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Sinclair User

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2017 12:18 pm
by sdmicro
I've been looking at QL coverage in vintage magazines other than QL User/World. Sinclair User for example dumped the QL virtually within the space of one issue in 1986. Up until then it featured quite a lot of news and reviews on the machine but obviously decided, rather rapidly, that it was of no further value in terms of readership. A decision also supported no doubt by the Amstrad takeover and lack of QL advertisers.

To be fair, at the same time SU gave up any pretence that the Spectrum was in any way useful for serious computing and turned itself into a colour-mad kiddies' games comic. The early issues had quite a good balance between entertainment and business software.

SU apart, which magazines gave the QL a fair crack of the whip? I can only really think of the specialist columns in Computer Shopper and bits and pieces in the weeklies, NCE and PCW.

Re: Sinclair User

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2017 2:51 pm
by dilwyn
sdmicro wrote:I've been looking at QL coverage in vintage magazines other than QL User/World. Sinclair User for example dumped the QL virtually within the space of one issue in 1986. Up until then it featured quite a lot of news and reviews on the machine but obviously decided, rather rapidly, that it was of no further value in terms of readership. A decision also supported no doubt by the Amstrad takeover and lack of QL advertisers.
To be fair, at the same time SU gave up any pretence that the Spectrum was in any way useful for serious computing and turned itself into a colour-mad kiddies' games comic. The early issues had quite a good balance between entertainment and business software.
SU apart, which magazines gave the QL a fair crack of the whip? I can only really think of the specialist columns in Computer Shopper and bits and pieces in the weeklies, NCE and PCW.
The weeklies PCW, NCE and another one called I think Home Computing Weekly certainly printed quite a few news, reviews and listings for the QL. Some issues of ZX Computing gave some space to it too. I have quite a few QL listings kept after tearing them out of magazines like Practical Computing and Personal Computer World too. Trouble is I daren't go fish these out - once I dig them out and start reading that's the rest of the day quickly gone!
Some of the magazines from that era such as Sinclair User are still available to download from the web, a job I still hope to do before they vanish. I have a CD of most of trhe ZX Computing mag, must go check that and make a copy before the CD dies.

Re: Sinclair User

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2017 4:18 pm
by gregtaylor
Computing Today was another. I took that and PCW in the early computing years - gave up when IBM PCs and the millions of look-alikes took over. From what I recall, though, there was never much about the QL apart from release reviews, minor coverage of new ROM releases and a bit on peripherals. That said, there wasn't that much on many other early computers either. They tended to concentrate on Spectrums, Commodore C64 and ilk and BBC Micro/Electron. To be fair, that probably accounts for about 95% or more of total sales.

Greg

Re: Sinclair User

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2017 4:53 pm
by sdmicro
That's right, there was a QL column in ZX Computing by Brian Beckett and sometimes by another chap. It was generally a bit downbeat about the QL's future as I recall.

Computing Today totally passed me by.

Re: Sinclair User

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2017 9:02 am
by Derek_Stewart
dilwyn wrote:W, NCE and another one called I think Home Computing Weekly certainly printed quite a few news, reviews and listings for the QL. Some issues of ZX Computing gave some space to it too. I have quite a few QL listings kept after tearing them out of magazines like Practical Computing and Personal Computer World too. Trouble is I daren't go fish these out - once I dig them out and start reading that's the rest of the day quickly gone!
Some of the magazines from that era such as Sinclair User are still available to download from the web, a job I still hope to do before they vanish. I have a CD of most of trhe ZX Computing mag, must go check that and make a copy before the CD dies.
Hi Dilwyn,

Since I do not work anymore, I have downloaded all the Sinclair Magazines on the Interweb, also from Archive.org.

I sit at home adn read the old Sinclair User, Your Sinclair, ZX Computing, Your Computer, Some Amiga and Atari Magazines all stored on my Raid Server, via a Tablet.

I could make them available, but the Copyright monster keeps raising its head....

Re: Sinclair User

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2017 1:44 pm
by XorA
Derek_Stewart wrote:
dilwyn wrote:W, NCE and another one called I think Home Computing Weekly certainly printed quite a few news, reviews and listings for the QL. Some issues of ZX Computing gave some space to it too. I have quite a few QL listings kept after tearing them out of magazines like Practical Computing and Personal Computer World too. Trouble is I daren't go fish these out - once I dig them out and start reading that's the rest of the day quickly gone!
Some of the magazines from that era such as Sinclair User are still available to download from the web, a job I still hope to do before they vanish. I have a CD of most of trhe ZX Computing mag, must go check that and make a copy before the CD dies.
Hi Dilwyn,

Since I do not work anymore, I have downloaded all the Sinclair Magazines on the Interweb, also from Archive.org.

I sit at home adn read the old Sinclair User, Your Sinclair, ZX Computing, Your Computer, Some Amiga and Atari Magazines all stored on my Raid Server, via a Tablet.

I could make them available, but the Copyright monster keeps raising its head....
Derek, archive.org links would be acceptable here as it operates as a library/museum. But avoid the TPB links ;-)