently the flavour of the month in a lot of popular quarters....and love them/hate them...we have to get along with them......and for the retailer's it will be big buck's for them...which at the end of the day..that's why they exist-to earn a crust..... as for people buying them with no prior knowledge about flying rule's and reg's ....and flying them.....well as most of us forumite's know....is a different kettle of fish..... ken anderson...ne....1..... earning a crust/kettle of fish dept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff S Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I'm a digital subscriber but bought the paper mag last month for the Ballerina plan. I'd been thinking of changing to digital+paper but having seen this month's issue with its concentration on quads I'm glad I didn't. A very experienced modeller in our club recently built himself a full house quad with gps and fpv etc. He admitted to me a few weeks ago that he was bored with it. He found building and getting set up was interesting but once the technical challenge was over, flying it had little to interest him. This is a guy who designed and marketed a V twin glow engine and I have the drawings and CNC cut components to build his 2 metre electric glider so he isn't a newcomer to aeromodelling attracted by the latest gadget. I think quads have a place and I bet racing fpv versions is great fun Not for me but I can see the attraction. I think their main applications are going to be commercial rather than hobby. Once they work they aren't that interesting in themselves because there's so little variety. Incidentally there was a picture in today's Guardian of an electric man carrying quad displayed at a big electronics show in the USA. Interestingly it was called a man carrying drone which I would have thought was an oxymoron Geoff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Hopkin Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Horses for courses gents..... MR's dont float my boat, but they are a) Radio Controlled and b) Models c) they have a big (and more importantly growing) following - so not to see them in RCME would be wrong really Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kc Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Myron is right - I won't bother buying any mag that goes droning on about drones. They are a passing fad and not aeromodelling. We would do well to disassociate ourselves from drones because the media have got it in for drones. The public associate drones with spying on their back gardens and remotely killing people in the middle east. The media jumped on this bandwagon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dai Fledermaus Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Posted by Myron Beaumont on 08/01/2016 15:50:24: More and more concentration on drones/cameras in our mag .Not for me ! Call me old fashioned if you like . Couldn't have said it better Myron. RCM&E is becoming less and less interesting because of it's focus on Drones. I can see restrictions on their use in the near future and I don't our hobby tarred with the same brush. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ASH. Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I'm with Myron on this one.. I too am 'old fashioned', but not that old! I also like what Andrew Ray suggests "we will be able to subscribe to a content package that suits our tastes, or even tailor the content by just ticking the relevant boxes and paying for what we want." I have been a subscriber to this mag for some years now and rarely find much that interests me. I am thinking of cancelling because electric, quad/mr and FPV have no interest for me. There are thousands of magazine publications out there catering for all sorts of special interests, surely there must be one or two on quadcopters/fpv etc? If not, then that's a money spinner in the waiting. I got my 15yr old nephew into RC flying a few years ago, alas, he's into drones/ fpv now (to my dismay) and totally obsessed by them. I think it's an interest to a younger generation who are computer native and have been brought up on the instant fix solution. Ash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john stones 1 - Moderator Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Aye when I wor a lad John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I agree with Dai, KC and others. It not aeromodelling, its flying meccano that will fade to nothing other than commercial use and I'm keen to distance myself and the genuine hobby from 'drones'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slopetrashuk Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 The mag is about radio controlled models. It used to have boats in it for hecks sake. Maybe you'll be into whatever the next big thing turns out to be and then you'll be whining that there is not enough of whatever it is in there. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norrland Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 What is a 'Drone'?>> I must say that I find the terminology used in this context rather amusing. If you like multirotors you call them that, If you don’t like them you call them drones. All we out there flying radio controlled airplanes, helicopters or multirotors are flying drones.>> ‘Drones are more formally known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). Essentially, a drone is a flying robot. The aircraft may be remotely controlled or can fly autonomously through software-controlled flight plans in their embedded systems working in conjunction with GPS’ (definition from The Internet of Things. Many more with similar wording can be found).>> If RCM&E should not contain any articles about drones, goodbye to all articles about RC. I don’t fly multirotors but I don’t dislike them. Do agree that the current popularity of drones and that so many are flown in the wrong place is a problem that must be tackled. Don’t think that an artificial separation of one kind of drone from another is the way forward though.Can't see the legislators taking that route either.>> Per R, Drone flyer with just one propeller at the time>> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Banner Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I had a small (cheap!) quad copter (I refuse to call them drones) for a while but got bored with it. There are a couple of chaps at the club that have spent thousands of pounds on their camera / FPV platforms and they are brilliant for filming the rest of us flying around, doing interesting things Paper mags are on the way out. Forums are much more interesting and relevant. If I am considering a new plane or Heli I will go on reviews and threads on forums rather than in magazines. I do buy RCME mind you, but if I am honest it's mostly for nostalgia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levanter Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Come on guys, we shouldn't be Luddites. Our hobby thrives because of developments not despite them. Now how about a bit of Free Flight FPV to lighten up a dull day! If it really upsets you, think about Speedy Boarding. I for one, am very happy that those indulging help keep my seat cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ASH. Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Posted by Slopetrashuk on 08/01/2016 18:56:24: The mag is about radio controlled models. It used to have boats in it for hecks sake. Maybe you'll be into whatever the next big thing turns out to be and then you'll be whining that there is not enough of whatever it is in there. Andy There's more than enough in 'fixed wing' to keep me going.. no need to look elsewhere! Master the discipline you're in rather than change out of boredom. Edited By ASH. on 08/01/2016 19:20:16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Banner Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Oh, and I know several guys who make their livings with "drones" or build their own racers etc. None of them buy RCME. They consider it old fashioned (because they aren't modellers) and they consider most of the drone articles to be very basic indeed. As an aside, most of the quads etc. reviewed in RCME are very much at the toy end of the market. Clearly aimed at tempting us traditional guys and attracting complete noobs. The number of these articles reflects the fact that circulation figures are dropping as trad modelling fades, unfortunately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Kenobi Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I'll probably be shown the door but many responses demonstrate for me just how clicky and closed shop some things can be. The 'it isn't done my way' therefore it is unacceptable type responses. Had the 'community' been a little more open, a bit more interested and welcoming, not to mention a lot less blinkered perhaps the 'drone' community wouldn't have dropped the 'flying' community right in the political spotlight. Tricopters / Quad / Hex / Octo are here to stay whether the luddites like it or not ... I wonder if the numbers of 'drone' owners is a bigger readership - if the aeromodelling community aren't careful they will become the minority group who will get neglected since at the end of the day no profit = no mag - digital or otherwise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john stones 1 - Moderator Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Careful you don't generalise yourself Obi 1 Some of the community have been open and welcoming and they fly along side multis a FPV flyers. I take your point though. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 As a confirmed dinosaur, my fear is I am up the patch, and a technocrat turns up, and does two slow rolls down the strip, at three meters altitude. Crossing all fingers I riposte, I can do that manually. He turns and says, "why". Quads are not going away, they are a precursor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 And Ben, re your second paragraph, are you honestly saying that criminals are reformed by a hug, or was that an attempt at journalise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mightypeesh Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I am with myron too. I know that multirotors are here to stay and yes - they fly in the air and good luck to those who are into them. I still think they are more akin to a flying tripod rather than a flying model though. Also I feel there was too much about them this month - and I would think the same if the magazine had lots of content on helicopters to which they seem to have have much more kinship. I would have thought that a multirotor flyer would be more likely to be looking at a heli orientated publication anyway. Right - back to my dusty workshop cave........... Cheers, Simon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Kenobi Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Trying to journalise I think. Most criminal types or those that are going to do irresponsible bad stuff will do it anyhow. I guess my point is more that there are many that commit flying 'sin' simply out of ignorance. You can't educate and exclude, OK some don't like multi rotors, but many do and they are opening up flying to many that previously wouldn't even try. They then move on to say if I can fly this I'm going to try that, I really don't think an us and them mentallity helps. I'll fly anything, I have quad, hex, I also have helicopters and fixed wing, each has its own fun factor - try hanging an SLR off your fixed wing ... hell I'd fly a tea tray if I thought I could make it fly ... have fun, because that's what it's about. Simply excluding technology out of some elitist ideal is crazy, I'm with the guy that says why when you say but I can do that manually - if a hi tech onboard computer can stop me putting my pride and joy into the ground I'm all for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ovenden Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Drone/quads/multi-rotors call them what you will. I suspect that a fair percentage of RCM&E readers have little or no interest in them. They are featured in the mag because they are selling a lot in shops and advertising revenue supports the publication of the magazine I imagine. It would be interesting to know what % of current RCM&E readers look at and or enjoy the multi-rotor articles. Having flown at a club with mixed fixed wing and quad copter/multi-rotors slots I have to say it is not an experience I enjoyed. The 2 disciplines are quite different in nature and don't easily co-exist due to their different characteristics. That doesn't mean they are not of interest to others and that they represent a great technical challenge and have all sorts of potential uses. Personally I am not interested in reading about them but do appreciate that others may find otherwise. If this forum helps the editorial team to better understand the views of their readers, well that's a good thing isn't it? Maybe a new magazine is needed to fully reflect the tastes of those who are interested in quads/drones/ multi-copters? I would prefer not to have so much coverage. Like others, I have changed to digital only subscription because there is just not enough of interest in the magazine now to make me want to keep copies for future reference. And I have bought RCM&E every month since 1971. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I once did convert a tea tray, bet, bottle of malt. Won Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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