''.info'' (originally ''INFO=64'' and later ''INFO'') was a computer magazine covering Commodore 8-bit computers and later the

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and significantly improved graphi ...

. It was published from 1983 to 1992.

History

''INFO=64'' began as a newsletter published by its founder, Benn Dunnington, operating out of a spare bedroom in his home. After a few issues, the entrepreneurial spirit struck and he decided to expand it into a full-fledged magazine. The first few issues of the magazine were published by Dunnington operating as a

sole proprietorship A sole proprietorship, also known as a sole tradership, individual entrepreneurship or proprietorship, is a type of enterprise owned and run by one person and in which there is no legal distinction between the owner and the business entity. A sole ...

in the state of

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

. After a few issues, he moved the company to

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, eventually incorporating as ''Info Publications, Inc.''. This, in turn, became a

limited partnership A limited partnership (LP) is a form of partnership similar to a general partnership except that while a general partnership must have at least two general partners (GPs), a limited partnership must have at least one GP and at least one limited ...

, (''Info Publications Ltd''), which published the magazine until its demise. ''INFO=64'' was produced using personal computers. An editorial statement in each issue explained that the magazine was produced using only "lay equipment", such as home computers and 35mm cameras, that were inexpensively available to the general public. Early issues were typeset using a

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness ...

and a

dot-matrix printer A dot matrix printer is an impact printer that prints using a fixed number of pins or wires. Typically the pins or wires are arranged in one or several vertical columns. The pins strike an ink-coated ribbon and force contact between the ribbon ...

, giving the magazine a distinctive hand-crafted appearance. ''INFO=64'' changed its name to ''INFO'' from issue 8, September-October 1985, reflecting its expanded coverage of Commodore computing. The magazine soon switched to a more professional appearance using laser printers with Springboard Software's The Newsroom or Berkeley Softworks'

GEOS #REDIRECT GEOS {{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from ambiguous page ...

geoPublish geoPublish is a desktop publishing program designed by Berkeley Softworks for the GEOS environment. A version for on the Commodore 64 was released in 1986. It was ported to the Apple II in 1988. Though not as sophisticated as contemporary count ...

software for 8-bit Commodores, before changing its editorial focus and publishing platform to the Amiga, and changing its name in issue 32, September 1990, to ''.info'' which was coincidentally the file extension of Amiga icon files. The magazine switched to its new name and exclusive focus on the Amiga because by 1990 there was no news to cover or advertising interest in 8-bit Commodores. The

Computer Press Association Founded in 1983, the Computer Press Association (CPA) was established to promote excellence in the field of computer journalism. The association was composed of working editors, writers, producers, and freelancers who covered issues related to comp ...

named ''.info'' as one of two 'Runners-Up' in the category of ''Best Computer Magazine - Circulation Less Than 50,000'' at its seventh annual awards ceremony in April 1992.

Computers in Accounting A computer is a machine that can be programmed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as programs. These progra ...

won that category, which included well over 100 computer magazines at the time, but ''.info'' tied with the slicker and much better-funded

NeXTWORLD Next may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Next'' (1990 film), an animated short about William Shakespeare * ''Next'' (2007 film), a sci-fi film starring Nicolas Cage * '' Next: A Primer on Urban Painting'', a 2005 documentary film Lit ...

. Ironically, ''.info'' was in serious financial trouble by then, and the publisher was desperately seeking someone to buy the magazine. The magazine closed its doors in April 1992, and on September 20 the magazine's assets were auctioned off.Auction flyer
from the sale of the assets, according t

nostalgia page a lot of the office furniture was actually added by the auctioneers to bulk the sale Over the course of its run, ''.info'' absorbed three pioneering Commodore magazines that ceased publication during the "great extinction" that struck computer magazines in the late 1980s. These were

Jim Oldfield Jim Oldfield is an author, editor, and reviewer famous for his work with Commodore computers. He is married to Deb Oldfield and is the father of James, Jon, and Jason Oldfield. He was the founder of the pioneering Commodore magazine, the Midnite So ...

and James Strassma's

Midnite Software Gazette Midnite is an alternative spelling of midnight. Midnite may also refer to: Music * Midnite (band), a roots reggae band from the U.S. Virgin Islands * ''Midnite'', a 2013 album by Salmo * "Midnite", a 2002 song by Brent Jones & TP Mobb featuring C ...

(which had previously absorbed 'The Paper', one of the oldest independent publications supporting Commodore computers), Mitch Lopes' RoboCity News (the one-time official publication of

FAUG ''Fearless and United Guards'' (abbreviated as ''FAU-G'' or ''FAUG'') is an action game developed by Bengaluru based company nCORE Games. It was released worldwide on 26 January 2021 for Android and in March 2021 for iOS. Bollywood actor Aks ...

, the First Amiga Users' Group, before it was spun off), and Chris Zamara and Nick Sullivan's

Transactor ''The Transactor'' was a computer magazine directed at users of Commodore home computers. In contrast to other Commodore-focused publications such as ''Commodore Magazine'' and ''COMPUTE!'s Gazette'', ''The Transactors popularity was based o ...

(the official publication of

TPUG The Toronto PET Users Group is one of the world's oldest extant computer user groups, and was among the very largest. The non-profit group is based in Toronto but has an international membership. It supports nearly all Commodore computers, includ ...

, the Toronto PET Users' Group). Unfortunately, when ''.info'' ceased publication, the receivers stood in the way of allowing its publisher to find another magazine to fulfill its subscriptions. A full set of the entire run of INFO magazine, including photocopies of the original newsletter along with other documents related to the magazine, is housed in the library of the State Historical Society of Iowa in

Iowa City Iowa City, offically the City of Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the time ...

. Scans and full text of most issues of INFO are available at

archive.org The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

Staff and writers

*Benn Dunnington - Founder, Publisher, Editor *Mark R. Brown - Managing Editor *Tom Malcom - Senior Editor *

- Associate Editor (after acquisition of 'Midnite Software Gazette') *Carol Brown - Advertising Director (through issue 31) *Anna Folkers - Advertising Director (issues 32-49) *Megan Ward - Art & Production Director *Kent A. Embree - Art & Production Assistant *Tony Bodensteiner - Art & Production Assistant *Marty Amorin - Data Manager (early issues) *Judith Kilbury-Cobb - Data Manager (through issue 47) / Staff Writer *Krista L. Kapacinskas - Data Manager (issue 49) *Chris Zamara - Technical Editor (after acquisition of 'The Transactor') *Nick Sullivan - Technical Editor (after acquisition of 'The Transactor') *Bradley W. Schenck - Contributing Editor / Graphics Columnist *Harv Laser - Contributing Editor / Multimedia Columnist *Peggy Herrington - Contributing Editor / Music & Sounds Columnist (through issue 42) *Bob Lindstrom - Contributing Editor / Music Columnist (issues 44-49) *Oran J. Sands III - Contributing Editor / Video Columnist *Jeff Lowenthal - Contributing Editor / Public Domain Columnist *Don Romero - Contributing Editor / GEOS Columnist & 'CHUMP' computer magazine parody guru *Jim Meyer - Contributing Editor / Productivity Software Reviewer *Mort Kevelson - Contributing Editor / Hardware Reviewer *Gregory Conley - Contributing Editor / Cartoonist *Warren Block - Contributing Editor *David Martin - Writer *Bob Baker - Writer * Daniel Barrett - Writer *Mindy Skelton - Writer * Jim Butterfield - Writer *

Dave Haynie Dave Haynie is an American electrical engineer and was chief engineer at Commodore International. He is vocal in the Amiga community. See also * Metabox (on German Wikipedia) * PIOS The International Open Series (often referred to as Pontin ...

- Writer

References

External links

Partial ''.info'' index
from the Amiga University Library
Partial Gallery of ''.info'' covers
from Benn Dunnington, founder, publisher {{DEFAULTSORT:INFO Amiga magazines Monthly magazines published in the United States Commodore 8-bit computer magazines Defunct computer magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1983 Magazines disestablished in 1992 Magazines published in Iowa Magazines published in Washington (state)