Conversion of Flicka Friends to the Adobe Acrobat PDF format in 2002 brought about a During the spring of 1995, Dennis Pratt and major change. Acrobat Pro is a software his son Geoff were returning from their boat program that converts just about anything into storage when they first discussed the idea of a the PDF files that are commonly used on the Flicka Newsletter. Dennis wanted to exchange Internet. ideas and information about maintaining the Flicka, to share stories about the Flicka and to Adobe Acrobat allowed me to take advantage of the YAHOO Flicka 20 Group on the establish Flicka gatherings. Internet. Rather than creating a newsletter The first issue attracted forty responses from and photocopying it for mailing, the original two continents. Pacific Seacraft sent out 400 publisher file would be “printed” into an copies of the newsletter using their mailing Adobe PDF file. Even with years of computing, list. The subscription numbers increased until I still find the compression of a 250 MB file roughly two hundred and fifty people were down to less then 2 MB incredible. getting the newsletter. This included thirtyfour U.S. States, three Canadian provinces and The best part about changing to PDF files is that the newsletter could be in full color. Since six other countries. the newsletter was not being sent through the The early Flicka Friends issues were low tech mail, the need to charge for the newsletter and in black and white. At the time, color disappeared. This also meant that printing, issues were possible but the additional folding, collating, sealing, applying stamps, printing costs limited this option. placing mailing labels and mailing was gone as well. Flicka Friends isn‘t the first Flicka related newsletter. Another newsletter called “The Initially, the newsletter files were placed on Scrollwork” was published by Morris and the Yahoo Flicka 20 web page. The file Karen London between June of 1984 and limitations prevented posting all the back spring of 1987. Six issues were published. On issues. the pages, you can find Flickas with their early owners, including # 171 sailing on Lake Mead Hal DeVaney helped with the back issues of by Del Delgado. There are stories about F l i c k a F r i e n d s f o r a w h i l e . H e a l s o various gatherings, including one in Isthmus recommended moving the Flicka Home Page to the company he uses for his business. Cove in 1984 and another on Block Island. Maybe the most unusual image that appeared on the pages of The Scrollwork was of Pacific Seacraft Flicka #284. Named Adventure, the Flicka was placed in a small swimming pool behind the brokers home. This must be the smallest body of water to ever float a Flicka. Another interesting image that appeared in The Scrollwork is that of Nor‘Star Flicka # 5. This Flicka may be the only topsail gaff rig among the Flicka Fleet. In the fall of 1997, Dennis asked me to consider taking the role of newsletter editor. Since my computer skills appeared to be up to the task, I agreed. After a couple of years, Dennis decided to remain the publisher and look over the final drafts. I was the editor. We both had Microsoft Publisher on our computers. This software was and is currently used to create Flicka Friends. After a couple of years, I was looking for another way to publish the newsletter.
In 1999, Rod Bruckdorfer started the Flicka Home Page on the Internet. He managed this site until turning it over to me in 2001. The web page was created and placed on a local Internet server using the space provided with the basic e-mail account. After reviewing provider and comparing costs in 2005, the decision to move the Flicka Home Page was made. This would finally allow all the Flicka Friends back issues to be placed on the Flicka Home Page.
By May, most of the Flicka 20 Home Page had been moved. Best of all, Flicka Friends is available on the Internet at the Flicka Home Page. The web page has been popular with hits coming in from around the world. In 2008, Gus Bear, the captain of s/y CARAWAY (Flicka # 423) agreed to take over the duties of the Flicka Home Page webcaptain. He migrated the existing information to a software program called DOT.NET Nuke. He is continuing to manage the Flicka 20 Home Page. At the same time, Daryl Clark, captain of s/y BALLO LISCIO took over as the editor for Flicka Friends. Several issues were produced until a computer crash killed three more issues. In October of 2012, Daryl Clark and I agreed on a change for the editor and he turned the control over Flicka Friends back to me. The newest issues are created using the MAC and their Pages desktop program and Adobe Acrobat Pro. A photo issue in the fall of 2012 was posted on the Yahoo Flicka 20 site at a lower resolution. A higher resolution version was posted to the Flicka 20 Home Page. Plans were laid for another photo issue in January of 2013 and a “regular” issue in March of 2013. The March 2013 was the fiftieth issue of Flicka Friends, certainly a milestone. While there have been some gaps in printing. The newsletter has continued through the years. With seven issues, this was also the year with the most issues published. With as many as 34 pages, a single issue in 2013 often exceeds the number of pages in an entire year at the beginning of this newsletter.
Hopefully, this newsletter will continue to be published for another ten years. I would expect that the interest in the Flicka will mean these fine little yachts will be with us for many A new domain name was selected. Since years to come. flicka.com was already taken, flicka20.com was selected. The move took some time. The Flicka stands out among sailing vessels. It Modifying nearly 300 web pages by correcting is a sailboat that draws your attention. The links, removing unnecessary graphics and Flicka is pleasing to the eye and it is seaworthy adding new pages took roughly six months of as well. The Flicka is something that Bruce P. my spare time. This process would have been Bingham can be very proud of. faster, but my computer crashed during the Thank you Bruce! process and rebuilding the information required additional time.