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From: egapmh@uncecs.edu (Paul M. Hudy)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Did you check out MacConnection's latest ad?
Summary: MacConnection Ad
Message-ID: <1990Apr12.132539.11302@uncecs.edu>
Date: 12 Apr 90 13:25:39 GMT
References: <12770@dime.cs.umass.edu> <2105@sequent.cs.qmw.ac.uk>
Organization: UNC Educational Computing Service
Lines: 63

In article <2105@sequent.cs.qmw.ac.uk>, jeremyr@cs.qmw.ac.uk (Jeremy Roussak) writes:
> In article <12770@dime.cs.umass.edu> roskill@cs.umass.edu writes:
> 
> [much stuff deleted; then a comment was made on waste of paper by his school]
> 
> >Yes...that's true, but my school prints it's catalogs on newpaper quality
> >paper (very easy to recycle), and that is serving an Educational service.
> >UMass does not put out a catalog to make a huge amount of money (although,
> >I will be the first to admit, there is money involved).  They are not
> >taking out 40 pages in the New York Times Magazine to cover their courses.
> 
> It is rather unclear to me that the pollution and waste generated by a large
> volume of printing is lessened by the purpose to which it is put.  Are the
> trees chopped down to make the paper damaged less because the stuff that
> is printed is advertising for a school rather than a computer company?
> Do the motives of the printers make any difference?  Is the harm
> diminished because the aims are altruistic rather than financial?  What's
> wrong with making a huge amount of money, anyway - Apple do it (sometimes).
> What does the New York Times magazine have to do with it?
> 
> >So there is quite a difference.
> There is no difference.
> 
> (By the way, has your school not taught you that "it's" is a contraction
> of "it is"?  The posessive of "it" is "its" (no apostrophe).)
> 
> Jeremy Roussak


   Anyone who thinks Universities publish student catalogs for
altruistic instead of financial reasons is sadly misleading 
themselves. Student enrollment is the main driver for increased
budgets.
   Also, it may be possible that MacConnection actually saved more
trees and money by putting their catalog inside MacWorld rather the
doing a separate mailing to a larger and less targeted audience. I
tend to keep my MacWorlds around a lot longer than I do catalogs I
receive in the mail or included with orders.
   I also find it hard to believe that anyone could mistake the
inserted catalog for anything but what it is - advertising. 
Advertising is not bad per se. *Every* organization advertises to
some extent. In the mail order business, competition and price
margins seem to be particularly cut-throat at this time. The consumer
-you and I- buy mostly on price and secondarly on service. A dolloar
or two in product price or shipping cost, seems to make a big
difference in this market. Advertising allows you to stand out from
the masses.
   Give the guys a break. I thought it was a well done piece. Not
every month, mind you, but once or twice a year, sure. Plus, I
found out some things about the company I didn't know - ie. the
president is a woman. (For some reason, I liked that - response was
sort of "Hmmm...well *all right*.)
   There are other aspects of the computer business - manufacturing,
etc. which has a far worse track record or effect on the environment.
This MacConnection Ad is very small and inconsequential. Would you
be willing to give up your PC/MAC, or your car, or your, etc. in order
to prevent environmental damage? It's a question of life style. I
don't have much patience for gratuitous environmental sniping unless
we are willing to giveup or sacrifice something in the process.
   Are we still in comp.sys.mac? ...sorry
Paul M. Hudy <egapmh@ecsvax>
UNC-General Administration
Chapel Hill, NC