Practical-Computing
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Reviews: Apple Lisa IBM PC XT Spectrum games Portable Tandy 100 BBC Buggy and Wordwise WP chip Special feature on printers and plotters- how to get hard copy from your micro Cromemco System One MicroCentre introduce Cromemco's new System One computer, available with an integral 5 megabyte Winchester hard disk, at a new low price. The System One supports the full range of Cromemco interface cards, including high resolution colour graphics, and software packages. The choice of operating systems includes CDOS, CP/M and CROMIX Cromemco's answer to Unix. Call MicroCentre for Q Cromemco 30 Dundas Street MicroCentre Ltd Britain's independent (Complete Micro Systems) Cromemco importer Edinburgh EH3 6JN Circle No. 101 Tel: 031-556 7354 PRACTICAL COMPUTING AUGUST 1983 17 FEEDBACK 165SBiBmConBOBeOeKsleSyreviews YOUR LETTERS >NEWS a selection of books about the BBC The column that airs your views. Micro. HARDWARE NEWS RANDOM ACCESS 15Four new Atari computers CORVUS CONCEPT: The review of 29Boris Allan turns his shown in Chicago, plus several new this 16 -bit micro has been held over attention to the fifth generation and developments among British micros. for next month. beyond. 2,SOFTWARE NEWS 3aCHIP -CHAT Smalltalk - the AO Can Zilog mount a cult language reaches the Apple ::FEATURES second attack on the 16 -bit market? market, and software publishing 1317 OPEN FILE meets the record business. 1 0A TWO IMAGES FOR Free programs for IBM PC NEWS THREE DIMENSIONS the BBC, Commodore, Tandy, 129Big Blue brings 11 Stereoscopic slicing -a fascinating Sinclair, Atari, Apple and other enhancements to the PC, from APL graphics technique described by Dave micros. Watson, with a listing in Basic. to maze games. 170LAST WORD COMPUTER FAIR 1 08 SOFTWARE AND 1671 Chris Bidmead reports on 3OSPECIAL REPORT THE LAW the war between Digital Research and Bill Bennett braved the Earls Court Anne Staines explains the current Microsoft. crush to find the new micros, new state of the law on copyrighting games and interesting add-ons. programs. >PR INTERS >RE'y' I EW5 AND PLOTTERS 90LISA 60PRINTERS FOR Li After introducing Apple's Li BEGINNERS new micro in our March issue, Ian Buying a printer can be confusing. Stobie reports on how usable it is in Jack Schofield explains what the practice. terms mean, and lists some of the 9a PORTABLE models available. 1.' TANDY 100 7nOLIVETTI'S JP -101 Tandy's handy new machine Vki SPARK -JET PRINTER will compete with the Epson HX-20. Chris Bidmead tests an innovatory Which is best? 11nFICTION printer that Olivetti plans to sell to BBC BUGGY 11 Jack is on the lookout lots of BBC Micro owners. 100David Watt tries a three- for the perfect partner in Martin 717 EPSON'S FX-80 wheeled."turtle" designed to be Foreman's A utodate. II DOT MATRIX controlled by the BBC Micro. FORMCALC Chris Roper reviews Epson's HOME WP - 5 112ON THE ZX-81 replacement for the best-selling 102BBC WORDWEISPART Brian Law describes how to use his MX -80. A word processor on a spreadsheet program, listed last 8nFIRST STEPS chip to rival Acorn's View, reviewed month. %I IN PLOTTERS by Neville Maude. 120FLOATING-POINT Bill Bennett takes a selection of .SPECTRUM GAMES NUMBERS plotters spanning the price range to 118Bill Bennett tackles All you need to know about binary see what they can do. Football Manager and other new computation but were afraid to ask.8A THE BENEFITS Spectrum games. OF BUFFERS IBM PC XT Free your micro from slavery by 301DESK -TOP TEST >REGULARS fitting a print buffer. Paul Sutcliffe Part 1: living with the new explains. hard -disc version of the PC, with MS-DOS 2. 5EDITORIAL - DEATH Sa CONNECTIONS - THE OF 1,000 CUTS 1611 RS -232 INTERFACE 130TK!SOLVER With Texas Instruments heading for aHow to hook up your printer: Mark Li The writers of VisiCalc $100m loss, do we really need a price Shepperd takes apart the most now solve more of your problems. war? common microcomputer interface. PRACTICAL COMPUTING August 1983 3 c.onri THE SPECIALISTS IN comput:sYstemms S100 SYSTEMS r - NOW IS THE TIME YOU SHOULD BE USING THE S100 FOR: UPGRADABILITY MODULARITY HIGH RELIABILITY UNMATCHED VERSATILITY AND AN INTERNATIONAL STANDARD OUR BRITISH BUILT MIDAS S100 SYSTEMS OFFER ALL THESE ADVANTAGES TOGETHER WITH CPIM 2 CPIM 86 ** AND NOW CPIM PLUS ** 51" and 8" FLOPPIES SINGLE OR MULTIPLE USERS FIXED AND REMOVABLE HARD DISCS CPIM + S100 = TOTAL SYSTEM FLEXIBILITY We stock over 50 different S100 Boards all from quality manufacturers. Advanced Micro BOARDS Digital, Godbout, SSM, Micromation, Dual, CCS, Sirton, Morrow, Pickles & Trout etc. S100 CPU CARDS No 1 of a Series * Z80A or B SBC, 64K RAM, 2S + 2P, FDC, 2K EPROM, CTC. * Z80A Slave 64K or 1 28K RAM, 2S + 2P, 2K EPROM. * Z80A 2/4 MHz, 2/4K EPROM 16/24 bit add, IEEE696. * Z80A or B, 8K EPROM/RAM, 1 6/ 24 bit add, Int Cont, IEEE696. * Z80A, Serial I/O, 2K Monitor * 8085 + 8088 dual CPU Card, IEEE696. * 8086 + 8013C, 16 bit CPU + space for 8087, IEEE696. * 6800 + MMU, 8K ROM. * 16032 + space for 32K ROM + 16082, 16201, 16081. We are pleased to discuss your requirements and will advise you as to whether your needs can be met with one of our computers. All of our systems are specials as they are configiired to suit your specification, thus ensuring that you get what you want rather than what happens to be available. Write or phone for a catalogue. INIIIIcirtrin MOWN Unit 14, 29 Willow Lane, Mitcham, Surrey Telephone: 01-640 6931/2/3 computer systems Circle No. 102 4 PRACTICAL COMPUTING August 1983 Editorial The death of EDITORIAL 01-661 3609 Editor Jack Schofield Deputy Editor Bill Bennett Assistant Editor cuts Ian Stobie 1,000 YOU MIGHTthink that in a booming industry, Art Ediior way. Commodore always has several, and Atari Steve Miller with products in short supply, manufacturersis about to launch four new micros. Even the would be thinking about putting up their prices. Production Editor currentmodels,includingthe99/4a and John Liebmann Law of supply and demand, right? In theCommodore 64, are being heavily redesigned to microcomputing industry, however, we are in Sub -editor use fewer chips, which will enable them to be Sally Clark the middle of a price war of unprecedentedmade even cheaper. proportions. Editorial Secretary Then there are numerous new machines lining Julie Milligan Four major manufacturers are involved:up for the Christmas market. Many will offer Sinclair, Consultants Commodore,AtariandTexas 16 -bitprocessors,includingthepowerful Chris Bidmead Instruments. They are, between them, alreadyMotorola 68000. Last but not least, the two Peter Laurie responsible for the vast majority of worldmajor microcomputer manufacturers - by ADVERTISING 01-661 3612 microcomputer sales - not by value, perhaps,value if not by volume - are threatening to but by volume. Advertisement Manager launch new machines. Apple has a "mini Lisa", Ian Carter 01-661 3021 A glance at the prices of these machines showscalledtheMacintosh,currentlyoutwith why. The 16K Atari 400 and 16K TI -99/4a are Assistant Advertisement software houses. IBM is rumoured to be about Manager now around £150. The Commodore 64 andto enter the small -micro market with the Peanut. Kenneth Walford 01-661 3139 Atari 800, which are both comparable in power So far none of these developments has had Advertisement Executives and facilities to the Acorn BBC Micro, are amuch significancefortheserious business Lynne Brennan 01-661 3468 touch under £300. In the pocket -money market,market. The manufacturers mentioned have not Robert Payne 01-661 8425 both the 16K Sinclair Spectrum and Vic -20 canreduced the prices of their peripherals and David Honeyman 01-661 8626 be bought for under £100 - allowing for asoftware by comparable amounts. Maybe you Advertisement Secretary package deal on the Vic. could expand, say, a Vic -20 or TI -99/4a to the Janet Thorpe Current American prices do not show thecapabilityof anOsborne2 orMorrow Midlands office: price -cutting storm subsiding. The AmericanMicrodecision, but if you cost the exercise you David Harvett 021-356 4838 package -deal price puts the Vic -20 at under $100will find them poor value in comparison. In Northern office: - around £65. Texas Instruments is giving amany cases, too, neither the peripherals nor the Geoff Aikin 061-872 8861 $100 "rebate" or money -back offer on thebusiness software exists. PUBLISHING DIRECTOR TI -99/4a which brings the price down to $159.95 But this could change. Forthcoming Atari, Chris Hipwell - around £100. Commodore and even Sinclair micros could Published by Electrical Electronic As in the U.K. so in the U.S. The Sinclairsoon be offering business capabilities, including Press, Quadrant House, The Quadrant, micros are undercutting everything. With a $15CP/M, at close to home -micro prices. Both Sutton,Surrey SM25AS.Tel: 01-661 rebate, the price of a Timex 1000 - known hereIBM and Apple havethemanufacturing 3500. Telex/grams 892084 BISPRS G. asthe ZX-81 - is only $44.95, which at today'scapability and the high profit margins which Distributed by Business Press International Ltd, Quadrant House, exchange rate is only £29. would enable them to engage in a price war. Of The Quadrant, Sutton. Surrey SM2 How can a machine for which Texas oncecourse they don't want to, but they may not 5AS. wanted £1,000 now cost $150? The answer ishave a choice. Subscriptions: U.K. £12 per annum; only partly to do with volume. As a veteran of Overseas £18 per annum; selling Meanwhile, the Japnaese are still waiting in price in Eire subject to currency the pocket -calculator wars, Texas knows it hasthe wings. The price war is not ending, it is just exchange fluctuations and VAT; to stay in the market.