no longer buying the mag

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Mclaren
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no longer buying the mag

Post by Mclaren »

This is the first month in probably 5 or 6 years i have not bought the mag. There is nothing on the mag cover to suggest there is anything inside the mag that isn't aimed at gaming.

It seems the mag should be called PC Gaming or something, because of late, there is just so much gaming stuff and very little else in the mag.

Is it a PC mag or a Gaming Mag ?

Most hardware reviews are about gaming, most articles are about gaming and its just getting too much of the same.

Pity, cause it once was much better ?
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Tribble »

Surely most people willing to buy those cards and the new hardware are into gaming? Generally, people who only want to do spreadsheets, internet and mail, would not be interested in the new technology. I saw a lot of articles geared to hardware - but yes incidentally that hardware is good for gaming. There are games towards the back - and with the high price of games it is useful to read reviews and see ratings before buying.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by THE_STIG »

i am a bit dissapointed that pcf has become more gaming orientated. i miss all the lovely tech articles. but unfortunately there seems to be more games than hardware nowdays, please pcf go back to your old ways
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by D3PART3D »

Mclaren wrote:This is the first month in probably 5 or 6 years i have not bought the mag. There is nothing on the mag cover to suggest there is anything inside the mag that isn't aimed at gaming.

It seems the mag should be called PC Gaming or something, because of late, there is just so much gaming stuff and very little else in the mag.

Is it a PC mag or a Gaming Mag ?

Most hardware reviews are about gaming, most articles are about gaming and its just getting too much of the same.

Pity, cause it once was much better ?
Oh, the irony.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Mclaren »

hard ware is not all gaming, when last was a comparison done on tv cards or printers etc, or what about those graphic tablets, projectors.

There used to be how to articles and tips and tricks, but nowadays its all just gaming gaming gaming....

we have more graphics card comparison than any other....

I get that gaming is a big part of pc culture, but pc culture is not all gaming. I have pretty much resigned myself to the probablity of the mag returning to its once great self as being 0%, and as such, until such a day that it does, I will no longer purchase the mag.

I wish the best to the guys who put all the effort into the mag, and i do hope that your sales continue to increase even with the direction the mag has taken. But its just become another gaming mag.
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nno longer buying the mag

Post by Animal »

Agreed, would like some more hardware and new tech articles. I buy the "other" mag for my gaming needs ;)
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Bladerunner »

And put the girls with the hammers and chainsaws back on the cover. :P
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by THE_STIG »

+1, i really miss the girls on the cover. it made the mag stand out.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by DeathStrike »

meh... and here i just got my renew subscription form in the post... only two issues left.

but hey i have always loved the mag and will be renewing for 3 years now :) keep it up guys
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Nab »

Hi all. Mclaren I am really sorry you feel that way. As I have said before the gaming stuff has been added to our monthly quota of tech and by added I mean it attracts it's own advertising to pay for the extra physical pages we have bolted on. I will admit the covers have been very gaming focused but to be honest if things are gaming themed it's because our reader surveys have shown the majority of our readers use their hardware for gaming. Now that the website has launched things will settle back to a balance but I cannot honestly accept a blanket statement that we only cover gaming tech. I keep your guys wants and needs very close and generally changes are already scheduled when complaints like this come in and this case is no exception. Please stick it out for one more month - August has 20+ pages on upgrading an old rig, a feature on photographing your PC and another on building a virtual network and hacking it.

Regarding the specific hardware you are requesting I would love to shed a little light. Graphics tablets - seriously? I get flak for reviewing the iPad, a tablet people actually buy. Projectors are a sore spot because I personally adore projectors but the industry has changed thanks to LCDs and nobody ever sends us projectors beyond ultra compact or super cheap rubbish. Lastly you requested printer reviews something I have fought tooth and nail to spare you guys from. Am I to understand people actually want printer reviews??? Ok well here is our universal printer review http://theoatmeal.com/comics/printers :mrgreen:

Jokes aside, I am really sorry guys I will do my best but I don't know if I can please everybody as I need to focus on the core/majority of my readers.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by JollyJamma »

Oh my word there is one section I always skip and that's printer reviews. Snore.

I don't blame the move and it makes sense from an economical point of view,more readers=more money.

Why not try not judging a book by a cover and looking at the contents list online?

I haven't bought a mag in a while thanks to my change to student life but I love PCformat and I think it's only trying to keep up with the changing times so 'give him another chance!'
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by KALSTER »

Thanks for the post Nab! I am sure you have sales figures to reflect that you are doing a good job. Your point about why those products aren't reviewed often is valid IMO. You can't please everybody all the time, but I am sure you have a strong following that find the mag to be well worth spending money on. Keep up the good work guys!
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Nab »

Thanks guys :)
What you see written above is my opinion and not that of the peeps that put food on my plate.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by jphegers »

When reviewing games please please tell us what genre ALL the games are not only a certain few.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Mclaren »

I gave just a few exmples, and i am talking about the tablets designers use. there are more items than just those. I understand that the surveys etc are showing that most of the buyers are gammers and hence, the reason why the mag has become a lot more game based. When i said that the mag is mostly about gaming, i did not mean the game reviews that used to be in the additional gear supplement, i think adding that booklet to the mag simplifies the package. I do play games just not many and most title i buy are based on the reviews in the gear section.

Its just that the hardware section has become so game based. in the last year, how many graphics card comparisons have we had ?

There used to be little one page or even half page articles on some of the software that was on the cover disc, which i found interesting too.

Like i said in my first post, the mag is pretty much a gaming mag and should be called gaming format, because thats what is has become. I don't knock the fact that because the majority of readers want that, that is what is provided. its just not what I want (from a PC magazine).

PS, i didn't give a blanket statement saying you only review gaming tech. i said "Most hardware reviews are about gaming, most articles are about gaming and its just getting too much of the same."

As much as your readership will grow with the gamming readers, you will undoubtably loose readers who want more articles on the day to day usage of PCs. You cannot please everyone, and i for one understand that you will follow the sales, because afterall, you are in it to make money, that what business is.

I just thought i'd let you know why I am not gonna be purchasing the mag anymore. (i will give next month a go for the reasons stated above), but we will have to see whats gonna happen in the future. I think i may become more of a casual buyer if the cover draws me in to purchasing a copy.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Jonboy »

Tl;dr - if you don't enjoy the mag anymore, don't buy it and spare us the extensive reasons therefore. I have bought every magazine since October 2000 and can say in all honesty that the mag is currently in it's strongest guise yet. Your complaints about the mag being geared to gaming are somewhat unfounded IMO, I just spent some time last night reading a whole section about tablets, about linux and memes. I believe the majority of readers far appreciate a review about the latest graphics card than about, erm, I don't know, the latest linux-run Easy Bake oven. The Gear section is far superior now to that little booklet that used to be included. I say Kudos and keep up the good work PCF.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Mclaren »

@ Jonboy, one of the ways magazines learn about some of our views about the mag is when we complain. It is of the utmost importance to any publication, to know what their readers want, even if, due to sales and various other reasons, they cannot provide the content some readers would like to see. It gives them insight into possible ways in which to retain those readers whom are not satisfied with the content.

This is just my opinion of the mag. I am sure you have yours.

And you have a very valid point, i am sure the majority of readers appreciate the latest reviews on graphics cards, and the current majority whom are buying the mag are gammers (as stated earlier in the thread by on of the mags employees). This is the direction the magazine has decided to go, and i do wish them well. The magazine is just geared more towards games than anything else at this point in time, and as a result will loose some of its followers. IMO Its is now pretty much a gaming magazine, not a PC magazine. And the point of my topic was to bring my opinion of the magazine to the magazines attention.

Its is up to them to do as they please with my concerns.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by JollyJamma »

You know what's awesome? Looing back at an old issue of PCformat or NAG and seeing what the graphics was like from days of yore. It's amazing how far and fast tech is evolving and there are a lot of people out there still trying to sell their 6600GT for R1600 that they paid for it.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Mclaren »

JollyJamma wrote:You know what's awesome? Looing back at an old issue of PCformat or NAG and seeing what the graphics was like from days of yore. It's amazing how far and fast tech is evolving
so true.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Bladerunner »

Nab wrote: Jokes aside, I am really sorry guys I will do my best but I don't know if I can please everybody as I need to focus on the core/majority of my readers.
Well either the majority of us who complain are just stuck in the past, or we grew up with a certain style of PCF that we really, really loved. I can remember buying PCF every single month back in high school, back when I still had my old Celly 2.4. There was a girl on the cover every month (that was something special about PCF which no other PC mag had), and in general the mag just seemed to have a wider variety of topics and there was something magical about it which made it stand apart from the crowd.

I do think that if you're going to focus on gaming, you're going to have a pretty hard time competing with NAG. I do like NAG, yes, and I like their style. If I'm going to buy a gaming mag it will be NAG.

Most magazines whose content I had enjoyed went out of business though: SACM, Computer Active, Intelligence (I think this one is off the market); and it is incredibly sad to see PCF now (seemingly) slowly descending down the same path. Sales decrease, rebranding, ... what next?
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Mclaren »

@PCF, i am sure this won't be discussed but are the sales declining ? as per the above post ?
Most magazines whose content I had enjoyed went out of business though: SACM, Computer Active, Intelligence (I think this one is off the market); and it is incredibly sad to see PCF now (seemingly) slowly descending down the same path. Sales decrease, rebranding, ... what next?
Last edited by jee on 05 Jul 2011, 15:30, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: fixed quote
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by jphegers »

Mclaren wrote:@ Jonboy, one of the ways magazines learn about some of our views about the mag is when we complain. It is of the utmost importance to any publication, to know what their readers want, even if, due to sales and various other reasons, they cannot provide the content some readers would like to see. It gives them insight into possible ways in which to retain those readers whom are not satisfied with the content.

This is just my opinion of the mag. I am sure you have yours.

And you have a very valid point, i am sure the majority of readers appreciate the latest reviews on graphics cards, and the current majority whom are buying the mag are gammers (as stated earlier in the thread by on of the mags employees). This is the direction the magazine has decided to go, and i do wish them well. The magazine is just geared more towards games than anything else at this point in time, and as a result will loose some of its followers. IMO Its is now pretty much a gaming magazine, not a PC magazine. And the point of my topic was to bring my opinion of the magazine to the magazines attention.

Its is up to them to do as they please with my concerns.
I would tend to agree with @ Mclaren,a few years back Intelligence Publishers put out a magazine called Computer Active, but was withdrawn probably for economic reasons.
It was a brilliant well balanced magazine with hints,tips and new hardware and software revues and also information on ADSL developments.One would have thought that they would have used some of the features and could have been incorporated into The PC format magazine,which was not done maybe for economic reasons, which is a pity.
Last edited by jphegers on 05 Jul 2011, 10:49, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by Bladerunner »

Mclaren wrote:@PCF, i am sure this won't be discussed but are the sales declining ? as per the above post ?
The current economic climate led to just about every publisher seeing a decrease in sales. I basically assumed all magazine sales would be affected. (EDIT: And IIRC PCF might have mentioned this before in a previous issue. I know for a fact SACM did.)
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by KillerByte »

I can assure you that PCF's sales are not dropping.
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Re: nno longer buying the mag

Post by RuadRauFlessa »

KillerByte wrote:I can assure you that PCF's sales are not dropping.
Now I'm as happy as a pig in Palestine \o/ :D Best mag on sale is here to stay...
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