The End

[Carl]

Poptronics magazine has announced it has folded. It was the last general interest electronic hobby mag in the US, with its roots going back to the early days of radio.

It was a big pile of old Radio Electronics & Popular Electronics mags at my old high school that steered me toward an eventual EE degree. Sad to think there's not enough left of the electronics hobby in the US to support a magazine.

- Carl

[FJ]

Re: The End

I liked Popular Electronics in my younger years also, it was the mag of choice for me and we had a few to choose from back then. It disappeared once before and returned. I didn't really care for it as much, I prefer the UK magazines over Popular electronics. If others feel like me, maybe a US magazine could be supported here if it were the quality of the UK counterparts. I still subscribe to Nuts N Volts but mostly because of the advertisements. Pretty bad huh...
Good luck,
Fred

[Nicko]

Re: The End

There's still Nuts & Volts (from what I've seem, a rather bizarre mag) and Circuit Cellar (which I like), and probably others...

In Europe, we have Elektor (really not too bad at all), and EPE (the successor to Practical Electronics and Wireless World and probably others). EPE is rather strange - it seems to have very few authors, and its style is very old-fashioned.

Elektor seem to have their act together - they publish in several languages and produce the very useful "30x Circuits" series of design books. They also have a habit of using new devices and do a lot in the high-end analogue/digital audio field. Although some of their stuff is lifted from manufacturers data sheets, they have a huge range of designs in any one year, they produce nice PCBs for most stuff, and test most designs themselves...

In Europe, we have don't have many of the "digital dice" or "windscreen wiper delay unit" types of articles (thank Heavens!), but a lot of high end stuff. i.e. Its not so easy to enter the field as an amateur (I am "biassed" as my degree is in electronics).

Apart from the trade rags, Elektor and Circuit Cellar are the only ones I look at.

Nicko



Elektor UK home page

[FJ]

Re: The End

Elektor was the magazine I was referring to from the UK. Its a fine magazine with professional level projects. I purchase the magazine now and then when I go to a local electronics store. I bought one of the Gameboy O'scopes they published a year ago and it is a cool piece of equipment. Turns a gameboy into a portable digital ocilloscope with FFT and PC interface.

NutsNVolts has gotten better in that regard. I've found some useful articles and projects in it but not the level of Elektor. Elektor is very expensive to get in the US. Thats the only reason I haven't subscribed.
Take care,
Fred

[Carl]

Re: The End

I've picked up an occasional N&V and Circuit Cellar, but they just didn't appeal to me. I've never thought of them as being very mainstream.

I used to love the old Radio Electronics, and Wireless World. Electronics World bought out Wireless World, and I'm currently subscribed to that, but current issues are getting as thin as a Radio Shack sales flyer, and I don't see how they can stay in business. Plus, it looks like Reed Publishing unloaded the title on someone else.

I like EPE, and Australia's Silicon Chip, but have no experience with Elektor. Only EPE can occasionally be found on newstands in the States. Maybe EPE or Elektor can begin a State-side version of their mag.

- Carl

[Nicko]

Re: The End

Carl,

Elektor is a league apart (read as loads better) than EPE. EPE is "quaint", but Elektor really is cutting edge.

Have a look at their web page to see the sort of stuff they get up to - I've subscribed for years - they've always been excellent. I don't build many of their projects, but they are a continual source of good ideas...

Have a good holiday,

Nicko