Any1 Read The Practical Reptile Keeping Mag?

[angela__k__84]

I picked mine up in the local Asda haha.
To be fair, it is a nice magazine but I can't say I have learned anything from it. It is basic.
On the other hand, I suspect I will continue buying it.
I would like to see some more in depth articles and maybe it would be a nice idea to have care sheets for different species in each issue.
I am not criticising - they are a very new publication - but I hope to see a more rounded, educational stance once they are established.
I can only look at so many pictures of royal morphs before I get bored.

[love_reptiles]

I agree, general consensus tends to be it needs to be more imformative. Was a bit shocked by the article on royal morphs but nothing explaining genetics!

I haven't learned anything yet (except for the liefood article about live inverterbrates) I am not what you would call an expert hobbyist either, so I think most of the article should follow suite of that one. It just seems like a picture book!

[GlasgowGecko]

Well having spoken to the editor a little regarding articles it is clear that at this early stage in the magazines life the depth and detail of the articles is an issue. In keeping the articles quite general (although factually accurate) they allow a broad spectrum of readers, from quite young children to the most scientific amongst us. Whilst I for one agree more detailed articles are needed I can see Davids point.
Having a little understanding of genetics leads me to know that any article written on this topic would not be publishable in this magazine, for a number of reasons. Firstly the wealth of terminology that would need to be covered before any explanations start would make it impractical space wise. Secondly it is very complicated, and there is no real way of making accessible to the widest possible audience. Layman's terms don't really cut it here.

I think perhaps sometimes we all forget that many moons ago when we started out as keepers, we knew very little, including things we now take for granted. This magazine is as much for those people, as it is for us with a little more experience. Perhaps in the coming months when the magazine finds its feet a little, and exactly where it fits into the market we will see a switch in the type of articles that get published.

Regards,
Andy

[GlasgowGecko]

OK guys, while discussing via email various other issues with David Alderton, the Editor of Practical Reptile Keeping he mentioned this topic. Here is what he had to say:

Getting the balance right - both in terms of coverage of the various taxa, and at different levels is a challenge! I'm aware of the comments on the forums, but we need to appeal to a broad audience, who have a general interest in the subject. As the magazine grows, so there's scope to become more specialised but we don't want to replicate the forums in this sense. We're running what I would argue are "specialist" features in each issue - eg Anderson's salamanders in issue 1 and Uromastyx in 2, but hopefully in a way that appeals to a general readership too. I see part of our brief as being to raise interest and awareness generally, promoting responsible herp-keeping. We're not a specialist snake or lizard or turtle publication etc., and we wouldn't achieve news-stand and supermarket distributions if we were!

Hope this helps to answer a few questions. He also went onto say that ideas are always welcome, so again I echo previous sentiments that writing the kind of articles you would like to see will help.

Andy

[iXXo]

Thanks for the replys GG and also to David. Its good to know that what people think matters

As a reply id like to say that i think he actually achieves that aim quite well. As a general reader im sure it would be far better than lists of stuff they dont undertand and have no need/want to go and look up.

I would though like to add that i feel the mag should avoid any more little lines such as you should never livefeed. If something is hard to put forward without making people think well its fine then, avoid it full stop. Little things i know...but just as i was having this convo with my mother in law the other day. She was told this, so when i explained about livefeeding..it just didnt get through. An "expert" told her and thats that.

Its difficult to get people to change their minds from thinking its ok. Changing it again! is a nightmare :P If it was in print...god! when are books wrong? lol.

Apart from that i would struggle to suggest any way to change it and keep to its aims. Maybe when my GF snt shouting at me to stop writing and sort my son out lol. Ill have a reread first too lol.

[MadMike]

Ahh, Practical TORTOISE Keeping....

[dEsSiCaTa_UK]

Originally Posted by kaimarion

don't forget about some of those lush photos .

You mean like this!



Unfortunatly though i used my dads email to send my picture in so in the mag its bt Dean Eyre and not Cain Eyre

[earthling]

HI all...newbie alert...and sorry for butting in but I bought the mag today from WH Smith and thought it was ok. I don't own any reptiles yet but will be buying a baby boa from a mate in a few weeks
I've looked at a few internet sites and wondered if there was a magazine available and WHOOHOO I found PRK
I know the mag is in its early stages but I think a larger Q and A section would be helpful.
I saw 4 Q and A's but if I didn't have internet access and wanted advice could I still write to the mag ?
Saying that though, maybe there were only 4 questions because only 4 people have written in since the first issue
I've had no previous experience of keeping snakes so I found the mag fairly easy to understand and I DID notice that in the next issue there will be an article on boas so I'll be first in line !!!

[BuzzzKilllington]

I picked up the second issue the other week as I was passing through ASDA. It's not bad, but I would offer the following criticisms:

*As others have pointed out, the articles are a bit basic. They seem to gloss over many subjects such as in the "Colours in the Corn" article which is about the many colour variations available for corns, but lists only 10 (half of which are motleys!) and doesn't go into any genetics. I think brief descriptions of the major/basic types with photos, and then a list of most mainstream morphs and a short explanation of the genetics would have been more appropriate; as it stands, the article seems like the author just picked out his 10 favourite morphs. Maybe links to more resources online (such as Ian's Vivarium Morph Guide for the Corn article?).

*Maybe it's just me but the editing seems a bit off. For example, the aforementioned corn snake article states that the latin name for corns is Elaphe guttata when I thought they had been reclassified as Pantherophis guttata, or in the back where it talks about next month's issue, "Briefing on boas", next to it is a picture of a woman holding a burmese python. Some aspects of the wording throughout the magazine seem a bit off, but that's probably just my overly pedantic nature.

*You get a free thermometer when you subscribe! Whoop-de-frigging-do. That'll save me a couple of quid. /sarcasm. I would hope that most people who subscribe to this magazine aren't in dire need of a thermometer! IMO a better offer would be one that offers access to previous articles online or delivers them on CD.

It's certainly not a bad magazine, and I may well pick it up again, but to be brutally honest I really don't think it's worth subscribing to.