When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works .
If you miss the old magazine cover-mounted demo disks of yore, the dominant channel for discovering new apps and games before the broadband internet age, be assured that many of these artifacts are preserved on the Internet Archive. Earlier today, our sister site PC Gamer revealed that there is now a treasure trove of its cover disks (floppies, CDs, and DVDs) archived and ready to enjoy.
PC Gamer’s headline highlights the 758 cover disks on the Internet Archive, but there are actually even more gems to be found. Our search uncovered over 1,500 PC Gamer software archives, thanks to a trove of floppy disk offerings from yesteryear. The total collection spans 1.2TB of material, according to the site.
The archive is a nostalgic reminder of the exclusive content these important printed media outlets used to offer. Such was the power of the printed word (plus cover disk) back then, app and games publishers would be eager to write custom demos and editions for the cover disks. PC Gamer highlights a few things, like its exclusive Freedom Force character skins on the June 2002 demo disk.
You may like 385TB video game archive saved by fans — Myrient has been '100% backed up' and validated, torrents being generated You can log into 28 vintage computer systems in your browser for free, thanks to the Interim Computer Museum 390TB video game archive being taken offline due to skyrocketing RAM, SSD, and hard drive prices I remember Amiga Format cover disks going further, with special editions like Christmas Lemmings, Cannon Soccer, and even an exclusive Syndicate level put on cover disks for readers.
(Image credit: Future) (Image credit: Future) (Image credit: Future) (Image credit: Future) While rooting through the Internet Archive’s similar collections, I was also happy to find a bounty of PC Format disks of various eras, ST Format disks, CU Amiga disks, and Computer Shopper disks. There are surely many more – check for your favorite old magazine.
While you are there, browsing software cover disks at the archive, remember that many of the old print magazines have also been preserved. So, you’ll often be able to find both the cover disk and a PDF of the magazine it was originally attached to. That may be useful if a special code or instructions are needed to get the cover disk content up and running.
There’s no doubt the Internet Archive is both a treasure and an important reference, but recent reports suggest its future worth may be being eroded. Last week, we noted that many news outlets were blocking the IA’s Wayback Machine from archiving their pages.
Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox.
Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/software/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/software/relive-the-pc-magazine-cover-disk-era-with-758-strong-archive-org-cd-rom-collection-1-2tb-treasure-trove-also-includes-floppy-disks-from-as-early-as-1993#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com
- 40 years ago we entered the megabit memory era with IBM’s DRAM breakthrough — a major leap beyond the 64 kilobit chips common at the time
- Tokyo court rules movie and anime 'spoiler articles' are copyright infringement in landmark criminal case — detailed, monetized plot summaries land man in Japan
- Xbox Series X|S storage expansion cards can be used on PC with an inexpensive CFexpress adapter — Speeds top out at 1,560 MB/s in Redditor's testing
- Crazed World of Warcraft gamer plays game with 3D-printed hot dog controller — the left wiener quad-array controls movement, the right triggers abilities
- US gov't blocks China's largest LED chipmaker's $239 million bid to acquire Dutch lighting firm Lumileds — US blocks acquisition attempt of European firm
Informational only. No financial advice. Do your own research.