SoftSide

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SoftSide Magazine
Editor	Roger Robitaille
Categories	Computer programming
Frequency	Monthly
First issue	October 1978
Final issue — Number	August 1984 ?
Company	SoftSide Publications
Country	United States
Language	English
ISSN	0274-8630

SoftSide Magazine is a defunct computer magazine, begun in October 1978 by Roger Robitaille and published by SoftSide Publications of Milford, New Hampshire.

Dedicated to computer programming, SoftSide followed a similar format to early issues of Nibble, with articles and program listings that users could manually enter and try out. A version specific to the Apple II began in January 1980 and lasted as an Apple II-only publication until August 1980, when it combined with the other versions of SoftSide covering TRS-80, IBM-PC, and Atari computer platforms. The Apple edition was edited by Apple II game author and publisher Mark Pelczarski.

In the first few years of publication readers often had problems with the legibility of the dot-matrix program listings. By the time the printout was photographed and placed in the magazine, it had become a bit illegible. One reader commented, "after a short while of typing, you felt like you needed some of the 'coke bottle bottom' eye glasses!" [1]

Like many computer publications of the time, SoftSide fell on hard times because of financial pressures and competition. This came during their attempt in 1983 to increase their distribution and reach a larger audience of readers. As a result, Robitaille made some efforts to reorganize the publication into a new magazine called SoftSide 2.0 (directed towards the computer user), and Code (for the programmer), with disk versions of both to be made available. He was never able to get either concept fully established, and SoftSide ended with its August 1984 issue.4

Scott Adams took out the first ad for a commercial software game (Adventureland) in Softside Magazine (probably in 1978).

Programmers who appeared in SoftSide include Sheldon Leemon, Harry Bratt, Craig Chamberlain, Herb Sandy and Lance Micklus.