Archive Magazine 1995/ARCHIVE95.iso/text/products/volume_08/issue_01

Text File | 1995-02-16 | 19KB | 321 lines

Å  200Mb Syquest removables Ö Syquest have released a new 200Mb 5╝ö
removable hard disc. The new drive can read and write the old 44Mb and
88Mb format cartridges as well as its own 200Mb format, and offers a
speed and size advantage over the older drive types while maintaining
backward compatibility. The drive comes with one free cartridge and, as
with all removable drives, it has an effectively infinite storage
capacity by simply replacing the cartridge. The external SCSI version
which can be used on any Acorn machine with a SCSI interface costs ú570
through Archive, the internal version (which is only really of interest
to RiscáPC owners) is ú490. Each comes with one cartridge and extra
cartridges cost ú90 through Archive.
8.1
Å  Acorn Enthusiastsæ Scheme Ö We stated in Archive last month that
Acorn were going to allow öEnthusiastsò, who are not actually ordering a
RiscáPC to register as such. However, they have decided that this scheme
will be launched properly at Acorn World 94.
8.1
Å Alpha Tracks Ö Silicon Vision have released a new Electronics Teaching
Course based on the ArcPCB design software, combined with the Unilab/
Testbed Alpha System modules. Designed by teachers, the system allows
students to explore electronics prototyping and computer aided design of
the PCB on any RISC OS machine. The design can be output to Artwork for
PCB production or directly onto copper clad boards with a plotter using
spirit-based pens for direct etching in Ferric Chloride solution. The
course has been designed for use with students or teacher training from
Key Stage 3 (age 13+), and includes notes and assignment sheets intended
to minimise teacher participation. The price is ú75 +VAT from Silicon
Vision.
8.1
Å  Archiboard Ö Supreme Software have officially launched Archiboard, a
Énetwork Email and conferencing systemæ. The system has been developed
over the last four years and is aimed at educational users. By means of
client software (provided), users can log on to the central server, and
there leave mail messages for each other, contribute to conferences and
use the server as a means of transferring files. The system is quick to
set up in its default state, and is highly configurable by means of text
files and a script language Ö plug-in modules can be used to add to
functionality. Working across Ethernet and Econet (without the need of a
file server), Archiboard also provides for connection to FidoNetì and
Internet to extend Email facilities world wide. The Network version of
Archiboard is available from Supreme Software fo ú89 (ú79 to educational
establishments) + ú2 U.K. postage. Supreme Software Ltd. can be
contacted at [phone].
8.1
Å  ArcPCB range expands Ö Silicon Vision have expanded their range of
electronic design automation tools. ArcPCB version 1.9, for digital PCB
layout, is now priced at ú99.95. ArcPCB professional version 3.3 at ú195
is aimed at both analogue and video PCB layout. ArcPCB Schematics
version 5.2, at ú275, is for combined Schematic and PCB layout.
PowerRouter v1.6 at ú59.95 provides full 100% rip-up retry routing.
GerberPLOT v2.1 for Photoplotting and ExcellonDRILL v2.1 for NC
drilling, both at ú39.95, are also available from Silicon Vision. All
these prices exclude VAT.
8.1
Å  öAutumn windfall on A3020sòáÖáAcorn are doing a special promotion on
A3020s during September and October. For every A3020 that schools buy
from Authorised Education Dealers, Acorn will give the school (or
college) a ú50 cash-back. Buy the computer(s), fill in the form(s), send
them to Acorn before 30th November and, within 28 days, Acorn will send
you your ú50 cash-back(s).
8.1
Å  CD-Net Ö Cumana have taken over the CD-Net software from PEP
Associates, reviewed in the June issue of Archive. The system provides
fast access to a number of CDs across an AUN or SJ Nexus network, using
a two-stage cache (utilising both RAM and hard disc) to allow multiple
users access to a number of CD-ROMs, often faster than if the drive were
local to the machine. CD-Net is now priced at ú150 +VAT & delivery from
Cumana.
8.1
Å  CD-ROM networking Ö To complement their CD-Net software, Cumana have
launched a tower of six Panasonic SCSI CD-drives. Multi-session, double
speed and PhotoCD compatible, the tower is priced at ú1499 +VAT. Cumana
feels that single drive units with automatic disc changing are not
suitable for large network use where several users may wish to access
different CD-ROMs, and this tower is their solution.
8.1
Å  CD-ROMs Ö From our survey of öwho is selling what for RISCáOS
computers?ò, the following CD-ROM titles have come to light: öArt in the
National Curriculum (KS 1 & 2)ò (AVP) Ö resources related to topics and
artists in the N.C., aimed to contain a number of images not readily
available in the home or classroom environment. öThe Horizon Reportò
(Hampshire Microtechnology Centre) Ö resources from the combined efforts
of over forty Hampshire schools and colleges investigating the uses of
multimedia for sharing and presenting information, covering topics such
as ÉIT in the high streetæ, ÉRainforestsæ and ÉHitleræ. With the
öKaraoke Macbethò (Animated Pixels Publishing Ltd Ö available from
Cumana) you can choose your favourite part or parts from the Scottish
play and read them yourself or with your friends, with the other parts
read for you; other plays will follow. öKingfisher Childrenæs
Micropediaò (ESM) Ö reference resource for Primary children, containing
1,300 entries accessed alphabetically or by topic, and the package comes
with curriculum activity ideas. öLand and Air: Environmental Seriesò
(Interactive Learning Productions and Academy Television) Ö an analysis
of environmental issues using data from governmental sources.
öPicturebase Ö Victorian Britainò (AVP) Ö materials relating to
Victorian times and their relation to the present day. öSemerc Treasure
Chestò (NW Semerc) Ö huge library of resources for key stages 1, 2 and
3. öOxford Reading Treeò and öSherston Naughty Storiesò (Sherston) Ö
both popular RISC OS talking books are available on CD-ROM. öWoodland
Birdsò (APA Multimedia Ltd) is a subset of the Woodland CD, and contains
details of approx. 50 birds and their calls.
8.1
Å  Colour printing bonanza Ö For those who want high quality colour
printing, there are two new ink jet printers on the market. Integrex,
who have provided colour printers to the Acorn market for years, have
released the Colourjet 600, capable of 300╫600dpi and of emulating the
HP Deskjet 500C. The printer comes with suitable RISC OS 3.1 printer
drivers and costs ú239 +VAT from Integrex. The second new printer is an
offering by Epson Ö the new Stylus Color (sic). This printer is capable
of 720╫720dpi on suitable coated paper, offering a substantially
improved picture when compared to most ink-jet printers which have only
half the resolution. It can also produce 360dpi on normal paper.
Unfortunately, at the time of writing there is no RISC OS printer driver
for it which can produce more than 360dpi, although one is being worked
on. The Stylus Color has an r.r.p. of ú639 +VAT and is available through
Archive for ú590 inclusive.
8.1
Å  DiskCat update Ö Oregan Developments have released a new version of
their automated disc cataloguing system. The new version has many
enhanced features and is compatible with the Risc PC. The package is now
ú19.95 inc VAT from Oregan. Existing users can upgrade for ú5 with the
return of their original discs to Oregan.
8.1
Å  DuplexáÖáMijas Software have produced a shareware application
designed to enable full duplex printing of a wide range of DTP documents
on a Hewlett Packard (or equivalent PCL emulation) Laserjet printer that
has a full duplex option. The program is on the monthly program disc but
for a registered copy plus manual, send ú10 (cheque or PO) to Mijas
Software.
8.1
Å  Earth Warp Ö This is a program from Longman Logotron based on the
BBCæs Look and Read, Earth Warp series for 7-9 year olds. It costs ú24
(+VAT +p&p) from Longman Logotron or ú27 through Archive.
8.1
Å  EPROM programming and emulation Ö Octopus Systems of Ipswich have
launched new control software to enable the Dataman Softy S3 and S4
EPROM programmers to be controlled from the RISC OS desktop via the
serial port. Files can be programmed into an EPROM or the system can be
used as an emulator with a flying header plugged into an EPROM socket.
This aids software development as it enables new software to be
downloaded and used immediately, without programming a new EPROM every
time. The control software and lead costs ú39 +VAT from Octopus Systems
who also offer a fast EPROM programming service from Acorn format discs.
8.1
Å  Game On! Ö The ARM Club have released a new application for the Risc
PC to help all those users whose games do not work on the new machine.
Game On! allows games such as Chuck Rock, Saloon Cars Deluxe, Chocks
Away, Gods, Lemmings and SWIV to work on the new machine, together with
applications such as FasterPC, Tracker, Coconizer and Digital Symphony.
A database is included showing which products have been tested for
compatibility with and without Game On! The price is just ú10 fully
inclusive from The ARM Club.
8.1
Å  Idek Iiyama have a new 21ö monitor which will be in full production
by the end of September. The MT-9121 uses a Diatron tube (Trinitron
look-alike) with a 0.30mm dot pitch and handles line rates of between
23.5 and 92kHz, with frame rates between 50 and 160Hz. The monitor can
support a 200MHz dot clock, allowing displays of up to 1600╫1200 at 72Hz
or 1280╫1024 at 80Hz with better convergence, distortion and contrast
than the other Idek Iiyama 21ò monitors. The controls are available from
an on-screen menu using a remote control! The idea is that you sit back
in your usual operator position when making adjustments rather than
being forced to be within armæs reach of the front of the monitor. The
MT-9121 has the usual range of controls, and also features auto power
down and a motorised tilt-and-turn stand. It is priced at ú1649 +VAT
from Idek or ú1884 through Archive.
8.1
Å Idek Vision Master17 Ö We have been able to improve the price of the
Idek Iiyama 17ö monitor. It is now available through Archive at ú694 inc
VAT and carriage or ú400 extra if bought on the Acorn Enthusiastsæ
Scheme with a RiscáPC.
8.1
Å  Letraset fonts Ö The Datafile have announced a reduction in the price
of their packs of Letraset and URW fonts. Their Pick Énæ Mix service now
charges ú5 for the first weight and all others ú3 each plus ú1.50 p&p
inc VAT, with a minimum order of ú20. This offer does not apply to their
ITC fonts (which are still ú7.50 for the first weight and ú5 for others
+VAT). The Datafile aim to release a new font pack each month now that
they have access to more fonts from other companies.
8.1
Å  Longman Logotron CD-ROMs Ö Longman Logotron are now distributors of
software by the American multimedia company 7th Level and sole
distributors of the UK-based Software Toolworks. New packages include
Photobase Decades, which contains around 2,500 images per CD-ROM, each
illustrating historical events and everyday life of one decade from 1920
to 1960; the discs can be bought separately or as a set in Acorn and PC
formats. The Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia is now available on a
single CD-ROM capturing all 21 volumes, and containing 33,000 articles.
The Multimedia World Atlas, designed for both home and school, features
350 maps and 1000 high resolution colour photographs, including video
and audio clips for selected countries and 300 topics of information for
every country. Prehistoria spans 500 million years of dinosaurs and
other prehistoric animals. Finally, TuneLand is an Éinteractive musical
cartoonæ for children of 3 years and up, enabling the children to direct
the action in eight screens and with 60 animated cartoon characters and
objects; the CD-ROM can also be used as a normal audio CD, with 43 well-
known nursery rhymes and tunes. Educational users ordering from
Longmanæs catalogue before Christmas are offered a free CD-ROM worth
ú49.
8.1
Å  Look! Hear! Ö Sherston Software have recently announced their first
series of talking topics aimed at infants. The series uses digitised
human speech and animations to bring the information to life, and the
first volume covers Land Transport, Dinosaurs, The Seaside, Pets, Homes
and The Body. Each pack includes two discs, a guide for parent or
teachers and worksheets for use at home and at school. Each pack is
ú11.95 +VAT from Sherston Software, or all of Volume One (six packs) may
be purchased at ú59.75 +VAT. The six pack is available through Archive
for ú65.
8.1
Å Morph Ö A new morphing packing is now available for Acorn machines.
Mycroft Software have released Morph which can work in single or multi-
tasking mode, handles from 16 greys up to 24-bit colour images, supports
OLE, allows colour and movement control during morphing, has manual or
automatic mesh creation and allows output of single frames or groups of
frames. Morph costs ú15 all-inclusive from Mycroft Software.
8.1
Å  OakPCB II Ö Oak Solutions have updated their design processor
package. New features include improvement of the user interface, options
to align tracks at 45 degree intervals, and improved facilities for
attaching tracks to pads. PCBDrill, a utility which allows automatic
creation of circuit boards on Roland CAMM2 and CAMM3 and on Boxford
milling machines, is included. The user interface is still based on Draw
for ease of use. The package can handle boards of up to four layers, and
comes with extendible libraries for PCB and schematic work. OakPCB II
costs ú70 +VAT from Oak Solutions (or ú76 inc VAT through Archive), and
upgrades cost ú35 +VAT inc p&p from Oak Solutions only.
8.1
Å  Paper Saver Ö is a new product from PTW Software for network use. The
package works with any network shared printer driver, allocating page
quotas to individuals, groups or classes and limiting the amount of
printing which they can do. Transparent in operation, the software will
help reduce the problem of individuals printing unauthorised output
which may make running costs for the printer excessive. The package
costs ú17.95 inclusive from PTW Software.
8.1
Å  Pocket Book II Ö If the Pocket Book was a cut-down Psion Series 3,
the Pocket Book II is a Psion 3a plus some!!! The details are on page 11
but basically, there are two versions: 256Kb for ú269.95 and 512Kb for
ú329.95 inc VAT. (ú270 and ú330 through Archive including carriage!)
8.1
Å  Product UNavailable Ö Basic WIMP Programming by Dabs Press which had
such a good review last month is sadly now out of print! Has anyone got
a copy they DONæT want that they would be prepared to send us for the
charity sales? (You could put it in the Small Ads if you canæt afford to
give it away Ö the second hand value has probably risen!)
8.1
Å  Professional colour scanning Ö Computer Concepts have a new
ÉProfessional Colour Scanner Packæ consisting of a Canon colour flatbed
scanner with drivers and PhotoDesk by Spacetech, which CC considers to
be the application best matched to the scanner. The scanner itself, the
IX-4015, is an A4 24-bit device capable of 800dpi, or 1200dpi in
monochrome, and is noted by CC as being particularly fast, and can be
connected to all fully Acorn compatible SCSI cards. The drivers are
specially customised for it and include full Twain support. The package,
including SCSI cable, is available from Computer Concepts for ú749 + ú10
p&p + VAT.
8.1
Å  Risc Developments Ltd Ö The publisher of Risc User, Acorn Action and
Beebug magazine (which ceased publication in April this year) and
developers of Acorn hardware and software, ceased trading on 8th August
1994 and went into voluntary liquidation. The reason for the liquidation
was stated to be ölosses associated with the production of our Beebug
magazineò. Adrian Calcraft, director of Risc Developments said, öWe are
very sorry to have to take this action which has been brought about by
the high costs of finishing the Beebug magazine.ò
8.1
The Acorn dealership company, Beebug Ltd, under its directors Sheridan
Williams and Adrian Calcraft is continuing to trade. Adrian Calcraft
added, öBeebug Ltd are not greatly affected by the closure and will take
over the products from Risc Developments, including the Risc User
magazine. Customers will be supplied and supported as previouslyò Risc
Developmentsæ press release also stated that, öBeebug will be at the
Acorn World exhibition in force and will be demonstrating some new
products and enhancements to existing software.ò
8.1
We have not yet been able to find out whether Acorn Action is to
continue but Beebug said they were going to honour the ú100,000+ worth
of pre-paid Risc User subscriptions, so existing Risc User subscribers
should not lose out.
8.1
Å  Sibelius 6 and 7 Ö Sibelius Software now have site licence prices
available. The basic single-user prices are Sibelius 6 at ú159 +VAT
(ú175 through Archive), Sibelius 7 (for amateurs, schools, etc) ú499
+VAT (ú545 through Archive), and Sibelius 7 (for professional users)
ú795 +VAT (ú865 through Archive). If you need a site licence, there is
one for Sibelius 6 at ú636 +VAT (ú691 through Archive) with a special
price for primary schools of ú318 +VAT (ú345 through Archive). There is
also a site licence on Sibelius 6 which includes a single copy of
Sibelius 7 (good thinking!!). This costs ú999 +VAT or ú1085 through
Archive.
8.1
Å  Tabby graphics tablet Ö The Tabby graphics tablet (previously only
available on PC and Atari machines) has now been made available for RISC
OS 3 Acorn machines, and plugs into the serial port. The price is ú68.08
+VAT +delivery from First Computer Centre, with special prices available
to Schools and Colleges.
8.1
Å  Teletext adapters Ö Octopus Systems, the new Acorn dealer in Ipswich,
is selling Ground Control adapters with enhanced control software. These
external adapters can be used with any Acorn desktop computer including
the A3010, A3020 and A4000, but not the A4. The new software supports
page cacheing and automatic keyword searching of pages, as they are
received. Only a few of these adapters are available, and the adapter
with software costs ú130 +VAT from Octopus Systems.
8.1
Å  The Times TableáÖáHazelnut Specialist Educational Software have
produced some multimedia software aimed at providing a fun way to learn
your tables Ö from ╫2 to ╫12. Six discs and an explanatory leaflet will
cost you ú30 + ú2.50 p&p (no VAT) from Hazelnut Software.
8.1
Å  Trellis Ö a new adventure interpreter from Soft Rock Software, using
the TScript adventure description language designed for text-based
adventures and intended to provide an easy way for people to write their
own adventure games. Trellis costs ú7.99 inclusive from Soft Rock
Software.
8.1
Å  Windows 3.1 Ö If you need Windows 3.1, we can supply it for ú110 inc
VAT or, if you donæt mind an OEM version, we have one for ú70.
8.1