MMM

[Mike Hol]

Hi,

 

I confined my earlier comments to the subject of this thread, MMM,not other publications.

 

Obviously, adverts are an important part of any magazine & I personally enjoy reading them. The photos by Andy are exceptional, but I'm not interested in articles of this nature. If I was, then I'd be looking at travel magazines, instead.

 

I note Daves comments, and agree, but the point that I tried to make is, there aren't enough contributors who write like Dave does. The only other that springs to mind is John Wickersham. Having said that, I always read the interchange section of MMM with great interest.

 

I have made my feelings known on this issue, in the MMM survey that was distributed a few months ago.

 

Happy Camping,

 

Mike Hol.

[Dave Newell]

Thanks for the vote of confidence Mike (I'm assuming that I'm the Dave in question?). Although I have to say that if more of the magazine were written by the likes of myself and John Wickersham (I rather like being placed in the same company as John) it might start to look like a haynes manual.

 

For my money, what makes MMM stand out is the sheer variety of material published each month; new vehicle tests, second hand vehicle tests, news from the industry, home travel articles, foreign travel articles, Interchange, readers letters etc.

 

D.

[Supertractorman]

I must admit that MMM is a good magazine, but I find now that I only purchase when I see an article I want to read which is displayed on the rack at the newsagents. Web sites like this seem to be a tremendous source of knowledge, and you can get an instant response to any question either technical or travel and it is written by someone with intimate knowledge of the subject.

 

David

[livewire]

Frank Wilkinson - 2007-01-27 11:33 AM

If you don't like a magazine, don't buy it, but please don't assume that what you may dismiss as 'rubbish' isn't appreciated by others.

I dismiss Celebrity Big Brother as rubbish, and that is appreciated by more people than those who like MMM.Like I said Frankie Babes, it's fine for adverts and newcomers. But personally I think a magazine should inspire and stretch your imagination.There must be loads of folks who say take their M/Hs to N.Africa or take a year out and tour the States in one. Trouble is they don't seem to want to write for MMM.

[Guest Frank Wilkinson]

Livewire wrote:

Like I said Frankie Babes, it's fine for adverts and newcomers. But personally I think a magazine should inspire and stretch your imagination.

So do I, but sometimes I just like a magazine to be entertaining and informative. To dismiss MMM as being rubbish is most unfair. It isn't rubbish at all. It may not have 100% perfection every month but rubbish it isn't.

I have never watched 'Big Brother' as you obviously have, so I cannot comment on your other quote.

Finally, I'm sorry that all of the other forum members who, like me, enjoy MMM, are to be so easily dismissed as readers of 'rubbish'.

[Keith T]

livewire - 2007-01-27 5:24 PM

 

Frank Wilkinson - 2007-01-27 11:33 AM

 

 

I dismiss Celebrity Big Brother as rubbish, and that is appreciated by more people than those who like MMM.

 

/QUOTE]

 

I guess there's a rather wider potential audience for CBB than MMM....

however, the former is utter rubbish, (personally don't watch it!) and MMM far from it.

As to stretching imagination and inspiring, I'm sure MMM has some articles which may well do that for some folk.

Equally though, I am sure its main purpose is to be informative, which by and large it is, and in this day and age a source of advertising....! I agree with previous contributors that without such large scale adverts the magazine couldn't exist. I also feel it's a good 'reference' for many things.

Whatever magazine you read on whatever topic, surely there will be occasions when the reader will disagree either with some of the content or the comments made in it.

Overall MMM scores very highly on most points, I feel, and its still the one I will continue to have each month.

[Clive]

"There must be loads of folks who say take their M/Hs to N.Africa or take a year out and tour the States in one. Trouble is they don't seem to want to write for MMM."

 

Well, both have been done before and Don Madge and Maureen are regulars at going to places that most of us fear to tread and getting into MMM.

 

As I said earlier, send a direct letter to the editor at the PO box in the mag with constructive brief comments. My guess is that a few of these would carry more weight than filling in a survey.

 

C.

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest Frank Wilkinson]

Keith T,

Can I just mention that it wasn't me who made the 'Big Brother' quote that begins your post!

I'm in total agreement with you!

[Brian Kirby]

livewire - 2007-01-27 5:24 PM ............... There must be loads of folks who say take their M/Hs to N.Africa or take a year out and tour the States in one. Trouble is they don't seem to want to write for MMM.

Chris

Reason is, probably, they are too busy taking "their M/Hs to N.Africa" or taking "a year out and tour the States" to write!  Oddly enough, however, there's an excellent and wonderfully informative article by one of the latter in the latest edition.

I think some of the criticism in this string is a bit churlish.  I have always admired the MMM letters pages, for being so comprehensive and for publishing readers' comments at such length.  Of course some are less interesting, even outright boring, but then I don't read those!

Interchange is excellent, and the degree of information and analysis, based on mere words (not always very clearly expressed) exceeds anything I've ever been able to get out of a garage, face to face, with the car there as back up!

I guess "The pan in the van" has lost its own plot.  Seems more "the restaurant in the high street".  Surely this is supposed to be the recipe/cooking tips section?

Vehicle testers?  Well, they seem to have developed their own journalistic tics, so most things become "just a tad" more, or less, than proper.  Can be irritating.

However, these people are, first and foremost, motorhomers.  Yes, they do let their personal preferences influence their opinions, but that is quite easy to spot, and it does enliven the writing with a bit of passion. 

Some do write better that others; well there's a surprise!  There was only one common entrance exam for membership, and that was to be a motorhome user: so the parentage, backgrounds, life experiences, educational attainments, analytical faculties etc of them all differ.  So, the writing reflects those differences.

However, I can't see how you counter that unless you want all of them to be mechanical or electrical engineering graduates, with specialisms in written English and the leisure industry!  Can't really see too many folk with those attributes coming forward as motorhomers with a desire to be journalists!  Oh, and there's no guarantee the writing would suddenly be much more interesting even if they did.  Could it just be that MMM "gets what the market has to offer", I wonder?

The Stothert pics?  Excellent: I just wish he'd be a bit less carping about poor Marion!  Being immortalised as "fag ash", and banging on about her being petite (not quite how he puts it) in print seems so humiliatingly cruel.  Yes, yes, I know she's in one the game really, but it still rather grates on me.

So far as I can remember, I tried all the mags before settling on MMM.  It was, and remains, extremely informative, unstinting in its detail, and still, for me, manages to create the look and feel of a really good club magazine rather than a merely commercial periodical. 

There is just that sense of a motorhoming family in its pages.  Just that bit more than yet another breathlessly enthusiastic review of the latest "must have" boys and girls toys, that characterises so many of the other specialist magazines.  That is manily, I suspect, because it is written, for the most part, by a bunch of cynical old fa*ts like me!

[Dave Newell]

Well livewire, taking this thread as a straw poll. Out of two pages of postings there are only five/six posts that are definitely anti MMM. Strangely enough they're all by yourself. I'd venture to suggest that this shows you're in a minority of one in your total dislike of MMM so why not stop being so negative. I do think it unfair of you to dismiss MMM as "rubbish" when you openly stated earlier that you last bought a copy last summer. you are entitled to your opinions, as is everyone, but I fail to see why you continue to try and persuade us all of the lack of merit of a magazine which so many of us, in general, enjoy reading.

 

D.

[Basil]

I still believe, despite me believing it has faults, MMM is the best of the bunch that is why it is the only one I subscribe to now.

 

This is just an observation.

 

Why is it that some have such polarised views?

I have noticed that it seems to occur all the time about anything but mainly MMM, Caravan Club, vehicle types and motorhome dealers/ manufacturers. Why can't we all recognise that we are all different and want different things?

 

Bas

[Guest starspirit]

Agreed Basil, MMM is fine and the CC is OK (if you like that sort of thing!).

 

However there is huge variation in both dealer and manufacturer attitude to after sales service once they have your cash and funnily enough the same old names keep cropping up as either good or poor.

 

We may all do different things with our vans but we all want and expect and should politely demand a decent quality product supplied by a responsible retailer who will both care for us if things go wrong.

 

When spending what is for most of us, an obscene ammount of money on a leisure product I for one will not accept shoddy product or service and to this effect I have learnt over the years quite a lot about where and what to buy and not to buy.

 

Perhaps if more of us were swayed by poor service reports than by glossy salesmen the culprits would have to off their bums and do something about it or go bust?

[Basil]

Yep starspirit I couldn't agree more.

All I was trying to say is just because I don't like adverts and travel articles in MMM doesn't mean the whole thing is rubbish and I also accept that others may like what I don't, also just because I don't agree with the Caravan Clubs policy on electric charging doesn't mean the whole issue is bad and would leave because of it.

Because an individual has had a bad experience there are hundreds more who haven't, as I said earlier just an observation because I find it puzzling!

 

Bas

[Clive]

By the way, what is "Big Brother"? Steven Warner perhaps??

 

C.

 

[Guest peter]

Frank Wilkinson - 2007-01-27 11:33 AM

I find myself saddened by the attitude of a great number of people these days, whose only role in life seems to be to complain and whinge.

I don't think that I've ever read one edition of MMM, Practical Motorhome or even the CC Magazine, in which I haven't found something interesting and informative. It may be a travel article, a technical piece or a review of a 'van but there's always something.

As for adverts, of course they're necessary. Has anyone any idea what a mag such as MMM would cost, including posting to our door (which must cost a quid at least judging by the weight of it!) if it wasn't heavily subsidised by advertisements?

I actually enjoy some of the adverts, especially the accessory ones and let's face it, many people buy magazines for advertisements because they're wanting to buy a new 'van, or anything from a 12v TV to a reversing camera.

If you don't like a magazine, don't buy it, but please don't assume that what you may dismiss as 'rubbish' isn't appreciated by others.

Wholeheartedly agree Frank. Well said. My only gripe with all the mags is, that the don't do do it yourself repairs Etc. Were not all hamfisted morons and quite capable.

[flicka]

Extremely well put, Dave.

Must be that latent journalistic tendency.

 

Flicka

[empress]

Am mortified having just read and enjoyed Clive's article in this month's MMM. How could I have said anything derogatry about travel articles? Humble pie being eaten.

 

Empress

[Dave Newell]

Empress, I quite agree, Clive's piece was a nice little travel article but I thought it was supposed to be about living with your own particular motorhome.

 

Clive?

 

D.

[Clive]

Thanks,

We were given the task just before we set of on our annual saunter into France (with the Laptop) in search or warmth. I did also included oodles of past DIY projects and it was over the limit of words so something got pruned out.

I cannot claim credit for the full page photo either, Dave Hurrell took it at a show as a backup if my own were inferior. I now know the answer to that question!.

I still remain quite chuffed of the photo in front of the Millau Viaduct even though the light was in the wrong position, it could have been printed full page but on the other hand the viaduct was recently aired in detail in MMM so I guess that,s why its a small photo.

 

I hope you don,t drive over any Sid James's on your wanderings.

 

C.

 

 

 

Oh yes, Dave,

What else could I comment on re the MH. It doesn,t leak, it has never broken down, never needed any parts replaced other than the flexible injector spill off pipes which were done under warranty.

I wouldn,t want to be a mechanical bore when there is really nothing to say!.

 

 

[Dave Newell]

Well Clive, not that I want to be critical but I just thought it was supposed to be about the 'van. If you look at Roy Pledgers article about his 'van it was all about how the van works and not about where they'd been with it. Havig said all that I did enjoy reading it so it can't be bad can it.

 

D.

[Clive]

Hi Dave,

Well I interpreted the title differently although I agree its open to interpretation and I accept your point.

 

"A year in a! I interpreted as what we did for a "year in a".

 

However the mix is what makes the magazine interesting and diverse I guess.

 

Roll on summer

 

All the best to Jackie and Dexter.

 

C.

 

[Ralph]

About 10 years ago I decided to get a haircut. Well nothing too surprising there, I have it cut twice a year, whether I need it or not.

But this time someone had decided to have a clear out and instead of the usual Readers Digests there was a bunch of MMMs. I was fascinated and quickly hooked.

Unfortunately this haircut ultimately cost me thousands of pounds as I went out and bought a motorhome, then another, then... well you get the picture.

So I'll always have a soft spot for MMM and still think it's the best.

 

But... (yes there's always a but) I no longer buy it regularly as no mag can hold your enthusiasm for that long. Things get repeated and you get fed up with reading about new things you can't afford.

This is not unique to the MH world of course. Look on the shelves and there are countless mags for every hobby you can think of. It's a very competitive market.

 

Being something of a cheapskate I find that MH mags are often in the cheap out of date magazine stall at the local market. Travel articles etc. don't date so lots of reading for less outlay.

 

 

 

[Dave Newell]

Clive - 2007-01-28 3:30 PM

 

Hi Dave,

Well I interpreted the title differently although I agree its open to interpretation and I accept your point.

 

"A year in a! I interpreted as what we did for a "year in a".

 

However the mix is what makes the magazine interesting and diverse I guess.

 

Roll on summer

 

All the best to Jackie and Dexter.

 

C.

 

Fair comment Clive, see you in peterborough?

 

D.

[fred grant]

I is now getting the hell of this forum.

 

You is spose to wind sumone up and then sit back and wait for the brickbracs.

 

Dose i relly want to read if dave agrees with clive or not. Or if clive agrees with dave. I thought that clives road test was reely interesting and he and his better haf seem like very good people. Is good to put a face to a name. If dave thinks he can do beter then why hav we not got daves articals in the mag.

 

long live MMM - its ruddy more interecting than this forum,

 

fed

[Guest Frank Wilkinson]

We'll really miss your beautifully constructed syntax and shining example of how the English language should be used. Perhaps you should apply for a job as a writer for MMM?