Re(2): Midrange Computing is liquidating.

FWIW, see below:

MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com writes:
>I am interested in knowing the numbers re trade publications.
>
>How many people read them now vs 5 yrs ago.  What are the circulation nbrs
>for the trade publications today vs then. Have the circulation nbrs
>dropped
>as much as the advertising has?  Esp when you factor in hits at the web
>site
>of the trade pub.

I subscribe to both Midrange Computing & News/400, and I have done so
since I started with the AS/400 back in 1992. My employer also subscribes,
but I like having my own personal copies (I have changed jobs twice since
then). I also keep all my old issues. I don't necessarily read them when I
get them (no time :-(), but I love having them around for when I get
interested in a new topic -- then I search the indexes and look up the
relevant articles. Whenever I do pick them up and browse through them, I
almost always learn something new and interesting. I wouldn't give them up
for anything.

I used to buy the CDs, but I stopped doing that when the information
became available on the web. The reason is that I hate reading CD-based
(or, for that matter, web-based) articles -- especially when you have to
click around to see the figures, sample code, etc. The only thing I use
them for is the "lookup" feature: I'll search on a topic and write down
all the relevant articles. Then I'll go to my stack of old issues and dig
them out. Maybe I'm an old fogey, but I hope magazines never go away (and
I don't think they will, completely).
>
>
>Has the fee based access to the news400 web site been a money maker?

I never use it.
>
>
>Do vendors get more bang for their buck by being a presence on the web
>than
>in a trade publication.
>
>Are the diminished nbr of ads in the trade publications a result of less
>spending on marketing or a lower pct of the marketing budget allocated to
>trade pub advertising.
>
>How do as400 customers become aware of a 3rd party product today: web
>search, posting to a list like this one, marketing email sent by the
>vendor,
>or seeing an ad in a trade publication.

If I want a range of products to compare, I'll look first at the ads in
the trade magazines -- they tell me a lot, and they help me narrow down
the list of products I want to investigate further. If I want a specific
recommendation, or I'm looking for a special feature, I'll probably ask on
a list like this one and then go check the company's web site. But even
when I'm browsing through the magazines not looking for anything, the ads
tell me what kinds of  products are out there and what features the
companies think are important to try to sell me on. I also start noticing
which companies have been around for a while, and which ones seem to have
changed what they do. This definitely affects my thinking when I actually
go to look for something.
>
>What are the sales and profits of the top 10 iseries vendors. Today and 5
>yrs ago?
>
>
>Not ready to jump ship yet,

Me, either.
>
>Steve Richter

hth

Mike Naughton
Senior Programmer/Analyst
Judd Wire, Inc.
124 Turnpike Road
Turners Falls, MA  01376
413-863-4357 x444
mnaughton@juddwire.com

+---
| This is the Midrange System Mailing List!
| To submit a new message, send your mail to MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com.
| To subscribe to this list send email to MIDRANGE-L-SUB@midrange.com.
| To unsubscribe from this list send email to MIDRANGE-L-UNSUB@midrange.com.
| Questions should be directed to the list owner/operator: david@midrange.com
+---