[HCDX] "ELECTRONICS AUSTRALIA TODAY" MAGAZINE CEASES PUBLICATION

["Bob Padula" <bobpadula@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

"ELECTRONICS AUSTRALIA TODAY"  MAGAZINE CEASES PUBLICATION

Australia's longest-running electronics magazine has ceased
publication. The current issue of Electronics Australia Today will
be the last. APC News understands that the decision to axe the title
was a management decision made by the Federal Publishing
Company, which owns the magazine.

The decision will sadden many amateurs, generations of whom built
equipment from circuits published in the magazine. EA traces its
history back to Wireless Weekly, which started in 1922. Radio and
Hobbies was formed out of Wireless Weekly in 1939. This was
renamed Radio Television and Hobbies in the 1950s and Electronics
Australia in 1965. Radio amateurs to have edited the magazine
included Ross Hull, John Moyle, Neville Williams and Jim Rowe.

In its heyday, the magazine included the very comprehensive
Amateur Band News and Notes by Pierce Healy VK2APQ and the
steady stream of projects produced by writers such as Keith
Woodward, Keith Jeffcoat, Jim Rowe and Ian Pogson. Projects
described included a television set, electronic organ, and the
ambitious Deltahet communications receiver. EA successfully beat
off competition from three rival magazines in the 1980s and
remained the dominant electronics magazine, challenged only by
Silicon Chip, which continues today.

EA's decline started in the mid-1990s, when readers noted a creeping
intrusion of consumer electronics and a drop in the quantity and
quality of constructional projects presented. Technical articles were
pushed to the back pages, behind the DVD and MP3 reviews.

Earlier this year, EA abandoned its hobbyist readership entirely.
Anything involving a soldering iron was barred from the magazine.
Long-running columns such as 'Forum' and the 'Serviceman' were
jettisoned in favour of a glossy consumer format that was big on
pictures and short on text. The magazine was renamed 'Electronics
Australia Today' (or EAT) and was touted as the 'consumer
electronics buying guide'.

That was just six months ago. Despite the consumer market being
larger than the hobbyist market, the change was to lead to the
magazine's demise.

Hindsight is a powerful thing, and it is now possible to discern what
went wrong. Three things come to mind. The first is that loyal
hobbyist readers resented their abandonment by the editor and
publishers. Many (if not most) cancelled their subscriptions.
Secondly, even when judged purely as a consumer magazine, EAT
rated poorly. Readers could not differentiate between advertising
and editorial. Other consumer magazines had better reviews and
more editorial content. It was therefore not surprising that readers
did not wish to buy something that was little more than an
advertising brochure. The third reason was that publication was
infrequent and erratic. Readers did not know when to look for it in
the newsagents.

So, rest in peace Radio and Hobbies, Radio, TV and Hobbies and
Electronics Australia. You have a proud history of supporting radio
and electronics in Australia. In the meantime Australia's amateurs
and electronic enthusiasts should do what they can to support the
remaining radio and electronic publications still in print.

(Source: VK3APC Amateur Radio News broadcast, Oct-17)

(Submitted by Bob Padula, Melbourne, Australia)




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