Archive Magazine 1997/ARCHIVE_97.iso/text/magazine/vol_09/issue_08

Text File | 1996-04-02 | 314KB | 6,239 lines

Products Available
9.8
Archive monthly program disc Ö We have been getting more material sent
to us for the disc, and so we decided to see if we could go over to
using 1.6Mb discs. Only two people said they were still using 800Kb
discs and so weæll just send out 2╫800Kb discs where necessary Ö and
hope they both buy RiscPCs from us soon! (Iæm sure we could arrange a
special discount!) The price of the discs remains at ú2 a disc or ú20
for a year Ö overseas rates are shown on the back cover of the magazine.
9.8
The content of the discs is, as always, completely unguaranteed. We put
on the disc whatever comes to hand that relates to the articles in the
magazine, plus any utilities and/or information that is sent in by
subscribers or dragged off the Net.
9.8
Christian Acorn Users Group Ö The library of PD software available to
members of the CAUG (not to be confused with the C (language) Acorn
Users Group!) is growing steadily and the latest catalogue has just been
issued. The latest CAUG newsletter has also just been issued but (Colin
tells me) will only be sent to those who have renewed their
subscriptions! This issue includes articles on keeping church records,
Christians on the Internet and the latest news about ExpLANæs Holy
Bible. Details from Rev. Colin Randall, The Rectory, Swan Lane, Long
Hanborough, Witney, Oxon, OX8 8BT. (01993-881270)
9.8
ClassNet upgrade Ö A new AUN (Acorn Universal Networking) DC14 upgrade
EPROM is now available for Oak Solutionsæ ClassNet cards. This makes
them compatible with Ethernet cards from other manufacturers and also
enables them to run the latest network products such as School Server,
InterTalk and OmniClient. Future networking developments will also
require this upgrade to AUN DC14. Included in the upgrade is CMOS RAM
protection which prevents unauthorised re¡configuration and protects the
setup of the machine. System Manageræs software is provided and is
password protected. It is fully compatible with existing ClassShare
Application Server and ClassRom hard disc protection products. The
upgrade is supplied as an EPROM exchange and includes a new manual and
management disc. The price is ú15 +VAT from Oak Solutions.
9.8
DTP design book Ö (With apologies to all those who already own a
copy...) This is just a reminder about the Non-Designeræs Design book
(below). This is the most helpful book about DTP layout and typography
that I (and many other people) have ever seen, and it is now owned by
almost 25% of Archive subscribers! We offered it (and still do so) on a
guaranteed full refund if not 100% satisfied. On this basis, only two
books have ever been returned from the hundreds and hundreds of copies
we have sold. i.e it is your recommendation, as the buyers, not just
mine as a salesman!
9.8
Non-Designeræs Design Book Ö This book by Robin Williams has absolutely
nothing to do with Acorn computers! However, it is a really excellent
guide showing how to make the best use of those DTP facilities that most
of us possess, yet few of us have ever been trained to use properly. It
explains the basic principles of page layout, using fonts, etc, in such
a way that (a) it is easy to understand and (b)áit is memorable. This
means that you actually put into practice the things that you have read.
(See Mark Howeæs review, 8.6 p23.) The price is ú13 inc p&p.
9.8
High speed serial card from Intelligent Interfaces provides two
additional RS232 compatible serial interfaces, with standard 9-pin
D¡type connectors, capable of communicating at baud rates from 50 to
230400 including 9,600, 19,200, 38,400, 57,600 and 115,200 baud. The
software supplied now includes Block Drivers for Hearsay II, ArcFax,
ARCterm 7, Termite, Voyager, the Internet Starter Pack, ANT Suite (users
require a PPP module, obtainable from: [e-mail] Ö they also
need version 3.47 of the Dual Card module) and the new version of
Acornæs InterTalk. The card can be used in any computer with a backplane
but requires RISC OS 3.1 or later. The dual high speed serial interface
card is available from Intelligent Interfaces for ú149 +VAT +p&p or ú175
through Archive.
9.8
Eesox have reduced the price of some of their CD-ROM drives. Included in
the reductions are: the Quad-speed IDE Gold series drive, now ú99 + ú8
p&p +VAT or ú120 through Archive; and the Six-speed IDE Platinum series,
now ú149 + ú8 p&p +VAT or ú180 through Archive. As always, the drives
are supplied with an IDE cable, an audio cable, driver software,
installation guide and fixing screws. The drives work on all RiscPC 600/
700æs and the A7000 range, using the CDFS driver supplied. The audio
cable is only suitable for machines with an audio mixer board, i.e. any
machine apart from the old RiscPC 600æs.
9.8
New from Eesox is the CD-ROM Recorder which allows you to write your own
CD-ROMs. Included in the package is the CD-ROM recorder, writer
software, and driver software to use the writer as a reader. As a
writer, the CD-ROM Recorder works as a dual-speed device, taking about
35 minutes to write 650Mb of information. As a reader it works at quad-
speed. Itæs a SCSI based device and so a SCSI card is required Ö Eesox
recommend a fairly fast one Ö and you will also need the hard disc
capacity to hold the data you wish to write to a CD-ROM. The internal
CD-ROM writer package costs ú799 +p&p +VAT or ú895 through Archive. The
external package costs ú859 +p&p +VAT or ú965 through Archive.
9.8
Elements and Nuclides Ö Atomic Software say that, following customer
feedback, both Elements and Nuclides have undergone major improvements.
They can now save text as RTF files and data as CSV files, as well as
many other significant additions. This has necessitated a price increase
from ú9.95 each to ú14.95 each, or ú19.95 for both, effective from 1
July 1996. (Update prices and policy remain the same at ú2 each, upon
receipt of original disc.) The earlier version of the software was
reviewed in Archive 9.6 p39.
9.8
Encode is a file protection utility which provides complete security of
data and applications where they are in danger from illegal access or
copying, while at the same time maintaining a friendly and intuitive
feel to the user. A further feature of Encode is automatic 12-bit LZW
file compression as used by Acorn. Possible environments where this
application will be valuable include computer shows, schools and
businesses. The software is completely transparent to the authorised
users, encrypting both files and applications. Applications and data can
be easily secured and may be accessed without decoding. Alternatively,
they can be decoded easily without risk to the data itself. A full range
of password systems is implemented and the application can be customised
to meet the needs of individual users.
9.8
Encode requires a 1Mb RISCáOS 3 machine and is available at ú19.50
(inclusive) from Grasshopper.
9.8
Essential Steps to Swimming has got to be the definitive CD-ROM on
swimming. Designed with the help of leading youth coaches, this CD¡ROM
is aimed both at teachers and students. There is something for everyone
Ö absolute beginners can learn how to get into a pool safely, while
experienced swimmers and coaches are able to analyse in detail every
aspect of a stroke. Water safety is constantly emphasised, with sections
on potential risks, survival techniques and a game to reinforce the
Water Safety Code.
9.8
Information is presented as spoken and written text, based on poolside
instruction. Clear and colourful animations show complicated movements,
and videos show each stroke in action. Interactive word games and
quizzes not only test knowledge but also encourage close observation and
independent thought. The CD-ROM provides the stroke analysis, and water
safety aspects of external PE examinations, and provides hints for keep-
fit swimming for those preparing for the sport and leisure industry. It
can be used by individuals, class groups and both specialist and non-
specialist teachers.
9.8
Essential Steps to Swimming is available from Yorkshire International
Thomson Multimedia and costs ú53.58 +VAT or ú60 through Archive.
9.8
Iota Software are now on the Net! They can be found at http://
www.iota.co.uk Ö youæll find information about their latest product
releases as well as hints and tips on using existing software, including
an FAQ page on DataPower. You can also pick up some free screen-saver
programs which use animations from their Complete Animator.
9.8
Learning Through Computing have launched a new range of primary
education programs. The Doorway Classroom Pack introduces children to a
wide range of topics covering time, numeracy and early literacy. In many
of the programs, the curriculum level can be set allowing the program to
be used throughout primary and into secondary education. The programs in
the pack include: AboutTime, WeighOut, Simple Spreadsheet, two Turtle
control programs, Number Table, Pelmanism, Texttype, FirstWord,
FirstLetter, SameAgain, Cashing In and Upto Ten. Teachersæ notes for
each of the programs on the pack are supplied in a robust ring binder,
along with a number of worksheets. In addition, a selection of Design
Conceptæs outline fonts, including the Foundation handwriting font, come
with the pack. The Classroom programs are run using Doorway, LTCæs
Hypermedia system Ö a Doorway browser program is supplied with the pack.
9.8
The Foreign Language Packs are a selection of programs available in
French, German, Spanish and Italian, covering Food and Drink, Clothing,
Body Parts and Animals. Students can use the programs to look up various
words in their singular and plural forms. They can be tested in a number
of ways, including having to match words with pictures, typing in names
of objects, and typing the singular and plural words. The programs will
mark and keep a score of correct answers. When a test is completed, the
student is presented with a list of words that he/she has had difficulty
with. To use the programs, LTCæs Doorway Browser is required, available
with the Classroom pack above, or separately.
9.8
Doorway Classroom Pack costs ú35 +VAT. The normal price for the Foreign
Language Packs is ú20 +VAT but for a limited period you can buy them for
ú16 +VAT. Doorway Browser costs ú35 +VAT. Site licences are available
from LTC.
9.8
Logic Gates and Counters is a software package for learning about logic
gates and digital counters. The package, from Camboard Technology,
includes three applications: Logic Gates introduces the main logic gate,
with on-screen user-enabled simulations of each gate. The simulations
mimic actual hardware by using switches and LEDs. The Camboard approach
enhances this by including dynamic binary logic status values, so the
user can see a representation of the logic level by way of a simulated
LED and its boolean property. Each logic gate has a dedicated text
screen with questions to answer. Counters is the main 4-bit counter
system and is described incorporating a
9.8
 similar approach to Logic Gates. The application starts with the 4-bit
counter and leads on to hexadecimal counters. Simulate combines solely
logic gates and three digital counters from the main applications. This
allows all logic gates and counters to be used together on screen.
9.8
Logic Gates and Counters costs ú16.95 +VAT from Camboard Technology.
9.8
Merlin Raytracer price reduction Ö Merlin Raytracer is a program which
allows you to create images using a technique called ray-tracing, where
each pixel is affected by light sources, shadows, reflection, refraction
etc. Merlin offers an excellent 3D editor (until now Acorn machines have
only had textual script files with which you are meant to Édescribeæ
your scene), a texture/material editor and, of course, a ray-tracer. Its
features include texture-mapping, Phong and Gouraud shading, anti-
aliasing, polygons-into-lines, transparency, mist/fog, different classes
of light-sources, various cameras and the ability to import Draw and DXF
(professional CAD) files, and it is designed with ease-of-use in mind.
Merlin costs ú80 p&p +VAT available from the Datafile or ú90 inclusive
through Archive. Upgrades are available from Datafile for ú2. (Merlin
was reviewed in Archive 8.11 p9)á
9.8
Number Time 2 is what you might call a compilation album plus. Hazelnut
Software have put together, on CD-ROM, some of their best known maths
programs and, in so doing, have re-vamped them and reduced the price of
the whole collection. In past reviews, the collection has received some
very encouraging comments (8.5 p51 and 9.1 p79). Now the collection
comes with 15 worksheets for teachers to print, covering tables, time
and number bonds. The original programs have been added to and include:
Number Bonds, covering simple addition and subtraction bonds, Tell Time,
covering hours, half past, quarters and the 24 hour clock Ö each has a
clock to make and print, and Times Table which covers two to twelve
times tables with over 130 animations, text and sound, and certificates
to print out. All of the programs come in six versions for 2Mb and 4Mb
machines and RiscPC, with an older or younger voice-over. (There is also
a PC version on the CD-ROM.) For educational establishments, there is a
28 day Étry before you buyæ offer. The collection is aimed at Primary
and Special Needs.
9.8
The CD-ROM costs ú29 +p&p from Hazelnut. The education price is ú26.50
+p&p. All programs have a free site licence. Times Tables, Tell Time and
Number Bonds are also available on floppy discs.
9.8
PC CD-ROMs Ö We announced last month the interesting developments coming
from Innovative Media Solutions, using their PC to Acorn Reader. The
Readers have been designed to read PC CD-ROMs and display the
information on the Acorn platform Ö this includes data, photos, video
and speech. Each month they hope to release a new title from the PC
world and are already busy on such titles as Microsoftæs Encarta and Art
Gallery. Ancient Lands and Dangerous Creatures will be the next two
titles available from the Microsoft HOME Series and will cost ú39 +VAT
+p&p or ú46 through Archive. From the Dorling Kindersley collection,
TheáWay Things Work is ready to ship and will be followed closely by My
First Incredible Amazing Dictionary, each at ú42.90 +VAT +p&p. The
Dorling Kindersley titles are only available from the DK Family Library,
IMS or CD Circle for the first six months of their release; thereafter
they will be obtainable from other Acorn outlets. The Microsoft series
CD-ROMs are available through Archive.
9.8
PenDown DTP is a new development of the ever popular writing and
publishing tool for children of all ages and abilities. PenDown DTP now
has three configurable levels and HTML capability. Level 1 features the
familiar PenDown style click and type approach, with full text editing,
speech capability and interactive spell-checking. Level 2 adds the
sophistication of a frame-based DTP environment. Level 3 features
multiple floating toolbars, hypertext documents and easy-to-use
mailmerge and label printing. Educational extensions, such as assessment
of reading difficulty and the generation of cloze procedures, are also
available at this level.
9.8
Still under development is a partner product which can be used to
convert PenDown DTP pages into HTML pages suitable for uploading to
Internet Web servers. It builds upon the Hypertext capabilities already
in place in PenDown DTP. The software is currently in its early testing
stages, and can be downloaded free by all PenDown DTP users from the
Logotron Web Server http://www/logo.com/pendtp/index.html Ö the complete
product will be available for release later in the year. In the
meantime, Longman would welcome any feedback from users, and those
downloading are asked to register their name and contact details.
9.8
PenDown DTP costs ú59 +VAT +p&p, or ú68 through Archive. A 5, 10, 20 and
40-user licence costs ú67, ú118, ú207 and ú354 respectively, or ú77,
ú132, ú232 and ú395 through Archive. Existing users of PenDown, PenDown
Plus, Talking PenDown and First Page may upgrade to PenDown DTP Ö
contact Longman Logotron for details.
9.8
PocketMedia Ltd is a new company set up to exploit the emerging market
for palmtop computers. Headed by Mike Collett, and with a team of
educationalists, graphic designers, programmers and teachers,
PocketMedia intends to become the leading developer of educational
software for hand-held devices. Initial development will be for Acornæs
PocketBook II and the Psion 3a organiser. Among their first products are
Pond Life, the first in a series called PocketExplorer, and a version of
the Three Little Pigs. Pond Life allows children to explore a pond
environment using scrolling pictures, sound and animation. They can also
learn about the different creatures which are found in the pond. Pond
Life will be followed by a number of other PocketExplorer products,
including Farm Life and City Life. TheáThree Little Pigs is a version of
the CD-ROM talking story and includes graphics, sounds and animations.
Also included are some educational games and activities based around the
story. The software is aimed at Key Stage 1 for use in school and at
home. Both products will cost under ú30.
9.8
Really Good Software Ö from the Really Good Software Company. Montage is
a program for creating and exploring the world of fractals. It enables
the complexities of fractal geometry to be explored easily as an art
form, by the creation of simple or complex pictures, and be fully
understood as a mathematical process. Pictures of objects or scenes can
be created by users with little or no knowledge of mathematics. The
program comes with a seventy page manual, a twenty page tutorial and an
on-disc guide. It requires at least 2Mb of memory for most applications,
and 4Mb for hi-res colour work. Montage costs ú45 for a single user and
ú180 for a site licence from RGSC.
9.8
Two programs for transferring information from older machines to newer
ones are MultiLink and Z¡Link. MultiLink allows users to transfer data
between 8-bit BBCæs and Acorn 32-bit machines, including the RiscPC Ö
you simply use the mouse to drag information between windows. Z-Link
does the same for the Z88 portable Ö it comes complete with special
serial cable and instructions. MultiLink costs ú24.94 or ú29.95 with
cable to link serial ports from RGSC.
9.8
SIMM prices drop Ö There have been some sudden and dramatic drops in the
price of SIMM memory just lately. Currently, the 4Mb is ú90 through
Archive, 8Mb is ú160, 16Mb is ú280 and 32Mb is ú650.
9.8

9.8
Table Aliens, from Sherston Software, is a new maths adventure designed
to put the fun back into learning tables. Earth is in grave danger from
an invasion of the Table Aliens Ö primary school pupils must sharpen up
their number skills to help save the planet. First, each pupil will have
to qualify to join the special task force which has been set up to
combat the alien invaders; then, they are faced with a series of
exciting adventures as they bravely do battle with these number-obsessed
creatures from outer-space.
9.8
Table Aliens includes full teacher control and can be set to teach,
practice and test any combination of tables up to twelve. The program
features ten different table activities which can be accessed directly
or through the four adventures. In addition to the program, the package
contains photocopiable worksheets to promote work away from the
computer. Table Aliens will be available after 15th April and will cost
ú24.95 +VAT +p&p or ú30 through Archive.
9.8
TopModel is now distributed directly from Sincronia and will soon be
sold in the UK and in the rest of the world by local distributors.
Sincronia is also developing a VRML browser based on the new Gemini MPGE
(Multi-Processor Graphic Engine), that will be the core of the next
release of TopModel. TopModel is now shipped with filters for importing
Imagine, DXF, Envisage, 3D Studio, Sculpt3D, Illusionist, RenderBender
II, Fems, TPoly and GEO ASCII file and for exporting in DXF, POVRay and
GEO ASCII formats. Z-Buffer management has been added for perfect image
management.
9.8
WatchDog/Padlock Ö The desktop security manager from Base5 Technical
Graphics was reviewed last month, p76. Unfortunately, we forgot that the
name had been changed from Padlock to WatchDog because ICS have an
application by the name of Padlock. WatchDog costs ú49 inclusive from
Base5 (no VAT) and WatchPup (i.e. Padlock Junior!) costs ú15 inclusive.
(Acorn User have also just published a review... under the name
Padlock!)
9.8
Xword is a powerful and sophisticated, multitasking crossword setting
and solving application capable of producing any size of crossword grid.
It was last reviewed by Roger King (7.5 p59) who gave it an unreserved
recommendation. Now Panda Discs have reduced the price to ú29.95.áuá
9.8
Abacus Training  (Gerald Fitton) 29 Okus Grove, Upper Stratton, Swindon,
Wilts, SN2 6QA. (01793¡723347) [01793¡723347]
9.8
Acorn¡by¡Post  13 Dennington Road, Wellingborough, Northants, NN8 2BR.
(01933¡279300)
9.8
Acorn Computer Group  Acorn House, Vision Park, Histon, Cambridge, CB4
4AE. (01223¡254254) [01223¡254262]
9.8
Acorn Risc Technologies  Cambridge Technopark, 645 Newmarket Road,
Cambridge, CB5 8PB. (01223¡577800) [01223¡577900]
<[e-mail]>
9.8
Alsystems (p8)  47 Winchester Road, Four Marks, Alton, Hampshire, GU34
5HG. (01420¡561111) <[e-mail]>
9.8
Anglia Multimedia  Anglia House, Norwich, NR1 3JG. (01603¡615151)
[01603¡631032]
9.8
APDL  39 Knighton Park Road, Sydenham, London, SE26 5RN.
9.8
Atomic Software  1 Fells Grove, Worsley, Manchester, M28 7JN
9.8
Avie Electronics (p13)  Freepost, 7 Overbury Road, Norwich, Norfolk, NR6
5BR. (0800¡614339) [01603¡788640] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Base5 Technical Graphics  P.O. Box 378, Woking, Surrey, GU21 4DF.
(01483¡761197)
9.8
Beebug Ltd  117 Hatfield Road, St Albans, Herts, AL1 4JS. (01727¡840303)
[01727¡860263]
9.8
Camboard  P.O.Box 416, Cambridge, CB3 7YS. (01223¡264512) [01223¡264512]
<101320,[e-mail]>
9.8
Clares Micro Supplies  98 Middlewich Road, Rudheath, Northwich,
Cheshire, CW9 7DA. (01606¡48511) [01606¡48512]
<[e-mail]>
9.8
Colton Software  2 Signet Court, Swanns Road, Cambridge, CB5 8LA.
(01223¡311881) [01223¡312010] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Computer Concepts  Gaddesden Place, Hemel Hempstead, Herts, HP2 6EX.
(01442¡351000) [01442¡351010]
9.8
Cumana Ltd  Boundary House, The Pines, Broad Street, Guildford, GU3 3BH.
(01483¡570295) [01483¡451371] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Datafile  71 Anson Road, Locking, Weston¡super¡Mare, Avon, BS24 7DQ.
(01934¡823005) <[e-mail]>
9.8
Eesox  Suite 8C, Newton House, 147 St Neots Road, Hardwick, Cambridge,
CB3 7QJ. (01954¡212263) [01954¡212263] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Generation Design  2 Whitecliff Gardens, Blandord Forum, Dorset DT11
7BU. (01258¡452507)
9.8
Grasshopper Software  6 Truro Close, East Leake, Loughborough, LE12 6HB.
9.8
Hazelnut Software  197 Blackshots Lane, Grays, Essex, RM16 2LL.
(01375¡375514)
9.8
Icon Technology  9 Jarrom Street, Leicester, LE2 7DH. (0116¡254¡6225)
9.8
Innovative Media Solutions  P.O.Box 332, Bristol, BS99 7XL.
(0117¡979¡9979) [0117¡979¡9979] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Intelligent Interfaces Ltd  P.O.Box 80, Eastleigh, Hants, SO53 2YX.
(01703¡261514) [01703¡267904] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Iota Software Ltd  Iota House, Wellington Court, Cambridge, CB1 1HZ.
(01223¡566789) [01223¡566788] <[e-mail]>
9.8
iSV Products  86, Turnberry, Home Farm, Bracknell, Berks, RG12 8ZH.
(01344¡55769)
9.8
Kudos Computing  PO Box 193, Gloucester, GL3 2YG. (01452¡712600)
9.8
Learning Through Computing  3 Relugas Road, Edinburgh EH9 2NE. (0131-
662-1881) [0131-662-1881] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Longman Logotron  124 Cambridge Science Park, Milton Road, Cambridge CB4
4ZS. (01223¡425558) [01223¡425349] <[e-mail]>
9.8
LOOKsystems  Unit 1, The Gables Yard, Pulham Market, Diss, IP21 4SY.
(01379¡608585) [01379¡608575]
9.8
Mijas Software  Winchester Road, Micheldever, Winchester, SO21 3DG.
(01962¡774352)
9.8
Oak Solutions  Dial House, 12 Chapel Street, Halton, Leeds, LS15 7RN
(0113¡232¡6992) [0113¡232¡6993] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Panda Discs  Four Seasons, Tinkers Lane, Brewood, Staffs, ST19 9DE.
9.8
Pocket Media  Mike Collett, PocketMedia Ltd (01234-349261) [01234-
349261] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Primrose Publishing  Vicarage Long Barn, Denham, Bury St Edmunds,
Suffolk, IP29 5EF.
9.8
Purple Software  59 Shakespeare Road, Walthamstow, London E17 6AS.
(0181¡531¡8384) [0181¡531¡8384]
9.8
Really Good Software Co. (p21)  39 Carisbrooke Road, Harpenden, Herts.,
AL5 5QS.
9.8
Repair Zone  421 Sprowston Road, Norwich, NR3 4EH. (01603¡400477)
9.8
Sherston Software  Angel House, Sherston, Malmesbury, Wilts. SN16 0LH.
(01666¡840433) [01666¡840048] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Sincronia  Via Bastone, 35, 10090 Rosta (TO), Italy. (0039-11-9540540)
[0039-11-9540540] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Softease  The Old Courthouse, St Peters Churchyard, Derby, DE1 1NN.
(01332¡204911) or (01684¡773173) [01684¡772922]
9.8
W. C. Smith & Associates (p12)  40 Royal Oak, Alnwick, Northumberland,
NE66 2DA., (01665¡510682) [01665¡510692]
9.8
Yorks Intæl Thompson Mæmedia    Television Centre, Leeds, LS3 1JS.
(0113¡243¡8283) [0113¡243¡48840] <[e-mail]>
9.8
Zenta Multimedia  10 Ravenhurst Drive, Birmingham, B43 7RS.
(0121¡358¡3054) [0121¡358¡5969]
9.8
Archive Monthly Disc Ö ú2
9.8
(The Archive monthly disc is now 1.6Mb. If you need 800Kb, please send
two blank discs with your order.)
9.8
u Arcscan data files Ö Updates for volume 8 and part of 9.
9.8
u Beginneræs Column files from John Temple Ö page 53.
9.8
u !Redraw Utility from David Breakwell Ö converts WMF, HPGL, CGM and EPS
to Draw.
9.8
u Comms Column information from Chris Claydon Ö see page 25
9.8
u Files from Gerald Fittonæs Column Ö page 41.
9.8
uáTablemate keystrokes (doesnæt need Keystroke) from Roger King Ö Help
Column, page 29.
9.8
uáUpdates of Robert Lyttonæs utilities, Case2Case and !LooknFind.
9.8
u !PtrCopy utility from Ran Mokady Ö page 23 öEmail Accessoryò.
9.8
u PD password program for Pocket Book sent in by Peter Stephens
<[e-mail]>.
9.8
u Scientific software from Chris Johnson Ö see Help Column, page 29.
9.8
u Toolbox example programs from Tony Houghton Ö page 61.
9.8
The following information is about the Christian faith, not specifically
about computing.
9.8
About a month ago, on the Acorn Usenet newsgroups, someone asked öWhich
is the best Acorn magazine?ò All was going well until someone said that
Archive was a good magazine but that it was spoilt by the presence of
the Godslot. A huge Éflame waræ ensued occupying several hundred
messages!
9.8
One thing that struck me was that many people seemed to think that
öChristianity all depends on one bookò and that öit isnæt very reliable
anywayò. Now, I am not a historian but, as I understand it, the events
that are centred around Jesus of Nazareth, his death and his (claimed)
resurrection, are some of the best attested historical events of
anything like that antiquity. The evidence includes, as well as a wide
range of Christian sources (i.e. not just the Bible), the writings of
Jewish and Roman historians, plus the archaeological evidence which all
broadly supports the biblical accounts of events. (Iæm sure that someone
will have at least one piece of evidence to Éproveæ that itæs Énot
trueæ, but no sane historian, having that amount of positive evidence is
going to throw out the whole thing because of a small amount of
apparently negative evidence.)
9.8
And what of the Bible itself? Surely that is of dubious pedigree? Hasnæt
it all been changed as the years have gone by? Well, letæs see how much
evidence there is for that view. Letæs compare the New Testament with
the best attested texts of comparable antiquity. For Caesaræs Gallic
War, we have 9 or 10 copies, the oldest of which dates from over 900
years after it was written. Slightly better attested is Livyæs Roman
History of which there are around 20 copies, but the oldest is again
from about 900 years after it was written.
9.8
Contrast that with the New Testament, which was probably written between
AD40 and AD100. We have excellent full manuscripts of the whole New
Testament from as early as AD350, papyri containing most of the New
Testament writings dating from the third century, and even a fragment of
Johnæs Gospel dating from about AD130. There are over 5,000 Greek
manuscripts, over 10,000 Latin manuscripts and 9,300 other manuscripts.
The N.T. scholar F.J.A.Hort said, öIn the variety and fullness of the
evidence on which it rests, the text of the New Testament stands
absolutely and unapproachably alone among ancient prose writings.ò
9.8
You may not believe the claims that Jesus of Nazareth made for himself,
or the claims that his first followers made, namely that he had risen
from death, but to deny that those claims were actually made is to fly,
irrationally, in the face of very strong historical evidence. Please
donæt waste your time trying to rubbish the evidence Ö many have tried
over 2,000 years and failed. Instead, read it and have the courage to
face up to the claims of this man of history Ö this man who changed the
course of human history.
9.8
P.B.
9.8
Acorn Group Ö Change is here to stay!
9.8
I am finding it hard to keep up with all the changes, and Iæm not the
only one. Colin Singleton wrote a long article about the changes of the
last few months, but Iæve had to ask him to update it in the light of
events reported in this issue (see pages 9 and 15). Hopefully, weæll
print it next month!
9.8
Thankfully, all of this monthæs changes seem to be positive Ö and there
are now rumours that the StrongARM is becoming a reality Ö first test
samples are running at 147kDhrystones, I hear. (cf the Aleph One 100MHz
586 at which runs 64kDhrystones.) For the very latest news, see the
Price List Supplement.
9.8
Acorn companies Ö Change for them too?
9.8
ANT Ltd are providing the browser for the Oracle NC, and Icon Technology
the WP Ö so they arenæt complaining about the changes! Longman, despite
being Ébroadly-basedæ, i.e. also doing PC software, are putting out new
Acorn software on a regular basis. However, other companies such as
Colton, CC and Minerva, traditional Acorn supporters, seem to have gone
rather quiet, and there is still no sign of Ovation Pro. We do need
replacements for these companies, otherwise the exciting new hardware is
going to be let down by lack of good software Ö a great opportunity for
some of the up-and-coming Acorn companies!
9.8
Happy reading!
9.8
Fact-File
9.8
Key: (phone)áá[fax]áá<net>
9.8
Norwich Computer Services    96a Vauxhall Street, Norwich, NR2 2SD.
(01603-766592) [01603-764011]
9.8
<[e-mail]>  OR  <[e-mail]>  OR
<[e-mail]>
9.8
http://www.cybervillage.co.uk/acorn/archive/
9.8
Wakefield Show
9.8
Alsystems
9.8
From 9.7 page 7
9.8
Peter Bondar Interview
9.8
Peter Bondar, the Director of Acorn Risc Technologies kindly allowed us
to put to him a number of burning questions about the future of Acorn.
He has answered them very frankly, and Iáthink you will find the news
somewhat reassuring.
9.8
ARM-based computers
9.8
Q1. In Power PC News, David Lee is reported as hinting at the immediate
demise of ARM-based desktops. This contradicts what you said earlier.
What is the true situation?
9.8
A1. I was present at the press conference at which this question was
asked. I can confirm that David was caught off guard by the phrasing of
the question. Because he had been talking about Mac OS in some detail,
he did not respond to the journalist as quickly as she expected. She,
therefore, took his lack of response as an implication of the negative.
9.8
I can confirm that the StrongARM development for the RiscPC is well
advanced. The layout of the new StrongARM card was previewed to a number
of dealers (including Paul Beverley) in February and we have a group
actively working on the CHRP situation.
9.8
Q2. If UK Education increasingly adopts other computers, will there be
enough demand from elsewhere to fund the development of ARM-based
desktop computers?
9.8
A2. If the volume of our sales were to drop, clearly this would be a
problem. However, it is clear that from our new, much more aggressive
licensing and sales environment, we are attracting an awful lot of
attention from a number of different parts of the world. For that
reason, it seems unlikely that we will halt development. (Peter himself
has been to Germany and Japan recently, and a team from ART had a trip
to Korea. Ed.)
9.8
In addition, it is very different from Acornæs Group perspective. We are
developing new applications for our new and emerging markets and,
without suitable desktop computers that come close to the state of the
art for ARM chips, we cannot provide state of the art technology.
9.8
Apple/MacOS/PowerPC
9.8
Q3. What is Acorn going to get out of Apple by using the PowerPC
processor and Mac OS?
9.8
A3. From a Joint Venture viewpoint, the use of MacOS will provide access
to a broader range of multimedia östandardò titles that otherwise
wouldnæt be expected, and the CHRP platform will provide a common focus
for one hardware platform, capable of running both Mac applications and
RISC OS applications at higher speeds than either would have experienced
on their traditional hardware.
9.8
ART is in discussion with Apple about licensing a number of its
technologies including its PC Card technology and its Skynet technology.
Given the undoubted price performance that the Acorn Computers enjoy
over any of our competitors (when looking at the cost and the end user
performance), it is simply inconceivable that Acorn would stop selling
and manufacturing computers for UK education market in the foreseeable
future.
9.8
Portables
9.8
Q4. Can you give us any indication, please, when or if a new Acorn
portable is likely to be released and what specification it is likely to
have?
9.8
A4. We have two portables in an advanced stage of completion, the first
being Stork, which is a traditional (!?) RISC OS portable, ARM 7500
powered, A5 format with a 16-level greyscale screen, housed in a
physical chassis from the Olivetti Group.
9.8
We have another portable, Newspad, which was developed as part of an
E.U. funded project. It is a tablet-based computer running a 32,000
colour SVGA touch colour screen, capable of running most RISC OS
applications.
9.8
As part of ARTæs new business strategy, we are actively marketing these
two product designs, and seeking partners who wish to put them into
production at a volume level much greater than any that Acorn could have
justified on its own.
9.8
From a business strategy viewpoint, we are very keen to put these into
production. The cost of the products to our traditional markets would be
quite high in the volumes at which we have been able to sell these
historically Ö that is why we are aggressively marketing the designs to
a number of organisations around the world, with a view to securing
larger orders which will justify a greater economy of scale.
9.8
The Newspad, especially, has had a very positive reaction from a wide
variety of sources, and we are hoping this will go into production some
time in early 1997. Both these technologies were previewed to dealers
from the Acorn Centres of Technology.
9.8
Developer support
9.8
Q5. Can you assure us that you are working with all the major software
houses to ensure that existing software will be upgraded to run on
StrongARM?
9.8
A5. ART has a checkout program and emulator to allow any organisation to
check its software compatibility with the StrongARM. We plan to release
this to software houses in the next few weeks, and we will be
encouraging all of them to try out their software on the StrongARM card.
9.8
Q6. How do you think software developers can be stimulated to continue
with Acorn in order to allow RISC OS to survive for the next few years?
9.8
A6. As we rapidly evolve and Échange Acornæ with the arrival of the
Network computer, and with aggressive licensing of our technologies
throughout the world, we believe that we can take a significant
proportion of our existing developers with us to the Énew worldæ to
which we are moving.
9.8
It is important to understand that it is paramount to Acorn that it
makes sure it has substantial software developing communities around it.
From an ART perspective, it is vitally important that, as well as the
exciting hardware, we have a whole range of software to run on it. So we
will be making sure that those developers that are close to Acorn will
be looked after Ö as well as those producing educational titles.
9.8
Platforms
9.8
Q7. When can we expect to buy an Acorn badge PowerPC platform computer?
Will it be possible to have both an ARM processor and an Intel Chip
alongside the PowerPC?
9.8
A7. We do not yet have a date for the sale of a PowerPC machine with a
StrongARM Processor. Because of the physical nature of the requirement
to plug processors, typically on processor cards, into a motherboard, it
is too early to say what the final packaging will have. It is certainly
technically feasible to have a machine with a StrongARM, PowerPC and an
Intel alongside it. The software issues are fairly significant!
9.8
Q8. Will it be possible to have both CHRP and RISCáOS alongside the
Apple Machine?
9.8
A8. CHRP supports the PS2 mouse interface and therefore one, two or
three button mice can be connected into it.
9.8
Operating systems
9.8
Q9. Which operating system will be used by the JV?
9.8
A9. As far as we are aware, the JV will be using Mac system 7, RISC OS
3.6 and Microsoft Windows for the respective platforms and/or Windows NT
for its servers.
9.8
Q10. Will the Mac Operating System ever support some of the concepts of
RISC OS?
9.8
A10. From our discussions with Apple engineers, it is clear that there
are many aspects of their future operating system, Copeland, that
overlap with the original plans for the RiscPC and RISC OS. It is also
clear that the technologies in Skynet further close the gap between the
two operating systems. All operating systems evolve over time,
especially as new paradigms and applications come to the fore. How, why
and where these things will change we do not know.
9.8
Q11. When do you think a Java compiler will be available for RISC OS?
9.8
A11. The Network Computer Division is working on supporting a wide range
of different technologies including Java. Since the network computer
runs a version of RISC OS, we would hope that it would not be too long.
For commercial and contractual reasons, I cannot give a date.
9.8
Q12. When do you expect the new version of RISCáOS to be generally
available for existing RiscPCs?
9.8
A12. We plan to produce a major new version of RISC OS to support the
StrongARM card, and it is likely that, when the StrongARM card is
released, hopefully by Q3 of this year, the supporting operating system
update will be released as well.
9.8
Q13. Will there be a RISC OS 4?
9.8
A13. As already stated, there will be a new version of RISC OS to
support the StrongARM. Further development continues on SkyNet, which
adds a number of major new features such as time code support.
9.8
(That prompted the following supplementary question.)
9.8
Q13a. What is Skynet?
9.8
A13a. Skynet is the codename for a number of technologies that sit Éon
top ofæ RISC OS. Currently Skynet deliverables include PC Exchange, Time
code object support, Multiple codec/multitasking replay.
9.8
Research projects within Skynet include Video conferencing and
whiteboarding, 3D object handling and rendering.
9.8
Currently, we have several projects looking at the Ékernalæ aspects of
RISC OS but, for commercial reasons, I cannot describe, in detail, the
nature of these!
9.8
It would be therefore premature to suggest that RISCáOS is dead or
deprived of R&D. Given that RISC OS is at the heart of the STB, NC,
Kiosk Box, Newspad, A7000, RiscPC, CHRP card and we have sold it to
major organisations in source code format, and guaranteed support for
several years, as Mark Twain said, öThe rumours of the death of RISC OS
are somewhat overstated.ò
9.8
(Anticipating the öWhat is a kiosk box?ò question, we saw them when we
went round ART. The idea is a multimedia point-of-sale terminal in a
sealed box so that customers can, interactively, find information about
products or services on offer.
9.8
Itæs basically an A7000 providing a high power, low maintenance,
multimedia setup. RISC OS running on an ARM7000, of course, provides an
excellent cost-effective system. We saw one running at ART where they
had an MPEG video onto which they had superimposed a sprite moving
around the screen, being modified as it went, without a touch of
flicker. I suspect these will go down a bomb in places like Japan.
9.8
The nearest competitor is somewhat more expensive, less versatile and
needs more maintenance. RISCáOS, starting up from ROM, can even cope
with a hard drive failure Ö just use the spare drive and tell the system
operator to come and fix the machine when he has a spare five minutes!)
9.8
Voice recognition
9.8
Q14. Voice recognition Ö How long away do you think voice recognition
is?
9.8
A14. Command-and-control voice recognition, controlling 2-300 words is
available today. Free ranging speech input is probably about 2 or 3
years away. It is therefore highly likely that, before the end of the
decade, we will be experiencing voice input computers.
9.8
Whatæs in a name?
9.8
Q15. Why has ART changed its name from ÉApplied Risc Technologiesæ to
ÉAcorn Risc Technologiesæ?
9.8
A15. This has happened as a result of the very substantial relationship
created by Oracleæs decision to commission Acorn to produce reference
designs for network computers. We felt that we had a rare opportunity to
reassert the Acorn name on the Worldástage.
9.8
Our strategy up to that point in time, of moving Online Media and ART
away from the Acorn Education name, seemed appropriate in the absence of
the Oracle agreement and the absence of the Joint Venture. However,
given the very large amount, and substantial level, of marketing that we
expect Oracle to do in relationship to Network Computers, and the need
to give the JV a new name, we decided to re-emphasise the Acorn name for
the group and hence obtain maximum benefit for all of the divisions.
9.8
Effects of the Oracle project
9.8
Q16. How much, if any, of the Oracle related software development are we
likely to see fed back to current RISC OS users?
9.8
A16. It is hoped that a very significant proportion of the technology
that appears in the Oracle Network Computer will be available to RISC OS
users. Because of the engineering and commercial issues, we cannot,
today, specify what and when, but it is the belief of all people within
Acorn that this will undoubtedly provide a major assistance to the
traditional RISC OS user base.
9.8
Q17. Are we ever likely to see an Oracle box compatibility which will
allow Oracleæs Set Top Box applications to run on a RISC OS Computer?
9.8
A17. It is too early to say, but given the fact that the first release
of a Network Computer will be running a version of RISC OS, there seems
to be no fundamental engineering reasons why that would not be possible.
However, there may be licensing and marketing issues which could
prohibit such a situation.
9.8
Q18. As an academic in a university that uses the Web extensively, when
will I be able to have a Network Computer from Acorn?
9.8
A18. It is inappropriate for Acorn to comment as to the release of
Network Computer products from Oracle, as it is their decision as to the
launch programme. However, given Acornæs role, clearly we have a
potential time-to-market advantage in producing such a product, and
Larry Ellison of Oracle Corporation is quoted as saying that he plans to
put these products on sale by the third quarter of 1996. We cannot
possibly comment!
9.8
Publishing
9.8
Q19. Do you plan to major in the publishing arena?
9.8
A19. ART has decided not to major on the professional publishing arena.
We will, of course, support all users that we have within this domain,
but it is clear that the effort involved in this niche market, and the
rewards gained, are insufficient, relative to the opportunities that are
now presented to us because of our new, more aggressive licensing
strategy.
9.8
Floating point
9.8
Q20. There is an alleged new floating point emulator Ö will it be
available to RISC OS users?
9.8
A20. There is no fundamentally new floating point emulator. However, a
lot of discussions have taken place within Acorn and ARM, especially in
the context of StrongARM, as to how to improve floating point capability
in the absence of a hardware floating point unit. We are actively
looking at this situation at the moment, but do not have a specific
strategy for external discussion.
9.8
Availability of C++
9.8
Q21. As a result of Acorn Educationæs partnership with Apple, and the
requirement for multi-platform development, it is assumed that C++ will
be used. Will Acorn/ART be more committed to C++ as a result of this?
9.8
A21. We have always planned to use C++ wherever practical and on the
arrival of the C++ compiler from ARM, it will be moved to RISC OS as
quickly as we can achieve it. We are currently dependent upon ARM for
the release of the compiler.
9.8
The Class Libraries debate is an interesting one. The size of code
created by some of the class library systems is at odds with the
performance that we wish to achieve in a number of different application
areas. Because of its emotive nature, several pages could be dedicated
to the discussion of C++ Class Libraries.
9.8
It is sufficient to say that there are different protagonists with
different views on this. We will, undoubtedly, support a C++ compiler
and some class libraries, but a strategy of blindly following
Microsoftæs lead, does not seem logical to us, especially within the
wider views of licensing our technology to a variety of people, and
Oracleæs intended strategy.áuá
9.8
Avie Electronics
9.8
(Coming in the morning - phone 416863)
9.8
Small Ads
9.8
A3000, 2Mb RAM, colour monitor, mouse etc. Genesis, 1st Word Plus, PC
Emulator, Chocks Away, Cyber Chess, Lemmings, PacMania and others.
Panasonic KXP-1092 printer with extras, ú399. Phone Paul on 01502-
565833.
9.8
A3000, 2Mb RAM, RISC OS 3.1, 40Mb HD, 14ö AlphaScan high-res colour
monitor, all boxed with manuals. Style, Easyfont, PipeDream and some
games, ú300. Phone [phone] or e-mail <[e-mail]>.
9.8
A310, 4Mb RAM, RISC OS 3.1, ARM3, 270Mb and 40Mb SCSI external HDs, 2
floppy drives, Taxan 775 multisync monitor, VIDC enhancer, CCæs
Interword and Spellmaster ROMs on podule, 256 Scalight Plus, PC
emulator, Acornæs plus Castleæs PC look alike keyboards, ú350 o.n.o.
Phone Elwyn 01255-506303.
9.8
A4 concept keyboard and cable for user port ú35, User/analogue port for
A3000/A4000 ú25, Hard Disc Companion ú15, PCEmulator 1.82 ú15, BBC Basic
Guide ú8, OS3 Style Guide + New Looks disc ú4. Or offers on any of it!
Phone [phone] after 7.
9.8
A410, 4Mb RAM, RISC OS 3.1, ARM3, 40Mb HD, Taxan 770+ LR monitor, VIDC
enhancer, RISC OS 2 PRMs, lots of software, ú400, Canon BJ-10ex with
TurboDrivers, ú100, Pace 14k4 modem, ú80, Cumana 16-bit SCSI card, ú90,
Vision-24 508 line digitser, ú80, or the lot for ú700. 01273-453148.
9.8
A410/1, 4Mb RAM, RISC OS 3.1, ARM3, 170Mb HD, VIDC enhancer, 5╝ö floppy
interface, Acorn monitor, boxed with manuals, any reasonable offer
considered. 0181-536-1238, [e-mail].
9.8
A540, 8Mb RAM, RISC OS 3.11, 120Mb SCSI HD, Beebug HD floppy drive,
AlphaScan+ Monitor, lots of software, ú600. Phone Ray on 01793-695296.
9.8
Acorn bits Ö Back issue magazines/coverdiscs (AU, AW, AC, MU) æ91
onwards ú1 each, Risc User discs (Jul æ95 onwards) ú3 each, Almanac 3
úoffers?, Mousemats ú1 each. Phone Jon on 01823-680111 or email
[e-mail].
9.8
Acorn C/C++ with Acorn Assembler Guide and RISC OS 3 Style Guide, ú190.
Phone James on 01484-513569.
9.8
Architech, Illusionist and Render Bender ú140. Phone Eric on +32 (0)3-
237-5612 after 16.00 or email [e-mail].
9.8
CC Turbo-driver version 4.02 for HP Deskjet or Laserjet. ú25. Phone
01235-834357, or [e-mail].
9.8
DeskEdit 3, ú10, Arctist, ú5, Flashback, ú15, Enter the Realm, ú13,
Swiv, ú5, Blowpipe, ú5, Style Guide, unopened, ú6. Phone Dave or Jon on
01267-236499.
9.8
Eizo 20ö monitor, multisync, ú350, Morley 16-bit SCSI podule, ú50,
Cumana external CD-ROM, single speed, ú35, Wizzo5, ú15, RISC User
volumes 1 to 8 with disks volumes 2 to 8, ú35, S-Base 2 Developer, ú35.
Phone [phone].
9.8
Morley Electronics Cached SCSI card ú100 Ö [e-mail].
9.8
ProLink fax/data modem, ú35, Junior PinPoint, ú15, Almanac 3, ú29,
Chocks Away + extra missions, ú9. Phone [phone].
9.8
RiscPC 600, 2 slices, 8Mb DRAM, 2Mb VRAM, 420Mb HD, 2 CD-ROM drives,
light use only, manuals, boxed. ú975. Phone [phone] eves.
9.8
RiscPC 600, 12Mb DRAM, 1Mb VRAM, 425Mb HD, Eizo 9060S monitor, Canon
LBP4 Laser Direct, Star DM printer, software inc Publisher, Fireworkz
Pro, Squirrel, Eureka, úoffers. Phone Mrs Storker on 0181¡856¡3851.
9.8
Software, PipeDream 3, Hard Disc Companion, ArcScan 3, Dune 2,
WorldScape, Black Angel, plus others, all ú10 each. Phone Malcolm
Robertson on 01296-23124.
9.8
Wanted, ADFS and View ROMs, for BBC Model B. Phone Gary on 01782-633553
(office) or 01782-662252 (home).
9.8
Wanted, The Flight Sim Toolkit. Phone Dave or Jon on 01267-236499.áuá
9.8
Whatæs Cooking at Acorn?
9.8
Paul Beverley
9.8
When Acorn and Apple made their announcement about the Apple/Acorn Joint
Venture, many people read it as if Acorn were selling out RISCáOS to
MacáOS. Since then, Acorn have tried to explain that this is most
definitely not the case and, in last monthæs Archive, I tried to show
all the reasons why Iáthought the RISCáOS still had a reasonable life
expectancy. This present article consists of a number of announcements
Acorn have made over the past month which help to clarify the situation.
It is also worth reading the interview with Peter Bondar on page 9 which
I think you will find very encouraging.
9.8
Acorn / Apple initiative
9.8
First of all, we have a question and answer session about the
implications of the Acorn/Apple initiative. In particular, it looks at
the product and marketing directions for the Acorn Group in the light of
the Joint Venture.
9.8
Acorn, the educational computer company with the largest installed base
of computers in UK schools, and Apple, the worldæs leading supplier of
computers to education, are delighted to announce the formation of a
joint venture company, based in Cambridge and dedicated to providing
schools with the widest possible choice of IT solutions from any single
source.
9.8
The implications for Education?
9.8
The new company will be offering RISC OS, Mac OS, and Windows systems
where appropriate, giving schools real choice in deciding which
solutions are best for their individual IT needs. The two companies have
shown, in their respective markets, a heritage of empowering teachers
and pupils. The joint venture will use this unrivalled education
expertise to develop the most appropriate solutions for classroom
requirements.
9.8
Schools can therefore be safe in the knowledge that their existing
investments are protected.
9.8
What about Acornæs heritage?
9.8
Acorn and Apple have unrivalled educational experience which they will
use to ensure educational values are maintained. Unlike many PC
manufacturers, selling anything that Microsoft and Intel provide, Acorn
has already announced future technology directions and its vision for
the future of educational IT (Bett 96).
9.8
The new organisation will be an effective and efficient company based in
Cambridge. It will utilise the resources and expertise of both the Acorn
Group and Apple. It will not adopt a business model based on a strategy
of overcharging schools for support and services. We anticipate that the
new joint venture will dramatically reduce the cost of this aspect of IT
provision and drive prices down, putting the competitors under severe
pressure.
9.8
What guarantees are you giving educational users?
9.8
This exciting new company provides a guaranteed future for all RISC OS
and Mac OS users in education, giving absolute confidence that choosing
either of these technologies now gives you the best route to the future.
9.8
The joint venture plans to do the following:
9.8
ÅáContinue selling, enhancing and supporting the current range of
machines from both companies.
9.8
ÅáDevelop and market innovative solutions which meet the needs of
children and teachers, incorporating the latest multimedia technology.
9.8
ÅáDevelop and market a series of products which make it easier for Acorn
and Apple products to sit on the same network, exchange files and share
peripherals.
9.8
ÅáOffer developer opportunities to integrate the latest technology into
their products and offer them the widest possible market opportunities.
9.8
ÅáProvide a clear future direction through the adoption of the Power PC
Reference platform, a RISC-based platform under development by Apple,
IBM and Motorola. This new platform will offer hardware from many
suppliers and a choice of operating systems.
9.8
What does this mean for non-educational customers?
9.8
The Acorn Group is pleased to announce that the marketing of RISC OS
desktop products to customers outside the educational market, both in
the UK and overseas, has been transferred to the Product Sales Team at
Acorn Risc Technologies. This is headed up by Chris Cox, who joins the
organisation from Acorn Education, where he was responsible for the
Sales and Marketing to the enthusiast sector. Chris has twelve years
experience in the electronics industry and has spent time in Cupertino,
California where he successfully headed-up the US sales and marketing
operation for one of the UKæs leading electronic equipment suppliers.
9.8
Acorn Online Media will continue to focus on the sales and marketing of
products, services and licences which exploit emerging world standards
in interactive multimedia, from Internet to broadband digital
interactive television.
9.8
How will this impact on the Clan?
9.8
The responsibility for the Acorn enthusiast club, Clan Acorn, remains
with Chris Cox and has moved to ART. It will now have even better access
to the latest developments from a position within the technological
powerhouse of the Acorn Group. The Clan will continue to be involved in
discussions about the future directions of RISC OS and will continue to
have access to beta level hardware and software products that are
currently being developed by ART.
9.8
What about VARs?
9.8
(To explain the jargon, a VAR is a Value Added Reseller, i.e. someone
who uses Acorn computers along with their own software and/or hardware
to put together a package which they sell for some specific application,
e.g. Sibelius sell a Émusic printing systemæ and Eidos sell a Évideo-
editing systemæ, each of which has an Acorn computer at its heart. Ed.)
9.8
The product group will also have responsibility for VAR  sales. ART will
be working closely with its VAR partners to ensure that they have the
support and back-up that they need to make the most of the unique
strengths of the ARM processor and RISC OS platform.
9.8
Will Acorn continue supporting non-educational sales? In the UK, the
Acorn Centres of Technology scheme is being expanded to include more
dealers. These meet the criteria for successfully marketing and
supporting the Acorn RISC OS products to non-educational end users. The
selection is based on a voting process conducted electronically via the
Clan Private area on the Acorn web site. Further votes for new Acorn
Centres of Technology will be carried out later in the year.
9.8
In addition to the nine Acorn Centres of Technology already announced,
the new centres are:
9.8
Castle Technology, Lindis UK, Microbits, Moray Micro Computing,
Pineapple Software, Selective Computer Services, Senlac Computing and
The Data Store.áuá
9.8
Acorn Group Product Announcements
9.8
What product developments are planned?
9.8
Planned RISC OS developments will continue to be made by Acorn Risc
Technologies, including two new enhanced versions of the A7000 and two
new versions of the Risc PC. There will also be a new version of RISC OS
to support ARM810 and StrongARM. The new Internet terminals and set top
boxes developed by Acorn Online Media will be brought into the range of
the educational joint venture during the first year of operation of the
new company.
9.8
What other developments are taking place?
9.8
Acornæs RISC technology is also being taken into new areas:
9.8
ÅáAcorn continues to develop RISC OS and will be using this in the set-
top and internet terminal markets. Acorn has also been able to announce
recently an agreement with Oracle, the worldæs second largest software
company, through which Acorn will be responsible for the development of
reference designs for Network Computers.
9.8
ÅáART (Acorn Risc Technologies) is developing RISC OS-based applications
for many confidential partners.
9.8
ÅáAcorn Online Media is selling RISC OS based products to leading
telecommunication companies.
9.8
What developments are being planned to incorporate Macintosh technology?
9.8
Apple Macintosh developments will include the introduction of new
Macintosh computers and, in the future, support for Power PC Reference
Machines. A new software release, codenamed Copeland which incorporates
advanced virtual reality, 3D, multimedia and user interface
technologies, will provide a new generation user experience and one that
is particularly suited to education.
9.8
The Power PC Reference Platform will provide a choice of operating
environments, including Mac OS, OS/2 and Windows NT.
9.8
ART announces StrongARM and CHRP platform strategy for use in high end
Risc PCs
9.8
ART announced 14/2/96 that it would use the Common Hardware Reference
Platform technology (CHRP) to produce a high-end successor to the Risc
PC. This product will also be used by Acorn Education as part of its
strategy in partnership with Apple. This innovative design follows on
from the Risc PCæs multi-processor hetero / mono-geneous processor
system.
9.8
More information on the CHRP design can be obtained from IBM, Apple and
Motorola.áuá
9.8
Acorn Online Media
9.8
1996 has started promisingly, with the dramatic rise in interest in the
Internet being translated into the agreement with Oracle. The advent of
a low cost Internet Browser considerably enhances the Online Media
product portfolio. AOM will now be able to offer customers a way of
progressing from low speed interactive TV (Internet Browsing) through to
high speed interactive TV. This we expect will make the initial sales
decision easier, as the network operators can initially utilise their
existing networks, thereby learning how to manage interactive services
prior to making the significant investments required for broadband
interactive TV.
9.8
1996 promises to be another year of market development, but with the
expectation that the increasing confidence in the technology and
customer demand for iTV, will lead to increased sales as the year
progresses.
9.8
Full information is available about AOM, The Cambridge interactive TV
Trial, products and designs by emailing: [e-mail]
9.8
More information about Online Media will follow over the next weeks and
months.áuá
9.8
Power-tec SCSI II Card
9.8
Brian Cusick
9.8
This review came about because of a decision to upgrade my current SCSI
interface to one of the new breed of SCSI II cards in an effort to
increase performance. I considered the Cumana SCSI II interface and the
new Power-tec card from Alsystems. Both of these offered similar
performance (DMA available on RiscPCs) and were similarly priced. A
decision was made based on the manufacturersæ data sheets and a few
snippets of information taken from some of the magazines, and an order
placed with Alsystems for the Power-tec card.
9.8
A few days later, the interface arrived complete with a Product Guide
and two discs: a CDFS support disc and a utilities disc containing a
transfer speed application, tape streamer backup software and the main
!PowerMgr configuration program.
9.8
Installation
9.8
The product guide gives adequate instructions on fitting the card,
describing the necessary steps required to open the computer casing, and
suggesting which slot is most suitable for optimum performance. When
fitted to a RiscPC, the interface needs to be fitted to slot 0 or 1 to
make use of the DMA feature. This does make it a little difficult to
route the internal 50-way ribbon cable, especially to any device mounted
in one of the 3╜ö bays, and care must be taken when inserting additional
interface cards to prevent damage to the cable. This will not affect
anybody owning a single slice machine since it can be fitted in the top
slot in this case, or for external devices plugged into the 50-way SCSI
II connector.
9.8
Further advice is given on fitting internal devices, although a little
more explanation may have been useful about ID numbers of SCSI devices
(the book simply refers you to the manufacturers device manual) and no
explanation at all was given regarding multiple SCSI devices and
terminators!! In my case, Iáwas fully aware of what was required but for
those who are unsure. (Read the article by Dave Webb in Archive 8.3 p67
which explains it all.)
9.8
Configuration
9.8
My current setup is as follows:
9.8
  Risc PC600, 24Mb/2Mb VRAM
9.8
  Seagate ST3620 (540Mb) hard disc
9.8
  Seagate ST32340 (2162Mb) hard disc
9.8
  Syquest 270Mb SCSI removable
9.8
  Tandberg 525Mb QIC tape streamer
9.8
  Pioneer DRU104X SCSI CD-ROM
9.8
  Canon IX-4015 colour scanner
9.8
I should point out that my own situation is slightly different from most
due to the lack of IDE hard disc within my machine. This meant that the
!Boot application already existed on the SCSI hard disc which had not
been configured as yet.
9.8
Configuration of the interface was easily achieved using the Express
Install option within !PowerMgr. This allows automatic mapping of
devices/partitions to logical drive numbers, thus removing the need to
manually enter device numbers against logical drives. One of the useful
facilities of the Power-tec card is its ability to have eight devices on
the icon bar instead of the usual four to which most other cards are
limited. This means that large hard discs with multiple partitions can
be used without having to waste some of that precious space. This
facility will be of less use to those fortunate enough to own one of the
new RISC OS 3.6 machines, although the rest of us should be able to
upgrade in due course.
9.8
For those with a little more knowledge of SCSI systems, there is an
advanced install option. This allows for the creation, initialisation
and conversion of partitions (or logical drives) as well as giving
control over the mapping of devices/partitions to logical drives. I
refer to these partitions as logical drives since there can be several
of them on one physical hard disc, each of which will result in a new
hard disc icon appearing on the iconbar (providing you donæt exceed the
eight allowed). One of the nice features of this utility is that it
allows conversion of other manufacturersæ partitions for use with the
Power-tec card without having to re-format the hard disc or losing the
existing data. This facility was tested using the Morley-formatted 540Mb
drive and it worked perfectly. Unfortunately, this was not the case with
the larger 2.1Gb drive (using the new filecore) where it only found the
first partition and then three other incorrect ones.
9.8
Hard discs can be low-level formatted by this utility, with
configuration options for sector size and LFAU (Large file allocation
unit). This allows for a certain amount of fine tuning of your system to
get the most space from your hard discs. With mine, I found the optimum
sector size was 1024 bytes but left the LFAU at the default (2048/4096
bytes for the         540/2162Mb drives). This left the maximum space
free after storing the same data on the drives using different
combinations of the above.
9.8
Additional control over the behaviour of the card can be gained from the
advanced install option, namely the size of the directory cache, setting
SCSIFS as the current filing system, the default drive number (or the
logical drive the computer will boot from if SCSI is set as the current
filing system), and the number of Read-Ahead/Write-After buffers. This
last item directly influences the maximum read speed of the card. The
higher the number of blocks allocated, the faster the data can be read
from the hard disc but the slower the data can be written. The book
suggests a certain amount of fine-tuning of this parameter for optimum
performance Ö but more of this later. The active termination of the card
can be set from this point, and it is possible to prevent removable
media drives such as Syquests from ejecting their cartridges when a
dismount is carried out.
9.8
The access rights of each logical drive can be set to Read protect,
Write protect, or both, and each drive can have an automatic spin-down
set where the drive will be dismounted/ejected after a pre-determined
time. The drive can be woken again by simply clicking on its icon.
Another nice feature of this card is that, when a drive is dismounted or
unavailable, its icon is minimised. There is one slightly unusual
feature of the card in that it accesses each drive once every 10 seconds
to check on its availability. This feature works well for removable
media, automatically displaying the disc name when the drive is ready.
9.8
To prevent tiny fingers playing havoc with your configuration, the
!PowerMgr application can be password protected.
9.8
The iconbar display utilises different sprites depending on the nature
of the device it represents. Hard discs, removable discs and tape
streamers all have there own sprites which avoids any confusion.
9.8
CD-ROM support
9.8
The Power-tec card comes with CDFS 2.21 and has the usual drivers for
the standard range of CD drives. However, it goes one stage further by
providing a combined driver for the NEC and Pioneer range of CD players.
This was quite useful to me having a Pioneer CD-ROM, and meant there was
no longer any need to use the SCSI II CD-ROM driver from EESOX. The card
also provides ATAPI support which means you can attach an IDE (ATAPI)
device to the RiscPCæs IDE interface and it will be treated as if it
were a SCSI device!
9.8
One thing to be aware of is that the CD icon appears on the iconbar even
if ÉCDROMDrivesæ is configured to zero. This causes problems for certain
applications (such as the 486PC card) which are unable to find or make
use of the drive. To remedy this, simply configure the number of CD-ROM
drives and buffers using <menu> over the CD icon, and all will be OK.
9.8
Tape Streamers
9.8
The supplied tape streamer support was tried on my Tandberg streamer,
but always gave an error message suggesting the tape to be Évoidæ. A
spare unit was supplied to Alsystems who resolved the problems on their
system but I was still unable to get it to function on my own system.
For the benefit of those who need this facility, I obtained the
following information from the programmer who created this utility:
9.8
Devices allowed include SCSI tape streamers or DATs, along with QIC80
devices which work on the floppy drive bus.
9.8
Tapes are formatted using the !PowerMgr application. This is carried out
by stepping through the entire tape to work out its capacity then
writing a header onto the beginning of the tape. Once this is done, the
tape can be used by the !Backup program. Configuration options are
available for the backup device, whether compression is required, and
whether the backup should multitask. There is also a scheduling system
so that a backup can take place at a particular time, although the
!Backup application must be left running to allow this to work.
9.8
Source files are selected using the usual drag-and-drop method.
Initially, a scan of all the files selected is made which is used to
check for changes to files made since the start of the backup, assuming
the system is multitasking. It is also used to work out a Ébest-fitæ
system, so if there is only 10Mb remaining and the next file is 12Mb,
the tape will be filled using smaller files if available. Multiple tapes
are supported but file splitting across tapes is not. This is a minor
limitation unless you are trying to backup that 500Mb PC partition!!
9.8
Restores are again carried out using a drag-and-drop method, but this
time selections can be made based on a single file, directory, or all-
files.
9.8
Scanners
9.8
The card performed without problem while attached to my Canon flatbed
colour scanner but gave no increase in scan speed over the original
Morley uncached card. Presumably, this is a limitation of the scanner
itself.
9.8
Performance
9.8
Since the card was to replace an existing SCSI card, the performance
issue was one of great concern. Tests had already been carried out on
Morleyæs cached SCSI card, and while the results had shown a significant
improvement over the uncached card, they were still a long way short of
the rated performance of the devices tested.
9.8
Performance tests were carried out using Alsystems own !Speed
application, !HDSpeed from David Holden, and a stopwatch for a general
feel of the card. The raw speed tests were extremely fast compared to
the Morley card both on block operations and random access filing, but
the general feel of the card in normal use was no better than that of
the original SCSI card!
9.8
Timings were taken for normal everyday operations on both the Morley
card and the Power-tec card with exactly the same applications running
at the time and with no additional data stored on the hard disc being
tested (this can lead to dramatic differences in performance on all SCSI
cards and all hard discs due to the relative position the data is
stored). The following table shows the results of the general feel
tests:
9.8
As can be seen, the Power-tec card is very similar in performance to
that of the uncached Morley card except when copying very large files.
There is a significant difference between the two cards when it came to
shutting-down or re-booting the computer. The Power-tec card was more
intelligent in that it made no attempt to spin down an empty Syquest
drive and it only spun down each drive once (unlike the Morley card
which insisted on mounting then spinning down each partition on each
drive).
9.8
Table 2 shows the performance results from the !HDSpeed by David Holden.
This showed a dramatic speed improvement with the Power-tec card
compared to the Morley with the Read-Ahead/Write After buffers set at
255 (Maximum read speed) and a slight improvement with the buffers set
to 0.
9.8
The final table shows the results of the application !Speed supplied by
Alsystems.
9.8
The results for the Cumana card were included for completeness since I
managed to get hold of one of their SCSI2 cards with the latest V2.00
firmware.
9.8
Problems
9.8
There were some problems during the period which Iáhad the Alsystems
SCSI card, mostly to do with data integrity, although the performance
issue was also considered to be important. Most of these were ironed out
with firmware changes, some of them beta-release, obtained directly
through Alsystems and their programmer. During the five months the card
had been in the computer, I had tried seven different versions of
firmware, some of them giving additional functionality, other fixing
bugs. All errors that were discovered were fed back to Alsystems and new
versions of firmware were received within a reasonable time. The card
appeared to work quite well by the end of the test period although it
never quite reached the speed of the Cumana card in general use. There
is a problem with lock-ups which affects all SCSI2 cards using DMA
performance, but this is said to be a bug in Acornæs DMAmanager module
which is currently undergoing changes. There appeared to be little
difference between the two SCSI2 cards as regards this problem.
9.8
The future
9.8
There will be a new hardware revision of the card released by Alsystems
soon which has a few improvements worth mentioning. First of all, it is
faster, with a stated performance of 8Mb/sec compared to the old card at
6Mb/sec. It also works in non-RiscPCs, although it will not give any
faster performance than that of a 16-bit SCSI card (about 2Mb/sec). It
is also fully CE compliant.
9.8
The software has also been updated since this review was carried out.
New facilities exist for full DOS formatting of hard discs, and support
for up to four separate SCSI cards in the computer at the same time. The
card is also Acorn Access (and Access+) compatible so would be suitable
for network use. Finally, full multi-lingual support is provided, both
in the applications and in the cardæs flash ROM.
9.8
Conclusion
9.8
The current manual supplied with the card is lacking in certain
information and no longer matches the current firmware supplied with the
cards. A re-write was supposed to be under consideration but, as yet,
this has not taken place. Apart from that, this SCSI card has some very
nice features which some people may find useful, especially the CD-ROM
support and eight partitions. I would not recommend this product as an
upgrade from an earlier 16-bit SCSI card, but if you require a new SCSI
card, or carry out a lot of work using large files such as graphics,
then this card may be just what you are looking for.áuá
9.8
Brian asked Alsystems what they could tell us about the new version of
the Power-tec card and what new facilities it has. Keith replied:
9.8
It is now fully CE compliant (EMC tested) Ö it works fast in non-DMA
slots and non-RiscPCs, and has overall faster DMA operations!
9.8
Non-DMA speed is about 1700Kb/s to 2100Kb/s (about that of a Morley
uncached card). The DMA performance should now sustain around 8Mb/s Ö
providing a fast drive is connected! Bar performance issues, it is
effectively identical. The software has been updated with a few new
features:
9.8
* Backup software questions the user before overwriting a previous
backup (as you suggested).
9.8
* Full DOS formatting.
9.8
* fully multi-lingual (both applications and firmware in ROM).
9.8
* Supports upto 4 SCSI cards Ö of differing origins (Morley etc).
9.8
* Menu option on Filer to remove icons as well as command line options.
9.8
* Acorn Access compatable (and Access Plus).
9.8
* Plus other cosmetic changes.áuá
9.8
RGSC
9.8
New artwork
9.8
Needs photo-reducing
9.8
Hints and Tips
9.8
ArcFax <Ö> Met Office Ö Users of David Pillingæs ArcFax system may be
finding it impossible to access the Met. Officeæs suite of MetFax
transmissions. These cover a vast number of products including satellite
pictures and plotted weather charts. The problem is that most automatic
Édial and receiveæ attempts are foxed by the first few seconds of the
MetFax broadcast which is a voice message saying öPlease press startò
(or something to that effect).
9.8
The solution is simple Ö dial the number (say 0336-400-400 for the index
page) from the handset, listen to the connection, and click on ÉReceiveæ
when instructed. David says that a string of commas after the dialling
code should work, as each comma introduces a short pause between the
Édialæ and the Éreceiveæ. However, I have not experimented enough yet to
know how many commas are needed.
9.8
Rodney Blackall, Battersea.
9.8
Artworks centring Ö In using ArtWorks to create a mini poster for a
friend of mine, I needed to centre several objects on the page. I used
the align command, but found that the objects were aligned around their
centres while still not being centred on the page.
9.8
I solved the problem by drawing a rectangle round the print margin
outline and then selecting all the objects and aligning them. The outer
rectangle could then be deleted, leaving the remainder correctly
positioned on the paper.
9.8
David Wild, Hemel Hempstead.
9.8
CD-ROMs Ö Now that CD-ROMs have become very cheap I have wandered round
such shops as GAME looking for sources of clipart and photographs for
use in DTP work. There is quite a lot of clipart available and, although
it does tend to have an American bias, much of it is quite usable in
Britain. Although you may need a Windows program on the PC card to use
the browse facilities, such programs as WMF->Draw will allow the files
to be transferred without difficulty.
9.8
For photographs, ChangeFSI will work on almost all of them. There are
many interesting photographs available but I donæt feel that they are,
generally, as useful as the clipart. This is, perhaps, because a
photograph is too realistic. A drawing of a shop assistant will
illustrate almost any article about shops, but a photograph tends to
attract questions about the particular subject.
9.8
Whilst looking at various collections of photographs in GAME, I bought a
cheap disc called ÉPhoto Gallery #2æ from Expert Systems. This claimed
to have ömore than 3,000 photographs... in full colourò and
öprofessional qualityò. According to Count, there were exactly 3,000,
but many of them were in black and white, and any professional producing
work like that would soon find himself looking for another job. The
quality of them was Évariableæ!
9.8
I wrote to the importers, with a detailed list of comments, and they
promised to pass on my comments to the firm in the United States. This
was well before Christmas but I have heard no more, and donæt suppose
that I will.
9.8
Clipart and photographs from Keysoft seem quite good and I have used a
number from the Corel Draw! 3 disc. I then bought Corelæs ÉGallery IIæ
clipart disc which has some useful pictures on it. Unfortunately, the
files on this disc are stored in ÉCMXæ format which, until the updated
version of ImageFS appears, needs the Windows program to get at it. On
just two occasions, I managed to get files out of it, but every other
time it has collapsed with a ÉStack faultæ when Iáhave tried to extract
any data although it displays the Éthumbnailsæ without any difficulty. I
wrote to Corel about the problem but have had no reply.
9.8
An interesting point about ÉClipartæ is that the phrase is often used
about work to which it doesnæt apply. The work of Christopher Jarman is
often given away by the magazines under this heading, but I feel that it
is misclassified. I have no complaints about the pictures, except that
they make me very envious, but to my mind, clipart is something that you
use for incidental illustration, while these are pictures to look at and
admire.
9.8
David Wild, Hemel Hempstead.
9.8
Email accessory Ö An essential (for me!) email accessory is a little
program called !PtrCopy, written by Ran Mokady in about 1991. What it
does is, when you press <alt> and <ctrl> at the same time, it looks at
the bit of screen under the mouse pointer and if it finds a letter in
system font, it puts that letter into the keyboard buffer. If the
pointer then slides over some more system font letters, it adds those
into the keyboard buffer too. Can you see the application?
9.8
Suppose I have an email on screen and someone says, öI suggest you email
Fred Czyzechoski <Czyzechoski @Pzyzorkzy.noyta.cccp>ò and you want to
type the email address into a ÉSend Emailæ window, youæll be jolly glad
you donæt have to type it!
9.8
Seriously, any time I have one bit of text in an email and I need to
type it somewhere else, <ctrl-alt> and slide the pointer does it
quickly, easily and accurately!
9.8
I managed to track Ran down and he kindly agreed that we could put the
application on the Archive monthly program disc.
9.8
Ed.
9.8
Email English Ö I take what Paul says about the standard of English in
emails and, in particular, correct spelling. One way is to use a word
processor of some description and then drop a text file into the email
window of the Internet application.
9.8
This is OK, but it is more effort Ö itæs much easier just to type a
reply using the text editor which the Internet software pulls up. I have
found something better Ö ÉSpellæ from David Pilling (ú10 through
Archive). When running, as it is now, it is clever enough to
continuously check anything typed into an icon or window and beep on
wrong words. It even has a Éforesightæ window to guess what I am about
to type.
9.8
Itæs just what I needed. I would recommend it to anyone. I will be
setting it up to load automatically when I run my Voyager internet
application.
9.8
(Great idea, Clive, thanks! Iæve tried it myself and find it works very
well indeed. Ed.)
9.8
Clive R Bell <[e-mail]>
9.8
Formatting v initialising Ö With any new hard disc (or removable
cartridge), you will first need to Éprepare it for useæ. This is
variously termed formatting, initialising, partitioning, and many other
things besides. Unfortunately, the terminology is used in contradictory
ways depending on who you talk to, and this causes a great deal of
confusion. Most manufacturers refer to the time-consuming low-level
process of marking the disc surface with tracks and sectors as
formatting. This is what you do with new floppy discs (which come
unformatted). However, the difference is that all hard discs and
removable cartridges are formatted in the factory, and do not need to be
formatted again, ever! It may even be a rather bad idea to reformat a
disc Ö I have had people claim that since they did this, their disc has
become very unreliable.
9.8
All that needs to be done to a new hard disc is to write onto it the map
and catalogue information which tell the RISC OS filing system what is
stored on the disc and where it is. To start with, there is no data on
the disc, of course, but that fact still has to be recorded in a form
that the filing system understands. This process of initialising the
disc to indicate that there is nothing on it, is most often called
initialising but, unfortunately, not everyone calls it that.
9.8
Unlike formatting, initialising is a more or less instantaneous process,
and that can be quite an alarming thing as Paul found out last month
when he initialised his main data disc! Fortunately for him,
initialising a disc does not actually remove data from the disc surface,
it merely tells the disc to forget that there is anything on it.
(öMerelyò, he says! Huh! Ed.) It is therefore possible to recover many
files from an accidentally blanked disc using a utility such as Disc
Rescue (ú33 through Archive).
9.8
Partitioning is a term used in association with SCSI discs, and is
closely related to initialising. You can designate different parts of a
SCSI disc to behave as if they were discs in their own right and, under
RISCáOS, they actually appear as separate drive icons. The process of
partitioning is the initialisation of each of these parts of the disc
and, theoretically, each partition can be initialised for use under a
different system (such as RISC OS, UNIX, DOS, etc). So, to initialise a
SCSI disc so that it shows as a single drive icon, you would still
partition it, but with only one RISC OS partition and no others.
9.8
The software that you use to do all this for IDE discs is !HForm. SCSI
interface cards, however, each come with their own very individual disc
management software Ö and this is where much of the confusion lies. Some
use the terms Éformatæ and Éinitialiseæ in completely the opposite
sense, or they mix and match other terms with these in such a random way
that they cease to have any meaning at all. The important thing, when
you attempt to Éprepare a disc for useæ, is that you read the SCSI
management instructions analytically to work out just how confused the
author was before you attempt to follow them.
9.8
(James has had to Éinterpretæ the makersæ instructions to confused
customers on a number of occasions Ö I think you can detect the note of
exasperation! Ed.)
9.8
James Taylor <[e-mail]>
9.8
Impression problems Ö If you have upgraded Publisher beyond 4.05
recently (or 5.05 if you have Plus) and started getting errors about
missing fonts, and such-like, at fairly regular intervals, youære not
alone! CC changed the software because of problems with RiscPCs of more
than 20Mb (or some such) but it seems to have introduced problems for
those of us with more modest amounts of memory!
9.8
The solution is to stop it using the dynamic memory areas. This will
slow it down a bit, I was told Ö although I havenæt really noticed any
speed decrease. Load the !Run file and add the following as the very
first instruction in the file:
9.8
Set Impression$NoDynamicAreas 1
9.8
Ed.
9.8
Printers 1.52 and Paint Ö If people are complaining that Printers 1.52
will not print sprites in colour from Paint (as I found on my A5000/
HP500C), there are two workarounds:
9.8
a) Drop the sprite in Draw and print it from there.
9.8
b) Put the following into an Obey file and run it before starting
Printers:
9.8
  Set Printers$DPLJfullQ Full
9.8
This gives you back the 256 colour option in the Printers control panel,
as well as the three dithering options, which was available in previous
releases of Printers. As Paint is not as clever as Draw about rendering
colour information (so I have read), it can only handle 256 colour
modes. If you now set Paint to a 256-colour mode, it will print in
colour.
9.8
John Jervis <[e-mail]>
9.8
Programming Errors Ö This is something Iáuse for programming, to help
with sorting out Basic programming errors. I put the following two
lines:
9.8
OSCLI öSet Alias$? Show Program_errorò
9.8
ON ERROR OSCLI(öSet Program_error ò+
9.8
REPORT$+ö at line ò+STR$(ERL)):END
9.8
at the start of my Basic Wimp program, and add:
9.8
OSCLI(öSet Program_error ò+REPORT$+
9.8
ö in line ò+STR$(ERL))
9.8
to my Basic error handling PROC.
9.8
If the program encounters an error, it stores the error report and line
number in a system variable. The variable has a nice meaningful name,
but typing all that out is too much bother, so a question mark is
defined as a system alias. All you need to do is to press <f12>, type a
<?> and <return>, and your error info is presented. I use Edit, by the
way. Of course, you could open a task window and enter ? there instead
of via <f12>.
9.8
This little tip saves me a lot of trouble, as I keep forgetting what
error occurred, or at which line.
9.8
Anton Mans <[e-mail]>
9.8
Pure printing colours Ö With a colour printer, colour can often be used
to enhance text, for example by emphasising headings. In these
conditions, the precise hue is usually not important, but arbitrary
choice of hues often results in disappointing results. The appearance
tends to be Édottyæ or muddy, because the hue is approximated by using a
mixture of different colours, and does not match the resolution and
crispness of black text.
9.8
To avoid this, use the CMYK palette option in your word processor, etc,
and select only saturated C, M or Y by dragging the colour sliders to
100% for the chosen hue and 0% for the others. The print will then
consist of dots all the same hue and will appear bright and crisp. You
are, of course, limited to four colours (including black).
9.8
Eric Ayers <[e-mail]>
9.8
Reading DOS format hard discs Ö An undocumented bonus feature of the
Alsystems Powertec SCSIá2 card is that, if you present it with a hard
disc in DOS format, it will recognise this and access it through DOSFS.
I only noticed this recently while setting up an internal 270Mb SyQuest
in a RiscPC due to go out to a customer. I like to make sure that all
the configuration, SCSI device settings, termination links etc are set
up correctly, and also that all the cartridges are initialised for use
under RISCáOS. At one stage, I put a cartridge in that was Épreformatted
for DOSæ and, to my surprise, a directory display appeared with several
SyQuest ReadMe files in it! It was possible to read and write to the
disc, but a phone call to Alsystems revealed that they are still working
on being able to initialise discs to DOS format.
9.8
James Taylor <[e-mail]>
9.8
Communications Column
9.8
Chris Claydon
9.8
Launch of a new Acorn BBS!
9.8
Andy Simm has just launched a new Acorn BBS, after a few false starts.
Wire BBS in Warrington uses a cable line, which means free calls for
local users!
9.8
Wire BBS runs on my own Immediate/RSDFS BBS host, and I was surprised to
see that Andy has done a much better job with it than I did! The BBS is
well set out and well presented. There are already a good range of files
available, plus a variety of CD-ROMs. The only major problem is the
absence of an online message reader, but this is my fault not Andyæs!
Mail can still be downloaded and read offline, as is the case on my own
board, and this saves on the phone bill too. Wire runs on a RiscPC 600
with an SP_Dual high-speed serial card, 28k8 modem and a CD drive.
9.8
The BBS is networked using RSDFS to an A3000 nearby. This provides scope
for three way chats Ö one user on the modem, one on the RiscPC and one
on the A3000 Ö usually Andyæs sister Lisa.
9.8
All in all, an excellent board, well worth a call, especially if you
have free local access via the cable network. Wire BBS is on 01925-
482459, supporting modem speeds from 9600 to 28800, 24 hours.
9.8
Internet access
9.8
Finally, I have sorted out all my email address problems Ö AF Software
now have a full dial-up demon internet account and, as a result, I have
been able to set up my own Web site!
9.8
In fact, anyone with their own internet account name (i.e.
[e-mail] rather than [e-mail]) can set
up their own web pages at no extra cost, with no size limits. The one
limitation is that they will only be available while youære connected to
the internet, as they will have to be fetched directly from your
computer whenever they are accessed.
9.8
If youæd like to try out our new Web pages, they can be reached on
http://afsoft.demon.co.uk/ while Iæm online. The afternoon at the
weekend is the best time to try. There is a ÉComms Columnæ section on
the site, which includes a complete listing of Acorn BBSs.
9.8
Letters
9.8
I have an email from John Birchenough, who says:
9.8
ÉI read your column with interest, but I am a little frightened about
accessing a BBS because I do not know how to correct my mistakes, and
there is no means of using a word-processor to enter informationæ
9.8
There is no need to worry about making mistakes Ö everyone makes
mistakes when they are first starting in comms. Other users will
understand Ö weæve all been there Ö and if you ask them, or the sysop,
they will usually be only too happy to give you help and advice.
Usually, you can correct your mistakes Ö it is very unusual for a
mistake to be totally irretrievable. For example, even if an email has
already been sent incorrectly, you can still send a follow up message
explaining the mistake. As for using word-processors, most systems have
a built in text editing system Ö word processors cannot handle quoting
and message headers properly. Special message editors called OLRs (Off-
line readers) are used to read and edit messages, and are the nearest
equivalent to a wordprocessor for comms. These are available from most
BBSæs.
9.8
Hopefully, this will clear up your fears about comms. In short, just go
for it Ö youæll soon get the hang of it and wonæt make mistakes so often
anymore!
9.8
Freedom of speech
9.8
If you do access the AF Software web site, you will probably notice the
Blue Ribbon symbol at the top of the index page. This is something which
everyone who runs a Web page is encouraged to display by the ÉCampaign
for Free Speech on the Netæ, to show your opposition to the new
regulations which the US government is attempting to apply to the
Internet.
9.8
This has suddenly become a very important issue, not only for the
Internet but for all international computer networks, FidoNet included.
The US government is attempting to impose censorship and restrictions on
what the internet can be used for. Things which would be perfectly legal
if written in a letter will be illegal in Email, and things which you
could legally buy from any newsagent or book shop would be banned from
the Internet.
9.8
The issue which concerns many people is not whether the availability of
such things is good or not, the important point is that adults should be
able to make their own choices about what they do and donæt want to
read. Using special software, it is already possible for parents and
teachers to control what children can access through the internet. This
is a good thing, and should render any government restrictions
unnecessary.
9.8
Due to the world-wide nature of the Internet, and the fact that much of
the traffic passes through America, Britain would also be affected by
these new laws. The British government itself has also talked of
imposing restrictions on the comms community, but has not attempted to
do so. Currently, the only British Political Party to actively show
understanding and support of the comms community are the Liberal
Democrats.
9.8
The new legislation is being challenged in court on the grounds that ÉIt
is unconstitutional and does not recognise the unique nature of the
Internetæ. The list of companies backing the legal action is very
impressive Ö it includes Apple, Microsoft, Wired magazine and many more.
Acorn however, are conspicuous by their absence, especially considering
their new NetSurfer system.
9.8
This issue may not be directly related to the Acorn market, but the
implications are very far reaching and will affect the entire computer
industry, so I thought it important to bring up the topic. If you want
to know more, I have placed the complete text from some of the Web pages
listed below on the monthly program disc.
9.8
If you want to show your support for the legal challenge, there are two
ways to do it:
9.8
Show the Blue Ribbon symbol on your Home page, Email footer, BBS etc.
9.8
Add your name to the petition being run by the citizens court challenge,
already containing over 31,000 names.
9.8
Useful Web addresses concerning the subject are:
9.8
Citizens Internet Empowerment Court Challenge: http://www.cdt.org/ciec/
9.8
The Blue Ribbon Campaign for Online Free Speech: http://www.eff.org/
blueribbon.html
9.8
The Liberal Democrats: http://www.libdems.org.uk/
9.8
The White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov/
9.8
US government information agency: http://www.usia.gov/current.html
9.8
Contact details
9.8
Post: Chris Claydon, 38 Main Road, Littleton, Winchester, SO22 6QQ.
Email: [e-mail] .co.uk  FidoNet: 2:252/501.
9.8
Web: http://afsoft.demon.co.uk/ (when online)áuá
9.8
I would like to point out that the views expressed in this, or any other
article within Archive, do not necessarily reflect the views of Norwich
Computer Services, or of the Editor of Archive magazine.  Ed.
9.8
Advanced RISC Machines Column
9.8
Alex Singleton
9.8
As mentioned in the Comment pages last month, Acornæs Peter Bondar has
announced that the first StrongARM processor upgrades for Risc PCs may
be available in August. However, while some people think Époweræ, far
more is on offer.
9.8
RISC OS 4?
9.8
RISC OS is why I use an Acorn. I used to be a PC user at the end of the
1980s, running Windows 2, which was pretty unreliable. The PC
downstairs, used by my father, runs Windows 95, which contains so many
bugs that it is not worth bothering with. In fact, despite him refusing
to buy an Acorn on the grounds that it is not öindustry standardò and
has no software for it, he uses my Risc PC for everything save simple
word processing!
9.8
Far be it from me to speculate and to work on rumour, but I think I
shall make an exception. According to Peter Bondar, ösure, weæll add
things to RISC OS... Weære a humble little company: we prefer to produce
something and then announce it.ò The PC card has, obviously, taught
Acorn a lesson or two. Peter has also said that RISC OS will definitely
be developed for at least the next few years, and it will require major
enhancements in order for it to be compatible with the StrongARM.
Furthermore, one major Acorn developer overheard someone at Acorn House
screaming the words öRISC OS 4.ò Is it possible that RISC OS 4 will be
released in August? (I wish! Ed.)
9.8
Psion 4 speculation
9.8
Evidence extracted from Computer Shopper, and a number of other reliable
sources, does seem to suggest that the Psion 4 will have some form of
speech recognition. Apparently, the new machine will be fitted with a
digital signal processor alongside an öordinaryò ARM, or simply fitted
with a StrongARM. However, when asked whether the rumours were true,
Psion said that öit is ridiculous to speculate on a computer that will
not be available until 1997.ò
9.8
Digital says, öPerformance estimates to recognize 5,000 words and
phrases indicate the need for more than 100 Dhrystone 2.1 MIPS. This
type of performance has traditionally been added through the use of
digital signal processors (DSP) and associated controller circuitry,
which add to board space and total system cost. Software-based systems,
such as Dragon Dictate, address manufacturing cost considerations but
require that the processor assume more DSP functions, raising again the
need for increased performance. Since speech recognition has been
identified as a key requirement for mobile workers, being tied to the
desktop represents a significant inhibitor to mainstream adoption.ò
9.8
Why is the StrongARM so fast?
9.8
The combination of high performance and low power is achieved through
several techniques. The processoræs underlying architecture has been
altered. The StrongARM has a Harvard-style architecture (unlike previous
ARMs), with separate instruction and data caches which improves
processor performance. The pipeline has also been upgraded to five
stages (from the current ARMæs three) and thereæs a high speed
multiplier to boot.
9.8
StrongARM and CHRP
9.8
I learned from the 19th Februaryæs Independent, that Acorn is to produce
a version of RISC OS which runs natively on Apple Macintosh machines by
the end of the year. Does this mean Apple CHRP computers or existing
Macs? Moreover, a major rewrite of the OS will be required to allow the
new StrongARM processors to run. Taking into account that Acorn RISC
Technologies says that it will continue to develop RISC OS for at least
the next four years, we could well see RISC OS 4 this year.
9.8
Having seen some of the negative untruths printed in the newspapers of
late, e.g. Apple UK has taken over Acorn, I think we have to be a little
careful Ö use a goodly dose of salt.
9.8
Recommended uses of StrongARM
9.8
The StrongARM is not intended to be the most powerful processor and is
definitely aimed at non-desktop machines. Says ARMæs Trent Poltronetti,
most of the companyæs customers have the speeds of (ordinary) ARMs
clocked down to about 2MHz. But, for Acorn, it has clear-cut advantages
over the competition. Firstly, it has excellent code density Ö in other
words, programs written for the StrongARM are very small. Secondly, they
are many times cheaper than Intel Pentiums. Finally, Acorn couldnæt
really change because RISC OS is tied to the ARM (although the noises
from Peter Bondar in the section on CHRP seems ambiguous). This is a
list of ARMæs wanted markets.
9.8
Å  Smart hand-held devices
9.8
Å  Personal digital assistant (PDA)
9.8
Å  Next-generation cellular telephone
9.8
Å  Organizer
9.8
Å  Pager
9.8
Å  Video conference equipment
9.8
Å  High-performance real-time systems
9.8
Å  Disc drives
9.8
Å  Data communications equipment
9.8
Å  Interactive digital video
9.8
Å  Video games
9.8
Å  Internet browsers
9.8
Å  Set-top boxes (i.e. Online Media)
9.8
Online Media wins all
9.8
One of Online Mediaæs rivals will, ironically, make money for the
company. Teknema has announced a network computer to be available during
the second quarter of 1996. Known as Easy Rider, it is fundamentally a
web browsing computer based around the ARM7500 öhigh integration
multimedia system on a chip.ò
9.8
öMany designs in consumer electronics prove that ARM is the best
solution for high performance personal electronics,ò ARMæs Robin Saxby
told the press. öTeknemaæs Easy Rider is a superb example of the
capabilities of the ARM architecture and of the compact software.ò
9.8
True, the device is only a web browser, but it does show how financially
sound the Acorn Group is because even Acornæs Écompetitorsæ have to
licence technology from what is, essentially, a subsidiary.
9.8
And finally
9.8
Both Aaron Timbrell and Quentin Pain would like to know the number of
MIPS of an ARM 3, which was missing from the graph in last monthæs
column (an old issue of Acorn Computing told me that the ARM250 ran a 6
MIPS). I looked for it on someone elseæs internet-ed computer and asked
around at ARM but to no avail. Can anyone help?
9.8
If you have any questions and/or comments about ARM processors, please
write to me at 31 Great Woodcote Park, Purley, Surrey CR8 3QU, or email
Paul and heæll post it on to me.áuá
9.8
Help!!!!
9.8
ARM3 Ö Has anyone got an old ARM3 upgrade they donæt want? If so, I can
put you in touch with a buyer. I donæt want to get involved as we would
have to add VAT to the reselling amount. (Or just email direct to Kjetil
Bernhard Thomassen <[e-mail]>.)
9.8
Ed.
9.8
BBC games discs Ö Has anyone got any old BBC games on floppy disc that
they donæt want, please? If so, could you send them in to us as we have
a charitable use for them? Thanks.
9.8
Ed.
9.8
CD-ROMs for grown ups? Ö Almost all the reviews seem to be for discs
designed for school use (the one about musical instruments reviewed in
9.6 looks to be a rare exception). It would be nice if someone could
hunt down some CD-ROMs for grown ups and review them from time to time.
9.8
Philip Draper <[e-mail]>
9.8
Digitiser comparison Ö Quite a few people have been asking about the
relative merits of the various digitiser cards available. As we do not
use them in the office, we have to rely on feedback from you, the
readers. So does anyone have experience of these cards (particularly if
used in conjunction with other multimedia related hardware such as TV
tuner cards)? Would anyone be prepared to collate the information for
us? If you wanted to write a comparative review, we could perhaps borrow
any cards that you didnæt have access to. It would be useful to have any
feedback at all, so please send your letters/emails to the Archive
office. Thanks.
9.8
Ed.
9.8
FPA11 Ö Does anyone have a floating point chip they would be willing to
sell? Or, better still, could you donate it(!) so that we could sell it
on for charity? People are still wanting to use A5000s with FPAs because
they are faster than a RiscPC! Eric Willemen in Belgium is one such. Can
anyone help him, please?
9.8
We have also been approached by an instrumentation company wanting
second hand A5000s with 4Mb, FPA, RISCáOS 3.11 and minimum 80Mb hard
drive Ö for the same reason as Eric. Anyone interested in upgrading to a
RiscPC?
9.8
Ed.
9.8
Hardware articles Ö Two types of articles that people are asking for:
(1) With the proliferation of add-ons for the RiscPC, any information
about what works (or doesnæt work!) with what, is very useful. Also, it
is a help to know what extra software is or isnæt needed in order to use
(cheap) PC add-ons in an Acorn environment. Any information on this
would be much appreciated. Even more appreciated would be someone to
offer to act as Hardware Column Editor to collate all the information!
9.8
(2) (I ask this one periodically) Does anyone have any hardware projects
they could write up for Archive? One magazine had an article describing
a PCB you could make up, then link it to the computer to make a digital
voltmeter. Thatæs the sort of thing Iáam often asked for and can only
rarely deliver.
9.8
Here is one idea Ö is it silly? This was prompted by the thought that
the BBC Micro range were so superbly easy to interface and that the
Acorn Risc machines are very hard work, by comparison. OK then, there
are lots and lots of old Beebs floating around, so why not do some
projects where the Beeb does the interfacing and then you link it to the
Risc computer to do the number-crunching and/or screen display? Any
ideas, suggestions, offers of help, gratefully received.
9.8
Ed.
9.8
KeyPlus and KeyCalc Ö Do we have any educational users who could help
us, please? First of all, is anyone using the KeyPlus mapping facility?
If so, would you like to have a copy of Angliaæs OS Map Converter and
the Map Editor for review? The person who initially took this software
for review found that it really needed someone familiar with the use of
KeyPlus, and especially its mapping facility, in an educational setting.
Any offers?
9.8
Secondly, Anglia are just about to launch öSpreadsheets Across the
Curriculumò and we really need someone familiar with using KeyCalc to
review it. This package consists of a photocopiable book and discs of
sample data. The ideas can be translated onto other spreadsheets but, to
do justice to the review, it really needs a KeyCalc user, or someone who
has access to KeyCalc and has used it at some stage.
9.8
Ed.
9.8
Keystrokes Ö If anyone has written comprehensive Keystroke files for any
application, do send them in to Paul in Executor format (which is freely
distributable) for the monthly program disc. Iáhave done one for
Tablemate together with a keystrip, which is on this monthæs disc.
9.8
Roger King, Guernsey.
9.8
Scientific software (again!) Ö As promised, I have sent Paul another two
applications for this monthæs disc.
9.8
!IsoMass is an application that calculates the isotopic (natural)
abundance for a compound or fragment. The results are shown both as a
table of data and as a simple bargraph. This is of direct relevance in,
for example, mass spectrometry, where the isotopic abundances for each
ion are normally observed. This allows the predicted abundances to be
compared with the observed abundances and, where necessary, peak
intensities can be corrected for isotopic contributions.
9.8
!A>B>C is a simple demonstration of the kinetics of sequential or series
reactions. This demonstration uses the simplest case of sequential first
order reactions. It allows the entry of rate constants, and the time to
run the reaction, and displays the result graphically as a plot of
concentration against time.
9.8
Although A>B>C has its own simple plotting routines, it also allows the
export of data to !MultiPlot. Users of my suite of plotting applications
will know that the latest version of MultiPlot can be used as a
Ébackendæ for the plotting and display of many types of data. If you are
writing your own applications, and feel that you would like an easy way
to graph data, you might find MultiPlot of use. Not only does it have
very flexible display options, but it also deals with printing the
graph, or converting it to a drawfile for use in e.g. DTP applications.
9.8
There are several ways of getting data into MultiPlot. Fully fledged
Wimp applications can communicate directly via the Wimp messaging
protocol, or at a slightly lower level, by the normal Wimp datasave and
RAM transfer. However, any simple program can produce a file on disc
suitable for loading into MultiPlot. I often write very simple ten or
twenty line programs in Basic to output data files for MultiPlot and
produce quite complex graphs in just a few minutes. If anyone is
interested, contact me for data formats and example programs.
9.8
Over the next few months, I will send further physical chemistry-related
applications to Paul for inclusion on the monthly disc as space is
available. I can be contacted as Chris Johnson, 7 Lovedale Grove,
Balerno, Edinburgh, EH14 7DR, or by email (please note my new email
address below). If you would like copies of the original two discs of
scientific software, either send me two discs and sufficient to cover
return postage, or simply send me ú1 to cover cost of discs and postage.
9.8
Also, for an experimental period, I am setting up an ftp server with
some downloadable software on it. Currently, it contains material from
the first two discs of scientific software that I issued, together with
the latest versions of my own graphing and charting applications, and
some of my chemistry related software. I hope to increase the content of
the technical and scientific software as material becomes available. To
this end, I am also implementing a facility for uploading material. (It
will not be possible for users to see what has been uploaded, so it is
quite safe to send me preview material by this route.) It will be
possible to download a text file containing instructions on how to
upload software.
9.8
Since I anticipate the loading on the server will be quite low, I am
implementing it on a RISC OS machine (what else?). It will be
interesting to see how it copes with the traffic.
9.8
To access the site, ftp to avogadro.che.hw.ac.uk (login as anonymous
with your e-mail address as password) and change directory to pub, or
use a Web browser pointed at ftp://avogadro.che.hw.ac.uk/pub/ and follow
the directory structure down.
9.8
The material will, of course, remain available on disc for those who are
not yet connected to the infamous Internet!
9.8
Chris Johnson, <[e-mail]>
9.8
StrongEd manual Ö Please has anyone got a printed manual for StrongEd
that was issued by Stallion Software?
9.8
Roger King, MalgrΘ-Tout, La Ruette des Corneilles, Cobo, CΓtel,
Guernsey, GY5 7HG.
9.8
System variables article Ö Please could we have a Ébeginnersæ article
explaining all these öFish$Fowlò variables that appear in !Boot and !Run
files. I expect they were all explained in the early days of the
Archimedes, but I was still using a Master then and lots of your readers
did not have computers at all.
9.8
Philip Draper <[e-mail]>
9.8
Timing program Ö I notice that there has been no published reply to
Roger Kingæs request (Help!!!! column, Archive 8.6) for a timing
program. What he requires, can be done using a spreadsheet, separating
h, m and s into separate columns (this can be done automatically from a
time such as 14:02:34 by utilising INTEGER and FRACTION), converting all
to a common term, e.g. seconds, for any calculations and then back to
h:m:s. I would be interested if anyone could write a race results
program which could record several massed starts by a key press and each
competitoræs finish time and race time. There could be some funding for
this from a sports governing body, if anyone can help.
9.8
Allan Bennett, Romford.áuá
9.8
Internet Column
9.8
Dave Pantling
9.8
Down time... continued!
9.8
Iæve received a number of emails about my comments in last monthæs
column. It seems Iæve struck a chord with the majority of seasoned
users. I found it interesting that not one person Iæve spoken to can say
that theyæve never had a problem. It appears that the norm is to have
service interruptions, days without news and 5p added to your phone bill
each time the phone connects and then inexplicably drops the line Ö par
for the course, apparently.
9.8
Software update
9.8
There have been a number of developments on the software front.
9.8
Argonet have now provided two newsgroups for Voyager users. They have
also made available for download an application called WebPack. This
utility allows customers to prepare their own web sites and upload them
to Argonetæs web server. All customers should soon be using their 500Kb
free web space.
9.8
A week earlier, Argonet released a new version of Voyager Ö v1.04. The
new package is substantially the same in appearance, but has improved
mail and news handling, with new mail features more akin to those
provided in the ANT suite. Version 1.05 will probably be released
shortly after you read this, and will be a substantially bug-fixed
version. An all-new news program is currently being developed, with the
aim of improving the speed of news processing.
9.8
ANT intend to release a new version of their Internet Suite. Fresco is
being further developed by ANT and Acorn Network Computers, for use in
ÉNetwork Computer productsæ. I asked Carol Atack of ANT if developments
for Oracleæs Network Computer would have benefits for ANT suite users.
9.8
öYes, indeed, developments in the Browser (Fresco) will be included in
an upgrade to the suite scheduled for launch by the end of the second
quarter this year.ò
9.8
öMajor improvements to news handling, including a range of expiry
options, are features of this new versionò, she added.
9.8
PD corner
9.8
A couple of helpful public domain utilities have made my job of running
the Archive web site much easier.
9.8
HTMacroL is a handy utility which presents a window containing many of
the commonest HTML tags. Tags are the markers that tell a browser how to
display a piece of text. For example:
9.8
<strong>Hello</strong> <em>there</em>
9.8
would result in a display of:
9.8
  Hello there
9.8
HTMacroL will work with any text editor, sending the macro to the
application that has the input focus. It is easily customised, and
instructions are provided to help you do this.
9.8
Richard Goodwin, the author, plans to release a new version allowing
colour tags to be used more easily.
9.8
This package has much of the functionality of RCompæs HTMLEdit, but is
free. It can be found at ftp.argonet.co.uk, in the PD directory.
9.8
Another utility I really appreciate is WebGIFá2 by Ian Jeffray. It
converts sprites to GIFs, allowing easy selection of a mask
(transparency) colour and interlace. It works well, but doesnæt handle
sprites with custom palettes. Ian tells me a major re-write is on the
cards, so Iæll look forward to it.
9.8
The one facility absent from the Acorn platform is an ISMAP utility. Are
any PD authors out there working on something I should know about?
9.8
BT discount schemes revisited
9.8
There were two inaccuracies in last monthæs column. The information was
supplied by their PR department, so I was inclined to trust it!
9.8
Firstly, the break even point for PremierLine and Option 15 are the
same, but PremierLine must be paid annually.
9.8
Secondly, BT decided to change the discount offered by Friends and
Family. It is now free, and offers 10% off five selected numbers. The
best combination is now Friends and Family combined with PremierLine,
which attracts 15% off all calls, or 25% off the five numbers you gave
BT.
9.8
Thanks to all the people who emailed or wrote to me. Keep it coming, as
it really helps me keep the column interesting every month.
9.8
You can email me, [e-mail]. Alternatively, you can write to
me, care of the Editor.áuá
9.8
Pocket Book Column
9.8
Audrey Laski
9.8
Sort it yourself
9.8
Ken Cowap wrote enthusiastically, a couple of months ago, about his
epiphanic realisation that the Psion/Pocketbook was a real computer in
the hand. He now reports progress on his programming activities Ö a
short program to sort Cards. Heæs now moved on to translating Basic
routines from Peter Duffet-Smithæs book ÉAstronomy with your Personal
Computeræ. This sounds like a mammoth task, but he remarks that öitæs
organised in sections which are, to some degree, stand-alone, so there
are intermediate rewards.ò I imagine there must be a number of palmtop
users out there who are interested in astronomy; they will be cheering
him on, delighted at the thought of being able to take Duffet-Smithæs
formulae out under the night sky with them.
9.8
Autoroute Express revisited
9.8
He was also very enthusiastic, at the time he last wrote, about
Autoroute Express. However, he has become somewhat disillusioned, as
some other correspondents have been, by out-of-date map data Ö
öAutoroute Express... is currently in the dog-house.ò
9.8
However, Peter Young, of Cheltenham, suspects that the real problem is
not the actual data. He suggests that the difficulty öseems to be
persuading the application to use a particular piece of road, which can
give the impression that, for instance, a new by-pass isnæt known by the
application. This seems to be a side-effect of the well-known habit of a
computer doing exactly what you tell it to. If you tell it to give you
the shortest route it does just that...ò
9.8
He finds more potentially troublesome the fact that öthe application
doesnæt seem to have accurate information about restricted motorway
junctions or urban one-way systemsò and he describes some horrendous
attempts by his Pocket Book to take him öhalf a mile the wrong way down
a one-way part of the inner ring roadò at Haverfordwest and to get him
onto the M5 southwards öat Junction 10, which is impossible.ò
9.8
However, his final judgement is: öWith this reservation, it is an
excellent program, even at its stiff price, but I wonder if Microsoft
will issue upgrades at a reasonable cost? Maybe they would be encouraged
to do so if enough people wrote pointing out these mistakes? The manual
says ÉSupport issues should be directed to Psion Technical Support...æ,
so presumably this includes Éwish-listsæ too.ò
9.8
Recommendations
9.8
I am quite excited about a batch of materials from Purple Software, some
of which Iæve been trying out. DataView (ú59.95 inc. VAT on SSD, ú44.95
on PC floppy) is an application which Éallows you to view and edit your
database files, sort the database entries, print entries to mailing
labels and create personalised letters.æ I havenæt tried the two latter
facilities, but I have found very useful simply the fact that DataView
presents the material in my various Cards files Ö and regular readers
will remember that I use Cards for a lot of odd purposes Ö neatly laid
out in rows, each Écardæ below the one before it. It enables much
quicker checking for various purposes than the separate data Écardsæ can
do, and of course has a normal ÉFindæ facility.
9.8
Iæve also been having fun with DrawIt (ú49.95 on SSD, ú34.95 on floppy),
an application which, while not permitting freehand drawing, or even the
free use of lines and curves, still enables you to create many
interesting designs by the manipulation of the library of 21 shapes it
provides Ö additional shapes are apparently available. It is very easy
to get into, with an excellent little manual. Some other items of
software from Purple, which evidently derive from DrawIt, are FloChart
and OrgChart, whose names speak for themselves. I havenæt tried these
yet, as all these applications take up a good deal of memory. They can
be bought on separate SSDs, but I have them on a floppy, and will need
to take everything off my flashdisc and reformat it to make room for
more experiment.
9.8
John of the other side of the bed says öHowever, it seems to me that the
actual drawing routines are held separately in DrawIt, FlowChart and
OrgChart, so that if you try to put them on the same flashdisc, quite a
lot of space is wasted by triplication. Another instance, it seems,
where marketing and economy conflict.ò
9.8
Power Pack Blues revisited
9.8
Ken, in his letter, also follows up the information from Steve
Hutchinson, in an earlier column. His lead, made in China for Psion, and
labelled öthe Psion Series 3 UK mains adaptor 230Vò, has the same öextra
groove near the tipò as Steveæs 9v Maplin regulated power supply, and
Ken, who bought it last October from Watford Electronics for ú10 +VAT,
reckons it is an upgraded version. He notes that it is a öregulated
power supply delivering 9.8 volts rated at 70 milliampsò, and wants to
stress to readers öthinking of using a PSU other than Psionæs, that itæs
essential to use a regulated supply such as that which Steve
recommends.ò At ú7.99 (inc. VAT) the Maplin one is cheaper than Psionæs
own and öwith a generous rating of 500mAò could be used for many jobs
needing 9 or 10 volts.
9.8
Editoræs hangup!
9.8
Paul has started using a Pocket Book II, and says he has a problem with
hang ups! öTwice now, I have been in the middle of typing, in Write, and
the computer has simply locked up Ö no keypresses would free the locked
display, and I simply had to pull out the batteries. I was pleased to
discover that I hadnæt lost any of the files on the RAM disc, but the
file I had been working on was gone. The first time it happened, I had
been typing for an hour and hadnæt saved it, but the second time,
learning from my mistake of being too trusting, I had been saving the
file every few minutes, so didnæt lose much.ò
9.8
Has anyone else had similar problems to Paul? Should I just tell him
take it back to his dealer(!) and complain?
9.8
Endnote
9.8
Iæm enchanted by the implication in Geraldæs Column that I have a fan
club! Having recently reached full Élittle old ladyæ status by passing
my 65th, I collect compliments the way some people collect stamps.áuá
9.8
Puzzle Corner
9.8
Colin Singleton
9.8
Thanks again for the many contributions. Richard Lyszkowski of Bridge of
Allan, Stirlingshire, informs me that secondary schools in Scotland
organise a Mathematical Challenge several times a year, for modest
prizes and the good name of the School. This seems an excellent way of
making an often boring academic subject interesting, even fun, although
some of the questions are far from trivial.
9.8
The latest winners...
9.8
(54) Battle of Hastings
9.8
Sam Loydæs version was, perhaps, too simple for the Émainæ monthly
puzzle, and H E Dudeneyæs almost too difficult Ö just three readers
solved the latter. Confusingly, several readers submitted smaller
Ésolutionsæ which did not, in fact, satisfy the required equation
B▓á=á61A▓á+á1. Clive Semmens of Ely, who wins the prize, demonstrated
that it can be solved without multi-length arithmetic. He discovered
that if we can find integers C and D such that 61C▓á+áKá=áD▓, where
Ká=á▒1 or ▒2, then we can calculate values Aá=á2╫C╫D/Abs(K) and
Bá=122╫C▓/Abs(K)á+áSgn(K) which will satisfy the equation B▓á=á61A▓á+á1.
Single-length integers suffice to find 61á╫á3805▓áÖá1á=á29718▓, giving
values of C, D and K from which Dudeneyæs solution is derived. The
values of A and B for any solution can be substituted as C and D (with
K=1) in Semmensæ formulµ to produce another solution Ö the number of
solutions is therefore infinite.
9.8
(55Ö57) More Cubes Ö Angles Ö Children
9.8
Several partially-correct answers, and quite a few totally correct.
Several readers failed to recognise that the angles are not necessarily
integral numbers of degrees. The prize goes to Rosemary Miskin of
Loughborough.
9.8
... last monthæs answers...
9.8
(58) Prime Sequences
9.8
Your computer search will be accelerated if you recognise that the first
in a sequence of N such numbers must be one more than twice the lowest
common multiple of the numbers 2 to N. For Ná=á4, 12721 is prime, as are
12722î2á=á6361 á12723î3á=á4241 and 12724î4á=á3181. The first number in
the first sequence of five is 19441, of seven is 5516281 and of eight is
7321991041. There is no sequence of six before the first sequence of
seven. I gave up my search for a sequence of nine when single-length
arithmetic crashed, and concluded that the first solution must be
greater than 35╫1010.
9.8
(59) Ship in a Bottle
9.8
Water does not compress, but air does, and becomes more dense. The ship
becomes more buoyant in air, and since its level depends on its relative
buoyancy in water and air, the ship rises.
9.8
(60Ö61) Heinz Beanz Canz
9.8
You can use calculus, or the progressive approximation technique
explained in Geraldæs Column. The smallest surface area for a cylinder
with two ends is obtained by making the height equal to the diameter. If
the base is rectangular, the optimum shape is a cube, and if there is no
restriction, the optimum shape is a sphere. The areas of cube, cylinder
and sphere of unit volume are 6, │┌(54p) «5╖536 and │┌(36p) «4╖836.
9.8
... this monthæs prize puzzle...
9.8
(62) Athletics and Football
9.8
This puzzle can be solved using Gerald Fittonæs five-point approximation
technique, explained in his column in Issue 9╖6 Ö but it needs some
ingenuity! You have to find the area of the largest possible Football
pitch which can be contained within an Athletics track.
9.8
For the purpose of this puzzle assume only that the track comprises two
parallel straights and two semi¡circles with a total perimeter of 400
metres, and that the Football pitch is rectangular. In real life there
are other constraints, so donæt worry if your solution to the puzzle
looks a little odd!
9.8
... and this monthæs prize quickies...
9.8
(63) 1000000!
9.8
The exclamation mark indicates factorial, i.e. N!á=á1á╫á2á╫á3á╫á...á╫áN.
Hence 1000000! (the factorial of one million) is a very large number,
but I only want to know how many zeros it has on the end.
9.8
(64) Ever Decreasing Angles
9.8
The diagram shows a sequence of squares and the diagonals of various
rectangles. Clearly the angle B╣á=áA╣. Can you prove that B▓á=áA│ ? And
can you find an angle in the A series which equals B│ ? Given the right
insight, this should be reasonably quick!
9.8
(65) Powerul
9.8
A puzzle from the Scottish Mathematical Challenge Ö without using a
calculator or computer, determine which is greater, 651662 or 331995.
9.8
And Finally...
9.8
Puzzle (50) Infinite Roots generated quite some correspondence. I must
explain that the Éproof by inductionæ fails because the only expressions
of this type which can be evaluated easily contain a zero embedded in
the square root sequence, which invalidates the inference for higher
orders. The correct solution, given last month, enables us to devise
more similar puzzles Ö so watch out!
9.8
The League Table shows a steady improvement in the response Ö though a
few readers have suggested Iámay have lowered the standard of puzzles!
The top 18 names (of 46) are shown above. The Éaverageæ month brings 2╖7
Énewæ entrants, plus entries from 25% of the Éoldæ ones. What does this
prove, I ask myself?
9.8
Please send solutions (by Friday 10th May), contributions and comments
to me, at 41 St Quentin Drive, Sheffield, S17á4PN.áuá
9.8
Comment Column
9.8
Acorn advertising Ö Reaction to changes at Acorn is often accompanied by
complaints that Acorn doesnæt advertise enough in the computer press
generally. Whilst I would be pleased to see more Acorn advertising, I
very much doubt whether it would be cost-effective. IBM must have spent
millions of pounds on advertising OS/2 with very little to show for it,
even though many reports suggest that it is better than the
corresponding Microsoft system, and there is no way that Acorn could
match that spending.
9.8
A large part of the problem is that the intended targets of the
advertising would ignore it as Éirrelevantæ because it was not PC-
related. In the photographic magazines, I tend to ignore the advertising
from Nikon, Pentax and Minolta, apart from looking at the pictures,
because their equipment is not compatible with my Canon outfit.
9.8
I suspect that the most effective advertising, from the point of view of
the advertiser, is that of dealers like Ian Copestake and his
counterparts in the photographic press. These advertisements do not try
to persuade you to buy anything, but simply give a list of what is
available and the price. If you donæt know what is meant by ÉImpressionæ
or a ÉCanon FD 100mm 2.8æ, the advertisement isnæt going to tell you.
These advertisements work because readers are looking for them because
they already know what they want.
9.8
I once asked someone on the staff of the ÉRailway Gazetteæ why the
manufacturers of main-line locomotives should advertise when they would
already have all the details of their potential customers, including
their probable requirements over the next five years, and no-one would
spend a million pounds on a locomotive because of a magazine
advertisement. His reply was that the advertisements were there to
ensure that the magazine remained viable, as it was a useful forum for
discussion of their products.
9.8
On this basis, it would seem to be in Acornæs interest that Acorn User
and Archimedes World should be kept going, and probably be useful for
them to advertise in Computer Shopper, in the hope that some Acorn
developments would be discussed in the main part of the magazine. There
doesnæt seem to be any other place where regular advertising would bring
adequate returns. Archive and Risc User donæt work in the same way,
because they are not available in the shops.
9.8
What might be more useful is for enthusiasts in non-computer activities
to mention the use of Acorn machines in the creation of such things as
special illustrations or family trees.
9.8
A much bigger influence is the enthusiasm of end-users, especially those
who have also worked with other machines. A recent issue of Computer
Shopper describes the effect on the staff of Dorling Kindersley when
they saw one of their CD-ROMs running on a RiscPC in native mode. If
they can be persuaded to tell other people, it can be very influential
because they will not be written off as biased in the way that an Acorn
dealer might be.
9.8
David Wild, Hemel Hempstead.
9.8
Acorn-Apple JV Ö (Archive 9.7, p8) I have demonstrated my confidence in
RISC OS by purchasing a RiscPC for delivery tomorrow. And, yes, my
dealer knows where he would be able to place at least one StrongARM
whatever the cache.
9.8
But the very fact that you felt you had to say what you did on page 25
about people sending in cheques in advance is at the heart of the Acorn
problem: the difficulty of fledgling companies in raising risk capital
in the UK. Now that Olivetti calls the shots Ö no UK firm having come
forward in the early crisis days Ö we can see the consequences of the
deep-rooted, and always denied, short termism of the City institutions
that dictate how capital resources (i.e. yours and my savings) are
allocated to the various economic activities. Manufacturing, in Britain,
is always at the bottom of the heap.
9.8
Whenever I argue this way Ö it being sheer heresy here in London Ö I am
wont to quote the case of clocks and watches. There was a time some 10,
or maybe a dozen, years ago when the Japanese digital watch was reported
in London financial circles as being about to sweep all analogues before
it. Consigned to the dustbin. End of story. Bye bye. But the major watch
suppliers to the world were Swiss and we know what happened to Japanese
digitals.
9.8
The question I put to my interlocutors is very simple: had that industry
been British what would have happened? Answer: it would have vanished.
No ifs and buts. Even without factual evidence (because we never had a
watch industry of any significance) there is no doubt what would have
happened: share values would have collapsed, loan capital would have
been withdrawn, skilled work forces dispersed and the proceeds would
have gone elsewhere, maybe even to assisting the Japanese to take their
digitals to market. (Donæt smile: major City traders assisted, nay
financed, the Japanese sales drives of motor cars into Australia in the
1960æs destroying what was then a major export market for UK vehicles.
OK, our cars werenæt anything like as good, but thatæs not the point.
Senior members of the British Export Houses Association didnæt care a
fig for our own export markets when better money could be made by
helping kick us out. Believe you me, that still is the case.)
9.8
So, although I have bought a RiscPC because I know it is unbeatable as a
home computer for ageing gentlemen, I do not have Paulæs confidence in
the longer term. Olivetti and Apple have their own agendas, and ART will
have to manage as best it can. Acornæs early foresight in the matter of
the reduced instruction set may well stand the new team in good stead,
but whether the profits will be ploughed back into a UK business,
producing desktop computers, is doubtful. Manufacturing is essentially
for others to undertake; we deal in invisibles. And donæt laugh again: I
heard Nigel Lawson say as much when he was Chancellor. He likely saw
himself as some sort of Emperor but they only made him into a Lord.
9.8
But, basically, I agree with Paul: there is absolutely no point in
downing tools. So let us cast all doubts aside!
9.8
Danny Fagandini, [e-mail]
9.8
Backing up Ö I was interested to see the request for help with the
backing-up of discs in a recent issue of Archive. There is no doubt that
this has been a problem for many computer users, whatever machine they
use, and many of us have been caught out by not having back-up files
when they were needed.
9.8
As discs get bigger the problem gets worse Ö the thought of copying even
200Mb onto floppy discs would give anybody nightmares, both for the
amount of work needed and the time taken. In my current machine, I have
nearly 2Gb, and a complete backup is just about impossible without
buying a tape streamer, the cost of which would be very difficult to
justify.
9.8
What I would suggest is that we change our approach from backing-up
discs to backing-up jobs. Much of the disc doesnæt need to be copied. In
the event of a major crash, almost all of the software can be re-
installed from the original discs. There is also a limit to the amount
of work that can be done in a day, so if that is backed up, either to
floppies or removable discs, it will not take long and the copies can be
filed with other records of the job. If these copies are kept with the
job records, it also means that the job directory can be deleted when
the work is complete without needing to search several directories to
see if any files are relevant.
9.8
This approach does mean that we need to organise our discs by job rather
than program. I have separate directories, which often have their own
sub-directories, for my letters, work done for Archive, each of several
DTP projects, our family tree and a newsletter which I edit for the
Railway Esperanto Association. Almost every one of these directories
will fit quite happily on a high density disc and can be backed-up by
straightforward copying from the hard disc to the floppy. An additional
advantage of organising files in this way is that you tend to need far
less ingenuity in inventing file names; a separate directory for each
job means that each of them can contain a file called Équoteæ and
another called Éinvoiceæ, without any ambiguity.
9.8
Many businesses will have tape streamers, but even then it will probably
be useful to let individual users keep copies of their own files, as it
is much quicker to restore a single file from a floppy than to restore
from a tape of the whole disc.
9.8
David Wild, Hemel Hempstead.
9.8
CurrDirRM Évirusæ Ö I have had one or two people tell me, with a mixture
of panic and outrage in their voices, that the Archive CD has a virus on
it! Pineappleæs Killer reports that a module by the name of CurrDirRM
(program disc 2.4) is infected with the SystemUtils virus. I would like
to assure you that this is not the case. Killer has been over-zealous,
and if you attempt to disinfect this perfectly innocent little module,
it will be rendered useless. Pineapple have now corrected Killer to take
this into account, and an update to version 2.208 or later will avoid
the problem.
9.8
James Taylor <[e-mail]>
9.8
Error detection Ö I have been interested to read the articles about C++
in recent issues of Archive. One of the themes has been that of
Éexception handlingæ, with the comment that it is missing from the Acorn
offering.
9.8
I am not sure that the exception handling is really worth the bother, as
most of the examples of use that I have seen, not just in Archive, have
been trapping things which should not have been allowed to happen
anyway.
9.8
A classic example is out of range subscripts. The most common cause of
this is a search routine which Éruns off the endæ of a table, but the
programmer should be aware of this when the routine is being written.
Although the program user may supply data for a table, the subscripts
are created by the programmer, and if it is calculating incorrect
values, this is much more worrying than the search problem because
values may be incorrect but still within the table, and no standard
error detection routine can possibly detect this.
9.8
Similarly, the program should never attempt a division by zero, or take
the square root of a negative number. The question which the programmer
must ask is öWhere does the program get the data for this calculation?ò
and check the data as it is entered, not when the calculation is done.
9.8
This is not just my preference for a particular language Ö similar
problems crop up in any language which offers error handling. Pascal
generates code to check for out of range subscripts but, while it may be
useful while a program is being developed, it should never be possible
for a Éliveæ program to invoke that code.
9.8
Data validation, tedious though it may be, is the key to avoiding these
errors, together with those things that are incorrect for the
application while being mathematically acceptable. For example, trying
to calculate the miles-per-gallon is mathematically wrong if the gallons
value is zero, but from the program useræs point of view, it is just as
silly to do the calculation if the miles value is zero. In either case,
there is insufficient data.
9.8
The use of exception handling routines can help by closing the program
with a suitable message but, for the user, it is just as wrong as if the
program had crashed.
9.8
David Wild, Hemel Hempstead.
9.8
Gosh! Acorn is electronic! Ö ART have changed to Acorn Risc
Technologies, so Anglo-centric heroics are a thing of the past because
they have got the right Oracle concession and itæs no longer a case of
Oracle choosing cretins. But they are not choice carol-singers, so I
must congratulate them on choosing correct aliens like Oracle!
9.8
(The best thing is that nice Oracleæs choosing ART Ö or so I thought Ö
then I realised I had got two aæs! Drat!)
9.8
Ed. <[e-mail]>
9.8
Modem speeds Ö Referring to your comments about modem speed (9.7 p27), I
reckon that if you find there is little difference in performance
between a 14k4 modem and a 28k8 modem for most activities, then youæve
probably chosen an ISP with inadequate links. They may have other
benefits that make them worth using, but their links could be somewhat
faster.
9.8
Some FTP and web sites seem to have some sort of time limit, and if you
havenæt completed a download in a certain time, they either drop the
link or, worse, quietly stop sending you any more packets. A 28k8 modem
can make the difference. There have been many complaints from people
unable to download the latest Clan Édiscæ because of such a problem, and
Acorn have had to split the package into two parts.
9.8
My ISP, TCP, provides two types of dial-in service, one for Southampton
users with a cable phone PoP (ÉFreestyleæ), and one using the Pipex vPoP
network for the rest of the country. I use the former and noticed a
definite increase in performance after upgrading to a 28k8 modem,
especially for sites on TCPæs local network and those in the proxy
(cache). Users of their Pipex-based service say FTP and WWW is
considerably faster than using the Freestyle service, suggesting that a
28k8 modem is well worth having if you use an ISP which resells Pipex
access, such as Argonet. However, some Pipex resellers may have the same
problem as TCP in that there is a slight bottleneck between Pipex and
the reselleræs news and mail servers, so if you only use news and mail,
a 14k4 modem may well be adequate.
9.8
You canæt really test all the options before buying a modem, so my
advice would be to buy a 28k8 if you can afford the lump sum, but donæt
lose sleep if you have to make do with a 14k4.
9.8
Tony Houghton <[e-mail]>
9.8
Portables for sale? Ö öWhen will Stork be launched?ò I am asked, and
öWhen can I buy a Newspad?ò. I think it is important to make clear that
Stork and Newspad are in prototype only at the moment. ART will not be
putting them into production unless they can find a buyer who will
guarantee sales of 500 minimum. The joint venture is obviously not going
to be that customer otherwise ART would be moving towards production
already.
9.8
I suspect that Newspad, because it is so innovative, is the more likely
of the the two to Étake offæ. Stork, by contrast, is just another
portable. OK, itæs a RISCáOS portable which makes it very attractive to
the existing Acorn community, but most people will only move into the
RISCáOS community if it provides something that others cannot, e.g. top
class music printing, network computing, set top box, etc.
9.8
I suggested last month that we might be able to help seed the Stork
project, and asked how many people would, at ú1900, buy a greyscale-
screen Stork. So far, I only know of 20 individuals plus a school that
says it would buy 10-12. If thatæs all there is, Stork will never be
born. If you would seriously consider buying a Stork at, say, ú1,900 inc
VAT then please let me know as soon as possible.
9.8
It may be that I didnæt get much response because people thought, from
the initial response to the JV, that RISCáOS was dead. Now that you can
see that that is most certainly not the case, perhaps more people would
consider buying a Stork.
9.8
(Acorn Dealers Ö Would you tell me too, please, how many Storks you
realistically think you could sell? Thanks.)
9.8
Ed.
9.8
Third world links Ö I am an academic, a mathematician, who has long had
close contact with friends and colleagues in universities in third world
countries Ö Bangladesh in particular. I have long wanted for them, the
ease of communication that I enjoy, and I have dreamed about the
possibility of a satellite channel dedicated to ending the isolation
that most academics outside the West suffer, by provision of Internet
access.
9.8
At first I thought this was a job for the UN or similar international
agency. Now it occurs to me that the Acorn/Oracle/OM consortium would be
a far more dynamic provider for this. I know they have interests in
developing the Far East market.
9.8
An educational channel would provide the consortium with good PR and a
useful testbed for sorting out the ticklish problems of coping with
local laws that may be unsympathetic to the ideals of open
communication. I envisage some kind of charter to ease such matters.
9.8
ICTP, the International Centre for Theoretical Physics, set up in
Trieste by Abdus Salam to help physicists on an international basis,
thinks my idea is a good one. Does anyone in Acorn think so?
9.8
Gavin Wraith <[e-mail]>
9.8
Z88 link Ö Ever since the introduction of the RISC OS 3.1 upgrade, I
have been having problems with the transfer of larger files from the Z88
to the Archimedes. The trouble would manifest itself as dropped letters,
randomly spaced. Sometimes, the Archimedes PipeDream spelling checker
would pick up the problem, but sometimes the sense of the piece would
change totally while remaining correctly spelt!! (I would rather retype
a piece than have my work changed by a machine!)
9.8
The writers of the various bits of transfer software that I tried, e.g.
Beebug and PD authors, were unable to help; then I found John Allenæs
useful software, called !Z88Link. This allows the Z88 to send files with
the []X command, (File Export), and the Acorn to receive them and
perform the required storage functions. This does not need the (now rare
and expensive) PC/Mac link ROM to be fitted to the Z88.
9.8
From John Allenæs comprehensive help file, the following useful info is
gleaned Ö öAcornæs replacement Serial Device Driver module 0.22 is
included in the application and loaded with !Z88Link. Without it, random
chunks of files transferred will disappear on older machines running
RISC OS 3.10. This problem can still occur at higher speeds on these
machines when transferring to floppy discs. For safety, you should
transfer to a hard disc or a RAM disc and then copy the file to a
floppy. If you donæt need the module, it can be deleted in the !Run
file.ò (My italics Ö many commercial authors would have left that bit
out?!)
9.8
I acquired the PD program from the PDCD series from the Datafile. As
suggested, I registered with the author John Allen. He gave me a few
extra operational hints, and now I use the program every day to transfer
successfully.
9.8
Bob Ames, City University
9.8
PD Column
9.8
David Holden
9.8
My thanks to all the people who have written to ask if I was going to
continue to write this column. Domestic circumstances in recent months
have left me very little spare time, but hopefully I shall now be able
to continue to write regular articles.
9.8
Why write PD?
9.8
I get quite a few letters and phone calls from people who have seen PD
or Shareware mentioned in magazines and donæt know what it is. When I
try to explain, they often ask, öWhy do they write programs and then
give them away?ò
9.8
To answer that question, you have to realise that there are really as
many explanations as there are programmers, but the essence is that the
majority of the people who write PD are doing so because they are
computer enthusiasts who enjoy programming as a leisure activity. As
with a lot of other hobbies, as well as being enjoyable, it also creates
a end product. This could be a fireside rug or a wooden teapot stand,
but if your hobby is computer programming, the result will be a program.
9.8
Having written the program, what do you do with it? Unlike most other
hobbies, the results of the programmeræs labours can be quickly copied
and given to friends who also have computers. As most programs will have
been written to perform some useful function (even if that is just to
while away a few hours zapping aliens), it could be useful to other
people. If it is a seriously useful program for which the recipient
might be prepared to pay, then the program may be distributed as
Shareware, but even if this is not the case, the appreciation and
recognition given to the author still makes it worthwhile.
9.8
A few years ago, it would have been possible to sell a program for
publication in a magazine, but the prices paid by most Acorn magazines
are now so pitifully low, in relation to the effort required to write a
program, that I cannot recommend this.
9.8
Most programs which eventually become PD are written without
distribution in mind. This is one of the reasons why there are so many
programming tools available. Programmers naturally write things that
they need for themselves and, having written them, they make them
available to other programmers.
9.8
Practically everything that I have written as PD (and most Shareware)
was originally written for my own use. However, prospective PD
programmers should beware. Once distributed, the program is outside your
control and takes on a life of its own. You will get phone calls and
letters from people who tell you how wonderful your program is, but
(there is often a Ébutæ) could you just make it do X, or work with Y as
well?  The praise always gets you hooked, and you go back to work.
9.8
Now this is the point where non-programmers come into the picture. If
you are a consumer of PD programs, you are not just a passive end-user
but a vital part of the machinery. The thing that keeps the whole thing
moving, that provides the motivation for the PD programmer to keep
working to improve and develop programs, is feedback from the user.
9.8
If you obtain a program that you like or use regularly, take the trouble
to contact the author and tell him or her. Most PD programmers are happy
to receive suggestions for improvements or reports of any problems, but
even if you donæt have any of these to offer, it will be worth your
while to spend a few minutes, and perhaps a stamp, to compose a short
note of thanks. The most frustrating thing for a programmer is to
distribute a program and then not to receive any feedback. Without some
form of communication from users, you wonder if it has been worth the
trouble, and so perhaps you donæt bother in future.
9.8
Please donæt forget this. Those who give away their work as PD obviously
donæt expect financial reward, but if you want them to continue to write
new programs, and support existing ones, it is up to you, as a
beneficiary of their work, to give them some encouragement. It doesnæt
take much effort on your part and it might make all the difference to
them.
9.8
There is one type of PD author with whom I do not feel so much sympathy.
I sometimes see a comment in a program that says that the program may be
freely distributed provided that absolutely no charge is made for
distribution, which means that it cannot be distributed by any PD
Library or BBS which charges for downloads. For all practical purposes,
this means that it will be unobtainable by the majority of computer
users. I have to presume that the author has no objection to BT making a
charge for the required telephone connection, although I donæt think
that they do very much to support Acorn computer enthusiasts.
9.8
This type of distribution licence is often augmented by a comment which
gives the key to the authoræs state of mind, and this invariably says,
öIæm not making any money out of this so I donæt see why anyone else
should.ò When I see this, I tend to lose all sympathy with the author.
My own feelings are that anyone who performs a service for others is
entitled to ask a reward for their labours, including programmers, PD
Libraries, and Bulletin Boards. Weáshould all be grateful when a
programmer waives this right, but itæs rather selfish of him or her to
then impose this same restriction upon everyone else in such a way as to
make it extremely difficult for the average user to benefit from his
work at all.
9.8
The strange thing is that this caveat probably negates the restriction
on distribution and renders it unenforceable. I recently raised this
subject with a friend who is a solicitor, and he pointed out that anyone
distributing such a program and charging a fee would technically be
breaking the Licence, and so in breach of copyright. The author could
force this distribution to cease but, in order to do so formally, he
would have to obtain an injunction, which is not cheap. However, what he
would probably not be able to do is to claim damages for breach of
copyright. In order to do this, he would have to show that he had
suffered a loss, and by declaring that the reason he is not allowing
anyone to charge a distribution fee is because he is making no money
himself for the program, he is impairing his own case.
9.8
PD for Acorn
9.8
Paul passed on to me, for comment, an email message from Michael Nolan
which suggests that Acorn should organise PD authors to write software
for them (for little or no reward) to be distributed by them. Now this
is a terrifying idea. The best thing about the whole PD/Shareware scene
is that it is not a product which is controlled or organised by large
companies. Anyone who wants a catalogue from just about any library can
obtain one for, at most, ú1. Administration costs are very low, which is
why many software houses are happy for PD libraries to distribute their
demonstration discs Ö it is simply not economically viable for them to
do so themselves.
9.8
Trying to collate and distribute any collection of programs is
incredibly labour intensive Ö this is why itæs invariably done by
enthusiasts. There is simply no way that Acorn could begin to compete
with the service already offered. In fact, as someone who has spent a
great deal of time and effort trying to raise the standards and
awareness of PD and Shareware, Iáwould anticipate that any direct
involvement by Acorn would probably be detrimental. This would also make
the mainstream suppliers of commercial software extremely unhappy. At
present, they can largely ignore its influence, but if Acorn were to
become directly involved, they might be thought to be endorsing the
Éoppositionæ. If Acorn want to support PD and Shareware, the best way
for them to do so is via the existing libraries and, so far, they have
shown little real interest in doing so.áuá
9.8
Geraldæs Column
9.8
Gerald Fitton
9.8
In my column this month, Iábriefly (and inadequately) respond to the
huge quantity of correspondence Iæve received concerning Colton
Software. Do you have Eureka? If so then Iæd like to hear about it from
you. The rest of this monthæs column deals with some mathematical
topicsáÖábut you donæt need to be a mathematician to follow them.
Iádiscuss the nature of mathematical induction and how it relates to
recursively defined functions. Then Iámove onto an example of a
recursively defined function; Iáconsider it to be an interesting example
because its exit condition is at an infinite number of recursions.
9.8
Iácomplete my column with a quick look at the cube root function. A
small handful of you working on the extended Heinz beans can problem
have pointed out to me that this function is needed when you want to
find the radius of a sphere of a given volumeáÖábut it doesnæt appear in
the PipeDream or Fireworkz manuals!
9.8
Colton Software
9.8
Iámust thank all those who have written to me making reference to my
remarks about Fireworkz (& Pro) in the last edition of Archive. Iáshall
include only two quotes but these are typical of the many.
9.8
The first is öIáendorse everything you say Ö and more!ò Iádo thank all
of you for your support and Iáam touched by those letters Iáhave
received which acknowledge that it must have been difficult for me to
write what Iádid.
9.8
The second quote is longer and has wider implications. Iáhave added the
words in brackets to make the meaning clearer. öCertainly Pro is not fit
for the purpose intended and, as such, they (Colton Software) are in
breach of the Sale of Goods legislation. If they do not agree (to a
refund of the cost of upgrading from Fireworkz to FireworkzáPro) Iáshall
have no hesitation in issuing a Court Writ... It is about time that we
(users of FireworkzáPro and users of other software which does not live
up to its specification)... raised our voices... taking the matter to
Court if necessary... Perhaps then we will begin to get what we paid
for.ò
9.8
In response to this second quote, Iáhave to say that, in spite of the
accolades and persuasive remarks Iáhave received (such as those of my
first quote), Iádo not wish to co-ordinate such a protest to Colton
Software. You must find another champion of your rights.
9.8
Longman Logotronæs Eureka
9.8
Iáwas interested to receive a copy of a letter sent to Alan Williams by
Which? magazine. It would seem that Iáwas wrong to assume that Which?
simply looked at clock speeds when comparing the PC with the Archimedes.
Indeed Which? asked Acorn for the names of packages similar to the PCæs
Word, Excel and Aldus Pagemaker. Acorn chose Style (as a word
processor), Eureka (as a spreadsheet) and Publisher (as the DTP
package).
9.8
Iádonæt wish to comment further at this stage since Alan will be writing
directly to Paul about the Which? tests, but Acornæs choice of
spreadsheet has caused me to give some consideration to Eureka. From
time to time, Iæve been asked to comment on the relative merits of
Eureka when compared with the spreadsheet packages which Iáknow better.
Iáhave asked Paul if he can let me have a copy of Eureka for evaluation
and, if he does so, then Iæll report more fully in a future article.
9.8
(Longman have very kindly agreed to supply Gerald with a copy of Eureka,
so that he can speak from his own experience. Ed.)
9.8
Inductive logic
9.8
Iáthink that, even before my interest in mathematics, Iáwas attracted to
study logic Ö Iáregarded it as a branch of natural philosophy!
Iáremember the syllogism which starts with the major premise öAll cows
eat grassò. What struck me at a very early age was that deductive logic
never increases the extent of human knowledge. Indeed, in order to make
the statement öAll cows eat grassò with certainty, we must have studied
every cow already! So we already know that they all eat grass before
concluding the syllogism with the eating habits of the individual cow
introduced into the minor premise.
9.8
Inductive logic is a different matter. You can get somewhere new if you
start with a set of particular examples and then work towards a general
principle. Mathematical induction is a most useful tool which depends on
the same principles as inductive logic (it is slightly different but
Iáwonæt go into the differences right now). In its most general form,
mathematical induction is a process where you start with something
complicated which you wish to prove and you show that this complicated
thing is true if something a bit simpler is true. In turn, the simpler
thing is reduced to something even simpler...áand so on Ö but not
(usually) forever. An inductive chain of reasoning (like so many things
in life) is easier to start than to stop. My four year old grandson has
just discovered that asking öWhy?ò generates such a chain. One of my
early Managing Directors used to classify his technical staff as
É2áWhy?æ or É3áWhy?æ people Ö he always stopped with his fourth (usually
unanswered question). Indeed, as we shall see, it is by studying
anomalies at the end of an inductive sequence, that we gain even greater
understanding!
9.8
The uncaused cause
9.8
Iáhave no wish to encroach on Paulæs ÉGod slotæ, neither do Iáwish to
offend those whose beliefs are atheist or religious. Nevertheless, Iádo
feel compelled to use, as one of my two simple examples of inductive
logic, something which does encroach into that field. Many people
believe that they are being logical when they claim that the recursive
nature of the classic series of questions about causes (which eventually
leads to the question öWho created the creator of the universe?ò)
negates the claim that a creator must exist.
9.8
Iásuggest that this logic is flawed and that you must look to the basic
premise of inductive logic which, in this case, is interpreted as öYou
must know when to stop asking for a cause!ò See if you can follow my
next statement: öIt is the recursive nature of Écauseæ which forces you
to accept that (if causality exists at all) then there has to be a first
cause (an exit condition from the causal chain) which is often referred
to as the uncaused causeò.
9.8
The recurrence relationship
9.8
Enough for now of religious philosophy Ö Iáshall return to my ÉGod slotæ
example later! One manifestation of inductive logic used in mathematics
is the recurrence relationship. An example which Iáuse a lot at college
is the factorial function. The definition of factorial x (written as x!)
is best demonstrated with an example, factorial seven.
9.8
 7!á=á7á╫á6á╫á5á╫á4á╫á3á╫á2á╫á1.
9.8
Now let me write 7! as a recurrence relationship. 7!á=á7á╫á6!
9.8
In more general terms x!á=áxá╫á(xáÖá1)!
9.8
If you accept that (xáÖá1)! is simpler than x! then you will agree that
Iáhave defined the factorial function in terms of a simpler version of
itself. It is knowing when to stop using the recursive definition that
is all important. If you go one step too far then youæll finish up with
nothing.
9.8
Have a go at using the recurrence relationship (not the original
definition) to find 1! and youæll find that youære multiplying by zero Ö
and anything multiplied by zero is the nothing you finish up with. Let
me repeat that knowing when and how to stop defining the function as a
recurrence relationship is all important. You have to accept that the
recurrence relationship x!á=áxá╫á(xáÖá1)! is not and cannot be true for
every value of x (and, going back to my ÉGodáslotæ example, not every
effect Éneedsæ a cause).
9.8
Those of you still in possession of that obsolescent tool, a calculator
with a factorial function, will be able to discover for yourselves thatá
0!=á1 is built into the software. This is the exception; factorial 0 is
not 0 times something (and therefore nothing) but just a plain and
simple (but illogical!) 1.
9.8
The gamma function
9.8
Study the graph of the function yá=áx! which is shown below. In
particular, Iáwant you to notice that it consists of a set of points
with nothing in between. The reason there is nothing in between is
because the factorial function exists only for positive integers.
9.8
In a situation like this, mathematicians are always anxious to find out
what goes on between the plotted points. You might think that there
ought to be nothing there and, in terms of the simple factorial
function, youære right. However, in the wider scheme of things
(functions of a complex variable as opposed to functions, such as
factorial, which only work with positive integers) there is a property
that well behaved functions have called Éregularityæ.
9.8
Loosely translated, a regular function through a few given points is the
function giving the smoothest possible curve drawn through those points.
It is relatively easy to prove that the points youæve got for the
factorial function (even excluding the factorial zero) are points on a
regular (smooth) curve. What is rather harder (but well within the Pure
Maths syllabus of most universities and a few good sixth forms) is
finding the function. The function which gives the smoothest curve
through all the factorial points is called the Gamma Function.
9.8
If you look carefully at this curve, you might guess that it can be
extended to negative numbers and that a smooth curve through the plotted
points will be symmetrical about the vertical line at xá=á0.5.
Mathematicians have discovered the Gamma Function by looking at the
information available (the factorial function) from a new and more
enlightened perspective (regularity or smoothness). Lesser
mathematicians have difficulty in accepting the inelegance of 0!á=á1 as
an exception to the recursive rule x!á=áxá╫á(xáÖá1)! It is the
enlightened and broader perspective of regular functions of a complex
variable which allows us to make sense of the exception to the recursive
definition of the function.
9.8
So that you may follow my philosophical point, allow me some repetition.
If you define a function recursively, you must have an exit condition.
From a narrow and limited point of view, it may seem as though the exit
condition is chosen arbitrarily. Indeed, as we have seen for the
factorial function, the exit condition may be an exception to the
recursive rule which defines the function. My philosophical and
mathematical point is that there is always a more enlightened and
broader viewpoint (in the case of the factorial function this is the
desire for smoothness) which places the exit condition as the natural
exception to the recursive rule.
9.8
The uncaused cause
9.8
Back to my ÉGod slotæ example. What is needed to overcome the logical
inelegance of having to accept the existence if an uncaused cause is a
new and wider perspective within which the uncaused cause takes its
natural place in the scheme of things, just as the 0! takes its proper
and natural place as a point on the smooth Gamma Function curve.
Remember that it is the more enlightened and more elegant concept of
regularity (smoothness) which allows us to extend the factorial function
to include fractions and negative numbers.
9.8
To repeat myself, as soon as you begin to believe in cause and effect
(causality) then, because of the very nature of causes, you have to
accept the existence of an uncaused cause (so youæll know when to stop
looking for causes). In the wider scheme of things Écauseæ implies a
time dependence and, speaking personally, Iáreckon that Iæll have to
understand a lot more about the nature of Eternity before Iácan see how
the uncaused cause breaks the causal chain in a natural way.
9.8
Defining functions recursively has its place in the mathematical and
philosophical scheme of things but (for this thesis at least) Iáwant you
to accept that, although it might be difficult to decide when and how to
stop Ö in nearly all cases we must stop somewhere. Furthermore, before
we start, we must have a good idea where we want to stop and how to do
it. Later, when we cease to ösee through the glass darklyò we can put
aside our imperfect recursive techniques. When Iáunderstand more about
the nature of Eternity, Iáshall be able to put aside my need for the
childish concept of causality Ö until then causality has its place in my
working model of the universe and (call it faith) Iáaccept the exception
and logical inelegance of the uncaused cause.
9.8
The infinite sequence
9.8
Iámust acknowledge that the inspiration for the next section of my
monthly column is Colin Singletonæs puzzle number 50, an infinite
sequence of square roots. Although, on the surface, much of what Iáwrite
will appear to be strikingly similar, there is a difference; Colinæs
problem was about series of numbers, whereas my article is about a
series of functions defined recursively.
9.8
Infinite recursion
9.8
In its most general form, the problem which Iáshall set you is to
evaluate a function which Iáshall call f(x) such that:
f(x)á=ásqr(1+f(xá+á1)). Please note that f(xá+á1) means öevaluate the
function f using, as its argument, (xá+á1)ò; unlike Colinæs problem, it
does not mean öthe (xá+á1)th value of fò. The function sqr() is the
(aphrodisiac) square root function which featured in my column a couple
of months ago. Those of you who have followed the earlier part of this
monthæs column will recognise that, given a value for x, then
f(x)á=ásqr(1+f(xá+á1)) can be evaluated recursively.
9.8
Hereæs a feature of this problem which interests me; how do we determine
the exit condition for this recursion? There is no natural exit point
such as xá=á0 or xá=á1 because, at each recursion, x increases! What we
have here is a recursive process which goes on forever (a bit like the
Eternity to which Iáreferred earlier)! So how do we get out of the
recursive process? When do we stop? To our rescue comes a mathematical
concept which it took me over 30áyears to understand (as opposed to
being able to do all the well known tricks with it). To our rescue comes
Infinity!
9.8
Now there is no way Iæm going to explain Infinity to you today but
Iácanæt resist saying that it is not just a big number, nor is it a
number bigger than you can think of, indeed itæs not a Énumberæ as you
understand the concept of Énumberæ and the usual rules of number
manipulation donæt apply to Infinity. Please allow me the licence to add
that, in a similar way, Eternity is not just a long time, nor is it a
length of time longer than any you can imagine; Eternity is not a length
of time in the way we understand time and the usual rules of time and
time dependence (causality) donæt apply to those things which are truly
Eternal.
9.8
The exit point for this recursive process (and many like it) is the
mystical Infinity!
9.8
There are many tricks which mathematicians can do with Infinity. Amongst
other things, we can find out what happens when we get there; we can
find out what happens beyond it Ö but thatæs another story. Also, we can
find out what happens on the wayáÖáand this is the clue to determining a
more practical exit condition for the recursive process than the vain
attempt to capture the mystic Infinity.
9.8
Convergence
9.8
Although f(xá+á1) increases linearly as we progress through the
recursion, this recursion is a process which converges (and does so
fairly rapidly) because the square root in the function sqr(1+f(xá+á1))
causes a reduction in value faster than the f(xá+á1) pushes it up. In
other words, we can find an approximate value for the function by
cutting off the recursion arbitrarily when weæve had enough!
9.8
What happens on the way to this Infinity is that you find two things,
(a)áyouære never going to get there using a step by step recursive
process and (b)áafter a short while youære nearly there anyway! The
conclusion is that the practical exit condition for an infinite
recursion which is convergent is that you should proceed until you think
youære near enough to the same answer as youæd get if you could repeat
the process an infinity of times (which you canæt) Ö and then stop!
9.8
Iáam not asking you to prove the convergence (though itæs not too hard
to do so); what Iáwould like you to do is to write a custom function in
PipeDream or Fireworkz or a procedure in Basic which evaluates the
function recursively. You can terminate the recursion after some
reasonably large number of recursions (thirty or so) Ö so to determine
your exit from the recursive process, just count the number of
recursions and stop when you feel youæve done enougháÖáget off the
treadmill and do something more interesting instead!
9.8
Colinæs problem, and mine, have the same answer. He reckons that, for
xá>á0, his infinite series evaluates to (xá+á1). In my version of the
problem, this translates to f(x)á=á(xá+á1). Both Colin and Iáagree on
this but Iáadd that, provided you choose your square root so that the
recursion converges, the recursive function evaluates to (xá+á1) even
when x is not a positive integer. Like most mathematicians, Iáam
compelled to try to fill in the gaps between the points on the graph of
the function. Indeed, Iábelieve that Iáhave proved analytically that the
function evaluates to (xá+á1) for any number, including negative
numbers, fractions, irrational numbers (such as the aphrodisiac square
root of 2), transcendental numbers (such as pi and e) and even complex
numbers (such as the mystical and imaginary square root of minus 1). In
case thereæs a flaw in my analysis, let me call it a conjecture. My
conjecture is that f(x)á=á(xá+á1) for all sorts of numbers. Finally, let
me repeat the proviso. Unless the number for which you are trying to
find the square root is the number zero, there are always two square
roots. You must choose your square root in such a way that the recursive
process converges. Iádonæt regard being fussy about which square root to
choose as cheating. Iáregard it as a way around an inevitable
imperfection of the recursive method of defining a function.
9.8
Using a recursive procedure which handles the so-called Real numbers,
you should be able to discover fairly easily whether what Iásay is true
for negative numbers and fractions. A screenshot of my non-recursive
numerical method for negative decimal fractions, using PipeDream, is
shown below.
9.8
Iáhave included the file which produces this screenshot on the monthly
disc. The recursive sequence is evaluated to about 30 terms, starting
with Ö6.0001 as the value for x. You will see that f(x) evaluates to
Ö5.0001 (to four decimal places), which is (xá+á1). Mind you, as Iásaid
earlier, Iáhave been a bit selective about whether to use the positive
or negative square root and, in order to guarantee convergence, the
definition changes (automatically) to the other square root around row
12 or 13 (you guess which) of this sheet!
9.8
In order to study my conjecture that f(z)á=á(zá+á1) numerically, when
the variable is a complex number, you will have to use the complex
function feature of PipeDream or Fireworkz to evaluate f(z) for a
complex number such as zá=á{5 ,Ö6}. (Iáam using the usual convention
which, in the example, means that the real part of z is 5 and the
imaginary part is Ö6.)
9.8
My helpful advice is that the complex function Ésquare rootæ in
PipeDream and Fireworkz is written as c_power(complex_no,{0 .5,0}) where
complex_no is typed into a slot as an array such as {5 ,Ö6} and the
second argument, {0 .5,0} is the power (the square root) to which the
complex number complex_no is raised. If my conjecture is right then,
when zá=á{5 ,Ö6}, the infinite sequence of square roots sums to the
complex number {6 ,Ö6}.
9.8
Can you prove it numerically (with a recursive spreadsheet custom
function or recursive Basic procedure) rather than analytically (as
Iábelieve have)? My helpful hint is that PipeDream and Fireworkz both
calculate only one of the square roots, usually the principal square
root (e.g. it calculates the square root of +4 as +2 and never as Ö2)
and this is not always the Écorrectæ root to choose!
9.8
Iáwill have more to say on this topic of recursive functions in a future
article but, for now, if you feel like sending me your attempts, Iæll be
pleased to correspond with you.
9.8
The cube root function
9.8
Although Iáhavenæt been employed as a full time lecturer all my life,
Iáhave been doing a bit of part time teaching for a very long time. Even
when Iáworked at Vickers, nearly forty years ago, Iáwas commandeered to
do about eight hours a week teaching in the apprentice training school
(augmenting what our day release apprentices were taught at the local
college) and Iátaught A level Maths at the college one evening a week.
So, really, Iáought to know that it is sometimes the simplest things
which people find the most difficult. Finding the cube root of a number
using either PipeDream or Fireworkz is one of those things which is so
simple to those in the know that even the writers of the PipeDream and
Fireworkz manuals didnæt include it!
9.8
Iáreceived an interesting letter from a correspondent who shall remain
nameless to protect his embarrassment. He had done much accurate and
intelligent work on the Heinz beans can but, when trying to calculate
the radius of a sphere of a given volume, he needed to find, not the
square root but the cube root of a number. Well, being a bit smarter
than the usual computer user, he had a look in the PipeDream manual for
the cube root function. He found the square root function, sqr(), but
couldnæt find a corresponding cur()! He didnæt give up but decided to
use logarithms to find the cube root (using logarithms this way is now a
lost art) but ran into a similar problem Ö no antilogs! At the end of a
very long tether he wrote to me. He is not alone. As a result of the
Heinz beans can problem, Iáhave had a small handful of letters (one from
a chartered accountant trying to get to grips with Excel) asking me how
to include a cube root in a spreadsheet.
9.8
The power function
9.8
Iáguess that all of you know that Éa to the power threeæ really means
(aá╫áaá╫áa) and can be written that way in a spreadsheet slot. In the
same way, you can find (aá╫áaá╫áaá╫áa), (aá╫áaá╫áaá╫áaá╫áa), etc.
Indeed, if you followed the earlier parts of this monthæs column, youæll
recognise that we can write the power function of the number a in a
recursive way as pwr(a,x)á=áaá╫ápwr(a,(xáÖá1)) with an exit condition
that Iæll leave you to determine.
9.8
Here is a graph of the power function using aá=á4 for a few integer
values of x:
9.8
This method of multiplying together x lots of 4 gives values for the
power function only when x is an integer. What about the values of x in
between the integers? This problem is similar to the problem we had with
the factorial function and the answer is the same, namely that we find a
way of drawing the smoothest possible curve through the existing points.
This smooth curve technique can be applied not only to fractions such as
xá=á1/3 but also to negative values of x such as xá=áÖ3.
9.8
Allow me to cut the discussion short and say that the cube root function
has to be a version of the power function Ö in particular it is:
9.8
cube_root(b)á=ápwr(b,(1/3)). In a spreadsheet, this power function is
written as yá=á(a^x) so that if you want to find the cube root of 64,
you would enter 64^(1/3) into the slot; the answer is 4. To find the nth
root of a you enter a^(1/n) into the spreadsheet. Using this power
function technique, you can find square roots as: sqr(a)á=ááa^(1/
2)á=áa^(0.5). Negative values of x in the power function imply division,
e.g. 4^(Ö3)á=á1/(4^3)á=á1/64á=á0.015625. An interesting result is the
evaluation of (a^0); all values of a give the same answer! Try it and
see what you get.
9.8
Perhaps another time, Iæll explain how to use the fact that
cube_root(aá╫áaá╫áa)á=áa together with something called the
multiplication rule of indices to prove that this method is a natural
extension of the power function to powers which are not positive
integers.
9.8
Inverse functions
9.8
The graph below shows that the cube and cube root functions are
reflections of each other in the line yá=áx. Iáhave created this graph
as a live graph in PipeDream. Iáthink that this graph is an excellent
example of the power of PipeDreamæs charting package. It demonstrates a
graph which contains (a)átwo lines which use different ranges for their
x values and (b)ámany pieces of text placed anywhere on the graph whilst
(c)áthe graph remains live. On the Archive monthly disc, youæll find the
PipeDream spreadsheet and the live graph which it generates. At college,
Iáuse Excel and Iáhave yet to discover how to produce such a graph with
that package.
9.8
The antilogarithm function
9.8
This function also perplexed my reader. The antilog function is the
inverse of the logarithmic function. By this, Iámean that if yá=álog(x)
then xá=áantilog(y). A consequence of this is that antilog(log(x))á=áx;
applying the antilog function to a logarithm gets you back to the value
from which you started. Again try that in a spreadsheet when you know
how to find an antilog and youæll see that itæs true.
9.8
Both PipeDream and Fireworkz include the log() function Ö but no
antilogs! Was this a serious omission? Once again the answer is öNo!ò
and once again the power function comes to our rescue. The logarithmic
function log() is more properly called the Élog to the base 10æ. The 10
comes into it when we consider the antilog. The antilog function can be
expressed as antilog(y)á=á10^y. Colton Software (and Iáguess all other
spreadsheet writers) havenæt mentioned this anywhere in their manuals
because to them itæs all too obvious. Well, to at least one of my
correspondents, it wasnæt.
9.8
So what is that other logarithmic function, ln()? Itæs an even more
tricky job to find its antilogarithm, but there is a clue in the name.
This logarithmic function is called Élogarithm to the base eæ. Iáwonder
if you know how to find e^x. Hereæs the answer. If yá=áln(x) then
xá=áexp(y) and so exp(ln(x))á=áx.
9.8
The graph above shows two functions (the logarithm and exponential
functions) which are reflections of each other in the line yá=áx. Once
again, the spreadsheet and its live chart are on the Archive monthly
disc. Iáhave yet to find a way of generating such a graph in Excel.
9.8
Let me stop there and await your comments. If, from your correspondence,
it seems that youære interested in some of the topics Iæve raised, Iæll
continue or expand on them.
9.8
To all of you
9.8
Thank you for all your letters. Please write to me (with a disc showing
examples, if appropriate) at the Abacus Training address given at the
back of Archive. If you use Eureka, Iæll be specially interested to hear
your comments about it.áuá
9.8
ACross
9.8
Dave Wilcox
9.8
ACross is a new release from Kudos Computing and is designed to generate
random crossword puzzles. The review version is 1.02, September 1995.
According to a representative of Kudos Computing, there is extensive
ongoing work being carried out on this package to increase the
facilities available and the overall functionality. Donæt let this put
you off, because the package provided has worked well and, to date, has
not hung up or crashed out once.
9.8
The review on this occasion was run on a RiscPC 700 machine, but the
program will apparently run on any Acorn machine running RISCáOS 3.1 or
higher, and with ╜Mb or more of memory. For speed reasons, it is best
run from hard disc but the copy supplied for review ran perfectly well
from floppy. The disc is not copy-protected, so installation or the
making of a working copy, presents no problems.
9.8
The package
9.8
The program comes on one disc and occupies about 530Kb. It is supplied
as standard on a high density disc but obviously could be supplied on a
DD disc if required. The disc is packaged in a double audio cassette
type case with a cardboard insert carrying the instructions and
registration card.
9.8
The program
9.8
The program at present is supplied with one dictionary of clues and
answers; this dictionary contains over 5,000 answers and 16,000 clues,
and uses grid sizes from 3╫3 to 11╫11.
9.8
The program is loaded to the iconbar by double clicking. Once it is
installed, the iconbar menu gives you several choices to make before
design begins. First off, you need to select the dictionary to use.
Currently, only the one mentioned above is available, named ÉQuick1æ.
The next setting is the grid size, which is set by using bump arrows.
The next option, Auto evaluate, is selected on or off by a radio button.
If the selection is on, and you complete the crossword on screen, the
program will congratulate you on completion.
9.8
Next there are three level settings Ö easy, medium, and hard, again
selected by radio buttons. The final choice is a timeout option, which
enables you to select the time the program is given to work out a
crossword for you. The default is 60 seconds and, to date, I have come
nowhere near this, usually waiting a maximum of 20 secs on my machine.
If more time is needed, the value can be changed by bump arrows. Once
the options are set, click on the icon and wait for your crossword to be
constructed (Example below).
9.8
When the crossword is constructed, two windows open, one showing the
grid, and the other, the clues. If you wish to solve the crossword on
screen, you can move the cursor around the grid using the mouse or the
keyboard, and the cursor will show whether you are entering across or
down clues by its orientation in the chosen square. Using dictionary
Quick1, all answers range from 3 to 6 letters. Again, donæt be fooled Ö
the setting is hard Ö believe me! If you get to the point of despair,
you can ask to have the answers inserted for you, and it doesnæt call
you a cheat either.
9.8
If you wish, you can print out the crossword and clues using the
standard printer drivers. On my laser printer, the grid is printed top
centre page with the clues in two columns below. The hard copy can also
be made with the answers inserted for reference at a later date.
9.8
Once generated, the puzzle can also be saved to disc. Currently, the
program can only have one saved puzzle at a time. If you generate a new
one and save it, the old one is overwritten.
9.8
Future versions
9.8
Kudos are currently working on a new dictionary, which is very near to
completion, and should be available by the time you read this. It is
also planned that future dictionaries will also be available under
different topic headings. There are plans to increase the grid size
although, obviously, speed will be sacrificed by larger grid sizes.
Currently, a trial has been made with a 16╫16 grid without problem.
9.8
On the save side, it is planned to introduce different export options,
the basic two obviously needed being drawfiles and text format. Also to
be included in later releases will be the ability to save as many
generated puzzles as you like, using a standard save window.
9.8
Conclusion
9.8
This is a nice, easy-to-use package which achieves its stated goal with
the minimum of fuss. When the future enhancements are made, it will be a
must for anyone who has the need to make crosswords quickly and easily.
I only have one moan about the program, a minor moan, but one that, in
my opinion, takes polish away from an otherwise good product. On several
occasions, I have had several clues in the same puzzle such as öWomanæs
Nameò or öAmerican Stateò. This can be seen in the enclosed sample,
although this is not the worst example. Only one occurrence of each,
please, Kudos.
9.8
It is important to note that Kudos say that any crosswords generated
using this program are freely distributable and free from copyright.
ACross costs ú24.99 inc. VAT + ú1.50 p&p from Kudos.áuá
9.8
Font Directory 2
9.8
Richard Rymarz
9.8
One of my birthday presents two years ago was the original Font
Directory. I asked for it because the number of fonts available on my
then A5000 was getting out of control. I am sure that many users have
similar problems: open up a font viewer in Impression, Ovation etc, and
the fonts spill off the bottom of the screen forcing you to use the
vertical scroll bar Ö a real pain at times. Font Directory has genuinely
helped to solve those problems, allowing me to partition my fonts in
folders that I define and understand, and install/ uninstall the fonts,
as and when I want.
9.8
The other most useful feature of Font Directory was the ability to scan
a document and have the used fonts automatically installed. Font
Directory was useful, productive and efficient. The only real criticism
I had was the rather convoluted way that the program had to be
installed. However, once it is done, little maintenance on it is needed.
9.8
Now, the producers, Look Systems, have published Font Directory2.
9.8
Why the upgrade?
9.8
If Font Directory was so good, why bother to upgrade? Well, for a number
of reasons. Firstly, FontáDirectory2 (FD2 for short) is a complete
rewrite, much of it in ARM code which has made it much faster and more
compact. FD2 requires only 76Kb of memory. Install 100 fonts and this
rises to only 80Kb. Displaying 400 fonts only uses 128Kb Ö about what
was used by the original FD but, of course, so much more is packed into
it. Given such meagre memory requirements, FD2 can be used from the most
humble 1Mb A310 to the most powerful RiscPC although a hard disc, and
RISCáOS 3.1 or greater, are necessary.
9.8
There are quite a number of new features:
9.8
1. ÉCollapsibleæ font list Ö The original FD still had the problem of
displaying long font lists. This has been solved by the creation of
user-defined directories. These open or close with a single click,
allowing an easy selection of available fonts. Large lists within
directories can be shortened by forcing font families to be grouped.
9.8
2. Improved interface Ö FD2æs main display offers a number of additional
features. As well as tick, cross and eye icons that FD users will be
familiar with, there are now options to examine the font in detail, use
the WYSIWYG display and use the new Font Viewer.
9.8
3. There are key shortcuts and a drag-selection feature.
9.8
4. The WYSIWYG display is brilliant. Click on the ÉAaæ icon, and a full
display of all the fonts is immediately available. Entire font lists are
displayed in real time up to 32pt if desired. Thus, an immediate visual
guide is available on all fonts making the choice of font completely
effortless.
9.8
5. Search for fonts Ö Click on the Éeye glassæ icon and a ÉFind Fontæ
dialogue box opens. Type in the name of your font and it is brought to
the top of the list, highlighted ready for use.
9.8
6. Automatic document scanning Ö Simply hold down <alt> while double-
clicking on a file and the document will be scanned and loaded in one go
Ö no dragging of a document is now needed.
9.8
There are a number of other features including user-definable memory/
performance specifications, password protection, which is particularly
useful in schools, and a selection of network preferences. Finally,
there is one more that merits more detailed attention: the Font Viewer.
9.8
Font viewer
9.8
The Font Viewer is a new application that can display any section of
text, from a single letter to a whole paragraph. To begin with, using
the button bar means that experimentation with fonts is easy. Text size,
leading, x/y ratio, justification, kerning, text and background colours
can all be changed and experimented with. Any styles can be saved and
quickly installed.
9.8
Secondly, character maps can be fully displayed, i.e.áASCII codes 0 to
255 (assuming all the characters exist in the font). Characters can be
entered either through the keyboard or by positioning the pointer over
the chosen character and pressing <alt>. It is then entered into the
keyboard buffer where it is available when the document is being edited.
9.8
Thirdly, an unlimited number of fonts can be viewed (memory permitting),
allowing easy comparison between fonts Ö a valuable aid when choosing
the correct font for a specific purpose.
9.8
Fourthly, several copies of the same piece of text, but using different
fonts, can have styles applied globally, allowing quick and easy
comparison. Finally, all views containing the same font can be updated
automatically. Altogether, this is an impressive, if slightly daunting,
addition to the software suite.
9.8
Installation
9.8
Installation is easy and is backed by a good manual which leads the user
gently through the process of using Font Directory 2. The software is
registered to the machine on which the software is to be installed.
Extra discs can be obtained from Look Systems. An application Ö !Install
Ö takes care of all the housework and, after a while, a window opens
offering options to control and examine fonts, set access to the font
partition, manage the fonts to be installed, and an option to change
parts of the partition (such as altering the partition size as your font
selection grows). All this is very straightforward, and the only area
where confusion could arise is when !Boot files may have to be manually
altered. However, this should not put off the nervous because the user
is gently led through the process by the manual.
9.8
Conclusions
9.8
FD2 costs ú45 including VAT, postage and packing (ú43 through Archive).
Network versions cost ú150, and upgrades from FD for single user and
network versions cost ú30. There will also be a FD2 Light, which will
cost ú25, but will not include the full WYSIWYG display and will look
more like the original FD. Extra discs, for second or third computers,
following the purchase of FD2 can be negotiated with Look Systems. All
in all, the pricing structure seems to represent good value for money,
since FD2 must be the ultimate font manager, offering facilities to a
high degree of sophistication.
9.8
Competition comes from EasyFont3, but I am unable to offer an objective
comparison without using both pieces of software. However, FD2 is now as
much an essential part of my desktop as FD used to be. If you are
seriously considering a font manager, I have no hesitation in
recommending Font Directory 2 to new users. As for existing users, ú30
is an expensive upgrade, but the extra functionality, features and
general ease of use are well worth considering.áuá
9.8
Graphics Column
9.8
David Thornton
9.8
Clares Micro Supplies have been developing RISC OS graphics software for
a number of years. This month, I shall look at Pro Artisan 24 and
Virtualise. Composition will be reviewed by Malcolm Banthorpe in a
separate article.
9.8
Pro Artisan 24
9.8
Pro Artisan 24 (or ProArt24 from now on) can be described as a 24-bit
painting program. It is a development of the famous Artisan series of
graphics software which has existed on the RISC OS platform for many
years. It is a RiscPC-only product Ö indeed, it would be pointless to
try to use a program of this calibre on anything other than a Risc PC.
It is just too graphics intensive and would be very limited on other
machines.
9.8
ProArt24 costs ú169.00 inclusive from Clares or ú160 through Archive.
However, substantial discounts are available for users of other RISC OS
graphics programs, especially the Artisan range, so do give Clares a
call to check the latest prices. Included in the package is a well-
presented and easy-to-follow manual with very few pages. Three floppy
discs are included containing the ProArt24 program and some excellent
exemplar material. A PhotoCD is also included, produced in association
with Cumana.
9.8
Installation onto a hard disc (or equivalent media) is required but is
very easy to do. Clares suggest that your Risc PC has 4-8Mb of main
memory and 2Mb of VRAM. The latter will enable the more suitable
desktops of 800╫600 in 16 million colours or 1024╫768 in 32 thousand
colours to be displayed. There is simply no point using a program of
this quality on machines equipped with less because the display would be
poor and the features of the program would be limited. More main memory
is also always nice but the 2Mb of VRAM is the priority. If you really
cannot afford the VRAM upgrade, 1Mb of VRAM will allow you to utilise
800╫600 in 32 thousand colours which should be quite acceptable.
9.8
The first thing that I noticed about ProArt24, after Iáhad loaded a
bitmap, was its unintrusive toolbar positioned at the top left of the
canvas. All of the features of ProArt24 have been categorised under just
ten logical icons, representing painting, drawing, sprite manipulation,
input and output, processing, colour, masking (a.k.a. frisket), zoom,
scale and undo. It is very obvious from most of the icons what each one
is for, so there is nothing difficult to learn here. To perform a task,
simply select the relevant icon and click <menu> to choose from the
toolæs range of features.
9.8
I am impressed by the painting options available in ProArt24. I believe
it to be the most comprehensive range of painting options in any RISC OS
bitmap program. I counted no less than sixteen different painting styles
and brushes under the painting menu, as well as options to fill areas of
the canvas in different ways and an option to edit aspects of each
brush. Some of the painting styles seemed very similar to each other,
but there are certain situations where the differences become more
apparent. ProArt24 pays attention to detail in this respect.
9.8
The drawing tool allows lines and geometric shapes to be added to the
canvas, and the text style window is very RISC OS compliant. There is a
useful try-out field in the text window which previews the text before
it is added to the canvas but, unfortunately, the text is not anti-
aliased. As with TheáBig Picture, from Longman Logotron, the text can be
anti-aliased afterwards using a separate tool giving very acceptable
results, although true anti-aliasing of text would have been preferable,
as in Photodesk.
9.8
The mask in ProArt24 is actually called the frisket and has 256 levels
of transparency, i.e. 8-bit. The frisket is easy to understand and has
been enhanced since the days of ProArt2. I found the new implementation
easier to work with. When the Create Frisket mode is selected, the
painting menu changes to reflect the features available, including
options to turn one or more of the RGB colour channels into the frisket.
For example, it is possible to make all red elements of a bitmap the
frisket, giving some interesting and unusual effects.
9.8
The colour palette can store up to 32 palettes, each containing 256
colour swatches. The Acorn colour picker is available for use and
individual palettes can be named. Hopefully, this will be extended to
individual colours in the future. Individual palettes can be saved and
imported as required.
9.8
ProArt24 has a suitable range of effects and filters, although I would
have liked to have seen a few more. It is possible to design your own
using 3╫3 matrices, as in most other high-end bitmap programs. Many of
the effects can either be applied to the entire image or just to certain
areas, using the frisket to protect parts of the bitmap, or by using a
brush to paint the effect on. The sprite manipulation tool also allows a
section of the bitmap which has been copied, to be manipulated in many
ways.
9.8
ProArt24 doesnæt have as many filters as Studio24Pro, or as many special
effects as PhotoTouch. The Big Picture also has the better colour
separation and modelling facilities. This is in no way a criticism of
ProArt24. If I specifically wanted filters, special effects or colour
management, Iáwould probably choose the other three respective packages
anyway, above all others. What ProArt24 does well is to provide a
comprehensive range of features that most users will be very happy with.
It all depends on how specialised you want to go.
9.8
ProArt24 includes excellent support for PhotoCD system. It displays
thumbnail previews of the images as groups of ten and can import images
using all but the smallest resolution. It is important to bear in mind
that the highest resolution will create a file of at least 24Mb!
ProArt24 also allows an area of a PhotoCD to be clipped and imported so
you can import a small section of the largest resolution image, for
example, if you have a limited supply of main memory.
9.8
As far as printing goes, ProArt24 displays a thumbnail preview of how
the bitmap will fit on the page. The printout can be scaled and centred
both horizontally and vertically. No colour correction is available, but
Computer Concepts latest TurboDriver software will provide for this if
you really need it.
9.8
ProArt24 relies on ChangeFSI, included in the Utilities directory of
every Risc PC and A7000, for importing bitmaps. It can import all
bitmaps supported by this software, as well as drawfiles and sprites
compressed using Squash. It can only import sprites into the sprite pool
and can only save bitmaps in either sprite or JPEG format. This is an
obvious limitation and should hopefully be addressed by Clares but, for
any serious bitmap manipulation using any bitmap editor, the purchase of
a copy of ImageFS2 would greatly increase anyoneæs productivity.
ImageFS2 also allows any supported bitmap file format, not just sprites,
to be dropped into the ProArt24 sprite pool.
9.8
ProArt24 does not support any kind of pressure-sensitive graphics
tablet, an omission which I also hope will be quickly addressed by
Clares. Some of the dialogue boxes and windows could also benefit from
being a little more RISC OS style guide compliant.
9.8
Conclusion
9.8
In my opinion ProArt24 is the best 24-bit graphics program for art and
painting, available for RISC OS. It does have some limitations, as I
have mentioned, but the tools available for creating original artwork
outshine those in alternative RISC OS programs, including Studio24Pro
and Photodesk. I wouldnæt choose it for photo-retouching or special
effects, but for painting, this is definitely the program for me.
9.8
Virtualise
9.8
Virtualise costs ú24.95 inclusive and requires a machine fitted with
RISC OS 3.50 or later because it makes of use of dynamic memory areas.
Virtualise is a utility designed to provide a virtual memory system for
any RISC OS application which supports dynamic memory areas. This not
only includes versions 1.02 of both ProArt24 and Compo, but also
versions 4.07 and 5.07 of both Impression Publisher and Impression
Publisher Plus.
9.8
ArtWorks currently does not support dynamic memory areas and neither
does The Big Picture (I am not a great fan of The Big Pictureæs virtual
memory system and had hoped that I could use Virtualise as an
alternative). Check the RISC OS tasks window to see if any of your
applications support dynamic memory areas. If they do, they will work
with Virtualise.
9.8
Virtualise is simple to use Ö which is just as well, as there is no
printed manual. All the instructions are in text format on the master
disc.
9.8
When Virtualise is loaded, selecting its icon reveals the dynamic areas
window, which lists all the applications on the computer which are
currently using dynamic memory areas. Various details about memory are
listed, and any application can be övirtualisedò by simply selecting it
on the list, clicking <menu> and selecting the virtualise option. Any
program can also be configured to automatically support virtualise, and
various information windows can be displayed, giving information about
memory page status, page faults and configuration. Instructions are
included about how to incorporate elements of the Virtualise module into
your own applications.
9.8
Conclusion
9.8
Virtualise is a useful complementary application for to ProArt24 and
Compo. These two applications have been optimised for use with it and
they all work particularly well together. If you are also running out of
memory when using Impression Publisher or Publisher Plus, but donæt want
to use the directory file format to minimise memory, then Virtualise
could well be for you. It is well priced and easy to use.
9.8
End note
9.8
In the Printers and Printing Column in Archive 9.6, Dave Floyd mentioned
a conflict between his PC card software and CCæs Impression Publisher. I
had the same problem back in August and eventually found the solution.
The problem, for me, was also in conjunction with the TurboDrivers. I
was using one of the 1.8x versions of the PC card software from Aleph
One. The solution was to upgrade to the latest version of Publisher, the
TurboDriver software and the PC card software. The problem then
disappeared. I believe the problem to have been with the PC card
software after spending ages testing different scenarios and removing
things from my boot sequence.
9.8
I am now having problems with DOSFS. It seems that when I open a PC disc
containing files, my DOS maps donæt work and all the files map to file
types such as &E00, &100, &200, &300, &900 etc. The files also have
white icons. Could anyone help me with this problem please?
9.8
Contact me
9.8
You can contact me at 1 Castle Court, Lower Burraton, Saltash, Cornwall,
PL12 4SE or as <[e-mail]>.
9.8
The next issue will have to be my last as Graphics Column editor as I am
going to have to spend a bit more time on my A Level studies! If anyone
would be interested in taking over this column, please get in touch with
Paul.áuá
9.8
Beginnersæ Column Ö Draw
9.8
John Temple
9.8
First of all, may I apologise for missing three issues and thank those
of you who wrote to me either with suggestions or with good wishes. Your
letters were very much appreciated and if I havenæt already, I will
reply soon.
9.8
Last time we looked at Draw, and I hope I managed to convey to you what
a powerful application it is. We examined the toolbox and some of the
menus, and I said I would give you a summary of all of them. Paul
published my diagram in the February edition and this article is my
commentary on it. It seemed appropriate for me to use Draw itself to
produce the diagram. If you want an A4 printout, look in the Beginnersæ
directory on the monthly disc.
9.8
To bring up the main Draw menu, click <menu> on a Draw window. (See
Archive 9.4 p68 right hand column, under the trees.) What is available
in the menu depends upon which version of Draw you use. The whole of
this article refers to version 0.88. The top menu is just a list of
submenus, except for the last item which is Toolbox. Clicking on the
word Toolbox simply turns the toolbox on and off. Try it.
9.8
It is useful to be able to do this if the toolbox gets in the way of
what you are doing. You can always turn it back on again, or you can
simply select tools via the Enter submenu.
9.8
To bring up a submenu, move the cursor onto the appropriate name in the
main menu. It will become highlighted. Move the cursor to the right,
over the arrow, and the submenu will appear. Repeat the process if you
want a further submenu, wherever there is a right pointing arrow.
9.8
Misc
9.8
The first submenu contains a mixture of facilities which do not belong
in any of the others. Info tells you about the version of Draw you are
using, including the version number. New view creates a second window
onto the drawing you are working on. Whatever you do in one is copied in
the other. This is useful if you want to work on more than one part of a
drawing at the same time or if you want different magnifications of the
same part of a drawing.
9.8
Paper limits brings up a submenu. Click on Show to reveal the limits of
the area which will be printed when you ask for a printout. (This only
works if you have a printer driver loaded into the computer, normally
indicated by a printer icon on the iconbar.) Anything in the grey area
round the edge of the drawing will not be printed.
9.8
You can change the area to be printed by pressing either <ctrl-select>
at the point which you wish to be at the bottom left or <ctrl-adjust> at
the point at the top right. The area defined is the same size and scale
as the original printer area. The facility is useful if you want to
print a drawfile which is larger than A4 but your printer only goes up
to A4 size.
9.8
An alternative way of redefining the print area is to use <select> to
drag a rectangle whilst holding <ctrl>. This is more difficult because
both the x- and y-axes are rescaled to fit the defined area to the
printer paper, so you can inadvertently introduce distortion. To reset
the printer area to its default size and position, click on Reset, in
the Paper limits submenu.
9.8
Portrait and Landscape set the orientation of the page, and you can
choose the paper size from A0 to A5. Be careful here, because the print
area is not defined by the paper size. If you select an A5 page, itáwill
print out on half an A4 sheet. If you select A3, you will only get the
A4 part enclosed by the grey printer limits.
9.8
Save
9.8
The first time you save a drawfile, you need to have the directory
visible where you are going to put the file. Choosing one of the Save
options brings up the Save dialogue box, enabling you to give the file a
title, and then you must drag the icon into the chosen directory. After
the first time, you can choose Save and then press <Return> and the file
will be saved under the same name in the same directory, overwriting the
previous version.
9.8
Selecting File will save the whole drawfile. The other options will save
only selected objects, or all the sprites and nothing else, or just the
text. If there are no selected objects, or no sprites, or no text, these
options will be greyed out and not available. Notice the shortcuts to
these options using <f3> with (or without) <shift> and/or <ctrl>.
<shift> is indicated by an up arrow, <ctrl> by a symbol like a
circumflex accent (^).
9.8
It is a good idea to save your work regularly as you go along, perhaps
using two filenames alternately. I once lost three hours hard work by
failing to keep saving, because somebody accidentally turned my computer
off. Aaarrggghh! Never again.
9.8
Style
9.8
Line width can be anything from Éthinæ to 4, or you can type in your own
value, between 0.01 and 999, though these extremes are rather absurd and
may be modified automatically. If you magnify or diminish an object, the
line width is automatically rescaled in proportion, unless it is Éthinæ.
9.8
Line colour, Fill colour, Text colour and Background all bring up a
window like this:
9.8
(RiscPC users will have a more comprehensive colour picker but with some
similar elements to this. Ed.)
9.8
The boxes are shades of grey from white to black (top row) and a
selection of colours (bottom row). Clicking on a box selects that
particular shade or colour. Alternatively, colours can be set by
dragging or clicking in the long boxes labelled R, G and B to adjust the
proportions of red, green and blue, or you can adjust them using the
arrows on the left. <None> means transparent. You have to click <OK> to
confirm your choice, otherwise nothing happens.
9.8
Line pattern givesáyou solid lines or a choice of dotted lines. Join
refers to the nature of the corners between lines (mitred, round, or
bevelled). The easiest way to find out exactly what these terms mean is
to try them out with some nice thick lines.
9.8
The differences between Mitred, Round and Bevelled joins are more
apparent in acute angles than in obtuse angles.
9.8
Start cap and End cap do something similar with the ends of lines (Butt,
Round, Square or Triangle). Triangle puts an arrowhead at the start or
end of a line Ö ideal for drawing Neptuneæs trident. The submenu allows
you to define the width and height of the arrowhead. Dotted lines have
the chosen start and/or end on each dot. Here are a solid line and a
dotted line, each with a triangle start cap and a round end cap.
9.8
If a line crosses over itself, creating an inner closed area within a
figure which is to be filled, there has to be a rule to decide whether
or not the inner area is filled. The rule is called the Winding rule,
and Draw has two to choose from. To decide whether or not an area is
filled, start inside the area and count how many times you have to cross
the line to get right outside the whole figure. With the Even-odd rule,
if the answer is an odd number, the area is filled and if it is an even
number, it is not filled. With the Non¡zero rule, you must also take
into account the direction of the line when you cross it. If it goes
left to right across your path you count it as plus one, if it goes
right to left you count minus one. If the answer is non-zero, the area
is filled; if it is zero, the area is not filled. Look at these two
single line objects which are identical in every respect except the
winding rule.
9.8
It makes you realise how amazing your computer is, does it not?
9.8
To put text into a drawfile, you must click on the text icon, T, on the
toolbox. Fontáname will then lead to a list of fonts that are available.
The submenu under the list selects the typefaces within the chosen font.
9.8
There are two ways of measuring the size of letters. Typists use (or
used to use) a scale based on characters per inch (cpi); printers use a
scale base on ems, an em being the size of the letter, m, measured,
Iábelieve, in hundredths of an inch. In the first scale, the numbers get
bigger as the letters get smaller (because there are more letters to the
inch). In the second, larger numbers indicate larger letters. The scales
cross over at about eleven. 10 cpi is roughly size 12 and 12 cpi is
roughly size 10. The typistsæ scale assumes that letters all have the
same width whereas the printersæ scale uses proportional spacing, which
is why the scales do not cross at ten.
9.8
Font size gives you a range of sizes to choose from by clicking. The
last number in the list can be changed using the keyboard. Move to it
with the mouse and change the value using <Delete> and typing in the
size you want in the range 1 to 999. Sizeá1 is really too small to be
resolved properly but size 2 is just about printable. A size 999 letter
fills an A4 page and, in some cases, is a little too big (m, w and most
capital letters), even to fit on A4.
9.8
Font height allows you to change the height of letters without altering
their width.
9.8
Text colour should be obvious, but Background is not quite what you
might think. It actually sets the colour of the anti-aliasing. Dave
Pantling has written about that in Archive 9.1 p61, so I shanæt go into
that.
9.8
Enter
9.8
The Enter submenu duplicates the toolbox with some subtle differences.
Text needs no explanation, but it is useful to note the alternative key
press of <ctrl-f7>. Line and Curve have their equivalents on the
toolbox, but you must also select or deselect Autoclose, further down
the menu, if you want or do not want a closed figure.
9.8
Move behaves precisely in the same way as its toolbox counterpart.
Complete and Abandon do not have equivalents; they complete an object
being constructed or abandon it. They have keystroke equivalents,
<return> and <esc> respectively. I had not realised this until playing
around with these tools in preparation for writing this article. Many a
time, Iáhave accidentally started an object and wondered how to abandon
it. And, occasionally, I have not been able to complete satisfactorily.
<Return> and <esc> are certainly joining my repertoire of skills.
9.8
The last two items in the Enter submenu, Rectangle and Ellipse should
need no extra word from me.
9.8
Select (f6)
9.8
Pressing <f6> has the same effect as clicking on the Select pointer on
the toolbox. This is not the same as using <menu> and then <select> to
select Select.
9.8
(You had better read the last two sentences again, or try this
translation: Pressing <f6> has the same effect as clicking on the lowest
icon on the toolbox. This is not the same as using the middle mouse
button and then the left mouse button to choose the submenu Select.)
9.8
If you do enter the Select(ion) submenu without first having selected
any objects in the drawing, you will find all but one of the options
greyed out. The only one that is always available is Select all. If you
click on that (and assuming there is something to select), most of the
other items will become available (and black) and every object in the
drawing will be selected. Of course, you do not have to select
everything. You can select just a few objects by clicking on them Ö
click the first object using <select> and subsequent objects using
<adjust>.
9.8
You can then Copy, Delete or Group the selection. Copy makes a straight
copy of everything selected Ö the copies end up as the selection, and
the originals are deselected. Delete leaves you with nothing selected.
Group puts all the objects together and treats them as a single object.
Grouped objects behave differently from ungrouped objects when they are
magnified or rotated.
9.8
The group of three objects (above right), a rectangle, a triangle and a
circle, was copied four times. The first two copies were rotated either
as separate objects or as a single (grouped) object. The other two
copies were treated similarly and then magnified. Compare the rotated
objects and then compare the magnified objects.
9.8
Clear means deselect everything. Ungroup reverses what Group does.
Grouping can be nested. That is, groups may be grouped. Ungrouping
leaves the previous layer of grouping intact.
9.8
Edit only works if the selection is a single, ungrouped text object. It
is a useful extra brought by RISC OS 3 and I have found it valuable for
correcting my many mistakes. For example, it saves having to redo a
whole text entry just for one letter.
9.8
Snap to grid works if the grid is visible or locked or both. Personally,
I am a bit wary of using it because it sometimes distorts a drawing and
it can be difficult to put back. But you can Undo and Redo in the Misc
submenu or simply by using <f8> and <f9>.
9.8
Justify works on a selection of objects which have been grouped. Look
carefully at the examples below.
9.8
Interpolate is fun. You need two objects with the same number and type
of points and lines. Each point moves to its corresponding point, in a
straight line, using however many steps (graduations) you specify. The
figure opposite shows what happens, but if you want to see some more
spectacular effects, look in the User Guide.
9.8
Grade is almost the same but not quite. The difference is in what
happens with the fill colour(s). Try it.
9.8
Convert to path applies only to outline fonts. Try this:
9.8
Type in some text, for example the word öTextò, using System font,
StyleÖsize 72. You can see how the system font is designed, in terms of
pixels. Now <select> the text and notice that you can use the handles on
the selection boxes to enlarge or diminish the words but not to rotate
them. Have a look, too, inside the Style menu and inside the Select menu
to see which items are available and which are greyed out.
9.8
With the word(s) still selected, click on StyleÖFont nameÖTrinity.
Notice how the outlines of the letters change.
9.8
Enter first the Select menu and then the Style menu and note which items
are available now. What has changed?
9.8
Yes, Convert to path has become available. You may also have noticed
that you can now rotate the text, but if you do, you will not be able to
convert it back into System font. Click on SelectÖConvert to path and
see what changes this time in the Select and Style menus.
9.8
Click on SelectÖUngroup and you will find it becomes possible to alter
the spacing between the letters. Unselect everything except the capital
T in öTextò. You can improve the appearance of the word by moving the T
in slightly closer to the e. This is known in the printing industry as
kerning.
9.8
Transform
9.8
This menu needs little explanation. Rotate rotates selected objects by
however many degrees you specify (but not text in System font, of
course). Plus or unsigned numbers produce anticlockwise rotation;
negative numbers result in clockwise rotation.
9.8
X scale magnifies selected object(s) in the horizontal direction only.
Fractional numbers produce diminution Ö for example .5 halves the size.
Y scale does the same in the vertical direction and Magnify does both
together. Line scale operates on the thickness of lines (unless they are
designated as thin).
9.8
As its name suggests, Zoom allows you to change the magnification of
your view of an area of your drawing, without changing the drawing
itself. (If you print it, it will not have changed.) You can use the up
and down arrows or alter the numbers in the magnifier by typing them. If
you use the arrows, the drawing is redone on every click. This can take
time if your drawing is complicated. If you type in a new value, you
have to change both numbers before the change takes effect (or change
one and press <return> twice). A useful shortcut to zoom is to use
<shift> and <adjust> to drag a box over the area you want to zoom in on.
<ctrl-R> will zoom you out again. Once you have defined a zoom, you can
use <ctrl-R> to toggle between zoom in and zoom out. You cannot undo a
zoom with <f8> or with the Misc menu.
9.8
Grid
9.8
Click on Grid to turn the grid on or off. Enter the menu to alter the
grid. Everything is self-explanatory, except perhaps Auto adjust. If you
zoom out with the grid on, you may find that the grid becomes so dense
that you canæt see your drawing. And it may take a long time to draw,
too. Turn on Auto adjust to avoid this.
9.8
We have already looked at the Toolbox, so you might think that is the
end. Not so Ö thereæs still a lot more to reveal about Draw. See you
next time.áuá
9.8
Multiple Minipodules on A4000
9.8
John Hughes
9.8
The A4000 was designed to take a single minipodule, so if you wanted to
run more than one, it would be necessary to plug and unplug the
different minipodules into the computer motherboard. The sockets are not
really designed for such treatment!
9.8
I had three minipodule cards: Midi, Scanlight256 and PC cards.
Simultaneous use of any two of these was considered to be highly
unlikely so, instead, a solution which allowed any one of the three to
be presented to the A4000 was devised. Fortunately, Acorn has the
helpful idea (missing from industry standard Prattsæ Calculators) that
podules should be self-initialising. The solution does involve soldering
skill, and is not for the feeble of sight, or the short-tempered.
9.8
To avoid problems with data skew and interference, short lengths of 50-
way ribbon cable are used for all connections. At the rear of the
computer motherboard are four sockets, with 17, 5, 5, and 17 female
socket holes (17A, 5B, 5C, and 17D respectively from left to right) into
which the minipodule pins fit. These are wirewrap sockets, and gold-
plated wirewrap plugs to fit (Part no.P5372) can be obtained from
Greenweld Electronic Components on 01703-236363. The 24-pin variety is
most suitable, since it can be carefully cut to the required number of
pins. To these sockets, an eight inch length of 50-way ribbon cable
(also from Greenweld, Part No. Y1500) can be carefully soldered, being
sure to preserve the numerical order of each strand of the ribbon cable.
9.8
On the other end of the ribbon a 50-way D socket is soldered. The
section of ribbon cable soldered to the 17A wirewrap plug can be
soldered to the top row of pins on the D socket, the 17D wires to the
lower row of pins, and the 5B and 5C plugs soldered to the middle row.
This configuration is most convenient for checking purposes, and is also
helpful because the Midi board does not use the 5B and 5C pins.
9.8
A similar process is performed on the actual minipodules. Antistatic
precaution must be taken throughout this part of the process to avoid
fatal damage to the minipodules.
9.8
The first step is to obtain and cut a metal box of suitable proportions
to mount the minipodules, stacked one above the other, with sufficient
clearance to avoid any possibility of electrical short between them.
Cutouts must be made in one side of the box to mount the minipodules,
using the screw holes provided in the minipodule backplates Ö the PC
card is best mounted on top so that the occasional edible chip can be
warmed up on top of the box!
9.8
It may be found helpful to shorten the legs of each minipodule with
sidecutters to make room! (I see what you mean that itæs not for the
faint-hearted Ö once the legs are clipped short, thereæs no turning
back! Ed.) On the opposite side of the box, cut an aperture just wide
enough to hold three 50-way D sockets, and to get your fingers past them
to allow for bolting them to the box. (50-way D sockets, D plugs and
hoods are available from Maplin Electronics).
9.8
A three inch length of 50-way ribbon cable should now be soldered from
each D socket to each minipodule, observing the same wiring conventions
as on the connecting cable to the computer motherboard. At this point, a
careful visual check should be made to ensure that every wire is
correctly soldered, that no solder splashes have found their way onto
the minipodules, and that everything is sound. Do not use a multimeter
to check for continuity, since this might send a lethal current through
the minipodule. Each podule and its assembled leads can then be
carefully tested on the computer before final assembly.
9.8
The final assembly of the three minipodules into the box is fiddly and
needs to be done with care. When the job is finished, the connecting
cable can be inserted into the computer and then into one of the
D¡sockets on the box. The actual box is situated at the rear of the
computer.
9.8
The system allows any one podule to be available to the A4000 at any one
time. What cannot, and must not, be done is to attempt to change modules
while the computer is running. The shutdown procedure must be followed
first, and power removed from the computer altogether. If this is
followed, the A4000 will now demonstrate the ability to access more than
one minipodule.áuá
9.8
Digital Symphony Masterpieces CD
9.8
Chris Coe
9.8
This CD-ROM effectively puts an end to the need to ever buy any Symphony
tracks from a PD library. It is a large collection of tracks for use
with the Digital Symphony application or any of the many PD music
players out there Ö a filer count reveals 3134 Symphonies in all.
9.8
As well as this, the CD-ROM includes a small application called
!SymphPlay, for those who have no other way of hearing the tracks, and a
demo of Digital Symphony itself which has save and print disabled, and
quits after 15 minutes use. This demo includes the !Symphony
application, tutorial program and a large number of samples, plus a few
example tunes for you to experiment with.
9.8
What do you get?
9.8
The main purpose of the CD-ROM though, is the large library of music. In
fact, the CD-ROM is less than half full, but there is such a vast
quantity of files that you are bound to find what you are looking for,
be it a piece for inclusion in a game or a demo (in which case the
latest DSymphonyPlayer module is included), for a multimedia
presentation, or just to listen to while you are working away in the
desktop, as I am doing now.
9.8
If you want to include music in your own commercial products, you have
to contact Oregan for permission, something which I did some time ago
and had no trouble whatsoever in obtaining. Whether the music supplied
on this CD-ROM is actually PD or not, Iáam unsure, but I would assume it
is.
9.8
How is it stored?
9.8
The tracks have not been stored in archives, so everything is in ugly
capitals, and finding songs isnæt exactly easy unless you know what it
is called (so you can do a filer find). The main problem is that the
categories are strange. There is no annoying interface such as those you
sometimes have to use on other CD-ROMs to access files, just an ordinary
filer window with directories and sub-directories, but they are not
arranged too well.
9.8
The main directories at the root level are Dance, Demo, Fun, Misc,
Quick, Rock, Sample, Soft and Voyages. Dance is OK, since itæs pretty
descriptive and contains the directories Acid_Tekno, Dance1, Dance2,
Hardcore, Rave and Rave_Plus, but Demo contains 01, 02, 03, 04 and 05.
What kind of category is Demo anyway? Similarly, Voyages contains
Environment, EpicScores and Scores. Also, some of the tracks werenæt in
the right categories anyway. Some of the tunes in Dance.Rave were
definitely not, and then I heard others that I thought would have been
better placed there. Perhaps it depends upon your idea of music, but I
found it fairly confusing, overall.
9.8
...feel the quality!
9.8
However, on a much happier (and I think more important) note, the
quality of most of the tunes was excellent, in both composition and
sample quality. The latter may have been helped by the fact that I am
using 16-bit sound connected to hi-fi speakers. Symphonies are an 8-bit
format similar to STModules and STrackers, but on RiscPCs with 16¡bit
sound, the 8-bit samples have their sample rate doubled and intermediate
amplitude levels added between each byte by RISC OS to make them 16-bit.
This gives the illusion of improved sampling quality and really does
sound impressive through a good pair of speakers. Of course, in such an
enormous selection, you are bound to find some dross, but overall I
found them to be quite pleasing to the ear, especially the Soft.Mellow
tracks which go nicely in the background while I am working. Again, you
have to have something of a taste for Écomputer musicæ to appreciate
this.
9.8
A note of caution
9.8
With 16-bit sound, oscilloscopes donæt work Ö well, not on any of the
programs that I have, and that includes the Symphony programs on this
CD-ROM. Also, !SymphPlay sometimes gives sound out of only one speaker.
Other programs, such as my own !MultiPlay PD player, donæt suffer from
this problem. Switching to 8-bit sound makes the oscilloscopes work
again, but you donæt hear any sound at all! This isnæt the fault of
Oregan or Zenta Multimedia though.
9.8
Conclusion
9.8
Despite my gripes, this is a CD-ROM that remains in my CD drive for the
majority of the time I spend using my Acorn. I donæt suppose I have
listened to even an eighth of the tunes, but I would be astonished if
someone looking for Éthat particular songæ to add to their world-beating
new program couldnæt find what theyære looking for here. Symphony is
also the best track format available on the Acorn, offering the widest
range of effects and using the least disc space, so the tunes are likely
to be of higher quality and, for ú29.95, youære paying less than a penny
per tune.
9.8
Digital Symphony Masterpieces CD is ú29.95 from Zenta MultiMedia, or ú29
through Archive.áuá
9.8
Textease 2
9.8
Christopher Murray
9.8
Textease 2 and Talking Textease were released at Acorn World 95. They
are, as you may guess from their names, a new version of Textease and a
talking version of it. Textease version 1 was reviewed in Archive 8.8
p43, so this article deals with the changes only.
9.8
I have been using Textease since the beginning of 1995, and have watched
as the number of features incorporated has increased. Now, with the
release of version 2, a number of customersæ suggestions have been
included, along with additional features that were previously only
available on Impression and Mac/PC.
9.8
The package now contains two discs, a completely rewritten guide book
(size A5 landscape), all in a proper box. Disc 1 holds the main
application, clipart and a selection of default setups, and Disc 2 holds
tutorials, examples of text flows, a 1996 calendar, example borders, two
fonts, a pronunciation editor for the !speak module and some label
templates.
9.8
Whatæs new?
9.8
The first thing I noticed with version 2 was the snazzy new sprite
sitting on the iconbar. With the spell checker switched on, it still
only takes up 608Kb of memory.
9.8
There are now more buttons across the button bar but, of course, the
button bar automatically scrolls sideways. A new feature incorporated is
the ability to rearrange, or remove altogether, buttons on the bar just
by drag and drop. Brilliant! The new buttons are for spelling, drawing
circles or ellipses, a word bank, a picture bank and a zoom tool.
9.8
If an Edit file is dropped onto the word bank window, whole lines of
text can be transferred from the word bank into your document. This is
useful if you frequently use standard phrases or complicated technical
names. Teachers may find it useful for writing pupil reports, building
up the report from a range of standard phrases. The word bank can have
its own styles set and be saved separately. The picture bank button
gives easy access to a directory of clipart and pictures
9.8
There are other new features, such as drag and drop editing, OLE, auto
save, simple save to specified path, grading of text, colours and lines,
the rotation and scaling of graphics and, oh yes, rotated text that is
editable! There is an improved search and replace facility which can
either take the usual entered replace string or the contents from the
clipboard.
9.8
Then there is a revised layout tool for centring objects on the page.
Objects can now be locked to the page, which is handy for creating forms
that need to be filled in on screen. Also, the options menu from the
icon bar allows many features to be set as the default.
9.8
Talking version
9.8
The Talking version of Textease2 was a novelty at first, but proved very
useful as time went on. I found after a long dayæs work and an evening
spent typing my OU assignment, it was very nice to sit back and have the
Stephen Hawkinsæ voice read my work back to me. There is plenty of
control over the speaking part of the software. This is, in fact, the
öSpeakò module from Jon Duddington incorporated into the software. My
children love using it and I find I have my work read back to me always
now.
9.8
The help information line can also speak to you.
9.8
Conclusions
9.8
Softease have deliberately aimed at the education market with this,
their first product. It is, in fact, featured in Acornæs own publicity
material for the A7000. I believe schools wishing to allow children to
express themselves on paper, with text and graphics, will find this
product more than satisfactory. It is very easy to use, just click and
go. My three children aged 13, 11 and 7 all use it. Having said that, it
would be a shame if this product were labelled with the öeducationò
sticker Ö it is more than adequate for most usersæ needs. The price has
gone up from last year because there are now more features and Softease
are now VAT registered. I like it and use it nearly every day. I
thoroughly recommend it.
9.8
Textease version 2 costs ú49 +VAT from Softease and Talking Textease is
ú65 +VAT, or ú55 and ú73 through Archive.áuá
9.8
Using the Acorn Toolbox ù 2
9.8
Tony Houghton
9.8
Step 3
9.8
Now we need some way of getting a file into the program. The Toolbox
makes it easy to export or save a file, but not to import or load one.
Iæve written a general purpose Écomponentæ (in the sense of a set of C
functions and structures or C++ classes, rather than a Toolbox
component) for loading and importing files; have a look at import.h. You
will be able to use this in other programs you write.
9.8
It starts off with three types of functions that its Éclientæ (in this
case other functions in FormText) should provide for handling the
importing of files. An ImportLoader should load a file from a filing
system (usually a disc); an ImportBufferHandler should handle memory
allocation for a file being transferred in memory. An ImportComplete
will be called when a data transfer has been completed. Ináeach case,
the handle argument is provided as a pointer to some data that the
client can specify to keep track of what itæs loading.
9.8
In case you have little RISC OS Wimp programming experience before
learning the Toolbox, I had better digress slightly to explain data
transfer from the receiving taskæs point of view. I should point out
that the PRM has a more complete description than mine on pages 3¡249 to
3-256. A task can be asked to load something with one of three Wimp
messages; Iæll use the names as defined in wimp.h supplied with Acorn C/
C++.
9.8
Wimp_MDataOpen means a file has been double-clicked. FormText wonæt be
responding to this Ö it should only be claimed by editors that Éownæ a
particular filetype.
9.8
Wimp_MDataLoad means the program should load a file from disc. It is
usually sent if a file is dragged from a filer window to an application.
9.8
Wimp_MDataSave means a file has been dragged from the Save as dialogue
box of another application to our application. This can be dealt with in
one of two ways. The simpler way is to reply to the sending task with
Wimp_MDataSaveAck, asking it to save the file as <Wimp$Scrap> and then
send us Wimp_MDataLoad. Or we can reply with Wimp_MRAMFetch, asking for
the file to be sent by RAM transfer. Not all applications will be able
to do this, so if we donæt receive a Wimp_MRAMTransmit reply from it, we
should then resort to scrap file transfer.
9.8
RAM transfer consists of a series of Wimp_MRAMTransmit and
Wimp_MRAMFetch messages until the sending task sends a block of data
that doesnæt fill the receiving taskæs buffer; then the receiving task
knows the transfer is complete. Data is not actually sent with the
Transmit messages, but by the sending task calling
wimp_transfer_block(). The message is needed to tell the receiving task
that this has been done.
9.8
Most of the above work is done by import; all the client has to do is
wait for one of the three initiating messages, and call import_start,
supplying pointers to its three functions. importæs client is textfile Ö
have a look at textfile.c to see how it works. The textfile variable is
used to point to a file in memory, but the value of the pointer may
change as memory is moved around by flex; a pointer to textfile is used
as the handle for the import functions. Using a pointer to a pointer is
confusing, but necessary because of the way flexlib works.
9.8
It is a shifting heap manager, meaning that it shifts blocks of memory
around to make sure there are never any unused areas in the middle of
the heap. Therefore, pointers to flex blocks do not have fixed values;
they may be changed at any time by another call to flex. This means that
there must only ever be one copy of the pointer, or the master copy
could change without updating its copies.
9.8
So, for flex block pointers to be passed around safely, we are forced to
use a pointer to the master pointer. flex uses the area of memory
immediately above what was available to the task before calling
flex_init(), and calls wimp_slot_size() during each operation to make
sure it has just enough memory. You can get flexlib as part of the C/C++
Upgrade described in my previous article.
9.8
textfile_initialise() is called once at the beginning of main(). It
initialises the flex memory manager, and registers an event handler for
the two messages that it will receive when a file is dragged to
FormText; textfile_importer() can be used for both because import does
so much of the work. The former just checks that the file is text and
calls import_start().
9.8
textfile_loader() allocates memory for the file and loads it. Although
it knows at this point whether it has loaded a file, it is best to wait
until textfile_complete() is called before taking any further action Ö
thatæs its purpose.
9.8
textfile_bufferer() checks whether any memory has been allocated yet,
and allocates a new flex block if not, otherwise it extends the block.
It then updates importæs pointer to point to the empty part of the block
just made available, and returns with its size.
9.8
textfile_complete() at the moment just shows a message saying what file
it has loaded and how big it is, then clears the memory ready to receive
another file.
9.8
To add new files to a Makefile, Make should be loaded with the Auto run
option off, then the Makefile loaded. The new files (in this case
textfile.c, import.c and flexlib) should then be dragged to Makeæs
Insert field and OK clicked. This adds the files to the list of those to
be compiled and linked to form the RunImage.
9.8
Step 4
9.8
The first thing we want to happen when a file is dragged to FormText is
for the main window to open. There are two new files, settings.h and
settings.c to deal with the window. settings.h just contains a struct
definition for how the settings are stored internally and in the
preferences file, and function declarations for initialising and showing
the window. All other functions concerned with the window are called
from these two, or by event handlers.
9.8
Open settings.c and look at the function settings_initialise(). This is
called once at the beginning of main() to prepare the settings windowæs
handlers. Most of the operations on the window will need to know its
ObjectId, but how do we find this out? We set the windowæs auto-create
flag for convenience when testing the interface with ResTest, so we
canæt simply call toolbox_create_ object() and get the id that way.
9.8
In this situation, it might be more sensible to clear the auto-create
flag and create it Éby handæ, but it is important to know how to deal
with auto-created objects, because more sophisticated applications will
make heavy use of objects that are automatically created by virtue of
their being attached to other objects.
9.8
One strategy is to ensure that all events generated by an object have
reason codes unique to that object and only refer to the objectæs id in
its handlers, where the id is available as the self_id field of the
IdBlock£ passed to event_initialise(). This may not always be possible.
9.8
To allow an auto-created objectæs id to be found as soon as possible and
used globally (the strategy used by FormText for Window), we use the
Toolbox_ObjectAutoCreated event. When objects are auto-created, these
events are queued up until they can be returned by event_poll() (or
simply Wimp_Poll if not using eventlib). As far as Iáknow,
Toolbox_ObjectAutoCreated event data is generated after the object, and
all its attached objects have been created, so you can find out the ids
of attached objects when handling the event.
9.8
settings_initialise() registers a handler called settings_created to
detect when the main (settings) window has been created. The other three
handlers registered by settings_initialise() are for events connected
with the window, but they have unique event numbers so can be registered
before knowing the id.
9.8
Now have a look at settings_created(). First of all, it casts the event
to the right type of struct Ö in this case,
ToolboxObjectAutoCreatedEvent *toace. This sort of casting is a frequent
chore when using the Toolbox. Then it checks that the name of the object
that has just been created is öWindowò. If not, it returns zero to
indicate it has not handled the event, and some other handler might want
to do so.
9.8
If it is öWindowò, it reads its id from the self_id field of the
IdBlock, and stores it in the variable settings_window. Then it checks
for a settings preferences file that may have been created by a user
saving the settings, and loads the settings from it. If no file is
present, it reads the current settings from the window. In this way, the
default settings can be edited by editing the Res file. The handler also
politely deregisters itself, because it is only needed once.
9.8
The functions write_window() and read_window() are for writing the
settings to the window and reading them from the window, respectively. I
havenæt room in this article to explain all the gadget-handling methods,
but they should be fairly easy to understand from the manual; I suggest
you look at how FormText uses them. set_fades() reads the current state
of the Contents option button and fades, or unfades, other connected
gadgets accordingly. There is no SWI to do this explicitly, so it has to
rather inelegantly manipulate each gadgetæs flag word.
9.8
Letæs consider the other event handlers registered by
settings_initialise(). cancel_clicked() clears the text file from
memory. It doesnæt need to close the window, because unlike with Wimp
applications, an action button closes a window unless the buttonæs Local
option is set. An action buttonæs Cancel option doesnæt currently seem
to do anything, but I suspect itæs supposed to force <adjust> to close a
window as well as <select>.
9.8
save_clicked() reads the settings from the window and saves them in a
preferences file (see above).
9.8
contents_click() responds to changes in state of the Contents option
button and calls set_fades().
9.8
At this stage, I have modified textfile_complete() to call
settings_show() instead of showing a message about the file that has
been loaded then clearing it. settings_show() uses toolbox_show_object()
to show the settings window as a static window/dialogue box, opening it
at the position defined in the Res file.
9.8
A static window/dialogue box remains open until explicitly closed,
whereas a transient dialogue box behaves like a menu and closes when the
user presses <escape> or clicks outside it. Those familiar with Wimp
programming will know that the former is opened by Wimp_OpenWindow and
the latter by Wimp_CreateMenu.
9.8
Step 5
9.8
We now need to consider that the file will have to be saved once
processed, using the SaveAs object. In settings.c, I have added a
Toolbox_ObjectAutoCreated handler for öSaveAsò, similar to the one for
öWindowò. It stores the id in the variable saveas_id.
9.8
There is also a handler for a click on the Format button,
format_clicked(). This handler reads the settings from the window, then
calls textfile_process, passing saveas_id so the function can set the
SaveAs pointers to the file. If the processing is successful, the main
window is hidden and SaveAs is opened. I have chosen to make it a static
dialogue box, because itæs a nuisance if it vanishes while you hunt down
that directory you forgot to open beforehand. Once SaveAs is open, the
Toolbox handles all its functionality for us, because its Client
participates option isnæt ticked.
9.8
There is just one final handler registered by settings_initialise(). The
saveas_done() clears the file from memory when it has been saved.
9.8
The main work of the program is done by textfile_process() in
textfile.c. It returns 1 if successful, or 0 if not. It works with a
simple multi-pass technique, applying one sub-process to the whole file
at each stage. This can take a while, so Iæve added some simple
Hourglass macros in hourglass.h.
9.8
I wonæt describe how the file is processed because it is irrelevant to
the Toolbox, but feel free to examine the code if youære interested.
Once the file has been processed, saveas_set_data_address() is called to
inform SaveAs of the fileæs address and size before returning control to
the function that opens SaveAs.
9.8
Conclusion
9.8
I hope you now know enough to write your own, larger, Toolbox
applications. Obviously, I havenæt been able to cover the whole Toolbox,
but I have tried to describe its most important concepts. Please donæt
consider FormText to be a well-designed and well-coded application. In
fact, its user interface is quite weak. It was just something I cooked
up in a hurry to demonstrate some of the more important parts of the
Toolbox, but it happens to do a useful job, albeit no more than
adequately.
9.8
Keep your fingers crossed for a better C++ compiler and decent class
libraries, and if any of you happen to meet someone from ART in the
meantime, ask awkward questions! u
9.8
£ There is a mistake on page 13 of Issue 1 of the User Interface Toolbox
manual. In the table showing the layout of the id block, the ancestor
fields should be at the top and the self fields at the bottom.
9.8
Starting Basic Ö 9
9.8
Ray Favre
9.8
Before starting this monthæs topics, WHILE... ENDWHILE and TRUE/FALSE, I
need to give you the answer to the homework question left from last
time. You will (yet again!) get the Error message öunknown or missing
variableò, because the keyword is MID$( and not MID$. Putting a space
between öMID$ò and ö(ò will stop it being recognised as a keyword.
However, MID$ on its own is a perfectly valid string variable name (see
later this article), but one which the program hasnæt yet seen Ö hence
the error message. TAB( is the same.
9.8
The WHILE ... ENDWHILE loop
9.8
This control loop complements the REPEATá... UNTIL loop. The crucial
difference is that  WHILE... ENDWHILE has an entry condition at the
start of its loop, whereas REPEATá...áUNTIL has an exit condition at the
end of its loop. The general form is:
9.8
WHILE <Entry Condition>
9.8
  <instructions>
9.8
ENDWHILE
9.8
As with all Basic condition statements, the entry condition must be able
to be evaluated to TRUE/FALSE. If, and only if, it is TRUE, the
instructions within the loop (up to the ENDWHILE) will be carried out.
The program then returns to the WHILE line again, and the entry
condition is re-tested. If and when the entry condition evaluates to
FALSE, the program skips directly to the line after the ENDWHILE line.
Therefore, if the entry condition is FALSE when the program first
arrives at the WHILE line, the loop is never entered.
9.8
Here is an example:
9.8
Word$ = öabcdefò
9.8
NewWord$ = öò : REM null string assigned at the start.
9.8
Position% = 1
9.8
WHILE Position% <= LEN(Word$)
9.8
  NewWord$ = MID$(Word$,Position%,1)
9.8
+ NewWord$
9.8
  Position% += 1
9.8
ENDWHILE
9.8
IF NewWord$ = öò THEN PRINT öDidnæt
9.8
 Enter Loop!ö ELSE PRINT NewWord$
9.8
Run as shown, this will print the contents of Word$ backwards. But if
you change the third line to Position% = 7, you will get the message
öDidnæt Enter Loop!ò. Compare this with the REPEAT ... UNTIL loop which
always carries out its loop instructions at least once.
9.8
The different elements of WHILE ... ENDWHILE loops need not be on
separate program lines Ö and that is all we need to say: it is a
straightforward construction.
9.8
TRUE and FALSE
9.8
Iæve been a little lax in using these terms in the series so far, and it
is as well to tie them down a bit more precisely. Letæs take it in easy
steps. Type the following, as a short Basic program, and run it:
9.8
Marker% = TRUE
9.8
Flag% = FALSE
9.8
PRINT Marker%
9.8
PRINT Flag%
9.8
you will get Ö1 and 0 as the results. This tells us that BBC Basic uses
the numbers Ö1 and 0 to represent TRUE and FALSE respectively. This is
an important piece of knowledge, so embed it in your memory!
9.8
Now letæs go a little further by typing and running the following new
program. (Iæve put the condition statements in brackets to emphasize
them. Remember, from Part 6, that everything between the IF and the THEN
counts as the condition statement and will be evaluated to find out
whether it is TRUE or FALSE. Also remember that most other constructions
and loops have condition statements and these same TRUE/FALSE rules will
apply.)
9.8
Marker% = 6 Ö 7
9.8
Flag% = 8 Ö 8
9.8
IF (Marker% = Ö1) PRINT ö1st Condition
9.8
 is Trueö
9.8
IF (Flag%  = 0) THEN PRINT ö2nd
9.8
 Condition is Trueö
9.8
When run, this will print both messages; showing, as you would expect
here, that the 1st and 2nd condition statements both evaluate to TRUE,
because we have deliberately made the numbers accord with the required
condition.
9.8
Now add the following two lines and run the program again:
9.8
IF (Marker%) THEN PRINT ö3rd Condition
9.8
 is True alsoö
9.8
IF (Flag%) THEN PRINT ö4th Condition
9.8
 is True alsoö
9.8
This will print 1st, 2nd and 3rd messages Ö but not the 4th. So, the
evaluations of (Marker%á=áÖ1) and (Marker%) are both TRUE, because
Marker% holds the value Ö1. However, whereas the evaluation of
(Flag%á=á0) is TRUE (because Flag% does equal zero!), the evaluation of
(Flag%), on its own, is FALSE, because Flag% holds the value 0.
9.8
It makes sense, but you might have to go through it a couple of times to
ensure you follow it properly.
9.8
Now, change the last line to:
9.8
IF (NOT Flag%) THEN PRINT ö4th
9.8
Condition is True alsoö
9.8
and re-run. This time the 4th message is added to the output, because
NOT changes TRUE into FALSE and vice versa. (NOT is one of the operators
covered in the supplementary sheet referred to in Part 8.)
9.8
So far so good. But now, with all the above changes still in place,
change the first line to:
9.8
Marker% = 9 Ö 6    (or any sum that does not give 0 as a result)
9.8
and you will now get 2nd, 3rd, and 4th messages.  The surprise result (I
hope!) is that the 3rd message still appears. What does this tell us? It
indicates that Basic regards any non-zero value, on its own (i.e. as the
complete condition statement), to be TRUE.
9.8
Check this out by adding the lines:
9.8
Number% = 77
9.8
IF (Number%) THEN PRINT ö5th Condition
9.8
 is True too!ö
9.8
and the 5th message will be added to the output. Try it with Ö77, 0 and
Ö1 just to convince yourself thoroughly. Only when the value is 0 will
the 5th message not appear.
9.8
Because the above points can be a little difficult to absorb straight
away, I would advise that beginners:
9.8
(a) try to use full condition statements wherever you can. It is easier
to understand and less likely to produce surprises; e.g. use:
9.8
         IF (Marker% = TRUE) THEN ....
9.8
  rather than:
9.8
         IF (Marker%) THEN .....
9.8
(b) always put the brackets round the condition statement to help you
remember what is happening.
9.8
(I know I have not followed these points in some of the instances in the
ÉLoanæ programs so far! It is a case of familiarity obscuring a point,
until a beginneræs question revealed the need to explain it. Touch wood,
there havenæt been too many. It also goes to show the importance of your
feedback.)
9.8
Points from Readersæ feedback
9.8
Error trap Ö Youæll recall that I introduced a simple error trap very
early in the series to assist if (when!) you made typing errors in
programs. The single-line error trap was:
9.8
ON ERROR REPORT:PRINTö at Line ò ; ERL :END
9.8
I simply want to mention here that you should keep a note of this,
because it is a good standby to plug into a program temporarily to find
out öWIHIH?ò (öWhat In H*** Is Happening?ò!). A reader was in difficulty
after updating one of the ÉLoanæ listings at a point which is reached by
the program before the normal error trap comes into play. He was getting
an error message, but without a line number to help. Adding the above
line at the very start solved the problem quickly. Interestingly, it
pointed to a line which was correct and the problem lay elsewhere Ö
which is not uncommon, but thatæs another story!
9.8
Printer/Screen characters Ö A potential problem for beginners is that
different computers, different keyboards and different printers can
produce different characters from the same keyboard press and/or ascii
code. Different characters on the screen, compared with the printer
output, can also occur. The notorious example is the ú sign. There are
rarely problems with normal letter characters, but some of the less-used
characters often exhibit differences.
9.8
Printer drivers and the Wimp environment have eliminated most (but not
all) of the problems when we use commercial applications (because part
of their job is to match the keyboard output to the printed output). But
in the non-Wimp environment and in a series such as this, the
difficulties can still occur Ö mainly because it is simplest to
introduce the subject of printing by demonstrating how to make direct
commands from Basic to the printer i.e. not using a printer driver.
9.8
My attempt in Part 5 to provide an Ascii chart in Basic form (to provide
a hard copy for those who do not have Impression) raised the matter
earlier than I intended. Character 124 gives öªò as a printer output (at
least on my Epson printer) but probably gives ö|ò on the screen.
9.8
(öHow did he get both symbols printed in the above sentence then?ò Ö I
hear you ask! Because my keyboard has both symbols shown Ö albeit that
one of them is obtained by pressing <Alt> with the key. Interestingly,
the on-screen symbols in Impression Publisher are the reverse of these
two keyboard symbols. Directly from Basic, my printer prints ª as per
the keyboard symbol, but then  produces a  for | on the keyboard! See
what I mean about confusion for beginners!)
9.8
I will not be tackling the subject of printing in this series for a
while yet (I need to build up energy for it!) Ö but at least be aware
for now that you can run into a few odd problems when/if you use direct
printing from Basic, and that some symbols may appear on screen
differently from the keyboard, even with commercial programs.
9.8
Other points
9.8
Variable names Ö We have been using and naming variables without much
comment since they were introduced in Part 2. There are, however, some
restrictions on what can be used for variable names Ö and you have
possibly already deduced some of the rules from our comments on error
messages and keywords:
9.8
Ö no spaces allowed within the name (which is why many people use the
underscore character Ascii Code 95 (&5F) to separate words within a
variable name, e.g. variable_name).
9.8
Ö no punctuation marks or arithmetic operator signs allowed. In fact,
any symbol which is used in Basic for some special purpose must not
appear in a variable name, e.g. # or ! (N.B. When we use % and $ at the
end of a variable name to designate its type, they are not regarded as
part of the name Ö but they must not be used elsewhere in the name.)
9.8
Ö must not start with a numerical digit Ö but digits can be used after
the start.
9.8
Ö must not start with any Basic keyword Ö for obvious reasons. But donæt
forget that all keywords are in upper case, so their lower case
counterparts (or a mixture) are OK.
9.8
If you compare these rules with those for PROC/FN names, you will find
that the latter are less restrictive because they can start with a digit
or a keyword Ö and the symbol @ can also be used. (Filenames have their
own separate rules Ö see Use Guide. They are not controlled by Basic.)
9.8
Declaring string variables Ö In program listings (a prime source of
information for beginners) you may see a sequence like this:
9.8
String$ = STRING$(20,ö ò)
9.8
String$ = öò
9.8
and wonder why the programmer has declared the string to be 20
characters long and then changed it to a shorter string, or even a null
string (as shown).
9.8
If you are using a string variable whose contents are going to vary
through the course of the program run, it is good practice to make the
initial declaration of that variable with a string of the maximum length
that the variable is likely to need. The reason, oddly enough, is to
economise on the use of the memory space needed to run the program.
9.8
If a Basic variable is storing a string of a certain length and it then
is called upon to assign a shorter string, there is no problem Ö the new
string is stored within the same space as the original string. However,
if the new string is longer, the Basic interpreter will allocate a
completely new storage space for the longer string Ö retaining, but not
using, the previous space occupied. So, for example, if the previous
string was 6 characters long and the new string is 7, then a total of 13
spaces (plus two lots of Éstorage overheadæ) will now be taken up. Do
this a few times and a lot of waste space will be generated.
9.8
You can now see the reason for the opening sequence: the programmer
wants String$ to start as a null string, but knows it is going to meet
other values, up to 20 characters long, during the run. The sequence
ensures that only 20 spaces (plus one Éoverheadæ) are used. If he is
wrong, and a string of length greater than 20 arises, then the program
will start to waste space Ö but almost certainly not as much as would
have occurred without the opening sequence.
9.8
This practice is particularly important when string arrays are declared
Ö which is a later topic.
9.8
(For the first time since the printed listings service started, there is
nothing to send out this time. But donæt worry, Énormal service will be
resumedæ next time!)
9.8
Next time
9.8
We have now finished our temporary diversions. Next time we start
looking at graphics from scratch, leading to developing our ÉLoanæ
program further. Donæt forget the feedback, queries (and A4 SAEs for
printed listings) to: 26 West Drayton Park Avenue, West Drayton, UB7
7QA.áuá
9.8
Outline Fonts from iSV
9.8
Ted Lacey
9.8
Having reviewed Zenta Multimediaæs Font Emporium CD-ROM (8.10 p45), my
first thoughts on reading about these fonts was simply that, if they
were converted PD versions from the USA, the price seemed rather high. I
am now given to understand that the term Public Domain is a bit of a red
herring in that, for some of the fonts, iSV use American PD PostScript
fonts as an inspiration, and the results have very little, if anything,
left of the original font after it has been re-designed.
9.8
Having obtained Packs 277 (2╫800Kb discs) and 298 (3╫800Kb discs) from
Paul, I set about having a good look at them. Pack 277 contains 36
families with a total of 276 fonts, and Pack 298 has 39 families with a
total of 282 fonts.
9.8
All fonts contain the styles or faces of Regular, Condensed and
Extended, all with corresponding oblique styles. In addition, ten
families on Pack 277 and eight families on Pack 298 contain Bold styles.
The Bold styles again contain a further six faces of Regular, Condensed
and Extended, again with oblique styles. In plain language, 20 font
families have a total of twelve styles each, the remaining 55 having six
styles.
9.8
Unlike a lot of PD fonts, they really are complete, containing all the
characters in the Latin 1 set. They have been well converted from the
original source, with scaffold lines, and kerning data has been added. I
understand that, where necessary, some fonts have been redrawn. The end
result is very good and the fonts contain all those foreign characters
with accents, as well as fractions and most of the other Éoddæ
characters associated with a good quality font.
9.8
The data on the discs comes in a compressed form, apparently using !CFS,
and needs to be installed. Read the !iSVManual first, which gives clear
instructions about doing this, and the amount of free hard disc memory
required. Clicking on the !iSVFonts application brings up a menu which
gives you a choice of whether to install to an Acorn !Fonts folder,
EasyFont or FontDirectory. I tested the installation using all three
methods and I am happy to report that there were no problems.
9.8
The on-screen menu tells you what to do and when to change floppy discs.
In addition, you get a warning that it will take about 5 minutes. After
using ArcFS as my compression system for several years, I found this
time delay a little irksome Ö I have got used to almost instant access.
9.8
Having installed the fonts, I then set about producing a document with
Impression Publisher using all the fonts, although only one style per
font. In order to be able to see results clearly, I used 24point
characters. The end result is extremely good, all printing well, with no
rough edges, and my initial reservations about the price were soon
dispelled.
9.8
It is obvious that a lot of work has gone into producing these fonts,
and the selection on both packs is well varied. Compared to other PD
fonts on the market, they are far superior and are obviously suited to
the professional DTP user as well as the home user. Naturally, cost
comes into the argument and, in the end, it boils down to what you can
afford. Pricewise, iSV fonts appear to fall nicely between the
inexpensive, but often incomplete, PD fonts, and those produced on a
more professional basis.
9.8
As regards memory, you will need about 5Mb of hard disc space in order
to install both packs. For anybody with a shortage of memory, I would
recommend installing to an Acorn !Fonts folder first and then perhaps
sorting the fonts into various directories which best describe the font,
such as Script, Serif, SansSerif, Heavy etc. They could then be saved
back to floppy discs and used when required. It is important to note
that, at the moment, installation directly to floppy discs cannot be
done. However, if you have a machine without a hard disc, but with extra
memory, you could install the fonts by creating a RAM disc of around
4Mb. It might be possible to do this on a 4Mb computer by making as much
memory as possible available and doing one pack at a time. The de-
compressed fonts could then be copied to floppy discs of a size suitable
for your setup.
9.8
This memory restriction is my only real criticism of these otherwise
excellent packages. It seems to me that, by making the packs so large,
the author is not catering for the needs of Acorn users with machines
which do not have a hard disc. Perhaps consideration might be given to
producing a smaller öBest ofò pack to tap into this market.
9.8
The price is ú25 per pack or ú35 for the two, plus ú1.50 post and
packing, direct from iSV Products.
9.8
All testing was done on a 26Mb RiscPC with a 410Mb hard disc.áu
9.8
Postscript
9.8
The publication of the above review was delayed because of lack of space
in the magazine and since then there have been some developments on
these products by iSV. In the words of Aaron Timbrell, they have
introduced a new font installer that allows you to drag a font folder
out rather than in. It displays the names of the fonts as they are
installed to either Acorn, Easy Font or Font Directory. There is a new
on-screen manual with pictures that can be printed out. All the fonts
have been remade using a later copy of !Fontfiend (an iSV product) and,
in particular, the hinting has been improved dramatically. Some of the
fonts on the older packs had a few characters missing and these have now
been added. Some families have extra weights, particularly Pack 277,
which now has over 300 fonts and occupies 3 ╫ 800Kb floppies. The width
of all the extended and condensed fonts have been modified, as some of
them were too condensed or too extended. These weights now have a
different kerning from regular and bold weights.
9.8
I have successfully installed the fonts to hard disc and a Proteus CD-
ROM drive optical disc (added since the original review), using the
Acorn folders and EasyFont version 3.17. I have not tried installation
with Font Directory, but have no doubt that this will work as well. Due
to the upgrading of these fonts they now require more memory than
before. The manual still quotes 5Mb of hard disc space as a minimum
requirement, whereas now one needs about 7.5 Mb for Pack 277 and about
6.5 Mb for Pack 298. The time to install is longer and a more realistic
time is 10 minutes for the larger pack.
9.8
I was also sent a copy of their Black Letter Font Pack (2 ╫ 800Kb
discs). This is a rather specialised pack, as it consists mainly of
Gothic and Old English styles of fonts. It should be noted that some of
the fonts on this pack are also on the other two packs Ö 4 on 277 and 6
on 298. They installed without any problems.
9.8
Further to my previous comments about users without a hard disc, iSV
inform me that they have now dropped plans to provide installation to
floppy disc, as enquiries made by customers at the recent Acorn World,
produced only one without a hard disc.
9.8
It is obvious that a lot of hard work has gone into improving these
products, and they now represent even better value for money and are
strongly recommended.
9.8
Prices for the products have been revised as follows:
9.8
Packs 277 and 298 Ö ú25 per pack. Both packs ordered together are now
ú35.
9.8
Black Letter pack Ö ú20.
9.8
In all cases, add post and packing of ú1.50 in the UK and ú3.50 abroad
per order.
9.8
For existing users of Packs 277 and 298, upgrades are ú10 per single
pack and ú15 for the two Ö send your original discs back to iSV.
9.8
Site licences for primary and secondary schools have also been revised
and are now 50% of the purchase price, which allows the product to be
used on any number of machines at the school. For example, a school
ordering Packs 277 and 298 at the same time, would need to include an
extra ú17.50 with their order.áuá
9.8
Tick-Tack: Travel and Tourism
9.8
Neil Hutchinson
9.8
The Tick-Tack/Penfriend range of language teaching software is not a new
product. For a number of years, Primrose Publishing has produced this
type of software for the full range of platforms. (I understand that
versions of the program were produced for the original BBC.) However,
the öAcorn Archimedesò program takes full advantage of the multitasking
desktop and is fully RISC OS compliant.
9.8
Contents
9.8
The program comes on a single 800Kb floppy disc (which may be backed
up). There are instruction manuals in English (or whichever language is
acting as the ömother tongueò) and the chosen target language;
accompanying these are helpful notes on teaching strategies as well as
RISC OS specific notes on use of the program. In the review copy,
English, French and German were available as both ömother tongueò and
target languages; and this particular program deals with the topic of
Travel and Tourism. This is one area of many for which the Tick-Tack
range caters. A greater breadth of commercial material is available for
the PC versions, but such material may well be made available to the
Acorn world in due course.
9.8
Installation and use
9.8
The program may be installed on hard disc simply by copying from the
floppy. Clearly, the trust of the author should not be abused. When
loaded, according to the Task Manager, the program occupies 464Kb,
enabling it to be used alongside word processors on all but 1Mb
machines. The program was, in fact, tested on my own RiscáPC (with
substantial memory) and on an A3010 with 2Mb RAM.
9.8
When loaded (on the iconbar), a single click will open two windows. The
first allows the user to select the ömother tongueò and target
languages, and whether the programæs output should be directed to an
external application or not. This window is also the öworking
environmentò where you select the topic for the next sentence, and then
the sentence itself. The second window is an Edit-style text window
where the output will appear if the user so chooses.
9.8
The program may be used in an almost casual manner to explore the range
of sentences provided, but the manuals have a printed list of all the
sentences. With a specific letter-writing task in mind, you point to a
topic area (Opening Sentences, Hotel Bookings, Accidents and Medical,
Conferences and Functions, to name but a few) and then to the sentence
which most closely matches what you want to communicate. The whole
sentence is not visible in the window, due to its size being
deliberately restricted. However, by loading Acornæs !Help application,
you can view the full sentence in the help window which you can place
wherever you like. Clicking <select> will then send the sentence to the
output document.
9.8
Clearly, in order to edit the sentences provided (regarding dates,
times, places. etc), the user must be aware of the target languageæs
basic structure and vocabulary. Within a few minutes, by repeating the
procedure several times, a letter can be produced that would have taken
a considerable amount of time and effort without the aid of a bilingual
colleague or, indeed, professional help. Once you become familiar with
the program, each sentence may be selected by entering its brief
alphanumeric code (e.g. B13), saving further time.
9.8
You can use the program with its second window and save the output in
text file format for later editing and incorporating into a word
processed document. However, the program is at its best when working in
conjunction with an established word processing program. Provided that
the window of your WP program has the input focus (the title bar is
yellow), then the output appears in the current style as defined by the
user. This method speeds things up tremendously. I have tested it with
Fireworkz, Style and PipeDreamá4. The text does not appear
instantaneously but as if you were typing very quickly. It generally
worked sucsessfully, but with PipeDream, an occasional letter
disappeared from the output, requiring manual insertion later.
9.8
The educational context
9.8
As a modern language teacher, I am only too aware of the pressures that
can exist to use Information Technology for its own sake, instead of
supporting the primary aim of modern language lessons, the acquisition
of foreign language skills. This Tick-Tack product sets out to provide a
functional and educational tool öfor the hotel, travel and tourist
industries and for students planning a career in themò to quote the
manual. Travel and Transport, Holidays, Accommodation, Geographical
Surroundings, Health and Welfare, Free Time and Entertainment, are all
modern language GCSE topics for which material is provided by this
program.
9.8
Although the software caters for a high standard of language competence,
there is no reason why it should not be used for the letters needed to
practise this level of work. However, lower ability students might find
the breadth of material overwhelming, and all students would need clear
and specific guidance as to the task to be completed when using
Tick¡Tack.
9.8
The success engendered by using this program to produce output of a
öprofessionalò quality will lead to a greater degree of student
satisfaction with the subject. In my opinion, those school students who
would make the most specific and regular use of the program as reviewed
are those studying the GNVQ Leisure and Tourism option, with a modern
language element in their studies. For these clients, this software is
ideal. Students studying on traditional A¡level courses would also
benefit greatly from the practical and useful nature of the material.
9.8
Product support
9.8
I have spoken to the author, David Sephton, and was impressed with both
his attention to detail and his willingness to spend time with
purchasers, both actual and potential. Presentations and training may be
offered, by arrangement, to educational professionals considering the
adoption of the software for an institution. To reduce the costs (e.g.
supply cover) to potential clients, such sessions may even be held at
weekends. Clearly, this facility is offered not to the casual and
curious, but to those in education who are seriously considering using
the product. Nevertheless, it demonstrates the authoræs confidence in
his software.
9.8
Costs
9.8
Tick-Tack products are not cheap, but their cost reflects the
professional nature of the product, and of its author. Prices start at
ú75 +VAT for Junior Pen¡Friend in a single language plus English, to
ú401 +VAT for Travel/Tourism Tick-Tack in a combined pack with English/
French/German/Spanish and Italian. Site licences are double the single-
user prices and the author is happy to negotiate licence arrangements
for groups of institutions and local authorities. Potential users will
need to decide whether their use of the product justifies the
expenditure.
9.8
Conclusions
9.8
This is an excellent product which does exactly what it sets out to do.
Anyone with a smattering of the target language can produce letters of
very high quality and fluency, that communicate clearly and accurately.
Whether a typical secondary school modern languages department could
justify the expense of the software will depend very much on the use
that might be made of it.
9.8
The post-16 education market is where this program will come into its
own, especially given the growth of courses that incorporate foreign
language study into a wider commercial syllabus. In this area, I would
consider such a piece of software essential. Adult learners, whether at
home or in a commercial setting, will find that confidence and
competence are increased by the use of Tick-Tack.
9.8
Furthermore, any small travel company or indeed anyone who corresponds
on this topic for commercial gain, ought to have this program Ö
translation fees could be sharply reduced. In addition, those who
regularly organise their own independent travel to the countries
concerned, will find the program of great interest.áu
9.8
PIMS
9.8
Mike Tomkinson
9.8
The problems of administering a School, even a small school, have not
been well addressed by writers of software in the Acorn world. Even
those of us teaching in Acorn schools are often forced to use PC
packages. At last this situation has a remedy, even if only for Primary/
Junior Schools.
9.8
PIMS or Primary Information Management System from Longman Logotron is
the first management system available for the Acorn range of computers
for use in schools.
9.8
PIMS is actually a difficult package to review in the normal sense. One
usually gains a good impression of a package at an early stage of using
it Ö often by comparison with another package. In this case, there is no
other similar package on the Acorn platform. Comparisons with DOS/
Windows packages are fruitless Ö if you are using them you are probably
stuck with them.
9.8
Any administration package has a steep curve of usability. This is only
partially related to its ease of use. Any changeover will tend to be
gradual, and there will be certain aspects of any package, for example
Inventory, that you may decide not to use immediately, if at all.
9.8
One area by which any administration software will tend to stand or
fall, will be in relation to pupil and staff records. Other aspects,
such as accounts, are more problematic.
9.8
Data input
9.8
As you would expect, the pupil/staff aspects are dealt with via a
database-like function. This is written in Longman Logotronæs S-Base.
Pupil and staff records are at the heart of PRIME (PIMS Rapid
Information Management Environment).
9.8
The pupil data contains all that one would expect and require in a
Primary/Junior school. This is entered into a card for each pupil and a
number of fields have the fast entry method, whereby a menu appears and
the user makes an appropriate choice.
9.8
An example is the Doctor field Ö most pupils would live locally and have
a Doctor from a Group Practice. You simply enter the names of the
doctors and, by using <menu>, their names appear. One single click and
their names are entered on the individualæs card.
9.8
Data output
9.8
This certainly eases data entry, but it is data output, not entry, which
is critical in any such software. After all, you may initially only be
using the software to produce better looking lists. Anything else you
can do may be a nice spin-off, but is not as crucial as a well
presented, up-to-date class list.
9.8
Here PIMS really comes into its own. There are four pre-defined methods
of displaying the data on screen and these, combined with careful
searching and sorting, give access to a wide variety of paper outputs.
As with any such software, the ability to customise is useful Ö but you
probably wonæt need to change it immediately. Only when you realise the
true potential of the package as it stands, does this ability become
useful. The Report Designer enables a whole range of different reports
to be designed, and should certainly assist on Form 7 Day.
9.8
One PIMS trainer I spoke to said that, depending on the school, this
level of true functionality only becomes apparent to some schools a year
after installation of the software.
9.8
Documentation and support
9.8
This brings us to another very important point about PIMS. The software
is well supported by a very good manual Ö but a manual is often a last
resort. After all, the whole point of PIMS is that it is being presented
on a RISCáOS desktop Ö it should therefore be naturally easy to use.
9.8
In the case of PIMS, however, the manual is not the last resort. PIMS is
not sold as just a package, but as part of a bundle, which includes
training and support. Without these it is useless. The training and
support exist not because PIMS is difficult to use Ö it is not Ö but
because, without these, productivity will not increase. If productivity
did not increase, you would have to ask questions as to why you were
computerising the administration in the first place. In fact,
productivity would plummet, simply because you were running two systems
in parallel.
9.8
Some might consider that talk of productivity was out of place in a
primary school context. If so, they are probably well out of touch with
modern educational developments. Resource management becomes more
critical in smaller organisations, not less.
9.8
Accounts
9.8
The accounting part of PIMS consists of an Accounts module, a Budgeting
module, a Purchasing module, an Inventory module and a Petty Cash
module.
9.8
I was reviewing the PIMS Evaluation Pack consisting of the full manual
and disks which only contain a subset of the full package. None of the
accounting modules were available, and I am always reluctant to pass
comment or judgment on any software based only on what the manual says
it should do.
9.8
Perhaps, to be fair to PIMS, it would be best to say that if the
accounting software performs only half as well as the pupil/staff
modules, it is an excellent overall package.
9.8
Try before you buy?
9.8
As PIMS does consist of a total solution to Primary/Junior school
management, Longman provide alternative methods of ÉTry before you buyæ.
I have already mentioned the PIMS Evaluation Package, and another
solution is the Dealer Demonstration Package. Obviously, this involves
an Acorn Dealer who is accredited by Longman who will demonstrate the
entire package before a school commits itself.
9.8
In fact, I would advise against the Evaluation Pack Ö its scope is too
limited to give a fair idea of what the total package is likely to be
capable of achieving.
9.8
Equipment
9.8
PIMS will run on any RISCáOS computer equipped with a hard disc, but I
would always recommend using the most powerful machine available. For
most primary schools, an A5000 or A4000 would suffice, if it has at
least 4Mb of RAM, but a RiscáPC would be a more sensible option for new
users.
9.8
Overall
9.8
I have very few reservations about this major package. One slight gripe
is that, although the manual is excellent and the package relatively
straightforward, Iálike on-line help. Perhaps I have been spoilt by the
excellent on-line help which accompanies most Windows programs, but I
really prefer it to manuals.
9.8
The purchase of PIMS should not be considered as a one-time purchase.
Indeed, there would be major disadvantages if this were the case. To be
of any use, an administration package must be able to respond to change
Ö both from the user, and changes caused by external agencies, such as
the Department for Education or the Local Education Authority.
9.8
Longman are constantly updating PIMS in response to both factors for
change. Any school which had particular requirements could probably be
accommodated, owing to the inherent flexibility of PIMS and the S-Base
language in which it is written.
9.8
Indeed, there are already major changes underway. For this reason, any
purchaser would wish to always have the latest version and, for this
reason, is really purchasing a rolling licence which entitles them to
this level of user support.
9.8
Conclusion
9.8
Any Primary/Junior School even considering the introduction of computers
into its administration should consider this package. This advice
applies whatever other systems are currently in use Ö it costs nothing
to look and evaluate. Data can be imported and exported, and the data is
not locked into one platform.
9.8
Talk to your local Acorn Education Dealer before committing yourself to
any other administration system Ö PIMS will offer you an Acorn
alternative.áuá
9.8
MenuBar
9.8
John Laski
9.8
One of the (few) good ideas in Windows 3 was the notion that you could
minimise a file, a directory or an application, and pin it to the window
in which it normally ran. At about the same time, RISCáOS 3 incorporated
the idea of the pinboard, which had been available for a long time as PD
utilities. This allows files, directories and applications to be stuck
to the desktop backdrop. Then, clicking on the pinned file relaunches
it.
9.8
This was a very useful idea which enables a file to be accessible
without the whole of its directory window cluttering up the screen.
However, there remains a tedious problem. How can you remember
whereabouts you have pinned the file underneath the pile of windows on
the screen?
9.8
Unlike other designers of G(raphical) U(ser) I(nterface)s, Acorn do not
insist that you do things their way, but provide hooks for programmers
to try out alternatives. In this case, it is the Éiconiseæ protocol and
its associated messages. I have been looking at the three programmersæ
attempts at such an improvement. MenuBar, subject to minor criticisms,
is by far the best.
9.8
Earlier attempts
9.8
I shall describe and criticise the earlier two first, in order to convey
the kind of difficulties the problem raises, so that, when I describe
MenuBaræs story, you will see why it is such a good one.
9.8
!Larger, from Warm Silence Software, conceives the desktop as a large
virtual space, with the display viewing a movable window within it.
Thus, for example, you could pin your files on the left, and put your
windows on the right; you would swap views according to what you wanted
to see. In theory, this solves the problem but, in practice, I could
still never remember where I had put things.
9.8
!Judith provides a window covering the complete desktop in which files
can be pinned. This window can be sent to the top and bottom of the
open-window stack so that it alternately is hidden by, or hides, the
desktop. This works well for simple use within a session but,
unfortunately, there seems no way of making a !boot file iconise to the
window, since *PIN only pins to the desktop, and the new Judith Iconiser
does not intercept it. I think it would be easy to make a module for
!Judith and have it recognise, say, *PINJ. Were this done, !Judith would
be quite effective, and it has the advantage of being freeware.
9.8
(In what follows, ÉMenuæ with an upper case M will refer to one of
MenuBaræs windows, not to the middle mouse button or to wimp menus, so
please watch carefully because Émenuæ and ÉMenuæ are used frequently.)
9.8
MenuBar description
9.8
MenuBar, designed and programmed by Graham Crow, provides up to ten
pull-down menus across the top of the screen, which you can name, and in
which you can put the files to which you want access. Rolled up, a Menu
leaves just its title on the top of the screen. Mouse clicks on a file
in a Menu act, substantially, as they would on an iconised file.
9.8
Dragging the title down and up, opens and closes the Menu so that you
can see what is pinned in it. Each pinned file occupies about the same
depth as an item in a wimp menu. The metaphor of window-blinds in a
physical window, that can be rolled down and up, may give you a feeling
for their use Ö but they roll smoothly and never need oiling!
9.8
This arrangement provides an excellent and flexible trade-off between
the amount of a screen used for pinned files, the number of files you
can pin, and how much you have to remember about the whereabouts of a
pinned file. Moreover, in the all Menus, a submenu, ÉFind <leaf>æ, will
open the Menu containing <leaf> with <leaf> selected. This is very
useful if you forget where you have put a file. ÉFind <path>æ is also
available, which allows you to find files containing a certain string,
although wild cards are available.
9.8
If you click on <menu> over any MenuBar window, you get a menu with
submenus: All Menus, Menu <thismenu>, File/Directory/Application <this
item>. Also, the usual items, Info/Choices/Help/Quit, appear below a
dotted line. I shall suggest below that Allmenus should be moved
elsewhere and Menu <thisMenu> promoted. I shall talk about öFile <this
item>ò, meaning File, Directory or Application, as appropriate.
9.8
Managing Menus
9.8
In the ÉAll Menusæ submenu is ÉAdd Menuæ which creates, to the right of
all existing Menus, a new Menu with a standard name <Menu#>. You can
then drag with <alt> to reposition this Menu where you want it and, in
the submenu Menu <Menu#>, click on the item Name to rename it to
something that makes better sense to you. Below this is ÉRemove Menuæ
for if you have finished with a Menu and want to delete it.
9.8
Both All Menus and Menu <Menuname> contain items Open/Close/Front/Back,
Sort by Name/Sort by Type and *Iconsprite. The first two groups have
obvious meanings, but I would like to see selections ticked or clear so
that I can see what the current state is Ö this would also shorten the
menus.
9.8
If *Iconsprite is set, the boot file of any application in Menu/all
Menus is run when MenuBar is first loaded. This will, usually, provide
icons for items in the Menus. I like this very much.
9.8
There is a maximum of thirty files per Menu and ten Menus allowed. If
the full width of Menus would overflow the width of the screen, they
overlap neatly. I think these limits are generous but, in principle,
Iáam against limits, and I would prefer to see the MenuBar slide left or
right as the iconbar does, though perhaps by clicking arrow buttons
rather than automatically. This would allow a button to access the All
Menus submenu, and get it out of the way. The All Menus submenu also has
items Save as data and Save as text, the first of which saves the Menu
states for automatic restart, and the second as readable text in a file.
9.8
Not documented, however, is a Save/Cancel/Ignore window shown, when
quitting after modifying the Menus. This effects Save data if Save is
clicked, and also is shown if you exit the desktop or shutdown. Iáfind
this very useful indeed.
9.8
Managing items in Menus
9.8
Dragging a (selection of) file icon(s) to a Menu inserts these in that
Menu. If sort by type/name is set, they will be appropriately
positioned, or you can drag them within the menu. Within the File <this
item> submenu are items Pathname and Info, which give you further
information about the file, plus Filer and Remove. Clicking on Remove
takes the file out of the Menu, and Filer opens the filer window which
holds the file. This last is most ingenious, effectively halving, for
me, the number of entries I need to put in my Menus.
9.8
If a file is in a Menu, you can click, double-click or drag it, and the
effect is as if you did so on the file in its home window. N.B. for
safety reasons, pressing <shift> will not remove files from the
underlying directory, but only from the Menus.
9.8
A particularly interesting feature is that if you press <alt> while
dragging a file that is in a Menu to an application in another Menu
then, rather than putting the file into the second Menu, the application
will be applied to the file. This saves cluttering the iconbar, a very
useful capability.
9.8
One or two niggles
9.8
There are one or two problems which, for the user, can be a bit
tiresome. Firstly, whenever MenuBar is loaded, or the mode is changed,
MenuBar is set to Front. There should be a button in the choices window
that sets/saves this. It does not really belong in the AllMenus submenu.
9.8
Also, the default setting for most users, should, Iásuspect, be Back.
Moreover, the keys to change this should be hotkeys, not restricted to
when the pointer is over a MenuBar window; you usually want the MenuBar
to come up front when you are in the window of another application, and
MenuBar is totally hidden by other windows. The use of <ctrl-select> and
<ctrl-adjust> as shortcuts to send the bar to the front or back is
unusual, but harmless. I donæt think it is worth having the facility to
front or back individual Menus, and I would take these out of the Menu
<this menu> submenu.
9.8
Conclusion
9.8
MenuBar, version 1, is a first class program and I shall keep it and use
it on my desktop. It provides the best solution I have seen yet to the
pinning access problem, and I doubt I shall see a better one.
9.8
However, there are some rough edges that I have mentioned above. I look
forward to version 2 in which these have been rubbed away. When this has
been done, I would recommend everyone to buy this as an essential
extension to the desktop. Maybe, even RISCáOS4 would accept it as the
standard pinning arrangement!
9.8
Menubar costs ú11.95 +VAT +p&p from Beebug or ú15 through Archive.áuá
9.8
Picture Point
9.8
Richard Rymarz
9.8
Now here is something a little different. Longman Logotron produce a
number of excellent educational programs as well as Éseriousæ packages
such as Eureka and Pinpoint. One of their newest is Picture Point Ö a
database designed for young children. The uninformed may ask why should
children aged 5, 6 and 7 involve themselves in such an apparently
austere exercise? Well part of the requirements of the National
Curriculum states that, by the age of 7, children should be able to
ÉEnter and store informationæ and that they should ÉRetrieve, process
and display information that has been stored.æ (Key Stage 1 Ö National
Curriculum Ö Programmes of Study)
9.8
More importantly, my experience as a primary school teacher for many
years, tells me that using a computer to do all these things is fun, and
children derive great pleasure from seeing their work displayed so
easily and tidily, and they enjoy being able to draw simple conclusions
from the data they have collected.
9.8
The package
9.8
This particular database comes in the usual Longmanæs style Ö a user
guide wrapped up in a classy A4 booklet and a sealed envelope containing
the two discs Ö one application disc and one set of topic files Ö and
the now familiar copyright and licensing conditions. A slight irritation
here Ö I do wish Longman would provide a pouch in the manual to hold the
discs. Not everyone has hard discs, and it would be nice to keep the
floppy discs with the manual. Installation to hard disc is simple, with
clear instructions, and is accomplished in seconds. There is no
protection, and floppy disc users are urged to make a set of backups.
Alternatively, the program is available on CD-ROM and costs exactly the
same.
9.8
The programs
9.8
There are two programs: !Collector which allows the actual data to be
collected; and !Designer where new database topics are designed.
9.8
!Collector
9.8
Clicking on !Collector installs it on the iconbar. Topics already
created are embedded within the program and an arrowed window allows the
user to scroll through them. By default, they include a variety of
subjects commonly covered in the the early years in school: throwing a
die (probability and chance), footwear, favourite fruits, different ways
to make a journey, pets, rubbish, school dinners, sports and weather.
The window also contains a short description of the topic and an
appropriate picture.
9.8
Having chosen the topic, a click on Create File and the database entry
screen is displayed. This is very attractively laid out in a grid with
appropriate sprites and words enhancing the simplicity of the design.
Clicking on a picture (which is effectively the field) increases the
total by one and a very clear sound effect is heard.
9.8
In fact, clicking on any part of the screen elicits a sound or a spoken
word. And herein lies one of the major attractions of Picture Point Ö
digitised speech. It really is quite exciting for young children to hear
as well as see what is shown on screen. Furthermore, for the teacher,
there is the obvious appeal of allowing those with limited reading
skills to use a database with ease.
9.8
Alongside is a simple toolbox allowing the child to add or subtract
data, create a graph, save and print. Data is entered by clicking on the
picture in the correct box (hence the name of the program, Picture
Point). Clicking on the graph toolbox icon brings up a graph choice box
(as well as the word, öGraphingò) which includes pictographs, bar charts
and pie charts Ö easy enough for younger children.
9.8
Picture Point even counts the totals in the columns and Ésaysæ them. Up
to 99 can be entered in each field. The graphs are very attractive,
automatically adjust to fit the page as the numbers increase, and are
hot linked to the data entry form so that the graph can be seen to
change as the data is entered. Printing of the data or graph, in
portrait or landscape mode, is done from the print icon on the toolbox.
9.8
Another nice refinement is an ÉOptionsæ choice, found by clicking <menu>
on !Collector on the icon bar. This allows the user to alter the sound
options, change the default font, adjust the layout of the data entry
grid, disable the number entry and print graphs either in solid colour
or in skeleton form, allowing the children to do the colouring (as well
as saving valuable coloured ink if a coloured printer is available).
9.8
!Designer
9.8
Some teachers will soon want to create their own topics, and this is
where !Designer comes in. This also installs on the iconbar with a
öWelcome to Picture Pointò. Clicking <menu> prompts the creation of a
new topics folder Ö otherwise the default one is used. Clicking on
Create Topic opens a box where the topic name, description, sprite and
number of boxes on the data entry grid are entered. This is
automatically added to the topic folder.
9.8
With the empty boxes displayed, any sprite or drawfile can be dragged
into them. The box name can also be entered, edited or deleted, and the
order of boxes within the grid can be changed by simply dragging and
dropping. Sounds are dragged into the picture and/or text box, layout,
and font printing options defined, and more boxes can be added (up to 99
if required). Saving the topic adds it to the topic pool.
9.8
Sound samples in Armadaeus, DataVox and Windows WAV can all be used.
Some form of sampler is, of course, needed if personal words or sound
effects are to be used.
9.8
One further point: an ideal opportunity presents itself for the more
ambitious Key Stage 2 teacher. Older children, given the appropriate
materials, can design topics for younger children. This combines the use
of pictures, words and sound in a multimedia way which corresponds to
part of the programs of study at Key Stage 2. Brilliant!
9.8
Conclusions
9.8
This program is excellent. It does much of what is required by the
National Curriculum for early years and provides an environment that is
easy to understand and use. (Being ultra critical, I would like to see
some form of sorting and searching of information included in a Key
Stage 1 database Ö Picture Point does not allow this but, to be fair, it
is not intended to.) The use of speech and sound adds an extra
dimension, and the resultant graphs are easy to produce and print.
Designing is straightforward and the manual is easy to read and follow.
It is an excellent Key Stage 1 program and delighted my colleague who
was desperately trying to find some way of using a database in her
classroom. At ú29 +VAT for the single user version (ú32 through
Archive), this is great value for money. Highly recommended.áuá
9.8
Anglia CD-ROM Decades Collection
9.8
Gabriel Swords
9.8
In March, we looked at the Longman Logotron Photobase Ö Decades
collection. This month we are going to look at another collection of
photographs, this time from the Anglia CD-ROM collection. As we saw last
time, the Longman approach to photo collections is to provide the user
with 2,500 images on each CD-ROM, a small amount of information on each
photo, a simple-to-use engine for viewing the pictures... then leave the
rest to the individual.
9.8
Under review this month are the Anglia CD-ROMs, ÉWorld War II Ö On the
Home Frontæ and ÉBritain Since 1930æ.
9.8
In contrast to Longman Logotronæs 2,500 photos, there are only between
two and three hundred photographs in each of the Anglia collections. The
photographs have been incorporated into the Key data handling system.
Itæs much more complex than the Photobase application used by Longman,
giving not only search facilities and text, but also map references,
statistical information about the photos, and various charting options.
There is also printing and a number of export facilities. In this
respect, it is very much like a conventional database, and so, to make
the most of it, the user will need to know more about the program than
with Photobase. Although Key Plus is sophisticated, access to the
pictures and text is quite straightforward. However, if you want to
chart or analyse the data, you will need to spend time with the manual!
9.8
Key Plus in action
9.8
When you load a Key Plus file, you get an open window on the top left of
the screen, displaying information about the records in the datafile.
This includes information about the number of fields in a record, how
many records are in use, and in what order they have been sorted. This
window stays on the screen all the time, and is your access point to the
data and the associated sorting, searching and manipulation facilities.
Each of the fields can be used to search or sort, and each record has
its own unique number, so if you do sort them, they still retain that
number.
9.8
Data from any of the fields can be used for statistical analysis, to
plot bar, pie and line charts, as well as Scattergraphs and Venn
diagrams. Data can be saved as Key documents, ASCII, SID and CSV files,
or printed in a number of forms.
9.8
What most users will want though, is to get into the collection and view
the photos and text. This is simple enough. Click <menu> over the main
display, and decide on the two display options Ö display record and
display graphics.
9.8
Choosing both of these, opens a further three windows: the text window,
the photograph itself, and a Égo toæ window, with arrows for forward and
backward movement through the collection. As you click on the forward
arrow, the other two windows change their contents to display the
current photo and its attendant text.
9.8
Most of the text supplied on the two CDæs was taken, largely, from the
back of the photographs, and would originally have been put there by the
photographer or by a magazine or newspaper sub-editor. In the two
collections, there are seven or eight fields attached to each file:
9.8
Headline caption Ö Usually just a title or newspaper headline.
9.8
Main caption and Secondary caption Ö These are sometimes
interchangeable. The main caption usually gives a fuller description of
what the photo is about. The details have been copied exactly as they
appear on the original photograph, including spelling Ö some information
may need further explanation, especially for pupils unfamiliar with the
Éold days,æ e.g. feet and inches, and ú s d.
9.8
Todayæs comment Ö This caption comes from the current day, and gives
some background information to the photograph. It also asks questions on
what the photograph might tell us about attitudes of the time and how
they compare with today.
9.8
Date Ö Where one is available, this is given either as the day, month or
year in which it was taken.
9.8
Censored? Ö This only applies to the Home Front CD. During the war, a
lot of photographs were held back for a period of time before they could
be published. Where they are clearly marked as censored, or were held
back for more than four weeks, they are regarded as having been
censored.
9.8
Photograph Ö This provides a reference number linking to that photo.
9.8
Lat/Long Ö Where this is included, it gives a location for the picture
which can be plotted to other Key maps.
9.8
Comments about Key Plus
9.8
Firstly, the screen can get a bit cluttered when you have open, a photo
window, a text window, the main Key Plus display window, and the Go To
buttons. If youære working on a small screen at 800╫600, it can be a bit
taxing!
9.8
Secondly, it does take some getting used to, and to make full use of the
program, the user really needs to know how it works. Arguably, this
could be a distraction Ö after all, most pupils want the information,
not a seminar on how to use a database!
9.8
Next, the interface looks a bit dated, especially when you compare it
with some of the more Éexcitingæ photo collections on the market Ö it
could do with a bit of development to make it look less austere.
9.8
Also, some of the facilities of Key Plus seem to be lost on these
collections; e.g. the statistical analysis doesnæt really help much.
Does it really say anything that 90% of the 207 photos in the Home Front
collection were not censored? It doesnæt say anything about censoring
during the war, only that of these 207, 10% were censored! The same can
be argued about charting on the other fields.
9.8
On the positive side, once you have a copy of Key Plus, the actual cost
of the data files is relatively small compared to some of the other
collections on the market. Compare the cost of this collection at ú29,
with Longmanæs collection at ú60, and Yorkshire Televisionæs collection
at ú117. (Yorkshireæs approach is different from either Anglia or
Longman, and we shall be reviewing them later.) It is actually a good
idea to design a data-handling system, and then provide integrated
datafiles to use on it.
9.8
Secondly, there is a wide range of other datafiles available from
Anglia, including a lot of Key maps. This makes the system worth having.
9.8
Lastly, if you take the time to understand fully how the database works,
you can collect and display more information than with the Photobase
collection, including plotting to other Key Plus maps. Comments and
captions are also more detailed. So, although my earlier comments may
seem negative, there is a lot going for the Key Plus collections.
9.8
About the collections
9.8
Although there are only 207 photographs in the Home Front datafile, they
do cover a reasonable range of subjects, showing different aspects of
life at home, up to and during the war. But itæs a very specific
collection Ö itæs really a social history about life and attitudes on
the home front during the war, not a reference guide to the Second World
War as a whole. That doesnæt mean that itæs not useful though. It does
say something about the times and attitudes of the people, and
newspapers of the time. There is a lot of information about social
history contained in the collection Ö a lot to compare and contrast with
today.
9.8
One frustrating thing is that there are some captions that demand more
explanation Ö you feel like asking, Éyes, but what happened next?æ
Record 183, for example Ö Why was that woman giving away her tea
rations? Was it a publicity stunt or did she do it every day? Maybe
these are the questions we are meant to ask, but there are times when a
bit more information would have helped.
9.8
Although you can do searches on any of the fields, you really need to
know what you are searching for. Without some teacher participation, the
only really effective way to get information is to browse through the
collection first. As long as you donæt read everything in detail, this
doesnæt take too long, and it does give you a good overview.
9.8
The Britain Since 1930 has just over 300 photographs, and the same
comments apply to this collection as to the Home Front. It is a
good(ish) social commentary on British life. You constantly find
yourself asking, ÉDid we really live like that?æ Ö it also supports my
assertion that Étimes was hard in them old daysæ, something I tell my
children on a regular basis!
9.8
The collection covers life from 1930 to the 1970æs, looking at such
things as health, transport, leisure, family life, news and major
events, and technological innovations. There are some good, and at
times, fairly lengthy comments on some of the photos. My only question
is, are there enough photographs to adequately cover five decades?
Probably not. Coverage of the 70æs is quite sparse.
9.8
Conclusions
9.8
These are two good collections certainly worth considering. For the home
user, the Britain Since 1930 provides a good, cheap abridged version of
what Longman cover in four CD-ROMs.
9.8
World War II Ö On the Home Front and Britain Since 1930 each cost ú25
+VAT +p&p, or ú29 through Archive.
9.8
Key Plus costs ú60 +VAT +p&p, or ú68 through Archive.áuá
9.8
Generation Design
9.8
Dave Floyd
9.8
Generation Design is a new company who specialise in budget-priced Acorn
games. They have just released their first two offerings, Robocatch and
Caves of Confusion. The games are priced at ú7.99 and ú6.99
respectively, or ú13.98 for both, direct from Generation Design. Also
included for the price is an application entitled !RpcMode, which gives
Risc PC owners a full size mode 13 screen rather than the usual letter
box format.
9.8
Robocatch
9.8
Describing Robocatch as Éa Space Invader clone with a differenceæ, as
the accompanying letter does, is not one of the best methods of building
my anticipation. The format has been done to death over the years and a
game has to be very good indeed to compete with the better
implementations, such as Galaforce on the BBC and YAIG, the public
domain offering along these lines on the Archimedes. On paper, however,
it seems that Robocatch may have what it takes.
9.8
The program automatically detects which computer you are using, from a
humble ARM 2 to a Risc PC, and increases the effects accordingly.
Soundtrack tunes are available to those who have 2Mb or more memory. The
game contains 101Kb of sampled sound effects and over 925Kb of 256
colour sprite data. The high score table can be saved to disc, the game
is easily transferred to hard disc or a high density floppy to avoid
disc swapping and, if you have an A3010, you can use a joystick instead
of the keyboard.
9.8
On loading the game, one of the first things that you notice is the
graphics. The sprites are large and brightly coloured and, obviously, a
good deal of trouble has been taken in their construction. The
Édifferenceæ, referred to earlier, which differentiates Robocatch from
most Space Invader clones is that, when you shoot an alien, they drop a
gold football which you can then catch to provide you with power¡ups.
Amongst other things, the power-ups can increase/decrease your score or
provide you with more missiles to launch at the enemy.
9.8
One of the most annoying features of this game is the fanfare which
accompanies the catching of these balls. I reached the point where I
seriously considered avoiding them, as the sound effect was driving me
up the wall. It is also very difficult to work out whether catching a
ball will result in a positive or negative effect. They are all the same
colour, and the only way of telling is to note which alien dropped it.
With bombs raining down and sprites hurtling around the screen at a rate
of knots, I am still none the wiser.
9.8
However, it has to be said, neither did I care. Robocatch boasts nine
levels of gradually increasing difficulty, built around a game scenario
that makes watching paint dry seem interesting. The longevity of the
challenge has to be questioned too, as I completed all nine levels at my
first attempt. This is a game that will appeal strictly to Space Invader
aficionados only.
9.8
Caves of Confusion
9.8
The first time I loaded Caves of Confusion, I forgot to run !RpcMode
beforehand. My three lives lasted approximately twenty seconds. The
utility supplied with both these games would seem to be essential when
playing CoC on a Risc PC. Having exited the game and loaded the utility,
it became possible for me to progress further.
9.8
Caves of Confusion is a horizontally scrolling shoot-æem-up in which you
attempt to blast away everything that moves, while avoiding asteroids
and, on later levels, invincible space craft and what can only be
described as planets, which appear at ever more regular intervals. Once
again, there is a plethora of sprites, sound effects and atmospheric
music, while the action is fast and furious. Sadly, it is also mind-
numbingly repetitive.
9.8
Scrolling shoot-æem-up games had a renaissance a couple of years back,
due to the addition of power-ups which enabled you to upgrade your ship,
and huge end-of-level guardians which took not a little strategy and
thought to destroy. In Caves of Confusion, the guardians are larger than
the standard ships but not overly impressive. The asteroids always
appear on screen at the same level as your ship and so are relatively
easy to avoid, even on level three, where they appear from behind, as
well as in front of you. The invincible ships which appear from the
bottom left corner (and the top left in level four) are annoyingly
difficult to avoid and I felt it was rather unfair that it was not
possible to shoot them.
9.8
With four levels, from hard to nearly impossible, Caves of Confusion
certainly provides a challenge. The programmer has thoughtfully provided
a password system so that you can avoid starting from the beginning
every time you bite the dust, having managed to blast your way past
level one.
9.8
Conclusions
9.8
These two games share much the same highs and lows. They are both
written in Basic, then compiled using Silicon Visionæs RiscBasic
compiler. As such, they are a testimony to what is achievable on the
Archimedes without resorting to ARM code. The sprite routines are very
fast and completely flicker free. The sprites themselves are reasonably
well drawn and, apart from the fanfare in RoboCatch, the sound effects
all add to the atmosphere. With more imagination and ambition in the
design stage, they could have been very entertaining games. Sadly,
however, they merely serve to whet the appetite for what Generation
Design may be capable of in the future and should act as inspiration for
Basic programmers who yearn to write games. Demo versions are available
and I would advise anybody considering spending their money to try them
first.áuá
9.8
Paul Beverley
9.8