It's taken a while, but at last it seems the average Amiga user now has a pretty powerful system at their disposal. There have always been those who would upgrade their Amigas to keep abreast of the latest software developments, but until recently there was still a significant number of Amiga users running very basic set-ups but still expecting to be able to work wonders. It's nobody's right to dictate the buying decisions of another, despite the 'upgrade or die' themed editorial comments we've all read too many times in the Amiga press, and if someone still finds their 1Mb floppy-only A500 sufficient for their needs, then fine. Everyone has their own specific uses for their computer and will modify their system accordingly.

However, now that many more Amiga users are running far more capable systems (as preliminary findings from our recent reader survey suggest), the whole Amiga scene is in a much better position to move forward. This issues sees the first of a three part series on how to overcome the limitations of the A1200 by transplanting it into a PC tower case, in direct response to an overwhelming number of requests for such a feature.

If you're one of those who has yet to expand the Amiga beyond its basic set-up, you're in luck. There has never been a better time to bring your Amiga up to date, especially if you're an A1200 owner. You can now get a 25mHz 68030 accelerator card with an extra 4Mb of RAM on board for five pence less then £100! For around the same price you could add a hefty 850Mb hard drive. Just these two additions alone with revolutionise a stock A1200 beyond all belief and open the door to all kinds of new possibilities. And then of course there's the ever-cheaper CD-ROM drive, which you could add to your Amiga for as little as £50 (as covered in the December 1996 issue of CU Amiga Magazine).

There will inevitably be a certain sector of the Amiga scene which stays firmly rooted in the low end, and there's a good reason for that. Walk into any high street computer retailer and you'll be lucky if you're offered anything for less than £1,000. There is no reason why this should be the base price for a home computer, but that's the way it is at the moment. Apart from, of course, the Amiga option. Name another computer than you can plug into your TV and use run a variety of powerful applications and play top games without breaking the bank, but also upgrade cheaply and efficiently to match current popular PC systems as and when required. Most Amiga users have now travelled down that upgrade path to an extent that's beneficial for the whole scene. Let's keep it rolling.

Tony Horgan, Editor, CU Amiga Magazine.