The magazine for members of Omega: the first full user’s report Internet Special: from getting on line to getting a website USB connects with RISC OS Issue 47 — Autumn 2003 The First Full Report On Omega fter all the months of waiting and Obviously, Castle have plans to Awondering about Omega, the extend the uses of RISC OS in wider first machines are now in the hands of markets, with improvements which users. will spread out to benefit computer users. As you may know, the Club was fortunate enough to win one of the The new ownership should also mean first two, which were offered in prizes tighter control, which will prevent at the Wakefield Show. This has given any risk of diverging versions of the us the chance to have the first full software coming from rival report on Omega, written by Tom developers. We will watch with Hughes after two months of use and interest for further developments. testing. During, this time, Omega has been updated and further As well as the exclusive full report on improvements are no doubt still being Omega, we are featuring another made on machines not yet delivered. special section this issue, this time about the Internet, following the So, finally, we have two new RISC success of last issue’s Digital OS computers and we look forward to Photography Special. seeing how both of them develop over the months ahead. If you found the black and white reproductions of the pictures There’s more good news too in the illustrating those articles rather announcement that the ownership of frustrating you can see them in their our operating system is now full colour on the Club’s website at completely back in the hands of www.armclub.org.uk/eureka/issue46 Acorn-succession computer makers pictures.html. with the purchase of RISC OS from Pace by Castle. Peter Jennings All opinions expressed in Eureka are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Club or its Committee members and officers. CONTENTS 4 Omega: full report INTERNET SPECIAL The first full report from a user of the long awaited new computer. 24 Internet access in a nutshell 14 Completing your auction sale The various alternatives The final instalment of our series available to get you on line. on buying and selling on eBay. 31 18 ARM Arena Choosing an ISP The latest games and the return of More decisions to make to get some old, updated, favourites. the best Internet Service Provider for your needs. 23 The Midlands RISCOS Show Plan now for your visit to the 35 Club's big Birmingham Show in A permanent presence November. How to keep the same internet address even if you eventually 24 Internet Special want to change your ISP. See the next column for full details. 38 Site seeing: travel & holidays 53 Double Cross puzzle Helpful websites to visit if Your regular chance to test your you're heading for sun or way with words. sights. 54 RISC OS Rhymes 42 Getting a website Our poetic Risc PC relates the How to have a website of your mad computer enthusiast's song. own, with the help of some free software. 2 Eureka 47 — Autumn 2003 56 USB comes to RISC OS 64 Aunty Gill’s Journal Iyonix users get a USB mass Help and advice on some of those storage class driver and there's a more personal problems that the 6-1 USB card reader from R- Technical Help team can't tackle. Comp. Club Contacts 63 The Double Cross solution Who and where to contact the See how well you did with our person for all your membership word puzzle. queries and suggestions. Our full report on Omega See you at the shows follows on the next page. There was not room there for our RISC OS South East usual information panel so the Saturday 18th October 2003 details are below. 10am-4pm Main Building Guildford Technical College Omega Stoke Road (A320) Price: Standard case £1149 Guildford, Surrey Mini Tower £1189 Entry £5 at the door Desktop £1190 Web: www.fillin.co.uk/seshow/ (all plus £20 delivery charge) index.html Supplier: MicroDigital Limited 37 Titus Street Midlands RISC OS Show Saltaire, Shipley BD18 4LU Saturday 29th November 2003 Tel: 01274 618774 10am-4.30pm Fax: 01274 619482 National Motorcycle Museum Email: Solihull, Birmingham [email protected] See full details on page 23. Web: www.microdigital.co.uk Eureka 47 — Autumn 2003 3 Omega: The Full Report any of you will already know Before going any further I should Mthat The ARM Club was lucky make it clear that the precise status of enough to win one of the two the machine being reviewed here is MicroDigital Omegas offered as unclear. I believe it to be more or less prizes at the Wakefield Show. I took a production machine — certainly the machine away from Wakefield neither I nor the club has been given and have had my hands on it for the any information to contradict that — Tom Hughes gives us the first full user’s report of the long awaited new computer which has, until recently, been available to try only as demonstration models. last two months, during which time I but it is possible that production have attempted to put it through its machines may differ slightly from paces. that on which this review is based. My first experiences with the Unfortunately, MicroDigital seem to machine were summarised in a have decided not to cooperate with us preview put together during the four in the production of this review — all days between our winning the my emails to both their published machine and my going off on holiday support address and directly to for three weeks. That preview was members of their staff have gone sent out by email, while I was away, unanswered. As a result, I have been to those of you whose addresses we unable to obtain clarification from know. If you didn’t get a copy then them regarding any questions I had now would be a good time to remind and everything in this review is based the Membership Secretary of your on my hands-on experience and email address so that we will be able reports from other Omega users about to include you in future. what MicroDigital have told them when they asked about various things. 4 Eureka 47 — Autumn 2003 The Machine The machine itself is housed in a mid sized tower case, finished in a dark grey colour. The front of the case has two doors; the upper, larger, door opens to reveal the floppy and CD drives, while the small lower door reveals two USB ports and two 3.5mm audio sockets for connecting a microphone and headphones. In the centre of the front panel is a power button, a recessed reset button and two LEDs: one power light and one hard disc activity light. Tower cased Omega Moving to the back of the case we find two PS/2 sockets for a mouse and keyboard, a video output socket and With the lid off, the case is revealed to standard serial and parallel ports as contain no fewer than seven drive well as a further two USB sockets. In bays: three 5.25” bays which can be the topmost expansion slot is a sound accessed from the front of the case card with a full set of connectors: five and are hence suitable for removable 3.5mm sockets to provide 5.1 channel drives; three 3.5” bays hung beneath output as well a microphone the 5.25” bays and not accessible connection and line input and a 15 pin from the front but perfect for hard D connector. drives and the like; and a single 3.5” bay on top of the 5.25” bays which Opening the case requires removing holds the floppy drive. the front panel; a simple ‘grab it and pull’ job, followed by four screws Also present in the case is a standard which then allow the cover to be slid 250W ATX power supply, a very large forwards slightly before being lifted (120mm) fan mounted on the rear of up and placed to one side. the case and the motherboard... Eureka 47 — Autumn 2003 5 The Motherboard 5+6, which suggests that the At the rear of the motherboard are hardware may be able to support an four 32-bit 5V PCI slots, the top one additional pair of USB ports if an of which contains a sound card as appropriate socket was connected. previously mentioned. The sound card has two CD audio input Near the USB connectors is another connectors (for different types of CD spare header labelled Serial Port 2 drives) and an auxiliary input which may suggest that a second connector. The CD audio wasn't serial port is a possibility in the future. actually connected in our machine The ALi M1535+ South Bridge chip although I assume that was a simple used in the Omega certainly supports oversight and that it would normally two serial ports, as can been seen be connected. from the Iyonix which uses the same South Bridge chip. Some other things not connected to the sound card are the front audio To the right of the PCI slots are the sockets. The cable from these is floppy drive connector and two IDE hanging loose in the case. So far I connectors, one of which is used to have been unable to identify any connect the 33GB Maxtor hard drive connector on the sound card to which and the 52x CD drive.