Second Class Mail Registration no. 5918, Shelburne, Ontario The INDEPENDENT Commodore Users' Magazine No. 20 JUNE 1983 ~'),~() VIC, PET Making Games, Finding Games, and Playing Games. C-64 GAMES Is It Good or Bad? How to get Hundreds of Free Programs for the VIC·20 and Commodore 64 see page 2 10610 BAYVIEW (Bayview Plaza) RICHMOND HILL, ONTARIO, CANADA L4C 3N8 (416) 884-4165 C64-LINK' The Smart 64 RTC Call or write payments Serial by VISA, Cartridge Audio 1/0 MASTERCARD Expansion Slot Switch RF Video Port Cassette Port Users Port or BANK TRANSFER. Mail orders also by certified check, etc. IEEE Disks (2031) (4040) Tape VIC Modem (8050) (8250) (9090) lEE E Printers 1541 Drive or VL3 Cable Many more 64s And V L 16 (4022) (8023) to Parallel 1525 Printer (8300) Printer etc. or 1515 Printer Wf fl (future) lEE E to Par a II e I IEEE to Serial or VL4 Cable Interface Cartridge Interface to Standard Parallel M other Board True Serial Modem Devices Devices Give These Expanded Capabilities To Your 64 * The ability to transfer data from any type of device to another (IEEE, Serial, Parallel) ,it I * BASIC 4.0 which allows you to run more PET BASIC programs and gives you extended disk and 110 commands. I And * The ability to have several 64s on line together - sharing common IEEE PAL © devices such as disks or printers with Spooling Capability. * Built-in machine language monitor I * A built-in terminal or modem program which allows the system to communi­ Spooling Other cate through a modem to many bulletin board systems and other computer mainframes. to Cart r idges Printer * Compatibility with CP/M. Copyrights and Trademark. C64 is a copyr ight of Commodore Business Machines, Inc. C64-lINK is a ccpyrighl of Richvale Tele­ comm unicat ions. CPI M is a registered trademark of Digital Research . POWER is a trademark of Pro­ Contact your local Commodore dealer or RTC. fessional Software PAL is a copyright of Brad Templeton . CONTENTS PAGE 2 Free Games and Programs (Where to get them) . Editorial Comment ;3 LEll EF~S TO THE EDITOR . ........... 4 Microtechnology-- Hazardous to your social health. .Clifford Wong 6 GAMES UF LIFE. ........................ Harry Baecker 9 Creating Sprites on the C-64 . David Bradley 15 Some Mixed-mode Graphics Subroutines in BASIC. ..... William R. Frenchu 19 Planning For Obsolesence . .. ........ Ron Kushnier CHIPP! .............................. Mike Richardson 27 Software Review. ............................ Ravi Palepu 28 Butterfield Box (You Can't Get Away From It>. J. Butterfield 29 Making Friends with Sid <Part II) . Paul Higginbottom 32 C-64 Meeting News. Mike Hyszka 32 C--64 Summer Programme. .. Mike Hyszka 33 Programmers Do It In Software (Part II) ............. Hal Chamberlin 39 Making VIC Programs Run With Any Memory Configuration. .. Gottfried R. Walter 41 Generating Random Numbers in Machine language . Vince Sorensen '13 The Une-Number Speed Fallacy .................. David Williams 45 TPUG Library Naming Convention .................. Mike Donegan 45 HELP! . Doris Bradley 47 Classified 48 New Library Releases 48 TPUG's This and That . DoriS Bradley The TORPET published by The Publisher Horning's Mills. Ontario Canada LON lJO (519) 925-5376 (416) 782-9252 Bruce M. BeaCh. Editor . Sandra Waugh. Associate Editor Published monthly (except April and December> Single subscription rate - $18.00 per year Honorary Editorial Committee. Jim Butterfield. Associate Editor of Compute. Toronto. Ont. Dave Williams .. Contributing Editor of Info Age. Toronto. Ont. Elizabeth Deal. well-known contributer to Commodore Magazines. Malvern. Pa. Jane Campbell. San Diego User'S Group President. San Diego. Ca. Cover Credit: Graham Bailey Special bulk rates to clubs Printed In Canada ISSN # 0821-1809 Second Class Mailing Permit Number 5918 Mailed at Shelburne. Ontario Application to Mali at Second-Class Postage Rates is Pending at Buffalo. N.Y. POSTMASTER: Send addresses to The TORPET. 1 Brinkman Ave .. Buffalo, N.Y .. 14211 TORPET June 83 page 1 EDITORIAL Subm is s ions WHERE TO GET GAMES TO OUR CONTRIBUTORS: PAST. Every now and then someone will call me and say, PRESENT and FUTURE: "How do I get those hundreds of free programs that you The rORPET still pays $20 per page for articles and tell about on the cover of The TOR PET?". Well, the we welcome new submissions. We do have a small answer IS very simple. JOin TPUG. Then you will have ac­ backlog of articles which we have not yet been able to fit cess to the world's largest public domain library. in. There are actually thousands of free programs in the We are trying to get to everything. We plan, in the library. And any member of TPUG can get them in a num­ near future, to have letters prepared to acknowledge the ber of different ways. If you are close enough that you received articles, but this will take some more time before can attend a TPUG meeting, there is a meeting disk given it is implemented. out at each meeting (recent releases are listed on the Send us a letter explaining the types of articles you back page of thiS TOR PET). Or you can attend one ot the would like to write. Frequently we need a special subject all day copy seSSIOns, which again are free to members, covered and, if you have indicated an Interest, then we and there you will have an opportunity to copy many disks. can contact you. If you live a long distance from TPUG then you can order disks or tapes from the club office. The programs Submitting Material dre still free but they charge a nominal fee for the copYing, materials, handling and postage. To be exact $10 Please type your name, address, etc. on both for a disk ($12 for 8050/8250) and $6.00 for a tape. the manuscript, and in the disk file if you are submitting There are still other ways to get the disks. From one. (We love disks but will retype manuscripts.) dealers who are members of TPUG (many of these just Send any photographs and/or diagrams (or cartoons!) charge you for the disk material), from other TPUG mem­ that go with your article. Diagrams are easiest for us to bers, or by joining the copy tree. use If they are drawn in fairly dark ink, or marker, and Most of the the disks and tapes have between 20 are done on plain white paper (we will redo them if and 40 programs on them. So, you see, they really are necessary). free. To found out just what the programs are, you need We would also like a photograph and biography of to look at the TPUG club library listing. This IS published the author. approximately quarterly and IS then sent to al/ TPUG Check your article for accuracy before you send it members. to us. Read any programs through an extra time, just to If you have bought your TOR PET on a news stand, be sure, and please include a little BASIC file contain­ you should have a copy of of the library listing inside ing any routines in your program so we can print it your TOR PET. directly. We don't like mistakes any more than you do. Incidently, all TPUG members receive a free copy of It you send your article on a diskette, we will send the TORPET each month and since TPUG membership is It back to you with TPUG's current monthly library just $2 more than a TORPET subSCription I think it is a release. This is the easiest way for us and the most ac­ real dea/. curate for your articles. Do send us a printout of the ar­ ticle as well so that we can check carefully. Send your submissions to The Publisher, in Horning's Cover Story Mills(address in front of this issue). The TPUG Office with- (from the left) Copyright Policy Joy Bennett entering memberships into the computer, Chris Bennett- business manager Our editorial committee has stated that the non-a­ cceptnce ot copyrighted material rule is not cast in iron (on the phone) taking some of the many but tor the present it remains TOR PET's editorial policy inqUiries received daily, standing), Doris that everything it prints is public domain so that new Bradley - TPUG assistant business manager compyter clubs can have material tor their newsletters. (prOCessing the maiD, Bruce Beach We also would like for you to share your thoughts about what we are doing right or wrong in TOR PET. Write TORPET editor (at word processor), and to the editor and tell us your advice. Tracy Bennett preparing new membership cards. TOR PET needs your help to serve you the best that Requests for disks and tapes are it can. nand led in this room but the duplicating of Sandra Waugh disks and the mailing functions are handled Associaate Editor in two additional rooms of about the same size. Some days find as many as ten Mistakes do happen ... people working in the office. We want to apologize to Mark Lieberman who wrote The TORPET editor is actually seldom the article about the Waterloo workshop for the May there because the TORPET is produced in TOR PET which we credited to Greg Harrison, Sorry about Horning's Mills. that Ed. page 2 TORPET June 83 Letters to t e the Editor We've been members for a few months now and wanted to tell you how good the club magazine is. Also, I want to say how much I enjoyed the articles w~ appreciate the way available tapes and disks were ex­ on word processors.