Please Note the Magazine and Month When Scanning in Atari Ads

[+Random Terrain]

Back in the early 1980s, if I saw an Atari 2600 ad in a magazine, I would carefully cut it out and tape it up on my bedroom wall. I didn't care about the name of the magazine or what month it was from. And ads weren't just in game-related magazines. My mother used to get various women's magazines such as Good Housekeeping and I'm pretty sure there were Atari ads in those once in a while. I know there were some in TV Guide.

 

Seems like more and more people are becoming interested in Atari 2600 video game release dates, so it's more important than ever that we pay attention to the name of the magazine and the month when we find Atari 2600 ads. Knowing when an ad first appeared in magazines can help us verify release dates that we already have from other sources or give us a clue when we have no other sources or help when there is conflicting information. Every piece of the puzzle helps.

 

From now on, when we see an Atari 2600 ad in an old magazine, let's remember to write down the magazine name and the month and include that information with the scan. I can't believe it took me this long to realize that I should be paying attention to the date and name of the magazine, but now is better than never.

[jhd]

I would even argue that should be extended to magazine scans more broadly. I have several folders of pages scanned from various gaming magazines, with no indication as to when (or sometimes even where) the article was originally published. It only takes a moment to add this metadata, but it makes life easier for anyone else wishing to reference the scan.