Effin' Kalmbach

[peteski]

Hey, it's your time to waste. I'm just letting you know you won't get very far.

You are such a ray of sunshine and hope.

[Chris333]

If enough people get pissed couldn't thing end up like the Bachmann On30 cracked gear lawsuit where Bachmann had to produce and replace new gears?  I know it took about 1.5 years, but they sent me new gears.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

If enough people get pissed couldn't thing end up like the Bachmann On30 cracked gear lawsuit where Bachmann had to produce and replace new gears?  I know it took about 1.5 years, but they sent me new gears.

It could, but I'm pretty sure that ship sailed long ago.

[ncbqguy]

Being a bit of a hoarder of old computer hardware and software, I can likely help you with that (well, unless you have hundreds of old CDR files to convert).
I can save them as V10 or V12 files which I believe even the latest Corel Draw can handle.

I'm kind of on the fence as far as how far back software manufacturers have to go back to support the native files,  but it would be handy if Corel Draw V18 could open V1 files.

Peteski-

Thanks! Please contact me off list.   
The files are extensive and would be too much work for you.   If there is a way to run earlier versions of CorelDraw on Windows 10 it would be great.  I haven’t looked lately to see what version the files are but can look it up when I’m back on my PC.
This has been a low priority project but worth doing as there is some good stuff in the files worth converting to pdf format.
Charlie Vlk

[John]

Peteski-

Thanks! Please contact me off list.   
The files are extensive and would be too much work for you.   If there is a way to run earlier versions of CorelDraw on Windows 10 it would be great.  I haven’t looked lately to see what version the files are but can look it up when I’m back on my PC.
This has been a low priority project but worth doing as there is some good stuff in the files worth converting to pdf format.
Charlie Vlk

I keep several old operating systems on virtual machines just for those purposes ..  I use Virtualbox https://www.virtualbox.org/on a PC with 16gig ram .. but lesser will work also ..  a few other alternatives are reviewed here .. https://www.lifewire.com/best-virtual-machine-software-4147437

[sirenwerks]

Hey, it's your time to waste. I'm just letting you know you won't get very far.

Just a follow-up on this.  After numerous emails to Kalmbach Customer Service and individuals like the editor of MR, I eventually figured out the CEO's email addie (ahem, dhickey@kalmbach.com) and sent him a colorful message.  He dispatched his very pleasant assistant to address my complaint and we negotiated.  The deal I have in writing gives me access to Trains.com Archive in perpetuity, so I have access to the lost MR and Trains content, as well as Classic Trains and future issues of all or free; and they refunded the cost of my other DVDs, which they've pretty much re-released at cheaper prices.  It only took about a year of bitching and countless written kvetching.


If anyone else takes the same approach, please don't mention my name or story.  Just as easily as they gave me this deal, they can turn it off and not respond to my emails again.  And I'm not done downloading all of those back issues yet.


But Ed, you can't see me but I am doing the 'told you so' dance...

[jereising]

The thread title sums up what i am thinking about them at the moment...  seems like every time there's a news article on TRAINS newswire I WANT to see, I get the "you've reached your maximum of eight free articles" tag.  I'm a subscriber - for well over sixty years.  That doesn't count apparently although I'm supposed to have access.  They simply want to try to sell anything they can.  and there's no way to easily contact customer service, and I've dumped cookies til I'm blue in the face.  What the hell is wrong with these people?  Do they enjoy biting the hand that feeds them?  And we won't even mention that I've not received this month's MR.  Oh, but you can read it online. Bullshit.  I want my fricken' magazine.  [\rant off}

[Mike C]

   Have you tried going directly to the publisher White River Productions ? Not sure if they can do anything , but it's another stone to turn over .

[Albert in N]

   Jim, I too like my paper magazines.  Since Kalmbach out sourced their magazine service department to some third party vendor in Big Sandy, Texas, the renewal and special issue process has not worked well.  I have subscribed to at least two of their train magazines for many years with no problems until the out source to Big Sandy.  For example, this October I received an offer to renew Trains magazine and add a few bucks for "EMD At 100".  I mailed my check with their form and envelope on October 30th.  Yes, I put a stamp on their envelope.  My check has not cleared and no response on order.  Then I renewed Trains on line and computer worked and my charge cleared Visa.  For what it is worth, I renewed both Trains and Classic Trains magazines a couple of years ago with the same type snail mail forms.  Then, I had added orders for "Locomotive 2020" and later "Locomotive 2021".  The Big Sandy crew used the extra order dollars to extend my magazine subscriptions.  I called them and the nice service person claimed to straighten everything out, but nothing was done.  She admitted that the out source vendor had made errors.  Thus, I will trash any future snail mail bills and start using the computer to renew or order paper magazines.  BTW, their digital renewal and order department is down at times.  Thanks for all the warnings on Kalmbach digital products. 

[railnerd]

   Have you tried going directly to the publisher White River Productions ? Not sure if they can do anything , but it's another stone to turn over .

white river produces RMC, not MR.

-Dave

[djconway]

My MR showed up today only 4 days after Trains.  Usually their in the mailbox together.

[Chris333]

My last issue show up today. For once I'm not sure if I will re-new. And strangely it is because of their website now sucks. In the new MR there is something about and N scale video series called "scale it down". But when I logged into the site and went to videos there was no such thing as "scale it down". So I clicked another video that looked like the same guy and clicked play. Nothing happened for like 2 minutes, just sat there loading. Then it popped up that I need an unlimited membership to watch the video. I was already signed in and it said "Hello Chris" at the top of the page.

It says an unlimited membership is free for 30 days so I go to sign up and it wanted credit card info. I don't give credit card info for free things. That is just an effing scam to give you a runaround when you cancel. And the membership is $84 bucks a year... just to watch a few videos that used to be free with a subscription?

And oh yes it took me to a different site when it came time to pay.

So as it is right now their website is 100% useless to me.

[Chris333]

LOL  then I tried to purchase the new MRP:

Unexpected Error Occurred
We're sorry, but it appears an unexpected error has occurred while trying to process your request. This error has been logged and will be reviewed by our webmaster.

Please try loading the page again. If you continue to have problems please contact customer service

I'll just wait till it shows up at Walmart... 

[jereising]

And the pity of it is, they have no clue they're pissing us off so badly.  I have had the pleasure of meeting Jim Wrinn (love his writing) and for my money he's the best thing to hit TRAINS since David P. Morgan - maybe better, more preservation oriented but generally speaking the rest of them seem to be "SUITS" (excepting maybe Tony Koester, seems to be one of us...) and therefore not worth the powder to blow 'em up...[rant off/]

[davefoxx]

My last issue show up today. For once I'm not sure if I will re-new. And strangely it is because of their website now sucks. In the new MR there is something about and N scale video series called "scale it down". But when I logged into the site and went to videos there was no such thing as "scale it down". So I clicked another video that looked like the same guy and clicked play. Nothing happened for like 2 minutes, just sat there loading. Then it popped up that I need an unlimited membership to watch the video. I was already signed in and it said "Hello Chris" at the top of the page.

It says an unlimited membership is free for 30 days so I go to sign up and it wanted credit card info. I don't give credit card info for free things. That is just an effing scam to give you a runaround when you cancel. And the membership is $84 bucks a year... just to watch a few videos that used to be free with a subscription?

And oh yes it took me to a different site when it came time to pay.

So as it is right now their website is 100% useless to me.

@Chris333,

I haven't experienced the problem you're having . . . yet, but I will agree that the Trains.com website sucks.  It kills me that it's been up for almost one year, and they have done nothing to fix the problems.  Searching for videos is a nightmare.  Hell, just trying to find the most-recent videos can be a real pain in the butt. 

"Scale It Down" is a series by Steve Brown, who is the same guy that does "It's My Railroad."  In the few "Scale It Down" videos, he's merely copying the HO scale Winston-Salem Southbound project railroad into an N scale town on his layout.  I went in last night, and had no problem playing the "Scale It Down" videos.  If you can find them, try again.  Those videos and Gary Leone's new series, "Back On Track," are just difficult to find sometimes.  The menu in the old MRVP site was so much better for finding new videos or going to find specific videos.

Interestingly, my MR subscription also expires with the February 2022 issue.  I'm probably going to let it go, and just stay with the Trains.com subscription . . . for now.  If it fails to improve significantly, I foresee me dumping it as well in 2022.  I'm wondering if the lack of new content has anything to do with the lockdown in Wisconsin over the past year or more.  Now that they are back in the office, I'm hopeful that we'll see more videos.  I was very surprised and disappointed to see the completed N scale MR&T in the recent issue of MR.  They are usually months ahead with the videos, and the magazine lags.  Now, they have barely started the scenery on the videos on Trains.com, but the magazine has photos of a completed layout!  That leads me to believe that they are intentionally releasing videos at a snails pace.

All that said, I will continue with the Classic Trains magazine subscription.  I still really enjoy that.

DFF