PC Magazine
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''PC Magazine'' (shortened as ''PCMag'') is an American computer magazine published by Ziff Davis. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009. Publication of
online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity, and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed as "on lin ...
editions started in late 1994 and continues .


Overview

''PC Magazine'' provides reviews and previews of the latest hardware and
software Software consists of computer programs that instruct the Execution (computing), execution of a computer. Software also includes design documents and specifications. The history of software is closely tied to the development of digital comput ...
for the
information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...
professional. Other regular departments include columns by long-time editor-in-chief Michael J. Miller ("Forward Thinking"), Bill Machrone, and Jim Louderback, as well as: * "First Looks" (a collection of reviews of newly released products) * "Pipeline" (a collection of short articles and snippets on computer-industry developments) * "Solutions" (which includes various how-to articles) * "User-to-User" (a section in which the magazine's experts answer user-submitted questions) * "After Hours" (a section about various computer entertainment products; the designation "After Hours" is a legacy of the magazine's traditional orientation towards business computing.) * " Abort, Retry, Fail?" (a beginning-of-the-magazine humor page which for a few years was known as "Backspace"—and was subsequently the last page). For several years in the 1980s, ''PC Magazine'' gave significant coverage to programming for the
IBM PC The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the List of IBM Personal Computer models, IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible ''de facto'' standard. Released on ...
and compatibles in languages such as Turbo Pascal,
BASIC Basic or BASIC may refer to: Science and technology * BASIC, a computer programming language * Basic (chemistry), having the properties of a base * Basic access authentication, in HTTP Entertainment * Basic (film), ''Basic'' (film), a 2003 film ...
, Assembly and C. Charles Petzold was one of the notable writers on programming topics. Editor Bill Machrone wrote in 1985, that If an article doesn't evaluate products or enhance productivity, "chances are it doesn't belong in ''PC Magazine''".


History

In an early review of the new IBM PC, '' Byte'' reported that ''PC: The Independent Guide to the IBM Personal Computer'' "should be of great interest to owners". The first issue of ''PC'', dated February–March 1982, appeared early that year. (The magazine was at first advertised as ''PC Guide''. The word ''Magazine'' was added to the name with the third issue in June 1982, but not added to the
logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name that it represents, as in ...
until January 1986.) ''PC Magazine'' was created by David Bunnell, Jim Edlin, and Cheryl Woodard (who also helped Bunnell found the subsequent '' PC World'' and '' Macworld'' magazines). David Bunnell, Edward Currie and Tony Gold were the magazines co-founders. Bunnell and Currie created the magazine's business plan at Lifeboat Associates in New York which included, in addition to PC Magazine, explicit plans for publication of PC Tech, PC Week and PC Expositions (PC Expo) all of which were subsequently realized. Tony Gold, a co-founder of Lifeboat Associates financed the magazine in the early stages. The magazine grew beyond the capital required to publish it; to solve this problem, Gold sold the magazine to Ziff-Davis, moving from California to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. By February 1983 it was published by PC Communications Corp., a subsidiary of Ziff-Davis Publishing Co., Bunnell and his staff left to form '' PC World'' magazine. The first issue of ''PC'' carried an interview with Bill Gates, made possible by his friendship with David Bunnell, who was among the first journalists and writers to take an interest in personal computing.


Early transition to square binding

By its third issue ''PC'' was square-bound, because it was too thick for saddle-stitch. At first the magazine published new issues every two months, but became monthly as of the August 1982 issue, its fourth. In March 1983 a reader urged the magazine to consider switching to a biweekly schedule because of its thickness. Although the magazine replied to the reader's proposal with "Please say you're kidding about the bi-weekly schedule. Please?", after the December 1983 issue reached 800 pages in size, in 1984 ''PC'' began publishing new issues every two weeks, with each about 400 pages in size. In January 2008 the magazine dropped back to monthly issues. Print circulation peaked at 1.2 million in the late 1990s. In November 2008 it was announced that the print edition would be discontinued as of the January 2009 issue, but the online version at pcmag.com would continue. By this time print circulation had declined to about 600,000. In the December 2022 issue, it was announced that the issue was the last one following the magazine format, and focus was shifted to the pcmag.com website. The magazine had no ISSN until 1983, when it was assigned , which was later changed to . PC Magazine uses
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical charac ...
as the official archive of its 27 years as a print publication.


Editorial leadership

Wendy Sheehan Donnell was appointed
editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is held accoun ...
of PCMag.com in January 2022. Donnell had been deputy editor and joined PCMag.com as a senior editor covering consumer electronics in 2007. As of January 2025, Donnell remained as editor-in-chief and John Burek was PC Labs Director and executive editor. Alex Colon was executive editor.


Editorial leadership history

Prior to Donnell's appointment, Dan Costa was editor-in-chief from August 2011 to December 2021. Lance Ulanoff held the position of editor-in-chief from July 2007 to July 2011. Jim Louderback was editor-in-chief before Ulanoff, from 2005, and left to become
chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
of online media company Revision3.


Development and evolution

The magazine evolved significantly over the years. The most drastic change was the shrinkage of the publication due to contractions in the computer-industry's ad market and the easy availability of the
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...
, which made computer magazines seem less necessary. This is also the primary reason for the November 2008 decision to discontinue the print version. It has adapted to the new realities of the 21st century by reducing its once-standard emphasis on massive comparative reviews of computer systems, hardware peripherals, and software packages to focus more on the broader consumer-electronics market. From the late 1990s, the magazine more frequently reviewed
Macintosh Mac is a brand of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple since 1984. The name is short for Macintosh (its official name until 1999), a reference to the McIntosh (apple), McIntosh apple. The current product lineup inclu ...
software and hardware. As of February 2025, PCMag.com has multiple categories of coverage, including reviews, how-to articles, news, opinion, deals, PCs & hardware, mobile, electronics, smart home, health & fitness, gaming, software & services, and security. The magazine also produces product comparisons. It also releases special issues lik
Get Organized
and an annua
Best Tech Brands
ranking.


The creation of a hardware test facility

''PC Magazine'' was one of the first publications to have a formal test facility, which they called PC Labs. The name was used early in the magazine, and a physical PC Labs was built at the magazine's 1 Park Avenue, New York facility in 1986. William Wong was the first PC Labs Director. PC Labs created a series of benchmarks, of which older versions can be found on the internet. PC Labs was designed to help writers and editors evaluate PC hardware and software, especially for large projects like the annual printer edition where almost a hundred printers were compared using PC Labs printer benchmarks.


See also

* '' DOS Power Tools'', sponsored by PC Magazine


References


External links

*
Archived PC magazines
on the
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

Digitized PC magazines
on
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical charac ...
* {{authority control Monthly magazines published in the United States Video game magazines published in the United States Arabic-language magazines Magazines published in Belgium Biweekly magazines published in the United States Magazines published in Brazil Magazines published in Bulgaria Chinese-language magazines Online computer magazines Computer magazines published in the Netherlands Video game magazines published in the Netherlands English-language magazines Magazines published in Greece Greek-language magazines Home computer magazines Magazines published in Israel Magazines established in 1982 Magazines disestablished in 2009 Magazines published in New York (state) Magazines published in Mexico Online magazines with defunct print editions Portuguese-language magazines Magazines published in Romania Monthly magazines published in Russia Computer magazines published in Russia Video game magazines published in Russia Computer magazines published in Serbia Serbian-language magazines Magazines published in Singapore Spanish-language magazines Computer magazines published in Spain Video game magazines published in Spain