40 years of talking tech
APC is a magazine about machines and technology, but it is made by people. For four long decades our writers, editors, designers, production people and the ad team have lived through the most impactful technology-driven change in society the world has seen. And it continues today.
Over the following pages many of the old team members have shared their thoughts and experiences about seeing technology change, and writing about it for you. These unique perspectives offer a rich insight into the tech of the time, and we asked each of them to nominate products or technologies that took off just as they predicted, plus the failures that never took hold, despite their expectations.
APC went through many transitions, too, in the ultra-competitive Australian magazine market, launching several spin-offs as well as taking the plunge into publishing digital editions. All the way through, the various APC teams worked hard to deliver you the very best in tech journalism, with deep technical analysis, yet focussing on what is relevant to you as the main mission.
We’ve made it this far, and many of you will have been with us for much of it. Whether you are new to APC, or have been enjoying it for years, we all thank you for being part of this continuing magnificent journey.
Sean Howard The first editor
“To say that the ZX80 was innovative is to understate the adjective ‘innovative’ to such an extent that it leaves that adjective meaningless.”
What was the inspiration for starting APC, and did you ever think it would become as successful as it has?
My ‘inspiration’ for producing Australian Personal Computer magazine comprised two elements: I was fascinated by the first true home (or ‘personal’) microcomputer: the Sinclair ZX80. It was launched in late January of 1980 but spoken and written about much earlier. To say that the ZX80 was innovative is to understate the adjective ‘innovative’ to such an extent that it leaves that adjective meaningless.
Oddly, I never bought a Sinclair. I spent my secondary school years in a brick shed with a tin roof in the backyard of our new house. Which I, incidentally, decorated completely in purple. It was the 70s after all. I mention this because the first issue of APC was typed by me in this shed. According to Google’s sky photographs, it still stands.
I achieved a sufficiently good HSC result to enter the Melbourne University Medical School. As I studied medicine, I hated the course and spent my spare hours reading about personal computers. By coincidence, my father published several titles in his chosen field of chemical engineering. It occurred to me that I might bring to Australia a magazine about personal computers using my father’s publishing experience as a resource. But where were the actual words for such a magazine to be found?
In 1978, at the age of 19, I had taken a three-month trip to Europe during one of our summer breaks and was astounded by the number of personal computer-related magazines and newspapers on the shelves of newsagencies and book shops. I bought one of each and lugged them back to Australia. There I wrote to every publisher of each of those magazines and newspapers.
In my letter I was seeking a licensing arrangement where the publisher would send me an advance photocopy of every issue about to go to press.
Of all the letters I wrote, I received just one reply. It was from a chap – one Felix Dennis – who turned out to be possibly the world’s most eccentric person. He had been involved in launching the globally famous newspaper by the name of . But Felix didn’t send me a draft licence as one would expect
