BEYOND THE SPREADSHEET - World Radio History

£1.25IIMAY 1986 Volume 9 Issue 5

PFOR BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL MICRO USERS

BEYOND THE SPREADSHEETSOFTWARE

HARDWAREJavelin a What's Best

Xerox 6085 a Ferranti AT cloneDealing with dealers

How to lock out hackersPLUS

AND

Quite simp y, it eavesother word processors

lost for words.WordPerfect 4.1 includes

many features not found inother word processors.

Newspaper style columnscan be displayed on screen,120,000 word UK phoneticdictionary, word -count,background printing andautomatic reformattingincrease efficiency.

Line drawing and rulers,sorting search and5 -function maths areinvaluable assets.

The colour -coded templatemakes using WordPerfectsimpler than you wouldbelieve. Most features are

available with a singlekeystroke. This makes learningeasier than ever before andusing it a real pleasure.

What you see on the screenis what will actually print.This makes good, professionallayouts simple.

Documents are treated as awhole and not a series ofpages. Reformatting andrepagination after editing areautomatic and very rapid.

However fast you type, youwill never be too fast forWordPerfect.

To find out more, write to theaddress opposite.

And see how WordPerfectdelivers today what others arestill searching for.

SENTINELSOFTWARESentinel, Wellington House,New Zealand Avenue,Walton -on -Thames, Surrey, KT12 1PY.Telephone: (0932) 231164

.MatbPYan

'2.

circle 101 on enquiry card

COVER FEATURE

BEYOND THESPREADSHEETSpreadsheets are one of theoldest business programs, andalso one of the most popular.VisiCalc started it all: now Lotusdominates the market. But whatlies beyond 1-2-3? After takinga look at spreadsheets past,present and future, GlynMoody looks at Javelin on page98, regarded by many asLotus's heir presumptive. Onpage 100 David Barlow reviewsReport Manager, a three-dimensional spreadsheet, andon page 102 there's anadvanced product for the Mac.Finally, Jerry Sanders looks atWhat's Best, an add-on forLotus which gives youadvanced goal -seekingcapabilities

97

INSIDE

Olivetti M-22 Portable, high-tech IBMulator - page 52.

AT compatibles The FerrantiPC-2860AT and Tandon'sPCA-30 - page 58.

'PRACTICALCOMPUTING

MAY 1986 CONTENTS

OLIVETTI M-22Olivetti has finally added to its best-sellingrange of micros. Glyn Moody tries out theslim -line battery portable with a back -lit LCD

52

XEROX 6085 PCSXerox pioneered the Wimp techniques that areso fashionable today. Ian Stobie looks at itslatest advanced desk -top machine

54

FERRANTI PC-2860ATTAN DON PCA-30Two AT compatibles from two very differentmanufacturers. John Lee and Timothy Leecompare and contrast them

58

NEC PAGEWRITERLaser performance at a lower price: a full -page printer based on LED technology,reviewed by Ian Stobie

62

PARADOXMike Lewis completes his review of thisexciting new database package with a look atPAL, the Paradox Application Language

64MIMI

BBC PAGE MAKERSPersonal publishing is all the rage; CarolHammond tries out some programs for theBBC

68

MULTIMATEADVANTAGEA new version of this popular word processor,reviewed by Susan Curran MININI

72

dBASE COMPILERSdBase is powerful, but it can be slow. MikeLewis looks at a pair of add-on programswhich speed it up

76MI=1

HACKER PROTECTIONIs your system safe? Hacker expert Steve Goldexplains how to keep it that way

80

DEALING WITH DEALERSWhat makes dealers tick? How can you getthe best from them? Jerry Sanders offersadvice on getting the best bargain

82

DATA PROTECTIONUPDATEAnne Staines asks whether the Data ProtectionAct has failed before it has even begun

85

TOP 10NON-IBMULATORSSteve Malone gives 10 good reasons for notjoining the Big Blue bandwagon

91

Shopping around Get valuefor money when buying fromdealers - page 82.

NEWS

".,11111111111fill1).,

Top of the Olivetti range: theM-28 AT compatible.

HARDWARE NEWSOlivetti trio 1 2SOFTWARE NEWSNatural commands on Q&A 14GENERAL NEWSZenith hits IRS jackpot 16

OPEN FILECONTENTSThis month's programs

LANGUAGESWhat to write in whichBUSINESSSTATISTICSPart 4: Essential statistics

FILE TRANSFERKermit

107

108

1 1 0

114REGULARS

EDITORIALIBM v AT&TFEEDBACKYour letters 7NEXT MONTHWhat's in store 8SOFTWAREWORKSHOPSecurity codesCHIP -CHATDIY logicCOMMS LINKMicrolinkASK PCYou ask, we answerBOOKSSerious businessINTERVIEWJohn Aris of the NCCLAST WORDDOS chaos

23

29

31

38

49

89

117

PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986 3

What on earthpossessed Mitsubishito launch a range ofbusiness computers

now?Mitsubishi Electric have been in business since1921, building nothing less than innovative,advanced technology - where it's needed, whenit counts. Which is why we've launched a rangeof business computers now.

Proven expertiseThe satellite earth station at Madley, Herefordshire;the revolutionary flat square television tube; theultra high resolution monitor, all were designed andbuilt by Mitsubishi. So every Mitsubishi businesscomputer is backed by - and serviced with - provenelectronics expertise.

High-speed powerIn Japan no business computer survives unless itcan process increasingly complex information andretrieve it at speeds that burn the eye. We like tothink that Mitsubishi's dominance of this marketsector in Japan has got a lot to do with high-speed,high capacity data processing.

Madley B Copyright BTI

Capacity with confidenceMitsubishi business computers can stand aloneor grow with your requirements. With a memorycapacity that can expand to 5 MB, a 40 MB hard diskand up to 1.2 MB 5.25" flexible disk drive, they'llaccommodate almost all your business needs,without draining your resources.

Built with all the backing that a major corporationcan provide, Mitsubishi business computers incor-porate four essential qualities: high performance;economy; flexibility and constant reliability. That'swhy we're sure you'll want to find out more, now.Pick up the telephone. We'll send you full details.

iNggfIvto MITSUBISHIthifiPUNg ELECTRICMitsubishi Electric UK Limited, Hertford Place, Maple Cross, Rickmansworth, Herts. WD3 26J. Tel: (0923) 770000. Telex: 296196.

-* circle 143 on enquiry card <-

4

°PRAMCOMPETINGIMIUMMILCVILLOTlit'INCOIMEIRMI

101145 .M

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Cover feature: page 97

PUBLISHED by Electrical -ElectronicPress, Quadrant House, The Quadrant,Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS. Tel: 01-6613500. Telex/grams 892084 BISPRS GDISTRIBUTED by Business PressInternational Ltd, Quadrant House, TheQuadrant, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5ASSUBSCRIPTIONS: UK £16.50 perannum; overseas f30.00 per annum;selling price in Eire subject to currencyexchange fluctuations and VAT; airmailrates available on application toSubscriptions Manager, Business PressInternational Ltd, Oakfield House,Perrymount Road, Haywards Heath,Sussex RH16 3DH. Tel: (0444) 459188PRINTED in Great Britain for theproprietors Business Press InternationalLtd by Ben Johnson & Co. Ltd, York.Typeset by Lithotype Design, LondonEC1©Business Press International Ltd 1986ISSN 0141-5433Would-be authors are welcome to sendarticles to the Editor but PC cannotundertake to return them. Payment is at£35 per published page. Submissionsshould be typed or computer -printed andshould include a tape or disc of anyprogram.Every effort is made to check articles andlistings but PC cannot guarantee thatprograms will run and can accept noresponsibility for any errors.

AL.rDITONEDITQIILALPWA3633 Telecom God.

Editor GLYN MOODY Deputy Editor (Production) JOHN LIEBMANN Art Editor HUGH ANDERSON

Assistant Editor IAN STOBIE Senior Reporter STEVE MALONE Reporter/Sub-editor CAROL HAMMOND

Editorial Secretary SUE JORDAN Consultant JACK SCHOFIELD

Advertisement Manager NITIN JOSHI 01-661 3021 Assistant Advertisement Manager NEIL MARCHANT 01-661 8626

Advertisement Executives KATE SCALLY 01-661 8425 JANET THORPE 01-661 3468

Midlands and North DAVID BARKER 061-872 8861Advertisement Secretaz LYNN DAWSON 01-661 3612 Classified SUSAN PLATTS 0 1 -6 6 1 8 1 6 3

ING DIRECTOR SIMON TIMM

WHO'S AFRAID OF AT&T?The micro world was recently agog. Moles and

pundits alike had predicted that IBM wouldannounce a machine, a significant event by

any standards. They also assured us that it would bethe long-awaited Clamshell lap portable, also knownas the Convertible. Sure enough, the Big Bluemountain shuddered - and brought forth thePC/RT.

Since then, the marketing waters have muddiedconsiderably as conflicting reports regarding itsintended end -market have circulated. Powerfulgraphics capabilities are an important feature of thenew machine, and IBM has stated that it will beaimed at the scientific and engineering commun-ities, along with CAD/CAM applications. However,IBM has also announced that a wide range ofbusiness programs will be available, and that thenew system is intended for office automation,

There are two significant technical features of themachine. First, in addition to the new reducedinstruction set chip, there will be a co -processoroption which allows you to run AT software.Secondly, the main operating system and back-ground environment in which PC tasks will run is adevelopment of AT&T's Unix System V, Aix.

Aix is not just another flavour of Unix; it attemptsto address one of the main impediments to Unix'swidespread success, its user -unfriendliness. Also,IBM seems to be throwing a good deal more of itsweight behind this implementation than any otherthat it has offered.

Consequently, the launch of the PC/RT couldprove to be one of the most important of recentyears, both for the future development of the micromarket, and for the coming showdown between twoU.S. giants, IBM and AT&T.

Since the break-up of the $100 billion monolithinto separate companies, AT&T has acted like acharacter in search of a play. It has long been toutedas the only possible competitor to IBM which standsany serious chance of bridling IBM's aspirations toworld dominance. Yet so far its showing has beendismal.

AT&T's first serious micro was based on Unix andwas a complete flop. Then came the MS-DOS basedPC -6300, and now AT&T has launched the PC -6300Plus which offers AT compatibility as well as runningUnix.

Both the PC -6300 Plus and the IBM PC/RTrepresent a kind of large-scale hedging of bets. Ofcourse, IBM is in the stronger position in that PC -DOS is used more widely than Unix. However, IBMcannot take a chance on AT&T stealing a march onit, which Unix potentially allows it to do.

But IBM may be doing more than covering itself.

It could well be that it genuinely sees Unix, or a laterdevelopment of it, as the way forward with multi-user micros for the 1990s. Evidence in support of thisis the recent early validation of a version of Unix forIntel's 80386 chip, which is the successor to the80286 found in the AT and expected to form theheart of the next generation of IBM PC machines.

There are some other pointers which suggest thatthe ugly duckling PC/ RT may yet turn into a swan.There are rumours that the RT's keyboard will findits way on to all IBM PCs. Similarly, there aresuggestions that other elements of the new micro willbe carried across. For example, it is reported that100,000 tape streamers of the kind used in the RThave been ordered, which is far more than could beused in RTs alone.

If the PC/ RT does prove to be a dry run for thenext generation of personal computers, and moreimportantly, if some form of Unix is at the heart ofthose machines, we are likely to see a lot of sparksflying. AT&T may have got off to a slow start, butthere is no doubt that it will persevere until it getsgoing.

AT&T will be helped in this by the rapid growthin the importance of communications, an area inwhich it is the clear leader. IBM knows that time isagainst it and that unless it can colonise large tractsof AT&T's traditional territory soon, the whole bus-iness community will find itself swept into thewaiting arms of AT&T.

So the PC/RT is a machine full of tantalising poss-ibilities. It could certainly prove to be a good dealmore exciting than was suggested by the politelystifled yawns which greeted its unexpectedappearance. Never underestimate IBM - especiallyif you are AT&T.

YEARS AGO...Acorn Computers has landed the job of building thenew BBC microcomputer - and the projected BBCTV series First Byte will use an extended form of AtomBasic in its instructional material.

Acorn describes the new machine, which will retailfor less than £200 and should be ready by the end of1981, as "a condensed version of the forthcomingProton".

Initially, the requirement was for a Z-80 processor,teletext capability and CP/M support, but intensivediscussions throughout the industry showed that itwas not possible to have a machine built in Britainwithin the time limit. The Z-80 requirement wasscrapped but Acorn has been able to meet the otherswithin the time limit. A new BBC Basic to be calledABC was to have been developed but this too wasdropped for lack of time.

PC Volume 4 Issue 5


OLIVETTI, ERICSSONAND EVERYTHING FOR IBM PC/XT, 'AT' AND COMPATIBLES

IBM PC/XT COMPATIBLE SYSTEMSAll MICRONIX PC's are fully IBM Compatible arid offer best value evercompare our specifications arid prices before you buy elsewhere F0.n lino., 8slot motherboard with switch selectable 7 5M1-1, turbo mode improve, systcr.throughput by 40%1 All systems have 640K RAM Full 12 month ON SITEWARRANTY BY NATIONAL ADVANCED SYSTEMS ON ALL MICRONIXSYSTEMS,

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PC1: 8088 CPU 7.5/4.77 MHz (selectable), twin drive, 8 slots, 640KRAM, keyboard, Hi-res type Monographics Card, parallel port,serial port, clock 8- battery and monitor. £999

PC2: As PC1 but one floppy and 20MB/40MB Hard Disk _11,499/£1,999PC3: Same as PC2 but additionally with internal 20MB Streamer. £2,298

PANASONIC PORTABLES - PC/XT COMPATIBLE1) Model JB3 301: Twin floppy, 512K, 12 inch Hi-res flat plasma screen

serial & parallel port, expansion slots, keyboard, DOS 2 5lbs £1,59921 Same as above but single floppy, 20MB hard disc £1,999

IBM "AT" COMPATIBLE SYSTEMIncredible prices! 12 month ON -SITE WARRANTY by NATIONALADVANCED SYSTEMS

AT2: System with 802 8 6 6MHz/8MHz CPU, 640K RAM 6 x 16 bitslots, 2 x 8 bit slots, 1 x 1.2MB floppy, 20MB Hard Disc 1 serial, 1

parallel port, Keyboard, graphics and colour Monitor £1,999

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PC/XT COMPATIBLE: 8088 7.5 4.77 MHz, up to 640K RAM, 8 slots,4 layer PCB with OK /256K /640K £219/249/299

AT COMPATIBLE MOTHERBOARD: 80286 8MHz/6MHz, 640K RAM 6x 16 bit slots, 2 x 8 bit slots, BIOS ROM and diagnostic disk £899

RAM UPGRADE CHIPS AND RAM BOARDS64KRAM 15ONS: Set of 9 chips (64K)/ set of 36 chips (256K) set of

54 chips (384K) £19/£72/£99128K RAM 15ONS: Piggyback for "AT": Set of 9 chips £43

256K RAM 15ONS: Set of 9 chips (256K)/Set of 18 chips (512K) £36/£70512K RAM Board with Clock/Calendar and battery with 512K RAM £169512K RAM Card (short) with 256K/384K/512K RAM ...E105/E129/E149

MONO/COLOUR GRAPHICSColour graphics adaptor 320 x 200 Colour, 640 x 200 mono

£79Hi-res monographic Card (720 x 348), printer port£79

MULTIFUNCTION AND MULTI I/O BOARDSFor PC, XT and Compatibles.

MF-640: Up to 640K RAM, 2 Serial (2nd port optional), 1 Parallel,Clock/Calendar with battery, games port, with OK/256K/384K/512K RAM £129/£159/£179/£199

CT6260: Floppy controller, up to 2 serial ports, parallel ports, clockcalender and batteries £99

For -AT" and Compatibles:MF 3000 up to 3MB RAM!OK RAM £229, 256K £265, 512K £300, IMB £370, 1.5MB £440,2MB f 51 0, 2.5MH £580, 3MB £650

I/O CARDS FOR PC/XT AND "AT"Asynch. Serial Card (short) for PC/XT with 1 or 2 RS232ports £39/£49Parallel Printer Card (short) for PC/XT £29Serial RS232C and Parallel Printer Card (short) for "AT" £89Floppy Drive Controller Card for PC/XT-Controls 2 internal/2 externaldrives with internal cables £49

161micronixcomputers Ltd

OLIVETTI M24/M21 AND SPM24 with 640K RAM, Single Floppy, 20MB Hard Disk, Keyboard

Screenand DOS £1,699As above but with 40MB Hard Disk £2,599

Olivette SP 10MHz CPU, 640K, 20MB Hard Disk £2,399

THE ERICSSON PC - INCREDIBLE VALUEALL ERICSSONgraphics

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HARD DISK/STREAMERSMICRONIX will upgrade your PC XT, AT, OLIVETTI, ERICSSON to20MB HD STREAMER at our premises at no extra charge20MB Hard Disk + Controller + Cables (internal) £45040MB hard disk + Controller + Cables (internal) £99920MB Streamer + Cables + Software (internal or external) £799/£89920MB half height hard disk for "AT" £32520MB Hard Disk a 20MB Cassette Streamer + Controller + Cables

Software - External Subsystem £1,499KEYBOARDS83 key for PC/XT £69

108 key UK KB - PC/ XT, separate cursor pad £99Keyboard for "AT" £139

MONITORSZenith Amber MonitorPHILIPS 12" GreenMITSU BISHI 14" Colour IBM compatible

£125£125£249

POWER SUPPLY155W replacement PSU for PC/ XT, DC Fan £99200W replacement PSU for "AT", DC Fan £175

SYSTEM BOXMetal Case, flip top cover, 8 slots suitable for MICRONIX PC XT Com-patible Motherboard, PSU and Floppy/HD/Streamers £69

Metal Case for "AT" Compatible Motherboard, PSU, Floppy/HD £125

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FUJITSU SP32048 CPS daisy wheel, Centronics £999FUJITSU DPL 24 288CPS/96CPS letter quality £1,299QUEN DATA 20 CPS Daisy Wheel £299CITIZENS 35CPS daisy wheel £599PANASONIC KX-P1592: 136 column, 180 CPS/38 CPS NLQ £399PANASONIC KX-1595: 136 column, 240 CPS/51 CPS NLQ, Dual I/F £649PANASONIC KX-P1080: 80 CPS/20 CPS NLQ - Special Price £175

VISA, ACCESS WELCOMEOrdering Information,Prices are exclusive of Carriage Er VAT. Please add 15% to TotalCost. Carriage: Systems Er Subsystems £20, Drives &Keyboards £8, Boards £5, RAM Chins £1. Monitor/Printer £15.

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circle 144 on enquiry card --

ProjectPlannersI HAVE to admit growingdisappointment with all the U.K.computer rags and PracticalComputing is only a little betterthan the rest of the pack. Yourrecent two -month review ofproject -management systems waspositively trivial! I know you donot have the resources to set upthe same project on all thepackages reviewed but you didnot even attempt a comparisonchart of the features, nor did youmention all the ones reviewed inyour final summary box. Piffle!

I realise you have to aim atend -users - the developer/system house market is not largeenough in the U.K. to justify atechnical magazine -but withproducts like Gem and Windowsyou do very little to help thesoftware writer choose whichenvironment to develop for.Indeed, apart from the individualpreferences opined by reviewersyou seem to do little to encouragethe sort of packages and userinterfaces you believe should beproduced. More co-ordinationover reviews for user-friendlyfeatures could make themagazine a serious force for gooddevelopment techniques.

JUSTIN SMITH,London SW18.

Buy BritishOH DEAR, Mr Cranshaw, you arenot doing your homework. I referto the letter "Open all hours" inthe March Feedback column.There are lots of computer dealersselling highly successful Britishproducts at all hours.Unfortunately, there are an equalnumber of British buyers who areso IBM -orientated that they arenot prepared to look beyond theirown noses.

PBS Computers in Leamingtonis within 15 miles of MrCranshaw. We sell the all -BritishFerranti PC, XT and AT which isthe basis of one of the majorsucces stories in the PC market in1985/86. Our hours are7.30 a.m. to 6.30 p.m. Mondayto Friday and 7.30 a.m. to1.30 p.m. on Saturday. Allcustomers have access to the salesteam through their hometelephones outside these hours.

You are very wrong in yourconclusion. It is not themanufacturers and dealers thatneed to get moving and bepatriotic, it is the average buyer.

NEIL GREEN,PBS Computers,Leamington Spa.

FEEDBAOur Feedback columns offer readers the opportunity of

bringing their computing experience and problems to theattention of others, as well as to seek our advice or to makesuggestions, which we are always happy to receive. Make

sure you use Feedback - it is your chance to keep in touch.Write to

Feedback, Practical Computing,Quadrant House, The Quadrant,

Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS

PASSWORDPROTECTIONAS PART of your March review of Tandata's PA, a set-up screen forPrestel access appeared on page 54. This clearly shows the user'sconfidential identity code. It is a relatively short step from there for awould-be hacker to try an assortment of passwords and thus gainaccess to this account.

Please emphasise to all your staff - and if possible, your readers- that the Prestel ID should be kept secret! I would suggest that theowner of that account be advised of the situation so that they mayconsider asking Prestel for a change of ID.

HOWARD SPURR,(via Telecom Gold).

THE EDITOR ADDS: Point taken. More security lapses occurbecause people have left passwords lying around than as a result ofclever hacking by the intruder. However, in this case the legitimateuser is still protected by the Prestel password, which is not displayed.

More moneyin sellingmainframes?AFTER reading Rod Butterworth'ssensible letter in your Februaryissue on the growing pains of thePC business can I suggest thatthere are plenty of salesmen withthe experience and qualificationshe tightly believes are needed?They are working on mainframesand quietly laughing at more andmore PC salesmen chasing lessand less money and ending upwith 35 percent of sweet FannyAdams.

ADRIAN WILSON,Burton -on -Trent.

UnderratedEdlinI AM sure many will support MikeLewis's comment in the Marchissue that WP packages are toosophisticated for the quick typingjob. But for those who run MS-DOS, what about Edlin?Consider: creating a file couldhardly be easier, saving it onlyneeds "E, and it can be printed

withCOPY < > PRN

What about editing? Since whendid a typist edit a letter. Whatabout typos? Well, I am aware ofmost of my typos as soon as I hitthe wrong key. I am aware of 99percent of the rest before I leavethe line. All these can be easilydealt with. And of the onepercent that remain? If they arereal bloomers, it is not such a bigjob to redo the line.

In my view Edlin is a muchunderrated facility.

W S HARVEY,Glasgow.

MetatextUNFORTUNATELY, in the excellentreview of the Metatext printenhancer in your February issueyou omitted the name of theU.K. distributor for Metatext, towhom all enquires should bedirected. Metatext is distributedby KPG Hardware House, 578Chiswick High Road, London W45RP. Telephone: 01-995 3573.

DAVE BERRIMAN,Campbell Sadler Lohan,

London EC1.

Wang APCWE HAVE been using the WangAPC now for a month and cancertainly agree with yourreviewer's comments in yourMarch issue.

We have been using Autocadsince September and have beenimpressed with it. Your SoftwareShorts mentions its availabilityfor IBM compatibles andApricots. We first used Autocadon a Wang PC and have nowmigrated to the APC with 80287maths co -processor chip and30Mbyte Winchester, using avirtual disc on a Wang VS -100 forbackup purposes.

The 101 -key keyboard is thesame used on Wang's VS line ofminicomputers, OIS line of word-processing equipment and regularPC. Their integrated word-processing application is similarto their other WP packages onthe rest of their systems.

In your article on softwarecopying you mention thatAutocad is not copy protected.True. However, U.K. versionsnow require a hardware -protection device that does putrestrictions on Autocad.

THOMAS GIVENS,Information Processing Center,

American Embassy,London Wl.

GreekalphabetI READ the letter fromS Weatherhead in Ask PC,March, regarding word processingusing the Greek alphabet withinterest.

We can offer another solutionwhich was developed here at BCAfor our own use. It allows theGreek alphabet, line -drawingsymbols and other specialsymbols resident in the DECLN-03 laser printer to be accessedfrom WordStar using standardWordStar control commands. Ittakes the form of a small utilitysoftware package and is suitablefor the IBM PC and the DECRainbow.

BRIAN S CRANK,BCA Industrial Publicity,

Services,Southborough,

Kent.

IN THE March 1986 issue ofPractical Computing,S Weatherhead asked aboutword-processing packages for theIBM PC that allowed the full useof Greek characters as well as thenormal ones. At least some of thepackages you mentioned are

(continued on next page)


FEEDBACK

(continued from previous page)

quite reasonable, but readersmight be interested in the onlyIBM package especially designedto do Greek/English,Russian/English, etc., calledAcademic Font. It is in use inmany universities around theworld, especially in the U.S. It isnow becoming available in theU.K. as I have agreed to helpUniversity Microcomputersdistribute it. It was originallywritten for Unix computers andbundled with AT&T minis. Theword-processing power alone isgood value at the current prices,and its multi-lingual capacitiesare unsurpassed.

Academic Font is primarilyintended for those who need todo textual work in more than onealphabet. It is based on Wordixand Edix - text formatter andeditor respectively - fromEmerging Technology. The baseversion, forEnglish/Romance/Germanicwork, including Wordix andEdix, is £250. The Propack,which also includes a spellingchecker, Spellix, and indexcreator, Indix, is £300. ThePropack Plus also includes Offix,an integrated software packagethat combines filing, wordprocessing, forms design andreport generation. Its wordprocessor is WYSIWYG, but canbe patched to Wordix for moresophisticated formatting andcombining with Edix files. Theprice for this package is £350.

Academic Font really comesinto its own with the moreexpensive versions: £375, £425and £475 for basic version,Propack and Propack Plus. Theyare designed to combine theEnglish alphabet with eitherGreek, Greek and Logic,Russian/Eastern European,International Phonetic Alphabet,Portuguese or Old Scandinavian.It is available for the IBM PC,PC/XT, PC/AT, Compaq,Olivetti and Zenith.

DAVID OWEN,Mansfield College,

Oxford.

DiskeyRE THE letter entitled "Datasecurity add-on" in your Marchissue. We also have a data -security system for the IBM.Called Diskey, it passwordprotects the hard disc of an IBMPC/XT or compatible computerfrom unauthorised access. Thepassword can be up to 15characters long. Upper case, lowercase and control characters areaccepted. On booting the system,you are prompted for the

password which unless enteredcorrectly will necessitate therebooting of the system. Oncethe password is correctly enteredyou can alter the password orelect to have the system bootnormally.

The password is encrypted anddoes not reside in the DOSdirectory of the hard disc.Booting the system from a floppydisc will still not allow you accessto the hard disc. If the passwordis forgotten, then this necessitatesthe hard formatting of the harddisc via the IBM advanceddiagnostics for a chargeable visitby a member of our staff. Diskey1.0 costs £39.50.

MIKE LANGENSIEPEN,Audit Computer Systems,

27 Murray Street,Llanelli,

Dyfed SA15 1AQ.

Hitachibusiness usergroupFOLLOWING the recent promotionof the Hitachi PC in the HighStreet there is now a sizeable userbase of this computer in the U.K.Support from the High Street forfull business machines is non-existent and as far as Hitachi areconcerned this product is adiscontinued line, so there is anobvious need for information forusers.

The Hitachi PC User Grouphas been established for thedistribution of information,assistance, advice and PublicDomain software for all Hitachiusers. The membership includescomputer suppliers, personnelagencies, county councils andmembers of political parties.There is also a commitment fromHitachi Sales (U.K.) themselvesto join this organisation.

There is a bi-monthlynewsletter withsoftware/hardware offers, tips onusing popular packages, such asWordStar, Multiplan, etc., onthe Hitachi and a library of freesoftware for the Hitachi availablefor all members.

We are trying to contact allusers with further information,but if any are reading this andwant more information pleasewrite to the address below. Thisis primarily a user group forHitachi users but if users of other16 -bit 5.25in. disc format MS-DOS machines would like to jointhey would be very welcome.

COLIN MILLER,Hitachi PC User Group,

39 Cranbury Road,Eastleigh,

Hampshire S05 5HB.

NEXT MONTHSPECIAL SECTION

LOCAL AREANETWORKS

More and more people are looking at the possibilityof hooking up their micros with LANs. This is fine intheory, but what about the practice? In our special

section we not only give the background to thelatest developments, but also carry out detailedbench tests on setting up and running different

networks.

HARDWAREFollowing our review of the M-22 in this issue, we

look at the remaining two new members of theOlivetti family, the top -end M-28 AT -alike and the

low-cost M-19. There is also a review of the ultimatein portable computing: a micro and cellular -radio

unit combined.

SOFTWAREBoxes and Arrows is an innovative package with

claims to be a "visual spreadsheet". We will alsobe looking at another product which straddles

several categories: Recall combines features of adatabase with the ability to use free text.

FEATURESThe controversy over VDUs continues; we look at

the issues and the evidence.

TOP 10 SURVEY

BUDGET SYSTEMSPurchasing a business micro no longer means

breaking the bank. We point you towards the bestbuys.

Don't miss the June issue of

"PRACTICALCOMPUTING

On sale at W H Smith and all good newsagents after 14 May

Contents may vary due to circumstances beyond our control and are subject tochange without notice

8 PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

LIVETTI M24640k RAM20Mb NEC HARDDISK UNIT1 x360k FLOPPYDRIVEPRICE -0 750

OLIVETTI M21 BUILT-IN

SCREEN &KEYBOARD

256k RAM 2 x 360k FLOPPY

DRIVESPRICE -0425

PRINTERS STAR SR15

200 CPS+NLO136 COLUMN

SILVER REEDEXP80040 CPSDAISY WHEEL

OLIVETTI M24 256k RAM 10Mb OLIVETTI

HARD DISK UNIT 1 x360k FLOPPY

DRIVE

Buy with confidence from one of Olivetti's largestand longest established Micro distributors.

All of our computer systems are inclusive ofscreen, keyboard, MSDOS, GW Basic & installationmanuals.

A full 12 months "No Quibble" guarantee.

OLIVETTI M24SP 640k RAM 20Mb OLIVETTI

HARD DISK UNIT 1 x360k FLOPPY

DRIVE 7 SLOT BUS

CONVERTOR 10MHz CLOCK

SPEED

This is only an example of our extensive product range

All prices are exclusive of V.A.T. and delivery charges.Government, Education, Local Authorities official orders welcome.Export enquiries welcome.

OLIVETTI M24 256k RAM 2x360k FLOPPY

DRIVES

OLIVETTI M21 BUILT-IN

SCREEN &KEYBOARD

640k RAM 20Mb NEC HARD

DISK UNIT 1 x360k FLOPPY

DRIVE

UPGRADEYOUR MICRO

10Mb HARDDISK UNIT20Mb HARDDISK UNIT(inclusive of fitting)

SOFTWARE DBASE III

PLUS WORDSTAR

2000 MULTIPLAN

PSIONXCHANGE

.Nim, emmrammise SOMME=0 .100.401.11Wires #961:515

Please contact us for details of other configurations. P.A.P. DISTRIBUTIONThe Sion, Crown Glass Place,Nailsea, Bristol, Avon BS19 2EPTelephone (0272) 856502A member of the P.A.P. Group of Companies

circle 145 on enquiry card -

Apricot Collectionstarts where

others finish-

then GEMgives you

more*Apricot F2 - twin disk drives, inclusive 9" mono green phosphor monitor, mouse, Writer 22 matrix printer and GEM software. System illustrated is with 10"colour monitor. Price excludes VAT

to

If you're serious aboutrutting a computer to work in'our business, you won't bepoiled for choice.

In fact, there's only one firmtarting point for seriouslusiness computing. Thepricot Collection and GEM -

cmplete business systemslesigned to get you up andunning from the word go.

With monitor, printer,riouse and friendly GEMoftware all included, the

And there's all the diskstorage you need. The ApricotF2 has two floppy disk driveswhich can store the equivalentof a medium-sized novel. Abuilt-in hard disk drive givesthe Apricot F10 the capacity tostore all the paperwork of amedium-sized company.

The keyboardA professional -standard

keyboard is a must for novices

kpricot Collection gives youverything you need - rightown to the power cable andlug - in one unbeatably pricedackage.

The powerThe Apricot Collection has

11 the power and versatilityou expect from a highDecification businessDmputer. The standard 512Kf memory is enough to coperith the latest integrated officejstems.

and skilled typists alike. That'swhy the Apricot Collectionfeatures all the typewriter keys,a numeric keypad for financialwork, and a built-in clock andcalculator.

And with the Apricotmouse and GEM software,most commands are as easy aspointing.

The monitorYou can choose a 9" or 12"

monochrome monitor, or a 10"colour monitor capable ofdisplaying up to sixteencolours at once - ideal forGEM's high -quality graphics.

The printerWhether you're running off

the month's invoices,producing charts and tables, orturning your rough drafts intohard copy, you'll need a high -quality printer. That's whyApricot Collection computerscome with a versatile printer -capable of handling bothdetailed graphics andcorrespondence qualitylettering.

The softwareEach Apricot Collection

system gives you access toliterally thousands of MS-DOSsoftware packages, includingall the big name packages fromLotus, Ashton Tate, DigitalResearch and many others.

And the inclusive GEMsoftware means you can putyour Apricot to profitable usewithin hours rather than days.Just by pointing an arrow andclicking a button you canexecute the most complextasks.

GEM puts the power of theApricot Collection to workfrom the word go.

GEM Write word processorlets you draft, edit and print outdocuments. While GEM Paintproduces drawings, graphs anddiagrams to order.

And you can combine thetwo for visually impressivepresentations.

GEM systems software isincluded in the entire range,making all Apricot computersequally easy to work with. Andall GEM packages work thesame way - learn one and youhave learned them all.

,

Dmrs, am mot

E001300 01E1

That goes for GEM Drawand GEM Graph too, andmany other GEM -basedapplications are becomingavailable.

To find out more fill in thecoupon or call us on FreefoneApricot (via the operator) andwe'll send you a free brochure.

It could be the start ofsomething big.

Apricot Collection and GEM- acomplete package for the first time

business userrPlease send me a free information love..pack on the Apricot Collection. ToApricot UK Limited, FREEPOST,HalesowenWest Midlands, B63 1BR.

NamePositionCompanyAddress

Tel

apricotGEM/1.7

9*

-0- circle 146 on enquiry card

c7Ind

1.1

N W SApricotupgradesXenIN A BID to make inroads into themini and mainframe markets,Apricot has introduced a multi-user version of the Xen 80286 -based microcomputer.

Known as the Xen Mainframe,the new system is claimed to beup to four times faster than thecurrent Apricot Network system,and yet to be compatible with thefull Apricot and IBM range. TheMainframe incorporates 2Mbyte ofRAM, a 720K disc drive, a

20Mbyte tape cartridge back-upunit and a modem. A hard disc isalso fitted as standard: you havethe choice of 20Mbyte, 50Mbyteor 100Mbyte versions. Prices rangefrom £4,999 to £7,999. XenMainframe is able to run undereither Xenix or MS-DOS 3.2.

Further details from ApricotComputers, Apricot House, 17

Westbourne Road, Edgbaston,Birmingham B15 3TR. Telephone:021-454 9091.

Burroughsmulti-userBURROUGHS MACHINES has in-troduced another model into itsrange of B-20 systems. The B-28desk -top computer is intended as amaster station in a multi-usersystem.

Based around the Intel 80286prOcessor, the base version of theB-28 comes with 1Mbyte of RAMand costs f 3,100. For an extra £650the computer comes fitted with a80287 maths co -processor.

Contact Burroughs MachinesLtd, Heathrow House, Bath Road,Hounslow, Middlesex TW5 9QL.Telephone: 01-750 1291.

QuattromodemA NEW universal V-22bis modernhas been announced by DNComputer Services. The Quattrocan be configured to the V-21,V-22 and V-23 protocols as well asoffering auto log -on, autodial andsynchronous/asynchronous trans-mission.

The Quattro is BABT approvedand priced at f795. More detailsfrom DN Computer Services,Truedata House, Green Lane,Heywood, Manchester OLIO 2DY.Telephone: (0706) 67567.

HARDWARE

THREE FROMOLIVETTI

OLIVETTI has announced the launchof three machines to add to itsrange of IBM-compatiblecomputers. The new models arethe M-19 IBM PC compatiblemachine, the M-22 portable, andthe M-28 PC/AT-compatibledesk -top computer.

Weighing around 8kg., theportable M-22 is about the size of abriefcase. Folding back the screenreveals the full-size keyboard, andstorage is provided by a single5.25in. floppy -disc drive on theside. The display is provided by aback -lit LCD screen, which is

much easier to read than con-ventional LCD displays.

The M-22 is fitted with two80088 CMOS processors, thesecond processor being dedicatedto screen handling and manip-ulation of the Personal Windowssoftware provided with themachine. Olivetti sees thismachine as being aimed at thecorporate market - salesmen andtravelling executives, in particular.The M-22 is previewed by GlynMoody on page 52 of this issue.

Based around the 80286processor, the M-28 is equipped

with 512K of RAM, expandable to7Mbyte if additional boards arefitted. In common with manu-facturers such as Compaq, Olivettihas chosen a clock speed of 8MHzfor its AT -compatible. This gives ita 30 percent edge over the IBMPC/AT, which runs at 6MHz. Massstorage is provided by a single1.2Mbyte floppy disc and a20Mbyte hard disc.

The M-19 is based around the8088 CPU and is fitted with 256Kof RAM and one or two 5.25in.floppy discs as standard. Alsoprovided are Centronics andRS -232C ports, with two extra slotsprovided for additional expansion.Olivetti is aiming the M-19 at theeducational and small-businessmarkets, and also at the corporatemarket where relatively lowly com-puters are increasingly being usedas work stations within a network.

No prices have yet been an-nounced for any of the newmodels. They are expected go onsale between now and the autumn.Contact British Olivetti Ltd, POBox 89, 86/88 Upper RichmondRoad, London SW15 2UR. Tele-phone: 01-785 6666.

The M-19 IBM PC compatible.

isof

The OliNctti M-22 portable.

The M-28 PC / AT -compatible.

Amstrad adds RAMand second discAN UPGRADED version of thePCW-8256 machine has beenintroduced. Called the PCW-8512it has an additional 256K of RAMand an extra disc drive. The newdrive is double sided, and readsand writes at double density,providing a formatted capacity of720K. Amstrad claims completecompatibility with existing PCWsoftware.

A 512K version of the PCW hasbeen on the cards ever since thefirst versions of the machineappeared with an empty row ofRAM sockets. Similarly, Amstrad

has promised a dual -drive versionof the machine to solve theproblems of having to swap discs.

The PCW-8512 is priced at£499, just £100 more than thePCW-8256. Although Amstraddenies that the new model is areplacement, the pricing raisesquestions as to how long thePCW-8256 is likely to remain inproduction.

Further details from AmstradConsumer Electronics, BrentwoodHouse,' 169 King's Road,Brentwood, Essex CM14 4EF.Telephone: (0277) 228888.

OPD getstelexinterfaceTHE ICL One Per Desk (OPD) cannow be used as a telex terminalthanks to Telexbox 3 telex inter-face from Data Control and Equip-ment. The Telexbox 3 can be usedwith a modem. Alternatively it canbe fitted directly to the printerport, where one OPD terminal canbe used as a telex supervisor for theother members of the cluster.

ICL has been so impressed bythe performance of the Telexbox 3that it is now recommending it toexisting users as a standard fortelex communications for theOPD. DCE says that the Telexbox3 should also be fully compatiblewith the British Telecom version ofthe OPD, the Tonto, though it isas yet untried with the BTmachine.

The Telexbox 3 costs £1,450.Further details from Data ControlEquipment, DCE House,Bessemer Crescent, Ralbans Lane,Aylesbury, BuckinghamshireHP19 3TM. Telephone: (0296)32971.


N W S

Newprinterfrom StarSTAR MICRON1CS is to replace itsSG -10 and SG -10C printers with anew unit called the NB -15. Thisnine -pin dot-matrix printer is cap-able of 120cps in draft mode and30cps at near letter quality.

Costing £278 for the parallel -interface version, or £318 with aserial interface, the NB -15 willhave a number of cartridges avail-able to enable it to interface toIBM, Apple and Commodorecomputers, as well as the usualCentronics and RS -232 ports.Further cartridges will becomeavailable to enable users to alterthe founts available.

For more information contactStar Micronics, Craven House, 40Uxbridge Road, London W5 2BS.Telephone: 01-840 1800.

EpsonLQ-1000EPSON has now set the price of itsletter quality dot-matrix printer,the LQ-1000, at £795. The printeris the 136 -column version of theLQ-800 launched late last year.

The LQ-1000 is fitted with anewly designed 24 -pin print headwhich enables it to print letter -quality characters and graphics. Indraft mode the printer is capableof 180cps, while in letter -qualitymode it runs at 60cps.

Another innovation on theLQ-1000 is a new cartridge whichprovides a wide range of founts,including one for use with opticalcharacter readers. Epson claimsthat the cartridge is compatiblewith most common desk -topmicros.

For details contact Epson U.K.Ltd, Dorland House, 388 HighRoad, Wembley, Middlesex HA96UH. Telephone: 01-902 8892.

HARDWARE

ATARI ADDST ST RANGETWO NEW versions of the Atari520ST were launched at the AtariUser Show held in March inLondon. The two new machines,the 520STM and the 1040STFrepresent an attempt to span awider market, than that currentlycovered by the standard 520ST.

The upmarket model, the1040STF, is fitted with 1Mbyte ofRAM and contains an integral720K disc drive. It is available intwo versions: with monochromemonitor priced at £799, or for £999with a colour monitor.

The 520STM is a cut -downversion of the standard 520ST.Retailing at £399, the computer issold without a monitor and is

instead fitted with a UHF mod-ulator to allow the computer to beconnected to a standard TV set.The price of the 520STM does notinclude a disc drive either, eventhough the ST machines do nothave a cassette port. A disc drive istherefore essential to enable you toload any software. Buying one sep-arately will cost you £150.

Also available for the ST range isa CP/ M emulator which willenable the computer to run CP/ Msoftware, although it will first haveto be transferred to the Atari's3.5in. disc format. Atari has alsopromised that the first deliveries ofthe long-awaited hard -disc drivewill begin in May.

Xtech's Insider jobTHE LATEST in the current rash ofhard -disc upgrades for the IBM PCis the Insider from Xtech. Likemany recent hard discs, this devicehas a capacity of 20Mbyte and canbe installed by the user.

The Insider fits into one of thecomputer's free slots and takesits power directly from thehost computer's power -supply

unit. Xtech claims that thisarrangement, combined with a

special aluminium chassis, willensure reliability. The Insider ispriced at £875.

Further details from Xtech,Court Farm Estate, Green Nor-ton Road, Towcester, North-amptonshire NN12 8AN. Tele-phone: (0327) 53399.

Thorn EMI goes for data commsTHORN -EMI DATAPHONE has enteredthe field of cellular radio datacommunications with the intro-duction of the Mobile Officesystem. The concept of the systemis to combine the features of lap-top word processors like theLiberator with the integratedcommunications facilities of ICL'sOne Per Desk.

The Mobile Office has beenlaunched with two separate packa-

ges. The Textiite PX-1000 is a

pocket -sized text processor with afold -up single -line LCD screen andtypewriter keyboard. Once the texthas been completed it can bestored on a cassette machine orprinted on a 40 -column thermalprinter supplied with the machine.

The other package in the MobileOffice range is the PM Magnum.Manufactured in Australia byPortable Micros, the Magnum is a

personal computer which Thorn -EMI claims is fully IBM com-patible. The computer is fittedwith a fold -up LCD screen and afull-sized typewriter keyboard. Ithas no integral disc drive; MS-DOSand applications software are heldon cartridge.

Contact Thorn EMI Dataphone,Apex House, Twickenham Road,Feltham, Middlesex T\XT13 6JQ.Telephone: 01-894 5644.

HARDWARESHORTSAjwad has released a twin -drive IBM compatible. Pricesstart from £890. Details01-788 1982.Victor has upgraded itsVPC II PC compatible byreplacing the 8088 with an8086 processor andincreasing the memory to640K. It costs £899. Ring(0494) 450661.The NL-10 is a budget -priced printer from DatastarSystems. The NL-10 hascartridge interfaces to make itcompatible with all makes ofmicrocomputer. It is priced at£239, excluding the interface.Details on 01-482 1711. Image Buffer is a plug-inboard which allows the AppleImagewriter II to buffer up to40 pages of text. Details fromP&P on (0706) 217744.The Keytronic 3270/PCkeyboard is designed for usewith the company's Micro -to -Mainframe packages. It isplug compatible with the fullIBM micro range. Details on(0420) 87500.The Facit D-2000 is an autobi-directional daisywheelprinter capable of operatingat a speed of 24cps. TheD-2000 is priced at £550.Details on (0634) 402080.Tallgrass now offers backupsystems for the IBM PC rangeand Olivetti M-24 users.. TheTG -20251 fits into a full -heightslot on the PC and contains a25Mbyte hard disc and20Mbyte tape storage unit. Asimilar unit, called theTG -14251 is available for theOlivetti M-24. Details on(0256) 460666. Rapid Terminals suppliesthe GLM-510, a stand-alonemultiplexer for use with LANsfitted to micros or GandalfPACX systems. For detailscontact (0494) 450111.Tandy has cut the price ofthe IBM-compatible 1000.Prices now range from £695to £1,995. Details availableon (0922) 648181. Pentagon Computers hasdeveloped a four -slotextender card for the EpsonPC. Contact (0753) 32723. A telex facility has beenintroduced by Dataline Systemsfor use with IBM PCs. Details(04427) 74006. Gizmo from ICCT is adevice which allows thePC/AT to access 2Mbyte ofmemory. For details phone01-248 8895.


N W S

Superkey:the secretis out

BORLAND SUPERKEY has officiallyarrived in the U.K. at last. The£69.95 IBM utility combines twomain functions: it lets you set upkeyboard macros and it allows youto encrypt data files. According toSuperkey's U.K. distributor,Altor, it is the latter functionwhich has caused the hold-up.Apparently the U.S. governmenttook some time deciding whetherinhabitants of the U.K. could be,entrusted with a full DataEncryption Standard productbefore issuing an export licence.

Superkey runs on the IBM PC,PC/ XT, PC/ AT and compatibles.It is a RAM -resident utility, soyou can use it alongside otherapplications. For instance, youcould set up Lotus commands assingle keystrokes or create aglossary of terms for use in yournormal WP. Superkey also offersother security features, such asquick keyboard locking and screenblanking.

For further details contact AltorComputers, 11A AnderstonCentre, Glasgow G2 7PH.Telephone: 041-226 4211.

SOFTWARE

Q&A TAKES COMMANDTHE NATURAL WAYPRODUCTS claiming to respond tonatural English -like commands areusually a disappointment butQ&A looks like being the first realexception.

Q&A is a database and word-processing package aimed atpeople who need to manage acollection of records, make on-linequeries and produce reports. Itcosts £250 and runs on IBM PCsand compatibles with at least 512Kof memory.

You can use Q&A in a con-ventional way, controlling every-thing through a set of menus; itsmenu structure is said to be similarto that of the PFS and IBM

Assistant series. The distinctivefeature of the package is itsnatural -language interface, calledIntelligent Assistant.

Intelligent Assistant does notrestrict you to a formal and preciseset of commands. Instead you cantrain Q&A to recognise the termswhich make most sense to you.You can type in ad hoc commandslike "Find me all the companiesthat make dustbin lids and listthem by area." Q&A comes with abuilt-in vocabulary of 450 wordsand you can teach it other words asyou go along.

Q&A has been on sale in theU.S. since September 1985, but is

only becoming available in theU.K. now. It has attracted favour-able comment in the U.S. press,not only because the 'natural -language interface appears towork, but also because the WP anddatabase applications are in them-selves quite powerful.

Other useful features of thepackage are the ability to importdata from Lotus 1-2-3 and dBaseIII, and its easy installation - it isnot copy protected.

Details from Paradigm,Southampton House, 192-206York Road, London SW11 3SA.Telephone: 01-228 5008 or (0800)289 202.

LaserprintingimprovedPRINTWORKS for Lasers is designedto help you get the most from yourexisting software when using alaser printer. Running on the IBMPC, the £67.15 utility is memory -resident, so you can use it at thesame time as an application pro-gram such as Lotus 1-2-3 orWordStar.

It lets you select type size,weight, pitch and spacing, andchoose between founts. It will alsoprint graphics, and lets you mergetext with graphics.

Printworks for Lasers works withthe Hewlett-Packard Laserjet andCanon LBP printers, and othercompatible laser printers.

Applications do not have to bespecially configured for use with alaser printer; Printworks can workwith anything designed for con-ventional matrix printers like theEpson MX -80 or IBM Graphicsprinters.

For further details contact FirstSoftware, Intec 1, Basingstoke,Hampshire RG23 ONE. Tele-phone: (0256) 463344.

Faster Multiplan isLotus compatibleMICROSOFT has released a newversion of Multiplan which canread Lotus 1-2-3 files and copewith larger worksheets. It costs£245 and will run on mostIBM-compatible and MS-DOSmachines. Multiplan 2.0 is goingon sale at once. Existing Multiplanusers will be able to upgrade for£50.

Multiplan came on the marketover three years ago, and rapidlyestablished itself as one of theclassic business -spreadsheetpackages. The new version is

designed to keep it competitivewith more modern products.Among the new features arekeyboard macros, improved con-solidation of data between work-sheets and the ability to use the

package with an optional mouse ormaths co -processor chip.

Multiplan still lacks built-ingraphics, but you can now transfera worksheet directly to Chart,Microsoft's business -graphicspackage. You can set up a linkbetween the two applications sothat your charts change auto-matically when you alter data inthe spreadsheet.

Multiplan can now read andwrite complete Lotus 1-2-3models, including values andformulae, according to Microsoft.It will also work with Sylk formatpackages such as Microsoft Projectand Word.

Microsoft is continuing withplans to release its high-per-formance Macintosh spreadsheet,

MICROuylaveoft MAIO in

Excel, for the IBM PC. Excel willbe targeted upmarket at heavyusers of spreadsheets, withMultiplan positioned below it as acheaper product aimed at thegeneral business user. Multiplan isthe less memory -hungry product;it only requires 128K to run andone double -sided disc drive. It willalso run on a broader range ofmachines.

For further information contactMicrosoft Ltd, Excel House, 49 DeMontfort Road, Reading, Berk-shire RG1 8LP. Telephone: (0734)500741.

Hard -disc securityCLAM is designed to make personalcomputers, especially hard -discsystems, more secure. The £98software utility for the IBM PC,PC/ XT and PC/AT and com-patibles replaces the usual MS-DOS prompts with a set of menus.Users log on with a password andcan then see the menu options forthe tasks and applications forwhich they have authority.

Security is a problem with hard -disc systems because they can storea great deal of information but thehard disc is more difficult toremove physically and lock awaythan floppy discs.

Once Clam is installed you can

only use the system by goingthrough the Clam menus. Userswho are authorised to use DOS canstill be locked out of particularsub -directories on the hard disc byClam.

Clam discs are not copy pro-tected, but have an individualserial number on them whichforms part of the securitymechanism. A networked versionof Clam is promised for later in theyear.

More details from MicroftTechnology Ltd, The OldPowerhouse, Kew GardensStation, Kew, Surrey TW9 3PS.Telephone: 01-948 8255.

Moneywiseis backONE well -regarded program laidlow by financial trouble is back onthe market. Called Moneywise, itis more orientated to modellingand producing printed reportsthan a conventional spreadsheet.

Moneywise will be marketedand distributed by a newcompany, Moneywise Ltd. Thepackage costs £395 and it is

available for the IBM PC, PC/XTand compatibles, and MS-DOSmachines such as the Apricot.

Contact Moneywise Ltd, 699London Road, North Cheam,Surrey SM3 9DL. Telephone:01-337 0663.


N W S

Foreign -languageWPVUWRITER Language Master helpsyou to write letters or producedocumentation in foreign lan-guages. It is a specialised word-processing package designed tohandle the unusual character setsfound in many foreign languages.

Language Master support allthe major European languages,including Greek and those whichuse the Cyrillic alphabet. It doesnot handle languages which arewritten from right to left. Runningon the IBM PC or compatibles, itcomes in two versions, dependingon the sort of printer you intend touse. Language Master for matrixprinters costs £295, while the laser -printer version costs £595.

Details from Vuman ComputerSystems Ltd, Enterprise House,Manchester Science Park, LloydStreet North, Manchester ME144EN. Telephone: 061-226 8311.

Paradoxfreed fromcopyprotectionANSA SOFTWARE has joined thegrowing number of companiesremoving copy protection fromtheir products. The new 1.1version of Paradox, the powerfuldatabase -management packagereviewed in this and last month'sissues is no longer copy protected.This will allow you to installParadox more easily on hard -discsystems, and let you take backupcopies of the program.

Paradox also comes with aseparate run-time system. This is acut -down version of the fullParadox system which lets you runapplications written in Paradox,but not create or alter them. Run-time is aimed at encouraging thegrowth of a dBase III style marketin third -party applications writtenin Paradox.

The price is £550. Existing userscan upgrade to the new version atno extra charge.

Contact P&P Micro DistributorsLtd, 1 Gleneagle Road, LondonSW16 6AY. Telephone: 01-6777631. Softsel Computer ProductsLtd, Softsel House, Syon GateWay, Great West Road, Brent -ford, Middlesex TW8 9DD. Tele-phone: 01-568 8866.

SOFTWARE

Colour printoutsof Mac graphicsTWO PACKAGES are now available tolet you get coloured pictures out ofa Macintosh equipped with anImagewriter II printer. Both workwith existing software.

Macpalette works with pro-grams that use object -orientatedgraphics, such as Macdraw, Jazz,Excel and Macproject. You assigncolours or coloured patterns toreplace the original monochromelines, text or patterns.

Colormate also works withMacpaint format images - in factanything you can transfer to theclipboard. With a Macpaint imageyou set up filters to select

particular grey tones within thepicture, which you can thenreplace with any selected colourpattern.

Macpalette costs £49 and isavailable from P&P. Colormatecosts £41.40 from First Software.You can also get Colormate Art, alibrary of over 100 pre -colouredimages for use with Colormate, for£41.85.

Contact P&P Micro DistributorsLtd, 1 Gleneagle Road LondonSW16 6AY. Telephone: 01-6777631. First Software, Intec 1,

Basingstoke, Hampshire RG23ONE. Telephone: (0256) 463344.

Improved MultimateASHTON-TATE, which now ownsMultimate, has released a newversion of the MultimateAdvantage word processor.

Multimate Advantage 3.60 has a40,000 -word thesaurus and canread and write documents in IBM'sDCA format. It can handle news-paper -style columns where textflows from the bottom of onecolumn to the top of the next.In addition to its existing110,000 -word built-in anglicised

spelling checker, Advantage hastwo specialised dictionaries ofmedical and legal terms.

Ashton-Tate acquired Multi -mate at the end of 1985. The newrelease confirms Ashton-Tate'sstatements that it will continue todevelop the Multimate productline.

Contact Ashton-Tate (U.K.)Ltd, 1 Bath Road, Maidenhead,Berkshire SL6 4UH. Telephone:(0628) 33123.

SOFTWARESHORTS

Microsoft Word is availablein a networked version forthe Apricot Xen. It is bundledwith email and other softwarein an office automationpackage which costs £1,499for five users. Details on(0734) 500741.Scratchpad Plus is aspreadsheet for the AmstradPCW-8256 and CPC -6128machines. Claimedadvantages are largeworksheet size and multiplewindows. Price is £69.99including VAT. ContactCaxton Software Ltd on01-379 6502. PC Paint Plus is the newversion of the popular PCPaint drawing package forthe IBM PC and compatibles.You can use it to enhancegraphs or data taken frompopular application packagessuch as Lotus 1-2-3, dBase orWordStar. PC Paint costs£99; with a mouse and extrasoftware it costs £186.Contact Data DesignTechniques Ltd on (0291)423781.Apricot Computers isbundling Gem across itsrange of computer systems.So all Apricot machines willhave Digital Research's Mac -like front end to MS-DOS,and will be able to runapplications writtenspecifically for Gem. Apricotis also bundling Microsoft'srival product Windows on itstop -end multi-user Xensystem. Details on 021-4549091.Ashton-Tate has announcedrecord financial results. Thecompany which boasts dBaseIII, Framework and Multimatein its product portfolio,reported revenues of $121.6million for the year ended 31January 1986.

AutopollAUTOPOLL lets you automaticallytransfer files down the phonesystem between two or morecomputers at a predeterminedtime. You need an autodialmodem on at least one system andauto -answer on the others.

The Autopoll software costs£250 for a set of discs for threesystems. Details from Format PCLtd, Goods Wharf, Goods Road,Belper, Derbyshire DE5 1UU.Telephone: (0773) 820011.

SpeedyMicrocacheMICROCACHE speeds up the IBM PCand XT as well as MS-DOSmachines such as the Apricot, byproviding automatic disc cacheing,print spooling and a RAM disc.The latest version allows you to useup to 4Mbyte of RAM on an IBMPC. Microcache costs £195.

Contact Microcosm ResearchLtd, 26 Danbury Street, LondonNi 8JU. Tel: 01-226 9092. IC


NEWSApple inthe HighStreetAPPLE COMPUTER has staked a placein the High Street with theopening of the first two AppleCentres in Knightsbridge andSwiss Cottage in London. Thesetwo centres are intended to be thefirst of 50 which Apple intends toopen throughout the country overthe next two years.

Jointly owned by Apple and itsdealers, the Apple Centres willprovide training and consultancyfor customers. Naturally they willalso supply Apple products. Appleclaims that the centres will providea 24 -hour customer -support ser-vice and hold a supply ofcommonly needed spare parts.

Atari Showat NovotelTHE FIRST Atari User Show, washeld at the Novotel Hotel inLondon on 7 to 9 March. SamTramiel, the President of Atari andson of Chairman Jack, was presentto launch two new machines in theST range, the 1Mbyte 1040STFand the 5 2 OSTM budgetcomputer. Full details of thesemachines are reported on page 13of this issue.

Tramiel also revealed that thecompany became profitable in1985 and that it requires nofurther loans from the banks. Atariwas firmly established in the U.S.,Canada, U.K., France, Germanyand the Benelux countries, he said.Following changes in the exchangerate Atari is now planning to makean assault on the Japanese market.

Turning to the future heannounced emulator packages forthe ST range which will enablethese machines to run CP / M andIBM software.

Atari demonstrated a prototypemodel of the IBM emulator at theshow. The concept is similar to thatof the Mac Charlie package for theMacintosh. An 8088 processor, theBIOS ROM and 512K of RAM arehoused in a separate box thatconnects to the ST.

Tramiel then revealed anothersurprise. Atari has noted thesuccess of the Amstrad PCW-8256and is planning to launch a similarall -in system this summer. Finally,the assembled company was toldthat Atari is working on a Unixmachine to provide an upgradepath from the STs.

IRS CHOOSESZENITH Z-171ZENITH DATA SYSTEMS, themanufacturer of IBM PC com-patibles, has landed two valuableU.S. government contracts. Thefirst is an order to supply portablemicros to the U.S. InternalRevenue Service. The contract tosupply 15,000 briefcase sizedZ -171s is worth an estimated $30million. The order was won in theface of fierce competition fromIBM, which was widely rumouredto have brought forward pro-duction of its own lap portable inorder to win the contract.

The Z-171 has an 80 -by -25back -lit LCD screen and a full-size

fold -down typewriter keyboard.The model sold to the IRS willhave twin 5.25in. disc drives and isfully IBM compatible. A built-inmodem will enable the auditors tocommunicate directly with IRScentral computers.

A separate contract to supplyPC/ AT compatibles to the U.S.Department of Defense is claimedby Zenith to be the biggest everawarded by the U.S. government.Zenith is expecting to supplyaround 90,000 of the computers,known as the Z-200, over the nextthree years. The estimated value ofthe contract is $240 million.

The Z-200 PC/AT compatible won Zenith a $240 million contract.

Data ProtectionRegister availableANYONE who wants to discover whohas got data hidden away on acomputer about them can nowexamine the Data ProtectionRegister. At present the register isonly available at the Office of theData Protection Registrar inWilmslow, Cheshire. Theintention is that eventually theregister will be available at all mainpublic libraries.

The Data Protection Registrarhas reported that of the 150,000registration packs that have been

distributed, only 10,000 have sofar been returned. As the finaldate for registration is 11 May, itlooks as though a large number ofusers will be in breach of the law.Anne Staines discusses this andrelated matters on page 85 of thisissue.

For further information contactthe Office of the Data ProtectionRegistrar, Springfield House,Water Lane, Wilmslow, CheshireSK9 5AX. Telephone: (0625)535777.

SHORTS

Buyers of the HayesSmartmodem 1200 orSmartcom II software cannow obtain a free TelecomGold mailbox. The modemscan only be obtained fromauthorised Hayes dealers.Details on 01-847 4471. The British StandardsInstitution has issued threenew documents outlining thestandards for OSI/LAN.Aimed at developers theDrafts for Development areDD99 part 2, and DD136parts 1 and 2. Phone 01-6299000. A+ G Computerware hasintroduced 8088- and 8086 -compatible chips which thecompany claims will increaseprocessing speed by 70percent on clock speeds of5MHz or less. For detailscontact 061-428 2014. The Department of Tradeand Industry has earmarkeda million pounds with the aimof providing every secondaryand middle school in thecountry with a modem. Themodels endorsed by thescheme are the Tandata 512and the Dacom DSL-2123AD. Hermann Hauser, adirector of Acorn Computersand a major shareholderprior to the company'stakeover by Olivetti last year,has been made director ofAdvanced Research andDevelopment in the Olivettigroup. The British TechnologyGroup has a low-cost speech -recognition module availablefor OEM evaluation. Fordetails phone 01-403 6666.

No more inky fingers?A NEW DEVICE from U.S.-basedcompany Fingermatrix Inc. is

claimed to abolish the time-honoured practice of taking finger-prints with ink and rollers. The ZCard can scan fingerprints and re-produce a perfect copy of the printwithin seconds, eliminating bothinky fingers and the possibility ofsmudged or distorted prints.

Fingermatrix produces a securitydevice based around the sametechnology. The Ridge Readerscans a person's fingerprint andcompares it with a file held inmemory. Thus the device can beused to restrict access to sensitiveareas by restricting entry to autho-rised personnel, identified by theirfingerprints.

Mac usersgang upUSERS of the Apple Macintosh arenow able to join the independentMac User Group. For an annualsubscription of £25 the grouphopes to be able to offer a regularnewsletter, public -domain soft-ware and discounts on hardwareand software. The group alsohopes to be able to cater for specialinterests, such as home use,business and education.

As an added incentive, the first500 members will receive a freedisc of public -domain software.Further details from the Mac UserGroup U.K., 55 Linkside Avenue,Oxford OX2 8JE. Telephone:(0865) 58027. am


NEXT DAY DISPATCH

comma EPSON416.MMED 01 dMilm4 f=0- t=1. 111111=- =NOM .,ImM/m/p NM

1Mlb MI=.1.MM MIMI1 MEM

ON MM. WM=la MP aI1 an a. OD a.61M. =MINIM, M. GMN 4. OM

IBM PC MOdel 64kb 1 x 360kb D/Drive £890.00IBM PC XT 256kb 2 x 360kb D/Drive £1197.00IBM PC XT 256kb 1 x 360kb D/Drive +

10Mb H/Disk £184400IBM AT Base 256kb 1 x 1.2Mb D/Drive

+ Keyboard £2069.00IBM ATE 512kb 1 x 1.2Mb D/Drive

+20Mb H/Disk & Keyboard £2583.00

COMPAaPORTABLES

Compaq Portable 2 x 360k Disks,256k RAM

Compaq Plus 360k & 10Mb Disks,256k RAM

£136400

£2156.00

286 PORTABLESCompaq 286 Model 11.2Mb Disk,

256k RAM £244400Compaq 286 Model 21.2Mb & 20Mb

Disks, 640k RAM £3452.00

DESKTOPSDeskpro Model 1360k Disk, 128k RAM £1364.00

Olivetti -Olivetti M24 128k 1 x 360k D/DriveOlivetti M24 128k 2 x 360k D/DriveOlivetti M24 128k 1 x 360k D/Drive

+ 10Mb H/Disk

£925.00£1169.00

Lotus °liven'

IBM Colour DisplayIBM Mono Display GreenIBM EGA Colour DisplayIBM EG Colour CardIBM Mono Display/Printer AdapterIBM Keyboard UK

Deskpro Model 2 2 x 360k Disks,256k RAM

Deskpro Model 3 360k & 10Mb Disks,256k RAM

Deskpro Model 4 360k & 10Mb Disks,Tape Drive, 640k

Deskpro Model 5 360k & 30Mb Disks,Tape Drive, 640k

286 DESKTOPSDeskpro 286 Model 21.2Mb & 30Mb

Disks, 512k RAMDeskpro 286 Model 4 1.2Mb & 70Mb,

Disks, 640k RAM

£325.00£13400£530.00£347.00£122.00£12400

£1436.00

£2156.00

£2876.00

£4097.00

£3560.00

£5755.00

Olivetti M21 + 10Mb H/Disk £2015.00Olivetti M24SP 640k + 360k D/Drive

+ 20Mb H/Disk £2177.00£1729.00 Olivetti M24 640k + 20Mb Tape £2156.00

Olivetti prices do not Include screen or keyboard

Printers, Multifunction Cards & Software available.Please ring for an immediate response.

Additional discount available for bulk orders.

Prices exclude VAT & Delivery. All goods subject to availability.ALL MAJOR CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED

0923 47405 - circle 147 on enquiry card

Unit 8, Woodshots Meadow, Croxley Centre, Watford, WD1 8YU17

AT OLIVETTI WE HAVE NEVER DONE THINGS BY HALVES. REDUCE WEAR AND TEAR. NOW OUR PRINTERS WILL BE WITH

NOT CONTENT WITH TESTING OUR PRINTERS FOR A YOU EVEN LONGER.

MERE WEEK OR MONTH, WE HAVE ALWAYS OPTED FOR SIX AND WE HAVE SPENT MILLIONS OF POUNDS IMPROVING

MONTHS. NON-STOP. EVERY OTHER ASPECT OF THEIR DESIGN, UNTIL NOW WE

GOOD ENOUGH, YOU MIGHT THINK. BUT WE THOUGHT HAVE THE FASTEST, QUIETEST AND MOST COMPACT RANGE

THAT OUR NEW RANGE OF PRINTERS COULD DO EVEN BETTER. OF PRINTERS MONEY CAN BUY.

SO WE CUT DOWN THE NUMBER OF MOVING PARTS TO PRINTERS IN EVERY PRINT TECHNOLOGY TO SUIT EVERY

AFTER SIX MONTHSNON-STOP WE DECIDED

OUR PRINTERSWERE RELIABLE ENOUGH.

SORT OF CUSTOMER AND EVERY SORT OF COMPUTER.

SO WELL THOUGHT OUT THAT YOU CAN CHANGE A

RIBBON CARTRIDGE IN SECONDS,WITHOUT AN INKY FINGER

IN SIGHT. - circle 148 on enquiry card -

IN FACT, THE ONLY THING WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO

SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE UPON IS OUR PRINTERS' RELIABILITY.

WE DON'T THINK WE CAN DO THAT.

TO:IPLEASE SUPPLY ME WITH MORE INFORMATION ON YOUR NEW RANGE OF PRINTERS.P.T.PT. ATKINS, BRITISH OLIVETTI LIMITED, 118 HIGH STREET, LONDON COLNEY, ST. ALBANS, HERTS,

AL2 1QL. TELEPHONE: (0727) 65721.

NAME

POSITION COMPANY

ADDRESS

r

L

cirlTmAri (7 i\-\\peripherOs

ORLD IDE PRICE LISWorldwide Computers Ltd are authorised dealers for the leading computers and software at prices that are guaranteedto be the best in the country. We supply everyone from leading UK companies, government departments and localauthorities to the small business and the private individual - anywhere in the world.

OLIVETTI. ,_.E. -.Z. ==

_ 7. -

Authortsr q i

De

PERSONALCOMPUTER ALSO

AVAILABLE- EPSON APRICOTPealerrsonalComputers 111111111

LONDON BRIGHTON SCOTLANDSpaWimbledonTelex:

01

House, 1 1-1 7 Worple Road.SW19 4JS

895 5888 WOWICO 20

543 2211LINES

Regent House, 2,3,4 North Road.Brighton,Sussex BN1 1YA 5 LINES

0273 609331

14 MaritimeEdinburgh

031

Street, Leith,EH6 6SB

5 LINES

554 4361IBMIBM PC Model 64 1X360K D/D .. £899.00 IBM Mono Display Green £153.00IBM PC -XT 256K 2x360K D/D £1149.00 IBM EGA Colour Display £608.00IBM PC -XT 256K 1 x360K D/D+10MB H/Disk. £1999.00 IBM Mono Display/Printer Adapter £149.00IBM ATE Base 256K 1x 1.2MB D/D £2149.00 IBM UK Keyboard £153.00IBM ATE 512K 1x1-2MB D/D+20MB H/Disk.... £3249.00 IBM Base Colour Monitor £149.00IBM Colour Display £455.00

IBM /olivetti ADD-ONSExtra Memory 64kb (9 Chips) £39.00Hercules Colour Graphics/Printer Card £169.00Hercules Mono Graphics/Printer Adapter £325.00IBM Asynch Comms Adapter £71.00IBM Bisynch Comms Adapter V2 £165.00IBM Colour/Graphics Adapter £160.00IBM EGA Graphics Adapter £433.00IBM EGA Memory Expan Kit 128kb £210.00IBM EGA Memory Expansion 64kbIBM PC Dos V 3.0

£160.00£60.00

IBM Printer Adapter £71.00K/B 5050 £105.00K/B 5151 (extended) £175.00Memory Expansion Card with 64kb £140.00Qubie Mono Display & Tilt Swivel £150.00Qubie Colour Display+Tilt/Swivel £408.00Sixpack Multifunction Card with 384kb £350.00Sixpack Multifunction Card with 64kb £199.00Taxan Mono Display Amber or Green £131.00Taxan Colour Display £360.00Techmar Master Graphics Adapter £530.0010MB ; Height Hard Disc complete £595.0020MB 3 Height Hard Disc complete £695.008087 Maths Co -processor £175.00

'

olivettiOlivetti M24 128k 1 x360k D/D £949.00 Olivetti M24 SP 640K RAM +20MB H/Disk £2225.00Olivetti M24 128k 2X360k D/D £1150.00 Olivetti M10/24 £375.00Olivetti M24 128k 1X360 D/D+10MB H/Disk ... £1799.00 Olivetti Mono Displays £169.00Olivetti M21 128k 1 x360k D/D+Key+VDU £1149.00 Olivetti extended K/B (102 keys) £120.00Olivetti M21 128k 2x 360k D/D+Key+VDU £1299.00 Olivetti/IBM style K/B (83 keys) £120.00Olivetti M21+10MB H/Disk £1999.00 Olivetti Colour Display £475.00

APRICOTPC 256K RAM+2x720K D/D £1299.00 F2+Mouse £1149.00Xi1Os 512K RAM 10MB+Expansion £1999.00 F10+Mouse £1749.00Xi2Os 1MB RAM 20MB+Expansion £3099.00 XEN 2 X 720 £1599.00Bin, Monitor £150.00 XEN 20MB £2399.0012in. Monitor £190.00 Apricot colour Monitor £349.00

EPSONEpson PX8 computer £649.00Epson PX8+128K RAM £799.00PF10

CX21

D/DAcoustic Coupler ££299.00130.00

Epson PC £649.00

1..1 0 -I- Iv! f T l';,' T. xAnadex DP 9000 £875.00Brother M1009 (P) £145.00Brother M1509 P+S+(NLQ) £385.00Canon PW 1080A (NLQ) £249.00Canon PW 1156A (NLQ) £349.00Canon Laser Printer £2149.00Data Products 8050 £1075.00Data Products 8070 £1499.00Epson LX80 (NLQ) £199.00Epson RX 100 F/T £249.00Epson FX 85 (NLQ) £339.00Epson FX 105 F/T (NLQ) £425.00Epson LQ 1500 (NLQ) £825.00Hewlett Packard Laser Printer £2599.00OKI Microline 182 £249.00Olivetti DM 5801 CB (NLQ) £885.00Panasonic KP1091 (NLQ) £255.00

SPEC/AL OFFERS

COMPLETE20MB HARD DISK SYSTEMS

Olivetti M24 System inc:M24 Base Unit

Compatible 20MB Hard Disk360k Floppy Disk

640K RAM7 Slot Bus Convertor

Olivetti MonitorOlivetti/IBM Keyboard

DOS 2.11

£1999.00IBM PC System inc:-

IBM PC Base Unit20MB Hard Disk

DAISYWHEELBrother HR15 £295.00Brother HR25 £609.00Brother HR35 £695.00Daisy Step 2000 (20 CPS) £219.00Diablo

630 (API) £1310.00Epson DX 100 £299.00Epson P 40 £85.00Hitachi 672 plotter £395.00IBM Wheelprinter £1150.00IBM Quietwriter £1150.00Juki 6100 £299.00Olivetti DY 250 £554.00Olivetti DV 450 £799.00Qume 1140 (RO) £1175.00Qume letter Pro 20 £450.00Ricoh RP 1600 8k £1325.00

ACCESSORIESKeyboards, cables, interfaces, tractor feeds, sheetfeeds, disks, software, up -grades, listing paper, ribbons,daisy wheels available for most products.All prices excluding VAT and DELIVERY MAR ID)

All SOFTWARE AVAILABLE

AT BEST PRICES

360K Floppy 256K RAMIBM Keyboard IBM Mono Display

Parallel Printer PortPC DOS 3.0

£1999.00Brother M1509 P+SA-(NLQ) £385.00Epson LX80 (NLQ) £199.00Juki 6100 18 CPS DW £299.00

IBM TYPEWRITER SIBM Actionwriter 6715 £259.00IBM Super Selectric I 6746 £449.00IBM Super Selectric116747 £599.00IBM Thermotronic 6750 £749.00

-----------____ - - - - ---- _E ___iii-a s -A . w m ,- - --- -ice- Bi----ii- NI 11M.---- ' Mr -- - '---1:-'''.1.-='-..= = -

1M: ...-...-..-- ---------..---=- -....-W- . -....--- 1-=--"."- -....- - --M- -..=--= ' : j..._- -- --r.

7-0

Programmable: Switch selectable to cover upto 95% of serial applicationsEx -stock for immediate delivery.

FROM OUR RANGE OF PROFESSIONAL DATA PRODUCTS

HOMESTEAD DATA PRODU'

Trelawney Industrial Court, Trelawney AvenueLangley, Slough, Berks. SL3 7UJ.

- circle 150 on enquiry card *-

BETTER SERVICE : BETTER PRICES : WIDER CHOICE

FERRANTI PC860Best value IBM compatible. Fast 8086 processor, GW basic, Colour graphics standard, Perfect 2

software suite. Hi Res monochrome monitor, 12 months FREE ON SITE WARRANTY

ATARI 520 ST D/S & col version available £599AMSTRAD PCW 8256 inc free disks

& paper E399PERFECT 2 SOFTWARE SUITE. Comprises Perfect Writer 2 (inc. Speller & Thesaurus),Perfect Calc 2 & Perfect Filer 2. "Perfect Writer 215 the best word processor available for its

price-. "Best handbooks I have come across"P.C. Business World £135 per module

WORDCRAFT inc database £395 DELTA 4 DATABASE

PROPHET ACCOUNTS inc Sales/Purchase Ledgers, Invoices & Statements £160

CAD SOFTWARE & SYSTEMS - Please call for details

£375

PRINTERS A selection ham our full range of matrix daisy laser printers

DAISYSTEP 2000iQUENDATA 1150 18cps Quality daisywheel outputJUKI 61 00/PETAL £269 NEC SPINWRITERS fromEPSON LX80/FX85 £195/£369 EPSON LQ 800NEC PINWRITER P2 £389 BROTHER M1509MANNESMAN TALLY MT85 180cps AMAZING QUALITY

PRINTER BUFFERS

£179£299£549£399£299

Serial/parallel in/out . 8k.512K, from 8K - £75, 1 6K - 05, 64K - £119

FANFOLD PAPER11"x 91/2" 60gm £9.7512"x 91/4" 60gm £11.69A4 clean 70g m £15.95Edge 85gm £9.3011"x 14" 60gm £13.50

All sizes available

2000 sheets2000 sheets2000 sheets1000 sheets2000 sheets

Delivery £2.45 (fixed) + £1 per box. Extra£1 per order for items marked

LABELS from £1 per 1000

RIBBONS for all printers

EPSON FX,MX,RX 80/100EPSON LX 80

JUKI 6100 single strikeSHINWA,M.TALLY MT80

OUME MULTISTRIKE 4

£2.49/£3.75£2.95£1.15£3.79£2.65

f rom £3.79YffgWityQuantity ribbons/printwheels

Official GovernmentlEducationahLocal Authority orders welcomed.Please add 15% VAT to all prices (inc. carriage) Limited space precludes listing of our full range of products

Please telephone if you do not see the item you require

£1149OLIVETTI M24 SP 640K, complete £2699

HARD DISK & MEMORY UPGRADES

10/20 MB Hard Disk Upgrade (IBM and Compatibles)IBM 384K MULTIFUNCTION Board + Ram disk + print spoolerOLIVETTI Upgrade to 640KSANYO Extra 128K Ram + Ram disk + extra 25% disk capacityMACINTOSH Upgrade to 512K (256K chips) 12 months warranty

APRICOT 512KPLOTTERS

Hitachi 672A3

Roland DXY:980 A3

Houston EDMP 42 A1

Cherry A3 digitiser

PLUS 5512K Ram BoardsSPECIAL offer until April 15 1986

Full range available -e. g.

£395 Roland DXY-880 A3

£1099 Roland DPX-2000 A2

£2995 Benson 1331 AO

£495 Summagraphicsfrom

£499/£579£249

£99£65

£179

£149

£749

£3499

£6750

£475

DISKS - SAME DAY DESPATCH - POST FREEBoxed in 10's. No quibble guarantee.

PANASONIC 51/4" First box

Quality C SSOD £13.45100% DSOD £16.95Guaranteed SSOD -

DSOD £19.95

SONY 3.5"0M-SBOBN

0M-DBOBN

0M -D3440

OM -D4440

ss £22.00Ds £32.50ss £26.80Ds £36.80

MAXELL/PANASONIC

Extra Boxes OYSAN 51/4" First box

£10.95 £15.40£14.95 £22.35

£22.35£17.95 £28.50

Extra boxes

£14.10£20.90£20.90£26.85

SEE 10 library cases £1.75SPECIAL OFFER! 60 Sonydisks in top quality ABAMD6OT lockable storagebox - SINGLE SIDED £1 35DOUBLE -SIDED £195

3" CF2 for AMSTRAD £33.50

£19.95£29.95£23.50£33.50

ADVANCED MICROCOMPUTER APPLICATIONS (A.M.A.)8 GLEBE ST. BEESTON NOTTINGHAM NG9 1BZ Tel: 0602 255415

L=:7 -

PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

- circle 149 on enquiry card -circle 151 on enquiry card - 21

Nobody beats ourprices or support

an computers

TANDON PC2 x 360K floppy drives,DOS, 256K systemmemory. Keyboard 14"High resolutionMonitor £1,295.00

TANDON PCX 10XT -Compatible: Sameas above PC except1 x 360K floppy drive,1 x 10Mb hard disc.

£1,595.00

TANDON PCA 20AT -Compatible: Intel80286, 1 x 1.2Mb floppy512k system memory,Keyboard, 20Mb harddisk, DOS, GW-BASIC14" high resolutionmonitor £2,795.00

NEC HARD DISCS10Mb £525.0020Mb £625.00

RODIME HARD DISKS10Mb half height

£425.0020Mb half height

£525.0010mb full height£615.0020Mb full height£795.0030Mb full height£995.0040Mb full height

£1,100.00

IBM AT HARD DISKUPGRADESDrive Rails, manual &cables.20Mb £535.0030Mb £700.0040Mb £880.00

CARD -BASED HARDDISKSMountain 20Mb.£795.00Westerb Digital 20Mb

£720.00Plus 5 20Mb £750.00

TAPE STREAMERSIrwin 10Mb £495.00Cipher 25Mb £795.00

Olivetti computers

OLIVETTI PERSONELCOMPUTERSOLIVETTI M24 (10Mb)1 x 360K floppy drive,10Mb disk, Keyboard,MS-DOS 2.11, 12"Olivetti Hi-res monitor.

£1,795.00

OLIVETTI M24 (20Mb)1 x 360K floppy drive,20Mb disk, Keyboard,MS-DOS 2.11, 12"Olivetti Hi-res monitor,640K system memory

£1,895.00

OLIVETTI M24 SP10MHz clock speed,360k floppy 20Mb harddisk, 640k memory,Keyboard, Hi-resmonitor, bus converterwith 7 slots, MS-DOS2.11 & GW-BASIC.

£2,800.00

*"NASHUA***DS/DD 5.25" box of 10

£15.00

EPSON PRINTERSFX85 £375.00FX105 £485.00LQ-1500 £835.00

NEC PRINTERSNEC P2 pinwriter

£405.00NEC P3 pinwriter

£530.00NEC P5 £825.00

SOFTWAREdBase II ver 2.34*

£295.00dBase III + £425.00WordStar £220.00WordStar Prof £299.00Lotus 123 rel 2 £318.00SuperCalc 3 rel 2

£280.00Crosstalk £125.00Data Talk £145.00Open Access £375.00

Full Manufacturers Warranty01.788 6311

Softquest Ltd

CAREY ELECTRONICSComputing and CommunicationsFor the BBC Microcomputer System

- computers - peripherals - softwareTHE ACORN BBC "MASTER SERIES" ALL SOLIDISK PRODUCTS AVAILABLEMASTER "128" 499.00 Acorn 1770 DES 49.95MASTER "TURBO" P.O.A. Acorn ADFS ROM 29.99MASTER "512" P.O.A. MONITORS (14" R.G.B.)&112" Mono):MASTER "ET" Econet Terminal 399.00 Microvitec 1491 (Med. Res.) 299.00PRINTERS Philips BM7502 (12" Green) 87.95CANON PW-1080 A 329.19 COLOUR PRINTERS:EPSON FX-80 503.00 CANON PJ-1080 A 499.00EPSON LX -80 283.00 JUKI 5520 516.00JUKI 6100 399.00 INTEGREX Colourjet 132 645.35SHINWA CPA 80 228.00 Plotmate A4 PLOTTER 343.85UpGRADE TURBO 64K BUFFER 161.00 UpGRADE TURBO 256K BUFFER 294.40

DISC DRIVES (All 40I80T Switchable. D(S. Without Power Supply):Pace PSD 3 (Single. 400K.) 129.84Pace PDD 3 (Dual. 2 . 400K = BOOK.) 244.95Cumana CSX 400IS (Single. 400K.) 134.95AkhterlUFD MO 400 A (Single. 400K.) 124.95DISK DRIVES (All 40(80T Switchable. DIS. With Power Supply):Pace PSD 3 P (Single. 4006.1 157.55Pace PDD 3 P (Dual. 2 . 400K = 800K.) 289.00AkhterlUFD MD 400 B (Single. 400K) 154.95AkhterlUFD MD 802 D (Dual. 2 x 400K = 800K.) 324.95

* BABT APPROVED MODEMS by ACORN PACE MIRACLE TECHNOLOGY & TANDATA

Pace Nightingale 136.85 Pace "COMMSTAR" 34.00Tandata range from 116.15 Tandata "TAN -ROM" 56.35Miracle WS 2000 129.95 Miracle "DATABEEB" 28.75

"PRESTEL"Miracle WS 3000 Acorn

from 339.25 Adapter 139.00

It's AFTER the SALE, that SERVICE counts!!

ALL PRICES INCLUDE V.A.T. AT 15% DELIVERY POST FREE U.K. MAINLAND

MAIL ORDERS TO: (callers by appointment)7 Church Road, VVALTON-ONNAZE, Essex C014 ODE

Tel: Frinton-on-Sea (02556) 6993 (Barn to 9pm)

- circle 153 on enquiry card 4 -

SOLID STATESWITCHING DEVICES

Co.0.01 Odit4 WAY

w ITCH 411.-

All lines Switched; Bi-Directional Communication;Push Button Select; Attractive Metal Case

PRICES:All items 4 -way switching

Parallel 36 -Way Centronics £159.00Serial 25 -Way RS232 £154.00Serial 5 -Way RS423 £134.00

All Prices include VAT

We supply switching devices to your custom requirementsi.e. RS232 to RS232 & RS423. Also cables made to your

specification

For prices and more information please contact:

BK ELECTRONICS103 Ber Street,Norwich NR1 3EYTel: (0603) 621277

PLEASE ALLOW 21 DAYS FOR DELIVERY

- circle 152 on enquiry card - - circle 154 on enquiry card 4-

III SOFTWARE

VIGENERE ENCRYPTION PROGRAMprogram crypt;

(Program to demonstrate the Vigenere method of encrypting a file,using exclusive or. The same program will both encrypt and decrypt.It takes two parameters: the filename and the key (or password).

This version is in Turbo Pascal ver. 3 under MsDos. To implementunder CP/M, you must use untyped files with block reads and writes,oth Turbo will interpret the first four bytes to be the recordsize and number of records. In earlier versions of Turbo Pascal, theparamcount and p aaaaa tr functions are not available, so get the userto enter the filename and passwords into the program.)

var

infilename, workfilename: string(I4l;password: string[9l; (password after making it exactly 9 chars)keytablei array(l..81 of integer; (password converted to 8 integers)infile, workfile; file of integer;(input and work files)current, Z: integer;

begin

(sign on and check parameters)writeln('FILE ENCRYPTION/DECRYPTION.); writeln;if paramcount02 thenbegin

writeln('To encrypt or decrypt a file, type:');writeln(' crypt ffff ppzip'11

writelnCwhere ffff is the filename and');writeln('pppp is a password of 4 to 9 characters');halt;

end;

if (lengthlp tr(21)(4) or (length(p aaaaa tr(2))>9) thenbegin

writeln('The password must be between 4 and 9 characters');halt;

end;

(open input file)infilenametxp trill;

assign(infile,infilenamel;(SI- switch on error handling)reset(infile);(SI* make error handling automatic again)if not (ioresult=0) thenbegin

writeln('Cannol find ',infilename);halt;

end;

(form work file name and open file for output)

it=pos('..,infilenamellif Z=0 then

workfilenamei.infilenamef'ASS'else

workfilenamei..copy(infilename,l0)4.'88$';assign(workfile,workfilename);rewrite(workfile);

(build the key table; this is done by converting successive pairsof chars. in the password to integers, then multiplying by 1,2,..,81other methods are possible)

passwordt.copy(p tr(2)+p tr(2)+p tr(2)0,9);(make password exactly 9 characters)

for ji=l to 8 dokeytablefil(4((ord(password(I1)*256 ordlpassword[J411)Isj) mod easinti

(now xor the input file with successive entries in the key table, writingthe results to the work file)

writeln('In progress');ii=0; (this is a pointer for the key table)repeat

read(infile,current);currenti4current xor keytable[7fIllwrite(workfile,current);I:(j+1) mod 8;

until eoffinfile);

(close files, delete the input fileclose(infile); close(workfile);

linfile);

rename(workfile,infilename);writeln('Finished');

end.

and rename the work file, and sign off)

rivacy is an issue thatconcerns many micro users.As computer applications

expand, so more confidentialinformation is finding its way intodisc files. As long as these files areheld on removable media likefloppy discs they can be lockedaway from prying eyes as easily as

their paper counterparts. But themoment you start using fixed discsor networks more sophisticatedsecurity procedures must bebrought into use.

Few off -the -shelf products offermuch help. With applicationpackages such as accountingsystems, any security devices are

usually aimed at preventing accessto the software rather than to thedata. Essential as these are, theycannot stop an intruder fromviewing a file from, outside thepackage. After all, virtually everymicro has the equivalent of theCP/ M or MS-DOS Type commandand you do not have to be an expert

BY MIKE LEWIS

HOW TOKEEP ASECRETA simple program toencode and decodeyour confidential files.programmer to know how to use it.

One safeguard is provided bythe fact that in many applicationsdata is stored as a series of binaryfields. For example, in a payrollthe salary, tax and overtime detailsmight well be held on file in avariety of numeric foramts, in-cluding integers, binary-codeddecimal, floating-point and evenbit strings. Typing this sort of fileusually produces a meaninglessscreen display.

Even to decipher a hex dump,the would-be eavesdropper has toknow which bytes are used forwhich fields and needs fairlyprecise information about thenumeric formats that have beenused. Knowing that an amount isheld in floating-point does notnecessarily help to determine whatthe amount is. Is it single- ordouble -precision? Is it thestandard IEEE variety of floating-point, the widely used Microsoftformat, or perhaps even the 48 -bitformat favoured by certain otherlanguages?

But if binary data files are safefrom the casual viewer, text filesare not. After all, ASCII text canbe read from the screen as easily asfrom the printed page. It is notonly word -processed documentsthat are vulnerable in this way. Adatabase program might record,say, the names of non -credit-worthy customers in ASCII, eventhough other fields in the databasemight be stored differently. If youwere to Type a dBase II file thechances are that you wouldrecognise most of the data.

Fortunately, there are manywell -established techniques forkeeping information secret. Infact, the development of crypt-ography - the study of codes andciphers - is closely connected with



I-

w WORKSHOP


that of computers and pro-gramming. The first electronic

word formation. Codes of this kindoften appear as entertainingpuzzles in magazines.

used for transmitting the key.Consequently, most re centresearch has concentrated on

same program can be used for bothencoding and decoding, as long asan identical key is provided each

computers were used chiefly as systems which use public keys. The time.dedicated code -breaking machines STRING KEY idea is that a public key is available The user specifies the key andduring the Second World War. The next step up in complexity for encoding the text, but only a the name of the file as a command -

However, secret codes have beenin use a lot longer than that. The

is a code called the Vigenerecipher. This is like the Roman

private key can be used to decodeit. The public key can easily be

line parameter. Although the key,or password, is entered as a char -

Romans used the earliest known system except that instead of derived from the private key, but acter string, the program convertscryptosystem and their technique adding a single integer to each not vice versa. So there is no need it to an array of eight integers. Thecould not have been simpler. It letter you use a small string of to keep the public key secret, and method used for this conversion isinvolved adding some pre -agreed integers. The string is obtained the person sending the message fairly arbitrary. Its aim is to pro -integer to the ordinal value of from the ordinal values of the char- does not need to know the duce eight integers - 16 bytes -every character in the text. acters in a key word or phrase, recipient's private key. that are as different from eachAssuming that the character set in applied repeatedly. If keeping your files safe from other as possible.use consists of the 26 capital letters For example, if the key word was prying eyes is a problem that con -followed by a space, the word: "ACE", you would have: cerns you, the program shown on LANGUAGES

PRACTICAL COMPUTING PRACTICAL COMPUTING the previous page might help. I I used Turbo Pascal for thiswhen coded with a key of 10,would become:

plusACEACEACEACEACEACEA

offer it without guarantees; itsintention is merely to demonstrate

example because it provides easyaccess to the DOS command line.

ZALMCSMLVJYWZDCSXQ gives a technique. If you must use it for If you prefer Basic, Microsoft'sThe Romans must have relied on QU FDWN DDQA FTNSZU LSH your vital data, make sure that you Quick Basic compiler offers the

a singular lack of numerical and With this code, the degree of have tested it to your own satis- same facility, as do most commonlogical skills among their enemies,because you can crack this code

security is in direct proportion tothe length of the key. An extreme

faction first.The program uses the Vigenere

versions of C. All the popularhigh-level languages support the

just by trying each of the 27 case would be to use a key which is method, but with one important XOr operator.possible key values in turn. as long as the text to be encoded. difference. Instead of the key and The program will not keep out

A tougher code to break is one This is the principle of a system the plain text being added the determined code breaker. Ifthat uses an arbitrary look -up value called the Vernam cipher, also together, they are combined by unauthorised access really worriesfor each of the characters in the set. known as the one-time pad, which means of an Exclusive Or you, buy a commercial encryptingThus L might be substituted for A, is used in certain military and operation. The Exclusive Or, or program. Finally, whatever sol-X for B, F for C, and so on. banking applications. Although it XOr, is a logical operator that ution you adopt, do not leave theAlthough there is no easy mech-anical method of breaking this

offers exceptionally good security,it is not practical for anything other

produces 0 from two bits that arethe same or 1 from two that are

program itself on your hard disc. Amalicious employee can wreak

type of cipher, it will present few than very short messages. different. The point is that it is rev- enormous havoc by encoding allproblems to anyone with a know- Of course any cryptosystem is ersible: if A XOr B is C, then A your important data and then for -

and only as good as the method that is XOr C is B. This means that the getting the password. 1)(

Oasis Instruments

Now availablefor theSinclair QLand RM Nimbus

Precision MADC12 module Interfaces featuring:- 12 bit readings in 30 uS to 0.02% accuracy.-6 precision ranges, +/-10V down to 1V unipolar.- 16 high impedance inputs with S.E. or differential modes.- All functions software controlled, 1 Mbyte per sec datatransfer.Price - systems for: QL - £499/1BMs - £749/Apple II -£449/BBC - £399 (+ VAT).Includes calibrated MADC12, interface H/W, manuals and software.Modules from stock - reliably solve your digitising or loggingproblem NOW.

Enhanced versions for maximum flexibility provide:- High speed for 12 bit readings in 15uS, 8bit in 10uS (option S15 - £95).- Full accuracy and speed with input isolation to 500V RMS (option 105 - £240).- 32 channel systems (option C32 - £250) and versatile, wide range, multiplexers.

Also available: low cost Apple II analogue interfaces, supporting boards andindustrial computers. Order directly or contact us for further information.

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Home, laboratory and industrial applicationsFull software support supplied:- General purpose acquisition package with easy userinterface and interactive scan control and data filegeneration.- Comprehensive product description to allow thehardware to be driven from your own software, eitherusing the routines supplied or from your own low levelroutines to operate the analogue to digital processdirectly.- Data file generation for export to existing spreadsheetor other post -processing software.

Custom hardware, software and systems solutions on aconsultancy basis.

Peter Nelson

24-. circle 155 on enquiry card


Even more networking powerThe new future FX50 is very, very

powerful. It's also extremely fast, 60% fasterthan the majority of micros. And its memoryis so huge, that it can run several seriousbusiness applications simultaneously.Future Versatility

The FX50 heads the widest, mostflexible and versatile range of Britishdesigned and built microcomputersavailable. All of these are fully compatibleand form a complete product family, able togrow simply and cost effectively into a fullyelectronic office with multi-user, multi -taskingnetworks and micro -to -mainframecommunications.

No Hidden ExtrasUnlike most other systems Future is

designed with a built-in networking facilityas standard, so now additional users canshare powerful facilities like hard disks andprinters for no more than the cost of theirworkstations.Freedom of Choice

With Future you can have the widestchoice of operating systems (ifs also IBMcompatible) which means that virtually allthe software available for microcomputerswill run on the Future Range.

So whatever your computing needsFuture can help you now and forgenerations to come.

-. circle 156 on enquiry card -

PFuture Sales Limited, 7 Imperial WayCroydon, Surrey CR0 4RR

Please send me information on the ENew Future FX50 El The Future range

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Company

Address

Telephone

FIMPREAwn the future generation.

No wonder people are racing out to buy Amstrad'snew CPC 6128 computer.

Not only does it answer all your business needs,it's also compatible with nearly 200arcade and adventure games. So itcan either speed you through yourincome tax returns or whizz youround a simulated Silverstone.

On the business side we startyou off witha free disc

which introduces you to the Amstrad CPC6128's impressive range of capabilities,and the best ways to exploit them.

You'll discover how its massive128k memory can open the doorto over 8,000 CP/M* applications.

Programs like 'Wordprocessing' and 'Database' willfile and index records, produce standard letters, mailing

lists and even compile reports.There's a series of business control

programs which form a complete invoice,stock control and statement system.

In other words it's easy to choosethe software you needto take the big problems

out of your small business.But even if you don't own a business

there are plenty of good reasons forowning an Amstrad CPC 6128.

It makes short work of the problemswe all face. Like keeping track of rates, mortgage andH.P. payments.

However even software packages as comprehensive

IIIIIIIhni

212AVAILABLE AT ALLDERS BOOTS BRIDGERS CLYDESDALE COMET CURRYS DIXONS GRANADA GREENS LASKYS JOHN LEWIS

as Amstrad's are only as good as the hardwarethey're loaded into.

You need a complete system.That's why the Amstrad comes complete

with a built-in disc drive as well as a monitor(green screen or full colour). So it's ready to go towork as soon as you get it home.

And if you want to go further additional discdrives, printers and joysticks are all available to ensurethat your computer can grow with your growing needs.

Finally there's one feature of the Amstrad CPC 6128that's both good business and a pleasure: the price.

With Green Screen around £299

PC16128 3

Tell me more about the Amstrad CPC 6128

Name

Address


Amstrad CPC 6128with 128k memory

Who says business and pleasure don't mix?With Colour Monitor around £399 Amstrad P.O. Box 462, Brentwood, Essex CM14 4EE

'CP/M is a trademark of Digital Research Inc.

RUMBELOWS SUPREME DISCOUNT STORES TANDY VALLANCES W.H. SMITH WIGFALLS AND GOOD INDEPENDENT COMPUTER STORES 2'1

THREE COMPUTER ARCHITECTURES COMBINEDTO GIVE THE BEST ADVANTAGES OF EACH

MULTI PROCESSING

Master console

Arc -Net

Any other Nodeswith Arc -Net

Optional

TIME SHARING

Shared resources

,_...---- ,',,,.

Telex \,...;..,..:---->:.r.4 r--,---- ---- s w-_____------ I( '.--.0-----------, ,----------- ,-_____-------;-

\

,, User VDU

>11''',-'00 ,------- ______----

Printer ,..----- ,

------- 1 '"--_-.--- ' -------e,

N te._----------t' Private

Printer

NETWORKING

Winchester

Modem cartridge disk/))oxi , DrIve Back-up 5% floppy

-

Printer

Master processor

Q00

The Bromcom system is truly a Hyper -micro with a new andinnovative concept. It is the first of its kind to have threecomputer architectures combined into one system offeringthe best advantages of each - namely the performance ofmulti -processing, cost effectiveness of time-sharing andexpansibility of net -working.

In each Bromcom system up to 16 Slave processors and16Mbyte of RAM can be accommodated and each Slavecan be allocated from one to four users. Fast 8MHz 80186processors with up to 1Mbyte of RAM on each Slave ensurespeed no less than you would expect from a high-performance system. Each work -station is provided with upto four virtual screens enabling each user to conduct foursimultaneous tasks, switching between them by a singlekey -stroke.

High -capacity and fast Winchesters, tape streamers andfloppy disks are all part of the complete and integral system.Furthermore the system can be networked via ArcNet toother Bromcom systems or IBM-PC/AT and compatibles.

Additional> slAve

processors

Slave processors(up to 16)

Total 0116 Slave Processorseach running a dedicated copyof Concurrent DOS -4.1 andnetworked via DR -NET.

Each Slave Processor has 4RS232 ports capable ofsupporting 4 users or anycombination of users/serialdevices of up to 4.

16 -bit Master processor with 1Mbyte of RAM and:Four Serial and one Parallel ports

Up to 512Mbyte Fast Winchesters 60Mbyte Tape Cartridge

Up to 16 Slaves with:16 -bit processor 80186 at 8MHz

Up to 1Mbyte of RAM & up to four Serial portsSlave/Master data transfer at DMA speed

Up to 32 users in one system each running:Concurrent DOS 4.1Four virtual screens/multi-tasking

CP/M-86 and MS-DOS 2.11 compatibility

Full Networking Capability: Connection to IBM-PC/AT and compatibles ArcNet/DR-Net used 255 Nodes in one LAN

BRCINECIM

28

417-421 Bromley Road, Downham, Bromley, Kent BR1 4PJ Telephone: 01-461 3993 Telex: 926012 BCOM G


CHIP -CHAT

gogic gates are the raw materialfrom which microprocessorsand most of their associated

support circuitry are made. Intheory at least, no matter howcomplicated the device, it couldall be implemented by wiringtogether large numbers of simpletwo -input inverting logic gatesusing the Nand or Nor format.

Since standard two -input gatesare normally supplied four at atime in a 16 -pin DIL package, andthe latest microprocessors need atotal of 50,000 or so, the resultingcircuit board for a homebrew68020 emulation would causequite a stir with the neighbours.Moreover, if bipolar TTL logicwere to be used, this laboriouslyassembled monster would have adramatic impact on the quarterlyelectricity bill.

Most disappointing of all wouldbe the level of performance. Theseveral kilometres of inter-connecting wire needed, andthe cumbersome use of multipletwo -input gates to emulate shiftregisters, RAM arrays and ROMs,would conspire to slow thingsdown to such an extent that theMotorola share price would hardlywaver.

Standard products like micro-processors and memory chips areusually designed at the individualtransistor level, one step downfrom gates. The creation of aperfect memory cell design can bethe life's work of some chipdesigners, and they tinker with thesize, type and orientation ofindividual transistors until theyhave combined the maximumpossible performance with theminimum possible chip area. Notfor them the wasteful simplicity oftwo -input gate Lego bricks.

FULL CUSTOMIf you are rich enough, you too

can have a chip designed for you inthis way. The process is called"full -custom"; it costs an arm anda leg, and you usually need toorder several thousand parts of thesame type for the economics towork. This approach does offer thehighest -performance solution,but for the average equipmentdesigner it remains just as im-practicable as the use of a room fullof quad two -input gate packages.

The microprocessor itself can beused to bridge the gap. Althoughwe tend to think of these devicesas number crunchers or textprocessors, they can also be used toimplement any sequential logicfunction under the control of asuitable program. In fact, moremicroprocessors spend their work-ing lives performing in this rolethan are ever used in personalcomputers.

It is tempting to think that inthe microprocessor you now havethe complete answer to all yourlogic design problems. After all, ablack box with N inputs and Noutputs containing a micro-processor and memory canimplement any operation you careto dream up, provided that youcan create an appropriate program.

Unfortunately, there is a flaw,since the sequential nature of themicroprocessor can make it muchtoo slow for some tasks. Even whenthe task is so simple that amicroprocessor can perform fastenough, the overhead of RAM,ROM, I/O chips and a crystal doesmake it seem a sledgehammersolution.

ULASemiconductor manufacturers

have been aware for some time ofthis gap in the market betweenfull -custom chip designs and thestored program microprocessor,and they have done their best tofill it with a variety of semi -customsolutions. In this they haveachieved varying degrees of suc-cess. One of the first firms to spotthe need was the British Ferranticompany back in the mid -seventies. Ferranti introduced aninnovative device called an un-committed logic array (ULA),which consisted of a standard arrayof simple gates that could be wiredup using a final layer ofmetallisation to produce a customlogic circuit.

The great advantage of thisapproach is that 90 percent of thechip fabrication can be identicalfor all applications, only the finalmetal layer being specific to eachcustomer. As a result, design andmanufacture is quicker andcheaper than can be achieved witha full -custom layout, and itbecame economically viable toproduce specials in hundredsrather than in thousands.

Ferranti did very well with thistechnology for a number of years,but it has now been eclipsed bybigger and better gate arrays fromcompetitors in the U.S.A. andJapan. Today the leading gate -array technology uses 1.5 micronCMOS and two layers of metalinterconnection to provide customcircuits with up to 20,000 gates -enough to build a simple micro-processor.

The market for gate arrays, orapplication -specific integratedcircuits (ASICs) as they are nowoften called, is growing rapidlywith more and more engineersbeing attracted by their benefits.Computer Aided Engineering(CAE) work stations, often basedon IBM or compatible PCs, are alsohelping to provide individual

engineers with the capability tocreate and simulate gate -arraydesigns on their own desks with-out the need for prototypebreadboards. A major use forcomplex gate arrays like these is inproviding the glue logic whichhandles the interface and controlfunction in microprocessor -basedsystems. Most inexpensive micro-computers rely on the use ofsuch devices to keep costs to aminimum.

All this is fine, but it still cannothelp the engineer who wants toproduce small numbers of systems,who does not have access to a CAEwork station, and who cannotafford to wait six weeks or more fora completed gate -array design.Fortunately help is on the way.

An analysis of logic designsshows that there are certain con-figurations of gates which are usedrepeatedly, with only the detailedinterconnections differing fromjob to job. Taking advantage ofthis common structure, semi-conductor manufacturers haveproduced simple field pro-grammable logic arrays (FPLAs),also called PLAs and PALS, whichprovide a generalisation of thecommon configuration.

SIZE RESTRICTEDTo use these devices designers

have merely to decide which inputsand outputs should be connectedto which gates. Then they programthese interconnections using asimple unit similar to a PROMprogrammer to blow tiny fuse linksincorporated on the surface ofthe chip during fabrication. Theresulting devices, individuallytailored on the designer's ownbench, can replace many discretelogic chips. But, unfortunately,the limitations of the bipolarfusible link technology haveplaced restrictions on the size anduse of these arrays.

Now new versions of theseprogrammable chips are becomingavailable. For the first time itappears that the gap betweenstandard logic and full -custom hasbeen completely plugged. For astart, most of the new devices usehigh-speed CMOS rather thanpower-hungry bipolar technology.Better still, devices are availablewhich are erasable and re -

programmable, and the number ofequivalent gates is increasing tothe point where they overlapthe lower end of the metallisation-programmed families.

Typical of the new erasable pro-grammable logic devices (EPLDs)is the EP -600 from the AlteraCorporation, based in Santa ClaraCalifornia. The EP -600 containsthe equivalent of more than 600gates, and has a particularly

BY RAY COLES

BUILDYOUROWNCHIPSThe gap between run-of-the-mill processorchips and expensivecustom devices hasnow been filled by anew family ofprogrammable chips.

versatile I/O architecture whichincludes 16 flip-flops that can beprogrammed to assume a variety ofdifferent roles. The main logicarray is based on the standard sum -of -products configuration, withprogrammable And and fixed Orterms. As many as 20 inputs and 16 outputs are available. Byprogramming some of the outputsto become feedback terms,sequential logic functions can beimplemented as well as com-binatorial random logic.

SECOND CHANCEUnlike fusible link devices, If

the EP -600 does not do what youexpect when you first program it,you can erase all the links usingultraviolet light, correct yourmistakes and start all over again.

To help you avoid mistakes inthe first place, Altera offers theA -Plus development softwarepackage. It runs on the IBM PCand allows designs to be entered asa circuit schematic or as logicequations. Once the design isentered, the Altera PLDS-2development system linked to yourPC can program a device inminutes.

The EP -600 family comes insmall 24 -pin so-called skinny -DIPpackages, runs off 5V supplies,and can operate at clock rates of upto 40MHz. If the EP -600 is not bigenough for you, there is also anEP -1200 family. To give the finalseal of approval, Intel is second -sourcing the whole range.


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Our daisywheel printers do a very finejob when linked up to our microcomputers.

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We make three printers in all.The ESW 3000K and ESW103 have their

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All three printers are as reliable as theweather. (You can rely on there being weatherevery day)

For free colour brochures of ourcomplete range of printers send off thecoupon now.

You'll see, whatever make of micro-computer you own, we'll bring the best outof it.

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Fe7d to Penny Cottee, Olympia BusinessMachines, FREEPOST,199/205 OldMaryleboneRoad, London NVV1 lYB.NO STAMP REQUIRED.

Please send me your FREE full colourPrinters brochures.

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30

COMMS

glor those people yearning touse U.S. information servicessuch as Compuserve and The

Source but deterred by the highcharges, it is worth taking a look atMicrolink.

Microlink is an extension toTelecom Gold, the electronic mailsystem owned by British Telecom.It is run by Database Publications.As well as offering all the usualmail facilities of Telecom Gold,Microlink provides a number ofadditional services.

Logging on to your Microlinkmailbox is carried out in exactly thesame way as you log on to a normalTelecom Gold mailbox. After ashort welcome message, whichgives details of any new services orupdates to the existing ones, youare presented with the familiarGold prompt > . Here you maytype in any of the usual Goldcommands such as Mail, IDB, etc.,or enter MM to get the Microlinkmain menu which comprises theentries detailed below.

Another feature which iscurrently under development is aCB -style conferencing system,where Microlink members will beable to chat to many users in real-time. Further details of this areavailable by typing Confer at the> prompt.

Microlink is quick and fairlystraightforward to use. Unfor-tunately, the user guide suppliedwhen you first join is not very clear.The system provides many usefulfeatures for business and homeusers alike, turning a somewhatmundane mailing service into thenucleus of a proper informationutility.

Charges for Microlink are asfollows: £5 for initial registration,then a standing charge of .f3 permonth. On-line charges are thesame as Telecom Gold: 3.5 penceper minute between 7 p.m. and 8a.m. and 11 pence per minuteduring office hours. If you accessthe system through PSS, there is anextra charge of 2.5 pence perminute.

MAIN MENUBB - Microboard EntersTelecom Gold's interactivebulletin board, Noticebd.Notices may be posted or readunder a variety of headingssuch as Chatter, Comms, Lap-helds, For Sale and Wanted.BR - British Rail Providesaccess to train timetables fortrains between London and 20other major British cities.users with credit cards mayalso book rail tickets andmake seat reservations.EE - Electronic mail Same asTelecom Gold's Mailcommand.

MICROLINK LOG -ON SEQUENCE

Welcome to Telecom Gold's Syste-Please Sign On>ID MAG95279PaSsword:

TELECOM GOLD Automated Office Services 18 4P(72)On At 22:24 02/03/56 GMTLast On At 18:46 02,03/86 GMT

Nail call (4 Read, 1 Unread)

*******************MicreLink*******************We.lcornel You are

now connected to theMicrolink mainframe

at TELECOM GOLD

(c) Database Publications

Type MM for the m!crc,,iink Menu HELPLiNE - 051 456 8535

Make Mother's Day a day to remember_send her flowers your micro: Key FL

See our new 'NewsBytes' feature. Key NB

Many extra sections for MemoPad- Key PP

EG - Exhibition guide Listsdates, locations and contactaddresses for all majorcomputer and computer -related shows.FL - Floralink If you have acredit card, you can use thisservice to order flowers andhave them delivered to anyaddress in Britain byInterflora. Soon it will bepossible to have flowersdelivered in other countries.GG - Telecom Gold Passesyou back to the Gold system.LL - Bulletin board listDisplays a regularly updatedlist of all the bulletin boardsystems currently operating inthe U.K.MM - Microlink menuDisplays the main menu.NB - Newsbytes A weeklyrundown of the currentcomputer news written bySteve Gold and based on hisU.K. news column whichappears on The Source.NL - Newsletter Details ofthe latest additions andimprovements to theMicrolink service.NN - Micro news A regularlyupdated database of computernews. Stories are kept on-linefor up to a month.OL - Orderlink If you usethe Microsearch database -

see SS - to look up computerhardware and software, youcan order featured productsthrough Orderlink.PP - Memopad Microlink'sown version of TelecomGold's interactive bulletinboard, Noticebd. Subjectscovered are predominantlybiased towards micros.SS - Microsearch Computerproduct locator database.Provides descriptions, pricesand source details of computerhardware and software.Keyword searching is providedso you can locate a particularproduct as quickly as possible.TL - Theatrelink Provides anup-to-date guide to theLondon theatre scene andallows you to book tickets atthe same time.TM - TelemessageTelemessages are thereplacement of the oldtelegram. Using this optionon Microlink, you can sendmessages anywhere in theU.K. or to the U.S. If you usethe First Class option which isonly available for U.K. letters,delivery is guaranteed for thenext day as long as you sendthe messages before 8p.m.TT - Telex Accesses thestandard telex system interfaceprovided by Telecom Gold.

BY BEN KNOX

MICROLINKTelecom Gold looksset to become morethan an email systemswith the addition ofthis on-lineinformation service.

UU - Users Guide An on-line version of the users guidewhich is supplied when youfirst join Microlink. Using theUU option you can keep up todate with features which werenot available when youreceived your copy of theprinted guide.WL - Weatherlink This is adatabase of weather mapstransmitted by orbitingweather satellites. Programsare available in this areawhich enable BBC Micros,IBMs and Apples to displaythe maps in colour. It takesabout seven to 10 minutes todownload all the map data forone picture at 1,200 baud.Obviously this time will befour times longer for 300baud.WW - Who's Who An on-line version of the Who'sWho in Computingencyclopedia. Keywordsearching is provided, so youcan locate people and thecompanies they work for fairlyquickly.XX - Telesoftware Adatabase of about 70 freeprograms. Currently only theAmstrad, Apple, Atari andBBC Micro are catered for.There are no error -freetransfer protocols available, soif you live on the end of arather noisy line, it wouldprobably not be worthwhileattempting downloads.

For further information, contactMicrolink, Database PublicationsLimited, Europa House, 68Chester Road, Hazel Grove, Stock-port SK7 5NY. Telephone:061-456 8383.


MicroSight 111

NIMBUS VISIONA complete image capture system including an

80186 based microcomputer with high resolutiongraphics, mouse, a high quality vidicon camera anda video digitiser with up to 512 x 512 pixel resolution.Applications include video displays, image analysis,object counting etc. Complete systems from

£2950 + VATMICROSIGHT - NOW WITH LINK TO PC PAINT!For connection to a range of microcomputers,MicroSight systems can provide a low cost imagecapture facility up to 512 x 512 resolution eitherby scanning or frame grabbing. Packages includingcamera, interface, software for disk storage, hard

copy and display are available for IBM PC, Apricot,Hewlett Packard, BBC Model B etc from

£985 + VAT

MICROSCALE SOFTWARE

MicroScale image analysis software toMicroSight Systems

* Particle sizing and Orientation* User definable scaling* Hard copy and disk file dumping of results* Dimensioning* User definable windows

Available for IBM PC, AT, XT, RML Nimbus,Hewlett Packard 9816, Apricot, BBC Model B etcfrom £365 + VAT

run with

For further details contact: -

The image analysis people

Digithurst Ltd.Leaden Hill, Orwell, Royston,Herts. SG8 5QH Telephone (0223) 208926

FREEOVERNIGHTDELIVERY!*

01-455 9823

COMPUTERS/CALCULATORS/PLOTTERSAPRICOTF2 512K 2.720K 0275.00F10 512K 10MB £1795.00PC 256K 2 x 720K £1495.00Xi 10S 512K 10MB £2195.00Xi 20512K 20MB £2895.00OLIVETTI M24M24 128K 1 x 360K E1375.00M24 256K 2.360K £1525.00M24 128K low E2050.00M24 640K 10MB £2150.00M24 SP 640K 20MB £2495.00COMMODOREPC10 IBM compatible £1395.00PC20 IBM compatible £2700.00HEWLETT PACKARDHP 4 1CV (SCI Computer) £139.00HP 41 CX (Computer) £199.00

HP 41C (Card Reader) £159.00HP 71B (portable computer) £425.00PLOTTERSHP 7470A (A4 2 Pen Plotter) £918.00HP 7475A )A3 6 Pen Plotter) £1525.00HP 7550 18 Pen A4 A3) £3220.00HP 7440 (8 Col 2 Pen) £999.00SHARP PC 1500A £147.50CE 158 RS232 and Cent IF £120.00CE 150 printer cassette IF £125.00PC 1251 (Computer) £66.50Casio FX7000 £69.00EPSON OX -10 (desk top computer) £1599.00EPSON HX20 Briefcase computer, 16Kexpandable, Si RS232 interface £345.00EPSON PX-8 (portable 64K ComputerWord Processor) £650.00Epson PC from £750

MONITORS/PRINTERSOKIOkimate 20 (80CPSALQ £229.00MICROLINE 182 (120CPS) £240.00MICROLINE 192 (160CPS) 050.00MICROLINE 84 T. (200CPS-NLQ) E620.00AMSTRAD 8256 (Complete with printer,monitor etc) £379.00MONITORSOUME from £399.00HAZELTINE from £499.00ACT Compatible from £155.00Brother 1509 (IBM/FX100 Comp) E400.00Brother 2024L (190CPS NLQ) E890.00CANON PW1080A (160CPS) £274.00CANON PW1156A (160CPS) £355.00NEC Pinwriter (132 cols) P3 £485.00NEC Pinwriter P2 (80 col) £385.00FUJITSU range from £850.00TAXAN range from £299.00NEC 3500 Series from £639.008800 Series from E1000.00X -DATA DYNEERDW16 )16CPS/B)-Dect Printing) £289.00DW20120CPS/17CPS) £499.00DW36 (36CPS/31CPS Shannon) £850.00DISK DRIVESCumana (Apple,BBC) from E95.00Dyneer Winchester (Olivetti 24/COMPAQApple IBM) from £1100.00EPSON 5.25 EBM comp £499.00CSI SUB SYSTEMS(IBM. PC Apricot/Sanyol from £1150.00OUME 12/20 £466.00QUME 11/90190CPS) £2100.00

SEIKOSHA range stocked POASTAR range stocked POAPANASONICEpson Compatible IBM SwitchableKXP 1091 (120CPS NLQ 22) £250.00KXP 109211800CPS NLO 33) £379.00MODEMS IDacom Master Epson, Nightin-gale Interlekt-Steebek Answercall etc.)from £73.50MANNESMAN TALLYMT80180CPS)MT160 (FM )160C PS)MT1801160CPS 132 col)Epson LX80 (80CPS+ NLQ)Epson FX100FT Plus (160CPS)Epson RX100FT Plus (100CPS)Epson LQ 1500 Plus (200CPS)LQ1000 17K Buffer 1 80CPS)L0800180C 180CPS)FX85 (160CPS 80C)FX105 (160CPS 132C)GX80 (100CPS)HR15 (3K Buffer 18CPS)HR15 XL (20CPS)HR25 (3K Buffer 25CPS)HR35 (35CPS)Twin WritersCANON LaserCANON Jet Printer (7 colour)HP Jet Printer (150CPS)HP Laser PrinterOLIVETTI DY250DIABLO 6201R0)630 (API) (IBM COM)

£177.00£495.00£527.00£198.50£410.00£324.00E729.00

£610£448.50£333.00£430.00£193.00£295.00£394.00£549.00£659.00

£1150.00£2195.00

£450.00£368.00

£2250.00£554.00£650.00

£1295.00

CAN YOU FIND A LOWERPRICE PHONE US FOR BEST DEAL

SOFTWAREIBM/COMPAQ/OLIVETTI/APRICOTWordstar (update to W/S 20001.E200.00 Open Access E309.00Lotus 1-2-3 £275.00 Smart System £460.00Symphony E395.00 Smart Spread Sheet £299.00dBase II CP/M86) £235.00 Smart Word Proc £220.00Wordstar 2000 E 27 5.00 Data Manager £299.00Graphwriter Combo Pak £339.00 Microsoft Project £185.00Lotus 1-2-3 £275.00 Samna III £345.00Symphony £395.00 Supercalc III £180.00Framework II £346.00 Turbo CAD £350.00D/Base III + E368.00 Word Star 2000 £275.00D/Base II £235.00 Word Star Professional £229.00Cornerstone £299.00 Multimate £225.00R. Base 5000 E385.00 Ouickcode III £79.00D/Base Clipper £550.00 Sage Accounts £250.00Easy Filler £199.00 Crosstalk £140.00Teach Yourself Framework £60.00 OMNIS II Information Manager...£21 5.00Teach Yourself Symphony £60.00 GEM Paint/Write £125.00Logistix £295.00 Easy Business System £850.00

GOODS FULLY GUARANTEED. PRICES EXCLUDING VAT (P&P EXTRA ON ORDERS UNDER(300

Company and Government orders acceptedBarclaycard Access Visa accepted by phone

Tel.: 01-455 9823MOUNTAINDENE

22 Cowper Street, London EC2

32 circle 162 on enquiry card - circle 163 on enquiry card 4 - PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

LOGISTIXADDS TO THE SPREADSHEET

WHAT YOU REALLY NEED

TIME MANAGEMENTThe Logistix worksheet provides the fourfacilities required by the professionalmicrocomputer user: a powerfulspreadsheet, extens(ve databasefacilities, presentation quality graphicsand that vital fourth dimension - TimeManagement.

Vital because Logistix lets you plan anyaspect of your business; the assignmentof staff to tasks, the allocation of jobs tomachines or even the scheduling of a fullscale project using Critical PathAnalysis.

Only Logistix integrates Time

Management with classic spreadsheet

features, an easy -to -use database and

unparalleled graphics.

Logistix even reads data files from otherpopular spreadsheet and databasepackages.

Logistix: the best idea in businesssoftware since the Spreadsheet.

LOG'S -fa

TIMESHEET

SPREADSHEET

GRAPHICS

DATABASE

Contact Grafox now for aLogistix Evaluation Pack.

GRAIFOXGrafox Ltd, 65 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6PE

Tel: 0865 516281 Telex 837748 GRAFOX G

circle 164 on enquiry card33

LOONLOWER

PRICES

LOOK

(MUT?DISKS

Same Day

Despatch

WE WILL NOT BE BEATEN !

We'll Better Genuine Lower PricesAdvertised in this Edition of PCW

fi

CAN YOU AFFORD TO BUY

We sell Factory Sealed -We sell Top Quality -

We sell Quality Brands -

ELSEWHERE ?

No RepackingNo Seconds

No Unkown Names

3'/3.5' DISKSBOXES OF 10 015K5 Prices per Box (6)

1-4 5-9 10-490M -D3440 S/side D Dens 23.95

SONY 0M -D4440 D/side D Dens 33.9522.9532.95

21.9531.40

3450 5/side D Dens 21.95MEMOREX 3460 D/side D Dens 30.75

20.9529.75

19.9528.40

MF350 5/side D Dens 23.95DATALIFEMF 360 D/side D Dens 30.75

22.9529.75

21.9528.40

BASF FD3.5 S/side(Boxed in 5) 12.75 12.25 11.75

MAXELL 3' CF2 5/heed D/side Rev. 36.50 35.75 35.00

510-3.5 SEE -10 Library Box For 10 Disk 2.15 2.00 1.75LB60-3.5 ABA Lockable Box 60 Cap inc Disk Pen 14.50 14.00 13.50FLD-3.5 Floppiclene Disk Drive Cleaner 12.95 12.65 12.25

5.25' DISKS1X HR Snide S Dens 11.75 11.25 10.95

BASF ID HR S/side D Dens 11.75 11.25 10.952D HR D/side D Dens 15.50 15.00 14.751D/96 HR 5/side Q Dens 15.50 15.25 15.002D/96 HR D/side Q Dens 19.45 18.95 17.955.25 2HD D/side H Dens 1.6MB 29.75 28.75 27.75

MD525-01HR 5/side S or 0 Dens 12.50DATALIFE MD550-01HR D/side 5 or D Dens 15.75

12.2515.50

12.0015.25

MD577-01HR 5/side 11 Dens 15.75 15.50 15.25MD557-01HR D/side Q Dens 20.95 19.95 19.45MDHD D/side H Dens 1.6MB 34.95 34.00 32.95Hard sectors add El. Library box add £1.60.

104/10 HR 5/side D Dens 14.00DYSAN 104/2D HR D/side D Dens 18.25

13.5017.75

13.0017.00

204/1D HR 5/side Q Dens 18.25 17.75 17.00204/2D HR D/side Q Dens 24.25 23.50 22.75

5151 HR 5/side 5 Dens 11.45MEMOREX 5210 HR 5/side D Dens 11.4511.0011.25

10.7510.95

5220 HR D/side D Dens 14.45 14.00 13.755410 HR 5/side Q Dens 15.75 15.35 14.955420 HR D/side Q Dens 19.65 18.95 18.45

HR denotes Hub Rings 5500HD D/side H Dens 1.6MB 29.95 28.95 27.95

HCK5 Heed Clean Kit with Fluid 13.50 13.00 12.50LC5 EGLY Library case for 10 Disks - High Quality 1.90 1.80 1.70LB40-5 ABA Lockable Box 40 Cap inc Disk Pen 12.25 11.75 11.25LB50-5 ABA Lockable Box 50 Cap inc Disk Pen 13.75 13.50 13.25LB90-5 ABA Lockable Box 90 Cap inc Disk Pen 16.50 16.00 15.50LB100-5 ABA Lockable Box 100 Cap inc Disk Pen 17.95 17.50 17.00VCK-5 Verbatim 5" Head clean kit 5.95 5.50 5.25VCD-5 Verbatim 5" H/c disks (per 10) 9.95 9.45 8.95DL -5 Disk Labels 100 (5 colours) 3.95 3.75 3.50DM -5 Disk Mailers 4 disk cap (per 100) 21.00 19.50 18.50

8" DISKSTelephone or write for very competitive prices for BASF, VERBATIM,and DYSAN disks. ABA Storage Boxes end VERBATIM Head Clean Kits.

PAP1PAP2PAPSPAP4LAB9

PAPER -LABELS11.x9.5. 60gsm 2000 Sheets Micro Perf Clean Edge 11.00 10.50A4 Bond 70gsm 2000 Sheets Micro Perf Clean Edge 16.50 15.75A4 Bond 80gsm 2000 Sheets Micro Perf Clean Edge 24.00 23.25A4 Bond 90gsm 1000 Sheets Micro Perf Clean Edge 12.50 12.0089mmx36mm 1 on web 2000 labels 7.00 6.50Many other sizes and weights of paper and labels available.

RIBBONS - PRINTWHEELS - SOFTWARE - PRINTERS

10.0015.0022.5011.506.00

Please telephone for very competitive prices on a large range of goods.

OFFICIAL ORDERS ACCEPTED FROM GOVERNMENT OR EDUCATIONAL ESTABLISHMENTS.Please contact us for Quantity Discounts (50+ boxes) and Trade Accounts.

Description Quantity Amount

Postage/Packaging (U()5.25/3.5 Disks,HCK5B" Disks , VCD8, C12

LC5,0L5,VCX5/8,VCD5,DPENLockable Box,Labels

£1 /13°.E1.3/Box.50p/pack

E2.5/Box,, ,o,...

(75p(95p(35p

(£2,,,

5*,5+,

5+,

2+,,_

Post/Pack

£5 Mao) Total exc VATES Max)£5 Max) Vat 0 15%E5 Max)

Total inc VAT..,, .,Add 30p for First Class Post

Name Tel. No.

Address

Post Code

Access/Barclaycard/Cheque No.

Telephone Orders Anytime 01-868 9548

Access

Pinner fifordpro34 CANNONBURY AVENUE PINNER [BARCLAYCARD,

MIDDX HA5 ITSVISA

SWAP MICRO TO MICRO 1FILE TRANSFER V2,4

SYSTEM

ro4:1

ro

q:/

111

11:1

kSWAP-SWAP-SWAP-SWAP-SWAP)

"Get your microcomputerstalking to each other!"

SWAP allows you to transfer any programs and data between 2computers of different manufacture. SWAP consists of 2 floppydisks and a cable configured for your 2 chosen computers. Hereare some of the formats available:

IBM PCApricotTelevideoSanyo 555

IBM CompatiblesApple (CP/M)SuperbrainDEC Rainbow

SiriusHP150BBCKaypro

If your format is not in our extensive range we can usually produce it at littleor no extra cost.

The price of SWAP is £158 (£135 plus VAT and postage and packing). Pleasespecify your computers when ordering.

MERCATOR COMPUTER SYSTEMS LTD3 Whiteladies Road, Clifton, Bristol BS8 1NU.

Telephone: (0272) 731079 1E pirkurc,Telex 44220 Comtel Ref 247 COMPUTER.SYSTENAS


Apple IIEXPAND your Apple II with these new cards from The ComputerFactory. They are designed by an ex -Apple engineer for maximumreliability, featuring gold-plated edge connectors and low -power components,

backed by a full one year warranty. Their manuals cover everything frominstallation through normal usage to programming details.

'"'" Extended 80 -Column Text Card (/ / e only)

Double the memory in your Apple / Ie to 128K RAM

PO View text in 80 columns, graphics in double resolution

IP Be compatible with Applesoft, Pascal, CP/M Use proven memory technology

£59.00

Real -Time Clock Card

O. Stamp ProDOS files with the time and date

BO Use the utility diskette with ProDOS, DOS 3.3 or Pascal

PP. Modify DOS 3.3 to stamp files with the time and dateUse Pascal PROCEDURES to read and set the clock

110 Use a hires graphics program to display and set the time

Nor Execute a background task under interrupts

Emulate other clocks E99.00

Write or ring for more information.Dealer enquiries welcome.

ComputerFactoryI I I\

Packing & postage included.

Please add 15% VAT.

051- 427 3144

The Computer Factory Ltd.38 Knowsley RoadLiverpoolLI9 OPG

Apple, Applesoft, ProDOS, DOS 3.3 are trademarks of Apple Computer Inc.

34 - circle 165 on enquiry card circle 167 on enquiry card PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

Bristol BoardsSeven -function add-on board for the IBM PC and compatibles at a fraction of the price of US -manufactured multi-function boards.

up to 384K of parity -checked memory in banks of 64K serial RS232 port (for modems, etc) parallel printer port, Epson/Centronics compatible battery -backed clock/calendar, automatically sets system date and time RAMdisk software print spooling software

Price is for OK board; add £10 for each 64K of memory.

Mono GraphicsCard

£89

Serial (RS232C standard) interface card forconnections to modems, printers, etc.

selectable baud rate - 50 to 9600 baud 5, 6, 7, 8 bit characters with 1, 11/2, 2

stop bits fully prioritized interrupt system controllable from DOS, BASIC, various

languages

Colour graphics adapter, fully compatible withBig Blue's.

Standard 80 x 25 as well as 40 x 25 textmodes

640 x 200 high -resolution mono graphicsmode

320 x 200 colour graphics mode 16 colours each foreground and back-

ground light pen interface Standard one year warranty

Combination floppy disk controller and multi-function card

controls 2 floppy disk drives parallel printer port RS232 (serial) ports battery -backed clock/calendar game port (for joystick)

MultifunctionBoard

£99

High -resolution monochrome graphics adapter with printer port directly replaces the IBM PC monochrome adapter text mode, 80 columns x 25 lines, fully compatible software -selectable high -resolution graphics mode 720h x 348v fully compatible with 1-2-3, Symphony, Reflex, other leading graphics products under 'Hercules' option manual includes advanced programming section built-in parallel printer adapter includes our standard one-year warranty

Serial Card£29

ColourGraphicsCard

£69

Multi I/OCard

£99

These boards are all available for the IBM PC, XT,, AT and compatibles. All areprovided with our standard 12 month hardware warranty: if it doesn't work, we willreplace it.

Bristol Micro Traders distribute a full range of hardware and software, including chips,boards, and drives for PC-. XT-, and AT -compatibles, as well as XT- and AT -compatibles systems.

For further information on hardware products, write to our Upgrades Group or ring uson (0272) 279499.

Volume buyers, telex 449075 or ring (0272) 298228.

We supply all Borland products, both the Turbo Pascal family and business productivitysoftware. Turbo Pascal (£49), the Database Toolbox (£39), and the Turbo Tutor (£25) areavailable for virtually all Z80 -based CP/M systems, CM/M86, MS/DOS, and PC/DOS.They will shortly be available on the Macintosh, Atari 520ST, and Amiga. Enhanced 8087and BCD versions (at £79, or £89 for both) are available for 16 -bit machines.

The Graphix Toolbox (£39), Editor Toolbox (£49), and Turbo Gameworks (£49) areavailable for the IBM PC/XT/AT and true compatibles. In addition we supply varioustools to support programming in Turbo Pascal.

Productivity products include Sidekick (£39, £59 for unprotected and Mac versions),Reflex -the Analyst (£69), and Turbo Lightning (f69).

We also distribute other programmers tools, especially those for the language C; write orring us on (0272) 279499 for more information.

Full-length RAM card, expandable to 512Kmaximum in parity -checked banks of 64K.User -selectable base address. One-yearwarranty, as with our other board products.

Please add £10 for each 64K of memory.

Interface card for IBM/Epson graphics printer,other printer using parallel (Centronics)interface.

512K RAMBoard

£49

Printer Card£19

OARDSPlease send me:

Quantity Amount

Multifunction board @£99+

Sets of 64K RAM @ £10

RAM board @ E49+

Sets of 64K RAM @ E10

Mono graphics card @ £89

Colour graphics card @ £69

Mono card (text) @ £79

Multi I/O card @ £99

Printer card @ E19

RS232 serial card g £29

Game port (2 joysticks) @ £19

Floppy controller @ £39

Hard disk controller @ £129

Hard/floppy controller

@E149

Carriage included within the UK. Else-where in Europe, add £3 per board. Out-side Europe, add E8 per board.

Carriage -

Total enclosed (UK add 15% VAT) f

Name:

Shipping Address:

City:

Postal Code:

Telephone:

Please note that these boards arecompatible with the IBM bus, andtherefore are available for the IBM PC, XT,AT and compatibles only. Where softwareis supplied, it is supplied in PC-DOS/MS-DOS format.

These products are warranteed for a full 12months. Defective RAM or boards will berepaired or replaced.

Official orders accepted from PLC's,government and education authoritiesonly. Outside UK, make payment by bankdraft payable in pounds sterling.

Send your order to: Bristol Micro Traders,Upgrades Group, Maggs House, 78Queens Road, Bristol BS8 1C1X.


35

Professionalinstrumentationwith the 1401intelligentlaboratory interfaceCompatible with: Apple, Apricot,BBC, HP, IBM, Nimbus, VAX . . .

$ Full 12 bit analogue input and output Up to 2 Mbytes of internal memory Full laboratory software - including FFTs -

is includedII Application programs including Spectrum

Analyser, Signal AveragerDesigned and made in Cam .2

Real Time ComputersScience Park, Milton Road Cambridge, CB4 4FE. Tel Cambridge (0223) 316186

er

- circle 105 on enquiry card -

Design for success with SINTROM

Instrument

Low cost/highperformance graphics

Compatible with most CAD

systemsMultiformat - AO to A4

Ex -stock availability

12 month warranty

.........

Sintrom Electronics Ltd..-..-.,

Si A Member of the Sintrom PLC Group of Companies.

IIIMIVII AOIn.. AMMON, .M. iIIIMIIN. AMOF AlWO. AOMM, IfIIIIIII M,

NMI111=1,MOW Arkwright Road, Reading, Berkshire RG2 OLS

Telephone: 0734 875464 Telex: 847395 Fax: 0734 868954

A Division of .AMETEK

Houston Instrument are one ofthe World's leadingmanufacturers of acomprehensive range ofintelligent plotters anddigitisers. Their reputation forhigh quality and great value isfounded on their consistentability to design accurate andreliable graphics peripherals atthe lowest possible cost.All Houston plotters anddigitisers are compatible withmost popular CAD systems andsoftware including AutoCAD,Racal Redac, Robocom, Lotusetc.Houston Plotters range from theAO model DMP56 for CAD anddrafting to the A4 size E595 forbusiness and educationalgraphics.Digitisers range over 11 modelsfrom the professional 42" x 60"table to the new 5" x 5" PC padfor digitising and "mouse"applications.Sintrom Electronics, as sole UKdistributor for Houston digitalproducts are able to providepre- and post -sales supportincluding on -site repair andmaintenance.So when you want to draw theline choosing your graphicsperipherals - call Sintrom.

I Dealer and OEM enquiriesI welcome.

L__I - circle 106 on enquiry card -

ASK PC

Q Please can you suggestways of making programsrun faster on an IBM PC

and explain how they work, howmuch the alterations cost, andwhether you think they are worthdoing.

C SCARLETT

AIf you are running Basicprograms with aninterpreter such as Basica

or GWBasic, then using acompiler such as Bascom willspeed them up a great deal,possibly by a factor of 15 times.

If your programs are slowbecause there are a lot of input oroutput operations, then a RAMdisc will speed it up dramatically.Loading programs like Basic,Lotus 1-2-3 or WordStar will bedone in a flash from a RAM disc,rather than the slow loading fromfloppy discs. The RAM disc doesnot actually speed up theoperation of these programs whenthey are doing calculations.

RAM disc software is providedfree by most manufacturers whenthey supply a memory extensionboard. PC -DOS version 3.0includes the Vdisk programwhich does the same job.Members pf the IBM PC UsersGroup can get RAM disc softwareon disc 42 or disc 63 for £5 pluspostage and VAT. Membershipcosts £30. The IBM PC UsersGroup is at PO Box 593, LondonSW1V 2PG.

A cheap improvement is toreplace the CPU chip by a betterone that delivers more usefulwork in a given time. NEC hasmade a V-20 chip which replacesthe 8088 chip, and the V-30 thatreplaces the 8086. These chips areclaimed to be pin and softwarecompatible to the Intel chips theyreplace, and since they run at thesame clock speed as the originalchip they will not stress any othercomponents. Observed speedimprovements seem to be up to30 percent, though there aresome more optimistic claims.

The NEC chips can beobtained from Nigel Grant,Control Alt Deli, 44 BrownDaker Court, Milton KeynesMK14 6JH. Telephone: (0908)662759. They are also suppliedby Axis Software, 42-45 NewBroad Street, London EC2M1QY. The price is around £15.

Installing the chips isstraightforward. You will need achip puller, and since the newchip is CMOS and thereforeparticularly sensitive to static youshould handle it as little as

IMPROVINGSCREENDISPLAYSQ

I have a Ferranti PC -860 which I use mainly for wordprocessing and Basic programming. The monochrome monitorI use with it flickers annoyingly when it is scrolling text. I have

heard that this can be cured by fitting a different video board, and Iwonder if at the same time I could obtain better -defined characters.Can you advise? Would I do better with colour?

AM JOHNS

The Ferranti does flicker during scrolling, as do the IBM PCand most of its clones. This flicker is most noticeable whenyou run an MS-DOS command such as Dir, or when you list a

program under Basic. It is hardly noticeable if smooth scrolling of thescreen display is handled by the program you are running, as inWordStar. Even scrolling by Basic is quite acceptable if you selectgraphics mode.

Probably the best solution is to add a third -party video board. TheHercules monochrome graphics board for the IBM PC is excellent butexpensive. It gives a graphics resolution of 720 pixels horizontally by348 pixels vertically. Characters are better formed than usual in a nine -by -14 matrix; the usual resolution for the IBM and look-alikes is only600 -by -200. The Hercules board works fine in an IBM PC, but it doesnot work in an Advance or a Ferranti or a number of other look-alikes.

The Paradise Multidisplay board has an option to switch off theblanking to reduce flicker. This works on the IBM, but I do not knowif the board will work with look-alikes. It is available from ParadiseSystems Inc., 150 North Hill Drive, Brisbane, Ca 94005, U.S.A.

Ferranti markets two alternative boards to improve the display, andplainly these are compatible with your machine. The PI -3 board givesan improved monochrome text display, but does not support graphics.The PI -5 board supports both monochrome text and graphics. ThePI -3 board can be fitted and removed later if you wish, withoutmaking any other changes to the computer. The PI -5 will also runwithout changing the computer, but it may be safer if the computer isappropriately modified by a dealer.

Increased resolution can be obtained either in monochrome or incolour by changing the video board. There are many suppliers, but becareful about compatibility - they may not work in your machine.You must also have a monitor capable of showing the improvedresolution. This route can be expensive, with the board and a suitablecolour monitor costing about £600 each. In general you will get abetter display with monochrome than in colour, unless you areprepared to pay a lot of money.

? ! ? ! ? ! ? ! ? ! ? ! ? !

possible. Fitting the new chip willinvalidate the warranty on yourcomputer, but you could refit theoriginal chip if you have anytrouble. This is a simple, cheapupgrade for most IBM PCs andlook-alikes.

Another way to speed uparithmetic calculations is to fit anarithmetic co -processor chip. The8087 chip simply plugs in to anempty socket on the motherboardof the computer, and it performsarithmetic in hardware ratherthan in software. This results inat least a threefold improvement,possibly more.

The chip works with either an

8088 or an 8086 CPU, but itrequires software that will use it.These chips cost about £150 inthe U.K. but only about $100 inthe U.S. You can contactMicroway on 01-223 7662.

If you are using a look -alikethat runs at 8MHz rather thanthe 5MHz of the IBM, make surethat you get an 8087 chip thatwill run at this speed. If you havean IBM PC/ AT, which has an80286 CPU, you will need an80287 arithmetic co -processorrather than an 8087. Be verycareful when buying an 80287.The 12MHz crystal speed in anAT is divided by two to give

6MHz for the CPU, but isdivided by three to give 4MHzfor the arithmetic co -processor.Using an 80287 will actually slowdown the machine, thoughMicroway has a 287 Turbo cardthat doubles the 80287 clockspeed to 8MHz.

Several makes of acceleratorboard are now available. Thesecards simply plug into one of theexpansion slots. One of thecheapest is the the Quadsprintfrom Interquadram; it doublesthe speed and costs between £500and £600. The Quadsprint worksby using a 10MHz 8086 CPUchip, and we have used one for ayear without any problems.Others such as the PC Expressfrom Intelligence Research, PCAccelerator from Saturn, Turbofrom Orchid, and the NumberSmasher board from Microwaygive speed improvements of 2.5to four times. Prices are in theregion of £1,000. They have10MHz CPU chips - either8086, 80186 or 80286 - and use16 -bit addressing. The NumberSmasher can have an 8087 chip aswell.

A more drastic and expensivesolution is to replace themotherboard in the computerwith a new one with an 80286CPU chip. This provides at leastthree times the performance, andmay be tweaked to run at a clockspeed of 8MHz or 10MHz ratherthan the 6MHz in the PC/AT, sothese motherboards outperformthe IBM PC/AT by a substantialmargin.

Several manufacturers makereplacement motherboards.Wavemate produces one calledthe PC -Bullet, claimed to be ninetimes faster than an IBM PC and65 percent faster than an AT.Wavemate Inc. is at 14009Crenshaw Boulevard, Hawthorne,Ca 90250, U.S.A.

A similar product, the Atlasboard, comes from Red RiverTechnology Inc., DFW West,4001 West Airport FreewayBedford, Texas 76021, U.S.A. Itis available both in kit form at$795, or as 8MHz or 10MHzassembled boards at $1,495 and$2,395 respectively.

Other replacement boardsinclude the Shuttle AT board,which costs $595 from IBSCorporation, 2700 E ImperialHighway, Building A, Brea, Ca92621, U.S.A. The PhoenixPfaster board comes fromPhoenix Computer Products, 320Norwood Park South, Norwood,Ma 02062, U.S.A.

In "Ask PC" John and Timothy Lee answer questions on any area of microcomputing. If you have a nagging problem, write to us, marking ASK PC clearly on

the top left-hand corner of the envelope. Letters should contain one question only. We cannot guarantee a personal reply, but to be considered your lettermust include

your name and address, together with a stamped addressed envelope. The most representative questions of general interest will be answered and published.


Multi-user networking in style

The designers of Minstrel 4were given a simple brief:

produce a world-beating, cost-effective and practical multi-usersystem.

And do it with style.

Minstrel power -801 13 6 master and HTS 186dual processor slaves.

They passed the latter test withflying colours. But looks aren'teverything. Inside this beautifullyengineered chassis, you'll find aclose coupled Turbo DOSt networkthat holds the key to all your multi-user computer projects.

Now, and for the future.Minstrel 4 is a multiprocessor

machine-every user of the systemgets a DEDICATED CPU and 512 KbRAM. This virtually eliminates theresponse time degradation youoften find on timeshareminicomputers and so-calledsupermicros.

Minstrel 4 is more powerfulthan most minis, even in its mostbasic state. You can start with twousers, but a full blown 16 usersystem will give you 9 MBytesdynamic RAM and 17 CPUs with80186 instruction sets, runningconcurrently at 8 MHz. With that

Minstrel design -fast tape back-up for safety andconvenience.

urba.Registered trademark of Software 2000 Inc

he newMinstrel

4

Minstrel workstations- come complete withunction keys and business graphics potential

sort of power, we're confident thatyou won't run out of steam.

Minstrel 4 has unprecedentednetworking capability. TheWinchester controller has built inARCnet. You can network IBM PCs,ATs, Apricots, Olivettis and alllookalikes if required. Gateways toIBM and ICL mainframes areavailable. Most important, you cannetwork Minstrel 4s together- 255of them to be precise.

IBM/PC isa trademark of International Business Machines IncApricot is a trademark of Apricot plcMS DOS isa trademark of MicrosoftMinstrel isa registered trademark of HM Systems LimitedArcnet isa trademark of Datapoint IncOlivetti is a trademark of Olivetti

Minstrel 4 supports CP/M,MP/M, MS DOS (including version3.1 with file and record locking) andhas PC DOS emulation, so you canrun nearly all the popular businesspackages.

You can even network stand-alones into theMinstrel System, using Minstrel ARC net cards.

Storage capacity is onlylimited by your budget. A singleMinstrel 4 holds up to 160 MBytesformatted disk capacity, withonboard streaming back-up of upto 60 MBytes. Direct memoryaccess means you can download 20MBytes onto tape in less than 4minutes. Higher capacity drivescan be supplied.

A two user Minstrel 4 system,complete with tape back-up andterminals will cost you less than£7,000. Additional workstations,just over £1,000 per user, a price/performance package you'll findunbeatable.

At last there is a seriousalternative to the minicomputer,with the sort of costs and flexibilityyou'd associate with a micro. It'scalled Minstrel 4, and you shouldfind out more about it. Write or callus for details.

With Minstrel, expansion is integral, not anafterthought.

HM Systems Limited, 220 The Vale, London NWI I 8HZTelephone: (01) 209-0911 Telex: 266828 -HMS G Easylink: 19001060

HM SystemsDesigned and built in Britain.


39

MEKOM FIRST AND FOREMOST FOR CANON LASER PRINTERS, FEEDERS AND CANON

foAn office can be a bit like a battlefield at times.

You've got the troops -sorry staff -but they'repinned down by an armoury of 'weapons' thatdon't measure up to the job any more.

Though your highly trained staff continue tobattle valiantly against these odds the outcome isa foregone conclusion -you lose.

An office needs a heavyweight performer. Onewith enough punch to overcome the paperworkbefore it over -runs you.

The answer is the triple combination of theCanon LBP-8 Laser printer, the B.D.T. Laser -Feeder to keep it well supplied with ammunitionand a word processing software programme tohandle the strategy of your campaign.

Canon's Laser printer advances at a speed of8 pages a minute but is so quiet you'll hardlyknow it's there. The three basic typefaces ofnormal, bold and italic effectively double tosix with facilities for enlarging the textsideways, vertically or in both directions atthe same time.

Further impact is available by deploying itsreverse, shading and underlining forces.

Canon's ability to cover the ground when it comesto handling an army of mail is matched only by thecapacity of the B.D.T. Laser -Feeder to keep itwell supplied with both paper and envelopes.

The feeder tackles 400 sheets of paper at atime together with 50 envelopes. Between thetwo they feed, print and collate an office full ofcorrespondence with precision that would passthe stiffest inspection.

The tactics behind that precision are foundwithin the Wordcraft word processing softwareprogramme. Already posted within majorcompanies, government offices and centres oflearning both in the UK and throughout theworld, the system affords an uncomplicatedtransfer from outdated typewriter keyboards.Used with an existing computer system it is fullyintegrated with the Canon LBP-8.

Behind this arsenal of office equipment is acommander with the reputation as the UK'sforemost distributor. Mekom enlists only thebest for their customers, so if you would like to

PERSONAL COMPUTER SYSTEMS AND SOFTWARE- circle 108 on enquiry card

find out more about whatmakes a winning team thenjust clip out the couponand discover more aboutrecruiting the latesttechnologyto yourside.

411 _MP MID MP MbMO00041/ MO 00000000000 0040 00 4=b

Computer Products LimitedHead Office:

Enfield Hall, Enfield Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 1QA.Telephone: 021-454 2288.

Giltspur House, 6 Giltspur Street, London EC1A 9DE.Telephone: 01-248 1711.

Please complete and return to: Mekom Computer Products Limited,Enfield Hall, Enfield Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 1QA.

Name

Position

Company

Address

Telephone

I I

Please contact me to arrange an immediate demonstration of theCanon LBP-8. My computer system is:

I I

Please contact me immediately to arrange a demonstration ofcomplete Laser Printing System comprising Canon A200 MicroComputer, Canon laser LBP-8 and "Wordcraft Laser" software.

I'd also like to know more about other Mekom Products.Olivetti Daisywheel Canon A200 P.C.& Dot Matrix Printers.

44

We'll sell you a 20 megabyte hard disk for £995- and throw in the computer for free.

Bristol Micro Traders have been selling 20 MBhard disk upgrade kits for £549 for some time,but we've noticed that the competition is stillcharging nearly a thousand pounds for the sameproduct. (We won't even mention the prices fromBig Blue!) So we decided that for this specialoffer we would match their prices - but add alittle value.

Included with the 20MB upgrade kit is our Micro20, a full IBM PC compatible, running all of thestandard software (Flight Simulator, 1-2-3,Sidekick, Framework, etc), and the usualhardware accessories as well. It's so compatiblethat you can use it with IBM's PC/DOS, as wellas MS/DOS and CP/M86.

It's a complete system, supplied with keyboard,monochrome monitor, printer port, 360K floppydisk drive, and documentation.

And it's a full-size system, with a heavy dutypower supply and 8 expansion slots.

We're sure you'll agree that above all, it's anamazing bargain.

XT -Compatible20 Megabytes

£995How can we do this at such a low price? BristolMicro Traders buy and sell in volume. We bringin parts from all over the world, test and assem-ble the resulting kit here in the West Country -and then sell directly to you. We don't buy frommiddlemen, and we don't sell through middle-men - so you don't have to pay for their adver-tising budgets and expensive High Street storefronts.

Maintenance. A delicate subject. We dothoroughly test drives and systems before ship-ping them out, but should the unthinkable occur,we also provide a full twelve month parts andlabour warranty on the entire system. Alterna-tively, you will find that the PC compatible hasbecome such a standard that trained repairmenare found on every High Street, and machinescan be serviced through nationwide maintenanceorganizations.

How do you order one? Give us a ring on (0272)279499. Send an order to Bristol Micro Traders,Systems Group, Maggs House, 78 Queens Road,Bristol BS8 1QX. Or just stop in and chat withour sales staff. We look forward to hearing fromyou.

The Bristol Micro 20 system includes 256K RAM, expandable to 640K on the

motherboard one 360K floppy drive 20 megabyte hard disk drive monochrome monitor parallel printer port keyboard heavy duty power supply 8 expansion slots provision for up to two floppy drives and

up to two hard drives

lei(0272) 279499

Telex 449075

42

IBM is a registered trademark of IBM Corporation, Reflex, of Borland,Analytica, Inc


PEGASUS ACCOUNTING SYSTEMSIBM PCXT*640K Ram*360K Floppy Drive*10Mb Hard Disk*Mono Screen*NLQ High Speed Printer*Four PEGASUS modules*Box of 10 disks*Box of paper*Printer stand

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OLIVETTI M24*640K Ram*360K Floppy Drive*10Mb Hard Disk*Mono Screen*NLQ High Speed Printer*Four PEGASUS modules*Box of 10 disks*Box of paper*Printer stand

APRICOT X110S*640K Ram*360K Floppy Drive*10Mb Hard Disk*Mono Screen*NLQ High Speed Printer*Four PEGASUS modules*Box of 10 disks*Box of paper*Printer stand

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IBM PC COMPATIBLE*640K Ram0360K Floppy Drive*10Mb Hard Disk*Mono Screen*NLQ High Speed Printer*Four PEGASUS modules*Box of 10 disks*Box of paper*Printer stand

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*FREE INSTALLATION AND TRAINING*FREE ON -GOING TELEPHONE SUPPORT*LEASING AVAILABLE

FT COMPUTER SERVICES01-519 5727 01-519 5811

ConsultancyFull Systems DevelopmentMaintenance

(All prices exclusive of VAT)

No. 6 The Office Village, 4 Romford Road, London

ProgrammingTrainingEquipment Rental

E15 4EA


HOW MUCH WOULD YOUPAY FORA PRINTERWITH

ALL THESE FEATURES? HIGH SPEED - 300 cps (draft) 50 cps (NLQ)

INTERFACES - Standard parallel andserial interfaces

COMPATIBLE modes for IBM® and Epson®

DETACHABLE tractor and cut -sheet holder

AUTOMATIC - cut -sheet loading and ejection

REAR AND BOTTOM fanfold paper loading

VARIETY of character sets and graphicsavailable

DOWNLOADABLE character sets

10k BUFFER as standard

COLOUR UPGRADE option, clip -on kit

£1800? £1500? £1000? £750?Well, just turn the page...

IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machine Corporation. BI Epson is s registered trademark of Seiko Epson Corporation.

PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986- circle 111 on enquiry card -

,MMIIMM

.41111111.. 111 mamia

=1111111,..IN /MOW 'INNER

Wm- MIDOWIIIIIW

High Resolution High PerformanceColour Graphics or

Frame Grabbing

Digisolve manufacture a range of highperformance graphics displays that are used in theVideo, CAD/CAM, Process Control, Educational andImageing fields, with resolutions from 512 x 512 to1376 x 1024 in 64, 256, 4N, 64K and 16Mcolours at pixel draw rates of 1M pixels per second.

Our family of products are supported on manycomputers with a broad range of software, contactour Sales Office for more details or a demonstration.

Digisolve Ltd.Aire & Calder Works, Cinder LaneCastleford, W Yorks WF10 1LUTel: 0977 513141. Telex: 557661 AGRAM

ContinuStat Computer Supplies

Experts in Continuous Specialists in MediaStationery Supplies

SURREY BRANCH:First floor, The Parade,Frimley, Camberley.

V (0276) 29719 & 685205

DISKS

SUSSEX BRANCH:Unit 33, The Forum,Stirling Road,Chichester.'472 (0243) 788707.

(BASF means security, quality and reliability)

51" BASF SS/DD £1.68 each (1DMXV)51" BASF DS/DD £2.03 each (2DPVX)51" BASF SS/QD £2.11 each (1/96KV)51" BASF SS/QD £2.48 each (2/96RXV)31" BASF DS/DD £3.00 each (3.5XXX)51" BASF SS/DD £1.68 each (1 DMXV)

*FREE FLOPPY DISK PEN WITH ALL ORDERS OVER £10*

LISTING PAPER (60gsm woodfree - top quality)

Green Music Ruled 11" x 141" £1.25 per 100 sheetsPlain with perf. margins 11" x 91" £1.00 per 100 sheets

LABELS (sprocket fed - carrier web)

Self adhesive - 1 across - 31" x 1 5/16" £3.75 per 500Self adhesive -2 across - 31" x 1 5/16 £4.00 per 500

All prices include postage & packing.All prices exclusive of VAT. Telephone enquiries welcome.


Which Computer?Computer?When you need facts not fantasy talk to Alliance.

We've a reputation for straight talk and plain dealing.If you're looking for hardware we'll advise on systems and PC's offering the bestprices you'll find on Epson. Victor. Apricot. Brother and other top nameequipment plus we'll guarantee the best of aftersales service.

We can supply 'off the shelf' software from Pegasus. Sage. Lotus. Delta Wordcraftand many others or we'll design 'bespoke' packages to suit your requirements.

Our backup facilities include the supply of a comprehensive range of consumablesand training programmes tailored to your needs.

For more information and an understandable chat ring Derek or Janet now,

Alliance ComputersAlliance Computers Limited, Brookfields Industrial ParkWerrington. Peterborough PE4 6LA Tel: 0733 77100

44 -* circle 112 on enquiry card 4 - circle 114 on enquiry card 4 -PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

CAMEL PRODUCTS FOR BBC C-64 QL SPECTRUM STAND ALONE

0cca_LU

U)

a.

Occ

1

JufiertativeEPROM PROGRAMMER, BLOPROM-RS* For micros with an RS 232 port. Either polarity RTS/CTS.

* Fully intelligent uP based unit. Short Basic listing for micro supplied.* Baud rates: 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600.* EPROM types: 2516-32-64, 2716-32-64-128-256-512, 513, 2732A -64A -128A* Functions: CHECK, READ, BLOW, VERIFY, CRC (RAM/EPROM)* Programming modes: SMART, FAST and EXTRA FAST

Special Features:

* Reverse device protection* System activity indicator LED* Safe break Panic Button* 110V/60Hz option

And now the SURPRISE! Price 449951 User Notes incl. short Microsoft Basic program for screen prompts etc.

Converted programs on disk/uDrive for IBM-PC, BBC, Apple, QL,Spectrum. £9.95 + VAT.

MULTEPROM an 8 gang copier for 2716 thru' 27128. Requires a ZX81 but no power pack orRAM pack. £199.95All prices in £. U.K. 15% VAT extra, P&P free. Europe P&P 5%. Overseas P&P + 10%, no VAT.BB -PROM 29.95 Q -PROM 69.95 Q -CART 5.95 Q. -CENT 26.04 BB -CENT CABLE 8.65 PROM -64 34.75 64 -CART 5.95 DHOBI-118.95, DHOBI-2 22.95 MULTEPROM 199.95 ROM -SP 29.95 PROMER-SP 29.95 PROMER-81S 24.95 BLOPROM-SP 89.95 CRAMIC-SP 89.95 PRINT -SP 31.25 POLYPRINT 44.95 PIO-SP 18.50 NIKE SP/AT 81 17.35 NIKE -Q Phone DREAM -81 59.95MEMIC-81 29.95 ROM -81 14.95 PROMER-81 24.95 P10-81 14.95

BLOPROM-RS

MULTEPROM

Cambridge Microelectronics Ltd. - One Milton Rd., CAMBRIDGE CB9 lUY. Tel. (0223) 314 814. TLX: 81574 CML

BLOPROM-SP CRAMIC-SP POLYPRINT NIKE-SP/AT/81 PIO-SP P10-81

0

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CML is a MAPCON Approved Consultancy. We convert your ideas into products, ON SCHEDULE, ON BUDGET, ON TIME.

circle 115 on enquiry card 4-

£499 including VAT!The new Seikosha MP1300AI

-a revolution in priceand performance.

The MP Series is the latest in the Seikosha range of NLQ dot-matrix printers,crammed full with features far in advance of their nearest competitors.

For less than £500 - and that includes VAT - the MP1300AI offers not just highspeed (300 cps Draft and 50 cps NLQ) but high -quality printing designed to meetall the needs of today's business user.

In fact, with just its standard features, the MP1300AI represents a completebreakthrough in value for money. Include its capability for upgrading to colourwith the optional "clip on/clip off" kit, and you have a truly versatile printer.

But don't just take our word for it. Rush along to your local computer dealerand find out for yourself why the Seikosha MP is a brilliant addition to theSeikosha BP and SP Series of quality printers.

For details for your nearest stockist, just contact DDL, exclusive distributor ofthe Seikosha range.

Available shortly: Cut -sheet feeder and MP5300Al (15" version).

5 King. Ride Park,Ascot Berks. SL5 8BPTel: 0990 28921

Telex: 846303 DD LTD G.

THE FORCE IN DISTRIBUTION

PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986 circle 116 on enquiry card - 45

Why spend £1000 on an ordinary NLQ printerwhen you can have this type for £600?

The new LQ800 and LQ1000 printers from Epson offerthe best print quality ever available from dot-matrix printers.

Indeed, they produce the sharpest print for any printersunder £1000. (Prices start at only £595 + VAT for the LQ800.)

You may think all this sounds rather big -headed. Andyou'd be right.

The LQ800 and LQ1000 print heads each have 24 pins(as opposed to the standard 9) arranged in a new pattern tocreate a far better definition of character.

Both printers produce an enormous variety of printstyles at impressive speeds (180 c.p.s. in draft, 60 c.p.s. inletter -quality mode).

Both have IBM -compatibility options and provide serialas well as parallel interfaces as standard.

Both come with a 7K buffer as standard (32K optional).And of course, both the LQ800 and LQ1000 are every

bit as reliable as you'd expect Epson printers to be.If you'd like to learn more, get something sharp and clip

the coupon.

EPSON

The quality certainly looks grand. Please tell me more aboutthe LQ800 and LQ1000.

Name

Company

Address

Telephone KPC 2

To: Epson (UK) Ltd., Dorland House, 388 High Road, Wembley,Middlesex, HA9 6UH. Tel: 01-902 8892.


47

The NewMT 85/86 printersare as Quiet as a...

Take a listen to the new MT85 andMT86 serial matrix printers.

They're amazingly quiet. Which makestheir performance definitely somethingto shout about.

The MT85 is a compact 80 columnprinter, while the MT86 offers a full 136column width. Both print high speeddraft output at 180 cps. And high quality

correspondence at 45 cps in varioustypestyles. Then there's compressed,expanded and bold print for even morevariety. And of course graphics.

Flexibility doesn't stop there either.Both printers take continuous fan foldand single sheet stationery in theirstride. And they're totally compatible viaplug-in interface modules-IBM PC

and Apple Macintosh included.The new MT85 and MT86 from

Mannesmann Tally. Europe's leadingmatrix printer manufacturer.

The quiet revolution in print.Contact us now for our literature pack.

AS 1vay MANNESMANNTALLY

MANNESMANN TALLY LIMITED, MOLLY MILLARS LANE, WOKINGHAM, BERKSHIRE, RG11 20T TELEPHONE (0734) 788711

BM PC and Apple Macintosh are registered trademarks.

circle 118 on enquiry card -Tr 24 HOUR PERSONALLY ANSWERED FREEPHONE 0800 400 402.

ANYONE thinking of buying acomputer for business use is besetby a host of problems. It is not justa matter of deciding whichmachine to buy and what softwareto run. People with little or noexperience in computing do notrealise the impact a computer canhave on a business, beneficial orotherwise. Left alone with theirnew computer there are a numberof other sources they can turn to forhelp: magazines, dealers, advicecentres, other users - and books.

One book to help first-timeusers is Frank Blewett's Beginner'sGuide to Microcomputers inBusiness. It is intended for peoplerunning a business who arethinking of buying a micro, andfor executives in larger companieswho need to use one. The authorvisited local businesses, providingguidance on behalf of thePolytechnic of North London'smicro advice centre, and this first-hand experience as an agony uncleis apparent; his book is full ofsound, easy to understand advice.

It is cheap, compact and clearlywritten with a chapter on each ofthe most popular applications forbusiness micros. To help explainan application Blewett con-centrates on one or two well-known software packages.Illustrations are in the form ofscreen shots and sample output.For example, in the section onword processing he cites WordStarto help describe facilities such aswordwrap, and Microsoft Word tointroduce the concept of windows.Similarly, he uses Multiplan as anexample of a spreadsheet.

But Blewett places such appli-cations in a larger context too. Hepoints out that word processingcan have its disadvantages, suchas the noise generated by adaisywheel printer. He explainsthat a spreadsheet has only alimited set of functions and cannotcope with large models, and thatin such instances it is reasonable toopt for a financial -modellingpackage. He also gives advice onhow to go about buying hardwareand software, together with arough guide to prices.

Blewett not only tackles theproblem of the kit you buy, he alsorealises that people are involved inany business and that they toopresent a dilemma. He points outthat by installing a new system youmay have to deal with staff who donot like the changes made; youmay lose control if your staffunderstand the system and youdon't, and there is a need to makea concerted effort to get to gripswith computing to get the best outof it. If you want a book to adviseyou on why you need a micro, whatis best to choose, how it works and

Ett

tiittil NE/fit. (14111. f it

MERLIN TONTOtitopheri Morn.

NiANAGINGANIII %VITHUI.EYOUR BUSINESS

APRICOT

DOWN TOBUSINESSRunning a business but troubled by techno-fear? Carol Hammond looks at some newbooks which will set you right.

when to upgrade, together with auseful glossary of computer termsand suggestions for furtherreading, this fits the bill.

Henry Horenstein and EliotTarlin's The Business ComputerGuide is also intended for thosechoosing a personal computer forbusiness use. This book cameabout because one of the authorswanted to buy a personal computerbut could not find a book that toldhim everything he needed to knowabout one. This guide is his answerto the problem.

The book was originallypublished in the U.S. but I did notfind its Americanisms particularlyintrusive. It is divided into twoparts: the first five chapters areexplanatory, and the sixth is acatalogue of products. The authorsexplain the main application areasof a micro, with worked examplesin each case. For example, theyshow how to use a word processorto amend a CV. They describewhat various pieces of hardwareare, how they work and how theyshould be looked after. They alsogive extensive guidelines on how toselect a personal computer, eventaking into account how best tobenefit tax -wise, and where toposition your micro best for yourhealth once you have bought it.

The catalogue of products is

somewhat out of date, as youwould expect, but it is still useful.It gives the specification of aproduct, comments on itsadvantages and disadvantages,gives a price guide, and places

a product within a particularcategory. Each section is prefacedby advice on what to considerwhen buying that type of product.

The book is illustrated with linedrawings, screen shots and sampleoutput. It is clearly laid out, easy toread and offers useful appendiceson further reading, programminglanguages and information servicessuch as Telecom Gold, completewith addresses. It is worth buyingif you are a beginner.

Andrew Leigh's UnderstandingManagement Software also fallsinto two parts. The first givesadvice on how to understand andselect management software whilethe second reviews 30 softwarepackages, giving a managementverdict similar to our own PCVerdict for each package.

Leigh's book is aimed atmanagers who are trying to makethe transition to turning the officemicro into a useful personal tool,rather than using it as part of alarge office system. As a work-ing manager himself, Leighsympathises with the problemsof the harassed manager. Heattempts to sweep aside the ideathat a manager should waste his orher time getting to know about thehardware. He says: "Surroundedby other incomprehensiblegadgetry, the CPU lives inside themain heavy box that you usuallythink of as the computer. In factthe CPU is not much bigger than acouple of large postage stamps andis thinner than a folded copy ofThe Times. To be fair to the

BOOKREVIEWS

computer fanatics, all that internalmish-mash could be madecomprehensible. But there are notenough hours in the day, so whybother?" In his jokey way, Leighmakes a valid point, but if I were abusy manager I would find it tire-some and unnecessarily timeconsuming to read this sort ofadvice.

This book is less attractive inappearance than any of the othersmentioned so far, and has fewillustrations. The review section isquite useful, though suchinformation can go out of date veryquickly.

Kathy and Terry Lang haveproduced two books for businesspeople who are planning to buy orare already using micros. Thebooks are identical in all but themicros they deal with. Managingyour Business with the IBM PC andManaging your Business with theApricot are very clearly laid outand well organised. The authorsconcentrate on explaining how youcan learn to get the best out of yourmachine. They explain how tocarry out everyday tasks efficiently,and provide checklists to measurepackages against to see which isthe best candidate for yourrequirements.

There are sections on PC -DOSand MS-DOS, where appropriate,with advice on how to use youroperating system to help you, andhow to protect yourself againstcommon mistakes. The authorsalso give a rundown on assessingand buying supplies and training,when to opt for adds-ons likeclocks, calendars and extra mem-ory, and how to use email tocommunicate with other users.

Unlike the other booksmentioned so far, the Langs'offerings enter the field ofprogramming, giving a simpleprogram in Basic and suggestingwhich programming language touse for what purpose. They profferadvice on when to have a programwritten for you rather than usingan off -the -shelf package.

Both books are illustrated withscreen shots, photographs and line



B

American. I found its tenor tooAmerican for my taste and phraseslike "What the heck" jarring. It isprobably most useful as a referencebook rather than something toread from cover to cover. If you doplough through to the end you willbe rewarded with a section whichexamines what philosphers andsociologists have to say aboutcomputers and their effect onsociety.

There is bizarre

checklists which you can use whenyou come to buy a package. This isfollowed by reference sections onnominal, purchase and salesledgers which detail what eachcomputerised ledger is, the pro-cesses involved and the facilitiesthey offer. It is a slim, well-organised book, complete withdiagrams, which should appeal toaccountants.

Another book for a specialistis Stephen Morris's Business

how the Xchange programs work,and provides examples of appli-cations that can be run on theTonto. These include stockcontrol, invoicing, accounting,analysis and forecasting, planningand scheduling. For example, inthe chapter on accounts it relateshow you can do a VAT returnusing Abacus.

There are plenty of illustrations,including screen shots and sample

ASCII

REVIEWSo"Computereven one piece

n films which mentions ET:technology was not

areaComputing on the Merlin Tonto,which was produced in association

output, plus appendices ofcodes and a glossary of terms. ForTonto users this makes an in -


drawings. They are more advanced

mentioned specifically, buttechnicians were certainly given apretty good ribbing." What I was

with British Telecom BusinessSystems. It explains in great detail

valuable companion to the userguide. PC

in their subject matter than the most surprised to discover was that DOWN TO BUSINESSother books mentioned, and areprobably best suited for someonewho already owns a machine butcould be made more aware of itsfull potential.

Myles E Walsh's UnderstandingComputers also attempts a crashcourse in programming in Basic. Itis divided into three sections:hardware, data processing andsystem software, and applications.It covers a wide range, attemptingto explain CAD/CAM and emailwhile providing an applicationdevelopment story to show howa small computer applicationdevelops.

It is very thick and veryr

there were two computers on theStarship Enterprise of Star Trekfame, one of which was the half-human, half -Vulcan Mr Spock. I

wonder that Mr Walsh hasn't beenbeamed up for expressing suchsentiments.

Gary Simon's ChoosingAccounting Software for yourMicrocomputer moves into a

specialist area. A charteredaccountant, Simon aims to helpyou go about choosing accountingsoftware. He explains how youshould work out your accountingrequirements and then what youwant from the software.

There is a large section of

Beginner's Guide to Managing your BusinessMicrocomputers in Business with the Apricot by Kathy andby Frank Blewett. Published by Terry Lang. Published by Holt,Newnes Technical Books, 160 Rinehart and Winston, 142 pages,pages, £4.95. ISBN 0 408 01527 6 £8.95. ISBN 0 03 910662 4The

Business Computer Managing your BusinessGuide by Henry Horenstein and with the IBM PC by Kathy andEliot Tarlin. Published by Sunshine Terry Lang. Published by Holt,Books, 196 pages, £8.95. Rinehart and Winston, 142 pages,ISBN 0 7181 2486 3 £8.95. ISBN 0 03 910661 6Understanding Choosing AccountingManagement Software by Software for yourAndrew Leigh. Published by Microcomputer by Gary Simon.Macmillan, 286 pages, £11.50. Published by Collins, 130 pages,ISBN0 333 40946 9 £7.95. ISBN 0 00 383006 3Understanding Computers Business Computing on theby Myles E Walsh. Published by Merlin Tonto by Stephen Morris.John Wiley, 434 pages, £29.15. Published by Century, 192 pages,ISBN 0 471 80476 2 £12.95. ISBN 0 09 161671 9

YOU KNOW WHAT YOU WANT. NOW WHERE DO YOU BUY IT?

11

OSIRISMICRO BROKERS

O.K. You've arrived at what you want but whatnext? You could go to any number of dealers butwouldn't you prefer a specialist buying servicethat would act on your behalf. Saving you time,trouble and money.

Talk to Osiris. We'll find you the best pricesin the U.K. Arrange rentals or provide finance.

Buy your software or have it written for you.Select and negotiate your maintenance contract.Locate the most suitable training courses for youand your staff.

In short, give you a service that's second tonone. Call us and discover Britain's first . . .

COMPLETE BUYING SERVICE FOR THE PC USER

50

30 Rivermeads Avenue, Twickenham, Middlesex TW2 5JJ. Telephone: (01) 894 22821892 7618

- circle 119 on enquiry card - PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

ile di t

Document

Urite - (Untitled)Search Character Paragraph Bit*ap

in 5.6 seconds

lMETt7r tFTZ

RM NIMBUS NETWORKACTION STATIONS

Local Area Networks for micro-:omputers have promised much in theshort time since they were introduced.shared software and peripherals.Communal access to a large centralmemory store. More work stations forless money.

But promises don't make workingwstems.

The truth is, it takes a special breed)f computer to run a 64 station network.Extra -fast running speeds. Additionalmemory to hold the network operating,oftware. Special network interfaces.

Unlike other `networkable' systems,Nimbus was designed from the start forletworking. With its 80186, 8MHzmicroprocessor and minimum 512K

RAM, Nimbus gives you fast processing,stunning graphics and the capacity tohandle the Microsoft Networks**operating system with plenty in hand.And the Nimbus Network becomesmore economical the more youdemand of it - right up to 64 stations.

Ask to see the Nimbus Network inaction. And like thousands of our users,you'll agree that Nimbus is the naturalchoice.

For further information contactResearch Machines, Mill Street, OxfordOX2 OBW. Tel: Oxford (0865) 248489or Sheila Lester on (0865) 249866.

*Time taken to send 700 word report to 64stations on the Nimbus Network

mmisesue j' '0smannoommummomm.

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MICROCOMPUTER SYSTEMS

- circle 120 on enquiry card - c

PREVIEW

OLIVETTI M-22THE GROWN-UP PORTABLEBy Glyn Moody .

Display and processortechnologies have beendeveloped to the point whereportable IBMulators are agenuinely usable proposition.Olivetti's machine promisesall this and more.

A, Practical Computing we havealways considered Olivetti's M-24to be the best of the value-added

IBM clones. Understandably, the companyhas been content to reap the maximumbenefit from this product, and has held backfrom further launches. Olivetti has pro-duced just one minor upgrade, the M-24SPreviewed in the January issue.

But the market has moved on. Recog-nising this, Olivetti has finally launchedthree new machines: the M-19, a low -endIBMulator; the M-28, an AT clone; and theM-22 portable reviewed here.

It is probably no coincidence that theportable has made its appearance at the timethat the major U.S. Internal Revenue Servicecontract for just such a machine was out totender. As it turned out, the contract wentto Zenith, but it seems likely that the M-22was a candidate, entered under the aegis ofOlivetti's American partner and part owner,AT&T.

It is also likely that AT&T will market theportable in the U.S. at some stage. Olivettireckons that AT&T sold some 200,000 of itsM -24s in 1985 - half of the total sales. Anymachine with this kind of backing would be

interesting, but the M-22 has enough virtuesof its own to merit attention.

It is a battery portable with a back -litLCD, one 5.25in. floppy, and a basic 256Kof RAM. Memory can be expanded to1Mbyte, up to 360K of which can be con-figured as a silicon disc. Other expansionoptions include a 10Mbyte Winchester, upto two proprietary cards and one full-lengtheight -bit IBM expansion card. There are two80088 processor chips, one of which handlesthe screen and the built-in PersonalWindows desk utilities. Prices are likely tostart at under £1,800.

Although the unit is not small, it is slimand easily manoeuvrable. It weighs 7.5kg.The casing is built in the fashionable flip -top style, where the screen closes over thekeyboard. The disc drive is on the right-hand side. In the base of the unit there is thehandle which swings out of its recess.

WINCHESTERThe M-22 will run on Nicad batteries also

housed in the base of the unit. They providearound 12 hours of normal use. Olivettisupplies a mains unit with the machine,which can be used to provide power directand to recharge the batteries. With thebatteries removed, it is possible to install aremovable 10Mbyte Winchester.

At the top of the machine towards theback there is a full-size IBM expansioncavity. The outputs from the card emerge tothe left. A hinged flap at the back of themachine folds down to provide support forthe main unit and the correct angling for thekeyboard. Behind it there are serial and par -

SYSTEM CONTROLTimeDateSpeaker volumeLCD BacklightSerial OutputSilicon DiskBattery Date

PRINTER CONTROLPortCharacter SotLines per PageTop MarginLino Spacing

PERSONAL 4INDCw5Ver. 1.0

12:00:00 amJan 1. 1980

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Protect Kelp Text Yes

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Personal Windows' main setup window where you can assign a drive to the silicon disc.

SPECIFICATIONCPU: 80088 running at 4.77MHzRAM: 256K, expandable to 1MbyteROM: 96K, including BIOS, diagnosticsand Personal WindowsDimensions: 410mm.(16.1in.) x91mm. (3.6in.) x 344mm. (13.5in.)Weight: 7.5kg.(16.51b.) withoutbatteriesDisplay: green back -lit LCD; 80 by 25text, 640 by 200 graphics, four shades ofgreyKeyboard: QWERTY with dualnumeric pad/cursor blockMass storage: one 5.25in. 360Kfloppy; optional 10Mbyte hard disc; 360Ksilicon disc can be configured from RAMInterfaces: RS -232, Centronics, twoOlivetti interfaces, one full-length IBMeight -bit card slotSoftware in price: MS-DOS 2.11;Personal WindowsPrice: likely to be under £1,800Manufacturer: made in Hong Kongfor OlivettiU.K. distributor: British Olivetti,Olivetti House, PO Box 89, 86-88 UpperRichmond Road, London SW15 2UR.Telephone: 01-785 6666.Available: autumn 1986

allel ports, an Olivetti mouse port and thepower socket.

The screen is a back -lit LCD of advanceddesign. Its overall surface area is very close tothat of a conventional VDU. The charactersare well formed and very legible. My onlycomplaint is that there seems to be a slightpersistence as text scrolls. The back -lightingunit has to be replaced from time to time,but this can be done by the user. The mainprocessors and memory are housed in thescreen unit, not in the main box. A slightlynoisy cooling fan is fitted to the main box,presumably to cool add-ons.

The keyboard is a new design fromOlivetti. Its feel is lighter and more rattlythan the ideal, but not unacceptably so.What is less forgivable is the tiny right-handShift key. It is so close to the far larger

52PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

III PREVIEW

Two plus points of the Olivetti M-22 are its dear back -lit LCD screen and its ability to use a hard disc.

Return key that I found myself constantlyentering Carriage Returns by mistake. Aswell as a numeric pad doubling as cursorcontrols, there are 10 function keys, groupedrather curiously in threes and twos - appar-ently another legacy of the AT&Tconnection - and an additional PersonalWindows key.

Personal Windows is a proprietary desk-top utility which is resident in ROM. It isavailable at any point, whether you havebooted up or not, just by pressing the specialkey. Personal Windows has two main uses.First it provides you with a range of simpledesk -top functions. These include a memopad, a To Do scheduler, a diary, an expensesledger, an address book, notepad, calendarand calculator. All of them are rudimentary.For example there is no check on whethertimes are valid for the scheduler, the addressbook does not automatically sort for you,and the ledger has no £ sign.

A novel option available from PersonalWindows is called View. It allows you totransfer non -graphic data from outsidePersonal Windows - say from DOS, or anapplication - into one of its memories.Perhaps the most important function of Per-sonal Windows is that it allows you to con-figure most aspects of the M-22. You do thisfrom the so-called Values option, which pre-sents you with a menu of some 25 options.They include things like setting up theprinter, the level of LCD backlighting, timeand date. You can also specify whetherpower is to be supplied to add-on cards.

Perhaps the most interesting option isthat of specifying the silicon disc. Anythingfrom 63K to 360K of available RAM can beset up in this way. This silicon disc can bedesignated A: or B:, and the physical drivethen defaults to the other assignment. Byjudiciously changing the internal drive,various loading operations can be speededup enormously. There is a special Loadcommand available from Personal Windows

which accomplishes transfers from physicalto virtual disc automatically.

Personal Windows is available at any timefrom within any program thanks to thesecond processor which is dedicated to it andthe screen handling alone. This arrange-ment allows images to be switched withimpressive rapidity. Personal Windowsrequires 64K of RAM for storing files itgenerates but they must be saved to aphysical floppy before powering down. Aprotection device sustains the silicon -discfiles for 15 seconds after you have powereddown. The unit beeps to warn you and thesilicon disc indicator flashes. The sameindicator flashes whenever the silicon disc isaccessed, and even makes half -realisticgrinding noises. There are also indicators forthe floppy and hard discs, and a low -batterywarning.

BENCHMARKSWhen you power -up the machine it runs a

diagnostic routine which includes a fullmemory check. The Basic Benchmarks showthe M-22 to be no more than 10 percentfaster than the IBM PC. As far as disc per-formance is concerned, the Bagshaw Bench-marks put the M -22's floppy drive approx-imately on a par with the IBM. What is moresurprising, running the Bagshaw Bench-marks on the silicon disc gave a result slowerthan many hard discs, and eight timesslower than the silicon disc on the CompaqDeskpro 286.

The M-22 ran all the usual IBMcompatibility tests: Lotus 1-2-3, FlightSimulator, Javelin and Sidekick. PersonalWindows takes precedence over Sidekick:after the Personal Windows key has beenpressed, Sidekick is unable to intercept thestandard double Shift command. On theprototype machine which I saw there was aslight problem with programs like 1-2-3 andFramework which use cursor highlighting.The M-22 has four levels of grey available on

the LCD and has a colour -compatiblegraphics board, but the mapping acrossfrom VDU to LCD was not totally successfulin its use of the grey shades to representcolour and cursor reversing.

All in all, the Olivetti emerges as amachine which goes well beyond the run -of -the mill portables. Its excellent LCD willovercome many people's traditionalobjection to that technology. Its fullyconfigurable silicon disc provides all theadvantages of two floppies without the dis-advantages.

On the down side, the M -22's less thanstunning performance is a disappointment.The processor speed is less worrying in thisrespect than the disc performance, which ispedestrian at best. I am also unhappy aboutthe design of the keyboard.

The world of portables is moving rapidly.Two months ago we looked at and wereimpressed by the new machine from Pana-sonic, which uses a large and legible plasmadisplay and is generally well designed. TheM-22 has the advantage of true battery -powered portability, and a markedly lowerweight. It is also far more flexible and comeswith Personal Windows as an extra. If a port-able IBMulator is what you are looking for,Olivetti's stylish new machine is probablynow the leader in the field.

CONCLUSIONS The Olivetti M-22 is a compact battery ormains -powered portable IBMulator with anoutstanding back -lit LCD screen. Its ability to configure part of RAM as asilicon disc is a powerful plus. The performance of both the processor anddisc is a little disappointing, especially whencompared to the M-24. The M-22 forms part of a complete range ofbusiness micros, fitting in below the M-24 andM-28 machines, and providing a usefulcomplement to them. The keyboard is flawed by an ill-judgeddesign of the right-hand Shift key.


III PREVIEW

XEROX 6085 PCSTHE ROUTE FROM PARCBy Ian Stobie

Xerox has often left othermanufacturers to put its ownideas into practice. This maychange with its new graphics -

orientated system, but it doesnot come cheap.

Although Xerox invented thewindows -icons -mouse interface, ithas been other companies that have

really exploited it in successful products andput it into the hands of users. Apple'sMacintosh, Atari's ST and Microsoft'sWindows all use ideas originally developedby Xerox at the company's famous Palo AltoResearch Center (Parc).

Xerox's own Wimps -based computerofferings have generally been pitched too farupmarket to make much of an impact. Forinstance, the Xerox Star work station hasbeen admired as a sort of super -Macintosh,but it has sold only in relatively smallnumbers. But now Xerox has come up withthe 6085 Professional Computer System,which costs less than half the price of the Starwhile running much the same software.Starting at about £4,700 for a hard -discsystem, it falls into the same bracket as theIBM PC/ AT, and with the addition of a PCemulation board the 6085 PCS is capable ofrunning IBM PC software.

However, the machine is not an attemptby Xerox to join in the cutthroat comp-etition in the mainstream PC market. The6085 PCS is not another IBM clone, but stillvery much a product in the Xerox image. Itis intended more for specialist applicationareas where a high-performance graphicswork station can command a premium price.

The most promising such area for Xerox isprobably technical and foreign -languageword processing, and the in-house prod-uction of documents which would otherwiserequire professional typesetting. A typicalsingle -user 6085 PCS configuration suitablefor this task, with Xerox laser, printer andsoftware, works out at around £14,000.

Xerox has a strong reputation in thecopier and laser -printer market already,which should help it sell the 6085 PCS as adocument -processing machine. Its otheruseful area of expertise is in local andlong-distance networking: Xerox inventedEthernet. The 6085 PCS comes equippedwith an Ethernet interface, and can be soldto larger users as part of a network -baseddocument -processing system.

Physically everything about the new

Xerox machine tends to be big. The 6085'ssystem box weighs 501b., and you stand itupright on the floor rather than keep it onyour desk. Inside the box is a 10Mbyte harddisc, although you can opt for anything upto 80Mbyte built-in. Also accommodated isat least 1Mbyte of RAM and a fast 16 -bitprocessor designed by Xerox.

The display units are also built to Xerox'sown design. They are enormous: you get achoice of a 15in. or 19in. display. The largerversion does not just show the same imagebigger; both units are mapped at the sameresolution of 80 dots per inch so there aremore dots on the larger screen, allowing it todisplay more material. Two upright A4pages can be displayed actual size on the19in. screen, as opposed to one A4 pagesideways on the 15in.

CONCESSION TO IBMBy comparison the keyboard looks fairly

conventional. As an apparent concession toIBM compatibility it has two sets of 10function keys, one set running along the topof the keyboard, the other at the side in theusual IBM position. You also get a two -button mouse.

When you turn on the system a picture ofa keyboard appears on -screen, which is

meant to suggest to you that you hit a key.When you oblige, a small form is dis-played, into which you type your name andpassword, and some other details. You canboot the system from either hard disc orfloppy drive, or from any other disc on thenetwork if your machine is wired up onEthernet.

The screen then comes up with a displayof the desk top. Superficially this looks verysimilar to a Macintosh screen, only bigger.You open windows and start applications byclicking on icons in the Mac way. One con-sequence of the big display is that you tendto leave many more icons lying around thedesk top, as there is plenty of room for them

SPECIFICATIONCPU: Xerox Mesa 16 -bit processorrunning at 8MHzRAM: 1.1Mbyte standard, expandableon board to 3.7MbyteKeyboard: QWERTY with numeric padand two sets of 10 function keysMouse: two -button optical mousestandardDiscs: built-in 10Mbyte hard disc isstandard; optional 20Mbyte, 40Mbyte or80Mbyte units and external 5.25in. 360Kfloppy -disc unitDisplay: 15in. monochrome 697 by880 pixels; 19in. monochrome 925 by1,184 pixelsInterfaces: two serial ports configuredfor comms and local printer, Ethernetlocal area network portDimensions: system box 546mm.(21.5in.) x 318mm. (12.5in.) x 241mm.(9.5in.); weighs 22.7kg. (501b.)Software in price: none; XeroxViewpoint operating environment and VPDocument Editor package cost £704Price: £4,685 for system with 1MbyteRAM, 10Mbyte hard disc, one 360K5.25in. floppy, 15in. monitor, keyboardand mouseManufacturer: Xerox Corporation ofPalo Alto, California; made in U.S.A.U.K. supplier: Rank Xerox (U.K.) Ltd,Bridge House, Oxford Road, Uxbridge,Middlesex UB8 1 HS. Telephone: (0895)51133Available: now

alongside the window in which you areworking.

Generally, the display is very clear butoccasionally I noticed scintillation of smallhorizontal sections of it. The refresh rate isonly 38 times a second, probably becausethe display is so large - most systems refresh50 or 60 times a second. So while the size ofthe display is luxurious and helpful, thescreen surface itself is not as restful to look atas, say, that on the Vienna PC or the Mac.

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Above: With the system connected tothe network you can set the emailsoftware on your 6085 PCS to flash,beep or display a message when mailarrives.

Left: Document Editor supportstechnical and foreign -language founts.You can display a picture of thekeyboard in a separate window to helpyou remember the key assignments.

55

II PREVIEW


Xerox's own software for the 6085 PCS is adevelopment of that for the Star. The disc -operating system is called Pilot, thewindowing environment that sits on top ofit, Viewpoint. At present there are about 20Viewpoint packages available from Xerox,including a spreadsheet, list -managementand drawing packages, plus various com-munications and file -conversion utilities.Xerox Development Environment, a dev-elopment system based on Smalltalk, will beavailable for people who want to write theirown applications. None of this is included inthe system price. To get equipped for textprocessing you would need to spend at leastanother £526, which would get you the VPDocument Editor package, Viewpoint, Pilotand a variety of type founts.

All of the Viewpoint software packagesintegrate together easily. You can give VPDocument Editor the capability to handleequations, Japanese or Chinese by buyingthe appropriate modules. Simple tintingand painting facilities are already built intoVP Document Editor, but you can improvethem by adding the VP Data Drive Graphicspackage, which also works with the VPSpreadsheet. The basic VP Document Editoron its own is a pretty impressive piece ofsoftware, more like a page make-up packagethan a conventional word processor. Allfounts are displayed exactly as they print on-screen, and you can have text in any numberof columns.

Most of the time you work at actualprinting size on the 6085's big screen,although you can change the scale if youlike. You can import special technicalsymbols, spreadsheet data or charts fromother packages into the middle of text. VPDocument Editor is able to flow passages oftext around pictures, across columns andover page breaks.

IBM PC compatibility takes the form ofan optional 80186 -based hardware cardwhich you fit inside the machine. You alsoneed the Viewpoint PC emulation softwareand a set of different IBM -style displayfounts which brings the total price to £794.You cannot add IBM-compatible hardwarecards to the system; it is software compat-ibility only that is on offer.

COLOUR GRAPHICSBut the software compatibility is well

implemented. MS-DOS or PC -DOS comesup as a full-size 25 -line by 80 -columnwindow on the Viewpoint desk top. Unlikesome IBM emulators it lets you run packageswhich use colour or monochrome graphics aswell as text -based ones, although the colourtakes the form of monochrome grey scales.The software also runs at a reasonable speed.

Flight Simulator does not run on themachine but Xerox says that most well-behaved IBM packages will. The company issystematically testing PC products andadding the ones that run to a certified list.At present this has over 25 packages on it,including word processors like WordStar,Word, Word Perfect and Displaywrite.Spreadsheets available include Multiplan,

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MS-DOS comes up as a full-size 25 -line by80 -column display inside a separatewindow on the large Xerox 6085 screenwhen you are emulating the IBM PC.

Lotus 1-2-3, Symphony and Supercalc, andfor data handling there are Framework,Cornerstone and dBase. The graphicsprogram Execuvision, and utilities such asSidekick, Sideways and Prokey also run.

DATA TRANSFERHowever, the real point of the IBM option

is not turn the 6085 PCS into an expensivePC clone. It is more to provide a very flexibleand convenient way of getting dataorganised on IBM PCs into the Viewpointdocument -editing environment. If all youwant to do is transfer text from an IBM to apage make-up package there are far simplerways of doing it. But if you want to transferspreadsheet, project -planning or graphicsdata from specific IBM packages into anelaborate and powerful word-processingenvironment, then the Xerox way makessome sense.

In fact the two environments, Viewpointand IBM, are running concurrently. So youcan take bit -mapped graphics out of the PCwindow and copy it directly into a View-point document. You can also run data filesfrom many popular packages into Viewpointformat. Xerox offers cheap utilities forLotus, DIF, WordStar and other commonlyused formats.

Xerox's strategy in a world of increasinglycheap IBM clones seems to be to avoidgetting directly involved in what is

becoming almost a commodity market. The6085 PCS is not going to be sold as astraightforward PC but as a specialist text -processing system from Xerox the photo-copier people. It also happens to have theability to run IBM software should you wantto move data from IBM packages into yourXerox -produced documents.

The 6085 PCS comes with a full IEEE -specification Ethernet interface capable oftransferring data at 10Mbit per second. Thisis quick enough for you to use remote harddiscs without noticing the difference. You

need some additional system software to usethe network, but once on it you have accessto printers and hard discs anywhere on thesystem, as well as email between networkusers.

Xerox has installed several thousandnetworks worldwide. Ethernet allows youboth to network locally and to join networkstogether. The networks can be located any-where, provided you have the comms lines.For big corporate buyers who need to shuntdata around buildings and across nationalboundaries this experience gives Xerox anextra edge.

But the system is not cheap. Once you addon the extras, especially the printers on offerfrom Xerox, the cost mounts up. There isstill something of the minicomputer worldabout the 6085 PCS. It is being sold byXerox's own sales force, not through dealers.If you are prepared to struggle with the usualproblems of the micro world you could getby with something a good deal cheaper,perhaps based on an IBM clone combinedwith suitable peripherals and one of thestandard software packages. What you getfrom Xerox is a very complete and wellworked -out solution, but the commitmentyou make both in monetary terms and to theXerox way of doing things is deep.

CONCLUSIONSE The 6085 PCS is a high-performancegraphics -based work station which makesmost sense in specific markets that really needthe features it offers. It is not Xerox's attemptto break into the mass PC market, or even thePC/AT clone market. Document processing, especially scientificand foreign -language word processing andin-house publishing, is likely to be the majorniche. The 6085 PCS, with its Viewpointsoftware, can mix text and graphics in com-plicated layouts and import text and graphicsfrom IBM PC applications with the PC -

emulation option fitted.IIIXerox has plenty of experience of net-working, and it is likely that most 6085 PCSswill go to major corporate buyers who want amulti-user solution. Once you add on the extras, especially theprinters on offer for the system, the Xeroxsolution does not come cheap.


Relational IntegratedDatabase Accounting

ONLY ONLY

"At E199 TAS Must beBest Value Ever"

If you looked at database products likedBase, Dataflex and Sensible Solution youshould know about TAS and the fantasticperformance and facilities it provides at avery low price. A 14 day money backguarantee allows you to try it and findout for yourself why we think TAS mustbe best value ever.

TAS is an easy to learn database andprocedural language. That's a nice wordfor a programming language that, unlikeBASIC, you learn in days rather thanmonths. If you have some brains andwant to write your own programsquickly, TAS is for you! If you have brains and programmingknowledge you can use TAS to develop professional menudriven business applications and produce fast, efficient andgood looking results quicker than ever before. And it willhandle the big stuff as well. When other database packagesstart to grind, TAS continues to fly.

TAr D BASE

Multi -User £100 No

Data Dictionary Yes No

Procedural Language Yes Yes

Compiler Yes No

Records Per File Unlimited Unlimited

Files Open 16 10

Fields Per File Unlimited 128

File Size Unlimited Unlimited

Record Size 10,254 4,000

Field Size 254 254

Prices £199 £530

"You get TAS Accounting for only£150 more"

Why stop at the database. For an additional £150 you get TASLevel 2, an Integrated Double Entry Accounting Systemconsisting of a Nominal Ledger with Report Writer, PurchaseLedger and Sales Ledger with Invoicing.

For another £150 you get TAS Level 3 which integrates withLevel 2 and provides Stock Control, Purchase Order Processingand Sales Order Processing with Backorders.

And please understand that with both Level 2 and Level 3,you get the source code as well. So you can use it as anextended tutorial, find out exactly how it works and makechanges and additions when you want to.

TAS Level 1: consists of the Data Dictionary and the

MORE

(IncludingSource Code)

"TAS's Unbeatable 14 DayMoney Back Guarantee"

Yes, there is a 14 day money -back -guarantee (less a handling charge). Thepackage you receive will contain two setsof floppy disks. One set will contain therun-time version of the accounting productyou ordered and a fully operational copyof the database but with a 200 record limitbuild in. This allows you to evaluate TAS onyour own system. The second (sealed) set offloppy discs contains the source code of theaccounting product you ordered and anunlocked version of the database. Providedthis set remains unopened and all goods arereturned to us within 14 days, you willreceive a refund less a 10% handling fee.

SolutionRelational Database Programming Language/Compiler. PriceSingle User: £199. For Multi -User add: £100.TAS Level 2: is an Integrated Double Entry AccountingSystem consisting of Nominal Ledger with Report Writer,Purchase Ledger and Sales Ledger with Invoicing. Supplied in

Processing and Sales Order Processing (with Backorders) that

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01613itSource. Price is Level 1 price plus an additional: £150. Price isLevel 1 price plus an additional: £150.TAS Level 3: consists of Stock Control, Purchase Order

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integrates with Level 2. UK version available Feb/Mar 1986.Supplied including source. Price is Level 2 price plus anadditional: £150.Prices include shipping in the UK but you must add 15% VAT.Quantity, Corporate and Educational Discounts Available.

BUSINESS a Division ofNEWTONS Laboratories111-113 Wandsworth High StreetLondon SW18 4HYTel: 01-874 6511.Telex: 21768 (NEWTON Gi

(All trademarks are recogni,ed(

Your

Comp

Name'

"TAS for the Technically Minded"Because TAS compiles down to intermediate machine code

your programs will execute fast. Very fast! TAS itself was writtenby Phil Mickelson in Assembler and executes machine code. (Philoriginally created "The Sensible Solution" relational database).TAS uses B -Tree multi -key file access and it is probably the fastestdatabase package around. Individual applications may have 16different screen/report formats, 16 files open, with 16 keys per file(all data file keys stored in only one index file) accessing up to 17million records in any one file. Individual fields may be up to254 characters long and a record up to 10KB in size. It supportsbox -drawing graphics and colour on certain systems. The multi-user versions support record and file locking (if provided byoperating system) and TAS can exchange standard ASCII datawith other programs. The database provides multiple companycapability. TAS has 60+ commands including, IF, DO, WHILE,GOTO, GOSUB etc. All data and programs are compressed(numeric fields stored in BCD format). TAS is available for 8 -Bitand 16 -Bit single and multi-user systems and also for certainLAN's. Order your copy now. Phone us if you arein doubt about your system el 0,

Is ii Si 0 1111 II 111 °I Ior disk format.

TM The Accoolltware for Your

Needs"

Affordable SofOrder

Quantity & Price incl. VAT

TAS LevelI Single User £228.85

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SPECIFICATIONSTANDON PCA-30CPU: Intel 80286 running at 8MHzRAM: 512K, expandable to 1Mbyteon the motherboardMass storage: one 5.25in.1.2Mbyte floppy, one 30Mbyte harddiscInterfaces: none built-inDisplay: monochrome board andmonitors supplied as standard, colouralternative also availableSoftware in prices: MS-DOS3.10, GWBasicPrice: £3,095Manufacturer: Tandon, made inthe U.S.U.K. supplier: Tandon Computer,Unit 19, Hunt End, Dunlop Road,Redditch, Worcestershire B97 SXP.Telephone: (0527) 46800Available: now

111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111

FERRANTI 2860ATCPU: Intel 80286 running at 8switchable to 6MHzRAM: 640KMass storage: one 5.25i1.2Mbyte floppy, one 20MbdiscInterfaces: one RS -232 s.one Centronics parallel builCentronics parallel on videDisplay: choice of monocolour boards for text an.Software in price: MGWBasic, Perfect WriteSpeller, Perfect FilerPrice: £3,898, not incland video boardManufacturer: FerrSystems, Decker Street,Lancashire OL I 3XF. Tel061-624 9552Available: now

111 REVI EW

The choice of AT -emulators iswidening, and two of thelatest entrants to the raceboth offer increasedperformance at a lowerprice.

Since IBM launched the PC/ AT inAugust 1984 the manufacturers ofcompatible micros have been anxious

to get in on the act. Ferranti and Tandon aretwo recent arrivals on the AT scene, and ashas often been the case their offerings out-perform the original in a number ofrespects. At £2,795 the Tandon PCA-20 isone of the cheapest AT clones so far.Ferranti's PC-2860AT, which has a 20Mbytehard disc, costs around £1,000 more than asimilarly specified Tandon machine, butscores in a number of other areas, such as itsdual -speed processor.

Alongside the Ferranti we looked at theTandon PCA-30, which is fitted with a30Mbyte hard disc. Both machines have1.2Mbyte floppy drives in addition to theWinchester. The standard memory on theFerranti is 640K, while the Tandon is

supplied with only 512K fitted.Both machines are similar in size to the

IBM PC/ AT. The Tandon is the larger of thetwo by about half an inch all round, and thisslight difference somehow contrives to makeit look a great deal more bulky. Some otherlook-alikes are appreciably smaller andoccupy less desk space. The Ferranti is quiteheavy, weighing in at around 331b. , butwith a floppy drive and a full -height harddisc this is no more than might be expected.The Tandon is heavier still. It weighs amassive 441b. , and you need to be quitestrong to lift it.

DETACHABLE KEYBOARDSBoth machines have detachable key-

boards connected by a coiled cable. Theyplug into the back of the computer using afive -pin DIN plug like the IBM itself. It is apity not to have the keyboard plug on thefront of the system box, as on the earlierFerranti PC -860, since this arrangementreduces the tangle of cables around the backof the machine. The Ferranti's cable is par-ticularly long and extendable, so you couldrun it under the desk if you wish.

The Ferranti's 84 -key keyboard looks wellmade, and the keys have a good positivefeel. It has basically the same layout as theIBM PC/ AT, with some minor rearrange-ments. There is a large, L-shaped Enter key,which is very well placed, and two large Shiftkeys. LED indicators are built into the topsof the Caps Lock, Scroll Lock and Num Lockkeys. We prefer this to the separate batteryof indicators found on the IBM keyboard.The Tandon keyboard has the samearrangement of keys, but it has a muchcheaper look and feel.

Both keyboards adopt the English layout,with the five characters " , f, @, - and #repositioned. You have to run Keybuk after

BASIC BENCHMARKSBoth the Ferranti and the Tandon were only marginally behind the speedy CompaqDeskpro 286. Even when the processor speed was reduced to 6MHz the Ferranti stilloutpaced the IBM PC/ AT by about 15 percent. The Benchmark routines arepublished on page 102 of the January 1984 issue of Practical Computing. Timings arein seconds.

BM1 BM2 BM3 BM4 BM5 BM6 BM7 BM8 Av.Ferranti PC-2860AT 0.3 1.3 2.9 2.9 3.2 5.8 9.2 9.3 4.4

- 80286, 8MHzFerranti PC-2860AT 0.4 1.7 3.9 4.0 4.4 8.0 12.5 12.6 5.9

- 80286, 6MHzTandon PCA-30 - 80286, 0.3 1.3 2.9 3.0 3.2 5.9 9.3 9.5 4.4

8MHzCompaq Deskpro 286 0.3 1.2 2.8 2.9 3.2 5.7 9.1 9.2 4.3

- 80286, 8MHzIBM PCIAT - 80286, 6MHz 0.5 1.9 4.6 4.7 5.2 9.1 14.6 13.5 6.8

switching on the computer, otherwise theAmerican layout is assumed. Differentversions of Keybuk are provided for the PCand the PC/ AT - it is the AT version thatyou need for these machines.

Tandon and Ferranti supplied identicalmonitors with their test machines -a 14in.monochrome model made in Taiwan byAdvanced Datum Information Corp. Theunit is housed in a small, modern -lookingcase mounted on a swivel base which allowsyou to adjust the screen angle. The screen issquarer than many, and has a matt front thatreduces reflections considerably. The use ofa high-performance green phosphor elim-inates any flicker, even when scrolling.There was no snow effect at any time and thecharacters were easy to read, indicating goodvideo boards in both computers. The

FERRANTI PC-2860AT

IN: VERDICT A.,

<,<k -'s- (5' :'c,

-. 0,z (..0 <-,..e -

Performance III

Ease of use Documentation Ill III

Value for money

Faster and cheaper than an IBM -we were sorry to part with it.

Tandon monitor has its own mains plug,while the power cable for the Ferrantimonitor plugs into the back of the systembox.

Both machines use the Intel 80286 centralprocessor chip running at 8MHz. TheFerranti can be run at 6MHz, if necessary, toretain compatibility with software designedfor slower machines. Comms packages areparticularly likely to be sensitive in thisrespect. The higher speed is obviously theone to use whenever possible. To changefrom one speed to the other you simply typeCtrl -Alt -8 for 8MHz or Ctrl -Alt -6 for 6MHz.Anyone used to the leisurely pace of the IBMPC will find the speed of the AT-alikesexhilarating.

The Norton Utilities Sysinfo programrates the Tandon and Ferranti at 8MHz,

which is 7.7 times as powerful as the IBMPC. This figure takes into accountinformation about the memory present andthe operating system as well as raw pro-cessing speed. On the same basis, theFerranti at 6MHz and the IBM PC/ AT itselfare 5.7 times as powerful as the PC. TheFerranti machine has been run experiment-ally at 10MHz, so there is still some power inreserve for future development.

At power -up each machine does a numberof checks to ensure that it is fully functional.The old steam -age IBM PC may take up totwo minutes to do this if a lot of memory isfitted. If you switch the machine off and onseveral times a day this can add up to a lot ofwasted time. The Ferranti 2860 with 640Kof RAM on board takes only 17 seconds tocomplete these checks, and the Tandonbeats 20 seconds with 512K of RAM. Bothmachines display a message while thisprocess is taking place, giving a runningindication of how much memory has beenchecked so far. The IBM PC / AT takes 24seconds for the start-up sequence.

Both machines use MS-DOS version 3.1 asthe operating system. It includes a numberof useful features such as Vdisk, a built-inRAM disc program. Entering your inter-national dialling code after the Country =command adjusts a number of features, suchas the way the date is shown, to accord withlocal custom. Thus entering 44, the U.K.code, gives you the British dd-mm-yy dateformat instead of the America mm-dd-yy.

The Ferranti has a Setup command whichcan be used to set the date and time, or otherfeatures such as keyboard layout, thenumber of discs, the amount of memory andwhether a colour, monochrome or graphicsvideo card is fitted. A similar system setupcommand on the Tandon can be invoked byholding down the Escape key during power -up. You can also invoke a Screen Savefeature which turns off the screen display ifthere has been no keyboard activity for 10minutes. A built-in battery -backed clockholds the date and time. Neither theTandon nor the Ferranti has a Reset button.

Both machines normally boot from thehard disc unless a disc is present in thefloppy drive, in which case they boot fromthat. There is a very high degree of IBMcompatibility. We successfully ran theFerranti using PC -DOS 3.1 from an IBMPC/ AT and used the Ferranti's MS-DOS



59

111 REVIEW

BAGSHAW DISC BENCHMARKSThe disc performance of the Ferranti is up with the best, leaving the Tandon among the stragglers. The Bagshaw Benchmarks aredescribed on page 99 of the July 1985 edition of Practical Computing. Timings are in seconds.

Ferranti PC-2860AT- 20Mbyte hard

Tendon PCA-30- 30Mbyte hard

Compaq Deskpro 286- 30Mbyte hard

IBM PCIAT - 20Mbyte hard

Ferranti PC-2860AT- 1.2Mbyte floppy

Tendon PCA-30- 1.2Mbyte floppy

Compaq Deskpro 286- 1.2Mbyte floppy

IBM PCIAT - 1.2Mbyte floppyIBM PC - 360K floppy

BMO BM1 BM2 BM3 BM4 BM5 BM6 BM7 BM8 BM9 BMI 0 BMI 1 BM12 BM13 Total5.9 1.8 2.3 2.8 1.7 2.9 1.0 2.9 1.0 1.3 2.2 11.5 10.4 3.0 50.7

6.0 2.2 2.5 4.9 1.4 9.6 2.7 10.3 3.4 1.4 2.1 30.8 18.1 13.9 109.3

6.2 1.8 2.5 2.3 2.8 3.6 1.2 3.8 1.1 0.8 1.6 11.0 5.9 3.2 47.8

7.0 2.8 6.4 3.7 2.9 2.8 0.8 3.3 0.9 1.1 2.0 15.8 7.9 2.9 60.3

9.3 3.3 3.6 8.1 8.5 18.5 4.4 19.1 4.5 7.5 15.1 56.6 37.8 7.2 203.5

10.2 3.3 4.4 13.1 13.4 37.4 13.1 33.9 14.6 8.6 15.6 303.9 150.7 34.7 656.9

10.5 4.0 4.0 12.5 15.0 16.4 5.0 17.5 5.3 8.0 13.4 75.0 45.5 18.2 250.3

10.9 22.8 23.9 23.2 21.9 17.6 4.2 18.4 3.6 6.1 14.3 73.8 36.4 7.7 284.821 10 21 21 20 30 8 65 17 7 15 311 145 51 742


3.10 to run both the IBM and the Tandon.The 1.2Mbyte floppy drives can read notonly 1.2Mbyte discs but also 360K discsfrom IBM PCs, thus ensuring access toprograms and data from many sources.

We ran a number of standard DOS 2.2applications packages, including WordStar,Microsoft Word 2, Volkswriter, Lotus 1-2-3and Ryan -McFarland' s Professional Fortran.They appeared to load and run satisfactorily,though we did not test them out thoroughlyenough to be able to say categorically thatthey are perfectly compatible. The onlyprogram which gave us problems wasSidekick, which would not run on theFerranti. We are not sure what was goingwrong; it may just have been an idiosyncrasyof our particular version of the program.

The Ferranti has the usual Centronics par-allel port with a 25 -pin D plug for a printerprovided at the back, and there is a secondparallel port on the monochrome video card.A serial port with a nine -pin D plug, as onthe IBM, is also provided at the back. TheTandon comes without any ports at all soyou will have to buy an expansion boardeven to attach a printer. Tandon makes aboard which provides both a serial and aparallel port, and another with four serialports. Presumably third -party boards wouldwork too.

The Ferranti has six expansion slots. Twoare for eight -bit PC -type cards; the otherfour take 16 -bit PC/AT-style cards. On thestandard machine one eight -bit slot is

occupied by the disc -controller card and one16 -bit slot by the video card. The Tandonalso has two eight bit slots, but has six 16 -bitslots, two more than the Ferranti. Oneeight -bit slot is used for the video board andone 16 -bit slot for the disc controller. Youwill have to use at least one more slot toprovide serial and parallel ports, but thatstill leaves plenty of room for expansion. Onboth machines you can reach the expansionslots simply by removing a panel on theouter casing, which makes it particularlyeasy to add or remove add-on cards.

You will hardly ever have to remove thewhole case - which is fortunate as on theFerranti it is not a particularly easy job.

Inside there is a large power supply with a300W rated output. It should be more thanadequate to power any boards, discs or tapedrives you may want to add to the basicmachine. The full -height 20Mbyte hard discis manufactured by Seagate, and the half -height floppy drive by Panasonic. There isroom above the floppy for a second drive or atape streamer. Cables for a second floppy arealready in place.

The Tandon case unscrews and slides offin the same way as on an IBM PC. The powersupply is rated at 190W - again, enough tocope with future expansion. On ourmachine a lot of makeshift wiring had beenadded to the motherboard, which suggests

TAN DON PCA-30

PC VERDICT0 k,.?"

k

0 -1ey

r C, <4,

Performance

Ease of use M U Documentation . 1. .Value for money IIE A powerful machine at a good price,but the cost-cutting shows.

that there had been a number of last-minutedesign changes. A battery -backed clock isalso provided.

There are four rows of sockets for memorychips. On the review machine two were pop-ulated by 256K chips, giving 512K in total.Adding two rows of 64K chips would bringthis up to 640K, or you could plug in more256K chips to make 1Mbyte. Tandon sells aplug-in board to add a further 2Mbyte.

On the Tandon machine both the full -height 30Mbyte Winchester and the half -height 1.2Mbyte floppy are Tandon's ownunits. There is room for two more half -height drives, and once again cables for asecond floppy have been provided by themanufacturer. On our machine the harddisc made a dreadful whining noise thatreminded us of a vacuum cleaner.

The documentation for both the Ferrantiand the Tandon machines covers all thenecessary ground quite effectively. TheTandon also comes with a really excellenttechnical manual; most manufacturers makeyou pay extra for documentation of thiskind. On -site maintenance is included inthe price of both machines. It lasts for a yearin the case of the Ferranti and six months forthe Tandon.

We enjoyed using the Ferranti. Thoughthe casing is slightly larger than on somecomparable machines, and the fan wasunusually noisy, it left us with the feelingthat it is a top-quality computer. Ferrantisays that it has had no other complaintsabout the fan, so maybe ours had beendamaged in some way. The only feature wewould have liked to see added is a Resetbutton to allow you to restart the computerafter a crash.

The Tandon's basic processor per-formance matches that of the Ferranti, andit is a great deal cheaper too. Like theFerranti it lacks a Reset button, but it doeshave a lock and key on the front; this featureis present on the IBM PC/ AT but not on theFerranti. However, its disc performanceleaves a lot to be desired and we did not findit as pleasant to use as the Ferranti. At firstwe had trouble with cooling fan whichstuck, and the hard disc on our machine wasnoisy. The keyboard was very rattly and gen-erally did not seem to us to be of the qualityyou would expect in a business machine ofthis price. The Tandon has potential, but itstill has some rough edges.

CONCLUSIONS Both the Ferranti 2860AT and the TandonPCA-30 provide the high performance of theIBM PC/AT and more, at a lower price.MThe Ferranti is a well -engineered, top-quality micro. For the Tandon, the mainattraction is its price. Both machines ran most IBM PC softwarewithout difficulty. The Tandon may turn out tobe a little better than the Ferranti in thisrespect. While the Ferranti's disc performance isabove average, that of the Tandon was dis-appointing. This might be an importantdrawback for some applications. Oa


4

a

impeccable pedigree.The PC with an

Amongst IBM compatibles the Ferranti PC isquickly establishing itself as the top dog.

There's little doubt it's a breed apart.It's backed by a nationwide dealer network that

will offer you the assurance of professional pre -salesconsultancy and advice. And a post sales supportpackage that includes fast response, on -sitemaintenance - free in the first year.

It's worth noting too that you're buying from anall British company with a rock -solid reputation forquality computer products spanning four decades.

The Ferranti PC range is an IBM compatible -and then some! It's got memory capacity, speed,expandability, value for money price tags and freebusiness software that enables you to do all theeveryday business tasks - immediately.

What's more the latest addition to the everexpanding range, the AT with its distinctive stylishslimline casing, definitely offers more byte than bark.

If you'd like to know more about the PC that'srapidly becoming management's best friend, send nowfor the Ferranti PC data pack.

Ferranti Computer Systems Limited,Derker Street, Oldham, Lancs, OL1 3X.F.Telephone: 061-624 9552 Telex: 665764.

FERRANTIPersonal computers

Please send me the Ferranti PC data pack.

Name

Position

Company

Address

PC 37

Post to: Ferranti Computer Systems Limited,Derker Street, Oldham OL1 3XF

Ferranti PC.The PC with pedigree- circle 122 on enquiry card - CSO3/140/125

6,1

II PREVIEW

NEC PAGEWRITERLASERS MEET THEIR MATCHBy Ian Stobie

A second generation of pageprinters based on LEDtechnology looks set toundercut lasers.

Since they arrived in the personal -computer market in 1984 laserprinters have been remarkably suc-

cessful. They have rapidly established them-selves as quick, quiet alternatives to thenoisy, slow daisywheel in traditional word-processing applications and are a crucialelement in the expanding personal -publishing market.

The only problem with these highlydesirable machines is the price, which seemsto have got stuck just below the £3,000mark. Now NEC has introduced a newprinting mechanism working on slightlydifferent principles. This may herald theprice breakthrough everyone has beenwaiting for.

The NEC Pagewriter is going on sale inthe U.K. at a price of around f2,500. It isnot a laser printer, but uses a similar page -printing technique based on light -emittingdiodes (LEDs). The LED technique involvesfewer moving parts and is potentiallycheaper to manufacture.

As well as using this technology in its ownprinter NEC is selling the LED printingmechanism to other manufacturers toincorporate in their machines. AlreadyDatasouth has announced a machine builtaround the NEC printing engine. It offers

more features than NEC's machine at aslightly higher price.

LED printers work in almost the same wayas laser printers - they are basically photo-copiers, working from the image of a pageheld in a memory buffer rather than from aphysical original. The difference lies in howthe printer gets the page image from thebuffer on to the photocopier -style drum.Both use a fluctuating light source to paint iton to the rotating photo -sensitive drum.Laser printers use a moving beam of lightfrom a small semiconductor or gas laser,while LED printers use a wide slit of lightfrom an array of LEDs.

ROD LENSESNEC's mechanism has 2,432 LEDs

arranged in a single row about 8in. long.This gives the printer a horizontal resolutionof 300 dots per inch, as each LED is res-ponsible for one tiny dot on the finishedimage. The light from the LEDs is guidedthe short distance to the surface of thephoto -sensitive drum by a matching set ofrod lenses. The LED array and the rod lensesare manufactured as a single assembly.

In a laser printer, by contrast, there is asingle light source, a small gas or semi-conductor laser. The beam from the laser ischopped up into dots and scanned across thedrum by a rotating polygonal mirror. Pro-ponents of the LED approach say this makeslaser printers more difficult to manufactureand less reliable.

With either system, once the light arrives

TECHNOLOGIES COMPAREDThe LED technique involves fewer moving parts then laser printers, and so ispotentially cheaper and more reliable. At the moment most manufacturers have moreexperience with laser -based systems. Second -generation laser printers with improvedfeatures are coming on to the market at the same time as the first LED printers.

What is likely to happen in the near future is that LED printers will take over thelower -cost end of the high -quality print market. Given the complexity of thephotocopier parts of the system it is unlikely that either LED or laser printers will costless than £1,500. The multi -pin matrix printer with an 18- or 24 -pin matrix headprovides generally acceptable but slightly inferior print quality and in this area it willrule supreme. Daisywheels may survive, competing on price at the very bottom of thequality print market.

Technology Speed Price

Dataproducts LZR-1200 laser 12 £3,100Qume Laser 10 laser 10 £2,880Datasouth Pagewriter 8 LED 8 £2,950Xerox 4045 laser 10 £4,045Document Technology DL -20 LED 12 £6,500NEC Pagewriter LED 8 £2,500

at the surface of the photo -sensitive drumthings proceed in much the same way. Thedrum is initially electrostatically charged,and rotates steadily past the LED or laserhead so that the surface is progressivelyscanned by successive waves of light. Wherethe light strikes the surface the electrostaticcharge is destroyed. A dark, plastic -basedtoner of opposite charge is then released onto the surface of the drum; it sticks to someparts and not to others, depending on thecharge present, and so forms an image. Theimage is then rolled on to a piece of paperand fused to it by hot rollers. This part of theprocess is almost identical to that used inmany office photocopiers.

Printer output samples produced byLED and laser printers are practicallyindistinguishable. The popular Canon LBP-CX laser engine is used in many laserprinters, including the HP Laserjet. TheNEC LED mechanism gives the same res-olution, 300 dots to the inch both hor-izontally and vertically, and runs at the samespeed of eight pages per minute.

If there is no difference in quality, usersare likely to decide on the basis of factorsthat have nothing to do with the printingmechanism itself. These include the rangeof founts and interfaces available, thecleverness of the controlling software, thepaper handling, and so on. NEC's own newoffering has rather good paper handling buta fairly limited range of founts at present.Compared to a laser printer, the machinelooks less like a photocopier and more like aconventional daisywheel printer because thepaper handling dominates its appearance.

There is a large 250 -sheet input hopper atthe back of machine and immediately infront of it is the 250 -sheet output stacker.Pages are collated in the same order that youprint them. The paper handling is veryquiet. Since the LED printing process alsomakes very little noise the machine is except-ionally quiet.

PRINT OPTIONSOn the front of the machine is a small

liquid -crystal display and four touch -sensitive switches. You use these to choosevarious printing options, including thefount you want to print in, assuming this isnot overridden by the software you arerunning on your computer. The machinecomes with four different variations ofCourier already installed; 10 and 12 pitch,italic and Courier special symbols. Courier isa popular typewriter and daisywheel fount,suggesting the initial market NEC is looking


MPREVIEW

for is daisywheel replacement. You can buyadditional founts in cartridges which pluginto two slots below the front control panel.Altogether you can have up to 12 founts andfount variations available at one time. Youcan choose these either from the front panelor under software control and mix founts onthe same page.

GRAPHICS COMMANDSThe standard NEC Pagewriter has limited

graphic capabilities compared to, say, theHP Laserjet Plus or Canon LPB-8 A2. Youcan put tints over areas of text or draw boxesaround things, but that is about the limit ofit. To do more you need the 1.3Mbytememory board, which costs £550. This givesyou graphics in 300- by 300 -dot resolutionover the whole page area, and responds tocommands in HPGL, a common graphicslanguage used by software designed to workwith Hewlett-Packard plotters.

All page printers, whether LED- or laser -based, require large quantities of memorybefore they can cope with detailed graphicsat full resolution. This is a fundamental con-sequence of the fact that the image is firstbuilt up on a charged surface and notdirectly on paper. The photo -sensitive drumrotates at a fixed and even speed, and cannotwait for light to arrive. Data has to beimmediately to hand to drive the lightsource.

When handling text in a known fount asmall buffer is adequate. The data to drivethe light source can readily be worked outfrom the information in the fount cartridgeand text buffer. But working out graphicsfrom some encoded description would taketoo long, so graphics have to be presentinside the printer in full bit -image form toget to the surface of the drum in time.

rintedEnlarged sample of the Pagewriter'sCourier 10 fount. Print quality is on a parwith cheaper laser printers.

The speed of the printing process is ulti-mately governed by the physics of the drumsurface and the intensity of the LED or laserlight. They are carefully chosen during thedesign process and determine the speed thedrum can realistically be made to rotate, andthis in turn determines how fast a page isprinted.

In practice, before a page containinggraphics is actually printed, there can beconsiderable delay while the full bit image isprepared in the page buffer from the dataarriving at the printer interface. We wereunable to try out the NEC with its graphicoption installed, but with any LED or laserprinter it is well worth finding out how longthis delay is likely to be. Once you haveprinted one copy of a page, any subsequentcopies you print will probably come out atthe speed quoted in the manufacturer's lit-erature -.eight pages a minute in the NECprint engine's case.

NEC appears to be aiming its appealinitially at word-processing users rather thanat the more ambitious graphics or personal -publishing market. A daisywheel printer inthe £1,000 to £1,500 range will go atperhaps 55 characters a second, which makesit a good deal slower than a page printer.You will probably need to buy a sheet paperfeeder for it if you want to use ordinarystationery, and an acoustic hood is advisableif you intend using a daisywheel in anordinary office. These extras considerablyreduce the capital cost advantage of thedaisywheel printer.

SPECIFICATIONSpeed: eight pages a minuteFounts: Courier 10 and 12 pitch, Italicand Symbol resident; two cartridge slotsfor additional fountsResolution: 300 dots per inchhorizontally and verticallyGraphics: full page at 75 dots per inch,one -eighth page at 300 by 300; optional1.3Mbyte graphics board allows full -page graphics at full resolutionPaper handling: 250 -sheet input andoutput trays standard; optional additionalinput trayInterfaces: Centronics parallel andRS -232 serial ports standardConsumables: separate toner andphoto -sensitive drum cartridges; tonerlasts a claimed 2,500 pages and costs£12 to replace, drum lasts 5,000 pagesand costs £75Price: around £2,500 for standardmachine, optional 1.3Mbyte graphicsbuffer about £500, additional paperinput tray £230Manufacturer: made in Japan byNECSupplier: NEC Business Systems(Europe) Ltd, 35 Oval Road, LondonNW1 7EA. Telephone: 01-267 7000Availability: late summer 1986

Ribbons are the main running cost of adaisywheel, so your consumable cost willvary a great deal depending on the sort ofprinting you are doing. A £5 carbon ribbonmight last 300,000 characters. If your typicalletter has, say, 30 lines of 70 characters youwould need a new ribbon every 150 or sopages. This gives you a ribbon cost of 3.5p apage.

NEC has separate cartridges for the Page -writer's main consumables, the toner andthe drum. The toner lasts for a claimed2,500 copies and costs £12 to replace, whileyou have to replace the drum after 5,000copies at a cost of £75. The machine will notlet you use the drum for more than 5,000copies. Pagewriter consumables thereforecost about 2p a page.

Impact printers like the daisywheel stillenjoy one advantage over laser and LEDprinters - they allow you to print on multi-part stationery or use carbon paper forsimultaneous copies. But the NEC canhandle a good variety of different paperstocks, just like a photocopier. Using themanual feed you can print on envelopes,and the machine prints on most types ofoverhead -projector film.

CONCLUSIONS LED printers will join laser printers as aplausible choice for anyone requiring a high-performance office printer. The performanceof the NEC unit is on a par with that of thecheaper laser printers. Only price prevents the wider use of pageprinters. As production of LED units gets underway, costs may drop far enough to enable LEDprinters to undercut the cheaper lasermachines. The NEC Pagewriter is very quiet and hasgood paper -handling facilities, making itattractive for heavy word-processing use. La


a SOFTWARE REVIEW

PARADOXTHE LANGUAGEBy Mike Lewis

A full applications languageforms part of Ansa'sambitious database.

paradox is a heavyweight amongdatabase managers. In the first partof this review in last month's

Practical Computing, page 66, I reported onhow some of its highly sophisticated featurescan be put to work by the non -technicaluser. But there is another side to thisremarkable product: the Paradox Application Language, or PAL. This is a true pro-gramming language which has a great dealto offer programmers and applicationdevelopers.

At heart, PAL is an interpreter, in thesame mould as dBase or Basic. At the sametime, it is tightly integrated in the Paradoxenvironment. It has its own Paradox -styletop -line menu, which can be accessed fromalmost any point in the main system, andPAL programs can be freely mixed withnormal Paradox working. Alternatively, aprogram can be invoked from the DOScommand line, thus allowing a programmerto shield users from the underlyingmechanism.

However, you do not need to be a pro-grammer in order to use some of PAL's moreelementary features. A PAL program -Ansa calls them scripts - need containnothing more than the sequence of key-strokes required to perform some often -repeated task. An ordinary Paradox user canrecord, and subsequently play back, thescript using normal menu commands,without recourse to PAL.

There are two ways to run a script. Thenormal Play command, which can beinvoked from within either Paradox or PAL,simply executes a program and displays thefinal results. By contrast, Showplay performseach step separately, showing every recordedkeystroke in turn. This is a very handy aid todebugging small scripts.

INSTANT SCRIPTOne drawback of playing scripts is that,

because each script is held as a separate textfile, you have to specify its name wheneveryou want to use it. Although this is an easyenough task, it does represent something ofan overhead for short scripts which consist ofjust a few keystrokes. To overcome this, youcan set up a file called an instant script,which can be put in motion just by pressinga function key. Unfortunately, only oneinstant script can exist at a time.

An alternative approach is to use a featurecalled the mini script. This is rather like theimmediate mode in Basic: you type in acommand, and it is executed straight awaywithout being saved. PAL is superior toBasic in that you can enter a whole string ofcommands in this way, including con-ditional statements and small loops.

Mini scripts come into their own whenused in conjunction with a Setkey state-ment. This is a normal PAL command,which assigns a further string of commandsto any nominated key. The assignedcommands can even include a Play state-ment, which means that an imaginative pro-grammer can make a single key do just aboutanything that Paradox is capable of,including running an entire application.

PARADOX

PC VERDICT6 <<,

99 r;

CEO ,t;_,

Performance

Ease of use Documentation IIValue for money

C A product to consider if you wantmaximum power from your database.Don't expect to learn it overnight.

An interesting point about script files isthat the record of keystrokes is held asordinary text. Every Paradox key has anEnglish name, and menu selections are rep-resented by words within braces. So a scriptcontaining

Menu {View} {Customers}will have the same effect, when run, as if theuser had pressed the Menu key, f10, thenselected View from the top -line menu, thenselected the Customers table from the sub-sequent sub -menu.

This use of ordinary text is importantbecause it allows the developer to use key-board scripts as a starting point for moreambitious programs. These can be createdvia the keystroke recording technique, thenenhanced and extended with a text editor orword processor. Alternatively, they can betyped in from scratch in the normal way.

In fact, PAL has its own editor, accessiblefrom its menu. Considering that this is asmall module of a very large package, it issurprisingly good. It supports all the usual

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cursor movement, inserting and deletingoperations, as well as the ability to combinetext files. However, there are no cut -and -paste facilities, nor can you print the textfrom within the editor. As with mostlanguage processors, you would do well tohave your favourite editor or word-processing program to hand for large-scaletext manipulation.

Compared to most high-level languages,PAL is large. It has around 60 commandsand nearly 100 built-in functions, inaddition to all the usual arithmetic,relational and logical operators. There is notheoretical limit to the number or total sizeof variables that can exist. PAL even allowsarrays, albeit with just one dimension,something which I have badly missed indBase II and III.

There are six data types: alphanumericstrings, floating-point numbers, dollars,dates, integers and logical. Variables do nothave to be pre -declared. As in dBase, theirtypes are determined each time a value isassigned to them, and they can therefore beretyped during the course of programexecution. An unusual feature is that diff-erent elements of the same array can havedifferent data types.

PAL programs can also access records indata files - known as tables in Paradox


SOFTWARE REVIEW

;WHAT.SC - Sript to display project assignments for a person

title . format("w80,ac", 'Description of the What Function')04,0 STYLE REVERSE? titleSTYLE0 7,0TEXT

This function asks for a person's name and then displaysall projects that the person is assigned to.

ENDTEXTSLEEP 3000

WHILE (TRUE)Enter a valid name in the People table to then use to query Assign

EDIT 'People" ;Edit the People tableEND ;get to bottomDOWN ;append blank recordMENU [Image} [PickFors) (2) ;select for to get nameMOVETO [First]WAIT RECORD UNTIL 'F2"IF (ISBLANK([Last])) THEN ;exit change loop on blank last name

DEL ;remove last record in the tableDO_IT! ;get out of edit modeCLEARALL ;clear workspaceQUITLOOP

ENDIFlast . [Last] + ".." ;set pattern to find keyfirst = [First] + ".."

CANCELEDIT ;cancels edit used to get nameCLEARALL ;clear workspace

MENU [Ask) [People} ;get query form for People table[Last] = last [First] = first ;fill in form[al = 'Find' ;place Find command in leftmost columnDO_IT! ;perform the query

; The "Answer" table will now contain any found records.

IF (NRECORDS("Answer") = 0) THEN

MESSAGE 'Name not found"c = GETCHAR(1LOOP

ENDIF

last . [Last] first . [First]CLEARALL CLEARmsg = ' Locating ° + first + " + last + ''s timesheets '

0 0,0 ? msg

; Query the table to display all records for the requested name.

[Ask} [Assign] CheckPlus Right "last' Enter "'first'DO_IT! ;perform the queryCLEARALL ;clear the workspace

ENDWHILE

The PAL commands cover the entire range, from basic low-level tasks to sophisticatedmini programs. There are a number of high-level operations which would otherwisetake many lines of code to implement.

terminology. Square brackets are used toidentify a field, so

[Customer-phone number]is the phone number field in the currentrecord of the customer table. An empty pairof square brackets denotes the field currentlycontaining the cursor.

The PAL commands cover the entirerange, from basic low-level tasks to soph-isticated mini programs. At one end of thescale there are the traditional statements formoving the cursor, printing a line on thescreen, assigning values to variables orarrays, and the like. Some of these arefeatures which would be very useful in otherlanguages: the Sleep command, whichsimply does nothing for a specified numberof seconds, is one example.

At the other extreme, there are a numberof high-level operations which would other-wise take many lines of code to implement.A good example is Showmenu, which gen-erates a Paradox -style menu on the top lineof the screen, and allows the user to make aselection. The programmer supplies thenames of the choices and the text to be usedfor the explanatory messages that go withthem. You do not have to worry about themechanics of menu selection; this all goes onbehind the scenes.

PAL also supports a number of programstructure commands, including If-Then-Else-Endif, Switch-Endswitch and While-Endwhile. In addition, there is a Scan-Endscan construct, which causes a sequenceof commands to be executed for every record

in the current table. So you couldimplement a global file update with a veryshort program, such as:Scan [Price] = [Price]*1.25 Endscan ;uplift

prices by 25%The semicolon is used to introduce acomment.

As well as the commands, there is also alarge repertoire of built-in functions. Manyof them like ASC( ) and CHR( ), willalready be familiar to the experienced pro-grammer. Others seem to belong in theworld of spreadsheets rather than that ofprogramming. For example, there is

CNPV( ), which computes the net presentvalue of a series of cash flows; PMT( ) returnsthe mortgage payment per period for a givenprincipal, interest and number of periods.

U.S. FORMATSA large number of functions are available

for simpler mathematical and trigono-metrical calculations, as well as eight formanipulating dates and times. Un-fortunately, these only work with Americanformats - Paradox does not support Euro-pean dates. There are even functions forfinding the name of the current directory,testing to see if a disc drive is ready, anddetermining the type of monitor in use.

If all this is not enough, you can writeyour own functions which can accept para-meters and return values. These are inaddition to subroutines, which are lower -level scripts invoked by the Play command.User -defined functions are held in RAM atrun time, and are therefore suitable foroften -repeated tasks. Scripts, on the otherhand, are accessed from disc as they areneeded.

All these goodies put PAL way ahead of itsrivals. It certainly leaves dBase III standing,and is more than a match for the real heavy-weight database languages like Rbase 5000and 4GL. For many jobs, it might even be abetter option than traditional tools like Basicand Pascal although, being interpreted, itwill inevitably run more slowly thancompiled languages.

CONCLUSIONS Paradox itself, reviewed in the first part ofthis article, is an extremely powerful databasemanager which offers a serious challenge tothe market leaders like dBase III Plus. It willalmost certainly sell in large numbers at thevery top of the market, but it is probably toosophisticated for the majority of simpler day-to-day filing applications. lt is a true relational database, treating filesas two-dimensional tables which can be linkedin various ways. The query and reportfunctions are especially useful. The Paradox Application Language is aremarkable development tool. It puts thepower of Paradox in the hands of pro-grammers and suppliers of turnkey systems. Itis likely to meet the demands of even the mostambitious users. Neither Paradox nor PAL is particularlyeasy to learn, which is inevitable in view oftheir size and complexity. Ansa goes a longway in helping the user, with first-class helpscreens, excellent manuals and a familiarLotus -style menu bar. 1131


The newWith a memorylike

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Resolution: 640X 400 pixelmonochrome or 320X200with 16 colours,640X200 with 4 colours.

TOS in ROM createsa workspace of over700K bytes.

94 -key QWERTY keyboardwith numeric keypadand cursor controls.

excluding w'

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The price! Under Ela Kb (excluding VAT)including colour monitor.

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1

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1040STFthatyou canbe suregottenathing

The Atari 1040STF employs state of the art 16/32 bittechnology. Yet its price is unbeatable.

The ST range of computers already has a large numberof software programmes available, including word processors,spreadsheets and databases, as well as a variety of programminglanguages and specialist business packages.

The 1040STF will also run software written on severalother popular operating systems, including CP/M.

It has a 1024K Ram, integral 1Mb (unformatted)double -sided 31/2" disk drive, two -button mouse and built-inpower supply.

The operating system is in Rom, leaving Ram free forapplications. Basic and Logo programming languages completethe package.

With 12" monochrome monitor, we recommend it sellsfor £799 excluding VAT saving you at least £1600 against itsnearest rival. The price of our 14" colour system is a remarkablylow £999 excluding VAT.

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ESOFTWARE REVIEW

BBC PAGE MAKERSCHEAP PERSONAL PUBLISHINGBy Carol Hammond

Using Fleet Street Editor orAMX Pagemaker you can getfull page output from yourBBC system.

It is not only the likes of Rupert Murdochand Eddie Shah who ate ringing thechanges in the printing industry. At the

other end of the scale, the production ofcamera-ready copy for newsletters, cat-alogues, price lists and in-house pub-lications can now be done direct from amicrocomputer. The pre-eminent machinefor these personal -publishing programs isthe Macintosh. Its high -resolution graphicsmake it ideal for displaying a full page indetail. Now personal -publishing programsare also beginning to appear for cheapermicros. Mirrorsoft's Fleet Street Editor andPagemaker from Advanced Memory Systemsare available for the BBC Micro in its variousforms.

Mirrorsoft is a subsidiary of Mirror GroupNewspapers, and Fleet Street Editor revealsits roots in the way it approaches personalpublishing. The program consists of sixdepartments which mirror the differentstages in newspaper and print production.This is fine if you are used to the jargon ofthe printing industry, but for most users itseems an unecessary burden.

Fleet Street Editor comes on two discs,one containing the system disc and the othera Graphics Library. The manual is ring -bound and very helpful. It takes you step by

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step through the program and explainsclearly what you have to do. There are sugg-estions on page layout, and hints on how torun off copies of your finished page.

You start by inserting the system disc andpressing Shift and Break to enter the mainmenu, which consists of six icons rep-resenting the different departments. TheGraphics Library is represented by an icon ofa transparency, for example, and all theother icons are equally easy to understand.The 200K Graphics Library contains illust-rations, symbols and typefaces you canincorporate into your own work.

The Studio is a drawing package whereyou can produce your own illustrations andmodify existing artwork. Copydesk is a wordprocessor for entering text; you can choosefrom 10 founts, and Fleet Street Editordisplays type in the appropriate fount as youenter it. Page Makeup is where you definethe format you want your page to take andwhere you put together your text andgraphics to make a page. Preview and Printprovides a reduced representation of yourcompleted page on -screen; this is where yousend your page to the printer. Admin-istration is where you set up the program tosuit your system, format blank discs, andintegrate graphics created with otherprograms or systems.

To enter a department you press the spacebar until the required icon is highlighted,then press Return. The first time you useFleet Street Editor you have to go to theAdministration department to set up theIt is easiest to do two -column layout onFleet Street Editor (left); on Pagemaker(below) it is just as simple to do multiplecolumns.

oaai

V v

system to suit your printer and disc drives,and to format a working disc. You can thenselect Guided Tour, which takes youthrough the whole page makeup process.

When using the system in earnest youshould go to the Graphics Library first. Alarge work -area window is displayed on-screen along with two smaller windows, onefor messages and one saying where you are.A miniature version of the main -menu iconis displayed at the foot of the screen,indicating which department you are in.Graphics Library functions are representedby a column of icons on the right of thescreen. You use the space bar or the Up andDown cursor keys to highlight the requiredicon, and then select it by pressing Return.

SELECTING GRAPHICSThe graphics contained in the library are

reproduced at the back of the manual,complete with page number. To select a par-ticular graphics item you load the relevantpage into the work area, then Cut and Pasteto get the item you want. A box appears on-screen, and you use the cursor keys to movethe box to the graphic, press Return andthen use the Right and Down arrows tostretch the box to encompass the graphic.Then you press Return and the screen clears,leaving a box in the middle. Using the cursorkeys, you move the box to the area of thescreen where you want the graphic toappear, then press Return again.

This is a long-winded process and I haddifficulty remembering which key did what,and sometimes pressed the wrong one. Tosave a graphic to disc you have to go througha similar process of stretching a box toencompass a graphic. A template is suppliedwith the program to slip above the functionkeys, but I did not find it helped much. Thecomplex key combinations which arerequired by Fleet Street Editor proved to beits downfall for me. I found it slow andfrustrating to use.

To begin to make up a page you return tothe main menu and select Studio. Againthere are work area and informationwindows, plus 34 commands represented bytwo columns of 16 icons up the right-handedge of the screen and 18 in two rows alongthe bottom. The work area has horizontaland vertical rule markings which appear1 lmm. apart on an A4 sheet. You could usethem to measure the space required for aphotograph to stick on later, but it would bequite a fiddly process.

You select the icons using the cursor keysand space bar, but here the key assignments



SOFTWARE REVIEW

FLEET STREET EDITOR

Above: The main menu.Top right: To select a graphicyou load a page from GraphicsLibrary into your work area.Right: Studio allows you tomanipulate graphics.

[CLIME El

SPECIFICATIONDescription: disc -based page make-uppackageHardware required: BBC model B,B+ or Master with one or two floppy -discdrives, 40 or 80 track; version forAmstrad 6128 and 8256 expectedsummer 1986Copy protection: system and fountdiscs are protected; backup set availableto registered users for £15Price: £39.95 including VATSupplier: Mirrorsoft, Maxwell House,74 Worship Street, London EC2A 2EN.Telephone: 01-377 4600Available: now

AMX PAGEMAKER

PIRA MIXER SET UP MENU

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Above: The icons used inPagemaker's Setup menu are noteasy to understand.Top right: You can see full pagesin Preview.Right: In Define you can designup to 91 characters, symbols orpatterns.

SPECIFICATIONDescription: ROM/disc-based pagemake-up packageHardware required: BBC model B orB+ with one or two floppy-disC drives, 40or 80 track; Amstrad 464, 664 and 6128versions also availableCopy protection: Font disc may bebacked up; Processor section of systemdisc is protected; backup discs £2.50Price: £49.95 including VAT; AMXMouse £40Supplier:. Advanced Memory Systems,166-170 Wilderspool Causeway,Warrington WA4 6AQ. Telephone: (0925)413501Available: now


SOFTWARE REVIEW


are more confusing than ever. The Left andRight cursor keys take you through the tworows at the bottom of the screen, which isnatural enough, but they also move you upand down the columns at the side of thescreen. The Up and Down cursor keys switchfrom the bottom of the screen to the side.The space bar moves through all 34 icons in acontinuous circuit. The easily recognisableselector box at the side of each icon, which isused in other departments, is replaced hereby a small black bar at the bottom of eachicon which is not nearly as clear.

While you are in Studio you can load inany graphics you have saved on disc andmanipulate them in a number of ways:enlarge, reduce, copy, frame, rotate, fillwith patterns and write on them usingdifferent pens. You use the red functionkeys to select the ink colour and thickness oflines and the speed at which to write withthem. Once more the need to use a multi-tude of key combinations proved slow andconfusing. However, if you do make amistake you can select the Sad Face icon torestore things to the way they were beforethe current operation. It is in this dep-artment that you can prepare headlines ifyou want to use any of three fancy largefounts contained in the Graphics Library.

COPYDESKOnce you have decided on your headline

and illustrations you will want to enter text.To do so you move to the Copydesk dep-artment. You can transfer existing View orWordwise files into Copydesk if you wish.The Copydesk screen contains a work area,plus a narrow overflow window that canstore up to 256 characters. A messagewindow lies at the foot of the screen, and atthe top right of the screen is a fount windowdisplaying the founts currently in use.

Before typing in text you load in anygraphics you have made and position themon the screen. The text you enter then flowsaround the graphics. This is a neat feature,but it does have its traps: for example, if youposition a graphic at the top left, you have tomake sure there is no room around it for astray character to flow in.

Two body -type founts are available; youpress f2 to switch between them whiletyping. Samples of the two faces are onpermanent display in a small window at thetop of the screen. In addition there are sixdouble -height founts and two single -heightfounts which are selected using Shift -f3.

Once you have finished deciding whattext and graphics you want on your page youproceed to Page Makeup. The screendisplays a large panel roughly the shape ofan A4 sheet, an operations window, and aformat window from which you can selecteither a four -panel format or an eight -panelone. Each left-hand panel on an eight -panelformat can be stretched to full page width toaccommodate banner headlines, etc.

A catalogue of the files on your user discappears in the operations window. Youchoose which files go in which panels byusing the Up and Down cursor keys to select

the file name, and then pressing Return. Ifyou want to leave a panel blank to insert aphoto you select the empty box on the cat-alogue. When you have filled all the panelsyou give the page a file name and save it.

I found this method of laying out a pagehard to use. You need to have arranged yourlayout to fix into box -shaped areas, whichmeans you have to be very systematic, with agood idea of how you want your page to lookfrom the beginning. It also leads to dulllayout.

To see what your page looks like you moveon to Preview and Print. There are threewindows: a display area, a catalogue window

FLEET STREET EDITOR

PC VERDICT ,0 <,, s -Y. e

0° -& 0 *,k s- 0 <4..

Performance II U IIII

Ease of use

Documentation

Value for money IM

I 1 Good for simple layout if you canmaster the keyboard commands.

-,

AMX PAGEMAKER

P VERDICT

00(k

,44, --0 k,

., ,--\ 0,i,- 0 k,

Performance 10

Ease of use II . IN

Documentation III

Value for money

I 1 As sophisticated a page layout tool asyou can get on the BBC Micro.

and a mode window. The catalogue windowshows the file names of the pages on the userdisc. The mode window is where you decidethe size and quality of output to have, andwhether to have a rule down the centre ofthe page.

Advanced Memory Systems' AMX Page -maker allows for more sophisticated pagelayouts than Fleet Street Editor. The pack-age contains two 16K ROM chips, a

system disc, a Font disc and a 92 -pagemanual. I used Pagemaker with an AMXmouse, but you can also use it with a joystickor direct from the keyboard.

The mouse makes Pagemaker muchquicker and simpler to use than Fleet StreetEditor. However, the AMX unit did notseem to be up to the job: the buttons pingedoff the first one we had after about fiveminutes' use, and a replacement fell apart inthe same fashion. The movement of themouse was also erratic, and the cursor didnot always move as I wanted it to.

The Pagemaker main menu displays four

icons indicating the main modules of theprogram. Setup is where you set up theprogram to suit your system. Define is whereyou can define your own characters andpatterns. Preview is where you preview pagescreated. Processor is where you lay out thepages. You select a module by clicking thecursor over the appropriate icon.

ICONS UNCLEARIn the Setup module there are seven

icons, none of which are as immediatelyclear in their meaning as those of Fleet StreetEditor. For example, the icon for soundon/off is a boss -eyed smiling face.Sometimes the programmer indulges hissense of humour at the expense of clarity.Options are available which allow you toreposition the screen on your monitor, alterthe screen colours, format and initialisediscs, and select the type of printer to beused. In Define you can design up to 91characters, symbols or patterns on a

16 -by -16 grid.Processor combines the functions that on

Fleet Street Editor are divided betweenStudio, Copydesk and Page Makeup. Thescreen display shows a large window with aninch /centimetre scale on all four sides.Above it is a narrow message window, andon the right is a column of icons. Clickingthe required icon will highlight it, andproduces a menu in the message window.Some options have their own own sub -menus. You can use the Scroll icons to scrollup and down the screen to see what yourpage looks like. Processor will only displayhalf a page at a time. To view a full page youhave to go to the Preview option.

You can load text into Pagemaker fromWordwise and View files if you wish. Textcan be ranged left, justified or centred, andcan be positioned anywhere on the screen.You can draw boxes and then run text intothem, cut and paste, stretch, resize, rotate,flip, zoom and spray patterns on textand graphics.

Text can be typed in any of 17 founts,each of which can be in a variety of sizes. Forexample, you can alter the body size of thefounts to appear bigger or smaller. If twocharacters appear too close together they canbe shifted a pixel at a time.

To print out a page you select the printer -dump icon. Dumps can be A4 or A5 size andof two qualities. They can be of a wholepage, what appears on -screen or of awindowed part of the page.

CONCLUSIONS FSE and Pagemaker bring personal pub-lishing to the BBC Micro at a reasonable price,although Pagemaker is not so cheap if youhave to buy the mouse. FSE is let down by its confusing command -key assignments. Pagemaker made life simplerusing the mouse. FSE's six departments make it harder to usethan Pagemaker, which has only fourmodules. Both products are restricted by the lack ofmemory on the BBC model B, which meanswork continually has to be saved to disc. ga


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SOFTWARE REVIEW

MULTIMATE ADVANTAGEWP WITH FILINGBy Susan Curran

Multimate is one of the top -

selling office word-processingprograms. The latest versionadds a filing capability to theestablished, reliable WPfunctions.

multimate has been among themost commercially successful ofthe full -featured word processors

for the IBM PC and compatibles. I testedMultimate Advantage 3.5, a new packagewhich adds a cardbox-type filing program tothe word processor with spelling checker.

This adds up to a formidable package.There are four manuals, over 1,000 pages intotal, and seven different discs, to saynothing of a book rest, sticky labels for thekeyboard and other oddments.

The package comes in a cardboardslipcase, which you have to remove from theshelf before taking the manuals from it. It isabout an inch taller than standard IBM -styleslipcases. The manuals are spiral -boundwith thin card covers. I found the wholearrangement rather messy and cumbersome.

The word processor has three manuals: aBeginners' Guide, a Reference Guide andan Advanced Users' guide. There is a singleindex to the three in the Reference Guide.

Instead of the usual keyboard templatethere is a map of the keyboard and a set ofrather flimsy sticky labels, several of whichtore as I removed them. Many of them go onthe front of the keys, and you have to priseoff the keys tops to stick them on. I foundthis easy enough, but once in place thelabels were hard to read. I also found someof their legends confusing. For instance, ittook me some time to realise that Scrll Lftmoves the cursor to the start of the line.

TAKES TIME TO LEARNMultimate is not an easy package to

master. There are a multitude of functionshandled by a bewildering variety of keys.Each function key has four functions andmost alphanumeric keys have a secondfunction. However, the on -screen help isgood, and there are two tutorials. One is ondisc, the other is in the Beginners' Guide.The disc tutorial is a very well -presentedintroduction, though it does not passbeyond the elementary level.

Multimate is based around a main menuwhich controls editing, printing, spellingchecks and the various utility functions. Inedit mode, normal operations are all

System

mutilmaUlttilies Diskette

ntunimaie On i3e

The On -File cardbox is integrated with thebasic WP program.

SPECIFICATIONDescription: word-processing packagewith spelling checker and filing programHardware required: IBM PC, PC/XT,PC/AT or compatible with 320K RAM andtwo discs, DOS 2.0 or higherPrice: £495Copy protection: noneU.K. supplier: Ashton-Tate (U.K.),Oaklands, 1 Bath Road, Maidenhead,Berkshire SL6 1UH. Telephone: (0628)33123Available: now

handled by key commands; there are nosubsidiary menus. It is necessary to quit adocument and return to the main menu inorder to print it.

Documents are handled entirely in pages.Only one page of a document may be viewedon -screen at once: you cannot see thebottom of one and the top of the next.

Neither are there any split-screen oralternate -screen facilities, which makes thisfeature particularly exasperating. Wheneveryou move from a page it is saved on disc, andapparently removed from memory. It istherefore necessary to wait for disc accessesbefore returning to a previous page to checkits contents. I do not see why a page cannotbe retained in memory after being saved.However, this arrangement gives the pro-gram a very high degree of data security.Saves are usually automatic, though they canbe aborted.

The paging arrangements are very flexibleand cope well with varying lengths, widowsand orphans, and so on. The program willpaginate automatically when a document isfirst created, but you have to order re -pagination after edits which alter pagelengths. Repagination is rather slow. I foundthese arrangements confusing, particularlywhen headers and footers are used, and Igenerally found it necessary to repaginateseveral times to get adequate results. Manualrepagination often proved better than auto-matic, and I cursed the lack of a conditionalpage -break command, as sub -headings keptbeing stranded at the bottom of pages.

The editing screen is clear and un-cluttered. Symbols for tabs, hard Returnsand printer features such as subscripts areshown within the text. The default editingmode is overtype. You can toggle into aninsert mode, which normally opens up aspace for each insert. Push -forward insertion


SOFTWARE REVIEW

No easy business, pr inter support. Multisupport proportional spacing on this Tandyfind the results disappointing. This sampwith a special proportional daisywheel, butdon't look right to me. However, it ispro gram that offers combined ps and microjall.

mate claims toprinter, but I

le was printedthe proportionsrare to find aus tificati on at

IMultimate handles microspace justification on a wide rangeof printers. This sample is printed on a Tandydaisywheel. You can see that the microspacing avoids the'rivers of white' appearance that crude justificationtends to give.

Multimate supports an unusually wide range of printers. On most of these models it deals automatically withproportional spacing, microjustification and extended character sets.

is available as an alternative, though Multi -mate seized up from time to time in thismode. Perhaps my freedom with inserts wastoo much for it. Text is reformatted auto-matically and fast after each editing change.

Reformats on margin changes are alsohandled automatically once the format linehas been altered. However, format linestend to proliferate throughout the text, andyou have to ensure that every one is alteredto achieve the desired effect. Justificationand double/treble line spacing are notechoed on -screen.

There are a good range of cursorcommands, though these are shared un-comfortably between the cursor keys and thefunction keys. In general screen response isgood, though there is a discernible delay indeleting, and long pressure on the DeleteCharacter key can have unfortunate results.

UNCLUTTERED SCREENMultimate is aimed at the office market.

Each document comes with its own summaryscreen, which includes space for notingauthors, operators and addressees, and theopportunity to list key words to help inretrieving documents. A word count is

available through the spelling checker.As well as all the basic functions, Multi -

mate handles footnotes and section num-bering. There is no automatic indexing, andno newspaper -style columns. Columnarcalculations are handled, but maths cap-abilities are otherwise limited. Multimate'sstrong points are its printer support andboilerplating operations.

Named libraries can be set up to holdstandard paragraphs for inclusion indocuments. This feature is distinct from themail merge operation. But there is no easymethod to save a block of text separatelywithin an existing file.

There is excellent provision for buildingmacro -type key procedures, includingpauses and prompts, which are well suited tostreamlining completion of forms andsimilar tasks. Macros are available, but theyare too slow to be suitable for the abbrev-iation of single words and phrases.

I was not impressed by Multimate's

spelling checker. You have to return to themain menu to order a spelling check, whichis then performed blind. All unrecognisedwords are flagged, and when you return tothe document file they blink at you. Theblinks can be edited manually or via aseparate Spell Edit routine. This lacks acommand to ignore the word for this doc-ument only, but it does provide spellingsuggestions. I found it very hard to locatethe cursor amid the forest of blinking words,and the entire procedure is slow and tedious,even on a hard -disc machine.

Multimate has the best printer support Ihave seen on a word processor. An enormousnumber of printers are covered. I was

MULTIMATE ADVANTAGE

PC VERDICT #.k,01,

ke-N-4° Tti

<4..

Performance IN IIEase of use MI IN

Documentation IN mi

Value for money U IIA competent professional word

processor.

surprised to find specific support for my ownTandy printer as few other programs provideit. I found it worked quite well, though thetranslation table used for proportionalspacing gave some weird results. Many otherusers of less popular printers will find thesame.

Printer defaults can be altered on anyprint run, and it is easy to switch betweenalternative printers. There is good supportfor print queuing, including a delay feature.there is also an option to choose betweenbackground and foreground printing,though merge printing is always done inforeground mode.

My only criticism is the lack of a quickBlock Print feature. To print a letter and

then extract the address for printing on anenvelope you have to edit the document file,save it and go to the printer menu. You thenhave to re -request the file and re-edit it tocut it down to the address only beforereturning to the printer menu.

The Advantage word processor itselfincorporates decent merge facilities, and it isnot necessary to use the On -File program inorder to do form letters. However, On -Filecomes into its own as a means of selectingindividual records for merging, and as ahandy cardbox-type database.

On -File carries the cardbox analogy as faras offering the front and back of mock filecards. It is possible to use these free -form orwith created templates. There is a subjectline, a text area and an index line. Multipleindex entries are allowed, and cards can beretrieved by searching for a word or phrase inthe body of the text.

On a colour monitor, the programhandles different colours of card, which canact as a sorting key. Cards can be searchedand sorted in a variety of ways, but they arenot saved in sort order and must be re -sortedon each access.

The menus have several failings. Nonames of cardboxes are displayed on firstaccess, for instance; it is necessary to quit theprogram if you forget the name of the boxyou want. After adding a new card you arenot offered the chance to add another, butare dumped back into the main menuinstead. An exasperating bug also wipes allbut the first word from the subject line ofthe card when it is saved.

One disadvantage of the program is thatendless disc accesses take place throughout asession. It will not win any speed records.There are no arithmetical features at all inthe program, which restricts its applicabilityas a multi -purpose database.

CONCLUSIONSMMultimate is a powerful word processor welldesigned for non -numeric office uses.It is extremely reliable and flexible, thoughrather slow and cumbersome in operation.MBoilerplating and printer support are its

outstanding features.


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111 SOFTWARE REVIEW

dBASE COMPILERSSPEED AND PORTABILITYBy Mike Lewis

The code generated by a compiler can be used independentlyof the dBase program itself, and runs more quickly too.

If you are a serious dBase III user, or if youproduce dBase applications for otherpeople to use, you really ought to con-

sider buying a compiler for the language.True, the purchase would set you back £650.But if time is money, a compiler could saveyou plenty of both.

There are two products to choose from.Wordtech Systems' dBIII-Compiler was firstin the field, closely followed by Clipperfrom a group of former Ashton-Tateemployees called Nantucket. Each producthas its strengths and weaknesses, but bothoffer considerable advantages over the morefamiliar interpreted version of dBase III.

The main advantage of a compiler isspeed. Once your dBase III command fileshave been compiled into executableprograms, they will run many times faster.Just how much faster depends a lot on whatthe programs do and how you have writtenthem. On the whole, though, you cannotexpect to see as big a saving as you wouldwith other languages, such as Basic.

This is not a reflection on the quality ofthe dBase compilers so much as on the powerof the language. Given that dBase allowsyou to write, with just two or threecommands, a global file update whichmight take many minutes to run, the timeneeded for interpreting the program, andhence the time saved by compiling, couldwell be negligible by comparison. That said,my benchmark tests on two fairly complexcommand files did show some veryimpressive savings.

In these and other tests, Clipper generallyproduced faster programs than dBIII-Compiler, although the difference wasusually small compared with the overallsaving of compilation over interpretation.On the other hand, dBIII consistently out-performed Clipper on compile -and -linktimes, and also produced smaller executableprogram files.

The other main benefit of compilation is afinancial one. If several people are using adBase III application on their owncomputers, each needs his or her own copyof the package at around f550 a time. But ifone person is responsible for developing theapplication, only one dBase III and one copyof the compiler will be required.

A further advantage is portability. LikedBase III itself, both compilers will only runon IBM PCs and compatibles, but both can

generate programs capable of running onany MS-DOS system. dBIII-Compiler canalso produce an installation program tohandle your user's terminal codes. Clipper isslightly less flexible in that the target systemmust sport an ANSI screen driver, but this isnot likely to prove too onerous a restriction.

The real differences between the twocompilers become clear when you take aclose look at the language elements theysupport. In theory, you should be able totake a working dBase command file andexpect it to compile and run withoutchange. I was certainly able to do this withboth compilers, but only up to a point sinceboth products come with a lengthy scheduleof language differences.

Obviously, the compilers do not supportthe purely interactive commands that youenter at the dot prompt rather than write

dBIII-COMPILER

PC VERDICT0 ..k,T 0 ,;.;1

(y

Performance M

Ease of use II U IIDocumentation MI

Value for money III

A first-class investment for the seriousdBase III user.

,

into your programs. These include ModifyCommand, Assist, Help, most of the Setoptions, and the normal form of Create.Since these are of no interest to the end -user,their omission is understandable.

But I was less happy with the absence ofEdit and the plain version of Append. Theywere presumably left out to prevent the userfrom putting information into databasesoutside the control of the program. Butwhen working in tandem with format files,these two commands provide a very power-ful way of writing file -maintenance utilities,at least in applications where validation isnot critical.

You can, of course, program round thisomission, using the Read command. But thegreat strength of Edit and Append is that

..-

SPECIFICATIONSdBIII-COMPILERDescription: compiler for dBase IIIlanguageHardware required: for compiling,IBM PC, PC/XT, AC/AT or compatible,256K RAM, one floppy or hard disc; forexecution of compiled programs, any MS-DOS system with 256K RAMCopy protection: nonePrice: £650Publisher: Wordtech Systems Inc.,Orinda, CaliforniaU.K. supplier: Micro MinderConsultants Ltd, 68 Upper RichmondRoad, London SW15 2RP. Telephone:01-870 7431Available: now

CLIPPERDescription: compiler for dBase IIlanguageHardware required: for compiling,IBM PC, PC/XT, PC/AT or compatible,256K RAM, one floppy or hard disc; forexecution of compiled programs, any MS-DOS system with 256K RAM and ANSIterminal driverCopy protection: yesPrice: £650Publisher: Nantucket Inc., Culver City,CaliforniaU.K. supplier: Xat Software Ltd, 45Kercroft, Milton Keynes MK8 8AP.Telephone: (0908) 566261Available: now

they allow the user to take advantage of thePage Up and Page Down keys to browsethrough the records. With Read, the pro-grammer has to provide some form of menuto achieve the same end, not to mention allthe extra Store and Replace instructions thatRead demands.

On the other hand, both compilers offer auseful repertoire of new features not foundin the original language. For example, bothprovide access to command -line parametersthat the user can type after the program


SOFTWARE REVIEW

BENCHMARKTwo large programs were used for these timing tests. Between them, they contain a good cross-section of dBase commands andfunctions, including indexing, string manipulation, calculations, and file updating.

The Chart program performs a series of calculations on fields in two databases, creates and indexes a third database, and plotsthe results in the form of a histogram. The Typeset program creates an ASCII file containing text and typesetting codes, usinginformation contained in three separate databases.

The tests were carried out on an Olivetti M-24 with hard disc. All times are in minutes.

CHARTInterpreter dBIII Clipper

TYPESET

Interpreter dBIII ClipperSource file size 8.7K Source file size 6.5KCompile and link time 1.4 4.4 Compile and link time 1.2 3.8

Running time 27.0 8.9 7.3 Running time 7.0 3.0 2.8Executable program

size, including overlays104K 122K Executable program

size, including overlays113K 121K

name on the DOS command line. Both alsohave an Inkey function which, like its name-sake in Basic, allows a program to test forkeystrokes without suspending execution.

dBIII-Compiler has additional commandsfor clearing the keyboard buffer, makingDOS system calls, accessing I/O ports, andtesting individual bits within a byte. I amnot sure how useful most programmers willfind these. More interesting perhaps is thesystem's ability to use databases created bydBase II and dBase III interchangeably. Youdo not need to tell it which is which, and youmay have any combination of them open ata time.

Clipper cannot access dBase II databases,but then neither can dBase III so this is

hardly likely to be a problem. But Clipper isalso unable to use indexes created by dBaseIII. It has its own, incompatible, index for-mat, which might well cause difficulties forpeople who need to transfer data betweenthe interpreter and compiled programs.Worse, Clipper uses a different file type forindexes - NTX rather than NDX - sonumerous adjustments to source code will beneeded.

By way of compensation, Clipper hasmany useful language extensions. There arefunctions for finding the names of fields,drawing boxes, replicating character strings,determining which key the user pressed toexit Read, and quite a lot more. You can alsowrite your own functions, along the lines ofBasic's Def Fn. You can program any of the40 Ctrl, Alt and Shift combinations offunction keys, not just nine of the unshiftedkeys as provided by dBase III. And there iseven a For -Next statement.

Unlike dBIII-Compiler, Clipper compilesto standard Intel object format. This meansthat you can link your dBase code withmodules written in other languages. A Callstatement is used to communicate betweenmodules and to pass paramaters. It alsomeans that you can define an overlaystructure for them. In fact, a modifiedversion of Phoenix Associates' Plink -86overlay linker is included with the Clipperpackage.

One of my favourite Clipper enhance-ments is its handling of the Help Key. Thisallows the programmer to write a specialcommand file called Help.Prg, which isautomatically activated whenever the user

presses fl. This program can find out atwhich point in the application the key waspressed, and thus display context -sensitivehelp screens or provide any other form ofassistance which the programmer wishes tooffer.

A point to remember about most of thesenew language features is that they are usefulonly if the application is designed at theoutset to take advantage of them. On thewhole, they are not the sort of extras that canbe slotted in at the last minute. This is fine ifyou are writing programs specifically forcompilation. But if you want to compileexisting dBase III command files, or if youintend to use the interpreter as adevelopment tool, compiling only when thecode is bug -free, you will have to do withoutmany of these enhancements.

CLIPPER

IN, VERDICT ,cP.1.

0(1

cdct. r ktr

Performance M U

Ease of use ElDocumentation 0Value for money III 0

Mere it not for the clumsy copyprotection, this would be an excellentproduct.

So which of the two compilers should youchoose? Clipper certainly beats dBIII-Compiler on language features. It is alsoslightly ahead on execution speed, althoughit trails on compile -and -link times. It is alittle more complicated to use than dBIII,but not significantly so. One major problemwith Clipper is the installation procedure,which is hindered by a clumsy copy -protection scheme. It was such a hassle Inearly gave up trying to use the packagealtogether.

First, I attempted to copy Clipper on tomy hard disc, but the special installationprogram supplied by Nantucket constantlycrashed, usually with a meaningless numericerror code. Nobody at the firm's U.K.agent, Xat, was answering the phone, and

the only clue I got from the manual was awarning that Clipper would not work with"non -IBM hard discs". Perhaps the disc inmy Olivetti M-24 comes into the category.In the end, I gave up.

Next, I tried to install Clipper onfloppies. This too failed, but by inspectingthe installation batch file I managed to tracethe fault. In fact, it would have worked finewith a two -floppy system, but not with ahard -disc machine. I ended up having toinstall Clipper itself on a floppy, with thelinker, libraries, etc. on the Winchester -not an ideal situation.

None of these problems applied to dBIII-Compiler, which is completely free of thenuisances of copy protection. This fact alonewould probably tip the scales in Wordtech'sfavour for many users, especially those whounderstand the importance of makingregular backup copies.

Finally, a word of caution. The softwareindustry moves fast. Wordtech andNantucket had barely started to sell theirproducts when Ashton-Tate announceddBase III Plus, a major upgrade of theoriginal language. This supports some 50new functions and commands, most ofwhich are completely unknown to the twocompilers. Just to complicate matters,Ashton-Tate is thought to be working on acompiler of its own. Whether Clipper anddBIII can keep up with this competition,only time will tell.

CONCLUSIONS Both Clipper and dBIII-Compiler will repaytheir purchase price very quickly, especiallyif you regularly use pre -written dBaseprograms, or if several users run the sameapplication. Software houses especially shouldbenefit from them.MBoth compilers are closely compatible withthe original dBase Ill, and both support manyextra language features. Clipper is the betterof the two in this respect. Whichever compiler you choose, you canexpect to see a big improvement in programrunning times. Although execution tends to befaster with Clipper, dBIII-Compiler takes muchless time to compile and link.11The big problem with Clipper is the messycopy -protection scheme and the resultingdifficulties with installing the package. Whatever Ashton-Tate's official attitude tothese products, they can only enhance thevalue of dBase Ill.


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PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986 circle 134 on enquiry card -79

DATA SECURITY

PRIVATE:KEEP OUT

For a brief but significant period, if youwanted to make a data-processingmanager turn slightly pale, all you had

to do was mention the number 414. A groupof young hobbyists from Milwaukee,Wisconsin, adopted these three digits -their area dialling code - as their hallmark.They went on to generate national publicityby finding their way into the supposedlysecure computers of businesses, hospitalsand government agencies.

The term "hacker", which once des-cribed any experimentally mindedcomputer enthusiast, came to denote acomputer trespasser. TV shows like WhizKids were spawned, with heroes thatperformed impressive but unrealistic feats ofunauthorised access. Most of all, the 414group and their like made computerprofessionals realise that even a kid with amodest knowledge of computers couldpenetrate their systems. Suddenly it seemedas if every telephone line had a hacker at theother end.

In many ways these early hackers did thecomputer industry a favour by demon-strating how vulnerable government andindustrial systems really are. In fact,computer -equipped teenagers are the leastof the computer industry's problems. Themore serious threats include computer -related fraud, particularly by a company'sown employees; industrial espionage andthe consequent loss of trade secrets; misuse

Steve Gold explains someof the techniques forpreventing malign or

mischievous outsiders fromtampering with your data.

of electronic fund transfers; and the invasionof personal privacy.

To try to prevent this kind of misuse,computer systems are now designed todemand some form of personal authen-tication from the user. This may be requiredat a number of points along the path ofaccessing computer data. The key points are:on entry to buildings where equipment ishoused; on entry to the terminal room; inorder to enable the terminal; at theencryption interface unit; on log -in; for fileaccess; and for data -item access.

Physical devices such as cards and keys arecommonly used at the first three of theseaccess points. Passwords, alone or incombination with other techniques, arecommonly used on log -in, for file access or atdata -access time.

As well as authenticating users to databasesystems, password schemes may providesome degree of protection against otherthreats to the integrity of a system.Unauthorised accessing can take severaldifferent forms. Browsing is where someonewith legitimate access to a part of the system

PASSWORD PROTECTION SCHEMESAdvantages Disadvantages

User selected Easy to remember Often easy to guess

System generated Difficult to guess More difficult to remember;algorithm may be deducible

Indefinite lifetime Easy to remember Most vulnerable to exhaustiveenumeration and guessingattempts; difficult to tell ifpassword is stolen

Fixed lifetime Easy to remember if time Vulnerability depends on timeinterval is fairly long; moresecure than indefinite

interval

One-off Useful for detecting successful Difficult to remember unlesspenetration of system; short written down; valid userslifetime prohibits any locked out if successfulexhaustive tests penetration occurs

Size and alphabet The larger the password and The larger the word the morealphabet, the more difficult it difficult it is to remember andis to use; less need forduplication of passwords

the more storage is required

Information contents Could aid detection of May cause passwords to be longpenetration attempts if and thus more likely to bepenetrator is unaware of valid written down; if schemepassword structure becomes known, passwords

could become easy to deduce

accesses unauthorised files. When alegitimate user is on-line but not actuallyusing their terminal, someone else may gainaccess using a technique known as between -lines entry. In a related technique, calledpiggyback break-in, the authorised user'ssystem communications are intercepted,and the intruder returns spurious systemmessages which fool the user into thinkinghe or she is on-line. Finally, hackers can mas-querade as authorised users after gettinghold of their password or other ident-ification items.

The degree of protection afforded bypasswords varies greatly. They providereasonable protection against browsingwhen implemented at the file or data level.However, passwords are ineffective againstthe threats of between -lines entry and piggy-back break-ins, unless each batch of dataentered to a system is verified in-dependently. This would be a laborioussolution to say the least.

PERSONAL IDENTIFICATIONData -encryption keys and the banking

system's personal identification numbers aretwo systems which use passwords as a meansof verifying identity. An encryption keycontrols the algorithmic transformation ofraw data into unintelligible code. The PIN istypically a four- to six -digit number. It isassigned to the card holder by the bank andis normally used in conjunction with a mag-netically encoded card. The U.K.'s bankcard system employs three magnetic stripslaid parallel to each other. Two are read-onlyand the other may be written to by thebanking machines.

For a password to be an effective deterrentto successful database penetration, it shouldbe difficult to guess, easy for the owner toremember, changed frequently and wellprotected. The degree to which a passwordscheme incorporates such features deter-mines the difficulty of compromising thepassword. The table on this page illustratesthe characteristics of the different passwordschemes now in use.

Other protection systems are availablethat compound the effect of passwords. Onesuch system is that employed in the Societyfor Worldwide Interbank Financial Tele-communications (Swift), a worldwidebanking network created by the BurroughsCorporation. At log -off time, the operatorspecifies the next log -in time, and Swift willrefuse any earlier log -in attempts.

More information on password protectioncan be found in The uses of passwords forcontrolled access to computer resources byHelen Wood, published in 1977 by the U.S.National Bureau of Standards: referenceNBS 500-9.


DATA SECURITY


BUYING EQUIPMENT

HOW UP IIIICALWITH DEALERS

When dealers get together at asales seminar, a curious matingritual takes place. Over a cup of

coffee during the afternoon break, twodealers from the same part of the country,who have been keeping an eye on each otherfrom their seats in the conference room,begin a ritual conversation.

"How's it going then?", says DealerJohn.

"Not too bad", offers Dealer Jack."I hear Dealer Fred isn't doing too badly

either", suggests Dealer John, cautiously,feeling his way into the denouement.

"Dealer Fred! Why, he's nothing but adiscounting box shifter!", obliges DealerJack.

"Bloody right mate . . . " , trumpsDealer John. From this point on the two geton together like a house on fire.

Enshrined in this ritual, repeated acrossthe country, is the key to a growingreligion. True believers worship the onegod, service, and shun the devil discount.The two trade commandments which mostdealers publicly espouse are: Thou shalt obtain a discount from thinesuppliers of between 25 and 40 percent ofthe recommended retail price on hardware,and between 30 and 60 percent on software. Thou shalt not pass any of thy margin onto thy customer, for that shall be calleddiscounting and be an abomination untilyou and your salespeople.

However, some dealers, such as JerryMcDougal who runs Computer Express inSt. Albans, believe that problems are justaround the corner for those dealers who carryout their public beliefs in the privacy of theirown showrooms. "There's going to be a bigerosion of prices this year", he told me."Dealers are not going to be able to get awaywith 30 and 40 percent margins. There'sreally no justification for them."

Jerry puts his money where his mouth is,by advertising 20 and 30 percent off the rec-

Buying equipment orsoftware can be a tricky

business. Jerry Sandersoffers some advice on what

to look out for whenshopping around.

ommended retail price of many leadingmakes of micro. But there are limits to hisgenerosity. "If my customers push us tooclose on the margins they can't legitimatelyexpect the level of support. One man rangme up from Bournemouth and wanted tobuy an Amstrad PCW-8256, which I'malready discounting from £399 to £375. Buthe expected delivery to be included in theprice.

"It so happened I had a driver who wasgoing within 100 miles, and I ended upmaking a profit of f15 on the deal. Then itturned out a couple of discs supplied withthe machine were dicey, and he expected meto do some sort of rescue operation on thediscs after chewing me down on the price. Inthat sort of case, I just don't feel the urgencyof the situation."

McDougal believes that 14 to 15 percent isabout the right level of margin for computerdealers, a suggestion that would shock manyof his peers in the industry. He believesthat this level of pricing is inevitable, andmakes a comparison with aircraft travel."Formerly, flying was exclusively for therich, even through the sixties and seventies.

Dealers are notgoing to get away

with 30 or 40 percentmargins. There's nojustification for it. q

Now companies like People Express havedriven the prices down, and now everyoneflies. In the micro industry it's bound to bethe same in the end."

At the moment, says McDougal, thestrategy of many dealerships is based onhaving an exclusive product that people paya lot for. While the end -user community isstill in its infancy, and knowledge andexpertise is in short supply, he is right. Themanufacturers themselves warn you offbuying a machine other than through anofficial dealer. In theory, authorised dealersdo not discount. Instead, they are urged bythe manufacturers they represent to providetop -class after -sales service.

One big advantage of buying from anauthorised dealer is that if the dealer fails toprovide you with satisfactory service, or goesbust, the manufacturer is usually there topick up the pieces. What is more, mostauthorised dealerships are hard-won, andcan be lost by dealers who consistently be-smirch the good name of the manufacturerwhose machines they sell.

Yet I suspect that many dealers secretlylong to be box shifters. After all, wholesalersmake their living selling goods at a discount,and no one thinks the worse of them for it.Yet for some reason it is not thought properfor a dealer to do the same. Sooner or laterthough, a dealer that becomes too successfulat it will end up an outcast, and will pro-bably become a distributor instead.

However, some highly respected dealers,have begun to realise that the reasondiscount structures exist in the manu-facturer/distributor/dealer relationship is

because they make for efficient business. Infact a new breed of dealers is emerging whovalue experienced customers, and if youshow one of them you are not a first-timebuyer you will be offered up to 15 percentdiscount on your system.

To find out if your dealer is one of thisnew breed you might ask for a support -


waiver form for you to sign. But before yousign it, do be honest with yourself. Buying acomputer at a discount today is like buying anew pair of shoes in a sale; do not expect anysympathy if they pinch. Every sale takestime, and every call for free support robs thedealer of valuable selling time.

There is roughly one business micro dealerfor every 24,000 inhabitants of the U.K. Ofthose 24,000, an estimated 21,600 havenever used a computer before. Some 21,599of those assume they have the right to freetraining on computers from the dealerbefore they buy, during the purchase andafter installation. Yet if you go to your localcar showroom, you probably do not expectto be taught how to drive the car for freebefore you buy it.

As a schoolboy I used to marvel at theknowledge my language teachers had ofirregular verbs. Later, as a language teachermyself, I used to marvel at my skill inkeeping one lesson ahead of my students.Remember that the most you can hope forfrom a dealer's staff is that they haveattended sales -training courses for theproducts they will sell you. The real tech-nicians are usually in the back roomrepairing micros, or out installing them. Thesales staff you speak to are not techno-freaks.

If your dealer has an on -site repair facilityor a telephone -support hotline, you willknow you are dealing with a more integratedfirm than if you are sold a maintenancecontract with a specialist maintenanceorganisation. Using third -party supportcontracts is a perfectly legitimate practice,but many dealers are now realising thatthere is money to be made in servicing theirown customers. It is not really possible tojudge whether the offer of a third -partymaintenance contract on its own is a good orbad sign.

Most manufacturers are beginning to usean internal classification of their dealershipsinto first -division dealers and the rest. Thesplit is usually around 80:20, the minoritybeing first -division material. The differenceis usually related to technical competenceand sales volumes. In practice, you may findmanufacturers unwilling to tell you which oftheir dealers fall into which category.

But you can work it out. Generally, the

first -division dealers carry a manufacturer'sentire product line, including the top -of -the -range models. Though you may notwant that particular product, an Apricotdealers who sells the Xen, an IBM dealerwho sells the PC/ AT or an Ashton-Tatedealer selling dBase III Plus is probablyregarded as a first -division dealer.

Though these outlets probably specialisein servicing corporate accounts, they will notdiscriminate against individual end -usercustomers. Conversely, a dealer who sellsonly the IBM PC floppy -drive machine, theApricot PC, and dBase II and WordStar,may be less interested in servicing complexsystems.

You may think that if a dealer offers you aparticular computer it is because it's the one

riaving bought themachine, you begin to

have doubts aboutanyone who gave youthat much discount/

best suited to you. In an ideal world thatwould be true. The reality is often that adealer will guide you towards the computeron which he or she makes most money. Asthe managing director of one well-knownretail grouping told me: "Whether you getsold a Compaq or an IBM depands largely onwhether there's a T in the month."

"T" stands for targets. For example, IBMhas quarterly sales targets for its productswhich are sold through dealers. At the endof every quarter, IBM authorised dealers areoffered extra discounts on PC products inorder to help IBM hit its sales targets.Assuming dealers do not pass this saving onto the customer, they are likely to respond toIBM's generosity by selling more IBMs inthose months, and make a higher marginper sale.

But there are two sides to every story. Amanager of a west London store told me: "Ifwe sold on the basis of margin, we'd be on ahiding to nothing as far as our professionalreputation was concerned. Each customer's

requirements must be examined on anindividual basis, and the only possible basisfor selling a system is to fulfil thoserequirements."

Do not assume that all salespeople are oncommission. Some dealerships, such asDigitus in Covent Garden, have nocommission structure for their sales staff nordo they have sales targets. So two questionsto ask the salesperson who is serving you arewhether he or she is on commission, andwhether that commission is based onproduct margin.

On the other hand, many dealers are waryof a customer who comes into a showroomknowing exactly what they want to buy. "Itcan be a major problem to have customerswho won't listen to what we have to say",says a spokesman at Tasha Business Systems,"They insist on buying a particularcombination of hardware and software, andthen three months later return to complainthat it doesn't do the job they wanted."

Try not to be suspicious of dealers who askyou to talk them through your applicationfrom top to bottom. You may think they aretrying to work out your level of ignorance,and therefore how much they can get awaywith selling you. But in most cases they aremore concerned with ensuring you get asystem which will meet your needs. If theycan do that for you, then they are likely towin your confidence and your repeatbusiness.

You choose a dealer for two mutuallyexclusive reasons. Before you buy anythingyou shop around, getting as much freeeducation as you can on the way, then go forthe cheapest option. Having bought yourmachine, your reasoning changes. Youbegin to have doubts about the reliability ofanyone who gave you that much discount.Will they cut back on service too? Will theystill be there when you need them?

Discounting leaves little margin for freeservice. In fact, discounting dealers willexpect you to spread the word about theirwonderful prices, attracting more customersto their stores so that they can sell thevolume they need to attract the highermargins they need from their suppliers tofinance the discounts they are giving.

Jerry Sanders is editor of Microscope.


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DATA PROTECTION ACT

TIME ISRUNNING

OUTIs the new data protection law about to beignored by common consent? With theclosing date for applications to register

looming, this seems possible. The deadlinedate is 11 May, and so far the anticipatedflood of 400,000 applications has notmaterialised. Only 10,000 forms have beenreturned complete on the Data ProtectionRegistrar since he opened for business lastNovember.

This is not an entirely surprising state ofaffairs. Of the considerable odds againstwhich the 1984 Data Protection Act has tostruggle, the most significant is lack ofinterest. Apprehension and even hostility onthe part of data users might have beenexpected. Instead, there is a tendency fordata users to dissociate themselves from thenew legislation.

Many people have chosen to assume thatthe Act does not apply to them, or that theyare exempt for some reason. This is far fromthe truth. Exemptions such as payroll,accounts and word processing are narrowlydrafted, and will apply only to a smallfraction of those users who intend to rely onthem.

Although small businesses are moreobviously ignoring the legislation thanlarger undertakings and public authorities,negative reactions are apparent everywhere.Local authorites cannot avoid registration.Regional conferences and seminars designedto promote data -protection awareness areattended almost exclusively by local -government employees. But it is clear that inmany cases they are bewildered by the ideaof data protection principles, fail to see theirpurpose, and regard the legislation as theconcern of someone other than themselves.

EXTRA SECURITYOlder employees, in particular, who tend

to be less comfortable with new technologyin the office, are nonplussed by theadditional security recommendations theynow receive. They are astonished to learnthat they should consider more discreetsiting of terminals in busy open-plan officesand prompt destruction of personal dataprintouts which hitherto have been used asscrap paper. This says much about theprevailing attitudes towards security ofpersonal data; one could almost argue a casein favour of the Data Protection Act.

However, one cannot have a great deal ofsympathy for a law which rests on a

The deadline for registrationis nearly here, yet apathy

and inaction still reignsupreme. Anne Staines

contemplates theconsequences.

manifestly false assumption. What possibleincentives could induce data users - andparticularly small businesses which alreadyfeel themselves to be paper -bound - topresent themselves voluntarily as candidatesfor yet more regulation? Why should theybe prepared to invest the necessary time andother resources in revealing informationabout their data files, and thus about theirbusiness, and then commit themselves, inwriting, on an official form, with effectswhich they do not fully understand? The£22 registration fee may be an insignificantresource, but some small businesses aremaking such heavy weather of completingthe 12 -page form that they are com-missioning consultants to do it for them.

This arrangement is extremely dangerousfor both parties. Anyone giving or takingadvice on data -protection registration mustbe sure of adequate professional indemnityinsurance cover. A computer consultant israrely qualified to give advice on legalobligations. The effect of a faulty reg-

istration might be a Prohibition Notice,which would be inconvenient at the veryleast.

The Data Protection Act depends for itseffect on the assumption that two incentiveswill prevail: that data users perceive theusefulness of the exercise and will positivelyco-operate, and that they fear the con-sequences of non-compliance. Like all theaspects of the Registrar's work, the cost ofenforcement must be met from registrationfees. Without a sudden dramatic increase inthe number of applications, the prospect ofany real enforcement is remote.

LACK OF CURIOSITYBut the real weakness of the Data

Protection Act lies in the assumption thatdata users perceive its usefulness. Data usersare also, in some shape or form, datasubjects and might therefore be expected tosee some benefit in having personalinformation open to inspection. Butexperience in Europe and the U.S. wherethis type of legislation has been in force forsome years, shows that data subjects are notas a rule curious to know the content of theirfiles.

The exceptions to this rule are those fileswhich will remain inaccessible to U.K. datasubjects, even when the legislation is in forcein its entirety. In France, for example, it isnoticeable that the majority of disputedapplications for access have been made bycertified lunatics wishing to know theidentity of the medical practitioner whocommitted them to an institution. Almostcertainly this information would not beavailable to a U.K. data subject without thewritten consent - which would rarely begiven - of his or her GP.

The vast majority of personal data fileswhich will become accessible under the DataProtection Act will hold no interest for theirsubjects. It seems arguable that if data userscould equate the new legislation with somereal and much -needed benefit to the public,they would comply more promptly with itsrequirements. As things stand, however,there seems little cause for alarm on the partof those who do register. After some initialenquiries by a few inquisitive individualsthey will probably never be troubled by theirdata subjects.

Anne Staines is a barrister and SeniorLecturer in law at Newcastle upon TynePolytechnic.

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KCO (HEAD OFFICE)78-82 KIRKTON ROAD 01-800 8182

LONDON N15 5EY

88circle 141 on enquiry card 4 - PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

II

John Aris joined LeoComputers in 1968,staying with the companythrough a succession ofmergers into whateventually became ICL. In1975 he moved toImperial Group tobecome head of computerdevelopment. From 1982he was manager ofGroup ManagementServices withresponsibility forcomputing,telecommunications, officeautomation andmanagement science. Hisassociation with the NCCbegan in 1981 when hewas appointed MemberDirector. He took over asDirector in 1985.

NTERVIEWJOHN ARIS - Director of the National Computing Centre

INTERVIEWED BY CAROL HAMMOND

What do you think is the role of theNCC?WE'VE just agreed a role, in fact, indiscussions with the senior management,which we embarked upon when I came onboard. We decided we wanted a short,snappy phrase and what we settled for was"to promote the effective use of informationtechnology."

How are you going to do that?WELL, at that point it all becomes a greatdiversity of activities. In the first instance wesee ourselves being about transfer oftechnology, that is to say essentially pickingup the best practice in the various areas inwhich people use information technology andtrying to spread the good word around. Thenwithin that we have certain areas where webelieve the need is greatest and we havemost to contribute. On the non -technical sidewe believe that it's very important to providethe messages that top management need tohear about information technology. It's fairlywell known that management -servicesdepartments have difficulty in talking in thesame language as their top managements;that's a problem from both ends and I thinkthe NCC has an important role in helpingthem to meet in the middle.

On the more technical areas our lead issueis software engineering, by which I mean thewhole question of how one gets programswritten and into operation. We are indifficulty here because over the yearshardware has improved enormously andsoftware hasn't, and it's really time we didsomething about the software problem.

The other topics we'd like to single out aretelecommunications, decision support, expertsystems and standards. We also want to getinto advanced manufacturing technology.

How do you see the relationshipbetween the NCC and the microuser, say, in a small business?TO TAKE the small business, I suppose ourmain involvement is through the Federationof Microsystems Centres. We have amicrosystems centre of our own and we alsoprovide the secretariat for the Federation asa whole. There are something like 20 of themup and down the country, each of which isvery much there to be in a position to helpsmall businesses.

How are these microsystems centresset up and who runs them?THE government decided that there was aneed for help for small businesses in the useof microcomputers and it let it be known thatit wanted to encourage the establishment ofthese microsystems centres. Exactly wherethey are and who runs them was acombination of the government letting it beknown that there were some pump -priming

funds available and the willingness of peopleto take it on.

There's quite a spectrum between purelyentrepreneurial activities, where people arerunning this as a commercial activity, all theway through to it being a sideline by apolytechnic or organisation of some sort thathas the type of expertise which it is willing todiversify in that way.

How does the NCC cope with beingboth a commercial organisation anda national body aiming to giveindependent advice?WE haven't so far found this a greatproblem. We attempt to keep our strictlycommercial activities visibly such, so thatpeople aren't in any doubt as to whether weare actually in a commercial selling role ornot. We then do our good works in a ratherdifferent way, and I hope people pef-ceivethe two and don't understand us to be doingone thing when we're doing another. Alsoour commercial activity is the only way offunding the do-gooding.

Why should somebody go to theNCC for advice as opposed toanother commercial consultancy?I THINK they must make their judgement asto who's going to give them the best advice.There are some very good consultanciesaround. I believe that there's room foreverybody in that particular marketplace andwe stand and fall by our merits asconsultants.

We also run an information service whichwe think of as being somewhat separate fromthe consultancy advisory service, and thatcentres around some of the activities withinour own microsystems centre. We make apoint of collecting together and publishingdirectories of what's available in the microfield. If you want a list of the sources, we'reprobably your best bet.

How do you see the role of the NCCdeveloping in the future?I MENTIONED some of the points earlier,also we're clearly going to respond tochanges in the technological scene which arestill coming thick and fast. I would like to givea few further flavours to the way the NCCdoes its work. One is that I'm very keen thatwe develop the theme of case studies. I thinkthe ability to quote the convincing history of acase when you're trying to persuade yourcolleagues or bosses to use computers is ofenormous value. There isn't enough materialavailable, and that's an ideal role for theNCC to do something about.

I'm also very much in favour of the generalpursuit of excellence. That may sound like amotherhood noise but it really isn't. It really issomething that one wants to emphasise tomake things happen as they should.


Financial Control k.iSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGES() AGESOFTSAGES() ilESC)FTSAGE 'ESOFTSAGE SOFTSAGES() ;,ESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOF GSAGES() .ESOFTSAGESOF' ;ESOFTSAGESO AGESOFT

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A straight forward bookkeeping systemfor the small business - cash or credit.R. R. P. £295+V.A.T.

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Sales, purchase, nominal ledgers systemwith invoicing and stock recording andfull range of management reports.R.R.P. £695+ V. A.T.

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A full function wages/salaries system totake the drudgery out of pay day; allstatutory and management reports.R.R.P. £195+V.A.T.

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An easy to learn and effective databasemanagement system which requires noprevious computing knowledge.R. R. P. £195+ V A.T.

AccountantSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGES() AGESOFTSAGESO IESOFTSAGES( ESOFTSAGE *L'SOFTSAGES() ;ESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOFTSAGESOF GESOFTSAGESOF' ;,ESOFTSAGESOF GESOFTSAGESOF' AGESOFT

Sales, purchase and nominal ledgerssystem with full range of managementinformation reports.R. R. P. £495+ V. A.T.

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A communications program to connectyou to electronic mail, Prestel and othermicros. R. R. P. £130+ V. A.T.or including an auto -dial -modem with

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THE SOFTWARE THAT KEEPSITS USERS FRIENDLY

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All of which explains why Sage is oneof the best -respected names in businesssoftware - and why, in an independent*survey, 91% of Sage users said they wouldrecommend our programs.

If you want to live happily ever afterwith your software, fill in the coupon orcontact your local dealer.* Romtec.

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BUSINESS.SOFTWARE PCs/86

10


NON-IBMULATORS

It has been estimated that sales of IBMPCs and its compatibles will take almosttwo-thirds of the U.K. market share in

1986, and there does not seem to be a lotthat anyone else can do about it. However,the IBM edifice is not as solid as it seems,and there are signs that the PC's user base isgetting restless. Mostly the complaintscentre around the ageing technologyemployed on the PC and the increasinglyapparent limitations of MS-DOS.

In the meantime, the few brave souls whohave steadfastly remained outside theembrace of IBM have begun to movetowards some kind of standardisation oftheir own. The well -trodden path away fromIBM compatibility consists of fitting 3.5in.floppies, a windows -icons -mouse operatingsystem and basing the computer around theMotorola 68000 family of processors.

This, of course, was the trail originallyblazed by the Macintosh - the firstmachine to prove that you could build anon-IBMulator and still sell computers. So itwas to be expected that manufacturersshould copy some of the Mac's more popularfeatures.

Yet things have moved beyond theinnovations introduced by the Macintosh.The latest flavour of the month for hardwaremanufacturers is the block -image transfer,or blitter, chip which can move chunks ofmemory in and out of screen memory atlightning speed, allowing you to performcartoon -like animations on your micro.

SUPPLIERSAmstrad PCW-8256 AmstradConsumer Electronics plc, BrentwoodHouse, 169 Kings Road, Brentwood,Essex CM14 4EF. Telephone: (0277)228888.Apple Macintosh Apple Computer(U.K.), Eastman Way, HemelHempstead, Hertfordshire HP2 7HQ.Telephone: (0442) 60244.Apricot Xen Apricot U.K. Ltd,Shenstone House, Dudley Road,Halesowen, West Midlands B63 3NT.Telephone: 021-501 2284.Atari Atari Corporation (U.K.) Ltd, AtariHouse, Railway Terrace, Slough,Berkshire SL2 5BZ. Telephone: (0753)33344.BBC Master Series Acorn ComputersLtd, Fulbourne Road, Cambridge CB14.11\1. Telephone: (0223) 245200.Commodore Amiga CBM U.K. Ltd, 1Hunter's Road, Weldon, Corby,Northamptonshire NN17 1QX.Telephone: (0536) 205252.RM Nimbus Research Machines Ltd,Mill Street, Botley Road, Oxford OX2OBQ. Telephone: (0865) 249866.TDI Pinnacle TDI Ltd, 29 Alma ValeRoad, Bristol BS8 2HL. Telephone: (0272)742796.Torch Triple X Torch Computers Ltd,Abberley House, Great Shelford,Cambridge CB2 5LQ. Telephone: (0223)840238.Vienna PC Northern Telecom DataSystems Ltd, Maylands Avenue, HemelHempstead, Hertfordshire HP2 7LD.Telephone: (0442) 41141.

Although IBM dominates themicro market, some

manufacturers have proved thatyou can shy away from IBM

compatibility but still findsuccess. Steve Malone

introduces our selection of thosewho chose to go it alone.

At present these devices are only fitted tothe Amiga, but Atari has made no secret ofthe fact that it wants to fit them to the STrange and has suggested that this mighthappen before the summer. Although itmight seem that blitters are only suitable forgames programs, their potential for high-speed spreadsheets and data processing istremendous, and only just beginning to beexplored. Naturally the public is impressed.Even some loyal customers of IBM arebeginning to ask when such technology isgoing to become available on Big Blue's ownmachines.

In the early days, businesses which feltthey ought to invest in new technology maynot have known much about computers, but

Such is the power of the prevailingstandard that some Mac users need toconvert their machines into a PC clone,using the Mac Charlie bolt -on kit. But willIBM soon have to adapt its own machinesto someone else's standard?

they did know that those three letters speltreliability. Once the standard had been set,that alone became the reason to continuebuying IBM. But the trouble with standardsis that they become set in aspic, and it is

almost impossible to update them to anygreat extent. While the IBM standard hasbeen frozen in 1981 technology, those whohave chosen to go it alone have been able totake advantage of technical advances andpass them on to the customers, often withgreat commercial success. Machines like theAmstrad PCW-8256 and RM Nimbus havecome to dominate whole sectors of themarket, although they have been unable todent IBM's corporate business stronghold.

It is hard not to feel a pang of sympathyfor IBM, which now looks to be trapped byits own success. At some point it will beforced to break with the standard that it hascreated, or else allow its products to becomeincreasingly antiquated and vulnerable toraids from ever -cheaper compatible manu-facturers.

But a clean break with the past standardin the form of, say, fitting 3.5in. discs or aradical departure from PC -DOS would putIBM pn an equal footing with the other non -IBM -compatible manufacturers. In thesecircumstances the PC II would be hardpressed to retain IBM's market share againstalready established competitors. Historyhas already proved that when IBM entersa market that is well informed andknowledgeable, that market does notwelcome it with open arms - witness theignominious demise of the PC jr.

This is where the hope lies for the non -compatible manufacturers. They know thatat some point IBM will have to abandon itscitadel and be forced to fight out in the openwhere they will be waiting. Apricot is al-ready relishing the prospect of IBM movingtowards the 3.5in. MS-DOS standard whichit has been using for years.

Of course, IBM may well continue todominate the market as it has done in thefirst half of the 1980s. But everythingsuggests that next time round, customersmight take a good hard look at what is onoffer before opting for IBM. oa


AMIGA around £1 ,500The widely heralded Amiga is the computer Commodore hopes will rescue it from itscurrent financial woes. Certainly, the quality of the sound and graphics make it animpressive machine. Based around the 68000 processor and running the Tripos-basedoperating system, the Amiga offers the prospect of true multi -tasking. The secret of theAmiga lies in the four custom-built chips which move blocks of data around the memoryindependently of the processor, thus freeing it for other tasks. The resulting speed of thegraphics display is stunning. But for potential buyers software availability is likely tomatter more than glittering hardware, and the Amiga suffers in this respect. Commodorehas promised an IBM emulation package to bridge the gap, but it is not yet available.

FOR Potentially a revolutionary advance in microcomputer technology.

AGAINST An unknown quantity.

AMSTRAD PCW-8256 £399At the price, the Amstrad is hard to beat. For a mere £399 you get a computer, monitor,disc drive, printer, 256K of RAM and word-processing software. The computer is basedaround the Z-80 processor and runs under the CP / M operating system. The advantage tothe user is that a large quantity of CP /M software is available, and following Amstrad'ssuccess much of it is being converted to the machine's 3in. disc format. By modernbusiness standards the eight -bit technology is old-fashioned, and only able to address64K of RAM directly. All the same, since its launch last summer, the 8256 has been arunaway success. Unless you feel the desperate need for fancy graphics or spreadsheets,why pay more?

FOR Excellent value. A rapidly increasing base of well -tried software.

AGAINST Old-fashioned technology.

APPLE MACINTOSH PLUS £2,295Once considered to be the only serious obstacle to IBM's complete domination of themarket, the Mac was able to survive, despite non-standard I/O ports, mainly because of aunique operating system which even the complete novice could master within a fewhours. However, the Mac is now surrounded by rivals, some of which have operatingsystems uncomfortably close to the original and often considerably cheaper. In responseto this threat, Apple has recently launched the Mac Plus, which puts right many of theshortcomings that Macintosh users have learned to live with. Whether this is enough tostave off the competition has yet to be seen.

FOR Excellent, reliable operating system. Still ahead of the rest of the field.

AGAINST Expensive. Business software still limited.

APRICOT XEN £2,099The top -of -range machine from Britain's only volume business -micro manufacturer.Based around the high-performance 80286 processor and running under MS-DOS, themachine compares with the best in the market. Compatibility with the rest of the Apricotrange means that there is a healthy software base available. In the past, Apricot hassuffered from poor -quality keyboards and a tendency towards leading -edge butunreliable technology. However, this time Apricot seems to have come up with a machinethat the public wants. An important machine for Apricot and one that should keep it inthe game.

FOR Fast. Well designed and engineered. Good software base.

AGAINST MS-DOS without IBM compatibility. External power supply.

ATARI 520ST £652When the newly revamped Atari launched the 520ST in 1985, the machine looked to be aserious challenger, if not to the IBM PC then at least to the Macintosh. So far the absenceof software has led many potential buyers to hold off. Now, almost a year after thelaunch, the Atari ST series is finally available with a bundled word processor anddatabase, although not the products originally promised. Third -party software support isalso beginning to come through. The products available suggest that software houseshave yet to decide whether the machine is a serious contender in the business market or anupmarket hobbyist machine. Recently, the company has launched a 1Mbyte version ofthe machine, the 1040ST, although this is unlikely to resolve any of the problems.

FOR A Macintosh -like machine for less than half the price.

AGAINST Lack of software. Lack of credibility.


NON-IBMULATORS TOP 10

BBC MASTER SERIES from £434Despite last year's well -publicised difficulties, Acorn is still going and has launched theMaster series in an attempt to follow the rest of the field upmarket. The philosophybehind the range is to maintain BBC model B compatibility by using a 65C12 eight -bitprocesssor for the front end, while allowing the option for a series of 16 -bit co -processorsto be fitted. The Master range spans four computers, from the Master 128, a revampedversion of the BBC B + , to the Master Scientific. The Scientific is equipped with 512K ofRAM and a 32016 co -processor, and is expected to retail at around f1,600. The Masterseries would appear to be an obvious choice for anyone with a BBC Micro who wishes toupgrade to 16 -bit computing without having to abandon their existing software.

FOR Plenty of software. Clear upgrade path from BBC B.

AGAINST Restricted by eight -bit technology. Expensive.

RM NIMBUS £1,295Research Machines' Nimbus looks like a computer that has found its way into the businessmarket almost by accident. Its manufacturer is well known in the educational field andoriginally produced the Nimbus to take advantage of the demand in this market forcomputers running under the new standard. The machine proved so popular that thecompany has now decided to try its luck in the business market. However, sales are notmade from good reviews alone, and lack of software coupled with relative obscurityoutside education has meant that the Nimbus has found it hard going. However, themachine still looks good value, particularly if you can claim you are buying it foreducational purposes and obtain further discounts.

FOR Good design and engineering. Lots of educational software.

AGAINST Non-standard I/O ports. Lack of business software.

TDI PINNACLE £5,995It is over a year since the Pinnacle was reviewed by Practical Computing and we still havenot seen a faster machine. But if the Pinnacle is out on its own in terms of speed, it mustalso be pretty lonely in terms of the operating system. The p -system OS is part of thereason why the machine runs so fast - the other being the 12MHz clock speed of the68000 processor - but it is so non-standard in business terms that few people outsideacademic and software -development circles have heard of it. However, in terms of rawcomputing power the Pinnacle has few rivals, let alone equals.

FOR Still the fastest around. Excellent for development work.

AGAINST Unorthodox operating system. Little software. Expensive.

TORCH TRIPLE X £3,995The Triple X's selling point is the Unix operating system, which everybody feels theyought to use but haven't actually got around to learning yet. Cambridge -based Torch hasovercome Unix's forbidding reputation by incorporating a Gem -like Wimp system as afriendly front end. The Triple X has been designed to a high specification which includesthe 68010 processor, 1Mbyte of RAM, a 720K floppy disc and a 20Mbyte hard disc asstandard. Although the Triple X can be used as a stand-alone micro, Unix is perhaps bestsuited to installations using networking or which have access to a Unix -basedminicomputer.

FOR Unix with a friendly face. Good for multi-user systems.

AGAINST Limited business software. Expensive as a single -user machine.

VIENNA PC £3,795Something of an outsider in the micro market, the Vienna PC began life as part ofNorthern Telecom's Vienna automated office, but has now been adapted as a stand-alonemodel. The most striking feature of the Vienna is the superb graphics capabilities madepossible by a second 80186 processor dedicated to screen handling. The quality of thedisplay is sufficient to sway even the most dedicated VDU-phobe. If you need a high-performance computer which runs under MS-DOS with a Gem front end, you willprobably find this machine well worth the extra cost.

FOR Unparalleled graphics capabilities. Vienna Office compatible.

AGAINST Expensive.

PRACTICAL COMPUTING May I 986 93

EVOIA1 KP810

M1009 (Brother) 160.00

HR15 (Brother) 359.10

DMP2000 (Amstrad) 159.95

RX100 (Epson) 419.00

FX85 (Epson) 360.00

FX100 (Epson) 524.00

KP810 (Kaga) 230.00

KP910 (Kaga) 429.00

6100 (Juki) 399.00

230.00 incKAGAKP810

Printer price includes paperand BBC interface cable.Screen dump rom availablefor £11.50 inc VAT

Phone for comprehensive catalogue

Prices subject to variation withoutBranchesMAIL ORDER: 36-38 WEST STREETFAREHAM, HANTS. (0329) 230670SHOP/TECHNICAL: 59 WEST STREETFAREHAM, HANTS. (0329) 23067117 TENNYSON AVE. KINGS LYNN:NORFOLK (0553) 773782

59 WEST STREETFAREHAM,HANTS. P016 OAW(0329) 230671

0Electronequip

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(Authorised BBC Micro Dealer, and Econet service centre)Discs & Accessories

30 Disc Box 6.9040 Disc Box 13.8080 Disc box 19.95

Large selection ofDisc Drives andcomputer books

DUST COVERSRX80 F/T 5.24FX80 5.29KP810 4.60BBC Micro 4.14Microvitec 6.10PW 1080A 4.60

EPROMS2764 2.4927128 3.35

1 Box DS/DD 96 TPI £19.95 inc1 Box SS/SD 48 TPI £16.96 inc51" Disk cleaning kit £5.99 inc

ALL PRICES INCLUSIVE OF VATprior notification

EON

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Large Stocks - 24 Hour Despatch

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36-38 West Street, Fareham, Hants (0329) 230670

The'Classic'Menu Generator.

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commands. Use MENUGENfrom Microft Technology tocreate menus to access allyour regularly used programs.

MENUGEN is a utilitywhich will create menus forany activity. A menu selectionwill run a program, call another menu, return to aprevious menu, run a basic program, execute operatingsystem commands, or exit to the operating system.

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MENUGEN is available for most CP/M, MS DOSor PC DOS micros including IBM PC/XT/ATandcompatibles, Sirius, Apricot, HP150, DEC Rainbow,and many Z80 machines. MENUGEN costs £48 + VAT(£55.20) fora single user licence, or £120 + VAT(£138)fora network licence, and is available from MicroftTechnology Limited, The Old Powerhouse, Kew GardensStation, Kew, Surrey TW93PS. To order, or for furtherinformation, telephone 01-9488255.

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Acorn, Apricot, Atari, Amstrad, Brother, Cannon, Commodore, Cunene, Enterprise, Epson, GCC, Juki, MannesmanTally, Mitsubishi, Opus, One, Philips, Sanyo, Sakata, Serryilwernissedyou, Sinclair, Solidisk, Tatung, Torch,

Triumph Adler

LEE SPECIAL SUMMER PROMOTIONS LEE

TAXANIKAGA 810 NLO PRINTER £229.00 + VAT -£263.35EPSON 1180 RIG PRINTER E197.00 + VAT -£226.55PHILIPS 7502 GREEN MONITOR 12" 20MHz (65.00 VAT -£74.75AMSTRAD 6128 + COLOUR MONITOR £330.00 VAT -6379.70ATARI 520ST + HARD DISCIPRINTER , SPECIAL PACKAGE DEAL OFFER

520ST MONITOR STAND + 1MB DRIVES + COLOUR MONITOR ADAPTER MOREFUJI 3.5" DISCS SS 135 TPI - BOX'S OF TEN E26.00 . VAT -E29.90

Amstrad 6128 + Green Monitor £249.00Atari 520ST 1500K Disc/Hi-Res Mon./Mouse/GEM etc) £608.00Atari Monitor/Drive Stand (Deluxe) £26.00Atari 520ST Compatible 3.5" Double Sided Disc Drive PHONE FOR DETAILSAtari 520ST 3.5" Drives in Monitor Stand PHONE FOR DETAILSAtari 520ST Centronics Printer Lead E15.00Atari 520ST Serial Leads £12.00Atari Video/Kaga RGB Lead £11.00Atari Video 520ST/Ferguson RGB Lead £10.00Atari Video 520ST/Microvitec RGB Lead £11.00Atari 520ST Software & Other/Own Products including

Hard Disc and Real Time Clock etc PHONE FOR DETAILSBBC Model '8' £277.00BBC Model 'B' + DFS £343.00BBC Model 'B' Plus' (New Modell 64K User RAM + Enhanced DFS £395.005" 400K 40/80T DSDD (Acorn Compatible) £99.005" 800K 40/807 Dual (Acorn Compatible) £220.00Cannon 1080A NLQ £ 260.00Juki 6100 Daisywheel £295.00MP 165 Printer 165 CPS PLUS NLQ (Atari 520ST Compatible £219.00Sakata SCP800 Four Colour Printer/Plotter £165.00Triumph Adler TRD 7020 Daisywheel £305.00Philips 7002 RGB/CTV Colour Monitor £189.00Microvitec RGB Monitors from £169.00

All prices exclude carriage & VAT. We carry most leading brand names. Please ring to confirm latestprices - You will find us unbeatable. For more information on how to get our monthly price list of

genuine discount prices plus details of the other services we offer, contact:

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8 WESTWOOD LANE, WELLING, KENT DA16 2HETelephone: 01-301 3745 (10am-10pm)

CALLERS BY PRIOR APPOINTMENT ONLY

94

MENUGEN is a Trade Mark of Microft Technology Ltd and is a British product.

- circle 168 on enquiry card - circle 170 on enquiry card PRACTICAL COMPUTING Moy 1986

Cut out theProblems of Buying aComputer SystemWhen you're investing in a businesscomputer system there's nothingquite like first hand experience tohelp you make the right decision.

Computer '86 is dedicated to showing youhow the latest developmentscan help your businessby giving you a vastchoice of computers,peripherals andsoftware to try,compare and buy.

June 24-26, 198610am-6pmeach day

omputer

mmDEC

4 c"t"if7

See the latest

01.11/E6.1cifR4NTI.

pry

Visit the National Computing Centre'sBusiness Advice Centre at the show. There

you can discuss all your problems relating tocomputers in business today.

Computer '86 is right in the heart ofManchester at the magnificent new G-MEX

exhibition centre, with itseasy access, car parkingfor over 3,000 cars and

excellent facilities.

ENTRANCE is FREE bybusiness registration to

business and professionalvisitors. Please note that

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BEYOND THE SPREADSHEET

Eight years on from the birth of the first spreadsheet, Glyn Moody considers thefuture form of this indispensable application

There were no fanfares when VisiCalc,the first spreadsheet, was launched.Instead, it slipped into the world as

merely another early product for the AppleII. At that time Apple was little more thantwo young men in a garage, and the Apple IIwas a fun hobbyist machine. But VisiCalcchanged all that. Soon people were buyingApple Its just to run VisiCalc. It was onlythe appearance of Supercalc for CP /Mmachines, and Lotus 1-2-3 for 16 -bit microswhich ended this seemingly unstoppablecombination. The rest, as they say, is

history.Yet when Dan Bricklin produced the first

spreadsheet back in 1978, it probably justseemed like a good idea. After all, spread-sheets are about manipulating numbers,and computers are notably able in this area.But it was more than a good idea, it was agreat one.

The continuing success of the spread-sheet, and with it companies like Lotus, islargely due to the way most businesses work.Everybody concocts budgets, everybodyattempts the odd forecast or two. Thespreadsheet provides the perfect tool.

First, it mimics completely the waybudgets are constructed on paper, with rowsand columns of figures, sub -totals and grandtotals. Secondly, it automates perhaps theworst chore of budget -making: totallingrows and columns, and getting the resultsto tally. Thirdly, and perhaps most im-portantly, it offers the speculative What -If?Using such trial runs, it is possible to maxi-mise profits or throughput, at least on anapproximate basis.

LOTUS 1-2-3The world's top -selling spreadsheet

package, Lotus 1-2-3, adds a couple of extrasto these basic functions which have alsofound some favour with the businesscommunity. When it was launched amidenormous brouhaha in 1982, much wasmade of 1-2-3's integrated graphics anddatabase. In truth, these are both quitelimited, but they were sufficient for mostexecutives' purposes. Now no self-respecting spreadsheet is launched withoutthem.

Lotus 1-2-3 has had the same kind of sym-biotic relationship with the IBM PC asVisiCalc had with the Apple II. There is evensome suggestion that Lotus's product was amajor contributory factor in the success ofIBM's micro. So it is perhaps appropriatethat Software Arts, the company whichdeveloped VisiCalc, should have beenbought by Lotus on one of its spendingsprees. Lotus has since discontinued itsforebear altogether.

Like the IBM PC, Lotus 1-2-3 may be thedominant player, but it is an ageing one.The recent Release 2 of 1-2-3, reviewed in

the February issue of Practical Computingwas mainly cosmetic: there are no radicalchanges nor dramatic developments. Thequestion now is, where do we go from here?

One possibility is to use Lotus 1-2-3 as astarting point and bolt on extra featuresby means of auxiliary programs. S&SEnterprises is a small firm specialising insuch add-ons for Lotus and other packages.Programs available include a consolidationpackage and a sideways print utility.Another company, called rather cheekily4-5-6 World, has been set up in the U.K.with the express aim of extending 1-2-3 bymeans of add-ons.

In addition to the home-grown products,a number of U.S. add-on software packageswill be available. One such is SpreadsheetAuditor, which allows you greater insight

into the logic behind the spreadsheets youhave set up, enabling you to check theiraccuracy. Basic Concerto is an add-on forSymphony, which already boasts featuressuch as goal -seeking and linear regression.

Goal -seeking and linear regression are twoextensions of the basic What -If? idea thathave proved especially popular. The dev-elopment of a full-scale add-on along theselines has arrived in the form of What's Best,reviewed on page 104.

However, such tweaking of Lotus can onlybe taken so far. One day, even Lotus is goingto have to produce a product that goes sig-nificantly further, but as yet the direction itwill take is still unclear.

An obvious move would be to extendspreadsheets from two dimensions to three,allowing an extra variable to be included.




This is the approach adopted by ReportManager, reviewed on page 100. Like manyof the latest packages, Report Manager takesthe Lotus command structure very much forgranted. The menu approach characteristicof 1-2-3 has become widely accepted asstandard both by users and by softwarehouses.

A more radical shift in spreadsheet designis represented by Javelin, reviewed on thispage. It has been tipped by some as thesuccessor to 1-2-3. Certainly it tries to gobeyond the straight spreadsheet -basedapproach and adds several ways of looking atyour central base of data. Other products totake this route are the British Logistix, whichadds extensive time -management andproject -planning facilities, and Sagesoft'sOptions.

Beyond a certain point, spreadsheets startturning into full-blown modelling systemsof the type widely found on mainframes.The danger with this approach is that one ofthe fundamental advantages of the spread-sheet, its ease of use, is lost in the process.Clearly such a penalty would not beacceptable for most micro users.

Given the wide appeal of the spreadsheet,it seems certain that people will constantlytry to emulate 1-2-3's success by goingbeyond it. With Lotus's hold on the marketstill looking so secure, it is probably going totake more than just a superficial change.Although intended for a totally differentmarket, Audiocalc from Davy Computingoffers a hint of how this could come about. Itis a talking spreadsheet designed for theblind and partially sighted. However, theidea of keeping spreadsheet functions thesame but changing the way you interact withthem has wider applications. Coupled withartificial intelligence, it could offer thatradical step beyond today's spreadsheet thatsoftware houses - including the mightyLotus itself - are all so busy seeking.

Supercalc: Sorcim-IUS Micro Software,Edinburgh House, 43-51 Windsor Road,Slough, Berkshire SL1 2EQ. Telephone:(0753) 77733.Lotus 1-2-3: Lotus Development U.K.,Consort House, Victoria Street, Windsor,Berkshire SL4 1EX. Telephone: (0753)840281.S&S Enterprises: 31 Hollow WayLane, Chesham Bois, Amersham,Buckinghamshire HP6 6DJ. Telephone:(02403) 4201.4-5-6 World: Saracen's House, 25 St.Margarets Green, Ipswich, Suffolk IP42BN. Telephone: (0473) 225951.Options: Sagesoft, NEI House, RegentCentre, Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 3DS.Telephone: 091-284 7077.Logistix: Grafox, 65 Banbury Road,Oxford OX2 6PE. Telephone: (0865)516281.Audiocalc: Davy Computing, MoorfootHouse, 2 Clarence Lane, Sheffield S37UZ. Telephone: (0742) 71201.

AVE LINFamiliar as it is, the spreadsheet is just one way ofexpressing the relationships between your data.

Glyn Moody looks at a program which combines it withnumerous other formats for entering and displaying data

Conventional spreadsheets concentrateon the basic row and column format.In doing so, they can often obscure

what lies behind the figures. Javelin, fromJavelin Software Corporation, regards thespreadsheet as just one View or way oflooking at the data. More importantly,it is only one of several possible rep-resentations of the logic which links thatdata together. There are 10 such Viewsavailable for any given set of information.

These Views can also be used for enteringdata. So, for example, you can enter figuresin a tabular form for each variable, whichshows the variation with time. Or you candraw a bar chart on -screen to prescribe data.By moving a bar up or down with the cursorkeys you can alter the value while main-taining a direct visual representation of howdata varies with time. Data entered by eitherof these methods can be carried across to aconventional spreadsheet format. You canswitch from one View to another at anypoint or display two Views simultaneously ina pair of windows. Any changes to data inone format will automatically carry across toother Views.

LOGICAL LINESThe logic which links together variables

can also be set up in a number of ways. Boththe tabular and graphical input methodsallow you to enter and edit formulae.Similarly, the spreadsheet can be used in thestandard way to set up relationships betweenrows and columns.

Javelin offers two other ways of looking atthe logic which lies behind the data. Firstthere is a formula listing which shows all thefunctional relationships between variablesand can also indicate which variables dependon a named variable. For example, if youhad a variable representing total sales, itmight depend on the sales of two differentregions, each of which would depend on the

SPECIFICATIONDescription: spreadsheet programwith advanced financial functions andlogic analysis featureHardware required: 512K IBM PC,PC/XT or PC/AT, hard disc and moreRAM advisable, the Intel Above BoardRAM expansion is supportedCopy protection: system disc cannotbe backed up; two copies may be madeto hard discPrice: around £550Publisher: Javelin Software ofCambridge, MassachusettsU.K. supplier: Ashton-Tate (U.K.),Oaklands, 1 Bath Road, Maidenhead,Berkshire SL6 1U H. Telephone: (0628)33123Availability: now

performance of individual towns or sales-people. Javelin would show the dependenceas a series of indented formulae, relatingtotal sales to regional sales, and the regionalsales to their component parts.

This kind of organisational relationshipcan be shown graphically. Boxes rep-resenting each variable are linked togetherin the form of a flow diagram. Arrowsindicate the logical dependence of variableson each other. Again, whatever way theformulae are set up, they are immediatelyaccessible from any View.

In addition to these main input anddisplay Views, there are several auxiliaryways of looking at data. Two are graphical,and allow the usual type of graphs to beproduced from data, as in other spread-sheets. There is a View called Notes, whichallows any variable to be annotated com-prehensively. An Errors View analyses whaterrors there are in the central base of infor-mation and formulae.

Control of windows, synchronisation andeverything else is effected from two places.

DEFINE

Create a Rollup build1y block

CLEAR VIEW WINDOW PRINT FILE QUIT

DEFINE II

45432 36785 38258 36612

19356 18892 16533 15398_ -

Build ins block56371 54877 54791 52882

Time delay

Rollup 1425 1425 1425 1425

5837.1 5487.7 5479.1 5200.2Import data

Lookup table 51188.9 47964.3 47886.9 45376.8

Nome change boson 4 Monthly data: January 1986 - March 1987 a

J 13t AMJJASOR I J FMAYIJJASORS87

otas.rdl 1188

Left: Javelin displaysparallel Viewssimultaneously.They can besynchronised sothat, for example,alterations to the barchart are reflected inthe spreadsheettable.Right: The formulalisting shows all thefunctionalrelationshipsbetween variables.Far right: Each Viewhas its own pull -down menu.



First there are function -key assignments tothose commands used most frequently. Atemplate is provided. Many more detailedfunctions are handled from pull -downmenus along the top of the screen. As inLotus and so many other packages, they areinvoked by using the Slash key, and thentheir initial letters or cursor keys. Each Viewalso has its own specific pull -down menu,which is only visible and accessible from thatView when it is active.

In addition to the function keys, the Tabkey plays a very special role in Javelin. Calledthe Spell key, it is probably one of Javelin'smost useful features. Whenever you arechanging the View of data, or setting uprelationships between variables, you arerequired to input the necessary variablename. If you cannot remember the exactspelling or format, Spell comes to your aidby listing the possibilities. It will also workout from any initial letters you have enteredwhat the nearest match is.

ASSUMPTIONSIf Javelin can safely make an assumption,

it does. For example, as you feed in variablenames in a spreadsheet which togetherdefine a cell, it will automatically retrievethe data from the central base and place it atthe correct position in that cell. When youenter dates in columns, it will not onlyrecognise various formats, it will normalisethem to its own preferred form.

In many respects the spreadsheet remainsthe central View of any given data. Inaddition to the auxiliary Views which giveyou so much more information about thebasic spreadsheet structure and data, thereare a number of extra features which extendthe power of the ordinary spreadsheet.

Many of these are advanced spreadsheetfunctions. Although Javelin lacks some ofthe more mundane operators found on con-ventional spreadsheets like @log, @sin andso on, it makes up for this with a staggeringarray of financial functions. For example,Bondprice returns the price of a bond with alisted yield, face value, listed coupon rateand maturity date. There are correlationfunctions, depreciation, net present value,and a function for calculating the slope forthe least -squares line for a series.

Many other extra functions refer to time.Javelin assumes that practically all variableswill be time -dependent. There is a screenwhich allows the time characteristics to beset up. Among its clever features is onewhich mixes monthly and quarterly figuresby means of totalling functions whichconvert between the two.

Time also plays a part in the so-calledbuilding blocks which can be set up forcollection of data. For example, it is possibleto construct a profile for a time delaybetween two variables. Typically this might

JAVELIN

Ca VERDICT ,(9

/.

:<,

Performance 0 U 0Ease of use IN M

Documentation Value for money III

El Goes beyond 1-2-3 - if you need to.

be the delay in payment for invoices sentout: 20 percent come in one month, another40 percent in the second month, and the restin the third month. Clearly this will affectthe overall cash flow in quite a complex way.Javelin lets you set up this kind of time-lagprofile, which is then automatically builtinto the relevant variable.

Another useful building block is theRollup, which is what most people wouldcall consolidation. Suppose you have severalsubsidiaries to a main holding company.Using the Rollup building block you canspecify how revenues are consolidated intothe main company's accounts. This processthen takes place autematically as anychanges are made to the subsidiarycompanies' figures. Similarly, the ImportData block lets you pull in data from otherJavelin models.

The Look -up Table building block is

useful if you have a series of rates, say forincome tax, which need to be applied to a

djust ndow Use arrow keys tom move divider, th

Net profit = Total sales - Total commissions - Total salaries

Jan 1986 51108.9

r:lePet 1986 47964.3

1986 47886.9

Apr 1986 45376.8

May 1986 48975.9

Jun 1986 49956

Jul 1986 34386

Aug 1986 39686

Sep 1986 35736

Oct 1986 39696

Formulas for all variables that affect Met profit:

Nov 1986

Dec 1986

Jan 1987

Feb 1987

Mar 1987

et profit = Total sales - Total commissions - Total salaries

Total sales - Sales Johnson + Sales Smith

Sales Johnson = 4 Monthly data: January 1986 - March 1987 +

Sales Smith = 4 Monthly data: January 1986 - May 1987 +

Total commissions 0 Commission Johnson + Commission Smith

Commission Johnson = commission rate Sales Johnson

commission rate = 0.1

Sales Johnson = 4 Monthly data: January 1986 - March 1987 +

Commission Smith = commission rate m Sales Smith

commission rate = 0.1

Sales Smith = 4 Monthly data: January 1986 - May 1987 k

7..ital salaries 0 Salary Johnson + Salary Smithsalary Johnson - 70e

otas.mdl

4230644916450863564636906

118K CALC AKA

variable in prescribed bands. Using a look-up table, the total tax paid, for example, canbe calculated automatically. Further, anychanges in tax rates and bands can beeffected by altering the look -up table ratherthan fiddling with formulae.

The look -up tables in particular are verypowerful additions to the normal repertoryof spreadsheet functions. However, they arequite complex to use. Similarly, theadvanced financial functions describedrequire fairly detailed knowledge beforethey can become useful. This is generallytrue of Javelin. Although the commandstructure is sensibly implemented, and theSpell key very useful, the feel of the programis that it is a tool for the power user.

In this respect it is unlikely to displaceLotus 1-2-3 from the corporate desks of theworld. Most spreadsheet users do not requirethe additional features: they only need abasic electronic budget sheet. That said,there is no denying that the ability tomonitor and audit spreadsheet logic is a tre-mendous boon. But it is likely to be mostuseful for departmental specialists, or thosewho use spreadsheets intensively.

The quality of Javelin's workmanship ishigh: it is no mean achievement to producea 400K program, and I came across noobvious bugs. The documentation is alsobeautifuly presented, though a little lackingin practical examples. A tutorial on severaldiscs is provided, but I found this of littlehelp in coming to grips with the details.

CONCLUSIONSMJavelin is a powerful analysis programwhich incorporates spreadsheet techniques asone way of many of looking at data.II Because of its power and complexity, it is

probably best suited to power users and thosewith a need for the special financial features itoffers.E The size of the program means that even ona 512K machine there is precious little roomleft for applications. A hard disc is also a must.For this reason, Javelin is best regarded as aproduct for the IBM PC/AT and above.E The U.S. price is high, but then so is the levelof functionality offered. The manuals inparticular indicate a premium product.1111Javelin is a very interesting product, but notone that Lotus should lose any sleep over.

DEFINE CLEAR VIEW

Copy contents of cells.

INDOW PRIMT FILE QUIT 0WORRSHEET

ales Johnsonales Smith

otal sales

otal salaries

otal commissions

et profit

Jan 1986

39015

19356

Feb 1986

36785

18092

Mar I

382

165

58371 54877 547

1425

5837.1

51108.9

1425

5487.7

47964.3

Formulas for all variables that affect Net profit:

Nit profit = Total sales 7 Total commissions - Total sal

Total sales = Sales Johnson + Sales Smith

:,les Johnson = 4 Monthly data: January 1986 - March

es Smith = 4 Monthly data: January 1986 - may 1987 ,

,1 :omissions = Commission Johnson + Commission Smith

mm::ilon Johnson = commission rate Sales Johnson

-,-anission rate = 0.1

Johnson=

4 Monthly data: January 1986 - March 1927 .

mini -:ion Smith - commission rate Sales Smith

1111'15011 rate = 0.1

14

5479

47886

xWORKSNEET

11102111MINData copy

Border

Range ...

Import file.

Name change

Exception

Sort ..Format

Width

118K CALC



EPORT MANAGER.Conventional spreadsheets are as flat as the pieces ofpaper that gave them their name. David Barlow

looks at a new product that makes life easier by going intothe third dimension*

To have any chance of success a newspreadsheet must either be incrediblycheap or have something very diff-

erent to offer. At £495, Datamation'sReport Manager plainly misses out on thefirst count; after all, Lotus 1-2-3 now retailsfor £100 less. Report Manager's dis-tinguishing feature is its ability to constructa spreadsheet model in three dimensions.

One of the major advantages of the three-dimensional approach is flexibility ofviewing. It is useful, for example, where aseries of annual reports are consolidated overseveral years. In a conventional spreadsheetthis could be handled either as one hugemodel, or as a separate model for each yearalong with a summary which consolidatesthe rest. Both methods are extremelyawkward when it comes to viewingequivalent figures from different years, andare cumbersome to manipulate.

The same model on Report Manager isbest visualised as a cube several slices thick:one slice for each year and one for the con-solidated figures. The cube can be viewed inall three dimensions to reveal differentangles on the same data. Viewed from thefront, in what is called Page View, the cubelooks like a conventional spreadsheetdisplaying the first year's results. Sub-sequent pages show the spreadsheets for thefollowing years.

The Page View will be the most used, butthere are also two others called ColumnView and Row View. In Column View thehorizontal dimension represents pages, thevertical dimension represents rows andthe depth dimension represents columns.In Row View the horizontal dimensionrepresents columns, the vertical dimensionrepresents pages and the depth dimensionrepresents rows.

SIMPLE INSTALLATIONReport Manager is available for the IBM

PC, PC/ AT and close compatibles. Itrequires a minimum of 256K of memory.Though it runs in colour on suitablemonitors it does not demand a graphicsscreen driver. Installation is very simple. Theentire program and associated Help files aresupplied on just one disc, and the program isnot copy protected.

User's models are held in RAM whileactive. This permits a maximum theoreticalmatrix of 255 cells high by 255 cells wide by255 cells deep. The precise cell count isdependent on the amount of RAMavailable.

Like most spreadsheets, Report Manageropens with a blank matrix. Commands arealso entered in a very conventional manner.Pressing the Backslash key brings up the

main menu headings along the foot of thescreen, just as in Supercalc. Items can beselected from here by typing in their firstletter and can then be followed up withselections from sub -menus. With familiaritya rapid succession of selections can beentered very quickly.

The main menu hides a very complexcommand structure. An excellent colourhierarchical chart supplied with the doc-umentation helps you make sense of it.Users are also kept well informed by statusmessages displayed in the bottom right-hand area of the screen. Apart from cellreferences, the information includes thecurrent file name, cell format, cursordirection, status of Num Lock and CapsLock keys, and the memory available.

If you wish, you can operate ReportManager in the conventional two-dimensional mode. Columns are then

REPORT MANAGER

PC VERDICT ,,0

s- Ls- -

6) -t" 0°l 'r 0

,k.

¢}<,e,

PerformancePerformance 1171

Ease of use Documentation III 0Value for money IN III

Ideal for unravelling complexconsolidated models.

referred to as letters A, B, C, etc., and rowsas numbers. In the three-dimensionalmode, pages are also referred to as A, B, C,but in practice this is not too confusing. Thepage letter sits at the end of the cell referenceso, for example, the top left corner of thefront page is referred to as A 1A. On thefourth pages the same cell becomes A1D,and the final cell in the maximum -sizedatabase has the long-winded reference ofIU2551U.

Apart from its three-dimensional aspects,Report Manager is much like any otherspreadsheet in the way it works. A usefulwindowing feature is provided, but its con-venience is limited somewhat by the lack ofkeyboard macros. Report Manager supportsthe use of look -up tables.

The graphics facilities on Report Managerare totally integrated, unlike those on 1-2-3or Symphony. Because Report Manager doeswithout a graphics -display system, graphsare built up using one of the standard IBMcharacter sets. This means that relatively fewpresentation formats are available. Bar

SPECIFICATIONDescription: three-dimensionalspreadsheet with built-in programgenerator and graphicsHardware required: IBM PC, PC/XTor PC/AT with 256K RAM; Apricot PC,Apricot XenCopy protection: nonePrice: £495Publisher: Datamation Corporation ofNorthbrook, IllinoisU.K. distributor: Sapphire Systems,Wellesley House, 102 Cranbrook Road,Ilford, Essex IG1 4NH. Telephone:01-544 0582Available: now

charts will generally be the order of the day,though it will also be possible to producesome rather gimmicky presentations usingsome of the odd characters available.

Despite this limitation Report Managerdoes have distinct advantages. Being inte-grated with the main program module, itcan produce graphs very quickly from eitherdirectly entered data, spreadsheet data orfrom an external data file. The windowingfacility allows the graph to be placed next tothe spreadsheet in question, and anychanges made in the data are then instantlyreflected in the graph. As a spreadsheet,Report Manager is quite fast, but ineveryday use, the need continually to calloverlays from a floppy disc slows thingsdown somewhat. With memory now socheap, this approach is totally unnecessary.

SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMSOne interesting aspect of Report

Manager's graphics is the ability to producea combined spreadsheet and schematicdiagram. This can be used to great effectfor educational purposes. The exampleillustrated opposite shows an operationalamplifier schematic where the input andoutput parameters are calculated spread-sheet cells. This is undoubtedly an inter-esting idea but creating schematics is acomplex and tedious business. We alsoexperienced difficulty dumping schematicscreens on to the printer with the Ctrl -Pcommand.

Data can be sorted by column, row orpage on up to three different key fields.Complex repetitive sort routines can bestored in cells and then subsequently calledup as required. A keyword -search featuremoves the cursor to the next location of auser -specified character string or sub -string.These facilities come into their own whenReport Manager is used in its VisualDatabase mode, where rows form theindividual records and columns the datafields.

Once the interactive aspects of ReportManager have been mastered, repetitiveprocesses can be automated by using thebuilt-in programming language, Exec. Ituses the full set of screen commands, plusaround 30 extra commands similar to con-ventional programming statements. Exec



881

B G

WESTERN REGION --QUARTERLY REPORT 1983

083

084 SALES1st Qtr.

1983

2nd Qtr. 3rd Qtr. 4th Qtr.

1983 1983 1983

TOTAL

1983

---- -

NOG.

198085 Product A 77,8811 80,850 84,892 89,137 331,880 82,9700186 Product 8 96,5130 101,325 106,391 111,711 415,927 103,982007 Product C 136,0110 142,8818 149,9411 157,437 586,177 146,544008

009 Total SALES 389,500 324,975 341,224 358,285 1,333,984 333,496010

011 EXPENSES

812 Egnipmest 13,11011 13,658 14,332 15,849 56,832 14,888013 Salaries 87,1100 91,358 95,918 180,713 374,981 93,745014 Utilities 1,800 1,898 1,984 2,884 7,758 1,948015 Rent 12,000 12,688 13.238 13,092 51,722 12,938016 - - -

017 otal COMES 113,880 119,490 125,464 131,738 498,492 122,623818019 Cross INCOME 195,788 2115,485 215,759 226,547 843.491 218.873020 axes 78,280 82,194 86,384 98,619 337,3% 84,349021822 NET INCOME 117,428 123,291 129,456 135,928 506,095 126,524

I -R 1 P:A211 016 83 5/1]3 s 11.1 - Last 011e:C:311

Page View looks like a conventional spreadsheet.

5.50

5.3&5.25.

Capital Technology

5.12 Week 3.08 5.50 3.25 6450

5.130 10/05/1985

4.88. Lou High Close Uol

4.75. x1000

4.62 Monday 3.08 5.00 4.38 1342

4.584.38 Tuesday 3.50 4.511 4.00 1532

4.254.12 Wednesday 4.80 5.58 4.12 1563

4.083.Mk Thursday 3.00 4.88 3.58 987

3.753.62 Friday 3.25 3.58 3.25 1826

3.583.38,

3.753.12 Change -1.12 Avg. 3.91

3.88

MTWTF Wk

1.1 yin Last fi le srocx IMO

Scale .12

P:8238 WI 92.2,

12/851

Display styles are more limited than in Lotus 1-2-3.

To. W.SutherlandFrom: A. Roberts

An Sales Analysis, 1984Date: 14 January, 1985

Bill,

As you can see, the final

1984 figures are in. They

are very encouraging. Sales

have grown so much faster

than predicted that we are

beginning to see possible

production problems.

In reviewing the 1983 report,

it seems that we shouldhave improved our estimates.

Let's hope we've learned

a lesson as we completethis year's projections!

Alan.

IM219 31111! 411115 91111111

1983 Forecast vs. Sales (millions)

9,1111111111111m

9111111111111111111

4111111111111111111

111111111111111111111111

F'cstSNME

Act' I

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-10-20-30-48-58-60-70- - -80

1984 Forecast vs. Sales (millions)

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Act' I

111;

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Last file C PROFITS2 READ

You can combine graphics and text.

Prd A -Sales

Prd 8 -Sales

Tot AUCst of Sales

Grs.Prof it

Oper. Lips.

Deprec. Exp.

Interest

Pretax 1..

Month

JAN 520

FED 353

MAR 361

WESTIN REGION

MN AIM 51.II MIN

JAM -ACT FE0-PJT -PJT

158.88 153.88 156.86 459.06875.88 092.58 918.35 2677.85

1825.88 1845.58 1066.41 3136.91

375.08 522.75 533.20 1438.96

658.08 522.75 533.28 1785.96

188.80 139.411 142.19 381.59

15.88 15.18 15.88 45.8815.88 15.80 15.88 45.88

528.80 353.35 361.02 1234.37

P81 -TAX INC0111

Last file:C:CIAPH1

ID 1 P:AlA 025 98.9x

Graphics are closely integrated with the spreadsheet.

A BMIIIIIIIIIIIID E F =G

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807 .03

808 24

809 .09

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821

822

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This Graph is Self -Adjusting

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1,10, .20,. .30x .48x 68,. 70,..80, 90

I P:C128 Wlz 48 4

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Changes made in data can be reflected instantly in a graph.

The Ideal Operational Amplifier

Inverting Amplifer Configuration

S.o /5/5/

Input

.62Voltage

Is

in If

50 1011108.011

108008/5/N,

Feedback

-40.80

VoltageOut

in I in Cain E out

.02 4.80801-4 -2000.00 -48.81

P:8228 81 98.5,

1111 111111 11111 11111 Last file:C:OPAMP

Schematic diagrams can be displayed next to the spreadsheet.

program files can be built up using ReportManager's own text editor or an externalword processor working in non -documentmode. Completed Exec files can be savedand run automatically whenever required.Specified Exec files can also be loadedautomatically from the operating -systemprompt, making it ideal for use by inex-perienced personnel.

Report Manager has a very powerful set ofpre-programmed functions covering math-ematical, date and statistical applications.Its forte is financial applications, for whichno fewer than 15 complex functions areavailable.

The documentation is well organised andcomprehensive, though let down by theword -processed look. There is a handypocket-size reference guide and an excellentwall chart. It takes some effort to understandthe three-dimensional element of ReportManager, but the package as a whole is quiteeasy to use. In any event, context -sensitivehelp is never more than a keystroke away.

Sapphire Systems, the U.K. distributor,offers customer support for a fee of k100 peryear. Product support and upgrades are bothincluded in this scheme. Sapphire also runsone -day introductory and advanced trainingcourses at its east London offices.

CONCLUSIONS Report Manager's three-dimensionalapproach makes it especially suitable for con-solidated models. In other respects it is a con-ventional though versatile spreadsheet.E The powerful built-in programming lang-uage tool can be used to generate soph-isticated customised applications. Report Manager's ability to display text andgraphics simultaneously is well executed, butpresentation facilities are not up to thestandard of Lotus 1-2-3. The documentation is comprehensivethough the presentation is somewhat un-attractive. Sapphire Systems offers excellentsupport facilities at extra cost.



Anybody launching a new spread-sheet program these days needs to,have a lot of faith. Users tend to be

very protective about the spreadsheet theyuse and will take a lot of wooing beforedeserting to another. The market leadershave recognised this, and have made theirnew offerings supersets of their originals. Soif you know how to use Multiplan it is nota traumatic task to convert to Excel;Symphony is an upgrade of 1-2-3 with morebells and whistles. It was, therefore, withsome concern as to its commercial viabilitythat I opened Mindsight, a new financial -modelling tool for the Apple Macintoshfrom the U.S. company Execucoln.

The packaging is professional and theformat of the documentation is reminiscentof the IBM manuals. It presents all theessential information in an easy -to -readtutorial fashion, followed by a comp-rehensive reference section.

Reading the manual shows that Mind -sight is no ordinary spreadsheet. In fact youdo not see a spreadsheet until well into themodelling process and you do not enternumbers into a matrix of cells. Instead youwrite formulae in English. The best analogyis that you write the program, and thenMindsight compiles it to produce thespreadsheet.

Instead of having to enter a formula in thefirst cell and then replicate it across all thecolumns, you simply enter the formula andthen move to the next row. You can eitherdefine the number of columns you requireor let Mindsight work it out for you. A nicetouch is that the columns you define to beyears, quarters or even months will beproduced automatically.

Each row is defined as a named variablewhich then has values assigned to it. You.can enter the values one by one, define themin terms of a formula which can call onprevious values in that row or variables inother rows, or even call them in fromanother model. For more complicated worka number of built-in functions and sub-routines can be used to work out such things

INDSIGHTJohn Lewis discovers that this package'sability as a financial modelling tool for the

Mac may make it worth getting to know.

* File Edit Model View Plot Options Interrogation Setup

IDIMINNE Cash Flow\Simple Cosh Floe modelColumns Feb thru JanUnits sold c 300, previous * 1.4Price c 38Gross Margin c Units Sold * PriceUnit Cost = 18Commission = if gross margin .gt. 42000 then gross margin * .1 else (01$Gross profit = Gross Margin - Unit Cost - Commission!I ri s = IRT'

..."C.i'

ir.rf!6ti

lif.ii

1101

16..

0':i. ;:o'11i1411=010i'l','i'illiq1.0-HisiN"'''' ..yr"41.!:1'.14161840. , 1.111011101.10'iiigr 4'1'!4141.1111'111M

FED MRR i RPR ! MAY JUN i

ti

Units sold

PriceGross tlarg__1199.M.Unit CostCommission

Gross prof

300.00138.0

18.000.00

11382.001

420.0038.00

15960.0018.00

i 0.00 1

'

15942.00

11 588.00 1 823.20 i 1152.481r !

38.001 38.00 1... ..............AA0 i22344.00 1 31281.60 1 43794.24 1

18.001 ...p.001 18.00 1..0.00 1 0.001 4379.421...

1 22326.001 31263.601 39396.82 1

The model and its solution. The scroll bars can be used to gain access to parts of thewindow not currently displayed. The commands are simple and English -like. The Salariesvariable will receive its information the compilation.

as net present values, median, straight-linedepreciation and many more. The logicoperators And and Or are supported, as toois If -then -Else.

Mindsight allows you to build up acomposite model by combining data fromup to eight separate areas. The data is

entered in the separate models, which canthen be consolidated to produce a finalmodel. If required, the results from any areacan be scaled by a constant factor beforebeing incorporated into the final model toaccount for, say, currency differences.

Once you have defined the businessmodel you solve it, and it is at this point thatthe familiar spreadsheet appears. Nochanges can be made directly to thenumbers in this solution. If you need to alteranything you have to go back to the modeland alter the statements there. Any errors inthe model definition are signalled byfriendly and helpful warning messages. Youhave to implement the alterations before thethe program can proceed.

While working on the solution you canalter column widths, change the format of

Select Variables for Solution for Cash Flow

Possible Choices: Current Set:Units soldPriceGross MarginUnit CostCommissionGross profitSalariesTravelPremisesPost PhoneStationeryAdvertisingOverhead

Cancel

1141i

iliWA

!4.

f opy

Append )

17) Analyze

( Remove All)

flemotte

( Copy All

Gross prof it

Activate

4 File Edit Model View Plot Options Interrogation Setup

1--1 Plot for Cash flow IMMINg

\Simple Cash Flom model

Columns Feb thru Jan

Units sold = 300, preulous * 1

Price = 38

Gross Margin = Units Sold * Pr

Unit Cost = 18

Commissi on = if gross margin.

Gross profit = Gross Margin -

k

...... II

I I"m..

. ..... I I I

mintrri1111 Ifib ON L"AB CV Mt... ..., , . ...IMi....P..

IZISoluti

FEB MAR RPR MAY 1 JUN 1

Gross prof 11382.001 15912.00 22326.00 1 31263.601 39396.821i

..4i! ...I-

f '

!I

1

A menu allows you to select variables to be included in either the The variable Gross Profit has been selected for plotting.graphs or the report.



\Simple Cash Flom modelColumns Feb thru JonUnits sold 300, previous *Price = 38

Gross Margin = Units Sold *Unit Cost 18

Commission if gross marginGross profit = Gross hang in

SPECIFICATIONDescription: financial -modellingpackage with graphics and reportgeneratorHardware required: 512K Macintoshwith second floppy disc or hard discCopy protection: original system discmust be present on start-upPrice: £150Publisher: Execucom SystemsCorporation, Austin TexasSupplier: Package Programs Ltd, 91Blackfriars Road, London SE1 8HW.Telephone: 01-633 0121Available: now

the columns and find which other variablesare used in the definition of any particularvariable. This is useful in large models whenyou may have forgotten just how all the vari-ables interact. Help screens are available atall times from the Apple menu, but if youknow what you are doing you can leave theHelp file off your disc to save space.

Once your model is complete you canexperiment with certain of the variables tofine-tune its performance. The usual What -If? questions can be implemented to seewhat changes occur across the whole model.Even more useful is Goal Seek, which allowsyou to specify a goal for a particular variable,leaving Mindsight to calculate what changesneed to be made to its dependent variablesin order to achieve the new target. Forexample, you may decide that you require aprofit of, say, £100,000 instead of the£60,000 predicted by your current model.The profit will depend on the number ofunits sold and their price, so you could seewhat effect the new profit requirementwould have on these two variables.

It is important to be able to present theresults of your model in a way that otherpeople will find easy to understand. Spread-sheets may give you the option of producinga graph, but the main bulk of the report willstill be the whole of the spreadsheet itself. Itis very difficult to select just the rows or

columns required to give the broad picture.Mindsight has a range of different plots,including a three-dimensional one, for dis-playing results graphically. You can choosewhich variables and which columns aredisplayed.

The same freedom of choice applies to thereport -making stage too. A format for thereport can be set up to show only the partsyou require, and in any order you want. Itdoes not have to follow the layout of thesolution. There are no problems with £signs. You can arrange for negative numbersto be displayed in brackets, which is ideal forfinancial statements. Mindsight reports areformatted as Macwrite documents, so youcan alter them further if need be. Themanual claims that you should be able toproduce part of a report and then appendanother part to it, but this did not work forme and gave two separate reports instead.

Mindsight lets you insert previouslydefined quantities or fragments of text at aspecified place at the time of execution.These fragments are known as micros.Standard micros supported are Date, Timeand Page. When using the Date micro in areport I found that it did not work properlywhen right -justified in the footer. You canswap the columns and rows around if youdecide you would like to have monthsrunning down the page rather than across.

Execucom produces the mainframe -basedInteractive Financial Planning System(IFPS), and obviously expects some users ofMindsight to develop models on their Macand then transfer them to the largermachine. To assist in this process aMacterminal clone called Link is provided,which additionally allows you to select thetype of host computer you will be working toas well as providing a special IFPS transfer

Mindsight makes good use of theMacintosh environment, with pull -downmenus and option keys defined for many ofthe more common commands. Splitter barsare provided, and clicking in the size boxenlarges the active window to fill the screen.The standard desk accessories are supported.

A so-called high -quality printer drivercomes with the package, but I could seeno discernable difference to the normalhigh -quality mode using the standardImagewriter driver.

Two discs are provided in the Mindsightpackage. The first is a U.S. system disc, sothe localiser will have to be used, with theHelp and Link files on. The second discis the copy -protected program disc. Aselection of templates is also provided, butthey have a transatlantic flavour and maynot be suitable for use in the U.K.

Mindsight hung up on me on twooccasions and gave a system error onanother. It also gave problems when usedwith the Switcher and Macwrite, per-haps because of its memory requirements:the program occupies 336K on disc. Thesystem master disc is copy protected and hasto be present at start-up.

MINDSIGHT

VERDICT ,c.o,r o Ir

QtIS' P VAt.

I (c.,

Performance Ease of use M Il UDocumentation

Value for money

0 A worthwhile financial modelling toolideally suited to the Mac. Shame aboutthe copy protection.

CONCLUSIONS1111Mindsight is a genuine advance on thespreadsheet which offers real advantages forfinancial modelling.E The presentation of results is superior to thatproduced by spreadsheets; the graphics aremore limited but still adequate. There are a few bugs, but they are notserious and will no doubt be eradicated inlater releases.

o File Edit Model Mew Interrogation Setup

PercentPine

Pie

Clustered../30

Stacked

1101111111111111 Sole

FEB 881

Gross prof 11382.00 159'

%/Legend

'AridMarkbarsTitles...Range...Scale...

- Sate Plot...6et Plot...

len gross margin * .1 elseCommission

low

1 JUM

00 31263.60 39396.82 n

Mindsight has six standard plots. Their attributes can be changedaccording to requirements.

6ENREPORT OPTIONS

0 Specify Widths: Column 10 Decimals ri Name Dine® Specify Format:

BO

999,999 31999,999 1

0 Show column titles:

Show model titles

ID Suppress If all zero

0 Linewrop

Invert

Scale 18. Divide 0 Multiply

( Variables ) ( Columns

0 Underline column titles with

rg Underline values with

0 Use printname

0 Indent names as in model

Spacing: Iii11 02 03Constant 1.00 Variable

( Cancel ) OK

A personalised report format. The 3 [ is a replicator of the999,999 format, which sets up six figures with a comma separatorfor thousands and no decimals.



EiHAT'S bESJerry Sanders explains how this Lotus add-ontakes the guesswork out of What -If? and

guarantees the optimum result every time

Spreadsheets allow What -If? cal-culations. You take an educated guessat what the solution to your problem

might be, set the variables in yourspreadsheet accordingly, and then make itrecalculate the result. If you have a largenumber of variables you probably have tomake a number of guesses before you eitherget an answer you are satisfied with or youget fed up.

What's Best works in conjunction withLotus 1-2-3 to remove the element ofguesswork. It automatically provides thebest answer to a problem involving multiplevariables by taking the formulae andconstants in a Lotus model as input intolinear -programming (LP) code. It thenformulates and solves the necessary linearequations to provide optimum answers,which are then placed into appropriatespreadsheet cells.

If this sounds complicated, be reassured.The program does all the necessary numbercrunching behind the scenes in RAM. Thereis no need to understand what linearprogramming is to operate What's Best,although to exploit its advanced features thisis an advantage. The manual containsexcellent LP tutorial material which goes along way to optimising your use of theprogram itself.

What you do need to be able to do isconstruct a spreadsheet which accuratelymodels your problem. In that sense, What'sBest is an ideal tool for consultants orknowledge engineers who analyse theirclients' problems and provide solutions. Ifyou can model your own problems withLotus, then you will have no difficultylearning how to tell What's Best which cellsof your spreadsheet contain the constant,constrained and variable data on which tooperate.

MEMORY RESIDENTThe basic What's Best Commercial

program requires 256K of RAM. A moreexpensive version, known as What's BestProfessional, can make use of 640K andallows you to set up larger models as shownin the table below. What's Best is memoryresident, and must be run from theoperating -system prompt before runningLotus. This installs it in RAM, after checkingthe drive for a master program disc. Youthen boot Lotus in the normal way, leavingthe system disc in drive A. When What'sBest returns its results it reboots Lotus, and ifthe Lotus master disc is not available theprogram will crash.

Two example problems illustrate whatWhat's Best does. The first could be solvedby drawing graphs, since there are only twovariables to cope with -a piece of paper canrepresent only two dimensions. What's Best

can handle as many variables as your RAMcan cope with, and the second exampledemonstrates how limiting even a goodspreadsheet is for solving complex What -If?problems by trial and error.

For the first example, imagine you are ahi-fi manufacturer making two models ofcassette recorder. The standard model has aprofit per unit of £300, while the deluxemodel has a profit per unit of #'500. The twomodels are produced from threecomponents: the standard chassis, thedeluxe chassis and tape drives. A standardcomputer has a standard chassis and onetape drive; a deluxe computer has a deluxechassis and two tape drives.

MAXIMISE PROFITAs the manufacturer, you have to decide

which combination of standard and deluxemodels will maximise your profit from thecomponents currently in stock. You coulddraw a graph such as figure 1. This showsthat by joining the extremes of producing 60deluxe units or 120 standard ones, allcombinations on the line or below it arefeasible because they do not exceed tapedrive availability. On the other hand, anycombination above the line would requiremore tape drives than are currentlyavailable. If you now add in chassis stock youget a second graph, like figure 2, showingwhich combinations are feasible allowingfor tape drive, standard chassis and deluxechassis availability.

SPECIFICATIONDescription: linear optimiser for Lotus1-2-3 spreadsheetsHardware required: IBM PC orcompatible, at least 256K RAM, two discdrives; What's Best Professional requires640KSoftware required: DOS 2.0 or laterplus Lotus 1-2-3 release IACopy protection: protected, as Lotus1-2-3Price: $695; Professional version $995Publisher: General Optimisation Inc.,2251 N Geneva Terrace, Chicago, II60614. Telephone: (U.S. area code 312)

' 248-7300U.K. supplier: noneAvailable: direct from U.S.

WBCommercial

WBProfessional

Numeric cells 800 8,000Optimisable cells 400 4,000Integer 0/1 cells 40 400Constraints 200 2,000Instructions 4,800 24,000Co-efficients 6,400 32,000

Capacities of Commercial and Professionalversions of What's Best.

FIGURE 1

60

50

40

30

20

10

Tape Drive availability

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 120

FIGURE 2

60

50

40 -

30 --

20

10 -

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

INFEASIBLE REGION/

FEASIBLEREGION

I II10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 120

FIGURE 3

Profit line = E33,000

Profit lineE15,000

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 120

The final step is to draw a profit linewithin the feasible region for an arbitraryprofit level, as in figure 3. Since total profitis equal to(£500* deluxe units) + (£300* standard

units)You can draw the profit line for, say,£15,000 as joining the production of 30deluxe units, with that of 50 standard units.Any combination on that line will produce aprofit of £15,000.

A higher profit will be produced bymaking more units, within the stockconstraints. So by plotting further profitlines parallel with this one, while notstepping outside the feasible region, youfind that the most profitable solution is theone which is farthest from the origin but stilltouches the feasible region.

In a two -product case it is easy to graphthese constraints. Add any more to the mixand it is not. But LP code such as thatproduced by What's Best constructs afeasible region even when a problem hasmany dimensions.

As a manufacturer you might want todecide on a production mix, where limitedresources must be combined for maximumprofit. As a transport executive you will want



It?:

Figure

(CO) U .C14.C17+014.017.E14.E17+F14.F17

A

E3(

1

1

2 SWINE G ROSES Hog Ferm 2

33

4 Nutrients Per Unit Weight Nutrients: 4

5 of: Minimum Dual 5

6 Item Grain 1 Grain 2 Grein 3 Grain 4 Required Surplus Value 8

8 Nutrient A 2 3 7 1250 -1250.00 $0.007

0

9 Nutrient B 1 1 0 250 -250.00 $0.00 9

10 Nutrient C 5 3 0 900 -900.00 $0.00 10

11 Nutrient 0 0.6 0.25 1 232.5 -232.50 $0.00 11

1212

13 Cost Per 13

14 Unit Weight $41.00 $35.00 $96.00 0100.00 14

1515

16 Weight Unite . Total 16

17 to Purchase 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 . Cost $0 17

1015

19 Dual Value $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 19

20 20

4. The basic Lotus spreadsheet. Figure

10 20 30 4

Feasible Solution' Value - 19550.00 after

40000.00

30000.00

20000.00

10000.00

6 tries.

.00

Figure 6. Attempts at optimisation are presented graphically.

to achieve optimal routeing, to ship goodsfrom multiple sources to demand points atminimum cost. Or you may be a livestockfarmer having to mix animal feed byblending raw materials, again at minimumcost.

In the second example you are a pigfarmer and have to provide your pigs withthe required quantities of four nutrients bybuying quantities of four different kinds ofgrain, while keeping the total cost to aminimum. Figures 4 to 7 show how What'sBest copes with this problem.

Having constructed your spreadsheetwithin Lotus - see figure 4 - invokeWhat's Best, by pressing the PrtSc key onthe numeric keypad - see figure 5. Then,using the cursor keys and function keys youlabel cells as either adjustable, constrainedor to be maximised or minimised.

BEST TOTALAdjustable cells, in this case C-17 to F-17,

are so defined by pressing f3, using thecursor keys to highlight the cells andpressing Return. On the Lotus Help line themessage "Enter range to unprotect:"should be ignored.

The Best cell is obviously the onecontaining Total Cost, F-17. In this case youwant to minimise it, so after placing thecursor in F-17, press PrtSc to invoke What'sBest, followed by f6 to have that cellminimised. The constraints in this case donot need to be set, since formulae enteredinto the spreadsheet will ensure that the cellsin the surplus columns will be negative untilsufficient quantities of nutrient have beenacquired.

This is because What's Best allows

A

SWINE 6 ROSES Hog Farm

E G

Nutrients Per Unit Weight Nutrients:of. Minimum

Item Grein 1 Grain 2 Grein 3 Grain 4 Required SurplusDualValue

Nutrient ANutrient 13

Nutrient CNutrient 0

Cost PerUnit Weight $41

Weight Unitsto Purchase 0

Dual Value $0

5 3

7

6

0

What'aBast Commands

Optimize Fl F2Adjustable Cell F3 F4 Fixed Cell

Maximise F5 F6 MinimizeDuel Value F? Fe IntegerExtension F9 F10

Les. or Equal < > Greater or Equal

1250 -1250.00250 -250.00900 -900.00

50

$0.00$0.00$0.00$0.00

t1 $0

5. What's Best overlays a command menu.

It?, (C0) U .C14PC13.014.017+E14.E17,f14,1?

1

2

3

4

5

6 Item

A

SWINE G R0565 Hog Farm

Nutrients Per Unit Weight Nutrients:of: Minimum Uuel

Groin 1 Grain 2 Grain 3 Grain 4 ',squired Surplus Value

8 Nutrient A 2

9 Nutrient B 1

10 Nutrient C11 Nutrient 0 0.612

3

1

3

0.25

1250 .00 $8.00250 .00 $1.00900 250.00 $0.00

232.5 .00 $40.00

13 Cost Per14 Unit Weight $41,0015

$35.00 $96.00 $100.00

16 Weight Units17 to Purchase 200.0018

19 Dual Value $0.0020

50.00 100.00 0.00

$0.00 $0.00 $51,00

. Total. Cost $19,550

Figure 7. The final result is added to the spreadsheet.

WHAT'S BEST

PC VERDICT A.,0 k,

Q. ,*" (Z) ,0 °S T 0 ,t:

Performance III

Ease of use M III IIDocumentation

Value for money An innovative and genuinely useful

product but a difficult concept tomarket.

constraints to be specified by means of a ruleof constraints. This states: All adjustablecells and all cells containing linear formulaedepending directly or indirectly onadjustable cells, will be forced to be non -negative during optimisation.

However, in the case of the cassetterecorders mentioned earlier, the constraintswould be that the quantity used should beless than or equal to the number in stock. Sothese are declared by invoking PrtSc andplacing a < sign between the quantity usedand the Quantity Stocked cells of thespreadsheet. A new column must beinserted in the spreadsheet to take thecharacter.

All that remains is to press PrtSc, followedby fl, the optimisation key. The Lotusscreen temporarily disappears, to bereplaced by a graph - see figure 6 -showing how many tries What's Best is

making to get a solution.When What's Best has finished, the

spreadsheet returns, and the Weight Unitsto Purchase cells contain the best perm-utation of quantities to obtain the most cost-effective yet nutritious purchasing plan -see figure 7. The time elapsed betweenhitting fl and obtaining the answer is justeight seconds.

By comparison you might like to try aWhat -If? exercise on this model by enteringthe appropriate values into cells C-17 toF-17. By trial and error you will eventuallyreach what appears to be a satisfactory result,but you will have no guarantee that it is

actually the best possible.What's Best has excellent error checking,

which returns cell numbers as pointers towhy optimisation is not possible. This maybe because there are unbounded constraintsin your spreadsheet, because you are usingnon-linear formulae in your spreadsheet, orbecause you have exceeded the limits ofconstraints or cells available in your versionof the product. If you are in doubt as towhether a formulae is linear or not, tryoptimising the model. If it is not, What'sBest will return an error message saying so.

CONCLUSIONSMWhat's Best performs a service normallyonly available on minicomputers running veryexpensive software.MOnly minimal knowledge of algebra or LPtechniques is required for basic use of theprogram. Best results will undoubtedly beobtained by users who are familiar with theconcepts involved.lilts potential for saving money is enormous.It performs optimising calculations fasterand more accurately than even a professionalmathematician could.

PRACTICAL COMPUTING Moy 1986 105

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106 -. circle 175 on enquiry card .- PRACTICAL COMPUTING May 1986

OPENn Open File we offer programming tips and freesoftware to key in - from demonstration routines toready -to -use business programs. As well as major

feature programs, every month we publish a selection ofsoftware written by our readers.

We welcome serious software for any of the microsystems listed opposite, especially short routines andutilities. Programs can be in Basic, Pascal or any otherlanguage.

Submissions should include a brief description whichexplains what your program does, and how it does it. Ifpossible it should be typed, with lines double-spaced. Weneed a disc of the program, and a printed listing from afully debugged, working program; hand-written listingscannot be accepted.

When printing listings, please remember to use a newribbon or double -intensity printing - faint listingsreproduce badly. Use plain paper only, and try to list theprogram across either a 35 -character or a 70 -characterwidth. Make sure all special graphics, inverse -videocharacters or any other non-standard symbols are listedcorrectly, or else include Rem statements to explain them

Each program listing or disc must have your name andaddress on it, or we cannot promise its safe return. Astamped addressed envelope is appreciated.

If you write in with a comment, correction or enquiryplease state the machine and the program title.

We pay at least Cl 0 for any programs used, or £35 perpage and pro rata for part pages.

OPEN FILE MONITORS

AmstradAppleBBC

CommodoreCP/MdBaseIBM PCTandyResearch MachinesSharpSinclair QL

Ian Stobie

Bill Hill

Nicholas McCutcheonMike Todd

Glyn MoodyIan Stobie

Glyn MoodyJohn Wellsman

Ian Stobie

John HooperGlyn Moody

LANGUAGES108

HORSES FOR COURSESAshley Oliver begins his two-part series explaining how you can improve your programs

by choosing the language best suited to the application in hand

BUSINESS STATISTICS110

ESSENTIAL STATISTICSSome key functions to help make sense of your data, described by Owen and Daniel Bishop

FILE TRANSFER114

KERMITThe Kermit file -transfer protocol has been implemented for just about every computer

under the sun - and the programs are free. John and Timothy Lee explain how it works


O

LANGUAGES

HORSES FOR COURSESEvery programming language has its strengths and weaknesses. Ashley Oliver details thefactors to take into account when choosing the one to program your application.THE IDEA that programs ought to becoded as efficiently as possible isfrequently bandied about, notleast in the pages of this magazine.Though Basic is the mother tongueof most microcomputer pro-grammers, a wide variety ofalternatives is now available.Choice of the correct language maybe the key factor in determiningthe efficiency of the program youfinally produce.

So what factors make a programan efficient one? There are twoareas in question: time andresources. Given two computersolutions to a problem and giventhat all other things were equal,you would probably prefer sol-utions that consume less timeand fewer resources. The total timetaken for a computer solution to aproblem depends crucially uponthe machine used., but since thisarticle is supposed to be about pro-gramming I shall assume from hereon that we are considering aspecified machine.

The total time can be dividedinto four portions: Development time required todesign, code and debug theprogram. Translation time, for conversionof source code to object code. Run time. Maintenance time.The final heading covers a 'varietyof ills. Specifically, it relates to anytime spent after the program hasfirst run successfully. This maymean modifying the program,enhancing it, porting it to a newmachine, changing the data ituses, attempting to optimise thealgorithm and so on.

As far as resources are con-cerned, the main factor is theamount of RAM needed. Withmainframes memory is not often amajor constraint, but with microsit can be a major problem. Theamount of memory needed can bedivided into two areas: Preparation space for pre-paration of source code and for thetranslator program. Execution space occupied by theobject code and its workspace anddata areas.

When people speak of ef-ficiency, particularly with regard toalgorithms, they are oftenreferring to run time alone. That isperfectly acceptable if run time isthe most important thing to them.However, the vast majority ofprograms are likely to take lesstime in execution than they are in

writing. So if a program is to berun once only, then the develop-ment time is likely to be thedominant factor in the total.

If a program is to have frequentminor modifications, then thetime taken for translation couldbecome dominant. If a program isto be ROM resident then space is amajor constraint. And so on. Ineach case the program thatconsumes the least time orresources overall is the moreefficient. This depends not only onthe program itself, but also on howit is to be used, how often, bywhom, and so on. You must makea separate decision in each casebased upon your priorities at thetime.

The language used will have abearing on each term of thetime/resources equation. In somecases choosing the right language issimple. In others it isn't, especiallywhen the efficiency equationdepends upon more than one oftlie parameters. You then have toweigh gains in one area againstpotential losses in others. Ex-perienced programmers usuallydevelop their own semi -intuitiveguidelines about which languageto use in a given situation.

To illustrate how the choice oflanguage can influence programefficiency I have chosen threeprogram fragments in BBC Basic,ISO -Pascal and BCPL. Each ismore efficient in its language thanin either of the other two.

In each language, developmenttime is a fairly subtle parameter.To make a prognosis here you haveto consider not only what you aregoing to do, but also how. Youshould have. some idea of thealgorithm to be used before youselect a language. The point is thatthe facilities offered by a languagecan have a great bearing on howeasily a particular algorithm can beencoded.

Basic is good at interactive I/O,number crunching, and has a verysophisticated set of string -mani-pulation functions. The interfaceto the operating system and tomachine code is usually good -and particularly so in BBC Basic.RAM allocation can be wellcontrolled. The fact that storagefor variables is allocateddynamically at run time allowsgreat flexibility and means thatvariables do not have to bedeclared before use. Of course,such flexibility can be dangerous incareless hands. A particularly

powerful feature of BBC Basicis the run-time evaluation ofexpressions using Eval.

On the minus side, the Remmethod of in -line documentationis rather clumsy. The controlstructures offered are not as exten-sive as they might be, although be-moaning the lack of multi -line If -Then -Else, While -Do and Casestatements normally reflects moreon the programmer than on thelanguage itself. There are elegantways of achieving the same effectsin Basic.

More serious drawbacks areBasic's data types and the way ithandles variables. Basic's lack ofdata types is merely a feature,neither good nor bad on thewhole, but the language couldbadly do with a pointer type for

dynamic structures and extensionsto its array handling. AlthoughBBC Basic has perfectly adequatemechanisms for controlling thescope of variables, the scope of aparticular variable is not usuallyobvious from a quick glance at alisting. On the other hand, beingable to declare a global variableinside a procedure is very useful.

It is easy to take for granted thefact that Basic has the greatadvantage of being interpreted,which makes the debugging muchmore straightforward and con-venient. Some who have taken anextreme position on the questionof structured programming wouldclaim that properly structuredprograms cannot be written inBasic and that this makes designmore difficult. I don't understand

BBC BASIC EXAMPLE PROGRAM

100 DEFPROCperm(A$)

110 LOCAL X$

120 FOR I%=1 TO LEN(A$)

130 IF LEFT$(A$,1)<>MID$(A$,I%,1)

THEN 1%=LEN(A$)+2

140 NEXT

150 IF I%=LEN(A$)+1

THEN PROCtest(TS+A$):ENDPROC

160 X$=FNunique(A$)

170 REPEAT

180 P$=LEFT$(X$,1)

190 X$=FNdelete(X$,P$)

200 TS=TS+P$

210 PROCperm(FNdelete(A$,P$))

220 T$=LEFT$(T$,LEN(T$)-1)

230 UNTIL X$=""

240 ENDPROC

250 DEFFNunique(A$)


LANGUAGES

how this conclusion is arrived at. Iwould maintain that a program ina procedural version of Basic can beas well structured as one in anotherlanguage.

Translation time is effectivelyzero in an interpreted language, sothe next factor to consider is runtime. This is Basic's biggesthandicap. Interpreted languagesare generally slow. A compiledor semi -compiled language is

typically three to 10 times faster.But some programs will run as fastin Basic as in a compiled language,and a few will run even faster. It isall part of the skill of picking theright language for the job.

Maintenance of a Basic programor indeed a program in any otherhigh-level language is principallyaffected by the style of the originalprogrammer. If the program is un-structured and undocumented thiswill always be a nightmare. Basic'sinterpreted nature makes themechanics of code changes veryquick. Against this one has to hopethe original programmer was

skilful enough to avoid un-documented side effects; in otherlanguages an unskilled pro-grammer probably wouldn't knowhow to introduce them. Don'tforget either, how powerful theData statement can be and howquickly these statements can beamended or added. Basic offers alevel of convenience here thatcan only be achieved in otherlanguages by maintaing separateprogram and data files. Oneexception arises if the maintenancerequired is porting the program toa new machine. Basic exists innumerous versions, so extensive re-writing will often be required.

The amount of preparationspace required for Basic sourcecode is normally favourable. SinceBasic interpreters can be made totokenise keywords, the source willbe very compact. Indeed, Basiccode occupies less space while it isbeing written than it does when itis running. This is the converse ofthe general case with compiled orassembled languages.

260 X$=LEFT$(A$,1)

270 REPEAT

280 A$=FNdelete(A$,X$)

290 UNTIL A$="" OR A$=FNdelete(A$,X$)

300 IF LEN(A$)>1 THEN =X$+FNunique(A$)

ELSE =X$+A$

310 DEFFNdelete(M$,N$)

320 IF LEN(M$)>LEN(N$) THEN =M$

ELSE Xls=INSTR(M$,N$)

:REM This function can be simplified by

replacing the line above by the contents of

the ELSE clause alone if run under BASIC2

where the bug in INSTR has been fixed.

330 IF X15=0

THEN =M$

ELSE =LEFTCM$,X%-1)+MIDCM$,X10-LEN(N$))

340 DEFPROCtest(A$): PRINT A$: ENDPROC

The amount of space requiredby Basic in running is difficult tocompare with other languages. Itwill certainly take more space thana compiled -source to interpreted -intermediate code language suchas BCPL or Pascal. It may take lessspace than machine code in certaincircumstances.

The example on this page takesas its input a single stringparameter A$, and produces everypossible permutation of thecharacters comprising A$. Thesepermutations are passed to aprocedure called ProcTest, whichsimply outputs them to the screen.The main part of the program iswritten as a procedure ProcPerm,which means that it may either beincorporated into a larger programor called interactively inimmediate mode. The stringparameter, A$, may be of anylength up to a maximum ofsomething over 20 characters,when BBC Basic runs out of stackspace on the standard Model B. Infact, the practical limit is likely tobe hit much earlier.

Only unique permutations areproduced by ProcTest: the input1122 would produce the six strings1122, 1212, 1221, 2112, 2121 and2211. Obviously for a string of ndifferent characters the run timeis proportional to n!. To produceall possible permutations of987654321 would take about 20hours. One other warning: T$ isglobal to ProcPerm, and should beinitialised to a null string beforethe procedure is entered for thefirst time.

The algorithm is highlyrecursive, as can be seen frominspecting the listing. Thefunction FNUnique takes a singlestring parameter and returns astring containing all the uniquecharacters in its input, in the orderin which they occurred. So given

ASHLEY OLIVERit would return

ASHLEY OIVRFNDelete takes as parameters twostrings, either of which could be asingle character. It searches for thefirst occurrence of the second inthe first and, if found, returns thestring formed by striking thesecond out of the first and closingup the gap left. If the match failsthe first string is returned un-altered. So given

ABCABCBCand

BC

it would returnAABCBC

What is it that makes Basicso particularly suited to thisalgorithm? The algorithm as I

developed it demanded orderedlists which could be accessedrandomly. A string is an ordered

list, and Mid$ allows randomaccess to a string, so Basic's string -handling features look promising.Further, the complexity andnovelty of the algorithm mademe lean towards an interpretedlanguage, as it was obvious fromthe start that debugging would bea headache.

As it turns out, the choice ofBasic was better than I knew. Thisversion of the algorithm leans soheavily on strings that it actuallyruns faster in Basic than it does as aliteral translation in BCPL. If youtried to code it in Pascal setting upthe primitive routines would be fartoo tedious. In Pascal you couldnot readily use the equivalent ofstrings - that is, the packed array(1 . . .n) of char - because ofPascal's insistence that theseshould be of constant length. If Ihad to choose another language forthis algorithm, then the only otherserious contender, would be Lisp,which is generally not faster thanBasic anyway.

This is not to say that a fasterroutine to do the same job in thesame space could not be developedin assembler, BCPL or even Pascal.But the much greater time taken insuch a development would havemade the approach inherently lessefficient than the implementationin Basic.

Basic is likely to be the naturalchoice for any program that is

going to be run a limited numberof times. Its interpreted natureshould mean that the savings ondevelopment and translation timemore than cover any losses on runtime. Basic is so good at stringhandling that it should always beconsidered if a lot of this is

required. It is also good atinteractive I/O, to the extentthat it is often worth writing theinput/output portion of aprogram in Basic and the pro-cessing portion in anotherlanguage.

Basic is unlikely to be suitable ifthe program needs to run veryrapidly or to execute in the mini-mum of space. Programs that arelogically very complex might makeyou wish that Basic had a larger setof control structures. Programsthat use very complex datastructures might require a lot ofwork to set up in Basic. If overlaysare inevitably required, then Basicis far from good at this.

Above all, don't be too ready todismiss Basic. Unlike otherlanguages it does not stand or fallentirely upon the quality of theoriginal definition /implemen-tation. The fact that it has alwaysbeen offered as standard on microsmeans that it is probably betteradapted to the micro environmentthan most languages.

O7:)mT1

r -m-


BUSINESS STATISTICS

ESSENTIAL STATISTICSIn part 4 of their series, Owen Bishop and Daniel Bishop present a program for the BBCMicro which works out the key statistical parameters for your data.MANY PEOPLE think of statistics asbeing concerned with incom-prehensible masses of figures, butthe aim of statistics is generally toreduce such masses of figures to avery few. These few useful figures,which might be called essentialstatistics, are the subject of thismonth's article.

As an example, we shall look atways in which you might specifythe quantity of mustard flour in atin of one of the standard sizes.The same considerations apply toquantities of other kinds, such asthe number of matches in a match-box, the number of grams ofpotato crisps in a packet, thenumber of metres of cable in coil,the number of customers enteringa store in a period of five minutes,and countless other kinds ofnumerical data.

In the case of the mustard, it isobviously impracticable for amustard manufacturer to weigheach tin after it is packed and toprint on the label the exactquantity of mustard it contains.Not only would this be an expen-sive matter, but it would be a wasteof time. People who buy mustardare not interested in the exactweight of mustard. However, themanufacturers need to specify theapproximate amount that a tincontains. What amount is to beprinted on the label?

TAKE A SAMPLEIn practice, a sample of tins is

taken - say, 10 tins each day - asa check on the quantity beingpacked. Table 1 shows the resultsof weighing such a sample.Usually, the mustard would beweighed more precisely than to thenearest gram but, for the sake ofkeeping the arithmetic simple,fractions of a gram can be ignoredhere.

With the sample shown in table1, and assuming that the sample isrepresentative of the productionstandard of the factory, the aver-age quantity is 113g. The averageor mean quantity is one of theessential statistics. It provides anidea of how much mustard toexpect to find in the tin. In thisexample, the mean was obtainedby averaging the contents of 10sample tins.

Strictly speaking, this value isthe amount found in those 10 tins.In other words, it is the samplemean. It does not necessarily applyto any other sample of 10 tins, or tothe factory output as a whole.

So to what extent can this meanbe used instead of the mean thatmight have been obtained byweighing every tin ever produced,or ever to be produced, by thefactory? In statistical terminology,to what extent can this samplemean be used instead of the popu-lation mean?

The sample mean is the bestavailable estimate of the popu-lation mean. Given this, andknowing that it is obtained byweighing only 10 tins, is it reason-able to print "113g." on the labelof all tins produced by the factory?

Table 1 shows that there isvariation in the amount of mustardin a tin. The average of thisparticular sample is 113g. but it iseasy to imagine that anothersample of 10 tins might includemore tins with only 112g. andnone with as much as 116g., givinga mean of, say, 112g. What isneeded is some measure of theextent by which samples are likelyto vary from one another.

To obtain this, you have toestimate what spread of valuesoccurs in the population. Again,there is only the sample to refer tofor information. The easiest way ofdescribing spread is to specify therange of the sample - in this case111g. to 116g., a range of 5g.

However, the spread is not areliable statistic. It depends on theunusual tins, the smallest and thelargest, and ignores the majority.A more reliable statistic is theinterquartile range.

To understand what is meant bythe interquartile range you mustfirst know about the median. Themedian weight is the weight suchthat half the tins are of medianweight or less, while half are ofmedian weight or more. Table 2

TABLE 1

114 1J3 114 111 112

113 114 116 112 112

TABLE 2111

112

Lower quartile 112

112113

Median113114

Upper quartile 114114116

shows the values of table 1 writtenout in numerical order. Themedian of the sample is 113g. Thishappens to be the same as themean, though such may not be thecase with other data.

The quartiles or quarter -wayweights are 112g. and 114g., so theinter -quartile range is 2g. This is amore precise statistic than ordinaryrange as it is less influenced by theextremes. Note that the median intable 2 actually lies between thefifth and sixth values, since there isan even number of values in thetable. The values on either side ofthe median are both 113g., so themedian is also 113g. However, ifthe fifth value had been 112g. themedian would lie between 112g.and 113g. In this sample, thequartiles lie at the third and eighthpositions, and so have exact values,112g. and 114g. respectively.

Medians and quartiles are easyto calculate, and may provide asufficient guide to average size andspread. However, there are otherstatistics which, like the mean, areparticularly important. They havespecial properties that allow themto be used in a number ofstatistical tests, which we will coverin future articles.

The most useful estimate ofspread is the standard deviation. Itis obtained by calculating thedeviation of each value in thesample. The deviation is simplythe amount by which each value inthe sample differs from the meanof the sample; it is positive forvalues greater than the mean, andnegative for values less than themean. But the, squares of thedeviations are all positive, and youcan add them together to get thesum of the squares. Taking thesquare root of the sum anddividing it by the number of itemsin the sample gives you what isknown as the standard deviation ofthe sample (SDS). Instead ofdividing by the number of items in

Inter quartile range Range

the sample, you can divide by oneless than the number of items.This gives the estimated standarddeviation of the population(ESDP). It has a value slightlygreater than the SDS, to allow forthe fact that the population is

likely to include tins containingless than 111g. or more than 116g.and so has a greater spread.

One simple use for ESDP is thatyou can expect the contents of 95percent of the tins to be no furtheraway from the mean than twice theESDP. In this example, in whichthe ESDP is lg., then 95 percent oftins hold between 111g. and115g. Furthermore, well over 99percent of all tins will be withinthree times the ESDP - that is,between 110g. and 116g. The tinscould reasonably be labelled"minimum contents 110g.".

These deductions apply strictlyonly if the weights are scatteredaround the mean in a particularway, known as the normaldistribution. We shall discuss thisin a future issue. In the meantime,you can assume that most datameets this condition closelyenough for the deductions to bevalid.

ESDMAnother statistic calculated by

this program is the estimatedstandard deviation of the mean(ESDM). Suppose you were totake repeated daily samples andcalculate the daily means, youshould obtain a set of means,which would itself have a standarddeviation, the ESDM. We willexplain next month how theESDM is used to compare meansfrom two supposedly differentpopulations and to determinewhether the difference is sig-nificant.

The program in this article, filename Esstats, accepts a table withone or more columns. When youload and run the program you areoffered two options:1. mean and SD2. median and quartilesPress key 1 or 2 to select the option.You should already have pre-pared a data disc created by theData Maker, as described in theFebruary issue of PracticalComputing. Place the data disc inthe drive and key in the name ofthe data file.

The data is analysed im-mediately for each column, eachrow and for the whole table. In



BUSINESS STATISTICS

ESSTATS

10 REM- ESSENTIAL STATISTICS tm20 REM- A Statistical Utility Program 470 RD=16:IF NR-RS<RD THEN RD=NR-RS30 REM 480 CD=CC:IF NC-CS<CD THEN CD=NC-CS40 REM- by Owen and Daniel Bishop 490 PROCcolumns:PROCrows:PROCdata50 REM 500 *FX21,060 REM- Version 1.0 - 6/10/85 510 VDU31,39,22:K$=GETS70 REM- For the BBC Micro Model B 520 IF K$=CHR$139 AND RS>0 THEN RS=RS-80 REM 16:GOTO 47090 *FX4,1 530 IF K$=CHR$136 AND CS)0 THEN CS=CS-100 *TV 255,1 CC:GOTO 470110 L$=STRING$(10,CHRt32) 540 IF K$=CHR$137 AND CS+CDsNC THEN CS120 MODE7:PROCcol:PRINT"ESSENTIAL STAT =CS+CD:GOTO 470

S" 550 IF K$=CHR$1313 AND RS+RD NR THEN RS130 PROCbtm:PROCcol:PRINT "Do you wish =RS+RD:GOTO 470

to find":PROCcol:PRINT"(1) means and standard deviations, OR":PROCalpha("(2) medians and quartiles? ",1)

140 IF OR$<>"1" AND OR$<>"2" THEN VDU7:GOTO 130

150 OP$=0R$160 PROCbtm:PROCco1:PRINT "Enter name

of file to be loaded":PROCalpha("(max 7letters): ",7)

170 ON ERROR PROC4serror:VDU31,20,0:PROCcls:GOTO 160

180 FILE$=QR$:A=OPENIN FILES190 VDU31,20,0:PRINT FILE$200 INPUT#A,DF$:VDU31,29,0:PRINT"DATE:

";DFX-;210 INPUT#A,NC,NR:PROCcol:PRINT"COLS:

";NC;" ROWS: ";NR220 IF OP$="1" THEN DIM SC(NC+4,NR+4),

CL$(NC+4),RL$(NR+4),DP(16) ELSE DIM SC(NC,NR),CL$(NC),RL$(NR),H(NR,3),DP(12),Q(NC,5)

230 INPUT#A,CW,LC:CW=10240 IF LC=0 THEN LC=1:GOT0260250 FOR J=1 TO NC:INPUT#A,CL$(J):NEXT260 INPUT#A,LR270 IF LR=0 THEN LR=1:GOT0290280 FOR J=1 TO NR:1NPUT#A,RL$(J):NEXT290 FOR J=1 TO NR:FOR K=1 TO NC:INPUT#

A,SC(K,J) :NEXT:NEXT300 FOR J=1 TO NC:INPUT#A,DP(J):NEXT:I

NPUT#A,DP$310 IF OP$="2" THEN 340320 HI=0:FOR J=1 TO NC:IF DP(J)>HI THE

N HI=DP(J)330 NEXT:FOR J=1 TO NC+4:DP(J)=HI:NEXT340 CLOSE#0:0N ERROR OFF350 IF OP$="2" THEN PROCsort360 NC=NC+4:NR=NR+4370 CL$(NC-3)="MEAN":CL$(NC-2)="SDS":C

L$(NC-1)="ESDP":CL$(NC)="ESDM":RL$(NR-3)="MEAN":RL$(NR-2)="SDS":RL$(NR-1)="ESDP":RL$(NR)="ESDM"

380 DIM NVX(NC-4),SVX(NR-4)390 SW=36-7*LR:CC=INT(SW/CW):IF NC<CC

THEN CC=NC400 CS=0:RS=0:HB=4+7*LR410 IF LR=0 AND NR>=100 THEN HB=5420 RB=NR+4:IF NR>16 THEN RB=24430 FR=0:FOR J=1 TO NC:IF DP(J)>0 THEN

FR=1440 NEXT450 VDU31,0,2:PROCcls460 PROCbtm :PROCco1:PRINTSPC(5)"Pleas

e wait while calculating":PROCmean:PROCb

560 IF K$="R" THEN RUN570 IF K$="P" THEN PROCprintout:GOTO 5

00580 VDU7:GOTO 500

590 DEF PROCprintout600 PROCbtm:PROCnum("Width of printout(40-132) ? ",1,40,1,132)610 PW=QN620 ON ERROR PROCpterror630 VDU2,21:PC=INT((PW-12)/CW)640 PRINTTAB(0)CHR$13650 SC=0:PP=PC660 IF PP>NC THEN PP=NC670 PRINT"FILE: ";FILE$""DATE: ";DF$680 FOR J=1 TO PP -SC

PRINTTAB(12+(J-1)*CW)0+SC;700 NEXT:PRINT:IF LC=0 THEN 720710 FOR J=1 TO PP-SC:PRINTTAB(12+(J-1)

*CW)CL$(J+SC);:NEXT:PRINT720 FOR K=1 TO NR730 PRINT;K;:PRINTTAB(3)RL(K);740 FOR J=1 TO PP -SC750 IF SC(J+SC,K)=1E-29 THEN A$="" ELS

E @%=&102000A+(DP(J+SC)*&100):A$=STR$(SC(J+SC,K)):IF RIGHT$(4$0)="." THEN A$=LEFT$(A$,LEN(A$)-1)760 @%=&90A:PRINTTAB(11+(J-1)*CW)RIGHT

$(L$+A$,CW);770 NEXT:PRINT780 NEXT790 IF PP<NC THEN SC=SC+PC:PP=PP+PC:PR

INT:GOTO 660800 VDU6,3:ON ERROR OFF810 ENDPROC

B20 DEF PROCmean830 LOCAL JX,V7.,C%,SUM,NT%840 FOR J%=1 TO NC-4:C%=0:FOR f.%=1 TO

NR-4:IF SC(J%,K%),'1E-29 THEN C%=C%+1850 NEXT:NV%(J%)=C%:NEXT:FOR J%=1 TO N

R-4:C%=0:FOR K%=1 TO NC-4:IF SC(1%,J%)-,1E-29 THEN C%=C%+1860 NEXT:SV%(J%)=C%:NEXT870 NT%=0:FOR J%=1 TO NC-4:NT%=NTY.+NV%

(J%):NEXT880 FOR JX=NC-3 TO NC: FOR KX=NR-3 TO N

R:SC(J%,K%)=1E-29:NEXT:NEXT890 FOR J%=1 TO NC-4:SUM=0:FOR K%=1 TO

NR-4:IF SC(J%,K%);.>1E-29 THEN SUM=SUM+SC(J%,K%)

(listing continued on next page)


BUSINESS STATISTICS

ESSTATS(listing continued from previous page)

900 NEXT:SC(J%,NR-3)=SUPUNEXT910 FOR JX=1 TO NR-3:SUM=0:FOR KX=I TO

NC-4:IF SC(KX,J%)<>1E-29 THEN SUM=SUM+SC(K%,J%)920 NEXT:SC(NC-30%)=SUM:NEXT930 FOR JX=1 TO NC-4:SUM=0:FOR K%=1 TONR-4:IF SC(JX,KX)<>1E-29 THEN SUM=SUM+S

C(J%,KX)*SC(JX,K%)940 NEXT:SC(J%,NR-2)=SUM:NEXT950 FOR JX=1 TO NR-4:SUM=0:FOR K%=1 TONC-4:IF SC(K%,J%)<>1E-29 THEN SUM=SUM+S

C(KX,1%)*SC(KIL,J%)960 NEXT:SC(NC-20%)=SUM:NEXT:SUM=0:F0

R J%=1 TO NC-4:SUM=SUM+SC(J%,NR-2):NEXT:SC(NC-2,NR-2)=SUM

970 FOR J%=1 TO NR-4:IF SVX(JX)<>0 THEN SC(NC-2,J%)=SC(NC-20%)-(SC(NC-3,J%)*SC(NC-3,7%))/SV%(J%)

980 NEXT990 FOR J%=1 TO NC-4:IF NV%(J%)<>0 THE

N SC(J%,NR-2)=SC(JX,NR-2)-(SC(J%,NR-3)*SC(J,C,NR-3))/NVMJ%)1000 NEXT1010 SC(NC-2,NR-2)=SC(NC-2,NR-2)-(SC(NC

-3,NR-3)*SC(NC-3,NR-3))/NT%1020 FOR J%=1 TO NR-4:IF SV%(J%)>1 THENSC(NC-10%)=SOR(SC(NC-2,J%)/(SWI(J%)-1)

) ELSE SC(NC-107.)=1E-291030 NEXT: FOR J%=1 TO NC-4:IF NVX(.1%)>

1 THEN SC(J%,NR-1)=SQR(SC(JX,NR-2)/(NV%(J%)-1)) ELSE SC(J%,NR-1)=1E-291040 NEXT:IF NT%>1 THEN SC(NC-I,NR-1)=S

OR(SC(NC-2,NR-2)/(NT%-1)) ELSE SC(NC-1,NR-1)=IE-291050 FOR J%=1 TO NR-4:IF SV%(J%)<>0 THE

N SC(NC-20%)=SQR(SC(NC-20%)/SW(J%)) ELSE SC(NC-2,J%)=1E-291060 NEXT:FOR J%=1 TO NC-4:IF NV%(J%)<>

O THEN SC(J14,NR-2)=SOR(SC(J%,NR-2)/NVX(J%)) ELSE SC(J%,NR-2)=1E-291070 NEXT:SC(NC-2,NR-2)=SQR(SC(NC-2,NR-

2)/NT%)1080 FOR J%=1 TO NR-4:IF SVMJX)<>0 THE

N SC(NC-3,J%)=SC(NC-30%)/SVMJ%) ELSE SC(NC-30%)=1E-291090 NEXT:FOR J%=1 TO NC-4:IF NV%(J%)<>O THEN SC(J%,NR-3)=SC(J%,NR-3)/NVX(J%) ELSE SC(JX.NR-3)=1E-291100 NEXT:SC(NC-3,NR-3)=SC(NC-3,NR-3)/N

TX1110 FOR J%=1 TO NR-4:IF Sla(J%)<>0 THE

N SC(NC,J%)=SC(NC-10%)/SOR(SVMJX)) ELSE SC(NC,J%)=1E-291120 NEXT:FOR J%=1 TO NC-4:IF NV7.(J%)<>

O THEN SC(J7.,NR).SC(J%,NR-1)/SQR(NVMJ%)) ELSE SC(J%,NR)=IE-291130 NEXT:SC(NC,NR)=SC(NC-1,NR-1)/SQR(N

T7.)

1140 ENDPROC

1150 DEF PROCdata:LOCAL J,K:VDU23,1,0;0;0;0;:FOR J=5 TO 20:VDU31,HB-1,J-1:PROCc11:NEXT1160 FOR J=1+CS TO CD+CS:HH=HB-1+(J-CS-

1)*CW1170 FOR K=1+RS TO RD+RS1180 IF SC(J,K)=1E-29 THEN 1200 ELSE 0%

=&0102000A+(DP(J)*&100):A$=STR3(SC(J,K)):IF RIGHT$(AS,1)="."THEN A$=LEFTS(A$,LEN(A$)-1)1190 VI131,HH-1,3+K-RS:PRINT RIGHTS(LS+

AS,CW):0%=&90A1200 NEXT:NEXT1210 VDU23,1,1;0;0;0;1220 ENDPROC

1230 DEF PROCcolumns:LOCAL J:VDU23,1,0;0;0;0;:VDU31,0,2:PROCc11:VDU31,0,3:PROCc11

1240 VDU31,0,2:FOR J=1 TO CD1250 VDU31,(HB-1+(J-1)*CW),2:PRINTO+CS

1260 NEXT1270 IF LC=0 THEN VDU23,1,1;0;0;0;:ENDP

ROC

1280 VDU31,0,3:FOR J=1 TO CD1290 VDU31,(HB-1+(J-1)*CW),3:PRINTCLS(J

+CS);1300 NEXT:VDU23,1,1;00;0;:ENDPROC1310 DEF PROCrows:LOCAL K:VDU23,1,0;0;0

;0;:FOR K=5 TO 20:VDU31,0,K-1:PROCc11:NEXT1320 FOR K=1 TO RD:VDU31,0,K+3:PRINT;K+

RS:NEXT1330 IF LR=0 THEN VDU23,1,1;0;0;0;:ENDP

ROC1340 FOR K=1 TO RD:VDU31,3,3+K:PRINT RL

$(K+RS)1350 NEXT:VDU23,1,1;0;0;0;:ENDPROC1360 DEF PROCnum(Q$,Q1,Q2,03,Q4)1370 *FX21,01380 PROCcol:PRINT 0$;:INPUT""ON$1390 ON=VAL(QN$)1400 IF QN=0 AND ON$<>"0" THEN 14301410 IF QN<>INT(QN) THEN 14301420 IF (03=0 OR QN:=04) AND (01=0 OR

N>=Q2) THEN ENDPROC1430 PROCline1440 GOTO 13701450 .ENDPROC

1460 DEF PROCalpha(Q$,Q1)1470 *FX21,01480 PROCco1:PRINT 0$;:INPUT""OR$1490 IF LEN(QR$)<=Q1 OR Q1=0 THEN ENDPR

OC1500 PROCline:GOTO 14701510 DEF PROC1ine:VDU1l:PROCc11:VDU7:EN

DPROC1520 DEF PROCbtm:VDU31,0,20:PROCc1s:VDU

31,0,20:ENDPROC

1530154015501560157015801590160016101620

$32);16301640165016601670

DEF PROCco1PRINT CHR$130;ENDPROCDEF PROCc1sLOCAL CRS%,V,HV=VPOS:H=POSCRS%=999-H-(40*V)VDU23,1,0;0;0;0;REPEAT: IF CRS%<255 THEN 1630CRS%=CRS%-255:PRINTSTRING$(255,CHR

UNTIL CRS%<255PRINTSTRING$(CRS%,CHR$32);VDU31,H,VVDU23,1,1;0;0;0;ENDPROC

1680 DEF PROCc111690 LOCAL V,H1700 V=VPOS:H=POS1710 PRINT STRING$(40-H,CHR$32);1720 VDU31,H,V1730 ENDPROC

1740 DEF PROCfserror1750 ON ERROR OFF1760 CLOSE001770 VDU71780 IF ERR>44 OR ERR=6 THEN 18201790 CLS:VDUll:REPORT:PRINT " at line "

;ERL1800 *FX4,01810 END1820 PROCbtm:IF ERR=222 THEN PRINT"No such file";:PROCcol ELSE VDUII:REPORT:PROCcol1830 PRINT" error. ":PROCcol:PRINT"Pres

s SPACEBAR, when you are ready "1840 *FX21,01850 REPEAT:A=GET:UNTIL A=321860 VD1111,11:PROCcls1870 ENDPROC

1880 DEF PROCpterror1890 ON ERROR OFF1900 VDU 6,3,71910 CLS:VDUll:REPORT:PRINT " at line "

;ERL1920 *FX4,01930 END

1940 DEF PROCsort1950 PROCbtm:PROCcol:PRINT SPC(7)"Pleas

e wait while sorting"1960 FOR K=1 TO NC1970 EC=K1980 PROCq1990 FOR J=1 TO NT2000 SC(K,J)=SC(00)2010 NEXT2020 IF NR=NT THEN 20702030 FOR J=NT+1 TO NR2040 SC(K,J)=1E-292050 NEXT2060 IF NT<2 THEN 21202070 IF INT(NT/2)<>NT/2 THEN NM-7(NT-1)/2+1:Q(EC,2)=SC(0,NM):Q(EC,3)=SC(0,WM):NM=NM-1:GOTO 20902080 NM=NT/2:Q(EC,2)=SC(0,NM):Q(EC,3)=SC(0,NM+1)2090 IF NT<4 THEN 21202100 IF INT(NM/2)<>NM/2 THEN NO=(NM-1)/

2+1:Q(EC,0)=SC(0,010):Q(EC,1)=SC(0,N0):0(EC,4)=SC(0,NT+1-NO):Q(EC,5)=SC(0,NT+1-NQ):GOTO 21202110 NO=NM/2:Q(EC,0)=SC(0,140):Q(EC,1)=S

C(0,140+1):12(EC,4)=SC(EC,NT-NO):0(EC,5)=SC(EC,NT+1-N0)2120 NEXT2130 VDU31,0,2:PROCcIs2140 PRINT'"Column"TAB(10)"L.QTILE"TAB(

20)"MEDIAN"TAB(30)"U.QTILE"2150 VDU142160 FOR J=1 TO NC2170 @%=&90A2180 PRINTO;TAB(3)LEFTS(CLS(J),7);2190 TB=0:FLAG=FALSE:@%=&102000A+(DP(J)

* &100):FOR K=0 TO 4 STEP 2:A$=STRS(Q(J,K)):IF RIGHTS(A$,1)="." THEN AS=LEFTS(AS,LEN(AS)-1)2200 TB=TB+10:PRINTTAB(TB);RIGHT$(LS+A$,10);:IF Q(J,k)<>Q(J,K+1) THEN FLAG=TRUE2210 NEXT2220 PRINT: VDU112230 IF FLAG=FALSE THEN NEXT:GOTO 22602240 TB=0:FOR K=1 TO 5 STEP 2:AS=STR$(0(J,10):IF RIGHTS(A$0)="." THEN A$=LEFT$(A$,LEN(A$)-1)2250 TB=TB+10:PRINTTAB(TB);RIGHTS(LS+A$,10);:NEXT:PRINT:VDUll:NEXT2260 @%=&90A2270 VDU152280 *FX21,02290 REPEAT :KS=GETS:IF K$<>"R" THEN VD

U72300 UNTIL KS="R"2310 RUN2320 DEF PROCq:LOCAL J2330 NT=0:FOR J=I TO NR2340 IF SC(EC,J)=1E-29 THEN 23702350 NT=NT+12360 SC(0,NT)=SC(EC,J)2370 NEXT2380 PROCquicksort(1,NT)

2390 ENDPROC2400 DEF PROCquicksort(P%,R%)2410 LOCAL IX,J%,W,X2420 I%=P%:J%=R%:X=SC(0,(P7.+RX)DIV2)2430 REPEAT2440 IF SC(0,I%)<X I%=I%+1:GOTO 24402450 IF X<SC(0,JX) J%=J%-l:GOTO 24502460 IF I%<=,17. W=SC(00%):SC(0,1%)=SC(007.):SC(00%)=W:I%=M+1:J%=J%-12470 UNTIL I%>J%24B0 IF P7.<J% PROCquicksort(PX,J%)2490 IF I%<R% PROCquicksort(I%,R%)2500 ENDPROC

(continued from page 110)

option I the table is displayed asusual, with additional columnsand rows to show mean, SDS,ESDP and ESDM. Use the cursorkeys in the normal way to examineparts of the table which are notdisplayed on the screen. Themean, SDS, ESDP and ESDM

calculated for the table as a wholeare displayed in a diagonal rowfrom the bottom right corner ofthe table. Key P and Return toobtain a prinout. Key .R andReturn if you want to rerun theprogram.

In option 2, median andquartiles are displayed for each

column as two rows of figures.Where the corresponding figuresin the two rows are equal, bothshow the value of the median orquartile concerned. If the figuresare unequal, the median orquartile lies between the two. KeyR and Return to rerun theprogram. PC

All the programs in this series,along with five others, areavailable on a single -sided 40 -track5.25in. disc. The price is £20including postage and 15 percentVAT. Please send your order toOwen Bishop, c/o PracticalComputing; cheques should bemade payable to Owen Bishop.


HERE IS S&S's SPRING CROPOF £10 SOFTWARE

SECURITY UTILITIESSET OF 5 PROGRAMS £40 + VATENCRYPT Encrypts/decrypts files using apassword.SECRET Makes files invisible to directorysearches.READONLY Makes files Readonly so that theycan't be deleted.UN DELETE Restores files that have beenaccidently deleted.ZAP Kills files dead, so that they can't beundeleted.

DISK ORGANISER UTILITIES:SET OF 6 PROGRAMS £45 + VATDOSMENU A menu -driven front end for DOS.FASTHELP Lets you design your own pop-uphelp screens.QDEL Quick deletion of files with confirmation.QCOPY Quick copying of files withconfirmation.QMOVE Moves files from one sub -directory toanother with confirmation.DOTOALL Makes Dos commands apply to allsub -directories.

EPSON PRINTER UTILITIES:SET OF 5 PROGRAMS .£40+ VATFX POUND Loads the IBM character set intoyour Epson FX printer.SETFXPR Allows your Epson FX printer toprint different styles.EPSTAR Lets your Epson print Wordstardocuments using bold underline, italics, etc.

CHEAPCHEAP

PRTGRAPH Lets you do graphics screendump to printer. Works with Lotus.HISTO Prints histograms.

WORD PROCESSOR UTILITIES:SET OF 6 PROGRAMS £40+ VATQPRINT A print buffer. Stops you waiting foryour printer.CAPSLITE/NUMLIGHT Puts Capslock andNumlock indicators on your screen.LABEL WRITER Prints labels in a range ofstyles; LOGOS too!TYPEWRITER Lets your PC emulate atypewriter!SIDELINE Prints your spreadsheetSIDEWAYS.WSASCII Converts a wordstar file to planASCII.

(except undelete £15) Buy one of our specialsets described above or choose any 8 for£65 + VAT.

Send your order to: 56,5 Enterprises,Utilities Division, 31 Holloway Lane, Amersham,Bucks. HP6 60J.For further details of these and our other utilitiesplease telephone Amersham (02403.) 4201.

/-* circle 172 on enquiry card 4 -

ALL -TIME CP/M MICROCOMPUTER

SYSTEM BARGAIN!Fantastic bulk purchase of a majorEuropean manufacturer's entirestock of this top-quality machineenables us to retail it at far below itsmanufacturing cost. ALLFEATURES LISTED areINCLUDED as STANDARD:*COMPLETE with EITHER single ordouble (as illustrated) TEAC half -eight51/4" double -sided, double -densityfloppy disc drives. Formatted capacity:320Kb per drive.

4MHz Z80A CPU

CARRIAGE:£9.50 (incl. VAT)Visa & Accessaccppted

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64Kb RAM (in 4164 chips)28Kb EPROM containing monitor &MICROSOFT BASIC

CP/M Version 2.280 x 24 display with colour block -mode graphics

*Exceptionally high quality styledkeyboard with numeric keypad & 6function keys

*Centronics parallel interfaceRS232N24 serial interface selectable300-9600 Baud

UHF Modulator for TV & compositevideo output

1 *ROM port. (A Word -Processor ROMis available at £69 + VAT)

6 month full guarantee

amo10 anai1141_1111,

..... E

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PRICES (monitor not included): With

DUAL floppy £199.00 (£228.85inc. VAT) With SINGLE floppy

£135.00 (£155.25 'Ind. VAT)

without drives or CP/M £75.00

(£86.25 incl. VAT).

Available ONLY from:

Brand new surplus stock of thishigh quality machine whichoriginally retailed at £2400.

4,8086 based (4.6MHz clock rate)* 128K memory with parity*twin half height 8" floppy disc drives(total 2.3MB formatted)

*12" green phosphor monitor included*ONE parallel & TWO serial interfacesincluded

MSDOS & manuals includedVICTOR/SIRIUS format*Manufactured by HITACHI to highestpossible standards

Much public domain software available*90 day fullguarantee

PRICE£485.00+ VAT

COMPUTER APPRECIATION, 111 Northgate, Canterbury, Kent (0227) 470512MATMOS Ltd., 1 Church Street, Cuckfield, W. Sussex RH17 5JZ. (0444) 414484/454377

- circle 173 on enquiry card - tr3

FILE TRANSFER

IT is often difficult to transferprograms or data from one kind ofcomputer to another. Differentmachines may store informationon different types of devices suchas tapes, Microdrives or discs, andeven when both micros havefloppy -disc drives the discs may beincompatible in size, format ordensity.

To solve the problem of datatransfer you must wire the twocomputers together, and a suitableprogram must exist to sendinformation from one to the other.There are several ways of doingthis. One is to use a local areanetwork. This requires hardwarefor each machine, which tends tobe quite expensive and is oftenlimited to one type of machine.

The mainframes and mini-computers in British universitiesand polytechnics have beenconnected together for a numberof years by a set of X-25 networksrunning on lines leased by BritishTelecom. Recently they have beenmerged into a single networkcalled the Joint Academic Network(Janet). Machines connected toJanet can exchange files with eachother using a standard network -independent FTP program. This isa very well -designed and efficientsystem, but it is for mainframes

nouse to micro users.

For many years users of Unixmachines have been able toexchange programs and data withother Unix machines through anetwork, or via a telephone lineand modem, using a programcalled UUCP. Another way is touse commercial file -transfer pro-grams such as BSTAM, Move -Itand Ascom for communicationbetween CP / M or MS-DOSmachines, and BSTMS between aspecific micro and mainframe.You must buy a program for eachmachine, so this is an expensivesolution if you only use itoccasionally or wish to connect a lotof machines.

A pair of machines can exchangetext files using the built-in utilityprogram Pip simply by connectingtheir serial ports together. Thismethod has the advantage that Pip

KERMITOriginally developed as a mainframe -to -microlink this data -transfer protocol and itsassociated public -domain comms programshave become something of an internationalstandard. John Lee and Timothy Leeexplain how they work.is provided free with CP /M, but itdoes not detect or correct trans-mission errors and it only works forsmall files which do not involvedisc accesses.

We have written two programsthat will transfer files betweenCP / M machines more easily andmore reliably. Both have beenpublished in Practical Computing.The first, called Undump, ap-peared in the March 1980 issue,pages 89 to 91. The more recentone is called CPM2CPM andappeared in the January 1985issue, pages 122 to 126. Both trans-fer binary or .Com files as well asASCII files. They will detect mosterrors, but if an error is reportedthey are unable to correct it andthe transfer of the file must bestarted again from scratch.

SINGLE STANDARDIt is obvious that a single,

standard file -transfer protocol thatwas universally used would bemore useful than the existingvariety of methods. Such a proto-col has to define exactly how data istransferred between machines, sothat the transmitting computersends it in this way and thereceiving, computer understandswhat it receives. The samestandard could be used to handlecommunication between twomicros, two mainframes orbetween mainframes and micros.

It is more important that thefile -transfer protocol is widely usedand universally available than thatit is particularly elegant orefficient. The CP /M-80 operatingsystem illustrates this; it becamethe de facto standard for eight -bitmachines simply because it runs onso many of them.

A good file -transfer protocolshould have the followingfeatures: It must run on a lot of microsand mainframes. It must be able to copy a filefrom one machine to the other,and guarantee that no errors havebeen introduced. Serial communi-cation lines occasionally drop orscramble a few characters becauseof noise on the line. The file -transfer program must detect ifthis happens and automaticallycorrect any errors which may occurin consequente. The protocol must be able totransfer different types of file, suchas ASCII text files, binary files,tokenised Basic or compressedfiles, regardless of whether seven oreight bits are significant in eachbyte.

that the com-mands are user-friendly. Somehelp facilities should be built-in ifpossible. It would be useful to be able tomove a whole family of files, or anentire disc or directory at a time. The transfer protocol should beefficient, so that file transfers takeplace in the shortest possible time.

KERMIT PROTOCOLKermit is a file -transfer protocol

that was designed at ColumbiaUniversity, New York. The firstKermit programs were used totransfer files between mainframesand micros. The aim was to allowstudents to save and archive theirfiles on the floppy discs on theirown personal microcomputers,thus saving space on the discsattached to the mainframe. Theoriginal Kermit allowed, com-munication in either direction

between the large central com-puters in the computer centre andsmaller computers scatteredaround in the departments andlaboratories.

The name "Kermit" actuallyapplies to two separate entities: thefile -transfer protocol and the set ofprograms that attempt to imple-ment it. Kermit is not a singlecomputer program; Kermitprograms written for individualmachines may be very different.The messages may be different,the features implemented maydiffer and the programs may evenbe written in different languages.But, because the underlying proto-col is the same, any machinerunning a Kermit program canexchange files with any othermachine running a Kermitprogram.

The Columbia network had tobe cheap and reliable. It had to useordinary terminal lines on -site ortelephone lines off -site. Columbiaused the RS -232C port to connectthe computers, since this was theonly common means of com-munication between the widerange of machines.

Kermit programs have spreadthroughout the U.S. and arerapidly gaining a hold in the U.K.Kermit has become the mostwidely used communicationspackage for transferring databetween all types of machines, andis the nearest thing there is to auniversal file -transfer system.

There are several reasons forKermit's success. One is that thebasic Kermit protocol is simple,and so can be implemented oneven the smallest and slowestmicros.

Also, Kermit is a public -domainprogram; everyone is entitled touse it, copy it or give it away. Youare not allowed to sell it for profit.Because it is a public -domainprogram it has been widely dis-tributed by bulletin boards anduser groups.

Further, there are no secretsabout the way Kermit works. Thesource code is readily available, soanyone can adapt an existingversion to run on their owncomputer or can write an entirely

CONTENTS OF A KERMIT PACKET

I MARK I LEN 1 SED : TYPE I DATA : CHECK

start ofpacketcharacter

number ofcharactersthatfollow inthe packet

packetsequencenumber0 to 63then wrapsround to 0

one characterindicatingthe type ofpacket:DATA, AC:K,NACK, SEND,RECEIVE etc.

The contents check-sun.'of the packet


FILE TRANSFER

MACHINES SUPPORTED

CP/M-80AculabApple IIBigbrd IICPT-85xx seriesCifer 1886Compupro IF3 /4DEC VT -180DEC VT -180 Robin,DEC Mate IIDelphi 1000Generic CP/ M ver 2.2Generic CP/ M ver 3.0Heath / Zenith -100Heath / Zenith -89Heath H8Kaypro IILobo Max 80Morrow D.1Morrow MD.1Nokia M.MikkoNorth Star HorizonNorth Star AdvantageOhio Sci.Osborne 1Sanyo 1100MBCSuperbrainT.ZorbaTRS-80 IITorchVector GraphicsXerox 820Most implementations are asingle .ASM program with asmall machine -specific terminalhandler.

MS-DOSACT ApricotGeneric MS-DOSHoneywell L6/10Heath / Zenith -100HP110HP150IBM PC, PC / XT, PC/ATNEC APCRainbow 100Sanyo MBCSeequa ChameleonSirius 1Tandy 2000TI ProfessionalWang PC

CP/M-86Fujitsu M-16Honeywell MSENEC APCRainbowTektronix 4170

UNIXAT&TCadmus

CallanCodataDEC VaxGouldHewlett-PackardMotorolaNCR TowerPDP-11PlexusPerkin ElmerPyramidSunTexas InstrumentsValid ScaldMany of the Uniximplementations are based on acommon C program.

MISCELLANEOUSAlpha Micro 68000Altos 986ApolloApple IIApple MacintoshAtari Home ComputerBBC MicroBBN C/70Commodore 64DEC Professional 350Fortune 16:32HP-98xx seriesHeurikonIBM PC /XT/ ATICL PerqIntel 310Intel Dev.Sys.Luxor ABC -800MasscompNCR TowerPascal m /enginePro 3xx seriesRM 480ZRidge 32TRS-80 / 16TRS-80Terak 8501AWhitechapel MG1

MAINFRAMEData GeneralGECHewlett-PackardHarrisHoneywellIBMICLLMINDPD -8 and PDP- 11Perkin ElmerSymbolicsTandemUnivacVax

new program which implementsthe Kermit protocol. Your com-puter can then exchange files withany other Kermit computer. Alarge variety of different im-plementations of Kermit havebeen developed for many microsand mainframes.

The Kermit protocol is designedto transfer a single file from onecomputer to another. The sendingcomputer transmits a predeter-mined number of bytes from thefile, together with a checksum;together these are called a packetof data. The receiving computer

stores the data bytes as they arrive,and calculates the checksum fromthe data, which is then comparedwith that sent from the othercomputer. If the two checksumsagree, the receiving computerknows that the data has arrivedcorrectly. It then sends an ACKsignal to the sending computer,requesting the next set of data.

If the checksum does not match,or if the receiving computer timesout because characters have beenlost, leaving the computer waitingfor more data, the receivingcomputer sends a NAK signal tothe sending computer. Thesending computer responds byretransmitting the last packet. Theentire file is transferred packet bypacket in this fashion, and anytransmission errors that occur arecorrected automatically.

LOST DATATerminal lines from mainframe

computers generally have a VDUand a person typing at the end ofthe line. People type relativelyslowly - say, five characters asecond. If you connect anothercomputer to the terminal line itcan send characters much faster -say, 120 characters a second or1,200 baud. Columbia discoveredthat if a large number of characterswere sent rapidly down a terminalline to a mainframe, then themainframe operating system couldnot keep up. Consequently themainframe lost some of thecharacters.

The problem is solved bybreaking the file into a series ofpackets that are small enough forthe mainframe to be able tohandle in their entirety. A packetis not sent until the mainframe hasassimilated the previous one; inpractice this usually restricts thesize of a packet to about 80 or 90characters.

Loss of data occurs with manymicros, though the causes aredifferent. Once a micro hasreceived a certain amount of data- often 16K - the data is auto-matically written on to a disc. Mostmicros stop listening to their serialport when they are using theirdiscs, so if any characters arereceived at the serial port duringthis disc -writing period they willprobably be lost. This can be over-come by the micro not sending anACK signal until the data has beensafely written to disc.

In addition to containing databytes from the file being trans-ferred, each packet contains a beg-inning, an end, a checksum orCRC, and a packet number. Thereis also a byte indicating the sort ofdata contained within the packet.The non -data bytes ensure that allerrors are detected.

Sometimes the pathway fortransmitting data is only seven bitswide. This may be because one orboth of the computers, or theconnection betweem them, cor-rupts the eighth parity bit. Thispresents no problem with ASCIIfiles, since ASCII characters onlyrequire seven bits, and the top bitin each byte is not used and can beignored. However, binary ormachine -code files, tokenised orcompressed Basic files, graphicsdata files and WordStar files all usethe eighth bit, and unless all eightbits are transmitted and receivedthe file will be corrupted. If bothKermit programs are told that alleight bits are significant and must,be transmitted, but only a seven -bit pathway is available for datatransfer, then a special means ofcommunication is used. Theeighth bit is either high or low,and this information is transferredby sending a special character tosay that the next character receivedshould have the parity bit set on.Thus eight -bit data can be copieddown a seven -bit pathway.

When two computers runningKermit are connected together,they negotiate with each other tofind what each machine is capableof so as to establish the best way ofperforming the transfer. Theydecide the length of the packets,whether to preserve parity andwhether to use data compression.

Data compression is an optionalfeature that allows repeated char-acters to be transmitted efficiently.For example, files containingtables of figures, graphics ormachine -code source files oftencontain a large number of con-secutive spaces.

DATA COMPRESSIONAnother time when the data -

compression feature is important iswhen transmitting Fortran fileswhich have been stored as cardimages. Since a punched card cancontain 80 characters and mostlines of code are only about 20characters long, a lot of time willbe wasted if 60 blank spaces aretransmitted one by one at the endof each line. Provided both Kermitprograms implement the com-pression facility, then the transfercan be carried out more efficientlyby giving the number of spacesinstead of transmitting a byte foreach space. If either Kermit imple-mentation does not support com-pression, then the file is sent infull.

The second part of this articlewill appear next month, and willshow in detail how the Kermitprogram may be used to transferfiles. Details will also be given ofwhere you can obtain a copy of theprogram.

0-0rn

-nr-rn


SOFTWARE CENTRECP/M CP/M-86 MSDOS

MICROPRO SOFTWARE SYSTEMWORDSTAR: Best selling professional Word Processing software; Onscreen formatting, Block manipulation, File readiwrite, SimultaneousEditing and Printing £295MAILMERGE: Enhancement for document personalisation and mailingapplications E145SPELLSTAR: Enhancement for checking spelling and maintainingspelling dictionaries 045STARINOEX: Useful package for creation of Table of Contents, Index,List of Figures. Interfaces to Wordstar to improve documentpresentation quickly and easily £116INFOSTAR: Impressive Data Base system combining the power ofDatastar with the flexibility of Reportstar £295DATASTAR: Screen based Data Entry, vetting and retrieval system.Screen formats under user control £175REPORTSTAR: Powerful report generator, provides much neededenhancement to Datastar for report production and transactionprocessing £210CALCSTAR: Electronic spreadsheet with interfaces to all MicroProproducts £116

WORDSTAR 2000: For the IBM PC£440

WORDSTAR PROFESSIONAL £399

DATABASE MANAGEMENTFORMULA II: Unique information management system with excep-tional capabilities for Application Generation. Multiple files and

indexes, transaction processing, interactive, no programming languagerequired £375dBASE II: The most popular of data management systems, very powerfulapplication generator £395

OUICKCODE: Add-on facility for dBASE programmers to speed developmentprocess by generating dBASE command files £200

dGRAPH: Extremely useful program for graphical representation of dBASE anduser created data files £200

data Plot +£195

CARDBOX: Highly popular electronic card index system. Easy to use, withpowerful retrieval facilities £195

FRIDAY: End user file management system from the authors of dBASE II File

definition, input and reporting under user control £195OPEN ACCESS: Multi -function Executives Information System £450FORMULA IV MULTI-USER: Database for PC DOS £595

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BASIC Interpreter £340 £341 CBASIC Interpretor £130 £275BASIC Compiler £385 £385 CBASIC Compiler £445 £395FORTRAN Compiler £485 £340 PASCAUMT + £300 £325COBOL Compiler £645 £680 C Compiler £295C Compiler £485 PERSONAL BASIC Int £130PASCAL £295 CIS COBOL £425 £425BUSINESS BASIC £450 FORMS -2 £110 £110Compiler FILESHARE £250 £425MACRO ASSEMBLER £1 95 £150 FORTRAN -77 £295

PRO FORTRAN £320 £320 PRO PASCAL £320 £320

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ABSTAT: Powerful statistics package £350

GRAPHSTAT: Versatile statistics and graphics package for theEpson ()X10, IBM-PC and Sirius £195

ALIAS ACCOUNTS: Fully integrated accounts system withinbuilt hooks to dBASE II £1200

ANYWARE: Remote control software for the IBM PC £99

RCS LEDGERS: Sales, Purchase, Nominal ledgers in MBASICsource code each £300

RCS PAYROLL: Full function, highly used package £500

STATISTICS PACK: Over 25 easily used routines in MBASIC£120

MATHS PACKAGE: Interactive routines (40+) in MBASIC £120

1

UTILITIESASCOM: The most flexible asynchronous communications packageavailable to the micro world. Interactive. batch, menu -driven. Availablefor CP/M. CP/M-86, MS/PCDOS E170

BSTAM: Simple communications program for exchanging files betweenCP,M systems. _050

TRANSFER: System for exchanging files between CP/M systems Providedwith full 8080 source code E130

CONVMS: Operating system converter. Runs MSDOS programs underCP/M-86 £70

CONVCP: Operating system converter Runs CP/M-86 programs underMSDOS £70

ASSEMBLER PLUS: Disassemble(' for 8080 and Z80 programs £18:IBM-CP/M COMPATIBILITY: Set of programs that enable IBM 3740 disks tobe used on CP,M, permitting transfer of tilestrufrom IBM mainframes £135SPP: Speed Programming Packagefor use with Pascal/MT+ £195EM8O/86: Emulator to run CP/M sortware under CP/M-86 and DOS £70DISPLAY MANAGER: Screen handling productivity aid for DigitalResearch compilers £450ACCESS MANAGER: File handling productivity aid for Digital Researchcompilers £350

MISCELLANEOUSCP/M 2.2: Standard operating system on 8"disk £135CP/M-86: Standard 16 -bit operating system £235SUPERSORT: Full function Sort/Merge/Selection package£145

MSORT: Standaloneand COBOL hbsted Sortpackage £190MAGSAM: MBASIC utility to provide multi -key ISAM filefacilities £150

TOUCH' GO: Teach yourself keyboard skills £40MICROSOFT MOUSE: Mouse, interface card and soft-ware £190

FIXED ASSETS SYSTEMS £350

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EXPRESSBASE II: Productivity aid for dBASE II £125

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- circle 179 on enquiry card --

LAST WORDTHERE ARE those who maintain thatto talk of the design of mainframeoperating systems (MOS) is a

nonsense and a contradiction interms. Others reckon that anyMOS is inevitably an automatedexample of Parkinson's Law. Athird group, noting the gothicarchitecture of their proceduresand the logical gargoyles thatstartle the unwary programmer,insists that they were designedaccording to the principles used inbuilding Chartres cathedral, whichcollapsed three times before thearchitect managed to invent theflying buttress. However, the storyof the development of mainframeoperating systems has becomeespecially relevant as pressures aregrowing to introduce multi-tasking operating systems formicros.

At one time the high price ofhardware provided the spur tocutting the operational costs ofa few big programs by multi -pro-gramming. When telex -type term-inals were first connected by tele-phone and modem to a computer,it became necessary to have lotsof little programs operating inparallel. This was achieved byproviding the original operatingsystems with a superstructurewhich allocated two or three milli-seconds to everyone in turn.Unfortunately, system efficiencyWas low because the batch -orientated designed of the basesystem was unsuited to timesharing.

SQUEEZED INWith the steady increase in on-

line applications, many moreprograms had to co -reside inmemory, and the technique ofvirtual memory became yetanother superstructure. The pro-gram became a book in virtualmemory on disc, with only thepage that was being processedresiding in core. You could put aquart into a pint pot, but it tooktime and lots of machine cycles.

When the first telecommuni-cations monitors were written, thesubsequent problems were akin tothose of squeezing a V8 engineinto a rickshaw. Then, when scoresof users needed simultaneousaccess to the same subroutine inthe operating system, a techniquecalled re-entrant programmingwas utilised. The system kept asingle copy of the subroutine and

KEEP IT SIMPLEAs the need for multi -tasking operating

systems on micros increases, Ralph Cornessuggests there are lessons to be learnt frommistakes already made by the designers of

mainframe software.

modified it from a scratch padbefore passing it on to a user.

By then 80 percent or 90 percentof the available machine cycleswere often taken up by systemsoftware. It was about this timethat informed opinion in the worldof computing concluded that anelephant was a mouse with an IBMoperating system.

Unfortunately, none of thelessons learnt from designingmainframes have been appliedin the design of multi -taskingsystems for micros. Designers stillseem bent on providing extrafacilities from an unsuitable base.They give little thought to wherethey are going or of the eventualpenalties of large complicatedsystems - a multiplicity of bugsand high operating overheads.

The ICL Quattro can handlefour users each running four tasksat once. It uses Concurrent CP /M,an expanded version of the systemwhch had its heyday in the lateseventies. The parallel with main-frame systems is obvious andominous. There is also a con-current MS-DOS, and a growingtendency to adapt full versionsof Unix, an operating systemintended for software dev-elopment and IT product design.Operating systems are becomingmassive and fragile once more, andagain the application program isshrinking to the proportion of apimple on the elephant's bottom.

It seems that there is no designstrategy for operating systems,other than to hit a problem overthe head as soon as it peeps overthe parapet. But one simple designstrategy could be borrowed fromthe hardware designers, and that isto make the product as modular aspossible.

An operating system is a coll-ection of programs that carry outwell-defined tasks. There is an all-ocator and deallocator for per-ipherals, a program loader andsometimes a link editor. Itallocates memory, fixes partitions,

allocates priorities, handlesspooling and input /output, logsusage, transfers control, signalserrors, handles interrupts, and soon. On mainframes these moduleswere not written as self-containedtasks with a standard interface toother tasks. Originally they werewritten for a particular type ofapplication program, and as theapplication programs changed sothe operating system wasbutchered.

ADVANTAGE UNIXA design strategy for micro

operating systems could be to writea series of alternative or mutuallyexclusive modules for all theoperating tasks. There might befour or five different spools, staticand dynamic methods of all-ocating core, I/O which is definedat compilation time or at run time,etc. They would all have a standardinterface. The design philosophyof Unix with its pipelined logicshould give it a head start. The -operating system then becomes acore program with the logicalequivalent of slots for additionalboards.

Once alternatives exist, a pre -packed collection will provide asmall, robust, fast and idiot -proofoperating system. It is difficult todesign systems frameworks toprovide subjects which in somecases cannot yet be defined. Butthe hardware designers havemanaged to provide open-endedsystems with interfaces and add-onboards.

There are those who argue thatoperating systems must be success-ful and well designed becausepeople are using them successfullyand profitably. Another argumentis that you must not provide alter-native modules, but a singleomnibus module with a largenumber of parameters to fit par-ticular tasks. There are reasonedarguments against this, but it is

not necessary to use them. Youhave merely to point the finger to

the story of . operating on themainframe.

A design parameter for modularoperating systems must have theability to produce some basicsubsets. The first requirement is aroutine in a fixed memorypartition to handle commun-ications in batch. It should accept alist of all the messages to be sentand probably all the calls to bemade, and work through the list.It should also receive incomingmessages and stack them. It is asmall routine, not to be confusedwith an inter -departmental andlarger communications managerfor networked systems.

Another task is a simplespooling operation. Output from ajob should build a file on disc.When the job is finished, the spoolshould start printing from the filewhile another file is being con-structed from another job. This isnot a complex mainframe -typespooling system, as it is impossibleto generate the volume to justifyone. It is only about 1 / 10th of thesize of more complicated spools inthe same operating system.

The next requirement is a utilityconcerned with copying discs,sorting files and compilingprograms. These operations areonly allowed to proceed in this par-tition because they fight each otherfor resources. If you time-sharesorts and compilations even on abig mainframe, all of them suffer.

A batch application partition isused to produce standard letters,carry out some analysis of data,produce a trial balance, orwhatever. Finally, there is an on-line partition.

STANDARD MODULESOnly two fulls are now needed.

One is the ability to set up a queueof work with icons and pointers.The other is an analyser whichtakes samples of the machinestatus every few milliseconds tohighlight the bottlenecks.

The scheme I have described isan example of a proposed set offixed facilities for the intermittentprofessional user. It is based onstandard modules which arescrewed together to meet his or herneeds. Software designers shouldborrow the hardware designconcepts of the bus and standardinterface and adopt a common,straightforward design philosophyfor different end -user markets. Ni]


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'PRACTICAL COMPUTINGshop window

Telephone 01-661 8163ADVERTISEMENT RATES

Rates quoted below are subject to the addition of 15% VAT.

Display Rates £18.00 per single Column Centimetre Minimum 5cm x 1 colOne Insertion: £18.00 per scc, Three Insertions: £17.25 per scc, Six Insertions: £17.00 per scc,

Nine Insertions: £16.50 per scc, Twelve Insertions: £16.00 per sccMicro Ads. Linage 40p per word minimum of 20 words. Prepayable.

COPY DATEShopwindow advertisements for the June edition will be accepted up to 27th April subject to space bein available.

Post to Practical Computing, Classified Department, Room H211, Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton Surrey SM2 5AS.

SCIENTIFIC SUBROUTINE LIBRARY

VOLUME 1 - STATISTICS AND CURVE FITTINGMean, SD, Normal Distribution, Partial Expectation, Chauvenets,

Criterion, Least Squares Fit to a Polynomial and Arbitrary Function,

Repetitive Least Squares Fits, Covariance Matrix, Chi -SquaredStatistics, Matrix Inversion, Solution of Linear Simultaneous Equations.

VOLUME 2 - LINEAR PROGRAMMINGReduction of a Simplex Tableau, Integer Programming, Partial Integer

Programming, Conmversational linear Programming System, Least Cost

Mix Problem.

VOLUME 3 - FURTHER STATISTICSRanking, Ouantiles, Frequency, Correlation Coefficient, T. Chi -Squared

and F Distributions and their Inverses, T. Test, Chi -Squared Test,

Wilcoxson Test, Linear and Multiple Regression, ANOVA 1 way and

2 -way

VOLUME 4 - TRANSFORMATIONS AND SORTING ALGORITHMS

Fourier and Fast Fourier Transforms, Numerical Integration and

Differentabon, Harmonic Analysis, Interpolation, Coordinate

Transformations, Exchange Sort, Guicksort, Shellsort, Tree Sort. Allroutines are written in BASIC for easy implementation on any machine.

Machine readable source code - f 75 plus VAT per volume.

(Most disk formats plus AL microdrive now available)

Manuals including full source listings with implementation notes and

documentation - f25 per volume.

CPIM TO DEC FILE TRANSFER

Software to read and write RT-11 format RX01 diskettes underCPIM80. Supplied on 8" SSSO diskette - f25 plus VAT.

SERVICES

Micro Logic Consultants specialise in scientific data processing and the

interfacing and control of laboratory instrumentation.

We can advise you on the best approach to your problem, or provide a

complete solution. Contact Derek Clifford on 0860 319482.

MICRO LOGIC CONSULTANTS LTD.57 Station Rd., Southwater, Horsham,

W. Sussex RH13 7HOTelephone 0403 731018

66

Circle No. 320

SolderlesscomputerWiring systems

/F youNEED

OR ALUP ONE

COMP..'uNDREOTER LITER

IVEATL,,RAMNALs

CA ' & QUICKLYL u irLYS Now(0604)

858888

TM

CO/AWARE 144GEORGE WILLIAM HOLLAND 8 SONS LTD.,

Bugbrooke Road, GAYTON, NORTHAMPTON NN7 3EUTel 106041 8580111 Telex 312242 MOTU< G

Circle No. 321

Circle No. 322

DISKCOPYINGIFORMATTINGI

FILE TRANSFERWE CAN TRANSFER YOUR DATA

BETWEEN OVER 1,000 DIFFERENTMICROS, MINIS AND MAINFRAMES VIA

FLOPPY DISC OR MAGNETIC TAPE.FORMATS INCLUDE: CPM, CPM 86,

MSDOS, PCDOS, UNIX, XENIX, IDRIS,TAR, RT11, MDOS, IBM BEE, ISIS, FLEX,0S9, VICTOR-SIRIUS, APPLE, TORCH,

ACORN, AMSTRAD, MISC.TYPESETTING/WORD PROCESSING.

'OVERNIGHT SERVICE - most formats returned bynext day's Post from

+ VAT per copy(Blank disks not include)

'DISCOUNT for BULK

A.L.DOWNLOADINGSERVICES166 PORTOBELLO ROADLONDON WI] 2E13TELEPHONE 01 727 8722

Circle No. 323

SEX PROBLEMS?Solve all your R5232 sex problerns.with our universal cable Plugand socket at both ends of the one metre cable

Price £29PRINTER CONNECTION PROBLEMS?

SOLUTION 1CONVERTER: SERIAL TO PARALLEL £59.95

(Inc VAT, p&p)For owners of computers with RS232 outputs who wish to diveCentronics printers. Add £25 for additional ways

SOLUTION 2DATA SWITCH: 4 -WAY SERIAL £59.95

(Inc VAT, p&p)For owners of computers with RS232 outputs who wish to talk to lourdiffered devices withoui swapping leads

SOLUTION 3DATA SWITCH: 2 -WAY PARALLEL £59.95

Lint VAT, p&p)owners who wish to drive more than one centronics

printer. Add £25 for additional ways. Reverse also possible at same

SOLUTION 5CONVERTER: PARALLEL TO SERIAL £59.95

(Inc VAT, p&p)For owners of computers with centronics outputs who wish lo driveserial printers. Add £25 for additional ways

Please enquire about our range of sohware for the NewBrain andalso our low-cost Computer Cables All the above prices includeVAT, postage and packing in EUROPE.For other solutions, watch this space, or contact us at

TYEPRO LIMITED30 Campkin Road, CAMBRIDGE CB4 2NGTel: 0223 322394 (24 hour service)

Circle No. 324

SECOND HAND SYSTEMS

BUYING/SELLINGAPRICOT, APPLE, IBM, SIRIUS, OLIVETTI,

TELEVI DEO .

We buy and sell all types of computerequipment from Micros to MainframesFD 2020K £169

HD 2040 £2479

12 inch Green Mon. + Adaptor odd £336

12 inch Paper white + Adaptor add £45,9

12 inch Hi -Res col. + Adaptor add £842

BRAND NEW APRICOT XENAVAILABLE NOW UPTO 25%

DISCOUNTALL PRICES + VAT + CARRIAGE

Call:

Busivies5Computers

BARNWELL HOUSE, BARNWELL DRIVE

CAMBRIDGE CB5 BUJTel: (0223) 241446 Telex: 817847

Circle No. 325


p winaowREAD AND PRINTBAR CODES ONYOUR P.C. FORJUST £399 (Ea VAT)

F62 Microcoder fitsbetween IBM, Olivetti orSperry PC and Keyboard.Reads EAN, Code 39 and 1125 without anysoftware changes. Price includesBARDEMON Bar Code Printing Program.

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Circle No. 326

ALBANY COMPUTERS

REPAIR DOMESTIC AND

PROFESSIONAL

COMPUTERS AT A FIXED

CHARGE.

CONTACT US FOR AN

INSTANT QUOTE

ALBANY COMPUTERSALBANY WORKSQUEENS ROAD

THAMES DITTON, SURREY K17 ORETEL: 01-398 8055

139

Circle No. 327

AMSTRAD & SHARPSERIOUS SOFTWARE BY

RETURN OF POSTPCW 8256 programs include; Genny -

genealogical database £35 Bill -itinvoice generator £19 Videoshop

booking system £35 Club Secretary -records £19 Stock control & analysis

£14 0 -level Maths & Physics £11

SAE FOR FULL CATALOGUE FOR8256*464/66416128*MZ-700*MZ-80AIK

DCS(PC), 38 SOUTH PARADE,BRAM HALL, STOCKPORT

Circle No. 328

GET MORE OUT OF YOUR BBC MICRO WITHSUPERFAST BASIC

BCOMP is a simple to use, powerful BASIC compiler in ROM for the BBC micro which can

halve the site and double the speed of your BASIC programs. supports all BASIC keywords

and has debugging facilities including TRACE and error messages.

BCOMP and manual E39.95

BSIDE a a disk based utility which allows you to create sideways ROMs from BASICprograms compiled using SCAMP. Each ROM may contour up to 20 programs, each with its

own '0' command Now you can create your own ROMs without using machine code. Real

varrables supported

BRIDE Dual lomat disk and manual E 12.95

Uncover the secrets of assembler with BASK a symbolic disassembles which allows you

to investigate machine code programs including sideways ROMs. This disk or ROM based

utility is simple to use yet offers some very powerful Natures to allow the disassembledcode to be formatted for easy reading. User entered symbols are substituted for address.

DASM dual format disk and manual E14.95

DASM sideways ROM and manual E19.95

Prices include p&p in U.K. Send CWD orSAE to: logik Engineers, 84, PortnallsRoad. Coulsdon, Surrey, CR3 30E,Tat Downland 52170

LOGIK Circle No. 329

FLOPPY DISCS 8", 5+" and 3+"Guaranteed for life. Example: 5:1" box of 10DSDD 96 TPI. £20.04. 51" box of 10 DSDD 48TPI £16.30.

P & P inc. No VAT. Official order or chequewith order please.Also cables, tools, connectors, dataswitches etc.Contact Runnymede Computer HardwareLimited for our catalogue - 24 hour phoneservice, 0784 39844. 69 Clarence Street,Egham, Surrey.

145

OUR TRAINING SOFTWAREIN FINANCIAL PLANNING

IS SPREADSHEET COMPATIBLEThe new WHAT IF? courses in asset and profitmanagement are designed to run with readilyavailable spreadsheet software on yourcomputer in the office or at home.

The fully documented courses will introduce ahost of new ideas to make your business moreprofitable. They will also provide you with arange of techniques which will bring yourspreadsheet to life.

For futher information about this stimulatingnew medium for understanding the essentialprinciples of financial planning just drop us aline with details of your computer andspreadsheet software.Dept PA286Interactive Learning Programs, PO Box 2.Bedroll). Cornwall. TR15 2UD.Telephone (0209842628)

/////////////////// // Circle No. 331

COMPUTER CLEANERS****STOP LOCK UPS****

Do you suffer lost data or lock -ups? Do you thinkmains is the cause? If so then our sockets may bethe solutin.As well as cutting high voltage spikes they smooththe cut spikes and filter RF from 1-30 MHz (30db)and up to 130 MHz.

These cleaners work - User group test.Adaptor (1 socket) (5a fuse) - £14 incl.Trailing 4 -way socket (13a) fuse) - £24 incl.

Simply plug either in - no wiring.

Tony Firshman Services43 Rhyl Street, London NW63H B. 01.267,3887.

151

Circle No. 332

HIV ERDICT

PerformanceDocumentofon

\I -111

POOR

GOOD

To bring your MANUALSin line with your product

phone (0202) 732079

TEK-KNOW Services106 Wedgwood Dr.Poole BH14 SEX 152

Circle No. 333

LOW! LOW! LOW! LOW!LOWEST PRICES

eg AMSTRAD PCW 8256 = £370 + VATATARI 520 ST = £595 + VAT

IBM COM PATABLES FROM £895 + VAT

ALSO AVAILABLEEPSON, CANNON, JUKI, VICTOR, SPERRY,

COMMODORE, OLIVETTI, etc etcSOFTWARE - SUPPLIES - MAINTENANCE

RING US NOW148

1st CHOICE DISCOUNT MICROSTEL 01-992 2512

43 CHATSWORTH G DNS LONDON W3 9LP

Circle No. 334

HAND HOLDINGFOR BUSINESS MICRO USERS

Our team of on -site support staff can help you start torelease the full potential of your computer for your

particular business.A short intensive training course may not be theanswer for you or your staff. Our approach is that ourpeople are there to help as the queries actually arise.

land we don't charge the Earth)

DATAN COMPUTER SERVICES

TEL: 01-446 7955863 High Road, London N12 8PT

137

Circle No. 335LOW-COST PCDOSIMSDOS SOFTWARE TOOLS

Professional quality development tools for IBMPC compatibles

Full -screen editor for programmers E9.95

Loaded with featuresff :9955808611308818087 assembler, Intel Mnemonics

Fortran 66 (extended) with 8087 support1, 2, 4 -Byte integers, 4, 8.Byte reels IIEEEI 1 -Byte logicals, charactervariables, pointers do for, do while, if then else constructs large arrays lup toIMByte). Common areas fixable at a physical address supports inbne808818087 assembler sequences (with access to Fortran variables by name).Complete Fortran Math Library E 1 5.95

Single and Noble precisionSophisticated Object Module Librarian E9.95Two -Pass Link Editor El 5.95Overlays, pre link, map, fret Natures.8085 Cross -Assembler 69.95Bit -Slice Micro Cross -Assembler 684.95For AMO 2900 series devices and similar user -defined instruction formats andmnemonics each format up to 64 fields, up to 128 bits wide.

Eastlake Software, 76 Crwys Rd, Cardiff CF2 4NPPhone: 0222 371173. Add f2 P&P and 15% VAT to U.K.

address. 147

Circle No. 336

When replying toClassified advertisements,readers are recommendedto take steps to protecttheir interests beforesending money.

TO RESERVE YOUR

SPACE FOR

SHOPWINDOW,

MICRO ADS ANDRECRUITMENT.

PHONE: 01-661 8163

120 PRACTICAL COMPUTING may 1986

SELF BUILD your own management systemwith fourth generation languages on amicro. Details Thomas East Folley LiskeardPL14 6LH (0579) 20606

TELEVIDEO TS806/20 processor 20MbyteWinchester disc, models 800 and 806a workstations, each with 64K Ram offers (08926)or 04352 6416 daytime

RAIR BLACK BOX and ICL PCs (8 bit).Bought sold exchange repaired advicegiven. Ring 0734 668951 (Reading). 267M

TANDATA TD 1616/2 Terminals 4 No FidelityCM 14 colour monitors 3 No all as new stillin boxes including leads any reasonableoffer considered. Tel: 021-632 5444

COMPAQ PLUS 640Kb, 10mb hard disk., co-processor, IBM colour monitor, IBMportable PC. Will split. Call 0252 517868,evenings.

NEW MP -165 NLQ printer. Far superior toEpson etc. ideal professional use.Incredible 75 -CPS NLQ. Unbeatable? only£219. Jonathan. 0992 57805

APPLE Ilc 128K, monitor, internal externaldisk drives Apple Software including wordprocessor, database, spreadsheet,mailmerge, utilities. Training disks usermanuals Brother HR35 daisywheel printerBrother CF100 sheet feeder all packagingassemble instructions cables transformer,6 months old realist offers only, would sellseperate 01-644 3905.

PERSONAL computer 5Meg hard driveMeg floppy drive 128K store CP/M software

£600 ono Telephone 09363 78537.

FOR IBM/PC DOS compatibles. A fullfeature comms. Software package. Freeauto-dialling/answer. Also some CP/M80versions. singles £67 & vat. Tel 01-876 1670.

VDU FOR SALE various types from £75phone Reading (0734) 668951

EPSON QX10 FOR SALE. With monitor andkeyboard twin floppy 360K each to includepeach calc systems utility graphics andprogrammers disks. Hardly used £700. Tel:(024 368) 2247.

"WANTED. Working 64K CP/M Nascom orGalaxy system - alternatively, 80 buscomponents (including disk drives) toconfigure Nascom 2 to CP/M. Additionally,complete twin drive MS.DOS systemwanted - IBM compatible or Apricot (mustbe DS). Contact Mr Clarke 01-435 2771evenings or weekends (private)"

ICL 1501/43, 21 MB fixed 21 MB removable,with 1525 dot matrix (120 cps) Printer and sixdisc packs. ICL-maintained since new, alldocuments and manuals. Offers? MrEdwards (0244) 570881 306M

LISA2/10, I M EG RAM, all Lisa software, andMacworks with Omnis 3, filevision, TypingTutor, Statworks, Macwrite, Macpaint, withextra profile 5Meg hard disk, 15"lmagewriter, lots of floppies, offers, 01-5555527

APRICOT TWIN 320K, 768K Ram, 8087,printer, plus 5 15Meg hard disk, Apricotcarrying cases, 12" and 9" moniters, WStar,SCalc 3 PStat, £1999, 01-555 5527

"MR. floppy" Discs. The UNIVERSAL discwill work reliably on ANY drive. D/S D/D 96tpi80tr. 10 for £15, 25 £35, 50 £65, LIFETIMEwarranty. CageySoft, 10 Pennine Drive,NW2 1PB, 458 1491. Unbranded discs D/S80tr, 10 for £12. Prices inclusive.

ICL PC2 with 20MB hard disk 512K Ram.Multi-user system with hi-res graphics£1995. Tel Reading (0734) 876656

Televideo 806/10MB computer £1400 80UAworkstations £600 ICL K9 terminal £200 MPI99 graphics printer £200. Tel Mr Mills 061 8322816

KEYBOARD and Wordprocessing Course, 2day intensive, aimed at managers new tocomputing. Thursday and Friday orSaturday and Sunday. Residential inSomerset. Fee includes hotel, lunches andvat. £220.00. Bookings (0458) 45637.

DISK COPYING SERVICEMoving data and program files from

one machine to another is often madedifficult because different

manufacturers have adopted differentdisk format standards.

We can copy your files to and fromover 250 disk formats including

CP/M, CP/M-86, MS-DOS, PC -ECG, ISIS,APPLE, SIRIUS, TORCH, APRICOT, HP150,

DEC RT-11, and IBM BEF.

Disks are normally despatched on theday they are received.

Our charge is Z10.00+ disk + VAT.Special prices for quantities.

For more information call us.

4 Pegg Medciov,. Ast4r)o. Devcr f(J737(1)[ !

TEL. (0364) 53499 10

Circle No. 337

MICRO ADS. Order FormSELL IT WITH PRACTICAL COMPUTING

Classified RatesLinage 40p per wordMinimum 20 words prepayable.Box No. £7.00 extra

Display Adverts.Rate per single columnCentimetre: £18.00Minimum 5cmSERIES DiscountsAvailable on requestTel: 01-661 8163.

Method of PaymentCheques etc should be madepayable to BUSINESS PRESSINTERNATIONAL LTD. and crossed.I enclose herewith cheque/PO for

Post to:Cut out the order form and returntogether with your remittance to:Classified Department,Practical Computing,Room H211, Quadrant House,The Quadrant, Sutton,Surrey SM2 5AS.

Conditions of AcceptanceMicro Ads are accepted fromPrivate readers only and must besubmitted on (or a photocopy of)this order form. All Advertisementsmust be prepaid.

Please insert the following advertisement in Practical Computing LINAGE

Cost per insertions1 Ins. 15AW; TOTAL

\£6.00 £0.90 £6.90

£8.00 £1.20 £9.20

£10.00 £1.50 £11.50

£12.00 £1.80 £13.80

£14.00 £2.10 £16.10

£16.00 £2.40 £18.40

£18.00 £2.70 £20.70

Box No. Required YES/NO No. of Insertions(50p discount for 2 ins.)

NAME (Please include initials)

ADDRESS

THIS FORM SHOULD BE RETURNED BY 27TH APRIL 1986 FOR JUNE ISSUE

Company Registered Number: 151537 (ENGLAND).

Registered Office: Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS.


UPGRADE TO TRISOFTSPEED UP WITH THE 8087

Now, using advanced, large scale

integration technology, the Intel 8087 familyof chips dramatically boost the performance

of your PC. Simple to fit with only 1

switch to set on the motherboard. Supported by an increasing number of

software packages including Lotus 1-2-3

ver.2.0. Supercalc III Re1.2, Smart and

Autocad. Makes your IBM PC as fast as an

AT for f 135. Available for the Apricot at£135.1 For Olivetti and Compaq 8MZ £175. For IBM AT 80287 £175. For othermachines please enquire. 12 Month

Warranty.

APRICOT RAM EXPANSION BOARDS" 12 Month Warranty *

128K £130.00256K f149.00512K £265.00

HERCULES MONO CARD

* 2 Year Warranty £289 £279

PLUS 5 EXTERNAL HARD DISKSFor IBMIOlivettilEricssonlApricot

FIXED DISK SUBSYSTEMS10 MB ONLY £ 935.0020 MB ONLY £1045.00

* 12 Month Warranty *

0629.3021PROFESSIONAL ADVICE LOW PRICES HOTLINE SUPPORT

FAST SERVICE

DISCOUNTS FOR QUANTITIESINTERNAL HARD 1:1ISKS

FOR IBM PC, OLIVETTI M24 AND ERICSSON PC

12 MONTHS LABOUR AND PARTS WARRANTY

WE CAN EITHER COLLECT AND INSTALL HERE

10 MB HARD DISK £695 20 MB £795

OR WE CAN INSTALL ON -SITE IN MOST AREAS.

10 MB HARD DISK £825 20 MB £925

We are dealers forTecmar, AST, Plus 5, Simon, Intel

and many other manufacturers of upgrade supplies.

INTEL ABOVE BOARD/RAMPAGE TWO MEMORY BOARDS IN ONE FILLS CONVENTIONAL

MEMORY BELOW 640K * EXPANDED WORKSPACE MEMORY

ABOVE 640K FOR USE WITH LOTUS 2.0, SYMPHONY 1.1,

FRAMEWORK 2.0, SUPERCALC III REL.2.1

Please telephone for details

FOR IBM PC & COMPATIBLES ...2 MB RAM £1330 f675

FOR IBM AT & COMPATIBLES . .2 MB RAM f 1420 £795

* FIVE YEAR WARRANTY *

Local Authority, Government and Corporate enquiries welcomed.

All prices are subject to V.A.T.

zits arraysCrown Square, Matlock, Derbyshire. DE4 3AT Telephone: 0629 3021

Telex: 8950511 ONEONE G (Ref. 129770011Telecom Gold: NTG 344 Prestel: 533544601

TECMAR CAPTAIN MULTIFUNCTION

BOARD

For IBM and compatibles I Tecmar'sanswer to AST Six Pak Plus Sub - 1%failure rate.

12 Month warranty Expandable to384K.

24 personal productivity programs. Parallel port for printing power. Serial port for communications power. Clocklcalendar Autotime software. Pal lockout option for security.

Ramspooler software Ramdisk

software.

64K R.R.P. £335 OUR PRICE £195384 R.R.P. £589 OUR PRICE £295

IBM RAM EXPANSION BOARDS

* 12 Month Warranty *256K £165.00384K £225.00512K £265.00

EXPANDED QUADBOARD 384KParallel port Serial port

Clocklcalendar. Memory expansion Game port I/O bracket and Ouadmastersoftware with spooler and DuadRAM drive(RAM disk) £295.00

PLUS 5 EXTERNAL HARD DISKSFIXEDIREMOVABLE SUBSYSTEMS

10 MB + 5 MB....ONLY £1825.0020 MB + 5 MB....ONLY £1945.00

"PRACFICALMIMING

AA & G ComputerwareAlliance ComputerAMAAmstrad

784421

26/27Atari Corporation (UK) Ltd 66/67Apricot Computers 10/11

BBitsper secondBK ElectronicsBriad Systems LtdBristol Micro TraderBritish OlivettiBrom Corn

CCambridge Electronic Design 36Cambridge Micro Electronics Ltd

45Carey Electronic 22Computer Express 113Computer Factory (The) 34Computmart 17Continustart 44Cambridge Electronic Design 36Cambridge Micro Electronics 45Carey Electronic 32

DDDLDNCSDigithurstDufose DevelopmentDigisolveDigitask

872275

35/4218/19

28

43/459632

10644, 87

118

Advertisement Index circle 181 on enquiry card

E M QElectronequip 94 Mannesmann Tally 48 Qume UK Ltd 62/63Elite Computer Systems 86 Matmos Ltd 113Epson (UK) Ltd 46/47 Mekom Computer 40/41

Mercator Computer Systems Ltd R

F

FerrantiFinancial ResourcesFraser Associate'sF/T Computer ServicesFuji Film (UK) LtdFuture Sales

6178

106437125

34Microft Technology Ltd 94Micro Processor Eng Ltd

71Micro Peripherals Inside back

coverMicronix 6Micro Rent 78

Reed Exhibition 95Research Machines 51Ringdale Peripherals 71

SSage Soft 90Sentinel Software Inside Front

Mitsubishi 4 Cover

Grafox

H

33Modehart 87Mountaindene 32Micro Computer Services 88Mx computer Supplies 96

Silicon Centre 79Sintrom 37Soft Quest 22S/S Enterprises 1 1 3

HM Systems 39Homestead Data Products 21

N TNewtons Laboratories 57 Tay Commercial Services 86

Icarus Computer Systems 88 Telesystems 116Trisoft 74,122

J 0Jarogate Ltd 60 Olympia International 30

Osiris Micro Broker 50 VK Vuman Computer Systems LtdKECMKirin

9484 P

PAP Distribution 9

1 24

Parrot Corporation Back CoverL Peter Nelson 24Longseer Ltd 124 Pinner Wordpro 34 Worldwide Computers Ltd 20


The Art ofDaisywheelPrinting /

RALIK'6100

20CPS(max)13" Platen

No. 1 Best Seller

BUT £ 349*

When you're looking for your printout to look its best, then there's nothing

to beat the letter quality of daisywheel printers. When it comes to choosing

a daisywheel printer you can't buy better than JUKI With a choice ofseveral machines for both the home and professional user alike, and a vast

range of printwheels to choose from, you too can add a little character to

your text. Take for example the following three models from the JUKI

range, ideally suited for home and small business use.

2100/2200Even with the advent of low-cost wordprocessors, the low cost electronictypewriters still offer the easiest and most flexible means of putting theprinted word onto paper. The JUKI 2100 & 2200 offer unparalled featuresat a realistic price. Printing at 10cps in either 10, 12 or 15 pitch they willprint up to 135 characters on a line. The portability of the JUKI electronicTypewriters allow you to produce true letter quality print almost anywhere.While the JUKI 2100 offers all the standard features such as auto correcting,centering and tabulation, the JUKI 2200 offers the additional feature of

either parallel or serial interface to enable connection to almost any micro-

computer. circle 102 on enquiry card

allIJKI2100

FULLY PORTABLETYPEWRITER/PRINTER

FAO.gu, £ 169*

2200WITH PARALLELOR SERIALINTERFACE

FOR E oa*

(//1/1 ( / /

CCC"lci 1,i '- / /I I

s_IILIIIICI 6100Ideal for the small business/home/educational user alike, the JUKI 6100

includes many features normally only found on more expensive printers.With its Diablo 630 compatible protocols it will run most wordprocessingpackages including WordStar and even offer a graphics capability - all ata speed of up to 20cps. The JUKI 6100 will print in 10/12/15 pitch aswell as proportional spacing and features a 2k buffer, parallel interface,revolutionary linear motor mechanism and uses IBM Selectric ribbons.Optional extras include tractor feed, sheet feeder and serial interface.

microPeripherals lid'THE POWER BEHIND THE PRINTED WORD'

I NTEC UNIT 3, HASSOCKS WOOD, WADE ROAD,BASINGSTOKE, HANTS. ENGLAND, RG24 ONE.

Tel: SOUTH 0256 473232 - NORTH 0706 211526Telex: 859669 MICROP G Facsimile: 0256 461570

IfIP

'Full 12 months warranty - RRP ex. VAT. 123

EveryParrothas apedigree.

The Parrot pedigree combines allthe best features you want in aflexible diskette.

Top -grade materials, the mostmodern production techniques and apainstaking attention to quality control,are brought together to produce a wholestring of champions, every one as goodas the rest.

For the Parrot is no hybrid. Every one ismanufactured in Britain in what is probablythe world's most advanced fully integratedplant, where we are totally committed tothe undeviating quality of our product.

The most sophisticated computer controlledcertification system ever developed is used toensure perfection.

So you get years of trouble free life from everydiskette. And the purity of the Parrot pedigree ismaintained.

For more information, and the name of yournearest dealer, phone, or write to: -

Parrot Corporation LimitedLlantamam Industrial Park, Cwmbran, Gwent NP44 3XL,United Kingdom.Telephone: (06333) 71144 Telex: 497253.

ParrotWe're unbending on quality
