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#13 2012-03-06 20:43:52

linguist
Member
Registered: 2007-11-03
Posts: 24

Re: TXP Magazine rises

I think that the magazine shouldn’t be called just TXP. For many of us, TXP refers to Textpattern CMS. It has been like that for a long time and probably will be for years to come. (I’m just a user, but I love TXP, meaning CMS.)

Textpattern docs, forums, and sites around the world are full of the abbreviations “TXP, Txp, TxP” referring to CMS Textpattern. In the book Textpattern Solutions (2007), Textpattern and TXP are used interchangeably:

Textpattern tags… TXP tags (txp:article, txp:title, txp:link, etc.)
a TXP veteran… a TXP newbie… the official TXP forum
Textpattern users… TXP users… Textpattern developers… developers of TXP
upgrading TXP… future releases of TXP… versions of TXP
the TXP interface… the Textpattern interface… THE TEXTPATTERN INTERFACE

In my opinion, the old name, TXP Magazine, is quite good, consistent with its URL txpmag.com, and more recognizable as a magazine name than just TXP, and much less confusing at that. For example, the title of one article of the magazine, namely “TXP reanimation”, sounds as if it were referring to Textpattern, even though I already knew that it was not when I was reading and rereading it. Can’t help thinking that such a title may be a disservice to Textpattern CMS. By the way, the name of the magazine should be italicized, if possible.

That said, I want to express my thanks to the authors and editors of the magazine for their time and effort. Today I read all the articles of the first issue of the magazine, and all of them are quite interesting. Looking forward to the next issue.

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#14 2012-03-07 00:36:39

Destry
Member
From: Haut-Rhin
Registered: 2004-08-04
Posts: 4,909
Website

Re: TXP Magazine rises

linguist,

Thanks for reading TXP. Glad you like it. The next issue will not disappoint. Maybe even stir up some more debate, and that’s good for readership. :)

Just to clarify a couple things…

As was explained, “magazine” is still a functional part of the name, we just don’t elaborate it, because there’s no need:

Like the other respected web magazines we considered, we’ll keep using “magazine” in the web domain, in the copyright statement, and other places concerning business communication.

It’s very unlikely that anyone will look at the magazine’s UI and be confused about what it is or what it represents. There are many elements in the UI that, together, strongly communicate the genre and scope.

Also, we are not the “Txpolice”; it’s no our position to tell you are anyone else what to say or write outside of Textpattern’s official copy. We’re not concerned with blogs and forums around the world, or even this one, really; we’re concerned with establishing some consistency in our own work so that other publishers are less likely to make mistakes with the brand. That’s not a bad thing. And that’s why brand use conventions are being prepared. Editorial guidelines will be used for TXP and Textpattern Docs copy at the very least, arguably the two most important places where content needs to be as clear as possible. That’s all any brand has control over—their own content—and we’re no different.

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#15 2012-03-07 10:35:50

Algaris
Member
From: England
Registered: 2006-01-27
Posts: 535

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Bloke wrote:

Although we planned not to make an official announcement on the forum as we’re now using the social channels to promote, discuss and publicise the magazine…

This has reminded me of something that’s been playing on my mind for a little while now.

I’ve noticed a definite policy shift towards de-emphasising the forum in favour of social media. I’m all in favour of pushing Textpattern (and TXP) via the various social media channels and think it’s an excellent way to promote them, but please not at the expense of the forum. Not everyone has access or wants to use social media. When I’m at work with my Textpattern hat on I check the forum everyday, comment on the latest happenings if I feel inclined and follow links from here to relevant news. When I’m at home and have access to social media the last thing I feel like doing is wading through a stream of tweets, Google+ and Facebook posts just to find out the latest happenings and comment on them. Every time I see a Google+ link to a Textpattern discussion I have an inward sigh as I know I won’t be able to follow and take part in it.

By all means encourage people to discuss Textpattern (and TXP) via social media and not hide away from the wider public, but please don’t stop posting news announcements here. Even if it’s in a reduced format at least I can read about it and add my 2 pence if so inclined.

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#16 2012-03-07 11:40:50

Destry
Member
From: Haut-Rhin
Registered: 2004-08-04
Posts: 4,909
Website

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Algaris, Ross…

Thanks. We hear you. Jonathan wrote something similar above and we on the editorial side of TXP completely agree that we need to promote in every channel. Blacklisting the forum was never the intention.

Here’s the deal. Straight up. Maybe by sharing it we can all go back to regular programming:

The magazine is not a horse committee affair. It doesn’t operate based on the opinions of the 1%. (Yes, another new concept for this community). That’s how the magazine used to operate and that model didn’t really work. Nobody should be surprised by that.

That’s why I chided Bloke (he knows I’m pulling his leg) about starting this thread because I knew it would turn into a ‘my opinion this… my opinion that’, and that’s simply not productive.

Keeping a simple frequency open in the forum for mag announcements is a good idea, but this is what to expect on that:

  1. It will go in Textpattern’s websites and social channels because that’s the right forum.
  2. There should be no need for multiple threads from us (the editorial side); a single thread that we update with news, when we have something to update will suffice. (This one, perhaps, if it’s moved, but maybe we’ll start a new one titled “News from the Mag”, or something equally silly.)
  3. The information we give will be announcement type information. We will not indulge discussion regarding magazine direction, editorial decisions… magazine business in general. We have our own planning channels for that, and they are not public. (The trick to accessing that level of detail is to participate on the team when an opening comes up.) Debating in context of a given magazine article is, of course, encouraged.
  4. We will never announce anything here first. All official announcements will be in TXP directly, typically in the From the Editor column each issue. Everything else is just rippling from where the pebble hit the water.
  5. We will not try and syncronize the same messages conveyed through all social channels. Some things are just better suited to certain channels. We don’t have the time or people power to be quite so redundant. We leave some of that sharing responsibility with the community.

We will still push our social channels because NEW and POTENTIAL users of Textpattern CMS are TXPs primary target audiences (that doesn’t mean the only audiences). Those people certainly don’t have accounts in this forum. We need to go out to them, as best we can. It’s no more conniving that that.

I think we can all get along with this.

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#17 2012-03-07 11:43:38

Destry
Member
From: Haut-Rhin
Registered: 2004-08-04
Posts: 4,909
Website

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Would people feel better if I change my avatar pic…maybe stand in the sun with a suit and tie on or something? Put a hamburger in my mouth, or a cigarette up my nose, to lighten the mood.

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#18 2012-03-07 12:05:59

Algaris
Member
From: England
Registered: 2006-01-27
Posts: 535

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Thank you for your reply Destry. I very much agree with what you’re saying and believe that Textpattern and TXP should be pushed strongly through the social channels. I guess my main concern was that I might fall out of the loop as I don’t have access to them when I’m in ‘Textpattern mode’.

We’re living in very exciting times for Textpattern.

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#19 2012-03-07 12:15:37

Bloke
Developer
From: Leeds, UK
Registered: 2006-01-29
Posts: 11,250
Website GitHub

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Uhh, yeah, sorry. In the cold light of day my opener sounds unduly harsh. It was late.

I should have said we’re simply using the social channels primarily to promote mag business to reach a wider audience than those that have forum accounts. Magazine stuff like that filters down to the forum, rather than the traditional approach of the forum being the centre: it’s now one of many discussion outlets.

The forum is fine for people like me, to discuss plugins (currently: I haven’t yet embraced Git but may do), float ideas around about the CMS, chit-chat about this CMS and that CMS, and so forth. I do that here, I do that on Facebork and occasionally G+ when I remember I have an account there. But I try not to duplicate the message because that gets boring real fast.

Twitter: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
Facebork: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
G+: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
Forum: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
stefdawson.com: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out

People with accounts or feeds from all those places tire quickly of others using a megaphone. It’s like that damn Clippy thing from Micro$oft Word (Hey, it looks like you’re writing a letter)!

So, as Destry says, each channel has its own flavour of information; and the type of info will be relevant to the strengths of that channel. As the other sites in the Textpattern universe come up to scratch (meh, .org one day) and each have their own focus, stuff will start to gel a little better and we can all choose how we like to be kept abreast of one thing more than another.

The end result is we all get info that’s of interest to us at the same time as promoting the CMS and the community. Most importantly, the various channel flavours invite discussion in the most suitable location for that content, in context.

Last edited by Bloke (2012-03-07 12:16:30)


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#20 2012-03-07 13:33:20

colak
Admin
From: Cyprus
Registered: 2004-11-20
Posts: 9,007
Website GitHub Mastodon Twitter

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Twitter: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
Facebork: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
G+: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
Forum: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
stefdawson.com: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out

I wonder if there’s a way to have feeds here in the forum from the social networks for those of us who either are not members or who just don’t follow them.

I like the new look of txp mag by the way:)


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I do my best editing after I click on the submit button.

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#21 2012-03-07 14:37:14

Algaris
Member
From: England
Registered: 2006-01-27
Posts: 535

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Bloke wrote:

Uhh, yeah, sorry. In the cold light of day my opener sounds unduly harsh. It was late.

Stef staying up late on a work night? ;-) I wasn’t pointing my stubby little fingers in your direction, just a general observation. =)

Bloke wrote:

I try not to duplicate the message because that gets boring real fast.

Twitter: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
Facebork: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
G+: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
Forum: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out
stefdawson.com: Hey I’ve got a new plugin out

Yeah we want to avoid that. Anyway I’m quite reassured and won’t derail this thread anymore than I already have.

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#22 2012-03-07 15:08:48

linguist
Member
Registered: 2007-11-03
Posts: 24

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Destry wrote:

Also, we are not the “Txpolice”; it’s no our position to tell you are anyone else what to say or write outside of Textpattern’s official copy. We’re not concerned with blogs and forums around the world, or even this one, really; we’re concerned with establishing some consistency in our own work so that other publishers are less likely to make mistakes with the brand. That’s not a bad thing. And that’s why brand use conventions are being prepared. Editorial guidelines will be used for TXP and Textpattern Docs copy at the very least, arguably the two most important places where content needs to be as clear as possible. That’s all any brand has control over—their own content—and we’re no different.

Destry,
Thank you for answering.

Maybe it’s really not that important what the abbreviation TXP refers to, or will refer to from now on. But I still believe that for the sake of consistency and brand recognition one should use, expand and strengthen what already exists. Radical changes may lead in the opposite direction, unfortunately.

My Google search for TXP shows seven related results on the first page: five out of seven for Textpattern CMS and two for TXP Magazine. On the second page, five results for Textpattern CMS. On the third page, six results for Textpattern CMS and one result for TXP Magazine. Sites shown on the first three pages of Google search for the term TXP include textpattern.com, forum.textpattern.com, textpattern.org, textpattern.ru, textpattern.net, txptips.org, txpmag.com, welovetxp.com, txpbuilders.com, txp-fr.net, txp-plugins.netcarving.com, txp-templates.com and some others.

By the way, TXP is even listed in an online dictionary (http://acronyms.thefreedictionary.com/TXP):

Acronym Definition
TXP Transponder (aircraft radio that responds to radar)
TXP Tape Transport (usually open reel tape deck)
TXP Taxoprexin DHA-paclitaxel
TXP tumor xenograft pharmacology
TXP Transaction Processor
TXP Transmit Power (communications technology measurement)
TXP Textpattern
TXP Transaction Protocol

Of course, we should use the term Textpattern when referring to Textpattern CMS, especially in formal context. But TXP is a useful and catchy abbreviation for Textpattern in less formal context, used in the same way as other informal abbreviations are used: WP for WordPress, EE for ExpressionEngine, FF for Firefox, etc. Just found an instance where Dean Allen used it informally in a funny way: Txp bee one 3 for Textpattern beta 1.3 (http://textism.com/article/687/txp-bee-one-3).

It’s understandable that using TXP only for the magazine (and not for Textpattern) may help promote the magazine a little, but at the same time it may diminish Textpattern’s recognizability. Besides, in my opinion, the name TXP Magazine, or TXP Mag, sounds much better and is more consistent with the rest of Textpattern-related products, projects, and sites. At least, that’s my opinion.

Last edited by linguist (2012-03-07 15:19:28)

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#23 2012-03-07 15:47:21

sacripant
Plugin Author
From: Rhône — France
Registered: 2008-06-01
Posts: 479
Website

Re: TXP Magazine rises

Linguist +1

Creation of an acronym, an abbreviation, a nickname is human. Especially in France, where everything becomes acronym:

  • Dominique Strauss-Khan = DSK
  • Bernard Henry Levy = BHL
  • WordPress = WP

and

  • Textpattern = TXP = TEXTPATTERN, It’s like that

Of more, communications tools like SMS or microblogging incite the use abbreviation.

So using the abbreviation of Textpattern for the magazine name, I think you wanted this confusion, but I have trouble understanding this strategy.

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#24 2012-03-07 17:29:24

maruchan
Member
From: Ukiah, California
Registered: 2010-06-12
Posts: 590
Website

Re: TXP Magazine rises

It’s almost like .net :-) I think it’s just great to use “TXP” for the magazine and I think it looks a lot bolder, more dominant than whatever might happen to be longer and easier to comprehend.

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