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Date: Sun, 23 Feb 2014 15:02:31 -0500
From: "Bob LeChevalier, President and Founder - LLG" <lojbab@lojban.org>
Organization: The Logical Language Group, Inc.
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Subject: [Llg-members] *** LLG 2013 Annual Meeting: President's report -
 book publication and the future of LLG as an organization
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On 2/1/2014 9:22 PM, Bob LeChevalier, President and Founder - LLG wrote:
> The verdict on my pain is that I have a pinched nerve in my neck, and
> will likely need physical therapy for several weeks. I'm coping, more or
> less.

Alas, ability to focus and type have been intermittent things.

> I asked for inputs on a variety of things in my last message. Everyone
> but Robin Powell has signed in, but no one is saying anything in
> response, so it feels like I am talking to myself.

Robin did sign in, and has now reported as Treasurer, though not as byfy 
chair.  I also thank Ali for his report.

My president's report will be rather limited.  Firstly, I have not been 
all that active myself due to many distractions, including the birth of 
my granddaughter last October.  And I had wanted to try to gather 
information via IRC before reporting, but without being able to focus 
for long or to type, it didn't happen

Other than handling correspondence and non-amazon book orders, I haven't 
done much.

I will focus on the books, because after all these years, it is finally 
time to do so.

Firstly Lightning Source reported that 68 copies of the intro book were 
sold last year. I don't have much to say beyond that.  I've wished that 
we could get Nick Nicolas's intro textbook out there as well, but it 
hasn't happened.


CLL was published in 1997 with an edition of 1500 hardbound books. 
Around 300-400 of those turned out to be defective.  In 17 years we have 
been slowly selling the rest of them by word of mouth, with no real 
advertising.  We paid of my loan for printing costs several years ago, 
and all sales since have gone into the LLG common fund.

Last year was our best sales year since the first year.  We sold 72 
copies of CLL via Amazon.  Via paypal and snail mail orders, I sent out 
another 2 dozen or so (the exact number depends on whether you go by 
order date or shipping date).

So almost 100 CLLs were sold.

amazon.com ran out of books just before Christmas, but no one apparently 
noticed until I checked on the sales number as just reported.  Until I 
can ship more books to amazon, they are listing for sale only obscure 
individual copies at prices of several hundred dollars.  Of course I can 
fill orders sent to me via PayPal or snail mail, and I have 4 of those 
that need to be sent right now.

With my recent physical problems, I have not been able to get into the 
back corner of my basement where the CLLs are stored.  I may try later 
today, since I am holding up fairly well, but the book boxes are around 
50 pounds.  If I can't do it, I may need to wait until someone can 
assist me.  There are some Lojbanists in the DC area, but I haven't 
interacted much in recent years.

I am estimating from sight that we only have about 100 books left plus 
or minus a couple dozen.  At the recent rate of sale, therefore, we only 
have about a year before we are out of copies.

We should probably try to have a second edition of CLL prepared before 
then, or we should decide to produce another printing of the current 
edition.

A 2nd edition would presumably depend on what Robin and the byfy have 
been able to come up with by publication time, and only Robin can speak 
to that. (Hence my request for a report).

We also need to decide on whether to produce a hardbound like the 
current book, or whether to try a paper-bound, or both.

Ideally we should produce something in the way of a dictionary at the 
same time.  People have been printing off various copies from jbovlaste 
over the years, so we should be able to manage something official. 
Again, the question of hardbound or paper-bound or both is at issue.

We also need to decide how to publish, via Lightning Source or some 
other print-on-demand company, or on our own (continuing to sell via 
amazon and/or other online markets).

Even if my health were solid, I don't think I could manage all this 
myself.  So we need others to step up.

So the general topic of book publishing is now open as a topic under Old 
Business.

------------------------------

I also plan to call for a discussion under New Business of the future of 
this organization.

My health is still good overall, but I clearly am not able to actually 
get around to DOING what I would like.  With Robin's considerable help, 
I've minimally handled the business aspects of maintaining our existence 
as a legal organization.  But I don't think I am doing much at leading 
the community.  Matt Arnold, when he was president, was doing a much 
better job at that aspect, and I wish I were up to that sort of thing, 
but apparently I am not.  We do need the organization to be somehow be 
leading.

But the organization is itself becoming ineffective, even moribund.
Online meetings by mailing list has made having those annual meetings 
much easier, and included more people from around the world, but nothing 
much happens organizationally outside of the meetings (the exception 
being Ali's effort to put together the 25th anniversary celebration).

We've had almost no new members added in the last several years, and 
several of the old members have become inactive.  And older.

Dave Barton's recent death brings this home to me rather strongly.  He 
was a year younger than me when he died.  I have no health issues that 
imply that I won't be around for several more years, but we need to 
think about the possibility.  We need to get new people involved in 
maintaining the organization, and we need to ensure that the 
organization is prepared for a time when I no longer can do even the 
limited amount I have been doing.  (filling book orders, maintaining our 
legal existence as a Virginia non-profit organization, conducting these 
meetings, and ideally leading the community).

I have lots of thoughts on the matter, but nothing worthy of being a 
conclusion.  So I am throwing this topic out for discussion under new 
business.

-----------------------

Bob LeChevalier
President

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