RISC OS magazine round up - RISC OS News, Software and Information

RISC OS magazine round up

Published: 14th Aug 2003, 20:43:05GMT Source: drobe.co.uk
By Chris Williams

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Omega'n'Alpha reviews, more features, big issues touted

Media Sick of reading drobe.co.uk? Can't say we blame you. However, the dead tree RISC OS publications have been eagerly touting their bumper issues this month and so it's worth running an overview of what's on offer. Believe me, any fool with a text editor and a webserver can run a news site but magazines have that special professional edge, acting simultaneously as the spokespeople for the platform. And you can read them at lunchtimes, in bed or on the train.

The ARM Club's magazine Eureka is boasting a "first full report" of the MicroDigital Omega - a claim that caused one or two drobe.co.uk staffers to splutter their de-caffeinated drinks over monitors and raise an eyebrow. It'll be interesting to see how Eureka's appraisal compares with ours.

In addition, it's welcoming to see another publication giving MicroDigital ink despite the hardware developer's contempt towards the very people who go out of their way to let everyone know aboout their kit. The vast majority of criticism aimed at MicroDigital over the years focused on the Omega's lateness and concern over the constantly 'evolving' Omega specifications and development problems. Now the Omega is available and shipping, if you picked the right dealer, the final hurdle for the Omega is the public reviewing rounds and maybe then we can all live happily ever after. Until of course someone slaps their forehead and remembers that the Omega is supposed to have USB and networking, oh and that XScale co-processor solution - but we didn't say anything, got it?

RiscWorld have also apparently run an Omega review, but Eureka have shown that they're comfortable with telling people how it is. After two months of brave Omega usage and a ten page write up, Eureka must be confident.

Everyone loves Acorn User, or rather, everyone loves telling Acorn User what to do. If you have any questions you want answering, email them and they'll try to answer your queries in a RISC OS market pep talk soon to be published online. The AU September issue begins its series on comparing and contrasting software running on the XScale Iyonix to a legacy StrongARM RiscPC - something tells us it's not a case of the hare and the tortoise. Acorn User are also looking at the Castle "takeover" of RISC OS, VoIP and digital video.

Acorn User is still (in places) the only shop shelf dwelling RISC OS publication although Acorn Publisher are said to be considering their options.

Finally, Archive magazine have a bumper issue this month with articles on the Castle buy out, the RISC OS 5 HAL, a MicroDigital Alpha review, a couple of articles shared with drobe.co.uk, and a hearty measure of regular articles. And don't forget that if you like Archive, you may like their sister publication Living with Technology.

Links
Acorn User, Archive, Eureka
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A.W. (+1.5) 15/8/03 10:31AM	eureka's will be a good review and very thorough - David Ruck will probably do it I expect. -- God Save the Queen
dgs (+3.5) 15/8/03 11:39AM	Actually I believe the Omega review in Eureka will be done by Tom Hughes. (druck was distinctly lacking in enthusiasm for borrowing the Omega that The ARM Club won). But Tom is an Iyonix owner too, so it should be an interesting review. I'm not aware of any impending Omega review in Acorn User (but I could be wrong). dgs
NoMercy 16/8/03 12:43AM	sigh I stoped buying Acorn User soon after the *Info pages stoped, damn I loved those things.
skeeter 21/8/03 6:09PM	I have to admit every time I see a thread like this I feel somewhat nostalgic for the publications that have long since fallen by the wayside. I can remember the excitement of wandering into WHSmiths on a Thursday after school; and (with the exception of one week) having a new Acorn magazine on the shelf each time. Acorn Computing/The Micro User was, for many years, my first choice namely because I was a late starter in getting a proper RISC OS machine. Acorn User joined in about the same time, albeit only occasionally, as my interests at the time fell a little outside the remit of AU. Archimedes World, with its intriguing layouts, was long a favourite; if only to try and understand some of the content. It seemed to sit on a middle ground between AU and MU but managed to impress regardless. After a visit to the Beebug showroom in 1994, the remaining Beebug magazines joined my collection; then RISC User and the ill-fated Acorn Action. Since then... RISC World, Acorn Publisher and various others. Am I one of the few RISC OS users to have read virtually all of the magazines to appear for RISC OS machines in the last ten years? Or beyond? David
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