So long, Macworld

After 30 years of publication, the venerable Macworld magazine will no longer produce a printed magazine. I'm inclined just to say they're out of business, but I'll defer to the publisher's statement that they will still be publishing, albeit it only on the web. I'm sad to see them go, and I'll remain proud of having written a couple of articles for them in years past.

In his final editorial, Jason Snell describes how their readers are vanguards, and that the decline of interest in a printed magazine is simply the way the world is turning. Despite being put out of a job by the announcement, Snell even manages to encourage readers to embrace the "monthly digital editions" that are now being offered. The rest of us, though, would simply call it a paywall.

Given this news, I found some delicious irony in one of the articles featured in their final, printed issue. The opening sentence is "There's no stopping change," and writer Chris Barylick continues on to offer this bit of advice to consultants and support professionals assisting their clients:

YouTube is your friend--especially when it comes to instructional videos. If your clients are worried about learning to use a new application, piece of hardware, or operating system version, odds are good that you can point them toward an instructional YouTube video, bookmark the video for easy access, and perhaps save a link to the desktop as well. The instructor in a video is always accessible (and may be feeling more patient than you are in the heat of the moment). Take advantage of these resources.

You know what else is always accessible and patient? The documentation that came with the product. It's also more likely to be correct and well-written. You know, just like Macworld magazine was.

Posted: October 12, 2014 link to this item, Tweet this item, respond to this item