Re: DRAFT: v7.3 Release Announcement - Mailing list pgsql-advocacy

Wow Josh, that's a bunch of assumptions I wouldn't make.
Heck, even most of the OS companies that bundle postgresql are
clueless about it, and they're way ahead of the CIO/CTO readers
that I was aiming this at, based on what the media have asked
us to provide them with in news items we have on postgresql...

Marc, as this is a press release for the community, not
PostgreSQL, Inc., it seems I may have wasted everyone's time
by missing the intended audience, which wasn't my intention...
I apologize for missing the mark after the *huge* buildup you
gave about me doing up this draft.

As I said, ( - no harm, no foul :) ... "even if you decide to
throw it out and start over ;)"

It sounds like Josh is very clear on this needing to be targeted
for a much more familiar and sophisticated media audience than I
know, so hopefully he'll put the right message together and let
the PGDG group adjust it to language and focus that is suitable.

I can't speak much to the media list, we've got our own internal
list at PgSQL, Inc. which consists primarily of journalists,
publications, individuals and companies that have asked us to
provide them with information. It isn't appropriate for us to
breach their privacy by releasing that list publicly (and none
of our maillists are for sale or rent, ever), but we'll
distribute whatever PGDG comes up with, to ensure that everyone
we know who's interested hears about the new release.

Josh, you apparently have a much different set of media people
you're talking with, so I'd encourage you to collaborate with
Justin, Bill Pollock and others to help compile an internal
PGDG media / press list that will be specific to the needs and
goals of the postgresql community.

As always, best regards,
--Geoff

> Josh Berkus wrote:
>
> Geoff,
>
> > As requested, I've put together a draft proposal for this
> > announcement of the upcoming release.
>
> Hmmm ... this release reads like a "We know you've never heard of
> PostgreSQL before, so here's some great stuff about PostgreSQL, and by
> the way, we have a new release."    Which is OK if we believe that most
> of our press targets are, in fact, completely ignorant of PostgreSQL.
>
> I think, though, that we are most likely to get coverage from the
> OS-freindly press, who *are* aware of PostgreSQL.  Thues, we may want
> to consider an approach that focuses more on the new release and less
> on PostgreSQL as a whole.  The PostgreSQL-as-a-whole stuff can be
> linked on the PostgreSQL Advocacy Web Site, which is where we should
> put most of the quotes, anyway.
>
> We also need to explain about the new features:
> a) Why this feature is important in plain english;
> b) How this feature makes us equal to/better than other enterprise
> databases
> c) ... but craft the language to make sure that we don't imply that
> PostgreSQL was somehow inferiour before.
>
> Finally, we need a list of press contacts, with e-mail, phone, and
> snail-mail addresses -- preferably one on each continent.  And we
> shouldn't link to the main postgreSQL site, with is *not* set up for
> Press access.
>
> -Josh Berkus