MAgazine Retention Period

Giving them away at your club is a good idea.  I used to take advantage of that when I was starting out in the hobby.  I wanted all the information I could get.  I don't keep them though.  I read them and toss them immediately.  

I keep my hard copies for at least 2 months then I give them to one of my local train guys......Paul 2

I hold on to 'em until the next issue comes. I tear the pages out of old magazines of articles of interest and scan them into the computer, and toss the rest. I have a dedicated (and backed-up) hard drive of past magazine articles organized and easily accessed. 

I hold onto them too long, because I don't have a good outlet for them.  I did find an HO club to donate all my Model Railroader magazines to a couple years after I switched to O gauge.  Now I have all my OGR magazines dating back to 2012 when I first discovered it.  I could ask my friends at the Pittsburgh Independent HiRailers if they want them to give away at shows, but I would still keep the last couple years and a few issues that are special to me.

The main reason I went to OGR's Digital Edition was to get rid of magazines.  I have never looked back, download the edition to my PC and it takes up no physical space.

Like Mark I also don’t have an outlet for them so I still have them. Three 4 drawer file cabinets full of O Gauge,  CTT and several other assorted magazines on O Gauge stuff. 

In my modelling heyday I kept various publications for reference quite a few years, i.e. Pacific Rail News, Extra 2200 South, CTC Board, etc. Then I saved only articles I thought would be needed in binders. Finally, everything went to recycling. For the very little modelling work I do now the internet works for me..... No more clutter.

Agree, I hold on to them too long.  I've just started moving some of them out.  

I don’t keep them any longer.  After I’ve read an issue cover to cover it goes into the recycling bin.  

Curt

Since the digital subscription offers every 300+ issues, I’m thinking what’s the point of keeping them. I hate to just recycle but may do just that if I don’t find someone to give them to

Mark Boyce posted:

Since the digital subscription offers every 300+ issues, I’m thinking what’s the point of keeping them. I hate to just recycle but may do just that if I don’t find someone to give them to

I prefer to sit on my recliner with the paper mag.

I still read a paper newspaper too

Retirement+Downsizing+Diminished Time Reserves = Digital Subscription...

The OGR offer of all the back issues in digital format finally brought me back as a subscriber after many years of lapse. It is a brilliant piece of marketing and...it worked on me. It was an elegant solution to just what you're dealing with right now. I gave away and /or recycled all my many years of train magazines over ten years ago. 

Part of the problem is we were all taught as children that ALL books are valuable and precious and printed material is worthy of protection and veneration. As with so many things we were taught as children we are coming to realize it "ain't necessarily so"...

One of the first "organizing" experts I used to follow in the early 1980's was Don Aslett. His helpful tips soon got me off the " all printed material saved forever" bandwagon. It was quite liberating.

John

On the contrary:  print IS worthy of preservation.  Unlike electronic material, it doesn't go anywhere when the plug is pulled or the wrong button is pressed.

I not only keep all mine permanently--if I have to downsize, my mags and books will be the LAST thing to go--I keep mags that are older than I am (Trains going 'WAY back).

Lionelski posted:

Mark Boyce posted:

Since the digital subscription offers every 300+ issues, I’m thinking what’s the point of keeping them. I hate to just recycle but may do just that if I don’t find someone to give them to

I prefer to sit on my recliner with the paper mag.

I still read a paper newspaper too

Oh, I prefer a paper magazine and newspaper as well.  Those are what I read.  I was just pointing out OGR is providing an option for those who are space constrained as we are.

palallin posted:

On the contrary:  print IS worthy of preservation.  Unlike electronic material, it doesn't go anywhere when the plug is pulled or the wrong button is pressed.

I not only keep all mine permanently--if I have to downsize, my mags and books will be the LAST thing to go--I keep mags that are older than I am (Trains going 'WAY back).

Same, almost.  I have RMC back to '55, several decades of NG&SLG, nearly complete Traction & Models, near complete Trolley Talk, near complete O Scale News, and complete O Scale Trains.  Exception: I tossed all of the OGR ~20 years ago and never looked back.

MartyE posted:

The main reason I went to OGR's Digital Edition was to get rid of magazines.  I have never looked back, download the edition to my PC and it takes up no physical space.

John Meyncke posted:

Retirement+Downsizing+Diminished Time Reserves = Digital Subscription...

I want to remind all of you that with the launch of our new Subscription Portal, every issue of OGR - 50+ years worth - is available in the OGR Digital Library. Looking back on the old issues from the 70s and 80s is fascinating reading. And some of those old articles are timeless. Many of the modeling ideas they present are still valid today!

All the issues can be downloaded as Adobe PDF files, so you can build your "digital collection" on your computer or tablet.

• If you are already an OGR Subscriber and would like to add a digital subscription, CLICK HERE to log into your account. If you don't know your account number, click on the "Don't know your account number?" link on the page. We'll automatically send you an email with that info.
  
  
• If you are not an OGR subscriber but would like to purchase a new Digital Subscription, CLICK HERE.

$29.95 gets you access to 310 issues of OGR! That's less than 10 cents per issue!

You are right, Rich!  Even for a paper lover like me, I couldn't pass up the paper and digital subscription.  Also as a fairly recent subscriber, 2012 was the first I knew OGR existed, I can go back and look at old articles like the one on Marty FitzHenry back in the '90s.

As others have said, I much prefer reading the paper copy of anything. However, my allocated storage space for paper copies of everything is reaching critical mass! 

I was a paper subscriber and added digital when it became available. Will probably continue to take the paper edition for reading, but may switch to keeping only the digital copies for space savings.

The additional back issues added to the digital archive is great to have. Every magazine issue ever made is now in there, very nice! 

I love my magazines, but I generally keep them until I try and clear space in my storage room and I get mad at them. A couple of years ago I posted two tubs of CTT, OGR and Lionel catalogs for free. A guy picked them up and said they were going to his friend the train guy. I have also reached the breaking point and thrown some out. Just this Sunday, I dumped a stack of JP (Jeeps) magazines in the recycling tub. Hate to do it, but space is at a premium.