NEW EBOOK: Minimum QRP - Doing more with under five watt amateur radio - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: vk3yedotcom
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 12, 2015, 08:28:52 pm
content: Just released is a new Kindle eBook dealing with success with low power amateur radio operating, or QRP as it's often known.Minimum QRP: Doing more with under five watt amateur radiois more an operating manual than a project book, so might not appeal to the person whose interest is strictly building.There's many project ideas but very few circuit diagrams for instance.But if you buildanduse gear gear on air then it could be of interest.For example substantial attention is given to homebrew equipment selection, especially in deciding which of the many available kits to buy or projects to build if making a transmitter or transceiver from scratch.When specifying the wanted features of something you should spend a lot of time imagining the user with it. Or, yourself if the project is for you.Minimum QRPgoes into quite a lot of detail on this with regards to homebrew radio gear. Antenna selection also gets a lot of attention, with many easy to build suggestions made.There is definitely such a thing as 'too simple' if a cute one-transistor circuit doesn't achieve what you want and you're endlessly calling with no replies. And 'too complex' if you never end up finishing a transceiver project. Minimum QRP goes through the features to look for in a circuit or kit you're considering constructing. A common beginner trap is the 'stupidly simple' which can lead to disappointment if your expectations of what it will do have been inflated. Applicable to many areas of electronics - not just radio!Anyway if this interests you, there's a summary, table of contents, cover and ordering info at:http://www.alphalink.com.au/~parkerp/miniqrp.htmComments and suggestions are invited and can be left on Amazon and/or sent to me.

author: aargee
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 12, 2015, 09:02:34 pm
content: I can't say anything of the quality of the book, but why not just start the post with "I have just released a new book...." rather than open with the wording of a reviewer?It's almost like people are not proud of their achievement when they do this.

author: vk3yedotcom
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2015, 07:46:35 am
content: Awkward wording or not, people seem to be buying, with over 300 sold in the first week and #1 ratings in the UK, US and Australia in certain categories.A few have requested print editions. Not sure if it's worth the effort and haven't investigated Lulu yet.Ebooks appear to be ideal for specialist authors (eg electronics or technical) writing for a niche.Established publishers do have books on Kindle but often their prices are high. This creates an opening for independent authors. And a high proportion of ebooks are written by independent authors.Independent writers can do well if they know their market and have enough links with it to get cost-free promotion (eg blogs).If you already have a high-rating website or youtube channel then a banner or video advertising your book is both free and effective.Even if you don't have much of a website I've found it good to have a web presence for the book, with a shot of the cover, contents and links to Amazon shops in various countries where people can buy. You can then use that link in promotional material and it will be applicable around the world.The upload and publishing process is a lot easier than I thought it would be. If you can write a Word document you can write an ebook.There's a few tricks with pricing (you can either do it in $US and let it do the exchange rate or separately price for each country). Also although the upload seems to be an integrated worldwide sites the individual 'shop' sites are not. So you may need to have an author profile separately on each (if you want one - it's optional).As for royalties, it seems to be 70% (for most countries) provided your book isn't priced too cheap. Having a small file size is desirable as download cost from Amazon comes off your profit.To summarise, if you have something to say and it's a niche area (like electronics!) then writing an ebook is highly recommended. And the money coming in (from good sales) seems to be better than YouTube ads!