[Bob Kuczewski]

There's a poll on the Oz Report about creating a PDF library called "Hang Gliding Library - PDF" at:

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=22687

The author of the poll wrote:

I was curious if our community would like to have all their favorite HG related books in PDF format? Would this be of interest?

It was a good question, and is deserving of discussion. The first person to respond was Brad Hall with his usual snipes at me...

Yes, as long as the authors still got their cut. I would hate to see the pilots that wrote them cut off from the small amount of financial returns they receive for their work. This would be similar to a pilot from my area that bought several of Bill Liscombs Big Blue Sky DVD's and then offered to lend them to all who asked, thus encouraging others to not buy the movie. We need to support those that put out the effort. Especially in this era of self publishing.

Brad Hall knows that I bought 4 brand new copies of "Big Blue Sky" directly from USHPA ... at full price. I bought a fifth copy from the Torrey Pines concessionaire ... again at full price. I've given several of them away to people who I thought would appreciate them ... including a copy that I recently gave to the Wills family. I also put out a call to the Torrey Hawks Hang Gliding Club asking if we could put together a group buy of these legitimate DVDs so we could all have copies. I also passed on one of my copies to a member of the Hawks and asked him to make up a "sign up" book for it and to pass it around to collect reviews and comments by pilots from within the club. My goal was to spread the word and not to "encourage others not to buy the movie" as Brad writes. Not once did I make an illegal copy of that DVD. Instead, I purchased all legitimate copies and I've promoted that video on forums and at many many other opportunities.

Yet Brad Hall has the nerve to post a message implying that I've somehow tried to cheat Bill Liscomb out of his royalties. Brad Hall is lower (and slimier) than pond scum. He's a perfect example of what's wrong with USHPA.

By the way Brad, how many copies of Big Blue Sky have you purchased and paid for?

Beyond Brad's typically pompous bluster, the original question raises a good point. Personally, I think it would be a great idea to try to distribute the many great existing hang gliding books in electronic format. Of course the authors should benefit from it, and this idea should be seen as an additional source of revenue for the authors ... rather than as a threat.

[SamKellner]

Hi Bob,

Your post comes as no surprise.

I've been following that ACLaversa thread over there.

When Brad posted, I would have bet that he was, well, just like you said. Counter productive.

And for BUYING 5 copies.

[Bob Kuczewski]

On the Oz Report Sam wrote:

I already only bought one copy, of Soaranator's DVD, that has been viewed by many. Glad I'm not as guilty as this other pilot who bought 5 copies.

Thanks Sam!! That's great!!

By the way, I know that Brad Hall considers himself a friend of Bill Liscomb's, so I suspect Brad has informed Bill that I was trying to "rip him off" (by purchasing 5 copies!! ). So I wrote directly to Bill ... with a copy to Brad:

Hello Bill (cc Brad Hall),

There's a poll on the Oz Report about creating a PDF library called "Hang Gliding Library - PDF" at:

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=22687

I was curious if our community would like to have all their favorite HG related books in PDF format? Would this be of interest?

Yes, as long as the authors still got their cut. I would hate to see the pilots that wrote them cut off from the small amount of financial returns they receive for their work. This would be similar to a pilot from my area that bought several of Bill Liscombs Big Blue Sky DVD's and then offered to lend them to all who asked, thus encouraging others to not buy the movie. We need to support those that put out the effort. Especially in this era of self publishing.

Brad Hall knows that I bought 4 brand new copies of "Big Blue Sky" directly from USHPA ... at full price. I bought a fifth copy from the Torrey Pines concessionaire ... again at full price. I've given several of them away to people who I thought would appreciate them ... including a copy that I recently gave to the Wills family. I also put out a call to the Torrey Hawks Hang Gliding Club asking if we could put together a group buy of these legitimate DVDs so we could all have copies. I also passed on one of my copies to a member of the Hawks and asked him to make up a "sign up" book for it and to pass it around to collect reviews and comments by pilots from within the club (I was hoping to pass these on to you for promotion). My goal - in all cases - was to spread the word on this great work and not to "encourage others not to buy the movie" as Brad writes. Not once did I make an illegal copy of that DVD. Instead, I purchased all legitimate copies and I've promoted that video on national forums and at many, many other opportunities.

Yet Brad Hall has the nerve to post a message implying that I've somehow tried to cheat you out of your royalties.

Bill, I know that you're probably a good buddy of Brad Hall, but his distortions are disgusting. I've probably bought more legitimate copies of your DVD than almost any other pilot on the planet. I've had nothing but praise for it, and I've always encouraged people to buy a copy.

That's all. I just wanted to set the record straight.

Sincerely,
Bob Kuczewski

P.S. Brad Hall, you're about as low a human being as I've ever met.

Brad's only reply was to quote the garbage on the old TorreyHawksForum which Jack Axaopoulos hijacked for his own private propaganda page (he locked everyone else out).

Is that the best you can do Brad?

[Bob Kuczewski]

From the Oz Forum:

If I can get 50+ votes in support I will start to pursue the topic further…so invite more opinions if you feel others would find this interesting. I'd love to help facilitate getting quality learning material into the hands of my fellow greenhorns.

We're trying to build some on-line training manuals here on the US Hawks (ushawks.org). The goal will be to provide high-quality free materials to help pilots and instructors everywhere. Please post to the US Hawks if you're interested in participating as a contributor or reviewer.

Also, anyone who wants to post this response to ACLaversa on the Oz Forum is welcome to do so. Thanks in advance.