November 2006 PCF - The Tales of Agony

[DAE_JA_VOO]

SO many of us are gonna get warnings when the mods see these threads

[SoulBlade]

Just saw this thread now. Oh the 0wnage. I must really get internet @ home.

PS. Creator makes very good points.
Not the end of the world BUT I've been reading PCF since 1998-9 and so far the quality is not up to the standard that Mars has set. Tamsini also did a great job...

Then again I'm willing to overlook since it's is the new editor's 1st/2nd month.

[Psypher]

I must say that I agree. The quality of the articles isn't in question its the content. We are in SA not the UK and we pay for SA content. If I wanted an overseas Mag I would buy one.

But, In the same breath, I would like to point out that this is not a editor specific problem and blaming the new Ed is a bit unfair.

Creator you've got the right Idea, let PCF know whats wrong where and help them fix it. The Mag has all potential in the world but at the moment its just not living up to it.

[rustypup]

Tamsini also did a great job...

debatable...

as to mag, whether it's a case of having outgrown pcf or not, the content alone drove me away a while ago... i have purchased possibly 3 in the last year, purely for disc content...

the lack of in-depth articles, original how-tos... this mag used to offer something for everyone, but has gradually become a collection of fads-and-ads... the benchmark-related articles have made a number of silly mistakes, which does nothing for their credibility...

as to the "rest" of this thread, creator's very valid points once again drowned in spam.... - i would, however, point out that the new ed has not yet been given fair oppurtunity to action any corrective measures. laying this all on her doorstep is a little harsh, as the quality of the mag has been declining for a while now... i am positive that any feedback given at this point will be taken to heart and acted upon...

<crawls back under his rock...>

[Kronos]

Oh goodness, what a sad bunch you okes are.

Have none of you got anything better to do on the weekend than complain about a magazine?

I'll just answer creator's post, since he is in such agony because of this:

The DVD
Oh No!
After only 110 issues there is a DVD that doesn't autorun.
Oh the Shame!!!

Instructions on how to use the DVD for Creator
Can your index finger click the left mouse button?
Put the DVD into your DVD drive (That's the one with a little DVD logo on it)
Go to "My Computer" (This would be YOUR Computer)
Open the DVD Icon where it says "PCF_November2006"
Double Click the "pcf116.exe" File

Get a life man. Do you claim Microsoft to be unprofessional when you find a bug in windows?

Cameron
Go look on the cover of your mag. What month is it for?
July? August? or Maybe November?
We are actually lucky that the mag is available before the end of the month. But that's LUCK!
The mag is supposed to be for november, and so, the news in it is relavant to the month of november.
Where's the problem?

Editor's Letter
Oh shame. The site hasn't been upgraded before the first of November, When it will be.
See above for a further explination.

As for the CPU battle.
EVERYONE knows that there is a raging battle between fans of the different CPU makes.
There are AMD Fanboys and Intel Fanboys, and both will tell you that their preference is better.
Now for the result, PCF have tested the CPUs, but understand that that alone, is not enough to persuade the avid AMD user to go out and buy a Core2Duo.
I wouldn't. I would stick with AMD as long as I trust them, and I trust that they will soon also have a new CPU that whips the Core2Duo.
Just as I will stick with Sony Ericsson Phones until I really find a reason not to. (The N93 being better than my current phone is not enough incentive to switch to Nokia).

She merely said: "You decide which one you want."

Letters Page
And who made this rule up? You?
Who do you think you are to tell the Editor who to pick as the star letter.
It's her personal preference for crying out loud.

This isn't National Geographic, or Reader's Digest where the Star letter writer has to have at least a double PhD, and 20 years of research experience.

It's a light harted PC magazine.

If I write a letter containing just the word, "Doh!", and she feels that it should get letter of the month, then that is her decision. She is the Editor after all.

Just because you don't like it. Or would like some other writer to get the prize doesn't mean that all of PCF must now bow to your will.

And lastly, regarding the humour, I bet you don't rate much higher on the "Own Humour" scale. So again, who are you to judge humour?
Some people might find that comment funny. Just because YOU don't, doesn't mean that you can now go and crack a cheap shot at her for not being funny. That's really low, and mean.
Not every editor on earth can be Chris Rock you know.

Now (Beyond lastly), while the quality and originality of the content is debatable, it is by no means a warrant to go out and insult the new editor and blame her for screwing up PCF.
She's only been here for 2 months.
There have been errors in just about every issue of the Mag, so why would you now demand the editor's head?

Every Other magazine that I subscribe to have also had errors. But the readers who find them simply bring it to light, and CONSTRUCTIVELY say "This is the right info"
These letters are always printed to show everyone else that some one found, and corrected an error.

If you had simply complained about the content of the articles, I would understand, and may even agree with you, but your attacking the editor for causing every possible thing wrong with the mag is unfounded.

I've never seen a reader of any other mag throw his toys out of the cot like you are doing here.

[Richard_]

i read the first sentence of your post, and didn't bother reading further. you've just lowered yourself to the standards of what south africa has come to expect in quality from every aspect of life: rubbish.

//edit - okay - i've tortured myself to read further. i'll reply later.

[capanno]

Kronos, I think that was completely unnecessary. Not only is Creator entitled to his opinion, which Im sure was stated to make pcf better, but you dont need to make this your problem. Seriously, you sound like a pcf fanboi.

[Kronos]

Kronos, I think that was completely unnecessary. Not only is Creator entitled to his opinion, which Im sure was stated to make pcf better, but you dont need to make this your problem. Seriously, you sound like a pcf fanboi.

Did you read my post?

Opinion yes. But it is not opinion to insult someone.

As I have said at the end of my previous post, If He had complained about the content of the articles in the mag, then so be it.
That is his (and many others' including myself) opinion.

However, he insulted the editor for firstly "not having a great sense of humour" and secondly, for not choosing the letter that creator liked to be the letter of the month.

EDIT: He's basically Saying:
1. You suck because I don't like your joke.
2. You are an idiot because you didn't choose this letter as the star letter.

That's not opinion, that's rude.

Another Edit:
I agree that the content of PCF has not been all to my liking either.
But who am I to say what they need to put in it?
There are obviously 30000 people who do benifit from the content.

If anything, maybe PCF can have a reader survey that touches on the content of the mag again. It's been a while since there was something like that in the mag.

Then we can finally, know what the majority of the readers want.

[Ron2K]

Just read though this thread. Wow, must have been an interesting Saturday night

I'm all in favour of criticism, so long as it's kept constructive. Unconstructive criticism gets everyone nowhere - it's not much help if you say something's wrong but you don't say what's wrong, and if you don't know what's wrong then you can't fix it, now can you?

Some of you are clearly over-reacting. I won't mention any names, I think you all know who you are.

Even though, none of you guys will admit, we are all computer-nerdy guys but you to learn to embrace it instead of treating the forums as a manner to boost your ego.

True. I embraced it a long time ago. Hell, I started coding when I was 10 years old. I go to LANs, I help admin at LANs, I even drive 600km from Durban to Johannesburg for rAge - and guess what, I enjoy doing it. I suppose that being an open-source advocate and being an active participant in two open-source projects does make me more nerdy than usual, but hey, I don't mind.

This could also explain why I've never had a girlfriend...

[neon_chameleon]

Lol.

Just a furthur comment on those star letters in PCF. Well I haven't read some for a while now, but over the last 8 years, I found most of them to suck!

They either mention something so blatantly obvious like how we get mistreated by Telkom or the whole piracy issue for the thousand time or just really boring...

The funniest was that 12 year old kid who won a copy of Leisure Suit Larry.

[Sojourn]

This site ftw... the mag is sucking for the last year... only buy it if i need the content on the dvd.

s

[Richard_]

Oh goodness, what a sad bunch you okes are.

Have none of you got anything better to do on the weekend than complain about a magazine?

I love it how people make assumptions about the lack of content available during my weekends. Who are you to judge what I contend to do with my weekends? Be that as it may, my weekend was not spent on the forums.

I'll just answer creator's post, since he is in such agony because of this:

Agony? Hardly. It's a matter of either buying it and pointing out the flaws in it so that it may better itself, or not buying it at all.

//edit - agony is a strong word. i shouldn't have used that in my title...

The DVD
Oh No!
After only 110 issues there is a DVD that doesn't autorun.
Oh the Shame!!!

Instructions on how to use the DVD for Creator
Can your index finger click the left mouse button?
Put the DVD into your DVD drive (That's the one with a little DVD logo on it)
Go to "My Computer" (This would be YOUR Computer)
Open the DVD Icon where it says "PCF_November2006"
Double Click the "pcf116.exe" File

Somehow I doubt it's occured to you that there are people in this world that don't know as much about computers as those that browse these forums. Other than your feeble attempt at sarcasm, you have shown me nothing that I don't already know. As for other readers of PCF, I can assure you that there are hundreds who have no clue how to access the interface.

Get a life man. Do you claim Microsoft to be unprofessional when you find a bug in windows?

How can you possibly compare Microsoft to PCF? Microsoft has hundreds of programmers writing millions of lines of code, which are eventually strung together in the hope that the standardised coding schemas that everyone should be using will hold them together. The DVD interface, on the other hand, is created by a single person - maybe two - and doesn't come close to the complexity of creating what Microsoft does.

Go look on the cover of your mag. What month is it for?
July? August? or Maybe November?
We are actually lucky that the mag is available before the end of the month. But that's LUCK!

You call it luck that a magazine that was finalised over a month ago finally makes it into CNA? I'd advise you to get a better grip on the workings of our publication industries.

The mag is supposed to be for november, and so, the news in it is relavant to the month of november.
Where's the problem?

The problem? The problem is that the magazine is on the shelves 10 days before the site is updated. People that have visited this site once or twice before see that it has apparently been updated. What do they do? They come here and see nothing new. Same boring, old site. They go away and don't come back. But that makes your life as an admin much easier, so obviously you won't be complaining.
Other than that, I have already mentioned that this was the least of my concerns, because to me the site is fine as is.

As for the CPU battle.
EVERYONE knows that there is a raging battle between fans of the different CPU makes.
There are AMD Fanboys and Intel Fanboys, and both will tell you that their preference is better.
Now for the result, PCF have tested the CPUs, but understand that that alone, is not enough to persuade the avid AMD user to go out and buy a Core2Duo.
I wouldn't. I would stick with AMD as long as I trust them, and I trust that they will soon also have a new CPU that whips the Core2Duo.
Just as I will stick with Sony Ericsson Phones until I really find a reason not to. (The N93 being better than my current phone is not enough incentive to switch to Nokia).

Everyone also knows that there is a raging battle between nVidia and ATI, but there have been numerous occasions in the past where PCF has stated quite clearly which was better at the time of writing; as with AMD vs Intel. Previously nobody seemed to have had any qualms stating which was better - why this sudden lack of decisiveness? On a price:performance ratio, there really isn't even a debate over which is better: Intel is leagues ahead of AMD, and as much as I am an AMD fanboy, even I'll admit to that. Nobody is being forced to buy Intel - but irrespective of where my brand of choice stands, I still want to know how it compares to other companies.

She merely said: "You decide which one you want."

As opposed to "Intel is has regained it's title king of performance; it'll take ATI some effort to wrench that title back again. See our Super Test for more."
We want facts, not indecisive mutter.

And who made this rule up? You?
Who do you think you are to tell the Editor who to pick as the star letter.
It's her personal preference for crying out loud.

Why the HELL do I buy a magazine?? To read idiotic letters about somebody who can't afford to buy themselves a decent computer? I don't give a damn how sorry the editor felt for this person - but for such a letter to be given an award of any type is a mockery to all those that put even a bit of effort into their opinions and ideas and bother sending them in.

If I write a letter containing just the word, "Doh!", and she feels that it should get letter of the month, then that is her decision. She is the Editor after all.

And if such a letter were to get so much as a second glance at an award, I would go much further than giving the fluffed up response that I have in this thread. As is, the star letter isn't much better, which is what provoked my irritation in the first place.

Just because you don't like it. Or would like some other writer to get the prize doesn't mean that all of PCF must now bow to your will.

This comment begs the issue of whether you've read any of the responses that other people have given. Firstly, what I expressed was not my will, but my opinion. Secondly, nearly everybody agrees with me thus far.

And lastly, regarding the humour, I bet you don't rate much higher on the "Own Humour" scale. So again, who are you to judge humour?
Some people might find that comment funny. Just because YOU don't, doesn't mean that you can now go and crack a cheap shot at her for not being funny. That's really low, and mean.
Not every editor on earth can be Chris Rock you know.

Nowhere did I say my humour was any better, but I do know humour when I read or hear it. No humour is better than a paltry effort at it.

Now (Beyond lastly), while the quality and originality of the content is debatable, it is by no means a warrant to go out and insult the new editor and blame her for screwing up PCF.
She's only been here for 2 months.

On what basis are you defending her?

• That she doesn't know much about computers? Then she shouldn't be the editor of a computer magazine.
• That she doesn't know much about PCF yet? In that case, obviously somebody that had previous knowledge of PCF should have been employed in her stead.
• What about that plain and simple fact that she has been here for ONLY 2 months? Please, spare me the excuses: 2 months is enough time to fit into any job and make decent work of it.

If not one of these, why then?

There have been errors in just about every issue of the Mag, so why would you now demand the editor's head?

Well.... I'm not sure... Maybe the connotations that the word EDITOR imply have something to do with it? You tell me.
This also isn't the first time that a thread has been started on the mistakes in PCF.

Every Other magazine that I subscribe to have also had errors. But the readers who find them simply bring it to light, and CONSTRUCTIVELY say "This is the right info"
These letters are always printed to show everyone else that some one found, and corrected an error.

If you had simply complained about the content of the articles, I would understand, and may even agree with you, but your attacking the editor for causing every possible thing wrong with the mag is unfounded.

See previous post. There is a reason for the title EDITOR.


Before things even further out of hand than they have already done, let me state two things:

1. I have nothing personal against the editor, nor do I want her sacked.
2. I also have nothing against PCF. It's one of my favourite magazines. No matter how harsh it may seem, this thread was started to show some constructive criticism. And seeing as that there are many that completely or at least partially agree with me, it is indeed constructive criticism.

[SoulBlade]

This site ftw...

Amen brother, threads like this just make my Monday ...

the mag is sucking for the last year... only buy it if i need the content on the dvd.

I wouldnt go as far as saying it sucked but I don't enjoy reviews, etc as much as I used to. The "x-factor" is kinda gone if u know what i mean

[ryanrich]

This site ftw... the mag is sucking for the last year... only buy it if i need the content on the dvd.

s

I agree, I really used to love it, but lately I can't read it anymore, nothing personal just the way it is.

I love this site though!

[doo_much]

No I will not post in the existing November PCF thread.... etc

Editor
In essence I agree with Creator.

We've been spoilt with a string of editors with - for the lack of a better word - loads of Chutzpah . Yes, yes even Walt had his moments.

So the current editor seems a bit errr - watered down? So let's give her some time. Maybe till the next issue?

Cover Disk

Yes the autorun thing is a pain one wouldn't expect of a professional publication like this.
I don't like the new inteface.
Sh*t happens.
Let's get on with our lives.

New Look Site

As long as it doesn't follow .co.uk's lead. That site sucks big time. Especially the forums.


---------------------------------

There - my two cents worth.

[Mikdog]

okay, I have a on topic post, but sing it with your songs lyrics:

At first I was afraid, I was petrified,

My pc format dvd locked it self inside,

no matter how hard i tried I could not get it out...

So I pry my rom, with a blade,

Singing i will survive, i will survive!

-------

Ok, that sucked...

but My side one of the pc format dvd just got stuck inside my dvd rom, So I got it out, but it's still not working

Dude, that's flippen' hilarious. I really did LOL there. I LOLled. Or LOL'd. I lold? Anyway, it was schweet.

[eraser]

This thread deserves and award!

It made for some good reading!

EDIT:

[neon_chameleon]

Dude, Creator's posts rock.

[eraser]

Dude, Creator's posts rock.

Ditto!

[Kronos]

@Creator, Please write shorter posts. It's a biatch to answer this.

I love it how people make assumptions about the lack of content available during my weekends. Who are you to judge what I contend to do with my weekends? Be that as it may, my weekend was not spent on the forums.

I wasn't referring to you (well not you alone).
That was a general statement to 6 pages of complaints in 1 1/2 day.

Agony? Hardly. It's a matter of either buying it and pointing out the flaws in it so that it may better itself, or not buying it at all.

//edit - agony is a strong word. i shouldn't have used that in my title...

I was referring to your thread title.

Somehow I doubt it's occured to you that there are people in this world that don't know as much about computers as those that browse these forums. Other than your feeble attempt at sarcasm, you have shown me nothing that I don't already know. As for other readers of PCF, I can assure you that there are hundreds who have no clue how to access the interface.

Indeed there are people who are not computer literate, just as there are other illiterate people.

However anyone who knows how to put a DVD into the drive and install and use an application / game would at least know how to browse the contents of their "My Computer".

Just as anyone who buys any other kind of mag, at least knows how to read.

How can you possibly compare Microsoft to PCF? Microsoft has hundreds of programmers writing millions of lines of code, which are eventually strung together in the hope that the standardised coding schemas that everyone should be using will hold them together. The DVD interface, on the other hand, is created by a single person - maybe two - and doesn't come close to the complexity of creating what Microsoft does.

I'm not comparing MS to PCF, nor am I saying that compiling a DVD is as complex as writing an OS.
I'm merely commenting on the fact that you are quick to complain about a little oversight on behalf of PCF, as opposed to the same thing at MS.

It's one thing to say in a light hearted manner: "You Idiot. The DVD Doesn't autorun."
But you were quite a bit more peeved about this matter than that.

You call it luck that a magazine that was finalised over a month ago finally makes it into CNA? I'd advise you to get a better grip on the workings of our publication industries.

This doesn't change the fact that the issue is relavant to November.
If it is as you say that the mag has been completed a month ago, don't you think that maybe Cameron intended to have the site up by the time the Mag hits the shelves, and just fell behind a bit?
It happens to me all the time.

The problem? The problem is that the magazine is on the shelves 10 days before the site is updated. People that have visited this site once or twice before see that it has apparently been updated. What do they do? They come here and see nothing new. Same boring, old site. They go away and don't come back. But that makes your life as an admin much easier, so obviously you won't be complaining.
Other than that, I have already mentioned that this was the least of my concerns, because to me the site is fine as is.

Somehow, I doubt that someone would not want to join the site, simply because of how it looks.

And no, I don't mind more users on the site. So I'm not "Happy that they don't come back".

Everyone also knows that there is a raging battle between nVidia and ATI, but there have been numerous occasions in the past where PCF has stated quite clearly which was better at the time of writing; as with AMD vs Intel. Previously nobody seemed to have had any qualms stating which was better - why this sudden lack of decisiveness? On a price:performance ratio, there really isn't even a debate over which is better: Intel is leagues ahead of AMD, and as much as I am an AMD fanboy, even I'll admit to that. Nobody is being forced to buy Intel - but irrespective of where my brand of choice stands, I still want to know how it compares to other companies.

Fair enough. I didn't take that into account.
However, isn't the new editor allowed to have a different point of view, or a different style?

As opposed to "Intel is has regained it's title king of performance; it'll take ATI some effort to wrench that title back again. See our Super Test for more."
We want facts, not indecisive mutter.

aren't the supertest results straight forward enough?
If the result shows that the Core2Duo is better, do you need the editor to tell you: "The Core2Duo pwns the AMD! w00t"

Why the HELL do I buy a magazine?? To read idiotic letters about somebody who can't afford to buy themselves a decent computer? I don't give a damn how sorry the editor felt for this person - but for such a letter to be given an award of any type is a mockery to all those that put even a bit of effort into their opinions and ideas and bother sending them in.

Do you buy the magazine simply to read the readers' letters?
I still contend that it is the choice of the editor alone as to who gets the star letter.
If she feels so sorry for the guy that she wants to give him the star letter, then that's her choice. Neither you, nor me, nor anyone else has any say in it.
Lastly, this is not a creative writing contest.
The Letters to the editor is there for you to write something that you feel you want to tell the editor. It's not about the prize, or creating a unique super-letter.

And if such a letter were to get so much as a second glance at an award, I would go much further than giving the fluffed up response that I have in this thread. As is, the star letter isn't much better, which is what provoked my irritation in the first place.

So, if I understand you correctly, The simple fact of the star letter being awarded to someone who you think didn't deserve it peeved you off?
Come-on. Really. That deserves no more than you muttering "how stupid" to yourself, and then carry on with the rest of your life.

Just because you don't like it. Or would like some other writer to get the prize doesn't mean that all of PCF must now bow to your will.

This comment begs the issue of whether you've read any of the responses that other people have given. Firstly, what I expressed was not my will, but my opinion. Secondly, nearly everybody agrees with me thus far.

Ask yourself how many of them would've actually said something if you didn't start this thread?

So, even though they didn't like it either, it doesn't seem to have bothered them as much as it did you.

Nowhere did I say my humour was any better, but I do know humour when I read or hear it. No humour is better than a paltry effort at it.

Again, this is your opinion.

Your first post on this matter:

Your humour is vastly abundant in negative quantities. If you try to be funny, please do so in a fashion that will pass at least a grin across someone's face, rather than a roll of the eyes at yet another unhumorous remark.

To me, this reads:
You are anti-funny. If you want to write something funny again, please consult me as to what I think is funny and what is not.

One dude at my office thinks it's funny to email a "Smile, It's Friday" email with a pic of some toothless dude EVERY friday.
While I don't think it's that funny anymore, he obviosuly does.
I'm not gonna go around telling him that he's not funny and should quit the crap, because I don't like it.

Now (Beyond lastly), while the quality and originality of the content is debatable, it is by no means a warrant to go out and insult the new editor and blame her for screwing up PCF.
She's only been here for 2 months.

On what basis are you defending her?

• That she doesn't know much about computers? Then she shouldn't be the editor of a computer magazine.
• That she doesn't know much about PCF yet? In that case, obviously somebody that had previous knowledge of PCF should have been employed in her stead.
• What about that plain and simple fact that she has been here for ONLY 2 months? Please, spare me the excuses: 2 months is enough time to fit into any job and make decent work of it.

If not one of these, why then?

Because of these reasons:
1. After having just let Cameron off the hook for saying that the site is upgraded, and it isn't, you attack her for saying the same thing.
2. You attack her for not telling you on the first page that the Core2Duo is the better CPU
3. You claim to be the authority on who may, and may not receive the star letter award.
4. You break her down for not making you laugh, with her own sense of humour. (Even though, by this time you were so pissed-off Chris Rock probably couldn't make you laugh)

There have been errors in just about every issue of the Mag, so why would you now demand the editor's head?

Well.... I'm not sure... Maybe the connotations that the word EDITOR imply have something to do with it? You tell me.
This also isn't the first time that a thread has been started on the mistakes in PCF.

The question still remains: Why didn't you have the same response when Walt, or Tamsini, or even Mars was editor?
Why only now?
Why not say: "You have made just as many mistakes as any other editor before you"?

Before things even further out of hand than they have already done, let me state two things:

1. I have nothing personal against the editor, nor do I want her sacked.
2. I also have nothing against PCF. It's one of my favourite magazines. No matter how harsh it may seem, this thread was started to show some constructive criticism. And seeing as that there are many that completely or at least partially agree with me, it is indeed constructive criticism.

Just be a little more constructive next time you write constructive criticism. Breaking the editor down is by no means constructive

[Ike]

Aaaaah, now the treads are just getting too long, I'm saving the page's for some late night reading...

[Jtaute]

are we really supposed to read through all of that crap?

[Cupersool]

So..........................

Is that it?

[jee]

move along people - either say something that will be of value to this thread (contsructive please) or desist in making innane comments please?

[thEnaileDonE]

move along people - either say something that will be of value to this thread (contsructive please) or desist in making innane comments please?

...what jee said ... doh!