Cool Sh#t Magazine - Review

I was given a heads up on Twitter about this magazine and thought it would be worth looking at. Initially, I'd picked up issue 9 as it was fairly recent and also discounted - hey, got to love a bargain. When it arrived a couple of days later, I had a quick look through it then ordered issue ten, the latest one, because having that ten minute flick though the pages convinced me that I wanted to read more.

As the tagline on the cover states, "Eighties, Nineties, Now" is the name of the game and it's pretty obvious as to the crowd this magazine is aiming for. You get coverage on video games, films, TV, collectibles, wrestling and skateboarding. Those latter two aren't really my thing, although I was at school in the early 90's when the American wrestling invasion happened - it just never appealed to me. And as for skateboarding. No, gentle reader, just no. I have all the balance, style and poise of a sedated panda. 

The physical quality of the magazine cannot be faulted, high quality stock is used and the design layout is quite clean and very easy to read. Issue nine comes in at 72 pages and issue ten at a massive 108 pages!

Issue Nine contents page.

Let's begin with issue nine first though, and there are reviews, previews and regular sections that are presented in such a way that it reminded me very much of the anarchic style of CVG and Mean Machines. The artwork is impressive, whilst the writing is clear and precise, allowing each contributor's voice to shine through. The Ask Erin problem page had me in fits of giggles with its sage advice too.

The layout is clear but with character.

Issue ten is bigger and there is a reason why. You not only get more pages but it also heralds a pause in the magazine publication - might as well go out on a high. The editorial explains the situation well and, whilst we will be seeing more from the team behind the magazines (and possibly more editions), they do sensibly suggest signing up to their newsletter to stay informed. You can also follow them on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. 

Issue Ten contents page.

I think I enjoyed ten better than nine, and that is mostly down to the focus on the various forms of Dungeons and Dragons - I loved the cartoon show! Writing, presentation and art maintain their high standards and it's great to see an independent publication cover the period of my childhood. Ok, never gonna skate and the idea of watching sweaty men in lycra does not appeal (not even those OnlyFans channels - just checking to see if you're reading these posts, darling!) but that is the joy of reading mags like Cool Sh#t, learning new stuff and remembering other sh#t that the mists of time had faded into obscurity. 

I loved that cartoon!

A note on customer service - there was a small problem in getting issue ten. A short email was responded to within hours and the problem was sorted the next day. Brilliant service all round!

It really is up to you if you think Cool Sh#t Magazine is for you, but if you are a child of the 1980's and 90's, this is aimed pretty much at you, and in my humble opinion, you owe it to yourself to check it out. I have enjoyed these two issue immensely and have great anticipation towards whatever the team produce next. 

The Freewrite Alpha - thoughts and ramblings

I have long been a fan of the "distraction-free writing" principle, using as I do an AlphaSmart 3000 amongst other devices to write without the distractions/complexity/faff of a full-sized laptop. Indeed, I used that very machine to draft this as I can just about use it whilst my back recovers, whereas sitting with a laptop is still a no-no at present. Once again, thank you to my good lady for doing the transfer and layout. Anyhoo, amongst the hardware that I have mentioned in the past (but have never purchased) is the Freewrite range of writing tools from Astrohaus. The full size Freewrite and the more portable Traveller have been on the market for a while now and, whilst reviewing reasonably well, have always fallen foul at the cost-benefit analysis stage. You may be more productive but for what are effectively electronic typewriters, they are pricey - the Freewrite is £576, the Traveller £433 respectively on Amazon UK at the time of this post. According to the latest news from Astrohaus, that may be about to change. 

Screenshot of the Alpha website.

Having been teased for the last couple of weeks, Astrohaus have finally announced their latest device, the Alpha. Taking its cue from the long-dead AlphaSmart brand (including using the domain name), the Alpha is a slate style writing device that brings the concept of the AlphaSmart into the modern day. Or so it appears. 

As you can see, it's not a bad looking device, although it could be equally at home in the bathroom as well as a table top. It very much looks functional. Spec wise, it has a claimed 100 hour battery life, a reflective 6 or 4 line display (dependent on text size), low profile key switches, a kickstand for angling the device, a one million page internal storage and a weight of less than two pounds. Dimensions are 215x320x18mm. Connectivity is either via USB-C or Wifi. So what's not to like?

Buckle up, gentle reader!

Let's go with the price first. When you eventually get to this page here, you can see that the price for early bird buyers in $249, rising to $349 later on. That's about £210 and £295 (at the time of writing). For an early bird price, that's something I'd be prepared to pay, albeit at the upper limit. However, there are two issues with this: firstly, does that price include tax - in the UK, that would be VAT which is charged at 20%. If I buy either of the other Freewrite machines on Amazon, VAT is included in the price. Secondly, what are the postage costs? 

Another important question is: does this device actually exist? Aside from the images on the website, there is nothing to say that these aren't just renders. Also, Astrohaus are taking $1 payments as an expression of interest that, should you choose to, you can cancel before production begins. The website does not state how or when you will be told this - I really think they should detail the whole purchasing process. Additionally, there is no release date. Ok, you say, it's only $1, but I am still handing over money on the expectation of receiving goods when I pay the rest of the balance, but Astrohaus haven't given any indication as to when that will be. 

This very much feels like Astrohaus are trying to get a product out without using a crowdfunding site. I can understand why. Both Kickstarter and Indiegogo charge fees which would impact the overall amount they would have to earn before being successfully funded. But here's the thing. If this were a Kickstarter, there would have to be proof of hardware before the funding could begin - that proof is lacking at the moment.

Speaking of the hardware, I would like to see and hear how that keyboard performs - after all, the typing experience is a key (oh dear!) part of using such devices. I'd also like to know more about that screen - the six line 15pt option would seem to be tiny on the images displayed. I'd probably use the four line 26pt option, but I really want to see this in action before dropping the best part of three hundred quid on the Alpha. A demo video of real life hardware to go with the slick website would be wonderful.

It is not my intention to give the Alpha a kicking, nor Astrohaus' approach to selling new hardware. My concerns are valid - as any potential purchaser would want to know: what's the device like in action, how much am I on the hook for, and if I do sign up, when will I get the goods? I dearly love using my AlphaSmart 3000 but it is slowly on its way out so a replacement is going to be needed. I have emailed Astrohaus an asked about the pricing, delivery, timeline and cancellation process. If I get a reply, I'll share that on Twitter. I'll also pop it into the AlphaSmart, QuickPAD and Portable Word Processor Enthusiasts Group on Facebook here. For the time being, this is definitely a "maybe" product. If more information is forthcoming and the potential price stays closer to £200 rather than £300, then I am tempted. If not, all I can say is that I wish them the best of luck. 

Reload Magazine - Kickstarter Preview

Apologies for the brief lull in posts. A temperamental disc in my lower back decided that it wasn't happy so it initiated the Bagpuss Principle (it wasn't happy so it decided the rest of me wouldn't be happy either), putting me out of action and unable to sit at a computer or even use a laptop. As someone who has posted regularly and has articles to submit for publication, this turned out to be a bit of a bugger. Fortunately, a way has been found to handle the situation whilst my back decides if it want's to have a civil relationship with the rest of me. I am still able to write using pen and paper, and my good lady has taken on typing and layout duties for the time being. Thank you ever so kindly! With that solution in place, I'd like to draw your attention to a Kickstarter that I found out about a couple weeks ago.

You may remember E1M1 magazine from a year or so ago which focused on that evergreen genre, the first person shooter. Well, Zach Murphy (co-creator and designer of E1M1) has created a new publication and is being aided by John Kavanagh (of Retro Format and Eight Bit magazines) in launching Reload Magazine. Since I enjoyed E1M1 and indeed enjoy the FPS genre itself, I thought I'd tell you lot about Reload too.

The initial Kickstarter is to fund and publish a 100-page mag that will focus on indie and AA-tier shooters, the mods and maps scene, as well as more bespoke pieces such as retrospectives and features on historical games. The Kickstarter is live until the 31st of August and has already hit its primary funding goal. There are stretch goals too.

If this sounds like your thing, you can check out the Kickstarter here. As part of the funding drive, a sampler has been created (available from the KS page) that will give you an idea of the style and content you'll get in the main issue. It also lists the contributors, some of whom may be familiar. From the sampler alone, this is looking good to me and I have pledged to the project. 

As always with Kickstarters, be aware of the nature of the fund raising platform but also understand that the people involved have a good track record in delivering their projects. 

Anyhoo, that's it for this weekend. Good lady permitting, there will be further posts next week to catch up on the backlog of reviews. As you may understand, I have had plenty of time to catch up on my reading recently. 

Personal Computer World - a brace of 1990 classics

Some readers may recall my recent Computer Shopper post and I mentioned that I was also an avid reader of Personal Computer World. As luck (and eBay) would have it, I managed to get my hands on a couple of issues of PCW from 1990 which I distinctly recall buying back in the day. I thought it would be handy to have a perusal and see how things had changed in the two years since that fourth issue of Shopper. 

PCW was always a magazine with a decent production and printing budget, and it's plain to see here that it has a certain level of quality that the cover price of £1.50 justifies. You have perfect binding and colour on most of the 330 pages - that page count also makes it quite a beefy publication too. As you can see from the front covers, PCW had already been around quite a while, these issues being numbers 5 and 8 from volume 13. 

You've got to pick a Poqet or two, oohhhhh, you've got to pick a Poqet or two...

Let's look at May first, and that cover machine! That, gentle reader, was a device that I hankered for even after it was no longer available. There was no chance in hell of me ever getting one - the Poqet PC retailed at £1,350! Still, it's enough to attract the passing browser in Smiths or Menzies (the latter was still a thing back then!). The sub-headlines mention the NeXT, Apple's Mac IIfx and the exciting technology of colour LCD's explained. 

Tis the future, I tell ye...

One thing that is immediately apparent since 1988 is that there are more computer companies selling directly to the customer. Mesh, Multiplex and Dan Technology are just three of the more familiar names that early 90's buyers would see. Oh, there are still plenty of resellers for IBM, Olivetti and Amstrad, but the rise of the independent PC builder has begun.

You can have it in any colour... as long as it's beige...

After the usual news and comment sections, we get the first hardware review, and it's the Poqet PC. Capable but pricy, the reviewer is not entirely sure where it fits in with the typical business user for the money, even with the convenience of such handy portability. Next up is the Mac IIfx and... far cough! How much??? I get it, it's running a 68030 at 40MHz, with 68882 maths co-processor. 4MB of RAM and and 80MB hard drive (heady stuff for the day, admittedly), but even with that colour monitor and keyboard - £7,800!!! 

It's NeXTy and it knows it... (sorry)

Moving swiftly on, let's look at the NeXT system, 'cos that's only... £10k with a mono monitor??? That truly was a beast of a machine - but £10k... not even sure if that includes VAT. If not, add another grand and a half... Mac System 7 gets a look in, and that article on colour LCD's is both quaint and interesting. Hewlett-Packard's Laserjet III is also reviewed, offering tremendous value for £1,999(!)

For RISC OS fans, there's four pages dedicated to the Concept Integrated Office System, an Archimedes-based solution for document processing, a review of Deluxe Paint IIe, and then the regulars that encompasses various workshops. reviews and topic specific columns. Overall, a good issue with a wide range of articles. It's also of note that there are no group reviews of products - they would become a feature of most magazines as the 90's progressed.

Tis not the future, of that I am certain...

August now, and Commodore's great hope for multimedia fans gets the front cover. Whilst the article is very positive about the CDTV and its future, history has taught us that this machine had a very different destiny. The news section has a piece on IBM's introduction of the PS/1 range of consumer machines. No idea what was happening at Big Blue at the time, but their product designers were definitely on something as the PS/1 is a damn ugly little thing.

Oh, the humanity!!!

The Tower of Power!!!

Compaq's SystemPro is the main benchtest machine for this month and when you think tower of power, this is pretty much what should come to mind for the time. Entry level price was about £12k, the review system (2 x 386 33MHz processors, a 387 maths co-processor, 12MB of RAM, a 5.25" and a 3.5" floppy drive, a 520MB tape streamer, two (count 'em) 420MB hard drives and a 14' VGA monitor) was £30k. By this point, I was starting to wonder if PCW covered anything that didn't start at four figures. Seems not, as far as these issues are going. 

Shiny, just not very popular.

The next hardware review is of the Acorn R260, part of their ill-fated attempt at the Unix market. But hey, two Acorn pieces in two issues, they were really getting about! This ARM3 machine with 8MB of RAM and a 100MB hard drive could have been yours for £3k. There are other articles on the likes of voice control, the Asymmetric ToolBook programming environment and the presentation package SlideWriter Plus - all very serious, though the Screenplay section does have a look at the new Atari Lynx - won't somebody think of the batteries???

386's were not cheap! I shall spare you the horror of the 486's on the next page!

As noted with the Computer Shopper post, I'll be covering advertising and pricing of the period in the near future but just look at the prices being advertised by Viglen. A mono 20MHz 386 would set you back £1,699 ex VAT. Colour was £1,999. Even a mono 286 would cost you £869 ex VAT. Prices were starting to drop, albeit slowly, and the explosion of manufacturers were helping with price competition. There again, an Atari 520ST-FM was £299 inc VAT, and the 1040ST-FM £499. You needed a TV or a monitor but PC's were still expensive for anything other than an 8086/88.

Personal Computer World is very different in tone and style from the cheaper Computer Shopper (as noted by the May issue proclaiming the award of Technology Journal of the Year), but is equally informative and the two titles complement each other well. There was definitely balance to be had by reading both if you could at the time. In a couple of weeks, I'll be having a look at another publication of that period, What Personal Computer, and how yet another PC-centric magazine tried to differentiate itself from the competition.