For the past several months the python magazine hasn't sent any new issues out. Indeed, since late last year they ripped out their website and had a banner saying "We're busy building a new python magazine", with a link laughably suggesting that there is more information available. This is after last year them getting several months behind with the magazine. They also said " Don't worry—your subscription and back issues are safe and will be available when the new site launches. ". That's fine, in theory. However consider:

• Whilst they may let the grass grow under their feet they haven't bothered telling their subscribers. Paid subscribers.
• They haven't bothered updating their website telling their customers what they're doing.
• Indeed, they appear, from a subscriber point of view, to have simply cut and run.

I can't actually think what excuse they can come up with that justifies not actually bothering to contact subscribers for well over 1/2 a year, but I'm sure they have one. On the flip side, they don't have any contact address on their front page, nor on their content free "what we're doing" page. Beyond this, last year they decided, of their own volition to charge my credit card to renew my subscription. Now I was going to renew anyway - it's been a great magazine in the past, but charging my card without upfront consent struck me as rather dodgy.
Since they've now reneged on their half of the sale contract and not delivered, and actually have a good reason to need to get in contact with them, I can't. This means I'm left with 2 choices:

• Either put out a public notice in the hope that it's something that someone there will read, and actually get back in contact to let me know how to contact them
• Contact Visa and say that they're a rogue trader, and that they should be banned from making any further transactions against my card (especially given the last one was done without my explicit consent.

Neither is particularly attractive, and hopefully someone knows how to get in contact with them because they sure aren't advertising any contact details right now.

Finally, I get that it's a small publication, that it's one borne out of love, rather than profit (at a guess based on guestimates of costs), but if you're having trouble getting things back started, at least have the decency to tell your subscribers, rather than having content free "information" pages.

After all, a lot can change in 1/2 a year... (Last issue I have is from August 2009...)

(Sorry to anyone who reads this who have nothing to with the python magazine, but if you know someone there, please let me know who is "running" it these days)