New Digital version of RMC (and others) coming from White River

[reinhardtjh]

White River Publications is announcing (did on April 1st - No Fooling!  Except for the price, which they botched!) a new version of the digital copies of Railroad Model Craftsman, Model Railroad News, Railfan & Railroad, Diesel Era,  HO Collector, Narrow Gauge and Short Line Gazette, O Scale Trains, Passenger Train Journal and Trains & Railroads of the Past.  Calling an Open Beta There will be an iOS and Android apps plus a web login for personal computers.

The downside that first sticks out to me is that there is no printing or downloading the PDF files for the magazines.  I don't know if you can copy/paste portions from the PC app or the iOS or Android apps.

$4/month is a decent price though and that allows access to all issues available online for that magazine.  They say they are continually scanning older issues and adding them to the archive pool.  It's billed in annual chunks so it's $48 to try it out.  If you subscribe to 3 or more there is a 10% discount.

APRIL 1, 2023, IT IS NO JOKE…

WRP is moving into our 2nd phase of beta testing for our digital app which has been in development for the last three years. We do so appreciate all the feedback we have received in the 1st phase of testing. Starting April 1, 2023, digital memberships to any of our magazines will be available for $4 a month, billed annually. With this you will receive access to all available digital issues for a magazine in our digital library. This membership locks you into a year's worth of digital viewing even if prices increase with the next newer version of the app.
Plus an Over-the-Top-Discount

Get 10% off when you order memberships to 3 or more magazines.
Coming Soon on both Android and Apple platforms!

    Two-page PDF-format viewing option for those who like the feel of the printed magazine.
    We are reworking all of the digital images to be higher resolution for better detail. Maps, diagrams, and roster shots will be much more useful.
    Automatic monthly billing so you don't have to pay for 12 months up front and you don't have to call in to renew your membership.

Thanks so much for supporting us in this adventure!
White River Productions Digital Team
More Details

    A membership provides access to our complete digital library for a specific magazine for the duration of the membership term. Once the term has expired, access to our library will be fully restricted.
    Each magazine requires its own membership, and memberships may not be transferred to another magazine or user for the duration of the membership term.
    Current issues will become available around the same time as the print edition. We are also working through our catalog of older back issues and those will become available as they are digitized by WRP staff.
    Access the digital library for each magazine by downloading the WRP Digital app from the Google Playstore on Android or the Apple App Store on iOS. Access to each magazine's library is also available online at WhiteRiverProductions.com/account
    PDFs are not available for download or print. For offline viewing, issues may be download to your Android or iOS device through the WRP Digital app.
    In-app purchases are not available. All memberships must be managed through the White River Productions website and customer portal.
    VAT and other local taxes may apply after the beta testing phase ends and we begin offering paid memberships.
    We are currently in a testing phase and the content includes no advertising. Advertising may be present at a later date.
    We currently offer Model Railroad News, Railfan & Railroad and Railroad Model Craftsman digital editions through third party platforms. Those offerings will remain in place until this new WRP Digital app has cleared all beta testing phases.

[John]

Not being able to print is a show stopper for me - I have a digital subscription now that I will not be renewing .. I've been beta testing for a while now - this is a step back .. too bad .

[Chris333]

Not that I at all am interested, but the only way to view them is to use an app? 

[reinhardtjh]

Not that I at all am interested, but the only way to view them is to use an app? 

They mention being able to do it via a web site through an account page as well.

[motofavorite]

I'm happy with it. The new app is better than the old version. Best of all, the entire library is in my phone and available on the train, in the waiting room, or at my workbench. And I don’t need to keep old print editions. My bookshelves do a fine job of holding down the carpeting without storing stacks of magazines.

[Ken Martin]

I agree, not being able to print will be a game stopper for me.  It may be cheaper to produce but it gives no satisfaction if you cannot retain a print of particular item.   How are you going to be able to use plans to scratch build?  Some one is not thinking here.

[nickelplate759]

I understood the terms of this such that  back issues would only be accessible to someone with a current subscription, including back issues that where published when that person had a subscription was current. 

That's a no-go for me.  It's essentially renting the content.  Even if I wanted to keep my subscription current for the rest of my life, there's no guarantee that the publisher will stay in business that long, nor that they will keep the app functioning that long. 

So essentially, back issues, even issues I "paid" for, are only available to me for as long as the publisher wishes me to have them available.  Yuck.

Contrast that with N Scale Magazine.  As a subscriber I can and do download and save copies of the issues I subscribe to.

[thomasjmdavis]

  PDFs are not available for download or print. For offline viewing, issues may be download to your Android or iOS device through the WRP Digital app.

I'm confused. Do phone users have a way to download to their phones ("the entire library is in my phone") but PC users do not? There is NO WAY I am going to try to read a magazine on the tiny screen on my phone.

I prefer digital magazines, but not if I can't keep them. It takes me 5 to 10 years to get around to doing some project covered in a magazine article. I need to be able to keep them and read them if I pay for them.

[reinhardtjh]

I'm confused. Do phone users have a way to download to their phones ("the entire library is in my phone") but PC users do not? There is NO WAY I am going to try to read a magazine on the tiny screen on my phone.

I prefer digital magazines, but not if I can't keep them. It takes me 5 to 10 years to get around to doing some project covered in a magazine article. I need to be able to keep them and read them if I pay for them.

They mention being able to do it via a web site through an account page as well.

I think it's a matter of terminology.  They may consider access through a phone app as "offline" where reading through your PC on the internet as being "online".  Both have the same access, just different paths.  What you can't do with either is store the issues on the device.  I expect it has to be downloaded via the network connection each time.  Which is a bummer.

I understood the terms of this such that  back issues would only be accessible to someone with a current subscription, including back issues that where published when that person had a subscription was current. 

That's a no-go for me.  It's essentially renting the content.  Even if I wanted to keep my subscription current for the rest of my life, there's no guarantee that the publisher will stay in business that long, nor that they will keep the app functioning that long. 

So essentially, back issues, even issues I "paid" for, are only available to me for as long as the publisher wishes me to have them available.  Yuck.

Contrast that with N Scale Magazine.  As a subscriber I can and do download and save copies of the issues I subscribe to.

And the Kalmbach model also.  With their "All Time Archives" you have access to any issue of the magazine for as long as you have the subscription and you lose access once you stop.  The difference is that Kalmbach allows you to download the PDF to some storage and allows printing.  In effect granting you permanent access (as long as you download each issue and keep it).

[Englewood]

Lots of the magazines that I've regularly read over the years have gone digital only. Every single one of them goes belly up within a few years.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I don't understand why they'd want to do their own thing here.
There are established platforms for this type of thing.

They should use one of those. Make it easy for people to buy your product and they will.

Put up barriers and they won't.