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Introduction

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 pirate 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, the project is funded by Text+, a consortium of the Nationale Forschungsdaten-Infrastruktur of Germany, and by the Vogel Stiftung Dr. Eckernkamp and the Universitätsbund Würzburg. The project is hosted at the Zentrum für Philologie und Digitalität at the University of Würzburg.

Currently, five persons are involved in the project: Yannik Herbst, Johannes Leitgeb, Madlin Marenec, | Torsten Roeder (as PI), and Tomash Shtohryn.

Contact

Please do not hesitate to send any question to info@diskmags.de.

Resources

You can find a raw dataset at our GitHub Repository: https://github.com/zpd-digital-editions/Diskmags

There is an article available about the ideas of the project: Roeder, Torsten. „Rescuing Diskmags: Towards Scholarly [Re]Digitisation of an Early Born-Digital Heritage“. Magazén 1/3, June 2022, p. 139–58. 10.30687/mag/2724-3923/2022/05/006.