

Linux Voice – A new Linux magazine that gives back - m0a0t0
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/linux-voice/

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LordIllidan
I was an avid Linux Format reader for some time and had a print subscription
for a heady couple of years. However, the content seemed to have dumbed down
recently, and the ratio of advertising to content seems to have grown. Also,
I'd go for more tutorials and less reviews, or if you're going to do reviews -
more detailed reviews, I hated seeing one-paragraph reviews.

Best of luck, I look forward to seeing my pdfs :)

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benev
One of the founders here if you've got any questions.

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wcchandler
My only suggestion is to provide free subscriptions to Universities,
especially if you can address them to Computer Science departments.

While I attended Uni, we signed up for a ton of free trials to various
magazines -- Linux Format, Linux Journal, EE Times, InfoSecurity, etc. We got
pretty lucky in that most of the free trials never ended. And if they did,
we'd pool together money and buy a year's subscription. The department even
bought a couple for us.

I can't stress how influential these magazines were to our participation. We
were in an academic environment surrounded by geniuses in their field. We
could read an article and nobody would understand it -- bring that topic up at
the end of a lecture and talk about it for 20-30 minutes with the prof
afterwards. Abstract concepts began to tie in with lecture materials. We were
able to validate our courses of study and how it can relate to the real world.
While this could've been just as likely by printing out articles or emailing
the prof articles and asking his opinion, it was much easier because everyone
(mostly) had thumbed through the communal magazines and had some rudimentary
understanding of what's being talked about. We were able to actively
participate in the discussion. That comfort in asking questions and talking in
front of peers led to some great lectures -- many of which probably wouldn't
have existed without the magazines.

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benev
Thanks for the info. This is something we're keen to do.

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Amadou
I've got a few librarians, particularly research librarians, in the family.
University libraries pay lots of money for whole-school access to online
journals and other publications. If you can make your sales process friendly
for university libraries you can increase visibility to people who aren't
necessarily in the CS department and probably get paid too. Handling that sort
of thing is one of the primary functions of a modern university library, they
aren't afraid to pay a reasonable fee because they recognize that good
publications need income in order to exist.

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AndrewGregory
American magazines typically have a much higher proportion of advertising to
editorial, with a lower cover price. Linux Voice will have more editorial
copy, paid for by the purchase price, not advertising. Ethically, I don't
think you can justify charging good money, then loading the thing with ads;
that's just taking the piss out of your readers. Of course, if Red Hat or
someone wants to buy 16 pages of advertising, we'll take their money, but
we'll print extra pages so that the number of editorial pages doesn't fall.

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vertis
I don't mind a certain amount of advertising in Linux magazines because it
lets me know that the company caters to the market in the first place (which
isn't always apparent).

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boothead
Done! I would have given you guys more money if you had the corresponding
digital subscriptions for the £50, £80 and £90 options. Best of luck!

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vmilner
"In this issue we're celebrating the crowdfunding revolution. We asked our
contributors what project they'd like to see on Indiegogo or Kickstarter...

    
    
         - Linux Format Xmas 2013"
    

"A. Gregory: For consistency I'm going to say a Linux port of Elite Dangerous"

"M. Saunders: After writing my own x86 operating system, I'd like to fund a
new version written in Forth"

"B. Everard: Having written a wooden scooter across Africa, I'd simply ask for
an off-road map"

:-)

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alexchamberlain
I have been a happy subscriber to The Previous Magazine for a while now; I'd
like to see a little more for profession software engineers, but otherwise
always on the ball.

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benev
Thanks for the feedback.

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sgt
I second that - some more highly technical articles would be great. Heck, even
an analysis of an IOCCC entry or something crazy like that. I know it may not
appeal to most buyers, but it will appeal to some, and I think the magazine
should have a little something for everyone.

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kwestro
Print is dead. Most publications have migrated to digital only. Why waste
money on physical magazines, when digital versions are inexpensive and very
easy to distribute?

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benev
We're offering digital subscriptions as well, so take which ever one you like
:). However, Linux Format (or the Previous Magazine as it's called elsewhere
on the thread) actually increased its print circulation last year. Print's
still got some life in it yet.

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sgt
I only buy digital subscriptions. Hold on, wait. That's not true, since
whenever I'm at an airport I buy a magazine such as this. Please make sure
that airports will carry Linux Voice!

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vertis
I used to be an avid Linux Journal reader/subscriber, but I ended up with a
bitter taste in my mouth because they sold my mailing address to a third party
(without ever asking).

I've not picked up a copy of Linux Journal for the last couple of years.

I'm backing this in the hope it becomes something amazing, that I can use to
replace Linux Journal.

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mikesaunders
Thanks a lot! Rest assured, we're doing this differently. We've split off from
a big company that could do stunts like that, and we're focused on our
readers. The entire team will be doing one thing: making a great Linux mag.

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josinalvo
Does that "play" program, with the "anythingby" option, really exist ?

I supose it would be possible (indexing metadata). And it would be awesome!

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benev
Well yes, but only insofar as it's a script created for the video that only
plays that one song!

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josinalvo
damn

