I began writing for newsstand magazines in the mid eighties, working for Pam
Turnbull at Micro user. I was the main education writer at Micro User, which
became Acorn Computing, pretty much up until it closed, contributing both
reviews and articles of a more general nature to most issues. During that time
I also wrote for Let's Compute!, a children's computing magazine; Key Ideas,
aimed at teachers and Acorn User, Redwood's answer to Micro User. More recent
work includes the following:
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A publication aimed at the private sector. I wrote for them for a couple of
years concentrating mainly on purchasing decisions. This was my first major
foray into writing about PCs rather than Acorn machines and gave me a good feel
for the way that market works. Articles included 'Surfing the Net' on getting a
school connected to the Internet, 'Computer Shopping' on the timing of
purchasing systems and up-grades, 'Using Multimedia in Schools' on hardware and
software requirements for multimedia, 'A Guide to Buying Computers' on the
advantages of different platforms, and so on. The editor during this time was
Jackie Mitchell. Private Education is published by Knightswood Publishing. |
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I was sub-editor/editorial assistant on this subscription magazine from
September '91 until it wound up in April '94. This was a fairly technical
magazine for users of the BBC and MS128 computers. This gave me a depth of
experience in making editorial decisions, serious re-writing of copy that was
often very technical and occasionally from people whose first language was not
English. This was a good place to sharpen my skills in making technical issues
accessible to non-technical writers. It also helped me build up the wide
variety of contacts I have in the Acorn sphere. The editor throughout this
period was Mike Williams (see Acorn Publisher), the publisher was BeeBug LTD.
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I wrote briefly for this magazine in the eighties when it was owned by
Redwood and edited by Lisa Hughes. I became a regular contributor in the early
nineties when it was transferred to TIN and edited by Mark Sealey. During this
time I wrote several major series including a look at IT in American schools
and advice on making use of older computers. I also wrote many other one-off
articles and product reviews during the time Mark was editor ('92 - '95 as I
remember). You can mail Mark Sealey at marksealey@aol.com. |
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I was in this recent title from the first issue in June '95. I continue to
write for it and have produced articles and regular features on HTML,
multimedia, maths, science and so on. I also commissioned and edited a series
of pull-outs with different curricular focuses. This included establishing
marketing deals with the software companies that we featured in the pull-outs.
With this magazine I have also experimented with providing supplementary
materials to support articles via Questions WWW site. InteracTive is published
by Questions Publishing. Mark Sealey was editor until spring '97, the current
editor is Brian Asbury. |
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Sadly, this is no longer with us. It was Paragon Publishing's foray into
this part of the market; a good quality magazine that is sorely missed. Along
with reviews, I wrote several major features for PC Kids. These included a look
at the government's support (or lack of it) for IT in schools, case studies of
what was actually going on in specific schools, and various items on using the
computer as an educational tool in the home. For its relatively short life (18
months around '95/'96?) the editor was Paul Mallinson. |
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Back to work with Pam Turnbull, now at IDG. P&C takes a broad view for
its audience, not just looking at computers, but education in general - the
'concerned parent' market. I have been writing regularly for this magazine
since mid '96. Most of my work here has concentrated on reviewing CD based
packages in specific curricular areas. What's nice is that the magazine is
prepared to give a decent amount of space to those reviews and allow them to be
truly independent. As I write this there is, apparently, going to be some sort
of shake-up at the magazine, but you should still be able to mail Pam Turnbull
at pamt@idg.co.uk. |
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I started a regular web page design series in Acorn Publisher late '96.
This now appears in every issue and runs to three or four pages. The spin here
is to look at design issues and the technical methods of achieving given
effects. It requires me to be extremely up-to-date with developments on the
WWW, the changes to browser specifications, user demographics and so on.
Specific features have dealt with graphics compression, the use of tables,
cross-platform design and so on. Acorn Publisher comes from Akalat Publishing,
the editor is Mike Williams. You can mail Mike on
akalat@kbnet.co.uk. |
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I joined Risc User in January '97, sharing the education input with Chris
Drage. I contribute one article per issue on a wide range of subjects. Recent
articles include a review of BETT '97, software reviews, a look at new
developments at Inclusive Technology and advice on using computers for home
education. Risc User is published by BeeBug LTD and edited by Richard Hallas,
who can be contacted at richard@hallas.demon.co.uk |
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This is an important step for me as it takes me into the areas of
non-educational newsstand publications. My only published article with them so
far was a study of the place of non-profit organizations in the economic life
of the Internet. Internet Business Magazine is published by Internet Business
Magazine LTD and edited by Tim Wilson. |
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Indicator are publishers of a series of high-quality newsletters aimed and business and academia throughout Europe (they are based in Belgium). In the first instance I am writing for their Tips & Advice: Internet newsletter - currently in preparation is an article on purchasing books via the web. |