Editor's Notes
It's always a pleasure here to launch a new magazine. It is something we pride ourselves on doing well, and our family of publications, both books and magazines, represents a significant and ongoing commitment to quality of product. We are a fluid group, at least internally, and have been fortunate in that we managed, as an editorial group, to avoid most of the pitfalls of overexpansion that befell many of our publishing colleagues in this industry's jarring setbacks of 1984 and 1985. Tom Halfhill, most recently editor of COMPUTE!, has now taken the reins of our newest publication, COMPUTE'S Atari ST Disk & Magazine. It's our most massive disk-based undertaking to date, and no publishing house in the history of this industry has ever dared place tens of thousands of bound-in disks into general newsstand distribution. Lance Elko, long our editor of COMPUTE'S GAZETTE, is expanding his duties to encompass COMPUTE!. We are confident this move will strengthen COMPUTE!, and help us in our continuing efforts to provide you with a constantly growing, and improving, publication. We welcome Lance to his new responsibilities, and can assure him, from long experience, that you out there will be the first to let him know how things are going.
A Software Product Note
While on the subject of COMPUTE!'s Atari ST Disk & Magazine, we'd like to mention an important concern. Thfe is a truly integrated product—the magazine documents, nurtures, and tutors the disk. The programs, likewise, appear only on the disk. In short, you need the two parts to make the whole. One of our vendors' biggest concerns for this magazine was that of removal of the disk. After all, they argued, this is an expensive item, and so on. It is of major concern to us that you, as potential readers, be able to handle the magazine and browse the printed pages. For this reason, you will find that the newest magazine we publish has a bound-in disk. And pages that open for previewing. We're relying on you to prove us right. And, as always, COMPUTE! disk products are produced so that you can immediately, and easily, create your own backup. We do not engage in copy-protection. We expect you to refuse to engage in copying.
A Rare Exception
We do not frequently participate, in these pages, in a hand wringing regarding the ebbs and flows of our staff page. This is not, after all, afternoon television.
Our rare exception usually regards the move hither or yon of an editor or two as mentioned earlier in this piece. This month we must make a far more notable exception. Mr. Charles Brannon, of our resident staff, has accepted new employment, and we want not only to wish him well, but to devote to him a few sentences on this page. Charles, known by many of you as the author of SpeedScript, an incredibly sophisticated piece of COMPUTE!'s "giftware," came to work for us in 1980 as a high school student, doing program listings after school. Over the years Charles grew and evolved into a very senior young member of our staff, achieving the position of program editor, and the person behind many, many of the significant programs we have developed and published here. We have many talented people, and would not wish these accolades for Charles to diminish that collective excellence. But there is, after all, only one SpeedScript and Superfont, and well, Charles, we'll miss you, and we appreciate all the tremendous service you have provided to the readers and users of these publications over the last few years. We wish you well in your new venture.
Until next time, enjoy your issue. And watch for COMPUTE's Atari ST Disk & Magazine, appearing on your local newsstand in early September.
Robert C. LockEditor in Chief