Our theme this issue centers on computers in education. We define education in its broadest sense - education as it permeates the home and the classroom. Several of our featured articles this month directly address this link and raise some critical questions at the same time. We look forward to your comments.
As prices continue to decline, and manufacturers begin looking forward to the Christmas season, expect some substantial purchasing opportunities. We expect to see more bundling of peripherals, software packages, and computers as vendors grow more aggressive. This lateral move will occur, in part, because basic computer prices have declined to near bottom, and future moves will have to be made through bundling and accessories.
With this issue COMPUTE!'s circulation approaches 400,000, and we expect to break the half million mark by December. Those of you who've been readers for a year or more will remember that just last October, we broke 100,000. We are proud of our leadership role in consumer computer publishing, and wish to thank you all, readers and contributors, for your support in the growth of COMPUTE!.
Gary R. Ingersoll has recently joined our staff and will be assisting in directing our future growth. Formerly president of the Chilton Company, the largest operating unit of ABC Publishing, Gary brings needed skills to our rapidly expanding division. He comes to COMPUTE! as president and publisher; I become chief executive officer and remain editor in chief.
Atari and Texas Instruments have both recently announced major revampings of the management teams responsible for their personal computer operations. Atari appears to be backing away from the $100-$200 price area and concentrating on building a family of systems which begins in the middle range. TI, on the other hand, appears committed to continuing to take on Commodore at the low end. A recent Time article indicates that IBM has now developed a 21 percent market share around the PC system. We still speculate that an IBM home PC (frequently referred to as the "Peanut") will debut soon. IBM does such a superior job of keeping the "lid" on leaks that our speculation is idle at best, but we think the middle-range market is so potentially lucrative for them that they won't stay away for long.
In a recent editorial we mentioned Adventure International in a context that was apparently misinterpreted by some readers. We want to make it clear that we respect Adventure International and their business practices, and that they have not been involved in any effort to "recruit" COMPUTE! staffers.
As our magazine and book publishing operations continue to grow, we are still looking for additional editorial support. If you're an experienced writer or journalist who has a personal computer background as well, drop us a resume. Our growth has been consistently strong, with our staff tripling in the last year. We're located in the central Piedmont region of North Carolina in a metropolitan area selected recently as one of the three best living/working locations in the nation.
