Gernsback had started another magazine called "Practical Electrics" in 1921. In 1924, he changed its name to "The Experimenter", and sent a letter to 25,000 people to gauge interest in the possibility of a magazine devoted to scientific fiction; in his words, "the response was such that the idea was given up for two years." However, in 1926 he decided to go ahead, and ceased publication of "The Experimenter" to make room in his publishing schedule for a new magazine. The editor of "The Experimenter", T. O'Conor Sloane, became the editor of "Amazing Stories". The first issue appeared on 10 March 1926, with a cover date of April 1926.