| Product: |
PC Direct |
| Date: |
26/05/01 (24 review reads) |
| Rating: |
 |
Advantages: Price. Some good free software on the cover CDs. Not bad for the business user.
Disadvantages: More advertising than anything. Not for the homeuser.
This one's not bad for a business orientated computer magazine. For your £2.99 you get a cover CD with at least one free program on it & a 280-page magazine which is mainly advertising. As I said, this one's main target is the business user, but homeusers can find some fairly useful features in it at times.
In a typical month's issue you'll find the likes of:
E-Shopper, which covers new stuff from the Internet world, interviews with relevant people & reviews of new Internet, related products.
News hotline covers the breaking news that's happening in the computing world. The news is breaking when the magazine goes to press but may not be so new by the time that you get your issue.
Business is the feature for ... business users.(Did you really need me to explain this one or did you guess by the section title?!)
Feedback is your chance to let PC Direct know what you think of the magazine & anything else that you care to tell them about! No! Don't tell them about your bad case of piles or your addiction to picking your nose!
Questions & Answers is where you read about other peoples' PC & Internet woes ... & then have a good laugh at someone else's expense!
Workshops is the section devoted to explaining about how to do different things with some of the cover CD software from the magazine. These can be very detailed & helpful at times & a total miss at other times.
Buying Advice is there to help you though the maddening maze of buying PC stuff. This can be quite a helpful feature at times.
Lab Tests puts new products through its paces for you. See who stands the tests & who falls at the first hurdle. You'll find software, hardware & consumables all on test here.
Reviews is the section where you find out about some of the new products that are coming on the PC market. Again, these can be software, hardware & consumables.
The cove
r CD normally has at least 1 full program on it for you to keep but most of the time you get more than 1. You can get some very handy stuff on the CDs that can save you a bit of money.
In all, (like I've already stated on several occasions above & in true BBC style!) this is a magazine aimed at the business user market. Homeusers may find the odd feature or program handy, but it's a magazine that wouldn't be worth subscribing to. I now mainly buy PC Direct when there's a good program on the cover CD. Any issue that I do buy, I read from cover to cover (minus the advertising) & then store with the rest of my magazines (much to the wife's horror!). PC Direct is more of an advertisement with the odd article than anything else.
All the same, if you fancy buying a copy, have a bit of a flick through an issue at your local newsagents/bookstore & see if it's for you.
Marks out of 5 would have to be about 2.
Summary:
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