Archive Magazine 1996/ARCHIVE_96.iso/text/magazine/volume_06/issue_12

Text File | 1995-06-25 | 277KB | 5,655 lines

Past, Present...
6.12
In my editorial comment in July 1990, I was reminiscing about way
Acornæs computers had developed over the years. I looked back to July
1980 when I had gone to 4A Market Hill and bought my Acorn Atom which
had 2Kb of RAM  Ö 1Kb for the screen and 1Kb for program and data! I
mentioned that it was July 1987 when I first saw the Archimedes with its
1Mb RAM and noted that, in 1990, 1Mb was not nearly enough RAM. I then
mused öI wonder where we will be in July 1993?ò
6.12
So, as I write, in July 1993, where are we? I thought it would be fun to
give an over-view of the last 13 years and see if we can make some
inspired guesses as to the future.
6.12
    Date    Computer    Processor    RAM
screen RAM    ROM    Floppy drive    Hard drive
6.12
    1980    Atom    1MHz 6502    2KbÖ16Kb
1Kb    8Kb OS+8Kb Basic    Tape only!
Whasat?!
6.12
    1982    BBC A/B    1MHz 6502    16Kb/32Kb
1KbÖ20Kb    16Kb OS+16Kb Basic    100Kb
Whasat?!
6.12
    1986    Master 128    1MHz 6502    128Kb
1KbÖ20Kb    128Kb OS+Basic+Apps    640Kb    5/
10Mb
6.12
    1987    A310    8MHz ARM2    512Kb/1Mb
160Kb    512Kb OS+Basic    800Kb
20Mb
6.12
    1989    A4xx/1    8MHz ARM2    1Ö4Mb
320Kb    1Mb OS+Basic    800Kb
20Mb
6.12
    1990    A540    26MHz ARM3    4Ö16Mb
320Kb    1Mb OS+Basic    800Kb
100Mb
6.12
    1991    A5000    25MHz ARM3    2Ö4 Mb
320Kb    2Mb OS+Basic+Apps    1.6Mb
40Mb
6.12
    1992    A3/4000    12MHz ARM250    1Ö4 Mb
320Kb    2Mb OS+Basic+Apps    1.6Mb
60Mb
6.12
    1994    Axxx?    33/50MHz ARM700    1Ö256 Mb
2Mb    2Mb OS+Basic+Apps    1.6Mb
200Mb
6.12
    Increase?    ╫300    ╫16,000    ╫2,000
╫500    ╫16    ╫40
6.12
    2000    Awhat?    150MHz ARM1000    4Gb
128Mb    10Mb OS + Apps    10Mb
200Gb
6.12
 ...and Future
6.12
The figures for 1994 are a relatively inspired guess but the figures for
the year 2000 are obviously just a stab in the dark Ö but it will be fun
to look back in 7 years time and see how far off I was!
6.12
When I was talking to Roger Wilson about this the other day (says he,
name-dropping heavily!) he reckoned that the exponential growth in the
80æs would not be mirrored in the 90æs. His reasoning behind this was
that, in the 80æs, the technological increase in the microcomputer world
was helped by the technology Éfalling downæ from the minicomputer world.
In the 90æs, the microcomputer development is using leading-edge
technology and so it will probably not be quite so dramatic.
6.12
What changes will take place over the next few years? Well, the trend
towards lower power devices, which is being led very effectively by
Acornæs RISC technology, is bound to bring more steps forward in the
realm of hand-held and portable devices. The Apple Newton, which uses
the ARM610, is the first of an exciting new generation of computers.
6.12
The other area where we can expect change is networking. The coming of
Econet in the early 80æs gave us data transfer at up to about 200Kbits/s
(i.e. about 25Kb/s). Ethernet now gives us 10Mbits/s but this increase
of ╫50 doesnæt really match up to the increase in the size of
applications and data being thrown around. However, ATM (asynchronous
transmission mode) should soon improve things to 100Mbits/s and more. I
hope we may have an article about this soon.
6.12
I think the next few years are going to be very interesting. My job is
to see that Archive magazine continues to keep you in touch with all the
latest developments.
6.12
Products Available
6.12
Å    Acorn have moved Ö Acorn Computersæ new address is Acorn House, Vision
Park, Histon, Cambridge, CB4 4AE. The telephone numbers all remain
unchanged Ö switchboard: 0223Ö254254 and fax is on 0223Ö254262. Vision
Park is appropriately named as the place from which Acorn will be
delivering their new ÉVision for the Futureæ... watch this space!
6.12
Å    Alpha-Sound from Xavier Educational Software Ltd (ú29.50 +VAT) helps
children with their letter/sound correspondence and alphabet sequencing.
Sampled speech is used throughout and the teacher has control over the
selection of letters and sounds. It provides printed report sheets for
some tasks.
6.12
Å    ARM3 upgrade upgrades! Ö If you have got an ARM3 upgrade without an
fpa socket, we are prepared to do a part-exchange on your old ARM3.
There isnæt much of a market for second-hand ARM3æs without fpa socket,
but we are prepared to offer ú60 off your old ARM3 against one of the
new ones. If anyone then wants to buy these second-hand ARM3æs we will
sell them at ú75. (We have to add VAT to the ú60, = ú70.50, before we
add anything for admin and postage.) The part-exchange price for the
ARM3 + fpa would therefore be ú185 + ú107 Ö ú60 = ú232.
6.12
Å    Artworks and Impression are available in a new dongle-less version for
network use. It now works with all the new Ethernet cards including i│,
Beebug and Digital Services as well as Acorn, Atomwide, Oak and SJ Nexus
cards that they worked with previously.
6.12
Å    Back trouble? Ö Anyone who has back trouble and is doing a reasonable
amount of computer work should consider buying a decent chair. For over
five years now, I have been using a Stokke Wing chair Ö see opposite. In
fact, I have two Ö one in the office and one at home. Iæm always singing
their praises to people who visit me. I find that if I ever have to use
a conventional office chair for any length of time, I get back-ache
whereas I can (and do) sit on my Wings (so to speak!) for hours on end
without tiring.
6.12
öIf they are so good, why donæt you sell them?ò someone said to me
recently. Why indeed?! So, I have made an arrangement with an importer
(they are Scandinavian chairs Ö you might guess!) and I can sell them
for ú320 inclusive. They have a five-caster base so you can move around
easily and a gas-lift mechanism so that you can adjust the height for
the best position relative to your monitor and keyboard. The chairs are
extremely robust and the material with which they are covered is very
good quality. The one I use in the office is just beginning to wear a
bit thin on one side of the knee-pad after over four years of constant
use.
6.12
Iæm so confident that you will be pleased with them that I will give you
a full refund if you buy one and find you donæt like it. You may feel
that ú320 is a lot of money for a chair but as far as I am concerned, it
is a kind of insurance policy Ö keeping my back in good condition Ö and
Iæm prepared to pay for that. I can say from personal experience that
they are very long-lasting but in any case, they come with a five-year
guarantee (although this does not apply to the covering material).
6.12
The Wing chairs come in natural beech, rosewood and teak and the covers
are available in black, blue, brown, red, cream or grey.
6.12
Å    CIS prices Ö The special offer that we had last month for some of the
Cambridge International Software packages has finished but C.I.S. have
had a general price drop. New prices are as follows:
6.12
Serpents    ú10
6.12
KillerBugs    ú10
6.12
Humanoids & Robotics    ú10
6.12
CardMania    ú10
6.12
MicroDrive II    ú19
6.12
MicroDrive Designer    ú19
6.12
Mah Jong    ú10
6.12
Crisis    ú10
6.12
FireBall II    ú10
6.12
Chequered Flag    ú10
6.12
TurboType    ú19
6.12
Sound-FX Maker    ú19
6.12
Photopia    ú23
6.12
E-Numix    ú10
6.12
Mental Maths & Memory Magic    ú10
6.12
Å    DataPower is Iotaæs new database for RISC OS computers. Amongst other
features, it has support for ArtWorks files, so that they can be stored
directly in a database file. All pictures stored using DataPower
(including drawfiles and sprites) are compressed Éon the flyæ, so
storing them in a database file saves you disc space. Datapower costs
ú149 from Iota or ú160 through Archive. Site licences are available from
Archive at ú375 for up to 10 machines and ú650 for more than 10
machines.
6.12
Å    Diet Manager (updated) Ö For the weight-conscious Archimedes owners,
this multitasking application will allow you to keep track of all those
calories (and proteins and fats). It also gives information about
energy, carbohydrates, fibre, vitamins and minerals contained in
individual foods, complete meals or diets. This updated program from
MEWsoft costs ú55 inclusive.
6.12
Å    Eizo monitor pricing Ö It wasnæt a ploy to get you to buy monitors
quickly, honestly! Eizo did say that the prices were going to be
increased on 1st August. They then said they were trying to avoid
raising prices. Now they are saying that there will be öa number of
changes in our price list from the 1st September.ò All I can do is
report to you what they are saying.
6.12
Å    FontDir Ö LOOKsystemsæ font filing system, as mentioned several times
already in Archive, has reached the stage that the program is ready but
the full documentation has still to be written. Brian Cowan has a pre-
release version and has reviewed it Ö see page 13. When it is released,
the price will be ú35 inc VAT from LOOKsystems or ú33 through Archive.
6.12
LOOKsystems are not predicting when the manual will be ready, so anyone
desperate to get hold a copy of FontDir can have a pre-release copy, as
supplied to Brian Cowan, by sending ú33 to Archive. We have arranged
with LOOKsystems that we supply this on the understanding that (1)áit
only has limited documentation, (2)áthe full documentation will be
supplied free of charge by LOOKsystems as and when it is ready, (3)
until the full package is available, you must not contact LOOKsystems
for technical assistance Ö if Adrian is too busy answering technical
calls, the manual will never get written anyway!
6.12
Å    Forms Suite Plus allows you to combine large size and standard text
with lines boxes and grids. You can include drawfiles and sprites into
your form and the resultant form can be saved as a drawfile for
inclusion in DTP packages, etc. Forms Suite Plus costs ú55 inc p&p from
MEWsoft.
6.12
Å    Frontier 2000 Ö öTwo thousand years of history for 8 year olds to
adultò. Cambridge Software House have produced a simulation/resource
package for history that could be useful in the primary classroom, in
the secondary school or in the home. There is a disc version for ú95
+VAT (which needs a 2Mb computer) and a CD-ROM version for ú175 +VAT
which is bigger and better with more paper resources as well as more
computer data. The CD-ROM plus the disc version are available as one
pack for ú195 +VAT.
6.12
Å    Hatchback is a new utility from 4Mation. It allows you, simply and
easily, to add various types of cross-hatching, striping and patterning
into drawfiles. Hatchback costs ú35 from 4Mation or ú38 through Archive.
6.12
Å    Keystroke is a new desktop utility which allows you to perform a range
of desktop activities, including using existing desktop programs like
Impression by just pressing keys. For example, at a single keystroke you
can call up Impression master pages and go straight to the master page
you want to edit. You can add auto-save to those applications that lack
it. You can even make up your own button bar. It comes with example
files of keystroke definitions for Filer, Paint, Draw, DrawPlus,
TypeStudio, Vector, WorraCAD, Ovation and Impression amongst other.
Keystroke is available from Quantum Software. (This software was brought
to our attention by a subscriber, Richard Skemp, who thinks it is
ösimple, powerful and very usefulò.)
6.12
Å    Mac removable drives Ö The 42Mb and 84Mb removable drives have had a
major drop in prices this month. The 42Mb has dropped from ú485 to ú410
and the 84Mb has dropped from ú670 to ú550! (This is the drive that will
read and write both the 42Mb and the 84Mb cartridges.) The prices
include cables (please specify podule type) and one cartridge. The 42Mb
cartridges stay at ú75 but the 84Mb cartridges go down from ú120 to
ú100. This price drop has probably been precipitated by the arrival
of...
6.12
Å    New 105M 3╜ö removable drives Ö There is now a 3╜ò removable drive
from the same manufacturer (SyQuest) as the well-established 5╝ö units.
The new drives have a formatted capacity of 105Mb. We have had a brief
opportunity to try one and they seem to be much faster than even the
84Mb drives. Here is a summary of the quoted specification plus our own
observations (in italics):
6.12
    42Mb    84Mb    105Mb
6.12
Size    5╝ö    5╝ò    3╜ö
6.12
Speed (rpm)    3,200    3,200
3,600
6.12
Ave access (ms)20    20    15
6.12
Buffer size (Kb)    8    32    64
6.12
Transfer rate (Kb/s)    590
900    1370
6.12
öFile copyò test (Kb/s)    45    47
60
6.12
Max power (W)    28    28    6
6.12
Ave power (W)    13    13    3.5
6.12
Cartridge weight (g)    183
183    79
6.12
Drive price (ext)    ú410    ú550
ú570
6.12
Media    ú75    ú100    ú75
6.12
Cost/Mb    ú1.79    ú1.19    71p
6.12
As you can see, the price of the 105Mb drives is very similar to the
84Mb drives and the media, as well as holding slightly more data per
disc, are somewhat cheaper (ú75 compared with ú110) and especially so
when you works out the price per Mb (71p cf ú1.19).
6.12
The internal units look like being ú490 each and they fit perfectly into
a normal second floppy drive slot. This mean that owners of A5000s can
put one in the second floppy drive slot Ö a wonderfully neat solution
for anyone who is looking for more data storage (who isnæt?!) and/or who
is concerned about backup of their existing drive and/or data security
in, say, a school environment. A310/A400/A540 owners could also install
an internal 105Mb removable although only as an alternative to the
internal hard drive. Also, you would have to hack a hole in the fascia
of your computer. (I have three spare two-slot fascias available for ú10
each, if anyone wants them but I am using the fourth one for my own
A540! Ed.)
6.12
The other significant comparison between the 5╝ö and the 3╜ò removables
is that the smaller drives only take a maximum of 6W power compared with
28W for the larger ones. Anyone who has, like me, felt nervous at the
temperature that their removable cartridges reached on a hot summeræs
day, should be well pleased with these new drives Ö and the external
units donæt need Éwind tunnelæ sized cooling fans!
6.12
These drives really look superb. When you see them, you really cannot
believe that such a small unit could hold so much data and be so fast.
Obviously, as these are new devices, I cannot say anything about the
long-term reliability but the manufacturer claims the same ömean time
between failuresò (100,000 hours) as for the older drives.
6.12
öWhat about magneto-optical drives? They are 3╜ö and hold 128Mb and the
discs are cheaper!ò The trouble with optical drives is that they can
only manage 675Kb/s on reading and about 250Kb/s on writing (cf 1,370Kb/
s on both) and the average access time is only about 40ms (cf 15ms).
Also, although the discs would cost about ú40 each (cf ú75), the drives
themselves would cost about ú1,100 instead of ú570.
6.12
öThey look very nice and I would like to buy one but will the price drop
five minutes after I have bought it? The 42Mb drives were ú680 when you
first sold them!ò No, I donæt think it will, not for a few months,
anyway. The thing is that I am gambling that the buying price will be
dropping at least a little, so what I have done is to set the Archive
price as low as I dare, allowing only a very small profit margin. That
way, I can hopefully sell larger numbers initially and then, if the
buying price does drop a little, it will bring it back to a more
realistic profit margin. I cannot (sadly!) predict the future, but my
guess is that it will be several months before the Archive price will
drop. On the other hand, if I get several early orders, I might be able
to force the buying price down a bit Ö in which case, everyone will get
the resultant lower selling price. So, if you are prepared to have a go
with one of these new drives, send in your order as soon as possible Ö I
will wait a week or so, to see what other orders I get and whether I
can, as a result, reduce the price.
6.12
I shall certainly be going over to using them myself. For the last six
months, I have had to carry two 42Mb cartridges back and forth every day
Ö one isnæt enough and I didnæt feel I could justify the cost of going
to 84Mb. However, the step up in size/speed/convenience ratio that these
new drives represent is certainly worthwhile for me. I will obviously
let you know how I get on with them.
6.12
(Many thanks to David Bower, one of our subscribers, for bringing these
exciting new drives to our attention. Ed.)
6.12
Å    Pictogram is a program from KudlianSoft that teaches children the use
of graphs for representing data. This is aimed at Key Stage 1 data-
handling. The datafiles it uses are compatible with DataPlot in
DataSweet. Pictogram costs ú20 +VAT from KudlianSoft but this price
includes a site licence.
6.12
Å    RemoteFS no longer comes with both serial and parallel cables as
standard. You have to choose which type you require. The Archive prices
are Serial ú53 and Parallel ú53 but if you do want both, you can have
Serial + Parallel for ú64.
6.12
Å    RISCáOS 3.1 upgrades Ö Acorn have now withdrawn the A5000 RISCáOS 3.1
upgrade. (They have already sold several times as many copies of this
upgrade as A5000s with RISCáOS 3.0!) The only upgrade available now is
the full upgrade (Archive price ú50 inc carriage) which includes manuals
and has the software on two 800Kb discs instead of one 1.6Mb disc.
6.12
Å    ScanLight Video 256 Ö This is a greyscale scanner and video digitiser,
combined on a single card Ö what a good idea! It combines the Computer
Concepts ScanLight 256 scanner (5.4 p30) and the Wild Vision GreyHawk
video digitiser (6.9 p7) on one single-width expansion card. The scanner
is a 400 dpi, 256 grey level scanner and the digitiser offers real-time
greyscale video digitising from any video source with quarter screen
real-time previewing.
6.12
The individual products will continue to be available and upgrades are
possible from either the scanner or digitiser to the combined ScanLight
Video. Upgrade pricing and details are available from Computer Concepts
or Wild Vision. The new ScanLight Video costs ú220 + VAT + carriage or
ú245 through Archive.
6.12
Å    Sleuth Ö Risc Developmentsæ OCR program, Sleuth, is in stock now. We
hope to have a review of it fairly soon. The price is ú49 +VAT from Risc
Developments or ú54 through Archive.
6.12
Å    Stunt Racer 2000 Ö In the year 2037, the world of motor sport has
developed somewhat. Will your driving skills match up to the demands of
the 16 courses across a variety of terrains doing jumps and loop the
loops? 4th Dimensionæs new racing game works on 1Mb machines and will
install onto a hard disc. Stunt Racer 2000 costs ú34.95 from 4th
Dimension or ú32 through Archive.
6.12
Å    Soapbox from Xavier Educational Software Ltd (ú35 +VAT) links spelling
patterns and vowel sounds by using sampled speech. As each word is
pronounced, the consonant pattern is emphasised by highlighting and
contrasts are made between words with short and long vowel sounds. 400
words are included but you can add your own words by using a sound
sampler such as the Oak Recorder.
6.12
Å    Sound Advice Ö This is a new 24-track sequencer for the Archimedes
produced by The Really Small Software Company. It includes support for
both Midi and the internal sound system allowing up to 32 internal
sounds in a song. It is pattern-based with the number of patterns
limited only by memory. It runs on a 1Mb Archimedes and costs ú39.95
inclusive from TRSSC with an education price of ú31.95.
6.12
Å    The Dungeon Ö 4th Dimension have produced a new 3D adventure game
which works on 2Mb machines and will install onto a hard disc. The plot
is that you have fallen through a hole into a subterranean world
inhabited by all sorts of weird and wonderful creatures, most of whom
need to be avoided or fought. It has an option for ARM3 machines to
benefit from improved smoothness of animation. The Dungeon costs ú34.95
from 4th Dimension or ú32 through Archive.
6.12
Å    Turbo drivers Ö Computer Concepts have said that their Turbo Drivers
for the HP Deskjet, Deskjet Plus, Deskjet colour and Laserjet 2, 3 and 4
are definitely now available. Their Epson Stylus 800 Turbo Driver is
also available now.
6.12
Å    Word Library is a program from KudlianSoft that provides a small
window containing a list of words which, when clicked upon, can be
entered into any desktop application which accepts text. This can be
used up to secondary level and is particularly useful within modern
languages. Word Library costs ú20 +VAT from KudlianSoft but this price
includes a site licence.
6.12
Review software received...
6.12
We have received review copies of the following: 1st Paint (e), Alpha-
Sound (e), ArcVenture III Ö The Vikings (e), ArtSchool (ea), BookStore
(e), CardMania (g), Choices (e), Control Logo (e), DataPower (ue), E-
Numix (e), Frontier 2000 (e), Games Wizard and The Hacker for comparison
(g), Gestalt 2 Ö Money & Shopping (e), Gestalt 2 Ö Time & Fractions (e),
Hatchback (a), KiddiCAD (e), Letters (e), Mini Expansion Adaptor (h),
Primary Nature (e), Programming book: Archimedes Game Makeræs Manual,
Sea, Trade & Empire (e), Serpents (g), Soapbox (e), Sounds & Rhymes (e),
Splash (ea), Switch (g), Tiles (e), TOM computer simulator (e) (6.5 p9),
Visual Backup (u).
6.12
e=Education, g=Game, h=Hardware, l=Language, m=Music, u=Utility,
a=Art.ááA
6.12
Norwich Computer Services 96a Vauxhall Street, Norwich, NR2 2SD.
0603Ö766592 (Ö764011)
6.12
4th Dimension     P.O. Box 4444, Sheffield. (0742Ö700661) (0742Ö781091)
6.12
4Mation     11 Castle Park Road, Whiddon Valley, Barnstaple, Devon, EX32
8PA. (0271Ö25353) (0271Ö22974)
6.12
Abacus Training     29 Okus Grove, Upper Stratton, Swindon, Wilts, SN2
6QA.
6.12
Acorn Computers Ltd     Acorn House,
Vision Park, Histon, Cambridge, CB4 4AE. (0223Ö254254) (0223Ö254262)
6.12
Arnor Ltd     611 Lincoln Road, Peterborough, PE1 3HA. (0733Ö68909)
(0733Ö67299)
6.12
Atomwide Ltd     7 The Metro Centre, Bridge Road, Orpington, Kent, BR5 2BE.
(0689Ö838852) (0689Ö896088)
6.12
Cambridge International Software     8 Herbrand
Street, Russell Square, London, WC1N 1HZ. (071Ö278Ö5136) (071Ö837Ö6077)
6.12
Cambridgeshire Software House       7 Free
Church Passage, St Ives, PE17 4AY. (0480Ö467945) (0480Ö496442)
6.12
Coin-Age Ltd     23 Cooper Street, Nelson, Lancashire BB9 7XW.
6.12
Colton Software (p25)    2 Signet
Court, Swanns Road, Cambridge, CB5 8LA. (0223Ö311881) (0223Ö312010)
6.12
Computer Concepts (pp16/19)    Gaddesden
Place, Hemel Hempstead, Herts, HP2 6EX. (0442Ö63933) (0442Ö231632)
6.12
Dalriada Data Technology (p18)     145 Albion
Street, Kenilworth, Warkwickshire, CV8 2FY. (0926Ö53901)
6.12
Datafile     71 Anson Road, Locking, Weston-super-Mare, Avon, BS24 7DQ.
(0934Ö823005)
6.12
Eizo UK Ltd     Unit 7, Genesis Business Park, Albert Drive, Sheerwater,
Woking, GU21 5RW. (0483Ö757118) (0483Ö757121)
6.12
ICS     1 Kington Road, West Kirby, Wirral, L48 5ET. (051Ö625Ö1006)
(051Ö625Ö1007)
6.12
Iota Software Ltd     St Johnæs
Innovation Centre, Cowley Road, Cambridge, CB4 4WS. (0223Ö421542)
(0223Ö421543)
6.12
Klein Computers     Ha▀locherstrasse 73, D-6090 Rⁿsselsheim, Germany.
(010Ö49Ö6142Ö81131) (010Ö49Ö6142Ö81256)
6.12
Kudlian Soft     8 Barrow Road, Kenilworth, Warwickshire, CV8á1EH.
(0926Ö851147)
6.12
Lambda Publications (p12)    194 Cheney
Manor Road, Swindon SN2 2NZ. (0793Ö695296)
6.12
Longman-Logotron     124 Cambridge Science Park, Milton Road, Cambridge CB4
4ZS. (0223Ö425558) (0223Ö425349)
6.12
LOOKsystems (pp40/41)    47 Goodhale
Road, Bowthorpe, Norwich, NR5 9AY. (0603Ö764114) (0603Ö764011)
6.12
MEWsoft     11 Cressy Road, London, NW3 2NB. (071Ö267Ö2642) (071Ö482Ö6452)
6.12
Minerva Systems     Minerva House, Baring Crescent, Exeter, EX1 1TL.
(0392Ö437756) (0392Ö421762)
6.12
New Era Software     204 High Street, Woodville, Swadlincote, Derbyshire,
DE11 7DT. (0283Ö812818)
6.12
Oak Solutions (p20)    Broadway
House, 149Ö151 St Neots Road, Hardwick, Cambridge, CB3 7QJ.
(0954Ö211760) (0954Ö211760)
6.12
O.U. Maths Education Centre    The Open
University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA. (0908Ö274066)
(0908Ö653744)
6.12
PEP Associates     34 Tiverton Way, Cambridge, CB1 3TU. (0223Ö212251)
6.12
Quantum Software     35 Pinewood Park, Deans, Livingston, EH54 8NN.
(0506Ö411162 after 6)
6.12
Rheingold Enterprises     7
Waterbridge Court, Appleton, Warrington, WA4 3BJ. (0925Ö210657)
6.12
Risc Developments     117 Hatfield
Road, St Albans, Herts, AL1 4JS. (0727Ö840303) (0727Ö860263)
6.12
Silica Software Systems     Mallards,
Lower Hardres, Canterbury, Kent, CT4 5NU. (0227Ö700279)
6.12
System Insight     Unit 1-3, East Burrowfield, Welwyn Garden City, Herts,
AL7 4TB. (0707Ö395500) (0707Ö395501)
6.12
The Really Small Software Company     Olivers
Hill, Ashburnham, Battle, Sussex, TN33 9PE. (0435Ö830467 Ö eve & w/e)
6.12
The Serial Port     Burcott Manor, Wells, Somerset, BA5 1NH. (0749Ö670058)
6.12
UK Software     38 Midlands Estate, West End, Southampton, SO3 3AD.
(0703Ö474681)
6.12
Wyddfa Software     3 Preswylfa, Llanberis, Gwynedd, LL55 4LF.
(0286Ö870101) (0286Ö871722)
6.12
Xavier Educational Software Ltd     Dept of
Psychology, 37 College Road, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2DG. (0248Ö351151)
(0248Ö364412)
6.12
Paul Beverley
6.12
O.U. Maths Education Centre    The Open
University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA. (0908Ö274066)
(0908Ö653744)
6.12
PEP Associates     34 Tiverton Way, Cambridge, CB1 3TU. (0223Ö212251)
6.12
Quantum Software     35 Pinewood Park, Deans, Livingston, EH54 8NN.
(0506Ö411162 after 6)
6.12
Rheingold Enterprises     7
Waterbridge Court, Appleton, Warrington, WA4 3BJ. (0925Ö210657)
6.12
Risc Developments     117 Hatfield
Road, St Albans, Herts, AL1 4JS. (0727Ö840303) (0727Ö860263)
6.12
Silica Software Systems     Mallards,
Lower Hardres, Canterbury, Kent, CT4 5NU. (0227Ö700279)
6.12
System Insight     Unit 1-3, East Burrowfield, Welwyn Garden City, Herts,
AL7 4TB. (0707Ö395500) (0707Ö395501)
6.12
The Really Small Software Co.     Olivers
Hill, Ashburnham, Battle, Sussex, TN33 9PE. (0435Ö830467 Ö eve & w/e)
6.12
The Serial Port     Burcott Manor, Wells, Somerset, BA5 1NH. (0749Ö670058)
6.12
UK Software     38 Midlands Estate, West End, Southampton, SO3 3AD.
(0703Ö474681)
6.12
Wyddfa Software     3 Preswylfa, Llanberis, Gwynedd, LL55 4LF.
(0286Ö870101) (0286Ö871722)
6.12
Xavier Educational Software Ltd    Dept of
Psychology, 37 College Road, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2DG. (0248Ö351151)
(0248Ö364412)
6.12
Government Health Warning Ö Reading this could seriously affect your
spiritual health.
6.12
No, donæt worry, the God-slot hasnæt got pushed out by pressure from
those who donæt like it! The main editorial bit was a bit too big Ö but
it was a bit exciting, too, wasnæt it? Just think, a 33/50MHz ARM700,
machine with up to 128Mb of RAM! Wow!! Oh, sorry, where was I? Oh,
yes...
6.12
What I want to say this month is perhaps more for those who would call
themselves Christians. Iásimply want to give a little testimony of what
God has been doing in my life lately and offer to share the means by
which God has been pouring out his blessing on us here in Norwich.
6.12
About 9 years ago, I listened to a series of eight taped talks by Colin
Urquhart, entitled öHow to Love and be Lovedò Ö that is öloveò in the
Christian sense, of course. God used those talks to change my life in a
wonderful way. There was no revolutionary new teaching in them Ö just
basic biblical teaching about Godæs love for us and how we can learn to
love him and to love others.
6.12
Through those talks, I came into a deeper knowledge of Godæs love Ö and
so did many other people in our church who studied the tapes. And so,
because the talks were so helpful, we typed them up and made them into a
48-page booklet so that they could be shared more widely.
6.12
Recently, I met up with a couple of folk at church who would, I thought,
benefit from listening to these tapes. These friends have, indeed,
benefited from the talks but, as a bonus, God has once again given me a
new depth of love for Him and for others.
6.12
öOh, noò, my friends say, öPaulæs in one of his enthusiastic modes
again!ò Listen! Wouldnæt you be enthusiastic if you believed that the
God who created the whole universe actually loved you enough to live in
you and to fill you with his resources of love, so that you could share
it with others? I believe it and I am full of praise to God for all he
has done for me and is doing for other people, too.
6.12
I have now re-printed the booklets so that I can share them with others.
If you would like a copy, just write in and ask for one Ö it would be my
pleasure to send you one free of charge. (Mind you, I wouldnæt refuse a
small contribution towards the printing costs. Because we only did a
small print run, they work out at almost ú2 each to produce. Thanks,
Paul Beverley.)
6.12
Reader Survey
6.12
As part of our efforts to improve and develop our services, we are
asking Archive Subscribers to help us by taking part in a Customer
Service Survey. We would be grateful if you could spend a short while
completing the questionnaire enclosed with the magazine.
6.12
We would like to know how you view the quality of the services we
currently provide and whether there are any comments or suggestions you
would like to make about any aspect of Norwich Computer Services or
Archive Magazine.
6.12
(Even if you do not intend to re-subscribe, we would value your response
to the questionnaire.)
6.12
We hope you will support us in this and trust that, in due course, you
will benefit personally from any developments arising from the
questionnaire results.
6.12
As a Écarrotæ, we are offering to send a free Archive mug for each of
the first 200 responses we receive in the Archive office Ö donæt forget
to put your name and subscription number clearly somewhere on the form
if you would like a mug.
6.12
Many thanks, in anticipation of your assistance,
6.12
Paul Beverley
6.12
Chair picture (trimmed to fit)
6.12
Man on chair picture
6.12
Hardware Column
6.12
Brian Cowan
6.12
Once again we have a mix of goodies and baddies. But first a correction
Ö in my rush to get the latest information into last monthæs column, I
overlooked a typing error which might have misled readers.
6.12
Correction
6.12
As I said last month, the Computer Conceptsæ Colourcard comes in two
versions. Apparently, they had to produce a second version because of
difficulty in obtaining some of the components used in the initial
design. What I meant to say in the last Hardware Column was that the
mode designer software can not be used with version one cards; it only
works with version two. Sorry for any confusion I may have caused.
6.12
Ageing floppy disc drives
6.12
I purchased some of the first A300 and A400 series Archimedes computers.
These have been running for quite some time now, permitting me to
observe and report on patterns of malfunctions. You might recall that
there was a whole batch of the original 20Mb ST506 hard discs which had
a very short life. Now a problem with floppy disc drives has occurred.
6.12
With both the original A440 machines, the floppy disc drive stopped
working. One of my students dismantled the first drive and discovered a
small piece of stainless steel sheet about one centimetre square
rattling about in the mechanism. When this was removed the drive
functioned perfectly and it continues to do so. The disc drive on the
second machine ceased to function and, acting on a hunch, I gave the
machine a good shaking with the front pointing downwards. After a few
moments a similar offending square of stainless steel fell from the
computer. Apparently it is a protective cover which goes over the head
magnet. Presumably, the adhesive dried out with age and the thing fell
off. The drives seem to function OK without the covers, so I have not
tried to re-stick them.
6.12
So, if you encounter a floppy drive failure it might not be completely
fatal. The funny thing about this is that the various A300 machines,
which are older, have not exhibited this problem. (If you do have a
fatality, we do have replacement drives in stock and they are quite easy
to fit. The A310/440 type are ú102 and the newer 400/1 types are ú83.
Ed.)
6.12
Monitors
6.12
While we are on the subject of the ravages of time, you might be
interested to know that two of the Acorn Multisync AKF18 monitors, as
supplied with the A5000, have died on us. Luckily, both failed within
their guarantee year and so they were repaired/replaced free of charge.
This is certainly a worrying trend. The one similar monitor which has
not failed will shortly become one year old; if it dies soon after that
I will be very annoyed!
6.12
One of the benefits of buying from a reputable dealer rather than a
Ébox-shifteræ was that, in both cases, we were lent a replacement
monitor while the dead one was being serviced.
6.12
Just for the record, all the original Acorn standard monitors are
functioning, even if the screen resolution is pretty grotty. Also, the
various Eizo monitors have given no problems. One Taxan 795 needed to be
repaired (outside of guarantee), when I had to pay about ú60 to have an
electrolytic capacitor replaced. (This reflects our experience in this
area of monitor reliability. We have hardly ever had Eizo monitors in
for repair but the AKF18æs have an unenviable reputation Ö but Acorn are
looking alternatives. Ed.)
6.12
Keyboards
6.12
Apart from the A4 portable, as yet, all Acorn ARM machines have
interchangeable keyboards. (Notwithstanding the Acorn employee at the
last Acorn User Show who swore blind that the A5000 keyboard was PC-
compatible.) So, in my laboratory the computers and keyboards are
thoroughly mixed up. Some of the old A300 keyboards are showing their
age with keys sticking or even Éfiringæ when not pressed. I guess that,
at some stage, some will have to be replaced. Or I might investigate the
PC to Archimedes keyboard converter; I know that at least one is
available. (Do tell us about it please, someone Ö it would be very
useful. Ed.)
6.12
There is a strange problem which I have encountered with keyboards, but
I donæt know if it is a hardware or a software fault. Often, the
capslock key seems to stop functioning. I observe this particularly when
using Impression, but maybe that is because I mostly use the capslock
key with Impression. Is it really the case that this particular key is
liable to malfunction or is there another explanation for this
phenomenon?
6.12
Bubble jet printers
6.12
In January, I purchased a Canon BJ200 bubble jet printer together with
the Computer Concepts Turbo Driver. I have sung the praises of this
system before; using standard photocopy paper, the print quality is good
and with the recommended paper (more expensive) it is superb. The Turbo
Driver software makes using the thing a doddle. Last week my ink
cartridge ran out. This was particularly annoying since I had no warning
of the impending expiry. I have learned my lesson and, in future, I will
have another in readiness. But the fact that I had no warning,
highlights one of the good points about bubble jet printers Ö the print
quality remains constant throughout the entire life of the cartridge.
This is in contrast to dot matrix printers where the print quality gets
progressively worse and you change the ribbon only when you canæt see
it. With my BJ printer, the ink ran out half way down the page. The top
half was printed perfectly and the bottom half was blank.
6.12
More FPA
6.12
Only one of my computers has an FPA chip installed, as reported last
month. I canæt say that I have experienced a faster öfeelò to the
machine apart from the few benchmark tests I ran, but that is probably
because most desktop applications are cleverly written to use fixed
point arithmetic. Draw does not use floating point, but WorraCad does. I
will soon install another FPA in a machine which is used exclusively for
number crunching. That will give a better indication of the benefits of
an FPA.
6.12
It seems unlikely that any faster versions of the FPA will appear. So I
donæt suppose I will be able to use one in my 30MHz A540. Furthermore,
it does not seem that there will be large numbers of the FPA available.
6.12
Presumably, the main use for the FPA design will be as a macrocell in
later ARM chips. Now that the design is complete and tested, and
particularly if the few bugs are corrected, future ARM CPUs will almost
certainly be available with internal FPA. The question is whether ARM
Ltd will continue to manufacture CPUs without the FPA. If so, then
upgrading to an FPA will simply involve replacement of the existing ARM
CPU.
6.12
SyQuest request
6.12
I have had a few replies to my request for information on the
reliability of SyQuest removable drives. Some people had problems in the
initial stages, getting the thing set up correctly etc, but there have
been very few problems once they are running. One person reported a few
disc errors, but nothing any worse that with conventional hard disc
drives. What has transpired is that the SCSI interface used is of
importance. I use Oak interfaces exclusively and they are superb. I
understand the Acorn interfaces can be a problem. Any more information
would be most welcome. Many of us have experienced the death of a fixed
hard disc drive. What I would like to know Ö forgive me please Ö is
whether anyone has experienced the death of a SyQuest.ááA
6.12
Acorn World Show Report
6.12
Paul Beverley
6.12
I believe that the Acorn World Show 1993 is going to be significant and
so, before I start on the show itself, I am going muse a little on the
whole context of where Acorn is today and where it is going in the
future.
6.12
Excitement
6.12
When Acorn took over the organisation of the main Acorn User Show and
declared that öthings were going to be differentò from now on, I was
somewhat sceptical. (My scepticism is based on many years of experience
Ö Acorn have NEVER been good at promoting themselves.) However, as the
year has progressed and more of Acornæs plans have been revealed, I have
moved from sceptical to mildly optimistic to downright enthusiastic. I
think Acorn really are making a huge effort, through this Show, to break
out of their old mold.
6.12
I am not alone in this view Ö if you read the editorial in the September
issue of Acorn Computing, you will see what I mean. Steve Turnbull
believes that Acorn are öthrusting their way into the markets of Apple
and PC compatiblesò. He believes that Acorn have processors and
computers that ödeliver more power to the user than either of the other
types of machinesò. I share his assessment and his enthusiasm Ö Acorn
and RISC really are important names for the future of computing. But...
6.12
... a note of caution
6.12
Steve Turnbull also goes on to muse about what will happen when Acorn
becomes a third major player alongside PCs and Macs outside the rarefied
atmosphere of education. Acorn have always been a öniceò company and
Acorn third-party suppliers have always been (with one or two notable
exceptions) very öniceò, untainted by the cut-throat attitudes and
activities out in the big, bad world. Steve believes that Apple and PC
companies could enter into a price war in which only the biggest
companies would survive because only they can afford to deliberately
fund huge losses.
6.12
My father-in-law always used to say, öPaul, thereæs no sentiment in
businessò. Now in the Acorn world of today, I donæt think that is the
case Ö there is a spirit of mutual help amongst Acorn developers and
dealers. However, I share Steve Turnbullæs fear that, if Acorn succeed
in their attempts to get out there into the big, bad commercial world,
many of our small, friendly third-party companies (and dealers too) will
get killed in the crush.
6.12
Is there any alternative?
6.12
Still, I donæt actually think we have got much choice but to follow
Acornæs line of slugging it out with the big boys. Macs and PCs are
moving in fast on Acornæs traditional territory of education. I agree
with Mike Williamsæ comments in his editorial in the August/September
issue of Risc User. (That reminds me, I was amused to see that while
R.U. has 10 issues a year, and others have 12, Acorn Computing are going
to exact four-weekly publishing Ö thirteen issues a year! Ö I canæt wait
to see what they call the thirteenth issue!!) Mike points out that LMS
(Local Management of Schools) has meant more power in the hands of the
governors to decide on buying policy. They donæt have much say in the
purchase of text books (thankfully) Ö that is left to the
educationalists who are qualified to make the decisions. But buying
computers involves (relatively) large amounts of money and so they do
get involved. Educational issues get put to one side and the öyouæve got
to be industry standardò lobby gets going. I agree with Mike Ö What is
standard industry? Is DOS standard? Windows? WindowsNT? Unix? Macs?
Word? Lotus? PageMaker? Is there an öindustry standardò network?
6.12
Anyway, I digress. (But thatæs an editoræs privilege Ö no-one can edit
out my ramblings!) All I am saying is that, yes, Acorn are making a real
effort to get out there and mix it Ö they have to or they will lose
their education market Ö but I think we are going to have to work very
hard if we are to maintain the friendly, atmosphere of mutual self-help
that has always pervaded the Acorn world of the past.
6.12
The Acorn World ...of the future
6.12
This is the first of a three or four-part series relating to the Acorn
World Show. The first two will give details of what is planned and the
final part (or two) will be a report of what actually happened.
6.12
Date and venue
6.12
The Acorn World Show will take place in Hall 1 at the Wembley Exhibition
Centre on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 29th to 31st October.
6.12
The theme Ö Vision for the Future
6.12
With the idea of showing the past, the present and the future, Acorn
have again picked up their öVision for the Futureò slogan, as I
mentioned in my editorial last month. Since then, I have gathered that
there will be some sort of ARM700/VIDC20 machine on show but with the
emphasis on it being öThe Futureò, i.e. it wonæt be a saleable product
but they do want to impress us with its capabilities. This is not
Acornæs normal policy as it is likely to hit sales of existing machines.
This Éfutureæ area is being set up with the help of the Science Museum
who are experts in interactive demonstrations Ö as anyone who has
visited the Science Museum recently will certainly be able to confirm.
6.12
Although there wonæt be an ARM700 machine on sale, Acorn will be
launching a new range of computer packages at the show. The two Learning
Curves, the Family Solution and the Home Office will all be superseded
by new bundles of various kinds aimed at different potential customers.
6.12
Features
6.12
The show will feature juggling, face painting and abseiling... Hang on,
I thought this was supposed to be a computer show! It is, but there is
also an emphasis on a fun day out for the whole family. If there is
enough to entertain the less computer-oriented children, the parents can
have more time to spend looking round the exhibits.
6.12
There will certainly be an Education Area, confirming Acornæs commitment
to its traditional market place but there will also be more emphasis on
both consumer and business. In the games arcade, you will find, amongst
other things, a laser light show produced by Laser Graphics who more
often work on pop concerts including one for Elton John.
6.12
The bit about abseiling refers to an exhibit where children (specially
selected ones, not yours!) will be abseiling down a tower while their
heart rate and blood pressure are monitored and analysed on an Acorn
computer.
6.12
New products
6.12
Judging by the dearth of new products in Archive this month, I guess
that many software and hardware manufacturers are saving things up for
launch at the Acorn World Show (or desperately trying to get them
finished in time for it). Sherston Software, educational software
specialists are certainly planning to launch their Crystal Maze, if
their full-page adverts are anything to go by.
6.12
Acorn will be launching their new computer bundles Ö thatæs önew
(computer bundles)ò and not ö(new computer) bundlesò Iæm afraid. We are
also hoping to see the !NewLook desktop being made available as an
official Acorn product.
6.12
Theatre presentations
6.12
There will be regular presentations in the theatre (up to nine each
day). The theatre will seat 150 people and will have a 6 foot high
projected video screen. The presentations will cover a huge range of
topics Ö see the list opposite. The idea is to give an indication of the
future direction of Acorn.
6.12
After-show reports
6.12
If you visit the show and see something interesting that you want to
share with other Archive subscribers, get in touch with me either at the
show or immediately afterwards and we can decide who will write up each
of the new products.
6.12
Vision for the future Ö Tie-ups
6.12
As I mentioned in last monthæs editorial, Acorn are working on several
Étie-upsæ with major companies. This work is part of Acornæs new serious
effort to break out of the straight-jacket of education into the Éreal
worldæ. They will be hoping to have many of these tie-ups worked out in
some detail in time for Acorn World. The importance of this is that they
are making an effort to attract non-Acorn people to the Show and they
want to show them that they mean business for the future.
6.12
We already know about links at the chip level with Apple, 3DO and Texas
but at the computer level, there have been tie-ups with Psion, Kodak,
Digital Arts and ABáDick.
6.12
We donæt yet have any details about the link with Psion Ö assuming, that
is, that itæs more than just the fact that the Pocket Book is produced
by Psion Ö Psionæs theatre presentation on the Saturday afternoon will,
no doubt, reveal more.
6.12
Kodak will be demonstrating their öinnovative imaging technologyò
including showing the photo-to-CD transfer taking place. Acorn are
porting the Kodak PhotoCD Access Developeræs Toolkit to run on RISCáOS
platforms and have already made CDFS PhotoCD-compatible.
6.12
Digital Arts is a Swiss-owned software company who have signed a joint
deal with Acorn aimed at the printing, publishing and graphic design
markets.
6.12
The UK subsidiary of the international pre-press printing specialist, AB
Dick, have a joint project with Acorn. They have adopted Archimedes
computers for their lower-end computer-based pre-press solutions.
6.12
Novell, the networking giant from the PC world are involved in one of
the theatre presentations but we havenæt yet managed to find out what
that is all about yet.
6.12
Is it worth coming?
6.12
If you ask whether I think the Acorn World Show is worth a visit then I
have to say a resounding öYesò! It looks to as if Acorn are really
making a major effort to attract non-Acorn people as well as its
traditional customers Ö who will certainly find plenty to interest them.
6.12
Advance booking
6.12
If you want to book tickets in advance, they are ú5 for adults, ú3 for
children and ú15 for families. (At-the-door prices are ú6, ú4 and ú16.)
Ring the ticket hotline on 0784Ö483818 and tell them you saw the
information in Archive magazine or write to Acorn World, P.O. Box 162,
Dept NCS, Staines, TW19 5JX. Ask to be entered in the prize draw and you
will have a chance of winning an Acorn Pocket Book computer!ááA
6.12

6.12
Theatre Presentations
6.12
Presentations will include...
6.12
Networking in the Wide World Ö Acorn & Novell
6.12
Publishing for Professionals
6.12
Open Access Ö Special Needs
6.12
Taking Better Photos for PhotoCD use Ö Kodak
6.12
The Electronic Prospectus
6.12
ARM Ö The Power behind the Vision Ö ARM Ltd
6.12
Graphic Design
6.12
School Administration
6.12
Producing a Pop CD
6.12
Governors Start Here
6.12
Photo Retouching
6.12
From Archimedes to Archimedes Ö Science Museum
6.12
Preparing Material for Publishing Bureaux
6.12
Educational Software on CD
6.12
A Truly Portable Personal Computer Ö Psion
6.12
Beginners Start Here
6.12
Why buy a Pocket Book for my child?
6.12
Publishing Magazines Ö Redwood Publishing
6.12
Education Down Under
6.12
Multimedia Ö Solution looking for a Problem
6.12
Lambda
6.12
New
6.12
LOOKsystems
6.12
öArial lightò
6.12
LOOKsystems
6.12
öMonotype Onyxò
6.12
Font Directory
6.12
Brian Cowan
6.12
Using fonts has become a pain. In the Éearly daysæ, there were very few
fonts available for the Archimedes and they were relatively expensive.
At that stage, all your fonts could be placed in the !Fonts directory
and everything was fine. But with the proliferation of fonts available,
You are likely to find that the !Fonts directory could not hold all your
font families. Setting font paths is relatively easy with RISC OS 3, but
now there has been a revolution: LOOKsystems have produced a ÉFont
Filing Systemæ Ö called Font Directory. This provides a completely new
way of managing large numbers of fonts.
6.12
Font partition
6.12
The fonts are stored in an image filing system which comprises a single
file called Épartitionæ stored in the !Fonts directory. This is rather
like a DOS partition and it is configured as a D format disc. This means
that files are stored contiguously so that deleting files can waste
space which must be recovered by compaction. The advantage, however, is
that it is an easy matter to extend the size of the partition. When
creating the font partition, you can choose a relatively small size and
then, as your collection of fonts increases, the size of the partition
can be increased accordingly. The partition can hold up to 77
directories, each of which can hold up to 77 different font families.
Thus Font Directory can cope with up to 5929 font families Ö more fonts
than most people would own!
6.12
Special features
6.12
Font Directory does a lot more than simply allow a large number of fonts
to be installed Ö you could use multiple font directories with the paths
appropriately specified to do that. The real advantage of Font Directory
is in the way it allows you to manage your fonts. It is easy to install
a selection of fonts and to change this when needed. Fonts need only be
installed when you actually want to use them. There is a provision to
view any of the fonts, and predefined selections of fonts may be
installed for particular applications. But the real piΦce de rΘsistance
is the facility to scan documents and files and install the required
fonts automatically. This is a dream to use. I always found it
frustrating that Impression would simply replace all uninstalled fonts
by Trinity without even giving the option to abort loading the document.
Draw would replace unrecognised fonts by the system font. Now that is
all a thing of the past.
6.12
The two applications
6.12
Font Directory has two application directories, one called !FontMgr and
the other called !FontDir. Font partitions are created and fonts saved
into their directories using !FontMgr. This provides a complete filing
system with directory viewers, etc, so you can save, copy and delete
font files, view free space and compact the partition as required. Then
there are some special features which are needed such as compiling font
tables and extending the font partition size. This is all managed by
!FontMgr. Once the font partition is set up, the access to the fonts is
controlled by !FontDir. This allows the installation and de-installation
of fonts, viewing of fonts and the scanning and installation of fonts in
documents and files. You can also control the font cache from this
application.
6.12
Getting started
6.12
The first thing which must be done is to run !FontMgr which puts an icon
on the right hand side of the iconbar. It asks you to specify the size
of the font partition, and the new version of !Fonts (containing the
font partition) is then dragged to a suitable directory viewer, usually
the root directory of your hard disc. The program then looks at the
available fonts and asks which should be moved to the font partition.
Alternatively, if you are happy with the RISC OS desktop, the font
partition directory viewer can be opened, directories created and files
copied in the usual way. It is all quite painless. At the end of the
installation procedure, you ask for the font tables to be compiled
before !FontMgr is quit.
6.12
In use
6.12
It is !FontDir which controls the access to fonts in normal use. This
installs as a font directory icon on the left hand side of the iconbar.
It makes sense to have this running all the time, so it should really be
run from your boot file. However, you have to quit !FontMgr to gain
access to !FontDiræs facilities otherwise the font directory is locked.
Clicking on the font directory icon brings up a list of all the fonts in
the partition ordered by directory, family and weight. Fonts can then be
selected and selections installed or de-installed, and individual fonts
can be viewed. By default, it shows the ubiquitous Équick brown fox
jumping over the lazy dogæ but any text can be displayed in any point
size and colour. There is also an option for selecting which fonts
should be installed by default at start-up.
6.12
Fonts in documents
6.12
You install the fonts that are used in a document by simply dropping the
document onto the FontDir icon. It is as simple as that! If you
inadvertently load an Impression document, say, and you get the error
message telling you that Impression could not find a given font and that
it has replaced it with Trinity, all you have to do is to drop the
document onto the FontDir icon. That causes the necessary fonts to be
loaded and the Impression document is then displayed correctly. The
whole thing is entirely painless.
6.12
Wish list
6.12
There are only two things which come to mind as possible improvements to
the system. As a very minor point, it should be possible to make the
font partition expand automatically rather than having to change the
size manually. During my initial installation, I must have increased the
partition size some five or six times as fonts were moved from the
!Fonts directory to the font partition. I would also like to be able to
store the font partition in a compressed form. Currently, my font
partition occupies some 16Mb. Although it is perfectly possible to use a
compressed filing system such as Compression or SparkFS, the problem is
that they need decompression space during operation which can be as
large as the uncompressed file Ö another 16Mb. However, since the
partition is stored as a D format, it should be possible to have a
compression scheme which simply uses a table to know where the relevant
piece of code for a given font is, and to uncompress that font alone.
That facility would certainly enhance Font Directory.
6.12
General impression
6.12
I was very happy with Font Directory. I found it very easy to install
and use, with minimal reference to the manual. Note though that you must
study the manual to find the difference between dragging, <ctrl>dragging
and <shift>dragging a document to the font list window of the Font
Directory icon. These options add the used fonts, install only the used
fonts or just indicate the used fonts, respectively. I understand that
LOOKsystems are examining ways of indicating those features from the
desktop. Apart from this point, this is a highly intuitive application Ö
a great deal of care and thought must have gone into its design and
realisation. It integrates seamlessly with RISC OS and if you use a lot
of fonts, you have to have Font Directory. However, because of its
convenience, I think I will continue using it with my usual, somewhat
limited, selection of fonts. Font Directory is available from
LOOKsystems at a price of ú35 inc VAT or ú33 through Archive.
6.12
Font post script
6.12
There is a great temptation to use a wide variety of fonts in documents.
This should be resisted Ö as every expert in typographical layout will
tell you. However, it is tempting to collect more and more fonts,
particularly for those special effects. If you own ArtWorks, you will
already have some 220 fonts at your disposal. To be honest, I was rather
disappointed with the ArtWorks font collection Ö there is actually not
that much variety. Furthermore, many of the fonts come only in a single
weight and style. If you are serious about collecting fonts then you
must consider the PD compilations from Skyfall. They supply four packs,
each containing 50 fonts, costing ú6, and you can buy the lot for ú20.
Many of the fonts come in different weights and styles. Furthermore,
many have scaffold lines. Skyfall also do a disc of Star Trek fonts
although these are not PD.
6.12
As I write, the first set in a series of Monotype fonts is appearing
(well, it should be available by the time you read this) from
LOOKsystems. The first set consists of 100 fonts for ú95 inclusive (or
ú90 through Archive). These are more expensive than PD fonts but they
promise to be truly professional quality. Eventually, there should be an
enormous range of Monotype fonts available.ááA
6.12
(Anyone who is desperate to get hold a copy of FontDir can have a pre-
release copy, as supplied to Brian Cowan, by sending ú33 to Archive. We
have arranged with LOOKsystems that we supply this on the understanding
that (1)áit only has limited documentation, (2)áthe full documentation
will be supplied free of charge by LOOKsystems as and when it is ready,
(3) until the full package is available, you MUST NOT contact
LOOKsystems for technical assistance Ö if Adrian is too busy answering
technical calls, the manual will never get written! Ed.)
6.12
Journal of Physiology
6.12
CC
6.12
6.11 page 26
6.12
Photopia
6.12
Gabriel Swords
6.12
Photopia is a new image processing application from Cambridge
International Software. Unlike other image processing applications such
as  Imagery or Revelation ImagePro, Photopia canæt Éeditæ Ö there are no
paint brushes, sprays or crayons to give you individual pixel power.
Never-the-less, you can probably do all that kind of stuff in !Paint Ö
Photopia simply wasnæt designed for that. In any case, at the special
price of only ú16, you canæt have everything, though surprisingly, for
the price, you get quite a lot.
6.12
Still letæs not get carried away with too many plaudits. There are, for
me, some very annoying things about this application. The first thing
you notice is that the image you get on screen is not very clear
compared with the display produced by other applications. Secondly, the
processing is very slow Ö imagine waiting three minutes for an image to
process only to find you donæt like what youæve done Ö it doesnæt make
you want to experiment! For example, Photopiaæs Whirlwind effect shown
below is very interesting but, while this was processing, I was able to
drink a cup of coffee, chat to my wife and tidy my study! Also, you
canæt ÉEscapeæ once the process has started. Finally, dialogue boxes do
not disappear when you choose another tool. This means that you could
end up with dialogue boxes all over the place.
6.12
Having got those niggles out of the way, we can have a look at some of
the positive things Photopia has to offer.
6.12
You can only process 256 colour sprite files, so if your sprites arenæt
in that format youæll need to convert them by using ChangeFSI (if you
can work out how it works). Once Photopia is loaded, you get three
windows. One loads your original image, one shows the image with any
changes you make and the other is a tool box.
6.12
How it works
6.12
Photopia works by affecting the prime colour components which produce
colours on the Archimedes. Coloured images are made up of a mixture of
three colours Ö red, green and blue (RGB). By altering the percentage
values of any of these colours, you can change from one colour to
another, or change the shades of the same colour. For example, dark blue
is produced by mixing different amounts of green and blue; yellow is
made with red and green. By altering these values, Photopia allows you
to alter the colour of an image and, therefore, change its appearance.
Itæs this kind of manipulation of colours which is used in such
functions as Mask, which removes one or more colours; RGB Swap, which
can swop one colour for another; Saturation, which varies the intensity
of a colour; Negative, which makes your image look like a photographic
negative; Anti-alias, which creates a blurred effect; Contrast, which
changes shades; and Brightness, which changes the amount of white light
in the image.
6.12
Other effects
6.12
Other effects like Posterise, Solarize and Greyscale produce black and
white, 8 and 16 colour images, respectively. The effects can be quite
startling Ö you can change a sky from being bright blue and summer like
to dark and menacing, or you can soften a picture with a gentle wash or
by applying the anti-alias option. Some of Photopiaæs special effects
allow you to change the shape of an image using tools such as Ripple,
Squidge, Whirlwind, Ellipse, Pyramid and Corrugate. It can also rotate
to any degree, rotate using the 180 degree pre-sets, or mirror on the x
or y axis. If you donæt want to process the complete image, you can
select areas for specific change. You can see from some of the examples
what can be done Ö but is it worth having?
6.12
Conclusion
6.12
Photopia is a good enough program if you donæt mind all the annoying
little niggles. I suppose the main argument for it is that because itæs
so cheap you donæt lose much if you donæt like it, and anyway itæs a
good introduction to image processing. While all that is true, I would
rather pay a bit more for a program which did things a lot faster and
which performed with a bit more sophistication. Having said that, if all
you ever want to do is change the look of images without being able to
edit them, and if you can wait for it to happen, then Photopia could be
the application to choose.
6.12
Photopia comes with one example file on an 800Kb disc. When in use, it
takes up just 96Kb of RAM before you drop in your image. It was
available from Archive at a special price of ú23 inclusive.ááA
6.12
Some examples included on the disc
6.12
Photopiaæs menu bar Ö You can use the bar or bring up menu of functions.
6.12
TableMate
6.12
Advert
6.12
Dalriada Data
6.12
CC
6.12
new artwork
6.12
Scanlight Video 256
6.12
Oak
6.12
From 6.11 page 13
6.12
JPEG Column
6.12
Stuart Bell
6.12
Manuel Timmers wrote from Belgium with a solution to my original
problems with using ChangeFSI from the desktop in the form of an
application called JPEG (not a true desktop-application ù he confesses
to zero knowledge of WIMP programming, just like me) with an Éobeyæ file
that invokes a series of Basic programs which call ChangeFSI to effect
the required compression to JPEG format. Thanks, Manuel.
6.12
Thomas Down, author of JPEGit, wrote to stress a point I made last time,
that JPEG is primarily for photographic images: öMy advice is to stick
to LZW (the algorithms used by, among others, Compression) or similar
for sprites from ray-tracers and art packages, and only use JPEG for
scanned photographs (very detailed line drawing can work well too) and
digitised video frames.ò
6.12
Jewel and JView
6.12
Also in response to my original article, Ketil Kristiansen wrote from
Norway, with some more specimen JPEG image files, to tell of two useful
freeware applications relevant to JPEG users. He writes, öJewel is a
JPEG compressor/decompressor which can convert between JPEG and either
GIF, Targa or PPM formats. Unfortunately it doesnæt accept sprites, so
donæt throw away Translator! The other program, JView, lets you view
JPEG pictures (Jewel has no facilities for viewing). Both programs are
much faster than ChangeFSI and Translator, and donæt create those BIG
temporary files that cjpeg and djpeg do.ò
6.12
Clearly, Jewelæs inability to handle Acorn sprite files makes it rather
less useful than JPEGit and JFIF. However, because some of the
compression /decompression routines are coded in ARM machine code,
rather than compiled ÉCæ, Jewel may be faster for JPEGing files that are
already in suitable non-Acorn formats. What was interesting was the
source of the application. I quote an extract from its Help file: öJewel
is another production of ARMæs TECH the new French programmersæ group.
This software is freeware and is ⌐ Frank Lyonnet 1993. Despite this,
donæt hesitate to support a student by sending me money, software,
hardware, RISC OS 3 PRMs, etc.ò(!) More files give details of this
French group.
6.12
JView comes from the same source and seems a most useful application. It
claims a 2╫ speed increase over Translator, and 3╫ over ChangeFSI. I
tried it, and it is very fast. Once the picture has been displayed, it
can then be zoomed, using a Paint-like magnifier option, and also saved
(in Acorn sprite format). So, it is much more than a JPEG viewer ù more
a JPEG de-compression program that also displays the image. The problem
I encountered was that, on my non-multi-sync screen, sprites were
displayed without omitting alternate lines, with the effect that the
images were stretched by a factor of two vertically. This happened even
with images that had started off as Énon-hi-resæ sprites. For example, a
Égrabbedæ and JPEGed 640╫250 image was displayed by JView as a 640x500
image. I guess the author assumed that we all have multi-sync monitors.
If only!
6.12
JView is so good that Iæve written to the author in France with these
comments, in the hope that he might be able to produce a version without
this problem. Watch the JPEG Column for news.
6.12
Another JPEG and a djpeg bug?
6.12
Mike Williams wrote to describe some of his further experiments with
JPEG. He enclosed a copy of another öJPEGò, this time written by Keith
Sloan, and he comments, öThe input file needs to be in GIF format, and
the output file can be in GIF or PBM format. . .ò
6.12
He also notes that John Kortinkæs latest Creator and Translator
shareware applications will handle JPEG files (ú10.00 registration
covers both), and continues, öThese programs are easy to use. They cope
happily with files which are larger than the available memory, (unlike
ChangeFSI which just suddenly disappears from the iconbar, leaving the
partially converted file in Wimp$Scrap). JPEG support appeared in
Creator version 1.36, and Translator version 7.11. Some PD libraries may
still be distributing earlier versions. Since the comparison that
follows (which Iæve already written) has already made this column rather
long, Iæll test and report on Creator and Translator next month.
6.12
Finally, he has been wondering about the dreadful loss of image quality
which I reported last time. He writes, öI think I have discovered what
might have happened to Cain Huntæs QRT ray-traced image. The awful
effect on this file doesnæt look anything like the normal subtle
distortion you normally get with JPEG quality losses. Iæve found two
things that can cause awful colours like this. (1)áIf your original
image is a 256 colour sprite with a non-standard palette, then the
conversion to or from PBM format is not performed correctly by some
conversion programs. (2)áThe other cause is a bug in the ödjpegò code.
Some versions of djpeg misread certain JPEG files. The file is encoded
correctly but is decoded incorrectly. I enclose a version of ödjpegò,
ported to the Archimedes by Keith Sloan, which does not exhibit this
bug. Simply replace the ödjpegò in ChangeFSI (or JPEGit or JFIF or
Translator) with the Keith Sloan version, saving the old one first in
case they are not completely compatible. You should then discover that
your öawfulò JPEG file can be de-JPEGed correctly.ò Again, this must
await next month. Many thanks, Mike.
6.12
Moving JPEG!
6.12
Tom Kirby-Green sent me a most interesting disc with the latest version
of ChangeFSI (0.90a), noting, öthe main change is that the loading of
windows bitmaps have been fixed, i.e. no longer needs to be a multiple
of 8.ò He also included a very long and interesting file off Internet:
öThis is the latest posting of the JPEG ÉFrequently Asked Questionsæ
listing. You did say in your original article that you were writing for
öusersò, not öprogrammersò Ö but if youære interested, I have the latest
official JPEG (and MPEG) sources, and lots of JPEG articles.ò Iæm sure
that articles in Ésoft formæ ù i.e. on disc ù will be of interest, and
Iæd be happy to accumulate them (provided theyære not copyright) for an
Archive JPEG Shareware disc. He concludes, öTalking of MPEG (the motion
picture compression scheme), did you know this is available on the
Archimedes too? I have the öofficialò Acorn version (which Roger kindly
emailed me) and a German version plus lots of movies. Itæs very similar
to Replay, but there are loads of movies available, and as itæs a
standard, you can run öSunò, öPCò movies as well. If youære interested,
I can send you the MPEG player engines and some movie files.ò (In case
thatæs not clear, MPEG is a moving version of JPEG.) Yes, please, Tom!
Thanks, too, for your images.
6.12
For Yours Eyes Only
6.12
As this column was nearing completion, I received FYEO from Neil
Hoggarth Ö this is another JPEG reader/zoomer/saver from Frank Lyonnet
in France. A quick test reveals that it displays the image as the
conversion proceeds, but that there is the same problem as JView for
those requiring an interlaced display on a standard resolution monitor.
Neil suspects that the output is more grainy than that of ChangeFSI, so
he has left the decompression facility in JFIF. More details next month!
6.12
JFIF or JPEGit?
6.12
Thomas Down, having received a preview of my comments about version 1.10
of his application, kindly sent me a copy of 1.11 and then 1.12 of the
shareware version, which address the minor bugs which I found and also
deletes its intermediate Scrap files. The shareware version now includes
the option to use outline fonts in its displays, rather than the dreaded
system font.
6.12
Likewise, Neil Hoggarth has updated JFIF, among other things removing
the very minor Ésaveæ window and ÉJTIF rather than JFIFæ bugs which I
reported last time. More importantly, he has also added a number of new
features to JFIF, including the use of the correct JPEG filetype.
6.12
So, the current state-of-play with RISC OS JPEG applications is: JView
(version 0.07) is an excellent JPEG de-compressor and viewer but, at the
moment, has a problem with non-hi-res screens. JPEGit exists in two
forms, one PD (version 1.11A) and one shareware (1.12B). JFIF (version
26/06/93) is a PD application. Which is best?
6.12
Installation
6.12
JView loads as a stand-alone application. JFIF requires one line to be
changed in the Boot file of ChangeFSI. JPEGit comes within a very
elegant installation program JPEGinst, which does the modifications to
ChangeFSI by icon-dragging on the desktop. JView and JFIF exist
separately from ChangeFSI; JPEGit becomes part of ChangeFSI, and its
icon is automatically displayed when the latter is loaded. On loading,
JView takes 160Kb of memory, JFIF claims 96Kb plus the 384Kb for
ChangeFSI, as does JPEGit in both PD and shareware incarnations.
6.12
Features
6.12
The four applications differ quite widely in the facilities which they
offer the user. JFIFæs options are to set the öQò value, and the sprite
output mode for decompression. These values may be changed for the
current session and then saved for future use. JFIF nowágives files a
suitable icon on directory listings. Full C source code is supplied and
the author is happy for people to Éhackæ it, as long as changes are
documented.
6.12
There is nothing to set in the case of the decompress-only JView ù
perhaps being able to select the sprite output mode would solve my
problem. Once it has decompressed and displayed a file, the screen image
can be zoomed and the image saved to file.
6.12
The facilities offered by JPEGit differ between the two versions. The PD
JPEGit allows the öQò value to be set, but not saved to disc. The
shareware version adds the source code to the application (in C), a
utility to de-install JPEGit from ChangeFSI (very useful when installing
a later version of JPEGit) and an alternative installation procedure
that keeps JPEGit as a discrete application. Once running, the öQò value
and options to öoptimise entropyò (gaining smaller files at the expense
of speed), store the file as a grey-scale image (reducing the size of
the intermediate file), produce a report of the translations, disable
pre-dithering when producing the intermediate file (as that holds 24
bits per pixel, image loss should be imperceptible), öauto choicesò and
öfast modeò can all be selected and saved to disc. These last two,
respectively, bring up the options window automatically each time ù very
useful if you want to change the options for different files ù and put
the machine into mode 0, reducing the overhead of screen updating.
6.12
Testing
6.12
To compare the various applications, I started with the öHi Peopleò
sprite from HCCS which I used in the first JPEG article. It was then
JPEGed with a öQò of 25 and then decompressed again. To test robustness,
attempts were made to use the applications with insufficient available
memory and also with files of the wrong format. Although I normally use
Compression, I did not do so for these tests which were carried out on a
4Mb A310 with an ARM3 and an Oak SCSI with 45Mb.
6.12
JFIF took exactly one minute to compress the file (mode 36), and
marginally less to decompress. It left the save window on screen until
another window was accessed. Since they both call the same routines in
ChangeFSI, I was surprised that JPEGit was faster than JFIF, the PD
version taking 42s to compress, and then ChangeFSI taking about 55s to
display the uncompressed image, which could then be saved to disc. Using
the fast mode option in the shareware version made negligible difference
in compression time on my machine but this would probably not be the
case with an ARM2 or with high-resolution screen modes. The author
reports a 20% saving with mode 31 (SVGA) and an ARM3. The fast mode
option has no effect on decompression, as ChangeFSI is used. With pre-
dithering disabled, the shareware version took 36s to compress. JView
took only 12s to display an image JPEGed with JPEGit.
6.12
The ÉReportæ option in the shareware JPEGit most helpfully gives the
parameters and timing of the compression in a special window, which
looks particularly elegant if the Éuse outline fontæ option has been
selected on installing the application. The Éshow optionsæ area allows
the options which applied to the compression process to be displayed.
6.12
When started with only 288Kb (i.e. 192Kb Éspareæ) in which to run, JView
quite properly reported önot enough memory for this pictureò. With a
similar spare amount with the (PD) JPEGit /ChangeFSI combination, on
attempted compression ChangeFSI reported önot enough room for this DIMò,
and then JPEGit, recognising that no intermediate file had been created,
guessed that ChangeFSI had failed, and suggested using the Report option
(which doesnæt exist in the PD version!). On decompression, ChangeFSI
reported two fairly uninformative errors in Écommand-line typeæ windows,
but did return control to the desktop, with ChangeFSI having been
deleted from memory, if the Écancelæ response was selected. In similar
conditions with JFIF, two unhelpful error messages were issued on
compression, and three on decompression, although it would decompress in
a little less memory than JPEGit required.
6.12
In the Ébad filetypeæ test, JView refuses to look at any file not of
type JPEG. If a file of that type doesnæt contain data of JPEG format,
it reports an error but then drops off the iconbar. JFIF claims to try
to JPEG any file not already in JPEG format. A text file produced
internal ChangeFSI errors. JFIF was not fooled by a Épseudo-JPEGæ file,
reporting Énot a JPEG fileæ, despite the correct filetype.
6.12
JPEGit (PD version) ignored any file that was not a sprite file. On
decompression, the modified ChangeFSI very helpfully responded ösorry,
format not recognisedò to an Edit file and to the pseudo-JPEG file that
was in fact a sprite file.
6.12
I felt rather cruel and ungrateful putting such freely-given software
through such tests but the results were good in that none of the
software crashed my machine.
6.12
So which is best?
6.12
Of those applications tested to date (with Creator, Translator and FYEO
to follow next month), the speed of JView for decompressing JPEG files,
and the fact that it will display, zoom and save images, makes it a
winner, at least ù at the moment ù for those with multi-sync monitors.
For producing JPEG files, JPEGit (PD version) is faster than JFIF but
the latteræs ability to save the öQò value and mode and the inclusion of
source code are distinct advantages. Not surprisingly, the shareware
version of JPEGit is the best all round package tested to date. The
additional options for speeding up the compression process and giving a
report of its activities are very useful and the Éoutline fontæ option
is elegant. Registration details will be in the PD version on the
Archive JPEG shareware disc (see below).
6.12
But one is left hoping for the compression partner to JView, (a Jewel
that reads Acorn sprite files) with the speed benefits of specially
coded compression routines.
6.12
Applications on disc
6.12
Clearly, it doesnæt make much sense to ask Paul to take up valuable
space on the monthly disc every time with the latest versions of JPEG
applications. Instead, in time for the October issue, Iæll put together
a JPEG shareware disc (including JPEGit (PD), JFIF, JView, FYEO, Tomæs
Internet file, the latest ChangeFSI and Keith Sloanæs de-bugged djpeg),
and ask Paul to add it to the Archive series. After that, Iæll update it
from time to time with the latest PD versions of the applications. It
will also include some of the JPEG image files that people have sent,
and will send, (hint, hint!) to me.
6.12
Finally, in response to my query about cross-platform portability, Neil
Hoggarth comments, öIn your column you ask if anyone has used JPEG files
between different platforms. I can confirm that ChangeFSI and FYEO work
with files produced on a variety of Unix systems at work and files
downloaded from Usenet news groups on the Internet (I canæt vouch for
what machines were used to make these Ö everything under the sun I
should think). Of course, the JFIF format starts out with a big
advantage, the IJG designed it to be portable and they have given their
code away to anyone who wants it. Nobody is going to start from scratch
when somebody else has done the hard work, so almost all the JPEG
implementations on any platform are based on, or derived from, the IJG
code.ò
6.12
Until next month, many thanks to all the correspondents, and especially
to the programmers whose work Iæve Éroad testedæ this month.ááA
6.12
Colton
6.12
From 6.11 page 14
6.12
Hints and Tips
6.12
Å    Cfs and the cluttered iconbar Ö There are five drive icons on my
iconbar, together with five Cfs (i.e. Computer Conceptsæ Compression)
icons, so there is hardly room for anything else!
6.12
Since version 1.17 of Cfs, however, things have rather changed for the
better, due to the key combination <ctrl-insert> which lets you switch
between the Cfs and the normal window.
6.12
I now find that one Cfs icon on the iconbar is all I need. What I have
done is this: My !Boot file contains nine lines concerning Cfs:
6.12
<d>.!Cfs
6.12
(This runs the application. <d> gives the path for the program, as
described in Archive 3.9, p.8)
6.12
RMEnsure CFSModule 1.17 RMLoad <d> .!Cfs.CFSModule
6.12
RMEnsure CFSModule 1.17 Error CFSModule not loaded
6.12
(These two lines are just to make doubly sure.)
6.12
CFStemp <s>!Scrap.ScrapDir
6.12
NewCFS ADFS::0
6.12
NewCFS ADFS::intern
6.12
NewCFS SCSI::SCSIDrive0
6.12
NewCFS SCSI::SCSIDrive4
6.12
NewCFS SCSI::extern
6.12
(The last six lines duplicate the way in which everything was first set
up from the Cfs iconbar icons.)
6.12
With these commands in the !Boot file, it is now possible to delete all
but one Cfs icon from the iconbar and save the changes. Now one of my
drives (the one I use most often) can have its Cfs directory windows
opened directly. On all the others, I open the relevant uncompressed
window, then press <ctrl-insert>.á Jochen Konietzko, K÷ln, Germany
6.12
Å    Impression arrows Ö Left and right arrows in Impression are extremely
easy to generate. You start with ö<ÖÖò or öÖÖ>ò and use <ctrl-R>
inbetween the characters to reduce the spacing (kerning) between the
characters so that you end up with ö<ÖÖò or öÖÖ>ò. Those two needed one
<ctrl-R> between the dashes and nine <ctrl-R>s between the angle bracket
(inequality sign) and the dash but it will depend on the font size.
(These ödashesò are produced in Impression with <shift-ctrl-hyphen>.
Actually, they are supposed to be minus signs, I think but I prefer them
to the öproperò dash which is <alt-152>. Certainly when I tried the
öproperò dash for this purpose, it produced öÿ>ò which isnæt quite as
good as the height is different and it doesnæt hit quite at the centre
of the angle of the hairpin.) You can see it better at a bigger point
size:
6.12
Two minus signs: öÖÖ>ò One dash: öÿ>>ò
6.12
In Times font, which I am using here, the long dash is slightly lighter
and doesnæt match the weight of the angle bracket. However, this trick
does depend on the particular font used Ö itæs a Ésuck it and seeò job.á
Ed.
6.12
Å    Multistore alphabetical sorting Ö I recently created a large database
for my church roll in which there was a single name field presenting the
information in the form öSue Adamsò. I set up an index on this field
using the Surname function only to discover that it persisted in sorting
öSue Adamsò after öMargaret Adamsonò. An examination of BaseLib (found
by shift-clicking !Multistore and dragging into !Edit) revealed how the
Base Function FNsurn worked and led to the idea of creating another Base
Function, FNchristian, to select the Christian name and any initial.
Using !Edit, I adapted FNsurn and then saved it as a further Base
Function in BaseLib. Then, using the Sort facility with the expression
öFNsurn(@ Name)+FNchristian(@Name)ò, the names were sorted into correct
alphabetical order. It is necessary to quit and re-load Multistore to
ensure that it knows of the new Base Function. FNchristian is as
follows:
6.12
DEFFNchristian(A$):LOCALI%,C%
6.12
WHILERIGHT$(A$,1)=ö ò:A$=LEFT$(A$) :ENDWHILE:I%=LENA$: C%=ASCMID$(A$,I%)
6.12
WHILEI%>0AND((C%>64ANDC%<91)OR(C%> 96ANDC%<123)ORC%=45):I%-=1
6.12
C%=ASCMID$(A$,I%):ENDWHILE
6.12
IF INSTR(A$,ö ò)>0THEN=LEFT$(A$, I%-1)ELSE=öò
6.12
Colin Brockie, Kilmarnock.
6.12
Å    Multiple stories on one page in Impression Ö It can sometimes be
extremely desirable to have two or more independent stories on a single
page in Impression. Normally, when you enter text in a single-frame page
and the text fills the frame, a new page is created and the text
continues to flow onto the new page. Creating a second frame on any
given page simply makes a local frame which does not exhibit this
ability to flow text onto a new page when it is full. However, if it
were possible to have two or more frames on a page which could
independently create new pages when full, this would be very useful Ö it
would make for easy creation of footnotes, for one thing.
6.12
I was recently asked how to achieve this effect by a user who was
setting opera libretti, and who wanted to have two columns side by side
for different languages. A two-column master page layout did not achieve
the desired effect because the text flowed from one column to the next
on the same page, rather than from any given column to the equivalent
column on the following page.
6.12
There is, in fact, a way of achieving the required effect in Impression,
but the technique is a little subtle.
6.12
How to do it Ö Either choose a suitable master page which exists already
or use the ÉNew master pageæ menu option to create an appropriate page
with the desired number of columns on it. Create whatever extra frames
you need on your master page in the normal way.
6.12
Now use the ÉShow flowæ option from Impressionæs iconbar menu to see how
the text will flow between the frames. Under normal circumstances, to
link frames into the text flow sequence you click <select> on the first
frame in the sequence, followed by <adjust> on the succeeding frames in
the correct order. However, it is not possible to remove frames from the
sequence using this method and so, if you try to alter the order of flow
which is automatically assigned on the master page, you will find you
are not able to do so. Therefore, the only way to remove a frame from
the text flow sequence is to actually delete it and then recreate it.
6.12
So, for each frame which is to contain its own page-creating story,
first select the frame and then open the ÉAlter frameæ dialogue box with
<ctrl-f10>. Make a note (mental or otherwise) of the X and Y coordinates
of the frame, close the dialogue box and press <ctrl-X> to cut the frame
to the clipboard. Immediately you have done this, press <insert> (or
<ctrl-V>) and paste the frame back to where you cut it from. Finally,
open the ÉAlter frameæ box again and restore the coordinates to what
they were before.
6.12
On the face of it, this seems pretty pointless. All you have done is
delete a frame and then put it back again in the same place. However,
the practical effect of the action is to un-link the frame from the text
flow sequence. If you choose ÉShow flowæ from the iconbar menu again,
you will see that the frame no longer has an arrow pointing to or from
it. (In fact, if you have a layout of three or more columns, you will
see that the flow has bypassed this frame, but still connects the
others.)
6.12
What this boils down to is that you can have as many individual stories
as you want on a single master page. Each story can consist either of a
separate frame or any number of linked frames. Any such set of frames on
an Impression master page will cause the creation of a new page when
filled with text in the document.
6.12
The layout shown in the illustration is not intended to be a serious
example but it merely illustrates the idea. The frames for both Story 1
and Story 2 have been linked, whilst the frame for Story 3 is a separate
entity, as is the frame for footnotes.
6.12
As for practical examples of this idea, one has only to look at the old-
style (RISC OS 2) Acorn manuals, such as the BBC Basic Guide or PRM.
These manuals all have a vertical line about a third of the way across
each page, to the right of which is the main text. The headings and sub-
headings all appear to the left of the line. Although the creation of
such pages by conventional methods would be perfectly possible, having
two independent stories (one for the main text, another for the
headings) would greatly simplify the process.
6.12
A similar idea commonly found in educational material is to have a
column, at the right hand side of the page, which contains comments
relating to the ideas presented in the main body of the text.
6.12
Another good use for this idea is the presentation of tabulated material
such as a printed index. If you want a column of numbers to be in a
different style to the reference text the numbers accompany, it is far
easier to have two independent stories than to apply a specific style
for each number on a line.
6.12
When using this approach, there is just one thing to watch out for. If
there is not a direct one-to-one correspondence between the number of
lines in the stories (which there may or may not be, depending on the
document), you must remember to press <ctrl-G> (which corresponds to the
ÉFrame=>Force to nextæ menu option) when you have typed in all the text
for the shorter story on each page. If you donæt do this, you may find
that, when you position the caret in the frame in which you want to
start typing, the text appears on the previous page. However, you will
soon get used to this.
6.12
As for footnotes, if you know that none of your footnotes will exceed a
single line in depth, you should create your footnote master page frame
to be just large enough to contain one line of text. Then, each time you
press <return>, the caret will advance one page. If you need longer
footnotes, however, make the master page frame large enough to hold the
largest note and remember to use the <ctrl-G> method.á Richard Hallas,
Huddersfield.
6.12
Is it possible to have two or more independent stories running side-by-
side in Ovation? If so, can anyone explain how? Ed.
6.12
Å    Printing to files Ö I experienced the same problem as Tom Rank
(Archive 6.9 p63) with printing to a file. This involved an address
exception being caused at the end of each print run which prevented the
last few graphics lines from being printed. The problem is caused by
ADFSBuffers. Setting this to zero using:
6.12
    *Configure ADFSBuffers 0
6.12
solves the problem.á Paul Mellor, Derby.
6.12
Å    Vector overlays Ö The new version 1.10 of Vector offers the option to
draw lines with overlays (i.e. between 1% and 99% of the lineæs interior
is drawn in a different colour), a feature which makes drawing little
map sketches very simple.
6.12
A problem arises if you want to join two roads or two rivers without a
seam.Vector produces something like this (overlay 50%):
6.12
For a decent map you need, instead, something like this:
6.12
If, as in this case, all paths have the same width, it is simple: Just
select them all and merge them through the öSpecialò menu. (This also
saves memory: The five paths in the first picture take up 1071 bytes,
the merged path only 883 bytes.)
6.12
If the width differs, the thickest line will force its width upon all
the others, making a merge inadvisable; then you will have to apply
little öbeauty patchesò in the form of completely white rectangles to
cover the unwanted black lines.
6.12
While you rotate the rectangles to align them with the road, it is best
to switch the amount of detail shown on the screen from stage 5 to stage
3, so that all the rectangles appear just as thin black outlines (even
if they are not selected) and this makes an öinvisibleò shape rather
more easy to handle.
6.12
When you go about rotating those rectangles, it makes sense to lock
everything else first with <ctrl¡H> because else it is very simple to
rotate something else besides the little patch.á Jochen Konietzko, K÷ln,
Germany.ááA
6.12
Help!!!!
6.12
Å    80Mb Oak SCSI drive problems Ö Colin Buckland, one of our subscribers,
bought an 80Mb Oak (Seagate) drive from us about 3 years ago and it
worked OK until recently, when he fitted a fan quietener. The drive died
and he quite reasonably assumed that it was because it had over-heated.
Colin had read Tord Erikssonæs sad tale (Archive 6.8 p41) of dying and
dead drives and he too had failed to back up all the data on his drive!
So, as a last resort, he tried using the drive external to the computer
Ö it worked! (So he immediately backed it up before trying anything else
Ö you see, Tord, your article has already helped at least one person!)
But when he tried to put it back in the computer, it would not work. Why
not?
6.12
Well, this problem occurred once or twice before when we first started
supplying these drives. Apparently, they are sensitive to a small
voltage appearing on the earth line. When bolted in place in the
computer, the drives refused to spin up but when electrically isolated
from the chassis, they worked fine. Colinæs solution was to fix the
drive in place with double-sided adhesive tape! It worked OK but I
wouldnæt like to transport a machine with a drive fixed in that way! Has
anyone else got any other way of solving the problem?
6.12
Å    Acorn Teletext unit Ö Has anyone got a circuit diagram? I F Montague,
Chatham.
6.12
Å    Austrian Exchange Student looking for Archimedes-users in and around
Strasbourg next year (Sep. 93 Ö June 94). Write to Roland Nitsch,
Mariensteig 17, A-1130 Wien, Austria, or call ++431Ö87 66 444.
6.12
Å    Greek fonts Ö There are various Greek fonts around including some PD
versions. Although some are available as both upright and italic styles,
I canæt find any which have bold weight. Does anyone know of a Greek
font which has a bold version, PD or otherwise? Alternatively, (although
unlikely) does anyone know of a utility which will embolden an outline
font?á Brian Cowan.
6.12
Å    Impression keys Ö As I didnæt foresee using some of the more
öprofessionalò aspects of Impression II, I bought a copy of öImpression
Juniorò and I must say that it is a joy to use. However, I am a little
disappointed that the function keys are not user-definable. Does anybody
know if it is possible to define <ctrl-shift-f11 Ö f12>?á Gary Jones,
Manchester.
6.12
Would Keystroke help, as mentioned in Products Available on page 4? Ed.
6.12
Å    Inter-machine communication Ö It is becoming more and more important
to be able to transfer files and/or data between different (types of)
machines. We have had requests for information (but no responses) about
Archimedes to Mac transfer (6.9 p31 and 6.10 p8).
6.12
Could anyone write an article for us about import/export from Archimedes
to different machines, covering hardware and software solutions? It
would be helpful to share any information that anyone has about options
for formatting, compression, splitting files onto floppies and using
SyQuest removables on Macs, PCs and Archimedes. One of the most common
requests is how to get large colour scans or large PostScript files in a
form for use by a Mac-only bureau.
6.12
Please write in to the Archive office if you have any experience to
share and/or could write an article for us. If there is enough
information, we might have an occasional Import/Export Column. Ed.
6.12
Å    Serial Port Graphics Enhancer Ö as The Serial Port seems unlikely to
offer a real RISC OS 3.1 upgrade, does anyone have any technical details
about the hardware? I would like to write replacement software to enable
alternative VIDC clock frequencies and to permit the use of an extended
palette chip. Seßn Kelly, 8 Vicarage Lane, Wing, Leighton Buzzard,
Bedfordshire, LU7 0NU.
6.12
Å    Transferring BBC tape software to disc Ö I would like to transfer some
old BBC software to the Archimedes but it is on tape, so first I need to
get it onto disc. Could anyone help me, please?á Gary Jones, 2 Cams Acre
Close Radcliffe Manchester, M26 0RZ.
6.12
Å    Z & Z Software Ö Does anyone know the whereabouts of Z & Z Software,
writers of !Pax, or has anyone got !Pax to work under RISC OS 3.1. If
so, please contact Peter Young, 20 Racecourse Lane, Northallerton. North
Yorkshire. DL7 8RD.ááA
6.12
Comment Column
6.12
Å    Basic compactors (6.9 p 65) Ö I think R W Darlington has misunderstood
what is going on when a program is compacted. There is no bug in these
compactors Ö the programs so compacted run quite normally. The
compaction works on the tokenised program, and removing spaces has no
effect on the interpretation of the program during runtime. The
öproblemò arises when a compacted program is reloaded into an editor,
when it is reconverted to text. If the program is now once again saved
as a tokenised program, the tokeniser can no longer differentiate the
end of variable names and the start of the Basic keyword, due to the
missing spaces, and the retokenising fails. This is NOT a fault of the
compactor, it would happen whenever you miss out an essential space
while entering any program.
6.12
If you are writing your own programs and wish to compact them, then it
is essential to keep a copy of the uncompacted program, on which any
editing must be done. The edited program can then be compacted.á Chris
Johnson, Edinburgh.
6.12
Å    Fitting an FPA in an 8Mb A5000 Ö Owners of an A5000 with an 8Mb
Atomwide RAM upgrade may well feel daunted by the prospect of fitting
the FPA as the RAM board, roughly postcard-sized, is attached to the
motherboard right on top of the FPA socket, rendering it totally
inaccessible. The board is clearly easy enough to remove. It was the
prospect of fitting it back on again that I found daunting.
6.12
Acornæs advice for fitting the FPA gives instructions for removing the
drive assembly. With this out of the way, the RAM board is revealed, but
you need more room for working and for seeing what you are doing. I also
removed the backplane, all podules and blanking plates and the speaker.
All of these come away quite easily.
6.12
If öSouthò is the rear side of the computer, the RAM board is attached
to the motherboard by screws at its NW and SW corners; by a chip
(presumably a memory controller) fitted to the underside of the South
side of the RAM board and socketed into the motherboard; and by a light
grey plastic connector looking exactly like a podule connector running
the whole width of the Eastern edge. This last connector is sealed by a
gummed label warning you that you will invalidate your Atomwide
guarantee if you break the seal.
6.12
My guarantee has expired, so I undid the screws and gently eased the
board free of its connectors. Once the board was out of the way, the FPA
went into its socket (with an unnerving crunching sound) and it was time
to refit the RAM board. I was able to align chip with socket and male
connector with female by peering through the gap left by the blanking
plates and putting the fingers of my right hand through the speaker hole
to hold the board. The Northern edge of the board was slightly elevated
and I simply lowered it down, pressing as I did so, as if I was closing
the lid of a box. Firm, gentle pressure at either end of the connector
and on the chip in turn eventually produced another unnerving crunch,
and the board was installed. I put all the bits back together again and
everything worked perfectly first time Ö and the FPA does indeed make a
wonderful difference to a spreadsheet!
6.12
One thing did puzzle me in Acornæs instructions for loading the FPE400
module in a !Boot file. They recommend renaming your present !Boot file
as !Boot2 and then creating a new !Boot file containing the line:
6.12
rmensure FPEmulator 4.01 rmload !System.modules.FPE400
6.12
and then another line containing an instruction to run !Boot2. This
seems unnecessarily long-winded to me. I simply <shift-double-clicked>
on !Boot to load it into !Edit and typed the line in at the beginning of
the file, saved and then rebooted. No problems.
6.12
I think perhaps I was a little lucky. I did the job after a confidence-
boosting liquid lunch, I forgot to earth myself when handling the FPA
and I didnæt really know what I was doing. If you want the job done
safely and professionally return your computer to NCS.á Alan Booth,
Northwood.
6.12
Å    Function key strips Ö Peter Smith, who provided Impression files of
keystrips for Artworks, Eureka and DBEdit on last monthæs program disc,
asked why such major applications were not provided with a keystrip.
6.12
You may be interested to know the reply I got from 4Mation when I
queried the absence of a keystrip while I was reviewing DBEdit. Mike
Matson told me: öNo, we didnæt include a function key strip in the
package. In fact youære the first user to have commented upon its
absence which, perhaps, confirms my suspicion that they are rarely used.
I canæt think when I last used a keystrip. However, if there is a demand
we will certainly consider designing one.ò
6.12
The answer seems to be, if you want a keystrip demand one.á Peter
Jennings, St Albans.
6.12
Å    Hutchinson Encyclopedia CD Ö Jim Baileyæs July review of CDæs (6.10
p25) brought a swift response from PEP Associates, the distributors of
the Hutchinson Encyclopedia CD. In his review, Jim says that (1)ámuch of
the information given on the CD is too shallow to be of any use, (2)áthe
program crashes, (3)áscrolling through the indices is too slow and
(4)ácross references do not always work and are not logical Ö he cites a
cross reference for Neil Armstrong and the Apollo Project, with the god
Apollo.
6.12
Paul let me have a copy of PEPæs comments and the CD, then gave me a
month to try it out. Letæs look at PEP Associatesæ replies. In answer to
Jimæs first comment, they said that the content of the CD is determined
by the authors of the encyclopedia. It should be the same as the printed
version Ö and so it is, as far as I can see. The encyclopedia doesnæt
provide in-depth analysis to every subject it covers. (É15-loveæ to PEP)
6.12
Secondly, the crash problems have been sorted out, but the new software
is only available as an upgrade to the 1993 text version of the
encyclopedia. (É30-loveæ)
6.12
Thirdly, the failure of cross references has been fixed in the 1992
multimedia version Ö these fixes are presumably available through Attica
Cybernetics? (É40-loveæ Ö just!)
6.12
That, for me, is the end of PEPæs scoring. From here, I have to agree
with the rest of Jimæs comments. Going through the indices is mind-
numbingly slow and even when you get a list of subjects, you still have
to wait quite a while before the computer accesses the information. PEP
say they may include an option to load the index into RAM in future
releases Ö this should improve searching and scrolling.
6.12
The real drawback to this program is the overall slowness of accessing
information. As much as I want to use CD-ROMs on my A5000, Iæm not
likely to use them until the speed is more acceptable. (The score is É40
allæ but I reckon that Égame, set and matchæ has got to go to PEP for
the cheek of their final comment.)
6.12
ÉIt should be remembered that the CD-ROM is a port from a PC product,
and I have found that Archimedes users are more exacting in their
software requirements than PC users.æá Gabriel Swords, Norwich.
6.12
Yes, that last comment is very telling, isnæt it? PC owners are more
used to the Éthick treacle syndromeæ, as I call it, than we are. Ed.
6.12
Å    Impression and large documents Ö The other day, for the first time, I
created a really large Impression document. I was not very impressed
with its performance as I shall explain. Indeed, I was sure that
Impression was not up to the standard which one could expect from a DOS
PC.
6.12
As luck would have it, I found an article in a German PC magazine which
dealt with just this subject. How do Winword 2.0, WordPerfect 5.2, Ami
Pro 3.0 and Wordstar 1.0 deal with text files of 2Mb or more?
6.12
Impression Ö Impression is thought to have the ability to handle ölargeò
documents. (However, as RISC OS does not provide virtual memory
management, they have to be divided into chapters, each of which must
fit into RAM.)
6.12
I was trying to make it possible to öFindò a string in all the Archive
Words files in one go by creating one big Impression document which, so
far, has six chapters. The first two files (6.5Ö6.8 and 6.1Ö6.4) were
merged quite easily. However, a Count gave the first nasty surprise:
2,047,670 bytes (the two Edit files) had mysteriously turned into no
less than 4,011,758 bytes. I wondered whether I would have enough hard
disc space left for the complete document.
6.12
So, before I went on dropping more Edit files onto the Impression
behemoth, I tried out the search routine on the document as it was. All
went well through the first chapter, but when it tackled the second one,
all I got was an öOut of Memoryò error. I could still scroll by hand
through chapter 2, but the search routine and also the key combination
<ctrl-down> (to jump to the end of the chapter) didnæt work. So much for
my bright idea!
6.12
Not yet willing to give up, I tried again, but this time I put each
issue of Archive into a new chapter. This division of the text into
eight chapters made it work Ö just. The size of the document had grown
once again, this time to 4,800,370 bytes, and the Info window which
before had showed 49,287 words, now claimed 55,778. While I was
wondering whether I had accidentally dropped one chapter twice into the
document, the next count gave 46,912 words as a result. Then the number
which appeared always was either 46,912 or 95,559(!).
6.12
This appeared to indicate that Impression was at the very outer limit of
its capabilities when trying to handle a text of 500+ pages. The search
aborted with an öOut of Memoryò error if there was less than 1,850Kb of
RAM available when the document was loaded. (This equates to the first
three chapters Ö shouldnæt it be possible to program the thing in such a
way that there only has to be enough RAM for two chapters?) When there
is more RAM, a different message appears once, in just the same spot
where before the missing memory was indicated, warning that öThis action
will change the file on discò, and asking if you really want to go on.
On a machine with less than my 4Mb of RAM, this behaviour would mean
having to divide a long text into lots of rather small chapters.
6.12
Anyway, I decided to go one step further and add the twelve chapters of
volume 5. The results were: 4,802,924 bytes of Edit text turned into
8,537,930 bytes. Compression could only squeeze this down to 4,995,740
bytes Ö still more than the uncompressed original! The word count had
dropped to 39,356 words Ö this feature really doesnæt work properly on
large files.
6.12
There was no problem with the page count Ö a öGo to last page of countò
brought me instantly to the end of the text although a few secondsæ
delay occurred because I had first to click onto the page to make
Impression load the last chapter. The scroll bar also worked without a
hitch.
6.12
Searching for a string which I knew occurred only once, on the very last
line of the document, took 4 minutes and 10 seconds. (In Edit, opening
the four files of volume 5 and 6 and searching for the same string took
just 54 seconds, most of which was used for opening and closing the
files!)
6.12
Changing the base style from 10 pt to 14 pt took a staggering 15 minutes
32 seconds and blew the file up to 10,855,012 bytes and 2,037 pages.
During the format operation, I nearly panicked because, after some
minutes, all activity stopped and there was no hourglass, no hard disc
access and the iconbar clock was still frozen. About two minutes later,
I had just about decided that Impression must have crashed, when the
disc started chattering away again.
6.12
All these times were taken on files in a Compression window, so I
decided to find out just how much Compression slows the work down. I
decompressed the document again and did the search for the last line
again. This time it was only 1 minute 36 seconds and changing the base
style took 11 minutes 15 seconds!
6.12
So, if there is enough disc space available, this would be a case for
not using Compression! My conclusion would be, while Impression is (just
about) able to handle really big files, it still has some way to go
before it is on a par with Windows text processors in this area, too.
6.12
The opposition Ö (I think that the four PC programs were being run in
öconcept modeò, with WYSIWYG disabled, to avoid unnecessary strain of
the CPU.)
6.12
Ami Pro became so indignant when asked to do long jumps through a 2Mb
file or indeed to do anything while the Auto-save option was enabled,
that it crashed!
6.12
WordPerfect worked without a hitch, but very slowly. Just to jump to the
last page of a 4Mb file took exactly as long as the search for a string
on the last line of the compressed file took Impression. (They said
nothing about the type of CPU or the amount of RAM they used, so time
values are, of course, very relative indeed.)
6.12
Wordstar could not deal at all with texts of more than 750 pages.
6.12
Winword worked very well. It took about as much time on their computer
to do its job as Impression did on my A410/1 (ARM 3, 4Mb) and it too
created files roughly twice as large as the original text files.
However, the page numbering broke down completely at about 1,500 pages.
ASCII files of up to 8Mb could be handled Ö 9Mb caused a crash. Of
course, there is always that well known spoil-sport bug which
occasionally causes Winword to refuse to save a file if it is too large
to fit into the Windows Clipboard Ö this could be quite nasty!
6.12
The one advantage that all these programs have over Impression is that
Windows does provide virtual memory management and so it is not
necessary to divide a large text into öbite-sizedò morsels.
6.12
Conclusion Ö This, in my view, is another example of the fact that
Archimedes owners tend to take the excellence of their computers for
granted and really donæt know how well off they are.á Jochen Konietzko,
K÷ln, Germany
6.12
Å    Menu help in C Ö This relates to Gwyn Williamsæ article last month
(Archive 6.11 p11). Here is an explanation of how to handle menu help if
you donæt have the new RISC_OSLib. I will describe how to modify DrawEx
using the same paragraph numbering as Gwyn Williams.
6.12
(1)    Also add:
6.12
#include öswis.hò
6.12
This file may not be with the other RISC OS header files but it should
be. In the öConstantsò section add:
6.12
#define Task 0x4B534154
6.12
(2)    Do not create the function ösetmessò. Instead, declare the array
ömessagesò either globally or within drawex_initialise. There should be
no call to wimpt_messages (since we donæt have this command).
6.12
(3)    Add the following after öwimp_wstate state;ò in drawex_initialise:
6.12
    os_regset    regs;
6.12
regs.r[0]=310;
6.12
regs.r[1]=Task;
6.12
regs.r[2]= (int) öDrawExò;
6.12
regs.r[3]= (int) &Messages;
6.12
os_swi (Wimp_Initialise, ®s);
6.12
win_init ();
6.12
Do not add setmess or wimpversion and remove the call to wimpt_init.
6.12
All other changes should be as described. I hope that this information
is of some use and error free, but readers may have to use their
initiative a little.á Richard Simpson, Farnborough.
6.12
Å    Monitors Ö I class myself as having a non-technical brain and I must
confess that the choice of monitors one could connect to the Archimedes
is bewildering. I own an A410 with a standard resolution monitor
(AKF12). I read about multisync; VGA; SVGA; VIDC enhancers and colour
cards. In the main, most of my work on the Archimedes involves text and
an occasional game. I donæt want to buy a new monitor only to find that
it isnæt suitable. Can anybody explain, in fairly simple terms, what I
would need to upgrade, without burning a very large hole in my pocket!á
Gary Jones, Manchester.
6.12
My answer would be to buy a Cubscan 1440 (ú480 through Archive) stating
clearly which computer you are using so that you get the correct monitor
lead. This is the only non-Acorn monitor we know of, apart from the Eizo
9060 (ú600 through Archive), which is a plug-in-and-go on all Acorn
computers. If you are prepared to start playing with a VIDC enhancer and
the software that goes with it then there is a lot more scope and you
can think about using some of the cheaper monitors. Has anyone else got
any suggestions? Ed.
6.12
Å    Re-inking cartridges (problems with) Ö I have a very salutary tale to
tell. I have a Canon BJ130e and decided to launch myself into the world
of colour, so I bought from InkMun a coloured ink outfit as well as a
black-only refill kit, complete with the ICS program !ColourSep. The
first problem that I found was that the supplied needle was not be long
enough for use with the BJ130e cartridges, but a telephone call to
InkMun brought a free long needle in the post a few days later.
6.12
So, I proceeded to cleanse all my empty cartridges as best I could by
repeatedly filling and emptying each sac with cleaning fluid. I then
inserted the Yellow, Cyan, Magenta and Black inks from the Colour Refill
Outfit and re-assembled the cartridges.
6.12
I loaded the computer with an Impression page containing a colourful
picture. I removed the black cartridge and inserted the yellow one
(palest colour first), used !ColourSep to pick out the yellow content of
the picture and tried a printout. It all came out as black on white, so
I decided I ought to öflush the printerò of black ink Ö to do this, I
made up some pages of solid yellow, cyan, magenta and black.
6.12
I started printing the yellow page but some ten pages later, it still
had a considerable degree of black content. However, after one öcleaning
cycleò of the BJ130e, things were almost perfect (but stripy) and after
one öpriming cycleò and only a third of a page of printing, I had öpure
yellowò coming through, so I did the yellow pass of my pictorial
document. The above (extremely lengthy) performance was repeated for
each of the other colours.
6.12
I decided that the design of the BJ130e, with its many lengthy tubes
full of ink, was not destined for a öcolourful futureò, and the dents on
my brick wall did, by now, bear a certain similarity to the shape of my
head, so, having used my refilled Black cartridge last, I decided to let
sleeping printers lie.
6.12
Over the next few days, my öordinaryò (mono) printouts began to become
more and more östripyò, until, after a couple of weeks and a few more
cleaning and priming cycles, the BJ130e stopped printing altogether Ö
but it was not due to ink running out. To make absolutely certain of
this, I inserted a brand new Canon cartridge, put the printer through a
cleaning and priming cycle and the following printout was the perfect
image of a brideæs dress on a snow-capped mountain with a white
Pyrannean Mountain dog at her side! (I think he means it was white. Ed.)
6.12
A local office equipment repair business found that the printeræs purge
unit had stopped working Ö probably because some content of one of the
inks had öattackedò the material from which the öpiston washers/ringsò
were made. As it is a sealed unit, the only answer was to purchase a new
purge unit, which has now been fitted, and the printer is once more in
pristine working order.
6.12
The moral of this story is beware of using ink refills on printers with
purge units and long tubes!
6.12
Although I do not have intimate knowledge of their construction, I am
given to believe that printers like the BJ10æs, and perhaps the HP
Deskjets, would not experience the same problems, so perhaps it is worth
finding out other membersæ experience. Bill Rawcliffe, Shepperton.
6.12
Å    Speed of Basic programs (6.10 p16) Ö I was interested in this comment
but I was very surprised that there was no difference due to length of
variable name and so I tested it on my machine. There was a difference
but only 0.07s in about 35s. This intrigued me. I thought Ö maybe the
routines use good technique and count down to zero, in this case
checking from the end of the variable name rather than the start. I put
the one different character in the middle of the long name and tried
again. The speed difference was now smaller than before. It appeared it
was checking the whole name from the beginning. I now did an Archimedes
and, while lying in the bath, carried out some mental calculations. A
difference of 70ms in a loop of 1,000,000 means a difference of 70ns for
a single cycle. The clock cycle of a 25MHz ARM3 is 40ns. Thus we are
apparently using 2 clock cycles (instructions) to check a 31 character
variable name six times over! Am I out by some orders of magnitude, or
is the Archimedes a very much smarter machine than even I thought? I
hope someone can explain.
6.12
What I was really writing about was the SYS calls. I agree that it is
very much faster to call a SWI (SYS) by number than it is by name.
However, it is almost as quick to use an integer variable as it is the
actual SYS number. The variable can have a meaningful name, so you do
not have to keep putting REMs in the program. Since the OS provides a
SYS call to look up the number corresponding to a SWI, you do not have
to remember, or look up the numbers anyway. During program
initialisation, set up any variables you need in the following way (note
the two commas after the first SWI name).
6.12
SYSöOS_SWINumberFromStringò,, öWimp_GetIconStateò TO GetIconState%
6.12
From then on, you could refer to this particular SYS as SYS
GetIconState%.
6.12
Users of the ABC Basic compiler (I cannot speak of any others) have the
best of both worlds, since the compiler will automatically convert the
text form into the number form for you during the compilation process.
6.12
There was also a utility in Risc User that will convert one form to the
other and vice versa.á Chris Johnson, Edinburgh.
6.12
Å    Talking Pictures Ö This is a reply by Anne Williams of Wyddfa Software
to the review in the July issue of Archive (6.10 p47).
6.12
There is a serious aim behind Talking Pictures which I feel was not
appreciated by the reviewer Ö it is to stimulate the development of
spoken language in children who have not yet learnt to read. The program
is also a simple introduction to the computer for young children, and
can help children who are having difficulty in correctly naming colours.
However, using sampled human speech (and incidentally the voice is male,
not female as the review says), the intention of this program is to
encourage spoken language. Its greatest value is with children with
special educational needs.
6.12
A computer is no substitute for crayons and paper but a child with
learning difficulties can be initially surprised and then stimulated to
respond to a computer that Étalksæ. In addition, a child with
difficulties with coordination will struggle to use a mouse and pointer.
This program can help a child to produce a decent coloured picture,
which can then be printed out, where crayons would leave him or her
floundering. (Talking Pictures is quite obviously not concerned with
either spelling or reading and it certainly does not claim to cover
these topics, contrary to the implication in the last paragraph of the
review.)
6.12
Talking Pictures comes with five pictures, but more pictures are
available. The Extra Pictures Pack (price ú10 inc VAT and carriage)
contains six more pictures which run in both Talking Pictures and its
sequel, The Spoken Word. More pictures are planned, both for children
and for adults. The one aspect of sales that has genuinely surprised me
is that individuals and institutions are buying this program for use
with mentally-handicapped and brain-damaged adults. I really would
welcome advice on suitable topics or themes for pictures for adults from
people who have relevant experience.
6.12
Finally, the review was based on a rather ancient pre-release version of
Talking Pictures. The release version has already dealt with several
minor points raised in the review, for example, the colour indigo has
been lightened.á Anne Williams, Wyddfa Software
6.12
Å    Text>Draw converter Ö In Archive 6.9 p31, Brian Cowan requested a Text
to Draw converter. I have written a multi-tasking application (on the
monthly program disc) that will do all that Brian asked for initially (I
have since had several e-mail messages from him Éupping the anteæ). It
allows the use of up to three font styles and does super and subscripts.
A WYSIWYG display is shown as the text is entered and the result can be
saved as a drawfile. Note that this program will only function correctly
on RISC OS 3.
6.12
The application contains extensive on-line help. If anyone finds the
program useful, they can contact me for a more enhanced version which I
have already written in response to some of Brianæs later wish lists.á
Chris Johnson, Edinburgh. (Chris has sent us another version for the
disc which is, I think, this enhanced version. Ed.)
6.12
Å    Ultimate MultiPodule, Analogue Port for A5000 and CC Laser Direct 4 Ö
I felt it may be useful to other people to know of my experiences with
the above. I have an A5000 with CC Laser Direct 4, an Acorn I/O podule
and an Vidi-Archimedes digitiser. As the I/O podule took up two slots,
the chance to get an analogue port in half a podule slot was attractive,
so I bought an Ultimate MultiPodule and analogue port (direct from
HCCS). Once fitted, the analogue port worked well, but the effect on
Laser Direct was devastating. It produced black or blank pages or
sections of gibberish. I had read in my favourite magazine that the LD
podule was a bit fussy about which slot it was in. I remember somebody
had complained about lines through the print. I tried swopping and
removing podules. There was a considerable difference depending on the
relative podule slot position of Ultimate and LD, but I could not find a
position where I was happy that the situation was stable. Incidentally,
the digitiser podule made no difference whether it was in or out or
where it was.
6.12
I rang HCCS who were helpful and came back saying they had tried the
same combination on their A5000 without any problem and suggested I send
the board back for checking. No problem was found, so when I got the
board back I borrowed a friendæs A5000 and put my podules in it. All
worked well in any position. I tried swopping the backplanes but this
made no difference. It looked as though there was something wrong with
the main board of my A5000. However, I noticed that my friends A5000 had
an Issue 2 board, whereas mine is an Issue 1. I also established that
the problem was nothing to do with the Analogue port of the Ultimate
setup, it was the main MultiPodule which was causing the problem. I
tried killing the Ultimate module, but this made no difference either.
6.12
At this stage, I called on my friendly neighbourhood Acorn dealer. He
tried my podules in an A5000 with an Issue 1 board and all the problems
were there once again. So it appears that it is not my machine, but a
function of an Issue 1 board and the two podules. The dealer said he
would write to Acorn, CC and HCCS, but three weeks later he has not had
a response. I am a rather worried that all I am going to get is buck-
passing as, effectively, three manufacturers are involved... but I live
in hope!
6.12
It has been suggested that the problem is due to a timing fault which I
gather was fixed by another manufacturer when a similar fault occurred
in a different situation, by putting the timing on the podule. This is
all a bit beyond me.
6.12
As a sideline, I also discovered a separate fault, which was due to the
Ultimate analogue podule or at least the module it loads. With the
Ultimate analogue podule in the machine, when ARCterm7 addresses my Pace
Microlin modem, it reports ömodem not respondingò. However, as soon as I
kill the analogue module, it all works perfectly. I have also reported
this to HCCS.
6.12
Roger Penniceard, Wandsworth.ááA
6.12
Music Column
6.12
Stewart Watson
6.12
Each month there seems to be more good news on the software front for
music lovers. Not only is new software appearing, but established
programs are constantly being updated, so keep in touch with the
distributors because many of the new facilities are well worth having.
6.12
Standard MIDI files
6.12
There is now a vast number of standard MIDI files available from a
variety of sources. Many of these files have been prepared by
professional demonstrators for the main music equipment manufacturers,
Yamaha, Roland, Akai, etc, to allow salesmen to demonstrate equipment in
shops. Copies of these discs are usually available free from your local
music shop. Most of these files are written to correspond to the General
MIDI standard which means that if you have a sequencer like Serenade,
and a keyboard or expander that responds to General MIDI, you can load
and run any of these files from your Archimedes. Many of these files are
in foreign formats, (DOS or Atari) but fortunately the Archimedes is
capable of reading both these types of files.
6.12
Demo files
6.12
Apart from showing off how good your equipment can sound, these files
can provide a fund of useful tips on sequencing because, once they are
converted into Serenade files, you can examine the various tracks and
see what tricks the professional demonstrators get up to. You can even
clip bits out and stick them into your own sequences.
6.12
Converting DOS files
6.12
Yamaha have produced many demonstration files for the PSR-SQ16, TG-100,
etc and these files can easily be modified to run from Serenade. First
make a copy of the original file and put the original away in a safe
place. Using the backup copy, click on the file using <menu>, go down to
the second item, file Éwhateveræ, move the mouse to the right and then
down to Set type and across to the right where you will see the word
ÉDOSæ in a writable icon. Press <ctrl-U> to clear this text and type in
&FD4 (Serenade filetype) and press <return>.
6.12
De-mixing
6.12
Load Serenade and double click on your converted file. If you open the
track window, you will notice that all the parts are loaded onto track
1. Click on track 1 and drag it down to the de-mix icon, and a warning
window will appear, ÉDemix track one? This will erase all other tracks.
Yes/No.æ Click on Yes, then go and make a cup of coffee and when you
come back, you will see that the parts have been separated onto
different tracks.
6.12
Performance changes
6.12
To ascertain which voices are on which tracks, open the Event Edit
window and you will be able to identify the voices by ÉPcæ for
Éperformance changeæ in the Type list, and the number in the Data 1
list. A full list of the General MIDI voice numbers is printed on page
74 of the Serenade manual.
6.12
Studio 24 files
6.12
EMR sell a MIDI file converter which converts standard MIDI files for
use in EMR programs. It also converts EMR files to standard MIDI files
which can then be loaded into Serenade. The EMR files are converted one
pattern at a time, so it easier to cut and paste all the patterns into
one long pattern in Studio 24 before converting into a MIDI file, rather
than sorting it all out later.
6.12
Inspiration
6.12
The Acorn Education Directory Issue 4 on p139 states that, öThe current
version of this product at the time the directory went to press does not
work with RISC OS 3.10. Please contact the supplier for information on
later versions.ò I have tried several times to get in touch with the
supplier, Pandora Technology, but without success.
6.12
Serenade
6.12
The guitar window in Serenade is very useful for making guitar parts
sound as if they are played on a guitar, rather than a keyboard. This is
because when a keyboard player plays a chord he tends to play all the
notes at once, whereas a guitar player strums the strings one after
another, producing a quite different effect.
6.12
Guitars with more than six strings?
6.12
Each chord has three alternative fingering patterns, any of which can be
placed and edited by combining the Draw feature from Edit mode with the
Guitar window, and if you superimpose the second and third versions of
the chord over the first version, you can produce guitar chords
containing more than six notes.
6.12
Harp chords
6.12
You can combine this technique with the octave transpose facility to
create strummed chords spanning five octaves to create harp-like
effects.
6.12
User files
6.12
I suggested to Richard Millican, the author of Rhythm-Bed, that it might
be a good idea to ask users to pool their rhythm patterns. He agreed and
suggested that drum kit files could also be included in this exchange.
If Rhythm-Bed users, via Archive, send me a disc of Rhythm-Bed files
disc, together with a stamped addressed envelope, I will undertake the
compilation of all the files. The inclusion of a brief note describing
the contents of the disc sent would be a help. I will then return the
original discs with copies of all the material received.ááA
6.12
Ovation Column
6.12
Maurice Edmundson
6.12
Hyphenation
6.12
Ovation contains a useful algorithm for hyphenation which I find works
very well and produces sensible splits in most words. It was some time
before I began to make use of this facility, since by default it was
switched off. Now I tend to keep it on, especially when I am typing into
columns narrower than a full page with the text justified. In these
circumstances, some hyphenation is inevitable if you want to avoid the
so called örivers of whiteò which can spoil a justified layout.
6.12
You will find the hyphenation option at the bottom of the Format menu.
6.12
To be active, it must be ticked. Sliding the mouse to the right also
reveals two user choices which control its operation in special cases.
These are (a) the ability to prevent splitting of a word whenever it
begins with a capital letter Ö useful for proper names for instance, and
(b) restricting the split to a minimum number of letters. The default
value in my software was six but I usually alter this to three. It is
surprising how many long words can be split after the third letter and
still make sense. Of course, this rule is not infallible and some
changes will have to be made from time to time. For example the word
öhyphenationò itself could only be split after the fourth letter at the
minimum. Selecting a number of letters does not prevent the internal
algorithm from choosing other split points at suitable places along the
word but it will never leave fewer than the minimum at the end of the
first line.
6.12
There is also a built-in hyphenation dictionary. It does not require
loading like other dictionaries but it can be brought onto the screen
for adding and deleting entries. This dictionary is called !HyphDict and
is accessed from the Spell option at the end of the main menu.
6.12
Adding a word to this dictionary will prevent it from being hyphenated
in the text. Alternatively, if a word is added with a hyphen at the
place where you wish any split to take place, it will appear normally in
the text without a hyphen, except when it occurs at the end of a line,
when it will split as you indicated. This method is useful for
specialised text, e.g. scientific papers, where you know of many words
which will occur again and again and must be split, if at all, only at
pre-selected points.
6.12
If, as you are typing, you can see the possibility of a word requiring
hyphenation, you can force your choice by typing <ctrl-hyphen> between
the appropriate letters as you write the word. Nothing will be seen on
screen, but if a split has to be made the word will be hyphenated at
this point. The advantage of this method is that if for any reason the
text is later modified and the word moved to a new position, no hyphen
will be visible to spoil the rearranged sentence.
6.12
Read the manual
6.12
Ovation contains many other useful features which, like hyphenation, are
easily overlooked, especially if they are only required infrequently. It
pays to re-read the manual and supplementary sheets from time to time. I
can illustrate this point by mentioning two things which have cropped up
in the past few days, as I write. On one occasion, I wanted to import a
short manual on disc into Ovation for editing and printing out. Ovation
now imports text from !Edit and other software very easily but, in this
case, as I imported the text file, I held down <ctrl> and this
automatically converted single carriage returns to spaces and double
carriage returns to single ones. This can save time when re-formatting
the text within Ovation.
6.12
The second feature I have used many times is the öFind and Replaceò
option, at the bottom of the Edit menu.
6.12
Note that the special öwild cardò characters only appear if the wild
card option is highlighted. Using these, it is possible to modify
globally, paragraphs and general layout as well as the more usual
technique of finding and replacing words.
6.12
I think I have covered many of the interesting and versatile aspects of
Ovation in this column to date and, for the time being, I will bring it
to a close. I am grateful to those readers who have written to me with
their ideas and comments. It may be possible with the editoræs
permission to contribute an occasional commentary covering any new
developments which may arise in the future.ááA
6.12
Small Ads
6.12
(Small ads for Archimedes and related products are free for subscribers
but we reserve the right to publish all, part or none of the material
you send, as we think fit. i.e. some people donæt know what Ésmallæ
means and there are certain things, as you can imagine, that we would
not be prepared to advertise as a matter of principle. Sending small ads
(especially long ones!) on disc is helpful but not essential. Ed)
6.12
Å    47Mb ST506 suitable for 400 series (no interface needed) ú140. Phone
Ian on 061Ö476Ö0229.
6.12
Å    A3000 2áMb upgrade (Watford) ú22. This is 2Mb only Ö not upgradable to
4Mb. Gerald Fitton 0793Ö723347.
6.12
Å    A3000 (4Mb) Ö Twin 3╜ö disk drives, colour monitor with stand,
Voltmace joystick, magazines and discs, ú550 o.n.o. A3000 Technical
Reference Manual ú10, Archimedes Assembly Language book ú5. Acorn ANSI C
(rel 3) Compiler ú40. Archive complete to date ú20. Interdictor ú5,
Zarch ú5. Phone Basingstoke 0256Ö27355.
6.12
Å    A3000 1Ö2 Mb expansion board (Atomwide, unused) ú20. Task and Window
Organiser ú5. DeskEdit2 ú15. (Originals with handbooks). Phone Ernie on
0493Ö740557.
6.12
Å    A310, 4Mb RAM, RISCáOS 3.1, MEMC1a, IFEL 4-slot backplane, external
floppy interface, Acorn colour monitor, Lingenuity 16-bit SCSI
interface, Rodime 105Mb, lots of software, ú695 or offers. May split.
Phone 0932Ö245301 anytime.
6.12
Å    A310M Ö RISC OS 3, colour monitor, Epson LX80, software, computer
desk, swivel chair, ú500. Phone 0782Ö657521 after 6.
6.12
Å    A440/1 Ö ARM3 and RISC OS 3.1 and much PD ú895. Acorn colour monitor
ú110. Computer Concepts ROM/RAM podule with Interword chip and battery
backup ú25. Bristol 0272Ö736237.
6.12
Å    A410/4 Ö 4Mb RAM, ARM3 processor, RISC OS 3, Oak SCSI interface, 100Mb
drive ú795. Taxan 795 Multisync ú350. Aleph One 386 PC Card (for A410/
A310 etc), 4Mb RAM, maths coprocessor, Windows driver and PC Emulator
ú350. Phone Bill on 0279Ö424139.
6.12
Å Acorn AKF18 multisync Ö ú190. Pace Linnet V21/23 Modem ú50. EMR
MicroStudio V1.0G and Music Disc Set ú40. EMR StoryBook and StoryBook
Disc Set 1 ú40. Both packages new, unregistered (unwanted competition
prizes). Contact G. Rhodes 0302Ö722781 eves.
6.12
Å    AKF18 multisync, as new, only 7 months old, ú200 o.n.o. Phone
0533Ö660123.
6.12
Å    Aleph One 386PC podule, 4Mb RAM and software. ú375 o.n.o. Phone Jim
Nottingham 0759Ö303511 after 3pm.
6.12
Å    Ancestry (2.0) ú5, Address I (3.02) ú3, MicroSpell (3.04) ú3, Split an
Image ú6, SparkFS (1.12) ú5, Archivist Pro ú15, First Impression
(tutorial guide) ú10, System Delta Plus 2 ú3, Watford 5ö hand held
scanner ú15, External 5╝ò 40/80 drive and interface ú25 o.n.o., Datachat
1223 Modem and lead ú10, monitor swivel stand ú5, blank used 3╜ö discs
10 for ú2. Phone 0223Ö629868.
6.12
Å    Archimedes 420/1, 2Mb RAM, 20Mb hard disc, RISC OS 3, Acorn colour
monitor and MIDI interface, EMR Studio24+ (V3.0c), PRMæs, all boxed,
ú950 or will split (e.g. Studio24+ ú150). Phone 0532Ö781455.
6.12
Å    Canon BJ130e bubblejet prints larger than A3, has sheet feeder up to
100 sheets. Original packaging, manuals, etc, RISCáOS 3.1 Turbo Driver,
ú275. Phone 0932Ö245301.
6.12
Å    Fast A5000 Ö 27MHz ARM3, 16.7MHz Memory (4Mb of 70ns Ram), Eizo 9060s
Multisync, 100Mb Quantum ú1300 (or with 40Mb ú1175). Totally reliable,
perfect condition + software. Phone R. James on 0494Ö522704.
6.12
Å    HP PaintJet XL (takes A3 & A4), paper and few cartridges, ú2,000
o.n.o. Would suit small business. Phone Chris Price on 0813Ö002112 or
write to Merton Court School, Knoll Road, Sidcup, Kent, DA14 4QU.
6.12
Å    Morley SCSI podule Archimedes or A5000 ú50 o.n.o. Phone Mike on
0203Ö715864 after 6.
6.12
Å    Programmers wanted for Archimedes/RISC educational software, part-time
home-based. Phone 0775Ö725717 eves.
6.12
Å    Student requires work experience for one year from Sept/Oct. Studying
for computing, maths & business studies degree. Can cover operating
systems, programming, spreadsheets, etc. Phone Daniel on 0603Ö614581.
6.12
Å    Taxan Viking II Ö B&W monitor, mode 23, 1152╫896 resolution, excellent
for DTP, ú350 o.n.o. Phone 0895Ö230826.
6.12
Å    Two 20M hard discs, ú65 each. Phone Paul on 0274Ö481075.
6.12
Å    Wanted Ö öDisctreeò, Hard Disc Companion II and Impression II
preferably upgraded for RISC OS 3.1, but not essential. Write to Peter
Young, 20 Racecourse Lane, Northallerton, North Yorkshire, DL7 8RD.
6.12
Å    Z88 with 128Mb RAMpack, mains unit, link to Archimedes, 4 rechargeable
batteries, charger, manual, ú95 Phone 091Ö536Ö2066. Also Psion II XP,
32Kb Datapak, 32Kb Rampack, 16Kb Datapak, mains unit, manual ú65.
6.12
Charity Sales Ö The following items are available for sale in aid of
charity. PLEASE do not just send money Ö ring us on 0603Ö766592 to check
if the items are still available. Thank you.
6.12
Acorn Education Directory ú15, Archimedes Assembly Language Programming
Disc ú3, Archimedes First Steps book ú4, Archway 2 ú8, Battle Chess ú18,
Computer Projects for Railway Modellers (book) ú5, Design Concept fonts
ú4, Holdfast Joypad ú5, Interdictor 1.0 ú3.
6.12
(If you have unwanted software or hardware for Archimedes computers you
could donate for charity, please send it to the Archive office. If you
have larger items where post would be expensive, just send us details of
the item(s) and how the purchaser can get hold of them.)ááA
6.12
PipeLineZ
6.12
Gerald Fitton
6.12
Already Iæve received a few replies to my last PipeLineZ article in
which I commented on the number of people reading this column who donæt
have PipeDream or Wordz. It seems that many of you read the specialist
columns of Archive because, when you are considering whether to buy a
package, you find them a much more reliable guide than reading reviews.
I have received more comment along the lines of, öArchive should
emphasise its specialist columns in its advertsò.
6.12
Leading on from this, it has got to be a result of the reduction in the
price of PipeDreamá4 (now ú140 through NCS) which has resulted in a
surge in the number of new PipeDream users asking for help and advice
and wanting to join the PipeLine user group. From my correspondence, it
seems that those of you who didnæt buy PipeDream before, were put off by
the price rather than the specification but, at the new price, you now
believe that itæs good value for money. Some correspondents have asked
me whether the PipeLineZ column will soon be an exclusive Wordz column.
My answer is that the surge of interest in PipeDream augurs well for the
future of articles about PipeDream.
6.12
I hope to include a comparison of PipeDream with FireWorkz (see below)
in the near future, so if you have a contribution to this, please drop
me a line.
6.12
Monthly discs
6.12
Thank you for your letters. With a very few exceptions, it seems that
you would like me to keep the PipeLineZ articles in the magazine totally
self-contained (even though it means fewer topics) rather than
transferring a lot of material to a monthly disc which most of you donæt
want to buy as an extra. One comment which I have received in many forms
can be summarised as, öIf the economies of scale were such that
supplying a disc with the magazine didnæt cost too much extra then it
would make the task of writing articles much easier for authorsò. I
suppose it would Ö I wouldnæt need the screen shots!
6.12
FireWorkz
6.12
FireWorkz is not yet a Éproduct availableæ in the Archive sense of the
word Ö so no review yet Ö just an explanation of the thinking behind it,
so youæll understand the pre-release publicity!
6.12
FireWorkz is not a package in the conventional sense of the word. It is
the name of the Éshellæ which will enable you to combine Wordz, Resultz
(and other Émodulesæ which will be released later) into a Éseamlessæ
integrated package like PipeDream. FireWorkz employs the same flexible
Émix and matchæ strategy as ArtWorks. By this, I mean that you will be
able to buy the Émodulesæ you want and leave out the rest (or add them
later). For example, you may want just the word processor, Wordz, and
the database, Recordz, but not the spreadsheet, Resultz. FireWorkz will
allow you to integrate as many or as few Émodulesæ as you want into one
package with one icon on the iconbar. In addition to the Éobviousæ
modules (word processor, spreadsheet and database) there will be other
new modules which you (the purchaser) will be able to install within
FireWorkz retrospectively. As you install your Émodulesæ in FireWorkz,
you will gain full Édynamic data-linkingæ (what I once called seamless
integration in a review of PipeDreamá2) between all the Émodulesæ you
have installed!
6.12
If you have a knowledge of the ArtWorks modular system then please write
to me.
6.12
Curve fitting
6.12
This monthæs PipeDream application is curve fitting...
6.12
For over a year now I have been asked to explain how to use the
PipeDream functions linest(y,x) and trend({c ,m},x). I kept promising
myself that I ought to get around to it but it has taken a problem sent
to me by John Nottage to finally make my mind up that now the time has
surely come.
6.12
I have decided that, in addition to describing the Éline of best fitæ
function, linest(y,x), and the trend({c ,m},x) function, I could use the
opportunity to show you how using Arrays and Names often make formulae
more usable and readable.
6.12
Best straight line
6.12
Letæs make a start by creating the spreadsheet shown in the screen shot,
below.
6.12
The formula for a straight line is yá=ám*xá+ác. The parameter c is
called Éthe constant termæ and m is called Éthe gradientæ. In the range
A12A17, I have inserted half a dozen values of x and, in the range
B12B17, the corresponding values of y have been calculated by putting c
and m (from B6 and B7) into the formula yá=ám*xá+ác. This formula is
used in many engineering and financial applications. An example is
ötotalácostá=ámarginalácost of a unitá*ánumberáofáunitsá+áfixedácostò.
The ömarginal cost of a unitò is the gradient (m) and, in this example,
it is the extra cost of producing one more unit. The öfixed costò (c) is
the cost you incur just getting ready to make some units (such as
machinery) but it doesnæt include the ömarginal costsò such as raw
material and labour.
6.12
Names
6.12
In slot B12, I could have typed B$7*A12+B$6 and then replicated it down
through the range B12B17 Ö but I havenæt done that. In my version, slot
B12 contains the formula set_value(y,m*x +c). I suggest that my version
makes the spreadsheet much more readable but at the expense of a little
more effort on the part of the writer of the application.
6.12
It may help you follow the next paragraph if you refer to the following
screen shot.
6.12
The four letters within the set_value(y,m*x+c) function, y, m, x and c,
are all PipeDream Names. If, in the final version of this spreadsheet,
you were to place the pointer over the italic f (just to the left of the
tick and cross and to the right of the PipeDream logo Ö near the formula
line) and click <select> then a sub-menu called Éfunctionsæ will open
and, at the bottom of the list, you will see ÉEdit nameæ. If you were to
run the pointer through the arrow to the right of ÉEdit nameæ, you would
see that there are seven names defined. These are x, y, y_est, m, c,
c_est, m_est. You could run the pointer through, say, c, and you would
see that the definition of the name c is the content of the slot B6.
Similarly, you could establish that the name x is the range of slots
A12A17 Ö this range contains the values of x!
6.12
To define a name such as x to be the range of slots A12A17, you click on
the italic f, run the pointer through ÉDefine nameæ, type x in the
dialogue box alongside ÉName:æ, type A12A17 into the dialogue box
alongside ÉRefers to:æ and finally click on the OK box.
6.12
The names I have defined are: xáasáA12A17, yáasáB12B17, y_estáasáD12D17,
máasáB7, cáasáB6, c_estáasáD6 and m_estáasáD7.
6.12
The set_value(,) function
6.12
The function set_value(,) is a simple way of evaluating a function many
times and Épokingæ the answers into a range of slots. It is particularly
simple when used with names. Yes, I know it takes time to define the
names but, for large ranges particularly, it is worth it. The function
in slot B12 is set_value(y,m*x+c). Having defined the names as slots or
ranges of slots, set_value(y,m*x+c) calculates all the y values from
m*x+c and Épokesæ the answers into the range of slots defined as y. What
is Écleveræ about PipeDream is that each value in the y range is
individually calculated using its corresponding x and the result Épokedæ
into the Écorrectæ y slot.
6.12
The set_value(,) formula is written only once and does not have to be
replicated (or copied) down the range of slots. Using names in this way
reduces the size of the PipeDream file in memory (the function appears
in only one slot) and on the disc. Because the file is smaller, the
loading time and the time to recalculate are also reduced.
6.12
The linest(y,x) function
6.12
In slot D6, I have entered the formula index(linest(y,x),1,1) but letæs
deal with linest(y,x) first.
6.12
The function linest(y,x) takes, as its arguments, only two ranges of
values Ö in our case y and x. Please note that the y range is the first
argument. In our simple example, x is a single column of values, a more
complex version (which weæll deal with another day) uses one y range and
a many-column x range! When used in this simple way, linest(y,x) returns
an array of two numbers in a single slot. The two numbers are the row
array {c_est ,m_est} where c_est and m_est are the Éconstant termæ and
the Égradientæ of a straight line which is the Ébestæ straight line for
the set of points. Strictly, it is the Éleast squares regression line of
y on xæ!
6.12
On page 250 of the First Edition of the PipeDreamá4 Reference Guide, the
function linest(,,,,) is shown with five arguments. All too often, I
have been asked how to use the last three arguments. The answer is that
you canæt because, in PipeDream version 4.13, they donæt exist and, as
far as I know, they are never likely to. The function linest(y,x) can
take only two arguments but the second argument, x, can consist of many
columns. Letæs deal with what is called Émultivariate regressionæ
another day. For now, let it suffice that the arguments stats, constant_
parameters and measured_errors of the First Edition do not and will not
exist.
6.12
The index(array,col,row) function
6.12
To Ésplit upæ the array returned by linest(y,x) into its two separate
terms, {c_est ,m_est}, we need to use the index(array,col,row) function.
The index function I have entered into slot D6 is
index(linest(y,x),1,1).
6.12
Since linest(y,x)á=á{c_est ,m_est}
6.12
index(linest(y,x),1,1)á=á(index({c_est ,m_est},1,1).
6.12
The array {c_est ,m_est} has only one row and so the last (third)
argument of index({c_est ,m_est} ,1,1) must be 1. The second argument,
1, selects the first element of the array which is c_est. Hence
index(linest(y,x),1,1)á=ác_est.
6.12
The value in D6 is our best estimate of the constant term c_est for the
Éleast squares regression line of y on xæ!
6.12
Slot D7 contains index(linest(y,x),2,1). The only difference is the
second argument, 2, which selects the gradient, m_est. The value in D7
is our best estimate of the gradient, m_est.
6.12
A point you should realise here is that Iæve Écheatedæ by using Éexactæ
values of y calculated from the formula yá=ám*xá+ác so that, if I have
the Érightæ formulae in column D, then my Éestimatedæ values for c_est
and m_est are bound to be Éexactæ and equal to the values of c and m in
B6 and B7!
6.12
The trend({c ,m},x) function
6.12
From the screen shot, you will see that slot D12 contains the formula
set_value(y_est,trend({c_est , m_est},x)) Ö and weæve dealt with
set_value(,). Note that y_est is the name of the range D12D17, so letæs
have a look at trend({c_est ,m_est},x).
6.12
The function trend({c_est ,m_est},x) returns a column array when x is a
column (as it is in this case) or a row array when x is a row. The
column array returned by trend({c_est ,m_est},x) is exactly the same
array as that given by the formula {m_est*xá+ác_est }. We saw how
{m*xá+ác } returned an array when we looked at slot B12. I think that,
when I know the values of c and m (separately), then I would prefer to
enter m_est*xá+ác_est (without the curly brackets) instead of
trend({c_est ,m_est},x); itæs shorter and it does exactly the same
thing. On another occasion when we have a look at the function
logest(y,x) to produce log-linear and log-log graphs, we shall see that
this second approach has its advantages. The function trend(,) has the
advantage if you donæt want to use the values of {c ,m} separately. In
those cases you can write trend(linest(y,x),x) and weæll find that we
canæt do that with log-linear and log-log curve fitting.
6.12
To summarise where we are up to now. In the spreadsheet on page 44,
there are only five slots containing formulae. These are:
6.12
    B12á=áset_value(y,m*x+c)
6.12
    C12á=áset_value(C12C17,x)
6.12
    D12á=áset_value(y_est,trend({c_est ,m_est},x))
6.12
    D6 = index(linest(y,x),1,1)
6.12
    D7 = index(linest(y,x),2,1)
6.12
There are seven PipeDream Names which have been defined. These are:
6.12
    xá=áA12A17
6.12
    yá=áb12B17
6.12
    y_está=áD12D17
6.12
    má=áB7
6.12
    cá=áB6
6.12
    m_está=áD7
6.12
    c_est =áD6
6.12
You can alter the values in B6 and B7 and in the range A12A17 but, for
now, you should change nothing else.
6.12
Best straight line
6.12
Up to now, the y values in B12B17 have been generated from a formula
which uses the values c and m in B6 and B7.
6.12
Place the cursor in slot B12, delete the formula and replace it with the
number 1. Nothing much should happen but the values of y are now no
longer calculated from the formula using c and m from B6 and B7. Enter a
few y values which are different from but approximately the same as
those generated by the formula and, when the sheet has recalculated, you
will find that y and y_est do not quite match. If you plot the values of
y against x you will no longer have a straight line (unless youære
lucky) but plotting y_est against x will give you a perfect straight
line, the Ébestæ straight line for the x and y values.
6.12
Donæt save the modified sheet unless you change the name!
6.12
Charting
6.12
To help you visualise what is going on, you might like to try creating a
chart with two sets of data. For the first set, use the x and y values
in A12B17 plotted in red. For the second set, use the data in C12D17
plotted in blue.
6.12
You wonæt see the blue points until you modify the y data as described
in the previous paragraph.
6.12
Finally
6.12
If you wish to write to me then you may do so at the Abacus Training
address given on the inside back cover of Archive.ááA
6.12
Beginnersæ Column
6.12
Laura Handoca
6.12
Laura has compiled some more questions Q and some hints H from readers.
If you feel you can answer any of the questions and/or fancy writing a
short article about any subject that beginners might appreciate, write
in to Laura via the Archive office. Thanks, Ed.
6.12
H.á(A response to the query about Acorn DTP and the öNo stack for trap
handlerò message.) Like Sue Hooper, I used to use this package Ö my task
was to produce a newsletter in the college where I worked. I got the
same messages when producing about four pages. My solution was to load
the printer driver first, then quit it from the iconbar Ö this leaves,
in memory, the modules required for printing. Drag out the önextò slot
(in the task manager) to about 1200Kb, then load Acorn DTP. Then, when
you are approaching the stage in document creation when memory is
getting tight, an error message pops up saying there is insufficient
memory. If you donæt increase the önextò slot size before the program is
loaded, this error message does not seem to appear and it comes up with
the dreaded öNo stack for trap handlerò message. [Barry Thompson]
6.12
H.áFurther Acorn DTP... Ö Concerning Sue Hooperæs problems with Acorn
DTP, I would think the problem is almost certainly lack of usable memory
Ö for printing perhaps? (Jim offers the same suggestion as Barry.)
6.12
Assuming this does the trick, thereæs a potential solution for printing
even larger documents and that is to Éprint to fileæ first rather than
direct to the printer Ö this uses less memory. Itæs a bit of a palaver
and means telling the printer driver where to put the print file (!Scrap
directory perhaps?) and what name to give it, but it can make all the
difference between getting a print-out and not. Once the print file
exists, its icon can be dropped onto the printer icon and the file will
be printed, in the background. The only solution for mega-files is mega-
memory, Iæm afraid.
6.12
There is another possible reason for the computer crashes Ö rather
obscure, but Iæve seen it before and the error message was near-
identical. This appeared when I was using some commercial clipart
drawfiles which had text areas and/or copyright messages embodied in
them, using the system font (some of these messages were öhiddenò
beneath the drawings). The problem surfaces if the drawfiles are reduced
in size (Sueæs ölots of drawfilesò?) so that the system font size is
reduced to well below the standard 12pt. In that case, the printer
driver may fall over in a heap and cause the crash.
6.12
Even if there are no visible text areas in System font, to see if there
are any hidden messages, the suspect file(s) should be loaded into
!Draw. Then Select All and have a look at the Style sub-menu. If öFont
nameò is greyed out, there are no messages lurking. However, if itæs in
black, have a look at the Font name sub-menu to see if any font is
ticked, especially System.
6.12
To clear the problem, there are two solutions. The easier is to
selectáöConvert to pathò but, if there are extensive text areas, this
can generate a large file. The alternative is to convert the System font
to an outline font instead. To do this, Select All, and choose the
desired font via the Style Ö Font name menu. [Jim Nottingham]
6.12
Q.áBasic programming Ö I currently have two programming problems. As a
teacher in a Sixth-form college, I have developed my own database (BBC
Basic on Model B, graduating to A310 with 4MB+HD+RISCáOS 3.1) for
handling entries to a wide variety of Exam Boards (using EDI), archiving
all past results, performing statistical analyses upon them and handling
a range of internal exams admin. The program has grown to about 140Kb,
with another 100Kb-worth of code-sections which can be appended as and
when required. I do not have either the time or the expertise to re-
write the program to run in a windows environment, although I have just
managed to put it in an !Applications directory so that it can be run
from the desktop (but it then runs native, NOT in a window).
6.12
Problem 1: Am I being naive to ask if it is possible to get an existing
Basic program to run in a window, so that it can multitask with, for
example, PipeDream, so that one has the flexibility to switch from
database to wordprocessor and back without having to close either of
them down? I donæt want to introduce pull-down menus etc, etc. I donæt
want to transfer data from one to the other; I just want them co-
existing in their respective windows. Can it be done by writing a
suitable front-end and without re-writing my Basic database? If so, how?
6.12
Problem 2: In order to obtain screendumps of statistical scatter-graphs
and bar charts by data from within the database, I currently load the
old *Hardcopy module and invoke that from within the Basic program.
However, the print quality is not marvellous. Is it possible to invoke
the facilities of the !Printers software to invoke a screendump from
within a Basic program? If so, what are the commands to use from within
Basic to load the relevant code and then to invoke it? [M. P. Sawle]
6.12
H. Hard disc management Ö The query from Christine Shield regarding hard
disc management prompts me to refer you to an article in Archive 5.12 p7
öHints and Tipsò by Steve Drain. I have recently been experimenting with
the amount of disc space occupied by directories on IDE drives. Like
Steve with his SCSI device, I found that the size of a directory created
on the hard disc is governed by the size of the Large File Allocation
Unit. The file allocation is determined by the hard disc formatting
program and is the final request from Acornæs !HForm application when
you have either formatted or initialised the hard disc. I discovered
that if the file allocation was chosen as 512 bytes then when a
directory was created, its size was 7680 bytes. If a file allocation of
256 was chosen, then a created directory had a size of 4096 bytes. With
floppies, the directory size seems always to be 1028 bytes. Of course,
if Compression is used, this helps enormously in saving space without
too much of a speed penalty. [Barry Thompson]
6.12
Q.áFirst Word Plus Ö I have two queries about First Word Plus. Firstly,
how do I go about changing the ruler? Secondly, how do I prevent it
printing a page number at the foot of each page? [M. E. Ellis]
6.12
(Have you got the old Archive magazines? There were hints & tips about
FWPlus in Archive from 1.10 to 3.11, including a regular FWPlus Column
that Stuart Bell did for us. Ed.)
6.12
H.áFile limitations Ö Beware, a reminder: all filing systems based on
FileCore (e.g. ADFS, RAM, IDEFS) have the limitation of a maximum of 77
entries per directory. Non FileCore filing systems donæt have this
restriction (e.g. SparkFS). If you try to exceed the maximum number of
entries, (i.e. files or sub-directories) you will get error messages,
such as ödisc fullò. [Ted Lacey]
6.12
H.áProfessional printing Ö In reply to Beginnersæ Column Archive 6.9, re
professional printing [Christine Shield], could I mention some things?
6.12
If you present a printout, say of an Impression document, to the Printer
(from now on Printer with a capital P means commercial Printer, with
small p means your computer printer!!) he will make a negative film
using a camera. From this film he makes his öoffset litho plateò from
which he prints your document. Your work will be presented to him the
öright way roundò, the negative film will be the reflected version Ö the
plate, right way round Ö offset roller reflected Ö final print right way
round!
6.12
If you take your disc to a typesetting bureau, they can do two main
things for you:
6.12
(1) They could make a negative film using a linotronic machine (very
high dot resolutions, up to 2400 dots per inch) for the Printer to make
his plate from Ö which will be much clearer than your own printout.
6.12
(2) They could make you a Bromide Ö a positive right way round printout
of your file at the same very high resolution, but with fairly coarse
graining for half tones.
6.12
If your document is complete (no additional bits needing to be pasted in
with real glue) a bromide is unnecessary Ö the bureau can make you a
negative.
6.12
But why is it so expensive? Because time is money! It can take a long
time for the document to öfeed throughò the linotronic machine Ö
sometimes several hours, thus tying up the bureauæs machine.
6.12
Are there any intermediate alternatives? Well yes, there are.
6.12
If you can push your document through someone elseæs Laser Direct HiRes
system (it is quite quick and cheap), you can produce camera-ready
artwork which is pretty good Ö for black and white work the results are
not noticeably different from those using a Bromide Ö and a lot cheaper.
The snag comes when you try to produce reasonable half-toning. CC HiRes
at 600dpi produces a very fine (in the sense of thin) dot screen which
the Printeræs camera tends not to be able to resolve properly: the
results of even a simple grey tint on the printout tend to become
öblotchyò on the negative and so on through to the final output.
Bromides overcome this by using a coarser screen. (I believe CC are
working on this for the RISCáOS 3 version of HiRes PrDr). (If you want
to see the effect, look at Archive 4.9. That was the first issue which I
produced after swapping my 300 d.p.i. Qume Direct for a 600 d.p.i. Laser
Direct Hi-Res 8. Archive is now produced by printing at 300╫600 d.p.i.
onto a good quality A4 art paper. This is given to the Printer who
reduces it for printing at A5.)
6.12
A fairly new alternative has become available in the last year. Most
Printers can make plates from either negatives (black where the result
is white) or öpositive filmò (the plates required here work the opposite
way round: thus where the positive film is black the plate will receive
ink). The recent innovation is the öPlazerò. This is an acetate sheet
coated with a special matt white emulsion on one side, designed to pass
through laser printers (and photocopiers Ö but not Bubble jets). Since
it is quite easy to print in reflection (everything mirrored) on an
Archimedes, you can print out your document onto a Plazer and the
Printer then uses them as positive film to make his plates. The result
is that you get dot for dot reproduction on the plate, and half tones
once more behave themselves!
6.12
Plazers are designed in principle to be used directly as Épaper platesæ
for Printing, but these require the sheet of Plazer material to be A3
size, and few of us are able to afford an A3 laser printer. However,
when used as positive film, an A4 size works perfectly well. The Printer
(who often uses A2 anyway) lays Étwo upæ or Éfour upæ on his litho
plate. All he needs to do is to expose the plate for about twice as long
as usual, the matt white coating acts like ömilk glassò.
6.12
Using plazers, you can get reasonable reproductions of scanned
photographs, though Laser Direct is effectively limited to a maximum of
128 grey scales.
6.12
If you require a proper professionally scanned photograph to be dropped
into the document, just make the box into which the photograph is to go
black. The Printer then can re-expose that part with the photograph scan
later.
6.12
I am willing to supply A4 Plazers at 70p each + p&p (or A3 size at
ú1.40). This represents a small mark up, but any profits go to church
funds. Buying from the suppliers, requires you to purchase a minimum of
250 A3 size! This price compares very favourably with the cost of a
negative (usually around ú4 to ú6 per page). Subject to demand, I could
also print out Impression documents on Plazers for a reasonable charge.
[Rev. Philip Foster, St Matthews Vicarage, 24 Geldart Street Cambridge,
CB1 2LX.]
6.12
H.áMore professional printing Ö I couldnæt agree more about the need for
an article. I deal with Printers all the time but could not begin to
write such an article. The trade seems to me to be a jargon-littered,
closed shop and you get different stories from different people. There
is an excellent Commercial Printing Guide in the ArtWorks package Ö
perhaps Computer Concepts could be persuaded to sell it separately?
6.12
As to negatives and bromides, I think most people will be familiar with
photographic negatives which, in the printing industry, can be used to
produce a positive, normally on film or printing plate, for printing in
quantity. Essentially, a bromide is a positive version of the negative,
on photographic paper, ie it is a normal print, and is also used for
certain printing applications. The material is usually a glossy paper
with a silver bromide coating, hence the name.
6.12
Apart from commercial printing, bromides have value in DTP and
illustration work. For example, I produce technical illustrations which
I print as camera-ready copy on my Laser Direct at 600dpi. If I print
at, say, 200% scale to fill an A4 sheet, this can be reduced
photographically to 100% and printed on bromide paper. In so doing, this
doubles the effective resolution to 1200dpi which approaches imageset
quality. In this case, lots of similar bromides are Ö quite literally Ö
cut and pasted onto board to make up the desired artwork, prior to being
passed to the printers.
6.12
By this method, we produce high-resolution artwork, using the superb
combination of Archimedes and Laser Direct, in conjunction with simple
photographic techniques, relatively cheaply. To produce the same or
higher quality, a Printer would take your PostScript file and feed it
into a Linotronic or similar imagesetter machine costing umpty-thousands
of pounds, hence the higher charges.
6.12
While the inherent quality of bromides (being a photographic process) is
quite good, the finished result can only be as good as the original
camera-ready copy. So itæs important to print on fine-quality paper, to
minimise laser toner Ésplatteræ or bubblejet inks running into each
other or the paper.
6.12
Some time ago in Acorn User, someone recommended Bromex brand paper. I
havenæt been able to find this but, almost by accident, discovered
System Insightæs FQS paper to be an excellent solution. Although it is
marketed as Final Quality Smooth Paper for inkjets, itæs useless on my
Canon BJC-800 bubblejet Ö but superb on my laser! It costs about 5p a
sheet, well worth the brass for the high-quality results. [Jim
Nottingham]
6.12
H.áCreating a 32 bit application Ö Further to your hint on this topic in
Archive 6.9, I have a couple of comments to make.
6.12
The listing given on page 20 has two areas which might possibly cause
problems. It is suggested that the Basic program should be called
!RunImage. Unfortunately, the !Run file refers to this as RunImage, and
not !RunImage. There is also the line which uses the RunImage system
variable Obey$Dir to set the directory, prior to running the Basic
program. When the program is exited, the directory setting remains. (I
will come back to this later.)
6.12
Since the setting up of an application directory needs a minimum of disc
space, plus extra time in reading the sprite file, I would question the
need for this action unless (a)    there is a
need for a distinctive icon within a directory window or (b) the program
is going to read and/or write data files.
6.12
It is this second aspect which may well justify the setting up of an
application directory, as the files can then reside within the
directory. They are thus hidden from immediate sight. However, it is
assumed that they will be loaded/saved in a non-Wimp fashion. The
context was a simple Basic program. In the case in question on page 20,
the program would read and write files within the directory, but with
the problem of not resetting the directory on leaving the program.
6.12
Remaining within the context of a simple approach, I use an alternative
method. I use a !Run file with the following lines to set up a system
variable, e.g. prog$dir.
6.12
SET prog$dir <Obey$Dir>
6.12
RUN <prog$dir>.Myprog
6.12
Then when reading a data file, I use either:
6.12
Z%=OPENUP (ö<prog$dir>.ò+file$)
6.12
or
6.12
Z%=OPENUP (ö<prog$dir>.òfile)
6.12
where file$ holds the name of the data file, or its actual name is
öfileò.
6.12
You can also use OSCLI to lock up, unlock, rename and delete. This means
that you can keep a backup, say öbfileò, which is updated automatically.
(However, there needs to be verification that bfile exists prior to
deleting it!)
6.12
OSCLI öDELETE <prog$dir>.òbfile$
6.12
OSCLI öRENAME <prog$dir>. òfile$+ ö <prog$dir>.òbfile$
6.12
Z%=OPENOUT (ö<prog$dir>.òfile $)
6.12
The advantage of this is that then when the program (or directory) is
moved to a new location, everything still works, while the actual
directory setting is not changed. [Paul Pibworth]ááA
6.12
Genesis/Magpie Column
6.12
Paul Hooper
6.12
Sounds in multimedia
6.12
If there is one advantage of multimedia packages over conventional
books, it is the ability to include not only pictures and movement but
also sound. When I was at school, the only way to learn about birds was
to read a book, where you were informed that a blue titæs song was
öTsee, Tsee, ch-ch-ch-ch-chò, öSi-si- siò (Observersæ Book of Birds,
1960). Now, with multimedia, you can record a blue tit and place the
resulting sound sample on the page, so that the bird can Ésingæ.
6.12
Sound can also be used in other ways, for example, I recently saw a
Magpie binder that taught young children the phonetic sounds and the
names of letters. Adventures can have recorded sound effects, words can
be spoken and musical instruments can be Éplayedæ. As an example, I have
put together a binder of pages containing sound effects on this monthæs
disc.
6.12
Sound sampling for multimedia
6.12
Without a doubt, one of the best investments for anyone thinking of
adding sounds to their binders is the Oak Recorder microphone which, for
ú48 through Archive, provides you with a microphone which can be
attached to the printer port. Using this you can import sounds into your
binder, either by speaking into the microphone direct or placing it near
a sound source. Using the birdsæ binder as an example, I recorded the
samples onto a portable tape recorder and then held the microphone near
the speaker of the tape recorder. (A direct link is available on the Oak
Recorder II so you could take the output straight from an audio output.)
There are also many sound samples in the PD libraries which can be used
for your binders. Beware of copyright problems though as the law is very
complex. If in doubt, donæt use it! Another useful PD program is
!SampConv which allows you to turn almost any form of sound sample into
Armadeus samples which the two programs will accept. All Iæm waiting for
now is a PD program which will convert Soundtracker into Maestro format!
6.12
Music in multimedia
6.12
Maestro files can be used in multimedia, either as background music or
to illustrate a particular style or point. But beware of over-use Ö a
few soft background musical pieces can be inspiring but donæt go
overboard with a different piece for every page! Soundtracker tunes
cannot be used in Magpie, but I have yet to try to incorporate them in
Genesis. From the script book, it appears that you should be able to run
them but if any one has managed this, please let me know. Both packages
allow you to play CDs from within them, but as I donæt yet have a CD-ROM
drive, I am unable to comment on them.
6.12
Sounds within Magpie
6.12
When you drag a sound sample onto a Magpie page, it is replaced with a
loudspeaker icon with a couple of sound waves emerging from it. Playing
the sample is just a matter of clicking on the icon. The icon can be
resized and also placed behind an object. You can make an object speak.
In the disc example, on page 2, the cow moos when clicked, the word
ÉCowæ says Écowæ when clicked. The letters say the names. So long as you
keep things consistent from page to page, most people will pick it up
quickly.
6.12
Magpie pages can be ordered to play sounds automatically when they are
opened. Using <menu> over a Magpie page, choose the Preferences sub menu
and click on the öPlay sounds/moviesò radio icon. Save the page and
then, next time you open it, the sound will be played automatically. You
can play two or more sound samples using this method but they are played
in the order that you place them on the page, so the first placed gets
played first. Again these icons can be hidden or displayed on the page.
6.12
Sounds within Genesis
6.12
The more powerful facilities of Genesis allow you more flexibility.
Sounds can use the original Armadeus icons or can be dropped into frames
that already contain other information so that when they are clicked,
the sample is played. There is no need to hide sound samples as in
Magpie. This allows the application to react to what the user does.
Sound samples can also be set to play on open or can be timed so that
they play after the page has opened. This can be done by defining a
blank backdrop using this to play the sample as follows:
6.12
DEF BACKDROP
6.12
DRAW öò
6.12
AFTER 10 SECONDS BEGIN PLAYSAMPLE öZulu2ò
6.12
NEXT
6.12
CLOSE END
6.12
END BACKDROP
6.12
The sample being played here is Zulu2 and is switched on after 10
seconds. The sample is then played for about 15 seconds and the next
page is opened and this page is then closed.
6.12
Conclusion
6.12
Experimentation with sound samples and music in multimedia produces some
quite interesting and impressive results Ö this is what places
multimedia above the text book. Many of the applications that I have
seen, or produced myself, have made little use of sound. Sound is such
an important sense that better use should be made of it in the
multimedia world.
6.12
The Swap Shop
6.12
After the suggestion that Magpie and Genesis were suitable for an
adventure game, (6.9 p58) I have been sent a rather good adventure by
Robert Williams about a Confederate Scout during the American Civil War.
This has been added to the catalogue. This excellent application shows
off Genesisæ ability to interact with the user. At one point during the
game, a window pops up and asks you for the password. If you donæt give
the right reply, you are marched off and shot as a spy!
6.12
Also accepting my challenge was Elaine Jones who, rather than just write
an adventure, has actually managed to write a Émindæ game on Genesis
called ÉKnightæs Challengeæ. This game has shown me a way of making
Ésolitaireæ type games on Genesis and I hope to develop a games
compendium based on this.
6.12
Also added to the list this month is Animal Alphabet, an application
developed for my local playgroup to teach children the basic names and
phonetics of the letters. Once this application is started, the whole
thing is totally mouse driven and the keyboard can be put to one side.
Having tested this with a group of 20 four year olds, I was quite amazed
at the speed with which the children picked up the use of the mouse.
6.12
Next month
6.12
Next month, I will be looking at Éskeletonæ pages in Magpie and the way
to recreate them in Genesis. In the meantime, if you have any
suggestions or queries concerning either program, or if you have an
application/binder that you want to swop then drop me a line: Paul
Hooper, 11 Rochford Road, Martham, Great Yarmouth, NR29 4RL.
(0493Ö748474)ááA
6.12
Wimp Programming in C Ö Part 1
6.12
Remo Biagioni
6.12
This is the first article in a series concerned with using the wimp from
C. My own background in programming was very much concerned with writing
short code to solve a particular problem, and I have only very recently
turned my attention to the wimp. So rather than attacking this series as
an expert, I aim to discuss the problems that Iæve had to cope with and
demonstrate how they were either solved or side-stepped. As ever, any
suggestions for future articles, or specific problems will be gratefully
accepted.
6.12
Assert
6.12
Those of you who are experienced C programmers, will no doubt have used
the assert macro. For the uninitiated, assert is part of the standard C
library, and is used to document code. It takes as a parameter a boolean
expression. If the value of the parameter is false (i.e. zero) then
assert will terminate the program with a diagnostic message. However, if
the macro NDEBUG is defined at the point where the header file assert.h
is included in the code, the assert statement is effectively ignored
(the preprocessor treats it as comment). To demonstrate its use,
consider the following code
6.12
/* c.Example1:: This program shows the way that the WIMP informs the
user of an assert error.*/
6.12
#include <assert.h>
6.12
#include öh.wimptò
6.12
int main()
6.12
{wimpt_init("example1") ; /* Tell
6.12
     the wimp that we
6.12
 are here */
6.12
  assert(1==0);
6.12
}
6.12
This will provide a nice little dialogue box explaining that example1
has suffered a fatal internal error and must exit immediately. If you
are really lucky, slightly to the left of this window, you will see the
message:
6.12
***assertion failed: 1==0, file c.Example1,line 10.
6.12
Which is what the C standard states that assert must do. The previous
message (fatal internal error ...) is actually produced by the abort
function which is called by assert. What Iæm going to explain is how to
get the message produced by assert into a window.
6.12
The standard C library
6.12
One of the nicer aspects of C is that it is powerful enough to write
most of its own library in C. This is in marked contrast to, say, Pascal
or Fortran. This makes it relatively easy to rewrite any part of the C
library to tailor it to your own personal requirements. I will
demonstrate this by rewriting assert to make it function better under
the wimp.
6.12
Werr
6.12
In the RISC OS library that comes with version 4 of Acornæs C compiler,
is a function called werr. This is used to produce error messages,
together with an OK icon. The function takes, as a parameter, an integer
and a message. The message is displayed and the boolean variable governs
the behaviour of werr. If this variable is zero, the program continues,
otherwise the program is terminated. Clearly, this is similar to assert.
Thus, werr is a suitable candidate to be used with assert. Note also
that no work is required by the programmer to declare a window Ö all
this is done by the library.
6.12
NDEBUG
6.12
As previously mentioned, NDEBUG is the macro which governs the exact
behaviour of assert. According to the C standard, if the macro NDEBUG is
defined at the time that the header file associated with assert is
#included in the code then assert is ignored, otherwise the parameter is
evaluated and assert called. This allows for assert to be used in the
same file with different values for NDEBUG each time. The value of using
assert with NDEBUG defined is that a debugging comment is left within
the code without delaying it at run time. Thus, in the final version of
any piece of code using assert, NDEBUG should be defined. Note that it
can be defined by the following preprocessor directive:
6.12
#define NDEBUG
6.12
and undefined by:
6.12
#undefine NDEBUG.
6.12
The assert header
6.12
Consider the following code:
6.12
/* h.WimpAssert :: header file for the assert macro to be used with the
Wimp.*/
6.12
#undef assert
6.12
/* Now if assert has already been defined, i.e. an assert header has
already been #included, then the original version is ignored, so that
the present value of NDEBUG can be examined and assert can be expanded
depending on this, rather than on any previous value. If assert has not
been previously defined, this command does nothing. */
6.12
#ifndef __assert__h
6.12
#define __assert__h
6.12
#endif
6.12
/* The above code has been added so that this header can be used in
conjunction with Acornæs header. So both versions can be used by the
same code in different places. _assert_h is the secret name used by
Acorn to decide if an assert header has already been defined.*/
6.12
#ifdef NDEBUG
6.12
#define assert(ignore) ((void)0)
6.12
/* So if NDEBUG has been defined assert is replaced by a
6.12
 void function. */
6.12
#else
6.12
/*Here NDEBUG has not been defined, so assert has
6.12
 to do something. */
6.12
void __WimpAssert(char *);
6.12
#define __SR(x) __VL(x)
6.12
#define __VL(x) #x
6.12
#define assert(test) ((test) ? (void)0  : __WimpAssert (öAssertion ò
#test ö failed at line ò __SR(__LINE__) ö of file ò __FILE__ ))
6.12
#endif
6.12
(The penultimate line, starting ö#define assertò, is one long, single
line. Ed.)
6.12
Hopefully, the comments in the code are self-explanatory. In effect,
this header file instructs the preprocessor to replace any reference to
assert by a void function if NDEBUG is defined, otherwise it is replaced
by a call to __WimpAssert. The macros and functions used in this header
are all prefixed by __, as this is a standard method of denoting a
function internal to a library, and is not a function designed to be
used by the end user. These are sometimes called secret names. The
macros __FILE__ and __LINE__ are defined by the preprocessor and are
replaced by the filename and the line number respectively, at the point
where they are included. The two macros defined above SR and VL are used
to transform the value of __LINE__ into a string.
6.12
__WimpAssert
6.12
Consider the following:
6.12
/* c.WimpAssert :: The _WimpAss-ert function. */
6.12
#include öwimpassert.hò
6.12
#include öh.werrò /* From the RISC OS library */
6.12
#define FATAL 1
6.12
void __WimpAssert(char *msg)
6.12
{werr(fatal ,msg);
6.12
}
6.12
This simple function provides the call to werr. The reason that a call
to werr could not be made from the header file is that this would mean
that the line
6.12
#include öh.werrò
6.12
would need to be in the header, and thus werr would be defined within
the end useræs code. In the case of werr, this would probably already be
the case but it still remains bad practice. Also, the name werr might
have been used by another function, providing a clash. The method used
above means that the client program is only aware of assert.
6.12
Note that any code using wimpassert, must be linked with o.wimpassert.
6.12
Now try Example1 again, replacing the line,
6.12
#include <assert.h>
6.12
by
6.12
#include öh.wimpassertò
6.12
and note the difference.ááA
6.12
Word Processing, Pure and Simple
6.12
Elwyn Morris
6.12
What do you want from a word processor? I, personally, only require a
little more than a glorified typewriter. I need to produce presentable
letters quickly via an inkjet. Alternatively, linked to a dot-matrix
printer, I write, and later easily edit, complex lecture notes, or
whatever, for my own use.  The main requirement of the word processor is
that it should use the printeræs own fonts instead of the Acorn outline
font which means that copy is produced quickly.
6.12
So what is currently available to do this? I would suggest that there is
little more than in Beeb days. Interword is still a near ideal answer
although this program has never been properly upgraded to take advantage
of the Archimedesæ capabilities. PipeDream, also pre-Archimedes, has
gone further down the RISCáOS multi-tasking road and Arnor tell me that
ProText is soon to go even further. There is another processor,
EasiWord, in the same group but, unfortunately, my personal experiences
with Minerva means I know nothing about it.
6.12
I find that a real advantage in processors which grew from low-memory
beginnings is that they employ multi-file facilities. Short files can be
loaded separately and quickly but a group can still be printed as one
large file. Perhaps PipeDream is less good at this than Interword in
that it does not remember page numbering or formatting commands when
they differ from the default.
6.12
As far as the presentation of the page on screen is concerned, I prefer
Interword. The cursor always remains at mid-point on screen and allows
text on each side to be read for editing without having to scroll up and
down. Equally, by showing the amount of unused page on screen, Interword
makes it easy to decide where to make a page break or how to lay out
notes to allow best for existing page breaks. All my examples, unlike
most PC word processors, allow for word-checking as you type Ö a
facility I find essential with my poor typing abilities. Interword
requires a second dictionary program to enable it to do this but this
can be on ROM where it does not wear out a disc drive. PipeDreamæs
dictionary can be loaded into memory to save disc use as well. Automatic
formatting is another ömustò for me. Here, Interword wins hands down.
Neither Pipe-Dream nor ProText totally reformat automatically in all
cases.
6.12
As processors develop, more and more facilities are implemented by
special key-presses. InterWord does not attempt very much so the key
pattern is simple to learn. PipeDream makes it easy for the user to
choose his own key-press preferences. ProText has a more complex
hierarchy but this can be learnt quite quickly and key formats can be
changed to useræs preferences but less easily than can PipeDreamæs.
6.12
On support and development, only one of my preferences looks set for
advancement. Interword seems to have been jettisoned in preference for
Impression. PipeDream may be about to be replaced by a new öZò range
although I think Colton will continue to support PipeDream. ProText is a
different story. Arnor remains a front-runner in PC word processor
development and say that they are upgrading their Acorn version very
soon. I simply hope they do not go the Colton öZò range way and move
over totally to the use of outline fonts.
6.12
Probably a very personal requirement is that a word processor should be
able to run under both RISCáOS and MS_DOS. It is unrealistic to talk of
conversion of files via ASCII or whatever when a major part of my
documentation relies heavily on indenting and paragraphing as well as
underlining. It is also unrealistic to expect existing PC users to
convert to Acorn machines overnight, however superb the Acorn machines
are or may become. Therefore, for people like myself, the use of word
processing packages which can öportò information between home and office
machines are a god-send. PipeDream and ProText do this.
6.12
So, to sum up, what do I recommend as a true word processor which is not
trying to be a DTP package (or, conversely, a DTP package masquerading
as a word processor)? I would have to say that I know nothing of
Easiword. I would then say that I have used Interword, on its own, for
the first three years that I had an Archimedes and that I now use it in
tandem with PipeDream. I have found PipeDream different, even
idiosyncratic, because of its history (I also use it as a simple but
highly competent database) but superb when its oddities are mastered. I
would also say that I have used ProText for the past few weeks and find
it a very sophisticated processor. Nor would I forget to mention the PC-
Archimedes connection.ááA
6.12
Using RISCáOSá3.1
6.12
Hugh Eagle
6.12
SCSI problems
6.12
Barry Thompson found one day that he was unable to access the hard
drive, an Oak Worra Winnie 45Mb on an A340 with RISCáOSá3.11. The error
message, ÉDisc not understood ù has it been formatted?æ came into view.
On Oakæs advice, he refitted RISCáOSá2 and the message became ÉBad free
space map.æ Adrian Lookæs !FixMap was unable to help, so the disc had to
be reformatted and, of course, all the data was lost. Someone at Oak
suggested to Barry that SCSI can be less reliable with RISCáOSá3 than
with RISCáOSá2 and recommended doing a *Checkmap every couple of days
and, if errors were reported, to back everything up and reinitialise the
disc.
6.12
Synonymous pathnames
6.12
Mick Day writes, öI wrote some time ago that the operating system did
not check for synonymous valid references to the RAMDisc pathnames. This
is, in fact, more general. If full and accurate pathnames are always
used, this is no problem; and where removable media are concerned, it is
probably necessary. However, comparison of the ÉBytes freeæ or a CRC
number could have largely eliminated this. Alternatively, if an
abbreviated Disc Spec was given, the filer could have filled it in
completely and thus discovered identical manifestations of filer
windows! It does no harm, but is confusing. If you set the pathnames for
your harddisc in the following short program:
6.12
*Filer_OpenDir RAM::RamDisc0.$
6.12
*Filer_OpenDir RAM::0.$
6.12
*Filer_OpenDir RAM:$
6.12
*Filer_OpenDir SCSI::HardDisc4.$ | set these
6.12
*Filer_OpenDir SCSI::4.$| names to
6.12
*Filer_OpenDir SCSI:$| your system
6.12
*Filer_OpenDir ADFS::MCDay.$
6.12
*Filer_OpenDir ADFS::0.$
6.12
END
6.12
you will find, on running, three identical filer windows on the screen
for RAMDisc, three for Fixed disc and two ADFS floppy! I think this is
sloppy implementation, akin to not checking the disc before issuing
ÉFreeæ!ò
6.12
Top bit set characters
6.12
Mick Day uses a Star LC10 mainly for address labels. The dip switches
set it to the Epson character set. However, he sometimes needs to use
top-bit characters in foreign addresses. He thus has implemented a
complete look-up table for the characters 160-255, trying as near as
possible to get the Latin1 set. He says that, interestingly, it is
possible to dodge about and use the IBM set in addition to the Epson
set! The Basic program $.Latin1 on the monthly program disc summarises
it; anyone with a Star LC10 should be able to get it going. It might
work on some others as well.
6.12
Form feeds
6.12
Mick Day also writes: öI have spent a lot of time trying to stop the
PDriver module or its front end from issuing formfeeds. I would rather
decide for myself when the paper is to be thrown out onto the desk. Am I
missing some glaring instruction or is it really impossible to configure
this simple option? I experimented further with !Printers after reading
Tim Nicholsonæs article (Archive 6.10 pp 43-47), but got no further. I
suspect that the formfeed is done by PDriver; I have set the printer
configure to the start sequence instead of the end and removed the
formfeed character, but all to no avail. It means that if you drag a
single address to print on labels, you need a specific Printer with a
page length of 9 Ö a sledgehammer to crack a nut! I want one driver for
the printer which does what I tell it. Can anyone tell me definitively
if the terminal formfeed is configurable or not? Otherwise I could be
experimenting until I die!ò
6.12
Testing a printeræs on-line status
6.12
(See Archive 6.11 p51) Mick Day says that he prefers the following
routine to the one published last month (which he says is slower and
escape can interrupt it):
6.12
DEF FNCheckPrinter
6.12
*FX 5,1
6.12
*VDU 2,1,0
6.12
SYS öOS_Byteò,152,3 to ;f%
6.12
f%=f%AND2
6.12
*FX 21,3
6.12
VDU 3
6.12
*FX 5,5
6.12
=f%
6.12
(Iæm no expert in these matters, but I believe that the *FX 5,1 only
applies if your printer is connected to the parallel port and the *FX
5,5 might have unwanted effects if your system is set up differently
from Mickæs ù HE.)
6.12
He adds that the important point to emphasise is that öthe fundamental
difference between earlier Acorn systems and RISCáOSá3.1 is that, in
RISCáOSá3.1, once you have issued a VDU 3 or equivalent, you are dead!
You can only switch the printer on or press <esc> (if it is enabled).
Page 18 of the Release Notes specifically refers to freezing when
attempting to print to Énon-existentæ printers. They could have been
much more helpful here in only a few words. I wonder how many man-months
of time-wasting this has generated?ò
6.12
AZERTY keyboard
6.12
Mick Day says that, try as he might, he cannot get an AZERTY keyboard
with *Country/*Language/*Keyboard France. He knows of at least one
Belgian colleague who was impressed by his Archimedes but who did not
buy one because he could not get the keyboard he wanted. (We have a
couple of modules that get round this problem Ö for French and German,
anyway Ö they are on this monthæs program disc.)
6.12
The following are taken from extracts from recent Acorn Customer Service
Newsletters which Barry Thompson has kindly forwarded:
6.12
RISCáOSá3 CMOS problems
6.12
There have been a number of reports of systems not powering up properly.
Acorn suspect this is due to rogue CMOS RAM settings which occurred
while the system was used with RISCáOSá2 and they östrongly recommend
that a ÉDelete-power-onæ is performed before the RISCáOSá2 upgrade is
removed. This will ensure that CMOS RAM locations now used by RISCáOSá3
are set correctly.ò
6.12
First Word Plus ÉWindow Definitionæ error
6.12
If First Word Plus issues the message ÉWindow definition will not fitæ,
a ÉDelete power onæ will cure the problem (but may well, of course,
corrupt other CMOS settings)!
6.12
Maximum DOS partition sizes
6.12
DOSFS only supports DOS hard disc partitions up to 32Mb. If you create a
larger DOS partition, it will not be possible to access it from the RISC
OS desktop environment.
6.12
DOS partitions larger than 32Mb can only be accessed from within the PC
card or PC Soft (i.e. PC emulator) environment. Therefore, if you wish
to transfer files between a large DOS partition and a RISC OS based
filing system, this should be done via floppy disc(s) or another
(smaller) DOS partition.
6.12
Windows driver with the Acorn 486 card
6.12
Following on from the last point ...
6.12
The Windows Driver disc supplied with the PC card is in Acorn ADFS
format. So, if you have created a DOS partition which is larger than 32
Mb, it will not be possible to use the procedure outlined in the PC Card
User Guide to copy the file on this disc to the DOS partition. Instead,
you should use the following procedure:
6.12
ù From within the RISC OS desktop, format a blank floppy disc to 720Kb
DOS format.
6.12
ù Click <select> on the floppy disc drive icon to open a Filer window
showing the contents of the root directory of the DOS format floppy (at
this stage it will be empty).
6.12
ù Remove the DOS floppy and insert the Windows Driver disc. Click
<select> again and copy the file ARMVGA/DRV from the Windows Driver disc
to the DOS floppy.
6.12
ù Start the !PC Card  application.
6.12
ù Insert the DOS floppy again.
6.12
ù At the DOS prompt type:
6.12
copy a:*.* C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM
6.12
to copy the correct Windows driver for use with the PC card into the DOS
partition.
6.12
ù Load the \WINDOWS\SYSTEM.INI file into the DR DOS text editor by
typing at the DR DOS prompt:
6.12
C:\DRDOS\EDITOR C:\WINDOWS\ SYSTEM.INI
6.12
ù Use the cursor keys to move down to the line that reads:
6.12
display.drv=vga.drv
6.12
and change it to read:
6.12
display.drv=armvga.drv
6.12
ù Save the modified file by holding down <ctrl> and pressing <K> and
then <Q>. Then press <escape> to return to the DR DOS prompt.
6.12
ù The new driver will be loaded the next time you start Windows, and a
different hourglass shape will indicate its presence.
6.12
MEMC1a or no MEMC1a
6.12
The following short command can be used from within Basic to find out
whether a MEMC1a chip is fitted:
6.12
PRINT ?274 AND 1
6.12
If the result is 1 then a MEMC1a is fitted.
6.12
RISCáOSá4 Wish List (continued)
6.12
The following are from Richard Burnell:
6.12
Å    Shutdown ù Include an öare you sureò window after you press <ctrl-
shift-F12> with an option to cancel the Shutdown, in case you press it
by accident.
6.12
Å    Unlimited directories ù Allow more than 77 files in a directory.
6.12
Å    Filer windows ù Allow file icons to be positioned where you want them
(as on an Apple Macintosh).
6.12
Å    Other disc formats ù Include another extension to the filing system to
allow the reading and writing of Amiga and BBC B discs.
6.12
Å    Outline fonts ù Allow unfilled outlines to be printed (without having
to convert them to paths in !Draw first) as you can in Windows on PCs.
6.12
Å    !Draw and !Edit should warn you when you try to save files with names
that already exist.
6.12
Å    !Draw ù When you drag selected objects, it would be helpful to see the
shape of the objects moving (as you do in Artworks), not just the
bounding box.
6.12
Å    !Edit ù should allow the option not to strip line numbers to be saved
in the configuration.
6.12
Å    Printer buffer ù Provide one that allows background printing. (Richard
observes that this was advertised as a feature in the pre-release
RISCáOSá3 reviews and finds it surprising that Acorn havenæt yet
released öa working printer buffer moduleò.)
6.12
Finally, a point from Roger King. A similar suggestion has been made
before but it is worth repeating:
6.12
Å    Distinguishing non-ADFS discs ù When a non-ADFS disc (e.g. a DOS disc)
is mounted, the disc drive icon on the iconbar should change to a
different colour. (Some form of indication like this is particularly
important because the directory names in Filer windows for DOSFS, as for
other öimage filing systemsò, are prefixed ADFS!) Roger receives many
discs through the post and increasingly often he finds that the discs
are DOS format, presumably because people buy them pre-formatted. The
great snag in using DOS discs in the Acorn environment is the shorter
length of filename allowed. Roger often checks and modifies files sent
to him, then saves them back to the same disc with a öUò (for öUpdatedò)
tacked onto the end of the filename. If the original file has a name 8
characters long and is on a DOS disc this results in the original file
being overwritten by the updated file since the öUò is discarded from
the filename!ááA
6.12
!FasterPC Emulator
6.12
Brian Cowan
6.12
It came as somewhat of a surprise to me to discover that someone had
decided to produce a software PC emulator to rival the Acorn product.
When it transpired that the price of the product was a modest ú19.95
(direct from David Lawrence, 33 High Street, Farnborough, GU14 6ES) Ö I
had to see it for myself. To be fair, FasterPC does not claim to be a
replacement for Acornæs PCem, rather it is described as a ösecond string
to oneæs bowò. What the product does claim is that the screen driver is
much faster and the sound simulation, pathetic in PCem, is quite
faithful. Subject to certain limitations, which I will describe,
FasterPC does live up to these claims.
6.12
Pedigree
6.12
FasterPC was written by David Lawrence who cut his teeth in the
emulation game by writing an emulator for the Sinclair Spectrum,
although this was never released into the public domain as the ROM image
is the property of Sinclair.
6.12
What it does
6.12
FasterPC takes over the whole machine Ö it does not multitask in a
window, but it allows you to return to the desktop by pressing <alt> and
<menu> together. As with the Acorn PC emulator, you can use PC
partitions on your hard disc. You can create these partitions and,
unlike the Acorn product, FasterPC allows the use of four hard disc
ödrivesò. The product supports modes from CGA, VGA and Tandy graphics
adaptors, but more of that later. A Microsoft compatible mouse driver is
also supplied.
6.12
I was very interested to see that there is an option to turn on or off
implementation of the æ186 op-codes. So you can choose whether to
emulate an 8086 or an 80186.
6.12
Versions
6.12
Currently, the software disc contains version one and version two of
FasterPC. The implemented improvements in version two are the ability to
re-enter FasterPC without re-booting, implementation of the
unidirectional printer port at hardware level and the provision of the
real-time clock. A future version should give hardware implementation of
the serial port.
6.12
Monitor support
6.12
There is a problem with the currently released versions of FasterPC in
driving various öhigh qualityò monitors. The emulator works fine with
the old standard resolution monitors and with the multisync monitor on
the A5000, but I could not get the screen display to lock using an Eizo
9070 or with a Taxan 795, both using VIDC enhancers. Also, it would not
work with the LCD display of my A4. However, I have told Mr Lawrence of
these difficulties and he is currently working to rectify them. I have a
pre-release version which does run on my A4 and the other problems
should be sorted shortly.
6.12
My impression
6.12
The present versions still do not support many of the features of the
Acorn Emulator such as GETFILE and PUTFILE, exporting text and graphics
screens and HD floppy disc support. However, many of these should come
in the future.
6.12
If you are interested in playing PC games on an Archimedes without the
luxury of a PC card then FasterPC is a must. If you run a lot of non-
Windows software and, if you use Acornæs PC emulator a lot, you should
consider buying FasterPC. Using it on my A4 definitely gave DOS programs
a faster öfeelò. In its present form, FasterPC is certainly not a
replacement for the Acorn product but it is a very useful and cost-
effective addition.ááA
6.12
LinkWord Spanish
6.12
Neil Hutchinson
6.12
Linkword Spanish is produced by Minerva Software. French and German
equivalents are also available. It is priced at ú39.95 (+VAT) or ú44
through Archive.
6.12
Linkword Spanish is supplied on one floppy disc which is not protected,
enabling simple backup or installation onto hard disc. It is accompanied
by a pronunciation cassette on which all vocabulary is recorded (this is
an integral part of the course). There is a manual, but this is only
eight pages in length, (four of which are taken up by a glossary of
words used. The manual covers the installation of the program, which is
multitasking, and its basic use. Apart from the glossary, it would only
be needed when starting out. Instructions appear on the screen as to how
the course should be used.
6.12
Background
6.12
For those who wish to delve into the theory behind the program, I would
suggest the following two articles:
6.12
M M Gruneberg and P E Morris ÉApplying memory researchæ, and M M
Gruneberg ÉThe practical application of memory aidsæ. These both appear
in Gruneberg and Morris (eds.) Aspects of Memory: Volume 1 (2nd ed.)
(London, 1992).
6.12
However, I shall attempt to summarise the basic theory. The assimilation
of vocabulary in a foreign language is improved by the association of
the foreign word with an image or activity conjured up by the wordæs
sound in English. For example, in Spanish, the word for bed is cama
(pronounced [kama]) and we are asked to imagine a camel lying on the
bed. If such imagery is not your Écup of teaæ then this program will not
be to your taste either. However, the theory is generally accepted as
experimentally proven.
6.12
Using the program
6.12
The program is divided into sections, according to subject area: for
example, ÉHome/Hotelæ, ÉIn the restaurantæ, ÉShopping and Business
wordsæ. Each section is further divided into sub-sections and there is a
review test at the end of each sub-section. It has to be emphasised that
the course must be followed in the correct sequence and according to the
instructions.
6.12
Having read some of Michael Grunebergæs work in the past, I fully
expected the program to utilise the computeræs capabilities to actually
produce pictures of the requested images. I was disappointed that the
requested image is merely described in text. It is left to the user to
picture the image in his/her mind.
6.12
The format of the review test is to present the vocabulary on screen and
request the meaning to be typed in. This test is conducted both from
Spanish to English and vice versa. I was surprised that there was not
the facility to enter accented characters and was disappointed that the
program is only designed to present the correct answer on screen for
comparison with your own answer. There is, for example, no on-screen
total of correct answers. At the end of each section, users are referred
to the cassette for pronunciation practice, listening and repeating the
words covered in the particular section.
6.12
There are three on-screen icons which are used during the presentation
of new vocabulary: Éforwardæ, Ébackæ and Éclockæ. The first is to enable
the presentation of the next word, accompanied by the instructions for
the necessary image. The second enables a review of previous sections.
The Éclockæ icon repeats the function of the Éforwardæ icon, but with a
built-in 10-second delay, during which the image for the vocabulary item
is held in the mind and memorised. This is a vital part of the theory
and function of the program, and indeed of Grunebergæs theories of
memory aids in general.
6.12
Conclusions
6.12
Computer Linkword first appeared almost a decade ago (for PCs). The
present program appears to be a smartened-up version of the original
(which I have not seen). It is an interesting way for the individual
student (adult or teenager) to learn some basic language. However, I
have to say that if I were faced with advising a potential learner, with
a budget of around ú40, Linkword Spanish would not feature very high on
my list of proposed purchases: basic language courses (with cassettes)
are available for less than ú20 and would teach far more than this
program.ááA
6.12
Days of Steam
6.12
Andrew Rawnsley
6.12
Days of Steam (written and marketed by UK Software) has been around for
at least 6 months but has only been reviewed in one magazine and has
received very little advertising.
6.12
The game itself is a simulation of railway management during the 1920s
through to the nationalization of the railways in 1948. You have the
choice of playing for 12 or 25 game years and there is a saved high
score table for both.
6.12
The fact that the game is set in this period only affects the appearance
of the trains, so it lacks the period feel of some historic simulations.
6.12
It is important to understand that the game doesnæt set out to be an
accurate historical simulation, rather an enjoyable family game that
merges strategy, simulation and profit into the ever-popular world of
steam locomotives. As such, it certainly achieves its aims, although
individual simulations do take some time to complete if you play out the
full 25 years.
6.12
The game runs outside of desktop (a pity for this type of game) and its
main menu allows you to set various options such as the name of your
railway, whether or not you can change the fares per mile of your
railway and whether or not you must order new stock before it can be
used.
6.12
Another important option is the ARM 3 button. This allows the user to
tell the game whether or not he has an ARM 3. It will adjust the playing
speed accordingly. Unfortunately, on an ARM 3 machine, with the option
off, it all runs a little too fast, but if you tell it that you have an
ARM 3 it is not quite fast enough. An ARM 250 is just about right!
6.12
You must choose the level of difficulty at which you wish to play Ö this
determines how many rivers there are. Rivers must be bridged and this
costs ú100,000 each time. Given that you start with only half a million
pounds with which to set up stations (ú100,000 each), trains (at least
ú50,000 each), goods yards (ú65,000 each) and lay track (ú625 Ö ú1,125
per 10 miles), it becomes clear why increasing the number of rivers
makes the game harder.
6.12
However, your yearly bonus goes up the higher the skill level, and
exporting of goods can only take place at river ports. The game allows
you to have a ú100,000 overdraft, but if you quickly produce a large
network, you soon wish you could borrow more!
6.12
To begin with, the main source of income is from passengers but once you
start to set up goods routes Ö to timber factories, brick works and
ports Ö you begin to make real money. You can see how your game is
progressing from the balance sheets and pie charts (both overall pie
charts and by station), and full information is given at the end of each
year. Unfortunately, this means that you canæt just leave the game
running and come back when the first 12 years are up, as it requires a
mouse click on an OK button at the end of each year.
6.12
The cities in the game (which can grow if your railway is making money)
come in three classes, and the laws governing where passengers of each
class will go, combined with goods transportation, lead to great
problems with timetabling. Fortunately, the gameæs timetabling system is
fairly intuitive and flexible, whilst still retaining its power. Good
timetabling is an essential part of running a profitable railway and,
despite powerful facilities, it is still helpful to write down each
trainæs timetable.
6.12
In-game options allow you to save and load (but not to/from hard disc,
although the main game will run from hard disc), set fares, order stock,
go to stations and locos, check orders, manually control trains (i.e.
now go to station ...) as well as checking your profits.
6.12
The graphics in the game are its biggest handicap, looking rather
amateurish, but this doesnæt spoil it too much. However, some goods
trains may take up to six game months to travel between stations, which
is rather unrealistic.
6.12
The author plans to start work on a new version later this year (once
the companyæs next product is out of the way) which should cure the
weaknesses and introduce ÉPopulous-styleæ 3D graphics Ö but it is likely
to be some time before it is released.
6.12
At only ú14.99 from UK Software (only available direct) Days of Steam
represents great value for money at a time when most Acorn games seem to
be pushing prices to the limit.ááA
6.12
Flare with Fades
6.12
Tim Nicholson
6.12
Silica Software have released an enhanced version of their Flare
graphics package, complete with a new application called Fades, which is
a carousel facility for producing rolling displays of Flare and other
mode 15 pictures. Flare itself has been around for some time, indeed its
origins are in the pre RISC OS days. So what has the new release got to
offer?
6.12
Re-kindling an old flame?
6.12
Flare is a non-desktop graphics package, aimed squarely at the primary
education sector. It works in mode 15 only producing pictures 535 pixels
wide by 191 high. These may be stored either in an internal compressed
format or as standard Paint-type sprites. The software is supplied on a
single, unprotected, floppy disc which contains the main and ancillary
applications, updates to the manual and a selection of sample pictures.
It comes packaged with its manual in a vinyl folder.
6.12
The manual is for release 2.65 of Flare. Release notes refer to the new
features present from version 2.71 onwards and the actual software was
initially version 2.72, with an upgrade to 2.75 being supplied during
the course of evaluation for this review. It is nice to see that,
despite not being a new product, development of the software in response
to feedback from users is continuing. Direct support for RISC OS printer
drivers, a simple palette option and an improved installation procedure
are the main improvements in recent releases.
6.12
Parentsæ and teachersæ overview
6.12
Manuals are often a last resort when trying to determine how to use a
particular package properly. This is a shame since although it is
usually possible to produce some results without reference to it, there
are often hidden functions which are best discovered by a thorough read.
Flare is no exception and it is worth reading the manual, which is laid
out in three sections, before leaping in at the deep end.
6.12
The introduction includes paragraphs on making working copies,
installing on a hard disc and coping with limited memory machines (1Mb).
There follows a tutorial covering the basic operations, and a reference
section with headings containing copies of the tool icons, followed by a
full description of each tool/menu and its uses. It is important to
refer to the release notes on the disc when first looking through the
manual since there are one or two significant changes in the latest
versions which render the manual incorrect. In particular, the manual
describes precautions to take in allocating screen memory before
attempting to load Flare. These are now redundant.
6.12
Double clicking on Flare in a filer window loads it onto the iconbar.
Once loaded, clicking on its icon exits the desktop and puts you into
Flare itself. Getting back to the desktop is simply a case of hitting
<escape>. You can toggle in and out of Flare in this way without losing
your current picture.  Once in Flare you are presented with a white
drawing area bordered by pull-down menu bar above, tools to the right
and colour palette below. Initially, this may be either the full 256
colour mode 15 selection or a 9 colour simple palette, using much larger
selection squares, suitable for younger children.
6.12
Switching between the two is achieved within the effects pull-down menu,
the default setting is presettable. This is an example of one of Flareæs
best features: customisation of the package to suit the abilities of
those using it. A separate pair of applications are provided to set up
the default status of various features and select which pull-down menu
items are available from the full set. Thus, younger children can have a
simple palette and östicky menusò with few facilities until they are
more used to the package, whilst older users can start off with the full
works. Options in between should cope with most abilities.
6.12
The toolbox
6.12
The tools to the right of the drawing area consist of a selection of
shape drawing tools for lines, open or filled squares, rectangles,
circles, arcs, etc, together with a pencil for freehand work, a rubber
for correcting errors, and text, flood filling and pattern-editing
tools. Underneath the tools are a selection of brushes which include a
spray gun, user defined and öanti-aliasò wash tools. The currently
selected tool is highlighted in inverse video. If brushes are selected
using the <menu> button instead of <select> then a window pops up to
enable sizing of the brush before use.
6.12
Menu masters
6.12
The pull-down menu bar contains four sets of menus under the headings of
area, effects, files and text. There is also an undo icon for undoing
the last operation although you canæt undo an undo (redo). The area menu
allows the usual range of cut, paste, copy, rotate, scale and flip
operations to be performed on a marked area as well as more subtle
effects like lightening or darkening, pixillating and anti-aliasing to
be applied.
6.12
The effects menu allows selection of colour-mixing logic to be used
(colour, inverse, AND, OR etc), filled or outline shapes, palette type,
cursor type (normal or cross hair) and gridlock on/off. The Files menu
allows the usual loading, saving and deletion of files, as well as
printer dumps of pictures using built-in drivers for Citizen Swift 9 or
24 pin or Integrex 132 printers. If any standard RISC OS driver has
previously been loaded then this may be used directly from within this
menu. The text menu allows different text styles to be applied such as
bold, italics underline, etc. These are applied to the system font, as
there is no support for outline fonts.
6.12
Flare do
6.12
So much for the facilities, but how do they work out in practice? In
fact, Flare is extremely straightforward to use. My 7 year old had no
difficulty in producing basic pictures straightaway, although he needed
frequent reminding, to start with, as to which tool did what. The fact
that tools behaved differently depending on which mouse button was used
to make the selection took a little getting used to and I have
reservations about the non-standard (in RISC OS terms) use of the mouse
buttons for some of the functions.
6.12
Having produced a Christmas tree by piling green triangles on top of
each other, he was able to greatly enhance it by means of the various
shading and texturing tools. The anti-alias wash proved to be effective
at making the picture look less öelectronicò. It works by adding an
intermediate colour between the junctions of two different colours
effectively softening the join. In some cases, the intermediate colour
was darker than either of the other colours rather than being the
midpoint as it should have been. This could make the picture appear
darker overall but otherwise the effect worked well enough. Add some
sprayed-on snow, etc and an otherwise cardboard cut-out image is turned
into a real picture. Even the 3 year old wanted to have a go but
obviously required a great deal of help.
6.12
Of mice and children
6.12
Younger children tend to hold the mouse at an angle and then move it up
and down or left and right so that the cursor moves on a diagonal. When
accessing menus, the ability to make them östickyò, i.e not disappear
when the cursor accidentally falls off the menu, but stay put until a
selection is made, proved invaluable. The simple 9-colour palette with
large colour blocks also proved to be a must since the main 256 colour
palette swatches are quite small.
6.12
A palatable mix
6.12
The 256 colour palette has the colours grouped together in blocks which
blend from one block to the other. There are one or two discontinuities
as would be expected from strips of colours rather than a colour
triangle but the approach generally seemed to work well. Both palettes
also have the pattern selections Ö there are eight default patterns
which are all editable and may be saved to disc. They are too small to
see properly on the selection grid but the currently selected colour or
pattern is shown in a large colour box to the right of the palette.
6.12
Up and down arrows allow for shading adjustments to the chosen colour in
a manner similar to the area options. However, because of the limited
number of bits used to describe mode 15 pixels, several steps of
lightening followed by the same number of steps of darkening will not
necessarily bring you back to your starting colour. In practice this is
unlikely to be a problem.
6.12
Hard copy, floppy copy
6.12
Once created, pictures can be printed or saved, in Flare format, to the
default directory. This means only a name is required for the picture
before it is saved, which keeps the user interface simple. It is also
possible to save a picture via Flareæs iconbar menu. This provides for
saving in either Flare or sprite format to any destination using the
RISC OS drag and drop technique. There is no scaling available on the
print options although the RISC OS format does at least allow for
different resolutions and greyscale sizes. Either way, the print output
comfortably fits on a sheet of A4.
6.12
Fading away
6.12
Having created some pictures, it was then a case of öCan we show mum?ò
This is where Fades comes in. Unlike Flare, Fades runs in the desktop.
Double clicking on its filer icon loads the application to the iconbar.
Selecting this opens a small window into which Flare or mode15 sprites
may be dragged.
6.12
For each picture, a duration and fade type can be set and an optional
title text string may be added in any available outline font. Sixteen
different fade types are available or örandom choiceò may be set. These
fades are what, in television terms, would more properly be called
wipes. There is a selection of up and down, in and out, and left and
right effects together with random and raindrop patterns.
6.12
Changing your mind
6.12
Having created a sequence, it is possible to insert and delete pictures
and alter the parameters associated with them. The save option creates a
stand-alone application which, when double clicked, will run the
demonstration. This stand-alone application only contains information as
to where the pictures are stored and so an error will be produced at run
time if a picture cannot be found.
6.12
There is no need for all the pictures to be from the same directory, or
even the same media, since the full path name is used. After creating
the demonstration, a picture may be altered or even changed completely
without needing to touch this run-time application. If it needs editing,
it may be dragged to the Fades window and worked on.
6.12
This approach makes the whole set up very flexible and easy to use. When
creating the list of pictures, no validation check is made. If a non-
mode 15 sprite is used, the error will only be picked up at run time.
Sprites do not need to be full screen but may not be larger than full
screen Ö they will be displayed centred on a black background.
6.12
A pictureæs worth a thousand words
6.12
For Flare pictures, any added text is displayed underneath the picture.
Full screen sprites have the text superimposed upon them in the
equivalent place. This plays havoc with the anti-aliasing of the fonts
and should be used with care. The resulting rolling demo is certainly
eye catching.
6.12
One trick is to save intermediate versions of a picture and then
sequence them together so the picture ögrowsò into the final version,
giving a simple animation effect. The demonstration may be set to run
once or loop indefinitely and has uses outside simply showing off Flare
pictures. It could, for example produce a rolling display from digitised
pictures of a school project for an open evening or the like.
6.12
In conclusion
6.12
Flare is not an all-singing, all-dancing, pixel-based graphics program.
It is designed as an educational tool with as straightforward a user
interface as possible. There are several art packages available these
days which are more powerful, at a price. For example, the Revelation
range, which is highly regarded in educational circles, is considerably
more powerful (although considerably more expensive). It is also aimed
at an older age range than Flare which is really designed as a package
to introduce children to computer painting. Some of the effects
available were surprising for what appears to be a relatively humble
package, and it is capable of producing very good pictures.
6.12
The Fades application provides a practical way of displaying these, and
other pictures, to good effect. At a combined price of ú22 for
educational users, they represent good value for money. (ú66 for a site
licence, ú7 for an upgrade on return of old disc.)  The ú29.30 home
usersæ price is perhaps a less good deal considering its limited usage
outside the educational environment. However, as a purchase for oneæs
children to follow up on work done at school, it may be worth
considering.
6.12
My 7 year old actually wanted to use it in preference to playing one of
the many games he has access to Ö now that must say something about the
package!
6.12
The software was tried out on both RISC OS 2 and RISCáOS 3 on a variety
of platforms from a 2M A3010 to a 12M A540.
6.12
The only areas where I could fault it were the slight error in the anti-
aliasing routine, and the slightly non-standard use of mouse buttons.
Neither of these seemed to bother the children at all and certainly
donæt detract from an excellent package.ááA
6.12
Paradroid 2000
6.12
Jean-Paul Hamerton
6.12
Paradroid 2000 is a Coin-Age conversion and costs ú25.99 (ú24 through
Archive). It was reviewed on a 1Mb A310 with hard disc. I first saw this
game in 1985 on a friendæs C64 and loved it, so as soon as it became
available on the Archimedes, I went out and bought it.
6.12
The plot
6.12
The year is 2390 AD and one of Earthæs colony worlds is under attack by
the Trimorg empire. To defend the colony, Earth has sent five freighters
filled with a cargo of the deadliest battle droids. All is fine until
the ships run into an uncharted asteroid belt. The droids become
activated and go haywire. The only way to get back control of the
freighters is to send the prototype droid, the Mark II Influence Device
(ID). As the ID, you are beamed on board the first freighter to destroy
all the other droids on the ship. To do this you have two weapons Ö a
small plasmabolt gun and the ability to take control of (or öhack intoò)
other more powerful droids.
6.12
The package
6.12
The game comes on a single floppy and in a white video cassette box. The
disc is protected so you canæt put the game on your hard disc. There is
a single piece of paper with the instructions and some hints on how to
play the game. If you havenæt played Paradroid before, it would be a
good idea to read them.
6.12
The instructions are very basic but this isnæt a problem as it is quite
fun to learn what you have to do. On a 1Mb machine, you have to change
the screen mode to 12 and make 720Kb free before double-clicking on the
Paradroid icon. The screen goes blank for about 20 seconds then some
music starts and credits are printed on the screen. The music is a bit
strange at the beginning but it does get better. Press <fire> and the
game begins.
6.12
The game
6.12
As the ID, you are beamed on board the deck on the first ship. It gives
a plan view of the deck, so you can only see the top of the ID, which is
very dull because it is a hovering ball Ö this doesnæt matter as you
donæt stay as a ball for long. It can be moved in any direction but the
screen will only scroll up or down.
6.12
Different decks have different droids on them Ö some without any weapons
which you should be able to shoot without too many problems. Before long
though, you will most probably meet a droid with a blow torch Ö two hits
from this and you are dead! If you do get hit, however, there are
energisers on some of the decks which will then recharge your battery.
When you move onto an energiser, a circle of lights starts to rotate Ö a
very nice effect.
6.12
Transferring droids
6.12
The next thing to do is try to öhack intoò a droid as this will give you
a bit of protection. When you are in a droid, if you get shot, it will
blow up the droid but not the ID. To do this you must hold down the fire
button for two seconds Ö a spark appears and then you move into another
droid.
6.12
The screen is cleared and a circuit is drawn. There is a row of 14 boxes
in the middle of the screen with wires coming from each side. What you
then have to do is move your pulsers down each wire and to fire at the
middle to change the colour of the boxes. This might sound easy but the
droid is going to do the same from the other side. The one with the most
boxes in their colour wins.
6.12
If you lose, your droid will blow up, so you will have to get the hang
of this pretty quickly. Itæs not too hard with the easier droids as they
donæt have many pulsers, but the harder the droid, the more pulsers it
has. When you have been successful in transferring, the ID will slowly
move from the old droid to the new one, then the old droid will blow up.
6.12
Strategic information
6.12
There are lifts which will allow you to go from deck to deck and
computers to allow you to find out information about the ship or how
many droids are still on the deck. You will know when you are near a
computer console as a light will appear.
6.12
There is another option that allows you to get more information on the
droids that are of lower rank than yours. When you select this option,
press up/down and you can get some details on what the droid does, how
fast it can go and what weapons it has. Some of the droids have some
really nasty weapons: machine guns, flame throwersáand even worse Ö but
I will leave you to find out the hard way.
6.12
As decks have different droids on them, you will soon learn the droids
to avoid until you get a better droid to use. When you are on a deck
with a really nasty droid, the combat can be very fast and furious. You
will have to decide on the best action, try to hack into it, stand and
fight or leg it Ö many times this is where get you killed.
6.12
Conclusion
6.12
I have been playing this game for about a month now. I have made it to
the fourth freighter but I still havenæt seen all the different droids.
The ability to take control of the other droids makes the game very
addictive. There is a lot of attention to detail Ö for example, if there
is a crate in front of you, you canæt see what is hiding behind it.
6.12
The graphics are straight forward but very detailed Ö the pictures on
the droid library are particularly good. The sound is very effective Ö
each weapon has a different noise. The music at the start has a good
beat after a while, but there is no music while the game is being
played. In any case, I always turn the music off after a while. The
whole screen is used instead of the two thirds used in other
conversions.
6.12
There are still some bugs: sometimes you go onto a cleared deck and
there is a droid there. Also, you canæt save the high scores.
6.12
As conversions go, I think Paradroid is one of the best. I found the
Archimedes version a bit easier than the Amiga one as you can get in the
999 droid and stay in it whereas, on the Amiga, you would be kicked out
after about 20 seconds. If you have enjoyed playing Paradroid on a
different computer, you will love this one. If you havenæt played
Paradroid before, but like to think about what you are shooting, then
this game is for you.ááA
6.12
Creating and Managing Window Panes
6.12
Graham Crow
6.12
A pane is a window which is Éfixedæ to another window, and this article
and the accompanying program, !Pane, will describe the purpose of panes
and explain how to use them in your own programs. Incidentally, Acorn
rather unhelpfully calls the main window the Étoolæ window, but I shall
refer to it as the Éparentæ.
6.12
There are two main types of pane Ö examples can be found in Draw and
DrawPlus. Draw uses a pane containing the various drawing options
attached to the left hand side of its parent window. Note that, in this
case, the pane has no title bar or scroll bars. If you experiment, you
will see that the pane always moves with its parent, and overlaps it at
the left of the screen. If you scroll or resize the parent, the pane
remains exactly as it was; and if you close the parent, the pane is
closed too. Finally, notice that if you click <select> on one of the
pane icons, the parent gains the input focus (its title bar becomes
cream).
6.12
DrawPlus offers a library window which enables you to view a collection
of objects and import selections into your drawing. The parent library
window contains a pane in which appears a list of the object names. In
this case, the pane has a vertical scroll bar to enable the contents to
be scrolled if there are more items than would fit in the window. Note
that the vertical work area of the window (and hence the size of the
scroll bar) is automatically adjusted in accordance with the number of
objects in the window. The parent window has no scroll bars but does
have a title bar, including close, back and toggle-size icons. It is
this latter type that is created in the program Pane.
6.12
The example application !Pane
6.12
Double-clicking on the application !Pane installs its icon on the
iconbar and opens the parent and pane windows. Within the pane appears
some scrollable text which describes its features.
6.12
I shall now explain the relevant parts of the !RunImage.
6.12
In DEFPROCinit we have to dimension a block of memory of 36 bytes (DIM
pq% 36) to hold information about the pane. (The main block q% does the
same for the parent window.) We also need to describe the position of
the pane in relation to the parent by assigning the offset from the left
of the parent (pol%), the offset from the top of the parent (pot%), the
width (pw%) and the height (ph%). All values are in screen units.
6.12
DEFPROCloadtemplates creates the pane and parent windows from the file
Templates. This may be examined by loading it into FormEd. The window
flags for the pane require that the Émovableæ bit is unset, and the
Épaneæ bit is set. Since the example displays text in the pane, the
Éauto-redrawæ bit is unset. There is a title bar (optional) and a
vertical scroll bar but no other Ésystem areaæ icons. Finally, a
writable icon has been added for demonstration purposes. The parent
window simply contains two icons, of which the upper will accommodate
the pane and the lower could be used for radio buttons or the like. The
window flags show that its Émovableæ and Éauto-redrawæ flags are set. It
has a title bar, with back and close icons, but no scroll bars.
6.12
There are two separate procedures for opening a window. DEFPROCow1()
handles any Open Window requests from the Wimp, for example when the
parent window is dragged. DEFPROCow2() opens a window at our own behest.
In this case, we need to call Wimp_GetWindowState, and set q%!28 to Ö1
to ensure our window is opened on the top of the stack.
6.12
Both these procedures check whether the window we are opening is the
parent and, if so, make a call to DEFPROCpane() which handles the
opening of the pane. The first step is to extract the visible area x and
y coordinates of the parent together with the window it is behind (b%).
Since the information about the parent is already in the block q%, the
data we want can be extracted from q%!4, q%!16 and q%!28.
6.12
Next, we call Wimp_GetWindowState to get information about the pane into
our special pane block (pq%). Before opening the pane, we need to place
it in the correct position in relation to the parent, and this is done
by setting its visible area coordinates by reference to the parentæs x,y
and the paneæs offsets, width and height. Then we set the Ébehindæ flag
to b% to ensure that it will be at the correct position in the stack
(i.e. behind the window behind which is the parent!). Finally Ö and this
is important Ö the parent must be opened behind the pane. This is
achieved by setting the parentæs Ébehindæ bit (q%!28) to pane%, before
returning to PROCow to open the parent.
6.12
This tortuous procedure ensures that the window redraw is performed
efficiently and that the pair of windows always behaves correctly, such
that they appear to the user as a single window.
6.12
The vertical work area extent of the pane is calculated from the size of
its contents and set by a call (in line 220) to DEFPROCsetextent.
6.12
Finally, there are two other procedures which are not used in the
demonstration, but which may be of value in your programs.
DEFPROCpaneforce simply forces a redraw of the pane should you need to
update its contents. DEFPROCpanescrolly() allows you to determine the
extent of vertical scrolling. The argument is negative or zero.
6.12
I hope the procedures described in this article will help to demystify
panes and enable you to take advantage of them in your programs. Panes
can certainly be effective, particularly when you have a lot of
tabulated information, such as an index, and you want to scroll the
data, while keeping the column headings fixed.ááA
6.12
Precision
6.12
Bob Ames
6.12
Precision is a pupil reading/teacher marking program. It provides a
series of words for a child to read, first in a learning format and then
as a formal test. The teacher clicks different mouse buttons as the word
to indicate if it is correct or incorrect. The computer keeps the score.
The score can be viewed and saved or you can return to the learning
stage, for instance, for the next pupil. Individual records may be
printed, success with a word being shown as a slash, failure as a cross.
6.12
The Itemfiles (as word files are called) are built up using a special
input editor, small pictures can accompany the word to be read, or
swatches of colours can accompany names of the colours.
6.12
There are student files, which are updated as the activity progresses.
There is a record of which activity is done by which pupil, at which
times, (assuming the Archimedes clock is accurate) and the scores at
reading the tests are also kept.
6.12
The program may be started by double clicking on the rather academic-
looking Épince-nezæ icon in the directory. However, double clicking on
the pupil or item file puts the Precision icon on the iconbar but
doesnæt load the pupil or item file!
6.12
Installation on hard disc was no problem as there is no copy protection.
The two-sheet ömanualò implores the owner to make two backups before
use. The use of an AOC multisync (with MonitorType3) showed no problems
either.
6.12
The program works well as far as it goes. New Era have provided a couple
of example files but if the use of pictures is chosen, a fair bit of
work will be required to achieve a full working set of word files Ö from
three to ten words (maximum ten letters) are allowed in each file.
However, I think most people would omit the tedium of drawing pictures
and use words unaccompanied.
6.12
I suspect that a school would find it easier to use than the more
traditional paper records of the past. However, it would be dependent on
there being a full set of files sold with the basic program, and
preferably included in the price of ú20 (no VAT), otherwise the tendency
would be to stay with the previous (paper) system.
6.12
New Era have öa growing library of named pictures available at extra
costò but I havenæt had a chance to look at them yet.ááA
6.12
Spreadsheets Column
6.12
Chris Johnson
6.12
The long awaited release 2 of Eureka has now arrived. Longman Logotron
claim there are öover 100 enhancements and exciting improvementsò on the
first release. All registered users should by now have received their
upgrade pack which consists of the software and a set of additional
pages for the manual. These pages also include an index, which removes
one of the common complaints about the earlier version. I have only had
the upgrade about three weeks and I have been away at meetings for most
of that time, so I have only had time to form a few first impressions.
Therefore, some of the following comments may be modified in the light
of further use. I hope to work through all the past correspondence I
have received in connection with this column to see how many of the öif
onlyò and öwhy doesnæt itò type comments have been satisfied.
6.12
Those who have received the upgrade will already be aware of the
numerous changes but there may be a number of Archive members out there
who have read the previous columns but have held off buying Eureka until
they see what the new version has to offer. Therefore, I will make a few
comments in relation to previous columns. Generally, my first
impressions are very favourable, although it still takes as big a wimp
slot as before, and I also feel it is a little slower, although this is
very subjective, and I have no scientific basis to back it up. All my
old sheets loaded without problem, and behaved impeccably.
6.12
Printing
6.12
One area where the original version was sadly lacking was that of
printing. Most of the adverse criticism has now been dealt with. There
are a number of new options available. It is possible to scale the
printout by a fixed percentage, or to force a fit to a specified number
of pages across and/or down. This allows much neater printouts and also
the use of a relatively large font size for screen display, but a much
smaller size when printing on a good printer. If simple scaling is not
sufficient, it is also possible to force page breaks at any chosen
column/row. The scaling appears to work well, both for whole sheets and
for selected parts. A further facility is that a chosen column and/or
row can be printed on every page, giving much enhanced titling of the
sheet, and making multipage sheets easier to follow. The feature still
lacking, which a number of correspondents would have liked, is a full
print preview facility, to allow page breaks, etc, to be seen before
printing.
6.12
Charts
6.12
The charting has been improved in a number of ways. Perhaps most
importantly, it is now possible to chart multiple columns (or rows) that
are not all adjacent. It is simply a case of making multiple selections,
and the program will initially construct the chart in the way it thinks
is best. It is a simple matter to override the programæs initial attempt
to produce a custom chart if you wish.
6.12
Saving selected areas
6.12
The saving of selected areas has been improved. Such (multiple) selected
areas can also be saved as CSV or as drawfiles Ö both work well. For the
number who have asked, my own program GraphDraw will load the CSV files
saved from Eureka, so you can now do those complex transformations! I
feel there is one feature still lacking from the drawfile saving, and
that is the facility to save without gridlines. I have used Eureka on
occasions for the production of tables (which may be purely textual)
since it is so much easier than the table-making facilities of
Impression. As long as it is a self-contained page, the printing options
from Eureka are very flexible, particularly since the gridlines can be
turned off, and the lines to be placed selectively using the cell border
facility. On some occasions, I would have liked to have incorporated the
output in Impression as a drawfile but without importing the gridlines.
This I have not yet achieved.
6.12
Macros
6.12
As originally promised, a comprehensive macro facility has now been
implemented. The macro language should be readily understood by anyone
who has seen Basic (or most other high level language) programs.
Constructions such as FOR, IF, ELSEIF, ENDIF, REPEAT UNTIL, WHILE, etc
should be familiar to almost all users. Macros are essentially multiline
functions, which are executed in a way similar to a program, and bring
real power to the facilities. All those out there who have been
impatiently waiting for this, then send me some examples of your macro
masterpieces. Those that are of interest, I will include in the column.
6.12
Comments please
6.12
I shall be most interested to receive your comments on the new version 2
of Eureka. By the copy date for the next issue of Archive, I hope that I
will have had more time to make a full investigation of the macro
facilities.
6.12
Eureka versus Excel
6.12
There have been several articles in Archimedes related magazines
(including Archive) comparing Eureka to Microsoft Excel. The overall
conclusion is that they are very similar. While I have never used Excel,
I have recently found a text book, Spreadsheet Chemistry, which is
wholly based around the PC version of Excel. I found that all the
examples I tried could be entered directly from the book into Eureka,
and all worked correctly. Some of these examples contained simple
macros, and these also worked correctly. This certainly demonstrated to
me how similar, at least in functionality, the two packages are. (If
anyone is interested in the actual book, I can let them have full
details.)
6.12
How to contact me
6.12
My postal address is Chris Johnson, 7, Lovedale Grove, Balerno,
Edinburgh, EH14 7DR. I can also be contacted by e-mail as
[e-mail]. clust, if you have access.
6.12
I am happy to receive anything in connection with spreadsheets, hints or
tips, macros, problems, solutions to problems, or just requests for
help. What could also be of interest are examples of unusual uses of
spreadsheets.ááA
6.12
Geordie Racer
6.12
Rocky Grove & Tracey Dunn
6.12
The program is supplied on one disc together with a glossy A5 booklet
containing program instructions, suggestions for follow-up in the
classroom and background information on pigeons and running! It is
published jointly by Longman Logotron and BBC Enterprises and costs ú26
from Archive.
6.12
Look and Read TV programme
6.12
The computer program is based on BBC Televisionæs öLook and Readò series
which is aimed at helping develop reading skills for children aged 7 Ö
9. The story for the Spring Term 1993 was entitled öGeordie Racerò and
was a tale about a boy called Spuggy who lives in Newcastle. Spuggy
keeps pigeons and proceeds to get himself tangled up with a gang of
crooks. The programme will probably be repeated in 1994/5.
6.12
The computer program
6.12
The graphics are very basic and can be little different from the BBC
version. It gives all the appearance of being a program run under the
emulator, although this is not, in fact, the case. The program starts
with öWordyò Ö a character from the television series, who gradually
introduces the other characters involved.
6.12
There are a total of nine separate games. Each of the initial games is
centred around either pigeons, or the Great North Run and the final part
of the program involves the user directing a sea serpent around a maze
in order to catch the crook, Baz Bailey.
6.12
Using the program in the classroom
6.12
After using the program for a term in the classroom, we feel that it has
encouraged the children to think more deeply about the Look and Read
story. It encouraged them to think about some of the hazards experienced
by pigeons when racing and also connected moral issues in the story.
6.12
Program content
6.12
The graphics are entertaining and the operating instructions were simple
to understand. We do feel, however, that some of the language used
within the program could be a problem for the less able child (for whom
the TV programme is mainly aimed). Further, the program is difficult to
complete unless children have watched all of the episodes in the
television series.
6.12
Conclusion
6.12
The program has been thoroughly enjoyed by all of the children in the
class who have played it and has been of great educational value,
combining many topics in a cross-curricular way. However, it is a shame
that more use was not made of the capabilities of the Archimedes and the
program would only be of real use to a class teacher following the Look
and Read television programme.ááA
6.12
KeyCount Ö A Primary Spreadsheet
6.12
Joe Gallagher
6.12
While the Archimedes has spawned wordprocessors and databases to suit
every pocket and age, spreadsheets, especially those for younger
children, remain a bit thin on the ground. Eureka, a clone of Excel 3,
is perhaps, the most user-friendly spreadsheet available but it is far
too expensive to justify for primary use. KeyCount is an attempt to fill
this gap and is the latest in Anglia Televisionæs suite of programs
based around their data-handling package, Key.
6.12
KeyCount comes with a selection of sample files showing some possible
contexts for using spreadsheets. The files are supported by both
childrenæs and teachersæ notes in a generally well laid out manual but
it would have been nice to have a quick reference sheet to supplement
the handbook.
6.12
The toolbar
6.12
The program is a modified version of KeyCalc, a spreadsheet aimed at
secondary schools. Itæs not just a cut down affair though for, as well
as limiting its facilities, some thought has been given to shaping the
interface to meet the abilities of younger users. For instance KeyCount
dispenses, for the most part, with pop-up menus and uses instead a
toolbar along the top of each sheet containing 14 options. A context-
sensitive description of each tool appears as you pass the pointer over
it. This is invaluable for new users (especially teachers!) who wish to
dabble before wading through a manual.
6.12
With these buttons, you can align cell entries, switch on or off
headings and determine both the units of measurement and the number of
decimal places required. The direction that the caret moves when
<return> is pressed is controlled by two further buttons. Other icons
include those for saving and printing worksheets, an autosum feature, a
fill option, a button for deselecting cells and one for deleting cells.
All these actions take place without the need for further sub menus
which makes for a very simple layout indeed.
6.12
Printing, however, is a bit long-winded. Clicking on the printer icon
opens a window with the familiar save text icon on it. Dragging this
icon to a printer driver installed on the iconbar will print out the
text. At least this does have the advantage of allowing text to be saved
into other RISCáOS applications.
6.12
Charts
6.12
The remaining button is for displaying charts Ö a more involved process
than any of the above functions. Clicking on this leads to a pop-up
window which allows you to choose from one of five types of chart to
display your data. Up to two sets of data can be plotted on one graph
and this is achieved by selecting a range of cells and clicking on the
legend, öSet 1 is:ò. The range to be charted is then inserted in the
appropriate box and you can choose to see your graph. This part of the
program could have been better thought out. For one thing, it would seem
more intuitive to click in the text box where the cell range is entered.
Whatæs more, if you are supposed to click on the legend, at least it
should look like a button in some shape or form.
6.12
Deleting and moving ranges
6.12
Columns and rows are selected by clicking on the column or row heading
respectively. However, it is not possible (as far as I can see) to
either insert, delete or move columns or rows in KeyCount. Once
selected, the contents of cells, rows or columns can be cleared by
clicking on the delete icon but the actual cells themselves are left in
situ.
6.12
While I can appreciate that deleting, as opposed to clearing, individual
cells could lead to unwanted complexities for young users, a more
flexible approach to handling whole rows and columns would seem to be
essential. Few of us, especially young children, would be expected to
get the layout of a spreadsheet right on the first go. Imagine a
wordprocessor which only operated in overtype mode and wouldnæt allow
you to insert or delete extra lines.
6.12
One solution may be to exclude anything other than complete rows or
columns from the scope of this operation as Excel does with non-
contiguous ranges. Given that it is so easy to delete a range of cells
and thus undo a morningæs work with a single click of the mouse, the
program really does need an undo facility. Why this feature is so thin
on the ground in applications for the Archimedes, Iæll never know.
6.12
Data entry
6.12
Data entry and editing is simplicity itself. Just point at the desired
cell, click and start typing. There is no need to tell the program what
sort of data to expect and the width of each column adjusts
automatically to fit the data. Now this is a feature that every
spreadsheet should have.
6.12
Double click on a cell and a small window pops up which allows you to
see and edit the contents of the cell, useful where formulas are
involved. Formulas referring to other cells can either be typed in
directly or else referred to by pointing.
6.12
Picture files can be dropped onto individual cells. When this is done,
the cell displays the name of the sprite or drawfile and is coloured in
blue to denote a picture. The picture can be displayed by clicking on
the cell while holding down <shift>. While pictures can enhance
understanding of the subject for the users, this can create huge
KeyCount files as the graphics are stored in the worksheet itself.
6.12
As well as reading KeyCalc files, the program can load KeyPlus and
KeyNote database files enabling access to the growing range of datafiles
now available for those programs.
6.12
Configuration
6.12
KeyCount comes with a good range of built-in functions, and custom
functions can be written in Edit and imported into KeyCount for use by
pupils. The format of these macros is very straightforward and several
examples are provided with the main program.
6.12
KeyCount can also be configured to meet the needs of different groups of
pupils from a password-protected option on the iconbar icon. Worksheets
can also be loaded from this icon, thus sparing children the need to
navigate the directory structure, although any KeyCount files can be
dragged to the applicationæs icon in the normal way. Files are saved to
a default directory unless the path is edited at the time of saving.
6.12
Conclusion
6.12
I was very impressed by the sensible defaults of the program and the
ease with which it can be set up for different users. While the
Archimedesæ menus are undoubtedly quick and effective in the hands of
experienced practitioners, toolbars do seem to offer a painless öway inò
for younger users at least. As KeyCount has obviously borrowed so
heavily from Excel in its use of the toolbar, why not go one step
further and make that toolbar fully customizable as is the case with
Excel4? After all, why should only accountants and executives have all
the easiest tools?
6.12
KeyCount is available from: (SCA) Anglia Television, PO Box 18,
Benfleet, Essex SS7 1AZ. Site licences range from ú40 +VAT for a small
primary school to ú120 +VAT for a large secondary school of over 800
pupils.ááA
6.12
HD Backup_2
6.12
Alan Murdey
6.12
This backup application came to my notice when the team from Klein
Computer were at the Acorn User Show in October last year. I had seen
Hard Disc Companion by Risc Developments, but I decided to try the
German software, as it offered a similar specification for less than
half the cost.
6.12
So after a short demonstration on the stand, I handed over ú17 for my
copy of the application. It really is my copy, as each copy is numbered
and registered at the time of purchase. A sensible protection system
that does not inconvenience the legitimate user, which means that Backup
can be run from a hard disc.
6.12
The package
6.12
I took home with me a plastic bag containing my disc and a sixteen page
A5 manual, which was produced using Impression, and written in very
good, understandable English. The disc contained !HD_Backup and some
shareware software.
6.12
Starting up
6.12
HD_Backup installs on the iconbar, occupying 224Kb of RAM. The info
dialogue confirms that the software is licensed to me, and that I have
v2.13.
6.12
On clicking on the icon, a window entitled öNew Backup Jobò opens the
following window:
6.12
This window is used to specify the backup source, which can be a whole
drive, a single directory or an arbitrary collection of files. This can
be selected by the user and saved for future backups. The source can be
set by typing in the drive specification or by dragging a directory to
the dialogue box. If the backup list is selected, a window opens and
files or directories can be dragged to the window. Items included in
error can be deleted by clicking <menu> over them and selecting Delete
item.
6.12
Show options will open the backup options window:
6.12
Backup options
6.12
The options in the File Selection group allow a selection of any files
to be excluded from the backup. Selecting all files means that all files
from the source described in the new backup job window will be backed
up.
6.12
Incremental backups are achieved by selecting the öafter last backupò
option. Files will only be considered for backup if they were created or
changed after the last backup. This function only works if the last
backup was made with this function selected and the Backup Job file was
saved. Finally, only files date stamped after a specified date will be
selected for consideration for backup.
6.12
The exclusion list, if selected, will open another window similar to the
one created for the backup list. Files can be dragged to the window.
Another feature, when clicking <menu> over the window, gives a choice of
delete item or add item. This allows the user to enter part of a
pathname, as the names are matched from the end. For example, if the
user types in Memo, any file bearing that name will be excluded.
6.12
File storage on backup discs
6.12
There are two methods of storing the files on the backup discs. Single
files means that the files are stored on disc in a full directory filing
structure, just as happens when using Backup from the filing system
menu. This method is not very efficient, as the directory structure uses
disc space, and creating single files slows the process down. File
splitting means that when using the single files format, the disc space
will be used fully, by splitting large files across two discs as
required.
6.12
However, it is now recommended that compact backup is used, as the
backup data is stored on the destination disc as one compact file, so
the backup process is faster, as a directory structure does not have to
be created on each destination disc. The compact file method allows use
of Huffman compression, which should compress most data to 60% of its
original size, but sprites could be compressed to 20% Ö 30% of their
original size.
6.12
Finally, if doing a backup onto a pile of unformatted discs, they will
automatically be formatted if Format all discs is selected. If this
selection is not made and a disc which is unformatted is used, then the
program will complain and ask for a confirmation to format it.
6.12
Once all of these parameters have been set in the windows that I have
described, you are ready to start the backup process. I recommend that
the Backup Job file is saved for the future. This is vital if you want
to do incremental backups in the future.
6.12
Backup process
6.12
When the start button is clicked, the backup process is started, the
progress window appears and it prompts you for the first destination
disc.
6.12
The process can be stopped by clicking on suspend and it is restarted by
clicking on resume. It is possible to abort the process at any time by
clicking on abort.
6.12
The program is fully multitasking and so you can perform your backup
whilst doing other work on the desktop, stopping just to feed discs into
the drive when requested.
6.12
Coping with compressed files
6.12
HD_Backup will cope with files that have been compressed previously with
Compression and ArcFS. For Compression users, it is suggested that the
original filing system is used as the source directory and the Huffman
compression is turned off, otherwise Compression will have to decompress
the files only to have them compressed again by Backup. Similarly with
ArcFS, whole archives can be backed up with Huffman compression off but
if just a single file from inside an archive directory is required, the
source directory will have to be ArcFS: and Huffman compression should
be switched on.
6.12
Restoring backups
6.12
Backup includes a restore function on the iconbar menu to restore files
back to a filing system. If the backup has been done using single files,
the restore function is not required as the backup is just a copy of the
source directory.
6.12
Clicking on Restore opens the Hard Disc Restore window shown opposite.
6.12
The method of entry is similar to the Backup Job window, with writable
fields for source and destination drives. The files to be restored can
be all files or a selection, specified as a list in a text file which is
dragged to the window.
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There are also options dealing with the overwriting of files, as
HD_Backup checks whether a file of the same name exists on the
destination disc, before a file is restored. If Query existing files is
selected, confirmation is required before an existing file is
overwritten. Otherwise selections can be made to prevent files being
overwritten, depending on whether they are locked or not, or all files
can be overwritten. The restore process has a progress window and it is
very similar to the backup process.
6.12
Conclusion
6.12
I have used HD_Backup on my A420 (still RISCáOS 2 and ARM2). The
11,471Kb of data in 1032 files on my hard disc were compressed down to
8573Kb on eleven 800Kb floppy discs. It was easy to configure it, to do
what I wanted, and the manual is easy to understand.
6.12
The retail price is certain to have increased as Klein Computer were
selling their software at the Acorn User Show at special pre-Black
Wednesday prices. So expect to pay at least ú20 now. Klein Computer can
be contacted at: Ha▀loch-erstr. 73, W-6090 Rⁿsselsheim, Germany.
(+49Ö6142Ö81131) (Fax +49Ö6142Ö81256).ááA
6.12
Grid Algebra
6.12
Ashley Bowden
6.12
Grid Algebra is a program from the Open Universityæs Centre for
Mathematics Education. The program offers a dynamic visual approach to
help develop images for interpreting and manipulating number
relationships and algebraic notation. The program relates horizontal and
vertical movements over a grid to the four basic operations of number.
Expressions, involving numbers or algebraic quantities, are generated by
journeys made over the grid.
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Some examples
6.12
The potential of the program is not immediately obvious but working
through the examples given in the manual, shows just what can be
achieved. Many of the activities are based on a Étimes-tableæ grid like
that opposite.
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If a journey were to start from the 6 in row 2 and comprise a move of
two squares to the right, the program would produce a destination result
of 6á+á4. In row 2, each square covered when moving to the right,
results in an additional increment of 2. If we were in row 3, the
increment would be 3 and so on. Movements to the left correspond to
subtractions.
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If, again, we were to begin a journey with the 6 in row 2 and this time
move to row 1, the result would be 6á/á2. A movement from row 2 to row 1
always results in division by 2. Similarly, moving from row 2 to row 6,
say, will correspond to multiplication by 3.
6.12
The cells in the grid do not have to have their contents displayed. The
arrangement given above can be created so that the program knows which
number corresponds to which cell, even though this is not displayed on
the screen. A pupil may have created a journey which corresponds to
7á╫á5 and then have to supply the actual value in the cell. A cell can
contain several expressions which represent its numerical value and the
program provides neat facilities for examining them and deciding which
variant should be displayed at a given time.
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Algebraic expressions
6.12
The beauty of this package is that most operations on numbers can be
applied to letters and a journey will then create an algebraic
expression.
6.12
If the letter a is placed in row 2, the journey to row 1 produces a/2.
Additionally, a two-stage journey from a can be carried out by doing the
horizontal move before the vertical or vice versa. This leads to the
equivalence of the expressions 2a+4 and 2(a+2). It is also possible to
investigate inverse functions (by reversing journeys) and to solve
certain equations with integer solutions.
6.12
Other features
6.12
The size of the grid can be set by the user with a maximum of 100 by 100
cells. It can be arranged so that journeys to the left move into the
negative integers in the obvious way. It is possible to fill the grid
automatically with the numbers, if that is required. The grid can be
scrolled, resized, cleared, saved and, of course, re-loaded later.
6.12
Numbers and expressions can be erased from cells or hidden. It is also
possible to highlight cells in one of two colours so that numbers with a
particular property, say, could be marked. The notation that the program
uses to represent multiplication can also be chosen by the user.
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The package
6.12
Grid Algebra comes on a single disc and runs as a non-RISCáOS single-
tasking program. The interface is quite intuitive and most operations
are carried out easily with the mouse. A slim 32-page manual provides a
good introduction to the ideas behind the package and the user is
invited to experiment freely. Much of the manual is devoted to example
activities and it is only after following these through that one really
gets a feel for the packageæs possibilities. Games, investigations, open
and closed exercises are discussed along with the mathematical concepts
and learning which they promote.
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In conclusion
6.12
As you will have gathered, this program is aimed mainly at mathematics
teachers. It is suitable for both primary and secondary age groups, with
the more numerical work accessible to younger pupils and the algebra for
those older. As might be expected from an organisation like the Open
University, the material is of a high quality with the educational
objectives well thought out and implemented. The package costs ú25 (inc
VAT) from the Open University for a single user licence which seems to
be quite good value. (A network version of the software is under
development.)
6.12
The actual value gained from content-free software often depends on the
imagination of the user (or the useræs teacher) and this is likely to be
the case here. The time taken to gain familiarity with such programs
(which would not be much in this case) is only well spent if the users
can turn to the program freely and concentrate on the educational ideas
generated, rather than the basic functionality.
6.12
So if, as a teacher, you want a good mathematical tool which can be used
in developing many varied areas of numeracy and algebra, this program is
well worth consideration. However, if you want to use the program to its
full potential, you will probably need to spend a bit of time
experimenting.ááA
6.12
Crossword 2.00
6.12
Andrew Rawnsley
6.12
Crossword version 2, written by David Ramsden, provides 50 desktop
crosswords at the click of a mouse button. Not only is it possible to
(attempt to) solve these crosswords, but you can also create your own
crosswords.
6.12
The software is not protected and can be easily installed on a hard
disc. RISCáOS 2 floppy disc users will have to load the FPEmulator
module before running the application, which has been compiled with
Silicon Visionæs Risc Basic compiler.
6.12
The manual takes the form of a text file on the disc, which can be read
in Edit or printed out for reference. It covers all the options and
choices as clearly as can be expected from a disc-based manual, but
perhaps a small application could have been included on the disc to
allow floppy disc users to browse through, and print out, the text
without the need to load Edit.
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The main game loads onto the iconbar and displays a crossword in a
window. The actual crossword displayed on loading can be chosen from one
of the fifty available. The window is nicely drawn and can use either
the system font (a nice touch for floppy disc users) or outline fonts.
In the latter case, Trinity and Corpus are used. Perhaps a future
version might allow the user to choose the font used.
6.12
Crossword in use
6.12
The crosswords are displayed just as if they were in a newspaper, but
the numbers are missing, as these would only clutter up the display. In
any case, the computer gives the clue when you click on the boxes in the
grid Ö <select> for a horizontal clue, <adjust> for a vertical one. This
works well, although you sometimes accidentally click the wrong button.
6.12
Clues are displayed in a large box to the right of the crossword, and
you can type in your answer in a box below. There is a problem with
punctuation in the questions, as any punctuation at the end of a line
(which grammatically ought to stay at the end of that line) is pushed
onto the next line. This sometimes adds to the difficulty in making
sense of the question.
6.12
The clues themselves are a mixture of anagrams, cryptic clues and
general knowledge questions. The latter are often quite difficult as
they require detailed knowledge of the last 10 or 20 years. This
restricts the age range for playing, but the level of difficulty is such
that the average child below 15 years would, in any case, have
considerable difficulty with it (without using the help options). Having
said this, there is considerable variety in the level of difficulty of
the clues.
6.12
Help is at hand
6.12
There are a good number of help options, ranging from first letters to
complete answers for just one question at a time, or the entire grid.
However, there did not seem to be an option to turn off the help once it
had been selected.
6.12
Crosswords can be saved in a half-completed state, so that you can
continue to work on them at a later date.
6.12
DIY crosswords
6.12
The option to create your own crosswords is the major difference between
release one and release two. However, it did not seem to have been
particularly well implemented. You must use a text editor to create the
crossword by hand and then load it into !Crossword. There is no
designer, which seems an obvious omission, and so producing your own
crosswords is rather hard work. There was also no print option which
would have been useful.
6.12
One aspect of the paper crossword as compared to !Crossword is that in a
paper crossword you can enter the wrong solution into the grid, and the
fun comes in finding which is the wrong answer. !Crossword will not
allow you to enter a wrong answer.
6.12
Overall
6.12
As it stands, !Crossword costs ú5.95 and represents great value for
money for the crossword enthusiast. Completing the fifty supplied will
take some time, so be prepared for a challenge, unless you are used to
doing the Times crossword in your tea break. The software is being
continually updated and developed, which is always a good sign. It is
available from: David Ramsden, 7 Chevet Lane, Wakefield, West Yorkshire,
WF2 6HNááA
6.12
Medieval & Gothic Fonts Collection
6.12
Richard Hallas
6.12
öThe Medieval and Gothic Fonts Collection with Period Clipart plus Draw
Fontsò, is available from Datafile PD library. Although the Datafile is
normally associated with public domain software, this is a commercial
offering with a price tag of ú31.50, all inclusive.
6.12
Packaging
6.12
Three discs are supplied in an attractive plastic wallet along with two
manuals. One of the manuals covers the outline fonts whilst the other
relates to the vector clipart which consists of four drawn fonts and
various pieces of ornate clipart. The whole package is very nicely
presented and the manuals well laid out, making imaginative use of all
the fonts and clipart supplied.
6.12
The three discs contain five outline fonts (one of which has an
additional oblique face), four capitals-only draw fonts, and various
pieces of clipart. I will deal with each of these in turn.
6.12
Outline Fonts
6.12
The five fonts supplied are all very pleasant in appearance, although
they really need to be used at a large point size before their
intricacies can be appreciated. Carol is a German Gothic face with
extremely florid capitals. Charlie could almost be used as body text,
although it is a little ornate for prolonged use. I noticed that it
bears more than a passing resemblance to the popular Caslon font (EFF
Eve), and my suspicions were confirmed by a disc file stating that it is
indeed a Caslon Swash face. Karen is another German Gothic face which
includes alternative, fancy versions of some lower case characters.
Priory is quite similar to the script hand commonly to be found in
medieval manuscripts. Versals is a lombardic face with embellishments,
which also features roman numerals. It contains capitals only Ö lower-
case letters are scaled-down versions of the capitals.
6.12
When viewed at a reasonable size, all five fonts look very authentic.
Carol, in particular, provides some beautiful ornamentation in its
capitals and goes particularly well with the more flowery decorations
provided with the package.
6.12
In terms of construction, the fonts are pretty good. (They are all RISC
OS 2 format and do not provide kerning data.) I examined them quite
closely using FontEd and can report that all are scaffolded and have
hinting lines provided. The quality of drawing is good, although not
quite in the same league as you would expect from EFF, say. None of the
fonts provides full character sets, although this is not terribly
important, as they are intended mainly for decorative use. Of course,
the more specialised characters would not have been present in the
original designs in any case. However, it would be nice if Charlie could
provide a full character set, since it is just a specialised Caslon
face. Many of the fonts do not provide full punctuation symbols,
although Charlie and Priory have a full set of Ébasicæ characters (i.e.
up to ASCII code 126), and most of the fonts include some unusual extra
characters. Charlie, for example, provides all five standard ligatures,
whereas the Acorn font specification only allows for two: ₧ and ƒ. (The
others are ff, f₧ and fƒ.)
6.12
Draw fonts
6.12
For the uninitiated, these are sets of letters provided as drawfiles,
usually because they are too large or complicated to supply as proper
fonts, or simply because they only exist as letters (without numbers or
punctuation). They cannot be used as normal text and are intended for
manual positioning in drawing packages.
6.12
Four sets of drawn letters are provided, although only one of the sets
has lower-case letters. A few of the capitals occur in two or three
styles, however. The fonts seem nicely drawn, although itæs a pity there
arenæt any numerals or common punctuation marks. Three of the four fonts
have a Lombardic appearance, whilst the fourth (Italian Chancery Papal
Manuscript) is highly ornate, with extremely elaborate capitals. It is
this font which also includes lower-case letters: they are very plain
and provide a stark contrast with the upper-case characters.
6.12
Clipart
6.12
The remaining space on the three discs is filled up with the clipart.
Although there isnæt a vast amount of it, what is provided is of a high
quality and should provide plenty of scope for producing interesting
designs. The three discs are really packed full, to the extent that much
of the clipart is provided, not as separate files, but as individual
objects within example files which have to be taken to bits in order to
use them. This is a generous approach, although it does cause a little
inconvenience to the user. Purchasers would be well advised to take the
example files apart and save their constituent objects as individual
files for easier access.
6.12
A second slight difficulty is that some of the objects were created in
ArtWorks, so if you ungroup them too far, you may find yourself with
bits of graduated fill all over the place! However, this is hardly a
problem and, with a little care, all will be well.
6.12
The clipart is mostly very nice indeed. A couple of the items did appear
to have been converted from scanned images by a tracing package, but Iæm
only guessing at that. Anyway, the vast majority of the artwork is very
well produced. There are a total of seven example files, and each is
discussed briefly in the manual. As well as providing the source of the
clipart, many of these files are intended to provide the initial ideas
for your use of the artwork. It is suggested that you recolour some of
the items, or use the floral decorations within the drawn capitals.
Although seven files does not sound a lot, there is a great deal in each
Ö in fact, the seventh file is over 700Kb long!
6.12
Conclusion
6.12
It is always nice to be able to report good service and support. When I
was sent this package for review, I found a number of problems and
inadequacies in it initially but, after speaking with Datafileæs Dave
McCartney, they were all corrected immediately and I now have little
left to criticise Ö which has left me with a somewhat shorter review
than I had to start with! The few criticisms I still have are being
addressed: for example, I believe that commercial fonts should provide
full sets of basic punctuation marks, if not complete character sets.
However, by the time you read this, it is likely that at least some of
the fonts will have been updated.
6.12
The package as a whole provides a wide range of quality period artwork,
and at least as great a range of ideas to stimulate the imagination. As
such, it represents good value for money and is to be recommended.ááA
6.12
P is for Saint Paul, perhaps?
6.12