Jere Gault
This may be more than you want, but I wanted to share a proposal to the President of our HOA regarding transitioning from monthly Newsletters in Word format (template) to gamma.
Here are some thoughts, observations, and comments that address several concerns and initiatives:
  1. While there is a learning curve as with any software, my experience is that the curve with gamma is relatively steep but intuitive. The Help feature is one of the best I have seen: specific, brief, yet comprehensive.
  2. Creating a new Newsletter is so easy that I have already made good progress on developing the February Newsletter. So easy and fast that I have also begun the March Newsletter, though I am deferring to Luba to create that one on her own. I will be available should she need my assistance. Meanwhile, Luba is becoming familiar with the gamma software.
  3. It is easy to export a gamma “deck” (full Newsletter) to either/both PDF (Adobe) or PPX (PowerPoint) file formats. By the way, an article in gamma is called a “card.” Cards comprise a “deck.” Depending upon the size/length of an article, the PDF or PPX files may be somewhat crowded, but screen adjustments can expand the file to make it more readable. I do not view this as an issue. These files can be uploaded to Vantaca as PDF files have been previously uploaded.
  4. A Newsletter can be duplicated and saved for use in creating the subsequent month’s Newsletter. It is easy to reformat, delete, add, or further revise/adjust articles in subsequent Newsletters. It is also easy to copy text and images from a PDF or Word file and paste them to a gamma card…and vice versa, if needed.
  5. Articles that we present periodically, such as the following ones, can be easily copied to a gamma library from which it can be copied to new and subsequent Newsletter:
a. Maintenance issues
b. Friendly reminders
c. Seasonal displays
d. Assessment billing and payments
e. Et. al.
  1. Gamma.app is quite a large software with myriad options that at first can appear overwhelming, but experience has led me to using only a limited number of those options and on a repeated basis. Simple.
I propose that we discard creating Newsletters in Word format and begin creating Newsletters in gamma which can then be saved in PDF format for recording under the appropriate tab in Vantaca. I also propose that each Newsletter be distributed to residents (Owners and Tenants) in PDF format along with the link to the online website assigned to that specific Newsletter. Incidentally, each monthly Newsletter will retain its own specific link as will all previous Newsletters created in gamma.