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From: don@col.hp.com (Don Allison)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: What's up with STart
Message-ID: <16830002@col.hp.com>
Date: 19 Sep 90 17:40:08 GMT
References: <1990Sep16.021856.27654@ecn.purdue.edu>
Organization: HP Colorado Springs Division
Lines: 41

Bill Shroka writes:
>                                                       ....  A local Atari
>store in my area has contacted STart as was told that they are combining
>STart and Antic into a single magazine.  This, and the process of taking over
>the subscriptions of other defunct ST mags, has caused a delay in publishing
>STart.  I'm not sure when they will be back up to full speed.

I find this rather sad.  When STart first began publication, it was to be
a magazine for programmers and people developing new applications for the
ST.  One of it's stated goals was to be chock full of source code listings on
the (almost mandatory) disk.  It was to be a quarterly, and was NOT supposed
to include beginners tips, simple BASIC programs, or the like...these were
to be left to the other ST magazines, including the ST columns that were
to remain in Antic.  Reviews were only to be minimally included, and were to
be more things like an article comparing all the available C compilers for
the ST, etc.

Based on it's stated goals and first issues, I subscribed enthusiastically.
However, with the passing of time I've noticed it gradually turning into
just another ST games review magazine.  (In fact, even with all the noise,
the ST notes groups lately have been carrying more technical info than a
typical issue of STart!)  In the quest for more circulation and larger
revenues and a broader reader base, they have lowered themselve to the
common denominator, and in my opinion, anyway, killed all that was good
about the magazine originally (especially when they went monthly and had
to start including fluff as filler to pad out the issue to make it look a
reasonable size).  With Antic now merging with it again, it looks like the
end of it's usefulness is about to be completed.

Sorry for the dreary diatribe, but I felt a eulogy was in order.  Now for
my question:  Does anyone know of a magazine for the ST, published anywhere
in the world (preferably in English, but other languages are okay) that still
does what STart started out to do?  ie, are there any ST magazines that still
publish programming tips, source code, hardware mods and upgrades, and articles
on novel applications for the ST?  If so, could you please email me information
on how to subscribe to that publication?  If I get any useful answers, I will
post a summary.

Thanks!
Don Allison
don@col.hp.com