There was a time when computer magazines were as hefty as phone books, their pages brimming over with ads, and few if any were as hefty as PC Magazine, the centerpiece of the Ziff Davis publishing empire.

But that was in the '80s, when PCs were still new to American consumers and there was an insatiable appetite for information on the myriad choices of what brand to buy.

These days, with the rise of the internet, the curiosity about all things computer is still there, if not greater, but it has moved online, and so has much of the advertising that once gave PC Magazine its heft.

So it comes as little surprise that PC Magazine is ending its print edition and shifting its entire operation online with its January edition. By February, the title will be completely digital.

The decision, announced yesterday, follows by weeks the decision by the Christian Science Monitor to end its daily print edition in favor of online-only publication in the face of rising costs and declining subscription revenues. A number of other titles have made similar decisions as the ad recession has deepened.

But the switchover by PC Magazine is unique.

Print advertising is indeed down sharply for the print edition, off 35.8 percent for the first six months of 2008, which is far more than than the 7.4 percent decline for the seven science and technology titles tracked by Media Life.

Much of that is the result of a major downturn in technology advertising. Tech magazine advertising was down 17.5 percent in pages through the first nine months of the year, according to the Publishers Information Bureau.

But PC Magazine has been in the unique position of having moved much of its operation online already, and these days three fourths of its revenue comes from its various online ventures, led by PCMag.com.

And that would make sense, considering its readership is heavily weighted toward techies.

PC Magazine has been publishing a digital edition since 2002, and editor Lance Ulanoff says the magazine’s essential format will remain unchanged.

The magazine will still focus on expert product reviews, tech advice, news, and opinions. It will be distributed via email, with a link to the current issue, and while it will still look like the print version, it will have interactive elements.

The online edition is being renamed PCMag Digital Network.

PCMag.com had 935,000 unique visitors last month, according to comScore, up 5 percent over the previous year. Meanwhile, circulation for the magazine has fallen to under 600,000, about half the subscribers it had at its peak.

PC Magazine won’t be the last to make a switch, and may not even be the last before the new year. 

The Christian Science Monitor will make the switch in April, though it will put out a weekly edition in print.

Dozens of magazines have folded their print editions in recent years while mataining an online presence. Most recently, Radar ceased print publication for a third time but was able to sell off its web site, RadarOnline.com.

But going online only, while leading to huge savings in printing and distribution, can be just as tough a go as competing in the print world.
In many areas, tech being one of them, there are already major online players to compete with, and they know the internet space far better.

In this regard, PC Magazine will have a major advantage, having been online as long as it has.