Subscribers of Wired, beware.

I had a subscription to Wired for a few years and recently decided to let the subscription lapse because I don't have the time to read it now. After the usual "your subscription is expiring" notices were ignored and the magazine stopped being sent, I received a charming little notice from a collections agency. WIRED hired this agency "to write you as to why payment has not been made as of this letter date." The letter ends in a bold, italicized threat: "This is an attempt to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose." After phoning the number at the top of the asinine letter (not a toll-free number, mind you) and wading through several phone prompts, I was given an option to let Wired know I am just not interested in subscribing anymore.

Since when is letting a magazine subscription expire a debt? This guerilla marketing technique is unethical in my book and a low way to intimidate others into re-subscribing. It infuriates me to imagine someone being bullied into sending money to this company.

Wired customer service wasn't any help, either. The gal stopped typing after I told her that I wanted to place a complaint--I'm sure they aren't concerned about ex-subscribers. If you do get Wired magazine and then decide you don't want it anymore, be prepared to receive a charming little letter like mine from them. I will never read their magazine again and I urge others to think twice before sending their hard-earned money to a company that stoops this low to regain a subscription.

Raspberries and two thumbs down to Wired Magazine.

According to this magazine we'll all have rocket ships in the next 5 years. Pretentious tech magazine.

While "Wired" remains at the forefront of technology magazines, a few things keep it from truely reaching greatness.

In every issue there is always a few interesting articles; but the writing and editing seems, at times, fairly unprofessional. Also the magazine tends to lack focus in reaching their target audience (are they trying to appeal towards 20 to 30 somethings with a technology related career? Because I'm in this category and the topics and writing sometimes seems geared toward even younger readers).

Fortunately the cost of "Wired" evens out all of its downfalls. At $10 for 12 issues it's worth it for even one good article a month and it still remains an informative and interesting magazine.

I remember when I first read Wired, back in 1994. They were on their second year: now it's been ten years Wired's been around, and it can be said without a doubt that they've contributed to shape the digital culture every bit as much as they have reported about it.

I have been and on-and-off subscriber of the magazine and hadn't been for a while, but ever since their edition about Music earlier in 2002 (May, I believe) Wired is back to its old self. Over the course of its life, it's had a couple of cycles it's gone through: from awesome, to mediocre, to awesome, to mediocre... Now it's back to awesome. The new editing team has made an extraordinary effort at defining content in ways that result appealing and go in line with the times. This, I consider to be the most remarkable accomplishment they have: the ability to redefine themselves to adapt to the world around them, as opposed to trying to force themselves down readers' throats. Get your Wired subscription today. Although the content is online too, you miss a lot of the reading experience... plus, c'mon: it's only a buck an issue!

The best thing about Wired is that it has stayed true to its roots over all of these years. Wired has always had a forward-looking, sophisticated attitude toward technology. You can tell that every article is well-researched and no feature in the magazine is an afterthought. In every issue, you will find:

- stories about the unsung heroes who are really responsible for pushing the limits of technology
- some politically-oriented article that shows the growing interplay between technology and politics
- cool digital and electronic gadgets (that usually cost a lot of $$)
- fun stuff like Jargon watch, Wired vs. Tired, and even some of the ads (how often can you say that?)

Beyond that, I find Wired is the best place to read about things like the melding of human and computer and the progess of technology outside of the U.S. So, I find every issue interesting. It's a little less useful to me as an investor in technology stocks, but it does offer me that broader perspective on technology that helps put investable ideas into context. The clincher is the price - a small sacrifice for so much intriguing and entertaining content. I once considered discontinuing my subscription, but realized that it's so different from everything else I read and just one decent article an issue makes it worthwhile. Very glad I kept it. So, if you've never read Wired, I would give it definitely give it a try.