...

It's pretty to look at, but after a while I found the "page turning" to be a nuance - let the technology leave that idea behind!  I also miss the dot bar a the bottom of the page.

The total page length, though - WOW!!!  That explains where the time went!!

We'll see how HTML 5 turns out - It'll be another round altogether!

Gen 2

Gen2 Like

I was up at the normal time this morning But due to the time difference i have to wait till after lunch to download.

The new format is fantastic and Thanks for pointing to the app to use with iPad I now enjoy MRH on both my devices

Cant wait for you to get rid of the bugs.

Thanks

Trevor

Page # difference

If you really compare the difference in page numbers between Gen 1 and 2, there is not much of a difference.  The Gen 1 had a landscape layout with many of the articles being presented in 2-3 columns per page.  Gen two has basically split the landscape page in two and presents the articles in 1 column per page.  This explains why a 130 page landscape, split in two, would turn into a 260 page publication.

Why no page numbers

iBooks and Kindle books have no page numbers, and getting MRH in the Apple iBooks Store and the Amazon Kindle Store is one ultimate goal of the move to Gen2.

If we reference page numbers anywhere in the text, then we have text that's invalid for these more modern ePub-based digital stores.

So get used to the lack of page numbers in the document itself - our goal is to make navigation easy by having as many page jumps you want to make simply a click away. Yes, when we screw up the reference, you will have to hunt around, but hopefully that will become very rare.

new look

At first I didn't like it but I found some things. Under the view one can clic on "two pages with scrolling". This view seems more readable than the old format. On the right side is the scroll bar and if I hover the mouse over it it will give me the page number. I can then drag it to the page I left off at. I think this view will be the default every time I open it until I change it.

 I don't understand how anyone can see anything on those little tiny screens.

$500 Layout Contest

Until Mr. Fugate fixes the index link, you can jump to the contest article on page 199.  The Reverse Running column at the tail end of the magazine is also part of that package.

Be sure to make your comments on both.

Thank you, John, for the kind

Video

Video is a great teaching tool but an incredible time sink for production.  Charlie C. probably spent an hour in production for every minute of raw video shot for Hot Trains.  See http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/3276

Jan issue with all corrections coming shortly

The fully corrected Jan issue is coming shortly. If you downloaded it, you should download it again. Many typos and some bad links have been fixed.

All before we make it the current issue ... we do this deliberately (the quiet release) and thanks to all who posted corrections!

Gen 2 is a miss

For those that use MRH on a computer as opposed  to a device its is not user friendly.  I know that this new and tweaking will come, and I know it's catering to the device user, but there should be some considerations for the non user. 

Steve

Misery Loves Company

Joe, does it feel like you work at Microsoft and are dealing with the mobile vs PC Windows 8 Live Tile hubbub?

For those who don't like Gen2 on a computer

For those who don't like Gen2 on a computer, we'd like to hear what the concerns are. The 2-page spread is identical in width and height to the old landscape page and the fonts are 20% larger - so all the aging model railroaders will be able to read it even better than before.

Like we said in staff notes - people don't like change. For those folks, every change is a bad change, so we just live with it.

Double your money back if you don't like the change ... (wink)

Clarity

I think the rub is the old version was one column (essentially) across a full landscape page whereas the new version is for all practical purposes two columns on a landscape page effectively making each single page half the width of the old style. Yes, I know your copy was columnar but overall the impression was one big wide page.

The only issue I have encountered (although I just this evening began reading) is a navigation issue. If I click on a link, say the reader survey as I did, my place in the online version is lost. Even using the browser back button, which I detest for navigation, returns me to the first page of the mag instead of where I was when I clicked the survey link. I suspect this is a FlippingBook issue. Cell phones not having tabbed browsing (I think) means the link can't open in a new tab which would resolve the issue.

Online edition

Alan:

That is most likely a Flippingbook issue as you note. I'll file an enhancement request to them to provide the option to open a new tab when clicking an external link.

LATER EDIT: Alan, it just occurred to me that Flippingbook has a setting that we had not turned on: restore session. We will turn that on and update the Jan issue online edition - that should make the back button work like you are hoping - to keep your place.

Gen 2 feed back

I will agree folks don't like change, and I excel at that, but you still need to have that warm same fuzzy feels to it.  Think if it like the slot machines in Vegas, they don't use coins any more but they still try and give you that DING DING DING feel. 

I liked being able to have a full screen option on the computer, the old version was was one click away.  The new page layout doesn't have that same warm fuzzy feel to it with all of the buttons and such - a not finished & cluttered feel.  It makes it seem like there is less.  No more full page in your face feel, now I have 2 wimpy pages sort if thing.

While the font is made large enough to read as is,  the pictures are smaller than ever.  Yes I can zoom in & out but I shouldn't have to just to see what it is. It was bad enough on the old version not being interactive to click for a lager view.

It's not a friendly to turn the page.  Being the smaller page layout withe new format there are less words to a page resulting in more page turning on a platform that isn't page turning friendly.

E books are not e mags.  E mags should have page numbers.  Think of it as the Ding Ding feel even though it serves no purpose. Although I will argue it has some purpose ie. "No no Joe, Look at Lance's article on Page X of the Jan 2013 MRH he spells out it out there. 

Just some things that stand out for now while skimming it .  I'll give more later

Steve

For those who want next and prev buttons

For those who want next and prev buttons, we've added them (not that hard, so we added them.

As for larger photos, that will be addressed over time - and it's not like we can't make big photos if we want as a spread:

http://publ.com/yC4r0Tu#/132/

Some of it will be us getting used to the new format as well.

I know there's the sense that we're catering to the mobile crowd by doing Gen2, but the reality is most of our 30% new growth over the last year has come from readers accessing us with mobile devices. And try Googling: fastest growing age group smartphones and see what you get. Per capita, people age 55+ are embracing smartphones more than any other age group right now (that's cuz the other age groups already have gone there, the 55+ crowd are the laggards, but that's changing fast). Guess which age group is also embracing tablets the fastest?

Reality is older folks don't like desktop and laptop computers. They're complex and expensive. That $300 tablet starts to look might attractive and it's a lot simpler to use than the computer as well - and you can use it in the easy chair and in bed. The number of people who go online regularly and never use a computer is growing strongly.

Our Google rep (we get enough web traffic Google has assigned us a rep who calls us periodically to chat) tells us their recommendation on anything web now-a-days is "mobile first". They said that by 2014 the number of web connections being made by mobile devices will exceed those made by desktop and laptop computers.

Currently the share of our readers going from desktop/laptop to mobile is 2% per month. If this keeps up, in the next 12 months, almost 1/4 of our readership will have moved from desktop/laptop to mobile devices.One publisher I read about (not in model railroading) made a mobile-friendly version of their offering and in 3 months time mobile readership jumped 340%.

So those of you who love MRH being free keep in mind the future of MRH is most secure when we grow readership aggressively. All the indicators are we will get our greatest readership growth if we become mobile friendly. To you who don't give a rip about mobile devices to read anything, just keep in mind it's the mobile readers who are helping secure MRH as staying forever free.

Older folks and tablets...

My 70 year old techno-wary father looked at my tablet before church the other morning and said, "That thing can do anything a computer can, can't it? I'm going to be needing to get one of those... "

And then I told him the price.

With any luck, he may inherit this one after I get whatever supercedes the Nexus 10. That's about the right time to think upgrade, methinks.

Number of pages

Just to Confirm

Does the online version look like this for everybody? Screen grab from 24" WS monitor with FlippingBook in full screen mode. Reading ease is splendid.

No Alan

Mine is at best a 1/3 of what you are seeing. 

Steve

Fantastic magazine

When I first opened the new issue I was not sure I liked it. The same old "don't like change" tapes playing. However, this evening I went back to read the issue and as I slowly progressed through the stories I found I really like the new layout. I only read MRH on my laptop computer so making changes to better suit readers and smart phones is of no interest to me. What I have found is the publication is easier to navigate and is more interactive. I love being able to one click to send an email to an advertiser. 

I am sure there will be additional changes and upgrades and I look forward to more change. This is a wonderful magazine and I really enjoy watching it grow and evolve. A toast to everyone involved creating the best magazine online.

Yes, that is what mine looks like...

Yup, that's what I am seeing too Alan

If you are not seeing what Alan and I are...

If you are instead seeing something like this...

Then first off, double click the magazine page to get the facing page (two pages) view.  Then look for the Full Screen icon in the row of buttons at the bottom of the window and click it.  That's what I did and then I was happy with the view and readability of the magazine.