Aminet 44/Aminet 44 (2001)(GTI - Schatztruhe)[!][Aug 2001].iso/Aminet/demo/mag/GDS-DISC11b.lha/text/ONLINE MAGS

Text File | 1998-10-02 | 6KB | 180 lines

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ONLINE MAGS VS. DISKMAGS«»
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«c3»BY DARKHAWK/IRIS«»
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«c5»This article is out after its time
so to speak, since the debate about
whether «c2»online mags «c5»have some benefits
when compared to «c2»traditional diskmags
«c5»is quite dead. Still, that won't stop
me from writing an article about it,
with my views about why online
diskmags are not very interesting.«»
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First off, the reason it is a bit too
late with this article is that right
now, there are no plans for online
Amiga diskmags to appear, well, if one
was a bit harsh, one could say that
there has never been an online Amiga
scene mag. «c2»Generation, ROM and
ScenePoint «c5»were somewhat online,
but they were not updated often, and
they did not feature much apart from
fresher news, which were not in the
traditional mags. ROM Online is maybe
the biggest exception from that, but
still it wasn't updated that often.
However, some editors have talked
and written articles about why online
mags would be a splendid idea. I think
Curt Cool wrote such an article for
the EC some issues ago too. Since I
haven't read any article with
arguments «c2»AGAINST «c5»online mags, I
thought I had to do it myself,
although the entire 'online mag' hype
is over and we have enough to do with
rescuing the magscene we have left,
hehe.«»
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First off, let's list the benefits of
online mags, such as I see them, this
is entirely subjective ofcourse:«»
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«c4»1. «c5»Having online mags means a
«c2»potentially broader reader base, «c5»as
everyone with internet access can read
them, regardless of machine specs and
maybe some people have an easier time
writing down an url than downloading,
unpacking and running an archive.
As a result of this, it might be
easier to get support too. Also,
people can read the mag while at the
job, etc.«»
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«c4»2. «c5»Online mags can theoretically have
«c2»fresher news «c5»and articles than a
traditional diskmag, because they can
get updated at once when there's new
stuff. This only sounds good on paper
though, but more on that later.«»
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«c4»3. «c5»It is «c2»easier to manage «c5»an online
diskmag. Atleast it is easier in terms
of code, which is one of the big
hindrances for people wanting to start
up a new diskmag. Well, it was before,
now the biggest hindrance is the
amount of articles, but by doing an
online mag, you don't have to worry
about too much code (yes, I assume
everyone can do something in HTML).«»
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«c4»4. «c5»And if one really wants to, one can
do a nice and professional onlinemag
with «c2»Flash code, «c5»so that it will
remind one of a 'real' diskmag, with
music, intro and effects here and
there. And still it is easier than
doing the code for a traditional
diskmag. But yes, Amiga browsers can't
show the mag then.«»
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So, these were the «c2»benefits «c5»as they
appear to me, and I must admit, I
don't place much value in those
benefits at all, but I guess it is a
matter of viewpoint. Still, here are
the disadvantages of online mags
coupled with the advantages of
traditional mags.«»
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«c4»1. «c5»About the theoretically broader
userbase. This might be true were the
mag less specific, but «c2»who will want
to read an Amiga scene mag? «c5»Yes,
you're absolutely right, Amiga sceners
mostly, plus those wanting to keep
updated for nostalgic reasons. The
first crowd can just aswell watch it
the traditional way, the second crowd
is a bit more at a disadvantage, but
they should never have sold their
Amiga's, so no reason we cater to
them, hehe.«»
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«c4»2. «c5»Unless the online mag gets updated
once, like a regular diskmag, it gets
confusing and boring to go into its
URL often only to find slightly
updated news and maybe 1 or 2 articles
each week. «c2»It is much more fun to view
the entire mag once, «c5»where everything
is new, and then get to the next
issue, where everything is new too.
That can be done with online mags too
ofcourse, mags like the EC on PC or
Hugi do it like that, so in effect
they have the same article content as
normal diskmags would have, and thus
they avoid this objection to online
mags.«»
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«c4»3. «c5»A traditional diskmag has, for me,
a much nicer 'feel' to it, it has
music, it has gfx, sometimes it has a
nice intro, sometimes the mag code is
pleasing to use, etc., it is a whole
package so to speak, an «c2»online mag
feels strangely empty «c5»and devoid of
spirit compared to it. Besides, while
you might read the online mag
everywhere, on your job too, you know
that there are some things you have to
take your time doing, to enjoy them to
their fullest extent. Reading and
experiencing a diskmag is one of those
things.«»
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«c4»4. «c5»On a related note, in a traditional
diskmag, more sceners get the chance
to show off their skills doing gfx,
code and music, whereas an «c2»online mag
typically only features html code and
gfx, «c5»not that overwhelming an
experience in comparison, and not the
work of that many sceners.«»
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The «c2»conclusion «c5»must seemingly be that
it is a matter of taste whether you
prefer traditional diskmags or online
ones. I for one can't see much point
in reading a mag online, I feel that
the pleasure of having a solid and
concrete diskmag on your harddrive,
which you can run as a standalone
production when you feel like it, far
surpasses the benefit of being able to
read a mag via your browser. Not to
speak of that mag not being able to be
as nice and nifty as the traditional
mag, because online mags seldom are
that advanced, and if they would be,
then you can't watch them on your
browser anyway. Simply put, a diskmag
is a production, and unless you do not
have an Amiga to watch that production
on, «c2»it will never be anything other
than a bad substitute reading the same
mag online.«»
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