See new audio and video features on
Alert readers may have a nagging feeling that something is missing within the familiar pages of AOPA Pilot this month. They would be right. The little black boxes with the red and white "i-box" icon that for years have accompanied most articles — and have steered you toward additional information on the Internet — disappear with this issue.
In their place, our design director has introduced a new icon labeled "Interactive" to guide you to a collection of new pages on AOPA Online where you will find expanded information and multimedia content related to AOPA Pilot.
What will you find on AOPA Pilot Online? As you might have guessed, some familiar features, names, and faces.
Did you ever wonder what it would be like to be a barnstormer and see the world from 500 feet — treetops, housetops, and cornstalks whipping by? You don't have to guess anymore. AOPA Pilot Senior Editor Alton K. Marsh engaged in the fantasy for a couple of days last summer and shares his experiences in a way only he can, with humor and insight and a touch of whimsy. Just for fun, we also gave him a small video camera and a license to shoot whatever struck his fancy. The result is Sky and Canvas, a Web video that will make you want to run away and join the circus (by the way, if you see Al, tell him to come home).
Now that the AOPA's Six in '06 Sweepstakes Piper Cherokee Six is finished and ready for a new owner, AOPA Pilot Editor at Large and sweepstakes pilot Tom Horne couldn't wait to take it up and show it off. Although the winner will have to wait until next year to fly the prize home, you can see it fly now online.
Likewise, when freelance writer/pilot Jason Paur suggested a story for us about hauling Christmas trees in the upper Northwest using helicopters, we told him we had to see it to believe it. You'll believe it too after you see his video report Christmas Tree Transport online.
To make these interactive features possible, AOPA Pilot joined forces with the experts in AOPA's Information & Technology department and the talented staff of AOPA ePublishing, the group that brings AOPA ePilot to you each week. We also enlisted the help of a Web design firm, Immersion Interactive.
One feature we hope you will try out is a "multimedia viewer" specially designed for AOPA that uses the latest Flash technology to display the videos, slide shows, animations, audio files, and other interactive media the Web is tailor-made to present. Just select the appropriate tab on the top of the viewer; controls for starting, stopping, adjusting the volume, and enlarging the image also are included.
This is just one of the online features incorporated into AOPA Pilot Online as a result of membership requests, and with your help, those features will continue to evolve to meet your needs even better. We'd like to hear your comments.
Most publishing experts don't believe that the Web will ever completely replace one of the most intuitive and easy-to-use devices ever created for delivering information — the ubiquitous printed magazine. The staff of AOPA Pilot tends to agree (no bias, of course). But when teamed with the award-winning print edition, we hope that AOPA Pilot Online will become at least as useful and as trusted a source of information about general aviation. Come back often to see and hear the latest.
E-mail the author at [email protected].
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