This sort of stuff is why I no longer buy that magazine. How many model railroaders happen to own a 3D printer? How many would spend several thousand dollars from their model railroad budget to buy one? Is this even "modelling"?
I did get beyond the cover and read the article (not meant as an offense, Les). The hurdle stated in the article was not the need to invest in a still-very-expensive 3-D printer, but owning and knowing how to use a CAD software package suitable for design of such a project. There are not a few people who have exposure to CAD programs in their professional and even personal lives, and from the number of CAD programs out there made specifically for model railroad layout track design, I suppose CAD really isn't only for the realm of engineers and computer wizzes (I am neither; CAD is still Greek to me). At any case, one of the points made in the article is that it is not necessary to own a 3-D printer; printing services are available through Shapeways and other vendors.
I am intrigued by the possibilities of 3-D printing in model railroading. For example, one of the things I have really desired in the HO scale modeling world is "normal" everyday automobiles. I model the circa-2000 era, where streets are full of import cars such as Toyota Camrys, Honda Accords, you name it. But these have never been readily available in the market - except now there's a vendor on Shapeways who makes 3-D printed Camrys. I snapped up a half dozen of 'em. Yes, they're kinda rough and will need some work to make presentable, but they're AVAILABLE, as are countless other things you could never find before. And the technology, and thus the possibilities, will only get better.
Same thing with laser-cut structure kits. LOVE 'EM. Can't get enough of 'em. They beat the snot out of plastic. They add to my enjoyment of model railroading. Somebody's gotta have the hardware, computer program, and know how to make 'em, but it doesn't have to be me.
DCC? Well, we've all talked both sides of that in this forum many times. For me, I was a holdout until just a couple of years ago. Now I'm sold on it, all of my locomotives have DCC, and I read articles on it to learn what the technology offers over my limited knowledge of putting decoders in locos and programming which way the pointy end is. I'm not going to get into sound (I think it's overbearing and annoying in a small-to-medium sized layout room environment), I'm not interested as some are in using DCC for signals and controlling turntables and most of the other stuff DCC is good for. I'm gonna learn enough about DCC and JMRI to speed match and optimize my locomotive fleet, control lighting functions, and wire a few reverse loops and wyes, and I'll leave the really high tech stuff for those who want that.
Yes, the "trade press" as it were sure does use up a lot of pages on the technology aspect of the hobby. I'm old enough to remember my eyes glazing over reading the lists of diodes, rectifiers, and capacitors from Radio Shack and the incomprehensible and uninteresting (to me) circuit diagrams that were in articles about how to build your own throttles or signal systems or such things in years past. "Computers in Model Railroading", indeed! Heady stuff, writing a layout capacity calculation program in BASIC (I actually did that one!). Has anything REALLY changed all that much? It's just another generation of technology being applied to the hobby.
I do think there should be more articles on the basics - there are an awful lot of new layout building and scenicking techniques out there that need to be talked about more (something I am especially interested in since I am finally, after two decades of dreaming and a decade of talking about it, beginning to construct my first layout of my adult life). There should be more articles on truly mind blowing model railroads and how they were built. There are some, sure, but the thing which has struck me several times recently and what I am FAR more concerned about being a trend, is I read about a really incredible feature model railroad, only to get to the end of the article and read that it was built by some guy who's retired from upteen years as a professional, or the railroad has been already been dismantled or its owner passed away long before the article was even published. No wonder it took me 20 years to finally say enough, I'm ready. I'm in my 40s now, I was apparently too young until now! Should I wait another 18 years until I can retire and have time to build a magazine-worthy model railroad?