COMPUTE!

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COMPUTE! (ISSN 0194-357X) was a computer magazine that was published from 1979 to 1994. In its 1980s heyday it covered all major platforms, and several single-platform spinoffs of the magazine were launched. One of these was COMPUTE!'s Gazette, catering to Commodore computer users.

Its original goal was to write about and publish programs for all of the computers that used some version of the MOS Technology 6502 CPU. It started out with the Commodore PET, Commodore Vic-20, the Atari 8-bit series, the Apple II plus, and some 6502-based computers one could build from kits, such as the Rockwell AIM 65, the KIM-1 by MOS Technology, and others from companies such as Ohio Scientific. Support for the kit computers and the Commodore PET were eventually dropped. The platforms that became mainstays at the magazine were the Commodore Vic-20, Commodore 64, Atari 8-bit series, TI-99/4A, and the Apple II series. Later on the IBM PC, Atari ST series, and the Commodore Amiga series computers were added to its line-up.

In addition, COMPUTE! published a large number of computer books.

Most personal computers of the time came with some version of the BASIC programming language. The magazine often featured type-in programs written in these versions of BASIC for their respective computers. Machine code programs were also published, usually for simple video games listed as hexadecimal numbers that could be POKEd into the memory of a home computer such as a VIC-20 or Atari 400. Machine language listings could also be entered in decimal with a program provided in each issue called MLX (available for Apple II and Commodore hardware, and written in Basic). It was noted particularly for software such as the multiplatform word processor SpeedScript, and the spreadsheet SpeedCalc.

Editors of the magazine included Founder Robert Lock, Richard Mansfield, Charles Brannon, and Tom R. Halfhill. Noted columnists included Jim Butterfield, educator Fred D'ignazio and science fiction author Orson Scott Card.

In May 1988, the magazine changed its focus to PCs and PC clones and dispensed with the type-in listings. During the early 1990s, with the decline of the home computer market in favor of the PC market, COMPUTE! went out of publication for a while until it was sold to General Media, publishers at the time of Omni and Penthouse magazines. Ziff Davis bought COMPUTE!'s assets, including its subscriber list, in 1994. General Media had ceased its publication before the sale.(3)

[edit] Where are they now?

Robert Lock: After founding COMPUTE! Publications, Lock started another successful company, Signal Research, which was among the first to publish magazines and books about computer games. He also wrote the book, The Traditional Potters of Seagrove, N.C. in 1994, and started Southern Arts Journal a quarterly magazine featuring essays, fiction and poetry about all things Southern, in 2005.(1)

Richard Mansfield: Mansfield has written many books, mostly on Microsoft technologies, including Visual Basic .NET All in One Desk Reference for Dummies, Visual Basic .NET Power Tools, Office 2003 Application Development All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies, Visual Basic 2005 Express Edition For Dummies, and CSS Web Design For Dummies. He also writes occasional pieces for DevX.com. He created much controversy with an article he wrote there called OOP is Much Better in Theory Than in Practice.

Tom R. Halfhill: Halfhill went on to become a senior editor at Byte. He currently writes for Microprocessor Report and Maximum PC.(2)