Five years on line...

Since time ago, I had taken the decision not to tackle in my editorials, topics which were not closely related to modelling, so as not to get readers fed up, but mainly not to get off the focus of interest: the modelling, working with kits…etc.

However, this month you’ll have to apologize me, because not only the cover but the editorial are focused on ourselves…on Modeler Site, celebrating our 5th anniversary, this means that we’ve been on line, and without a break, since five years ago.

Such a conclusive event for us, that marks a milestone in Modeler Site’s history might not mean a lot for a new reader, but all those who join us along our trajectory will understand what I’m speaking about, at once.

This month’s cover is composed of pictures from the 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004 April cover issues and is a symbol of our magazine’s spirit, our view of modelling and life…and this is, content and perseverance.

Modeler Site is not a simple web site, it has been arranged like a magazine and needs all the work a magazine does, maybe less costs are of great benefit to us, as it’s obvious that whereas printing a paper magazine is by far, costlier than publishing a virtual magazine, the advertising we receive is also thousands times lower, so, our only way to survive was offering our articles in a friendly PDF format.

Thus, contents were our main concern from the very beginning, our articles should be so good or better than the ones published in well known magazines, not to be in competition, but showing a different conception, offering what we couldn’t find on those times we were readers, texts that could be easily understood providing modelers the necessary tools to do what could be appreciated in the pictures. To a certain extent, our notes are mostly devoted to intermediate and beginners.

It’s worthy of mention our contributors’ work, that after their business hours, put all the necessary effort and a great deal of time into writing articles, correcting other notes and even encouraging other modelers to contribute to our magazine, never forgetting our philosophy…good content is a must.

We are in debt to readers, we should brush up our English and Spanish. Most of the articles we receive are in one language and unfortunately, we can’t pay either translators or people to correct mistakes with English university degree…and vice-versa, many other articles are translated to Spanish in a short time, without getting the gracefulness the language has and the reader deserves. In spite that we become conscious of this, we’ve decided to invest our limited resources to reward modelers for the effort made when writing texts, taking the photos we need…etc, always aiming at offering an article easy to follow and with a useful content for the modeller…personal conceits have no place in Modeler Site.

Finally, I think that Modeler Site’s essential ingredient besides our contributors’ talent, is the perseverance to go after a dream that seemed nearly impossible to reach…and more precisely when surfing the crest of a wave…harder to keep.

From these lines, I give you a more than generous hug, thanking you all the support and help received, and I hope there will be an editorial to celebrate Modeler Site’s tenth anniversary …our next target. Would that be too much to hope for…?