Archive Magazine 1997/ARCHIVE_97.iso/text/magazine/vol_09/issue_10

Text File | 1996-06-05 | 319KB | 6,378 lines

Products Available
9.10
ANT Internet Suite II is the new version, due for release this month, of
the popular internet program. Amongst the improvements are: Dialler, an
easy-to-use utility for connecting to service providers and launching
the Suiteæs applications; Fresco, the Web browser, which now supports
tables and client-side image maps, local and global history lists,
additional Netscape and HTML 3.0 extensions, progressive rendering of
GIF, PNG and JPEG images, text and tables; Marcel features support for
the SMTP, POP and IMAP email protocols as well as MIME encoding;
graphical front ends have been developed for utilities including Finger,
Resolver, TraceRoute and Whols, as well as an enhanced Ping utility.
9.10
An upgrade pack including new release disc and an entirely new manual
will be available direct from ANT to registered users for ú10 inclusive.
Registered users who have supplied ANT with a current address will be
notified by email when it become available.
9.10
To new users, the ANT Suite costs ú99 +VAT +p&p or ú115 through Archive.
9.10
!CPC Ö This is a new version of !CPC, the Amstrad CPC emulator for Acorn
RISC OS computers. It features many significant improvements over
previous versions, resulting in a very high degree of compatibility with
the real thing, as well as myriad improvements for enhanced user-
friendliness. CPC is shareware Ö a demonstration version, !CPC_Demo, is
available on the World Wide Web, at the following URL: http://
www.hep.phy.cam.ac.uk:8080/rison/cpc/cpc.html.
9.10
Full details on registering for !CPC are given inside !CPC_Demoæs !Help
file.
9.10
CASA III Ö (Computer Assisted Structural Analysis) W C Smith and
Associates have been developing structural analysis software for RISC OS
for over 6 years. Their latest product, CASA-III, makes use of 3D
perspective graphics through which the user can interact with, and edit,
the model of a structure.
9.10
They recently launched a new bureau service; for a small registration
fee, the user will receive a copy of CASA-III with full pre- and post-
processing capabilities. When the user requires an analysis, they
prepare the data using CASA-III and then send the data to W C Smith, who
perform the analysis, and the results will be returned. From as little
as ú10 +VAT per analysis, this approach can be quite cost-effective for
users who will not be using CASA-III intensively. Initially, this will
be a postal service, but if sufficient demand is found, they will
upgrade it to allow the data to be transferred by modem. CASA III costs
ú950 +VAT from W C Smith & Associates.
9.10
CastleTech SCSI 2 card is a 16-bit card at a budget price. It has a 16
byte cache on chip; CDFS and SCSI2 CD-ROM softload driver in ROM,
transfer rate of up to about 1.7Mb/sec, with bulk rate of up to 2.4 Mb/
sec possible on some machine types. It doesnæt allow DMA access and is
16-bit not 32-bit, but it is half the price of other SCSI II cards. It
costs ú99 +VAT +p&p from Castle Technology, or ú114 through Archive.
9.10
CDFast2 is a totally new version of Eesoxæs CDFast, and is said to
enhance the performance of virtually all CD-ROM titles and applications,
in some cases improving performance by between 30Ö40%. Among some of the
new features are: improved caching algorithms; larger cache memory;
configurable cache sizes; multiple simultaneous drives; Quad and Octal
speed drive support. Existing users of CDFast can upgrade by sending
their original disc to Eesox with a cheque for ú10 inclusive.
9.10
CDFast2 costs ú25 +VAT (ú28 through Archive) or ú15 +VAT (ú17 through
Archive) when ordered with an Eesox CD-ROM drive.
9.10
CD-ROM drive Ö Eesox have released a new 4.5 speed SCSI Gold CD-ROM
drive for use by any Acorn machine. It comes with cable, driver software
and utilities, and can be used in tower mode. The 4.5 speed CD-ROM costs
ú160 inclusive through Archive for the internal version and ú240 for the
external version.
9.10
Composition Ö This had a good review from Malcolm Banthorpe last month
(p33), and that was written when he thought the price was ú160 but now
it is down to ú99.95, or ú95 through Archive, so it is even better
value!
9.10
Digital Oasis Ö This isnæt a Product Available, more of a Service
Available, but we thought weæd mention it here. Digital Oasis is an
Acorn Web e¡magazine which you can access via your Web browser on:
http://www.argonet.co.uk/users/aok/
9.10
According to its producers, ÉFeedback is welcome. Ifáthere is something
you would like to see in Digital Oasis, write and tell us. New writers
are welcome to submit articles and ideas. The ÉOzæ style non-linear page
access was implemented entirely from email dialogue between Carl
Cepurneek in Oz and ourselves. Digital Oasis is updated regularly, as we
get articles and newsæ.
9.10
DIY RiscPC Ö Following on from last monthæs article, we ought to point
out that a DIY RiscPC is not really DIY! In other words, you select what
you want and NCS puts it together for you and tests it. If you are
thinking of buying a RiscPC in this way, it would be worth getting in
touch because the pricing of memory is still very volatile, so you may
want to know the latest prices to help you work out your purchase.
9.10
Secondly, we ought to make it clear that the ACB64 has exactly the same
pcb as the 710 machines. In other words, it is not one of the older
RiscPCs, and if you were to change the processor and memory, and added
an extra slice, it would then be identical to a RiscPC 700 Ö except that
it would have a ÉRiscPC 600æ logo on the front!
9.10
Thirdly, we werenæt deliberately trying to mislead you when we said, öIt
is important to know whether Acorn are likely to come up with a RiscPC
capable of taking, say, 4Mb VRAM. The answer, quite categorically, is
NO. The next major change will be the PowerPC machine which wonæt be
around until 1997 some time.ò Since that went into print, we have heard
that, because the StrongARM is so good, Acorn are looking at the
possibility of doing a StrongARM RiscPC. Itæs not definite yet, and in
any case, it wouldnæt be available until some time during æ97. Also,
they are looking at the idea of it being possible to provide it as a
Épcb upgradeæ, i.e. you keep the same case, drives, memory and
processor, and just swap out the main circuit board.
9.10
STOP PRESS: the financial calculations in the article have just changed
Ö in your favour Ö because the price of memory has fallen even further.
So you save even more money than we said by buying the bottom-end RiscPC
and upgrading it.
9.10
DrawWorks2 is a complete re-write of iSVæs original DrawWorks program.
Among some of its new features are: a second button bar with 64 buttons,
giving easy access to most of the Draw features; a new preferences
control; integrated path merging and scrunching; information report on a
drawfile or selection (including information on any fonts used);
changeable toolbar options; improved versions of merge, kern and scrunch
tools; DrawTrix file effects processor which allows drawfiles to be
warped, twisted and even wrapped around 3D shapes. DrawWorks2 costs ú20
+p&p from iSV or ú20 inclusive through Archive. To upgrade from
DrawWorks1, return your master disc with a cheque for ú10 to iSV.
9.10
Epson scanners Ö We have some improved pricing on Epson A4 flatbed
scanners this month. The following prices include Twain and Imagemaster:
9.10
GTX5000 (parallel)   300dpi  ú480
9.10
GTX5000 (SCSI)   300dpi  ú550
9.10
GT8500 A4 (SCSI)   400dpi  ú630
9.10
GT9000 A4 (SCSI)   600dpi  ú750
9.10
FM Radio, from Irlam Instruments, is a fully featured FM stereo
receiver, allowing radio broadcasts to be listened to via the computer.
Preset channels, auto-tuning, plus control of volume, balance, bass and
treble are all included. Itæs suitable for A300, A400, A540, A5000,
A7000 and RiscPC, and costs ú79 +VAT +p&p from Irlam Instruments or ú91
through Archive.
9.10
FPA11 Ö The Floating Point Accelerator which can be fitted to the A540,
and both the 25MHz and 33MHz variants of the A5000, is still available
and the price has come down too. The new Archive price is ú104.
9.10
French clipart is a series of discs made up of clipart for use by French
language teachers. The threeádiscs cover various aspects of the National
Curriculum. Disc 1 covers Area of Experience A; Disc 2 Area B and some
of Area C; Disc 3 covers topics from the remaining areas. Each disc
costs ú6 and includes a donation to Christian Aid of ú1. Theyáare
available from: R J H Enterprises, Beck Bottom, 9áMoorland Close,
Embsay, Skipton, N.áYorks, BD23 6SG.
9.10
Full-FS RSDFS is the new Full-FS version of RSDFS from Armed Forces. It
provides a complete RISC OS filing system for accessing the hard disc of
one computer over a serial link to another machine, either via a direct
cable or through a modem link-up. It provides everything you would be
able to do if the hard disc were inside your own computer, but obviously
not quite as fast. Users of previous versions of RSDFS can upgrade for
ú15, and the complete Full FS package costs ú45 from Armed Forces.
Alláprices fully inclusive Ö they are not yet VAT registered.
9.10
Fun with Texts is a foreign language package originally designed for the
BBC B in 1984. It was one of the most popular software packages for
modern language. The program has recently been converted and updated to
run on RISC OS machines. It is an imaginative authoring package that
enables a teacher to create a number of short texts which can then be
used by students as the basis of a variety of text-reconstruction
exercises. The package has been thoroughly field-tested by experienced
teachers and by students of English, French, German, Spanish and
Italian. It is designed for use by individual students or by pairs and
small groups. Fun with Texts is printed and published by Camsoft and
costs ú75 +VAT for a 10-computer site licence.
9.10
Hawk V9 Mk II Ö CCæs digitiser has gone the way of their Eagle
multimedia card Ö it is no longer available. (Weæve got one left in
stock at ú190 Ö first phone call secures.)
9.10
HighWay Ö The main purpose of HighWay is to allow you to have your most
regularly used applications, directories and files easily available. By
dragging your desired objects into the HighWay filer window, they can be
set to do a multitude of things, both at the time, and at the computeræs
start-up.
9.10
Among some of the features are: easy loading and saving of up to eight
named Pinboards; applications and files can be run, or set to run, on
start-up; star commands can be set to be operated by just a double-
click; different HighWay setups can be used for named users; objects in
the HighWay window can be placed in the order you want them, or can be
hidden if required.
9.10
To obtain a copy, send a cheque for ú25 to: MráBáVeasey, 24 Drift Road,
Bognor Regis, WestáSussex. PO21 3NS (orders outside UK may attract
carriage charges at cost) Email: [e-mail]
9.10
For more details see: http://www.argonet.co.uk/users/bernard.veasey/
soft.html
9.10
HolyBible Resource Builder creates multimedia directories for use with
HolyBible. The items within these directories are made available when
HolyBible is run and will appear as icons in the Resources Window when
the relevant Étaggedæ Bible passages are visible on screen. Tagged
resources may be global or specific Ö this will depend on context within
the Bible text and user interpretation. Resource Builder allows for the
import of text, draw, sprite and JPEG filetypes. Special features
include: temporary overlays which highlight specific areas or indicate
orientation without affecting the original file; customised icons
identify Éspecial filetypesæ which include a compound resource icon, map
resource icon and chart with position markers.
9.10
Resource Builder costs ú38 +VAT (includes free site licence and
carriage) or ú43 through Archive.
9.10
Insight Training Ö The Secondary Insight Conference is a two-day
programme of training and presentations designed to benefit IT
coordinators, subject teachers and anyone else involved in planning,
implementing or supporting secondary school IT. Delegates can choose
according to their needs from presentations and hand-ons training
sessions, with both Apple and Acorn systems. The conference is being run
by Insight Training and Xemplar, at Oakham School on 5th and 6th July.
9.10
The conference fee is ú160 +VAT, which includes all training and tuition
fees, conference pack, materials and course notes, lunch, dinner and
refreshments on Friday, and lunch and refreshments on Saturday.
Overnight accommodation is not included.
9.10
For more information, contact Insight Training. Up¡to-date information
can also be found on the Insight web page on: http://www/argonet.co.uk/
business/insight/.
9.10
Keystroke V4 is now available. Itæs more powerful, faster and easier to
use than ever before. According to Quantum Software, many of the changes
have come about because of customer feedback Ö this includes a bigger
and much easier to follow manual.
9.10
Keystroke is a desktop utility which allows you to perform a range of
desktop activities with a click of the mouse or the press of a key. For
example, at a single keystroke, you can call up Impression master pages
and go straight to the master page you want to edit. You can add auto-
save to those applications that lack it. You can even make up your own
button bar. It comes with example files of Keystroke definitions for
Filer, Paint, Draw, DrawPlus, TypeStudio, Vector, WorraCAD, Ovation and
Impression amongst other.
9.10
The new version is faster, is much easier to set up and use, includes
over sixty functions, and is fully compatible with RISC OS 3.1 and 3.6.
Existing users can upgrade by returning their original discs with a
cheque for ú9.95 to Quantum Software (users outside of the UK need to
add a further ú1). To new users, Keystroke costs ú 35.95 inclusive or
ú34 through Archive.
9.10
Maker Series from Carlton Software comes on three discs, offering three
desktop utilities. DateMaker is a diary application which allows you to
list all your appointments by day and time. Entries remain fully
editable, you can export data, search on keywords, and jump forwards or
backwards through the list. MailMaker is an address book which provides
fields for: name, address, home and work phone numbers, email, fax and
notes. Categories are user-definable; there are export facilities for
TSV and CSV; names can be seen at a glance through pop up menus, and
records can be sorted. MemoMaker is a Éto doæ list manager. Memos can
have up to twelve lines of text; they can be prioritised, sorted and
exported to and from Acornæs Pocket Book.
9.10
Each application costs ú7.23 +VAT +p&p, or ú10 through Archive.
9.10
Mozart mixer Ö YESæs mixer is designed for the original Mká1 RiscPCs and
provides, in one single card costing ú69 through Archive, the
functionality of the 16-bit ÉMinnieæ sound card (normally ú71) and an
audio mixer (normally ú44).
9.10
Previously, the situation was that the Acorn/ESP 16¡bit sound card was
needed by the Mká1 RiscPCs in order to get sound from the PC card, and
also to give them the 16¡bit sound capability of the current Mká2
machines. The Eesox audio mixer board was needed if you wished to feed
the direct audio output from audio CDs through the RiscPCæs internal
sound system (so that a single set of speakers could be used for all the
sound output). However, both of these have now been completely replaced
by the Mozart card.
9.10
The Mozart card is better than the combination in several ways. (1) The
obvious advantage is that the single card is less fiddly to fit, and
cheaper, than two. (2) There are two inputs for CD audio not just the
one. (3) It is possible to switch between the 16¡bit and 8¡bit systems
in software, so there is no need to take your RiscPC apart just to play
certain games whose sound only works correctly under the 8¡bit system.
(4) Most software designed for 8¡bit sound will work fine with the
16¡bit system under emulation, but the poorer quality of 8¡bit samples
can be shown up by the 16¡bit system, so the Mozart card adjusts the
response of the output filter to the sample rate being played to give
the highest quality output regardless.
9.10
However, unlike the Eesox audio mixer, the Mozart card does not
automatically come with a CD audio lead, so if you intend to connect the
audio output from your CD drive to the Mozart card, and you did not get
an audio lead with the CD drive itself, you will need one. When ordered
separately, these CD audio leads cost ú6.
9.10
My First Incredible Amazing Dictionary is the latest title from IMS to
be converted from the PC world to the Acorn platform. The CD-ROM
introduces 4Ö7 year olds to 1000 words, with their British
pronunciations and their meanings, through spoken words and pictures,
3,000 sound effects, and 850 animations, and games. My First Incredible
Amazing Dictionary uses CD-ROM technology to present opposites,
synonyms, word groups and other vocabulary elements to increase their
understanding of language.
9.10
IMS already have a long list of CD-ROMs they hope to convert over the
next couple of years Ö and the list is growing! Look out over the coming
months for: My First Amazing World Explorer; The Ultimate Human Body;
Encyclopedia of Science; Encyclopedia of Nature; Encarta 96; Kiyeko and
the Lost Night; Hutchinsonæs Multimedia Encyclopedia, and many more!
9.10
My First Incredible Amazing Dictionary CD-ROM costs ú39 inclusive from
IMS.
9.10
MultiGen2 Ö The high band Genlock adaptor from Sonamara Computer Video
has dropped in price and gone up in specification. It now supports
resolutions of up to 800╫600, with simultaneous RGB, S-Video and
composite video outputs, as well as S-Video and composite video inputs.
Features of the external unit include under/overscan options, image re-
scaling and re-positioning, freeze frame and fade (with adjustable rates
of fade). An infra-red remote control provides full control over all
functions. The MultiGen2 is available for PAL or NTSC. AáMultiGen2 Pro
is also available offering resolutions up to 1600╫1200 plus 2╫ zoom and
pan.
9.10
MultiGen2 costs ú299.95 inclusive or ú345 through Archive. MultiGen2 Pro
costs ú499.95 or ú575 through Archive. For users who require
professional titling in their videos, there are two new bundles
available Ö MultiGen2 + Claresæ Titler for ú369.95, and MultiGen2 Pro +
Titler at ú549.95 (ú425 and ú635 respectively through Archive).
9.10
Observess is an Expert System shell for the Acorn RISC OS machine. It is
fully desktop compatible and incorporates an IF... THEN... rule
structure with up to three conditions. It provides support for
percentage-based certainty factors on facts and rules, and single or
multiple recommendations based on the certainty factors. Included in the
latest version (2.71) is a backward chaining inference engine. The price
remains at ú40 (no VAT) for a single user copy, or ú120 for a site
licence. Further information can be obtained from: Chessfield Software Ö
[e-mail].
9.10
Panorama from HCCS, provides a new way of capturing high resolution
images using an ordinary camcorder. It works by capturing a sequence of
video images from a camera which is panning across a scene. These
pictures are then matched together to create a single seamless image.
9.10
The minimum requirement is a 4Mb machine with hard disc and an
application which allows you to view 16 and 24-bit sprites. The
panoramas are built to the hard disc, so even with a minimum
specification, you can build pictures of almost any size. For
professional use, it is recommended that a RiscPC with 1Mb of VRAM, 8Mb
of RAM and 100Mb of free hard disc space be used. Included in the
software is a tiler feature which allows a number of A4 sheets to be
printed with crop marks for matching together.
9.10
The package comprises: Vision 24 hardware, Panorama software, 16 sheets
of A4 inkjet paper, 16 foam A4 tiles, a can of aerosol glue, a stainless
steel 12 inch ruler and a knife. It costs ú249 +VAT or ú290 through
Archive. To upgrade from Mono Vision, CVision, and HVision costs ú149
+VAT, and to upgrade from Vision 24 costs ú99 +VAT through HCCS.
9.10
!Printers 1.53 Ö An update to Acornæs printer driver software now
supports the Canon BJC-4100 and BJ-210 inkjet printers, and also Epsonæs
Stylus-Pro and Stylus Pro XL. The ÉSmall Halftonesæ option has been
reintroduced as Éhalftoned (fine)æ. It is available from Acornæs FTP
site or on our Utilities Disc 7 for ú2.
9.10
Probe is an interactive computer-based interest questionnaire,
graphically illustrated throughout by colour drawings. Itæs designed to
introduce younger pupils to the idea of relating interests and skills
with the requirements of future occupations. Possible broad careers
areas are revealed, together with basic foundation subjects. Pupil
printouts can be made, as can worksheets for further research. Probe
will be kept up-to-date by Cambridge Occupational Analysis on an annual
basis Ö therefore discs are leased for a 12-month period, with revised
discs becoming available at the beginning of each year.
9.10
A 12 month lease costs ú90 +VAT. A six month lease costs ú45 +VAT, from
Cambridge Occupational Analysis Ltd.
9.10
Religions of the World has come to our notice in answer to Liz Leydenæs
request for information about religious programs for Acorn machines (9.9
p54). This application is produced by Ultima and is sold through SEMERC.
The application covers aspects of six major religions and is intended as
an introduction to children at Key Stage 2 and 3. It covers the main
beliefs of Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, Buddhists and Jews,
allowing comparisons across and between religions. The application comes
on a 1.6Mb disc, and youæll need at least 2Mb of memory.
9.10
Religions of the World costs ú24 +VAT +p&p from SEMERC.
9.10
Risc TV from Irlam Instruments is a full motion 24-bit colour desktop
television and teletext system. With Risc TV, you can watch full motion,
full size, true colour television in the desktop, and capture high
quality still images. Auxiliary composite video and S¡VHS inputs are
provided, so that you can connect recorders, camcorders and Canon Ion
cameras. Risc TV uses special hardware to superimpose a video image
directly onto the screen with no processor or bus overhead Ö it means
you can watch TV and still use your computer! An optional teletext
module can be added to provide teletext support. Pages can be selected
and viewed in the desktop, and subsequently saved as sprite or plain
text files. Fastext and index page links are fully supported. Risc TV is
available for A5000, A7000 and RiscPC.
9.10
The Risc TV package, comprising expansion card, applications and manual,
costs ú249 +VAT +p&p. The Teletext decoder module costs ú39 +VAT +p&p.
Through Archive, the card costs ú290 and the decoder module costs ú64.
9.10
SCSI ROM upgrades Ö For those not fortunate enough to have one of
Alsystemsæ Power-tec SCSI cards, Alsystems are producing ROMs suitable
to replace those of other manufacturersæ cards. The first for this
treatment is the Morley cached or uncached SCSI card. Inserting the
Power-tec ROM into your Morley card will not magically transform it into
a fast SCSI 2 card, but it will allow you access to all the software
features of the real thing, including the slick easy-to-use front end,
Énew FileCoreæ awareness, up to eight disc partitions, CDFS and the
soft-loading CD drivers for a good range of CD drive types. This
replacement ROM (+disc +manual) costs ú40 +VAT from Alsystems, or ú46
through Archive.
9.10
Serial NET, from iSV, is a network system for connecting two computers
via their serial ports. Messages and files can easily be transferred,
printers shared, and discs accessed from either machine. Transfer rates
start at 25Kb/s on RISC OS 3.1 machines, faster on RiscPCs and A7000s.
Any two machines can be connected and no special cables are required,
although different wiring diagrams are supplied for connecting RiscPCs
and non-RiscPCs. Serial NET costs ú20 +p&p, or ú20 inclusive through
Archive.
9.10
StrongARM Upgrade Ö The StrongARM is continuing to amaze the engineers
at Acorn. Even the first pre-production silicon is now running Draw at
up to 7 times the speed of an ARM710! This is quite staggering and gives
the RiscPC a huge lead over its PC rivals. The StrongARM upgrade for
RiscPC will cost ú249 +VAT = ú292.57, and it is scheduled to be
available by September. This price includes the new version of RISCáOS
that is needed to run the card.
9.10
If you would like to Ébook a place in the queueæ, ask us to send you an
application form, then send it, with a cheque for ú50 deposit, to Acorn
Direct in Wellingborough. When the cards are available, you will be
invoiced for the remaining ú242.57, and Acorn will send you the card.
Until all priority orders are fulfilled, no cards will be supplied to
dealers. (Donæt worry, NCS gets a payment for each card sold, provided
you nominate us as your Épreferred dealeræ!)
9.10
For potential RiscPCáowners, if you buy a RiscPC before 30th June 1996
(although we think this may be extended until the end of August), Acorn
will make the StrongARM upgrade available to you for just ú99á+VAT! So
if you havenæt yet read the article in last monthæs magazine about how
to save money on buying a RiscPC (ÉDIY RiscPCsæ Ö page 9) we suggest you
do so... quickly! Also, the price of memory is still falling, so the
savings mentioned last month are even greater this month! (Apparently
the price drop is because the anticipated uptake of the Windows 95
Émemory eateræ has not been as big as anticipated Ö has öthe worm
turnedò? Ö and so there is memory around in the market not being used.
Once again, Microsoftæs loss is our gain!!)
9.10
TopModel, Sincroniaæs 3D modelling package, is now available through
Spacetech. TopModel is the first package of a new series of professional
tools for 3D graphics creation on RISC OS platforms. It gives you the
possibility to create your own 3D objects and manipulate them. You can
add textures, material definitions and many different light sources, to
give your scenes the maximum level of reality. Even the most complex
models can be created and manipulated with unrivalled ease and speed,
with objects made up of hundreds of thousands of polygons. Optimized
hand-written ARM code routines have been created to boost performance in
all areas, from screen redraw to the most exotic tool. For the first
time, all operations (from line drawing to complex non-linear extrusion,
from torsion to Bezier volume distortion) are applied in real time.
9.10
Filters are provided for import/export of various industry-standard
formats. TopModel can save your scenes in native ASCII and binary file
formats, as well as drawfiles for easy inclusion in your documents and
as sprite files for various other purposes. For the best output, the
package can produce high quality 24bpp rendered images, with multiple
light sources at sizes up to 2048╫2048 pixels (memory permitting).
9.10
TopModel uses 96 bits colour precision for each pixel, and produces a
24bpp dithered output (typical time for a high quality 800╫600 pixels
24bbp output with several light sources and an exact material matching
on a RiscPC 600, is 5 seconds).
9.10
The system requirements are RISC OS 3.10 or later, 2Mb of RAM minimum
(4Mb recommended), hard disc drive, VGA or multisync monitor
recommended. TopModel costs ú99 +VAT from Spacetech or ú110 through
Archive.
9.10
For further details, see Alex Cardæs comprehensive review on page 23.
9.10
Tiles is a visually attractive and entertaining crossword game that
provides a basis for learning spelling, vocabulary, strategy and
computer literacy. To cater for all levels of ability, 30 boards are
supplied in five languages: English, French, German, Spanish and
Italian. The game is played using the mouse by up to four players. Each
player has his own window from which he drags tiles to the main board
window. If a word is completed, an entry is made in the playeræs score
window. Sets of sprites optimise the screen display for different types
of monitor. User defined patterns and boards may be added. Playersæ
names, some of the rules, and the display setup are user specified and
may be saved. Sprites are generated from the useræs outline fonts or the
system font.
9.10
GCSE Basic French for Beginners (supplementary) Ö this disc contains 223
French Language crosswords of words of six letters or less for students
starting the GCSE basic level French course. Age range: 13 to adult;
French AT3, Reading: Key Stage 1Ö3. This costs ú19.75 (no VAT) from
Brain Games.
9.10
GCSE Basic French for Improvers (supplementary) Ö this disc contains 217
French Language crosswords for students approaching examinations in the
GCSE basic level French course. The disc is a companion volume for the
GCSE French for Beginners supplementary disc and is laid out in a
similar manner. Age range: 14 to adult; French AT3; Reading: Key Stage
2Ö4; ú19.75 (no VAT) Site licences are available from Brain Games.
9.10
TextEase continues to develop at a pace Ö future developments will see
video Replay, sound and animation all incorporated into a TextEase file.
According to Softease, the developers: ÉHaving already broken down the
boundaries between desktop publishing and word processing, we are now
tackling the boundary between multimedia and desktop publishing.
Multimedia document handling will soon be available, and very easy to
use.æ
9.10
The latest version allows text to be rotated, JPEG support on RISC OS
3.60, drag and drop editing, Object Linking & Embedding (OLE), an
ellipse tool, arrow heads on lines, customisable button bar. Talking
Textease is the same as Textease with the addition of an extra button on
the button bar to make it start talking Ö highlighting each word as it
is spoken. There is also an option to talk as you type. Textease version
2 costs ú49 +VAT and Talking Textease is ú65 +VAT, or ú55 and ú73
respectively through Archive.
9.10
Vector v1.1 Ö The price of 4Mationæs vector graphics package is now down
to ú59.95 +VAT or ú66 through Archive. 4Mation have said that they are
re-vamping Vector, so weæll bring you details as and when they are
available. However, as Computer Concepts say they are not sure whether
they are going to develop anything further for the Acorn platform, being
fully committed with Corel Xara, there is now room for someone to
overtake Artworks. Could Vector 2 will be the next Artworks?!
9.10
YES audio mixer Ö Yellowstone Educational Solutions (YES) have produced
an audio mixer based on the mixer circuitry of their Mozart sound card.
For those who need to be able to feed the audio output from one or two
CD-ROM drives into their RiscPCæs internal sound system, but who do not
need the 16¡bit sound card functionality offered by the Mozart card,
this is a cheaper alternative to the Eesox audio mixer. The YES audio
mixer is ú29.95+VAT from them, or ú34 through Archive. Note that this
does not come with a CD audio cable, so if you did not get one with the
CD drive, add ú6 to your order.
9.10
Product News
9.10
APEX Broadcast Video Board Ö Acorn videographics hardware specialists,
Millipede, now have the StrongARM processor running on their APEX
broadcast video board. This is an upgrade for the current ARM610 or ARM3
processor daughterboard. APEX is an advanced videographics processor
engine, designed for high quality, high performance real-time video
applications. The StrongARM upgrade should considerably enhance existing
software and open up new opportunities. For instance, there will be a
significant increase in the performance of the Eidos video codec
software running on the board.
9.10
Initial tests using prototype silicon look exciting, with very
significant speed increases for image processing and image manipulation
functions. However, it is too early for Millipede to accurately quantify
the performance gains. ÉWe first need to optimise some of our coding for
StrongARMæ, said Richard Jozefowski. ÉOur custom P3 chip architecture
makes extensive use of DMA, and we need to ensure that we best utilise
the non-write-through data cache, whilst maintaining cache consistency.æ
The APEX firmware is contained in Flash memory, making it quick and easy
to update with StrongARM optimised code.
9.10
StrongARM upgrades for APEX should be available when production silicon
comes on line later this summer and are expected to be priced at about
ú250 +VAT. For more information contact: [e-mail]
9.10
Micropedia 96 Ö The new edition of the Kingfisher Childrenæs Micropedia
will be published in the next month or so by ESM, and will contain a new
level of information for the very young and for special needs users. The
use of shortened, spoken entries and simplified cross-references will
help many more young enquirers to investigate and learn for themselves.
The Micropedia æ96 will also contain the Seelinks database, which will
allow children to sort and classify the entries which they are
interested in, before accessing the whole encyclopedia.
9.10
WinRisc Ö This is one to look out for! According to the press release
from Armed Forces: öWith the obvious exception of the StrongARM, we
believe that WinRisc will be the most important release on the Acorn
platform this year! WinRisc will allow you to run Windows software under
RISC OS! You will be able to access the massive range of specialised and
industry standard software available for Windows while maintaining most
of the consistency and ease of use provided by RISC OS! Gone are menu
bars on top of windows, gone is the awkward program manager. In their
place, are floating RISC OS-style menus, a RISC OS style filer display,
much better multitasking of Windows software, drag and drop file load
and save from Windows software.
9.10
öWinRisc will not be available for purchase for some time yet Ö we have
only just got much of it working, and some parts are still not working.
Even when it is ready, our team of beta testers will require several
weeks to give the software a thorough testing, so donæt hold your
breath! We anticipate a price of around ú25.ò
9.10
Review software received...
9.10
We have received review copies of the following: ÅEncode (u), ÅMy First
Incredible Amazing Dictionary CD (e), ÅSimple Circuits (e),
ÅObservessá(p) ÅReligions of the World (e) ÅCDFast2á(u), ÅMaker Series
(d/u/b).
9.10
b=Business, d=Database, e=Education, p=Programming, u=Utility.áuá
9.10
4Mation  14áCastleáParkáRoad, WhiddonáValley, Barnstaple, Devon,
EX32á8PA. (01271¡25353) [01271¡22974] <[e-mail]>
9.10
Abacus Training  29 Okus Grove, Upper Stratton, Swindon, Wilts, SN2 6QA.
(01793¡723347) [01793¡723347]
9.10
Acorn-by-Post  13 Dennington Road, Wellingborough, Northants, NN8 2BR.
(01933¡279300)
9.10
AcornáComputeráGroup  The Quorum, Barnwell Road, Cambridge, CB5 8RE.
(01223¡724724) [01223¡724324]                                 http://
www.acorn.co.uk/
9.10
AcornáNC + Acorn OM  CambridgeáTechnopark, 645áNewmarketáRoad,
Cambridge, CB5á8PB. (01223¡518518) [01223¡518520]
9.10
AcornáRiscáTechnologies  CambridgeáTechnopark, 645áNewmarketáRoad,
Cambridge, CB5á8PB. (01223¡577800) [01223¡577900]
<[e-mail]>
9.10
AlepháOneáLtd  TheáOldáCourthouse, Bottisham, Cambridge, CB5á9BA.
(01223¡811679) [01223¡812713] <[e-mail]>
9.10
Alsystems (p13)  47áWinchesteráRoad, FouráMarks, Alton, Hampshire,
GU34á5HG. (01420¡561111) <[e-mail]>
9.10
AngliaáMultimedia  AngliaáHouse, Norwich, NR1á3JG. (01603¡615151)
[01603¡631032]
9.10
ANTáLtd  P.O.Boxá300, Cambridge, CB1á2EG. (01223¡567808) [01223¡567801]
<[e-mail]>
9.10
APDL  39 Knighton Park Road, Sydenham, London, SE26 5RN. (0181-778-2659)
[0181-488-0487] <[e-mail]>
9.10
Argonetá(a.k.a. VTI)  Unitá1, TheáShopwhykeáCentre, ShopwhykeáRoad,
Chichester, PO20á6GD. (0500¡585586) [01243¡531196] <[e-mail]>
9.10
ARMedáForces  38áMaináRoad, Littleton, Winchester, SO22á6QQ.
(01962¡880591)
9.10
BeebugáLtd  117áHatfieldáRoad, StáAlbans, Herts, AL1á4JS. (01727¡840303)
[01727¡860263]
9.10
BraináGames  Swinegate, Hessle, NortháHumberside, HU13á9LH.
(01482¡649288) [01482¡641136] <[e-mail]>
9.10
CambridgeáOccupationaláAnalysts    TheáOldáRectory, Sparham, Norwich,
NR9á5AQ. (01362-688722) [01360-688733]
9.10
Camsoft  10áWheatfieldáClose, Maidenhead, Berks, SL6á3PS. (01628¡825206)
[01628¡825206] <[e-mail]>á<[e-mail]>
9.10
Care Electronics  15 Holland Gardens, Garston, Watford, WD2 6JN. (01923-
894064) [01923-672102]
9.10
Carlton Software  Felmersham Road, Carlton, Bedford, MK43 7NA. (01234-
721448)
9.10
CastleáTechnology  OreáTradingáEstate, WoodbridgeáRoad, Framlingham,
Suffolk, IP13á9LL. (01728¡621222) [01728¡621179]
<[e-mail]>
9.10
ChessfieldáSoftware  61áChessfieldáPark, LittleáChalfont, HP6á6RU.
9.10
ClaresáMicroáSupplies  98áMiddlewicháRoad, Rudheath, Northwich,
Cheshire, CW9á7DA. (01606¡48511) [01606¡48512]
<[e-mail]>
9.10
ColtonáSoftware  2áSignetáCourt, SwannsáRoad, Cambridge, CB5á8LA.
(01223¡311881) [01223¡312010] <[e-mail]>
9.10
ComputeráConcepts  GaddesdenáPlace, HemeláHempstead, Herts, HP2á6EX.
(01442¡351000) [01442¡351010]
9.10
CreativeáCurriculumáSoftware     5áCloveráHilláRoad, SavileáPark,
Halifax, HX1á2YG. (01422¡340524) [01422¡346388]
<[e-mail]>
9.10
DavidáPilling  P.O.Boxá22, ThorntonáCleveleys, Blackpool, FY5á1LR.
(01253¡852806) <[e-mail]>
9.10
DexedreamáProductions  12áAlneáTerrace, Fulford, York.
<[e-mail]>
9.10
Doggysoft  FurzefieldáHouse, FurzefieldáRoad, Beaconsfield, Bucks,
HP9á1PQ. (01494¡673222) [01494¡675878] <[e-mail]>
9.10
Eesox  Suiteá8C, NewtonáHouse, 147áStáNeotsáRoad, Hardwick, Cambridge,
CB3á7QJ. (01954¡212263) [01954¡212263] <[e-mail]>
9.10
Eidos plc  The Boathouse, 15 Thames Street, Middlesex TW12 2EW. (0181-
941-7899) [0181-941-7895] <[e-mail]> http://www.eidos.com.
9.10
ESM  DukeáStreet, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, PE13á2AE. (01945¡63441)
9.10
ESP  21áBeecháLane, WestáHallam, Ilkeston, Derbyshire, DE7á6GP.
á(0115¡929¡5019) [0115¡929¡5019] <[e-mail]>
9.10
ExpLAN  StáCatherineæsáHouse, 20áPlymoutháRoad, Tavistock, Devon,
PL19á8AY. (01822¡613868) [01822¡610868] <[e-mail]>
9.10
FontáCompanyáLtd  Unitá1, TheáGablesáYard, PulhamáMarket, Diss,
IP21á4SY. (01379¡608585) [01379¡608575]
9.10
HCCSáLtd  575¡583áDurhamáRoad, Gateshead, NE9á5JJ. (0191¡487¡0760)
[0191¡491¡0431]
9.10
IMS  DesktopáLaminations, P.O.Boxá332, Bristol, BS99á7XL.
(0117¡979¡9979)
9.10
Insight  01223¡812927
9.10
IrlamáInstruments  133áLondonáRoad, Staines, MiddlesexáTW18á4HN.
(01895¡811401) <[e-mail]>
9.10
iSVáProducts  86, Turnberry, HomeáFarm, Bracknell, Berks, RG12á8ZH.
(01344¡55769)
9.10
LiquidáSilicon  FREEPOST EH2725, Kirkcaldy, Fife, KY2á5PN.
(01592¡592265) <[e-mail]>
9.10
LongmanáLogotron  124áCambridgeáScienceáPark, MiltonáRoad,
CambridgeáCB4á4ZS. (01223¡425558) [01223¡425349] <[e-mail]>
9.10
MillipedeáElectronicáGraphics  CambridgeáHouse, Hargrave,
BuryáStáEdmunds, Suffolk, IP29á5HS. (01284¡850594) [01284¡850351]
<[e-mail]>
9.10
QuantumáSoftware  35áPinewoodáPark, Deans, Livingston, EH54á8NN.
(01506¡411162áafterá6) <[e-mail]>
9.10
Repair Zone  421 Sprowston Road, Norwich, NR3 4EH. (01603¡400477)
9.10
SEMERC  1áBroadbentáRoad, Watersheddings, Oldham, OL1á4LB.
(0161¡627¡4469)
9.10
Softease  TheáOldáCourthouse, StáPetersáChurchyard, Derby, DE1á1NN.
(01332¡204911) orá(01684¡773173) [01684¡772922]
<[e-mail]>
9.10
Sonamara  TorquayáRoad, Shaldon, Devon, TQ14á0AZ. (01626¡873866)
[01626¡297866]
9.10
SouthernáPrinters  47áDrakeáRoad, Willesborough, Ashford, KentáTN24á0UZ.
(01233¡633919)
9.10
Spacetech  21áWestáWools, Portland, Dorset, DT5á2EA. (01305¡822753)
[01305¡860483] <[e-mail]>
9.10
StuartáTyrrelláDevelopments  P.O. Boxá183, Oldham, OL2á8FB.
<[e-mail]>
9.10
W. C. Smithá&áAssociates  40áRoyaláOak, Alnwick, Northumberland,
NE66á2DA. (01665¡510682) [01665¡510692]
9.10
WarmáSilenceáSoftware  StáCatherineæsáCollege, ManoráRoad, Oxford,
OX1á3UJ. (0585¡487642) <[e-mail]>
9.10
Xemplar Education  The Quorum, Barnwell Road, Cambridge, CB5 8RE.
(01223¡725000) [01223¡725100]
9.10
  http://www.xemplar.co.uk/
9.10
YES  WelbeckáHouse, WelbeckáRoad, Luton, Beds. LU2á0HD. (01582¡584828)
[01582¡562255]
9.10
Archive Monthly Disc Ö ú2
9.10
 (Now on 1.6Mb, but available as two 800Kb discs if you ask specially.)
9.10
u System Variables program from Andrew Berry  Ö page 29.
9.10
u Digitiser samples from Jim Nottingham Ö page 56.
9.10
u Files from Gerald Fittonæs Column Ö page 38.
9.10
u Electronic clipping Ö Acorn news items of interest from the Net.
9.10
u 3D molecular structure program Ö Martin Wⁿrthner and Roger Sayle Ö
page 77.
9.10
u Scientific software from Chris Johnson Ö see page 38.
9.10
u Starting Basic programs from Ray Favre Ö see page 64.
9.10
u Three utilities plus an alpha-release game from Chris Whitworth.
9.10
u Psion FAQ from John Woodthorpe.
9.10
The following information is about the Christian faith, not specifically
about computing.
9.10
The Atheist and the Christian agree on one thing, that neither of us can
prove the existence (or otherwise) of God. However, I suggested last
month that since Jesus actually claimed to be God, and then rose from
death to prove it (or so Christians have always claimed), the open-
minded Atheist ought to investigate those claims. Again, I cannot prove
that Jesus rose from death, but as I examine the evidence, it seems to
me the most probable explanation of the historical observations. And
remember, if God doesnæt exist, no problem, but if he does exist, the
implications for you could be very serious.
9.10
öHow do I even know that you exist, Paul, let alone God?ò
9.10
Hmm! Another good question! How can you know that I exist? Indeed, I
might be no more real than Timothy Edwards and Chris Searle in the early
days of Acorn User. (They were me, in case you were wondering!)
9.10
I know! Iæll call ÉMr Atheistæ as a witness Ö he met me at Acorn World
95 and talked to me, so he knows Iáexist. Would you believe him? No?
Well, OK, the only thing to do is youæll have to come to Acorn World 96
and meet me for yourself Ö then youæll believe I exist.
9.10
Well, maybe thatæs not a terribly good analogy, but what is happening
all over the UK at the moment is that people are Émeeting Godæ for
themselves. It is estimated that, in the next 12 months, something like
a quarter of a million people will be going on these Alpha courses that
I keep mentioning. Whatæs happening? Why are the numbers mushrooming?
Itæs because people who are complete outsiders to church, and to
Christianity, are finding out about Jesus and, so they tell me, are
Émeeting Godæ Ö and you can see it on their faces Ö something very
special has happened to them! To find an ÉAlpha churchæ, ring the Alpha
Coordinator on 0171-581-8255, and find out for yourself.
9.10
P.B.
9.10
Paul Beverley
9.10
Change is here to stay!
9.10
Yes, I know, Iæm beginning to sound like a permanently stuck record, but
things are still changing on the Acorn front. The latest changes are the
result of the absolutely staggering speed of the StrongARM, which is
proving to be about twice the speed that Acorn expected.
9.10
Because the StrongARM is so fast, ART are actively looking into the
possibility of putting it into various different computer
configurations. Acorn have already demonstrated a StrongARM Netsurfer
(report on page 22 Ö picture on page 19), there could now be a StrongARM
RiscPC (see page 17) as well as the CHRP machine, and I would be very
surprised if they werenæt already developing StrongARM versions of
Newspad and Stork. Then thereæs the possibility of StrongARM
videophones, StrongARM GameBoys, and StrongARM Psions! Oh, and how about
a StrongARM card for the PowerMac? Why not?! We could then use Sibelius
as a Trojan horse for getting RISCáOS into the Mac camp!
9.10
StrongARM cards
9.10
The other change is that, as I predicted, the cached version of the
StrongARM card for the RiscPC is looking less and less likely to appear
as a product. The uncached version is so fast (making the ARM710 RiscPC
more than five times faster!) that itæs doubtful whether it will be
worth developing a cached version of the card Ö but no firm decision has
been made yet, as far as I know.
9.10
On the StrongARM compatibility front, rumours are getting stronger that
CC will indeed, by some means or other, be upgrading their RISCáOS
software for StrongARM. Whatæs more, the problem is being attacked from
both ends, i.e. ART have various tricks up their sleeve which should
minimise the incompatibilities anyway. My guess is that it will be
similar to the change from RISCáOS 2 to 3. There will be problems with
some software for a while but, in due time, all but the most obscure
applications will be made compatible.
9.10
Well, Iæd better let you get on with reading all about it!!
9.10
Fact-File
9.10
Key: (phone)áá[fax]áá<net>
9.10
Norwich Computer Services    96a Vauxhall Street, Norwich, NR2 2SD.
(01603-766592) [01603-764011]
9.10
<[e-mail]>  OR  <[e-mail]>  OR
<[e-mail]>
9.10
http://www.cybervillage.co.uk/acorn/archive/
9.10
Small Ads
9.10
(Small ads for Acorn 32-bit computers and related products are free for
subscribers but we reserve the right to publish all, part or none of the
material you send, as we think fit. i.e. some people donæt know what
Ésmallæ means and there are certain things, as you can imagine, that we
would not be prepared to advertise as a matter of principle. Sending
small ads on disc is helpful but not essential. If you have email,
thatæs the best of all! Ed.)
9.10
60Mb HD, with word processors, databases, 260 fonts and other software,
reasonable offers considered. Phone [phone].
9.10
A3000, 4Mb, RISC OS 3.1, ARM3, Taxan 775 14ö multisync, HCCS Vision
digitiser, Serial         upgrade, Wild Vision expansion box, Beebug HD
floppy controller, PC Emulator 1.8, lots of software, ú375. Phone 01734-
571883 or email [e-mail].
9.10
A3000 LC, ARM3, 4Mb RAM, 210Mb IDE HD, RISC OS 3.1, DFS interface, PRES
monitor stand with 5╝ö drive bay and two expansion slots, serial port,
software including PC Emulator 1.8 with Novell DOS 7, manuals, boxed,
ú350, ColourCard Gold, ú65. Phone [phone].
9.10
A310, 4Mb RAM, RISC OS 3.1, Oak 50 Mb drive + SCSI interface, AKF11
monitor, Acorn I/O podule, 1st Word Plus. Any offers considered. Phone
01544-318939 eves, 01432-372451 day.
9.10
A400 series, 4Mb RAM, 40Mb HD, RISC OS 3.1, Eizo 9060S monitor, Wordz,
PipeDream 4, Superbase and some games, ú250 + carriage. Phone [phone]-
5732.
9.10
A420/1, 4Mb RAM, RISC OS 3.1, SVGA 14ö monitor, Beebug VIDC enhancer,
Acorn inkjet printer, software, ú350 o.n.o. Phone [phone].
9.10
A5000 LC, 4Mb RAM, 40Mb HD, RISC OS 3.1, boxed with manuals, AKF50
monitor, Advance, Easy C, PRMs and wide carriage printer, ú750 o.n.o.
Double-speed external CD-ROM drive ú100. Phone [phone].
9.10
A540, well equipped, the first fair and reasonable offer accepted. Phone
Jim on 01366-385824.
9.10
Acorn 486 card, for RiscPC, complete boxed and unregistered, with DOS 6,
unwanted gift, ú99 + VAT, try it out then use it to save ú200 + VAT off
a 5x86 card. Phone Harry on 01895-630344.
9.10
AKF60 multisync, boxed as new, ú150 o.n.o. Phone William on 01475-
673063.
9.10
Free to a deserving cause: 135 issues of Acorn User (almost all of Nov
æ83 to Dec æ95), 61 issues of The Micro User (Dec æ83 - Oct æ89). Buyer
must collect from Chelmsford, or pay carriage. Phone Derrick on 01245-
225671 after 7pm.
9.10
Job at Pineapple Software: Pineapple are looking for a new full-time
employee to handle technical queries, telephone sales and general
running of day to day business. Training can be provided. Phone Jim on
0181-599-1476 for details.
9.10
RiscPC 600, 8+2Mb, 420Mb, 17ö AKF85 monitor, 16-bit sound card, Cumana
CD drive with mixer, 486-33 PC card, ú1650. Good offers considered.
Phone [phone] eves.
9.10
Software: Times CD-ROM Sampler (DOS only) ú10, Populous (game) ú10,
Event (diary) ú5. Will sell all three for ú20. Phone [phone] eves.
9.10
Wanted, 4-8Mb RAM expansion for A5000. Phone John on 01942-884738.
9.10
Wanted, ArchiTech or Apollonius PDT, will collect. Phone [phone].
9.10
Wanted, Any Acorn machine with RISC OS 3.1 or later, 4+Mb RAM, hard
disc, 1.6Mb  floppy, CD-ROM, multisync monitor. Complete or nearly.
Total cost within ú1,000. Contact Anthony on  0113-226-9059 or as
[e-mail].áuá
9.10
Now with built-in ATAPI driver Ö connect virtually any IDE CD Drive.
9.10
Universal SCSI CD Driver built-in.
9.10
Multi-tasking verify as well as multi-tasking low level formatting.
9.10
Fully compatible with:
9.10
  Å New SyQuest EZ135 and Iomega ZIP Drives
9.10
  Å SyQuest 5╝ö and 3╜ò Drives
9.10
  Å Mag-Optical Drives
9.10
  Å ÉProteusæ Panasonic PD Drives
9.10
Supplied with built-in Tape Streamer Software for backups.
9.10
Able to read other manufacturersæ partitions Ö no need to reformat.
9.10

9.10
For further information, please contact Alsystems on 01420-561111
9.10
Copyright ⌐1996, Alsystems, 47áWinchesteráRoad, FouráMarks, Alton,
Hampshire, GU34á5HG. Email [e-mail] or visit our web site
at http://www.alsystems.co.uk.
9.10
The top half of...
9.10
Alsystems
9.10
From 9.8 page 8
9.10
i.e. this is the new bottom bit below!
9.10
ESP Midi Synthesizer
9.10
John Woodthorpe
9.10
The package consists of a small A5 booklet and three HD floppies,
allowing any RiscPC to play Midi samples by software only (i.e. no Midi
hardware is needed). It does need 16-bit sound, but whether that comes
from the extra card produced by ESP (amongst others), or a newer machine
with it built in, doesnæt matter. ESP say that an 8-bit version is due
in the summer, allowing the older RiscPCs to make use of it. This review
was done on an old-style RiscPC 600 with the ESP sound card and external
speakers. The software also cooperates with !PCx86 to give Midi sound
from PC applications, whether Windows or DOS.
9.10
Installation
9.10
This is very straightforward, consisting of an improved !Player
application (as supplied with the sound card, but now v1.26, and capable
of playing both Midi and 16-bit samples), !Synth (v1.02 of the control
software), !SynthBank (the instrument data) and a few Midi files. ESP
recommend installing everything in a separate directory, but Iæve found
putting the first two in the Apps directory and !SynthBank in
!Boot.Resources to be more convenient. About 4Mb of hard disc space is
needed, most of which is for the instrument data.
9.10
In use
9.10
It works very well in both its RISC OS and PC Card functions. Some Midi
files are supplied for you to try out, and others can be obtained from
bulletin boards, PD libraries, etc. The files have the advantage of
being very small compared to other music files of equivalent playing
duration because the instrument samples are stored in the application.
It does also mean that the playback quality is heavily dependent on
these samples, and ESP freely admit that the ones they supply as
standard are not brilliant.
9.10
Better quality ones will be available in the summer at ú5 +VAT per
instrument disc (pianos, brass, strings and guitars), but they will
typically take up more RAM than the standard ones. Not having heard
them, I canæt comment, but I will say that the basic ones are a sensible
compromise between quality and size, and are perfectly adequate without
being outstanding. Certainly, none of the files I played sounded as
stunning as the 16-bit samples supplied with the sound card, but as ESP
say, ö3Mb of samples and 16-note polyphony in software is quite an
achievementò.
9.10
One problem that becomes very obvious when playing Midi files is that of
stray clicks and pops if you try to do anything that needs a lot of disc
activity at the same time. ESP have reduced this dramatically recently,
especially if you drag the Midi file to the !Synth icon to load in the
right samples before playing. They are also working on a fix in
conjunction with Acorn.
9.10
Surprisingly, double clicking on a Midi file wonæt play it Ö it has to
dragged to the !Player icon on the iconbar. I found that a little
irritating even after a month of use while preparing this review, and
when Iáput this to Andy Pierson of ESP, he agreed to allow files to play
when double-clicked.
9.10
The panels for Control and Instrumentation are clear and allow you to
limit the amount of memory used by the application (although more clicks
and pops might be expected as instrument samples are loaded in).
9.10
The memory setting is a little fiddly, with the Minimise button not
implemented yet, and the memory having to be ramped down 4Kb at a time
from 2Mb (Iæve suggested that a writable box would be helpful, and ESP
promise to implement that). Sample rates, driver accuracy, instrument
mappings, and many other things, can be changed, sometimes with very odd
results! Again, there are some gaps in this when it comes to creating
and saving new instrument banks, but ESP say they will deal with them
when the instrument editor is released later in the year.
9.10
PC card
9.10
I must confess that one of the reasons for wanting to get hold of the
synthesizer software was to be able to actually hear more than WAV files
from my Acorn 486SX card. At first, I wasnæt sure how to set everything
up, as the ESP booklet doesnæt go into that, but after working through
the ReadMe files with the PC card software (v1.92, in my case) and its
drivers, it is reasonably straightforward.
9.10
You do need to set up the Soundblaster drivers exactly as described, and
allow the PC card software to make changes to your AUTOEXEC.BAT and
SYSTEM.INI files. After that, go through the described actions in
Windows Control Panel, reboot, and it should work, as long as you have
!Synth running at the same time. There are extra instructions for
setting up the sound under Win95, and for dealing with DOS applications
that insist on knowing interrupts, DMA channels and so on.
9.10
I have come across a problem when starting up, in that !Synth often
wonæt start if I try to load it while the PC card software is starting
up. Again, ESP are aware of this and are trying to track the problem
down. Until then, the advice is to load !Synth before !PCx86.
9.10
I tried some DOS and Windows game demos and applications, and things
usually worked fine if Iáselected ÉGeneral Midiæ when asked for my sound
card configuration. A few applications didnæt work as expected, either
remaining mute or making nasty crackling noises. On talking to a couple
of PC-owning friends, this is something that they have come to accept,
so I donæt suppose I can complain too much on that score!
9.10
Donæt expect to get digitized speech or sound effects Ö it seems that
General Midi wonæt cope with that, but you should get music and ordinary
sound effects. ESP have never guaranteed support for Midi under DOS (as
opposed to under Windows, which is supported), but nevertheless they
expect to release improvements to the DOS performance soon. One word of
warning, if youære interested in this aspect of the synthesizer, is to
make sure that you have plenty of memory over and above that needed by
the PC card. It is possible to limit how much !Synth takes but,
unrestrained, it can take over 1Mb!
9.10
Summary
9.10
This is a basic, but impressively competent, way of playing Midi files
by software only. If that were all it did, it would a bit of a costly
luxury for most people, but given the expansion that is planned for
ESPæs suite of Midi software and the higher quality instrument samples
due later in the year, it looks much more attractive. If you add onto
that the sound support for the PC card, it is an indispensable extra for
getting something much closer to full PC compatibility. In addition, the
extremely positive attitude of ESP in supporting and modifying the
software in response to comments is very encouraging.
9.10
The complete package costs ú39.95 +VAT, with the extra instrument discs
costing ú5 +VAT when they are available. Further information can be
obtained from ESP (contact details on Factfile). They also have a WWW
page at http://www.cybervillage.co.uk/acorn/esp/ which carries details
of their products. With all these planned improvements and developments
(including a number of new sound- and Midi-related applications to make
good use of RISC OS and StrongARM etc), ESP will be keeping users up-to-
date with information on their Web pages and will provide upgrades there
when appropriate.áuá
9.10
Wakefield Show Report
9.10
Andy Ward
9.10
Itæs hard to believe that it is over two years since the RiscPC was
first publicly unveiled, in front of the eager masses at the Harrogate
Conference Centre. Even so, a lot has changed in the Acorn world since
then, not all of which has been particularly easy for Acorn followers to
swallow. Iæm thinking here particularly of the resignation of Sam
Wauchope after last yearæs massive losses, the restructuring and
redundancies that followed, and the Éselling outæ, as many saw it, to
Apple on the education front. Even some ardent enthusiasts were
expressing concern over Acornæs future as a mainstream computer
manufacturer, so ART returned once more to Yorkshire Ö Wakefield this
time Ö with a lot to prove.
9.10
Happily they came armed (pun intended) with plenty of ammunition to
persuade the doubters that Acorn is far from rolling over in the face of
the PC onslaught. It has new hardware, new alliances and new strategies.
9.10
The show
9.10
Before I start, I really must say how very impressed Iáwas,áand everyone
I spoke to, with the way the show was organised and run. The Wakefield
Acorn Computer Group, ably headed by Chris Hughes and Mike Wilson, did a
fantastic job in bringing together nearly 60 exhibitors (including just
about all the big Acorn names), booking up almost the entire 4-star
Cedar Court Hotel, and packing the place out Ö there were over 1,500
visitors. This is all especially impressive given the short notice they
had, and that this was their first attempt at a show of this size. Well
done to all the WACG members and helpers!
9.10
(I must add some comments here... The Wakefield crew were just brilliant
Ö well done everyone! It was simply wonderful to be greeted by a
friendly car park attendant and then to have a team of volunteers
offering to help carry all our clobber up to the stand! OK, I realise
that if a company is organising a show, they have to have the minimum of
staff for financial reasons, so itæs a bit unfair to compare, but maybe
the professional organisers could take a leaf out of Wakefieldæs book!
Once again, itæs an example of the ÉAcorn familyæ pulling together. Iæve
said it before, and Iæll say it again, but if Iáever had to Édiversifyæ
to stay in business, as I have been advised more than once when things
were financially difficult, Iæd rather give up altogether. Iæm sticking
with Acorn. Ed.)
9.10
Though there was lots to see, Iæm going to dwell a bit on the ART stand,
and I make no apologies, as there were some exciting developments there.
9.10
I shall essentially be reporting on the sights of the show. If youære
keen to hear about what was said in the ART presentations, youæll find
Richard Walkeræs article, following on from this, an interesting read.
9.10
So, to business... What was there to see?
9.10
StrongARM
9.10
The undisputed star of the Wakefield show was the StrongARM. More than
anything else, this much vaunted chip is the single piece of technology
that has the potential to turn Acornæs fortunes around and itæs pretty
clear that itæll become the cornerstone of many of ARTæs future
products.
9.10
On show was a 169MHz first iteration piece and a second iteration 200MHz
piece, sitting in probably two of the most jealously guarded RiscPCs
ever seen! The board containing the faster of the two processors was on
display in a perspex casing, giving us spectators a good view of the
StrongARM daughterboard and the new RISC OS ROMs. The first impressions
of the board are of how understated the chip actually looks on it. Itæs
exactly the same size as an ARM7 (it comes in the same 144 pin package,
about the size of your thumb tip); there are no heat sinks or fans to be
seen anywhere on this little powerhouse.
9.10
How fast?
9.10
So, the $64,000 question is ÉHow does it perform?æ Well, quickly, very
quickly. My first impressions are that you wonæt be hanging about for
things to redraw. To give some examples, the Artworks ÉAppleæ redraws in
about 3-4 seconds, while on an ARM710, it takes around 16 seconds, The
RiscPCæs demonstration JPEG images decode in, literally, the blink of an
eye. Graphics demonstration programs such as the 3D ÉRoomsæ and tumbling
JPEG demos are effortlessly smooth, whereas beforehand they stuttered
and jerked. If youære into benchmarks, the 200MHz piece clocks up around
330kDhrystones (version 2.1) compared with around 50kDhrystones for the
ARM710. Impressed yet? I was!
9.10
I suppose that for a relative measure of the speed increase, you should
cast your minds back to the magnitude of speed increase witnessed with
the upgrade from the ARM2 to ARM3. Now, if you apply that order of
increase to the 40MHz ARM7 and then Éadd someæ youære in the right sort
of league.
9.10
What ART have in the StrongARM is the potential to put together a RiscPC
priced around ú1500, that delivers a shade under 200 MIPs, and still
make themselves a good profit. That is snapping at the heals of
workstation performance! When you consider that equivalent powerful
Intel P6s are going to come in costing around 750 quid per chip, it
becomes pretty apparent why the StrongARM is going to be so important.
9.10
Compatibility
9.10
Although the StrongARM has the same instruction set as older ARMs, which
means it is code compatible with its predecessors, it has a radically
different internal cache, which has implications for programs which use
a programming trick called Éself-modifying codeæ. Basically, these
programs wonæt work without some re-coding, and since core parts of RISC
OS use this feature, there has been some work going on Éunder the
bonnetæ. The new version of RISC OS is presently going by the name of
RISC OS SA, but ART are apparently open to suggestions. Intriguingly,
the desktop information box identified itself as RISC OS 4.70, though
read into this what you will.
9.10
As far as individual applications are concerned, itæs early days yet,
but the list of applications seen running, now includes Impression
Style, Eureka, Datapower, Zap and the PC software, as well as Acornæs
standard applications. It has to be stressed that itæs way too early to
know definitively what will and what wonæt work, and besides, itæs to be
expected that actively developed applications will be made to work over
the coming months.
9.10
(There are various rumours around, but suffice it to say that I am
confident that all major software titles will be upgraded, many of them
even before the StrongARMs become generally available. Ed.)
9.10
Anyway, before I steal any more of someone elseæs fire, Iæll finish
talking about this stunning little chip by saying that you can place an
advanced order for one by ringing Vector Services. It costs ú249 (+VAT)
for the card, new ROMs and manuals, with a ú50 deposit required to book
your place in the queue. Iágather you can have one for only ú99 +VAT Ö
Éallæ you have to do is buy a RiscPC before the end of June. (I think
itæs been extended to the end of August! Ed.) Expect to see the
StrongARM cards available around September, when DEC finally get up to
production speed.
9.10
Stork
9.10
The Stork is ARTæs A4 replacement, and although it was overshadowed by
the blindingly fast RiscPC next door, it was getting quite a lot of
attention. Itæs a essentially an A7000 in one of Olivettiæs sub-notebook
cases, so itæs based around the ARM7500. The version on show had only a
16 colour grey-scale screen, running at 640╫480, but thereæs supposedly
the option of a full colour TFT screen at up to 800╫600. Mouse control
is by an unusual looking tracker ball to the top-right of the keyboard,
with select being operated by the index finger, and menu and adjust by
two buttons to the top-left of the keyboard. Quite what left-handers
would make of this I donæt know! Other features of note are a built-in
PCMCIA 1, 2 or 3 slot, and a ÉFreeze Modeæ, which allows operation to be
suspended, and to be recalled in the same state some days later.
9.10
These arenæt for sale yet, unless you want to pay through the nose for a
one-off. However, if enough interest is raised to warrant a reasonable
production run, the word is that they ought to retail just under the
grand mark, for the mono screen version.
9.10
NewsPad
9.10
Sitting beneath a sign saying Éú5Million Prototype. Do not touch!æ, this
was an interesting concept machine, with lots of potential as an on-the-
move PDA machine or even a network computer. The pointing method of
actually touching the screen is really very usable (öWhat sign,
Governor?ò), even though ART admit that there is still room for
improvement. In case youære wondering, you hold your finger down to
bring up a menu, otherwise it counts as select. The actual screen
quality was very impressive (800╫600 at up to 32 thousand colours), and
really suggests that ART could put together a good colour laptop.
9.10
Replay
9.10
As well as fancy hardware, ART were showing off their latest video
compression/decompression and replay code. Their video phone software
was beaming live pictures from one side of the stand to the other and
displaying the pictures in a window. Perhaps of more immediate interest
to most RISC OS users were the latest developments of Replay. Movies now
multitask smoothly on the desktop, so your machine wonæt stop all other
tasks running any more. The StrongARM machines were seen displaying
three movies simultaneously, whilst rendering artworks files, and taking
it all in their stride.
9.10
Exhibitors
9.10
There was plenty to see away from the ART stand. The general air of all
the exhibitors appeared very upbeat, and perhaps as a consequence of the
stands being cheaper than other professionally organised shows, there
seemed less emphasis on the hard sell, and more on chatting with us
customers and talking about recent developments, which was a welcome
change.
9.10
Simtec were showing off their Hydra board, with parallel and single
processor versions of a mandelbrot program showing the potential speed
increase to be enjoyed by multi-processing.
9.10
The RiscBSD team, too, had a populated Hydra board sitting in a machine
running their free port of NetBSD (a Unix operating system). Although
there is still lots of work to do to incorporate transparent multi-
processor support, they are at the stage where they can potentially farm
out tasks to individual CPUs. This beta version of RiscBSD is already
looking remarkably mature and certainly stable enough for day-to-day
use, if you need a Unix box in addition to RISC OS.
9.10
Back to the hardware again, Irlam were making themselves the most
popular stand of the afternoon amongst Formula One enthusiasts by
demonstrating their ÉRisc TVæ card, which was displaying the Monaco
Grand Prix (or dodgems as it seemed!) live in either a RISC OS window,
or full-screen.
9.10
On the subject of crowds, Warm Silence Software were getting so much
attention from people trying to get a look in at the latest versions of
MovieFS, and their incredible Quicktime VR viewer, that, at times, the
corridor next to their stand was almost impassable! Robin Watts also
seemed to be doing an absolutely roaring trade in WSS ÉBeebæ emulators,
despite the fact that RBS, at the next stall along, were offering the
genuine article for the princely sum of ú10!
9.10
Next door, Argonet/VTi had come up trumps again and set up the free
ÉCyberZoneæ, where Énet newbiesæ could get an idea what this internet
business is all about, by going on-line using the Argonet software. ANT
were exhibiting the second release of their Internet Suite, which looks
extremely professional now, and Doggysoft, too, where showing off the
latest incarnation of their net software.
9.10
ANTæs sister company, Aleph One, were offering DX2/80 PC cards at a very
tempting knock-down price, and one stall along, Spacetech had released
PhotoDesk2, which impressed me so much that I just had to buy it, there
and then, despite promising myself that I would be good, and keep my
wallet in my pocket all day! Spacetech were also selling TopModel, the
new 3D modelling package from Sincronia Soluzioni Multimediali, as they
had just become the sole distributor for the Italian company.
9.10
Next door, Stuart Tyrell Developments were attracting a lot of intrigued
audiences with their ÉKing-size Keyboardæ and É3D experienceæ
demonstrations. The former was a set of oversized piano key style
pressure pads on the floor that you were supposed to jump around on to
play a tune, while the other was a stereographic extension that
displayed the desktop in 3D when viewed through special glasses. I donæt
suppose they made many sales but it was fun to watch, which in some
respects pretty much summed up the ethos of the whole show.
9.10
At the end of the day, I managed to squeeze into the jam-packed show
theatre to listen to Peter Bondar make an eloquent, honest, and often
humorous presentation that covered a whole range of topics, allaying the
fears that many of us had about Acornæs future. One of the highlights
was the announcement that RISC OS is far from dead, as there are new
contracts to licence it to some Émajor playersæ. Itæs also presently
undergoing a lot of development, bankrolled partially by the Network
Computer initiative. It was also hinted that work is underway on a third
generation RiscPC aimed at power users. (For a full rundown on what was
said, please read Richard Walkeræs article.)
9.10
What all this means is that it seems like Acorn have managed to do it
once again. As they have done several times before in their roller-
coaster history, they have extracted (perhaps that should be
StrongARMæed!) the proverbial bunny from the top-hat just as things were
looking most bleak for them. Two years down the line from now, who knows
where Acorn will be? Letæs just hope they still have time to come to
these grass-root shows when theyære not at exhibitions in San Francisco
with Oracle, or Tokyo with Sony...
9.10
If you want to contact me, Iæm Andy Ward <[e-mail]>.áuá
9.10
Charity stall
9.10
Michael Binns and the Wakefield crew did a wonderful job on the charity
stall. NCS brought items of hardware and software that Archive
subscribers had sent in, or brought to the NCS office, plus the charity
bits that were left over from AW 95, and some people brought things to
Wakfield themselves. These were sold, and almost ú800 was taken during
the course of the day. Half of this will go to MS research, and half to
a local charity or charities in Wakefield Ö the Wakefield Hospice, and
possibly one other charity.
9.10
Well done to all who manned the stand, and thanks to all who donated
things to be sold. Actually, this only shows part of the way charities
benefit because, when things are sent to NCS, some of the items are
Ésyphoned offæ. Computers especially, including BBCs, are taken by
RepairZone (a.k.a. Ray Maidstone Ö ÉThe Engineeræ) for direct use by
charities or deserving causes. Ray and Sara have a list of people
waiting for Éfreeæ BBCs and Archies, many of them children with Downs
syndrome. Ray refurbishes the computers and Ésellsæ them to those
waiting, i.e. he charges for a six month warranty. Ifáyou have old
computers (and especially monitors which donæt seem to last as long as
the good old Beebs!), please send them in to NCS for recycling. We will
make sure they go to a good home.
9.10
Ed.
9.10
Network Computer News
9.10
I didnæt manage to get over to the States for the launch(!) but various
things were announced on Mayá20th, and some things were actually
demonstrated (see the picture on the previous page) while other
companies just used mock-ups! Here are three press releases which tell
the story faster than I can. Ed.
9.10
San Francisco, May 20, 1996 Ö Apple, IBM, Netscape, Oracle and Sun today
joined forces in the announcement of an unprecedented common set of
guidelines for developing low-cost, easy-to-use network computing
devices. On stage at San Franciscoæs Westin St. Francis Hotel,
representatives of the five companies disclosed details of an open NC
profile which will combine existing industry specifications to create a
reference platform for network computing devices.
9.10
This collaboration marks the first time that world-leading information
technology companies have joined to select specifications for Internet
appliances, an idea that has caught fire in less than a year, and has
demonstrated a future that encompasses the Personal Computer (PC) and a
broad range of new devices. Called ÉNC Reference Profile 1æ, the set of
guidelines is designed to make multimedia Internet computing as
ubiquitous as telephone and television services. It will promote
competition in a new class of communications and commerce devices for
use in homes, schools, businesses and institutions, and will ensure
compatibility of models from different manufacturers.
9.10
NC Reference Profile 1 will provide a common set of standard features
and functions across a broad range of scalable NCs. It is
architecturally neutral, and intended to facilitate the growth of the
network computing industry while protecting investments made by
customers, content providers, system providers, service providers and
application providers through industry-wide compatibility.
9.10
öWe believe that such a platform-neutral architecture opens broad
opportunities for moving personal computing into a new era,
characterized by the convergence of communications and multimedia,
especially in the form of the Internet,ò said Gil Amelio, chairman and
CEO of Apple Computer, Inc. öAs a pioneer in developing next-generation
computing devices, as demonstrated by the Pippin and Newton, we are
excited to contribute our expertise to this industry-wide effort to
define network computing guidelines.ò
9.10
öThe Reference Profile is one more step along the way to making network
computing a reality for customers,ò said John M. Thompson, senior vice
president and group executive, IBM. öIt will accelerate the development
of network computers, applications and content while ensuring their
compatibility. And it will increase the benefits of network computing by
reducing cost and putting the power of information in the hands of many
new users.ò
9.10
öNetscape, which champions the concept of open Internet standards,
warmly welcomes todayæs announcement, because it will help ensure that
these standards are incorporated in forthcoming devices,ò said Marc
Andreessen, vice president of technology at Netscape. öThese open
standards give customers freedom of choice and help drive innovation
which together make the Internet the hot bed of activity it is today.ò
9.10
öThis initiative has been formed in the interest of true open
computing,ò said Oracle chairman and CEO Lawrence J. Ellison. öLike the
Internet itself, the NC Reference Profile has the potential to set in
motion an industry that serves the interests of users instead of
software developers and hardware suppliers.ò
9.10
Scott McNealy, chief executive officer of Sun Microsystems, described
the NC Reference Profile as the most compelling proof statement of the
benefits of open standards.
9.10
öSun has proven, time and time again, that open standards provide a
level playing field which drives innovation and choice. And the ultimate
winner in this model is the user,ò said McNealy. öAdopting Sunæs NFS and
Java technologies with the other open standards in the NC Reference
Profile will provide all the vendors Ö from hardware manufacturers to
content providers Ö with a common set of guidelines that will jump-start
an entire industry.ò
9.10
NCs complying with the planned NC Reference Profiles may take many forms
Ö from desktops to laptops to video phones, pagers and even conventional
PCs. All these devices may be linked to the Internet or Intranet and run
basic applications such as Web browsers, email applications, word
processors, spreadsheets and presentation packages. In addition, NCs may
function as multimedia machines by supporting video email, 16-bit CD-
quality sound and digital videos.
9.10
The NC Reference Profile 1 sets guidelines for standard functionality,
but it does not impose limitations. Vendors interested in adding more
functionality to their NC implementations may do so because the
Reference Profile does not limit designs to a specific set of features.
9.10
Elements of the profile
9.10
The NC Reference Profile 1 covers general hardware guidelines, Internet
protocols, World Wide Web standards, email protocols, common multimedia
formats, boot protocols and security features.
9.10
The hardware guidelines cover a minimum screen resolution of 640╫480
(VGA) or equivalent, a pointing device (mouse or track ball), text input
capabilities and audio output. The agreed upon Internet protocols are
Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), File Transfer Protocol (FTP),
optional support of NFS to enable low-cost, medialess devices while
allowing for persistent storage in the network and SMTP, a protocol
enabling the distributed management of devices.
9.10
The profile further adheres to World Wide Web standards HTML, HTTP and
the Java Application Environment, as well as to mainstream mail
protocols (SMTP, IMAP4, POP3) and common data formats such as JPEG, GIF,
WAV and AU. Optional security features are supported through emerging
security APIs; security standards are ISO 7816 SmartCards and the EMV
(Europay/MasterCard/Visa) specification.
9.10
NC Reference Profile 1 will be made available for public comment and
review in July 1996 and is expected to be finalized by August 1996. The
draft published today can be viewed on the World Wide Web at http://
www.nc.ihost.com. (And itæs on the Archive monthly program disc. Ed.)
Future versions of the NC Reference Profile will be determined and
published by the participants in this announcement, with the involvement
of other interested parties, in response to changing technologies and
market requirements. In the third quarter of 1996, Apple, IBM, Netscape,
Oracle and Sun plan to organize a joint Web site with tests for profile
compliance. Manufacturers whose designs successfully meet the criteria
of the profile will be authorized to promote their devices as ÉNC
Profile compliantæ and to use the NC logo in connection with the
manufacturing, marketing and sales of NC products and product families.
9.10
Acorn to offer sub-$500 Internet device
9.10
Development agreement with Oracle results in quick-to-market devices.
9.10
May 20, 1996, San Francisco, CA Ö The Acorn Computer Group today
announced it will be among the first to organize the manufacture and
distribution of Network Computers, the low cost Internet machines which
Oracle has been promoting as the new wave of computing to follow on from
the personal computer. Products based on the reference designs, produced
for Oracle by Acorn, have been publicly demonstrated by Larry Ellison in
San Francisco and Amsterdam and will be available as soon as September
1996. The announcement, made at an Oracle press conference, comes just
four months after Acorn entered into an agreement with Oracle to develop
reference designs for a range of easy-to-use, low cost computing devices
based upon open Internet standards.
9.10
Acorn is able to bring the Acorn Network Computer to market quickly by
capitalizing on its work with sister company ARM Ltd in creating chips
for low cost interactive TV devices, such as set-top boxes. These
devices share many common features with the Network Computer, such as
the use of networks and sophisticated graphics from a low cost chip set.
Furthermore, these devices do not depend on local storage of
information.
9.10
Instead, the useræs information is stored on a network of servers. This
approach cuts out the need for expensive data storage devices within
each machine and greatly helps to simplify the design of the device and
thus reduce its cost.
9.10
öFor years, Acorn has been focusing its efforts on making the benefits
of computing technology more widely accessibleò, said Malcolm Bird,
Chief Executive of Acornæs Network Computing Division. öThe whole
industry has been slowly heading in this direction, and finally we are
entering the fourth wave of computing. Weæve gone from the mainframe, to
the minicomputer, to the PC and now to the Network Computer, with each
wave costing less, being easier to use, and offering access to more and
more people. Ellisonæs vision is one that we fully believe in as the
next step towards reaching the general consumer, and weære aiming to
make it happen as quickly and as simply as we can.ò
9.10
Acorn has garnered extensive user feedback and early reaction to the
functionality offered by such a device through its leadership of the
Cambridge Interactive Television Trial running since 1994. Trial
participants have recently been hooked up to the World Wide Web through
their TV sets. Making use of a broadband network, these participants
have been able to launch video and CD-quality audio from their favourite
Web sites. Using technology developed by Acorn, including anti-
twittering and anti-aliasing of text for a stable display on TV, the
trial set-top boxes, and forthcoming Network Computers, offer good
quality viewing of the Internet at a low cost.
9.10
NC Ö almost a one-chip computer
9.10
Acorn, has made use of its experience in producing high performance, low
cost RISC-based computer products to bring the Internet appliances to
fruition quickly. The current network computing devices developed by
Acorn are based on the ARM7500FE, a fully integrated RISC processor,
video and I/O controller offering much of the functionality of a Network
Computer on a single chip. The ARM7500 has earned global acceptance as a
low cost source of powerful digital intelligence. The processoræs high-
speed and cost-effective, low-power design make it ideally suited for
the Network Computer environment.
9.10
The Acorn Group is one of the leading high technology innovators and
suppliers in the world. Within the group, Acorn has expertise in the
development and marketing of advanced technology products, services and
licences which exploit emerging world standards in interactive
multimedia, from Internet to broadband digital iTV.
9.10
Acorn demonstrates first ever StrongARM network computer
9.10
May 20, 1996 Ö San Francisco, CA Ö Acorn today demonstrated the worldæs
first working prototype of a Network Computer, a low cost Internet
machine, to use the StrongARM processor. This new high performance
processor was jointly developed by ARM Ltd and DEC.
9.10
The StrongARM processor provides a significant performance advantage
over the already high-performance and low-cost ARM7500 family. The
200MHz StrongARM increases performance from circa 60,000 dhrystones to
over 300,000 dhrystones. Processor card upgrades for developers using
Acornæs Risc PC desktops will be available from Q3, 1996. The first
finished StrongARM Network Computer product design is expected in 1997.
9.10
Malcolm Bird, CEO of Acornæs Network Computer Division said öThe NC
prototype we are showing points the way to future high-performance NC
Reference Designs. We have said from the outset that we were developing
a range of product designs and this, coupled with the ARM7500FE-based
NC, widens the scope and applicability of the NC. Oracle has been very
public about its vision of different NCs being targeted at different
customer types Ö we are showing that NC philosophy provides for more
than just an entry level product.ò
9.10
The StrongARM NC prototype has been created using resources from across
the Acorn Computer Group and this is the first application of StrongARM
to be announced that utilizes the processor in a consumer appliance,
rather than a computer product.
9.10
The demonstration comes only weeks after Acorn announced it had
successfully initialised the prototype silicon, and had run its RISC OS
operating system, JPEG decompression software and a graphics rendering
application on a development system.áuá
9.10
No, this is NOT a carefully-worded press release making it sound as if
they demonstrated a StrongARM Netsurfer. They really did demonstrate it
Ö they did have a StrongARM running inside a Netsurfer box. Hey, these
ART guys (and gals!) are really flying at the moment! Ed.
9.10
Top Model
9.10
Alex Card
9.10
Top Model is the latest 3D modelling program for Acorn computers. It has
been written by Sincronia Multimedia of Italy and is to be marketed by
Spacetech. This is the first incarnation of the program, with more
powerful versions to follow. As it stands now, Top Model is still a very
powerful program and could well secure a niche in the Acorn market.
9.10
Four things immediately struck me about the program; the speed of
redraw, the 3D editing environment, the vast array of menus and icons
and öWow, this is so complicated, Iæll never get the hang of it!ò
9.10
Supplied on four discs, Top Model uses the Gordian protection system to
lock the program onto your hard disc. You can de-install it back to the
master floppy then re-install elsewhere if need be, but I found the
protection to be very unobtrusive once applied. In fact, the only
noticeable thing is the very brief display of the Gordian banner each
time the program is loaded. My only concern is that if for any reason
you decide, or are forced to re-format the hard disc, or accidentally
delete the program, you are well and truly stuck, and will have to
contact Spacetech to sort out the problem.
9.10
The remaining discs are composed of examples, textures, objects and
tutorials. Once youæve had the inevitable Éplay aboutæ, the tutorials
are the next logical step.
9.10
Easy Pisa?
9.10
Top Model is one of the most complex and powerful programs likely to be
encountered on the Acorn platform and certainly one where reading the
manual isnæt just an option, itæs essential!
9.10
The copy of the manual I received is very well set out. The two example
tutorials are superb, and introduce to the user many of the features of
the program, with pictures and step by step instructions. There may be a
slightly modified release manual, as the copy Iáreceived shows its
Italian heritage Ö there are a few grammatical errors and spelling
mistakes, but at no stage does it become incomprehensible. Other than
this, it is excellent, with clear diagrams, short examples on the use of
individual functions, and detailed descriptions of the various menus and
icons.
9.10
When in RAM!
9.10
Clicking on the Top Model icon brings up a slightly daunting memory
setup window. This asks you to specify the maximum number of points and
polygons, but deciding what youære going to require before youæve
created an object isnæt easy. If you have plenty of memory, you can
simply set high values but if you are running on a limited amount of
free RAM, it is worthwhile finding out how many points and polygons some
of the example files are using, to give you an idea of what sort of
values are likely.
9.10
Icon and on
9.10
There are six main elements to the user interface, with the main design
window being bordered by the toolbar and view panels. The numerous sub-
menus and windows could easily have turned into a nightmare were it not
for the well thought out and elegant way in which theyæve been
implemented. Anáexample of this is that panels may be moved
independently, or relative to the main window, and also that many sub-
menus are initially displayed in their minimum form so as not to clutter
up the screen unnecessarily.
9.10
If there is an Acorn program with more icons than Top Model, I certainly
canæt think of it and this will inevitably lead to some confusion. Since
the icons have to be small, I found it difficult to figure out what they
all stood for just by looking at them. Fortunately, thereæs also an
optional help bar that describes what the icon currently under the
pointer does. Often, the pointer will change into a message informing of
an available sub-menu. I think that the design of some of the icons
could have been improved Ö they are perhaps too colourful, detailed and
small to put over the gist of what they do. Certainly, they donæt
compare to similar packages such as Truespace2 on the PC.
9.10
The view bar dictates the form in which models are displayed; whether
points are highlighted, perspective is on, light sources are shown etc.
A major section of the view tools comprises the display options from
points, through wireframe, flat, gouraud and phong shading to high
quality 24-bit rendering. The chosen options affect the rate of redraw
and detail, and can be selected at any time to check progress.
9.10
The main toolbar is, in fact, two in one, consisting of select and
modify tools, and the creation tools. The common links between them are
the view and plane cubes which allow selection of the active face, or
full 3D perspective mode.
9.10
Modelled by design
9.10
In Create mode, the basic shapes are displayed Ö cubes, spheres,
pyramids, tori and pipes Ö and their associated controls mean that many
variants on the theme are instantly available. For example, a pyramid
becomes a cone or cylinder merely by adjusting its attributes. Surface
definitions can be applied which can radically alter the appearance of a
primitive, too. These are entered as numbers of vertical and horizontal
polygons so that, for instance, a sphere can appear to look like a
diamond by reducing the number of polygons that it is made from. Objects
can be set with either Polygon or Bezier characteristics, the latter
allowing for much greater control over the object, and is likely to be
required for the majority of detailed models whereas polygons give a
much more Éblockyæ appearance. In addition, Bezier surfaces can have
straight, smooth, circular or rounded surfaces (dependent on the
selected primitive).
9.10
Objects can be created either by clicking and moving within the main
window, or by directly entering values such as location, radius, height,
etc, within each primitive type sub-menu. If you still require something
a bit different, then all is not lost Ö polygons with any number of
edges can be created, or totally irregular shapes drawn freehand, and
turned into solids made up of a network of triangles. If all else fails,
there is a library of ready-made shapes such as bottles, vases and
stars.
9.10
Light sources are also dealt with in the creation tools, and Top Model
allows up to 1024 lights per scene! These can be any combination of the
three types; point, spot and sunlight. Intensity, position and colour
are specified for each source.
9.10
Select and modify mode
9.10
The scene you will have created is likely to be pretty basic and
geometric, but Select and Modify mode provides a bounty of powerful
tools to give realism to a scene or object. Individual points,
primitives, or entire objects, can be transformed in various ways;
dragged, scaled, rotated, mirrored, copied etc, and more complex changes
can be made such as deformation, twisting and extrusion.
9.10
In fact, there are so many tools that it is all a bit bewildering at
first, and takes some time before you get used to it and realise what
can be achieved. öThereæs more than one way to skin a catò is very true
of Top Model, and picking the best tool for a particular job isnæt
always obvious.
9.10
Top Model excels in its ability to manipulate points and objects, For
example, the magnetic drag option allows points to be chosen and
dragged, attracting adjacent points to greater or lesser degrees Ö very
useful for stretching sections or quickly creating relief and mountains.
The split tool is handy for adding extra points within polygons thus
enabling enhanced detail of objects. Lattice deformation is particularly
powerful Ö a cube is displayed around selected objects, and its vertices
can be dragged in realtime to Émouldæ the object to fit the shape.
9.10
Many Sweep tools merely wrap around a central axis but the one in Top
Model is far more versatile. It allows progressive resizing of the
initial shape and you can set the number of steps and the degrees of
rotation, so you could create a shrinking, rising spiral up the screen.
9.10
The Extrusion tool produces some strange but wonderful effects such as
ribbons, worms and even vases from a mere line or polygon. These are
applied to an envelope design with bevelling and rotation options.
9.10
All in all, this is a very versatile set of tools, although Iáthink that
an Undo operation needs urgently implementing, as recovering from a
mistake can be very time consuming and irritating. It is possible to
escape from the current changes, but once fixed thatæs it. Well, we
should now have a wireframe object, so what is needed next is to add
texture, material, colour and other attributes to it.
9.10
Give me assign
9.10
Built into the attributes are many pre-defined colours which can be
assigned to any selected objects or simply by dragging and dropping onto
an item. New colours can be created in the usual RGB colour picker
manner, and material types added such as plastic, glass and metal. Each
material comprises six parameters: ambience, diffusion, reflection,
gloss, transparency and refraction. By carefully altering these values,
some impressive effects can be produced, and to enhance the appearance
further, an object can be set as flat or smoothed. The smoothing will
create the illusion of rounded edges without the inconvenience of
creating curves.
9.10
Textures are applied by importing simple bitmap images. For this,
!ChangeFSI must have been Éseenæ, and any file format that is recognised
by that application can be utilised. Textures are then held within Top
Model and can be viewed as thumbnails to check that they suit the
purpose. Again, there are plenty of mapping techniques available for the
way in which a texture is applied.
9.10
If you donæt wish to create objects from scratch, you can import files
from the huge library of ready-made wireframes, and full models,
available from other packages. Currently, supported are Amiga GEO, DXF
wireframes, Imagine, 3D Studio, Sculpt 3D, Illusionist, FEMS, Lightwave,
POVRay, Render Bender II files and sprite and drawfiles, with others to
follow.
9.10
After some time of use, the program does become much easier to use, so
itæs well worth persevering with. The speed of redraw is impressive, and
Top Model will work on the entire range of RISCáOS computers, although
an A5000 or Risc PC would be desirable. I think that the Undo problem is
quite serious, and we really need an improvement over the very
rudimentary animation that exists at present.
9.10
Glancing ahead
9.10
Work is continuing on updating Top Model, and many new features (some of
which I have never heard of!) will be appearing as updates, or in the
professional version.
9.10
Improvements include: chrome mapping, fog, glass deformation, 32,000
colour mode support, up to 64 layer scenes, CSG (Constructive Solid
Geometry), import of text files, Blob objects, any surface as a light
source, support for import and export between other packages, modelling
utilities such as particle animation, shell and contour map generators.
There will also be much fuller implementation of animation and ray-
tracing for near photo-realistic effects and films.
9.10
StrongARM support is planned, and multi-processor support should be
added soon, so Top Model could well be one of the first programs to
benefit from the extra speed. There is no point in waiting for the
professional version, however, as an upgrade will be offered at a very
reasonable price. Apparently, there are already over 350 orders before
the package has even been released!
9.10
In addition to the proposed enhancements, a CD-ROM containing many more
example models and textures is planned. The graphic engine has been
licensed to Clares for inclusion in !Composition, Oregan for !Cineworks
and as a VRML2 browser for Oracleæs Network Computer. Impressive stats
to say the least.
9.10
3D into the future
9.10
Isnæt it always the way?! You can wait for the proverbial bus and then
two come along at once. This is the situation with 3D modelling on
Acorns, as Aspex have just launched their ÉDa Vinciæ program, their
successor to Architech. I havenæt seen Da Vinci, so I canæt comment on
it but can only say that it is in for some very tough competition with
Top Model. As it stands, Top Model, in this first release form, is
already superb, and the price of ú99 +VAT represents almost unbelievable
value, especially when compared to broadly similar packages on the PC.
Truespace 2, for example, is considered under-priced at around ú400
whilst the current ultimate package, 3D Studio, will set you back a
whopping ú2,500+!! Whilst Top Model is still some way off matching the
power of 3D Studio, it is nevertheless a stunning program and, at this
price, is an absolute bargain. Iæd have to say that it ranks right up
there with Sibelius in terms of excellence.
9.10
Top Model is produced by Sincronia Multimedia, and marketed in the UK by
Spacetech at ú99 +VAT, or ú110 through Archive.áuá
9.10
Club News
9.10
Derbyshire Acorn Risc Club Ö Meetings are held on the second Monday of
the month (except August) 7.30-9.30 p.m. at: Duffield Parish Hall, St
Alkmundæs Church, Duffield. Meetings include: July 8th Ö Barry Thompson
on Graphics with Artworks and DrawPlus, September 9th Ö ANT Internet,
and October 14th Ö Sibelius. Single Annual Membership ú15, Family Annual
Membership ú20, Visitoræs fee, ú2 per meeting. More details from the
chairman, Mike Smith, on 01629-540281.
9.10
Dutch Acorn Users Club
9.10
ÉThe Big Ben Clubæ proudly presents: Acorn Expo æ96, Saturday 22th June
1996, Mercury Hotel, Buizerdlaan 10, Nieuwegein (Utrecht), The
Netherlands.
9.10
This is a National Day for Acorn Computer Users featuring exhibitions/
promotions by various companies, including Dutch, German and British
Acorn dealers (including NCS!), demonstrations by club members, etc.
9.10
The venue is within easy reach: by public transport Ö bus stop close to
the door of the hotel (busline 116, from Central Station NS Utrecht), by
motor vehicle Ö direct to the motorway A2, 800 free parking-places in a
multi-storey car park.
9.10
More information at http://www.wi.LeidenUniv.nl/~rdevreug/bbc_expoe.html
or contact Herman Corijn, Public Relations, POáBoxá1189, 6801 BD Arnhem.
Telephone (answering machine) and fax: [phone].
9.10
RiscDOS Column
9.10
Mike Clarkson
9.10
This monthæs column contains a collection of the many hints and tips
which have flowed my way as a result of past columns and Jim
Nottinghamæs article ÉPCx86 Cards Ö Hints and Tipsæ in the 9.7 p34. Many
thanks to all who have contributed.
9.10
Printing
9.10
In Archive 9.2, I promised some help with printing, and asked for tips.
The almost universal (though small) response was that there was no
problem, and Iátherefore let the matter drop. However, it does seem
there can be some problems, particularly when using Computer Conceptsæ
TurboDrivers. These mainly occur because the TurboDrivers require the
use of a non-standard cable (presumably a form of software protection α
la dongle), with the result that output from a standard DOS or Windows
driver is not understood.
9.10
There are two solutions: one is to have a second cable handy, and swap
them over, which is clearly rather tedious. The other is to set up your
system as follows: from !PCConfig, choose öUse RISC OS printer stream
for LPT1ò, and disable öAllow PC Card to access parallel port directlyò.
This will send output via RISC OS, but you still need to have loaded
your TurboDriver for it to work; this will use up possibly very valuable
memory, and so you may be better to locate and load the !PrintQFS
application, which is in !CCShared, which itself is inside the !System
directory.
9.10
If you donæt know where your !System directory is, which is certainly
possible on a Risc PC, press <f12>, then type Show System$Dir <return>
and note down the file path you are given, then press <return> again to
return to the desktop. !PrintQFS is the only part of the TurboDriver
system required for printing from the PC card, so loading just this will
save on memory. If you are likely to do this on a regular basis, it
would probably be worth pinning !PrintQFS to the pinboard to avoid too
much directory hunting each time! The disadvantage of using this method,
as against a separate lead, is that sending output via RISC OS does
reduce printing speed. I have not found it a great problem, but others
might like to comment.
9.10
Error messages during booting
9.10
Several readers have offered solutions to the problem of missing error
messages during the PC card boot sequence, as outlined in Jimæs Hints &
Tips article; a combination of the following may help.
9.10
At the beginning of the AUTOEXEC.BAT file, there is a line @ECHO OFF.
Adding REM at the start of the line will cause all the lines to be shown
on screen. Adding PAUSE as a new line at some point within the file will
stop the display with the message öPress any key to continueò, which is
useful to determine precisely where an error is occurring.
9.10
Unfortunately, it seems that neither of these work with Win95, so I
havenæt checked them out myself Ö precisely how Win95 does boot is still
something of mystery to me Ö any offers?
9.10
However, perhaps easier and more useful than those (which may have their
uses in certain circumstances), is to press <f8> when the message
öStarting PC DOSò appears. You will then be asked to confirm each
command before it is carried out, making debugging easier Ö hopefully!
This does work under Win95 Ö press <f8> when öStarting Windows 95ò
appears Ö except that, instead of taking you straight to step-by-step
confirmation, you are given a menu, and can choose from there a variety
of methods of start up, including step-by-step confirmation.
9.10
Also in the realm of startup errors, you may find the file BOOTLOG.TXT
useful Ö a file created by Windows each time it starts up (at least I
think itæs each time) where Windows records which commands were
successful and which were not. Iæve never had to use it for debugging,
but it could be helpful.You might also want to note that it seems much
safer to play around with .BAT and .SYS files than with .INI files,
which seem to be much more sensitive, to judge from comments I have
received from various people. Always keep a copy before changing
anything!
9.10
Speeding up startup
9.10
Jim commented that one of the factors causing the PC card to take a long
time to boot is the testing of the memory allocated to it. He suggested
altering the card setup, but a couple of readers have come up with a
much simpler and more satisfactory solution. In CONFIG.SYS, find a line
(probably the first) which reads öDEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYSò, or
similar, and add to the end (but before the [0d]) ö/TESTMEM:OFFò. (Donæt
include the quotation marks!) This cuts out the test altogether, but
since memory these days is pretty reliable, and it is likely to have
been working under RISC OS, I donæt think that this is running a great
risk Ö I assume that RISC OS does a similar check on startup.
9.10
(It does indeed! The standard Power On Self Test (POST) checks the
memory, and if it fails, the screen will hold at a blank, red screen,
and the floppy drive light will flash out an error code in the form of
eight groups of four flashes. RAM failure is indicated by long flashes
in the second or third flash of the fourth block of four. Ed.)
9.10
Speeding up Windows
9.10
As we all know, Windows accesses the hard disc frequently, if not
constantly. One potentially major source of speed improvement can be had
by defragmenting the drive, since Windowsæ disc management is poor. This
is particularly so in the early days while applications are being
installed and various configuration files updated Ö the disc can become
very messy. Try the command DEFRAG from DOS on a fairly regular basis
and see if it helps. In Win95, select Disc Defragmenter via the System
Tools subset of the Programs option from the Start button. This will
also tell you how fragmented your disc is, and whether it considers it
worth defragging.
9.10
Speeding up RISC OS
9.10
Jim Nottingham has observed that having the !PCx86 application loaded
can slow down RISC OS filer operations very noticeably, depending on the
state of the !PCx86 application. Here are his results:
9.10
  Time increase
9.10
RISC OS only  Baseline
9.10
!PCx86 on iconbar (i.e. unbooted)  Zero
9.10
!PCx86 running but frozen  40%
9.10
!PCx86 running in RISC OS window  80%
9.10
The last of these is to be expected, at least to some extent, since both
processors are running, but the increase in time with the x86
application frozen may come as a surprise. I have briefly tried
replicating these, and donæt seem to find the same result, though I can
only try accessing directories as I still donæt have enough memory to
allow me to load very much under RISC OS while Windows is running.
Perhaps others might like to try, and also perhaps suggest a reason for
the slow down, if they get one?
9.10
PC time
9.10
The PC card takes its time from RISC OS, which means that the time
within Windows should always be the same as the time within RISC OS.
Except under Win95 it doesnæt! This is because Windows tries to guess
when British Summer Time begins, and adjust automatically. The problem
is that, if you have already set your RISC OS clock for BST, the PC will
change it again, thereby putting you out by an hour, as some may have
discovered last month. The answer lies in the PC control panel, under
Date/Time. Here, the Time Zone section offers the option of
öAutomatically adjust clock for daylight saving changesò Ö leave this
box unticked, and all will be well. As far as I can see, Win 3.xx
doesnæt try to be this clever...
9.10
PC value
9.10
Several readers have written asking about which PC card upgrade I would
choose. Iæm happy to try to help, based on the experience I have with
PCs of various specifications at work Ö but some figures worked out on
the basis of David Coronelæs performance figures in the April Archive
might be of interest. (See table below.)
9.10
I hope these figures are correct, and meaningful. (They represent öú per
Windows User overall benchmark figureò!) The lower the number, the
better value youæll be getting. Certainly, with a new RiscPC, the 5x86
looks expensive when compared with the DX4/100, costing twice as much
but only giving 36% better performance, according to Davidæs figures.
When it comes to upgrading from the original card, the SX33, the
performance figures are the improvement in performance from the 3.8
benchmark of the SX33 Ö and here, as you can see, you get very much the
same bangs per buck, as they say.
9.10
Software value
9.10
I mentioned in my last column the high price of PC software Ö
particularly the Ébasicsæ which are so often bundled with standard PCs
(Excel, Word etc) Ö and am grateful to Brian Baker who suggested that
the easiest route is to buy slightly old versions of software and
upgrade if necessary. One supplier he mentions in this regard is
Sterling Management Systems Ltd., 13-15 Barrack Road, Guildford, Surrey,
GU2 6RU (01483-301331). Since (as far as I can tell) they are hardly
likely to be competitors to NCS, I trust Paul wonæt mind me including
them here.
9.10
And finally...
9.10
Do keep the comments coming. My address is MikeáClarkson, Riggæs Hall,
The Schools, Shrewsbury, SY3 7AZ. I can also be emailed as
[e-mail], but since I rely on the school (PC) network
for email, I canæt guarantee to check it very frequently. Thought for
the month: before Windows 95, was the Sinclair ZX81 the last computer
product to be named after a year? Any similarities?áuá
9.10
Card/if bought   With RiscPC  Separately  Upgrade from SX33
9.10
DX2/80  ú175/8.1 = 21.6  ú293/8.1 = 36.2  ú175/4.3 = 40.7
9.10
DX4/100  ú234/9.2 = 25.4  ú351/9.2 = 38.2  ú234/5.7 = 41.0
9.10
5x86/100  ú469/12.5 = 37.52  ú586/12.5 = 46.9  ú351/8.7 = 40.3
9.10
System Variables Ö Part 1
9.10
Andrew Berry
9.10
This is the first of three articles on the subject of system variables.
The first two parts deal with some of the most common system variables,
how they are used and why you might need to use them. The final article
describes how to set and unset system variables, including an
explanation of the different types available.
9.10
System variables
9.10
System variables are used to store various pieces of information which
affect the way in which the computer works. For example, a system
variable can tell the computer which application should load a
particular type of file; another contains details of the date format. A
set of default system variables is present when the computer is first
turned on, but the list is added to by many applications as they are
Éseenæ by the filer.
9.10
Listing the variables
9.10
To display a list of the current system variables, type *Show at the
command line (i.e. having pressed <f12>) or in a task window (i.e.
having pressed <ctrl¡f12>). This will display all the currently defined
variables in alphabetical order. Donæt worry if you donæt understand
what all the lines mean Ö many are only used internally and wonæt need
to be altered. As for the others, I will try to explain what the most
common types do and how to alter them (or indeed why you would want to!)
If you are writing a RISC OS application, it is likely that you will
need to set your own system variables at some time.
9.10
After reading this article, you may wish to display selected groups of
system variables only, as the complete list can be very long. Following
the *Show command with the name of a particular variable will cause it
to be displayed, for instance:
9.10
*Show Obey$Dir
9.10
The name may also be wildcarded using *, so to display all the run types
use:
9.10
*Show Alias$@RunType*
9.10
Obey$Dir
9.10
One of the most-used system variables is one called Obey$Dir. Each time
a file of type Obey (&FEB) is run, including each time an application is
seen by the filer or is double-clicked on, Obey$Dir is set to the
pathname of the directory containing the obey file. For instance, if an
obey file in a directory $.Apps on a disc called ÉProgramsæ was run,
Obey$Dir would be set to ÉADFS::Programs.$.Appsæ. It would then remain
set to this until another obey file was run.
9.10
The !Run file in most applications contains a line which runs the main
program, !RunImage, through use of the *Run command. It would be
possible for this line to contain the full pathname of the !RunImage
file, but if the application were then moved into a different directory,
this pathname would no longer be correct. For this reason, Obey$Dir is
used as follows, the angular brackets being used to denote a system
variable.
9.10
Run <Obey$Dir>.!RunImage
9.10
Because the !Run file is an Obey file, the system variable Obey$Dir will
be set to the pathname of the application when the file is run. When the
above line is reached, É<Obey$Dir>æ is replaced by the pathname of the
application. In this way, the application can always find its resources,
regardless of its position in the directory structure. For example, if
an application called !App was in the root directory of a disc called
ÉProgramsæ, then the above line would be executed as though it read
9.10
Run ADFS::Programs.$.!App.!RunImage
9.10
App$Dir
9.10
The problem with using Obey$Dir is that it is redefined each time an
obey file is run. If an application needs to load a file from within its
directory after it is first loaded, Obey$Dir cannot be used because it
is likely to have changed since the application was started. To avoid
this problem, it is necessary to set a new system variable when the
application is first run. This is achieved by including the following
line in the !Run file
9.10
Set App$Dir <Obey$Dir>
9.10
where App is replaced by the name of your application, for instance
ÉEasiWriter$Diræ. Note that this line must come before the line which
runs !RunImage.
9.10
When the application is run, Obey$Dir will be set to the pathname of the
application as described earlier. The *Set command then defines App$Dir
to be the same as Obey$Dir at that time. Even if Obey$Dir later changes
(as it will if any obey file is run), App$Dir will remain unchanged and
so the application will always be able to find its resources. All that
must be done is to replace any occurrences of <Obey$Dir> in the program
with <App$Dir>. Although this is not strictly necessary in the !Run
file, it is essential for any files which will be loaded after the
application has first started.
9.10
App$Path
9.10
This is similar to App$Dir, but there are two important differences ù
the pathname includes a trailing É.æ and the variable can hold many
pathnames, separated by commas. App$Path should be used when an
application holds resources in more than one directory. The directories
listed are searched in the order given until the required file is found.
9.10
Once an App$Path variable has been set up, there is no need to use
<App$Path> as the shortened form ÉApp:æ can be used. For example, to
access the file É<App$Path>Dir.Somefileæ, you can use
ÉApp:Dir.Somefileæ.
9.10
For an example of an App$Dir variable type É*Show System$Pathæ. Under
RISC OS 3.1, this will display something like
9.10
ADFS::IDEDisc4.$.!System.
9.10
If your program needs to load a module called Émodæ, it can use
ÉSystem:Modules.modæ and the module will be loaded from within the
!System application. On machines fitted with RISC OS 3.5 or later,
typing É*Show System$Pathæ will produce something more complicated, such
as
9.10
Sys:360.,Sys:350.,Sys:310.,Sys:200.,
9.10
ADFS::HardDisc4.$.!Boot.Resources.
9.10
!System.
9.10
This is in fact a list of pathnames which point to various directories
within the !System application, and you can see these directories by
opening the !System directory from the desktop (hold down <shift> and
double-click on !System). You will notice that the variable System$Path
contains references to another variable, Sys$Path (shown by Sys:). If
you type É*Show Sys$Pathæ you will see something like
9.10
ADFS::HardDisc4.$.!Boot.Resources.
9.10
!System.
9.10
The variable System$Path can therefore be used to load any module from
any of the directories within !System. For instance, to load a module
called Émodæ, you can use ÉSystem:Modules.modæ in exactly the same way
as under RISC OS 3.1. The directories Sys:360, Sys:350 and so on are
searched in turn for the file Émodæ. It is the use of App$Path type
variables which make this possible.
9.10
Next month
9.10
Next month, Iæll look at a few more types of system variable which
youære likely to come across. Setting system variables will be covered
in the third article, but in the meantime, the program !SystemVar, on
the monthly disc, will allow you to read, set and delete system
variables without using the command line ù full instructions are
provided on the disc.
9.10
If you have any comments or corrections concerning this article, please
write to me at: 39 Lancaster Avenue, Sandiacre, Nottingham, NG10 5GW.áuá
9.10
Mechanisms CD-ROM
9.10
David Smith
9.10
Mechanisms is a learning and teaching !Genesis application from Creative
Curriculum Software which runs on both RISC OS and Windows. As a teacher
of Technical Education in Scotland, and an Acorn enthusiast, I looked
forward to reviewing Mechanisms, as it appears to be one of the few
applications which will ideally suit the Scottish Standard Grade
Technological Studies syllabus. As it turns out, it does this admirably
and will also be ideal for GCSE Engineering and Technology courses.
Science teachers will also find some of the content useful.
9.10
The main filer window contains the Acorn and Windows applications and
copies of !Genesis Browser (the read-only public distribution !Genesis
Professional program), and also the Resources and Movies directories
which contain a variety of support materials which relate to the
teaching pack included with the CD-ROM. All diagrams, drawings and
photos are supplied as sprites. A number of CSV files are supplied which
can be used in spreadsheet and database applications.
9.10
The review was done on a 9Mb RiscPC600 with a Cumana double-speed CD-ROM
drive. The minimum requirement is RISC OS 3.1 and 4Mb RAM.
9.10
Starting up
9.10
On double-clicking on the Acorn folder in the main filer window, the
window shown below appears.
9.10
Double-clicking on the !Mechs icon loads !Browser and then runs the
Mechanisms application. An attractive animated title page appears. From
this, you can link to the Help, Principles or Main Page sections. The
supplied instructions gave a short and clear description of how to use
the program. The Help section repeats the information on-screen, and it
can be accessed at any time whilst using the main program.
9.10
!Genesis allows a variety of methods of moving through a document.
Double-clicking on one of the page Éleavesæ allows movement linearly
from page to page; either forward or backward.
9.10
Clicking directly on a diagram on one of the Theory pages links you
directly to the appropriate Examples index. Clicking on the page title
links back to the start of the section, and individual pages can be
closed by the standard use of the ÉCloseæ cross. Although there is some
logic behind the linking methods used, they are difficult to get used
to, and regular confusion arises. This could prove to be a major
irritant when the program is being used in the classroom. Pupils can
easily become Élostæ. I would prefer a set of standard linking icons on
each page which will allow direct links to the start of each section.
This system is used to good effect in other applications.
9.10
Structure of the application
9.10
The main sections are ÉPrinciplesæ and ÉExamplesæ. Aáshort introductory
section explains the basic theory of machines and mechanisms; forces and
motion. This includes the use of the Input-Process-Output systems
approach to technology. Correct standard symbols are illustrated for
each mechanism.
9.10
On completion of the general introduction, a more extensive explanation
of eight fundamental mechanisms is given: Cams, Pulleys, Gears, Levers,
the Inclined Plane, Cranks, Chain and Sprocket and Linkages.
9.10
The theory of each mechanism is introduced by means of a combination of
concise text with both animated and video examples. The theory may be
reinforced at any time by accessing examples of real machines, either by
clicking on any diagram in the theory section, or by clicking on the
Éexamplesæ icon at the end of the section.
9.10
A wide variety of examples is given. These allow a fundamental
understanding of each Émechanismæ and the use of Acorn Replay movies and
animated diagrams makes the whole learning process enjoyable. The
mathematical concepts of Mechanical Advantage, Velocity Ratio and Gear
Ratios are explained, with supporting examples. One desirable inclusion
to future versions would be a series of on¡screen tutorials in order to
reinforce these quite difficult areas of study.
9.10
Level of study
9.10
Mechanisms is suitable as a basic revision package for Higher Grade and
A-Level students but its main use will be up to Standard Grade and GCSE
levels. Secondary 1 and 2 pupils will also find it an excellent resource
package for use in investigations. Teachers could use Mechanisms as a
teaching aid, but its best use will be as a pupil-centred resource for
investigation and revision purposes.
9.10
The supplied teaching package is somewhat conservative in its design but
offers a variety of appropriate activities for use with the program.
Worksheets can be used to guide the student around the application and
suggest activities for using the Resources section. Most teachers will
probably modify the package to suit their own courses.
9.10
Pupilsæ opinions
9.10
Four pupils in S2 and S4 acted as Éguinea-pigsæ and used Mechanisms
intensively over a two-week period. All of the pupils thought the
information was well presented and easily understood, and agreed that
the program complemented their classwork well.
9.10
They said that not enough use was made of animations and, especially,
video sequences.
9.10
A major grumble was that the page linking methods were not good. They
regularly lost their position in the program when trying to link from
the examples back to the theory section. (This confirmed my own
opinions!)
9.10
Other sections
9.10
Mechanisms contains two other sections Ö Days Out and Do it Yourself.
9.10
Do It Yourself simply gives details of some commercially available kits
which are appropriate for building prototype mechanisms. This section is
little more than advertisements for the firms involved, and fails to
mention some major alternatives Ö Fischertechnik being an obvious
omission.
9.10
Days Out gives four examples of visits to the Snowdon Mountain Railway,
Harewood Traction Engine Rally, Crakehall Watermill and the Leeds and
Liverpool Canal. Each is explained in detail and complements the other
main sections in the program well. A welcome addition would be a
database of similar attractions throughout Britain.
9.10
Using Windows
9.10
Mechanisms runs at a workable speed using the standard 486 card on the
RiscPC. It uses an unattractive default font, and no video clips would
run. The latter may have been due to the lack of the appropriate Windows
video replay program, but the animated start-up screen is not available
in Windows Ö this leads to the conclusion that all video clips are
unavailable. There appears to be no reason to run the Windows version
anyway and this shortcoming will probably not be a problem.
9.10
Conclusions
9.10
At first glance, the design and layout of Mechanisms appears somewhat
plain and uninteresting when compared to, for example, Dorling
Kindersleyæs ÉThe Way Things Workæ. However, after using Mechanisms for
a while, it becomes apparent that its laid-back style is well suited to
its main purpose Ö that of a serious teaching and learning aid for use
in schools. It is not simply Éedutainmentæ.
9.10
Despite my complaints about its confusing page-linking methods, I have
no hesitation in recommending Mechanisms as a well-produced and
informative package which will prove to be an invaluable acquisition to
any schoolæs Engineering and Technology department. I look forward to
the forthcoming Structures CD-ROM from Creative Curriculum Software
which is due to be released later in 1996.
9.10
Mechanisms CD-ROM costs ú69 +VAT for a single user version and ú99 +VAT
for a site/network licence (ú79 and ú115 respectively through Archive).
Both versions include the Resource Pack and come on a dual format CD-
ROM.áuá
9.10
Comment Column
9.10
Acornæs future Ö I must agree totally with the comments of Richard Teall
(9.9 p38). Whilst I wholeheartedly support the JV company initiative,
Iáthink that Brendan OæSullivan and his team must take note of the fears
of many teachers, and ensure that the Xemplar WWW pages are more
representative of the product range they sell.
9.10
As Mike Cook stated in the latest Acorn User, his royalties from Mac
programs account for very little whereas his Acorn royalties are quite
significant.
9.10
Additionally, Xemplar must get the dealer situation sorted out. In my
part of the world (Surrey going into London), Calancraft were the Acorn
Educational Agents but they were not appointed Xemplar agents. I gave
them information about my wifeæs school, but Iáfear there is little they
can do!
9.10
Perhaps it is time for the Éoldæ Acorn Educational Agents, software
developers, hardware developers and I.T. coordinators to write to
Xemplar reminding them that they have a market already and that getting
new customers is much, much harder than retaining existing customers.
9.10
Keith Parker <[e-mail]>
9.10
Alsystemsæ Power-tec SCSI2 card Ö Because the Power-tec card has a Flash
ROM on it, it is possible to reprogram the ROM from software supplied on
floppy disc. This means that it is cheap and simple to update it. With
every new version of the software, it just gets better and better. The
Power¡tec card is Énew FileCore awareæ allowing RISC OS 3.6 machines to
access large discs as a single logical drive without partitioning. It
will recognise DOS format hard discs and removables and access them
through DOSFS allowing you to read and write to them just as you can
with DOS format floppy discs. Recently, this has been extended so that
you can also initialise a hard disc in DOS format. In fact, you can even
create a mixture of DOS and RISC OS format partitions on the same disc,
up to a maximum of eight logical disc devices. This will be good news
for anyone who needs to be able to exchange material with PCs on
SyQuests or other removable hard disc cartridges.
9.10
James Taylor, NCS
9.10
ArtLesson CD Ö Thanks very much for the very positive review of my CD by
Rob Ives and Helen Constable (9.9 p63). I would like to offer an extra
comment if I may.
9.10
Rob mentioned that he was not too keen on the fixed window aspect of the
program, and readers may like to know how they can alter this if they
too wish it were different!
9.10
If you have Genesis Pro, it is quite possible to copy the teaching bit
of ArtLesson onto your hard disc. Itáis just over 20Mb in size. You can
then load it into your own copy of Genesis and re-style the pages and
windows to your heartæs content. It is the PhotoCD which takes up the
vast bulk of the content of the CD, and this can stay on it.
9.10
I actually designed the program without window frames and re-sizing
icons because I noticed that that is how the professional CD-ROMs from
Anglia, and others, are designed. In my innocence, I thought that that
was Éthe thing to doæ, and that the program would look a bit naff if it
didnæt look like all the rest!
9.10
I have learned my lesson now, and I agree that the ability to resize the
windows independently is probably much more useful. I have written three
more CDs since then, which will be published by Topologika this year,
and I have made the windows re-sizeable. On the other hand, donæt be put
off by the ArtLesson format because no-one has complained about it. It
runs happily on all makes of Acorn, and is only the same as Angliaæs CDs
anyway!
9.10
Christopher Jarman <[e-mail]>
9.10
Beware ÉCall waitingæ Ö In the May issue, there was discussion of
creating a pause during dialling with a modem.
9.10
I guess we have similar telephone services in NZ as in the UK. We have a
service called Écall waitingæ which enables a telephone conversation to
be interrupted by a beep, signalling that someone else is trying to get
through Ö ideal with lots of children around.
9.10
During Internet sessions, the last thing I want is for a signal to come
through and disturb the link. Others clearly feel the same and our
Telecom people have created the code *52 to suspend the call waiting
service for the duration of the call that one is making (to the Net).
9.10
When I use this code, I follow it with a wait, for which we use code W,
in preference to commas, which you mentioned. W gives a two second
pause.
9.10
Thus my login script begins with: *52W
9.10
Alan Jackson <[e-mail]>
9.10
Epson GT9000 software Ö To add to David Crossleyæs comment in Archive
9.9 p41 about the Twain driver for the Epson GT9000 scanner having less
than ideal control of image quality, it should be noted that the GT9000
has five pre-defined contrast settings available and seven for
brightness.
9.10
Twainæs ÉQualityæ dialogue has sliders with 21 divisions, zero through
to 20, which implies a wide range of settings. Unfortunately, they
access only the hardwareæs fixed settings, and Epson users would be best
advised to do some test scans for reference purposes before getting down
to serious usage. It will be found that the lowest slider setting gives
greatest contrast, and the highest setting gives very nearly the least
contrast. The first thirteen Contrast slider divisions all give
identical results.
9.10
A similar Ésteppedæ arrangement applies to ÉBrightnessæ.
9.10
David Pilling, the author of Twain, is well aware of this shortcoming
and has promised to produce something more intuitive before too long.
9.10
Malcolm Knight <[e-mail]>
9.10
French prophet Ö (The French prophet who didnæt make a profit!) In
October 1994, when Acornæs shares went to a low of 90p, Bernard
Maugoust, from Villeneuve in France, wrote in the Help!!! Column...
9.10
öI have some money to go towards buying a RiscPC, but only about half of
what I need. Iæd like therefore to invest that money in Acorn shares so
that, in 2-3 years time, when the next generation of amazing Acorn
computers appears, Iæll be able to buy one as the shares will have
doubled in value Ö well, thatæs the theory. The trouble is that I live
in France. Can anyone help me to buy them directly from a UK broker as
the procedure for doing that from France is far from easy?ò
9.10
No-one sent him any help. He did not buy any shares Ö and now look at
the share price!!!!
9.10
Sorry, Bernard, the Acorn enthusiast community let you down!
9.10
Ed.
9.10
Hard disc speeds Ö I have recently bought a Rapide32 fast IDE interface
and an 850Mb Quantum hard drive for my original (home-based) RiscPC 600.
The combination is certainly much faster than the original 425Mb drive
on the Acorn IDE interface. One of the utilities supplied with the card
is a simple hard drive speed tester. It is nothing fancy, a WIMP front
end simply using OS calls to write chunks of data to a file at the
current pointer position, and when the file size reaches 5Mb, it simply
starts at the beginning again, continuously reporting the writing speed.
Since it works with any drive, I went around the department, testing
randomly selected machines.
9.10
The fastest speed was not surprisingly the new interface, reporting an
average speed of 3600kb/s. The 425Mb drive on the Acorn interface on the
same machine reached 1600kb/s. This speed was almost exactly duplicated
by the machine in my office (also a 30MHz PC600 with RISC OS 3.5).
However, two newer RiscPCs (33 MHz PC600, RISC OS 3.6), both with 425 Mb
drives, could only manage 1450 kb/s. Does this mean the later drives, as
supplied by Acorn, are slower, or that RISC OS 3.6 is slower thaná3.5?
9.10
Moving to earlier machines, an early A5000, now fitted with 230Mb and
100Mb drives (both from Beebug) reported 900kb/s and 600kb/s
respectively. A later A5000, fitted with the original 80Mb drive,
managed only 500kb/s.
9.10
A Conner 425Mb/HCCS IDE interface combination fitted to a A420 reached
1200kb/s, while our oldest A300 (ca. 1988, but obviously upgraded to
ARM3, RISC OS 3.1, etc), fitted with an ICS IDE interface and 170Mb
Conner drive was consistently running at a little over 1500kb/s.
9.10
These tests are not claimed to be definitive, but do reveal that the
third party IDE interfaces and drives do tend to be faster than the
Acorn-supplied ones. The final test on a A400 machine with original 40Mb
ST506 drive, which crawled along at about 150kb/s before the program
crashed with a full hard disc, shows what we used to think was high
speed.
9.10
Chris Johnson <[e-mail]>
9.10
High quality fonts (1) Ö Last month (9.9áp78), Dave Floyd asked for
information regarding high quality fonts. That is, fonts that are fully
RISC OS3.1+ and with full kerning information. His suggestion was to
look at the EFF range, as although they are expensive (Acorn pricing
levels), they were the only real solution to Acorn users.
9.10
Many people may well be aware that there is anotherásupplier of high
quality and professional fontsáto the Acorn market and that is The Font
Company Ltd. Soáfar, they have converted the entire Monotype Library of
over 600 fonts and are now embarking on the URW and Letraset libraries
(aámere 10,000 to go).
9.10
The fonts are fully licensed by Monotype and have full scaffolding and
hinting, have full kerning information, and work with RISC OS 3.1+. So
far, Iáhave purchased five (of the eight) packs with no regrets, and I
look forward to buying the remaining three packs in due course.
9.10
The packs contain (on average) 50 fonts/weights/styles and cost a mere
ú60 (inc p&p) direct from the Font Company, or via Archive.
9.10
I know that T-J Reproductions use them and have no problems running them
through their imagesetters (something Mac users often complain about)
and actively recommend them to their customers.
9.10
May I suggest that interested customers contact the Font Company Ltd.
They will supply you with a brochure of the packs with illustrations of
each font in each pack.
9.10
Keith Parker <[e-mail]>
9.10
High quality fonts (2) Ö (9.9 p78) One source of good quality fonts is
the CorelDraw3 CD which I have seen advertised lately in the PC mags at
under ú40. It contains about 50 families with 280 Adobe type 1 format
fonts which are easily converted using Acornæs !T1toFont (v1.26) and an
extended encoding file. With this version of T1toFont, the scaffolding
and kerning information is kept intact after conversion.
9.10
Most of what you require is on the CD in different names, and there is a
list of the trademark equivalents, e.g. Avalon = Avante Garde, Dixeland
=áZapf Dingbats, etc. To anyone without a PC card (like me), there are
only an additional 400 pictures available in WMF and BMP format files,
but with the card, you can also access hundreds of clipart files. (Or
does someone know of a program to convert Corel format files to the
Acorn, so that I can use them too, please?)
9.10
The extended encoding file and details of the alterations to the Message
file are on the monthly program disc.
9.10
Brian Cocksedge, Midhurst, West Sussex
9.10
Pocket Book cases Ö The notice in the June Archive (9.9 p6) prompts me
to mention that an excellent case for a Pocket Book can be bought for
only ú6.95. You can buy it at any of the John Lewis department stores
where it is sold as a miniature camera case. It is a perfect size, has a
pocket that can be used for spare batteries and flash cards, and comes
with a loop for a belt and a shoulder strap.
9.10
Sherwin Hall <[e-mail]>
9.10
Power-tec SCSI-2 cards Ö Can I confirm what Keith Faulkner of Alsystems
stated about this card and scanners (9.9 p44)?
9.10
I have just purchased my first flatbed scanner for my RiscPC, and I got
ImageMaster and a Twain driver from David Pilling Ö the setup of Mustek
Paragon 800SP and ImageMaster works very well and was most definitely
ÉPlug æn Playæ.
9.10
As it happens, I also have a Umax PowerLook2 Ö aámighty beast hooked up
to an Apple PowerMac 7100. It is done that way because of Photoshop3
(brilliant program, especially for photo re-touching, but very expensive
and slow), and I asked David Pilling about a Twain driver for the
PowerLook2 and he emailed me one.
9.10
I have recently ordered Photodesk2, and will try this setup shortly (in
the hope of dumping my PowerMac), so I asked David about SCSI cards and
he said that almost any Acorn SCSI card would be fast enough for any
flatbed scanner currently on the market, because the data is Ésuckedæ in
fairly slowly. (This cheered me up because thoughts of ú200 for the
Power-tec/Cumana SCSI-2 or YES SCSI-3 had come into my mind.) Now, if
only ImageMaster could go as fast as the Umax Mac driver!
9.10
Keith Parker <[e-mail]>
9.10
Risc User April 1996 Ö As the writer of the DTP Workshop in Risc User,
naturally I agree with our august editoræs comments (9.9 p47) and I know
many of the Risc User contributors like and respect Archive. Long may
the Acorn Écommunity spiritæ continue.
9.10
Regarding the CHRP (PPCP) article, Alex Bienek works for ART, and I
found it interesting that he speculated (at the end of a very technical
article) about placing an ARM processor on the CHRP processor bus and
this leading to the possibility of a CHRP platform containing only an
ARM processor, or an array of ARM processors, for multi-processor,
multitasking OSs such as TAOS.
9.10
Who said that ART had no vision? What a thought Ö the prospect of five
StrongARMs inside a CHRP box? When can I have one, please?!
9.10
Keith Parker <[e-mail]>
9.10
Risc User May 1996 Ö Well done again, Richard! Another good issue of
Risc User. I hate to say this, but I think readers ought to be
subscribing to both Risc User and Archive! The particular articles to
draw attention to this time are two good articles about the Internet by
Robin Watts, an inside view of ANT (so to speak) by Carol Atack, in
which she gives some feeling for what itæs like developing software for
Oracle, a glowing review of Font Directory 2, and, most important of
all, an interview with Peter Bondar.
9.10
In this interview, Peter talks about a range of subjects including:
improving the interoperability of Apple/Acorn, possible new versions of
RISC OS, the likelihood of technology Éspin-offæ from certain major
projects back into the RiscPC market, the future(?) of the CHRP project,
and questions as to whether the Stork will ever be born.
9.10
Ed.
9.10
VerbMaster-German Ö This got a glowing review last month, but stupidly
(sorry!) I forgot to put the address of the author in the Factfile. It
is Nigel Caplan, 33 Alwoodley Lane, Leeds, LS17 7PU.
9.10
Ed.
9.10
You never had it so good Ö Colin Singletonæs comment (Archive 9.1 p30)
on the growth of RAM and hard disc capacities set me thinking. Not only
memory and storage, but processor speeds and capabilities have shown
incredible rates of increase in just the last 20 years. In the æ70s, we
were wondering how to make use of a novel integrated circuit chip Ö the
4004 Ö which was very powerful and fast, and handled bits four at a
time. Soon the 8008 and then the 8080 with an 8-bit bus came along,
shortly followed by the 8086. The latter was a real landmark, as it was
the begetter of the whole range of 80x86 processors, up to and including
the current electric toaster simulators running at 100 MHz or so with up
to 64-bit buses.
9.10
Indeed, it was the entry of the mighty IBM into the microcomputer field
that led to de facto standardisation which is now clearly seen as
premature Ö all subsequent machines had to be able to run 8086 programs.
The effects of this event are all too clear in the freezing of what has
been called ÉIndustry Standardæ into an obsolete mould. In computing,
even 5 years old is Éantediluvianæ. Just peek at the files in a Windows
directory to see the expedients and Éfixesæ Ö drivers for extended
memory, expanded memory etc Ö needed within this straitjacket to exploit
the capabilities of later and more powerful processors.
9.10
There was always competition, however, though most of it tended to get
squeezed out of all but specialist areas once the great steamroller got
running. Zilog developed an enhanced version of the 8080 and called it
Z80. It was with this chip that (now Sir) Clive Sinclair powered his
ZX80 computer, which gave the UK the highest penetration of home
computers in the world. Many are still around Ö it isáaáfavourite for
controlling ÉMicroMiceæ in maze-running competitions. And, of course,
the Spectrum which followed continued the good work.
9.10
Away from the 8008 derivatives, however there were other processor
designs Ö notably the 6502 (still an 8¡bit device) which powered the BBC
Computer and the breakthrough into the schools market. It must have been
a good design since it appeared in my first computer, an Ohio Scientific
bare board, in 1978. This came with 1Kb of RAM, though I eventually
managed to extend this to some 40Kb by various paging tricks. Competing
with the 6502 were Motorolaæs 680x 8-bit processors, forerunners of the
6800x which powered the earlier Apple Macintosh computers.
9.10
The limitations of the 8-bit bus, capable of addressing directly only
1Mb of memory (which included the operating system, screen display and
any languages such as Basic) did have the effect of concentrating the
minds of programmers wonderfully. Off-line storage was usually on
cassette tapes (at 300 bits/sec), though floppy discs appeared later, so
Évirtual memoryæ hardly provided a let out. I suspect that a generation
of programmers reared on the BBC have helped to keep Acorn programming
compact and efficient. I am not sure we have advanced when I contemplate
the profligate use, I would say waste, of resources in typical present-
day Éindustry standardæ PC programming. And as for W95...
9.10
Though the BBC had this limitation, various expedients and expansions
eased it. Thus there was the Aries board which provided a separate 20Kb
of screen memory, and, most significant of all, the Acorn ÉTubeæ which
allowed second processors and extra memory to be bolted on. Acornæs
early expertise here surely bore fruit with the RiscPC and its (up to
five) additional processors. The Torch was one Tube add-on that brought
a pair of 5╝ö floppy discs and a Z80 processor which ran CPM Ö a multi-
platform operating system which preceded the later ÉDOSæsæ.
9.10
Mentioning floppy discs reminds me of my second computer, pre-BBC, which
was a somewhat offbeat animal called a Transam Tuscan. It ran CPM with a
Z80 on an S100 bus Ö more shadows from the grave! However, I did get a
pair of Micropolis 5╝ö hard-sectored disc drives for it. They stored
35Kb on each side and were unbelievably fast after the cassette tapes.
9.10
I later actually got a hard disc for the BBC Ö this was the size of a
shoe box, held 20Mb, and cost ú1,000. At that rate and allowing for
inflation, even the National Lottery could hardly afford a modern 2Gb
disc.
9.10
I havenæt yet mentioned the Commodore Pet, at one time very popular, but
I am reminded of seeing one still going strong in our local hospital,
complete with 8ö floppy disc drive. I wonder how many of those would be
needed to compose one CD-ROM?
9.10
Other advances over the last decade include such things as the
Transputer, now extensively used in vast high-power multi-processor
arrays for really serious number-crunching. It was developed under
government auspices, but sold off abroad by utterly unenlightened
politicians. But we can be very proud of Acornæs contributions. After
the roaring success of the BBC, it took courage to break the chains and
start with a new architecture for a range of 32-bit RISC computers,
while the ÉIndustry Standardæ remained stuck in the mire. A superb
operating system, the original concept of which has needed only
development, not replacement, economical and efficient programming and
very fast processors all stand to its credit. And now StrongARM is
making the most sceptical sit up. The next 20 years should be
interesting.
9.10
Eric Ayers, Ipswich
9.10
Acornæs share price over the last eight months
9.10
i.e. since David Lee became MD.
9.10
A = First rumour of Oracle deal
9.10
B = NY Times article about Acorn/Oracle
9.10
C = Oracle deal publicly announced
9.10
D = Joint Venture announced
9.10
E = Rumours of Netsurfer abound
9.10
Help!!!!
9.10
Acorn Online Media Ö Graham Jones, who used to write about AOM matters,
has become somewhat over-worked of late and cannot continue with this
role. Would anyone be interested in taking over? It would mean that I
would feed you with any information, press releases, etc, so that you
could churn out an occasional article about what is happening on the
set-top box front.
9.10
We could possibly combine it with the Acorn Network computing side of
things which is moving even faster, so you might almost have something
to write about each month. This is an important area, partly because it
is changing so rapidly, and partly because it is the source of major
funding for Acorn which enables other projects to benefit!
9.10
If you would be interested in covering either or both of these areas, do
get in touch. (It would help if you have email access.) Thanks.
9.10
Ed.
9.10
C/C++ books Ö This year I am teaching Computer Studies after a break of
10 years. I feel the need to hone my skills in the programming area, so
Iáam seeking good introductory books on programming in C, C++ and ARM
assembler.
9.10
In case you wonder why I would consider buying books from the UK, you
may be interested in the price of Kernighan et al, The C Programming
Language. Our local university bookshop sells it for over $100 (approx
ú45)!
9.10
Michael Clark <[e-mail]>
9.10
I donæt know about C and C++, but Iæm pretty sure there isnæt an
introductory book on ARM assembler although I know a couple of
publishers who are öthinking about itò. As Acorn starts to come back
into mainstream again with StrongARM, NetSurfer et al, it would
certainly be worth someoneæs while writing such a book Ö thereæs no
competition at the moment! Ed.
9.10
Scientific software Ö Two more scientific-related applications for this
monthæs disc. UnitConv has been seen before in an earlier incarnation,
but Energy is totally new.
9.10
Energy Ö This chemistry related software is a demonstration of (a)
translational speed distributions and their variation with mass or
temperature and (b) rotational energy level populations and the
intensity of pure rotational spectra.
9.10
UnitConv Ö This application converts between various units, generally SI
and Imperial, but there are also some more specialised conversions, such
as energy equivalents.
9.10
Both applications have been added to my ftp site for downloading.
9.10
Chris Johnson <[e-mail]>
9.10
Text editor, please? Ö I really do need a new text editor, please. Can
anyone help? The thing is that I write 30 to 40 emails a day, and as I
do these in Edit, I miss certain facilities which I have grown used to
in Impression. Does anyone know of a text editor that offers:
9.10
Abbreviations Ö e.g. in Impression, I type ösmò for StrongARM Ö this
sort of thing saves me a lot of time.
9.10
Change case with a single keystroke Ö <ctrl-S> in Impression.
9.10
Transposing adjacent characters Ö my most common mitsake!
9.10
Could Zap or StrongEd do this?
9.10
Ed.
9.10
ARM Column
9.10
Alexander Singleton
9.10
Network Computer roadmap
9.10
As reported in last monthæs Archive, on March 31st, ARM announced its
ÉNetwork Computer (NC) road mapæ. Essentially, ARM has made the
statement that there will be further joint development with Digital to
produce more powerful StrongARMs, and that an ARM8500 range will
supersede the processor in the A7000 (plus the present Acorn NetSurfer
and Oracle NC). Also ARM has announced a floating point version of the
7500 aimed at NCs. Is ART, or Aleph One et al, going to produce an
upgrade for A7000 users?
9.10
Yamahaæs announcement
9.10
The company that started off producing reed organs and which became the
worldæs largest manufacturer of musical instruments, Yamaha, has
licensed 32-bit RISC processor cores from ARM Ltd. A processor core is
simply the building blocks of a processor, not an actual finished
processor that could be slotted into a computer. Yamaha will build ARM7
cores into custom integrated circuits for Internet appliances, advanced
sound generators, car navigation devices and set-top boxes. The first of
these multimedia chips is expected by the end of the year.
9.10
Yamahaæs Takashi Murayama said, öFor our next generation sound and
entertainment chips, we need to integrate a CPU with more performance
than existing 8 or 16-bit cores offer. We found that the ARM processor
delivered the performance we needed at the lowest cost and power
consumption.ò
9.10
Oracleæs announcement
9.10
Oracle (ART-designed) network computer (NC) is causing quite a stir
within the industry. Analysts have said that to appeal to the consumer
market, Oracle has to strike below the magical price point of $500.
Using the components found in an IBM-compatible PC would amount to $600
in hardware costs alone.
9.10
But can an ARM-based NC be cheap enough to produce? Oracle and ARM
obviously think so. However, Mac Useræs Jim Smith hinted (26th April
issue) that Bill Gates (Microsoftæs founder) did not believe that prices
for the network computer would be as cheap as Oracle claims. öItæs easy
to paint a rosy picture when the details are out of focus,ò Bill argues.
But I would say to him that itæs even worse when a company releases a
16/32-bit OS and advertises the rosy picture that itæs fully 32-bit.
9.10
öInteractive set-top boxes are a demanding product to build Ö you need
twice the performance of a desktop PC at one third the cost,ò said
Malcolm Bird, chief executive of Acorn Online Media, as quoted in a
Digital press release. öWhile the performance of these StrongARM
processors is impressive, what sold us on this technology is the price
points at which the performance is delivered. This technology will help
make interactive TV a reality.ò Hmmm...
9.10
Interestingly, when interviewed on Channel 4æs Triumph of the Nerds,
Oracle boss Larry Ellison suggested that the de-facto reason behind
IBMæs loss of market share in the PC industry was non-exclusive
licensing from independent companies (Microsoft and Intel). But isnæt
this exactly what Oracle is about to do with its NC? Or am I missing
something?
9.10
Atmelæs announcement
9.10
According to Atmel Corporationæs Christian Fleutelot, its recent
licensing of the ARM Éthumbæ core will allow Atmel to produce
microcontrollers with an exceptionally small core. öThus, an ARM
Éthumbæ-based microcontroller can sell for less than comparable
performance devices. Atmel-ARM microcontrollers will offer designers
fast throughput times and low power consumption.ò
9.10
The companyæs product lines will have emphasis on telecommunications,
information processing, networking, consumer and automotive markets.
Atmel is headquartered in California, and designs, develops,
manufactures and markets Flash ROMs, EEPROMs and EPROMs, as well as
programmable logic, microcontrollers and application-specific devices.
9.10
Microsoftæs home computer
9.10
I suspect that Bill Gates feels threatened by the Oracle NC. Thatæs why
heæs announced his own Simply Interactive PC (SIPC). Rather than merely
being a set-top box, it will take full control of your home, possibly
including devices such as your toaster, cooker and fridge. Can you
really imagine running into your living room to click on the toaster
icon to get the toast out of the toaster? According to one source, it is
Microsoftæs intention to make PCs as easy to use as televisions.
Unfortunately, some would argue that this will not be possible if MS
chooses Windows 95 as its operating system. This includes Appleæs co-
founder, Steve Jobs, who recently described all of Microsoftæs products
as öthird rateò. These devices are, apparently, still only a figment of
Gatesæ imagination, so it seems like a perfect time to announce them.
9.10
Whatæs more, I am told that Acorn co-founder Chris Curry produced the
Red Box, which did the same sort of thing... ten years ago!
9.10
Apple Newton with StrongARM
9.10
öAppleæs Newton team and the StrongARM design team have worked closely
together during the past eighteen months,ò said Michael Culbert of Apple
Computer. öWe are very excited about this new technology and its
potential to carry the next generation of Newton PDAs to a new level.
Our customers and licensees will be delighted by the new applications
and human interface capabilities this chip can enable.ò
9.10
Oracle Corporation apparently attempted, and subsequently failed, to
purchase the ARM-powered Newton from Apple at the end of last year. Then
Oracle will become a licensee of the technology.
9.10
Acornæs future OS?
9.10
When I interviewed Peter Bondar in August last year, he made pretty
clear that Acorn is playing with new OS technologies which will öcause
Windows to come unstuck.ò
9.10
One of these was a 3D environment where the user flies around a room. At
the simplest level, you could have a cube representing an application
that had six documents open. Bondar revealed that two major multimedia
publishers had been given a demonstration of a simple form of this. One
divulged that their company öcould really do things with this.ò For this
environment to work smoothly, Bondar estimated that around 500 MIPs
would be required ù sounds like an excellent use for one of those Simtec
Hydra cards with multiple StrongARMs.
9.10
Three-dimensional CD front ends, where the user isáviewing the inside
of, say, a museum, are becoming increasingly popular but are lengthy to
program. IfáART would produce an off-the-shelf technology to automate
this and actively market it, who knows where that would lead?
9.10
Bill Gates seems to agree with ARTæs idea, because in his much
criticised book, The Road Ahead, he conveyed his belief that 3D would be
important. The book was published after Bondar started talking to press
and other companies about this technology!
9.10
ARM3 speed info
9.10
Jim Nottingham has kindly written in with details on the speed of the
ARM 3. öIæm working purely from long-term memory here but I seem to
recall that when an A4x0/1 or similar (i.e. with 8MHz RAM) was upgraded
to the Atomwide ARM3, it gave around 10MIPs. The A540 (with the 12MHz
RAM and 30MHz ARM3) gives 13.5MIPs. The 25MHz ARM3 in the later A5000s
gives 12MIPs.ò He also pointed me in the direction of an article by the
Éotheræ Singleton about dried pebbles off that useful CD (is Paul
producing another?), which is in Archive 7.9.
9.10
Iæd also like to thank Richard Hesketh, who lives in the distant land of
Andorra, for the information that his 25MHz ARM3 A5000 runs at between
13.5 and 13.65 according to an application called ARM-Si.
9.10
Gameboy 2 with StrongARM
9.10
I want one, although this is only rumour, and therefore likely to be
accurate(!). Well, actually, Iæd much rather have a NewsPad. Perhaps if
I write to Larry, heæll buy me one...
9.10
Contacting me
9.10
By the time I next write I will hopefully Ébe connectedæ, but in the
meantime you can contact me via Paul.áuá
9.10
Xenakis 16
9.10
Chris Coe
9.10
So, the RiscPC now has 16-bit sound Ö thatæs great, but how many
programs are there to exploit this extra functionality? The answer is,
not a lot! Playing 8-bit sound samples is OK though, because Acorn have
done a good job of implementing a É16-bit oversampled modeæ. The 8-bit
samples are changed into 16-bit by a method called fractional
interpolation, in which the effective sample rate is increased by
estimating (interpolating) a sampleæs amplitudes at intervals where they
arenæt specified in a sample block. So, all of our 8-bit music sounds
much better than it did before, but unless you have a PC card, there is
little to exploit the 16-bit sound capability and produce pure 16-bit
sound.
9.10
Here is one exception Ö Xenakis 16 is the first Étrackeræ program (as
far as I am aware) that allows the use of 16-bit samples to create
exceptional quality music. To explain, a tracker file is a means of
storing music for the computer to play. It is widely used for computer
games, demos and similar applications, because of the ease with which it
can be incorporated into such code. There are a variety of modules in
the public domain which run under interrupt, so you just need to issue
the start SWI and forget about it.
9.10
The method used to enter notes is the same with all tracker editors Ö a
numerical-type notation that is quite dissimilar to standard stave
notation. This has the advantage of allowing you to use a large variety
of effects and samples to make all sorts of strange noises, but the
disadvantage is that it is quite difficult to get used to, and musicians
wonæt like it at all! Put simply, tracker editors usually appeal to
games writers and such like, whereas Érealæ musicians use programs like
Sibelius, Notate and so on, that offer conventional stave-editing
facilities.
9.10
One problem with trackers is that there are many different formats. If
you get hold of the PD application TrackConv by Chris Davis (the
ChangeFSI of tracker files), you will see an enormous range. On the
Acorn, the most popular formats are generally: STModules which are
mostly Acorn-originated files but, unfortunately, there is no player
module yet for the RiscPC, STrackers which are mostly Amiga-originated
files and can be played on all Acorn machines, Symphony, another Acorn
format, and CocoTraks from the PD Coconizer application. Finally, there
are a couple of less-used formats, ProTracker and TeqMusic.
9.10
The difference in all these types, apart from the physical layout of the
file, is in the range of octaves, tempos and effects, and the maximum
number of samples they offer. Of the trackers mentioned, all offer three
octaves only except CocoTrak, which allows eight but, unfortunately, it
has a poor Écommand setæ (availability of effects, etc). Symphony has by
far the best command set, allows more samples than the others, and can
also be stored in a self-compressed format.
9.10
Xenakis 16
9.10
So, thatæs the background, but what about Xenakis 16? On loading up, you
get the usual icon on the iconbar, and then the first disappointment
comes (although this is pointed out in their advertisements). The main
editing window single-tasks. This would not normally be much of a
problem, since you donæt normally do anything else when writing music,
and most of the other tracker programs I have single-task.
9.10
However, I found the controls on this interface particularly difficult
to get to grips with. In fact, I still havenæt. There are several
annoying features such as, when I am scrolling through a list of
samples, the arrows seem to me to make the text scroll in the wrong
direction.
9.10
The manual, which was supplied on disc as an Impression file, is well
written, with a useful tutorial guide and a good reference section at
the back. Reading carefully through the manual, there are all the
expected features of a tracker editor Ö cut and paste, effect parameter
increments and decrements, sample loop editing, and so on. All the usual
effects are included, like arpeggio, volume and pitch slides, echoes and
so on, but nothing exceptional or unique to Xenakis.
9.10
A big problem is that, unlike other tracker editors where you can just
drag in the samples you want to use, Xenakis 16 maintains a database of
samples which you canæt access from outside the program (i.e. you canæt
listen to them in a sample editor), and you can only use samples in the
database in your tracks. You can add and remove samples, but it would
have been much more user-friendly to be able to drag in the ones you
want to use. There is a nice collection of 8 and 16-bit samples
provided.
9.10
Even more annoying is that Xenakis 16 uses its own Xenakis music format
file for saved tracks. There is a module to let you use them in your own
programs, and a desktop player called !DXen, but this format has no
support anywhere other than in these forms. You canæt even use the likes
of TrackConv to convert it into another format.
9.10
Fortunately, Dexedream Productions will be addressing most of these
problems with Xenakis 16 Pro, a more expensive version that is RISC OS-
compliant and has many more features than the current Xenakis 16.
9.10
Conclusion
9.10
Xenakis has many good features, and the command set is quite good,
although I note there are no stereo commands. However, the combination
of a poor interface, very annoying sample database and unsupported music
format cripples Xenakis 16 too much for it to be of any serious use.
9.10
I rubbed my hands with glee when I heard that there was to be a 16-bit
sound editor, but I was disappointed with the program. Its only real
advantage is offering 16-bit sample capability but, in the race to be
first, I think they have rushed into publishing the program too soon.
Now that Digital Symphony 2 supports 16-bit samples, that is still, as
Oreganæs advertising claims, the definitive sound track editor though,
admittedly, at ú59.95, it is three times the price.
9.10
Xenakis 16 costs ú19.95 inclusive from Dexedream Productions.áuá
9.10
Geraldæs Column
9.10
Gerald Fitton
9.10
Letters referring to my discussions of mathematical (and other)
philosophical matters keep pouring in but I have decided that, at least
for the moment, I shall make no more comment in Archive, though I will
continue to answer your letters individually.
9.10
My thanks to Paul, and to Gareth Owen of Clares, for the copy of
Schemaá2 which I received about a week ago. This month, I shall follow
up last monthæs comparisons of the way in which various spreadsheet
packages allow you to enter text, and how they cope with my most
difficult charting problem, a graph of the cube and cube root functions.
9.10
PipeDream
9.10
On 10tháMayá1996, Jill and I were invited to a meeting with Protechnic
at Cambridge. To my surprise and great pleasure, the possibility of a
new version of PipeDream was discussed. It would seem that Protechnic
would be willing to invest in a new version of PipeDream if the extent
of the demand were to be such that they can make it a financially viable
proposition. If Protechnic go ahead, current registered users would be
offered a paid-for upgrade.
9.10
Over the past year or so, I have received much correspondence from
PipeDream enthusiasts asking if there was any way of getting PipeDream
upgraded. Some even suggested that we users should club together and buy
PipeDream from the owners and then commission the upgrade ourselves.
Consequently, I started looking into what would be involved in buying
PipeDream Ö but Iæve put those plans on hold for the moment; maybe we
wonæt need to buy it after all.
9.10
Text in a spreadsheet
9.10
Last month, I explained that PipeDream and Fireworkz were primarily
spreadsheets but with word processing features built in, so that you can
mix many paragraphs of text quite easily with live spreadsheets in one
document. The facility for the inclusion of text in Eureka documents is
more limited. However, Eureka can be linked to Impression using Acornæs
OLE Ö many of you will prefer to use such a combination of Impression
and Eureka rather than the PipeDream or Fireworkz integrated packages.
9.10
This screenshot appeared last month and should remind you of the way you
can include text in these two packages.
9.10
For comparison, look at the screenshot below and you will see a couple
of text cells in a Schemaá2 spreadsheet. Schema has a facility not
shared by the other spreadsheets called a ÉBig Cellæ. You can create a
Big Cell which overlays a block of cells. In the screenshot, I have
created two such Big Cells, A5C8 and D5F6. If you make a Big Cell too
large or too small for the text which you want it to contain, you can
not go back and add or delete cells from the block which it overlays.
However, you can change both the line height and column widths of the
cells which the Big Cell overlays and sometimes this is sufficient.
9.10
The screenshot also demonstrates what I believe to be a negative feature
of Schema which it shares with Eureka Ö you cannot edit text within the
cell but only in what is generally referred to as the Éformula lineæ.
Contrast this with PipeDream or Fireworkz, in which you can edit text
within a cell. Indeed, later versions of Fireworkz have a facility which
I usually turn off, namely that you can edit not only text but also
numbers and formulae within a cell. I turn it off so that I can see more
easily which cells are Étext cellsæ and which are Énumber cellsæ by
looking at the formula line to see if itæs blank (aátext cell) or if it
contains a number or formula (a number cell).
9.10
I find PipeDream and Fireworkz easier to use because, as I enter or edit
text within the cell, I can see exactly what the layout is like. In
Eureka and Schemaá2, the text is entered or edited within the formula
line as a single long line. You only see what it looks like in the cell
when you finally press <return>.
9.10
Graphs in Schema
9.10
Last month, I included examples of a rather complex graph which I
produced using PipeDream, Fireworkz and Eureka with varying degrees of
success. To remind you of the graph, I repeat the PipeDream version over
leaf.
9.10
The points I made about this PipeDream graph were: (a)áthere are three
independent lines on the chart; (b)áyou can add more lines without
starting again; (c)áeach line has different x and y ranges; (d)áthere is
no limit to the number of text objects which you can add to the chart;
(e)áthese text objects can be placed anywhere you like. I would add;
(f)áany text object can be individually edited (rather than having to
delete an incorrect text object before starting on it again); (g)áthere
is complete control over the intervals on the axes.
9.10
The graph below shows the best I have managed to achieve up to now using
Schema:
9.10
You will appreciate from this graphic that I have had a serious problem
trying to suppress that part of the cube function corresponding to
values of x above xá=á1.2. I did not have such a problem using Eureka Ö
I just left blank spaces for the y values corresponding to x greater
than 1.2. What you might not realise from the graphic is that the values
on the axes cannot be controlled as they can in PipeDream. Iáwas unable
to force an interval of 0.2.
9.10
In Schema, you can add as much text as you like to a graph. You can
reposition added text, and you can delete individual text objects from
the graph. You can apply text styles to any of the text objects
including the numbers on the axes. I did have a problem keeping the
graph in the spreadsheet hot linked when I added my fifth text object. I
donæt know whether the number of text objects is limited or whether I
have been doing something wrong. The graphic shown here has been saved
in drawfile format. The graph in the spreadsheet on the Archive monthly
disc shows how far I got in adding text objects.
9.10
Using Schema, you cannot add extra lines to a graph retrospectively; you
can in Eureka, Fireworkz and PipeDream.
9.10
Before leaving the subject of graphs in Schema, Iáhave to say that I
feel as if I have been unfair to Schema by choosing a graph type which
is particularly difficult for Schema to reproduce. In my defence, I must
say that I chose the graph type a couple of months ago before I had
Schema! Schema is able to produce many different graph types Ö for
example, it produces superb horizontal bar charts (incorrectly Ö and to
my annoyance Ö referred to as histograms!) which cannot be produced in
PipeDream or Fireworkz, and, unlike the other spreadsheets I have been
considering, you can add your own drawfiles to your charts.
9.10
Finally on the subject of text in charts, let me answer a question many
of you have asked about Fireworkz. Iáhave it direct from the programmer
of Fireworkz (Stuart Swales) that you cannot add text to a Fireworkz
chart yet. The manual says that, to add text, you should enter text in a
cell, mark the cell and then execute the command ExtraáÖáChartáÖáAdd.
This doesnæt work yet, but it will do one day!
9.10
The common clipboard
9.10
The common clipboard is a feature of RISCáOS supplied by Acorn. The way
it works is this. Suppose you have both a Schema document and an
Impression document on screen. In Schema, mark a block, probably a
table, and Copy it to the (Schema) clipboard. Click in the Impression
document, and place the cursor at the point where you want the table to
appear. Click on the Impression Paste icon (or use <ctrl-v>), and the
table will appear within the Impression document. This works because
Schema and Impression share the Acorn common clipboard.
9.10
You may be interested to know that the database package DataPower also
shares this common clipboard. This means that if you have a Schema,
DataPower, Impression combination you will be able to copy and paste
data between the three packages. You may prefer to use such a
combination rather than an integrated package such as Fireworkz because
you will be able to use each individual package to do the things which
it does best.
9.10
Neither PipeDream, Fireworkz nor Eureka make use of Acornæs common
clipboard.
9.10
Other features of Schema
9.10
In later articles, I will compare other aspects of the four spreadsheets
Eureka, Schema, PipeDream and Fireworkz in detail, but I do want to
mention some of the more positive features of Schemaá2 now so that you
donæt write it off on the basis of one graph which undoubtedly is
difficult to produce.
9.10
Schema has a superb set of matrix functions, including one which enables
you to solve simultaneous equations. I have successfully solved a set of
six simultaneous equations. The two spreadsheets I am most familiar
with, PipeDream and Fireworkz, will handle up to three only. So how can
you use this facility? One which might be useful to some of you, is
curve fitting (by which I mean, specifically, that you can choose the
order of polynomial you wish to fit to a set of experimental points) Ö
an alternative to the finite difference method that I outlined last
month.
9.10
I have sent for the separate book about writing your own macros (known
as custom functions in PipeDream and Fireworkz). Some interesting ones
are already included on the Schema discs. Schema is almost totally
compatible with Lotus, and many functions specific to Lotus are included
as Schema macros, so that Lotus files can be loaded directly into Schema
and files from Schema into Lotus. Unlike Eureka and Fireworkz, you
cannot load Excel files directly into Schema.
9.10
You can define Sheet Variables. These are known as Names in PipeDream
and Fireworkz. Using Sheet Variables simplifies the use of
interdependent documents. Another feature of Schema which simplifies the
use of multiple interdependent spreadsheets, is the concept of a
WorkSpace. AáWorkSpace is a single name for a set of interdependent
documents including all the macros used by the main spreadsheets. Saving
a set of documents as a workspace preserves all the relative addresses
so that, if you decide to copy the set to new directory, you will not
have problems with the path name to the files.
9.10
Finally
9.10
Thank you for all your letters. I am still getting letters (without
discs) with problems which I can answer best by showing how to do it
with a disc file. Let me give you just one example. The question was how
to draw horizontal lines (without the vertical grid lines) between rows
in a PipeDream document Ö a sort of extended underline separating the
records of a database. I tried to explain in words how to do it, but it
would have been much clearer if I could have used the correspondentæs
own file.
9.10
Please write to me (with a disc showing examples if appropriate) at the
Abacus Training address given at the back of Archive. I shall be
particularly interested to hear about your experiences with either
Eureka or Schema.áuá
9.10
Printers and Printing
9.10
Dave Floyd
9.10
HP Laserjet 5L (1)
9.10
Following Andy Jacksonæs supplementary comments to his review of the 5L,
Keith Parker has written to answer some of the questions raised by Andy:
9.10
Iáonly print from ArtWorks or Publisher, and Iáhave no problems printing
out at A5. Iádefined an A5 page (in the pdf) in Landscape mode, and when
Iáprint, Iásimply select the Print Sideways option.
9.10
As regards the durability of the machine. Iáhave printed over 5,000
sheets with no problems and it has even survived the loving attention of
my four year old daughter and one year old son Éplayingæ with it!
Iáthink it is pretty robust!
9.10
Size ù Iáwas comparing it to my existing printer and it is much smaller.
As far as the LJ4P goes, Iáwouldnæt know.
9.10
Iáhave a RiscPC, so Iácouldnæt comment on machines with a uni-
directional printer port. All Iásuggested was that as HP Érecommendæ a
bi-directional printer port, Iáfelt that Iáshould play safe, rather than
give a Éblanketæ OK!
9.10
Iástand by what Iásaid Ö it really is an excellent printer that offers
exceptional quality at a very low price.
9.10
HP Laserjet 5L (2)
9.10
Last month, Iámentioned that Jon Keates was having problems accessing
the internal fonts. He wrote to Customer Support at Hewlett Packard and,
a few days later, received a phone call from HPæs European Customer
Support Centre in Amsterdam. They pointed out that he could contact HP
First on their fax information line and they would fax a twelve page
HPCL4 document. As Mr Keates does not have a fax machine, they were kind
enough to fax the document to themselves and post it to him. Excellent
service!
9.10
The HPCL4 document covers all of the printer commands that Mr Keates
needed, except for the new features covered in the HPCL5 standard, such
as Economode and Tone Density. If anybody else manages to discover how
these can be used, please let me know, as there are a growing number of
Laserjet 5L owners who would be interested.
9.10
HP internal fonts
9.10
Iáalso received a letter from Kate Crennell who wanted to draw my
attention to !LazyPrint. This is a shareware package which is available
on the June 96 Acorn User cover disc and allows you to print text files
and some drawfiles using the internal HP commands and fonts. This method
is far faster than waiting for the Acorn or CC printer drivers to create
and send the whole page as a bitmap, and the software also works
completely in the background, allowing you to be getting on with
something productive while the printing continues.
9.10
The software is still under development, and it is hoped that it will
soon be able to handle drawfiles containing sprites and text areas,
rather than just line drawings. Anyone who is interested in this package
but cannot find the June issue of Acorn User will have to wait until
September (it is currently ⌐Acorn User under their 3 month copyright
scheme) when it will become shareware again. More information can be
obtained from D J Crennell, PO Box 64, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0TH.
9.10
In response to Dave Burridgeæs question on the HP 5MP, Kate also states
that they have been using an HP 4MP for over a year, and since upgrading
the machine to full PostScript compatibility, have been very happy with
it. Before upgrading to PostScript, however, they were not so happy with
the machine using the Acorn and CC drivers (on a speed and efficiency
level), which is what prompted the writing of !LazyPrint in the first
place.
9.10
Canon BJC600
9.10
Nick Edgar has sent in the following which may be of use to owners of
the Canon BJC600, and possibly those who own other inkjets:
9.10
Probably through using ink refills, Iámanaged to block three nozzles in
the magenta head on my Canon BJC600. It was suggested that Iáshould
stand the head in (shallow) warm water for 10 minutes to unblock it.
After several attempts Iáabandoned this Ö it had no effect.
9.10
Iáthen spotted an advert in Acorn User (Care Electronics) which listed a
ÉPrint Head Recovery Fluidæ at ú5.95. This Iáduly ordered. It came in a
very small bottle with a photocopied instruction sheet. The instructions
stated that the head should be stood (nozzles down) on a tissue soaked
in the fluid, replaced and the head cleaning cycle run. This Iádid Ö
with the result that Iágot an awful printout with strange diagonal
patterns!
9.10
Iágave up, but a few days later decided to try again, and activated the
new print head cleaning cycle (different from the full head cleaning).
It worked! Iánow have my printer fully operational, producing excellent
printouts without having to spend ú100+ on a new print head Ö and Iæve
still got most of the fluid left in case it happens again!
9.10
One final point is that, using TurboDriver version 4.04, setting the
quality to ÉBlack enhancedæ in the configuration window dramatically
improves the black printout which previously was always rather
disappointing on the BJC600.
9.10
Printer memory
9.10
Paul Beverley of Norwich, a name most of you should recognise, wrote to
ask me about the need for memory in printers Ö whether it is essential
or merely a convenience. The answer is dependent on what kind of printer
you have.
9.10
Dot matrix and inkjet printers contain a small amount of buffer memory
(which can sometimes be added to or upgraded). The more memory you have
installed in these printers, the quicker you will have control of the
machine returned to you after sending a document to print. As both of
these technologies are line printers, i.e. they print one line at a time
rather than a whole page, it is more convenient and efficient to have
extra memory, but not essential.
9.10
Laser printers are page printers, however. Before printing a page, they
create the whole image within their internal memory. If you do not have
enough memory installed to hold the image, they will print as much as
they have room for, followed by a second sheet containing the rest. The
fitting of extra memory in a laser printer is usually essential if you
are intending to use it for anything other than text.
9.10
How much memory you need is more difficult to answer and largely depends
on your needs. 4Mb fitted into an A4, 300 dpiáprinter should allow you
to print even the most graphically intensive pages without problem.
Likewise, 10Mb in an A4, 600 dpiáprinter should prove to be more than
adequate. This issue is further clouded by some of the more recent
models which come complete with very effective compression algorithms,
and therefore need less memory to hold the page.
9.10
Anybody considering upgrading their memory, but not sure how much to
install, could perhaps get a better idea by creating the most
graphically intensive page they are likely to need to print, then
printing to file. The length of the file should bear some correlation to
the amount of printer memory they would need to print it. Perhaps
someone who is a little more conversant with the internal workings of
laser printers could either confirm or deny this Érule of thumbæ method
for me.
9.10
Duplex printing
9.10
Those of you who are regular readers of this column will remember that
Iáhave mentioned LjDuplex a couple of times over the past few months.
Duplex printing seems to get very little press but the concept
interested me, so Iáwrote to John Evans at Mijas, and asked for more
information on the process, and perhaps a list of printers that offered
the facility.
9.10
Duplex printing allows the user to print both sides of a sheet in one
pass, something which would certainly be of use to me and, Iásuspect,
any other reader who uses their laser printer to print out newsletters
or small run magazines rather than photocopying. One other advantage of
using LjDuplex with some printers is that of overcoming the 99 copies
limit imposed by the Acorn printer drivers. Some of the more recent HP
models will accept a command to print up to 32767 copies. Although it is
possible to change the command by editing the ÉPrintoutæ file using
!Edit (look for [1b]&1#X where # is the number in decimal digits, e.g.
&199X, and change the number as required), LjDuplex will automatically
do this for you.
9.10
John agrees that duplex printers are not widely advertised and suggests
that there are at least two reasons why this is so. Firstly, very few
people appear to print long runs of duplex copy on their printers and
the ecological advantage of using both sides of the paper for letters
etc, is hardly worth the price increase from a simplex to a duplex
printer. Secondly, very few programs and drivers fully support duplex
anyway, even in the PC world!
9.10
John thinks that many other people would find that printing final duplex
copy was advantageous if they knew how to do it easily. As far as Acorn
users are concerned, you need to have an HP Laserjet printer (or
equivalent with PCL emulation) with full duplex option and a copy of
LjDuplex.
9.10
John says that duplex printing is a real advantage if:
9.10
1. A rapid turn round time is important. OR
9.10
2. a) The number of double-sided A4 sheets per month is between 1,000
and 8,000 with no print run of greater than 500 sheets of one design.
9.10
b) The print quality required is higher than possible on a copier.
9.10
c) Only trivial amounts of colour are required, if any.
9.10
So which printer models offer the opportunity of duplex printing?
Hewlett Packard have had duplex printers in their range for a long time,
and they are usually distinguished by a ÉDæ at the end of the model
number. They also make duplex adaptors for a number of their other
printers. Kyocera and Brother also have duplex models in their range. A
friend of Johnæs recently picked up a new 300 dpiá8ppm Brother duplex
printer at a knock down price of about ú700 with 3Mb of memory fitted.
The 600dpiáversion of that printer costs somewhere in the region of
ú1600 new.
9.10
If anybody is thinking of looking around for a second hand model then
John recommends trying Fletcher Lawson in Lymn Cheshire (01925-756996)
who, he says, have helped him in the past with both new and second hand
equipment. Due to the Acorn printer drivers treating everything as
graphics, you will need at least 2Mb of printer memory, preferably more
for A4 duplex printing. John himself uses an HP IIISiá(300dpi) with
duplex adaptor to print large quantities of material and describes the
machine as ultra reliable. The current 600dpiáIVSiámodel with duplex
adaptor works out quite expensive, but if you look around, it should be
possible to pick up a second hand IIISi.
9.10
Multiple copies using inkjets
9.10
John has a problem with printing, which he hopes can be solved by an
Archive reader somewhere. He has a regular need to print 300 copies of a
colour A4 sheet which he does on his colour inkjet. However, the inkjet
(in common with most?) does not have enough buffer memory to hold a full
page so cannot print multiple copies by itself. John currently gets
around the problem by dropping the ÉPrintoutæ file into the print queue
300 times. As this has to be done manually, and it takes some time.
9.10
A halfway house solution is to create a one-page file, and use Edit to
concatenate as many copies as machine memory will allow. Once saved,
this larger file can then be dropped into the print queue as many times
as required.
9.10
This is still time consuming, and John wonders if anyone knows of a
program that would automate the procedure. Alternatively, perhaps you
have an inkjet and have managed to solve the problem by some other
method? If so, please share it with us all.
9.10
This problem is at odds with my understanding of inkjet printers. Iáhave
always understood that they are line printers and therefore do not need
to hold a complete page in memory. Iáwould have expected it to be
possible to select 99 copies in the printer driver, and leave it alone
to produce them one by one, as used to happen with my old dot matrix.
Could someone clarify this for me, please?
9.10
PostScript problems
9.10
Richard Sillars, from Ashford in Kent, has run into problems outputting
PostScript files to give to a local printer. His plea reads as follows:
9.10
Iáhave been doing DTP for several years now, with an A5000, and now with
a RiscPC 700, using Impression, and producing PostScript files which
Iáhave had printed by a local printer who uses Macs. He has been
extremely helpful, and we have always been able to overcome the problems
that seem to arise every time he or Iáupgrade our software.
9.10
He has now upgraded his hardware, and Iáam using Publisher Plus on my
RiscPC 700 along with !Printers 1.52.
9.10
When Iálast sent him files to print, they all came out pushed over on
the left hand side of his imagesetter with about a quarter of the page
missing.
9.10
In haste, Iáre-did the files, configuring the page size in !Printers to
A3 and centre pages ÉOnæ in the print set up dialogue box. This worked,
and if Iáonly ever wanted to print single A4 portrait pages, I would
have been OK. However, this is not the case, as Iáwant to print a page
the size of three A4s in Landscape. The next challenge has been how to
print an A4 Landscape complete with registration and crop marks.
9.10
Iáhave looked at the user guide supplied with !Printers 1.52 and came
across the following:
9.10
PostScript Multibin switching
9.10
The PostScript PDF template will be extended to support a paper feed
pathname (currently to be found in !Printers.ps.Feeds.xxx). This
pathname specifies a directory containing PostScript files Ö one for
each available feed. The first line of the file must be of the form:
9.10
%%RISCOS_FeedName: <name>
9.10
The name will be extracted by !Printers, and used to create a menu of
available feeds. The filename used for the feed files is unimportant,
but can start with a digit, in order to provide a sorting order for the
menu. !Printers will also add a ÉNo feedæ option to allow PostScript to
be sent to a file without containing any printer specific code.
9.10
The ps back-end code will declare a new system variable, PDriver$PSFeed,
which contains the full filename of the feed file being used. The ps
text code and the PostScript printer driver will be modified to push the
contents of the file into the output stream.
9.10
The printer manager will also be extended to allow the ps back-end code
to insert the feed code when printing a PostScript file. Previous
versions of the printer manager do not call the back-end code when
printing Énativeæ printer data.
9.10
The mechanism for specifying paper sizes will also change slightly. What
!Printers currently does is extract the first word from the paper size,
e.g.:
9.10
A4 (Generic PS) -> A4
9.10
then use a message in the messages file to convert this into suitable
PostScript for selecting A4 paper. However, this has caused a lot of
problems for printers that donæt support Énormalæ paper sizes, so what
will happen is that the paper size, e.g. A4, will be used as the
leafname of a paper size PostScript file, and the contents of this file
will be output to the stream. The filename is specified in the system
variable PDriver$PSPaper. The standard paper sizes and their PostScript
mappings will be pre-defined.
9.10
By default we currently only supply Canon LBP8MkIIIáas a printer that
supports multiple bin switching. This can be used as reference for other
PostScript printer bin switch files, and indeed may work by default with
some.
9.10
(What does all this öwill beò mean?) Iáthought ögreat, there must be a
file that outputs a page size that can be set upò, but no, when you look
in the files, it just says a4, a3, etc.
9.10
Iádesigned a paper size in ÉEdit Paper sizesæ big enough to include crop
and registration marks for an A4 landscape size page, with another name
other than A4, otherwise !Printers puts a paper definition of a4 or a3
(which must interpret to a fixed size) in the PostScript output file
which overrides any A4 page size alterations.
9.10
Having found that out, Iáthought my problems were over, but not so.
9.10
Now Iáam able to print a page any height Iáwant, but whatever width
Iátry, the maximum width that Iácan get printed is 12ö even though the
imagesetter film is nearly 14ò wide and, using his own software, he is
able to print the full width.
9.10
By printing from Publisher Plus, and selecting Ésetupæ from the printer
dialogue box, and then setting the XáOrigin to Ö5 and Écentre pagesæ off
and Éignore page bordersæ off, we have been able to just fit half of the
crop and registration marks, of an A4 landscape page, starting hard on
the left of the film.
9.10
My printer has been really helpful, but there is a limit to the tests
that Iáfeel Iácan ask him to do for me. Somewhere, the PostScript
printer driver is putting in a code restricting the printing width to
12ö.
9.10
The strange thing is that Iáuse !Ghostscript to check the PostScript
files and it shows the whole page.
9.10
He is using an Imagesetter that is using PostScript Level 2, so Iáhave
been using that PDF. However, just in case Iáwas using the wrong one,
Iáhave tried all the other PostScript PDFs, with the same result.
9.10
It may be a very simple thing that Iáhave overlooked or misunderstood,
but can anyone help please?
9.10
Epson GT-9000 scanner
9.10
When Iáconducted my investigations into scanning and printing for
photocopying, Iápromised a review of this scanner. It comes complete
with both parallel and SCSIáinterfaces and costs ú830 inclusive through
NCS. (However, we can now do this scanner with Imagemaster and Twain for
ú750. Ed.)
9.10
As Irlam are relatively local to me, Iábought mine direct from them and
the package arrived complete with a SCSIálead and Irlam software. Iáhad
had visions of the scanner looking something like a compact A4
photocopier but on opening the oversized box, Iáhad to rethink this
somewhat. The Epson has a surprisingly large footprint and takes up most
of the top of a filing cabinet which sits beside my computer desk!
Having looked at photos of similar scanners in magazines since, this
would appear to be usual but it was a bit of a shock to me at first and
meant that Iáhad to relocate my printer before Iábegan.
9.10
Having reorganized my computer corner, Iáplugged everything back in and
installed the software, which, as with most Acorn applications, was very
easy to do. One thing that disappointed me slightly was that, as Iáhad
bought the SCSIáversion, Irlam did not supply the software to drive the
scanner through the parallel port. The software is reliant on the
scanner being present, and having both versions of the software could
provide a useful backup in the event of my SCSIácard failing at some
time.
9.10
The software itself (also see Archive 9.9 p.41) is very simple to use
and anyone who has even a rudimentary experience of RISC OS software
should have no problems finding their way around it. The Irlam manual is
clearly written and easy to understand, and the Epson manual, despite
concentrating on Macs and PCs, also contains much interesting
information.
9.10
Clicking on the iconbar icon opens two windows, the control panel and
the viewer. One adaptation Iáwould like to see, regards the control
panel. It opens just showing the basic functions. By resizing the
window, you are presented with options to change settings such as image
brightness, etc. There is also a button for expert settings, which can
be selected to expand the window once more, and gain access to options
such as dither and invert. Every time Iáload the software, Iáresize,
select expert settings and resize again. This is annoying as it would be
a simple task to have these preferences included in the saved choices
file, along with the window positions, so that the application launched
itself as Iáwanted it every time.
9.10
Those who have read some of my previous writing in Archive will know
that Iáam something of a Ébells and whistlesæ aficionado. It has to be
said that the Irlam software, when looked upon in these terms, is all
but mute. They have made no attempt to provide facilities for image
manipulation other than the bare minimum required. In this instance,
Iáfind this to be more than acceptable for a number of reasons.
9.10
Firstly, as a small company, they would probably find it difficult to
justify the extra development time on functions already provided by
!ChangeFSIáor David Pillingæs Image Master. It would also make sense to
me that anyone willing to spend over ú800 on a scanner would already
own, or be intending to buy, one of the more expensive manipulation
packages anyway.
9.10
Secondly, the seeming lack of functions and manipulation available must
contribute to the speed of the software which allows the scanning
process to be undertaken completely in the background.
9.10
Thirdly, and possibly most important of all, by concentrating on a few
functions rather than many, Irlam have implemented them incredibly well,
and the scan quality obtainable through their software is nothing less
than excellent.
9.10
One slight (?!) change Iáwould like to see implemented is in the saving
of scanned images. The software allows you to save them in Sprite, JPEG,
TIFF, PBM+, Clear and Irlam formats, but you have to specify which you
require before scanning. This means that if you want to scan in an image
and save it as a TIFF file and a JPEG file, for instance, you have to
physically scan it in twice. It would be nice if the software converted
them on the fly, although Iásuspect that, while scanning, it optimizes
the output for whichever format you want, so it may be a little more
difficult to achieve than it sounds.
9.10
Other changes Iáwould like to see are in the scan type section of the
panel. Clicking on the dpiábutton opens a menu which gives you the
choice of 100, 1200 or 2400dpi, and a writable icon where you can
specify any other value. Iáwould like the menu to be extended to include
values for 200-600dpiáwithout having to type them in.
9.10
The way that the software handles the number of colours is awkward too.
It is fine if you want a specific number of grey scales or monochrome,
but in order to scan in using 16 million colours, for instance, you have
to select ÉColouræ from the menu and change to a mode that can support
that many colours. Surely, the software could give you the option of
scanning in 16 million colours without having to change mode, while
displaying a likeness of the image on screen if you were in a 256 colour
mode?
9.10
Iáhope Iáam not being over-critical, because the Irlam software
certainly achieves what it sets out to do, and my quibbles with the user
interface should be treated as secondary.
9.10
In use, the scanner works like a dream. A full page scan can take some
minutes at the higher resolutions, but as it happens in the background,
allowing you to get on with other things in the meantime, this has not
held up my productivity at all. It is also possible to scan in images
that are too big to fit into memory, assuming you have the space on your
hard disc. This could be useful if you intend to manipulate the image
using a package that integrates with Claresæ Virtualise, for example.
9.10
Minor grumbles about the interface aside, Iácan heartily recommend this
scanner and software combination to anybody who has a need for high
quality graphical or OCR scans. Iáwould certainly not like to return to
my old hand scanner!
9.10
Finally
9.10
Any printing related problems, or suggestions for future articles,
should be sent to Dave Floyd, c/o PO Box 2795, London NW10 9AY.áuá
9.10
Modular Software for RISC OS
9.10
Gordon Taylor
9.10
Although the RISC OS software market is more than five years old, new
word and document processors to rival Computer Conceptæs Impression
family have recently been launched, such as Softeaseæs TextEase, or are
imminent, like Beebugæs Ovation Pro. Fortunately, CC designed Impression
and ArtWorks to accept plug-ins, and it has proved possible to extend
the functionality of Impression via shared resources and Object Linking
and Embedding. This latter mechanism has also been adopted by other
developers of RISC OS software. OLE may be set up in all versions of
RISC OS, but even more easily in RISC OS 3.5, introduced with the
RiscPC, and RISC OS 3.6, introduced with the A7000.
9.10
Plug-Ins
9.10
Plug-ins increase versatility, while keeping the RAM size/footprint as
small as possible. Also, they provide a degree of future-proofing Ö e.g.
by handling new filetypes, such as HTML. In the case of Impression
Style, Publisher and Publisher Plus, the plug-ins are loaded as Imodules
Ö notably for loading and saving text in other (than native and plain
text) formats. Particular examples are the loaders and savers for Rich
Text Format and WordPerfect 5.1 (from CC), and HTML (from Ben Summers).
9.10
In the case of ArtWorks, all the standard tools are loaded separately
from the main program, and the plug-ins take the form of additional
tools. CC has published a Software Development Kit for these, to
encourage their development by third parties, and there are already
three available:
9.10
ÅThe Eesox Pressure Tool for the Wacom pressure sensitive tablet and
stylus. As well as freehand drawing, this provides line width varying
with pressure.
9.10
ÅThe Open Sky Projects Arranger and Precision Tools. Arranger provides
snapping of lines and corners together, while Precision enables
positioning and scaling with digital precision.
9.10
In addition, CC has extended the functionality of both Impression and
ArtWorks with the Graphics Loaders. These resources are installed within
!System, and thus shared by both Impression Style, Publisher, or
Publisher Plus, and ArtWorks. Moreover, similar Transgraphic loaders Ö
for Windows BMP and ICO files, and WordPerfect Graphics WPG files Ö are
available from IMS.
9.10
OLE
9.10
OLE (Object Linking and Embedding) was originally introduced in Windows.
What the Acorn community calls OLE is only what Windows calls Éembeddedæ
(i.e. where the graphic is included in the document), and not Élinkedæ
(i.e. where the graphic is an external file). As implemented under RISC
OS, for a document in a suitable Écontrolleræ application, ctrl¡double-
clicking on a graphic object loads an editor for it, and loads the
graphic into it for editing, e.g. in an Impression document, ctrl-
double-clicking on a drawfile graphic will load Draw, and load the
drawfile into it.
9.10
For OLE to work, the subordinate (e.g. graphics) editors which are to be
used for editing a given filetype (which Windows calls associations)
must be Éknown to the systemæ. This can occur by the applications
concerned having been seen by the Filer or, more conveniently in RISC OS
3.5/3.6, by showing in Apps (also known as ResourceFS), which is
represented by its own icon. This is done either by putting the
applications in the Apps directory on the hard disc, or by adding AddApp
<pathname> commands to the Desktop boot file
(!Boot.Choices.Boot.PreDesktop). Another way is to add lines such as
Filer_Boot <pathname> to the Desktop boot file
(!Boot.Choices.Boot.Tasks.!Boot). A reboot is required for all such
applications to become Éknown to the systemæ.
9.10
Example using Impression as Écontrolleræ:
9.10
Ö Drawfile graphic from Draw   ) free
9.10
Ö Table from TableMate1  )
9.10
Ö Equation from Equasor  )
9.10
Ö Equation from Formulix  ) at additional
9.10
Ö ArtWorks graphic from ArtWorks  ) cost
9.10
Ö Bitmap graphic from PhotoDesk  )
9.10
Ö Spreadsheet from Eureka3  )
9.10
Ö Graph from Eureka3  )
9.10
Ö Sound sample from AudioWorks  )
9.10
RISC OS applications which can act as Écontrollersæ include the word and
document processors Impression Style, Publisher and Publisher Plus,
TechWriter, TextEase and Ovation Pro, the multimedia authoring package
Genesis Professional, the presentation package CableNews2 and the
graphics composing package Composition.
9.10
As implemented in RISC OS, an application may act as both Écontrolleræ
and Éobjectæ Ö allowing OLE to be nested. A controller such as
Impression can contain a table from TableMate3, which itself can contain
a drawfile graphic. Thus, ctrl-double-clicking on the table will cause
TableMate3 to be loaded, and the table into it for editing. Then ctrl-
double-clicking on a drawfile graphic in the table will cause Draw to be
loaded, and the drawfile loaded into it for editing. Indeed, TableMate3
can act as both controller and object to itself Ö enabling tables within
tables !
9.10
Although originally proposed by Microsoft, OLE has not been widely
adopted by developers of Windows software. They seem to prefer to sell
what the Americans themselves call Éfatwareæ, where applications with
more functionality than most users will ever want, require very large
amounts of RAM, and the user interface is inevitably complicated.
9.10
Plug-ins and OLE enable the functionality of application software to be
increased, without adding to the basic code Ö thus allowing the basic
application to be run in the minimum amount of RAM. Both allow a modular
approach, where the additional code is purchased, loaded and learnt only
as required. Indeed, you may already possess an OLE-compatible
application with the necessary functionality. Moreover, once the
mechanisms are in place, extensions can be in any direction Ö e.g.
drawing, painting, spreadsheet etc Ö or others as yet unforeseen.
Furthermore, they allow the user to upgrade as necessary, e.g. to a more
powerful table editor or equation editor, without having to load the
less powerful editor (which would waste RAM space and complicate the
user interface). Finally, relying on OLE for additional functionality
simplifies the user interface, thus shortening the time to learn and
relearn.áuá
9.10
Cross-Platform Working with RISC OS
9.10
Gordon Taylor
9.10
Gordon Taylor of Computer Concepts has kindly written two articles for
us about aspects of RISCáOS which make it very special, and mark it out
in stark contrast to other more ubiquitous operating systems.
9.10
Software may be divided into applications (editors) and Écontentæ
software on discs and, increasingly (for multimedia), on CD-ROMs. This
has been recognised by Acornæs announcement, at BETT 96, of the
MediaRange. The RiscPC, the A7000 and, to a lesser extent, the
PocketBook, may be used to run editors, e.g. for the creation of printed
and multimedia documents. The forthcoming set-top box with CD-ROM drive
and the set-top box with network card (and to a lesser extent the
PocketBook), on the other hand, are intended mainly to deliver content Ö
usually multimedia.
9.10
Cross-platform working may thus be divided into:
9.10
Å playback and editing of DOS/Windows and other alien files, using RISC
OS applications,
9.10
Å harnessing content in Acorn, PC and Mac formats, on discs and CD-ROMs,
under RISC OS.
9.10
Playback and editing of foreign files
9.10
What Windows calls Éassociationæ gives the ability to double-click on a
file, load a suitable editor, and load the file into it. Thus, double-
clicking on a RISC OS sprite (bitmap) file probably loads Paint, and
then loads the picture into it. Likewise, double-clicking on a drawfile
(vector graphic) loads Draw, and then the drawing into it.
9.10
As with OLE, for the association to work, the editors which are to be
used for editing any given filetype must be Éknown to the systemæ. This
can occur by the applications concerned having been seen by the filer
or, more conveniently, in RISC OS 3.5/3.6, by them showing in Apps (also
known as ResourceFS), which is represented by its own icon. This may be
done either by putting the applications in the Apps directory on the
hard disc, or by adding AddApp <pathname> commands to the Desktop boot
file (!Boot.Choices.Boot.PreDesktop). However, this only sets up the
native filetypes, which can be loaded into the application. For any
other filetypes which can be imported into the application, lines such
as:
9.10
*SetáAlias$@RunType_FB1:RunáADFS::HD.
9.10
$.CCApps.Audio.!AudioWorks.!Run %*0
9.10
need to be added to the Desktop boot file
(!Boot.Choices.Boot.Tasks.!Boot). A reboot is required for all such
applications to become Éknown to the systemæ. By pressing <f12>, and
entering *show, all the associations may be viewed under Alias$@RunType.
9.10
As well as its native ADFS format, RISC OS can read, write and format
DOS format discs. Association of RISC OS editors for DOS/Windows
filetypes is controlled as above, together with DOSMap commands. These
are lines of the form DOSMap EXT xxx, where EXT is the DOS extension,
and xxx is the RISC OS filetype. Most Mac filetypes have DOS/Windows
equivalents. Some DOSMap commands may be included in applications or
utilities, but additional ones may be put in the Desktop boot file
(!Boot.Choices.Boot.Tasks.!Boot). Those prevailing may be checked by
pressing <f12>, and entering *DOSMap. When looking at DOS/Windows files
under RISC OS, the fact that DOSMap commands are operative is shown by
the icons of the recognised files being not just the black and white one
with a DOS filetype, but (usually) individual coloured ones, with named
filetypes.
9.10
I also placed !CD_Type, (which is Public Domain), in
!Boot.Choices.Boot.Tasks. This makes it possible to double-click on any
of the DOSmap recognised files also on PC format CD-ROMs.
9.10
My tests were done on a RiscPC, running RISC OS 3.5, with DOSFS 0.49. (I
later upgraded to DOSFS 0.62, as in RISC OS 3.6). What I have done on a
single machine with a DOS partition Ö but not necessarily a PC processor
Ö could (I assume) also be done over a network, from a DOS sharer/
server.
9.10
With my setup, *DOSMap returned 100 different DOS extensions (see DOSMap
Appendix), but only 54 different RISC OS filetypes. With four being
Acorn in origin, this means 50 original DOS extensions. For playback and
editing, these needed only e.g. Impression, PhotoDesk, ArtWorks,
FireWorkz Pro, WorraCAD, AudioCtrl/AudioWorks, a Midi player, and
ARMovie/ARPlayer, i.e. only eight applications (plus two invaluable
conversion utilities). Hence, the RISC OS applications, running on the
Acorn platform, can playback and edit many DOS/Windows data types.
Moreover, even when working with alien files, the performance and cost
of the Acorn solution is often better or cheaper than a PC. Thanks to
MovieFS, this is true even for movies, including large (320╫240) format
QuickTime files. Also notable are the two Quicktime VR demos, which play
faster on a RiscPC 700 than they do on a Power Mac.
9.10
Playback of multimedia content
9.10
Content software includes assets such as still pictures, movies and
sound files on PC format discs and CD-ROMs (with CD_Type), and on Mac
format discs and soon CD-ROMs (with MacFS). Those accessible under RISC
OS include:
9.10
a) CD-ROMs authored for the Acorn platform. As well as the Acorn
platform only, there are some from Anglia that are authored to run on
Acorn, Mac and PC. This particular series have the further advantage of
video which is provided not only as Acorn Replay, and as Apple QuickTime
(for playback on Mac and PC), but also as MPEG (which is platform-
independent). If an MPEG decompression card (such as the CC MovieMagic
card for the Acorn RiscPC) is fitted, this MPEG video can be viewed on
an external, SCART-connected TV-standards monitor Ö at a far greater
size and quality Ö i.e. better-than-VHS, or received TV quality.
9.10
b) CD-ROMs authored for Video CD (and Digital Video on CDi), containing
linear movies of MPEG video. This is platform-independent, and again, if
an MPEG decompression card is fitted, they can be played back as above.
9.10
c) CD-ROMs containing World Wide Web pages (in HTML). These are also
platform independent, and may be read under RISC OS with a suitable Web
browser, such as the ANT Fresco.
9.10
d) CD-ROMs authored for the PC (and Mac, in principle), for which Acorn
readers have been written. This has been done for several older CD¡ROMs
(e.g. Bible, Shakespeare, Sherlock, Space) and marketed by Cumana. More
recently, it has been done for several Dorling-Kindersley and Microsoft
CD-ROMs, by Innovative Media Solutions (0117-979-9979). Thus far,
readers are available for D-Kæs ÉPB Bearæ, and ÉThe Way things Workæ,
and Microsoftæs ÉMusical Instrumentsæ and ÉDinosaursæ, but many more are
in the pipeline.
9.10
e) All CD-ROMs authored for the PC, and some for the Mac, using the ISO-
9660 format Ö i.e. the vast majority. The Acorn platform can read such
discs. These may contain assets (text, images, sounds, movies) that can
be played back and edited under RISC OS (i.e. without any need for an
x86 processor and Windows) Ö as noted above. Images may be imported into
and displayed in RISC OS applications with ChangeFSI or ImageFS, and
movies may be played back in, and converted to, Acorn Replay with
MovieFS.
9.10
Thus, even to playback or edit very many DOS/Windows assets, there is no
need to pay the Wintel tax Ö i.e. buy a Windows operating system or an
Intel processor Ö both of which have to be imported. Nor is it necessary
to purchase imported Windows application software (from Microsoft and
others). This is highly significant, since the cost to the UK of
importing computers and software amounts to about ú3,000 million a year,
or about 150,000 jobs.áuá
9.10
DOSMap Appendix
9.10
For each line, add ÉDOSMapæ, e.g. for ÉTXT FFFæ, the command is DOSMap
TXT FFF.
9.10
TXT FFF  Plain text files can be exported from almost all word
processors, and loaded into even the simplest text editors, such as
Edit.
9.10
With DOSMap RTF C32, and Set Alias$@RunType_C32 Ö !Publisher, Impression
is able to import RTFs, provided that the Computer Concepts RTF Loader
is permanently installed in the Auto directory of the copy concerned.
[Also Saver] This is done by double-clicking on an RTF, which loads
Impression (or FireWorkz Pro), whereupon the RTF file may be dragged
onto an Impression page. FireWorkz also works, but the result is better
in Impression.
9.10
RTF C32  Microsoft Rich Text Format files can be exported from many
Windows word processors, and imported into RISC OS word processors such
as FireWorkz unaided, or Style and Publisher, when using the RTF
Loaders.
9.10
CSV DFE  CSV files can be exported by most spreadsheets and databases,
and imported into most RISC OS spreadsheets and databases, such as
FireWorkz (and presumably Resultz and Recordz).
9.10
With *set Alias$@RunType_DB0 Ö Eureka3, and DOSMap WKS DB0, double-
clicking on a WKS file causes Eureka3 to load, but the file is not
loaded or displayed. This is because it is not Eureka3æs native
filetype. However, dropping the WKS file onto the Eureka3 icon causes it
to be imported. Likewise, after setting up DB0 to FireWorkz Pro, double-
clicking on the WKS file causes FireWorkz to load, but to return ÉNo
data in file so and soæ. This is because it defaults to a letter (which
is top of the list). However, after dropping a WKS file onto FireWorkz
Pro, it asks whether letter, sheet, db_1card, db_2cards, or db_sheet,
and when you choose sheet, it will import the file.
9.10
WKS DB0  Lotus 123 WKS files will import into most RISC OS spreadsheets.
Those which read them directly, like FireWorkz, (and presumably Resultz)
and Eureka3 are more convenient than those which use a separate
converter, like PipeDream3.
9.10
WK1 DB0  The above also applies to this later type of Lotus 123 file.
9.10
After setting BA6 to FireWorkz Pro, double-clicking on the XLS file
causes FireWorkz Pro to load, but it returns an error message. However,
you can then drag and drop the XLS file onto the FireWorkz Pro icon,
answer the dialog with Ésheetæ, and it will import the file.
9.10
XLS BA6  Microsoft Excel files will import into RISC OS spreadsheets
such as FireWorkz and Eureka3.
9.10
With DOSMap FWK BDF, you can double-click on FWK (and FWT) files, and
they will cause FireWorkz Pro to load, and will load in straight away,
despite being a sheet document, since these are its native files.
9.10
FWK BDF  FireWorkz letter, sheet and database documents may be saved
from FireWorkz for Windows, and loaded directly into FireWorkz for RISC
OS.
9.10
FWT C1D  FireWorkz templates may be saved from FireWorkz for Windows,
and loaded directly into FireWorkz for RISCáOS.
9.10
Double-clicking on a DXF file usually loads Draw, and, after a dialog to
do with scaling, loads the drawing into it. However, even the RISCáOS
3.5 version of Draw does not support all the 2-D DXF primitives. (Of
those, DXF files associated with AutoSketch, Bike and Shuttle are OK
with the default scale of mm, Office was OK in inches, but Ericson
failed as too complex.)
9.10
DXF DEA  The simpler 2-D AutoDesk DXF files will load into RISC OS Draw.
9.10
More complex 2-D DXF files can be imported into Oak WorraCAD, via their
DXF Translator. The loading of !Translate may be linked with that of
WorraCAD, by adding to its !Run file the line *WimpTask *run <pathname
of !Translate>
9.10
AFF AFF  Drawfiles (NOT containing sprites) can be imported into, and
exported from, OakDraw for Windows, and will load into Draw.
9.10
FF9 FF9  Sprites can be imported into OakDraw for Windows, but the only
bitmap format it can export is Windows BMP.
9.10
With the help of ImageFS, from Alternative Design and Publishing Ltd
(0141-248-2322), the following graphics formats can be imported by all
RISC OS bitmap editors, such as Paint and PhotoDesk. With ImageFS 2,
they may also be exported, e.g. to a DOS filing system. The loading of
!ImageFS may be linked with that of PhotoDesk, by adding to its !Run
file the line *WimpTask *run <pathname of !ImageFS>
9.10
After setting the corresponding Acorn filetype to e.g. PhotoDesk,
double-clicking on the alien graphic file causes PhotoDesk to be loaded,
and the graphic to be imported.
9.10
TIF FF0  TIFF files can be loaded by PhotoDesk unaided, or via ImageFS,
into other bitmap editors, such as Paint. With ImageFS loaded, they may
also be dropped into frames in Style and Publisher, (even without using
the CC Graphics Loaders).
9.10
SEP FF0  The above should apply to TIFF separation files (not tested).
9.10
CMY FF0  The above should apply to TIFF CMY files (not tested).
9.10
CPT FF0  The above should apply to TIFF CPT files (not tested).
9.10
JPG C85  JPEG files can be loaded by PhotoDesk unaided, or dropped into
frames in Style and Publisher, when using the CC Graphics Loaders.
9.10
JIF C85  The above should apply to JIF files (not tested).
9.10
PCD BE8  PhotoCD files can be loaded by PhotoDesk unaided, or dropped
into frames in Style and Publisher, when using the CC Graphics Loaders.
9.10
BMP 69C  Windows Bitmap files. (Also DIB 69C, and RLE 69C)
9.10
GIF 695  Graphics Image Format files.
9.10
PBM 69E  Portable Bitmap Plus files. (Also PPM 69E, PGM 69E, and PWM
69E)
9.10
TGA 69D  Targa files. (Also VDA 69D, ICB 69D, and BST 69D).
9.10
PCX 697  PC Paintbrush files (Also PCC 697).
9.10
PIC FD5  PICT 2 files
9.10
MAC 694  MacPaint files (Also PNT 694).
9.10
IFF 693  Amiga IFF files (Also HAM 693, LBM 693, and HBRá693).
9.10
IMG 692  GEM IMG files (Also GEM 692).
9.10
RAS FC9  Sun Raster files (Also SUN FC9).
9.10
SCF 6A2  ColoRix files (Also SCI 6A2, and RIX 6A2)
9.10
The latest version of ImageFS enables any vector editor, e.g. Draw
oráArtWorks, to load WMF (Windows Metafiles). With DOSMap WMF 412, and
with 412 set up to e.g. ArtWorks, double-clicking on the WMF causes
ArtWorks to be loaded, and the WMF to be imported.
9.10
With DOSMap AI FF5 and DOSMap EPS FF5, then after setting up FF5 to
ArtWorks, double-clicking on them will load it, whereupon they may be
imported by drag and drop (as above).
9.10
AI FF5  Adobe Illustrator EPS files can be imported by ArtWorks.
9.10
EPS FF5  Adobe Illustrator EPS files can be imported by ArtWorks.
9.10
Double-clicking on a WAV file plays the sound in AudioCtrl (i.e.áwith
minimal scope for control) or, if AudioWorks is already loaded, loads
the file into it (whereupon it may be edited and controlled, e.g.
looped).
9.10
WAV FB1  Microsoft Wave sound files can be loaded into, played back in,
and exported from, AudioWorks (and probably other sound sample editors).
9.10
With the help of MovieFS, from Warm Silence Software, (0585-487642),
most alien movie formats can be loaded and run by Acorn Replay (ARPlayer
and ARMovie). (One exception at present is the Indeo variant of Video
for Windows, which is used in the Microsoft Encarta 95 CD-ROM.) The
loading of !MovieFS may be linked with that of ARMovie, by adding to its
!Run file the line *WimpTask *run <pathname of !MovieFS>
9.10
Double-clicking on AVI, MOV, FLI, and FLC files plays the movies in
ARMovie (i.e. cut into the centre of the screen), or, if ARPlayer is
loaded, plays them within a repositionable window, with start, stop, and
volume controls.
9.10
AVI FB2  Microsoft Video for Windows files, using almost all known
Écodecsæ.
9.10
MOV FB2  Apple QuickTime for Windows files, using all known Écodecsæ.
9.10
FLI B9F  AutoDesk Animator for DOS files.
9.10
FLC B9F  AutoDesk Animator for Windows files.
9.10
Warm Silence are hoping to extend Movie FS to support the playback of
MPEG files in Replay (in software).
9.10
MPG BF8  Motion Picture Expert Group files, as used on Video CDs.áuá
9.10
Example RISC OS applications for DOS/Windows filetypes
9.10
Filetypes  Playback only  Edit and playback
9.10
Plain Text files  Edit  Edit
9.10
RTF, WPerf, HTML  Impression  Impression
9.10
Image files  Paint  PhotoDesk
9.10
EPS, AI files  ArtWorks  ArtWorks
9.10
DXF 2-D CAD files  Draw  WorraCAD
9.10
Lotus WK? files  FireWorkz/Eureka3  FireWorkz/Eureka 3
9.10
Excel XLS files  FireWorkz/Eureka3  FireWorkz/Eureka 3
9.10
CSV data files  FireWorkz/Eureka3  FireWorkz/Eureka 3
9.10
WAV etc sound files  ARPlayer  AudioWorks
9.10
MIDI music files  Piano  Notate/Serenade/Rhapsody/Sibelius.
9.10
Movies AVI, MOV, FLI and FLC  ARPlayer  CineWorks
9.10
Aspects of Digitising
9.10
Jim Nottingham
9.10
In the Help!!!! Column in Archive 9.8 (p28), Paul put out a general plea
for feedback on readersæ experiences of digitisers and, ever the sucker,
I find myself volunteered to review a couple of products. Stuart Bell
has kindly passed on emails from a number of readers and, as always, I
thank all those who responded for the very useful information.
9.10
A bonus was that the reports tended to confirm a suspicion Iæve had,
from comments in earlier issues of Archive, that there is considerable
confusion as to the general nature and limitations of digitisers. So,
before we look at specific products, I thought it might help if we
considered the generic aspects, dealing with the terminology on the way
(keywords are in bold). Hopefully, this will assist existing digitiser
users to improve or optimise the results they are already getting and,
coupled with later product reviews, help potential buyers to make a
choice appropriate to their needs.
9.10
What is digitising?
9.10
Firstly, what about the term digitising? In this context, we mean taking
a suitable source of video images (live broadcast or recorded, moving or
stationary) and Égrabbingæ a single image to produce a still picture.
The output format is a bit-map (usually a sprite) which can be used for
display and/or incorporation in a document.
9.10
All digitisers exist to mechanise this process for us, and should not be
confused with scanners which, although they also produce bit-maps, use
different techniques to capture the image Ö not from a video source but
from material such as a printed page, photograph or transparency.
9.10
Invariably, digitisers consist of a hardware interface (podule)
installed in your computer, plus the control software; alternatively,
they may form part of a multimedia package such as the (now
discontinued) Eagle M2 system.
9.10
Scanning v. digitising
9.10
In general terms, the quality of output from a scanner is likely to be
significantly better than that of a digitiser and, if we are not to be
disappointed with the latter, it is important to appreciate the reasons
why this should be so and what we can do about it.
9.10
If we take, say, a conventional photograph as the source and use a hand-
held or flat-bed scanner to capture the image, the quality is likely to
be very good. Modern films give excellent colour rendering, and the
resolution is going to be more than adequate for display and, arguably,
for commercial typesetting. Even a budget colour scanner will give a
resolution of around 300dpi (dots per inch) in thousands of lovely
colours, so the image should be very satisfactory. For example, a 7ö╫5ò
photograph scanned at 300dpi, with a modicum of cropping and without
post-scan processing, is going to give an image in the order of
2,000╫1,400 pixels. Processing the image in !ChangeFSI, or an equivalent
application, prior to printing will normally improve results still
further.
9.10
On the other hand, currently, the very best we can hope to achieve from
a digitised image (regardless of source, digitiser, or even the platform
used) is going to be no better than around 770╫576 pixels, i.e. well
under 20% of the typical scanned image. This can be perfectly adequate
for display on screen (indeed, thatæs close to the 800╫600 pixel
resolution of an SVGA display) but will give a much-degraded result in
print unless the image size is markedly reduced.
9.10
This is the main limitation of digitisers but, in practice and for many
reasons, we may well achieve even lesser results.
9.10
Video standards
9.10
To explain the reasons for these limitations, and to allow for them, we
need to consider the effects of each of the three main elements used in
the production of a digitised image Ö the video source, the digitiser
itself and the interconnections.
9.10
In the UK and Western Europe, the video source will normally use the PAL
TV/video standard. Other systems used around the world are NTSC and
SECAM, which are not compatible with PAL, although some digitisers can
be switched to accept any of these standards.
9.10
Vertical resolution
9.10
The PAL video standard is often referred to as giving an image
consisting of 625 horizontal lines, which are redrawn (Érefreshedæ) at
50Hz or 50 frames a second. In fact, this is not strictly accurate as,
quite literally, it gives only half the picture. What we actually get
are two separate fields, drawn at intervals of 1/50th second. One field
will draw all the odd lines (1, 3, 5 and so on) and, 1/50th second
later, the other field will draw all the even lines (2, 4, 6 etc). After
a further 1/50th second, the first field will be refreshed, followed by
the second, and so on.
9.10
The two separate fields are displayed, 1/50th second apart and slightly
offset by 1 line (interlaced). The eye is unable to distinguish between
the two separate images, so what we discern on screen is a single frame.
This principle of interlacing two separate fields to produce the single
frame applies to the majority of video sources, one exception being the
entry-level Canon Ion camera (RC260) which records just a single field.
However, the top end model RC560 (at over ú2,500!) records both fields.
9.10
So we see that, in theory, the maximum vertical resolution for a video
source is 625 lines (usually converted to sprite pixels at 1:1). In
practice, however, a few lines are lost at the top and bottom of the
screen and, even on the very best TV displays, we see only 576 lines.
Not many digitisers run to this figure, and some process little more
than 500 lines, so the resultant 5-10% cropping must be allowed for when
preparing the source video (e.g. shooting with a camcorder).
9.10
But that assumes that both fields are grabbed, whereas a number of
digitisers (e.g. the one on the Eagle M2 card) grab only one field, so
the vertical resolution will be a relatively coarse 250 lines (pixels)
or so.
9.10
Horizontal resolution
9.10
Resolution in the horizontal axis is rather more involved. With a
nominal 576-line vertical resolution and an aspect ratio of 4:3, one
would expect the horizontal coverage to approach 770 pixels but, again,
digitiser coverage tends to be less than this, and the cropping must be
allowed for. (I seem to recall the otherwise splendid Techno-I digitiser
Ö no longer in production? Ö was limited to 512╫512 pixels but it was
possible to pan the capture area around, before digitising, to give some
control over the cropping).
9.10
Somewhat confusingly, horizontal resolution is also expressed in Élinesæ
although, in this case, it has nothing to do with lines being drawn to
form the image. Fortunately, we donæt need to delve into the techie
reasons for this; suffice it to say that, rather like the frequency
response of audio hi-fi systems, horizontal axis performance is a
measure of the frequency response and bandwidth of the video system. The
main difference is that, instead of Hz and kHz (audio), we are talking
MHz (video) which is clearly more difficult to engineer.
9.10
Where the term Élinesæ comes from, is the use of test cards for
assessing horizontal resolution by both visual and electronic means. The
illustration shows part of a typical card, consisting of vertical bars
or lines, with different widths and spacing.
9.10
In the upper half, the vertical lines are relatively far apart, and most
video systems will be able to reproduce them on screen with reasonable
fidelity. However, in the lower half, the lines are narrower, and closer
together, and the system video bandwidth will have to be at least 50%
wider to be able to reproduce them to the same standard. It follows
that, in the horizontal axis, there is a top limit to the number of
these Élinesæ that can be reproduced in the frame to a satisfactory
degree. This is measurable and is the method generally used to determine
the relative capability of the video system.
9.10
Video source performance
9.10
Currently, the best video quality will come from a live television
transmission which, in the horizontal axis and using the method
discussed above, is of the order of 700 lines. No doubt this will
improve once digital broadcast systems become the order of the day.
9.10
At the other end of the scale is the domestic camcorder, whether it be
VHS, VHS-C or 8mm (Video8). All these have a horizontal resolution of
only some 250 lines, so are way down on the quality scale. Indeed, as
soon as you take a second generation copy to give to your mates, the
resolution falls even further. You have only to watch a few minutes of
ÉYouæve Been Framedæ (if you can bring yourself to do so...) to see the
considerable differences in relative quality.
9.10
Somewhere in the middle lie all the other video sources; top-end
professional/broadcast recordings, ÉHi-bandæ camcorders (SVHS, SVHS-C
and Hi8), digital camcorders (DVC) and the digital still cameras (e.g.
Canon Ion).
9.10
In summary, although the two-field vertical resolution is roughly
comparable between the majority of systems, there are wide variations in
horizontal resolution of source video, inevitably affecting the quality
of digitised images. These variations are summarised in the following
diagram:
9.10
Other factors affecting quality
9.10
The wide variations in horizontal resolution of the video source are by
far the major variable in the eventual quality of the digitised output.
However, other factors will have an effect, to a greater or lesser
degree, and some of these are considered below:
9.10
Å Cropping Ö The majority of digitisers translate the horizontal lines
into pixels at the natural ratio of 1:1 and retain the 4:3 frame ratio
or thereabouts. So a digitiser output approaching the optimum 770╫576
pixels, will result in little cropping of the input video frame.
However, as already discussed, a digitiser coverage of, say, 512╫512
pixels will inevitably lead to some vertical and horizontal cropping.
9.10
Å ÉJaggiesæ Ö Compared with a scanned image, the relatively low
resolution sprite from a digitiser will inevitably exhibit the dreaded
Éjaggiesæ, most evident on diagonal lines. The following blow-up makes
that clear (see below ¼) and, as with any other low-res sprite, the only
practical solution short of considerable image processing, is to reduce
the size of the image before printing.
9.10
Å ÉRingingæ Ö If the frequency response of the source video is
relatively poor (e.g. a domestic camcorder), itáis quite usual to suffer
ringing which is seen as a Éghostæ image immediately to the right of
sudden changes in image intensity or colour. Aátypical example is shown
(see ¡) in the previous illustration.
9.10
Å Noise Ö It is a fact of life that, with analogue systems, unwanted
noise will be mixed with the wanted video signal. However, the highly
random and dynamic nature of electronic noise is such that it will not
be repeated between successive frames so, unless it is very bad, the eye
and brain will tend to suppress the noise and look for the wanted
signal. The exception to this, of course, is where a television
broadcast is badly affected by considerable noise (Ésnowæ), often due to
an inadequate aerial at the receiver end.
9.10
The problem is that, although we tend not to register the noise in
individual frames because the noise changes from field to field (at
50Hz), once we digitise a single frame, the instantaneous noise is
imprinted on it and is there for all to see.
9.10
If the noise is particularly bad, some digitisers give a part-solution
by enabling us to take the two grabbed fields and, instead of
interlacing them to form a conventional image, allow us to superimpose
one field on the other. Statistically, it is highly unlikely there will
be noise on exactly the same X/Y pixels on two adjacent fields, so
superimposing the signal from one field on the unwanted noise of the
other, effectively it doubles the signal/noise ratio of the whole image.
However, in doing so, it has the effect of halving the vertical
resolution from, say, 512 lines to 256 lines (pixels).
9.10
Å Blurring Ö The typical exposure time for TV/video cameras is generally
much longer than for still cameras, perhaps as long as 1/50th second.
This means that, for a moving image, blurring is almost inevitable. Take
for example the following image grabbed from a live TV broadcast where,
even though the camera operator has done a splendid job of panning to
Éfreezeæ the main subject, the horseæs forelegs are badly blurred.
9.10
In the live, moving visual image, the eye would not normally register
this blurring but, once grabbed as a still, it is very evident. If we
have control over the exposure (e.g. when using a camcorder), setting a
shorter exposure time will greatly reduce the degree of blurring.
9.10
Although not evident on the thumb-nail image above, when the white
rectangle is blown up, there is also a marked Ézig-zagæ effect on the
moving image. This is caused by the two separate fields making up the
frame being, in effect, two Ésnap-shotsæ of the moving hind leg, taken
1/50th second apart and then interlaced. Most two-field digitisers allow
us to minimise the effect by digitising only one field although, as with
noise reduction, this effectively halves the vertical resolution.
9.10
Å Colour changes Ö A digitised image will often exhibit evidence of
unrealistic colour changes but, by and large, this is a feature of the
source video, not the digitiser (Égarbage in, garbage outæ). As viewers,
we tend not to register these changes in a dynamic video display but,
when presented with the static image, once again they become quite
evident. The phenomenon tends to be worse with the lower-fidelity
sources such as the domestic camcorder.
9.10
Å Connections Ö It will come as no surprise to find there can be no end
of problems physically connecting digitisers to the video source. BNC,
Phono, mini-DIN and SCART plugs/sockets abound but, fortunately, cables
and adaptors are generally available from high street or specialist
retailers. However, if we are not to degrade the quality of the
digitiser output, it is important that we pay attention to the type of
connection used.
9.10
At the bottom end (e.g. source video from a domestic camcorder or VCR),
the most common connection Ö single-screened cable with phono plugs/
sockets Ö is adequate to support the already-limited bandwidth.
Conventionally, this is called a composite connection, i.e. where all
video signals pass along the single cable.
9.10
However, once we start using an improved video source, such as a Hi8 or
SVHS camcorder, it is far preferable to use a system where the basic
picture and colour data are routed along separate lines. In techie
terms, these are the luminance (Y) and chrominance (C) signals. These
so-called S-Video Y/C connections normally appear as 4-pin mini-DIN
sockets on Hi-band camcorders or as separate pin-outs within SCART
sockets on up-market TVs and SVHS VCRs.
9.10
Sadly, not all digitisers cater for S-Video connections, having either
BNC or phono composite connectors. As a result, there will inevitably be
some degradation, but it is far better to use a Hi-band source and use a
composite connector than to use a Lo-band source such as a VHS camcorder
or VCR.
9.10
Å Grabbing frames Ö Most, if not all, digitisers have a preview window
on the desktop to view the incoming video. However, the refresh rate of
this display Ö even on a Risc PC Ö is limited typically to 2-3 frames/
second, or every 8-12 video frames. This is perfectly adequate for
grabbing a slow-moving or stationary image but, if the source image is
moving fairly quickly, it becomes increasingly difficult to grab the
particular frame we want. Some digitisers use different techniques
partly to get round the problem, so it is probably best if we discuss
these in the product reviews.
9.10
So why digitise?
9.10
With all these dire tales of woe and degradation, it might seem there is
no point in even considering the use of digitisers! This would be an
unfair conclusion as, provided we appreciate the inherent limitations of
digitisers, as discussed above, and take whatever actions we can to
optimise the image quality, it can be perfectly feasible to match the
results to the requirement.
9.10
For example, one of my business activities is to produce video footage
for multimedia training packages on A.N.Other platform. With careful
selection of equipment, and a modicum of time and effort, the single-
frame images grabbed from this footage are quite satisfactory for use as
illustrations in the associated reference manuals. The emails Iæve
received from readers contain details of all manner of ways in which
digitisers are being used and, by and large, the reports tell of
satisfactory results.
9.10
Besides, digitisers are normally considerably cheaper than scanners, and
many people may already have a camcorder or have access to one through
school or work, while some Teletext adaptors have an auxiliary output to
allow live TV signals to be fed to a digitiser.
9.10
Choosing a digitiser
9.10
If you are in the market for a digitiser, you may or may not have a
choice of product (e.g. there may be only one available model which will
physically fit in your computer). However, if you do have a choice, some
performance points to watch out for are:
9.10
Å What is the overall vertical/horizontal image coverage? If this is
significantly less than the optimum 576╫770 pixels, can you accept the
resultant cropping?
9.10
Å Does the video input have S-Video and/or composite connectors?
9.10
Å Is the digitiser capable of grabbing and interlacing both video
fields? Does it have the option to superimpose both fields and/or
process a single field?
9.10
Å Is the digitiser output monochrome or colour? How many greyscales/
colours?
9.10
Å Does the digitiser have brightness, contrast and colour controls? Are
these preset, or is it possible to adjust them after the frame has been
grabbed?
9.10
Å What options are available to ease the problem of grabbing the right
image from a rapidly-moving subject?
9.10
Using a digitiser
9.10
Once we have our digitiser up and running, there are very many things we
can do to improve and optimise the output quality Ö but my overall
advice is not to expect too much of the system. For example, donæt try
to print the inherently low-res image at A4 size and expect to be
impressed with the result.
9.10
Some of the doæs and donæts for digitiser use are:
9.10
Å Use the best available equipment for the video source. The best option
is a live broadcast but, failing that, try to use a Hi-band or DVC
camcorder, SVHS VCR or a digital still camera (e.g. Canon Ion).
9.10
Å If you intend to grab images from live broadcasts, use a good aerial
system.
9.10
Å Where practicable, couple a camcorder directly to the digitiser, set
the camcorder to Record and grab the Éliveæ image (bypassing the
recording stage).
9.10
Å Unless you are using Lo-band equipment (e.g.áVHS), use S-Video
connections if possible.
9.10
Å Unless you are using a digital camcorder, donæt use a copy of the
video tape if the original (master) can be used instead.
9.10
Å If you have a two-speed VCR or camcorder, use the standard play (SP)
setting in preference to the long¡play (LP) option.
9.10
Å If the image is moving, and you have control over the recording, set a
shorter exposure time to reduce blurring.
9.10
Å If the digitiser has them, do take time to optimise the brightness and
contrast controls, etc. Allow for the need for trial and error.
9.10
Å If the image is reasonably static, try grabbing and digitising a
series of frames as you may find one has less noise than the rest.
9.10
ÅááIf noise still persists, and if the digitiser supports it, try
superimposing the two frames instead of interlacing them (noting that
vertical resolution is halved).
9.10
Å If Ézig-zaggingæ is evident on a moving image, and if the digitiser
supports it, try processing a single field rather than interlacing both
fields (noting that vertical resolution is halved).
9.10
Å If you are not satisfied with the printed result, try reducing the
image size as, often, even a modest size reduction can significantly
improve the printed image.
9.10
The end bit
9.10
At present, we have two product reviews on the stocks; the HCCS Vision24
(with the new Panorama facility) and the not-yet-released Yellowstone
DeskTV system. If anyone is using another digitiser which is still in
production and is willing to do a review for Archive, Iæm sure Ed. would
welcome it. In the meantime, Iæd be pleased to receive any comments from
existing Vision24 users for incorporation in next monthæs review.
9.10
If thereæs room, the two source digitised sprites referred to in this
article will be included on the monthly disc so you can inspect them at
leisure. Ifáyou prefer to send me one or two formatted discs (ináa jiffy
bag only, please) and sufficient return postage, Iæll send you a number
of sprites grabbed under differing conditions. Happy grabbing...
9.10
Jim Nottingham, 16 Westfield Close, Pocklington, York, YO4 2EY.áuá
9.10
Music Column
9.10
Alan Gibson
9.10
Welcome to the new Music Column. This month, Iáam just going to
introduce myself and give you a bit of background about what I do. Next
month, I plan to cover a few of the common master keyboards which are
available and explain how they can be used to input music into Acorn
machines. Then, over the following months, Iæll cover such delights as
Midi interfaces, notation and sequencing software, and computer
speakers.
9.10
I am the proprietor of Liquid Silicon, an Acorn-only dealer based in
Scotland. I am also a keen musician and have recently started to combine
both interests by specialising in the musical side of Acorn machines
(amongst other things such as bar coding).
9.10
I play clarinet and bass clarinet, tenor and baritone sax and piano,
mainly in the orchestras for shows (such as 42nd Street, Anything Goes,
etc). This often leads to the need to print various bits of music,
ranging from odd parts in the shows which need to be transposed (like 32
bars of bassoon in the middle of a baritone sax part. Why?) to
typesetting complete big band arrangements, the latest of which is due
to be broadcast by the BBC on 22nd June.
9.10
My setup now comprises a heavily expanded RiscPC with a Rhodes MK80
digital stage piano and a Roland PC-200 MkII master keyboard, both
plugged into a PowerWAVE 50XG dual Midi and sound card, with a pair of
the new Yamaha YST-M20 powered speakers and a keyboard amp providing the
sound output. (Phew! Donæt worry if some of that meant absolutely
nothing Ö I will go over each of these areas in the coming months). I
also now use Sibelius 7 (surprise, surprise! Ed.) for all my music
typesetting work, with a LaserDirect HiRes (LBP8) for proofing work.
9.10
Before this starts sounding like one long advert, Iæll stop! If you have
any queries on anything musical, even if it doesnæt tie in directly with
computers (as long as no-one asks why only one reed in a box is ever any
good), please get in touch with me.
9.10
I intend not to be too biased towards certain products, although, like
everyone else, I am more knowledgeable about the products I use
regularly. For example, I know there are many Rhapsody and Notate users
out there, owners of MidiMax or Acorn Midi cards, Yamaha and Casio
keyboards and even, I believe, trombone players (hi Gavin!), so I will
try to answer any queries and cover other products as fairly as I can.
9.10
A couple of snippets before I go... Oregan will apparently release
MidiWorks after all (by August at the earliest). They are also working
on ProSound, which is a highly sophisticated 8-track mixing desk and
sample processor. (Anyone got any 4Gb drives going cheap?) Are you in
the market for a new sequencer package? Watch this space.
9.10
If you have any queries, or ideas for articles, please contact me via
email at: [e-mail] or write to my company, Liquid
Silicon.áuá
9.10
Puzzle Corner
9.10
Colin Singleton
9.10
Several readers of this column have asked about the Journal of
Recreational Mathematics. It is published by Baywood Publishing Inc.,
26áAustin Avenue, PáOáBoxá337, Amityville, NYá11701, USA. There are four
issues per year, and the subscription is $19.95 plus $11.25 postage
outside the USA and Canada. Iádo not have a regular column in JRM Ö it
isnæt organised that way Ö but I do usually have contributions in each
issue.
9.10
The Scottish Mathematical Council has published a book containing 72
Mathematical Challenge questions from past years Ö excellent value at
ú6.50 (including UK postage). Enquiries to the Mathematics Department,
Elgin Academy, Morriston Road, Elgin, Moray IV30 2ND.
9.10
The latest winners in this magazine ...
9.10
(62) Athletics and Football
9.10
This deceptive problem defeated many readers, including quite a few on
the Leader Board! The answer is 8255 (to the nearest square metre), not
6366. The prize goes to a new puzzle entrant, P A Muis of The Hague.
9.10
(63Ö65) 1000000! Ö Ever Decreasing Angles Ö Powerful
9.10
There were quite a number of different answers to the first quickie, but
the other two proved little problem. The winner (re-established in the
Éregularsæ group after a few monthsæ absence) is John Banks of
Rickmansworth.
9.10
... last monthæs answers ...
9.10
(66) The New Chairman
9.10
This clearly calls for a computer solution. I used a recursive function
Ö a concept explained by Gerald Fitton in his column a few months ago.
If the number of Directors is D, and the Chairman counts out the Nth
each time, I define a function FNChair(D,N) to return the chair number
of the survivor. For this purpose the chair on the Chairmanæs left is
number zero, the Chairmanæs chair is number (DÖ1). In Basic, the
function is:
9.10
DEFFNChair(D,N) : IF D=1 THEN = 0 : ELSE = (FNChair(DÖ1,N)+N) MOD D
9.10
It is now easy to write a program to find a number D for which three
consecutive values of N return the same value for the function. There
are 86 Directors, the Chairman counts every 19th, 20th or 21st, and the
lucky chair is number 14, or numberá15 if you are counting in the more
conventional manner from one.
9.10
(67) St Andrew
9.10
Divide the flag into eight congruent triangles Ö the blue portion
constitutes 64% of each. It is now not difficult to show that the colour
boundary intercepts the edge 10% of the length (or width) from the
corner. The dimensions of the rectangle are irrelevant.
9.10
(68) Four point
9.10
To the best of my knowledge (and that of Richard Lyszkowski who
forwarded the puzzle) there are six arrangements of four points having
just two different distances between pairs.
9.10
(69) Cigarettes
9.10
Seven cigarettes can be arranged thus, each touching each of the others.
One is standing on end in the middle.
9.10
... this monthæs prize puzzle ...
9.10
(70) Noniamonds
9.10
Brian Wichmann of Woking has contributed this problem, which may become
a combined effort among readers, rather than a competition. The figure,
above left, is a noniamond (or 9-iamond) Ö it is formed by sticking nine
equilateral triangles together. Is it possible to tile an infinite plane
with repetitions of this tile (rotated or reflected if desired), without
any gaps? Yes Ö in this case it is easy. Two such tiles can be used to
form a rhombus, repetitions of which can clearly cover the plane without
rotation or reflection.
9.10
There are, Brian informs me, 159 different noniamonds, each of which may
or may not be able to tile the plane. Just 20 of them, he has been told,
cannot tile the plane, but he has been unable to solve eight of the 139
problems which Éshouldæ have solutions. So, can you cover an infinite
plane with repetitions of any one of these shapes?
9.10
Donæt expect them to be as easy as the example above Ö and donæt expect
to solve all eight! Please send any solutions you can find.
9.10
... and this monthæs prize quickies ...
9.10
(71) Ninety-nine
9.10
Another puzzle from Scottish Mathematical Challenge. If you all buy the
book, I will have to stop using their puzzles! Find a number which can
be multiplied by 99 simply by appending a single digit 1 to each end.
9.10
(72) Multiple Primes
9.10
What is the largest number of four-digit prime numbers which can be
formed by different sequences of the same four different digits?
9.10
(69) 1000000! again!
9.10
This is Gerald Fittonæs question from last month, now made Éofficialæ.
What is the factorial of one million Ö as accurately as you can
calculate it?
9.10
And finally...
9.10
Thereæs a new leader on our leaderboard this month, Richard Lyszkowski,
and four new names further down the list (not yet on the leader board).
Most entries still come from readers who enter occasionally, for fun Ö
and long may they do so! Many thanks for the continuing new ideas.
Please send solutions (by Friday 5th July), contributions and comments
to me, at 41 St Quentin Drive, Sheffield, S17á4PN.áuá
9.10
Starting Basic 11 Ö More Graphics
9.10
Ray Favre
9.10
In this session, we are going to start to use graphics in our ÉLoanæ
program, but we need to cover another graphics topic first.
9.10
Keyword PLOT
9.10
So far, we have introduced graphics using the MOVE and DRAW commands,
plus the series of self-explanatory commands that produce special shapes
Ö like CIRCLE, ELLIPSE, etc. These are fine Ö but limited. To take us
further, Basic provides a more general, all-purpose, graphic command
called PLOT, which takes the general form:
9.10
PLOT k, x, y
9.10
where k is known as the plotting mode (not to be confused with the
display mode) and x, y are the usual coordinate values to be used in the
plotting action. As k can take any value from 0 to 255, there are a
large number of graphic effects available, including a PLOT equivalent
for all the graphic commands we have so far introduced Ö although some
of the latter are a little awkward to use. We could, if we wanted, use
entirely PLOT commands, but it is easier to recognise MOVE, DRAW etc in
a listing, compared with their PLOT equivalents, so we will normally use
PLOT in this series only for those cases where a ready-made keyword does
not exist.
9.10
The 256 available values for k are split into 32 blocks of 8 numbers: 0-
7, 8-15, 16-23, 24-31, etc. (or, in hex, &00-&07, &08-&0F, &10-&17, &18-
&1F, etc. up to &F8-&FF Ö which shows the pattern more easily, each
block starting with either &x0 or &x8). Each block represents one
graphic effect/pattern, and the eight numbers within each block can best
be regarded as offset values which vary the block plot action in the
same way whatever the block. The table below should help Ö even though a
couple of the meanings include a subject we have yet to cover:
9.10
offset    meaning
9.10
  0  move cursor relative (i.e. use x,y values as relative to last
cursor position)
9.10
  1  plot relative, using current foreground colour
9.10
  2  plot relative, using logical inverse colour (ofácolour(s) already
on screen)
9.10
  3  plot relative, using current background colour
9.10
  4  move cursor absolute (i.e. to actual x,y coords given)
9.10
  5  plot absolute, using current foreground colour
9.10
  6  plot absolute, using logical inverse colour
9.10
  7  plot absolute, using current background colour
9.10
Acornæs BBC Basic Reference Manual gives a complete list of the block
plot actions and a few of them are:
9.10
  block    plot action
9.10
  0-7  (&00-&07)  draw solid line
9.10
  16-23  (&10-&17)  draw dotted line including both end points
9.10
  64-71  (&40-&47)  plot point
9.10
  144-151  (&90-&97)  draw circle outline
9.10
So, for example, both PLOT 5,x,y (or PLOT &05,x,y) and PLOT 21,x,y (or
PLOT &15,x,y) would mean draw using the current foreground colour from
the current cursor position to the point (x,y) Ö but the first would
draw a solid line and the second a dotted line.
9.10
Letæs give some more examples of how PLOT is used. Up to now we would
have used a short sequence like this to draw two lines on the screen:
9.10
MOVE 100,200 :REM Move graphics cursor to required start point.
9.10
DRAW 300,400 :REM Draw a solid line from start point to (300,400)
9.10
DRAW BY 500,600 :REM Draw a solid line 500 x-distance and 600 y-distance
away from point (300,400).
9.10
Using PLOT, this could be replaced by:
9.10
PLOT 4,100,200 :REM Émove absoluteæ
9.10
PLOT 5,300,400 :REM Édraw solid line absolute, in foreground colouræ
9.10
PLOT 1,500,600 :REM Édraw solid line relative, in foreground colouræ
9.10
to give the same result. Changing the last line to PLOT 17,500,600 (or
PLOT &11,50,600 to make it clearer that we are using the same offset in
a different block) would make the final line dotted instead of solid.
Play with the PLOT mode blocks and offsets to get used to the idea.
9.10
At this stage, we need say no more about PLOT as an introduction. In
practice, PLOT commands tend to be used mainly for different line
effects and also for the different colour plotting effects, which weæll
come to later. Note that all the &x0 and &x4 values are equivalent to a
MOVE BY or MOVE command respectively.
9.10
Back to the ÉLoanæ program
9.10
Before tackling something more substantial, letæs add a few lines to
ÉLoan_7Cæ to show how some very simple graphics can enhance a program.
Add/amend the following lines of ÉLoan_7Cæ (including the blank lines
and keeping carefully to the shown line numbers. Then renumber and save
the program, to arrive at ÉLoan11_Aæ on the disc):
9.10
  10 REM>Loan_11A
9.10
  20 REM** Upgraded from öLoan_7Cò, see öStarting BASICò Part 11 **
9.10
 502 Graphic1Col% = 1 :REM** Red **
9.10
2501 GraphHeight% = 400 :REM**A convenient height, in OS units. **
9.10
2502 Xorig% = 128: Yorig% = 32
9.10
2503 Scale = GraphHeight% / L
9.10
2504 Gap% = 4
9.10
2505
9.10
2506 PRINT TAB(6,30) ö0ò
9.10
2507 PRINT TAB(7 Ö LEN(STR$(L)),18) STR$(L)
9.10
2508
9.10
2581     GCOL Graphic1Col%
9.10
2582
9.10
2583     MOVE Xorig%+Gap%*
9.10
(NumOfPayments%),Yorig%
9.10
2584     DRAW BY 0,Scale*((L*
9.10
FirstValue)Ö(P*CuSum))
9.10
2585
9.10
2620     PRINT TAB(45,24)ö No. of
9.10
 payments (N) > ö;
9.10
STR$(NumberUpper);
9.10
2640     PRINT TAB(45,24) ö No. of
9.10
equal payments (N) = ö; STR$(NumOfPayments%);
9.10
Run the new program, choose N as the unknown parameter, enter some
values for the knowns Ö and the result is the screenshot shown below. A
small histogram is plotted beneath the input text, showing how the loan
amount is gradually reduced to zero as the equal monthly payments are
made. The number of payments needed is also printed on the graph. (If
the number of payments needed exceeds the top limit set, the graph ends
at that limit and you can get a picture of how much of the loan is still
outstanding.)
9.10
What weæve done is mainly to modify PROCfindNumberOfPayments to draw a
vertical line each time round the REPEAT ... UNTIL loop. The length of
the line represents the amount of the loan still outstanding at that
pass. By plotting each line slightly to the right of the previous one, a
histogram is built up. Letæs go through the action Ö using the above
line numbers (with their renumbered equivalents in brackets).
9.10
Line 2501 (2520) picks a convenient height for the graph, line 2502
(2530) sets the origin, and Line 2503 (2540) calculates the vertical
scale to be applied. We want the graph to be the same vertical height
whatever value of loan is chosen by the user, soáthe scale simply does
this. Line 2504 (2550) sets a variable for the horizontal gap between
each vertical line. Lines 2506 (2570) and 2507 (2580) write text to
label a crude scale to the left of the first vertical line of the graph.
Note how weæve coped with the differing number of digits in the loan
value L. The value is converted to a string, and the length of the
string is used in the TAB statement to offset the text printing start
point to the left by the number of digits to be printed Ö so the number
is effectively Éright justifiedæ to a chosen spot.
9.10
Line 2583 (2700) moves the cursor to the chosen y¡origin, and also moves
it to the right along the x-axis by the value of Gap% each time Ö then
line 2584 (2710) draws a vertical line of the correctly-scaled height.
Finally, a message giving the total number of payments made is written.
9.10
Even though this small addition could do with a little tidying up, you
can see that something simple can be quite effective in presentation. We
need to wait for another topic for the tidying up, so weæll pick it up
again later.
9.10
Main graphics upgrade
9.10
With this simple example under our belt, letæs try something more
substantial. ÉLoan_11Bæ on the disc adds a fairly large upgrade which
starts to tackle the problem of finding the interest rate when the user
chooses R as the unknown main parameter. A graphical solution has been
chosen deliberately, to fit our needs at this point. Firstly, we need to
refer again to the formula introduced in Partá7:
9.10
L/P = B + B2 + B3 + B4 + ........... + BN-1 + BN
9.10
where B = 100 / (100 + R), and:
9.10
L = Loan Amount (ú)
9.10
P = Amount of monthly payment (ú)
9.10
N = Number of equal monthly payments
9.10
R = Interest rate (%)
9.10
As, in this case, L, P and N are known, one means of finding R is to
pick an arbitrary trial value for R and work out the right-hand side of
the equation. The resulting answer is then compared with the known,
left-hand side value Ö which will either be greater or smaller. The
trial value for R is then adjusted by some rationale (designed to pick a
better trial value) and the process is repeated Ö as many times as is
necessary Ö until the right-hand side answer is very close to the left-
hand side value. This gives the solution for R, to whatever degree of
closeness you care to specify. If we also plot a graph (of the
cumulative build-up of the right-hand side) each time the calculation is
carried out, we will see the trial values of R progressively converging
on the left-hand side value. Once again, as this is a Beginnersæ Basic
series rather than a Finance series, letæs concentrate on the
programming and not the maths! (Interestingly, two other columns in
Archive have recently been looking at similar methods of solving
problems: look at ÉIterationæ under Geraldæs Column in 9.4 and
Programming Workshop in 9.5. I can only extend the latteræs claim that
it is pure coincidence that we are all mentioning it at around the same
period Ö but it is no coincidence that we all chose it: rather, it adds
credibility to the general usefulness of the method.)
9.10
Our process, in pseudo-code, will be:
9.10
Decide accuracy required and set other initial values.
9.10
Draw and label graph axes, using value of left-hand side of equation as
our Étargetæ value.
9.10
Pick 1st trial value for R
9.10
REPEAT
9.10
  Calculate and draw graph of result using trial R value
9.10
  Compare result with left-hand side value (and with any other trial
results so far)
9.10
  Adjust trial value of R if need be
9.10
UNTIL right-hand result is within chosen accuracy limits of left-hand
side.
9.10
Display result.
9.10
To keep the action clear, ÉLoan_11Bæ starts this exercise without the
REPEAT ... UNTIL loop. It draws the graph axes, shows the Étargetæ value
and plots a single graph using only the first trial interest rate. The
result is shown below.
9.10
DEF PROCfindInterestRate at line 3060 kicks things off by assigning the
value of L/P to a variable Target. It then calls PROCaxes() followed by
PROCplots() Ö passing Target as a parameter in both cases.
9.10
DEF PROCaxes() is straightforward. The x-axis represents the number of B
terms being summed on the right-hand side of the equation and the y-axis
represents the cumulative sum of those terms. After drawing the main
graph axes using the OS limits set at the very start of the DEFPROC, a
horizontal line is drawn on the right-hand side of the graph at a
y¡position appropriate to the value of Target. Due to the effects of
VertScale and HorScale, the target line will always be in the same
position Ö and the horizontal extent of the graph will always be the
same, whatever the value of N, i.e. the graph is normalised in both
axes.
9.10
DEF PROCplots() then does the calculation and draws the graph. Line 3550
sets the initial trial interest rate. (Again, donæt letæs get hung up on
this item. It doesnæt matter in a programming series.) We then print
this rate, work out B and call PROClinePlot to plot the corresponding
graph line. DEF PROClinePlot (Line 3720) zeros the accumulation
variables, puts the graphics cursor at our axes origin, and then enters
a REPEAT...UNTIL loop which repeatedly accumulates the sum of the B
terms and uses PLOT &15 to draw straight, dotted lines between
successive (absolute) values of the cumulative CumVert value,
corresponding (in the x¡direction) to the number of terms so far
accumulated. As the lines are short, the effect looks like a curve Ö and
the higher the value of N, the shorter the lines and the more of them.
The loop ends (at line 3840) when all N terms have been accumulated, or
when the graph Égoes off the topæ if this occurs first. Without this
latter refinement, a FOR...NEXT loop would have been possible.
9.10
The one graph line drawn in this case will almost certainly end up (i.e.
at its right-hand end) higher than the target line Ö as shown opposite.
The aim of our next steps will be to adjust the trial rate successively
until the end of the plotted graph line gets so close to the target line
that we are prepared to accept that value as Éequal to the targetæ. But
thatæs next time...
9.10
Next time
9.10
Weæll start by introducing the VDU5 command, which allows us to place
text on a graphic screen. After that weæll be able to take the ÉLoanæ
program further. Keep the comments, queries, etc coming (and donæt
forget the A4 SAE, if you want printed listings) to: 26 West Drayton
Park Avenue, West Drayton, Middlesex, UB7 7QA.áuá
9.10
Beginnersæ Corner
9.10
John Temple
9.10
How much do you remember about Draw? Here are a few questions based upon
my last article. If you cannot answer most of them, maybe you are not
getting all you can out of this excellent application.
9.10
How can you a) show and b) change the paper limits of a drawfile?
9.10
What is kerning and how is it done in Draw?
9.10
What does Interpolate do and what is needed for it to work?
9.10
What difference does it make if objects are grouped before being
magnified or rotated?
9.10
How does Draw decide whether or not to fill areas in an object which has
been formed by a line which crosses over itself?
9.10
These were all dealt with in my article.
9.10
Editing in Draw
9.10
I said last month that there is more to reveal. The first thing I had in
mind was the ways you can edit (adjust) an object in Draw.
9.10
Let us start with a simple path object, a rectangle, and manipulate it.
The figure shows a rectangle and four copies of it which were
subsequently edited. I drew the rectangle using the rectangle tool on
the toolbox, defining the top left hand corner first. I had the grid
showing, and locked, and the first rectangle was an inch long and ╛inch
high. The shapes of the edited copies may be familiar.
9.10
To edit a path object, click on one of the icons on the Toolbox other
than Move, Text or Select. (The Toolbox is the block of icons attached
to the left of the Draw window Ö remember?) Having selected one of the
drawing icons, move the cursor arrow over the object to be edited and
press <adjust> (right hand mouse button). This will put a blue square
onto each point on the object, i.e. the four corners in the case of a
rectangle. It will also make the lines appear thinner. The drawing is
now in Path Edit Mode. The blue squares are called end points in the
manual, but I shall refer to them as handles because I find it easier.
In path edit mode, you can press and drag <adjust> to pick up any one of
the handles and move it. Only two handles had to be moved to create the
ÉManual Inputæ symbol.
9.10
Within path edit mode, pressing <menu> will bring up a submenu which
looks like this:
9.10
To create the next shape, called Document, click <adjust> on a rectangle
to get into path edit mode and then position the cursor over the bottom
left corner handle and press <adjust> again. This will highlight that
handle and the bottom line of the rectangle (by making them both red).
Now press <menu> and select Change to curve.
9.10
Two new handles appear, coloured orange, on the bottom line, which has
become a curve (albeit straight at the moment). I shall refer to these
orange handles as control points. That is what the manual calls them.
Control points define the direction of the curve at the handle they are
linked to.
9.10
Now click and drag <adjust> to move the left hand control point up a
bit, and do the same to move the right one down. Click <select> anywhere
on the drawing to get out of path edit mode, and you have the Document
shape. You may like to experiment with the control points. They not only
define the direction of the tangent at the handle; they also determine
how far the curve goes in that direction.
9.10
To make the Storage shape, click <adjust> on the top left handle of a
rectangle, then <menu>ÖChange to curve, and drag both resulting control
points to the left; repeat the process for the right side, after
clicking on the bottom right handle.
9.10
For Decision, move the right hand side of the rectangle in to make a
square, rotate it through 45ádegrees and then, in path edit mode, drag
the side corners out a little.
9.10
Segments
9.10
The lines between points on an object are called segments. When you
click <adjust> on a handle in path edit mode, it is not only the handle
that is highlighted but also the segment between it and the previous
handle. If (as I suggested) when you created a rectangle, you defined
the top left hand corner first, the corners are numbered clockwise from
the top left, 1,2,3,4,5. Yes, the top left corner has to have two
numbers, otherwise the left hand side (segment) of the rectangle would
not be defined and the object would be open. Point 5 is on top of point
1 and therefore it is point 5 not point 1 that is selected if you click
on that corner.
9.10
If you defined your rectangle in a different way, you may have to
interpret the following paragraph slightly.
9.10
Clicking <adjust> on the bottom left handle of the rectangle selects
that handle (number 4) and the previous segment, i.e. bottom line of the
rectangle. That enabled us to create the second of the edited
rectangles, the Document shape.
9.10
Edit Path menu
9.10
Change to curve or <ctrl-f8> changes the selected straight line segment
to a curve, as we have already seen.
9.10
Change to line or <ctrl-f8> changes the selected curve segment back to a
straight line.
9.10
Change to move does what you would expect, it changes the selected
segment to a move (no line drawn). Interestingly, if the object was
closed, it also draws new lines from the start of the segment to the
first point of the object and from the end of the segment to the first
point of the object. This means that both parts of the object, each side
of the move, are closed. However, the result is different from what
happens if the object is drawn initially containing a move in the same
place. If this sounds complicated, try it out and all will become clear.
9.10
In each case, the star marks the first point.
9.10
Add point puts an extra point in the middle of the selected segment,
dividing the segment into two halves which are the same as the original
(straight line or curve).
9.10
Delete segment deletes the selected point as well as the segment,
linking the previous and following points with a segment having the
properties of the segment after the point. If the last point of an
object is selected, the last segment is deleted. If the first point is
selected, nothing happens. Again, try it to make it clear.
9.10
Flatten join adjusts the control points each side of the selected point
so that the tangent to the curve is in the same direction on both sides
of the point.
9.10
Open path and Close path are greyed out unless a point on the object has
been selected. Both commands work by moving the last point of the
object, irrespective of the point that is actually selected.
9.10
Itæs logical, even if it is not quite what you might have expected.
9.10
Enter coordinate allows you to position a point exactly, with reference
to the origin at the bottom left hand corner of the drawing. The
existing coordinates are displayed so it is a simple matter to change
them. It helps if you have a grid showing, because you can use it as a
reference when you are working out the values you want. Nothing happens
until you press <OK> and you can chicken out by pressing <Cancel> or
moving off the New coordinates box and pressing <select>. Note that the
origin may be (and normally is) outside the paper limits.
9.10
Snap to grid does what you would expect, but it works only if you have
the grid either shown or locked or both.
9.10
Exercise
9.10
Starting with rectangles drawn using the rectangle tool from the
Toolbox, try to convert them into the following figures by using the
techniques I have described.
9.10
Text areas
9.10
You can type text into a drawfile having selected the ÉTæ text icon on
the toolbox. But (as I hinted in earlier articles) there is another way.
You can simply pick up a text file (e.g. created by Edit) drag it onto a
Draw window and drop it where you want it to go. Draw will automatically
create a rectangular area called a text column and insert the text into
it using the font Trinity Medium, with point size 12. The text column
has a fixed size, which is about 4 cm (1╜ in) square, but you can change
it later if you want to. The bottom left hand corner of the invisible
rectangle is where the cursor arrow was pointing when you dropped the
file.
9.10
The text is both left and right justified and word wrap operates (words
are not split at line ends except when a word is longer than a line).
9.10
Once you have got the text in, you can move it around the drawfile in
the normal way by selecting it as an object and then dragging it using
<select>. You can also alter the height and width of the text column by
picking up the handle in the bottom right hand corner and moving that.
However, it is only the rectangle itself which changes size. The text
inside it remains at size 12, Trinity Medium.
9.10
If the text column is too small for the text, the overflow seems to be
lost because it cannot be seen. However, it remains in memory and if you
enlarge the text column, it appears as if by magic.
9.10
What if you want to use a different font or a different size? Well, of
course, you can. What is more, you can set justification (left, right,
centre or full), line spacing, margins, background colour and the colour
of the text. It is all done with special commands, at the start of the
file or buried in the text itself. You can set these up yourself or you
can let Draw do it for you. If you drop a text file into Draw and then
save it again using <menu>ÖSaveÖText area, and examine it in Edit, you
will find that Draw has inserted a block of text area commands at the
beginning. It does that automatically if there are none already there.
9.10
Here is the start of a text file that has been set up to have three
columns, three fonts and fully justified blue coloured text. You will
find it on the monthly disc, but if you do not have the disc, you will
have to invent your own text. Sixty or seventy words will be enough.
9.10
áá\! 1
9.10
áá\;This is a Draw Text Area File
9.10
áá\;Written for Archive by John Temple
9.10
áá\AD
9.10
áá\D3
9.10
áá\F0 Trinity.Medium 18
9.10
áá\F1 Trinity.Medium 12
9.10
áá\F2 Homerton.Bold.Oblique 12
9.10
áá\L14
9.10
áá\P6
9.10
áá\C 0 255 255
9.10
áá\0
9.10
ááFor Beginners
9.10
Drop the whole file onto the bottom left hand corner of a Draw window
and play around with it. Selecting the whole object (all three columns)
enables you to move it about on the page but not resize nor rotate it.
But if you select a single column instead of the whole object, you can
move the column on its own and now you can resize it. You select a
column by double clicking on it. Resizing a column makes text run from
one column into another. Youæve just got to try it out.
9.10
This is what the text area command codes used above mean:
9.10
All text area files must begin with \! 1 and end with a new line
character. The backslash denotes a text area command. The ! 1 tells Draw
that the file is a text area file. You get a new line character by
pressing <return>.
9.10
The semi colon in \; is a bit like a REM statement in Basic. Everything
after it on the same line is ignored by Draw.
9.10
\AD means Alignment Double, or full justification. (Alternatives are \AL
for left, \AR for right and \AC for centre.)
9.10
\D3 defines the number of columns.
9.10
\F allocates the number which follows to the stated font. There are
three in this file, numbered 0, 1 andá2.
9.10
\L14 sets the line spacing to 14 points.
9.10
\P6 sets the space between paragraphs. 6 points adds ╜ line, so the
paragraph spacing is equal to 1╜ lines. I didnæt actually include any
paragraphs in this file but you can add some if you wish, to see the
effect. Draw ignores a linefeed character on its own, so if you want to
indicate a paragraph, you have to put in two Returns.
9.10
\C sets the colour of the text using the scales 0-255 for each of red,
green and blue.
9.10
Finally, a backslash followed by a number turns on the font that was
given that number in the header. You can change fonts at any point in
the text.
9.10
There are some other text area commands, but I think I have given enough
for an article intended for beginners. There is plenty here for you to
experiment with, and if you want more, you can always go to the manual.
9.10
Fonts
9.10
Before we leave the subject of text in Draw, there is something I must
tell you. I have always thought, and Iæm sure I read it somewhere, that
if you load a Fonts directory, you lose the fonts that are available in
ROM in RISC OS 3 and you canæt get them back without re-booting. I wrote
something to that effect in my article for the May issue but Paul
noticed my misconception, got James to check it and, in the version that
went to print, cut that paragraph out. (He confirmed it with me before
he did it, not that he needed to as editor.)
9.10
The key sentence in Jamesæ comments is öAll this revolves around a
system variable by the name of Font$Path which is set to a comma
separated list of the directories where fonts are to be found.ò
9.10
So I have added to my boot file the line
9.10
Set Font$Path Resources:$.Fonts.,ADFS:
9.10
:Harddisc4.$.Utilities.!Fonts
9.10
and it works! I now have available not only the ROM fonts Trinity,
Homerton and Corpus from ROM, but also the special fonts which I have
collected over the years from public domain sources. I only mention this
because there may be somebody in the readership who has read the same
article as I did and may still be unaware of this simple way of
accessing whatever fonts you want.
9.10
Next time
9.10
Draw will also accept sprites and Iæll go on to deal with that next
time.áuá
9.10
PenDown DTP
9.10
Alex Cessford
9.10
What follows is a description of my initial impressions of PenDown DTP
version 1.00 after our school purchased it just eight weeks ago.
9.10
Why did we buy it?
9.10
As the I.T. Coordinator for our primary school, I was on the lookout for
a DTP package that would offer a friendly and rapid way-in to DTP for my
teaching colleagues who had achieved reasonable competence and
confidence in word-processing, using PenDown Plus. PenDTP seemed ideal,
for reasons of staff familiarity and its potential for extending staff
skill (and therefore confidence in the classroom), which arises from its
range of sophistication levels.
9.10
As an attention-grabber at BETT, Longman demonstrated the production of
a greetings card, comprising a graphic and text lines both on the front
and inside, in under two minutes, including receipt of the printout.
This included having the inside contents inverted and correctly sited,
ready for folding into a quartered card Ö it was tailor-made for
repetition back at school! More of this ÉGadgetæ later.
9.10
What do you get?
9.10
Quite a lot actually! It comes on two discs, which together bring two
applications, !PenDTP and !Speller, plus various directories containing
clipart, borders, an animation example, frames, gadgets and a set of
hypertext documents. There is also an admirably thin A4 manual, which is
well-conceived and presented, but has occasional blips which I will
mention later. It covers just the first two ÉLevelsæ Ö an explanation
follows. The sixteen hypertext documents form the manual for Level 3,
(you can print them out, but thereby lose the hot-linking), and some
example documents on creating labels, storybooks, poems and letters Ö
most comprehensive.
9.10
The structure
9.10
This program has three levels of sophistication. When loaded onto the
iconbar, it defaults to Level 1, which is the simplest. If you are happy
with this, you can simply click on the iconbar icon which opens a
dialogue window inviting you to choose a gadget. These gadgets are a set
of pre-defined macros (and you can design and add more of your own),
which are set up to give an extremely easy way in for anyone wanting a
quick and simple life.
9.10
The gadget options are Fresh Start (the default choice Ö just a normal
blank page), Greetings card, Invitation, Certificate, Newspaper and
Notice. All fairly self-explanatory, they come with frames set up
appropriately and, in some cases, bordered to suit. For example, the
Greetings Card gadget presents you with a succession of boxes in which
to type a message or name, or to make a selection from the thumbnail
windowæs offerings of clipart. When you have completed the final entry,
it then goes off to print it for you without even requiring you to do
anything technical like pressing the Print key! Most impressive indeed Ö
I like it a lot. The dialogue window has the now usual menu icon and,
after making your selection, you then click on the Open button.
9.10
Fresh Startæs screen is literally blank, with nine Pendown-similar
buttons on a bar across the top, covering choices for fonts, text
colour, bold, italic, etc. Across the bottom is a clipboard for cutting
and pasting text and graphics, a frame store for saving and retrieving
frame setups, an append tool for merging document files, and then a
long, narrow Help Display window, (which you can turn off), akin to the
Acorn !Help application.
9.10
To get going, you just start to type, which instantly results in a frame
being created for you, which can subsequently be manipulated if needed.
Drag and drop a graphic onto the page, and again the frame appears
automatically.
9.10
Both page and iconbar menus and toolbars vary according to what level
you are using. Level 1 page menu has the usual options for Save, Print,
Edit, Page (orientation and size), etc, some with the normal keyboard
shortcuts, but also has Border, Speech (Superior Softwareæs module) and
Background Ö which gives a choice of Transparent, Coloured or Special,
the latter offering ten designs such as Cafe, Curtains, Notepad and
Scroll, and with a little preview window before you need to click on the
Apply button Ö smart!
9.10
On the subject of saving, whether loading the application or loading via
a previously saved file, level 1 is the default level.  So you enter at
Level 1 even if you prefer Level 3 and even if you saved your work at
that higher level. I have had an explanation of the rationale for this
from the author, which I accept as being a valid alternative.
9.10
Level 2
9.10
Move into Level 2, via the iconbar menu, and you become aware that
PenDTP, unlike the older Pendown, can open multiple document windows,
because the iconbar menu has grown two additional options. Open Document
and Remove Document, indicate that the program will hold additional
documents, whether their windows are open on screen or not.
9.10
Opening a window, reveals that the ten Level 1 buttons on the top
toolbar have been joined by nine more to facilitate, amongst other
things, overlaying a grid to which frames may be optionally locked, hide
text/graphicsæ page layout choices, scaling the view of the page and
setting the number of pages and/or page size.
9.10
A second toolbar has arrived underneath the top one, with a graduated
ruler below that. The new baræs tools control justification, tab and
indent markers (drag and drop to add in place), adding new rulers, and
windows showing the current ruler and text style, each with its own menu
icon to retrieve alternative definable and savable rulers and text
styles.
9.10
Another minor gripe here Ö the last button on the extreme right of the
top row of the toolbar is the Éundo last operationæ button, but I did
not guess that the two opposite facing arrows meant this, (would a
pupil?), and the help display had no comment to make about it, until I
switched to Level 3, when I was informed by the help display what it
was! The manual was equally unhelpful on this point; pages 5 and 26
mention undoing a text cut, öClick on the Undo icon on the toolbarò, but
there is no accompanying illustration in the margin Ö until page 32!
9.10
Other extra facilities at Level 2 include menuing on the top toolbar to
gain a choice between a Pendown-like toolbar or a FirstPage-type
toolbar, according to which original program you are most familiar with.
There is a chance to set the frame attributes to be read only, locked,
auto-expanding, text flow round, graphic, and normal Ö with the option
of naming and saving the resulting setup, and it has a wider range of
save options which include saving an individual frame and switching
compression on and off.
9.10
There is also the additional menu item of Text-Selection-Select, plus
keyboard shortcuts, giving the chance to click on the menu to highlight,
(i.e. select), the current word, line, sentence or paragraph, which is
excellent as an alternative to the <select> then <adjust>, or dragging,
to mark a block. As some people find the fairly fine control necessary
for the mouse selecting process a bit finicky, I feel that this Level 2
menu option should be offered at Level 1.
9.10
Level 3
9.10
Venture into Level 3, and the iconbar menu alters more radically to give
access to the thirteen options seen in this illustration below. Not
surprisingly, the main menus also confront the user with a much richer
hoard of goodies, all of them, so far as I have discovered, useful and
desirable. I have limited myself to describing the ones that have
especially taken my eye Ö the rest you can guess at yourself by looking
at the other screenshots.
9.10
I was interested to note the last two options on the Graphics menu Ö
Shear, where this action can be applied to either the x or y-axis, with
the degree of shearing specifiable, and Animation. PenDTP will inspect
any incoming sprite file to see if it is a set of almost identical
sprites and will animate it if possible. The Animation sub-menu gives
control of Start Stop or Continuous, and Slow, Medium or Fast. However,
when I tried to control the speed of the Piston animation supplied as an
example, it would only respond to clicking on Slow or Fast Ö Medium just
ignored me. However, if I went back into the Graphics menu and then
immediately returned to the Animation menu, it had defaulted to, yes
youæve guessed, Medium Ö weird!
9.10
Also, having dropped the Piston in, just to try it, I then wanted to
remove it, so I clicked on it so as to get it to be the current active
frame, and was rewarded with use of one of PenDTPæs hot-links Ö it
loaded up !Speller Ö for a graphic? Peter Hunter tells me it shouldnæt
do this, and is investigating.
9.10
Talking of hot-links Ö Longman call it Object linking Ö there is also
the same easy access, (i.e. double-clicking on the frame in question),
to editing a drawfile, a sprite and even to Edit where the text
concerned has been converted into a graphic using the relevant radio
button on the Frame-Attributes submenu. Those used to hot-links will
know that the way back is simply to use the relevant applicationæs Save
option and hit <return>. Iæll give Longman their due, this program is
very much all-singing and dancing at this level, should you need it.
9.10
Level 3 iconbar options
9.10
What else do I like at Level 3? Well, certainly the option of having a
second floating tool bar. (Perhaps when Paul reported multiple floating
tool bars, in Products Available in 9.8, he meant that you could have a
second bar from a choice of seven?) What I donæt like is that having
taken advantage of the Tool Layoutæs facility to change from a two-
columns-of-ten arrangement to a square format, this information is not
retained when saving the file, so guess what you get next time you load
a previous file?!
9.10
While griping, isnæt it more likely that you would want to do a word
count or spell check on the whole document, rather than from where you
are presently typing To End of Story? This is the default Scope for both
these two, and also for the case change facilities. I have just checked
repeatedly, and found that it doesnæt even retain the useræs setting
when you change the scope to, for example, Whole Story, (on the word
count at least), and return to do a re-count just a few seconds later.
9.10
Educationally speaking, I am very pleased that !Speller can a) mark-up
errors, and b) be used with other programs, and although I havenæt tried
it yet, the Reading Level macroæs ability to assess a text, using
variously SMOG, FOG, FLESCH, etc, tests, would seem to have potential to
impress the OFSTED mob if your school, like mine, hasnæt been Édoneæ
yet. This latest member of the PenDown family also offers a new view
window which can be scaled up or down from its parent Ö very useful!
9.10
What else can PenDTP do?
9.10
It can accept files from all its Pendown relatives, and will further
allow not only Draw, Edit and Paint imports, but also CSV and 1stWord+.
Frames can be set to auto-expand, be replicated vertically, horizontally
or both, be locked to the grid, moved to back or front, and be specified
as read-only. Files can be made to remove themselves from memory when
their windows are closed, and printout formats include normal, batched,
fitted, pairs, book pairs, fours, folded fours and tiled. Thereæs a full
range of save options and the expected undo via <ctrl-U>.
9.10
Is the manual any good?
9.10
Yes, itæs excellent, but... ! The presentation is clear and it is slim,
so people are actually likely to read it Ö full marks so far.
9.10
Now, about those blips I spoke of:
9.10
On page 5, Editing text item 3. refers to use of the Copy key but I
donæt seem to be able to find it on my RiscPC keyboard Ö oops! I later
discovered that the End key is the Copy key in disguise Ö did you know
that?
9.10
On Page 6, under the heading of Text font and size, the parameters
Height and Aspect are described, and it is explained that aspect may be
changed by entering ö ... a percentage value ... ò Well, the terms
aspect and percentage may well be more technically correct, but
considering that page 6 is only the fourth page into a section on Level
1, which extends to twenty pages and purports to be for non-
sophisticated users, I think that Drawæs Size and Height, or better
still, PenDown Plusæ Height and Width seem more friendly in terms of
Éplain-Englishæ.
9.10
Page 16 refers to the red flow handle to indicate a link, but the
program does not possess any subsequent means of indicating where such
links lead to. A colleague at my school has already experienced
difficulties which could have been avoided had PenDTP possessed the link
tool available to Ovation users.
9.10
It crashed Ö but well-done Longman
9.10
Crash one happened when entering the Font List to change fonts Ö youæve
seen it Ö Fatal error type 5, exit (but this has been corrected in the
latest version).
9.10
Number two occurred when selecting a printout format in the Print
dialogue window.
9.10
Longmanæs Technical Services Department responded quickly to my letter
saying that they had successfully replicated the first crash and that
the author is in the process of fixing it, but that they had not so far
replicated the printing crash, so please could I keep an eye on it to
see if it was a one-off or not. It isnæt! Iæve had it again on five
different days, but I award Longman twelve out of ten for listening to
their customers and responding extremely positively.
9.10
My wish list
9.10
1. Frame Ö FrameStyle Ö Margins: This menu option actually sets the
INSET margins, and I have not found a facility to set the OUTSET
margins. The result is that flowing text can crowd up against a graphic
or whatever. Inserting a space at the beginning of each line seems a
crude solution, nor does it seem very satisfactory to have to set the
INSET margin of every frame.
9.10
2. The option to create a master page/document/chapter. Again, the
Technical Services Department opinioned that PenDTP does not have this
Pendown Plus feature Ö not as far as they can discover from the Level 3
hypertext documents.
9.10
3. Handles to re-size the frames, together with the ability to drag a
frame around without first having to click the caret into another frame.
9.10
4. A Line Tool with options to modify thickness, style and end caps.
9.10
Personalise it!
9.10
Although I may not need extra facilities, (other than the items in my
wish list, that is!), a perusal of the hypertext documents clearly shows
that Longman Logotron have, from the outset, intended that the package
they are selling should support anyone wishing to tailor it to their
individual needs. These hypertexts contain what to me appear to be very
detailed descriptions on how to ÉConfigureæ the program to start up in
the ideal way you might want. (Iæve just thought! Is this how I can make
it load up in Level 3 every time?)
9.10
They show you how to define ÉMacrosæ to do all sorts of wonderful
things: how to utilise the PenDTP ÉCommandsæ Language, how to use the
ÉKeysæ files to extend the keyboard shortcuts and to develop input via a
concept keyboard, how to amend files held inside the application itself
(e.g. the Exceptions file which lives in the !PenDTP.Extensions.RLevel
directory), etc, etc Ö wonderful! Is this Éopenæ policy intended to
reflect Acornæs new openness, I wonder?
9.10
Conclusions?
9.10
As with any sophisticated application, PenDTP will take a while to get
fully into, but the Levels system makes for a gentle learning curve with
obvious resting points, while the gadgets are superb at motivating
children and adults alike, by providing instant success. It is clear
that a tremendous amount of thought has gone into this application,
(witness the explicit provision of the paper colour option in
consideration of ö ... those with visual impairment ...ò), and you are
never going to satisfy everyone all the time Ö but the author has come
as close as anyone is ever going to, at the first attempt! So, in spite
of the crashes, my grumbles and wish list, remembering that this is
still only version 1.00, I think that Longman Logotron have created a
product which anyone, not just those in education, should give very
serious consideration.
9.10
If any potential purchasers, or existing owners of PenDTP, would like to
tap into my (limited!) experience with the program, or offer me the
benefit of theirs, do get in touch: Alex Cessford, 30 Belvoir Crescent,
Langar, Nottingham, NG13 9HU. (Home: 01949-860738 School: 0115-989-2250)
9.10
The price?
9.10
PenDown DTP costs ú59 +VAT +p&p, or ú68 through Archive, and 5, 10, 20
and 40-user licences cost ú67, ú118, ú207 and ú354 respectively +VAT
+p&p, or ú77, ú132, ú232 and ú395 through Archive. Existing users of
PenDown Plus etc, who upgrade, get preferential rates Ö contact Longman
Logotron for details.áuá
9.10
PenDown Tools
9.10
1stPage Tools
9.10
PopUp Cards
9.10
Bob Ames (+ Lisa)
9.10
PopUp Cards, from Southern Printers, is a package of Artwork which
assists the artistically minded to design and make just that Ö various
types of PopUp Cards Ö as well as more ordinary folded types, and also
matching envelopes.
9.10
The manual should be read before attempts are made to run the program,
otherwise nothing seems to happen Ö it is all user-driven. The package
does not consist of a program, with menus, etc, but has a series of
templates, patterns, and other artwork which is used to design card
layouts in a drawing package. The list of requirements is very basic: an
Acorn computer, a drawing package (Artworks, Vector, Draw, etc), a
printer and driver, and then the firmware: scissors, card, paper etc!
9.10
It is a well put together package, which has a few very neat touches.
The card designs all seem to work and there are some useful examples
included, öto get you goingò.
9.10
The package comes as two discs. These are compressed with David
Pillingæs !Spark utility, and !SparkPlug (the free decompression
utility) is included on disc B. (I wonder how many copies Iáhave now!?
It is so widely available, extra copies on the disc are almost
redundant!)
9.10
Decompressed, the package needs four 800Kb discs, but there may be a
problem with 1Mb machines Ö the user is requested to ring the support
line in case of problems! A hard disc system needs 2.4Mb of free disc
space for installation. The user is requested to backup the original
discs before installing or decompressing, so there is no copy
protection.
9.10
The material sent for review also included an extra artwork disc called
SP4 (a separate product from  PopUp Cards), although it seems to
duplicate over 1Mb of compressed line art. It also has a small LineArt
manual which gives thumbnail pictures of all the contents. A few ÉHow-
Toæ suggestions usefully complete the manual.
9.10
Three types of card may be produced with the package as supplied,
although more types may be designed. A Éfront/backæ type has a scene on
the front, and the reverse of the scene or item on the back, the two
being joined by the hinge. The folded A4 type is the simplest, and the
layout is prearranged so that, when the sheet is printed and folded, the
various faces are correctly oriented; front, two faces inside and a card
back.
9.10
The third type is the true pop-up card. Paper engineering is used to
give the mobility needed Ö careful use of scissors and glue positioning
is needed. There are a few examples given, some types are multi-layer,
and other types can be designed.
9.10
The directoriesæ names indicate the supplied contents; Cards1, Cards2,
ArtMono, ArtColour, Borders and Envelopes all appear, with a section
called Extras containing more borders and colour and mono artwork. The
mono artwork is supplied to make cards to be coloured in by children Ö
very personal cards are thus generated. The script may be
machine¡printed for each recipient, or a general message, printed and
then personalised by hand.
9.10
Southern Printers also supplied me with four ready¡made examples of
cards included in the package, complete with designer envelopes. These
areáprobably the most difficult part Ö the paper engineering required to
produce good quality envelopes from flat paper sheets is amazing!
9.10
Almost at the end of the instruction manual, there is a very useful
explanation of the method which should be used to adjust or align the
paper and the drawing on screen. Another section describes the
manufacture of the envelopes. Finally, Hints and Tips gives a few clues
to further development, and the package Draw+ is suggested to assist
further text manipulation.
9.10
All in all, this is a very good package. The usefulness is limited only
by the useræs imagination! PopUpCards is good value at ú14. An
educational site licence costs ú28, and the extra artwork disc SP4 (with
thumbnail manual) costs just ú6. All these prices fully inclusive, from
Southern Printers.áuá
9.10
RasMol for RISC OS
9.10
Mike Clark
9.10
The good news for scientists, students and teachers in the biological
and chemical sciences is that a new professional tool has become
available and although itæs copyright, itæs being made available as
freeware from the Higher Education National Software Archive (HENSA).
There are, I know, a significant number of academics who choose to use
Acorn computers because they find RISCáOS such a good operating
environment within which to work. However, a major criticism is that
there are few serious professional applications covering some areas of
computer use, particularly with regard to scientific software.
9.10
One of these omissions has just been plugged by Martin Wⁿrthner
([e-mail].  uni-stuttgart.de) who has ported Roger
Sayleæs X11 package, RasMol, to RISCáOS. RasMol is a truly professional
package for the representation and visualisation of highly complex three
dimensional molecular models. It allows the structures of molecules such
as proteins and DNA, made up of thousands of individual atoms, to be
viewed on screen, rotated, moved and magnified. The RasMol package is
used by scientists and students to look at these structures, and also
for the preparation of publication quality figures for use in lectures
and reproduction in journals and text books.
9.10
The determination of molecular structures through the use of techniques
such as X-ray crystallography or Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)
spectroscopy, involves a lot of computer intensive data processing.
Traditionally, and for obvious reasons, this intensive number crunching
is carried out using mainframe computers and top end UNIX workstations.
However, once the data has been computed, the results can be written out
as the relative three dimensional molecular coordinates of every atom in
the structure.
9.10
To allow this structural information to be exchanged, standard data
formats have been adopted. One major standard in this area is the
Protein Data Bank format (PDB files) as used by the Brookhaven Database
of sequences, made publicly available over the Internet by the USA
National Institute of Health and mirrored in the UK by the European
Bioinformatics Institute (URL http://www.ebi.ac.uk/PDB/).
9.10
The Protein Data bank (PDB) is an archive of experimentally determined
three dimensional structures of biological macromolecules, serving a
global community of researchers, educators and students with over 4,300
structures currently available. RasMol can understand PDB files as well
as other formats: Émdlæ (Molecular Design Limitedæs MOL format),
Éalchemyæ (Triposæ Alchemy), Émol2æ (Triposæ Sybyl Mol2), Écharmmæ
(CHARMm) and Éxyzæ (MSCæs XMol XYZ) produced by the different software
packages. Acorn filetypes have been allocated for the PDB format, as
well as some of the others, allowing files to be loaded into the
application with a double-click.
9.10
RasMol (Copyright ⌐1992-94 by Roger Sayle) is available as a C source
program designed to compile and run under X11 and optimised for
compilation using the GNU C compiler, gcc. The package has also been
ported to and runs on Microsoft Windows, Apple Macintosh, and VMS
systems and, of course, now native under RISCáOS.
9.10
The program reads in the data files and then opens up a display window
in which the molecular model is shown in one of a number of different
representations, such as depth-cued wireframes, ÉDreidingæ sticks,
spacefilling (CPK) spheres, ball and stick, solid and strand
biomolecular ribbons, atom labels and dot surfaces. The model can also
be coloured in various ways to highlight various chosen features of the
whole molecule, or of individual atoms or residues which make up the
structure.
9.10
The application opens two windows, the molecule display window and a
command window. This is almost identical to the way the application
appears on other platforms, so those with experience of RasMol on say
UNIX or Windows, will feel immediately at home. A few commands, to
enable the structure to be moved, rotated and magnified, are directly
available using an attached toolbar and a combination of mouse drags
(using select or adjust). Simple display features such as model
representations and overall colours, are also available using the menu
button and then following options offered. However, for really complex
operations, it is necessary to use the commands available in the command
window.
9.10
Fortunately for beginners, one of the commands available is Help, which
gives access to a manual of information on the commands available, and
how to use them. Using the commands, it is possible to apply different
display features to selected parts of a molecule, and to label the
features shown. Highly complex figures can be generated in this way, and
the viewer can look at them from all angles and at many magnifications,
including zooming into the centre of a molecule and looking at the atoms
inside.
9.10
Clearly, this can be a laborious process to replicate, so it is possible
to automate the commands by saving script files of multiple commands
which will load and display the molecule in a predefined way. As the
application runs on multiple platforms, it is possible to import both
the molecular structures and the script files from one machine to
another, and to generate similar displays.
9.10
For example, at work, I carry out complex molecular modelling on a
Silicon Graphics Iris Indigo workstation, I then bring the files home
and can carry on working on them using RasMol for Windows on the PC486
card on my RiscPC. Now, with this new release, I am pleased to find that
I am also able to run them under native RISCáOS. A nice feature of
RISCáOS, of course, is that it is possible to load scripts into text
editors such as Edit, and to rapidly and easily carry out global changes
before re-running them, all within a multitasking desktop.
9.10
I havenæt carried out any detailed timings, but my impressions are that
the RISCáOS version (currently RasMol 2.6, RISCáOS version 1.10) running
on a RiscPC 600 with 2Mb VRAM in an 800╫600, 32,000 colour mode feels
about the same speed as RasMol 2.5 for Windows running on the PC486 SXL
processor card in a similar screen mode. I have just upgraded to a PC486
DX4/100 card and this now runs RasMol faster, presumably partly as a
result of the numeric coprocessor available on the new card.
9.10
However, an important feature of the RISCáOS version of RasMol is that
it can run on any Acorn machine with OS 3.1 or higher and with 2Mb of
RAM available. I would suggest that 4Mb of RAM is more appropriate, and
indeed I have obtained very good results loading a structure of 10,400
atoms into a 4Mb A5000 and also a 4Mb ARM2 A3000. This must make the
package very attractive for school use where RiscPCs may not always be
available.
9.10
Martin Wⁿrthner has made a very good job of porting the package across,
and the colour screen output, to my mind, is better under RISCáOS than
under Windows. A nice feature is a dither tool available under RISCáOS
which, when clicked on in a 256 colour mode, generates a better dithered
representation of the current view, albeit with a time penalty. The
final images, once generated, can be exported in a number of formats for
possible publication or incorporation in other applications. Filetypes
currently supported are sprites, GIF and EPS (both bit-mapped and vector
PostScript, although there are some problems at present with the
latter).
9.10
To really do justice to this application, and to find out all of the
many sophisticated features available, you need to get hold of a copy
and to play with it. Many scientists and students will already be
familiar with the package as used on other platforms, but there must
also be many teachers, for example, who have never seen this
application. I strongly urge them to get hold of a copy, because I know
from experience that there is nothing like being able to manipulate
models in three dimensions to enable a more rapid learning process of
concepts in chemistry and molecular biology.
9.10
The package, as supplied on HENSA, includes some example script files,
and a few simple molecules such as aspirin and atropine as well as a
Ébucky ballæ and a Protein DNA complex. Further structures are readily
available on the Web, and by FTP, from various academic sites including
EBI.
9.10
Martin Wuerthner has said that he is happy for us to put RasMol on the
monthly program disc, which we have done, and simply asked that we be
sure to acknowledge Roger Sayle ([e-mail]) and to quote the
address of the RasMol WWW home page (http://klaatu.oit.umass.edu:80/
microbio/
9.10
rasmol/) which is provided by Eric Martz.áuá
9.10
Vistamusic 3
9.10
Denise Bates
9.10
Vistamusic 3 has been produced by the Enabling for Music Project at the
University of York within the Department of Electronics. The aim of the
project is to harness technology to enable hard-of-hearing, physically
disabled and partially sighted people to compose, arrange and perform
music. Vistamusic is designed for someone who does not play a keyboard
but perhaps can play some other instrument, or someone who is musically-
minded who does not play any instrument. The program is designed to be
controlled via a Midi interface by a suitable keyboard instrument, and
the computer keyboard need not be used at all.
9.10
The program
9.10
Vistamusic was reviewed using an A5000 with RISC OS 3 (although any
Acorn computer with 1Mb of memory is sufficient so long as it has a Midi
interface) and a Yamaha Clavinova. This may not be the best instrument
to demonstrate the capabilities of the program, as the one used had only
three voices.
9.10
Vistamusic takes over the whole machine and does not run in a desktop
window. It is entirely driven from menus and does not use the mouse. The
program can be run in three ways. The first is using allocated keys on
the same Midi keyboard as that used for inputting notes. The second way
is to use two Midi keyboards, one for note input and the other for the
controls. Iásuspect most users would normally control the program from
the computer and enter notes via a Midi instrument.
9.10
A limited range of notes can be entered from the computer keyboard, and
a module is supplied to enable music to be listened to without using a
Midi instrument.
9.10
The notes appear on the screen as different coloured shapes which
represent the note pitch, duration and sound. The conventional stave is
not used. Once a tune has been entered, accessing one of the many edit
menus allows the tune to be manipulated note by note until the desired
volume and tempo is achieved.
9.10
The inputting of music is extremely quick and the editing facilities
make error correction very easy. The degree of control over the tonal
quality of the output is extremely good and, in this context, those who
are interested in computerised music may be tempted to add this software
to their collection.
9.10
Target users
9.10
The program has been specifically designed for those with little musical
knowledge. I felt that, whilst such people would be able to use
Vistamusic successfully, they would need to work under the guidance of
an experienced tutor who did have musical knowledge. To this extent, I
feel that the natural users of the program will be conversant with
computers, be involved in teaching, care or therapy work and will have
sufficient understanding of music to show their clients how to use the
program.
9.10
Tape
9.10
The program comes with three tunes discs and a demonstration tape which
highlights the quality of output which can be achieved. The quality is
extremely high, but there is no indication of how long it took to
produce the tunes in this format or the degree of musical knowledge
possessed by the inputter.
9.10
Criticisms
9.10
I have three specific criticisms of Vistamusic. Unfortunately, the
quality of the manual is extremely disappointing. After explaining the
installation procedure, and how to run the program, it gives little
practical help in getting to grips with the musical aspects. Although
the software writers feel that using the program menus are self-
explanatory, and understanding will be easily achieved through
experimentation, I did not agree. I felt many aspects of the program
needed further explanation to eliminate the frustration of trial and
error. This is a pity because when understanding has been achieved,
Vistamusic is very simple to use. A stage-by-stage guided tutorial to
introduce the user to all the control menus systematically would be a
desirable improvement.
9.10
Secondly, Vistamusic comes with a handwritten keystrip for the function
keys. I feel that when a program is being sold commercially, the buyer
deserves better than this. A simple drawfile could be included on the
disc, enabling the user to print out their own keystrip.
9.10
The final criticism relates to the fact that files cannot be saved in
Midi format. Because Vistamusic does not use conventional musical
notation, it is not possible to print out a score. Saving as a Midi file
would allow the composition to be loaded into another music notation
program which could then be used to produce a conventionally printed
score. This point would be relevant if a user produced a good, original
composition because, at present, there is no way of showing this to
anyone except as a series of coloured shapes on screen.
9.10
Vistamusic is available at a cost of ú40 from GordonáDalgarno,
23áFarmstead Rise, Haxby, York, YO3á3LL. (01904¡761594) A demo version
of the program is also available.áuá
9.10
Feast your eyes on this pile of Acorn Netsurfers! Note the Smart Card
slot, microphone input, headphone socket and remote control Ö all for
under $500. Iæd pay ú300 for one of these, wouldnæt you?!
9.10
James, can you fit that photo into this frame, please? Or in some way
give the picture a dark border to make it stand out?
9.10
ART at Wakefield
9.10
Richard Walker
9.10
What I have written concentrates on the presentations made by Chris Cox
(on StrongARM) and Peter Bondar (on the future of ART). I have also
expanded on what they said Ö including some speculation!
9.10
New RiscPC?
9.10
Because of the huge interest that the world has shown in ARTæs own
technology (i.e. RiscPC, A7000 etc.) they are working on IOMD and VIDC
again, so we may well see a new RiscPC motherboard being produced! ART
are still thinking about it and wonæt make a decision at least until
mid-June. We may see:
9.10
  Ö More VRAM capability
9.10
  Ö EDO RAM support
9.10
  Ö More SIMM bays
9.10
  Ö Improved graphics capability
9.10
  Ö Faster disc/memory/expansion access
9.10
  Ö More processor sockets
9.10
  Ö Faster processor bus
9.10
  Ö New version of RISC OS to control it all (!)
9.10
Some of this depends on what will fit in the existing case, and I guess
most depends on the success of the Network Computer (RiscPC would be the
ideal development platform for it). ART are saying that the board could
be available Éaround the end of 1997æ and there could be an exchange
system for RiscPC owners. (Bear in mind though, that to buy a RiscPC
motherboard now costs about ú450 inc. VAT!)
9.10
If you are at all interested in a new RiscPC motherboard, please do let
ART know! They need to know whether or not it is worth doing. (Email
them at [e-mail].)
9.10
StrongARM
9.10
The StrongARM processors are currently on prototype cards, both without
any second level cache. ART first thought that an uncached card would be
choked by RiscPCæs bus and that an L2 cache would be needed. In fact,
StrongARM works beautifully without the secondary cache, and the cost of
a new card with the extra cache would probably not be worth it.
9.10
On target for September is the first (in a family) of StrongARM cards
for the RiscPC. We are looking at a 200MHz chip on a processor card, and
a new version of RISC OS (supplied on ROMs and disc). This will be
supplied to the Clan priority customers first, followed by other non-
Clan priority bookings (i.e. those who paid the ú50 deposit) and then
anybody else who pays the ú249+VAT and the ú99+VAT if-bought-with-
machine bundle.
9.10
There will also be a new FPEmulator for the StrongARM, which should
provide a workable speed for those pining for an FPA!
9.10
NewsPad and Stork
9.10
The NewsPad project is developing well, but the anticipated cost of the
machines is quite high (circa. ú1,500). ART will be investigating the
development of a half-size StrongARM-powered version.
9.10
The Stork could well be a portable Network Computer. This of course,
depends on the success of the Network Computer (as do many of ARTæs
projects!)
9.10
Is RISC OS dead?
9.10
An official, öNo!ò screams Peter Bondar! There are now more ART staff
working on RISC OS than there have been in the last 10 years! RISC OS is
being improved at customersæ requests Ö big paying customers, not humble
enthusiasts! Some RISC OS customers have five-year support contracts!
9.10
Where ÉStrongARM and/or Acorn kitæ is used, RISC OS will be there! ART
is working on a micro-kernel (very small) version of RISC OS which can
be used in consumer hand-held devices to control a StrongARM Ö it is
targeted to sit in a 32Kb ROM!
9.10
Things like virtual memory will probably never happen because it is not
appropriate for ARTæs new markets to want such a feature Ö but if
someone pays for it... (Peter Bondar still says, öbuy more SIMMs!ò)
9.10
RISC OS will not be modified to work on the multi-processor unit unless
a large customer pays for the work! It is not really the kind of thing
ARTæs customers are currently interested in. The Hydra API (see Archive
9.9 p11) makes it possible to write RISC OS software specially for the
multi-processor card and you could of course run Taos or RiscBSD etc.
9.10
ARM810
9.10
The ARM810 processor card will be released in January 1997 (ish!) and
will become the bottom-spec RiscPC because Xemplar want it. Although
StrongARM compatibility will be good, Xemplar want a RiscPC which is
100% software-compatible for schoolsæ ease of use. Many enthusiasts and
power-users will no doubt move to StrongARM. Mind you, I know a school
who are trying to buy a new RiscPC 700 just to get the ú99 StrongARM!
9.10
CHRP (aka. PPCP)
9.10
Xemplar also want ART to develop a PCI interface card with RISC OS and a
StrongARM on it. This is aimed at PowerMacs with PCI so they can have a
dual-boot RISC OS/MacOS on it. ART say that, they could, in theory, make
this same PCI card work in PCs! Great Ö we can go around sticking them
in PCs and converting their users to RISC OS!
9.10
(Can you imagine the market this would open up to Sibelius?! If they
could offer a ÉSibelius add-onæ to PC or Mac Ö which just happens to
include a StrongARM processor and a complete operating system(!) Ö they
would take the music world by storm. And it would be very good press for
Acorn, too! Ed.)
9.10
ART also say that a CHRP solution (as a high-end-RiscPC successor) would
be a totally Éstandardæ CHRP box with a StrongARM+RISC OS card. (No more
RiscPC case? Boo!)
9.10
A7000
9.10
There will eventually be a faster A7000, probably based on the ARM7500FE
(ARM7500 with floating point hardware) with faster memory access. It has
been commissioned by Xemplar, so will happen!
9.10
Network Computer (Oracle)
9.10
Peter Bondar said that the first ÉNetwork Computeræ would be launched
the following weekend in San Francisco by Larry Ellison Ö from ÉBig Oæ!
9.10
(It was indeed Ö see the separate article on page 20 and the piccie
opposite! Ed.)
9.10
Software development issues
9.10
There will be a Éproperæ C++ compiler Ésoonæ.
9.10
There will be a Java compiler Ésoonæ.
9.10
Miscellaneous items of interest
9.10
Thereæs been a turn-around in profitability for ART. Whatæs more, this
is not just licensing deals Ö their actual sales are above target. (One
indication of this is that they cannot make RiscPCs fast enough to keep
up with orders Ö weære developing something of a backlog of RiscPC
orders, Sorry! Ed.)
9.10
ART is no longer dominated by the lowest common denominator of
education. They can now go and make rapid decisions such as ÉWeæll make
a StrongARM card for the RiscPC, and weæll do it now!æ
9.10
Larry E has stumped up for lots of development, and the Oracle agreement
allows any of this technology to be put back in traditional desktop
machines. The StrongARM card is the first example of this. !Printers is
to be redeveloped under this agreement too.
9.10
ART are also working on Éalternative Internet technologyæ. (My guess:
Inferno)
9.10
ART said that in two weeks they toured thirty different companies in
Japan and showed off RiscPC, A7000, PC cards, etc. Apparently, not one
single person asked whether it would run Windows! Wow! They really do
not care about (or favour) the Microsoft/Intel monopoly.
9.10
Summary
9.10
ART have got their fingers in lots of pies at the minute. All
development is good development if it puts money in the coffers. Much of
this technology finds its way back into RISC OS (e.g. Replay3, Video
Phone). The education bias is rapidly disappearing, as ART tries to
portray itself more as an innovator. Xemplar is just a customer now, but
has contracts to be supplied with RISC OS products for some years. ART
appear to be marketing themselves for once, showing off their wares to
big-wigs around the world, and generally making a name for themselves.
9.10
One of the recent leaders in an IT rag commented that Acorn were É...on
song again and knew it.æ Having seen Peter Bondaræs presentation, Iæd be
inclined to agree. Usually, these lectures end in some fairly savage
questioning (or Ébitching... from whiners in the corneræ as he put it!),
but the only real gripe Iáheard was that the CHRP-based RiscPC would not
have the same case (CE and economic reasons).áuá
9.10