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[quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by CNJ831 Two points those who advocate cutting out articles and throwing the rest of the magazine away should consider: 1. Especially in the case of newbies and semi-newbies (anyone with less than 8-10 years in the hobby), you are clipping what interests you right now. You have no idea what info may come in handy next year or five years from now. Generally, it turns out to have been in the portion of the magazine you discarded.[/quote] This is a very good point, and one I can't completely explain away knowing my own history of interests and the normal changes over time. However, given that I can get a 1947 mag for less than a dollar in 2006 (indicating a relative surplus) why shouldn't I expect that there will be a similar surplus of 1997 mags in 2056, such that I could just get them off Ebay as needed? (Or more likely, buy a digitized set of the entire magazine run from Kalmbach. . .) The other thing I've noticed in my other modeling hobbies is that even factual information becomes dated. Drawings that were made in 1962 or whenever are found to be in error or weak on small details as research uncovers more data, new pictures show different colors for the standard schemes, structures are seen to be freelanced rather than prototypical, and so on. Wouldn't that make the old info less valuable? (I've seen this in armor modeling. The "conventional wisdom" about both German and American WW II tanks has been set on its ear in just the last five years or so. One reason I haven't looked at some of the stuff I've got is that I know it's wrong.) And look at all the electrical stuff. Is a three part article on using 120VAC relays (or whatever) really relevant in an age where locos have on-board microprocessors? Some of the early IC parts aren't even made anymore. And who wants to try figuring out a 500 line BASIC subroutine written for an 8086 computer when there are DCC units doing the same thing off the shelf? I guess at age 44 I've come to realize that my potential interests are not infinite, and really can't be. (For example, while I might want to do a larger layout or one 20 years on either side of what I'm doing now, I just can't see myself wanting to go from modeling the PRR in 1961 to modeling a narrow gauge Colorado logging road in 1885.) If I take the position that "all knowledge must be saved on the oft chance I might need it" then there will be no end to it and I'll drown under the paper. [quote]QUOTE: 2. If you amass any significant collection of clipped articles, how are you going to reference what you've saved? If someone here, or in a current issue of MR, refers readers to the article on page 58 of the July 1978 issue, how will you go about finding it (if you happened even to keep it)?[/quote] This I am more willing and able (I think) to deal with. I strongly suspect as well that referencing back issues will be less far reaching as time goes on, due to the "shelf-life" of info described above. When was the last time somebody referenced a 1961 article in MR, other than to say something like "The Gorre and Daphetid was first featured in the June '52 MR. . ."? [quote]QUOTE: Incidentally, my MR reference library spans from January 1940 to the present and I wouldn't part with a single page. [/quote] How much shelf space or cubic feet does it take up? And when was the last time you pulled something useful from the May 1946 issue? I guess I was thinking along the lines of some archival philosophy when I first posted. Most of the responses to date have been along the "You never know when you might need it !" track, which ain't that compelling to me, but I'm still listening [:)] Thanks, KL
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