N Scale magazine is offering their first 5 years of issues on CD for $19.95. Kalmbach could do this if they weren’t so obsessed with making money off of their recycled articles… HEY KALMBACH!!! Anyone there listening?
N Scale magazine publishes only six issues a year, and those issues are smaller and less graphically intense than any monthly issue of Model Railroader. Moreover, NScale started publication in the late 1980s - early 1990s. (And even Bob Hundman seems reluctant to start the digitization of his flgship, Mainline Modeler, which began publication as a bi-monthly in 1980. From Bob’s own comments, it seems like the success of the N Scale CD-ROMs will decide whether or how soon his other periodicals will be available on CD-ROM.)
I’ve ordered my copy of the N Scale CD-ROM, but it hasn’t arrived yet. I will be interested to see what sort of search capabilities will be available, whether there will be hyperlinks between articles and issues, and if there will be any extras not included in the original publications.
Another thing that may influence things is that, at least in my area, Hundman’s back issues command full cover price, when available, at the local hobby shops. I am told that back issues for all other publications are acquired for pennies on the copy and then sold for as much as $2.00 a copy. I could see CD-ROMs destroying the back issue market, and causing widespread irritation.
The maintenance and copying of back issues is a valuable and labor intensive process. (I work in the quick print industry, so I know something about this.) And if you want the photographs to be readable, and the text not to be going over page edges, it gets more expensive. And unless you have access to engineering copiers, there is no way to reproduce some of the multifold locomotive plans in one piece.
I tend to believe Kalmbach when its representatives say converting their back numbers to CD-ROMs is cost prohibitive. (And I doubt Kalmbach could get away with just collections of Adobe Acrobat files; they would be expected to add bells and whistles.) The equipment and expertise for a photocopy service is probably easily justified, an
But how do you lay in bed and read a CD-ROM? 
I have all N-Scale Magazines (and N-Scale Railroading also) from Volume 1, No 1. They are a valuable source of research material. Wouldn’t part with mine for the world.
Which brings me to another subject which I was intending to introduce as a new topic -but, since it is directly related to this one, I’ll bring it up here.
A rumor passed my way (I didn’t start it!!! I’m only passing on what I heard) that Hundman is a fixin’ to fold N-Scale Magazine. What was said was “N-Scale (Magazine) may not be around very much longer.” (And no! Kalmbach and Carstens were not in the room). I find this just a little bit hard to swallow because I can’t envision him going to the expense of putting his first 5 years of publications on CD-ROM and then folding the endeavor - except that that would drive the price of the CD-ROMs up - but that’s only on the short-term.
Anyway, just asking if anyone has any light to shead on this subject.
(Mr HUNDMAN) - don’t have apoplexy - I have had a subscription for many years, intend on hanging on to it, and, I guess what I’m really trying to say is, I do hope that this is just a wild-a___ed rumor with no substance at all.