I miss those huge Dell and HP adverts that block the screen off so you can't read anything.

Okay, we weren't paying subscribers

7 = meeting place
6 = macuser (I think)
8 = software (Mac side)
1 = Comments
2 = Help
13 = Hardware (Mac side)
21 = Computer Games

Morning Alex,

I wanted to write to you about the forum situation. To quote you on bit-tech:

"Well, I understand why you're upset - but there's two issues here:

1. The closing of the CPC forum and the relaunch of it here on bit-tech.
2. The closing of the Dennis-wide Meeting Place forum.

1 did not cause 2.

I had something to do with (1) - although I wasn't the only person involved - and I've explained the reasoning behind it at length on the CPC site.

In the case of (2), I had nothing to do with it - I wasn't involved in the decision making - and it's not something that relates to bit-tech, either."

If you are able to communicate with the person(s) that caused 2, I would very much appreciate it if you would convey the disappointment of the meeting place at large. In the space of less than 24hrs 91 people have migrated to a new forum no longer hosted by Dennis. This may not be much to the brass, but I think it's a lot of people given the timeframe.

I have no problem with 1 in and of itself. I'm a CPC subscriber and I appreciate that Bit tech is a superior from that angle. However, it doesn't have the Mac, Linux and "serious PC" people that the combined Dennis meeting place had. I have asked many a question there on a very wide range of subjects and somebody can ALWAYS help. There is a community there, that for most people, doesn't exist in the real world anymore. Yes we argue sometimes, but people look out for each other. I broke my ankle 8 weeks ago and have been stranded at home ever since. Apart from my time in hospital, the meeting place has provided the majority of my human contact.

For me, this could possibly be fixed by migrating all the Dennis publications to bit tech. Although, I doubt a lot of the more hardcore Mac and Linux folks would enjoy that.

Anyway, I won't bore you. I like your magazine. I've read every single issue and been a subscriber for several years. I am however appalled at Dennis' treatment of their community and will therefore be cancelling my subscription. Whether or not you can do anything about this (and I understand that you probably can't), I would appreciate hearing your thoughts and those of the CPC team.

Yours sincerely,


James Langridge

Strange isn't it all the members of management that have commented have all said splitting teh forums was nothing to do with them.

So who the hell made the decision I wonder

I am writing to you about the MacUser website and the proposed changes. I am a regular MacUser reader, and I visit the MacUser website daily, and participate on the forums actively. I hope that by now you are aware of the deep feelings that the changes have drawn from the regular visitors to the MacUser, PC Pro, Computer Shopper and other Dennis technology sites. Those feelings are not good, and a lot of people are very angry.

The thing that hurts the most is the way in which the forums are being treated. It was explained to us yesterday that they would be split off into their respective publications, and the forums would become separate entities. At the moment, the forums are a single site, with different boards exposed depending on which portal you enter from. However, a couple of the boards are common across each publication; namely the Comments and Meeting Place.

I, and many others, like this mix. When I read a news article which may be of interest to a PCPro Reader, I can comment on it, and I invariably do. My comments can be read by anyone, regardless of the magazine portal they are using, and they can also comment. This exchange of opinions between differing readerships has, I have found, been educational and beneficial. You get the occasional heated Mac/PC debate, but even those are cordial.

The Meeting Place is a great place to be - where else would you get such a disparate group of people - students, doctors, designers - all together because of their interest in IT? It’s a fantastic resource, and one which bas been very skilfully brought together by the various Dennis IT publications. I for one feel enriched by it and have found it a great place.

Yet, as of close of business today, this will be gone. When the new sites emerge at the end of the month, a post in the MacUser Meeting place will not be read by my compatriots on the PCPro site. Comments on news articles will be unread by those elsewhere who may well want to join in the discussion. This is a truly bad thing to have done - the community will be fragmented, ghettoised and something special will have been lost. This is upsetting a lot of people.

It has been suggested by Barry Collins that we could visit each of the sites in turn, but you have to agree that this is so, so wrong in so many ways that it’s laughable.

You may be interested to learn of an alternative forum, set up by one of the many regular visitors to the site. It was set up last night, and currently has 107 users - that’s 107 of the MacUser/PCPro/CPC etc, forums who would rather spend time with other forum members than be compartmentalised by publication. Imagine that - 107 user sign ups in less than 24 hours. That’s 107 of the regular visitors - people who visit the Dennis forums practically. Many, if not all of those on the new forum, will visit some time every day. After this week, I guess their appearances will be less frequent and their participation will drop.

I am one of those. If forced to choose between the MacUser site and the new forum, I am sorry to say that the MacUser site holds less appeal than it did this time yesterday. I will no doubt pop in occasionally, but I am not sure if it will be a regular visit. I certainly will not see the Comments and Meeting Place in the same light, and my contribution to those forums will be negligible due to the fact they will not be shared with the other Denis tech forums.

You have miscalculated your audience. We are not a bunch of statistics, nor are we mindless automata. We are people who have formed friendships through the Dennis forums, and value those above loyalty to any web site or publication.

I doubt I am in time to halt that which is in motion. I hope I am - but it seems that the exodus has begun. I understand that the MacUser and other Dennis IT sites will be off line for a week - a week in which the new venue can take a hold and be established. I, and many others, feel that Dennis has treated it’s audience very shoddily. Maybe it really is time to part company.

I have a subscription with MacUser...But it's not what I really want...This months issue had an article on free office suites, but then goes on in another article and says about editing images in Photoshop...Would be nice if they used free apps to do the stuff they show you, then everyone could join in...
I'll be cancelling soon, it's just not what I'm after...

Bought my first one today...did laugh at the "how to do stuff with this £2.5k creative suite you've bought and really should know how to use" attitude in some of the mac magazines.

It used to be a bit of a trade mag which was why I read it for so many years. When they started dealing with all the consumer stuff and the iPods was when I cancelled my subscription.

I learned a lot of stuff from it in the olden days.