Softalk
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Softalk (ISSN 0724-9629) was a magazine of the early 1980s which focused on the Apple II computer. Published from 1980 through 1984, it featured articles about hardware and software connected with the Apple platform and the people and companies who made it. Unlike other computer magazines that generally focused on a specific, narrow subject matter or market segment (e.g., business applications, games, or professional programming), Softalk gave broad coverage to all parts of the Apple world of the time, from programming tips to game playing, from business to home use, including computing as an industry, a hobby, a tool, a toy, and a culture. On occasion it even ran fiction. As a result, it developed a loyal fan following.
Another characteristic of the magazine was a playful, insider-like voice, where the experts in those early days seemed to chat in their own relaxed language about the techniques and elements of their world. Bert Kersey, of the small, homey Beagle Brothers software company, was one columnist.
A regular feature was a monthly chart of the most popular software in various categories, which was the Apple community's equivalent of the Billboard charts for pop music. There were also contests encouraging the participation of readers. Originally, Softalk was sent free to all registered Apple owners, but later it required paid subscription. Softalk underwent rapid expansion in its early history, with issues getting very thick (largely from advertising), but it underwent a slump in 1984 which caused it to cease publication.
Towards the end of its run, its publisher also launched an edition for the IBM PC, as well as one for the Apple Macintosh (named St. Mac) and one devoted to computer games (Softline, renamed to St. Game for its final issue).
The startup capital for Softalk came from the money one of its founders, Margot Comstock Tommervik, had won on the game show Password.
The disk magazine Softdisk was originally partly owned by Softalk, but survived on its own.
