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Sa
p o R o o
nScript
° S 0 S 0 I ° O 0 N "^A ° L
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IM
Introducing SaxonScript Professional, the most powerful and sophisticated PostScript Interpreter available on the commercial market. It's like turning your dot matrix, ink-jet or laser printer into a full fledged PostScript printer, with the added flexibility of being able to edit and manipulate individual files! On printers equipped with resolutions of 300 dpi or more, the output quality of SaxonScript Professional actually exceeds that of 300 dpi Adobe PostScript laser printers! Halftoned areas in particular, are consistently sharper, more detailed and feature better transitions between various levels of grey than comparable images produced by using PostScript- PostScript Output at 300 dpi SaxonScript Output at 300 dpi
FEATURES
■ ■
When pixel values cannoi be reproduced exactly. PostScript i lihIc is ihc affected pixels in (he closed darker shade available ai ihe given screen density. Subtle details are inevitably lust as a result. PostScript halftones also tend In have a grainy appearance because of PostScript's inability to produce irregularly shaped halftone cells.
PostScript's approach to halftoning limits the maximum number of pos- sible greys lo a func- tion of both resolution and screen frequency. At lower resolutions, this gives rise to the creation of very visible bands of grey which degrade the overall quality of printed images.
FONT CONVERSION UTILITIES
SaxonScript Professional supports all PostScript downloadable fonts, including Com pu graphic and Adobe Type 1 fonts. Custom utilities further allow you to convert PostScript fonts in Amiga Bitmap, Saxon Publisher or Adobe Type I formats for use in a variety of different applications!
IMAGE CONVERSION UTILITIES Convert your PostScript files into IFF, EPS, or DR2D formats for manipulation in various paint programs and desktop publishers! Or attach IFF headers to your EPS files, effectively allowing you to view EPS files
Because SaxonScripi's algorithms intelligently switch between halftoning and dithering, any pixel value can be accurately reproduced. Notice the greater detail found in this image. SaxonScript's images are also sharper and cmper than comparable PostScript images because of Ihc program's unique ability lo create irregular halftone cells.
Our unique approach to halftoning docs not limil the number of grey levels which can be printed. Consequently, no banding is visible in areas con- taining colour gradients. This permits smoother transitions and enhances Ihc overall quality of primed images.
accurate colour proofs on screen. Using the included moire testing program, you can also lest screen angles and densities for visible artifacts before printing! After verification. SaxonScripi's proprietary compression algorithms can be used lo compress your PostScript files into a more compact PostScript format for faster, i.e., much less expensive output.
SaxonScript Professional is available at your nearest dealer for only £99.95 inc. VAT! A free copy of SaxonScript Professional is also included with every purchase of Saxon Publisher VI.2.
on screen!
PRINTING UTILITIES Preview linotronic files for potentially costly errors before sending your output to a service bureau. Print PostScript directly lo the screen display lo obtain
SURFACE UK LIMITED 5 ROCKWARE AVENUE, GREENFORD TEL: 081-566 6677 Ml 1)1) \ EXT: 204/205
UB6 0AA FAX: 081-566 6678
• True virtual memory for
compatibility with low memory Amigas. ot under condition* of heavy multitasking
• A powerful PostScript Interpreter featuring the implementation ol all of the standard PostScript operator*
■ Suppini Ini all Pi eft fences prinler*.
■ A standard sel of fonts, matching those most com- monly found in PostScript printers: Avnnt Gardr. Hook man. Century School- bmik. Courier, Helvetica. Palatini), Times, ZnpT Chancery and Zapf IHnirhalv
• Support for nil Pamcnpi downloadable fonn including Corapuerapnit, Adobe Type I and Adobe Type i fonts obtained from any number of different sources Any PostScripl font on an Amiga disk can be manipulated within SaxonSrripl Proftuional.
• Conversion nl PostScript fonts into SaDFM Pubtithrr. Ami&a Bitmap nt Adobe Type
I U.I I fills
• A full colour PostScript screen preview which is lOQIr accural/ lo the limitations of the screen display.
• The ability to convert PostScripl files into a compressed PostScript furmal for faster output at service bureau*
■ The ability Id test screen angles anil densities fof ■noire patterns before printing.
• The ahility to intrgraie individual separations into a single full-colour document for accurate colour proofs
on colour printers.
•The conversion of PostScript file* into IFF. EPS, IKK ••' DRID formats for editing and manipulations in various applicainins.
• Automatic sensing ol WW* I. or MW12.
• Implementation of all standard PusiSciipi operators.
• An open architecture to allow customisation by PD programmers
• Delayed pruning and print lo nVut options.
MIN REQ: 1 meg, 2 drives.
'Amiga is a registered trademark of OiraminVnr- AniiB* inc. *Atl other products mentioned beiein are Ihe property of their respective owner.
Dealer Enquiries Welconu
ANNOUNCING
THE
A5000™B5000
• B5000-25 Faster than the CBM A3000-25 • • 500-1000% Faster than your Amiga •
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The Chart Show Icons - could you do better? See our
cover feature on Page 19 for 4.
GENERAL
WHO'S WHO
editor
All EDITOt FIATUUSHMICK NfWS EDITOt TKKSICA1 EDITOB PRODUCTION IDITO* STAR WRITEB EDUOtlAl ASSISTANT
CIOUP AD MANAGH SfMOl AD SA1ES
AD SAILS
AD PRODUCTION WAUIT1NG MANAGEI
CIRCUlAnON MANAGB DISTRIBUTION
Mfti B*iin
Paul Auibn
Sttvie Kennedy
Ptnl Mora Djntel Wiiletwd ioiullun M*Wod
l« Conway Sue HonH*td WmDebwhiff Simon lees Mi Ptiertev Michelle Allen* NWlDrton
COMAGIOWl 444055
WOOUCT10N ViANAGH Sue GmUiH SYSTEMS MANACH David S<r-afi
Pubhshed hv kropreu Publialiom Lid
Europa House, Adlington Park. Macdeslield. SKI04NP
CHAIRMAN Dere* NWb" FINANCE CONTROHH linBloc«*M<J PIBUSHEB R<thJfd VSIIlia™
Td: OWS 8"SAM IAII oVpaflnwrfl! 051 157 2%\ iSufccnphonii Fii:»25 17W
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month with th# mo*! OeA.twl covrf *9* ol
Compul" I""'
amiga
Comrru
141!
VIDEO
SPECIALS
Solid as a rock
What do you need to exploit Amiga high -y ^
res graphics without getting a headache? J J
VideoPilot
All the sophistication of a high powered edit
suite is only an f-key press away ^
The Show must go on
Ever fancied being a big time movie A*J producer? Have a go with ShowMaker
The comms page lor 1 beginner* Get online today!
24 carat colour
You might think that 4,096 colours pushes the £ *| Amiga to Its limits. You would be wrongl ■
Video visuals
Get your great graphics onto your great video £ ✓ with the help of a genlock-
Go with the Flow
Don't jot your ideas down on a cigarette pack, * ^ Q follow them through - with How ■ -*w
TOURING
GOSSIP
COVER FEATURE
THE COVERDISK
Prodata vl.2
A FREE look at the latest version of the most popular Amiga database. This version saves small files
X.F.I.
Excellent light cycles arcade game with non-stop frenetic action. Outsmart the Amiga or die!
Virus Checker v5.26
The latest in viral protection! Will detect and kill all the latest viruses, including the new Saddam strain
dtv ^:.Mfti
Machine crtle...*.! 53 Music.
Camera! I I Action!. I .Desktop Video
The be* i advice for coders — assembled just for you
Hit the ncjhl note'Tuni-in fci
Britain \ mo^ • lyrical musk » page "•
)r details of our brilliant competition
O T
CONTENTS
Subscription offers for new readers
Turn to Page 100
The latest version of our popular sample ripper is compatible with Amos sample banks and powerpacked files
Picsaver
Crab and save windows, screens or brushes with this handy Workbench utility
PLUS
Fonts from UGA, PPLoadSeg, and a program to update last month's CanDo Extras disk.
REGULARS
WHAT'S NEW
Exclusive: The A500P Is on Its way "
GALLERY
The Amiga art gallery Is open for viewing O J
PUBLIC SECTOR
Our monthly free for all 1
ESP
The mailman with the most ,., ,.
125
The Workstation
Make the most of Amiga Computing s exclusive Workstation disk. This month, a final look <m m «a in the rear view mirror at SID I *T I
Special reader offer
Not taking advantage of The Workstation yet? It's not too late to order your copy. \ SC% See our special reader otter now! I OO
BEGINNER'S GUIDE
Talk nkely to your Amiga! 13/
acas
A problem shared is a problem aired I
ROCK LOBSTER
Closing shots and competitions 1/1/
Grand Grab
The Amiga Computing GRAND CRAB goes from strength to strength with more massive giveaways!
Have you got last month's Amiga Computing handy? Check the winning numbers published this month against your number and see If you have won a fantastic GOLDEN IMAGE scanned
You can also find out how the number on this month's cover could win you a copy of DPalnt IV or one of over fifty top games
121
f AMOS *„1SJ Code Clinic 159 DTP Multimedia? It163
• ^^^^^^^ • ■
P^9V il Slucji Willi C ' Frpofjcrrvn to ^fl^ CDTV hjnore
1 AMOSqiiru riicCmlf ■LjJAjjUaH |,nnl ^jj
HL* J helps ymi Clinic may I inyMerjei m I makes sense ol
th.il hii I li.iv. ■ tin- 1 w> ■ Bggagj !■ Oil' rcvciled ||u. latest \>uu
: . ~.
Amiga § Repairs
is
E S
Dl
If something is wrong with your Amiga 500 or C64. who belter to turn to than the FMG National Repair Centre.
For all repairs to your computer, one low payment covers diagnosis, repair (including parts and labour) and delivery back to you.
The experience and expertise of our technicians ensures that your computer is repaired to a high standard at a low cost. And each repair will be carried out within 12 working days!
To schedule a repair call Michelle or Audrey on 0733 391234.
Please be ready to give your name, address, computer type, serial number and the type ot fault.
The cost is £57.45 for an Amiga 500 and £47.45 tor a C64. Payment can be made by cheque, postal order or credit card.
0733 391234
FMG House Newcombe Way, Orton Southgate Peterborough PE2 OSF
£57.45 COVERS
ANY REPAIRS
G.T.S.
GEORGE THOMPSON SERVICES
Presents Theme Packs and **GTS Club**
(i ! S CLUB ** GTS CLUB ** GTS CLUB **
HAVE YOU JOINED THE LEADING PUBLIC DOMAIN CLUB FOR AMIGA ENTHUSIASTS? CONSIDER THE ADVANTAGES.
• RECEIVE THE LATEST AND THE FINEST PD FROM THE U.S.A. AND EUROPE
• PAY LESS FOR SOFTWARE EVEN LESS ON THEME PACKS
• TALK TO "AMIGA ONLY" ENTHUSIASTS
Since the early days of the Amiga, George Thompson Services have made available to Amiga owners all over the world the latest PD disks from the U.S.A. and Europe. Couriers deliver material each week to our offices where we first carefully check them for virus using the latest virus checkers. They are then catalogued and released to the duplicating room for labelling and copying onto top quality branded TDK disks. As a member of this Very Special Club you will benefit from lower PD Software prices and be kept upto date on the latest PD and shareware programs for the Amiga. Send only £15.00 annual subscription now and you'll receive by return:
• Our Double Library Disk Pack detailing the contents of 100's of PD disks.
' The latest issue of Pd News, dedicated to PD and
Shareware programs. ' £5.00 PD Discount Voucher for use against the
purchase of 10 or more individual disks at £2.75 each.
(You can also choose an extra one free)
• Two brand new disks from the TBAG/SACC Libraries.
To become a member of the "GTS CLUB" just send a cheque, PO or place a credit card order using Access/Visa and we'll send you this pack immediately.
- •
CLIP ART EXTRAVAGANZA **
This four disk set is packed with over 100 graphics, in IFF format, of men and women doing some type of job. Men: Included are accountant, barber, engineer, country singer, policemen, photographer, painter, plumber, printer and many more.
Women: Included are women in conference, in the office, on the phone, putting on makeup, shopping, brushing hair and many more.
Some are humorous, some serious, The pictures may be loaded into a paint package and modified or used directly with a DTP program for your own publications. The standard is high and the pictures original. FREE! with each "Clip Art Extravaganza" we will include, the program "Print-A-Card". This disk includes everything you need to prepare and print Christmas, Birthday, Anniversary, in fact Cards for all occasions in both colour, if you have a colour printer, and shades of grey. The Clip Art pics are ideal for this program. Just follow the simple instructions and PRINT!
5 DISK SET FOR £10.99 (Members £9.99)
** THE ERIC SCHWARTZ** ** COLLECTION Vol I **
The cartoons of Eric Schwartz are unique, they nearly always have a surprise ending. All run at the click of an icon and you wiTI need 1 Mea and then you may possibly have to disconnect external drives.
5 DISK SET £10.99 (Members £9.99)
** WORDS! ** If you are interested in completing, solving or making up crosswords or anagrams, this is the ideal pack for you. Included are top programs such as Cross, WordGame, CWP, Scrazzle and Disearch. (Requires 1 Meg) 2 DISK PACK £5.99 (Members £5.49)
** SIMULATIONS Vol I ** This three disk set containing eight programs that involve you to role play. Metro - you play the part of a city planner. SeaLance - a simulation of the Trident submarine, liberate the earth from an alien occupation. DC-10 - learn and experience flying. King - game of King Oil, object is to accumulate as much cash, oil wells and property before either play goes bankrupt. Lore of Conquest - Is a war simulation in space. You are the Lord of an entire world destined to take over the galaxy. (Two player game) 3 DISK SET £8.99 (Members £7.99)
** PRINTER WORKSHOP Vol II **
We have included on two packed disks twenty five of the finest PD/Shareware programs to help Amiga users with printing and achieving high quality results. Print Banners with Gothic, Dump screens using ShowPrint. Print labels with DisPrint.
2 DISK SET £5.99 (Members £5.49)
** HOME MANAGEMENT PACK Vol II **
More useful programs for home and the small business. There is a typing tutor and grammar checker, Web a superb spreadsheet and DataEasy an easy to use database. CheckBoot wilt look after your finances and Milage Master your car running costs.
2 DISK PACK £5.99 (Members £5.49)
** MANDELBROT & FRACTALS Sel I ** The definitive four disk pack for Mandelbrot Artists and enthusiasts. We have selected only the finest programs. They include the latest version of Mandle Mountains, MandAnim for handmade animations, create exploding Julia set animations and realise the beauty of Mandlebrots with CPM»(Requires 1 Meg)
4 DISK SET £10.99 (Members £9.99)
** LIBRARY PACK**
Our double disk library pack detailing the contents of 100's of PD disk's. (Free update if returned with order)
ONLY £1.00
Don't forge! we hold one of the largest and only collection of Try Before You Buy <TBYB> in Europe. We also hold the PDQ series of disks, they have been put together by Jumpdisk in California and consist of a potpourri of programs that have, in the main, been downloaded from Bulletin Boards. Other collections that wc stock are Educational. Programming. Theme Packs. Games. Music as well as the libraries of Fish. TBAG. SACC and AMUSE.
Our keyword is "Customer Service" with a smile. WE ARE GEORGE THOMPSON SERVICES.
Our NEW address is; CUCUMBER HALL FARM, CUCUMBER LANE, ESSENDON, HERTS, AL9 6JB. (0707) 664654
Please send a cheque (with your Bank Card No. and Expiry Date on reverse), a PO or just telephone with your Visa or Access details before 3pm and we will despatch your order immediatly. Our Telephone lines are now open 9. 00am to 3. 00pm, answerphone 24hrs.
Help your child to a brighter future - with the best in educational software A
nil
■
Sing along with DJ Ted to popular nursery rhymes.
TYPING
■■■■■■■■■
■aoaofla laaaaagi
JIDDBBE1C IBIIBI
Type the correct letters and words and save Freddy from the crocodile.
DESERT DATES
1774
/
Study historical events to find the secrets of the pyramids.
Select the correct number of Teddy's bedtime book.
SHOP KEEEPER
# W "Fun School 4 zooms to the top of the class Three brand new packages combining the essentials of ihe National Curriculum with beautiful graphics, cleverly animated rewards and stimulating sound keep your children engrossed while they learn.
Teddy for under fives Freddy the Frog for five Co seven vear olds and Sammy the Spy for seven to eleven year olds provide SIX original stimulating programs in every pack. Plus, the carefully designed levels for each program encourage your children to have fun and learn at their own pace - and ensure they gel the most from Fun School 4 and keep coming back for more.
v. — —
Shop with Freddy and his friends choosing coins to pay the bill.
i EXCHANGE RATES
Change Sammy's money at the international exchange desk.
FORMAT Amiga ST PC C64 Spec.rum CPC
T»pe Disc Tac« Disc T»l» H« PRICE C 24.99 24.99 21.99 , 2.99 16.99 12.99 16.99 1 2.99 16.99
e
UWPRESS
SOFT WARE
Archimedes and PCW versions will follow >n earty 1992 Spectrum, C64 & CPC available early November. Amiga ST A PC available end of October
. n« a ur I Funioi tat ^llitipon Mb Macclesfield. Ctolure SKlO 4NP
ES2£«S S L»» 35* - *m **** - wh
Mr*«s «nd Boc« t* oedu md p«"**« «■ *™ 2961
A500P
on its way for UK
Commodore tell John Butters what the Amiga's getting for Christmas
AT AN exclusive press briefing recently, Commodore told Amiga Computing that the A500 Professional will go on sale in the UK early next year and gave details of other plans for the Amiga family.
The A500P, which has been available in (he States for several months, is based on the A500 but is fitted with the enhanced chip set, one megabyte of memory and runs the Workbench 2 operating system.
The enhanced chip set includes the Super Agnes and Super Denise chips which give the computer improved sound and graphics, and Workbench 2 is an improved version of the operating system with a more attractive appear- ance and added features.
While Commodore have not fixed a price or marketing plan for the machine, experts believe the price will stay at or close to the current £399.99.
The move casts doubt on whether A500 owners will have an option to upgrade their operating system to Workbench 2 but as Amiga Computing exclusively confirmed last month,
upgrades for other models in the family will be available by the end of the year. But even before ASOOPs arrive, standard ASOOs are to have one megabyte of memory.
The computer has always had halt a megabyte of ram, and for several months had a 51 2K upgrade included in the box. The extra power will make the A500 an attractive buy for most home applications, such as wordpro- cessing and accounts.
The new version, which could be available before Christmas, will have the additional memory already fitted to the motherboard and Its price will remain at £399.99.
It will feature in the Cartoon Classics bundle, which will be at the centre of a £3.5 million television advertising cam- paign during Christmas
The A500 is the firm's best selling version of the Amiga, with 675,000 units already in the UK and a forecast of growth of a further 180,000 by the end of this year.
With 1991 sales of 250,000, the Amiga remains the best selling home
WHAT'S
On the ouMde the ASOOP looki identical to the AS00. but inilde tfwr'i a lull mtgabytt of memory the enhanced chip tet and an Improved operating tyitem
computer in the country. The com- puter's success has led to the firm building a S9.1 million assembly plant in the Philippines.
To be opened in February 1993, the factory will be used for overspill pro- duction from the company's existing
Hong Kong assembly line which turns out "hundreds of thousands" of machines each year.
Meanwhile, the firm's German plant in Braunsweig will continue to manu- facture computers higher in the Amiga range.
Amiga makes French music
MUSIC program Audio Sculpture is the first Amiga package to come from French company Expose Software.
It is described as being a powerful music tool which enables users to cre- ate music from the beginning to the end. Tools include a high quality soundtracker, a sampler which includes a sample editing interface and sound synthesis which allows synthesiser type sounds to be gener- ated.
A data disk is supplied which has modules and samples and the pro- gram a accompanied with an "easy to understand" manual. It will be dis- tributed in the UK lor £49.99 by the Software Management Group who can be contacted on 0274 566155.
First 040 for A3000
A5 the A2000 sees new 68040 accel- erators nearly each month. Amiga Computing has received details of the first 68040 board for the A3000.
Denver-based Progressive Peripheral* and Software have |ust released the Progressive 040/3000 which plugs into the computer's pro- cessor slot beneath the floppy disk drive.
Using software supplied with the A3000, users can switch between the machine's original 68030 and the 040/3000. Under the increased power, a 16MHz A3000 will run at sin times its normal speed and a 2SMHz A3000 will be four times faster.
The chip's performance is rated at 19.2 MIPS and il has a built in maths
co-processor The accelerator does not have additional memory and costs SI. 795.
Progressive are also (o send Video Blender to the UK. A professional video switching system for all ver- sions of the Amiga, It provides video switching, genlocklng, local back- ground screen colour generation In 16 million colours and a variety of video fades. A stereo sound mixer is also Included.
Video Blender can mix and manip- ulate composite video, NTSC RGB and Amiga RGB video outputs, and an internal colour generator pro- duces up (o 16 million background colours. The unit is also PAL compati- ble.
Video Cameras and 24-bll frame-
buffers can be attached lo the set up to give special video effects.
Multiple video inputs can be syn- chronised without time-base correc- tor hardware and stereo audio channels can be synchronised with video
It has full linear keying over 256 levels, so superimposed graphics can be anti-aliased to just about any degree the user wishes.
Controlled through the Amiga's serial port, the compact unit enables 256 levels of red. green and blue colours to be mixed.
An unlimited number of wipes and other effects are available through MixMaster software. UK pricing for both on calling Marcam (081-941 6117)
CDTV gets CES support
9
9®
WHAT'S
E
> o Z
Card avoids bottlenecks
USERS of graphics applications on A2000s are being targeted tor a new 68040 accelerator card from California- based Computer System Associates (0101 619 566 3911).
The card, which makes the com- puter run at three times the speed ol the fastest 68030-based Amiga, enables several "performance bottlenecks" to be bypassed.
CSA describe the 40/4 Magnum as a single board computer, rather than just an accelerator, and it works by taking as much processing work as possible from the motherboard.
At 4.5in by 13.Bin, the board plugs directly into the A2000's CPU slot and uses a Motorola 68040 tunning at 25MHz.
It is supplied with one megabyte of static ram and currently supports 4, 8, 12 or 16 megabytes of Dynamic ram. sixty-four megabytes of Dram is expected to be available by January, when a number of manufacturers will be releasing 16Mb, 32-bit SIMM mod- ules.
-Installing an SBC like the 40/4 Magnum is like adding a second, more powerful 1992-model engine, transmis- sion and cargo trailer to your favourite 1985-model car," said CSA's Steve Riker.
"Not only can you drive faster and haul more luggage, you can still put in the same kind of gas as before and still
COMMODORE used the recent trade only Computer Entertainment Show to demonstrate several new CDTV soft- ware products but were quiet on any- thing new for the Amiga.
Falcon is a compact disc version of the Amiga shoot-'em-up flight simula- tor which has you completing several missions at the controls of an F-16 fighter. The most noticeable difference is the sound, with includes an impres- sive flight briefing with realistic speech.
Trivial Pursuit comes from Domark and the main advantages of the CDTV technology are seen in the questions, with each having a digitised picture relevant to the subject and sound.
The Guinness CD hold all records lound in the book but by makrng the most of the increased storage capacity manages to add illustrations and sound
to the software.
The company were expected to unveil their new CD-rom drive which will enable A500s to use the CDTV's compact discs but because EMAP chose to make the show trade only, had to re-think their strategy for the different audience.
Experts believe that the A690 will now be shown for the first time at the World of Commodore Show to be held in London on the 15-17 November 1991. Commodore's Andrew Ball claims that between 35 and 65 per cent of the existing A500 user base wants the drive for "wild and wacky
— i. ,9nnoHrn coUtd Pro Monk TWfcu
from Ornamks. with their twin cor
games". Scores of new joysticks were released at the show. New models came from Power Play/Sonma*. Cheetah and Spectravideo but the only original design was from Dynamics.
Their Competition Pro Manix Twins are two hand held controllers which operate together. One controls direc- tion using an eight-way switch while the other has three fire buttons and extra control keys for special functions
The entertainment show was also the launching ground for education soft- ware from AWac (0626 332233). Under the banner Edutainment the firm will be
selling New Math Blaster Plus! and two Algebra programs.
New Math Blaster Plusl is aimed at children aged between 6 and 12 to improve maths skills in six skill levels. It covers addition, subtraction, multiplica- tion, division, fractions, decimals and percentages.
Both Algebra packages are for chil- dren of more than 1 3 years old and each have eight sessions teaching dif- ferent elements of the subject. There are tests and a glossary of 160 terms and definitions. Each program costs £39.95 each.
sit in the same familiar driver's seat - you even get better mileage from your old engine because the new engine has taken over much of the work."
-By removing the Amiga's speed bottlenecks the 40/4 Magnum makes the Amiga and its software base a viable alternative for video, graphics and animation professionals."
40/4 Magnum runs at 20 MIPS and costs £3,995.
I
I
E o w
10
Sysops get BBS package
DIC PROFESSIONAL fi a communications program M«<M« hf^^" and the professional bulletin beard market that has ius,
The prmram I made up afa gr«,p ol interrelated modules and
,han . «* large application '° «"* " * alm mnWY 0"ffht0d ° multi-user multi-tasking ot all (unctions ond operations.
*«. FidoNet Tronic mail and echoma» conlerenang protocols and UseNet, a net twA used bv researchers, softworf firms, unrvmilin and governments "1 e^Tbased on AmigaDOS. «ft enaUes standard ,o be too**** into a DIG bulletin board set-up. Standard funrton, of rn^ng rt S are induaed such as message « - oZnLing, MM* reading and sysop-configurable Hie -transle, protocols. ^2-based sysop. Tony Mftr. who nos been testing .heparan Computing: "With the int™tofon or DIC Pro as the no,, « my BBS has neady quadrupled in Ac year I have been runn«, « ond I have needed Mover 600 megs ol hard disk to keep up **h user o^ands.
Available lor CDNSI99 from Ttlepro Technologies 1010 1 306 665 381 1).
Multimedia division opens
COMMODORE have reinforced their commitment to multimedia by open- ing a new division at their Maidenhead office aimed at promot- ing the lop end Amigas in that field.
It will be headed by Terry Cooke, who moves from the company's busi- ness operation and will be staffed by a team of 10 people across the coun- try.
One of the division's responsibili- ties will be to oversee the training for dealers wishing to become multime- dia centres.
Training has already started and Commodore are expected to announce the first 12 centres by the end of November.
Spokesman Andrew Ball told Amiga Computing that the centres
terry Coolie moves within Commodore to become head ol the firm 'J new Mtfltmeala MMM. ">* deportment *IH promote top end Amlgai m the gtvwing rmilltoedia market
were to prove "Commodore are at the forefront of the market in educa- tion, corporate, dealers and distribu- tion".
A2000s and A3000s are soon to have special multimedia software bundled with them. Commodore say they will be addressing the needs of the market with the A2000 heading for video use and the A3000 being >old for corporate presentation.
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NEW AMIGA A500 PACK
The exciting world ot graphics, animation and sound is at your fingertips with the Amiga 500.
Cartoon Classics brings together a fantastic selection ot Cartoon games and a pain! package to create your own cartoons.
■ Amiga A500 Computer Keyboard
■ TV modulator and Commodore mouse
■ Built-in 1 Mb DS DD disk drive
■ Kickstart and Workbench 1 .3
■ 512KA501 RAM expansion
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I DAATAMOUSE, high quality replacement upgrade mouse, so fast uses 70% less desk space than a tandard mouse.
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METHOD OF PAYMENT please specify and send to 163a Bedtwd Road. Kempslon. BocHo-S MK43 6BL □ CHEQUE
Can) No □□□□ □□□□ □□□□ □□□□ Exp □ □ □□ Name
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Move Over 'Screengems' The New Official Commodore Amiga Pack is at Digicom
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I lu exciting world of graphics, animation and sound is at your fingertips with the Amiga 500. Cartoon Classics brings together a fantastic selection of Cartoon games and a paint package to create your own cartoons. Amiga A500 Computer Keyboard Built-in I Men DS/DD disk drive 5I2K A501 RomKxpanslon Lnlesi Kickslarl and Workbench I.J Notepad Mini word- processor All necessary disks . manuals and i-jWcn T.V modulator and Commodore mouse 40% colour graphic* . A channel stereo sound 12 months warranty on all items Full ILK specification machine
Bart vs the Space Mutants
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HOW TO ORDER By Phone :
Call our credit card order line, and quote your credil card detail! la oar helpful sale* staff. We accept Acceflf. Visa. Eorocird. Mastercard. AM EX and the new direct debit mrd* like Switch and Barclays Connect.
By Mail :
Simply write down the details of jour order ■ long with yuur name and o d d r e * s . then post It to us with a personal cheque. postal order, bankers draft or building society cheque made payable to. "Digicom Computer Services Ltd".
Personal cheques require lime to ch ar before despatch
fleet '-'I **»r)ni«ll»«" i» rhi»t» «M»»«I •«Ui«.
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Digicom offers you !
"1 Free Catalogue with all orders f112 months guarantee period fl All product tested before despatch D Regular newsletters and special offers OT echnical helpline 3 30 day replacement or faulty product nPrice or product match □ Computerised order system
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ADPro gets JPEG compression
THE AMIGA has received its First software package to use Joint Photographic Expert Group (JPEG) image compression technology,
(PEC modules have now become a standard part of ASOG Incorporated's Art Department Professional and will enable such Hies to be loaded and saved. Using this compression technique a true colour or greyscale image can be cut to a fraction of its size without noticeable degradation.
The user specifies how much compression should take place and the firm claims that results of 80 to I or better are possible. People using the Amiga in video, print and other imaging related work will be able to keep more images online in a man- ageable fashion and transmit them more easily.
ADPro files meet the JFIF standard which enables images created on other com- puters such as IBM PCs and Apple Macintoshes to be exchanged with its own. The UK distributor is Silica Systems (08 1 -309 1111).
PC emulation
A NSW adaptor is to be bunched at the World ol Commodore Show to enable A1500 and A2000 users to plug KCS' Power PC Board into their computed.
The device a necessary for anybody wanting to run the X T emulator on the high end Amigas and is to be cbsely followed by a software update. It will add VGA and EGA graphics resolu- tions, but due to restrictions caused by certain software packages the VGA option might be limited to mono- chrome use only.
It is expected to sell for £25.
Flow gets better
TEXAS based New Horizons (010 1 512 328 6650) have announced changes to their "idea organiser" pro- gram. Flow.
Designed to enable the user to enter ideas and thoughts and go back to build the document in a logical constructed manner, it is said to be ideal for teachers, students, journalists and other people who are constantly writing and preparing presentations and articles.
Version 3 of the software includes outline automatic numbering, ARexx support, the ability to create macros, saveable configurations, headers and footers, spellchecking, Workbench 2 enhancements, document information and numerous printing enhance- ments.
Company president James Bayless: "Flow is the only program of its kind on the Amiga platform and fills a very important need in the markeL The continued enhancements of Flow is another indication that New Horizons is meeting its goals and the needs of their users."
Upgrade information is available from New Horizons, while the price for new users is $110.
Impulse gets foundation
A NEW personal software authoring sys- tem has just been announced by Minneapolis-based Impulse Incor- porated (0101 612 566 0221).
Foundation is described as being an expert system for gaining complete control over the Amiga and enabling users to create applications and interac- tive presentations without program- ming knowledge.
The package can automate all com- puter tasks. It records actions with its Macro Recorder, plays back tutorial programs about the software and gives online help with a built in HyperView stack system.
Stacks supplied include the FounDex phone and address stack, Calendar .the MediaBase animation and a sound and picture database. Each can be modified to add buttons for printing reports, log- ging on to online services and for simultaneously launching and commu- nicating with other programs.
The software can be used for creat- ing automated business presentations,
WHAT'S
new
standalone marketable stackware, per- sonalised home and office organisers and front end screens to control laser disks, video recorders and CD-rom
drives.
Users adapt the example stacks and objects that are supplied with the soft- ware or by using the FAST-Talk script- ing language. A debugger and compiler ensures that routines can be fine-tuned and stored in libraries and tools accessi- ble by any stack in the memory.
"Foundation is the glue that will hold a home office together, and make small businesses profitable and compet- itive in today's fast moving world," said an Impulse spokesperson.
The program, whkh does not have a UK distributor, is available for S250, and demonstration disks are available.
Music designer launched
BARS and Pipes Professional has been released for composing, recording and designing music with the Amiga.
II provides an unlimited number of tracks and notes and Ihe sequencer has all the features normally found as well as Ihe ability to see the music as it plays. There are unlimited methods of editing music in real time.
Toots enable tunes to be enhanced as they are composed, played back or edited and the modules perform standard musical and technical tasks to save time and give a creative edge.
It includes a range of editing oplions such as an event list, piano roll and music notation thai can be seen, heard and changed. By using the mouse, Midi events can be adjusted graphically or numerically and music can be printed at any time.
There is also an automated mixing feature, MixMaestro, which includes real time control of volume, panning and other Midi controllers. As music plays various sliders and knobs adjust the balance of the arrangement
Running on any Amiga with at least one megabyte ol memory, it cosU S379 from Atlanta based Blue Ribbon Soundworks (010 1 404 177 1514). Al the time of going to press there was no UK distributor.
Colour laser for £5
A FIRM has just been lormed to offer a colour printing service for Amiga users unable to meet the £10,000 price tag lor a top quality laser printer
Computer artists sending a file to Tamworth-based Studio 101 (0827 280884) will receive a pnntout of then work Irom a Panlone-regislered colour laser printer. The cost of an A4 image h £5. with additional coptes available lew £2 50
Mies Irom leading art packages including Delude Paint, Pro-Page and Photon Pami arc accepted.
on untitmlrd numhrr i\T frofli and nuln. Bar
WHAT'S
Backup utility
A PROGRAM being llagged as the first lull backup system tor Amiga hard disk users has been released by Electronic Zoo (0285 641541). MRBackup Professional has more than 60 backup commands tor sav- ing to tloppy disks or tape streamers and will cost £29.99.
Silica gets Audition 4
SOUND sampling software. Audition 4 is to compete against AudioMaster when it becomes available in the UK soon from Silica Systems (081-309 1111).
Aimed as an upgrade to the software provided free with hardware sound samplers, the program's features include the ability to "try out" an effect without damaging the original sample, its fast operation and large range ol dis- tortion effects.
It can sample in mono or stereo, with sample rates of up to 55KHz. There are echos, delays, smoothing, waveform tuning, fade, filter, bass and treble control, cut, copy and paste fea- tures and a zoom facility. Audition 4 supports direct to disk recording to its floppy disk format. Price: £49.99
Studio 16 cards
SUNRIZE Industries' Studio 16 software is being bundled with one of two cards to convert Amigas into professional dig- ital audio workstations. Hours of work can be recorded directly to hard disk and synchronised with timecode.
A complete video sound track can be edited, special effects added and glitches and filter noise fixed. The cards supplied are either 12 or 16-bit sam- plers.
The AD1 01 2 is a 1 2-bit sampler card intended as a low cost option for edit- ing video sound tracks, features includ- ing audio in/out, adjustable low pass filters and a SMPTE time code reader.
The 16-bit card, the AD1016, also supports audio in/out, eight times over- sampling digital filters, digital in/out for DAT or CD hookup, Midi in/out and SMPTE in.
Call HB Marketing for prices and other information on 0753 686000:
fun School 4 ft Ut lot rehme in the neit lew wrrki. H contlnim to troth elemenU ol thr Nattonol Cuirkukim with the hjntilior character*
Teddy and Freddie stay in Fun School
ONE of the most popular series of education programs is set for its fourth release. Fun School 4 retains the popular Teddy and Freddie the Frog and adds Sammy the Spy to the line up of educational fun.
Through a series of interactive learning games, the programs in the new soft- ware have been developed to conform to the National Curriculum. For under- lies, Teddy returns in a pair of Reeboks and a baseball cap, with six educaUonal programs giving games for art, maths, words, karaoke and others.
Freddie the Frog carries his skateboard to the street for five to seven-year- olds. Freddie features in games covering sequences, maths, word sorting and typing, to improve a child's keyboard skills.
Eight to eleven-year-olds learn with Sammy the Spy, who by travelling the world teaches geography, maths, general knowledge and timetables. Europress Software can be contacted on 0625 859333.
Animation winners chosen
A PANEL of three judges looked at nearly 50 entries for the Amiga Centre Scotland 1991 Animation Competition, held during the recent Edinburgh Festival, before choosing the winning entries.
Split into three cate- gories the winners were as follows. Taking a Harlequin 1500, in first place in the non-com- mercial category, was Paul Franklin with his Mondo Data Phage work.
Ken Blackey's The Fly won the commercial category and the Eric Schwartz Award was won with The Dating Came by Eric Schwartz.
Organiser Martin Lowe said: "We were very please to receive nearly 50 entries this year. And also I was very impressed with the creativity, originality and technical qual- ity of many of the animations."
"I would like to give my thanks to the companies who together donated nearly £6,000 worth of prizes and also to the judges who were faced with a difficult task and showed great skill and ingenuity to ensure a fair allocation of winners."
Do you know something we don't?
Although Amiga Computing has scores of contacts in the Amiga world we need you. II you have some hot news nng |ohn Butters on the news-desk now on 0625 878888.
All information supplied will be treated in the strictest of confidence.
Monde Data I Amiga Centre
in 1500 in ihit year'i
DIARY DATES
October 11 to 13. 1991 The Computer Market Show
Organiser. Rex Centre (021-773 9090) Venue: Rex Ctntre, Birmingham A new show, aimed at users shopping for computers, software and consum- ables at low prices.
3 November, 1991
All Formats Computer fair
Organiser. Bruce Evehss (022 S 868100)
Venue: Royal Horticultural Hall, London
10November,1991
Venue: National Motorcycle Museum, SoWiutf
Brings together a collection of small firms and PD libraries.
15 to 17 November, 1991 World ol Commodore
Organiser ITP Exhibitions
Venue: Earl's Court 2
The 1 5th Commodore event.
1 December, 1991 All Formats Computer Fair Organiser: Bruce Events (022S 868100)
Venue: City Hall, Candteriggs, Glasgow
14 December, 1991
Venue: Royal Horticultural Hall, London
15 December, 1991
Venue: University of Leeds Sports Centre, Leeds
Plenty of bargains and heaps of pub- lic domain software.
5 to 8 December, 1991 Computer Shopper Show
Organiser Blenheim Pel
(081-868 4466)
Venue: Wembley Exhibition Halls
An opportunity to buy some bargains
before Christmas.
7 to 9 February, 1992
Sth International 16-bit Computer
Show
Organiser Westminster Exhibitions (081-S49 3444)
Venue: Novate! Hotel, Hammersmith The first post-Christmas Amiga show. Expect plenty of bargains.
OVERSEAS EVENTS
1 to 3 November, 1991 Amiga '91 Koln
Organiser: Ami Shows Europe QmbH (010 49 8092 24086) Venue: Fairground, Cologne, Germany The second major German show of the year expects to attract more than 200 exhibitors.
• If your company is organising a show relevant to the Amiga and it's not listed, lei us know so we can include the information in the diary.
If your database looks like this, you're ready to face the ftiture.
Given the chance to gaze at the future of database computing, what would you see?
Graphical applications that are intuitive and yet incredibly powerful, supporting sound samples and even pictures.
Applications like Superbase 4 Amiga.
mi «~1 a»||~» I >>l Ml f~ I gl"fi1
Unique features like the VCR panel mean browsing and reporting on data have never been simpler.
Superbase's WYSIWYG Form Designer lets you draw and design forms that are easy to understand and use. '
And, with its own comprehensive Database Management Language, you can develop professional applications.
You can share data with users of IBM-compatible PCs, while developers can make sophisticated database solutions available on both Amiga and Microsoft Windows platforms.
All [oik-marks ackmrn-lcdRrd. Screen shot laken on an IBM PC.
Superbase 4 Amiga also supports import/export of dBase, Lotus 1-2-3 and Microsoft Excel files.
So, for your future's sake, clip the coupon, send us your business card or call us on 081 330 7166 to find out more about Superbase 4 Amiga. After all, the benefits are staring you in the face.
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For Commodore Amiga, Atari ST or TT. Pretext 5.5 £152.75 Upgrade from S.O to 5.5 £30 Upgrade from 4.2/4.3 to 5.5 £60
Please return your original disks when upgrading French or German spelling dictionary £35.25
When upgrading please return any extra spell checking dictionaries lor a free update to the revised version.
Both Protext 5.5 and Prodata require 1Mb of memory
... with Protext 5.5 because the pop up thesaurus will provide you with inspiration whenever you need it. With words provided by Collins the thesaurus has 43,000 main entries and 827,000 responses!
Protext 5.5 introduces enhanced text formatting options. Automatic hyphenation lets you produce a well-spaced page loyout without the bother ol manually putting in soft hyphens. Prolext determines the correct hyphenation points by algorithms and look-up tobies, elimination of widows and orphans is also provided. You will no longer need to worry about those infuriating single lines ot the lop or bottom of poges. Protext termors the text to ovoid these as you edit ibe text. Extro blank lines at the lop of o page can be suppressed.
New document analysis features provide a wealth of information about your text. You tan examine a list of all the words used - alphabetically or by the number of occurrences. Other statistics shown include average word length, average sentence length and o table of the number of lines on eoch poge.
pfoi vHAttq "t"te toKbnoo<e*aa' • • '
U Enhanced file selector with different sorting methods, bulk copy and erase.
Prodata users - mail merge directly from Prodata
Hies, no need to export.
Mail merge: nested repeat loops.
New window-based help facilities.
Improved line drawing.
Spelling checker finds repeated word and missing capital letters.
Conversion to and from WordStar 5.5 ond Microsoft RTF
Full printed documentation of new features.
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Choice of pull -down menu or keyboard operation, extensive printer font support and proportional formatting while editing, up to 36 files open, spirt screen editing, characters for 30 languages, index and contents, footnotes, newspoper column printing, file sorting, macros, indent tabs, moil merge programming language, exec files ond the fastest search ond replace otound. Altogether the most comprehensive word processing software for your Amiga or ST.
16
Amor Ltd (ac), 67 » Lincoln Rood, Peterborough PE1 3HA. Tel: (0733) 68909 Fox (0733) 67299
AmigaDOS 2.04
Officio/ announcement
t»* tkl of news from DevCon that .tpptoved tor public consump- t»o ...r- the official release ol A/mgaDOS release 2 tor the Amiga S00 and 2000
KickStari 2.04 - version 37.1 75 on the About menu, il you want to check yours - is now available at a <l'vk update lor Amiga J000 own- ers, and enhancer kits containing dtsks and roms for the Amiga 500 and 200O will be available In the US somelimc in October.
What this moans 'or a UK release is unknown, since each country's vales company will decide when lo 'please the upgrjde. But by October the packages, manuals, roms and disks should be ready lo go.
While many users have grown impatient wailing lor this AmigaDOS upgrade, it's worth the wail. The release 2.04 ol 1991 is very different from the release 2.00 that shipped with the Amiga iOOO in 1990.
Most ol the delay resulted Irom Commodore's wise decision Lo add a number of routines to make poorly-wntten software more com- patible. Il was easy to tell which programs broke the rules under early versions ol 2.0 - they invari- ably crashed. But release 2.04 will run more than 90 per cent ol exist- ing Amiga software.
Now there's no reason not to upgrade your Kickstart. And the extra time gave Commodore the chance lo (Infill their Compu- graphic outline lont technology, giving Amiga owners access to smooth fonts in any size.
WHAT'S
Report by Denny
Future looks good for Amiga
THE 1991 North American Amiga Developer's Conference was held in Denver, Colorado - the Mile-High City - September 3 to 7. As I write this, I'm fly- ing home from the conference, feeling awfully good about the future of the Amiga.
Unfortunately, most of what was dis- cussed at this year's DevCon is under strict non-disclosure. Developers can't talk about what's coming until alter Commodore officially announce any new products.
However, you can take heart in know- ing that evidence abounded at DevCon that issues such as better graphics, sound, and new Amiga markets are high priorities in Commodore's future plans.
While the lay offs announced last month were a bit disconcerting, Commodore still have more employees in research and development than in most years previous, and they're hard at work developing neat stuff. One of the highlights of DevCon occurred when members of the CDTV and AmigaDOS release 2 development teams paraded
Perfectly fascinating
FROM the creators of Empire, possibly the most addictive war game of all time, comes the Perfect General. Authors Mart Baldwin and Bob Rakosky have outdone themselves with this superbly playable battle game.
Like the earlier Empire, The Periect General's biggest strength comes from its sim- plicity. All actions can be initiated with the mouse, Joystick or keyboard.
You're not overburdened with minute details like many of the hex-based war games. The computer takes care of minutia such as unit strengths and movement limits. You simpfy move your units and tell them where to fire.
The game- includes 14 scenarios ranging Irom the simple, speedy First Battle to the more complex Patton Kicks Butt. You have a variety ol units at your command, rang- ing from infantry and tanks lo engineers who can build mines and bridges. You can play against the computer, against another player on the same Amiga, or against another Amiga or PC running the Perfect General using a modem.
The game is hard disk- installable, and uses only word-lookup protection. There's a lot of gameplay here for J59.9S.
Contact Quantum Quality Productions on 010 1 908 788 2799.
through the Developer's Showcase to the tune of Lemmings. Resplendent in green mop-hair, the large-as-life Lemmings bounced down the stairs, climbed over obstacles, and jumped off hotel furniture carrying umbrellas.
Finally, Bryce Nesbitt and Leo Schwab, blockers extraordinaire, exploded in a blast of confetti and the Lemmings escaped into an elevator, to the applause and laughter of most of the 265 devel- opers in attendance.
1991 Developers' Choice Awards
A number of developers were selected by 1991 Developers' Choke Awards. The win Best Educational Software:
Best Entertainment Software: Best Consumer Productivity Software: Best Professional Productivity Software:
Best User Interface: Best Hardware: Amiga Hall of Fame:
their peers at DevCon to receive the ners were; Distant Suns by Virtual Reality Laboratories Lemmings by Psygnosis AmigaVision by Commodore AmigaDOS C Development System by SAS Institute
Workbench 2.0 by Commodore Video Toaster by NewTek Fish Disks by Fred Fish
ProWrite Perfected
OWE ol the first developers to announce o product that lakes advantage of 2.04's CC lont technology is New Horizons (010 1 S12128 6650), makersol the ProWrite wordprocessor.
ProWrite i.2, which should be available by the time you read this, will automatically use larger sited fonts and scale them down to printer resolution when priming. II you 're running Workbench 1,3 and have a larger bitmap ol the current lont in your FONTS: directory, you should see a decent improvement. Output Irom a 2.04 system, though, will be al your printer's highest resolution, resulting in true taggy-free priming.
Other improvements include a new '3D look" user interlace, even under Kickstart 13. key equivalents in requesters, direct insertion of text files into ProWrite documents, exporting ol files in Professional Page text formal, automatic timed saving of backup Hies, and a more flexible macro menu, which will allow you to give ARexx macros real names, instead ol "Macro, I 'and so on.
You no longer need the ProScnpt add-on to output to PostScript printers. Ml of ProWrite's features, including fonts, styles, colour, and columns ore now supported in PostScript output.
II you have a colour printer, ywll be delighted by ProWrite 1.2's improved colour sup- port. Pictures now preserve their original colour palette - when they're displayed onscreen they automatically map to the closest approximate Kreen colour Also, when you resize a picture down and then up in sue, the picture doesn i come out Wociy any more - (he origi- nal data is preserved.
Many ProWrite users love everything about the program except its Macintosh-like Hie requester. Now, Workbench 2.04 users can choose to use the system-stondard ASt requestei instead. ProWrite i.2 also adds support tor releose 2.04's Public Screen feature, so you can now open the wordprocessor on another screen, for instance, you could use it lo take notes as text scrolls by on your comms program's screen.
Registered ProWrite owners mil be sent upgrade information through the mail. ProWrite i.2 retails lor J 175. Upgrades from ProWrite i.O or i. I are 120; from 2.0 or 2.5. S60, and Irom 1.0 or 1.1. VS. Shipping and handling is J5 in the US. J to lor other countries.
BE YOUR OWN BOSS FOR ONLY
The all in one computer software productivity pack designed with the home office in mind.
In this pack you will find the software packages of most help to you in managing your affairs.
Use the database and word processor to create personalised letters.
Use the graphics library to put together a newsletter using the high quality fonts of the publishing package.
Use the spreadsheet with the other programs to make stunning reports. m
Kind Words 2.0 More than just a simple wo processor, Kind Words will allow you to check you^^^t
spelling against its own 100.000 word English dictionary as well as incorporating colour graphics.
Page Setter
The comprehensive solution to your Desktop Publishing requirements. From letterheads to newsletters and posters, Page Setter is your only logical choice.
INC VAT
Info File
This is more than just a simple database. Info File manages your pictures and sounds as well as text and numbers. With 10 ready made templates you'll * have the head start to get you straight into the package.
"" Artists' Choice
Over 200 professionally drawn ■ graphic images to illustrate and compliment your document.
Maxl Plan
The leading Spreadsheet, Database. Charting and Application building programme which allows you to plan finances from personal to corporate and output them in any of 100 different chart styles.
Cale Fonts
This collection of 35 high quality fonts work with Page Setter to enhance your creativity.
Home Office from Diamond, building the businesses of the future.
DiamonD
LMC Moosalt* 121 Regents Sweet Lear««ngton Spa ■ War**
TEL 0926 3121 55 FAX 0926 883432
Diamond Computers 144 Ferry Road EAnDurgh Scotland
TEL. 031 554 3567
Diamond Compuiera 1022 Stockport Road Manchester TEL: 061 257 3909 FAX 061 257 3987
Diamond Ccnpuiafs 232 Tottenham Ci Road London W1 TEL 071 580 4355
HOME OFFICE is available from all our branches. To get your copy simply call in or phone your nearest branch with your cred.t card number, nr qpnri us cheoue for £69.95.
Postal and telephone customers should include £5.00 p&p and insurance.
DON'T MISS THE BEST OF BRITISH BARGAINS SEE OUR 6 PAGE AD IN THIS MAGAZINE FOR PRICES YOU WONT BELIEVE. SEE OUH ^ CHEAPER THAN DIAMOND!
Diamond Computers 84 Lodge Rd Southampton TEL: 0703 232777 FAX 0703 232679
Diamond Computers 406Asrtfy Rd Poole Dorset
TEL: 0202 716226
Diamond CompulH>B 227 Filton Ave Bristol
TEL: 0272 522044 FAX: 0272 633223
Diamond Computers 1045 High Road ChaoWl Heath - Romford
TEL OBI 597 88S1 FAX 061 590 8969
WIN A CDTV
The lucky winner will also receive this CDTV from Commodore worth over £600! I
Amiga Computing in con- junction with The ITV Chart Show are offering what surely has lo be the most exciting Amiga art competition in the history of the machine.
Anyone can enter and there's abso- lutely no need for any specialised knowledge of the machine or a pro- gramming language. All that's required is a spattering of artistic talent and an imagination to match the challenge.
The competition is based around the familiar Chart Show information panels which are produced and activated via the Amiga. At present this is done with a custom built utility which operates in a similar way to the familiar icons and windows environment of Workbench.
Simple!
You'll be glad to know that Amiga Computing will produce the interlace and as a result all that's required from the entrants is a series of icons which suit the various information boxes which display the text, such as band history, musical influences, album details and so on.
The icon section of the competition not only gives you the chance to express your artistic talents but also offers your the opportunity to decide just what you, the viewers, wanl to know about you favourite artists.
Rather than just creating the icons to order, you decide just what sort of
spectac
the ultimate
comp
news, views, and slanderous gossip each of your idols will reveal thanks lo your designer icons.
This added incentive lets you not only add your artistic talent lo the pro- gram but also allows you to actively lake part in the production of the show by defining the categories of informa- tion to be displayed.
Because each artist on the show is completely different it's important that a whole range of icons are available for Ihe producer to choose from. As a result we're setting a target of twelve icons, all of which have to be com- pletely individual and which at a glance will tell Ihe viewers just what Is lurking with Ihe various info boxes.
Any newcomers to icon creation may well Ihink twice before embarking on such a mammoth task, but believe me once you're in the swing it will take no
time at all to produce the imagery - It's the ideas that will be Ihe difficult bit
So think and look for originality and you could become immortalised on Ihe small screen, adding your very own piece to the jigsaw of modem pop cul- ture.
|ust twelve icons isn't much to ask for a chance at immortality, and the opportunity to interrogate your favourite stars every week. As a result we've added another twist to the com- petition in the form of a font designing challenge. This all-new font will be used lo display the answers to the questions posed by your icons.
Once again this won't need any spe- cial knowledge but will require a >
r
ii
create television history, with your very own artwork appearing in millions of homes every H ! week!
THE BEST ST HOME FINANCE PROGRAM NOW AVAILABLE FOR THE AMIGA
AMIGA VERSION
FULL MULT I TASKING OVER 100 BUDGETS SELECTABLE (10 ANALYSABLE)
fersona Finance
M
anager
-The Worlds Most Sophisticated Personal Finance Program
If you run a personal bank account and have a Commodore Amiga then you need "PERSONAL FINANCE MANAGER".
AS EASY TO USE AS A CALCULATOR
PFM makes full use of Amiga's Workbench interface, if you need to amend or update an entry or Standing order simply click on it. Your screen looks just like a bank statement!
STANDING ORDERS & DIRECT DEBITS EATEN ALIVE
PFM handles Credit and Debit • Monthly.Quarterly, Yearly and even complicated regular payments like 12 payments of £52.99 followed by one of £12.50, PFM will check the date and automatically insert standing orders as they become due.
BUDGET WITH EASE, AT A CLICK OF A MOUSE.
If you're the type that likes to look ahead then PFM allows you to set budgets for both expenditure and income. Over 100 budgets can be set over a year, a quarter or a month and then 10 can be displayed either in figures or as a bar graph for a given period. Expenditure for these budgets can also be shown as a pie chart so you can tell at a glance where your money's gone. PFM also allows you to display or print your budget groups selectively so you can see your expenditure quickly and easily.
BALANCING WITH YOUR BANK ACCOUNT IS NO LONGER A JUGGLING ACT
When you get your bank account statement or a balance from an autobank machine you can confirm it with PFM quickly and easily. Simply select PFM's unique "Auto Balance" option and type in the balance as given by the bank and PFM will attempt to balance and highlight entries that have not yet been processed through the bank.
MAIN ACCOUNT SCREEN
OTHER FEATURES
BUDGET COMPARISON BAR- GRAPH SHOWING BUDGETS & ACTUAL EXPENDITURE OR INCOME
• The number of entries >s limited only by memory size ' You define the Me size
• Ora entries are automatically deleted
• Automatically places entnes In date o'Oef
• European or U S A date lormals
• Balance of accouni grapn.
■ Moveable and re-sizeable windows
• Run multiple bank accounts by amply usmg rjitferenl file names Muti-Tashing allows Multi -Account access.
• Faoiity to check ofl items against statements
• Locates cheques written months ago m seconds
• Selective print features for dates/statements, standing orders and budgets
& Mlthlron %
Home finance Program 5tj Peter Veale
Here's what the critics say
Amiga Version by Dan Lenrw
"PFM is one of those rare programs with which it is May to feel
comfortable from the first time you run it."
Ron Massey, ST USER
"Personal Finance Manager is a sophisticated home ftnanclel
package, it will probably help you save money."
ST UPDATE.
"PFM is just the ticket if your expenditure is as disorgenised as
mine."
POPULAR COMPUTING WEEKLY
PIE CHART SHOWING SELECTED ENTRIES OVER CHOSEN DATES
BALANCE DISPLAY SHOWING HIGHS & LOWS OVER SELECTED DATES
Free 30-Day Trial
Order direct from MICHTRON and if you are not 100% satis- fied, return within 30 days for a
full refund N0T C0PV pn0Tei
TO ORDER:
SEND TO. MICHTRON PO BOX 68. St Austell, Cornwall PL25 4YB Allow 28 Days for delivery
*.->*. BY PHONE '"-^ WITH CREDIT CARDS TELE (0726)58020 f 30 95 |.nd P&Pl
AMIGA VERSION
Please send me Personal Finance Manager at £30 95 (incl P&PI
□ Cheque enclosed made payable to MICHTRON
Q Please debit my credit card account:
MIM I I I II Mill I I I I I Expiry date:
Name
Address
Signed:
0'
Artistic history
rrlofiodouta little more about the ortfsfic background ol The Chart Show, I to louM Hod/ey( the woman behind the show'! graph* design and one ol the tqhts in the field of computer generaied graphics, M * turned out, Loon revealed that many of the familiar animations and graphic «*» employed by the show are, in TV term, rather doted.
As a result, on December I the show will be undergoing a complete face-lift Ms to a whole range of new techniques and equipment, some of whKh may well be added thanks to the Amiga which along with ofher systems is beginning to revo-
tttyjoe TV graph/a. ,
The Amiga's arrival in such lofty graphic amies is down to the recent explosion ol 244* boards and paint packages which are about to turn the TV worW upside down - they are already making their matt in everything from game shows to feJevmon
^'tt?post much of The Chart Show's artwork has been provided thanks to Quontet's Paintbox which has hng been the industry standard in 24-M art. Now that's all changed thanks to the Amiga's 24-bit abiHUes. Nevertheless n s st.ll worth looking back at how things used to be in the bad old days...
Apart from Paintbox, a three dmens.onal system entnled Dubner has been the mainstay of most ol the show's graph* output. This is the hardware responsible for the famous plane and rocket sequences and indeed the majority ol speaal amrna- lions such os the Exclusive Release animation and many more besides.
Other systems such as Cubicomp are at the controls of the Homes whKh Mat from the rear of the rocket When all of the elements are complete the entire package is brought together with the aid ol Paintbox.
Moving mentioned all ol this high power and high price hardware, ,t s perhaps easy to forget that some of the mast interesting graphic effects needn t cost the earth. The opening roller-coaster sequence is a pnme example.
This particular piece ol wizardry ,s the product of a cameraman ^'^ut^n to the wind and brav,ng the worst that Alton Towers could throw at him Mer the ,ive act-on was captured on film, the shots were edited back in the studo and then each frame was hand painted using the Paintbox and a production technique known
™ llaZmthe new took provided by the next generate of hardware, there could bean added mystery name appearing all over the glossy graphics ol the show.
An unnamed sponsor is about to lend its financial muscle to the unfortunately, even otter my best efforts os an investigative reporter, I coukln t glean any more than a 'no comment " as to the identity of the mystery backer
As a result I'm afraid we'll all have to wait to hnd out which of the corporate giants intend to make the best even better.
1
► designer foni that's easy to read and suits the environment of The Chart Show's all action video format.
Designing a font should be within everyone's grasp thanks to the Workbench Extras disk which every Amiga owner should have hidden away in the back of a long-forgotten disk box. If you boot the disk you'll find a utility entitled FED which funnily enough stands for Font Editor, With the aid of this handy tittle utility you shouldn't have any problem creating your very own designer font.
If the prospect of creating a com- plete character set Tills you with more apprehension .than any amount of Icons, don't despair - it's perfectly acceptable to load a standard Amiga font and modify it to your own design, but remember - the more original the design, the more likely it is to win.
An important point is to make sure you create a full character set, not just the letters - a complete range of numerical characters is required as well as all the essential quotation marks, commas, colons and so on.
The only restriction to your calli- graphic exploits is the point size of the font itself, which must be between 12
and 1 9 point You can design as many fonts within this range as you like. But remember your entry is not valid if the fonts are smaller than 12 point or big- ger than 1 9 point.
Producing the goods
Designing your icons is simplicity itself and can be done either with one of the many icon creation utilities that lurk within the public domain or by employ- ing Dpaint to produce suitable brushes which can then be transformed into icons for use with the appropriate infor- mation boxes.
The advantage of using icon creating utilities such as IconMaster and Icon Magic is the addition of the Pattern Fill option which effectively gives you four extra paint effects to add to the original four colours of the Workbench screen.
This is done by alternating colours in a fill function to give a fine mesh effect which can be applied to any filled area within an icon.
When these extra pattern effects are applied to the secondary image of a twin picture icon, its animated effect can be greatly enhanced thanks to the Amiga's familiar double clicking pro-
fconi art ta\y wtth DPaml
cess. If you're unfamil- iar with icon creators, any good PD library will happily supply the necessary program com- plete with documents which will guide you through the finer points.
Regular readers will be glad to know that they could already have the necessary software among their coverdisk collection, the most recent example being Huge, the icon utility that was given away in the March issue of Amiga Computing.
Workstation owners also have a head start thanks to what has become the most popular of all icon creators,, namely IconMaster, which is just one of the many utilities waiting within the disk.
H we assume that you're equipped with either a copy of Dpaint or a suitable utik ity, the next job is to cre- ate your icons. With an Icon editor all that's required is an idea and you're off.
For Dpaint fans things are a little more complex. First you must specify the correct resolution which has to be medium-res, and in order to save confusion later on the available colours should also be set, to eight
When the design stage of
r
9
KonMasler, on the Workstation dhk
21
*• your project finally gets under way, remember to keep your icons to rea- sonable proportions in relation to the screen. K you're familiar with The Chart Show, as I'm sure you are. you'll have a good idea of what's required.
If you're one of our many European and American readers or even those fur- ther afield this translates to about the size of a postage stamp for each of the
12 (com
This size restriction applies to both the first and second stage of the icon so don't let you imagination run too wild as far as size is concerned - after all, the viewers still want to get a look at the artists, not just the icons and - of course - the juicy details they reveal.
Competition essentials
3. Make sure your designer .on. Is Induded on <ne disk and ,s ..beHed
included with you entry. s. The compe.l.lon H open un.l, November 5 « , e sure ,o os.^ur en.rle, In plen.y o. Ume ,o mee. Park,
s=r^=r&no.LnCIUded
in the competition.
Behind th
It's just gone quarter past twelve on a humid Friday afternoon as my taxi pulls up outside an anonymous, tall and oth- erwise uninteresting building in the heart of London's Soho.
I have armed at what the broadcast industry has come to know as a "facili- ties house". This is basically a high-tech hotel where TV programme makers can rent rooms or "suites" packed full of video equipment. The sort of kit , needed to edit a H programme to H broadcast qual- H ity is awesomely i accurate and H toe-curlingly H expensive. H When you H consider that H some suites ost well )ver £500 an hour to rent you get some idea of the scale of
Die humble Amiga 2000 hai plenty lo do...
If
...even with oil thlt gear around!
hardware invest- ment we are talk- ing about.
There are thousands of edit suites in London's West End where pro- grammes are fin- ished off by production teams working to strict standards and tight deadlines.
After paying the taxi I am escorted to a small room hidden up several stair- cases separated by sharp corners and fire doors.
I am now in "Edit 2" of "Wiseman", where The Chart Show's producer Phil Oavey is )ust putting the finishing touches to part one of tomorrow's show.
Go with the flow
The Chart Show is enjoyed every week by over two and a half million viewers, so it's important that every cut and link is just right. If an editor has done his job property, you won't be aware of the joins. A good programme should flow. This is especially true of The Chart Show, where there are no presenters to take up slack or fill in gaps. Every single video is linked by graphics sequences. Some wipe, some fade, some mix but they all bind the programme together.
It takes a complete working day to get one Chart Show down on tape. This might seem a long time for around 50 minutes of television, but by most recognised standards it is positively speedy. The programme uses a whole range of technologies and techniques to achieved its high-lech look and feel. Vision mixers, character generators, and a bank of video recorders all combine to produce that unmistakable look.
We are not here to admire the moni-
ie"McKendrick visits The Chart Show
tors or flashing lights though. At the end of the control desk sits the comput- erised star of the show. A lone Amiga 2000 complete with external drive is responsible for the generation and dis- play of The Chart Show's icons and information boxes.
The Chart Show uses a custom piece of software which allows an operator to input the information you seen in the dialogue boxes and then decide which icon will display it. The system is by no means as ornate as it could be. Ease of use has taken priority over features, but that's only sensible considering the fast moving environment within which it (s being employed.
Compare the cost of the Amiga with the rest of Wiseman's kit in "Edit 2" and the humble 2000 is almost disposable. However the graphics input our trusty machine provides to The Chart Show has proven it invaluable.
Those Amiga icons have become The Chart Show's hallmark, just as the Amiga is starting to become the hall- mark of quality video work with the onset of 24-bit paint systems and Amiga controlled editors. There's an exciting time ahead.
If YOU want a really good deal from one of the leading Amiga retailers... all you have to do is phone: 0602 441442. Or... see this months Amiga Format for full details of our EXTRA special NEW offers!
That 's the
Media Direct
AMIGA 500 PACKS
F A
X
u
s
N O
w o
N
0 7 8 2
2 8 1 5 0 6
PRINTERS
Ail our pontes are UK soeaticai©" and are covered by a 12 months warranty- Ail ine pnees include a printer lead ana a tailored dust cover
All Our Amiga's are UK speoltcation and come complete with the loUowmo:—
Amiga Pack 1 (Casstt Pack) 5i2K random access memory
Built-in dish drive 4096 cotour graphics 4 channel stereo sound
Kjcksiart 13
Workbench i 3
Extras 13 and tutorial d«sK
Amiga mouse
TV modulator
Power supply unit
A500 keyboard
Bart Simpson Captain Planet Deiu»o Paint HI and game ot the year Lemmings
We also grw you:- Mouse mat and pocket * dust cover. 10 blank disks and boi. OmcKshoi Python, 1 joystick
PIUS
10 more GrMf Games
Football Manager Hotshot Las Vegas Fl>gh! Path 737 Fuebiaser Karting Grand Prix Thai Boxing Seconds -Out Mouse Trap PI tot
Amiga Pack 2
(Cfessc Pack Pfut)
As Pack l but also includes the Cumana CAX3S4 external disk drive
Amiga Pack 3
(Oasse MMr Pack)
As Pack 1 but includes tne
Star LC200 'uircolouf
pnnler
Amiga Pack 4
iThe UKmto Pack)
As Pack 1 but includes Star LC200 colour pnnler plus Philips CM8a33>ll stereo colour monitor
Amiga Pack 5
(Educator* Pack)
As Pack l but includes a selection o* educational software — Spell Book (ages 4-9) Things to do with woras (ages 5-12)
Things to do with numbers (ages 5-10)
Lets spell at the shops (ages 4 10) Let's spefl at nome (ages 4 tO)
Let's spe» out and about (ages 4-10)
. Puzzle Book V(5 to, adult) Puzzle 'Book 2 (5 to adult)
Amiga Pack 6 (Gamers Pack)
As Pack 1 but also includes some of the hottest games — , F29 Retaliate Fi9Stoatth Fighter. Lotus Esprit Turbo Challenge. Swiv (Silkworm II). Bight ot the Intruder
Stir LC-tO A pepotar low cost M&ToPfflfar
Multiple 'onl options Irorn Iron! panel
Excellent paper nandkng facilities
Simultaneous, continuous and angle sheet stationery '240x240 DPI graphics
Star LC 24-10
24 Pit VeflfOfl of LCIO Excellent letter quality pnnt 360x360 DPI graphics 8 resident lonts Adononal font cartndges available
Star LC200 Cotour Printer
An exc&lent rcto for money
Colon Printer
240 DPI 9 p«n colour
Front pane* pitch selection
Push/pull tractor feeds
Heverso paper teeds
16K buffe'
8 resident fonts
Supplied with co*oui and
mono ribbons
Front panel programmable
Paper park with auto
single sheet loading
Star LC24-20O Mono Pnntet
80 column dot matrix printer
7K buffer expandable to 39K
tO resident fonts Paper park with auto single sheet loading Supplied wrth mono ribbon Faster then LC24-10 Extra font cartridges available
Front panel pitch selection Programmable irom front pan©)
Star LC24-200 Colour Printer
360 DPI 24 pin colour printer
30K buffer expandable to
62K
1 0 resident fonts . Front panel t>tch selection Reverse paper feed Paper park with auto single sheet loading
r «4.94
Suppked with colour and
mono ribbons ,
Front panel programmable
Extra font cartridges
available
OQtn120D +
A very popular low cost mono pnnler Centronics/ RS232/CBM 64 ser.al Please specify interface when ordering (two year warranty)
Citizen 1240 24 pin Mono Printer
BK butler expandable Push and p\* tractor feeds 3 fonts with excelled tetter quality (two year warranty)
Citizen Swift 9 pin Cotour Printer
8K buffer 240x240 OPI colour graphics
Push and pun tractor leeds Excellent pnnt. quality (two year warranty)
Citizen Swift 24 pin Cotour Printer
European Printer o* the Year 1990
24 pin version of the 9 pm colour printer 360x360 DPI colour graphics
Push and pull tractor feed
£309.«
PERIPHERALS
We stock a large range of peripherals all of the highest quality it you can't see the one you 'equire please give us a call to see it we slock it.
not©**
m o yjJ
Mice and Trackballs
Naksha Upgrade Mouse
Armga/Atan swrtchabk; Simply the best 260 DPI resolution Ergonomic design Smooth precise operation "2 years guarantee Free mouse mat Free mouse pocket Now mdudes Operation Stealth trom US Gokd Only
E22.9S*
GOVERNMENT, TRADE AND EDUCATIONAL ORDERS WELCOM
MEDIA DIRECT — THE AMIGA SPECIALISTS
Mega Deals, Multi-Choice
t
> Uouse
zcm Amiga' Alan cement mouse 3* resolution ■> sick operation
|Q* Trackball by Alfa
Er.at*e between Atari : *.T.,ga the third
IK* be'ihe best • Packbail available
1 NaMna Scanner r* Amiga A500 OPl 32 grey shade **id scanner »*oe >nclu<tes W* hand scanner D Wertace v supply urwt i Scan professional n»e 'The Ulnmate **** So 'twere
Eiaannon Boards
»* A500 0.5 Mb HAM msion board
Mies memotv lo i Mb
technology ■cement lot A50I
witch
1 5 Mb RAM
")n
need more memory i f*s board is lor you > en extra l 5 Mb ol ' lo your machine a total ol 2 MEGS with dock/ Uses me latest DRAMS lor low consumption 12 - guarantee KicKsiart 1 3 or ta^iy titled into the
ler your A500 res no soldering ft he (X your A5C0 muV loved to* fitting the li Connector)
service available fo> details
RAM 500 fix expansion
2 4. of 6 Mb last '^Amiga 500
£29.95
£129.95
£26.95 £29.95
£84.95
Easily plugs mto A 500 expansion pod Amiga bus through port Eas>iy expandable zero wait slates and mdden refresh lets you run larger and more sophisticated programs Allows creation ol large and very last RAM disks Test mode and software simplify troubleshooting On/Of switch
.Supra/am 500RX 2Mb 'Supiaram 500RX 4Mb Supraram 500RX 8Mb
EHernal Disk Drives
£195.00 £270.00 £420.00
Cumana C AX 354
Very qmet StfraHna design Throughport connector On/oll switch on rear Long connecting cable 880K formatted capaoty Fits all Armgas
...
ONLY
£57
95
Supradnve 'or Amiga A500
Using state of the art technology these drives use the same amount of power as a floppy <*sk dnve These dnves are snipped lormaned and ready to use so you can Simply plug-m your drive turn on your compuler and the system is ready lo use The drive can be configured as auloboot or non auloboot. it can nave uplo 8Mb of Ram and as many as r-> SCSI drives can be connected together The dnves aiso come wwh ' express copy , harp dish backup software, "superbool" and
Supertools" 'tie management and formatting programs
52Mb Hard dnve with 0 5Mb Ram 62Mb Hard drive with 2Mb Ram 80Mb Hard dnve win 0 5Mb Ram 80Mb Hard drive with 2Mb Ram 105Mb Hard dnve w4h 0 5Mb Ram 105Mb Hard drive wth 2Mb Ram
We also stock the range of Supra modems phone for details
Zydec External Drive Very quiet * Slimline design Quality Dtt/e.i drive mecnanism On/oft switch on rear Long connecting cable B80K formatted capacity Fits all Amigas Only
DISKETTES
Master. Sound — Mono Sound Sampler
A low cost high features sound sampler package includes hardware and , - software with a host of features to sample- and 1 edit music live onto your Amiga Only
Miscellaneous
Midi Master — Midi Interface for the Amiga
Midi in — 3X Midi out and Midi through
Compatible with all leading miu> software Fully OPTO isolated Includes two free rrnoi cables
Please state A500/1000/ 2000 when ordering Only
Action Replay MKII by Datei
A wnote host ol features Including Freezel'ame Boot Seteetor, Vitus Detection and much much moro. Only
Replacement Amiga A 500 power supply Replacement internal disk drive lor Amiga ASOO (original Commodore one — no modification required)
SoundBlaster
The amazing Soundblasier adds a new dimension to your games Blasting out stereo sound at 5 watts per channel into two high quality 50 watt 3 way speakers The pack comes complete w>tn an AC power supply and as an added bonus there is a pair of free stereo headphones
ONLY
£4495
Amiong Offers 0" W DSDD KAO BULK DISKETTES
25 DSOO 135 Ipi 50 OSOO 135 ipi
£11.95 £21 .95
|
75 DSQD 135 Ipi |
£31.95 |
|
100 DSDD 135 Ipi |
£37.95 |
|
200 DSDD 135 tor |
£71 95 |
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500 DSDD 135 Ipi |
£169.95 |
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)000 DSDD 135 ip* |
£309.95 |
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All 3.5" disks are |
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supplied wiin labels and |
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are t0O% error free |
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' 2 'or 1 guarantee |
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Riinoow Diskettes |
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Red. green, yellow |
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orange, black white |
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Colours and quantity of |
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your choice |
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3.5" DSDD Disks |
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25 DSDD 135 tpi . |
£13.75 |
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50 DSDD 135 tpi |
£26.45 |
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100 DSDD 135 tp |
£44.95 |
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200 DSDO 135 to |
£84.95 |
|
3.5' DSDD SONY BULK |
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|
DISKETTES |
|
|
25 DSDO 135 Ipi |
£13.45 |
|
50 DSDD 135 tpi |
£23.95 |
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100 DSDD 135 Ipi |
£42.95 |
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200 DSOD 135 lot |
£81.95 |
|
500 DSDD 135 tp. |
£189.95 |
|
1000 DSDD 135 tp. |
£349.95 |
Remember!! Remember!! Remember! I
We only supply lop quality diskettes Our 3 5" diskettes are manufactured by KAO and our 5 25" cfcskettes are manufactured by ATHANA
We do not sen substandard diskettes trom the Far East
MONITORS
Philips CM8833/II Stereo Colour Monitor
All our monitors are ol UK specification, are covered by a 12 month warranty' and come complele will a connecting lead .
£244.95
1ST
Media Direct Computer Supplies Ltd Urvi 3 Railway Enterprise Centre Snefton New Road. Stoke on Treffl Staffordshire ST4 7SH
0 7 8 2
2 0 8 2 2 8
MEDIA DIRECT - THE AMIGA SPECIALISTS
Media Direct
F A
X
U
s
N O
w o
N
0 7 8 2
2 8 1 5 0 6
DISKETTE
STORAGE BOXES
Ban* Box
Slacks horu'Q"ta»v vertically and can hold upto 90 3 5- disfctfies
An our storage bones come with and stain: W. two keys and dividers where applicable
Atari dust cover Amiga dust cover Sia, LClO dust cover Star LC24-10 dust cover Star LC200 dust cover Star LC24 200 dust cover 2 piece qnnte* stand fl"ilt 'n' tu/n monitor stand Monrior ptynth
Switches and CaWts
Monitor Cables
Amiga to CBM 10B4S
monitor cable
Amiga to Phillips CM8833
cable
- Am-ga to scad cable Amiga to HuaotufGranada
V prn dm
Amiga to multisync 15 pin li row plug
Amiga to multisync I5r»n 3 way socket
EDUCATIONAL
SOFTWARE
3 5" 100 capacity bo« 3 S" BO capacity bo* 3 5" 50 capacity box 3 5" 40 capacity box 5 25' 100 capacity box 5 25" 50 capacity bo"
Otter
Deduct El 00 Tom above Do* price. if cxi' chasing a quantity o< diskettes (Mm 25 disks)
JOYSTICKS
Speedking Standard
Speedking Autolire
Speedking Sega'
Mogadnve
Navigate
Sting Ray Standard
Sting Ray Autodre
Sung Ray Sega Megadm
Mania Ray Standard
Mania Ray Autofare
Mania Ray Sega
Megadnve
Zipstick Standard
Zipstick Autodre
£13.95 CI 4. 95 CI 5.95
Stackable Storage Boies
These boxes are >deai lor the person who requires an alternative to the standard style box or who has a large number ol disks to store
Posso Box
The Posso box holds 1 50 3 5" diskettes or 70 5 25." diskettes and can be stacked horizontally or vert'Calty
Please state 3 5" or 5 25' version when ordenng
Bulk Storage Box
ideal lor bulk storage ot diskettes, each box can notd upio 250 3 5" diskettes
S"j* 'jr • t<
3* 5-
Cotnpetition Pro 5000 Black
Competition Pro 5000 . Clear
Competition Pro Go E«"a Competition Pro Ext fa Competition Pro Star Python t Turbo III (QS137F)
python 3 Sega Megadnve Apache 1 (QS131) Fltghtgnp 1 (QS129F) Mavenck 1 (OS13BF) Chimera 3 Sega Megadnve (OSMO) Intruder t (OS 149) intruder 3 Sega Megadnve (OS 150)
Aviatoi 1 (OS155) Aviator 3 Sega Megadnve (OS '56)
ACCESSORIES
All our accessories are ot the highest quaMy
General
Mouse mat
Mouse pocket
3 5" disk drive cleaner
5 25" chsk drive cleaner
£S.9S
Cfi.95
£9.95 C9.95
Data/Printer Cables
Parallel printer cable 36 way to 36 way Centronics cable 25 way D type male/male cebte
25 way D-iype male/temaie cable
26 way D type lem/lem cable
Data Switches
2 way parallel data swtch
2 way serial data switch
3 way parallel daia switch
4 way parallel data switch
Miscellaneous
Amiga 4 piayc* adapter Atari 4 player adapter Mouse/|Oystick switcher Mouse'ioystick extender cable
C7.95 E7.9S £7.95 £7.95
C1Z.95 £12.95 £17.95
C6.95
2.95
£12.95 C5.95
PRINTER RIBBONS
We stock a ia>ge range ol ribbons H you can't see your particular type ksted then please onone us tot a quote
Star
LC10 mono LC10 colour LC24-10" mono LC200 mono ■ LC200 colour LC24-200 mono LC24 200 coioui
Citizen 1200 Mono
Citizen Swift 24 mono
Citi/en Swift 9 mono
Citizen Swift 24 colour
Citizen Sw>tt 9 colour
Spell Book (ages 4-9) Things to do with words (ages 5-12)
Things to do with numbers (ages 510)
Lets spell at the shops (ages 4-10)
Let's spell at home (ages
4- 10)
Let s spell out and about
(ages 4 10)
Puzzle Book i (ages
5 adult)
Puzzle Book 2 (ages
5- adufl)
BOOKS
We stock a large range ol Abacus books suitable lor advanced programmers as well as bocenneis
Advanced system programmers guide Amiga 3D graphics basic programming Amiga basic inside and out
Amiga C advanced programmers guide Amiga C lor beginners Amiga DOS inside and out Amiga DOS qu-ck reference
Amiga desktop vdeo guiBe
Amiga disk drives msrde and out
Amiga tor beginners Amiga machine language An>ga punters inside and out Amiga system oiogrammers guide Best Airnga tncks and hps Making music on the Amiga
- Quality and Value Direct to You
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C*l»oal UK Version «tiuding Altered Beast 1 nun art |
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ONLY £119.95 |
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tart Software
roomer II *d Beasl I rVdd
XI Palmer GoH m Flash Squadron Puooun C>jr,ri5
Deli Tracey Pymmite Duke lw
KgVlen Welds ■to" Ground
0«3*u>uste<s Oo>5 n' Ghosts , Garten A«o
, Jr« Pond • V Douglas Boxing
Madden US Football Battle Mouse Lair rboy III) walker : DtHertder tt* GoH Tour (asy Star tl
ol Shinobi Dancer the Hedgehog Harriet II
* if Hang On
League Baseball Monaco G P Real Basket bar Thunder blade o» Sooan ol Vermifton artoice II Hawk Cup Italia 90 Go"
m •masia
■man
fcjWrwe Accesson«
ArC-aoe oo*er st»ck |RMd"> **oeo cable CoH'ol oad womf base converter
£23.95 £27.45 £27.45 TBA £27.45 £34.45 £27.45 £27.45 £27.45 £27.45 £27,45 £30.95 £38.95 £27.45 £27.45 £23.95 £30.95 £23.95 TBA TBA
£32.95 £6.95 £12.95 £27.95
ONoU UK Version
ONLY
£99.k
Game Gear Software
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£27.45 |
Columns |
£16.95 |
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£27.45 |
Pengo |
£16.95 |
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£23.95 |
Psychic Wodd |
£16.95 |
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£27.45 |
Putter GoH |
£16.95 |
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£27.45 |
Super Monaco G P |
£16.95 |
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£30.95 |
Wonder Boy |
£16.95 |
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£30.95 |
Woody Pop |
£16.95 |
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£23.95 |
Dragon Crystal |
£19.95 |
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£27.45 |
Donald Duck |
£19.95 |
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£27.45 |
G Loo |
£19.95 |
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£30.95 |
Golden A*e |
£19.95 |
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£27.45 |
Mickey Mouse |
£19.95 |
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£27.45 |
Ninp Gaiden |
£19.95 |
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£27.45 |
Outrun |
£19.95 |
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£27.45 |
Space Hamer |
£19.95 |
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£27.45 |
Sntnot> . |
E19.95 |
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£34.95 |
Bosebaii |
TBA |
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£27.45 |
Frogger |
TBA |
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£27.45 |
Joe Monlanna Footpa* |
TBA |
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£30.95 |
Kmetic Connection |
TBA |
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£27.45 |
Talot |
TBA |
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£30.95 |
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£27.45 |
Game Gear Accessories |
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£30.95 |
AC mams adaptor , |
TBA |
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AV cable |
TBA |
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£27.45 |
Car lighter adaptor |
TBA |
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£27.45 |
Game Gear to Game Geo* |
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£27.45 |
cable |
TBA |
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£30.95 |
Game Gear TV tune* |
TBA |
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£46.45 |
Recnargaote battery pack |
TBA |
PUBLIC DOMAIN
SOFTWARE
We slock a large range ol PuWrc Domain Software, well over 2000 titles in 'act To receive a catalogue send a ml class stamp together witn your name and address 1 you require a catalogue on disk send three first class stamps instead ot one
Here are some of our more popular packs
Pack 1 - Home Business Pack
This 8 disk pack corn airs — Spreadsheet Word Processor Amiga Spell . Memo Pad inventory
Daiaoase etc. etc £10.00
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Pick 2 - Demo Pack |
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(10 DO* |
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Budbram t (2 disks) |
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□ i L/ilvain 7 DUGOfdin e |
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Bmmih Mpntiil Hannovr v'VUU ^t^Jtn 1 r*UI ^(B* T lU1 "^^*r ' |
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Hr~iri7r*rr ' SlPfstTifvi Rao flUltiUl' tJ^ICyi T]j l_*rjtj |
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P i j wt PiillirVi T'J1 |
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TTifirw*r |
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UUul IV" ^UwU1 IUC |
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Dha rwrt an A Iftlawrtt/Vk rite' 'Kr ' 'el <o unci 3^XJt_l^ |
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npT*iv 1 Simoon*? rternn |
£1 1 00 |
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P«k 3 - Music Pick |
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(IO0rS*P4f» |
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Vision Music Masters |
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Crusadent ' Bactena |
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Musx; |
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Crack Muse Disk |
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Jotset Overload |
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Music OiSk |
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RAF Megemi* 1 |
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FUsn Digital Concert 6 |
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Flashing Bytes ( * |
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Sweet Songs One |
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Mcafraf Panic, Voices or |
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Energy |
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L<'usaoers Micro t-orct n |
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A r chaos Music Disk |
£11.00 |
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Pack 4 - Adult Pick |
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(10 fttf Rk*| |
£11.00 |
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Pick 5 - Music Makers Pick 1 |
£11.00 |
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Pick 6 - Hew Release Pack |
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Tnis pack changes on a |
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weekly bass, so is kept |
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bang up to date |
£12.00 |
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THIS MONTHS |
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SPECIALS |
HOW TO ORDER
S 0782 208228
BY POST
Make cheques and postal orders Payable to MEDIA DIRECT. Please send "us together wth your name and address, daytime telephone number il possible and your order requirements to:—
MEDIA DIRECT COMPUTER SUPPLIES LIMITED DEPARTMENT 65029 UNIT 3. RAILWAY ENTERPRISE CENTRE SHELT0N NEW ROAD. STOKE ON TRENT STAFFORDSHIRE ST4 7SH
FAX: 0782 281506
Carriioe cronjts
Please add £3 35 per order tor postage and packing.
£5 00 lor orders over £150 00 Sotware and carriages £1.25 per item Guaranteed TWO Day delivery £6 95 Guaranleed NEXT Day delivery £9 00
Remember!!! Remember!!! Remember!!!
Media Direct are a well established company with a reputation tor its quality and service A pent to conader before purchasing your computer goods So why not buy from us and put our reputation to the test.
AM gloom o*f i ore sublet lo avarfaCMly and lo Wing the tales' advertised packs ahd prion
(Pack dettMs may vary from Mn« to limol fftOE
HOW TO FIND US
Come and visit our showroom where the and many other ptoducls are on display
Media Direct Computer Supplies Lie Urvt 3 Railway Enterprise Centre Sneton New Road. Stoke on Trenl Staffordshire ST4 7SH
GOVERNMENT, TRADE AND EDUCATIONAL ORDERS WELCOME
A fully functioning version of Prodata which will even save small databases to disk? Are you dreaming?
■Rroduclivtx
Prodata
Tye best coverdisk does it again with one of the most useful and oroductrve freebtes ever to find its way onto our cover. Arnor Software have been kind enough to release a demo version which actually saves small databases of up to twenty records, so you can't afford to miss this opportu- nity to make the most of it!
H you already own an earlier release oT Prodata, skip these pages and dive straight into the program. The support material in these pages is strictly for those who've never used the program, and especially those who wouldn't know a database from a tin of sardines.
Right, first things first! Grasping the key firmly between thumb and forefin- ger, twist gently until the tin is open, being careful not to spill any of the veg- etable oil, as this can make a real mess of your Amiga keyboard. See what I mean? How many of you were examin- ing the disk for a key? None of you? Oh.
The program
Don't worry if you're a database begin- ner - at its most basic level, Prodata is an absolute doddle. Once you get your head round the jargon, you'll be creat- ing your own databases with gay aban- don.
To launch the program, double dick on the coverdisk's icon. Double clicking on the Prodata program icon will load an information screen from which you can press any key to start Prodata. Alternatively, you can launch the pro- gram from the Shortcut menu at the top of your coverdisk Workbench screen. Don't at this stage press Return
for the list of files as the screen sug- gests. There aren't any on the disk, so our first job will be to create one. Be warned: There's not much free space on the disk, so to save a decent sized database you may need to copy Prodata or delete, say, the machine code drawer (always ensure you're using a backup!). Hold down the right mouse button and select Create New Database from the "File" menu on the extreme left of the menu bar.
You will now be asked to type in the name of the new database. Call it "coverdisks" and press Return. Two more questions on the general nature of the database will be put to you.
In answer to the first question, which asks if your database will allow duplicate entries in the index field, type Y. If you were to answer No to this question, the database wouldn't allow two records to have the same entry in the field it uses as the default index (field 1). just press Return in answer to the second question. Fifteen characters rs plenty for the labels we'll be giving to fields.
You should now be asked to type in the name of your first data field. The brackets to the left of the cursor Indi- cate the field's parameters, but all you need know about them for the pur- poses of this tutorial is that the default field is a text string (hence the S) with a maximum length of fifty characters.
Our database will have four fields in each record, which you should name in the following order: -program/file*, "Disk No.", Type of Program/File", and "Comments". As you type each one and press Return, you will be asked if you want your input checked to see if it is
printer Database of records Layout Ho. Index to.
Pllv&AT\v1 In ft> Arnnr 1 0»n: (4 F) COWHIKS Fr inter SIMFLE Recs:
rixDisk v1.2
|*Vlo«3er turbo
t Urujlron
tftelraColer
CtvfrOitfc 17 - Harcti V
Coopr&trt M - Oct SI
CoverOisk ?4 - Oct J1
CovtrOlik 24 - Oct 91
Cevtr&isk t« - tell
[Rill [P]U UklAM WwTO'ttf tf1?«t,5lxlpKJiI42?}X?ifL1iS2ui
SEL M Back [*] Next [Hi first [Ml LasUSIel/wts t*Sl Sel/AII Of
Tht Hal layout can alb* ,ou to qukkt, ku« your rrcordi
the correct type for the field. Answer N to each question until you have the four fields named, press Return after the fourth, then Esc.
Data entry
Once the database form has been saved to disk, Prodata will ask if you want to password-protect the file. Answer in the
negative for now, and press Return to go to data entry.
The demo version of Prodata will allow you to create databases with up to twenty records, so there's plenty of space to enter your favourite coverdisk programs of the past six months or so. At this stage, you should type in the rel- evant details for the programs you liked. As you fill each field, press Return
Field to. Field Label Data siring tonber of rtcorus selected
Prodofo'i info iWp con optofn a great d*al
X.F.I.
Author Tony Chcelham
Remember Tron. the sci-fi classic that used uimpulrt qiaphi.s lot |u\l .ibout everything7 Atlct its release, a flood ol name* appeared based on the lilm's moil exiling sequence, |ell Bndqes's life ami death light -cycle chaw, all of which gnppnl "w 'iai"c plavmq public through Hie sheer addtctiveness Of lion's iini|iiijl idea
Basically, rath competitor controls I , y, le wlvi h leaves behind il a stream ol lii|ti( as it Imm'K at m« the nieen I his light stream aits as a solid wall, and if
collided with will destioy the cycle As the game progresses, therelore, manoeuvring space becomes more ami more restricted until the player has nowhere to go but mtn oblivion.
The qame has both one and two player modes, so you can opt to cycle it out with a Iriend il the computet proves too tough lor you, which I guarantee il will to begm with! Ihere are alvo a lew extra ingredients lor the light cycle tenpe, adding a touch ol spice to whal has been pretty regular fare over the \catv
i....... j. .p.'1 1 .-".I l«* tmii'
Hazardous scenery
Rather than race over an empty screen, X I I adds a" «m teasing amount ol walls and othei scenery as lh* levels progress I he player ynnn Imds the nerd to avoid hitting stationary ob|eih
I 'mi's more pressing than the desite
to Itap an opponent As a cop-out,
r
The Disk that no drive can afford to be without - because it s free! PRODATA, ONE FULL GAME, and four great utilities!
UGA Fonts
to go to the next field, then Return and Esc to finish the record.
To add the next record, either select Add Record from the Edit menu, or press A, and continue in this way until you've filled out the database to your satisfaction. It would be best to stick to five records or so, as there is limited
space on the demo disk to save your database, and this number is sufficient lo demonstrate search functions and so on.
When the fast record has been ere*
The font included on your coverdisk is a sample from UGA's PowerFonts disk, containing ten fonts designed by Demo supremos such as Red Sector Inc. They are all presented in the form of DPaint IFFs, from which you cut each letter as a brush and paste it into your demo screen or message.
Square Font is just one of a huge number of excellent IFF fonts available for demo use, but if you find it tasty enough and want some more, you'll have to purchase a full disk from UGA or Softville PD. See the on disk documents for full details.
i
i
SS*f3*. !
AB you need for thaie PD drmoi
ated, press Return and Esc to exit Create mode. You will find you can now move back and forward through your database, one record at a time, using the cursor left-right arrow keys. To jump directly to the first record, press the control (Ctrl) key at the same time as the left arrow, and to skip to the end of your database, press Ctrl with the right cursor arrow key.
Once you're happy going back and forward through your database, it'* time to carry out a Find operation Co to the first record and select Find String from the Edit menu or type F. A cursor will appear in the strip at the bottom of the screen into which you should type the string you want to find.
Try the name of the program you entered in the second last record, and press Return. The disk will whizz as
Prodala looks through your records, then the display should change to show the record containing the string you typed in. Prodata cannot search back- wards, and will not continue on from the beginning of the database, so all searches should be started from record number one.
Layouts
The default Prodata layout is an unin- spiring sight, designed to make it easy for the beginner to produce a straight- forward list of records and get his or her database off the starting line. You can, however, make use of Prodata's flexible layout editor to radically alter the appearance of your records on screen and in print.
There is a menu dedicated purefy to
How to use the Disk
First of all, you must make a back-up copy of the coverdisk. To 00 this, boot up with your copy ot Workbench, then double click on the Workbemh drsk Icon, followed by the Shell or CU Icon. Now type:
DISKCOPY FROM OfO: TO DFO:
or, II you have an extra disk dnve, put a blank, lormatled disk In DFI : and type:
DISKCOPY FROM DFO: TO DFI
Follow the onscreen prompts until (he copying procedure has ended, then put your original disk away in a safe place. Now iwitch off the machine and wait for 10 sec- onds before rebooting with the copy. Watt until the CoverDiskl 7 Icon appears, double click on It and away you go.
That's all you need do to make a straight copy o' the entire disk. However, you may also want lo to copy individual
programs from your copy ot the coverdisk (o a separate disk. In this case ensure that you fully understand which related files need to go with it.
For example, all ol ine document files on the disk require that the tent editor PPmore is In the current disk's C: directory Therefore, it you copy the docs lo a new disk you will also have to copy PPmore to Ihe new C directory before you can read them
Some of the smaller docs will not have been crunched, so for these you need only change the tool types on the icon's info screen to reflect whichever text editor you do have on the new disk.
As a general rule, you should carefully cead the documentation for any program you copy from disk to disk.
This can save a great deal of messing about and can help you avoid all those infuriating error messages!
Abiding death ion be Ihtki
there are "jump gates" which, when driven into, transport you to the next level without destroying the other cycles. These can be very handy in a tight spot, but can also be latal il you are trapped into jumping to a level whose layout is a mystery to you.
If you're feeling particularly masochistic, you can change the game speed by pressing keys 1 to S on the top row of the keyboard. Speed 1 is the slowest and the default value, and I would recommend you stick to il until you become a more expert cyclist. If you want to die very quickly, speed S ts available at a key press.
If this game gives you hall as much fun as it's given us. you'll be well
CanDo Fixit
If you were surprised to find the brushanims icon missing from your de-archived CanDo demo from last month's front cover, how d'you think we fell?
The American suppliers, INOVAtronics inadvertently shipped us a CanDo demo with a mistake in the archive that becomes the ExtrasDisk. If you still have the de-archived disks you can repair the fault by using the program you II find in this month's coverdisk utilities drawer.
Make sure you have a backup of the de-archived ExtrasDisk (the second de-archived disk>, then boot from the coverdisk, double click on the disk icon, then the Utilities Icon, then on the FixCanDo icon. A script will be executed which will copy the missing files from the coverdisk to your ExtrasDisk, which you should then be able to make full use of.
Hunter III
Author. Neil Boffin and Martin Steven
If you bought our April Issue, you'll already have seen Hunter II, which was on that month's coverdlsk. We decided to Include the latest ver- sion because It has a couple of fea- tures which make it a much better all-round program - we think you'll like Itl
Hunter Is a sample "ripper", which means It will chew out the bits of memory containing sound samples, then save them to disk for later use In your own programs or MED/Soundtracker tunes. For this to work, there must obviously be some samples available to rip, and there are several ways you can ensure this.
Because of the nature of memory chips, a warm reboot (holding down CTRL-Amlga-Amlga) will not flush their contents. This means that If you play a PD demo or a game, then carry out a warm reboot, the samples used In the game's or demo's music will usually be preserved in memory.
Hunter can take advantage of
Palette
"jn if r i handy pakllr rtquater
the situation because it enables you to "playback" the contents of your computer's chip memory - where all samples are stored - until from among the hissing, crackling noises you hear a sample you'd like to keep. Once the sample has been found, you can isolate It using Hunter's Length and Start buttons until you have determined Its exact location, then save it to disk.
The Start button determines where In memory the playback will begin, and the length button sets the amount of memory to be played through. By the (udlclous
juggling of these two settings, it should be possible to home in on any sample present In your machine's memory, as these will stand out plain and clear from the background garbage that is the rest of your chip ram's contents.
tf this process seems a little over complicated for your tastes, you can make use of Hunter's very fast search option. By clicking on one of the two buttons under the word Search, you can instruct Hunter to go through all chip memory In search either of an IFF sample or a Soundtracker type module.
Neither Is perfect, and both will often entirely miss a sample or module. They are both very fast, however, and It's a good Idea to use them first, then resort to the longer and more tedious process of checking your memory piece by piece If they don't work.
The warm reboot method is the only way to rip samples from Inac- cessible software such as games or PD demos, but there are other ways of finding samples. Hunter III can load any sample, module, or tune into memory using its Load facility, then trawl through mem-
ory In the same way as before. Hunter III offers several Improve- ments over Hunter II. The most useful from an Amos user's point of view Is the facility to load Amos sample banks for examination, or to save samples as an Amos bank ready for use in Amos programs.
This facility makes Hunter the only choice of sample ripper for Amos fans and represents a major upgrade from vZ
The second major extra is Hunter Ill's ability to load PowerPacker data files, uncrunch them, and search them for sam- ples. It seems these days as If everything has to be powerpacker compatible, so universal has It become as a cruncher, so Hunter's new PowerPacker-friendly version will ensure It isn't left out In the cold.
As an added extra, there is a palette control which you can bring up by clicking the right mouse button any time Hunter's window is active. This Is designed to complement the Workbench 2 look of the main panel, an effect which can be unsuccessful if the screen colours are wrong.
> layouts, but for the moment you need only select Create New Layout, the last in the list. When asked, call the layout "flat", and press Return to go to the layout editor.
You must now define the layout's parameters. Most of these don't con- cern us as the flat layout will be a fairly simple example.
Type in the values shown in the box on this page to create a layout with records that appear as thin strips one above the other.
Since we allow 999 records per page, you can fit as many of your records on one screen as possible, mak-
ing this sort of layout ideal for quickly glancing through the database.
When you've typed in all of the parameters, press Esc. The screen will change to a graphical representation of the layout, and field one will already be onscreen ready to be positioned. It needn't be moved as it's where we want it, so press F to call up a list of fields, and double click on field two.
The field will appear as a line of dashes on the editor screen, and will be highlighted to show that it is the cur- rently selected field. We want to move it to the right of field one on the same line, so hold down the Shift key and use
PPLoadSeg
Author: N/co Francoli mo,dSe9 is .he answer to a disk -n^am, J***^
"paich"i replacing the Amiga s Loaaieg rouu
PowerPacked system files. covetdisk to the C:
To use PPloadSeg on any d,sk ^ ™ ™ (o ^ ,he line
distributor for UGA Software, on 0705 266509.
the cursor keys to move the field across and up until it is in the correct position. Remember to leave a blank space between the two fields.
If you now press Esc, the layout will be saved to disk and your records will appear onscreen in their new form. Don't worry that only two fields are vis- ible - the other two still exist To swap layouts, choose "Select Layout" from the layout menu or press L A list of the available layouts will appear and you
can double click on the standard layout if you want to see all the data again.
Now that you've grasped the basic principles of layout creation, you can go on to create address labels, book record cards - the list is endless. To master the full power of Prodala, how- ever, you'll need more advice than we can supply in these two pages, and for that the only source is the Prodata manual, available from Amor when you buy the full version of the program!
PicSaver
Author: Preben Nielsen
PicSaver is a utility for saving screens or parts of screens as IFF files for later use in DPainl or any other Amiga art package. For example, all the Virus Checker windows grabbed for use in this month's disk pages were grabbed using PicSaver.
To run PicSaver, either click on its icon, or run it from CU by typing
namr <ietm»>
The program will automatically detach itself from the CLI to run in the background.
Three way split
In use. PicSaver off en three ways to save screens or parts of screens. All three involve holding down the left All-Shift-Ctrl keys at the same time. To save a full screen, hold down Alt-
Shift-Ctrl and the S key and the presently active screen will be saved once you've typed its name and save path into the file requester.
To save a window on its own, ensure that the desired window is active by clicking in it, then hold down Alt-Shift-Ctrl-W to bring up another save requester.
The third method involves holding down Alt-Shift-Ctrl with no other keys. A cross-hair will then appear on your mouse arrow, which you can use to cut out a portion of the screen in exactly the same way you'd cut out a brush in DPaint Click with the left mouse button and drag the cross- hairs until you've outlined the target area, then release the button and type your path and filename into the requester as normal.
To remove PicSaver, either run it again, or press Alt-Shrft-Clrl-Esc
The recent outbreak ol the Saddam file virus, a particularly nasty piece ol work, prompted us to cast around (or a good general purpose killer capable of deal- ing with the latest menaces. Virus Checker was the obvious choice.
Installation
You can run the program by clicking on its icon once Workbench has loaded, but by far the most efficient way to use it is to include it in the startup sequence of your hard drive or the distc from which you normally boot your system. If you continually reboot with different system disks, it's a good idea to put Virus Checker on its own disk and use it after each reboot
To do this, take a blank, formatted disk, install a standard boot block using the command:
UJTI.LL DRIVE IfO: <UMI>
then copy the program across to it from the coverdisk. You can do this by dragging the icons across on
*>' disi m elti B&s NW-STWMI boot cur
It can Itom any numbrt of boot block virion
Workbench, or by using the COPY command.
If you have two drives, boot from the coverdisk and place the blank disk in your external drive. Next, click in the CU window left open at the bottom ot the coverdisk main screen and type:
COPT UTILITIES/VIRUS_CHECKEI TO DM: ALL <UTM>
The entire Virus Checker directory will be copied to the extra drive, and you should be able to run it at any time by typing:
DFimRUS.MEKEI <1ETUII>
If you have a single drive, your best bet would be to load Virus Checker into ram at the start of the day, tf using a word- processor, for example, you could then check each dala disk before saving pre- cious documents to it. To copy the pro- gram to another disk using a single
Virus Checker
Author: John Veldthuii
drive, activate the CU window on the covecdisk's Workbench screen, and type:
COPt COP! TO IAN: <1ET0I»
COPT C» TO III: <tOMft>
COPT WtlLlTKS'VlIUI.CHECCtA TO 111: ALL
<IET01I>
CB IAD: <IETUH>
Now insert the blank disk onto which Virus Checker is to be copied, and type:
COPT IAH:IT TO DFO: <IETUM>
If in future you need to use the pro- gram to check a number of disks, or would just like it close at hand, rename the disk as VIRUSCHECKER (no spaces), and type:
COPT VIIHCKCIU:!? TO lAd: <IETNI>
You can now run Virus Checker by typ- ing:
lAltVllUI.CMECIEl <IETUU> at any time.
Using Virus Checker
When activated, Virus Checker first checks memory for known viruses or suspicious vectors, and removes or dis- ables those found.
The program next checks all floppy drives for known boot block viruses and alerts the user to their presence. At this stage, you have the option to display, ignore, or remove the virus.
Displaying the boot block will give
•Mr (*k»p:'*r
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SAKE I
Th» Oifb in Oil : bai tun HlMlHl with ih» ICA (vn Vims
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you a chance to gaze at a load of machine code which sometimes con- tains Ascii text from the coders of the virus. This can be of help of you're try- ing to decide whether a dodgy boot block is a virus or simply a custom block.
If the boot code displayed by Virus Checker includes a stupid message from the dork who wrote the virus, you can rest assured of its identity. Otherwise, the display function is just a
handy aid to nosy people like you and me. If the boot block is a new or unknown factor, a fourth option appears enabling a "learning" function. This adds the boot block to Virus Checker's "brain file", a sort of ID parade for boot blocks. Once a boot block is added to the brain file, Virus Checker will cease to alert you to its presence, saving loads of hassle if you have a lot of PD disks with message- style boot blocks.
Digital Scuds
As a last ditch defence against the Saddam virus, John Veldthuis has sup- plied the computer equivalent of the
fltu* t.it«r drill u* Is ti ChecMd lor ltM. IM. CtnturiDM, at fftitpntc Viruses
m \h* itriaj Gidft thto areii (rttoro) it CI id » CWrk *M*t Ctlca N cancel to Aeert Ctitck Nov.
IMU; Tht Fiti dri:l/tisk-VtliM»r • b«o infected mth tfci SADWK Virus II* Mr has kef* KLltEl 1m U>e disk ii'fl vm «*» Mfd U replace it »ttli Ikt tui-Vtlidttor filt fron * ato4 Disk.
Vint Chetktt will lake tart ol Saddam'
A icon for Xtno can wvr a lot of htartoche
Patriot missile system in the shape of his FixSaddam program. The program is designed to be used on disks already Infected by Saddam and, when run, attempts to repair any damage inflicted by the virus.
There is no cure for disks which have been completely kippered by Saddam, but the virus will alter some blocks when it first infects a disk, and it is this damage that FixSaddam is intended to repair. To check a disk, put it in one ot your drives, say DFO:, and type:
ftiSaddai MO: <IETUII>
The program will then cycle through all tracks on the disk, and will inform you when it finds Saddamised blocks.
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Think you can do better? Want to be famous?
We are always on the lookout lor new. quality Amiga programi (or the coverdisk. H you think you hive writ- ten something good enough for others to ihare and enjoy, please send it m and we'll have a loot.
The Amiga Compufino. covertfak is used by thou- sands ol Amiga owners every month in places afl over the world from New Zealand lo the U.SA » f your submission finds its way onto the dnk, you could be famousl
Please make sure you hit ALL Workbench and other files necessary for the program to wort Feel free to design your own icons for progs which run from Workbench, but please don't make them too big
U you ensure your program is as compatible as pos- sible with a wide range of Amigas, it w* abo stand a better chance of pubkalion. We are especially inter-
ested in programs designed to work with the A WO although rf they work only with the new machli they'll have to be quite small.
We are prepared to pay our current rates for orW nal work which hasn't been distributed in any oth way and which has not been put in the public domali
If you wish your program to be released as shai ware or freeware we will be happy to publish it, b would, of course, be happier if we'd been given it firs
Your submission MUST be accompanied by tl submissions form, a copy of it, or a signed declaratu to the same effect. Please supply your full nar address and phone number.
Unfortunately we cannot undertake to return dr sent to us as the volume of submissions makes the impractical exercise.
Name ......
Address hmm
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Evening phone..
Submission size.
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Submission name ..„ „h
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the material on Oils disk a mint I dldn'l steal ll horn someone Hie It hain't been published before and haven't submitted It ebewhere because I want Amiga Computing to publish It I understand thai by sub mittlng my work 10 Amiga Computing *nd ugntnq thti declaration I am giving full copyright control it Europress Publications Itd.
I understand that II my submission ri bought by Amiga Computing I will be paid the current apphcabb rate I know what copyright means and I wii be responsible lor any pouibie litigation arising from breach ol It by Europcest Publications ltd as a result ol using my submission.
Poil your submission)
IV) JH A COPY Of THIS FOAM to;
Sl9ned - Swvie Kennedy, Amiga Computing.
CoverDisk Submnuons, Europa House,
Date . Adlmglon Park. Macclesfield, SK10 4NP
/DLadbroke Computing
International
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afturys r>e criaiprxt we do endeavor to offer consrstonff)' pood sbwb art backup J This isril frsl a* opinion we were voted 'ttcsf Deafer f9flST by fie readers of NMfl rnaoa^wtc not lor 'the ntxvbor d boxes shltetf. but la quatfy sornca
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It you have ever used an Amiga application that opens a high res- olution or interlace screen, you wtH have noticed the rather awful inter- lace dicker that afflicts these screen modes. If you use Desktop publishing or Computer Aided Design (CAD) you will probably find that high resolution screens are essential, and you have to find a way to reduce the flicker.
There are several ways in which you can reduce the flicker on a television or standard monitor, such as the Philips CM8833 or the Commodore 1084. You can reduce the brightness level on the monitor, change the colours, buy an anti-glare screen filter or even wear sun-glasses. None of these methods will completely remove the flicker - they will just cut the levels down.
De-interlacers
II you have decided once and for all that the flicker must go no matter what the cost is, then you have only one option - buy a multisync monitor. Depending on what machine you are using you will probably need to buy a de-intenacer card as well. This converts the video output from the Amiga into a stable non-interlaced output that the multisync can display.
II you own an Amiga 500 there is only one de-interlacer currently avail- able (or you - the ICD Flicker Free Video board. This board plugs inside your Amiga 500 invalidating your war- ranty, and will probably not fit if you have accelerators or other internal hard- ware added. Once installed, a ribbon cable with a 9-pin monitor connector hangs out of the back of your machine. To this you can attach a multisync monitor.
If you want to play games, or work in low or medium resolution you will find that fast moving objects, like your mouse pointer, or anything that moves
4^4 9-pin monitor connector hangs out of the back of your machine ^
Does your telly or monitor flicker? Do your eyes update your brain 50 times a second? Maybe it's time you
looked at flicker-free displays.
jolyon Ralph has the details...
in games, will blur to the point lhat a lot of games are totally unplayable. The only solution to this is to use a monitor connected to the standard Amiga output for these modes, either your original television or medium-resolution moni- tor, or your new multisync with an adaptor cable
Video slot
The Amiga 1500 and 2000 provide a special video slot which allows easy installation of a de-interlacer card. There are two such cards available - the original Microway Flicker Fixer, a tried and tested design, and the Commodore A232Q card.
The Microway card has been around for a couple of years now and was, until they released their own card, strongly recommended by Commodore. It fits neatly into the
video slot with a 9-pin monitor output Most modern multisyncs have 15-pm outputs rather than 9-pin. so you may need an adaptor to plug your monitor in.
Like the ICD board, it does not han- dle low or medium resolution very well, leaving you to either run two monitors or wire up a cable allowing you to switch between the Flicker Fixer and the standard 23-way output. The Microway card, unlike the ICD and Commodore card, is not compatible with the new ECS screen modes.
The Commodore A2320 card uses
the same de-interlace circuitry that is found in the Amiga 3000 which unlike the Microway and the ICD products, is intelligent. It will de-interlace all high resolution and interlace screens, but will double-scan low and medium reso- lutions screens.
This means that not only is the image free from blurring, but the thin black scanlines found on ordinary mon- itors have been removed. The result is a clean and sharp image, although it does make low resolution in particular seem rather blacky. It is certainly better than having to put up with two moni- tors or a switch box.
Switched off
If you don't like the blocky low res or for some bizarre reason you want to return to the flickery interlace, there is a disable switch on the card which will give you a standard Amiga image.
The Amiga 3000 does not need a de-interlacer. for it has an excellent de-interlacer built in to the machine. Any standard multisync monitor, including those listed below, will give a stable image in hi res.
There are a wide vanety of multisync and similar monitors available which will work with the Amiga. Some of them will only work with the flicker-fixer installed and actrve. others will also wort with the standard Amiga output, or with the Commodore A2320 card in all back mode. For PAL machines the monitor must be capable of 50Hz vertical frequency opera- tion, which unfortunately rules out most cheap VGA monitors.
Monitors
When looking for a moni- tor there are a few things which you must take into consideration.
Firstly, it must be capable of a 50Hz verti- cal sync frequency - as opposed to a 50Hz power supply fre- quency, which it must handle if sold in the UK. Otherwise your Amiga picture will continually roll around the screen with no way of stopping it.
Some monitors are capable of a 50Hz display despite it not being men- tioned in the technical specifications. Also, it you want to use it with the stan- dard Amiga output - either direct from the Amiga's 23-pin video port or by switching off the A2320 card - the monitor must be capable of a ISKHz horizontal sync frequency. Most larger monitors cannot handle this,
The second thing to check for is the screen quality. This is, of course, a com- plex thing to measure. Watch for the dot pitch - this is the distance between each group of red, green and blue dots *
What is flicker?
Interlace Bicker is unavoidable when using the Amiga with a television or a cheap colour monitor This is because a single high-resolution Kwn cannot be fully displayed in a single vtdeo frame (1/50 second). To output the full display requires two passe* The first frame displays all the odd-numbered lines, 1 ..3..S.7..9.. and so on, and the second frame draws in the even-numbered lines to fill the gaps. However, because of the time delay in drawing the second screen, the phosphorous screen has already started to fade, and it it this drfltr- ence in brightness levels between the odd frame and the even frame lhat causes U>r (Inker
What is a multisync?
Televisions and normal monitors operale on a fixed frequency The frequency is described in two components: the vertical Ireqoency. wh.ch b the number ot frames displayed per second, and the honzontal frequency. whKh ,s the number of horizontal lines displayed per second.
Standard PAL televisions have a vertical frequency of 50Hz and a horizontal frequency of around 15.5KHz. The Amiga output is identical to this, to allow the Amiga to display all video modes on the same monitor - unlike the Atan ST. With these (ixed values, the number of lines that can be displayed in one frame .s lim- ited to around 300
A multisync monitor can accept a w,de range of vertical and honzontal fre- quencies, typically 50Hz to 70Hz vertical and 15.5KHz to 35KHz honzontal.
A quick calculation reveals that by doubling the standard Amiga honzontal fre- quency, we can get all 512 lines of our h.-res display in one frame, resulting in no Ibcker. De-interlacer cards work by providing an output at these Irequencies I that the multisync can display.
on the screen sur- face. The lower the dot pitch, the higher the screen quality. This can range from 0.39mm on bad monitors to 0.21mm on the most expensive screens. Some screens have anti-glare coatings to cut back reflected light, others have low radiation screens which are said to be safer to use, particularly for pregnant women.
Taxan sell a wide range of monitors that are compatible with the Amiga, from 14in models up to 20in monsters.
Options
The Taxan Multivision 770 Plus LR is probably the most popular of these. It works fine with both standard Amiga output and de-interlaced output It is a Min monitor with an excellent anti-glare tube. The dot pitch is 0.31mm, which is average for these monitors, but not excellent. This moni- tor has the distinction of being one of the lirst low-radiation colour monitors around which are so safe that even the Swedes use them. Apparently.
Less healthy, but with a bigger screen, is the Taxan Multivision 970 with its 20" display and 0.31mm dot pilch. This monitor has a medium-per- sistence display, which means that interlace is cut down considerably even without a de-inlerlacer, because the phosphor coating on the screen fades more slowly than normal screens.
If you want the best in quality screens, the Tafcan Multivision 795 pro- vides an amazing 0.26mm dot pitch on a 1 4" screen. Unlike the other two Taxan monitors mentioned here, it does not
4 Monitors which are so safe that even the Swedes use them ^
support standard Amiga 15.5K.Hz signals, so it will not work without a de-interlacer, or if it is turned off.
Other popular monitors are the AOC range. There are two very similar mod- els being sold, the CM-325 and the
CM-326. The CM-325 is a Super-VCA monitor rather than a multisync. The difference with Super-VCA monitors is that rather than working over a wide band of frequencies, they can automati- cally switch between a few preset fre- quencies.
These monitors are often consider-
More information
Display enhancers
Make
Commodore Power Computing
Mi< row ay
Monitors
Make Taxan Taxan
laxan
AOC Monitors
pjnasontc
A2320 - ,£249
ICD flicker Free Video ~ *2S0
Mtcroway
Flicker Fixer • XI 25
Multivision 770 Plus LR -£629 00
Multivision 795 £6" 00
Mull iviskm 979 £1,999
CM-32S ~ "°°£400
CM-326 «0C£400
TX-1703MA.... - - £1,399.
All of these monitors are available from most serious Amiga suppUers. including Almalhera, on 081-683 6418 All pnees include VAT
ably cheaper than multisyncs, although not all Super-VCA displays will work with de-interlacers, and they will not work with the new ECS display modes or with the de-interiacer turned off.
The CM-326 is a true multisync and will handle all Amiga displays including the ECS chipset. Both monitors have a good 0.28mm dot pitch and a 14" tube. The CM-326 comes with both 9-pin and 1 5-pin plugs to fit easily into any of the three boards available, although you will need to use an adap- tor cable if you want to run the monitor with the standard 23-pin output.
My personal favourite for price and features - although I can't afford one at the moment - is the Panasonic TX-1703MA. It has a Sony Trinitron 17" FST screen and a 0.28mm dot pitch. Although it cannot cope with standard de-interlaced signals, it can cope with the ECS productivity modes.
The screen display is simply excellent - it is big enough to allow you to use a large display with small fonts and still read them, but not so big that you hurt your neck constantly turning your head to view both sides of it. It also has two sets of inputs, which is useful if you have two or more computers.
Flexible
II you have more than one computer, multisync monitors can prove a worth- while investment. One monitor can work not only on the Amiga, but on PC's (with VGA, Super-VCA or above graphics), Apple Macintosh II, Atari ST and almost every other type of com- puter you can think of.
If you have an Amiga bridgeboard you can forget the crummy slow CCA graphics - add a VGA or Super-VGA board into your system and plug your multisync directly into the bridgeboard for the best possible PC graphics. Monitors with two or more sets of inputs will allow you to wire up the bridgeboard and your Amiga directly lo the monitor and switch between them giving you the best combination of Amiga and PC graphics > you can have in one
"hi
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A professional desktop video system. Combine graphics, animation and animated titles to make your own video productions or live multi-media presentations. Showmaker features:
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• Titling over Amiga animation and graphics as well es video
■ Synchronized music and animation to eiternaictocas ISMPTE'MTC or Midi)
• Complete control of Genlock functions
• Midi commandand file support
• Full ARexK support
• A ait 'or -click Interactivity
• Production looping
• Volume lading
• Story boarding
• Cue sheet generation
• integrationwithAmigaViiion
• Multiple wipes, reveals, and transitions
• integration with Video Toaster
• Demonstration video
■
HOW MAKER DEVICE SUPPORT
• Video effects switchers
• Laser disk players
• Video tape recorders
• Genlocks
• Writable optical disks
• Midi devices
• Video networt protocols
ONLY£199
i:m:maker
DESK TOP VIDEO
Provideo Post Broadcast Titler 2 Digiview Gold 4 Pixmate Video Tiller Director Showmaker Elan Performer
£142 £166
£99
£31 £100
£64 £199
£69
Professional 3D animation rendering
system.
Features:
• Mtlftl wiedowobject editor
• Full Boolean math object creation tools
• Comprehensive animation edilor
• Includes key cell tweening & motion velocity
• Multiple rendering techniques
• Ray trace, solid model, wire trame & polygon model
• Intuitive user interface
• User defined image sues
• 24-bit image support
• Real time object manipulation
• Supports all Amiga graphic modes
ONLYE135
RAY TRACING
Sculpt Animate 4D Turbo Silver Imagine
£279 £100 £135
COMPLETE COLOUR SOLUTION
Pack includes; Vi Di RGB VIDI AMIGA VIDI CHROME
ONLY£129
Colour splitter Videoframe grabber Digitise lull colour pictures
PROGRAMMING
DOS 2 DOS Cross Dos Devpac Amiga Histoft Basic Lattice CVS Lattice C+* 8BCEmulator Extend
£25 £19 £26 £20 £149 £139 £39 £16
MISCELLANEOUS
Digita Home Accounts Quarter Back Distant Suns Pro Flight
£29 £34 £30 £30
Three dimensional modelling tool suitable for draughtsmen, designers, engineers and any creative person wishing to make the most of their Amiga. Features:
• Over 1000 3D command combinations
• Accurate to I millionth ol a millimetre or inch
• Poi nt, I me, siring, ere, polygon and pattern fill entities with planar surfaces and surfaces of revolution as standard primitives
• User definable symbol libraries
• Selectable real world units: Metric or English
• True 3D model space with almost infinite units
• Group modification commands include: copy, move, rotate, mirror, scaleend project
• Command location input features include: Giidsnap, entity snap, end, origin, intersection, layer, colour etc.
• Cartesian co-ordinates
• Automatic hidden line removal and shading
• 64 outline colours and up to 4096 colour shaded images
• User definable conslruction planes
• Over 100 000 000 available layers
• Automatic perspective views
• Dynamic view manipulation • real time
• Pull down menus
• Support torHPGL, CPGL & BGLpen plotters
• All preferences supported primers
• Output toTurbo Silver
• XCAD Designer and XCAD Professional compatible
ONLY£185
COMPUTER AIDED DESIGN
XCAD Designer XCAD Professional XCAD 2000 XCAD 3000 XCAD 3D
£71 £299
£75 £199 £185
XCAD UPGRADES
From Designer to XCAD2000 From Taurus to XCAD30>» From Designer to XCAD3000 FromXCAD2000toXCAD3000
All prices include VAT, delivery and are subject io change
Unit 8 Railton Road Woburn Road Industrial Estate Kempston Bedford MK42 7PN Tel: 0234843388 Fax; 0234 840234 All trademarks acknowledged
£19 £165 £165 £146
Spoc>l>citieni in subnet 10 change wilhoul nol«ct
IfLlltUlMtl' Kl USUI I'll
TIUtl4»7t<M<lliHtl> F« I1I4HM01
itiMMieeMi wseetw
howroom am Court Road ondon W1
New Showroom 232 Tottenham Court Road London W1
I A M O N D
COMPUTER SYSTEMS LTD
'svjVA
PacK
THE 24 CARAT DIAMOND PACK
AMIGA 500 +
3 GAMES
Back To The Fulura 3 Speedball II. Hard Drivfn II
£299.00 ,nc
1Mb
PacK
1Mb
COMMODORE CARTOON CLASSIC PACK
AMIGA 500 *
Lemmings. Captaifl Planet Bart Simpson, Deluxe Paint III + RAM board
ONLY
£345.00
mc VAT
• PHILIPS B833UKU MONITOR WITH " ' ■ GAME 4 COMPETITION
1Mb
PacK
CLASS OF 90 s PACK
Everything you need for Art + Design ♦ Word Processing
AMIGA 500 *
AMIGA LOGO. INFOFILE. LETSPELL. MUSIC MOUSE. CBM EMULATOR. DELUXE PAINT II, 0501 1/2 Meg upgrade, Mouse Mat - 10 free disks
wly £429.00 inc vat
• philips 8833 mk n monitor
WITH Pi& GAME A COMPETITION
only£649.00 inc
VAT
PacK
Mb
COMMODORE CARTOON CLASSIC PACK
AMIGA 500 +
Lafnmlnga, r*jit* San Si<iu»r n, Oahus Paint HI • RAH board
+10 Games
Man Unfed i Speed Bal II.
Xenon IL" ■ t.1,/,1 ■ ■;
Hard OrlVtn II. • l X»lQv , Pipe Mania Cada>«K H-<. ■ TroFi,-!"- .joyst**. "IOj-io. mousemat dusicover. ten spare <MK& . tx».
ONLV £399.00 INC VAT
-PHILIPS S633MKH MONITOR WITH > GAME 1 COMPETITION
only£599.00 inc vat
You get everything but itw kmmn amk
new PacK new
AMIGA 500 SpeedBall PACK
INCORPORATING
51ZK RAM ' Two Manuals
i Mo Disk Drive Operaong System
4096 Cotout* Buil in Speech
Mouse Synthesis
TV Modulator ^af
' MEGA PACK -
Speed Bal H, P'*n,i ■■ , ii,HinUm«d. Xenon II. T^engg^ Mniv.i W*va~ - Hard Onvln II, ST Drn-j Pip* Mania. Cadaver. Uat» lo The Future 3
only £349.00 MC VAT WITH
8833 MK II Colour Monitor ONLVC569.00 inc
PacK
AMIGA 500 PREDATOR PACK
INCORPORATING
51W RAM ' Two Manuals
1Mb Disk Dnve " Opefatng System
4096 Cotours V * BuiH tn 5peech Mouse Synthesis TV. Modulator
'10 GAMES'
Predator II, Hjrd Dnvm . Phobia. Samt & Greavsie, Hard Drivin II, Datasterm. Man United. Pipe Mantojeenage Mutanl Turtle; Emotion
ONLY £329.00 mc vat
WITH
8633 MK II Colour Monitor ONLY £549.00
foarlventjwssof dffiffi&dM £>0&C3®£3&
m -The lab of puiv
PftOf6**OR PRICE!...
AT LAST I UAME ThE PoVJ&R,
oTTwe ooze.- rr was &oot>'
W4O06H ToSTop Those T± ■ffcENA&E- MUTANT -foR1b\S6S. til U£6 IT ON DIAMOND..
HMMM... WPSSSMTb HAVp A PROSUCM...1
No. 1 FOR
Diamond Retail Outlets Around The United Kingdom
• Dorset
t 0202 716226
• Bristol
t 0272 522044
• Manchester
® 061 257 3999
• Warks
• 0926 312155
• South am Z 0703 232
• Romford / 081 597
• Edinburgh © 031 554 2
• Central London t 071 580 4355 (Retail Only)
Export Holllne Bristol 0272 522044 Richard Brown
REMEMBER, AT DIAMOND YOU HAVE A CHOICE
NEW PacK NEW
AMIGA 500 SKILL PACK 1Mb 'NCORPORAT1NG "V,U AMIGA 500+ fMVIU
Disk Siorag© Bo* ' Two Manuals
1 Mb Ois* Dnv# Opa<a!fl(| System
4096 Colours Built-in Speech
Mouse Synthesis
' T.V. Modulator EXTRAS'^ RAM
'DIAMOND MEGA 10 DAMES'
Man UniMd. PrutJaw | Speed Ball II.
Xenon II, 'o.<i.i> M urn 'jinja Turtle*, Hard DnV*) II. 5 i ' -agon. Pipe Mania. Cadaver. Sack To Thffyun 3 . Joystick
ONLY £354.00 INC VAT
WITH
8833 MK II Colour Monitor ONLY £574.00 inc vat
p.N PacK
QUALITY AMIGA 500 COLOUR
1Mb
PLUS HOME OFFICE KIT
The ultimate word processor-DTP pack
' Integrated Wordprocessor
DTP THF Spreadsheet „
Database ULTIMATE
PACK
PLUS
24 pin SWIFT 24 colour pnntef Including colour Kit
PLUS 51 2K RAM Board Philips 8832 Mk II Monitor
£879.00 inc vat
Authorised full service centre al our Bristol Office, now ottering same day ropalrs. Contact Keith our service manager for details Bristol 0272 522044
PacK
AMIGA 500 TURTLE PACK 1 Mb INCORPORATING 1 juiu AMIGA 500 + MVIU Ditk Storage Box ' Two Manuals
l Mb Disk D-Jve Operating System
4096 Colour* Built •» fipeecn
MouW SynVWSR TV Modulator ' £XTRA6l2k RAM
'DIAMOND MEOA 10 GAMES*
Predator II. ■ 'd U' >»•'. PnoOta. Mo- "United, Hard Dnvin tl, Oallltcm. Pipe Mania. ' r"ri"o 3, Emotion. Muuuv N im|,i Tuniee + Joystick
ONlV
£354.00
WC VAT
WITH
8833 MK II Colour Monitor ONLY £574.00 inc vat
PacK
A590
20Mb Hard Disk with 2Mb RAM
20 FREE 3 1/2" disks 80 Disk Capacity. Disk Box ONLY £339.50
PROTAR Hard Disks & RAM
A500HD20 C279 00 A500 HD30 £349.00 A 500 HD 50 C429 00 ASM HO 50OC ES29.00 A500 HD 80 £542.00 A500 HD 80 £599.00 A500 HD 100OCC039 00AS00 HO 160DC £939 00
1 Mb RAM £58.00 2Mb RAM 4Mb RAM £248.00 8Mb RAM RAM power supply £34.00 12 Mb memory upgrade kit
£116.00 £496.00
All prices include VAT
D Word PIN KAC Ix Processor QUALITY & DTP
AMIGA 500
1Mb 1Mb
51 2K RAM board ' Philips 8833 Mk II Monitor ' 9 pin eolour printer ■ Connecting Lead
PLUS HOME OFFICE
/
Processor •DTP
' Spreadsheet * Database
ONLY £749.00
INC VAT
^
1Mb PacK 1Mb
DIAMOND MUSIC MASTERS PACK
Everything you need to create your own In house musical extravaganza
AMIGA 500 + MUSIC-X ( the complete MIDI sequencer as used in recording studios by the professionals)
+ MIDI Interface +512k RAM upgrade
ONLYE399.00 INC VAT
I'U- Ai9T Blow! rt AWAY Wllb MY HURRICANE BREATH AHb <^l\NG> mojbv fon CHClVTMA* ff
yjjrT o
COuuD t CJCR MA SUPER- HERO UKfl -tou?
WANT A1 500? GOT A 500?
SWAP IT FOR ONLY £499.00
MR DIAMOND'S PART^ EXCHANGE CENTRE
STEP INTO THE FUTURE WITH THE AMIGA FAMILY OF COMPUTERS
AMIGA 500
The ideal first time buy, with superb graphics, there is no better machine on the market with 1000 s ol Top Software titles trom as lltUe as £5.00 at Diamond.
AMIGA 1 500/2000 rev B
For the more adventurous user, this machine not only offers all that the above does but also has capabilities for the latest In video tilling and digitising, high quality animations, most general application software and has the possibility of being easily converted to a compatible PC . XT or AT. Most small to medium sized companies can be easily administered on this machine. NOTE - All of Diamond's press advertising is produced on an Amiga 1 500.
AMIGA 3000
The Ultimate machine for the serious user, again as well as offering everything from the other two machines it also runs Commodore's new multi-tasking operating system Workbench 2.0. flicker free graphics on- screen as standard. There is even a Unix option for this machine. It runs at 25MHz on a 32bit processor andl undoubtedly sets the standard tor professional use for the 1990's
Now You Understand The Machines. Improve Your Social Standing With The Ulimate In Amiga Power
DON'T YOU OWE IT TO YOURSELF TO DRIVE THE BEST? NOW YOU CAN WITH DIAMOND PX!
Full upgrade palhs and trade-ins are available on your Amiga 500 from all our branches.
All you have to do is bring in your computer and any accessories and as long as it is in adequate condition then you can walk away with an Amiga 1500
lor only
£499.00
P/X is available from all of our branches.
Come to DIAMOND and meet the Amiga Experts!
AMIGA
A 1500 1Mb RAM. 3.5" floppy disk drive, base machine with 2x 3.5" and new software pack
all above* Monitor
with XT Brldgeboard
floppy disks £699.00
£899.00
£999.00
INCREDIBLE PX OFFER
visit Mr. Diamond and discover what your A500 is worth in part exchange
XT Bridgeboard
5.25" floppy drive £149.00
AT Bridgeboard with either
3.5" or 5.25" floppy dnve £575.00
The NEW Commodore AMIGA
AMIGA 3000-25-100 25Mhz, 100Mb hard disk An Incredible £2395.00 INC Mr Diamond Incredible Offer with 1950 M/sync monitor C2595.00 INC VAT AMIGA 3000 4Mb Static column RAM £199.25 or FREE when you buy the Full Kit at ONLY £2595 INC VAT for the fist 50 customers.
you have reached the limits of the A500 then lake advantage of the Diamond Pari Exchange Upgrade Option. Swap your 1 MO A500 lor an A2000 for ONLY £349.00
Mr. DIAMOND AMIGA 2000 PACK A2000 Rev. B 48Mb Autobooting Hard Disk,
28ms average access ONLY £995.00 With Colour Siereo Monitor ONLY £1 1 95.00
A2000 base machine £469.00 Ex-demo A2000 £645.00
PC XT & AT Compatibility for AMIGA
XT Bridgeboard
5.25" floppy drive £149.00
AT Bridgeboard with either
3.5" or 5.25" floppy drive £575.00
BUY NOW & SAVE MONEY
THIS CHRISTMAS
MR DIAMOND'S SUPER SPARES CENTRE
IVS TRUMPCARDS
The IVS Trumpcard Is the top selling SCSI hard drive controller. Representing the latest in technology directly from the USA. it is the only controller to support IBM, Amiga and Apple MAC partitions on one hard disk. This allows you to run software for the three main hardware platforms on one machine. Only one computer can do this
PHILIPS MONITOR
B833 Mkll colour monitor inc. dust cover and lead
♦ F19 Promo only £229.00
HARD DISK DRIVES
IMPULSE FUJITSU
IMP52SL.P 52Mb 3ms DMJJO M261 2ESA-MJ iMPbOS/LP 60Mb 9ms UW SO M261 3ESA-MJ IMP- a5S LP 105Mb9ms £309.00 M261 4ESA-MJ IMPiTOS 1?0Mo6ms £999.00 IMP2I0S 2lGMb8ms £*59.00 SYQUEST
44Mb 28ms P O. A. removeaWe cartdridge drive TRUMPCARD FOR ABOVE add CI 13.00
90Mb 19ms U«.CO 135Mb 19ms £367.00 180Mb 19ms 24DS.CO
MEMORY UPGRADES
tor your A 1500 or A2000 with the
Supra 8Mb RAM board
Bare Board £81 .00 Extra 2Mb populated £75.00 Extra 4Mb populated £149.00 Extra 6Mb populated £223.00 Extra 8Mb populated £295.00 Extra
|
Topstars |
JOYSTICKS £23.95 Prot 9000 dejuxe |
£29.99 £12.25 |
|
|
Navigalo Afiicl'S |
'£14.99 £9.99 |
Flash Rre The Arcade Turbo |
£11.95 E23.9S |
|
Gunshol |
£5.00 |
Cheetah 125* |
£5.00 |
|
£18.99 /£1021 |
Challenger |
£34.95 |
FLICKER FIXER
Get Ihose flicker tree high res modes, use the Flicker Fixer Video Card
EXTERNAL DRIVE
3,5" external dove £54.95
HIGH RES
1024x768. 0.28 dot pitch Multisync Monitor £349.00
|
SOFTWARE |
|||
|
Pro Page 2.0 |
£169.95 |
Pro Video Post |
£149.00 |
|
Propage Templates £34.95 |
Propage ClipArt |
£34.95 |
|
|
Pro Write |
£85.00 |
Sculpt Animate 4D |
£279.00 |
|
Broadcast Titter II |
£17900 |
X CAD Designer |
£69.33 |
|
X CAD professional £229.00 |
Deluxe Paint III |
£34,95 |
|
|
Oigiview Gold 4 |
£88.13 |
Plxmate |
£35.00 |
|
Vista |
£49.00 |
Distant Suns |
£36 00 |
|
Pen Pal |
£81.00 |
Cross DOS |
£25.00 |
|
Devpac Amiga |
£45.00 |
Hisoft BASIC |
£55.00 |
|
Lattice C V5.0 |
£149.00 £34.00 |
Lattice C*+ Pro Draw |
£250.00 |
|
Hisoft Pro Flight |
£81.00 |
||
|
Quarter Back |
£35.00 |
Videotitler |
£100.00 |
|
Turbo Silver |
£100.00 |
Director 2.0 |
PO. A |
|
Photon Paint II |
£23.50 |
Bars & Pipes |
£120.00 |
|
Excellence |
£89.95 |
Pagesetter 2.0 |
£44,96 |
|
Pagestream 2.1 |
£129.95 |
Pro Write 3.1 |
£88.95 |
|
Quick Write |
£34.95 |
Scribble Platinum |
£34.95 |
|
T tans write |
£27.95 |
Platinum Works |
£68.95 |
|
Home Office Kit |
£69.95 |
Superbase Pro 4 |
£116-50 |
|
Hyperbook |
£34.95 |
Wordworth |
£85.00 |
AMIGA BOOKS
AMIGA For Beginners £12.99 3D Graphics programming £18.99 Machine Language £14.99 Systems programs guide £32.99 DOS inside* Out £18.99 C for advanced programmers £32.99 Graphics Inside & Out £32.99 ♦ Many others for Christmas AMIGA MADE EASY Video
ONLY £9.99
E149.CH
GVP PRODUCTS
GVP COMBO board. The SCSI hard disk controller with built in 68030 accelerator and RAM expansion capability.
22MH? Combo with t Mb RAM £799.00 33MHz Combo with 41Mb RAM £1*95.00 40 Mb SCSI hard disk £249.00
1 1 4 Mb SCSI hard disk £449.00
GVP Series 2 RAM Card comes with 2Mb RAM as standard.
2Mb £200.00 4Mb £275.00 BMb £345.00
GVP Series 2 RAM Card Bareboard £209.00 40Mb £369.00 52Mb Quantum 1 1ms E429.00 1 1 4Mb NEC 20ms £ 549.00
ICD Adspeed ICD FFF 0, VGA Monitor AT-Once
(2000 version also available)
£175.00 ICD Flicker Free video £499.00 KCS PC Power board £169 00 £199.00
£?W.0O £235.00
ICD
FLICKER FIXER POA
600 Mb Hard Disk P.O.A.
NEXUS COMBO'S
High speed Hard Disk Controllers taking
up to 8Mb of on board RAM
Bareboard £199.00 52Mb Quantum 11ms £425.00 114Mb NEC 20ms £689.00
GENLOCKS
Rendale 02
£149 00 £57500
20Mb Disk
Drive
P.O.A.
Obviously, when you carry as much stock as DIAMOND, you can't advertise all your spares; but contact your local branch and we guarantee you won't find the part that you're looking for at a better price.
ALL PRICES INCLUDE VAT
BUY NOW AND SAVE MONEY FOR CHRISTMA
THE VISION OF THE FUTURE^ IS NOW THE PRESENT AT DIAMOND
C.D.T.V. £599.00
EDUCATE YOUR CHILDREN THE WAY THEY WANT TO BE EDUCATED, WHILST BEING THE ENVY OF ALL YOUR FRIENDS, WITH A NEW DIMENSION IN SOUND AND GRAPHICS FOR YOUR HOME.
So what is C.D.T.V. ? Are you confused by all the hype? If you are , then why not pop into your local Diamond branch for a full working demonstration of this exciting new medium and have all the answers to all of your questions translated by experts from unneccessary gobledegook into plain easy to understand English.
GREAT PART EXCHANGE OFFERS You will be surprised at just how generous Mr Diamond will be when you trade in your old Amiga 500 for a C.D.T.V. C.D.T.V. ROM, normally £599.00. only £349.00 when you P/X your old Amiga 500 External Amiga A500 ROM Player ONLY £399.00
|
All Dogs Go To Heaven Electnc Crayon |
EM N |
Hutchisons Encyclopeadla |
£49.99 |
|
Classic Boa/O Games |
£34.99 |
Time TaMa ol Sconce & Innovalion |
£39.99 |
|
Piycho Killer |
EM M |
Time Table ot Business Politics |
£39.98 |
|
WtbOi ol me Demon |
CM 99 |
Dr. Wellman |
£54.99 |
|
Case ot me Cautious Condor |
BUI |
The New Basics Electric Cook Book |
E3B.99 |
|
Batllestorm |
EM M |
World Visia Atlas |
£54.99 |
|
Sim City |
(MM |
Amancan Heritage Dictionary |
£49.99 |
|
De*ende» o* the Crown |
BUI |
Complete Works o< Shakespeare |
£34.99 |
|
Lemmings |
CM 9fl |
Illustrated Holy nr.. |
C34.99 |
|
Xenon II : Meg ablest |
£39.99 |
Illustrated 5hekxk Holmes |
£24.97 |
|
inCoo' Soots |
C2999 |
Amencan Vista |
£47,97 |
|
Many Roaoft to Murder |
EMM |
Moving Stomach Acne |
C36B7 |
|
Snoopy |
£29 89 |
Hound 0> BasKervllle |
£24.97 |
|
Spirit ol EicallDu' |
1 J j N |
AnmaM In Mown |
£36 47 |
|
Horse Racing |
EMM |
Sign ol Fa* |
£36.47 |
|
Nlnja Highschool Comli |
£1699 |
A Study m Scan* |
C36 47 |
|
Dinosaurs for Hire |
£16.99 |
Emergency Languages |
£26.47 |
|
Baskerball |
Bfl M |
Prelvstonc |
£39.97 |
|
Battlechess |
E44 N |
||
|
Terminator |
£27.47 |
||
|
Road To Final Four |
£34.97 |
B.v -»y Bc-a- O&es to Schoci |
|
|
Gnatshy HocKyi |
EM N |
Fun School 3 (for under S's) |
£29.99 |
|
Po*e* Plndan' |
£24.97 |
My Paint |
£24.99 |
|
CD Remn |
£24.97 |
A Bun lor Barney |
£39.99 |
|
Falcon 21 |
£47.97 |
M-nd Run |
£39.99 |
|
Super Games Pack |
£19.98 |
Thomas s Snowsurt |
£34.99 |
|
Space Wars' |
£19.97 |
Scary Poems tor Rotten Kids |
£39.99 |
|
Chaos m Andromeda 1 |
£26.47 |
Paper Bag Pr-neess |
£34.99 |
|
Town With No Name! |
£26.47 |
The Tales ol Peter RaDbrl |
£39.99 |
|
Team Yankee |
EM N |
Mud Puddle |
£34.99 |
|
Murder Made Strange1 |
£24. 9B |
LTV English |
£34.99 |
Benjamin Bunny I Rawest
Barney Bear Camping' Cinderella!
Long Hard Day Ranchl Haathat Hits Home Run1
Indoor Plants
Women m Motion
Animated Colouring Book
Advance Military Systems Series
Garden Plants
Trees and Shrubs
Fnrfs . Vegetables and Herbs
Music M.i«"r
£3197 £24.97 £19.90 £26.97 £36 96 £2697
£29.99 £34 99 £34.99 C29.99 £34.99 £34.99
EMM
f 19.09
SOFTWARE SUPERSALE
100 s of Titles coming soon! Buy a system before the price goes Sky High!
EVERY DAY IS SALES DAY WHEN YOU SHOP THE DIAMOND WAY ALL THESE TOP TITLES FOR ONLY A RIDICULOUS £5.00 EACH
Man United. Totall Recall, Speed Ball II, Xenon II, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Final Battle, Stunt Car Racer, Cadaver, Super Off Road Racer, Golden Axe. Hard Drivin', Phobia. North & South. Silkworm, Shockwave. Continental Circus. Turrican, X-Out. Ninja Warriors, Table Tennis. Chess Player 2150, Datastorm, E-Motion. Dungeon Quest, Grand Master Slam, Kid Gloves, Mercenary, Rick Dangerous. RVF Honda, Shuftlepuck Cafe. Soccer, Menace, Blood Money, Saint & Greavsie. Netherworld, Nightbreed, Slaygon. Snowball Hell, Fastlane, Aton 500, Balistrix, Gold Runner. Tower of Babel, Fantasy World of Dizzy, Star Blaze, .star Ray, Terra Quester, Jupiter Probe, Bombuzzal. Days of Thunder, Dark Castle, Dark Side, Prospector, Archepelagos. Terrorpods and many many more...
ONLY SOMEONE AS WONDERFUL AS MR DIAMOND CAN OFFER YOU THE LATEST TOP SELLING TITLES AT
UP TO 1/2 PRICE, JUST CHECK THE PRICES BELOW
Lemmings only £14.95, Bart Simpson only £9.95, Captain Planet only £9.95. Deluxe Paint III only £34.95
D501 51 2k RAM card -dock ONLY £24.95
ALL PRICES INCLUDE VAT
CHIPS 8t DISKS
We only sell new chips A590 Memory chips 0.5Mb £17.60 1.0Mb £35.25 2.0Mb £69.00 A590 2Mb Populated £328.00
8UP BOARD & CHIPS Bare Board (0Mb) £81.00 add cost of RAM lo your specification
2Mb + £69.00 4Mb t£1 37.50 6Mb + £206.00 8Mb +£274.00
DISK CONTROLLER CARDS The GRANDSLAM, new SCSI controller Irom IVS. Extra Parallel port - space for 8Mb on board RAM
only £235.00 NEXUS SCSI hard disk controller card - space (or 8Mb on board RAM.
ONLY £199.00 The U.K. oHicial importer
ALL PRICES INCLUDE VAT
D501 512k RAM card* Disk Drive ONLY £79.90
MONITORS
ALL PHILIPS U.K. MONITORS
HAVE 1 YEAR ON SITE GUARANTEE + F19 Software
■*4 \y v
PRINTERS
PHILIPS 88J3(U.K.) Colour Monitor with stereo sound
* FREE LEAD & DUST COVER
. Ft 9 Promo Only £229.00
DIAMOND Multisync Monitor OnlyE347.00 COMMODORE 1084/s Only £222,00 COMMODORE 1084/SD Monitor Only E234.00
DISKS
FOR A LIMITED PERIOD WE ARE SELLING HIGH QUALITY 3.5" SONY BULK DISKS AT ONLY E0.35 EACH
|
STAR LC200 COLOUR |
£189.00 |
|
CITIZEN 1240 |
£190.00 |
|
OKIDATA LASER 400 |
£704.00 |
|
PHILIPS MNS1432 |
£116.00 |
|
CITIZEN SWIFT 24 |
P.O.A. |
|
WITH COLOUR |
P.O.A. |
|
PANASONIC KXP/1183 |
£187.00 |
|
OKIMATE 20 |
£153.00 |
|
STAR LC MONO |
£140.00 |
|
STAR LCW10 |
P.O.A. |
DIAMOND PRINTER BARGAINS Seikosna B0 column Quality 9Pin 192cps printer only £11 4.95 wc VAT
OR with the HOME OFF1CEKIT onlv £179
SEE OUR SEPARATE »0 IN IHIS CS3UE Buy an OKI LASER 4ppm tor
ONLV £589 INC VAT HP Paintjet. high quality ink jet printer.
only £589.00. We can't be beaten on genuine U.K. prices.
WHERE ELSE CAN YOU GET PRICES LIKE THESE? YOU CAN'T BUY CHEARPcR THAN DIAMOND!
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VIDEO |
SECTION |
|||
|
Deluxe Paint III |
£34.95 |
DigiView Gold 4.0 |
£88.13 |
Deluxe Video III £67.95 |
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Digipaint III |
£54.75 |
Rom bo Vidi |
£79.95 |
Amiga Vision £69,95 |
|
Photon Paint II |
£23.50 |
Disney Animation |
Art Department £49.95 |
|
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Sprite |
£3.50 |
Studio |
£82.25 |
ArtDeptPro £124.95 |
|
Icon Paint |
£3.50 |
Art Dept Pro |
||
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Comic Setter |
£23.50 |
Video Studio |
£116.50 |
conversion Kit £59.95 |
|
Can Do |
£49.95 |
Hyperbook |
£39.95 |
Deluxe PhotoLab £49.95 |
|
Elan Performer 2 £74.95 |
T.V. Show |
£48.95 |
||
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Scene Generator £27.95 |
Scala Fonts £169.95 | |
AUDIO MUSIC AUDIO
A" the latest and best audio and music packages from Mr. Diamond al trie keenest prices
MusicX ver 1.1 £59.00
Perfect Sound £39.00
Audio Engineer £149.00
MasterSound £25.00
Quartet £33.00
MIDI l/F £24.95
Keyboard £25.00
LHC Microsales 1 21 Regents Street Leamington Spa - Works TEL 0926 312155 FAX 0926 883432 OPEN ON SUNDAYS ▼ ^ Diamond Computers ^ 144 Ferry Road EDINBURGH Scotland * TEL 031 554 3557 . OPEN ON SUNDAYS A Diamond Computers 1022 Stockport Road MANCHESTER TEL 061 257 3999 FAX 06 1 257 3997
HOW TO ORDER
Simply telephone through your order, giving your Access or Visa card Number or send a cheque or postal order to your Local Dealer. All prices include VAT unless oiherwise staled. Next Day Courier Service Delivery £1 1.75 Please allow 5 working days for cheque clearance. Bankers drafts clear on Ihe same day
All pneo tit iwrcn U lunt of pxuji tu picn bui ma) (lunar »lih"ui notice
Diamond Computers 232 Tottenham Ct Rd LONDON Wl TEL 071 580 4355 Amiga World downstairs
THE
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Diamond Computers 84 Lodge Road SOUTHAMPTON TEL 0703 232777 FAX 0703 232679
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I
« E
Tie Amiga is already the primary nachine in the world of desk- :op video, with countless titlers and all manner of Amiga generated images finding their way in to both amateur and commercial productions.
However, up until now the Amiga's role has been merely that of a special effects engine, only called upon to add finishing touches such as animations, titles and of course glamour where live action is concerned.
Now fortunately for both the machine and it's videophile owners, that's all about to change and the once humble extension to the average video workstation may soon become its heart.
VideoPilot is one of three systems presently leading the field in Amiga controlled editing, and over the next few months we plan lo explore all the available options and give the definitive guide to the Amiga in the movies.
Obvious advantages
Anyone who's tried video editing the old fashioned way won't waste any time extolling the virtues of computer controlled editing. The endless piles of scrap paper, worn out stopwatches and an expression that only being up till four in the morning can provide, are sure signs of the video editing old guard.
The basic principle of any editing system is to help keep track of hun- dreds of scenes spread throughout your library of unedited tapes, to arrange them as required, then to accurately assemble the desired shots in a user defined order, all with squeaky clean edits making seamless connections.
To achieve this, the various master tapes need lo be either timecoded or controlled via their tape counters. The timecode option Is by far the most pre- cise of the two and boasts an accuracy of +/- one frame, which is as good as any system can offer.
The tape counter alternative isn't anything like as accurate but is still capable of between 5 and 10 frame precision over a period of around IS minutes. If you're working with longer tapes, the software can divide the footage up in order to keep timing within tolerable limits.
What's in the box?
Like many dedicated Amiga applica- tions, VideoPilot is a combination of both hardware and software - the hard- ware element of the equation being a multiple input timecode read/write unit that synchronises three source players whkh then write to a fourth mastering machine.
The various machines can be a mix- ture of VCR's and camcorders, all of which are controlled by either infra red or hardwire remote control.
Along with the black box, you receive a pair of infra red rodents which
connect to the VideoPilot and issue commands to the players by taking over the role previously undertaken by their own remotes. Also included is the control software, connections and of course the ever-present manual.
The learning process
Perhaps VideoPilot's greatest strength is its versatility and willingness to learn how to control the ever-changing vari- ety of available VCR's and camcorders.
It's the afore-mentioned infra red rodents which provide this power, due to their ability to be taught how to con- trol unfamiliar machines. This is done by aiming the VCR's own infra red con- trollers at VideoPilot's surrogate units which then learn the required com- mands to operate the transport on the machine.
This process is done a matter of moments in one of VideoPilot's embar- rassingly friendly option screens,
which in this case asks you \ A to press a func- \ tion key for the , j*^^
appropriate O video control, at , ■ which point a l 1 bleep sounds \ prompting you to hit the corre- t-^-" sponding button on the VCR's own remote.
After all the commands are com- plete, the Amiga assumes full control of the VCR from the comfort of the func- tion keys. Amazing...
Having explained this impressive tal- ent it's perhaps unlikely that you'll need to try it for yourself - there are a multi- tude of pre-defined configurations already programmed into the software and even if you do need to define com- mands they can be stored on disk and loaded with the rest when necessary.
Second only to VideoPilot's flexibility is its easy of use, which for a program and hardware combination of such
UIDEOPILOT PRE EDIT CHECKLIST HELCDME TQ THE UIDEOPILOT SYSTEM 1) CHECK UIDEOPILOT IS CONNECTED TO THE AMIGA UIA THE SERIAL PORT B) CHECK THE DUTPUT OF THE RECORDER IS CONNECTED TO THE TO
RHD THE TU IS TUNED TO THE UIDEO SIGNRL 3) CHECK THE PLRYER<S) HHD RECORDER HRE CONNECTED TOGETHER CORRECTLY THIS CRH BE VERIFIED B* PLRYIHG ERCH MRCH1HE m TURH RHD CHECKING RH IMAGE IS SEEN ON THE TU H) CHECK THE UIOEOPILOT CONTROLS THE RECORDER UIR
THE FUNCTIOH KEYS 5) CHECK THE UIDEOPILOT CONTROLS THE PLRYERtSi UIA THE FUNCTION KEYS 6> IF CASSETTES ARE TO BE TIMECODED CHECK THHT PLAYER RIGHT AUDIO IN IS CONNECTED TO UIDEOPILOT TIMECODE OUT
NEXT PRGE URLIDRTE
A prime example of VideoPilot's helping hand apptoath to editin
movies
Paul Austin takes the controls of perhaps the most flexible DTV editing system around.
complexity is a rare thing indeed. All the various screens lead you by the hand with large icons and wiring con- figurations all appearing onscreen.
This makes the correct connections in the real world as simple as possible.
n.nriinn nn U'UU'UU uu
F9
i - II
TEST RLL PC FUNCTIOH KEYS CDMTF.OL
THE CORRESPONDING FUNCTION;
BEFORE BEGINNING EDIT
Vour chance lo try Ihe canUolt of your video, via the function keyi
The entire process of configuring and operating the system is done with the rodent, with the only exception being the operation of the video controls which, as mentioned earlier, is done with (he function keys.
A prime example of this process in action is the configuration screen which displays the rear of the V3I0 or VideoPilot if you prefer, and four selec- tion boxes for the various players and the recorder.
Configuring the system is simply a matter of clicking on the appropriate input on the V310. then on the player in question. If your selection is incorrect the software throws up a warning and suggest what could be the problem.
To select a player simply requires clicking in one of the four available boxes until the correct make, timecode and control method appears.
If your particular player isn't avail- able you can add the necessary details followed by a trip to the programming screen to teach the infra red unit the correct controls.
When all's well with the system you can timecode the tape and begin to
UiDf OPiLOT CONFiGURRf iON
Timecode trickery
HMD RECORDER »T SELECTING THE
E OF EDUIPMEHT HHO COUNTER CKING DM MENU EOXES
LES BV CLICKING OM CONNECTORS
ilf'C MODEL INfil'liERT I1O0EL CLIO ON OK 10 CONTINUE
Setting up your jyilrm. mode eaty thanki lo the toolptool configuration urttt)
ilot
th the Amiga...
construct your masterpiece, with the aid of the onscreen Edit table. This allows old and new scripts to be chopped and changed as required, with wordprocessor style cut and paste operations.
Effects can be added at various points, such as captions, still frames, crossfades and genlock effects which when necessary cause the software to emit a warning bleep, allowing you to operate the desired effect at the appro- priate moment.
The inertia of the record machine can also be adjusted to ensure accurate edits and up lo eight tapes can be used
in the various machines during assem- bly. Once again, a warning bleep is sounded when the necessary changes are required.
All the shot selections are done via the function keys, with fine-tuning being achieved via single frame advance or, if complete accuracy is required, through'the Edit table.
Conclusion
In general, VideoPilot is excellent, and H you're a video nut it may even be worth the asking price, for the professional who wants to free valuable time for
rrnnttadlng yaw crrationi in imidiii with Ih* tlmplr coding KIWI
Perhaps the biggest stumbling block in both the Amiga and video worlds is the seemingly endless supply of incompatible timecodes which are unsuccessfully vying for dominance.
In the professional market this problem has long been resolved thanks to SMPTE timecode which has been the industry standard in TV and film for years.
In music SMPTE also plays an occa- sional role 3long with MTC but unfor- tunately video Is a minefield of formats and VideoPilot docs its bit to add to the confusion by employing its own propnetary code entitled V3TC. This, of course, isn't compatible with either VITC or SMPTE systems but does work with RCTC or "artic" as ifs known and pronounced.
This happy coincidence is both great news for VideoPilot and Sony who are employing this new format for use with 8mm camcorders. The big advantage of the new system is its ability to retain a full stereo sound- track without the need for any modifi- cations to the VCR.
Because VideoPilot reads this new format frame accurately it can be edited direct, something which Sony's own RCTC editing system has not yet mastered. So for the moment if you're the proud owner of Sony's CCD-V800 camcorder, VideoPilot could be the perfect choice.
Like everything else, the addition of a timecode can be a case of swings and roundabouts, due to the sacrifice
more work and less editing It could soon pay for its place in your system.
After all, once the shot selection is complete and providing there are no tapes to be change, the system can be left to compile your creation all on its lonesome.
My only criticism concerns the limit of two infra reds which could cause problems on some systems, although of course four hardwire inputs are available for the remaining players. The only other disappointment is the inability to see your edits prior to mas- tering.
Having had my little moan, both fac- tors are more molehills than mountains and don't do any real harm to what is an very impressive product.
VideoPilot Is available from: EMR Video The Bam Business Centre Ct Rlsslngton Cheltenham CL54 2LH
Tel: 0451 810185 Price; £850 VideoPilot £50 for extra Infra red
£75 for Multiplexor £10 AB roll switch box
of one of the available audio tracks for timecode information.
If you're working with hi-fi VHS/S-VHS or 8mm units employing PCM sound, it will inevitably mean that you'll be left with a mono sound- track. You could always combine the sound from both tracks but of course the actual stereo effect would be sacri- ficed anyway.
On non-stereo VCR's and cam- corders adding a timecode will com- pletely obliterate any available sound, so dubbing to a hi-fi machine might well be worth the loss in quality.
Enhancements
E.M.R., the UK distributors of VideoPilot, offer a number of addi- tional services to enhance the abilities of the system. The first of these ts to supply a PCM encoder for 8mm source machines equipped with the optional PCM track. The PCM/AFM output is then split into separate mono hi-fi tracks for sound, and mono PCM for timecode.
Other machine formats can have their pre-amplifier circuitry and out- put sockets modified to keep the origi- nal hi-fi sound in stereo whilst still being able to output a separate time- code track to the VideoPilot.
All the necessary work is done by E.M.R. who operate a collection and delivery service using insured couriers to transport the love of your life back and forth In perfect safety.
Because the system supports up to three players and a recorder, a whole range of connections bristle from the rear portions ol the black box, which control not only a variety of players but also tape formats and control systems
As a result almost all machines can be catered for, providing they support either the LANC (Control L) system, which can either be a five pin mini Din socket, a mini jack or alternatively the aforementioned inlra red remotes.
Source machines
Viden 8/H18 camcorder with LANC VHS, S-VHS, VMS-C or S-VHS-C stereo
VCR with infra red control Camcorder with inlra red control
Record machines
Vtdeo 8/H18 VCR or camcorder with
Video-m and LANC socket VHS. S-VHS or VCR with Infra red 01
|VC-type pause fack socket U-Matic, BVU or any pro-recorder
with 33-pm parallel interface
ALL PRICES INCLUDE VAT, COURIER DELIVERY
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New PC880B intelligent disk drive featuring: Blitz Hardware, Virus Hardware, Anti-dick, Thru-port, Isolating Switch • Ten 3.5" DS/DD disks with labels • 40 rapacity lockoble disk boi • 3.5" disk drive (leaner kit
Only £69.95
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AMIGA ASOO ASTRA ASfX 5t2k corrcwter. rrou» software titles (see ASOO svB ASTRA pack below for deteia)
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AMIGA ASOO 1MB CARTOON CLASSICS Amga AfiOO computer. 5t2K Ram expansion wilh clock and battery back-up. mouse, tv moekiator. manuaia Workbench etc daka. plua The ampeone. LemmnpA Captan Panel and Deluxe Pamt 3
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AMIGA A1SOO BASE A1500 <»mputer with 2x35" 880k dak drrwee butt in. and a mouse. The A1500 base pack la suppled with no aoftware
AMIGA AISOO SOFTWARE ccnaetaof Aeoobaas pack and Platinum Works. D Paint 3, Populous. Stem Qty. Battle Cheaa. Their Rneat Hour and 2 books
1m b
3mb
5mb
9mb e
C5QQ.OO £795.00 £873.00 £1000.00
£055.00 £850.00 £930.00 £1055.00
NEW!! PROTAR ASOO HARD DISK DRIVES
At last ... htoh quality bard disk drives tor the Amiga A500. The new PBOTAB range of A500 hard disks are bete ... end Just took at the specifications ...
Accessories
A5005t2K ram upgrade* clock £2999
ASOO 16Mb ram upgrade £9999
A590 20Mb hard dak drive £264.96
External a5" Disk Drive £85.00
Goloen Image Hand Srjanrw C16900
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Amiga 8833 MM Lead CT299
Mouae Mat C350
512K Ram Upgrade with Clock
We are now atrxkingthe new PROTAR 5CK RAM UPGRADE WITH CLOCK The neat compact 4 chp design comes complete with box nalREbcna on/off switch and a hit t2 month warranty.
PROTAR 5I2K Ram with clock £29.99
We also ravelled stocks of the genuine Commodore A501 5t2K Ram ^pension, which we are offenng at me ultra low price of i
' Perfect colour and fitting to the A500 ' S times faster than the A590 ' 8MB Internal ram expansion facAty * 1 year REPLACEMENT warranty ' Auto parking & auto booting
Sizes
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i range Mak Cache' PSU
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£3999
Please specify which 5I2K ram mgrade (other Protar or Ccimmodorel when ordering from ua
PRINTERS
Alof our printers come with a paratel cable to serf Atari ST Amga and all standard PC etc (other cables aveiabte at extra cost _ ask for detaisl At printers carry a tut t2 months warranty We only set genuine UK stock - we do oof otter inferior 'grey Imports'.
SPECIAL OFFER f For a Smiled period only we ore offering a CITIZEN PftNTEF STARTER PACK with af Citizen printers. The pack comprises of : 3£~ dak fuM of printer drivers for the ST Amiga S PC: 200 sheets of fanfokl tractor feed paper. 200 fanfokl tractor feed address labels. 5 tractor feed envelopes at for only CTZ99 on top of the price of the printer
Citizen COD « (9-pin H4 cos draft 30 ops NLQI £13900 Cmzen Swift 9 19-pin 192 ops draft 48 cps NLOI £199.00 Citizen C4D (24 -pn 144 cps draft 48 cps LQI
£19900
Gtizen Swift 24 (24-pln 192 cps draft 64 cps LQ) £29900 Citizen Swift 24X 124-pin *S" carriage version of Swift24l £399.00
Star LCK) Mono f9-p#i H4 ops draft 34 ops NLOI £155.00
Star LC200 Colour (9-pei 180 cps draft 45 ops NLOJ £2200)
Star LC24-10 Mono (24-pkx ISO cps draft BOcpsLQ) £215.00
Star LC24-200 Mono (24-pkx 200 ops draft 87 cps LQI £260.00
Star LC24-200 Colour (24-pin 200 cps draft 87 ops LQI £29500
Sta/XK4-OMono^^Pro/esafeina7Ser7es' £475-00
Star XB24-C Mono (24-pin 15" version of XB24-10) £600.00
Canon BJ10E Bubble Jet fnk jot portable and compact) £28900 Hewten Packard Desk Jet 500 ink jet 3 pages per minute) £459 00
Philips 8833 Mkll Colour Monitor
The Phitps 8833 MM is the perfect colour monitor for Amiga owners. With its stereo sound and super quatty picture H raaty shows off the 7iM capabMties of the Amiga. The Ptotpa 8833 MM also comes with B months on site warranty FREE
8833 wite Amiga cable £24999
proud to announce the production to our range of the new VtSTO colour men/tor The VTSTO CUM. made irxter official UK licence from Phelps themselves, is identical in every respect to the Phtps 8833 Mkt inducing at inputs and outputs. But VtSTO have enhanced the looks of the monitor by rvpiacsig the case with a new upx/raded better lookttg version. The VtSTO Ct4M has anooubolet2 month replacement warranty and comes free with cables for at Amrgaaand at Atari ST&
V1STO 04M £248.00
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Well, what will they think of next? First we had sequence dancing, fol- lowed by synchronised swimming and of course sequenced music. Now Cold Disks have gone the whole hog and produced the Amiga's first multimedia sequencing package which claims to control every aspect of the machine's >ast array of talents - all from one user fnendly interface.
If you're anything like me, at first you'll probably be a little confused as to what a multimedia video sequencer actually does, how it does it, and why you'd want it to do it in the first place. Well to clear the air I teet a short expla- nation is in order.
ShowMaker's primary mission is to draw together all the Amiga's talents and apply them in one smooth and perfectly sequenced production. To do this it employs the Timeline which Is the window at the very heart of ShowMaker.
The Timeline is an event display win- dow which shows all the elements within a production plus their duration, type and position within the creation. The unusual thing about what Is in effect a fairly standard sequencer is its ability to control a whole range of events, whether they be external video sources, internal sound effects, musical backing tracks or, of course, animation.
Track talk
Before we defve into the various ins and outs of the system, a quick look a just
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The timeline in ait ion. with ttilii running Uraight into animation*
THE
SHOW
must go on...
Sit back and relax as Paul Austin reveals all with the assistance of ShowMaker, the latest star on the video sequencing stage
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