Amiga DTV CD
€ £19.95 € Almathera Systems € 0181 687 0040

This new compilation is aimed directly at Amiga desktop video fans but should also find favour with Amiga users who are interested in multimedia. Top of the contents list is an impressive collection of DTV-orientated utilities sourced from a variety of Public Domain libraries. The utilities on offer include ImageStudio, MainActor, VTimer and a wide range of lesser known PD video ones.

The range of DTV support files is equally impressive with the usual selection of 3D objects (in both Lightwave and Imagine format), scanned backdrops (in AGA and ECS formats), bitmapped (colour and mono) fonts, outline fonts and clip art taking centre stage. Highly recommended.

"The Amiga DTV CD is an absolutely invaluable source of video-related Public Domain and backdrop images."

CAM COLLECTION
€ £24.95 € Almathera Systems € 0181 687 0040

CAM is a French-Canadian Amiga Public Domain collection put together by the Club Amiga Montreal (CAM). Although many of the files on the disc can be found in other Public Domain collections (notably the Fred Fish library), most of the material is original. CAM have tried their best to concentrate on disks with a specific theme (music, DTP, games and so on).

Running from a friendly AmigaGuide-based menu system, over 950 disks have been archived on to the two CAM discs. Some of the programs show their French-origins just a little too much with many of the instructions in French but CAM have tried their best to provide English translations too.

"A veritable treasure trove of original Amiga PD software. This disc is a must for all serious Amiga Public Domain fans."

NEXUS PRO
€ £TBA € Videoworld Multimedia € 0141 641 1142

CD-ROM discs packed with scanned images are hardly a new concept but few are as polished as this offering from Videoworld Multimedia. Aimed at multimedia producers, the disc contains hundreds of high-quality scanned images in a variety of different formats and resolutions including full 24-bit JPEGs, 256-colour IFFs and GIFs.

Taken from the Nexus Pro range of background images (which were previously sold on floppy disk), all the images have been designed as backdrops for both multimedia and video work and, as such, are hardly works of art in their own right. That said, the scan quality is second to none making this one of the best collections of images ever compiled for the Amiga. Also on the disc are 470 CompuGraphic outline fonts and 100 assorted sound samples.

"A very professionally produced and well designed collection of extremely high-quality backdrop images."

PD GALORE
€ £19.95 € Express PD € 0116 2559711

It seems that virtually every Amiga PD company is dipping its corporate toes in the murky waters of CD-ROM these days. 17Bit, PD Soft and Virus Free PD are just three PD libraries that have taken the plunge in CD-ROM technology. Hot on their heels is Express PD with their PD Galore compilation, a CD-ROM containing the entire range of PD disks from this premier PD supplier. Most of the programs on the disc can be accessed either via a nicely produced menu system which decompresses PD to floppy disk or directly from the Workbench.

There's the usual selection of games, demos, animations, music modules and fonts. None of the files are particularly original - if you already own a PD compilation, the chances are that you'll already own most of the files on offer. For first-time CD buyers, however, PD Galore is well worth considering.

"With this collection of programs you can have your own PD library without breaking the bank!"