Byte is back.
For anyone who has followed technology (and technology journalism) over the last 20 or so years, that’s amazing.
As a long-time technology PR consultant, I am glad.
Byte helped set the standard for technology publications. Getting coverage in its pages was prestigious; established IT leaders and energetic start-ups vied for the attention of Byte‘s reporters. As a rule, the articles were more accurate than many of the publication’s counterparts.
According to the welcome message, Byte is back because it helped usher in the personal computer revolution and “we’re in the midst of another revolution. We call it the consumerization of IT.”
Interestingly, I was just discussing the demise of so many computer publications over the years. Some of us remember Computer & Software News. Or the days when Computer Shopper was so thick it could be used for weight training as well as for technology research. Or the Industry Standard and the host of Internet publications that have since disappeared.
Of course, the new Byte is different. It’s strictly online, for starters. It’s been launched as a subset of Information Week’s website (www.InformationWeek.com). It is including a lot of material from its sister publication. And it has industry veterans like Gina Smith, Editor in Chief) and Jerry Pournelle (Chaos Manor) at the helm.
All this is promising. It’s just good to welcome an old friend back.
