What exactly does a Pyramid subscription gives access to, and how long?

[Maz]

Yea his might be a stupid question but I couldn't really find a clear answer. I might have been looking the wrong places of course.

Anyway.
If I buy a Pyramid subscription for say 6 months. What exactly do I get access to? ALL pyramid articles published before the date I buy it, and then all that comes in the next 6 months?
Or only the latest, and then the ones that come during the next six months?

Also, once my subscription runs out. How many of the pyramid magazines can I then still access? If I downloaded some to my computer, can I then still use it after the period?

Thanks.

[adm]

As I understand it.

Under the current setup, you get the next six Pyramids (Or however many months your subscription is.) at a sliding scale discount (Longer subscription, higher discount.). Those will always be available for download as long as SJGames does downloads. Any from the past you want to look at, you need to buy at full price.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by Maz

ALL pyramid articles published before the date I buy it, and then all that comes in the next 6 months? Or only the latest, and then the ones that come during the next six months?

The latter. You get the latest, and however many future issues are needed to fi; out the length of your subscription. You don't get any past issues.

What a Pyramid subscription effectively does is buy you six (or twelve) issues at a discounted price. But the effect of each issue being purchased is just like buying an individual issue, or a SJG PDF publication that isn't a magazine at all. The issues you acquired stay permanently in your W23 downloads library, and you can download them as many times as you like, to as many devices as you like.

Also, once my subscription runs out. How many of the pyramid magazines can I then still access?

The same as you could before it ran out. There isn't any DRM on them to enforce any limitations.

Note that the way PDF Pyramid (volume 3) works is completely different to the way the web-based Pyramid volume 2 worked. What you got for a subscription in volume 2 days was the time-limited ability to log into the Pyramid website. While you had that ability, you could access all of the Pyramid volume 2 content that had ever been released. When your subscription expired, you lost access. That content is no longer accessible, except for some articles that were made available as free samples, and still are. People who had Pyramid volume 2 subscriptions active at the time of the transition got to download an archive of all of it, and I did, but I don't use it much. It's all for GURPS 3e and a lot of it is obsoleted by 4e.

[Maz]

Ok, thank you, to both of you. then I guess I won't need a subscription as it was one or two specific magazine I wanted to read.

Originally Posted by johndallman

Note that the way PDF Pyramid (volume 3) works is completely different to the way the web-based Pyramid volume 2 worked. What you got for a subscription in volume 2 days was the time-limited ability to log into the Pyramid website. While you had that ability, you could access all of the Pyramid volume 2 content that had ever been released. When your subscription expired, you lost access. That content is no longer accessible, except for some articles that were made available as free samples, and still are. People who had Pyramid volume 2 subscriptions active at the time of the transition got to download an archive of all of it, and I did, but I don't use it much. It's all for GURPS 3e and a lot of it is obsoleted by 4e.

Aah this is probably why I am confused as I had one of those once in the way back times. But I didn't like that you couldn't access it again once the subscription ran out, and so I never reconsidered until recently, when there where some articles I really wanted to read.

[Imion]

Originally Posted by johndallman

(...)
People who had Pyramid volume 2 subscriptions active at the time of the transition got to download an archive of all of it, and I did, but I don't use it much. It's all for GURPS 3e and a lot of it is obsoleted by 4e.

Emphasis mine.

GURPS 4th edition was supported by Pyramid Volume 2 from 2004 until the latter's end in 2008. So it's not all just 3rd Edition.

[PK]

Originally Posted by Maz

But I didn't like that you couldn't access it again once the subscription ran out, and so I never reconsidered until recently, when there where some articles I really wanted to read.

You'll like the new Pyramid then, whether you subscribe or pick and choose issues. Once you buy an issue, it's yours forever. If you lose it or switch machines, you can just redownload it again; there are no limits or catches.

The advantage to subscribing is price. For example, if you subscribe for a year ($70), you get 12 issues of Pyramid (a $95.88 value), which is basically "pay for nine issues, get three free."* So if you ever feel like you do (or would) consistently enjoy at least three out of every four issues of Pyramid, get a subscription. If not, grab 'em individually.

* Well, technically it's "pay for 8.76 issues, get 3.24 free," which is a slightly better deal, but not one that rolls easily off the tongue . . .