Practical Computing - May 1983, Volume 6, Issue 5

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Publication Date : May 1983

Publication Contents :

Page Item
5 Editorial [Article]
Jack Schofield
Can you believe everything you read in a microcomputer advertisement?
7 Feedback [Article]
Your letters: Goverment patronage and the CCTA list, corrections, suggestions and Boris bashing.
9 Introducing the Micronix 80HD [Advert]
17 Fortune 32:16 - The Real World Computer [Advert]
21 Commodore 64 and 8000-series spreadsheet [News Item]
Calc Result is a three-dimensional spreadsheet program for the Commodore 64 micro which also runs on the 8000-series machines.
21 Image Processor for Pet and BBC [News Item]
Microscale, an-image processing software package, is now available to go with Digithurst's TV camera add-on for the BBC and Commodore Pet computers. The software allows you to measure the areas and perimeters of objects or parts of objects placed before the camera.
21 Texas TI-99/4a Scrabble Pack [News Item]
Scrabble players will soon be able to play against the Texas Instruments TI-99/4a. The game will cost about £30 on cartridge and TI says it will be available by the autumn.
21 Word processing and games in Audiogenic 64 range [News Item]
Software 64 is a new brand label for a range of programs supplied by Audiogenic for the Commodore 64. There are applications software, games and utilities in a range that covers most areas of microcomputer use.
21 Program copier to Apple discs [News Item]
Version 4.0 of Copy II plus is a copying program for the Apple II micro. According to Tony Riley, managing director of the supplier Orchard Software, "if it starts with 'Visi' then our product will copy it."
21 Better database [News Item]
PSF, the long-established Apple database package, is available in a new incarnation for the IBM PC and the Apple IIe and III. PSF costs £105.
22 Jupiter Ace [Advert]
23 Take-away from Texas Instruments [News Item]
The Compact Computer 40 is the latest battery-powered portable micro designed for the business user. The computer has an integral LCD display and is programmable in enhanced Basic. Peripherals for the CC-40 are also battery powered.
23 Spectrum Centronics interface [News Item]
The ZX printer may be a wonder of engineering, but is not the polished of computer products. Now it is possible to print readable output with the ZX LPrint. The device takes LPrint and LList output from the Spectrum and converts it to the parallel Centronics format. It can then be printed on any exisiting Centronics-type printer.
23 Acorn recalls defective school tape recorders [News Item]
Acorn has had to withdraw 3,600 defective tape recorders sent to schools with BBC computers as part of the package subsidised by the Department of Industry.
23 BBC/Winchester link [News Item]
The new GSL Winchester Interface allows the BBC Model B to be interfaced to up to four 85Mb hard discs, providing up to 340Mb of on-line storage.
23 ACT to build British [News Item]
ACT, the Birmingham-based microcomputer company currently known as the importer of the Sirius computer, is to build its own microcomputer in Scotland. The new machine is to be a portable 16-bit micro weighing under 20 pounds. Project Apricot, as the project is being called, will include the 3.5-inch Sony floppy and will maintain a software compatibility with the fast-selling Sirius.
23 Texas Instruments TI-99/2 [News Item]
A 16-bit computer for £75 sounds a little unlikely but here it is, the Texas Instruments TI-99/2. It is a training machine, designed to teach people how to use a computer.
24 Apple II pared to its core [News Item]
The U-Com2 is an Apple computer minus the power supply, case, video generation, cassette interface, keyboard and Apple manufacturer's label. It is made by U-Microcomputers, and includes 2K of ROM, eight expansion slots and a game I/O socket.
24 New Atari boasts 64K of memory [News Item]
Atari's new micro is the 1200XL. The best thing about it is that it is software compatible with the current 400/800 models. The main improvement over the 800 is that the 1200 comes with 64K of RAM as standard.
24 Nissei 16-bit Samurai [News Item]
Samurai is the latest 16-bit micro to reach our shores from the Land of the Rising Sun. Manufactured by Nissei Sangyo, a subsidiary of Hitachi, the Samurai is distributed by Micro Networks Ltd.
25 When it's time to stop playing games and get down to business...Rair Business Computer [Advert]
29 VisiCalc and Co now on PC [News Item]
The VisiCorp programs, that reputedly, sold so many Apple IIs are now available for the IBM PC. They are VisiCalc, Desktop/Plan. VisiFile, VisiTrend/Plot, VisiSchedule and the most recent addition to the family, VisiWorld.
29 CP/M-86 version [News Item]
Digital Research has produced an enhanced version of CP/M-86 for the IBM PC. Enhancements are a print spooler to provide background printing, GSX graphics extensions, and device drivers for popular printers, plotters and cards.
29 Go-faster PC announced [News Item]
The new IBM Personal Computer XT is an expanded version of the PC with one of the floppy drives replaced by a 10Mb hard disc. The XT also features 128K of RAM as standard, a communications adaptor and eight expansion slots.
29 Chatterbox Aeon and Omninet networks [News Item]
Two companies have announced networking for the IBM PC. Chatterbox Computers has launched Aeon, which stands for advanced electronic office network. Newly appointed IBM dealer Keen Computers can now offer the Corvus Omninet network for the IBM PC.
29 All-in-one Lotus [News Item]
Lotus 123 is one of the new generation of integrated software packages being launched to compete with Apple's Lisa and VisiOn, when that eventually appears. 123 integrates graphics, spreadsheet analysis, simple text editing and filing in a single package.
29 Doxiver add-ons [News Item]
The PC can be networked using PCNet distributed bustechnology. The hardware is a single-slot adaptor board, and software is provided as an interface to MS-DOS. This provides for disc sharing, file locking and multi-tasking.
39 Chip Chat [Article]
Ray Coles
Ray Coles' monthly column about microprocessors tackles a 44 million chip question.
76 Canon AS-100C New From Japan [Review]
Jack Schofield
The editor tried out the latest IBM PC work-alike. Find out why he cried when they came and took it away.
80 Texet's Low-Price Colour Micro [Review]
Bill Bennett
Bill Bennett tested the latest Oric/Spectrum-type home computer. Find out why he cried when it arrived.
82 Graphics Made Easy on the BBC Micro [Review]
John Harris
Three packages to simplify the production of attractive graphics with the BBC Micro.
86 Home WP - Part 2 Pet Alternatives [Review]
A comparative review of Superscript and Wordpro, two important word processors for the Pet.
93 Orion - British Business Micro [Review]
Ian Stobie
Ian Stobie tests a new office micro based on the Intel 8086 and finds it "faster than a speeding Olivetti...".
95 Interview - Martin Healey [Interview]
Strong views on operating systems and the future of the British micro - from the man who designed the Orion.
99 Robot Ping-Pong [Article]
John Billingsley
John Billingsley of Micromouse fame introduces a new competition to challenge the robotics buffs.
100 The Computer That Cared [Article]
Fiction.
103 Memory Matters [Article]
A brief introduction to what is happening in the memory market - and why we always need more of it.
104 Disc Discussion [Article]
Robert Parry
Robert Parry surveys the disc-drive market from shirt-pocket floppies to Winchester hard discs.
111 Databases - What Are They Anyway? [Article]
Mike Lewis
Mike Lewis looks at what a database is, and what passes for one in the microcomputer world.
114 Databases Side by Side [Article]
Chris Bidmead
Chris Bidmead examines some of the most popular packages.
120 Do-it-Yourself Database Program [Article]
Jim McCartney
How to construct your own database - a step-by-step guide by Jim McCartney.
124 Databases What's Available [Article]
A listing of some of the packaged software available to handle information.
128 Databased Charity [Article]
How the National Association for Gifted Children uses a database to keep in touch with its members around the country.
133 Programming for Eigensolutions [Type-In Listing]
M.G. Walker
M.G. Walker's program describes how complicated buildings and engineering structures behave.
141 Education Traffic Survey [Article]
A program to help children tackle field studies, devised by Frank Davies.
145 Games on the TI-99/4A [Review]
Jack Schofield
Plug-in ROM cartridges make the Texas micro good for games, but are the games any good? Jack Schofield tries them out.
149 Open File [Type-In Listing]
More programs, hints and tips about popular personal computers including Apple, Tandy, the BBC Micro and others.
183 Book Reviews: Atari Books by the Dozen [Review]
Twelve books that set out to tell you what Atari doesn't tell you.


ISSN Number : 0141-5433

Creator : Electrical Electronic Press

This exhibit has a reference ID of CH3942. Please quote this reference ID in any communication with the Centre for Computing History.
 

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