Eurochart - No magazines for high-configuration
computers only, please!

Prologue

This article is in general about requiring advanced computer systems or configurations for running a magazine. In my view a magazine (such as Hugi which you are reading now) must reach an audience as wide as possible. Can you imagine being able to run Hugi only on the most advanced PCs anno domini 2004? I don't think so!

A particular chart-magazine called The Official Eurochart (which also had a few issues released on the PC by some other, ex-amiga sceners) wants to release their 48th issue for a highly advanced PPC amiga only. The main-editor Darkhawk of Iris comes with a courageous attempt to start a new revolution with the stonetablet charts-magazine The Official Eurochart. He bravely tries to get his readers on a new crusade with the goal being to unleash a new PPC scene; More releases; Unity among Amiga sceners! Long live the Amiga scene! Hell no!! Sadly not...

PPC versus AGA

Ironically years ago, somewhere in 1995 I believe, I did more or less the same thing as Darkhawk tries now. In 1994 The Official Eurocharts (back then a real chart and not a so called charts-magazine) was the first that morphed from an ECS to an AGA chart. In 1995 I did the same with Chit Chat issue 15. The first AGA diskmag ever released. I promoted AGA. For a good reason. There were more sceners who had AGA than ECS! I can remember I wrote and I quote: "You can't stop progress from happening even in the Amiga scene." Well I got that right! But trying to get sceners buy a PPC amiga anno domini 2004 is foolish! There will always be more 68k users than PPC users. That is the point really! Darkhawk's cry for PPC is born out of passion for a dying culture. Don't get me wrong I will cherish Amiga forever but you can't stand tall forever, look with reality rather than being naive and say: Nothing Lasts Forever, not even Amiga.

Darkhawk wrote: "In short, it is PPC or death." Who is Darkhawk to decide to let the EC die? Who is he to give such vague information about the future of the EC? This is what Darkhawk wrote in his article called NEW CHARTS in the last EC. When I demanded a response from Darkhawk he told me he had written in another article that he might (yes MIGHT) release the EC for AGA amigas too (in addition to PPC). Well how is that for giving clear information to us, sceners? "MIGHT?" Well he ought to do so for 100%! "Compose an article describing what you want to happen", Darkhawk wrote. Well here you are, Darkhawk. Even Ghandy, who runs www.diskmag.de, is of the opinion: "But it is true that your article(s) in EC were not as clear as they should have been. I also misunderstood them." So next time when you are trying to explain changes or other important things make it as clear as possible!

Don't forget the Roots

All releases for ECS, AGA or PPC should be honoured. Written about and put on the many scene archives on the internet. But let's face it - the Amiga scene has (almost) become the C=64 scene of the 21st century! I have to note that the 48th issue of The Offical Eurocharts, which has been released since 1989, is a nice issue. Many articles, nice graphics and music and of course, although not to many voters since issue 47, a nice chart! But please don't dare to make it PPC only! I vote for a scener's choice! Who are they (e.g. Darkhawk) to decide PPC only? For example a choice between AGA or PPC when you start issue 48 would be good! Or, if they stay stubborn and release it as PPC only, let them port the darn whole thing to a ONLINE website! Then you will reach a larger population than only people who have an amiga anno domini 2004. (That's why this article you are reading now in Hugi will be online soon after the release of Hugi 29 at my homepage. ;)) Only a minority of sceners has PPC, and the rest won't upgrade! Who would invest in old technology. In technology almost no-one uses, not even in the real life world!? Passion alone isn't enough! Don't shut all sceners with AGA out of a chart which is one of the only legacies the Amiga scene still has!

Epilogue

In short, don't be irritated by this article Darkhawk. I see that smile on your face now... I think ;) Tomorrow you won't even think about what I wrote here. I guess I will see a reply somewhere, somehow sometime.. But not in the new issue of EC - of course that can take ages to release ;)

If you haven't read the Eurocharts issue 47 you can download it from www.irishq.dk.

Addendum

When I asked Darkhawk of Iris for a final response this is what I got:

"'However, this is it, this will probably be the last issue of the EC with this code, the last EC with this chart, and maybe the last EC on any 68k Amiga, although we'll try to get the new code to run on 68k Amigas too.'

I know, relative terms can be confusing to some minds, and the use of 'maybe' and 'try' could seem very misleading to these minds, but it's a fact that you went ahead and concluded that the EC would not be 68k, although you had no reason for this.. Ohh, except wanting to write an article of course.

But don't feel too bad about it Magic, I don't think Ghandy could read either, as he told me that I must not let the 68k EC die at BP. After telling him that we wouldn't, he still went on implying to people (like in this thread), that it wouldn't come out on 68k.. My my, some notions are really hard to get out of your head once they're stuck there, or otherwise they're just used as effective propaganda, true or not, like telling the VS crew that I hated their work.. Ohh, this is a bit like the old, golden days of intrigue, it stirs me, and makes me want to do something.. However, we will have to code the new EC first :)

I hope it is beginning to dawn on people, that there will be both an 68k and PPC version of the same mag, the EC, available, when/if it will get finished? ;-) As for the last part, well, we will do what we can, just keep the scene alive while we work, please."

So in short, the next issue of the EC will be 100% on AGA and PPC. And yes, let's keep all scenes alive!

End of file..

Magic of Nah-kolor