Archive Magazine 1995/ARCHIVE95.iso/text/products/volume_04/issue_12

Text File | 1995-02-16 | 17KB | 351 lines

Å   4M upgrades for A310 Ö Over the last few months, we have had a lot of
very positive feedback from readers about the I.F.E.L. memory upgrades
for the A310 and so we decided to have a look at them ourselves with a
view to stocking them. (We have in the past stocked other A310 memory
upgrades but stopped because of the difficulties we experienced.) We are
very happy with the quality of the I.F.E.L. upgrades and have therefore
arranged a deal with them so that we can offer the 4 M memory upgrade to
members for ú350. This includes the cost of collecting the computer from
your home (or place of work), installing and testing the upgrade and
returning the computer to you, hopefully within a couple of working
days. The upgrade is soldered in which minimises the risk of things
working loose in transit (which was the problem that we had with the
other upgrades). I.F.E.L. do also sell a plug-in D.I.Y. type of upgrade
but that is NOT the one that we are supplying.
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If you want to have ROM sockets that take the larger RISC-OS ROMs, we
can fit them for you. However, we do not advise plugging these sockets
into the existing sockets because you are then back to the potential
problems we had before. What we will do is to desolder the old sockets
and solder in the new ones. This is labour intensive and increases the
cost of the ROM upgrade to ú35 but it will give you a much more reliable
end result.
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Å   A3000 ARM3 upgrade Ö Aleph One and Atomwide are now offering an ARM3
upgrade for the A3000. It involves desoldering the ARM2 and fitting a
socket that will take the ARM3 board Ö a technically difficult task as
the A3000 uses so-called surface-mount components. Donæt worry, Atomwide
collect your computer, do the upgrade, test it and return it to you all
for ú399 +VAT.
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Å   A4 flatbed scanners Ö DT Software have produced an interface and
software to run an Epson GT4000 (or GT-6000) from an Archimedes
computer. The main features are: 25 to 400 (or 600) d.p.i., 24 bit
colour, 256 grey scales, full RISC-OS application. The prices are ú1299
+VAT for the GT4000 or ú1699 +VAT for the GT6000. This includes software
and the interface board. (These prices compare rather favourably with
Clares GT4000 with interface for ú1799 +VAT. The list price for the
GT4000 is ú1499, so DTæs is a very good price.)
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Å   Acorn Desktop C and Acorn Desktop Assembler Ö Acorn is releasing major
upgrades to its C and Assembler programming development software which
integrate the software development tools into the RISC-OS desktop.
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Each package contains öall the tools needed for software development in
that language for debugging, editing program source, generating object
code, managing the construction of applications from multiple source
files and using support utilities.ò
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Hardware requirements: You need at least 2M of RAM to run the desktop
language products. For professional development, a hard disk is advised
and it is required if you wish to use both products together.
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Upgrades: Existing owners of previous language products can upgrade
through Vector Services as follows (the prices include postage and
packing):
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      inc VAT
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C release 3 to Desktop C   ú85
ú99.87
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C release 2 or 1 to Desktop C   ú105
ú123.87
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Assembler to Desktop Assembler   ú75
ú88.12
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Software Developers Toolbox
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  to Desktop Assembler   ú75
ú88.12
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To obtain your upgrade, you should send to Vector Services:
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áÖááyour name and address
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áÖááyour original disc (disc 1 only for C release 3, the utilities disc
for the Software Developers Toolbox.)
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áÖááa cheque or postal order, made out to öAcorn Directò for the inc VAT
price indicated above.
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The offer expires 31st December 1991.
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Å   ARCtist Ö The 4th Dimension have produced a 256 colour RISC-OS
compatible art package for just ú24.95 (ú23 through Archive). The
package includes several hundred kbytes of clip art. (This has no link
with the original program of the same name Ö one of the original art
packages produced for the Archimedes.)
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Å   ArcRecorder(s) Ö The sound sampler produced by Oak Solutions (which is
now called ÉOakRecorderæ) is available in small quantities though not
yet enough to match the demand. Hybrid Technologyæs offering will be
available within a few days, possibly by the time you read this, I donæt
know what sort of quantities they are producing, but I doubt whether
they will be able to meet initial demand as this is proving to be a very
popular product. The important question is how do the two products
compare? It does look as if Hybrid Technologyæs software is more
extensive but all we have to go on at the moment are the manufacturersæ
claims! As soon as we have a review copy of either (or both) weæll get
something into print.
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Å   ARM3 prices down again Ö Aleph One have reduced the price of their
ARM3 upgrade to ú389 + VAT (ú459) so we have been able to bring the
Archive price down to ú390 inc VAT.
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Å   BlastOn Ö Another offering from Eterna Ö a shoot-em-up game with what
Micro User reckons are ögood graphics and sound, making a professional-
looking packageò. ú19.95 from Eterna or ú19 through Archive.
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Å   Break 147 / SuperPool is out at last and itæs very impressive. You
have a complete 3D view of the table which you prowl around studying the
options for your next shot. Once you take your position for the shot,
you line up the direction plus the point on the ball which you are going
to strike for your stun shot or to screw the cue ball back for your next
shot etc. You can play against other humans or the computer by arranging
tournaments. There is action replay so you can see what went wrong (or
right) with your last shot. The referee speaks the score and tells you
when you have fouled or have a touching ball etc. ú24.95 from the 4th
Dimension or ú23 through Archive.
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Å   Bubble Fair Ö This is the latest offering from Eterna. I havenæt been
able to find out much about it yet except that it has 72 levels, 3
tunes, 256 colour overscan screen, challenges and bonuses! The price is
ú19.95 from Eterna or ú19 through Archive.
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Å   Design Concept Fonts price increase. Design Concept have increased the
range of their decorative fonts (see Archive 4.8 p53 for a review) to 14
and have extended and improved some of the original ones and they have
put up the price from ú1.50 per font to ú2.50 Ö but thatæs still
incredibly cheap! Site licences are available for ú5 per font. The other
related software that Design Concept produce has also been improved and
updated. (No VAT is charged as Design Concept are not VAT registered.)
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Å   Einstein Ö Ace Computing have produced an all-in-one multi-dimensional
design and animation package for just ú120 +VAT (ú125 through Archive).
It presents a öhighly consistent world for 2, 3 or 4 dimensional graphic
designò (!) and claims to be öthe first product for the Archimedes which
allows interactive manipulation of Bezier surfacesò. The press release
talked about using Bezier surfaces to produce such things as car body
shells, which was fine, but when it talked about ö4D Bezier
hypervolumesò I gave up trying to understand it. I suggest you contact
Tony Cheal at Ace for further details but it certainly sounds
impressive!
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Å   FaxScan Ö Keeping up their reputation for innovative design ideas,
Spacetech have taken advantage of Amstradæs ability to produce cheap
volume products to provide a versatile add-on for the Archimedes. If you
have an Amstrad FX9600T (now discontinued) or an FX9600AT fax machine,
Spacetech can sell you an interface which plugs into the Econet space in
the A3000 or Archimedes and links to the serial interface on the Amstrad
fax. Spacetechæs software then enables you to use the fax as a 200
d.p.i., sheet-fed scanner and, by adding a standard parallel printer
cable, to send faxes direct from the desktop so that output from DTP,
Paint or Draw can be faxed without having to print it Ö a time saver for
those with dot-matrix printers and a revolution for those without. You
can even use the fax machine as an Epson compatible 216 d.p.i. printer!
The interface and software costs ú99.50 +VAT. If you buy it with the
FX9600AT, which is a fax and an answering machine, the total price,
including carriage and one yearæs on-site maintenance, is just ú490.75
+VAT.
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(See what I mean about innovation! We are trying to make this available
through Archive, so check the Price List for prices, assuming we get it
organised by the time we have to go to press.)
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Å   Hawk V9 software upgrade Ö Wild Vision are offering an upgrade to
their Hawk V9 colour video digitiser. For ú29.90 inc VAT, you can get a
new ROM, a new version of !FastGrab which incorporates the !ChangeFSI
routines and a new manual. ChangeFSI is available separately from Wild
Vision for ú22 +VAT. This is the new desktop version.
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Å   Landmarks Ö Two more Landmarks packages have appeared from Longman-
Logotron: Rain Forest and The Victorians. ú19 each (+ VAT) from Logotron
or ú21 through Archive.
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Å   Master Break is a snooker style trivia quiz for 1 to 4 players. It has
over 2,000 questions on science & nature, pop music, geography, sports &
pastimes, arts & history. ú19.95 from Superior or ú19 through Archive.
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Å   RenderBender II Ö Clares now have a RISC-OS compliant version of their
RenderBender package at ú135 (inc VAT) or ú120 through Archive. It has a
new front end which allows you to draw the scenes (a bit like !Draw)
before converting into 3D by the ray-tracer part of the package (which
can work in multi-tasking mode). There is also an animator included and
you can animate manually by in-betweening or by assigning formulae to
the objects.
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Å   Rhapsody II Ö Clares have released version two of their their music
system, Rhapsody. Full details are given in the review on page 56. The
upgrade price is ú15.50 (inc VAT) from Clares (only) and the full
package is ú61.95 from Clares or ú57 through Archive.
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Å   SCSI Drives Ö Continuing what has become a well-established Archive
tradition (!), we have worked some better prices on SCSI drives Ö most
notably on removable drives. Itæs a long story involving various
contacts with U.S.A. but the bottom line is that we are now able to
offer two alternatives on removables and some good prices on external
fixed hard drives.
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Removable drives Ö We now offer a choice between the Atomwide removable
drive and a öMac-typeò drive. Both are the same price Ö ú525 inc VAT &
carriage and this includes one 42M cartridge and a data cable (please
specify podule type). If you want an Oak podule with the drive, add ú200
or for a Lingenuity A3000 podule, add ú160.
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So what is the difference between the drives? Firstly, the Mac-type
drives are öMac shapedò Ö 10ö x 10ò and 2╜ö high (to sit underneath a
Mac computer) whereas Atomwideæs drives are 6ò wide, 4ö high and 10ò
deep Ö much better suited to putting alongside the Archimedes computer.
The second difference is that the Mac drives are plastic cased whereas
Atomwide use metal cases. Finally, Atomwide have used a more powerful
fan and placed it square on at the back of the drive unit whereas the
Mac drives, being flat, have the fan by the side of, and at right angles
to, the drive unit. They point downwards so the positioning of these
drives is more critical.
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External fix hard drives Ö We have found a supply of fixed hard drives
(from a company called Frog Systems!) that are very competitively
priced. The only disadvantage I can see is that, like the Mac removable
drives, they are the öwrongò shape Ö i.e. 10ö x 10ò and 2╜ö high Ö and
therefore take up more desk space than those drives specifically
designed for the Archimedes. If you buy one of these drives as a first
drive (i.e. with a podule) there is a certain price advantage but if you
already own a podule and just want a second drive, the price advantage
is huge. For example, we sell Oakæs 100M Worrawinnie drive (their
economy version) at ú630 without a podule whereas the 100M Mac drives
are only ú470 and are slightly faster! The 200M Frog at ú730 compares
well with the 100M High Speed Oak drive at ú700. More details are given
in the price comparison chart below. (WW = Oak WorraWinnie, HS = Oak
High Speed, AW = AtomWide.) Firstly, Archive prices including an Oak
podule....
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   WW   HS   Frog   AW
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20M   395      490
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45M   500      530
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50M      600      620
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65M         560
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80M   615
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100M   730   800   670   790
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200M   1030   1200   930
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300M      1900   1390
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640M      2500   1790
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1000M         2390
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If you look at the prices without podule, i.e. for those of you looking
for a second SCSI drive, the differences in price are more marked....
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   WW   HS   Frog   AW
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20M   295      290
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45M   400      330
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50M      500      420
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65M         360
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80M   515
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100M   630   700   470   590
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200M   930   1100   730
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300M      1800   1190
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640M      2400   1590
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1000M         2190
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The other advantage of the Frog drives when compared to the Worrawinnies
is that they have dual connectors at the back which makes daisy-chaining
easier and they also have a push-button ID setting which aids setting up
when you have a number of different drives. (The Worrawinnies donæt have
any SCSI connector on the back. For cheapness, they just have a cable
coming out of the back with an IDC connector on the end Ö i.e. to plug
straight into the Oak podule.)
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We have done some speed tests on the 100M drives so that you can relate
speeds to prices. The first is the raw data transfer rate in kbytes/
second. The Oak HS and the Atomwide are the same because they are using
the same Quantum drive mechanism. The Worrawinnie is only tentative
because Oak are changing the type of drive they use so this information
will be out-of-date by the time you read it!
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mode   WW   HS   Frog   AW
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0   ?650?   1170   884   1170
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15   ?650?   1156   884   1156
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21   ?530?   735   286   735
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We also did our other speed test where we copy the contents of the
Applications 2 disc (i.e. lots of files) from one directory on the drive
to another. We have in the past quoted these as the time in seconds but
to make it easier to judge the speeds we have divided the time into the
total data copied (420k) to give a rate in kbytes/second.
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mode   WW   HS   Frog   AW
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0   ?42?   70   56   70
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15   ?40?   65   53   65
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21   ?36?   51   36   51
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The Frog drives run at about 80% of the speed of the higher speed drives
in modes 0 and 15 and 70% in mode 21. (This suggests that they have a
smaller ram cache and so cannot ötake up as much slackò as the other
drives when the computer is busy updating the screen.)
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Å   Top Banana Ö öJoin the frantic fruit fight to save the planet.ò A
company called, simply, öHexò has joined the Archimedes games fraternity
with this arcade style game which boasts four worlds, three level
parallax scrolling in 256 colour mode. The sound is ösolid sampled
cyber-mixedò and the graphics use colour sampled video. It comes in
öecologically friendly packagingò and includes a free loose-fit T-shirt.
What more could you want for just ú25.99 or ú24 through Archive?
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Å   World Championship Squash Ö Play club level or championship level
squash without even a single bead of sweat on your forehead! Play
against the computer or another human being. Various options including
ball speed and type of competition Ö knock out or ladder. The price is
ú25.99 from Krisalis Software or ú24 through Archive. (öAvailable 6th
Septemberò, they say.)
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Å   Zelanites the Onslaught Ö MicroPower have entered the Archimedes games
world with their first game which follows the basic formula of space
invaders with variations similar to Arcadians where the baddies come
sweeping down at you from the midst of the hoards tracking across the
screen and working their way down towards you. There are also various
bonuses to be had by shooting other objects which make their way across
the top of the screen. Finally, there are a number of different objects
which you can catch as they fall from the sky. These offer some positive
helps such as extra shooting power or a protective umbrella but donæt
catch them all Ö some are distinctly unhelpful such as one which makes
the controls operate the wrong way round! The price is ú24.95 inc VAT or
ú23 through Archive.
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