Well, I've seen 4 magazine eras, and I really miss the first ones...

• The first one was the 80s magazines. The magazines I bought were about my 8 bit computer. I'm spaniard and I had (and still own) a Sinclair ZX Spectrum +, so that meant Microhobby. That magazines were (mostly) about gaming, but they had articles about hardware and making hardware, programming and included listings to type and learn from. I miss that ones, when computers were a new world to explore and everyone seemed to be willing to learn and teach. (Note that most magazines about PCs in that era were business oriented. They had nothing about DIY hardware, and almost nothing about programming)
• The second era was the 90s. Some magazines (PCMania in Spain) took where 8 bit magazines left and, although most of the magazine talked about games and new products, you could still find articles about programming, technologies (i.e.: MIDI), and the like. Some existing PC magazines (i.e.: PC Actual) opened their views and oriented to a "family" public, including gaming, programming and multimedia sections. Other stayed at their business position.
• Somewhere about 2000s started the third era... some magazines "split", recovering their business orientation and creating little sisters oriented to families (i.e.: gaming, multimedia, internet). Programming and the like dissappeared.
• And now we are at the (I hope) last era of magazines. Most magazines are subtle (or not so subtle) forms or advertising from manufacturers. Almost every bit of useful information is present (or directly taken from) internet, even some family magazines copied the "multimedia/digital" design of blogs and webs. Most magazines have dissappeared, and I guess the last ones won't live for long.

Did I miss printed magazines? Well, sort of. I really miss the first era magazines (and old PCManias...), but I guess I don't really miss the magazines. I really miss that era where computing was something new and exciting (before anyone ask... I was born in 1975, so everything at that age was new and exciting), and everyone could make their own things... I don't miss the magazines, but the whole thing. I guess that 90s kids will feel the same about internet, but I don't really know if actual kids do feel excited about anything about computer/consoles.

Zup wrote:

Well, I've seen 4 magazine eras, and I really miss the first ones... […]
Show full quote

Well, I've seen 4 magazine eras, and I really miss the first ones...

• The first one was the 80s magazines. The magazines I bought were about my 8 bit computer. I'm spaniard and I had (and still own) a Sinclair ZX Spectrum +, so that meant Microhobby. That magazines were (mostly) about gaming, but they had articles about hardware and making hardware, programming and included listings to type and learn from. I miss that ones, when computers were a new world to explore and everyone seemed to be willing to learn and teach. (Note that most magazines about PCs in that era were business oriented. They had nothing about DIY hardware, and almost nothing about programming)
• The second era was the 90s. Some magazines (PCMania in Spain) took where 8 bit magazines left and, although most of the magazine talked about games and new products, you could still find articles about programming, technologies (i.e.: MIDI), and the like. Some existing PC magazines (i.e.: PC Actual) opened their views and oriented to a "family" public, including gaming, programming and multimedia sections. Other stayed at their business position.
• Somewhere about 2000s started the third era... some magazines "split", recovering their business orientation and creating little sisters oriented to families (i.e.: gaming, multimedia, internet). Programming and the like dissappeared.
• And now we are at the (I hope) last era of magazines. Most magazines are subtle (or not so subtle) forms or advertising from manufacturers. Almost every bit of useful information is present (or directly taken from) internet, even some family magazines copied the "multimedia/digital" design of blogs and webs. Most magazines have dissappeared, and I guess the last ones won't live for long.

Did I miss printed magazines? Well, sort of. I really miss the first era magazines (and old PCManias...), but I guess I don't really miss the magazines. I really miss that era where computing was something new and exciting (before anyone ask... I was born in 1975, so everything at that age was new and exciting), and everyone could make their own things... I don't miss the magazines, but the whole thing. I guess that 90s kids will feel the same about internet, but I don't really know if actual kids do feel excited about anything about computer/consoles.

A very interesting analysis, Zup.
And I suspect you're right about your last point. It's the "whole thing" we miss, not just the "magazines", when "everything was new and exciting", you got it perfectly right!
Thanks.

I really loved PC Shopper, when it was in the 1.5" thick, very large format (tabloid, perhaps?). Yes, you were paying to look at a LOT of ads but there were also good articles and reviews. LOVED poring over them late at night at Hardee's or Whataburger, being excited about the latest advancements, like 100MHz RAM, and clock-tripled processors and VLB cards and the like. And the ads, with every seller claiming the lowest prices ($call!) and best service. The line drawings. The foldout ads from Dell and Gateway 2000.
Those were the days.

Zup wrote:

Well, I've seen 4 magazine eras, and I really miss the first ones... […]
Show full quote

Well, I've seen 4 magazine eras, and I really miss the first ones...

• The first one was the 80s magazines. The magazines I bought were about my 8 bit computer. I'm spaniard and I had (and still own) a Sinclair ZX Spectrum +, so that meant Microhobby. That magazines were (mostly) about gaming, but they had articles about hardware and making hardware, programming and included listings to type and learn from. I miss that ones, when computers were a new world to explore and everyone seemed to be willing to learn and teach. (Note that most magazines about PCs in that era were business oriented. They had nothing about DIY hardware, and almost nothing about programming)
• The second era was the 90s. Some magazines (PCMania in Spain) took where 8 bit magazines left and, although most of the magazine talked about games and new products, you could still find articles about programming, technologies (i.e.: MIDI), and the like. Some existing PC magazines (i.e.: PC Actual) opened their views and oriented to a "family" public, including gaming, programming and multimedia sections. Other stayed at their business position.
• Somewhere about 2000s started the third era... some magazines "split", recovering their business orientation and creating little sisters oriented to families (i.e.: gaming, multimedia, internet). Programming and the like dissappeared.
• And now we are at the (I hope) last era of magazines. Most magazines are subtle (or not so subtle) forms or advertising from manufacturers. Almost every bit of useful information is present (or directly taken from) internet, even some family magazines copied the "multimedia/digital" design of blogs and webs. Most magazines have dissappeared, and I guess the last ones won't live for long.

Did I miss printed magazines? Well, sort of. I really miss the first era magazines (and old PCManias...), but I guess I don't really miss the magazines. I really miss that era where computing was something new and exciting (before anyone ask... I was born in 1975, so everything at that age was new and exciting), and everyone could make their own things... I don't miss the magazines, but the whole thing. I guess that 90s kids will feel the same about internet, but I don't really know if actual kids do feel excited about anything about computer/consoles.

Pcmania and Micromania where probably the best of them all in the 90´s. Sadly, Hobbypress/Axelspringer has gone a long way since then... to worse.

Retrogamer is still something quite enjoyable, but is mostly for Videogames stuff.

Emu10k1 wrote:

Zup wrote:

Well, I've seen 4 magazine eras, and I really miss the first ones... […]
Show full quote

Well, I've seen 4 magazine eras, and I really miss the first ones...

• The first one was the 80s magazines. The magazines I bought were about my 8 bit computer. I'm spaniard and I had (and still own) a Sinclair ZX Spectrum +, so that meant Microhobby. That magazines were (mostly) about gaming, but they had articles about hardware and making hardware, programming and included listings to type and learn from. I miss that ones, when computers were a new world to explore and everyone seemed to be willing to learn and teach. (Note that most magazines about PCs in that era were business oriented. They had nothing about DIY hardware, and almost nothing about programming)
• The second era was the 90s. Some magazines (PCMania in Spain) took where 8 bit magazines left and, although most of the magazine talked about games and new products, you could still find articles about programming, technologies (i.e.: MIDI), and the like. Some existing PC magazines (i.e.: PC Actual) opened their views and oriented to a "family" public, including gaming, programming and multimedia sections. Other stayed at their business position.
• Somewhere about 2000s started the third era... some magazines "split", recovering their business orientation and creating little sisters oriented to families (i.e.: gaming, multimedia, internet). Programming and the like dissappeared.
• And now we are at the (I hope) last era of magazines. Most magazines are subtle (or not so subtle) forms or advertising from manufacturers. Almost every bit of useful information is present (or directly taken from) internet, even some family magazines copied the "multimedia/digital" design of blogs and webs. Most magazines have dissappeared, and I guess the last ones won't live for long.

Did I miss printed magazines? Well, sort of. I really miss the first era magazines (and old PCManias...), but I guess I don't really miss the magazines. I really miss that era where computing was something new and exciting (before anyone ask... I was born in 1975, so everything at that age was new and exciting), and everyone could make their own things... I don't miss the magazines, but the whole thing. I guess that 90s kids will feel the same about internet, but I don't really know if actual kids do feel excited about anything about computer/consoles.

Pcmania and Micromania where probably the best of them all in the 90´s. Sadly, Hobbypress/Axelspringer has gone a long way since then... to worse.

Retrogamer is still something quite enjoyable, but is mostly for Videogames stuff.

Thanks!!!!

AlaricD wrote:

I really loved PC Shopper, when it was in the 1.5" thick, very large format (tabloid, perhaps?). Yes, you were paying to look at a LOT of ads but there were also good articles and reviews. LOVED poring over them late at night at Hardee's or Whataburger, being excited about the latest advancements, like 100MHz RAM, and clock-tripled processors and VLB cards and the like. And the ads, with every seller claiming the lowest prices ($call!) and best service. The line drawings. The foldout ads from Dell and Gateway 2000.
Those were the days.

↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑ TOTALLY! You seem to have been able to perfectly put in a few words my tons of feelings! (y) (y) (yyyyyyyyy) ↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑

AlaricD wrote:

I really loved PC Shopper, when it was in the 1.5" thick, very large format (tabloid, perhaps?). Yes, you were paying to look at a LOT of ads but there were also good articles and reviews. LOVED poring over them late at night at Hardee's or Whataburger, being excited about the latest advancements, like 100MHz RAM, and clock-tripled processors and VLB cards and the like. And the ads, with every seller claiming the lowest prices ($call!) and best service. The line drawings. The foldout ads from Dell and Gateway 2000.
Those were the days.

Yeah I remember back in 1993 looking at these and picking out a Dell system that would "scream" in Autocad. These were machines in the 4000-5000 dollar range running dos/wfw, now I feel like a fossil.

Notice how online reviews mysteriously disappear before ~1996/1997. Thankfully Google Books has lots of scans of old PC mags from before that time...so you want to read original reviews of Doom...now you can!

right!!!

We had a few local magazines in the 80's and early 90's that had C64 gam and program lists that you could type. They also tested joysticks, printers and other peripherals and also had comparisons of the most popular home computers of the era. When home computers died in the early 90's so did the magazines, or at least they changed to please more generic reader. Everything went pretty smoothly until early 00's when console games took over and PC was left with mostly rubbish console ports for a long time. By the 2010 the end was already in sight with all the mobile, handheld and indie games flooding the pages. Luckily one of the first computer magazines decided to get back to their roots recently and ditched all the hifi and home theater reviews for nostalgic articles and tips on how to use a Raspberry Pi as an emulator. Too bad the oldest (and only) PC game magazine we have is on it's last legs. Most articles are about some obscure Japanese game or philosophical musings about artistic value of gaming culture and other nonsense. For me that magazine died 10 years ago and it's painful to see how the once mighty has fallen to such depths.

The first year book of game reviews

The first magazine

The latest magazine

I miss Computer Shopper when it was a couple inches thick (tossed all mine I think).

Reviews back in the day might have been a little biased but anything in print today seems to be 100% paid for.