About Personal Computing Magazine

PCMagazine.com.au exists for one simple reason: to celebrate personal computing in Australia.

I grew up as the kid in the school library devouring every tech magazine I could get my hands on — Australian Personal Computer, PC User, Atomic, PC PowerPlay, Macworld, Hyper. While everyone else was outside doing… whatever teenagers did… I was falling in love with computers and the people who loved them too.

It wasn’t about brand wars or breaking news. It was the joy. The curiosity. The sense that computers weren’t just machines — they were possibility engines.

Somewhere along the way, that spirit faded. Tech media turned into stock charts, regulation commentary, and grumpy takes about why the future looks annoying. That’s important work — it’s just not why many of us fell in love with computers.

So when the domain pcmagazine.com.au expired, I grabbed it for $25. The trademarks had lapsed, the name was free, and the nostalgia was too strong to ignore. I registered the business name, opened a blank page, and decided to write the kind of tech site I want to read again.

What you’ll find here

Stories, thoughts, and experiments about personal computing — told with curiosity and enthusiasm. No tribalism. No breathless hype cycles. No doom scroll about the industry.

Just the joy of tinkering, learning, and exploring how tech fits into real life in Australia.

What you won’t find (at least for now)

A forum, a social network, or a Discord server. Maybe one day. Right now, this is a simple blog written by an enthusiast who thinks there are still fun things to say about computers.

Want to contribute?

If you’re excited by the idea of celebrating computers — not arguing about them — you’re welcome here. Writers, tinkerers, nostalgic nerds, modern builders, curious hobbyists… send a note and say hi.

Why bother?

Because computing should be enjoyable. Because the personal computer isn’t dead — it’s evolving. And because some of us still miss magazine cover discs, dodgy shareware games, and that sense of wonder you only got from flipping through Atomic at a newsagent.

Thanks for stopping by. Let’s make computers fun again.

P.S. Yes — I still miss Atomic.

P.P.S. And those cover CDs were magic.