But in the blizzard of stories about new technologies and the billion-dollar businesses that make them, it’s easy to lose sight of consumers who want only to make informed choices about hardware and software for their families. That’s why each fall, NEWSWEEK publishes a special edition called Computers & the Family. This year’s goes on sale this week. It’s devoted to helping you find your way through the bewildering options confronting you every time you set foot in a computer store or software outlet.
You won’t find jargon in this magazine–unless we’re trying to decipher it. You won’t find hype; our product reviews are sober and based on the needs of nontechnical users.
What you will find is a guide to buying a PC in what is now a buyer’s market. You’ll be able to peruse our list of the top 50 CD-ROMs. We give you a rundown on electronic games, with tips on what kind of game system might be best for you. And there’s a roundup of this season’s most interesting emerging product: digital cameras.
Computers & the Family is more than product reviews. ““Coping With the Internet’’ offers advice on kid-friendly Web surfing, while ““The Myth of the Computer’’ argues that there’s a limit to how much PCs can aid the learning process, and that books are still the best tool of all. In a NEWSWEEK exclusive, a top game author gives the inside view on how a new PC game is created, from the first brainstorm to the last line of code.
This edition is the work of a team of NEWSWEEK writers, reporters, designers, researchers and editors led by Editor of New Media Peter McGrath and Senior Editor George Hackett. We hope you look for it at your newsstand. It could help you get through the blizzard.
