Good on you! That's significant and something which will benefit the entire hobby.

Yes, they dumped Zinio, your old stuff is still there but no new material.

But you will be able to read the purchased electronic editions on their website. Assuming that your subscription is current.

@Michael - imagine if you could still search to find what you want to read!  Like you could just two weeks ago 

@Joe Happy to help in any way possible, including subscribing to an additional service. 

I suspect the challenge will be getting MR to allow access to their content for such a purpose and not cluttering it up with additional subscriptions.  As an avid hobbiest a one stop indexing service across all the Train related publications would be amazing.

The main reason I took the free trial was to get access to the archives and look up the Jack Work coal mine articles as I have a Pola kit of it on my pike that I want to enhance by building my version of the additional buildings not included with the kit. Fortunately I already knew what issues, Oct., Nov., Dec., of 1959 but I can't imagine finding them otherwise.

I've lately taken huge interest in the Northern Pacific, Columbia River Gorge, the CP at Slocan Lake and Vancouver Island BC where the prototype of the Work coal mine was located. You would think the "Trains" archive would be a great resource if I could search it but how am I going to easily find that stuff otherwise?

I will probably cancel before the trial runs out, I have till April 12th. I'd have to justify that 80 bucks to my wife. What I said earlier about the 6.99 a month would be a lot easier to slide by her. She doesn't think twice about the monthly charges like TMTV, she looks at them just like she looks at her "Ipsy bags".

BTW, no one should get me wrong, I've loved MR and Kalmbach over the years but I wish they were getting different advice about some of their marketing decisions. I'm willing to pay for good content but you need to make it a lot more convenient to pay for and access than they are doing. As I said earlier, I want options.

I suspect the challenge will be getting MR to allow access to their content for such a purpose and not cluttering it up with additional subscriptions. As an avid hobbiest a one stop indexing service across all the Train related publications would be amazing. I have some ideas in this regard.

We have our ways to get access to MR back issues for indexing purposes. You’ll still need to locate a copy of the back issue once the index brings up the reference, but at least we can fairly easily index them.

@Michael has confirmed what I have heard and feared: No search on any of the new Trains.com Kalmbach archives.  Incidentally Michael, re Northern Pacific, have you seen Jack Parker’s Central Pacific layout?  Certainly one of the most beautiful of all time. He owned Central Valley Model Works (the tie strip I use) for many years. He’s passed away and his kids run it now.  It was featured in one of the Great Model Railways Kalmbach annuals.  I’m guessing maybe 2009?  I’d look it up, but they killed the search. Lol.  

@ Joe, All the best in the pursuit !  Very much hoping you are successful. If it’s not a shared service amongst the publishers, maybe you can white label and sell the solution back to them!

I'm still waiting to hear from MR on how they’re going to apply the balance of my MR subscriptions to THEIR newfound pride and joy!  A shame the internet doesn’t extend to the great beyond so the likes of Al, Linn, Gordie and John could chime in on the discussion.

Someone asked about Zinio.  Saw a statement this week said that henceforth, magazine subscribers will be able to access digital MR for the time you are subscribed but they won't be on Zinio.  Digital issues you may have bought previously should still appear on Zinio.  Frankly, I was urged to take advantage of some free download with my sub, but I can't access it.  Each statement they release seems to contradict the one before.  Have not bothered with Trains.com. They run an article about "my" railroad once every four years.

Joe,

Thanks, that will be great.  I have been using the NMRA index since the Kalmbach one went away.

Dan

Model Railroad Crowd-sourced Magazine Index (olimpia.com)

Part of my note to them:

I last used the search on March 10.  An archive without search is useless. I subscribed to print + digital + archive JUST TO GET THE ARCHIVE.  A collection of magazine covers that I have to open individually is USELESS to me. Fix it or refund me my unused subscription.

“Thank you for contacting Trains Unlimited! I apologize, You can search for the archives by the year using the drop down box in the middle-left side of the page. The new link for the archives is listed below. I apologize for the inconvenience.”

Which is of course, the digital box of covers.  That’s the search.  So I said that didn’t give me what I had ... and sent them the screen shots of what they provided as at March 10.

“A more robust search function for archives is expected in a future update of the website.”

So, I asked about the timeline ... and why they weren’t rolling my subscription in to the new thing ...

”There's no timeline at the moment for an update to the search function.

For your subscriptions and account details, I have to send your email on to customer service representatives who can better help you. They are in copy.”

Awaiting the subscription answer.  Rather perplexed they couldn’t have sent even one measly email out about this transformation.  After over 35 years in the IT business, the deftness of some outfits still astounds me.

"You’re Cancelled.  Your refund is $48.77. " was the essence of it! Lol.

Not any explanation of the amount, or a last chance ask for a confirmation, etc.

A great example of a big, faceless corporation illustrating exactly how not to to business.

Meanwhile, on the forum they have moderated all of my comments (polite but focused).  Another member just provided a link to the archive search which, at the moment, still exists, but is well hidden if you didn’t have it bookmarked.

So, for those if you who are subscribers: http://mrarchive.mrr.trains.com.  Who knows how long it will be accessible.