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 <C> 1994 by GEnie
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  On September 27, 1994 the Commodore RTC got a visit from Steve Reid, the
editor of Random Magazine.  The conference brought out much information about
the magazine, and what it offers Commodore users.  This includes GEOS,
programming, news, telecommunications...but wait, you can read this all for
yourself.  Enjoy.
  This conference, as the others in the series was hosted by GEOS-TIM (Tim
Hewelt), captured and edited by THE.OUTLAW (Cam Stewart), and the back scenes
communications was handled by C128.QT PIE (Sherry Freedline).  Look for other
conferences in this series in the library.


<GEOS-TIM> *********WELCOME TO THE RANDOM MAGAZINE CONFERENCE**************

           Our guest tonight is Steve Reid, the editor of this new Commodore
           specific magazine.

           Welcome Steve.....
           We are feel privilaged to have you as our guest tonight.

<RANDOM-MAG> Well, like Tim said, I'm Steve Reid, editor of Random Magazine.
             Random has been published since March of 1993, and we plan on
             supporting the Commodore market for many years to come.

<GEOS-TIM> Steve, I know that many don't know a lot about Random magazine...the
           top question on my list is....is this a disk magazine or hard copy?

<RANDOM-MAG> Random is a printed magazine, which has averaged around 56 pages
             in size. We do also have a Companion Disk, which includes the
             latest public domain and shareware software, as well as our type-
             in programs.

<GEOS-TIM> Sounds pretty big. Every magazine has a focus.  It may be on
           programming, beginning computing, general articles , technical
           articles, etc.  What is the focus of Random Magazine?

<RANDOM-MAG> Basically each issue we try to give a wide variety of articles,
             focusing on everything from GEOS to modemming to some programming,
             though the primary focus is that of the beginner to intermediate
             user. We plan on adding more technical articles for more advanced
             users.

             Each issue usually has two or three feature articles on topics
             affecting Commodore users, such as upgrading your system, getting
             into modemming, the effects of piracy, programming, and the like,
             as well as our standard columns on topics inlcuding our
             programmers page, a GEOS column, BASIC for Beginners, Commodore
             Thoughts, reviews of new hardware, software (commercial and
             shareware) and a news column.

<GEOS-TIM> Sounds like it covers quite a gamot of topics.
           To those in our audience....we will be entertaining questions at any
           time

           Tonight....just type /rai if you have a question...and you will be
           called in the order recieved.

<RANDOM-MAG> Yes, well we do our best. :) Right now we're actively seeking
             writers for a new machine language programming column and a CP/M
             column.

<GEOS-TIM> Random has been on the market for almost two years now. Have your
           goals as a magazine been met? Or surpassed ...?

<RANDOM-MAG> Yes, that's correct.. Well, we've grown a lot, and learned quite a
             few things in the process.. I think that we have met our original
             goals and expectations, but that we have many new ones we have
             set.

<GEOS-TIM> That's great....It is good to see so many magazines coming on the
           market.... That leads me into the next question.....

<RANDOM-MAG> Yes, it really is.

<GEOS-TIM> With so many choices....what sets Random apart from the rest?  Why
           should a Commodore User get Random Magazine?

<RANDOM-MAG> Well, I suppose what sets us apart is, well, we're different! :)
             Random tries to focus on the beginniner to intermediate Commodore
             user, and offer the greatest amount of information and support we
             can. We keep abreast with the latest in Commodore news worldwide,
             and try to offer different and lesser known information than the
             other magazines.

             We also are not afraid to criticize, and let Commodore users
             really know whats the best for them. I guess you could say we're a
             bit more radical than the rest. :) Plus, we also try to offer the
             most information for Commodore users, as well as the best, and
             that's why we've kept up steadily at over 50 pages per issue--
             there's simply so much for Commodore users to know.

<GEOS-TIM> If one wanted to subscribe to Random magazine, where would the
           subscription be sent to , and what is the subscription prices?  Do
           you have sample copies?

<RANDOM-MAG> Our address is Random Magazine, 7161 N. Maine, Clovis, CA
             93611-8200. We accept checks or money orders payable to Random
             Magazine. We also have a 24-hour voicemail/fax line at (209) 323-
             7841. And, of course, we can be contacted here on GEnie under
             RANDOM-MAG, on the Internet under [e-mail].

<GEOS-TIM> I figured you would probably like that question. :D

<RANDOM-MAG> Heheh.. :>

<GEOS-TIM> About how many writers have written for you magazine, and are there
           any names that we would recognise? C= famous guys. :D

<RANDOM-MAG> Well, the first few issues were written by our staff.. We have
             only recently started taking submissions, and we haven't exactly
             had any of the greats-- though perhaps we will in the future.
             Cameron (THE.OUTLAW) has just written a lovely article on the
             Internet, which will be published shortly. We also reprinted an
             article by Craig Taylor in the March/April 1994 issue.

<GEOS-TIM> That is a name we recognize....

<RANDOM-MAG> Harry Blake-Knox has written a few articles, and also Mr. Tuomi
             (D.TUOMI I believe) wrote an article on the collapse of Commodore.

<[Sherry] C128-QT.PIE> we know him here as Doc

<RANDOM-MAG> Other than that, most of the articles were written by yours truly,
             and the rest of the staff..

<GEOS-TIM> Tom Patch has a question....go ahead Tom

<TOM.PATCH> Are back issues available? And at what cost?

<RANDOM-MAG> Yes, we have back issues going back to the first issue. All back
             issues are $5.00, with the exception of the Jan/Feb 93, which we
             have only a few issues remaining, and thus is $7.50.

<TOM.PATCH> Great look for my check in the mail

<RANDOM-MAG> Will do. :)

<GEOS-TIM> One question, or perhaps two questions that C= users always want to
           know when a magazine comes out is.......

           What hardware are you using to put Random together with?  Also what
           software?

<RANDOM-MAG> Ahem. Well, in all honesty I must admit that while the first two
             issues we produced on a Commodore 64 using GEOS 2.0 and
             geoPublish, we now produce the magazine on an Amiga 3000T/040 with
             18 megabytes of RAM, 1.2 gigs of hard drive space, and PageStream
             2.2.

             We simply had to switch to make production quicker-- The current
             version of geoPublish, even with a Turbo Master CPU, was just too
             slow and not powerful enough for what we wanted. We might,
             however, switch back to GEOS 128 when Maurice Randall's program is
             completed. :)

<RANDOM-MAG> Hehehe.. Yes..But we are all Commodore 8-bit users at heart. The
             A3000T sits in the back of the room while we use our commies...
             The Amiga is useful as it also runs our voice mail system.

<GEOS-TIM> Well, at least it is in the Commodore family. :D
           If a person wanted to write for Random magazine...you did mention
           that you were taking submissions now.. What are the author's
           guidelines?  And is their renumeration?  And what would it be?

<RANDOM-MAG> Well, we really don't have a written set of writers guidelines.
             Basically anything which we feel is useful information to a good
             number of our subscribers can be published in the magazine.

             Currently, if we publish your article, you will receive a one-year
             free subscription (or extention) as well as a payment of anywhere
             between $5-$50. Usually though it's at the lower end of the scale,
             as we don't want to go bankrupt. ;)

<GEOS-TIM> Can an author upload the text via GEnie?

<RANDOM-MAG> Yes, via email. That method actually works best, as it is the
             quickest and easiest way for us to receive the article, as well as
             to read it and let you know of whether or not we'll use it,
             payment etc. Alternatively you can send it, with both hard copy
             and floppy disk (Commodore 5.25" or 3.5") to our offices.

<GEOS-TIM> What future goal do you have for your magazine?

<RANDOM-MAG> I guess right now our goal is to increase the number of pages to
             64, add some color pages to the magazine, and just continue to
             support Commodore users.

<GEOS-TIM> It appears you have been growing.  I have heard Random Magazine
           mentioned more and more in C= circles....User groups and such.....Do
           you have any special deals for User Groups? Or is there one going to
           come in the future?

<RANDOM-MAG> Well, we did in the past. Currently there are no such special
             deals, with the exception that user groups only have to pay 3.95
             per issue for a single issue, as opposed to $5.00 normally.
             Perhaps in the future, though, we will have a user group deal.

<GEOS-TIM> That would be great. I know our user group always gets involved in
           those kind of deals.

<RANDOM-MAG> We also are publishing the 1994 Commodore Support Index, which is
             basically a book which lists all user groups, BBSes, and other
             places of Commodore Support wordwide..

<GEOS-TIM> That would be very useful...we hear people ask about that many times
           in the RTC

<GEOS-TIM> You have mentioned your staff several times.  About how many do you
           have on your staff at the moment?

<RANDOM-MAG> Currently we are a group of Commodore enthusiasts, consisting of
             myself, Steve Cremer, who writes some articles and does our
             subscription services, Stevan Noxon, who runs our nifty
             advertising department (as well as contributing), Trever VanNoort,
             who does a good deal of the actual magazine, and Mark Rodway.

<GEOS-TIM> I have a Trivia question: What is the background of the name for
           your magazine? I have often wondered how you got it.

<RANDOM-MAG> Hehehe.. Well, it seems *almost* normal now, but I can see how it
             might seem odd to others.. :) We originally came up with the idea
             of Random in late 1992, during the time RUN magazine was slowly
             dying. We wanted a name that had the same sort of nice sound to it
             as RUN, and for some reason the BASIC programming command RND
             jumped into our heads. The rest, I guess you can say, is history.
             It just stuck. :) Of course, we also found out in our special
             piracy issue (Sep/Oct 93 that there was once a C= pirating group
             named Random, but we're proud to say there's no relation. :)

<GEOS-TIM> LOL! That is an interesting tidbit....
           Steve...I've asked many questions about your magazine, but I've
           neglected some about you.

           Could you tell us how you got involved with your Commodore computer?

<RANDOM-MAG> Well, I've been using Commodores since around 1984, when my
             grandfather purchased a 64 for me. From the beginning, I fell in
             love, and dabbled a bit in BASIC programming. I just loved the
             machine, and picked up every C= magazine I could find.

             Within a few years, I bought my first modem, and was constantly on
             local Commodore BBSes... It's been ten years now, but no other
             machine I've ever used has replaced my trusty old C-64.

<GEOS-TIM> That is the interesting thing about our little 8 byte machines.
           People always have a urge to go back to them, even after getting a
           more powerful computer

           We are about to go into open forum.....
           Are there anymore questions from the audience?

           Thank you Steve Reid, for this portion of the conference. It was
           very interesting, and I'll be sending a check.

           Now to open forum

<RANDOM-MAG> Thanks. It was a pleasure..

<GEOS-TIM> The magazine is bigger than I thought. I didn't realize that it was
           so far a long

<RANDOM-MAG> Yes, well, we're one of the best kept secrets of Commodore
             computing! Heheh.. :)

<GEOS-TIM> We are in open forum..so you can stretch your fingers now, folks.

<[Sherry] C128-QT.PIE> giggle

<GEOS-TIM> It sure was, STeve

<THE.OUTLAW> and we're expanding out into the Internet! :>

<[Sherry] C128-QT.PIE> Nice conference Steve! Thank you!