Introduction
About the catalog
Welcome to our online catalog dedicated to the fascinating world of disk magazines, also known as 'diskmags', 'diskzines', or 'magazettes'. Our site provides a comprehensive database of these multimedia periodicals designed exclusively for personal computers and published on digital media, particularly 5.25" and 3.5" floppy disks.
Diskmags reached their pinnacle of popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s, predominantly originating from the United States, United Kingdom, West Germany, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and various other countries. While many disk magazines were published in English, numerous vibrant language communities produced their own remarkable publications. It's worth noting that reading a disk magazine was limited to the specific computer system it was created for.
During their heyday, some disk magazines were readily available in regular newspaper shops, often affordable enough for pocket money purchases. A secondary readership emerged through the trading and circulation of legal and illegal copies, contributing to their widespread dissemination. Some disk magazines were even exclusively distributed through copying. With the advent of the World Wide Web in the 1990s, the majority of disk magazines either ceased production or migrated to online platforms, often retaining the term 'disk magazine' in their titles.
Regrettably, the preservation of these valuable historical artifacts has been lacking, with libraries generally neglecting their collection. Consequently, the current state of preservation for disk magazines is relatively poor. However, through this catalog, we aim to shed light on these captivating publications, ensuring their significance is recognized and appreciated by enthusiasts ... like yourself!
People and Institutions
In 2023, this project is funded by
- Text+, a consortium of the German Nationale Forschungsdaten-Infrastruktur,
- Vogel Stiftung Dr. Eckernkamp, and
- Universitätsbund Würzburg.
In 2023, five persons are involved in the project (in alphabetical order):
- Yannik Herbst
- Johannes Leitgeb
- Madlin Marenec
- Torsten Roeder (PI)
- Tomash Shtohryn
The catalog is hosted at the Zentrum für Philologie und Digitalität of the University of Würzburg.
Publication Log
- Torsten Roeder, Yannik Herbst, Johannes Leitgeb, Madlin Marenec and Tomash Shtohryn, Preserving the Early Born-Digital Heritage of Floppy Disk Magazines, Zenodo, June 2023. DOI 10.5281/zenodo.8158532 (poster), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.8107401 (conference abstract)
- Torsten Roeder, Rescuing Diskmags: Towards Scholarly (Re)Digitisation of an Early Born-Digital Heritage, Magazén 1/3, June 2022, p. 139–58. DOI 10.30687/mag/2724-3923/2022/05/006
Presentation Log
2023
- 23/12: 37C3, Hamburg
- 23/10: Vintage Computing Festival Berlin
- 23/10: Blips, online
- 23/09: Jahrestagung der Gesellschaft für Informatik, Berlin – publication upcoming
- 23/09: Text+ Plenary, Göttingen
- 23/07: Digital Humanities Conference, Graz
2022
- 22/09: Text Encoding Conference, Newcastle upon Tyne
- 22/07: Journalforschung, Schloss Herrenhausen Hannover – publication upcoming
- 22/06: Arbeitskreis Digitale Editionen, Universität Würzburg
- 22/05: Deutsches Historisches Museum, Bonn
- 22/03: DH@BUW-Espresso, online
- 22/03: Game Science, online – publication upcoming
2020
- 20/03: DHd Conference, Paderborn