QUOTE: "Over the years many readers have asked us if there was a single source of all "Vintage Radio" articles ... Until now that was not possible. But now it is! We've put together a DVD containing every "Vintage Radio" column for more than 20 years -- from April 1997 right through to December 2018 -- and included an easy to read index ... all in PDF format so the quality is even better than in the magazine (you can actually read many dials!)"

I wrote to Leo Simpson some years ago with this very request. He replied (in summary) that he didn't consider it viable. Seems he changed his mind or perhaps new editor Nick Vinen got behind it. Either way, this is a welcome initiative and is a nod to what I suspect is Silicon Chip's core readership demographic.

It's also available for download.

As they say in advertising, this would make an ideal Christmas gift for those who love the vintage stuff.

Purchase here: https://www.siliconchip.com.au/Shop/3

I think the current editorial staff may see the scope of topics a bit differently than previous.
I have actually been buying SC again after a break of many years and find it now an interesting read about electronics and industry in general. In this era of disappearing magazines, SC is one of the few quality mags amongst the tons of rubbish being printed.
Fred.

I trust that April, 1977 == April, 1987...

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

1997. My typo. Fixed.

Oh, poo. I was hoping they'd go right back to the first issue. The first few years by both John Hill (SC) and Peter Lankshear (EA) were amongst the best of all in that they went into great detail to educate newcomers (such as myself at the time) about how thing worked and how to diagnose basic faults.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

Maybe the DVD starts in 1997 because they have the material in digital form from then. Possibly also a matter of copyright clearances. I'm heading over that way soon, so I might ask them directly.

I think the current editorial staff may see the scope of topics a bit differently than previous.

Nick Vinen and Leo Simpson interviewed by Squeaky Dave 6 years ago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYCiksNEhNI

I was hoping they'd go right back to the first issue.

The first article was "Vintage Radio" How It Began: Part 1 by John Hill [March 1988]

Silicon Chip first issue was November 1987.

So, if we have it right, they aren't including the first 10 years or so of articles which is a pity. I will go ahead and ask why, though I suspect it's because they would have to be scanned.

And I have changed the thread title to say 'Most of' instead of 'All', accordingly.

It's amazing that SC licences their projects to other magazines. One would think that the US and GB would have their own operations but it appears that SC is truly one of the last magazines of its genre in the world.

They do a very good job, especially considering what they are up against with the throw-away society and the ever-shrinking DIY sector.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...

I have had a few chats with Leo Simpson over the years and must say I was most impressed by him. I reckon he is very astute and understands the electronics enthusiast quite well certainly better than the clowns who took over and wrecked EA. (Perhaps they went on to run DSE or Maplin!) By licensing content from SC the magazine effectively gets a much wider readership than it would otherwise just in Australia.

I bought the Radio TV and Hobbies DVD and I reckon I will get the SC DVD too.

Andrew

the Radio TV and Hobbies DVD

That has an interesting history. As I recall, two Sydney guys approached Leo Simpson for permission to scan every issue of TV&H and make a DVD. He told them he thought they were completely nuts but to knock themselves out. And they did!

At first they handled sales orders themselves, but eventually asked Silicon Chip to take over.

Call me old school but if they published them in a book then I would buy it. Yep I will get the dvd though.

The catch 22 in all of this is storage. Whilst one need something to read the aged CD / DVD which is in several areas, being replaced by the larger capacity "zip" aka flash drive, one must concede that these take up a whole lot less space: Like the workshop here contains the sites library with books, where the first edition is 19th century, or around WW1. So one is looking at minimum 3 metres on three rows. That does not include those Like Radio Waves, National Geographic, Silicon Chip ,which if hoarded, can start infesting space.

Zips, Tera-bite HDD, CD's and such do promote economy of scale. But the fall down is that books are more reliable and are not destroyed by surges & the various malady's that befall electronic devices.

Call me old school but if they published them in a book then I would buy it.

When I wrote to Leo Simpson in 2011, I was seeking a book version. However, the DVD will be searchable, so that's a bonus.

I agree that books are easier on the eyes. I once had a copy of Discovering Vintage Radio which was a similar compilation by EA and the author of the first batch of their vintage radio articles, Peter Lankshear. I have yearned for a copy of some years as I don't recall where I have left the original.

Last night on Ebay, one was purchased. It was a magazine rather than a hardcover book but print is still easier on the eyes than a computer screen, despite the aforementioned searchability. Perhaps both options should be available, or perhaps, the DVD licence could include the owner being able to print a copy from the DVD for personal use.

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A valve a day keeps the transistor away...