• Tag Archives DOS
  • PC Magazine (August 20th, 1985)

    Source: PC Magazine – August 20th, 1985

    Next to PC World, PC Magazine was probably the most popular PC magazine of the 1980s and 1990s though it didn’t hang on quite as long. The August 20th, 1985 issue includes:

    Cover Story/Features

    • Word Processing: The Latest Word – A comparison of 18 word processors including WordStar Professional, Wordstar 2000, XyWrite II Plus, Word Perfect, Volkswriter Deluxe, Display Write and Display Write 3, Easy Writer II System, SuperWriter, Perfect Writer, Microsoft Word, MultiMate, Samna Word III, OfficeWriter, Textra, Spellbinder, Personal QWERTY, and PFS: Write. While Word destroyed most of these, at least Word Perfect is still around.
    • Software: Lexical Electronic Filing – A look at word oriented database managers designed to replace paper filing systems. A couple of software packages looked at here include ZyINDEX and OCRS.
    • 3-D Reconstruction: Seeing Beyond the Surface – A look at some of the uses of 3D visualization and the software that makes it possible. In this case, the software is called PC3D.
    • A Footnote to Word Processing – A look at software that combines support for footnotes and indexing with WYSIWYG editing. There is a review of three different word processors here including WordPerfect 4.0, XyWrite II-Plus, and WordStar 2000 Plus.
    • Gateway Software to the Information Stars – A look at gateway software that makes searching online databases simpler. These include Sci-Mate Universal Online Searcher, PC/NET-LINK, Searchmaster, and In-Search. They all assist with searching a different combination of online databases.
    • AT Multifunction Boards: The Fast Five – A look at five boards for the IBM AT that combines memory expansion with various other functions. These include the AST Advantage!, SMF/AT210, Grande Byte, Rio Grande, and Maestro.
    • Good Is Not Good Enough – A look at two new “laptop computers”. The Visual Commuter is more of a hybrid portable machine with an optional 25×80 LCD display, 2 5.25″ disk drives and 256K RAM for $2495 or 512K for $2935. The Datavue 25 features a 25×80 LCD, 1 5.25″ disk drive and 128 RAM for $2195 or 640K for $2795.
    • One Small plus for CPAs – A look at CPA+, an accounting package based on Lotus 1-2-3.
    • RS-232C LANs: A Basic Bargain – A look at two software packages, LANLink and EasyLAN, that let you use your PC’s RS-232 ports for networking.

    Columns/Departments

    • PC News – Windows (1.0) is ready for release; IBM announces workstations based on IBM AT; Panasonic introduces portable IBM PC compatible featuring 256K RAM, two floppy drives, 8087-2 coprocessor, and more for $2795; new memory expansion boards from Quadram and AST; 10MB hardcard; and more.
    • From the Editor’s Screen: Waiting for WYSIWYG – An editorial on WYSIWYG word processors and how they aren’t quite perfect yet.
    • Letters to PC – Letters from readers about software piracy, using multiple serial devices with one PC, making macros, and more.
    • The Norton Chronicles: Software Makes the PC – The importance of software in the value of a PC. A look at some of Peter Norton’s favorite software including Framework, Lotus 1-2-3, DOS PATH, PFS: Write, MultiMate, Word, SideKick and more.
    • Quantum Leap: The Gigabyte Age – Of course we’ve moved well past gigabytes at this point… A look at CD-ROM technology.
    • Computers In Society: The Republic of Technology – A new technology for taking orders at restaurants on handheld wireless terminals.
    • Programming: End Big Blue’s Backup Blues – A type-in program that creates BAC.COM, a backup program superior to the COPY and BACKUP commands in DOS.
    • Spreadsheet Clinic – Tips, tricks and solutions for using various spreadsheet software including Lotus 1-2-3 and more.
    • Power User – Patching WordStar to customize features, including an example. Also, tips for running WordStar from RAMdisk and more.
    • User-To-User – A type-in program for creating a master index of all the subdirectories on a drive.
    • New on the Market – The Merchandiser, a software package that combines point-of-sales, inventory control, and mailing list management; Peak Performance:Run, software for scheduling personal training; Life/Time Manager, software for managing your time; SongWright III, a PC based music processor; PC Commander, a DOS shell for navigating via menus; and much more.
    • PC Tutor – Questions answered about the differences between different iterations of the IBM PC, interrupts and BASIC, monitor noise, and more.

    …and more!


  • The One (November 1989)

    Source: The One – Issue Number 14 – November 1989

    The One was a gaming magazine that was published in the U.K. It covered various systems over the year but it was primarily a 16-bit computer games magazine. In 1989 it was mostly covering the Amiga, Atari ST and PC. The November 1989 issue includes:

    • Disk – The cover disk included with the magazine this month includes an add-on for the Amiga and Atari ST versions of Populous called Final Frontier.
    • Letters – Letters from readers about Deluxe Paint, game construction kits, Power Drift, and more.
    • News – A look an an interesting new game called Atomic Lunch, new games coming for Christmas including Space Harrier II, Scramble Spirits, Liverpool, Saint and Greavsie, Terry’s Big Adventure, and more
    • Work In Progress – An in-depth look at a game still under development, Chase HQ.
    • Reviews – Reviews of Future Wars: Time Traveler for the Amiga, Power Drift for the Amiga, Tintin on the Moon for the Atari ST, Pro Tennis Tour for the Atari ST, Eye of Horus for the PC (DOS), North and South for the Amiga, Interphase for the Amiga, and Batman for the Amiga.
    • Play Guide – A strategy guide for Xenon II.
    • Tips – Tips and tricks for Paperboy, Dragon’s Lair, Continental Circus, Dynamite Dux, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, The New Zealand Story, Rick Dangerous, and Robocop.

    • Demos – A look at various demos for the Amiga and Atari ST as well as where to get them.
    • Showcase – Budding programmers, graphic artists, and musicians submit their work for consideration.
    • Graphics – Creating 64-color art on 16-color displays with EA’s Fusion.
    • Arcades – A look at new and upcoming arcade games including Big Run (Jaleco), U.N. Squadron
    • (Capcom), Sky Adventure (SNK), and Omega Mission (UPL/American Sammy).

    …and more!


  • Computer Shopper (March 2001)

    Source: Computer Shopper – March 2001 –

    Computer Shopper, for much of its life, was a huge telephone book sized magazine with tons of ads of course but also tons of content. It had shrunk considerably by the turn of the century. The March 2001 issue, though much smaller than earlier years, was still a fairly hefty 250 pages. It includes:

    Features

    • Tower of Power – Reviews of “Power Systems” including the Compaq Presario 7000T, Gateway Performance 1500XL, HP Pavilion 9720A, IBM NetVista A60i, and Micron Millennia Max XP. These are all either 1.2 GHz Athlon systems or 1.5GHz Pentium 4 Systems with 128MB RAM and video cards such as the nVidia GeForce2 GTS Ultra and ATI All-in-Wonder Radeon. Prices range from $2513 to $3649 with the HP being the cheapest and the Compaq being the most expensive.
    • Handheld PCs – Reviews of five handheld PCs including the Casio Cassiopeia EM-500 (Microsoft Pocket PC), Compaq iPaq H3650 Pocket PC (Microsoft Pocket PC), Handspring Visor Platinum (Palm OS), Handspring Visor Prism (Palm), and Palm VIIx (Palm). Computer Shopper liked the iPaq ($500), Handspring Visor Platinum ($299), and Palm VIIx ($449) the best.
    • Take-Along Tunes – A guide to portable music players with a look at the various audio formats plus a look at various software players including FreeAmp, MusicMatch Jukebox 6.0, RealPlayer 8, SoundJam MP 2.5.1, Winamp 2.7, Windows Media Player 7, and X Multimedia System.
    • Many Happy Returns – Reviews of tax software including Kiplinger Taxcut Deluxe, Quicken Turbotax Deluxe, and TaxAct 2000 Deluxe.
    • Something for Nothing – Free stuff including free music at MP3.com, free clipart, e-mail, hosting, web access, phone, fax, and more.
    • Not of the Presses – A feature on eBooks with a look at the latest eBook readers such as the Franklin eBookMan, Palm OS Handhelds, Pocket PC Handhelds, RCA eBook REB1100, and RCA eBook REB1200 plus places to get free eBooks and more.

    News

    • Net Now – Arizona first to have public election using voting over the Internet, Zairmail offers letter service, an upgrade kit for furbies, and more.
    • Hot Gear – A look at some of the latest gadgets including the Cyber-shot DSC-P1 3.3 megapixel digital camera from Sony, the Pocket Concert Audio Player from Intel, the Kyocera QCP 6035 Smartphone, Kimar wireless audio streaming devices, and more.

    Opinions

    • Jack Blackford – The slow march towards seamlessly using all of your devices together (in this case, Cell phones, PDAs, LANs, and the Web).
    • John Dvorak – Thinner and flatter CRTs coming soon.
    • Jim O’Brien – A look at luxury shopping sites such as BlueNile, Ice, Millionaire, and Mondera.
    • Michael Slater – A look at multifunction devices and whether combining all those functions makes sense.

    Web Buyer

    • Site Reviews – A look at travel sites, online shopping sites, and more.

    Business Buyer

    • Off Site, on LAN – Keeping offsite workers connected.
    • e-Services and Tools – A look at the free online financial advice available on the Web from Intuit and Microsoft.
    • Building Your Business – Using cookies to add advanced features to your website.

    Help & How To

    • You Can Take It With You – A guide to moving your data, apps, and settings to a new PC.
    • The Hard Edge – The Pentium 4’s bus speed, DDR SDRAM, dealing with spam, and more.
    • Alfred Poor’s Computer Cures – Help printing to a file, upgrading RAM, checking your hardware configuration, and more.
    • Buying Advisor – Using the Panasonic Toughbook 47 for all your rugged computer needs.

    Reviews

    • Desktops – Reviews of the HP Pavilion 2755C (800 MHz Pentium III, 128MB RAM for $1049), Sony Vaio PCV RX280DS (1 GHZ Pentium III, 128 MB for $2199), and Tangent Medalllion Pro (1 GHz Pentium 3, 256 MB for $1995).
    • Hardware – Reviews of the Intel Pocket PC Camera and Kodak EZ200 webcams, Hercules Game Theater XP sound card, Matrox Marvel G450 ETV, Ricoh Mediamaster MP9120A Combo Drive, and Samsung ML-4600 printer.
    • Mobile – A review of the Acer Travelmate 351TEV, a laptop featuring a 700MHz Pentium III, 128MB RAM, for $2299, the Innogear Minijam, Motrola Timeport P8767, the NEC Versa SXI latptop, Sceptre Soundx 69502 laptop, and Tiny performance Notebook 800.
    • Software – Reviews of the newly released Netscape 6, Macromedia Dreamweaver 4, Documents to Go Professional Edition, and Psync.
    • Web Services – Reviews of homeadvisor.com and Phonefree.
    • Games – Reviews of You Don’t Know Jack 5th Dementia, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2, and No One Lives Forever.

    …and more!