dgs©
Postmaster
Reged: 03/29/04
Posts: 15091
Loc: West Monroe, Louisiana
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Thanks Mr. Fienberg, for checking in personally to set the record straight. 
Now, if the same thing starts to happen to S&T, I expect you to put up a pretty big fight. 
You'll have plenty of help in your corner. 
I'm afraid it's true, this hobby/obsession of ours is not shared by enough of our fellow man to support more than a modicum of printed periodicals, or even equipment manufacturers. Sadly, the time has come for a bold new attempt to bring in eager beginners, to fold under economic pressure. That certainly won't help any efforts to grow the membership, but I hold out hope that it won't really have an overwhelming negative effect either.
To tell the truth, I was more sad to hear of Mr. O'Meara's departure than the demise of NightSky. But, S&T has more than a handful of good writers already and should have no problem filling the space. I am curious though, about the disposition of Mr. O'Meara's books vis-à-vis publishing rights. These books are too good a resource to vanish from supply, or end up being published in any lesser quality.
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- david
8"Ø Newtonian on SVP, Moonlite CR2, Telrad
PST Oberwerk Ultra 15x70 Orion Ultraview 10×50
Hand-me-down Sears Refractor (Discoverer) 60mm×900mm
"What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world, remains and is immortal." --Albert Pike
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Scott Regener
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 03/31/06
Posts: 1210
Loc: SE Minnesota
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Please tell me Sue French's column will appear in S&T! Please!?!?!
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Orion SkyQuest 4.5XT
Orion SkyQuest XT10i w/COL
Urban (red) skies
Limiting Mag 3.5-4.0 Average
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Jeff Lee
professor emeritus
Reged: 09/17/06
Posts: 709
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Rick:
Thank you for being a responsive business person. I think that S&T is one of the better Magazines being published. I hope S&T enjoys a long an healthy life.
While I love O'Meara's M objects book, I have to say that the other contributing editors seem for me to write more interesting columns. I don't subscribe because I like to support my local book store (even though I belong to a club where I could get a substantial discount)but 10 out of 12 months I do buy S&T because it is a great read.
I've been in business for quite a while, and no matter what folk think, laying someone off at this time of year hurts.
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Jeff Lee
C90,C5,C8, 10 x 50's
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Wes James
Postmaster
Reged: 04/12/06
Posts: 5477
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*deep sigh* I, too am truly saddened by the pending loss of my very favorite astronomy magazine... just glad I found out before renewing- I looked forward to each issue more than any other magazine I subscribe to... it spoke on my level, and made things simple.
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Wes
Atlantic Beach, FL
Bino’s- Tak's, Fuji's, Nikon's, Canon IS and Garrett 20x110 Signature's,
Some telescopes from Carton & Zeiss 60mm's up through a couple of 8” reflectors… Orion 3.6" O/A- and a wonderful 4.25" Delmarva Schiefspiegler!
Some good friends, made here on C/N.
Oh- several cats and a wonderful wife!
Anyone want a cat???? :-O
"When your work speaks for itself- Don't Interrupt" -Gamble Rogers
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Rick Woods
Postmaster
Reged: 01/27/05
Posts: 11940
Loc: Inner Solar System
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If I recall correctly, this isn't the first time Steve O'Meara has left S&T? Didn't he leave several years ago to pursue volcanoes? Anyway, I hope the parting was without rancor or hard feelings.
Thanks for clearing things up for us, Mr. F. You're a good man to have at the helm of S&T.
- Rick
PS: FWIW, Sky Pub is having a $1 clearance sale.
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- Rick
14" LX200
Cactus Patch Observatory
"The four points of the compass be logic, knowledge, wisdom, and the unknown. Some do bow in that final direction. Others advance upon it. To bow before the one is to lose sight of the three."
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carlos_dfc
sage
Reged: 02/20/05
Posts: 243
Loc: Darlington, UK
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Quote:
Any other Astronomy mags avail?
Carol
Couple of British ones - not sure just HOW EASILY available they are in USA, but I have heard of people in USA who have seen them.
Astronomy Now
http://www.astronomynow.com/
Sky at Night (spin off from the BBC TV show)
http://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/Default.asp?bhcp=1
Sky at Night is a little more expensive than the others, but has a CD on the cover, which includes the previous month's TV show, software, tutorials, images etc
Sadly - with the demise of NightSky - I'm now gonna be down to 4 regular mags (As well as Astonomy Now, and Sky at Night, I also get S&T and 'Astronomy')
Edited by carlos_dfc (12/12/06 05:38 PM)
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mistyridge
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 10/28/05
Posts: 2896
Loc: Loomis, CA
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I am sorry to see Night Sky go. I have been a reader of Sky and Telescope since 1959 and hope it contiues to be healthy.
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Mike F
Misty Ridge Observatory
Skyshed POD
Many scopes 70mm to 12.5", SCTs, refractors, and newts and a lot of other astro stuff.
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rodelaet
Post Laureate
Reged: 04/28/06
Posts: 3185
Loc: 50°56' N - 4°58' E (Belgium)
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This is really bad news. I subscribed a year ago and allways looked forward to the day the postman came by with my shiny magazine.
Will S&T forget about us beginners?
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Rony
'The Casual Sky Observer's Guide.'
My Astronomical Sketches
My Binocular Sketches
Callibrate your Monitor with this little strip.
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Wes James
Postmaster
Reged: 04/12/06
Posts: 5477
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... Unfortunately, the British are very proud of their magazines, and it reflects in what a subscription costs... postage, I suppose...
Wes
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wirenut
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 09/21/06
Posts: 780
Loc: m'dale Pa
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bummer i just suscribed to that havent even gotten the first issue yet well i guess i'll have to order order a another
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8"GSO dob
EQ platform
a case full of EPs
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Astrosetz
professor emeritus
Reged: 10/05/03
Posts: 590
Loc: Wisconsin
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I am seriously bummed about Night Sky going away. I felt that somebody finally came out with the right mix of product and observing information for not only the rank beginner, but I daresay the mainstream sky observer as well. Looking at club star parties and larger events over the past few years, I saw Night Sky being used in the field being more than the other two.
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-Astrosetz
www.astrosetz.com
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David A Rodger
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/12/03
Posts: 515
Loc: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
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Hold on here. We Canadians have an excellent publication called Sky News, edited by Terence Dickinson, that we're delighted to share with other North Americans.
DAR
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Sky-Watcher 10-inch Dob
Orion 100mm ED and EON 120 refractors
Tele Vue NP-127 refractor
Celestron CPC 1100 SCT
Celestron Classic C-8
Sky-Watcher 150 mm Mak-Cass
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~Steph~
Texas Wildflower
Reged: 06/11/05
Posts: 26279
Loc: North Texas
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That would be this one -- http://skynews.ca/ -- I presume? 
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Steph
Taking it one day at a time...
I'm in the fight! - Support Liver Disease Awareness
10" RCX400 ~~ 4" TV102 ~~ WO ZS80FD ~~ PST
Serenity Observatory 
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~Steph~
Texas Wildflower
Reged: 06/11/05
Posts: 26279
Loc: North Texas
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There's also a quarterly magazine called Amateur Astronomy that's quite good, not at all glossy, that's about to undergo an editorial/owner change. Hopefully it will remain as good as it is now, too. Find info at http://amateurastronomy.com/
Me, I'm a magazine-aholic, so I've been getting all 4 US-based mags, and may branch out to the Canadian and UK based ones as well to check them out. 
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Steph
Taking it one day at a time...
I'm in the fight! - Support Liver Disease Awareness
10" RCX400 ~~ 4" TV102 ~~ WO ZS80FD ~~ PST
Serenity Observatory
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David A Rodger
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/12/03
Posts: 515
Loc: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
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That's the one. Thanks, Steph. A few posts back Carlos began a list of alternatives to Night Sky, and I thought Sky news ought to be on it. A bi-monthly, it has regular columns and features by Alan Dyer, Ken Hewitt-White and other well known astronomical writers. Check it out. It's first class.
DAR
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Sky-Watcher 10-inch Dob
Orion 100mm ED and EON 120 refractors
Tele Vue NP-127 refractor
Celestron CPC 1100 SCT
Celestron Classic C-8
Sky-Watcher 150 mm Mak-Cass
Edited by David A Rodger (12/12/06 08:58 PM)
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Mike I. Jones
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 07/02/06
Posts: 2874
Loc: Fort Worth TX
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Well, now that Night Sky will unfortunately be no more, complete 2004-2007 sets will be a collector's item. Wish S&T would consider scanning them all into print-quality pdf files and selling CD's of the complete set. I know I'd buy one.
Mike
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56 mirrors, lenses, 16" f/6 Newt, 6" f/10 refractor, TOA-130S, Tinsley 5" f/15 Mak, 6" f/4 RFT, Coronado PST. Still to build: 24" f/10 Modified Dall-Kirkham, 10" f/26 Mak, 8" f/12 apo, spectrohelioscope, Herrig, Schupmann, and others.
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Pedestal
Post Laureate
Reged: 03/11/06
Posts: 4374
Loc: Smoggy Bottom, Baytown,Texas
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Quote:
I just hope that Sky and Telescope vs Astronomy doesn't go the way of Meade vs Celestron!
So true!!!
Hubert
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Hubert
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www.smoggybottom.org
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121601
super member
Reged: 08/18/04
Posts: 125
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Quote:
Hello, everyone. This is Rick Fienberg, editor in chief of Sky & Telescope magazine. ... Yes, we'll be doing some things differently, but all in the interest of operating more efficiently (to keep costs down and avoid having to raise the price you pay) and providing a better experience for our readers/customers.
Rick,
Do you think that incorporating an expanded "beginner"s column or section(s) to S&T would be a worthwhile idea? This may allow S&T to funnel in a series of featured articles which were similar or at the level of the key and more important articles in Night Sky.
It may actually produce a S&T magazine version which will contain articles or features targeted over a wider audience. In my opinion, there already exists a plethora of highly technical articles in current issues which cover topics on astrophysical news, cosmology and astrophotography, etc. A monthly segment of "back to basics" articles may fill in some of the vacuum created by the losss of Night Sky. I feel that what readers really miss about Night Sky is its focus on visual observing which I think is at the heart of the hobby.
Renato
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Scott Regener
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 03/31/06
Posts: 1210
Loc: SE Minnesota
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Quote:
I feel that what readers really miss about Night Sky is its focus on visual observing which I think is at the heart of the hobby.
EXACTLY!
Although the science interests me, I find that over half the "science" articles are speculation based on some "latest theory" that we never hear about again (presumably because it either doesn't hold water, or because it has no practical use.) Then there is the relative lack of depth. These are complex things (obviously) and articles usually devolve into little more than a quote of scientist X saying what this discovery could mean, scientist Y saying how impressed they are with scientist X, etc. The brief summary of the science isn't enough to really understand the science of it, and the rest is just "human interest" stuff.
Night Sky avoided this problem perfectly. Their articles dealt with the real nuts & bolts of astronomy, both visual and scientific. Instead of focusing on the "hottest" ideas, they stuck to the basic, readily understood, very practical science. Then there were the plethora of articles devoted to finding and appreciating the objects themselves. I thought there was more visual observing "meat" in Night Sky than in either S&T or Astronomy, even taking into account the bi-monthly nature of NS.
I don't have enough fingers and toes to count the objects I've discovered with the help of NS articles in just one year.
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Orion SkyQuest 4.5XT
Orion SkyQuest XT10i w/COL
Urban (red) skies
Limiting Mag 3.5-4.0 Average
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sarastro
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/12/04
Posts: 632
Loc: Seattle
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For those interested in BBC Sky at Night magazine, I subscribed through bbcamericashop.com The suscription is only $60 for a full year which is way less than I've seen it anywhere else.
Roger
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