| Product: |
Computeractive |
| Date: |
04/06/01 (14 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: easy to understand, cheap, useful workshops
Disadvantages: may be too simplistic for experts
I have read many different computer magazines in my time but I have to say that computeractive is the best I have ever read.
Most computer magazines are monthly for a start so by the time they get to the shelves and you buy and read them a lot of it is out of date with the speed the computer world works. Not so Computeractive, which is published fortnightly meaning it is usually relevant time wise.
Although it isn't as big (and by that I mean number of pages) as most other magazines, it has a lot of quality and gets straight to the point. Most other magazines are stuffed with adverts meaning that for every five pages you get at least 2 pages of adverts, this is not the case for computeractive. Sure, it has its fair share of adverts, but not as many as the others meaning you get better value for money.
As well as this, it is accessible for all levels of computing ability. Personally I am currently doing a degree in IT and I still find it relevant to me, although I do see a time when it will become less useful, but at present whenever I read the magazine I find out something I didn't already know.
If you are a complete beginner or a relative novice, this magazine is a godsend. Not only does it speak in plain English (for which it won an award), it has a glossary of potentially difficult terms as needed meaning that you will rarely be left in the dark by techno babble.
Another bonus for the novice is the workshops included in each issue. Here you will find detailed explanations and walkthrough of many potentially tricky computer related actions such as formatting a hard disk, adding new hardware or simply getting the most from your software. All of these are simple and easy to understand in stepwise format meaning that even somebody who has limited computer experience will actually learn something useful and productive from this magazine.
Although it doesn't usually come with a "free" CD
, how many of these "free" CD's actually are? £4.99 or more for a magazine does not sound like the CD is free to me. Now and again useful things are included but it is not gimmicks that computeractive is all about.
The magazine itself has recently undergone a facelift (thankfully disposing of the unnecessary words of Uri Gellar) making this an altogether more enjoyable read. In each edition is a comprehensive news summary of recent happenings in the computer world (and remember they are up to date), excellent letters pages, recommended web-sites, educational ideas and detailed tests on various products.
In summary, this has to be one of the best computer magazines on the market. Rather than just give you endless pages of adverts, this magazine will help you get the most out of your computer and you will learn many new tricks along the way. All this for only £1.20
After buying this magazine for several months, I realised that I was buying every edition without even thinking about it so I decided to subscribe and I have never looked back since.
The only thing that I could possibly think of as a disadvantage of this magazine is that it may be too simplistic for experts, but honestly, I bet even they would learn a thing or two from this magazine, even if they do keep that fact to themselves!
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