Another example of old technology. Photo by Terry Freedman

Here at Freedman Towers I have been trawling through the archives, hoping to salvage something of my legacy to donate to the nation, or indeed the world. Anyways, all joking aside, I came upon this email I wrote for the publication I started called Practical ICT. This was a paid-for publication, but it was hard work. The admin, I mean. This was back in 2007, and what a difference between then and now.

To start a paid-for publication now, all you have to do is — if you want a relatively easy life — go to Substack, start a publication, register with Stripe and implement the paywall option. If someone decides to unsubscribe they get a pro rata refund automatically. You can easily give people a complementary subscription or a free trial, or a special offer. You can see all this in operation if you go to my Eclecticism newsletter on Substack, where nearly everything is free but goes behind a paywall after two weeks. I could change that in seconds should I wish to. The price you pay is a commission to Substack, based on revenue.

Contrast all this with the hassle of 16 years ago:

I had to buy and install a subscription and payments database on my website’s server.
That sometimes entailed having to carry out maintenance and updates, often manipulating SQL code. I could do it, but frankly it wasn’t my idea of fun.
When I decided to close the publication down, I gave all subscribers a pro rata refund for the days remaining on their subscription — but it took me quite a while because I had to do it all myself in a spreadsheet.

Do I miss those days? Only from the point of view that, like others who were around at the time (some of whom still are active in education technology) I was what Leon Cych once called a digital pioneer. It was real belt and braces stuff, but there was a huge amount of satisfaction in pulling it off.

Nevertheless, as I wrote in Looking Back In Wonder (That We Achieved Anything At All):

I am absolutely not one for nostalgia: I believe that, for the most part, the best thing about the past is that it's past.

But enough of this persiflage. Here is part of that web-based letter I mentioned at the start. Please note that most of the links no longer work.

Practical ICT Product

Dear {$user.name_f}

Your subscription to Practical ICT is due for renewal on

{$payment.expire_date|date_format:$config.date_format}

If you would like to remain subscribed, you need not do anything, and payment will be deducted via PayPal automatically. If, however, you wish to cancel your subscription, please log in to the members' page at http://www.terry-freedman.org.uk/amember/member.php

Thank you.

Best wishes

Terry Freedman

Well goodbye to all that — and good riddance! (Not the publication, many of whose articles are still relevant today) but the hassle.