Gotta say... my first rant about FT.

[kilroy07]

0-80 in 2 seconds - I'm impressed!

Probably why it crashed!

I've only been in "The Family" for a year and a half, so I still consider myself a newcomer.
When I watched the early videos there was a certain chemistry with Josh and Josh, with Peter and with David (I really miss the time they were a part of the program!)
I realize FT has to make a living, I get that... But I also have seen a sort of disconnect from this community.
the flip side to that there appears to be a LOT of the members still hanging around offering help to us "newbies" (I appreciate you ALL btw)

I guess what I am saying is @PsyBorg I hope you don't leave the community (forums) here, we met at FF last year (My first) you and all the other redshirts accepted me into the team like we had known each other for years... That's a pretty special thing to find these days, and I sincerely hope it doesn't fade away!...

Maybe someone (with connections) can reach out to the FT folks and maybe put a bug in their ear that they might be neglecting their grass roots. My first impression of them is that they will take that to heart...

Conversation is always good, even when it's about something difficult to talk about!

 

[CarolineTyler]

I was on FB for a long time, been free for almost 2 years. It used to be cool. Twitter is cancer IMO, I never even registered there.

2 years Facebook free here, leaving felt so difficult but actually it was the easiest thing. Freedom from angst magnified by so many onlookers.

 

[FDS]

This is not a new thing, many hobbies have had the same problems when champions of freedom take the corporate $.
YouTube’s own changes have partly driven the need for sponsors, if you rely on any of their revenue paying wages (for the example if you need to pay a video director) then the way ad revenue and view counts etc has been altered over the last two or three years has cut payments to small and medium channels by a lot.

I respect people’s right to earn a living, after all if you work as hard as the FT guys and girls do then you should be rewarded. Business needs capital to grow, we all want FT to grow.

HOWEVER, I feel there is a line of principle at stake. There is a huge difference to me between making extra money from your content (everyone makes click bait sometimes) and DEBASING YOURSELF and all you stand for simply for the sake of money. The “let me take a minute to tell you about our sponsor” bit is SOULLESS COMMERCIALISM, I have much less respect for any maker that compromises their personal integrity like that, it’s cringeworthy. Every time I see it on ANY channel, it makes me sad. It’s not like any of the sponsors were even hobby related.
WTF has an app game got to do with getting together with your friends and family to make memories through flight? If anything that type of trash is part of the reason many families DON’T spend enough time together!
I never minded hobby companies like Horizon sponsoring things, after all at least it’s related content.

The store, I haven’t been here long enough to comment and there isn’t one in Europe. From a business standpoint I can see how using someone else’s warehouse and distribution system might save money and the bigger reach of their brand might sell more of your product. Consumers can vote with their feet.

Edgewater- I loved the visionary aspect of that, but it’s thousands of miles away in Ohio, so is less important to me than say getting an EU or better still UK Flite Fest. I wish them well with it.

Overall I would say the content on YouTube in the last 4 months has been pretty terrible. Click bait titles, repetitive intros and those vomit inducing sponsor plugs.
The actual plane builds have been as good as before, the master series and the big A10 show they still have the ability to push their chosen medium in new and exciting directions.

Forums Vs Facearse, it’s a continual thing. In my experience forums have more integrity and the people who populate good, well moderated forums work very hard to keep them welcoming and happy, unlike Facearse groups where seemingly anything goes and stuff gets tossed out there just for traffic through the page.

 

[SlingShot]

Take what you want, and eat what you take, says it about as well as anything else.

A lot seems to be related to audience and audience size. I noticed early on that their article pages had a lot more hits than the forum. Presumably the FB behemoth dwarfs the other audiences.

There's more quirkyness here on the forum and you get access to some of the best minds in the FT community, but sadly, it is probably also the case that we're not the favorite child. That equates to less hand holding.

 

[FlyingMonkey]

Hi guys... I see it's time for the annual winter induced, cabin fever "discussions". Mind if I chime in here on a few points I've seen mentioned?

That is when I noticed our forums falling by the wayside with a lot of good and dedicated people left holding down the fort with less and less interaction coming from FTHQ.

I've been around Flite Test for a long time... since the beginning even. I was the one who suggested the forums, and was somewhat involved in their creation. FT has never been overly involved in the forum. They've had a few attempts at being more active on here, but it's never been their priority. This is something they created for us, the community to use and enjoy. At no cost to us.

Fast forward past a successful campaign and the birth of Edgewater Air Park.

With that came more growth and more change as well as more distraction from what attracted me and I assume most of the early people in the FT movement.

This to me has manefested in a loss of focus of the original values and is migrating more and more into corporate rather then family driven orientation.

Edgewater and corporate are two things that should not be in the same sentence. Edgewater is a huge step towards making Flite Test more accessible to the community, not less. Is it distracting? Maybe, but the end goal I think is going to be very much worth it.

The two most recent and obvious markers for me have been to move to partner with Amain and pass control of sales in that direction.

The second is the addition of homemade commercials or ads into all the content.

Every time Flite Test does something that involves commercializing the content, people object. "Flite Test has lost contact with its original intent" is a common theme. I've been involved with Flite Test from the very beginning. As in from a conversation with Chad where he told me... "I have an idea for this show..." Trust me, commercializing it has always been the intent. Is every method going to work? No. Partnering with HobbyKing was seen as selling out, but it kept FT afloat, until other ideas could be discovered and implemented.

We all get to enjoy the free episodes, the free forums, articles, podcasts, social media access, plans, build videos, etc. But then use some of those same free items to complain about the high cost of a few product or service endorsements that are slipped into the show.

Now on to the ads and homemade commercials. I dont deny FT the right to recoup money for their effort by having sponsors. The standard links in video discriptions work fine. A section on the forums for sponsors is also fine. We all know how you tube works and can use forum search to find things the sponsors may provide.

My issue is this. Flying rc is what I do for fun. I am old and grumpy and have little time for it left. I do not need it invaded like everything else by advertising specially for things NOT related to the hobby.

I cant imagine how much of my life has been wasted waiting in commercials and ads I care nothing about.

See my last statement above... I remember when people complained about the intros that every episode used to have. The great thing is, these free videos are on the internet. You can fast forward through the parts you don't like with a scroll of the mouse. I'm going to guess that Flite Test has a better handle on what forms of ad placement works best for them. I don't play online video games, but if a couple seconds of them marketing that to a fairly large portion of the audience helps keep Flite Test in the black, then that's a small cost for me to contribute to them.

I was never a huge supporter of the store, the shipping and customs costs are just too high to justify in most cases. That only got worse with the move to Amain. As for the new style ads in the videos... I can not stand them. I understand the need for a company to make money, but it does seem the focus has shifted to money > all.

If you don't support them through the store, which is fine, and don't like the advertising they are using to generate revenue to support the show, forums, plans distribution... then what method of funding the operation are you in favor of?

I never used the FT store being in europe.... Also sponsor messages in the middle of videos, no one likes that. I wouldnt mind if they were at the end but I always skip them, not interested in that. Would be nice to at least make them less invasive.

If an episode producer put the sponsor's message at the end, "where I always skip them" then why would a sponsor pay for the message to be put where no one will watch them? If you're not supporting through the store, and don't like the advertising, then you're basically saying you want Flite Test to produce content, provide free plans, online support, more interaction, build videos, etc... but you want them to do it for free.

Imo the best videos Ft was putting out were about a year and a half ago.

I always love seeing these posts. It seems that Flite Test's best content is always the videos that were being produced when that person found Flite Test. Go back a year and a half, and you'll find people complaining that "Flite Test has lost it's way, the videos aren't as good as they used to be."

I agree with the concensus: there is no reason for FT to advertise non-hobby things in a video. They are a business, they make their own money providing products and services for a specific hobby. How would you feel walking into a Jaguar dealership and the salesman says, "I'd love to show you the newest E-type, but first, have you heard about the new sandwich options at Chick-fil-a? It doesn't belong.

Heh heh heh... one of my favorite episodes.

I realize FT has to make a living, I get that... But I also have seen a sort of disconnect from this community.

I've seen this comment mentioned often over the years. If this was truly the case, FT would have no connection to the community at all by now. It's cyclical. Spring will return, the shows will feel more inclusive as the focus in Ohio returns to more group episodes filmed outside.

HOWEVER, I feel there is a line of principle at stake. There is a huge difference to me between making extra money from your content (everyone makes click bait sometimes) and DEBASING YOURSELF and all you stand for simply for the sake of money. The “let me take a minute to tell you about our sponsor” bit is SOULLESS COMMERCIALISM

Yeah... here we go with the "advertising is bad" comment again. Flite Test has grown into a business that has employees that need to feed their families, pay their mortgages, and car loans. Flite Test isn't "debasing itself simply for the sake of money. Clearly the income from all the people using the free forums, watching the free episodes, building the planes from free plans isn't quite cutting it. They had to lay off several employees this year. But, yeah, let's complain because a video game or an app ad that you can fast forward through paid some of the expenses that Flite Test generates while providing us with all the free services that people then turn around and complain about.

Overall I would say the content on YouTube in the last 4 months has been pretty terrible. Click bait titles, repetitive intros and those vomit inducing sponsor plugs.
The actual plane builds have been as good as before, the master series and the big A10 show they still have the ability to push their chosen medium in new and exciting directions.

Not to be too contrary, but what I'm seeing here is... "I'm still enjoying the benefits of Flite Test designing, prototyping, and distributing model planes at an expense to them, and no cost to me, but I will complain about the advertising they use to supplement my lack of financial support."

Forums Vs Facearse, it’s a continual thing. In my experience forums have more integrity and the people who populate good, well moderated forums work very hard to keep them welcoming and happy, unlike Facearse groups where seemingly anything goes and stuff gets tossed out there just for traffic through the page.

Ok, I'm getting a bit tired of this one too. Clearly you haven't been to the Flite Test Fans Facebook group. I have a very aggressive stance on keeping it family friendly in there. Facebook is a tool, and is only as good or bad as the user. I enjoy the format for being able to have live conversations with my friends there. Just like I enjoy the ability to have and follow a slower paced discussion on the forum. Like it or not, Facebook has become a media that is essential for businesses to use if they want to stay in contact with their customer base.


Ok, phew, rant over, I think.

Thanks for keeping it all civil in here.

 

[BS projects inc.]

The only parts I agree with are about the store and the forums. First off I think that even though partnering with AMAIN might have helped Flite Test and most certainly does not benefit the community. We now how to buy Flite Test products through a large corporation like amain. Literally the one thing that made the FT store so awesome was the quality and smaller yet fantastic selection of products because they were all FT products or FT endorsed. Secondly I think it's atrocious the way that the FT crew has borderline abandoned the forums. There are hundreds of threads directly concerning the FT crew that have and will go unanswered. The only person I see on the forums sometimes is James Wholesomely who talks about the articles every once in a while. I think its terrible how they have chosen to contact the community through Facebook and not the forums because it shows what their priorities are.

 

[PsyBorg]

Hiya Fred thanks for bringing those points to light. Yes you are correct this type of rant happens in most places where out door hobbies reside.

However there are several differences here.

Lets start with the importance of Facebook and what it brings to the table. Lets begin with Kwad Share.. what did that bring to our community. Not people coming here for help like it has always had. It brought an onslought of beggars thinking everyone here would hand them brand new top of the line gear just by posting an I am poor thread.

None of us is super set financially which is one if the reasons FT is so popular.

How many of those Facebookers come and contribute to the whole of FT. From what I see most come for free plans, use Banggood electronics, and rarely say thank you for the help let alone stay to pass it forward.

Dont get me wrong there are some that have come thru FB and become valued parts of our forum family. Sadly the ratio of people wanting to join the community to people wanting to abuse the community dont balance no matter how much money is generated.

Which brings us around to the store. Again how many of the all for one and one for me crowd attracted from Facebook actually use the store. The stores main support came from "the family". People really into the hobby.

Moving the store to a company totally unrelated to flight makes zero sense. I understand wanting to branch out into all aspects of rc but FT forte is based in flight.

Add into that the community that was the highest percentage of support for the store here has voiced unhappiness with that change AND have publically stated they have voted with their wallets. That makes the yearly winter blah rants a tad more important I would think.

Which brings us around to communication. No one here is expecting the FT core to hang out and hand hold. What has been asked is important communication be passed on here as well.

For example things regarding Flite Fest. Thats just a tad important for say... people who have gone every year... or maybe the volunteers needing to know specific dates to get time off from work.

That comes around to personel and salaries. Its not hard to copy n paste the same info posted on social media here. It takes literally seconds.

That comes around to the core team not having enough time to do things. Thats understandable but its a choice. Its great to see such ambition after nearly a decade from them but its a choice to branch out so many directions so quickly. Spreading out so thin rather then focusing in what they do best is a choice that is effecting a very loyal fan base who HAS been letting the FT know their content us suffering. Thats a choice not a necessity so using "too busy" as a reason is moot.

These are not "winter boredom rants" they have been coming on and off over the last year and a half. It just happens to be winter when the aggitation over ads has brought me to a point I needed to point things out during a normal lull so maybe some if it can be addressed now not in the middle of peak season.

So far all the voices have been sporadic but the same points are popping up now more and more.
Putting it out into one organized place will show how much an issue these issues are.

What you and or FT do with that information is up to you.

Im not here to be that guy..nor be a burr under the saddle. If I didnt care about this place I would simply walk away. I have no stake in any of this other then a bunch of cool people I can associate and share a hobby with. Maybe even a few new real life friends thru here.

For that part of it I thank you and for that part is why I have brought this to the forefront.

 

[FDS]

I did not say advertising is bad, Youtube is a commercial platform, to produce good content regularly on it costs money. I don’t mind ads at the beginning/end or a sponsor being name checked at the beginning or end of a video, or a sponsors product being used if it’s stated as sponsor given product. What I do object to is AWFUL and DISRUPTIVE breaks in a short video promoting something that is NOTHING to do with the hobby or content of the video.

Making money is fine, treating your YouTube viewers like brain dead fools waiting to be mugged by tacky ads right in the middle of something they care about is not. That’s why nobody watches main stream commercial TV anymore and why pop up blockers are such popular bits of software.
I support FT by buying their product, watching their content (unless it’s full of ads) and by contributing as much as I can. I wouldn’t mind if there was a small charge for plans, they cost money to make. I am amazed at what is still free. I don’t take any of those things for granted, equivalents certainly don’t exist in other hobbies I do.

I am not a Facebook person, I have had my share of issues with the platform so don’t engage with it, thus I appreciate information not being exclusively given out there. It might be popular but if supporting that comes at the expense of other places and you are told “you should have looked at FB” then that’s not a community approach that works for me. I am sure the FT pages are well run, but the platform is hideous IMO.

As for the store, I don’t support Graupner except by buying FT speedbuild kits, their stuff is amazing quality but really expensive, like twice the price of similar products. If there was a direct FT Europe store with ample stock and £1:$1 ratio on price then I would support that. There isn’t.

Not got a problem with a contrary opinion from someone who has been involved here longer than me, just wanted to clarify my opinion.
Rapid growth from small to medium sizes is really hard to do in communities and business, especially without alienating your core customers/audience.
These discussions are essential to help everyone see what’s what.

 

[JTarmstr]

I am noticing a lot of people complaining about unrelated sponsors for the videos, but the problem is that its hard to get a sponsor, there are companies that do a ton of sponsors like nord VPN, World of Warships, War Thunder, but the thing is, you cant make a company like grayson hobby sponsor you with a 1.5 minute add, even if you could it just wont give the same amount of money that something like Fortnite or World of Warships would. That said I completely agree with ads in the middle they are quite anoying, in my opinion they should be at the end or beginning, never in the middle.

 

[FDS]

Exactly. Put that stuff at the start or end if you muse have it.
Also, if your business model requires sponsors to generate any content at all, then you need to look at your model? I would rather have less but better content.
There’s cheaper ways to make content surely? The Vlogs only cost a bit of time, even the video podcasts can’t have been that expensive to make?

 

[FlyingMonkey]

Hiya Fred thanks for bringing those points to light. Yes you are correct this type of rant happens in most places where out door hobbies

This begs the question, is the forum the best place to air such greivances?

What is the goal here? Is it to express concerns and views with the intention of a conversation with a decision maker at Flite Test? Or is it to create an echo chamber of discontent where at best someone from Flite Test will feel blackmailed into coming in and posting a reply? It works, this will get to Josh, he'll likely drop what hes doing and come in and write up a sincere apology, there will likely be a discussion at a staff meeting where this thread will have been passed around, and yeah, we may see an uptick in FT participation on the forums, for a while. But will it be a change made through positive actions? Or with feelings of resentment from both sides?

Would an email directed to Josh or one of the other crew members been a more tactful way to approach this?

Personally, I think so. I've seen the other way, and it it always end poorly. Everyone comes in with good intentions, but complaints beget complaints and then above mentioned echo chamber takes over.

I don't begrudge Flite Test how they generate their revenue. This isn't a few guys operating a hobby show in their spare time on a shoestring budget anymore. The "hobby industry" as you may know is suffering, so expecting Flite Test to operate at the level they do, on the limited advertising money from Horizon Hobby is a bit unrealistic.

The question is, are you getting your money's worth from Flite Test? If you enjoy the show, is it not worth helping them with the operating costs by watching 30 seconds of Alex talking about a video game?

Why would they take advertising money from such a business?
Just a guess but probably because it's something the crew is familiar with. Alex and others play video games.


I know people hold certain grudges against Facebook. But, Flite Test hasn't shifted to Facebook, they've used it as a platform for sharing content and information since the beginning. I can look into the stats, I know that the beta builders team works through Facebook, there's a core group of the original forum members plus new folks that keep in contact on Facebook as much of not more than the forum. So FB isn't an evil pit devoid of positive influence on the FT community.

Ok, back to work for me, I'll check in later.

 

[clolsonus]

Here's my 2 cents. Josh B. is and has always been the real star of the show. He is the secret ingredient to anything FT does that is successful. It's nice to hear other voices in FT videos, but he is the main attraction (and he's a really good guy too ... I met him once at Oshkosh and you can just tell these things right away.) No one wants to get stuck in a rut doing the exact same thing for the rest of their lives, we all have new ideas and new dreams we'd love to pursue. I've watched FT explore a lot of different ideas over the years, different formats, different voices, different products, full scale, paragliding, flight fests, etc. etc. This is natural and good, but not every new thing will carry the same magic as the original/older FT material.
Over the years we have a substantial FT community built up. Don't underestimate how special that is. It's not something that can be arbitrarily created by anyone. It doesn't happen every day. I was lucky enough to be at the center of creating a community once (FlightGear open-source flight sim.) The FlightGear community is much like every other community with triumphs and struggles over the years. I've been thinking a lot about that lately and how community is one of the most important aspects of human life. But you can't just sit down and manufacture communities around yourself. You need the right moment, the right subject matter, and the right people. Most of the time we are joining other good communities and contributing our small part to make them better.
What I love about this forum is the threads about people creating and building stuff. I love to see threads from people just finding the hobby and just building their first airplane (who might be asking the same dumb or obvious questions, but you can see the learning process in action.) I love to see threads from people learning to fly. And I really enjoy threads about cool ideas or people pushing the envelope of design, materials, scale.
The way to keep this community strong is for us (the members) to contribute positive experiences, ask honest questions, encourage each other, share cool stuff, and meet up at flight fests and local clubs as much as possible.
Our job is to make a positive contribution to the community, support each other, treat each other with patience and respect. The cool thing about FT is that 99% of the time (probably more than that) this is exactly what happens here.

 

[JTarmstr]

The question is, are you getting your money's worth from Flite Test? If you enjoy the show, is it not worth helping them with the operating costs by watching 30 seconds of Alex talking about a video game?

Moreover, you dont even have to watch it like on programmed tv, you can press the 30 second skip button, and they still get their money.

 

[Fluburtur]

Some french youtubers I watch have found some alternative to ads and stuff like that but mind you, it is channels held by a single person im talking about so it wont be an answer but maybe part of it.

One of them found a thing that is basically a website with only ads on it and when peoples watch them it gets the contect creator some money, like ads before a video but in its own website. What some peoples have done is just open a tab with that and let ads play for the night. No effort and it rewards the content creator.

There is also donations, peoples are often generous when given the chance to be.

No matter what it takes (exept if it is really really bad) I will always support and defend FT. They are still truly inspirationnal and important in this community.

 

[basslord1124]

I for one agree regarding the advertisements. Not the traditional youtube ads that pop up, but the ones of Alex (or whoever) promoting an unrelated product. Can't stand them. BUT, I skip past them. I have noticed these with other youtubers as well so it's not just FT.

As for social media...I suppose I'm a little different here maybe b/c I'm in a different generation. First of all, if I don't like something or don't agree with something on social media...I simply don't bother with it, unfollow it, or whatever the case may be. I think the social media additions are a nice touch. I do try and post often on the FliteTest Fans Facebook page where the community feel there is very much like it is here. Occasionally you get some negativity, but for the most part it's very good. Actually I probably like the feel of it better than some of the other RC related Facebook groups. I am a pretty rare Instagram user but do post stuff on occasion...BUT Flitetest will have some behind the scenes Instagram livestreams on there sometimes where you could even chat with the guys. Pretty cool in my opinion! I'm not sure about the FT presence on Twitter b/c I rarely use it...like even less than Instagram. But I can definitely see an importance to be active on social media too...it's a tool to reach even more people.

Ya know, something I've wondered. I have wondered if forums are gonna be on the way out. I grew up in some of the early stages of the internet and back then it was more of a focus on chat rooms, forums, newsfeeds, etc. Now there to be more focus on social media. I remember trying to help someone with something RC on a Facebook group and I directed him towards RCGroups for some more assistance. Apparently it was his first time seeing what a forum was like and he didn't like it b/c it was not laid out good enough so he could use it on his mobile device. He gave up trying to do it. He was younger than me.

I don't watch the videos like I used to but I do watch some of the crazy challenges that come up sometimes. I kinda got used to the Peter, Chad, and David days as well. I feel that the plane/design has slowed down some but I kinda figured they had their plates full regarding Edgewater. I hope we see a resurgence of that and I think the stuff with John Overstreet may help revive that. Foamboard planes has been their big thing so I hope they keep that going. Since FT focuses a lot on community, I'd like to see more community contributions on the channel. I don't know of very many that have been featured...John, @SP0NZ , @nerdnic , etc. Or maybe there have been and I just haven't noticed them.

So, I suppose I'm kinda in the middle compared to some folks here. I have my issues, but I see some benefit to things too. I will continue to support FT in whatever I can...if I had more money, I'd probably buy more on the store that's for sure. But for right now, I'll get the occasional speed build kit and some supplies. Most of the time, I scratchbuild and get electronics elsewhere for less. I do try and show more support for them on my youtube channel as well by focusing mainly on their designs. So maybe that's helping some too. I hope so.

 

[TexMechsRobot]

I'll weigh in a little too. While I've been out of the hobby in general for about a year and silent on the forums for much of that time, I never missed a Flite Test YouTube video because they bring me joy. Admittedly, there are some episodes or story arcs that I just don't really care for but in general, I enjoy watching the Flite Test team do their thing.

Flite Test has changed. But how could it not? I would expect change and differences of approach as time moves forward, pop-culture changes, FT employees come and go, technology changes, etc. As a species, we seem eager to romanticize the "good ole' days" and forget that progress and change is inevitable and good.

I also don't begrudge Flite Test their methods for making money. I enjoy the free (to me) content but I'm also very aware that if it doesn't generate income for Flite Test, then Flite Test will cease to exist. As a consumer in a capitalist market, I have the power to only participate in the things that I want to. If I get to a point where Flite Test content brings me more angst or disappointment than joy, I'll stop spending money on their product and they won't get my ad revenue. Any opinion expressed in this thread is valid for the person expressing it and they have the right to feel the way they do.

On that not though, I agree with FlyingMoney and the question of "what is the point?" needs to be considered. If we're just here to complain about what we don't like in an open forum with no thought for helping Flite Test become more accessible to the market they want to grow in then we're only stirring up bitter feelings and nostalgia. The discontent shared in here is valid. I'm not a fan of ads in YouTube videos either. I choose to put up with them because I know what it does for the content creators and I wish I didn't have to watch them. I support some through Patreon for this reason (not n option for Flite Test) and I buy Flite Test products periodically because I have the financial ability to do so.

It's also true that the family, backyard antics feel of Flite Test has shifted to a more corporate feel. I imagine this is because they've grown. It's still very much a small company and is run as such from what I can tell but this gradual change has created a Flite Test that feels different than the one I stumbled across 3-4 years ago. But again, I'm ok with that. Change is inevitable and I think they're doing an amazing job at staying relevant to their market share while also inspiring new people to join the hobby, creating interesting content, and developing new methods for getting people together and creating memories.

I think this discussion is not born out of malice. My perception is that this discussion is fueled by everyone's love of Flite Test and our shared desire to see it grow strong in the hobby and the market.

 

[Spacefarer]

I never used the FT store being in europe so I can't really say anything about that and I have nothing about the more vlog type videos, it feels a little bit closer to the guys most of the time but I have to admit some videos feel a bit empty to me, not that I dont enjoy them because im an easy audience but im sometimes thinking "that is all?" at the end of videos.
The episodes one year or two ago were a bit more enjoyable I guess, I need to look back at them and compare.

Also sponsor messages in the middle of videos, no one likes that. I wouldnt mind if they were at the end but I always skip them, not interested in that. Would be nice to at least make them less invasive.

Yeah, I recently went back and watched all the videos around the time the versa wing was released and it felt so much more engaging now that we have seen these kinds of videos for this long. I know there's a bit of nostalgia involved, but I generally do like the earlier format better as I felt it was much more lively and full.

 

[nstiesi]

I am no one around here, but have enjoyed flitetest for some years now.

All I want to say is that there are not many companies in the world that GIVE their intellectual property away for the good of a hobby. There is alot of power in that, and that should buy alot of credit in my eyes. They have to make money SOMEHOW, or else the free build plans, etc go bye-bye for good.

Knowing that I can go online and download plans for a simple, PROVEN, and fun air frame...or have a LIFETIME supply of replacement parts for free to support a purchased speedbuild kit, is invaluable to me. I think that is rare for any product, and if the cost is a few cheesy ads, so be it.

However....I know that I am not plugged into the community aspect of FT like alot of you are, and I get that. This is just my opinion, and will keep me coming back for as long as I fly.

 

[Mad_Mechanic]

I guess I'll add my 2-cents and thoughts.

I have not been a member here for very long, I only just joined the community at the end of January this year. I only just discovered the Flite Test youtube channel at the beginning of this year.

What I have observed here is a healthy, friendly community of people who are willing to help others and not just tell them to use the search bar.

Regarding the sentiment that FT has 'sold out', well I don't think I've been a part of the community long enough to have a real opinion on this. Regarding the FT partnership with Amain and price gouging, well, I have a little bit of an opinion on this.

I suspect most of you are aware by now that I've been working on spreadsheets to compare the parts in the FT Power Packs to other parts from other manufacturers. This was never meant to deter people from buying the FT power packs, in fact I will probably buy one soon, but here are some examples of pricing concerns I've had based on my research.

The EMax 30A BLHeli series ESC that is used in the Power Pack C. You can buy this as a separate/replacement part from Flite Test/Amain for $20.49. However, you can also buy this from Emaxmodel.com for $9.24.

We see something similar for the 20A ESC found in the Power Pack B. Amain sells this part for $15.49, but you can also buy it from EMax model for $9.12.

One last time, we see this price difference for the 12A ESC used in Power Pack A. Amain sells this part for $14.99, but Emax model will sell the same part for $8.52.

Now...Am I saying you should NOT buy from FliteTest/Amain? No, I'm not saying that at all. Flying Monkey made a very good point in his post. Buying from Flite Test (Amain) supports Flite Test. And if it weren't for financial support in some form or another, Flite Test wouldn't be able to do what they do. The fact that Flite Test puts a lot of time into R&D on airplane designs, and then releases the designs for FREE is amazing to me. The speed build kits cost what they do because of material costs and overhead, I chalk that up to 'cost of convenience'.'

What I do like about the Power Packs is that FT has put the time and effort into putting together parts packages that will work for the planes specified. That makes it that much easier for new fliers to get a plane built and flying. I'm not new to this hobby but I appreciate the convenience of this package system. Can you save money by buying parts from other sources? Certainly. Should you? That is completely up to you.

Regarding social media. I've never had a twitter or instagram account and I shut down my facebook account about 5 years ago and I'm very glad I did. Am I a little disappointed to learn that the FT crew isn't very active on the forums? Yeah, but it sounds like that is the norm, not a recent exception. Despite that, I go back to my first impressions of the community here. The people are friendly, and I have yet to see a flame war here, which I very much appreciate.

I personally like this forum. I like the people and the atmosphere. It feels much more laid back compared to other forums I've been a member of and I never feel fear that I'm going to be trolled or flamed here. I may very well be shown/proven wrong about something I thought I knew, but rebuttals are presented in a way that are polite and learning happens instead of hard feelings.

 

[SlingShot]

I can look into the stats, I know that the beta builders team works through Facebook, ....

That's actually interesting. I never would have imagined that the beta builders were based on FB.