USBP on Amazon update

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Oct 242014

I have – I *think* – just corrected an error in the listing that should open sales up worldwide. If some of all y’all furriners would like to take a look and see if it’s still unavailable, that’d be helpful. Note, though, that USBP#02 has been uploaded and is going through review… and – again I *think* – should be far better in terms of image resolution. If I get confirmation from a customer or three that #2 is better than #1, I will re-upload #1. I don’t know if previous purchasers can download the new, better version or not…

#2 took freakin’ *forever* to get properly formatted. I couldn’t find a way to get the “Caliber” converter on my computer to *not* reduce the image resolution, so I had to use the Amazon system directly, which meant uploading the thing and waiting for it to process, then looking through the annoyingly slow previewer for the innumerable and mysterious formatting issues. After around 20 cycles of this, I *think* I’ve got it hammered into shape with full-rez images. So while this is formatted and laid out differently from the standard PDF version, the image quality should be as good.

Unless something screwy happens (and, gosh, when has *that* ever happened), USBP#2 should be available on Amazon in the next some hours. I have high hopes of being asleep at the time. So if you’d like to be the first kid on your block with a copy, or want to help out be getting a copy early and providing feedback (if so, thanks), just search for “US Bomber Projects” on Amazon.

My plan at this time is to keep publications at Amazon about five or six issues behind those on my website.

USBP on Amazon

aircraft, blather, books, Hmm..., projects, US Bomber Projects 5 Responses »

Oct 242014

I have gotten some feedback by buyers of US Bomber Projects #01 on Amazon for the Kindle. Not a lot, but some. Half of the feedback is “Amazon won’t let me buy it because of where I am.” Hmmmph. I followed Amazons recommendations on pricing, and I guess that includes making it unavailable to all y’all non-American-types, even though I was pretty sure that the list of nations that it would be available in included the whole Anglosphere and then some. Or maybe it just takes longer to become available elsewhere. Hmmmph, I say.

Also: For USBP #02 on Amazon, I plan on tinkering with the format a bit. Nothing major, but I plan on trying to figure out why the filesize, an the imagery, got a lot smaller.

Also also: I went to Amazon and did a search on “bomber project” to see if and where USBP01 showed up. Turns out it’s right up there. Curiously, as you can see from the screenshot, USBP01 is listed as “#1 Best Seller in 30-Minute History Short Reads.” Woo! That was promising, so I spooled up the page that tells me how it’s selling, to see how many hundreds of copies it has sold to reach #1 status. Six!. Well… just “six.” Not “six hundred.” So I’m guessing that “30-minute short history reads” is a category that’s not exactly burning up the charts.

It’s in among some good company, at least. Pity about the dreary cover, I suppose.

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Yeeesh. Amazon e-pub … success!

AARRRGH, blather, books, Hmm..., US Bomber Projects, ಠ_ಠ 2 Responses »

Oct 222014

So a few days ago I released US Bomber Projects #11, US Transport Projects #01 and the 11X17 collection for USBP 07-09. Sales were… well, even more dismal than what I’ve grown accustomed to. So I wandered on over to Amazon to finally start trying to sell these through their system. I guess they don’t sell PDFs, but only Kindle format pubs… but the Amazon conversion process did *horrible* things to USBP #01. When I fed it the native Word document, the text got formatted all over the place, and the images were all replaced with red X’s. When i fed it the PDF version, the images were installed, but chopped up, and the text was still a mess. So I guess I’ll have to utterly repave every issue. Feh.

Anyone have any successful history with this? Specifically, half-image, half-text Amazon publications?

UPDATE 1

OK, I hammered away at USBP #01 and finally got it into a form that I think works (looks ok on the “Calibre” epub creator/viewer) and I seem to have walked it through the publication process on Amazon. However, it’s “in review,” and that could take 12 hours. So… there it is, I suppose. Assuming it all goes through, the selling price is set at $2.99. That’s a heck of a hit compared to the $4 price for standard PDF versions available directly from me (especially after Amazon takes their chunk), but I guess it’s ok for older issues. So if this works at all, new issues will be released on my website, and wind up on Amazon sometime down the line.

I will of course post a link to this when/if it becomes available. I have high hopes that there’s at least one somebody out there who just can’t wait to be first in line to get on board with this… and who will point out any formatting flaws or other problems that may appear on this first issue.

UPDATE 2

OK, it has gone through the approval process, and is now available over at Amazon. If anyone wants to be the first to take the plunge, I’d sure like to hear how it works & looks on your e-reader. On looking at the listing I realized that I left a lot out of the description, so I went back and edited that stuff in… but it appears that changes have to go right back into review, so for a number of hours the description is pretty sparse.

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US Bomber Projects #11, US Transport Projects #01 now available

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Oct 202014

As well as the 11X17-format PDF collection of diagrams for USBP07 through 09.

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USBP 11

Issue 11 of US Bomber Projects is now available (see HERE for the entire series). Issue #11 includes:

Boeing Model 464-40: The first all-jet-powered design in the quest for the B-52
North American D-118: A turboprop conversion of the F-82E into a ground attacker
Boeing Model 701-218: A twin engined supersonic concept
NAA Model 705-00-04: A ramjet cruise missile with a manned rocket booster
Northrop Nuclear Flying Wing: A well defended if rather hypothetical design
Martin Model 223-11: *almost* the XB-48
Boeing B-1: The design that might have beaten the Rockwell concept
Bell/Martin 464L: The submission that most closely resembled what the Dyna Soar eventually became

USBP #11 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4:

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USTP 01

And also available, issue #01 of US Transport Projects. Done in the same format as US Bomber Projects, USTP will cover flying vehicles designed to transport cargo, passengers and troops. Issue 01 includes:

Redstone Troop Transport: An Army concept for a troop & supplies launcher
Lockheed CL-334-1: A small STOL battlefield transport
NASA LH2 747: A “three fuselage” hydrogen-fueled jetliner
Douglas DC-8-1004: A very clean pusher-prop passenger liner
Bell/Boeing/NASA ATT: A wasp-waisted transonic concept
Boeing Model 733-94: An early SST
Aereon Dynairship: A giant modern airship
Boeing Model 473-10: One of the earliest jetliner designs

USTP #01 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4:

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Large format USBP drawings, Issues 07-09

The CAD drawings created for USBP reformatted and rescaled for 11X17 collected in a separate volume. Drawings have in some cases been corrected, improved and added to.

USBP 11X17 07-09 collects the diagrams created for issues 07, 08 and 09, including:

Boeing model 464-25; Boeing Model 828-2; Fairchild N-12; Rockwell D645-3; Boeing Model 701-273-7; Martin Model 223-7; Convair 464L Dyna Soar I; Convair 464L Dyna Soar III; Bell MX Hovercraft; Bell mobile defense platform; Boeing Model 464-27; Rockwell D645-6; Republic M-4.25; Martin MAMBA; Boeing Model 484-2-2 (twin-pod); Martin Model 223-8; Douglas 464L Dyna Soar I; Boeing Model 800-11A; Boeing Model 464-33-0; Consolidated Army Bombardment Type; GE Supersonic System 6X; Convair B/J-58 B-58C; Boeing Model 484-2-2; Martin Model 223-9; Northrop N-206 Dyna Soar I/II/III; Boeing Model 800-15A

USBP11x17-01-03 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $10:
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Forthcoming…

aircraft, drawings, new products, projects, US Bomber Projects 1 Response »

Oct 132014

I’d planned on having these done a few days ago, but as I’ve reported recently, CAD drafting has been difficult of late. Nevertheless I forged through, and here’s a preview of the next three things I plan to release.

US Bomber Projects #09 and 10 Now Available

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Sep 042014

Issues 09 and 10 of US Bomber Projects is now available (see HERE for the entire series). Issue #09 includes:

Boeing Model 464-33-0: A turboprop B-52 predecessor
Consolidated Army Bombardment Flying Wing: A ground attacker with an extreme mode of attack
GE Supersonic System 6X: A Mach 3 nuclear-powered bomber
Convair B/J-58: A supercuising version of the Hustler
Boeing model 484-2-2: AB-58 competitor
Northrop 464L: A blended wing/body spaceplane
Martin Model 223-9: a 1944 step on the road to the XB-48
Boeing Model 800-15A: A Mach 3.5 hydrogen fueled design of incredible range

USBP#09 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4:

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Issue #10 includes:

Boeing Model 464-34-3: A turboprop B-52 predecessor
Martin Model 192-5: A medium-sized flying wing
Republic Mach 7: a relatively small high-speed design
Convair WS-125A: A large nuclear powered supersonic design
Boeing model 484-415: A jet-powered supersonic flying boat
Boeing 464L: Boeings first Dyna Soar
Martin Model 223-10: a 1944 step on the road to the XB-48
Lockheed CL-1301-1: A very small VTOL ground attacker

USBP#10 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4:

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US “X” Projects

aircraft, APR, blather, books, drawings, history, Hmm..., new products, news, nukes, projects, rockets, spacecraft, US Bomber Projects 16 Responses »

Sep 032014

US Bomber Projects issues 09 and 10 are now done, and will be available for sale just as soon as I get all the requisite website blahblah worked out. Hopefully tonight. I have issues 11 and 12 planned out, though still quite a bit of drafting to do.

The USBP series has been modestly successful (not blisteringly so, but ok, I guess…). I’m pondering doing the same format but with something other than bombers. Other concepts include:

US Fighter Projects
US Transport Projects (jetliners, cargo, civvies, SSTs, HSTs, etc.)
US Recon & Experimental Projects
US Launch Vehicle Projects
US Spacecraft Projects (spaceplanes, moon landers, Mars ships, etc.)
US Helicopter Projects

So, a few questions for commentors:

1) What did I leave out?

2) What would you most like to see? Some of these have a much bigger database to work from than others, of course.

Sunday Evening Sale

sales & specials, US Bomber Projects No Responses »

Aug 242014

Because why not: until midnight or so I’m going to run a sale on US Bomber Projects. In short, all 8 current issues, plus the Preview, plus the two current 11X17 drawing packages, for 40% off for the whole block. Normally that would run $60, but for the duration of the sale, get everything all at once for $36.00.

Sale has ended.

Aug 192014

With the recent cat illnesses, serious dropoff in business and increase in vet bills, stress levels hereabouts have been at near-historic levels. But hey, at least I haven’t yet contracted a life threatening case of bronchitis in 2014 (that’s me, always looking on the bright side). One of the consequences of stress is a decrease in lesser creativity… I might still be able to creatively think myself out of some emergency situation, but art? Feh. Gone.

Fortunately, things are starting to crawl back towards the normal only-slightly-apocalyptic level of DOOM stress, and creativity is starting to slooowly return. So, some updates:

Support The Cause via Patreon

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Jun 282014

EDIT: I should note that Patreon contributions will likely be the sole source for most if not all of the diagrams and documents I release from here on. A few might wind up being sold individually as with prior Air & Space Dwgs & Docs, but most if not all won’t. I will shortly post information on some of what I have coming up. Some of it will, I trust, be of considerable interest to many…

I’ve launched the Patreon funding campaign:

http://www.patreon.com/user?u=197906

If you appreciate the aerospace research I do and the stuff I dig up, please consider contributing. As a bonus, you will get goodies if you do! High rez large format diagram scans, brochures, reports, proposals, etc.

Pledge $0.75 or more per month

You get my thanks and a warm fuzzy feeling, knowing that you are contributing to saving the history of aerospace engineering!

Pledge $1.50 or more per month

You will receive the uploaded documents and blueprints at 125 dpi

Pledge $3.00 or more per month

You will receive the uploaded documents and blueprints at 200 dpi

Pledge $4.00 or more per month

You will receive the uploaded documents and blueprints at 300 dpi

Pledge $5.00 or more per month

You will receive the uploaded documents and blueprints at 300 dpi plus a bonus CAD diagram at 300 dpi, sized for 8.5X11

Pledge $6.00 or more per month

You will receive the uploaded documents and blueprints at 300 dpi plus a bonus CAD diagram at 300 dpi sized for 11X17

Pledge $8.00 or more per month

You will receive the uploaded documents and blueprints at 300 dpi plus a bonus CAD diagram at 300 dpi sized for 18X24 or larger AND the diagram in the native vector format

Pledge $10.00 or more per month

You will receive all the prior rewards, plus have the opportunity to vote on what will be released next.

Tell all your friends.