Publisher's Letter
July 1, 2008
Dear Subscriber:
This letter is to let you know of some important changes at REALbasic Developer magazine. Effective immediately, I have decided to cease publishing the print edition of the magazine. This will not change the digital edition of the magazine: it will continue to be published as before (the July/August issue will be emailed on July 1) and all current paper subscriptions will simply be converted to PDF subscriptions. (If you're an overseas subscriber who has paid additional postage for your subscription, your subscription will be extended accordingly.)
There were several factors in this decision, including:
- Economic
The cost of printing and mailing the printed publication has continually gone up while our subscriber base has remained stable. We have essentially broken even financially over the nearly seven years we've been in business and there simply is no future if we continue as a print publication. Switching to digital-only will enable us to continue to provide you with top-quality REALbasic tutorials for years to come. - Growth
The design and structure of RBD as a publication and a business has been limited by the print edition. By eliminating print, we can focus on exclusively on digital media and create a superior product and offer improved services for our subscribers. For instance, I would love to see us expand into ebooks and video tutorials, but in the past all our resources have gone into the print edition and it wasn't even an option. - Environmental
Print is wasteful. Due to the nature and cost of the printing process, we always end up with hundreds of extra issues which simply end up in a warehouse. We sell a few back issues, but most will end up in recycling. By switching to a print-on-demand (POD) service for the handful of people who require a printed edition, we'll be more efficient and save a few trees.
While I am sorry to see the printed magazine go, I see this as a big step forward for REALbasic Developer. By eliminating the overhead of our largest expense, we'll have more resources to devote to the content of the magazine, which is where we should be focusing our energies. This move will benefit all our readers and the REALbasic community.
Print Issue Alternatives
I realize there are some of you who absolutely insist on a printed edition. Perhaps you have poor eyesight or just prefer the convenience of paper. I therefore offer some alternatives for you.
First, it's important to realize that REALbasic Developer is not a book: it is a 50-page magazine. Almost everyone who has a computer has a printer, and it's really not that big a deal to print 50 pages. It takes ten minutes and RBD is 90% text, so it won't even use much ink. You've waited two months for the new issue: is it such a burden to hit "print" and wait a few extra minutes?
As another option, I plan to make RBD available via print-on-demand. This is a third-party printing company that will take your order, print your magazine, and mail it to you. I won't kid you: it's going to be expensive, but a few may choose this route. Unfortunately, at present there isn't a way to handle a subscription in this manner, so you'll have to order each issue manually. (A new company, MagCloud, has just been announced that may solve this problem in the future, but it's too new to tell.)
I also plan to offer really nice perfect-bound books of each annual volume of RBD via the same POD system which will simplify the process of ordering printed back issues. In both of these cases the print quality should be higher than the printed issues we've been producing.
What You Need to Do
I want to hear from you. You are the lifeblood of our publication, and your opinion matters. I know I can't make everyone happy, but I will certainly listen to your suggestions and ideas. Please let me know what improvements you'd like to see, or any concerns you have regarding the transition. This is a great time to get me ideas because I'm making plans for the next few years and if there are features and services you'd like me to offer, I need to know what they are. I thank you for subscribing and supporting RBD and I hope you'll continue to subscribe for years to come.
Marc Zeedar
Publisher
REALbasic Developer
publisher at rbdeveloper.com