This is a grey area. Elektor still sells "Back Issue" CDs and DVDs, though the 1990–1999 DVD is long out of print. While copyright is technically active (Elektor International Media bv), the company has historically turned a blind eye to archival downloads of out-of-print decades, as it drives new customers to their modern content.
Disclaimer: You should check your local copyright laws. If you find the ISO via torrents, use a VPN. The best legal route is to purchase a used physical copy on eBay and rip it yourself.
In the golden age of hobbyist electronics, few names commanded as much respect as Elektor. For decades, this European publication was the bible for engineers, students, and tinkerers. While modern makers rely on GitHub and YouTube, the foundational knowledge of the 1990s lives on in a specific, highly sought-after digital artifact: the Elektor Magazine DVD 1990–1999 ISO Full. elektor magazine dvd 19901999 iso full
If you are a vintage electronics enthusiast, a repair shop owner, or a student of electrical engineering history, this ISO image is not just data—it is a time machine.
| Feature | 1990–1999 DVD | 1980–1989 DVD | 2000–2009 DVD | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | Microcontroller Focus | PIC & 8051 (DIP packages) | Z80 & 6809 (rare) | ARM & AVR (SMD) | | Analog Difficulty | Medium (through-hole) | High (calibrations needed) | Low (op-amp modules) | | PCB Complexity | Simple double-layer | Single-layer (easy DIY etch) | 4-layer (hard to homebrew) | | Relevance to modern e-waste repair | Very High (CRT TVs, VCRs) | Medium | Low (smartphones) | This is a grey area
If you obtain the ISO, do not browse aimlessly. Here are the top five legendary builds from that decade:
The DVD is essentially a digital library. It contains high-resolution scans of every issue of Elektor Electronics (and its regional variants, often Elektor Electronics USA) published during the 1990s. The data is typically packaged as an ISO image, which is a single file representing the entire contents of a physical disc. Disclaimer: You should check your local copyright laws
The primary purpose of this release is preservation and accessibility. Instead of storing ten years' worth of physical paper magazines—which are heavy, prone to yellowing, and difficult to search—users can mount the ISO file on their computer and access decades of engineering knowledge instantly.
The original disc was designed for Windows 98/XP with Internet Explorer 5. Getting it to run smoothly today requires a few steps:
The DVD you're referring to likely contains a collection of issues from Elektor Magazine spanning the years 1990 to 1999. Such collections are valuable for: