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1995-02-16
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• 105Mb removable hard drives − We have made a special purchase of a
number of 105Mb removable drives which can be used for A5000 or Risc PC.
These are brand new, fully guaranteed drives but are only £270 (normal
price £340) including fitting kit and including one cartridge − while
stocks last! Please ring the NCS office to book one rather than just
sending a cheque.
7.11
• 270Mb removable hard drives − We can now get the IDE version of the
270Mb removables. There are internal versions for both the A5000 and the
Risc PC and each is £490. This includes fitting kit and one cartridge.
Extra cartridges are £90 each.
7.11
• Acorn standard resolution monitors − The AKF30 and the AKF40 are now
out of production. There are some stocks left but they may have all gone
by the time you read this. The AKF52 multisync is now the minimum
standard (VGA) monitor that Acorn supply.
7.11
• Acorn Enthusiasts’ Scheme − Acorn have agreed to allow “Enthusiasts”,
who have a special reason for doing so, to order a Risc PC without a
monitor at £294 off the full with-monitor price. To do this, you must
first fill in a special form giving details of your reasons for wanting
a computer without a monitor and to register as an Acorn Enthusiast.
Acorn say that Enthusiasts will be given ‘priority information’ and that
there may be ‘special offers’ and ‘limited edition literature’ available
to them. These special forms are available from the NCS offices.
7.11
If you want to register as enthusiast even though you don’t want a
monitor-less Risc PC, we can send you a form if you send us an SAE.
7.11
• Apollonius PDT − Oak Solutions have announced a fully parametric CAD
package, allowing the user to specify relationships between elements in
the drawing so that any change updates all the elements automatically.
It also features an ‘intelligent’ toolbar which provides a large number
of features based on eight basic tools, which vary in precise function
according to context. The price is £150 +VAT from Oak Solutions or £165
through Archive. (£75 +VAT as an upgrade from Oak Solutions’ Parametric
Design Tool).
7.11
• Calendar − Kudlian Soft have released Calendar, a package intended
for primary education with the purpose of producing wall calendars. It
is intended to be very easy to use, with a WYSIWYG display, and uses the
RISC OS outline fonts and printer drivers to produce high quality
results in several formats. It also allows pupils to include their own
pictures. The pack costs £25 +VAT including a site licence for primary
schools, or £40 +VAT for secondary schools.
7.11
• Calligraph A4-1200 − Following on from their high resolution A3
printer, Calligraph have released a direct drive, A4, 8ppm laser printer
capable of true 600 × 600 dpi resolution and up to 1200 dpi horizontal
resolution through software enhancement. The software provided can
handle variable screen density and gamma correction, as well as a draft
printing mode and OPI-like virtual sprites (which leave large scans on
disc until print time). The A4-1200 can be driven entirely from the
computer, including all status and menu option information which would
normally be on the printer itself. It also emulates an Epson FX80. The
single bin version is available at £999 +VAT, and the dual bin version
is £1149 +VAT (£1140 and £1315 through Archive).
7.11
• CD-ROM for Risc PC − Cumana are now selling an IDE CD-ROM 300iA drive
for Risc PC. It is a caddy-less drive (i.e. you cannot operate the
computer in tower mode as the discs will fall off the tray!) but the
drive comes complete with an audio mixer so that the CD-ROM sound can be
combined with the computer’s own sound and output through the computer’s
own sound socket. Also included are the ProArtisan 2 Clipart CD and a
PhotoCD disc with sample pictures. The price is £249 +VAT + carriage
from Cumana or £290 through Archive.
7.11
• CD-ROM for Risc PC − Morley Electronics have two internal CD-ROMs for
the Risc PC, both SCSI devices. The 4101 is a caddy-less version (i.e.
you cannot operate the computer in tower mode as the discs will fall off
the tray!) and costs £249 +VAT + carriage from Morley or £290 through
Archive. The 3401 has a caddy and is slightly faster than the 4101 (330
Kb/s cf 300 Kb/s) and costs £349 +VAT + carriage from Morley or £400
through Archive. (Both require SCSI interfaces, e.g. the Morley uncached
SCSI card at £160 through Archive.)
7.11
• Classcardz − Colton software have launched resource packs which take
the user through the first steps in document processing and creation of
spreadsheets with the company’s popular programs Wordz and Resultz. The
packs are £20 each from Colton, and consist of sets of A4 laminated
cards which can be photocopied for classroom use.
7.11
• Colton Software price drop − Colton have announced some price
reductions on the ‘z family’ of programs: Wordz is now £59 +VAT (£64
through Archive), Resultz has been reduced from £99 to £79 +VAT, (£88
through Archive) and Fireworkz has been reduced from £149 to £99 +VAT
(£110 through Archive), with site licences discount also available from
Colton Software.
7.11
• Commodore64 conversions − XL.C.US Software are planning to provide a
picture and sound sample transfer service between Archimedes and
Commodore 64 machines. For details, contact Jonathan Hunt at 21 Green
Street, Milton Malsor, Northampton, NN7 3AT.
7.11
• Design Processor update − Oak Solutions are working on a new version
of their Design Processor to be packaged with OakPCB, DrawPlot, Genesis
Professional and Apollonius PDT, due out in September. The new version
will be £1200 (it used to be £900) for a site licence and regular
upgrades but the price increase will not affect existing users or those
who purchase Design Processor before September.
7.11
• First Page − Longman Logotron have released a new easy-to-use DTP
package. First Page is capable of multiple columns, headlines and
captions, and can import PenDown and PenDown Plus files maintaining
layout and styles. In addition, it has its own basic word processing
facilities. Illustrations can be included both as separate images and as
frame backgrounds. FirstPage costs £49 +VAT for a single user or £140
and £190 +VAT respectively for primary and secondary site licences. The
Archive prices are £54, £155 and £208 respectively.
7.11
• Flashback − This new release from US Gold is another port from the
Amiga/PC markets. It is a graphic adventure, which was widely acclaimed
for the innovative techniques used in production. The character
animation was produced by filming athletes, to give very accurate
movement − the character you play has 681 animation frames to himself.
The plot involves having your memory wiped after your latest invention
identifies the presence of hostile aliens on Earth. All you have to help
you is a message from yourself, explaining what has happened, and then
it is up to you to explore. Sections of the game are linked with “Cine
Sequences” which are short, non-interactive sections to add to the feel
of the game.
7.11
• HQ Tracker − Mycroft Software have released a low-cost alternative to
SoundTracker, based around their PlayModule relocatable module and
intended for use in adding sound effects and music to users’ software.
The system is intended to be more extendable than its competitors, and
comes with a converter for soundtracker files. HQ-Tracker is £25 from
Mycroft Software with a special price of £20 to people who mention
Archive when ordering.
7.11
• Idek Iiyama monitors − These new monitors are now available in both
17“ and 21” sizes. The prices are £734 (£440 with Risc PC) and £2144
(£1850 with Risc PC) respectively. As you can see from the
specifications opposite, the 17“ monitor is a slightly higher
specification than the Acorn 17” monitor and it works out slightly
cheaper provided you class as an Acorn Enthusiast (see above). Our
subjective view, having had the two monitors side by side is that there
is little to choose between them in terms of display quality or
programmability. The only real difference apart from the price is that
the AKF85 comes with a 12-month on-site warranty whereas the Idek
monitor has a three-year return-to-base warranty, i.e. it’s guaranteed
for three years but you have to pay to get it shipped back to Idek −
they fix it and send it back to you.
7.11
As regards the 21“, we are very impressed with this one. It is, in our
view, better than the Eizo F780iW costing several hundred pounds more!
It has a very easy-to-use control tray that slides out from the front of
the monitor and allows you to adjust all the various parameters and save
that particular mode definition. The 20” Taxan doesn’t have quite such
good definition but it has the advantage of being a Trinitron tube and
yet is £150 cheaper.
7.11
(As soon as I can afford it, I shall be buying an Idek 21“ and a
Risc PC. This will make production of Archive an order of magnitude
easier. Ed.)
7.11
• IFEL 8Mb RAM upgrades − A5000 and A3000 machines may now be upgraded
to 8Mb by means of a new upgrade from IFEL, for £259 +VAT for the A5000
or £249 +VAT for the A3000. However, IFEL recommend their fitting
service (£50 +VAT for 4Mb machines) since the upgrade requires removing
the surface-mounted MEMC. A300 and A400 series upgrades will follow.
7.11
• ImageFS is a RISC OS 3 image filing system (similar to that used for
PC partitions) which allows transparent loading of a number of image
formats RISC OS-legally − including TIFF, BMP and PICT. The images are
converted to sprites on the fly, and the software supports deep sprites
and a number of dithering options. ImageFS is available for £34.95 +VAT
from Alternative Publishing Ltd.
7.11
• Landmarks − Microworld Invasion and Pinpoint Datafile − Britain since
the 1930s are new educational programs from Longman Logotron aimed at 9-
13 year-olds. They are designed to complement the BBC’s Landmarks
history series to be broadcast in Autumn 1994. Prices are £24.95 +VAT
and £12 +VAT from Longman Logotron (£27 and £13 respectively through
Archive), with versions for the IBM PC and site licences also available.
7.11
• Lark − Wild Vision’s 16-bit audio sampling and play-back card for all
the Acorn machines is now available. It can sample and playback in
stereo and sample up to 48kHz, and features MIDI connection and on-board
filtering. The Lark A16 is £199 +VAT + carriage or £225 through Archive.
7.11
• Lenses & Light is a pack from Anglia Television for the Key Plus
database and the Key Calc spreadsheet. It covers eye testing, shadows,
polarisation, single and double lenses, microscopes and telescopes with
background information and worksheets for photocopying provided. Lenses
& Light costs £22 +VAT from Anglia Television.
7.11
• Premier Manager − Gremlin Graphics Ltd, the makers of Zool, have
released a game for those who prefer their football as most of us get to
see it: from the sidelines. Starting in the Vauxhall Conference League,
up to four players can simultaneously work on their teams, investing
their money on the grounds and their players in the hopes of bringing in
the sponsors and the fans. The game features five divisions, cup
competitions, match highlights, full ground sponsorship, complete
results service, weekly fax data on match reports, transfer news and
player information and complete interaction with other team managers.
Available for £25.99 from Gremlin or £24 through Archive.
7.11
• Sound FX #2 − Alpine Software have released another disc of sound
effects for Creator, Creator II or UltraSonic. The effects are grouped
under the headings of VOCAL_1, VOCAL_2, TREK, WeirdFX and Weapons. The
disc is £5 from Alpine Software.
7.11
• Tekkie CD − Emerald Publishing have produced a CD that contains the
RISC OS 3 PRMs. Not only that, but it also contains the Style Guide,
Basic Guide, Desktop C, Assembler and DDE guides, all for the same price
as the paper version of the PRMs − £99 +VAT. (See the review on page
61.)
7.11