From: Harv@cup.portal.com (Harv R Laser)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc
Subject: .info Magazine has "suspended operations"
Date: 9 Apr 92 19:49:28 GMT
Organization: The Portal System (TM)

First a note to those unfamiliar with it: .info Magazine (formely
INFO Magazine and before that INFO 64) is a mass-market periodical
produced by .info Publications, based in Iowa City, IA, USA, which
has concerned itself nearly 100% with the computers made by
Commodore during its entire publishing life.  They produced and
shipped to newsstands and subscribers 49 issues, at first bi-monthly,
and, for the last two years, 11 per year, over the course of the last
seven or so years.  

I've been personally invoved with .info, not as an employee, in fact
I've never stepped foot in their offices, but rather as a columnist
("public domain" from issues 22 through 42) and then as 
a "contributing editor" for MultiMedia (issues 43 through the
current issue 49).

INFO and .info have always been able to proudly claim that they 
were produced entirely with the computers they talked about:
Commodore's line of personal computers. For the last few years the
magazine has been produced entirely on Amigas.  .info has been
a colorful, glossy, well-written and eye-appealing "speaker of the
trurth" about Amigas and I have been extremely proud to have been
associated with them.  

Now (as the politicians might say) That being said... something
sad happened a few days ago.  .info suspended operations.  God
only knows the American Amiga-specific magazine market has
narrowed in the last few years, what with the demise of
Transactor, AmigoTimes, AMnews, Amiga+, Amiga Sentry, Amigan
Apprentice & Journeyman, AX, Graf/X, and most recently, Amiga World's
Tech Journal just a couple months ago.

I hope and pray that .info's owner will be able to refinance his
operation and bring the magazine back up to operational status
again.  To lose it would be extremely saddening to me and I'm sure
to the thousands of other faithful readers and writers. 

The following is a slightly edited cross-post of a notice posted
to a public message area of a commercial service.  Mr. Brown
has given me permission to post it here to the world, and has
told me that a lengthier posting by him will be forthcoming in a
few days.  

Quote:

The official line from .info management is this:
`We have suspended operations pending seeking refinancing.'
What this means, of course, is that .info will be gone if we don't manage
to line up financing or a buyer for the magazine. Needless to
say, in an economy like this, it'll be tough to do so.
 
It has, however, happened before - we went on a six-week hiatus in early
1990, arranged financing, and scrambled to get back on the newsstands. So
there is still hope. I'd like to express the official .info appreciation for
all the kind words said here. If a non-cancellable finality comes about, or a
saviour comes along, I'll try to get back and post an update for you. Thanks
for your concern.
  -Mark R. Brown, Managing Editor, .info publications. 
 End of Quote
 
 If you cross post this, please keep the words straight as to what
part of this is mine, and what part is Mark's. 

Harv Laser
Contributing Editor, Multimedia, .info Magazine
(but NOT an employee of .info Publications)