Saturday 30 June 2012

QLToday - To Subscribe or Not

Subscription renewals are now due for QLToday. To renew or not that is the question. QL Heaven has subscribed continuously since the magazine was launched but now considers that QLToday has been gradually detaching from ordinary QL users since Mr Wicks has taken the editorial chair. Each edition has had either a direct or indirect attack on Quanta plus a self congratulatory bit on the number of pages filled in the magazine. Yet there is little sense of the quality of the content. The amount of filler smeared over the pages is now outstanding and often filled with angst. I can give references to specific articles if required. What QL Heaven asks has this got to do with QLing.  The business model Geoff Wicks unwittingly adheres to gives the magazine little influence on the actual content, yet quality of content is the key responsibility of the editor. But no, Geoff sees the last "independent" QL magazine as a soap box for his anti Quanta and pseudoprescient views. To be fair Geoff is not unique as there have been many more virulent precursors. However, it is clear that if QLToday keeps its current editorial line Mr Wicks will ensure that he will be literally and factually the last man standing in QLToday.

QLHeaven is still considering if it should resubscribe to QLToday. Is it time to quit?

Tuesday 12 June 2012

QL Hardware

Memory Lane computing has pulled out of developing the QL-SD card although it is said that the drivers are ready. The project is now back with Peter Graf - who originated it. It is not surprising really that the project became non viable as the number of users of black box QL must now be minuscule and when last surveyed a few years ago this die hard group had been most resistant to upgrading or spending anything on hardware over the preceding decades. C'est la vie.

If hardware projects are to succeed they must tap into the modernisers group of QL users