COMPETITIONS!

icon Graphix
Cosmic Shock Absorber
 !t was a one-in-a-million accident -
but Number Five, designed to be a
strategic artificially intelligent
weapons system, the most
sophisticated robot on the planet,
has escaped - and has come to
,the conclusion that he's alive!
Now the scientist who put him
together wants to take him apart

Ocean Software Limited

Ocean House • 6 Central Street Manchester M2 5NS Short Oi\»t» i trjtfcfrwi of TrvSur Return, Inc. jnd PSO Pirtenutiom.
Telephone 061 832 6633 Telex 669977 Oceans G W86 VvSur Pmurev Inr, tnd PSO Prrvonuiiom. Al Right* Rt-wrved
 m
FEATURES REGULARS
NEWS: The return of Monty Mole.
FIRST STEPS IN MACHINE CODE: Advice for beginners 4
from Alon Davis.
14
SHORT CUTS: More readers' routines
42
EXPERT SYSTEMS: Lef your computer decide.
18
QL COLUMN: News of a new Superbaslc compiler.
49
PRINTER GRAPHICS: How to get the best out of your
printer.
22 ACROSS THE POND: U.S. news
60

GREAT GRAPHICS: A round-up of all the best graphics

hardware and software. CROSSFIRE: Readers' letters.
24 71

DISCIPLE: Could this be the ultimate interface? RANDOM MEMORY: Programming advice from Clyde
30 Blsh.
72

MINI STUDIO: A sound sampler tor the Spectrum.

32 DISCOVERY COLUMN: Routines from Discovery owners.
84

THE VALUE OF TABLES: Pete Cook, author of Academy

and Tau Cell, reveals some of his programming CROSSWIRES: Problem Page.
secrets 87
58

STREAMS AND CHANNELS: Tonl Baker says that you SOFTWARE REVIEWS
CAN use your ZX Printer with the Spectrum 128.
ICON GRAPHIXS 128: A graphics utility for the 128

II | T m
66
from Audiogenic.
28

i
a r t 1 * l P i SPECTRUM: Silent Service (46), Impossaball (54), BMX
F m warn Simulator (56), Ultimate Games (61)
Short Reviews begin
38

I JH
»
Tsr
^ -JPL MINDPLAY: The Silicon Dreams Trilogy from Ralnbird.
76

H-s&J! fliwfi?

Gauntlet (82)

PROGRAMMING PROJECTS
PROJECT X: Ray Elder throws down a programming
challenge.
13
SPECWORD: The last part of our wordpro prog.
50
THE BETTER LETTER: Modifying Tasword.
90

COMPETITIONS
ICON GRAPHIX: Win Audiogenic's graphics utility
versions for both 48 and 128K machines. Football Fortunes (12)
7

COSMIC SHOCK ABSORBER: Martech's latest

mega-game.
37

3 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

 Monty
Grange Hill After Hours Returns
The Grange Hill cast gel the
arcade adventure treatment in
Argus Press Software's release
based on the Phil Redmond Gremlin's Monty Mole is
book, Grange Hill After Hours b a c k for his fourth outing in
The plot In this animated icon Aut Wledersehn Monty. Peter
driven a a m e centres on Luke Harrapt author of the first
"Gonch Gardener's attempt to Monty platform escapade
retrieve his confiscated Walk- has been recalled to
man from the school. With his p r o d u c e w h a t is said to be
accomplice Paul "Hollo" Hollo- positively the last Monty
way he must break Into the game. In the mark IV Monty
school after hours, gel his Walk- you must g u i d e him across
man a n d so avolclthe wrath of Europe while In the process
his mum. p i c k i n g up sufficient funds
Not surprisingly they run into to buy the Greek Island of
many of Ihe other characters Montos where he c a n enjoy
such as Griffiths the caretaker a p e a c e f u l retirement.
a n d tmelda Oavles, the school But will it be the last Monty
witch a n d sometimes when game? Will Peter Harrap
things get dicey Hollo has to be w a k e up one d a y soon a n d
p l e a d e d wlfh to carry on. find Monty in the shower
There's a degree of Interaction : r o w , w r ' T x r i M d o i n g a Bobby Ewing a n d
that enables you to talk to char- • f i l l i-ft'il eager to traipse over the
acters a n d their response Is In platforms yet again. The
keeping with their character. answer of course lies In how
Grange Hill — The Computer many Monty fans shell out
Game costs £9.95. tor the latest last game.

Spectrum Games Top Ten

1 ( 3) Gauntlet US Gold
2 ( ) Footballer of the Year Gremlin
3 ( D Trivial Pursuit Domark
4 t 7) Space Harrier Elite
5 t ) Super Soccer Imagine
6 ( 5) The Great Escape Ocean
7 t 2) Computer Hits 3 Beau Jolly
8 ( 3) Paper Boy Elite
9 ( ) Headcoach Addictive
10 ( 1 Breakthru US Gold
(Chart supplied by W.H. Smith)

Editor: Bryan Ralph

Assistant Editor: Cliff Joseph

r
Consultant Editor: Ray Elder
Advertising Manager: John McGarry

Design: Argus Design

Primed by Chaw Web, E stover, Plymouth. A.S.P. Advertising a n d Editorial
Advertisement Copy Controler: Andy Selwood No. 1 Golden Square, London W1R 3AB 01-437-0626
Distributed by: Argus Press Solo* and Distribution Ltd. 12-18 Paul Sfreol, London EC2A JJS

ZX Computing Monthly Is published on the fourth Friday ot each month Subscription rate} cn bo obtained Irom ZX Subscriptions. Inlonol. Times Houso,
179 The Morlowes. Hemel Hempstead. Herts HPS1 1BB
The content* of this publication. Including all article*, design*, plan*, drawings and other intellectual property rights heroin belong to Argus Specialist
Publications limited All rights conferred by the Law ol Copyright and other intellectual property rights and by virtuo of International copyright conventions
are specifically reserved to Argus Specialist Publications Limned and any reproduction requires tho prior written consent ol Ihe compony
Argus Specialist Publications Limited. 1987

4 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987


Yearplanner
A legion of ZX readers set out to
rhyme their way to a Level 9
Yearplanner. Perhaps our
favourite was Alistalr May of
Elgin. Scotland who m a n a g e d
to rhyme "adventures" a n d
"dentures" in a poetic gem
worthy of William M c G o n a g l e
The other winners are:
R. Wilkinson, Rugby; Jay
Sachania, Milton Keynes; C
Grant, Irvine; R. Tarr, Bracknell;
G. Galloway, Liverpool; M. Ack-
royd, London SE15; D.I. Wicker,
Fakenham; J. Jacobsen, Glos-
trup, Denmark; R. Thrower, Lon-
don SW18: T. Ridley-Thompson.
Lambley; I. Rogers, Devizes; P.
Owen, Sidcup; M. Summers,
Morpeth; G. Bond. Co Antrim;
D.V. Filip, Geraardsbergen. Bel-
•r *M >•»
MOVtMfcHO
t * t f f c N
5 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987
Joystick New Alignments
To Hand
Loading problems? Interceptor Micros have just released an
Azimuth Head Alignment Tape tor 48K a n d both 128K
Spectrums. Avid Azimuth checkers should note that the
package which Includes the head alignment program, a test
The makers of the Phasor One program on the reverse side (WheeTin Wallie), instruction
joystick are hoping to slun the manual, screwdriver a n d pointer, retails at £8.99.
o p p o s i t i o n with their new
"handheld" stick design. Made
by Britannia Software, the
Phasor One c a n be used by
either right or left h a n d e d
gamers a n d features the joy-
stick p l a c e d on top of the pistol
grip with the trigger p l a c e d
ideally for the Index finger.
Complete with an extra long Azimuth Head Alignment Tape
cable, presumably for firing on
the move, the Phasor One costs
£12.95.
B r i t a n n i a S o f t w a r e (0222
481135)
Winners
gium; C Collins, Normanto; B
Scott, Gateshead; M. Maysaml,
Dulsburg, W. Germany; H. Wil-
liamson, Moray: J. Welsh. Gals-
8
ow; T. Jamleson, St Helens; E.J.
hun, Lancaster; J. Shelling.
Cardiff; R. Sands, Sklpfon; R Lay-
cock. London SE6; M. Kemp Lon-
don SE18; H. Spall. London SE7;
RGB Page, Liverpool; M. Austin,
Chesham; E. Bennet, London
SW11; G. 8lake, Glasgow; C Mor-
gan, Croydon; M. Benjamin.
Northants; A. Beale, Blandford
Forum; M. Beaman, llford; P. Rey-
nolds, Sleaford; D. Rademaker, SINCLAIR SPECTRUM
Palinghuizen, Gent. Belgium; D.
Morrison, Aberchlrder; A, McLel-
lan. Paisley: B Carter. London E2;
/
A. Rlgg. York.
Throne
Together
Mike Singleton of Lords of Mid-
night a n d Doomsdark Revenge
fame Is teaming up with Mel-
bourne House to release a
"multi-player combat game"
c a l l e d Thrones of Fire. The
g a m e is a three-sided power
struggle with two players and a
computer opponent or one
player a n d two computer
adversaries. The three roles
layed are those of sons of the
Pate
c King Alherlk each vying for
the vacant throne. Alliances
c a n be formed [and broken of
course) as you try to out-
manoeuvre your fraternal foes.
Unlike some medieval
strategy games Thrones ol Fire
promises l a r g e a n i m a t e d
figures hacking away at each
other with axe and broadsword.
Priced at £8.95 Throne ol Fire
has a projected release date of
April. Meanwhile another Mike
Singleton g a m e Dark Sceptre
tlGfj £ COt-tFH J WODC
ORnrts i c n e w jqgi jrirtm
for Beyond Software has still yet
to see the light of day. Will
Throne of fire suffer the same
tale of repeated delays?
Enduro Racer Indoor Games
Acllvlslon are set to release gruelling trail bike marathon
the conversion of Sega's coin- over progressively rougher
op motorcycle simulation terrain, tnduro Racer will cost
Enduro Racer, The game Is a £8.95.

r "Sxrt 'T»xa«i»x<: \ruuu L-v&^i-fl

^ |r Jti.

Super Sunday
In the wake of the Superbowl, Nexus are releasing an
Amorican Football simulation c a l l e d Super Sunday. Costing
£9.95 Super Sunday will feature 20 of the teams who havo
appeared In the Superbowl since 1968. Details of the 1987
finalists Denver Broncos a n d the Now York Giants will also
be included.
Super Sunday wilt combine animation with players'
performances based on past form statistics. When you've
d e c i d e d which move your team will make, all the players on
screen move during the play. There is a two player option
or you can take on tne computer. There is also a n 'tiutoplay"
option where the computer plays two sides against the other
based purely on the teams' past form.

Lift for Quicksilva

A
> f

-I -I
I I
m

Elevator Action Is a g a m e where former lift operators will have

Adventures On Paper
a definite advantage In this coin-op conversion you must guide Incentive Software, is a i m e d at those who want
Agent Offo Irom the top of a skyscraper to the bottom where producers of the Graphic to organise their adventure
his getaway car is wailing. Olio c a n certainly take care of Adventure Creator have writing more efficiently. The
himself as he is able to 'Shoot, jump, ride, duck a n d karate kick released a new Designer GAC Designer Pad costs
his way lo salety". The g a m e retails at £8.95. p a d for Adventurers. Each £7.95 plus £1.25 p & p
p a d consists of over 200 Incentive Software, (07356
double sided A4 pages a n d 77288).

6 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

 ICONS AND
OLD MASTERS
Here's your c h a n c e to win one of twenty-five copies of Icon Graphix

C o p i e s of Audiogenics' Software Lid. The editor's Square. London W1R 3A&

enhanced Icon Graphix for fhe decision Is final a n d no Please remember to put your
128 are on offer in this correspondence. address on your entry envelope.
competition designed tor the art Send your entries to Icon The closing date for entries is
connoisseur. If you are a 48K Graphix Competition, ZX April 10th.
Spectrum owner, don't despair, Computing, No 1 Golden
just tick Ihe appropriate box on
Ihe entry coupon a n d if you win Icon Graphix Competition
you'll receive a copy of the
original Icon Graphix. A) Title - ( ) Artist - ( )
All you have to do to win is
correctly identity the three B) Title - ( ) Artist - ( )
famous pictures on
this p a g e a n d name the artists C) Title - ( ) Artist - ( )
who painted them.
If you c a n spot all three Please tick your machine - 48K • 128K •
pictures a n d their painters a n d
are a m o n g the first iwenty-five Name
entries pulled out of the hat, you
will soon be creating modern
masterpieces on your Spectrum
Address
a.
with Icon Graphix.
The competition is open to all
ZX readers except employees of Send your entries to Icon Graphix Competition. ZX Computing, No 1 O
Argus Specialist Publications, Golden Square, London W1R3 AB
Chase Web a n d Audiogenic O

7 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

 ij » - j r—J
i # i j* -1 < % «
lifil
*
£ 1
• »•- t
A 3D POW escape
game that captures the
Imagination
The Great Escape
Ocean
£7.95
ocked in a prison c a m p your
daily routine consists of roll calls,
exercise periods a n d e s c a p e
attempts.
If you're indecisive for more
than a few seconds you'll
automatically follow the daily
routine of sleeping, walking a n d
eating. If you want to try
something else then a press of
Ihe fire button regains control.
Now you c a n explore the c a m p ,
search a n d find potentially
useful objects a n d scout out
possible e s c a p e routes. But you
must return to the c a m p routine
if you want to stay out of solitary.
Swapping in a n d out of this
"auto prisoner" m o d e is essential
if you are to escape as it
ensures you get to roll calls, eat
a n d sleep but allows you some
time to explore the c a m p s
without raising the alarm.
a i *
4 # v • W #\ •\ #^
hip
Get c a u g h t in the wrong
p l a c e at the wrong time a n d
you'll b e sent to solitary to c o o l
your heels. This also destroys
your morale a n d c a n also
Increase the number of guards
that are assigned. A constant
escort of three guards makes
e s c a p i n g almost Impossible.
Your morale is extremely
important a n d Illustrated by a
flag at the side of the screen.
As e s c a p e attempts fail a n d
objects are confiscated your
morale drops. The lower It gets
the less likely you are a b l e 1o
break out of "auto prisoner" a n d
e s c a p e until finally at zero all
player control is lost a n d the
g a m e Is over.
After recent O c e a n disasters
such as Miami V i c e a n d Knight
Rider t was surprised at how
g o o d this g a m e was. It takes a
little while to get into it as you
just observe the normal prison
routine.
Then you c a n find the
opportunities to d u c k through a
door, search the room contents,
steal anything interesting a n d b e
out before the guards notice
you're missing.
You c a n only carry around
8 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
two objects at any time a n d so
you have to find a safe p l a c e to
stash them before the b i g
escape.
A good hiding place a n d a
possible e s c a p e route is the
tunnel that you c a n find by
moving the boiler in your room!
Unfortunately, the tunnel network
Is c o m p l e x a n d difficult to
n a v i g a t e in the dark, but if you
found a torch . . .
The g a m e graphics are
excellent as the c a m p is
c r e a t e d from 255 scrolling 3D
screens full of prisoners, guards,
dogs, b a r b e d wire, buildings
(most of them off limits) a n d
searchlights.
All night the c a m p is
enclosed In darkness that allows
you 1o explore freely if you c a n
a v o i d the patrols a n d the
searchlights.
The odds however are against
you a n d you'll p r o b a b l y spend
the rest of Ihe night in solitary.
A brilliant idea, superbly
implemented, Ocean's best ever
Spectrum g a m e !
 The answer to the
Spectrum-users prayer
thedlSCDPLE
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t & f i
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+ C^patfblewKhany standard drive - single or double * °P e r a » i n 9 « S T
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SNAPSHOT BUTTON • Interface 1 Compatible
* Saves any program instantly - at any point you wish and
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PRINTER INTERFACE W
i r Compatible with the whole range of Centronics Parallel W
printers. W
-k Uses normal Sinclair c o m m a n d s - ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
LLIST. L PRINT. COPY ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
• Permits user defined and screen graphics.

Use the disciple with any Spectrum - even the new Plus Two model.

the disc PLE

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Designed by Miles Gordon Technology for Rockfort Products (a trading division of Vignesh Ltd)

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Please send me POST FREE (Quantity) DtSCIPLE Interfaces
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Spectrum in October, Amstrad in November, Commodore 64 in December. All C9.95

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. ^Al tt Castle Lodge, Castle Green,
I J p Wj I Taunton, Somerset TA1 4AB
1 L- L^ I W f f l E 1 England t ^ ^ m h , . ^
software getting harder
 R.R.P. £9.95

Spectrum & Amstrad Y ^

- r r 1
available November 20th
Commodore 64
available January 20th
— njl— "
Trade enquiries to Centresoft
/
on 021 356 3388 MMtv\ '•Ml
Sales dept
Castle Lodge, Castle Green,
Taunton, Somerset TA1 4AB
England rinpnom i»
TmHptKxm mii M
|0*U) ww
4 t t A*

u l l M r w
m u w m i
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11 \ \ f k l «

\V. i >'• i,53JBI

f* f <

A
T /P.
^ " h e n popular b o a r d games
have been a d a p t e d tor the
home computer they have often
crisis, "Selection Problems'" is a
square fo beware ot as the
computer program chooses one
of your players randomly who is
either injured or retired causing
you to frantically rejuggle the
team.
Plenty of variety is built info
the b o a r d g a m e but to stop any
c h a n c e of it b e c o m i n g replti-

£
been a disappointment. Games
that c a n draw p e o p l e round a
table like a magnet tend to lose
Jheir a p p e a l when the monitor
screen is the focus of attention.
Perhaps with this in mind. CDS
have designed a g a m e that
keeps the a p p e a l i n g social
aspects of board games (ie. it
c o n get very competitive a n d
there are plenty of opportunities^ eiemenf a n d the more players
to outsmart your opponents)
while ny out all the d o r
work — j o l H r t y m e a l c e . statistics,
tious you c a n conduct transfer
deals a n d h a g g l e over players
at any point in the g a m e a n d il
someone is selling off players to
ovoid bankruptcy the bargain-
ing c a n get very fierce indeed.
There's an awful lot of
enjoyment to be h a d out of
Football Fortunes w h eliher, y o u ^
enjoy football p i j y o i CDS hove
, ii o a c k Ihe human
VoTThave (from two to five c a n
play) Ihe better Ihe g a m e For a
c h a n g e Ihe c o m p i H » n 3 ' o g r a m

*
t d W « ; results e t c to the ^.flfi n g role to the ,
computer. ^ ^ j i i Iball Fortunes is
Football Fortunes I F a r f f l all the be! PThat.
enferpgstna nybrid that
been i H K j o u g h t out to eWW
m a x i m j W B b l d over the football
fanatics imagination. If you've
ever followed football you will
definitely have put together your
"dream team" with all your
favourite players. With Football
Fortunes you c a n try to d o just
that in your quest to carry off the
• A
l e a g u e a n d C u p double. Suc-
cess depends on assembling a

A\
strong squad from the available
player cards, e a c h c a r d
i I represents a well known player
a n d gives his category
(defender, midfield. etc) a n d a
star rating 1 to 5.

F I
If your favourite player has
b e e n left out there are blank
cards provided so you c a n g
include them. The star ratings
are b o u n d to spark a n argument

4
or two especially if your
particular hero is d e e m e d to b e l
only worth one star. The total star"
ratings for defence a n d attack
are fed into the computer before
e a c h match to indicate your \ J
team's current form.
The g a m e proceeds much ^
along the lines of a conven-
tional b o a r d game. Throw the
computerised d i c e a n d p r o c e e d
around the board, which is
sizeable (fitting it into the d o u b l e
cassette size box was a master-

OSIT"
p i e c e of origami) to l a n d on
squares that may be to your
advantage like sponsorship or
send you sliding into bankruptcy.
The manager's Tuck square may
be g o o d or bod. a n d result in a
windfall or g o i n g seriously into
the red due to a m a n a g e r i a l

Ray Elder sets the next
programming
challenge in this
interactive series.
elcome to the second in this
occasional series intended to
present a problem, discuss
means ot arriving at a solution
and then leave It to you to
produce the c o d i n g to d o Ihe
job.
First may I say that I was
pleasantly surprised at the g o o d
response from the last Project X.
Entries are still arriving a n d I will
present the solution which I think
is most efficient, original a n d
interesting in the next issue,
meanwhile on to this project
which is . . .
The Shuffle
Over the last few years I have
seen, used a n d devised several
ways of simulating the shuffling
of a pack of cards. As a side
product the solution to this may
also be a means ot p r o d u c i n g a
non repeating sequence of
random numbers which may
widen the scope of the
applications of this exercise.
1. Identify Problem.
We need to b e a b l e to select
a series of numbers 1-52, which
represent the 52 cards in a
pack, in a random or mixed up
order with no repetition of
previously selected
numbers/cards.
2. Breakdown of process.
This is fairly straightforward in
theory:
a) Set up a representation of a
pack of cards.
b) Swap the cards positions in
the pack (Jumble up or Shuffle).
3. Possible Approaches.
In practice the
implementation offers several
ways. The Random number
generator will obviously be
called on in order to effect the
actual shuffle a n d the most
complex part is likely to be the
means ot ensuring that
selections are not repeated.
In the most basic computer
card games (and in one or two
early commercial games I have
13 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987
seen this happen) a c a r d is
simply selected purely at
ramdom. The player loses faith
in the program when he/she
draws two nine of diamonds or
five aces!
One a p p r o a c h would be to
select a c a r d at random a n d
then check it against a list of the
cards previously chosen to make
sure that if hasn't b e e n picked
before. This means that all
previously selected cards hove
to be kept recorded to enable
the check to be made.
A decision has to be m a d e of
the way the c a r d will be
selected. It could be a
straightforward random number
between 1 a n d 52 (INT
(RND'52+1)) a n d then use a
table to look up the actual card
a n d value. IE. 1 may equal the
ACE of SPADES, 2 the TWO of
SPADES etc. up to 52 perhaps
being the KING of DIAMONDS.
If this method is used then
e a c h selected number needs to
be stored somehow, possibilities
ore to store as a number or as a
string. If kept in numberical form
then perhaps the simplest way
would be to DIM an array
variable to 52 - DIM S(52) - this
also initialises e a c h of the 52
elements to 0. a n d as e a c h
number is chosen then c h a n g e
that element to 1 as a flag that
it has already been picked.
The check c o d e would be
something like IF S(number) THEN
GO TO choose a g a i n line.
This Is perfectly OK for games
where only a few cards are
required e a c h h a n d (such as
pontoon) but if a lot of cards are
used then the selection
procedure slows to an
unbearable level as many
reselections a n d checks need to
be made. You also have the
problem of keeping another
record of the numbers tor
reference.
An Alternative?
Rather than fill the empty array
it c o u l d be set to the numbers
first then shift e a c h number
around, this also has the
a d v a n t a g e of keeping a
recording of e a c h number.
Something like DIM S( 52):FOR
1=1 TO 52:LET S(I)=I:NEXT I to set
up the array a n d Ihen select two
RND numbers between 1 & 52
a n d swap the contents of the
array, eg: LET
A=INT(RND'52+1):LET
B=INT(RND*52+1):LET X=S(A):LET
S(A) = S(B):LET S(B)=X
Put this in a loop for as many
times as it takes to get a g o o d
mix a n d away we ao!
Of course we stilTneed a
table so that we c a n work out
which number represents which
card, but the actual shuffle takes
a fraction of the time that the
first method would take.
Personally I wouldn't use either
method, but I thought it worth
looking at the first iwo ways
because the second method
has a wider a p p l i c a t i o n than for
our card shuffle In that it is a
very effective way of producing
a numerical non repeating
sequence of random numbers.
If you think of a pack of cards
then there are two elements, the
number or value a n d the suit —
Hearts, Spades, Diamonds a n d
Clubs — the non numerical
cords are Ace. Jack, Queen a n d
King. It is almost as if the
designer of cards h a d us
computer bods in mind. NONE of
these names begin with Ihe
same letter!
This means we c o u l d set up a
string to represent the cards
using H,S,D,C.A.J,Q, a n d K to
represent e a c h of these words. A
typical set up might be LET
C£="AH2H3H4ZH5H6H7H9HTHJ
HQHKHAS2S3S4S5S6S7S8S9STSJ
SQSKSAD2D3D4D5D6D7D8D9DT
DJDQDKDAC2C3C4C5C6C7C8
C9CTCJCQCKC"
Note that I used T to represent
10 because this then means that
e a c h c a r d is represented by
only two characters. Shuffling
becomes a matter of picking an
element of CS at random,
removing it from the string a n d
a d d i n g it to the front or the end
of the string for as many times as
it takes to get a g o o d mix.
It you set up the variables
T,J,Q,K a n d A to a value of 10
then finding the numerical value
of the card is a matter of getting
the VAL of the first of the Iwo
elements that represent a card.
So now what? I hope this has
started a few ideas buzzing
around and, just like the last
time, we would like to see the
results of your ideas, especially if
you know of, or create a
completely unique method of
solving the problenn.
What we would like is a short
program which shuffles a pack
of cards a n d deals two cards
face up. We do not want a full
game, but we wilt take into
consideration the solution to the
shuffle problem a n d the quality
of the graphic representation of
the cards
The program(s) which Impress
us most will be featured, a n d
their authors suitably rewarded,
in a future issue.
 FIRST STEPS INTO
MACHINE CODE
Alan Davis makes the
transition from BASIC
Into machine code.
ost p e o p l e seem to tind no
great difficulty In b e c o m i n g
reasonable proficient at BASIC
programming, after a little
practice a n d experience. But
sooner or later they realise the
limitations of BASIC seek to g o
further — a n d find themselves up
against the notorious " m a c h i n e
c o d e barrier". It's a barrier that,
sadly, many fail to cross (though
often not for want of trying), a n d
I gather that the question "How
d o t pass from BASIC to m a c h i n e
c o d e programming?" Is still one
of the most c o m m o n requests In
the ZXC m a i l b a g . So here's my
own attempt to provide a very
simple a p p r o a c h with a
minimum ot jargon — by which I
mean VERY SIMPLE INDEED! I'm
g o i n g to sacrifice discussion ol
a number of Issues which would
'be theoretically desirable,
because the most Important
thing is to make that initial
transition a n d actually write
m a c h i n e c o d e programs, no
matter how trivial. Even If you've
tried betore a n d failed, I hope I
c a n persuade you to hove
another go — because I'm
c o n v i n c e d that most p e o p l e
give up simply because they've
tried to swallow too much, too
soon.
I
Z sequence of numbers, a n d you
The cursed hex
If have tried to c o m e to grips
with machine c o d e before,
S you've probably been harrassed
< by hexadecimal, tousled by
"two's complement", a n d
oc stultified by "the stack". But
O though you'll EVENTUALLY need
to get to grips with such things if
O you're to b e c o m e really
oc proficient, you c a n In fact get
started without them. There are
Q. certain disadvantages in d o i n g
so — but we're desperate folk,
a n d desperate measures are
S c a l l e d for! So let's begin. What,
exactly, is "machine code"?
Though you may not be
o
aware ot it, you're using
m a c h i n e c o d e every time you
run a BASIC program on your
111
Spectrum. You may think that the
CL computer understands BASIC
00 c o m m a n d s such as PRINT AT
14
10,121'Hello!" - but It doesn't.
When we program In BASIC we're
b e i n g spoon fed by a complex
a n d length program which is
present in the Spectrum when
we switch on, part of whose task
Is to translate our BASIC
instructions Into a form that the
heart of the computer — the Z80
microprocessor — c a n c o p e
with. What the Z80 understands is
the stuff we call m a c h i n e c o d e :
a sequence of numbers which
cause the Z80 to perform certain
actions. If we by-pass the
Spectrum's "translating" system
a n d feed the Z80 directly with
the correct numbers, we c a n
exercise total control over the
machine. Heady stuff!
First steps
So let's write a m a c h i n e c o d e
program. First ot all we need to
secure a n area of memory so
that any fiddling about in 8ASIC
that we d o won t interfere with it,
a n d we c a n d o this using CLEAR
59999. This means that we c a n
safely manipulate any address
trom 60000 upwards. Next, enter
these two direct commands, one
after the other
POKE 60000,0
POKE 6000,201
What you've just d o n e is to store
two numbers (which together
make up a m a c h i n e c o d e
program) in the Spectrum's
memory at addresses 60000 a n d
60001. What we d o now is to
direct the Z80's attention to this
c a n do this by entering
RANDOMIZE USR 60000. Try It
yourself, now. You might think
that nothing has h a p p e n e d —
but you'd be wrong; quite a lot
has h a p p e n e d , intact. First, the
Z80 looked at the contents ot
address 60000, a n d found the
number 0. This is the m a c h i n e
c o d e "NO OPERATION"
Instruction which tells the Z80 to
d o nothing ot all. So for a tiny
fraction of a second it d i d
i n d e e d d o nothing. Then It
looked at the contents ot the
next address (60001) a n d found
the number 201. This Is the
"RETURN" instruction, which in
this case tells the Z80 to leave
the m a c h i n e c o d e program at
this point a n d effectively "return
to BASIC". And so the obedient
Z80, without further ado, d i d just
that — which is why at the e n d
ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
you were presented with the O.K.
reporl at the bottom of the
screen. The m a c h i n e c o d e
program has been completed,
a n d normal service has been
resumed.
Now, the g o o d news Is that In
understanding that, you've
understood a m a c h i n e c o d e
program. Ot course you'll very
rightly point out that It's not a
very useful program — but that
doesn't matter. The Important
thing to a p p r e c i a t e Is that what
to us fooks like a string of
numbers is effectively a
sequence ot c o m m a n d s to the
Z80. Herein, of course, lies a
problem; I'm not a Z80, a n d
neither are you. The number 0
doesn't immediately make us
think "DO NOTHING", a n d the
number 201 certainly doesn't
make us think "RETURN". If we
h a d to learn to read a n d write
m a c h i n e c o d e like this, life
would be very hard Indeed —
but fortunately, we don't have to.
What we need, really, is some
sort of Intermediate l a n g u a g e to
act as a buffer between
ourselves a n d the Z80. a n d
fortunately such a l a n g u a g e
does exist. It's c a l l e d ASSEMBLY
language, which is a kind of
drastically abbreviated p i d g i n
English where e a c h m a c h i n e
c o d e instruction (that is, a
number or series ot numbers) is
represented by a mnemonic (a
set of letters) which is much
easier for us to understand. To
take a n example, if we translate
our little m a c h i n e c o d e program
above into assembly language.
It looks like this:
NOP (No Operation)
RET (Return to BASIC)
This is m u c h easier to get to
grips with, isn't it? You c a n
understand It; I c a n understand
it; but the b a d news Is that the
Z80 can't! It wants nothing more
nor less than NUMBERS. The
solution lies in a n ASSEMBLER
program — a n d this. I'm afraid,
is the point at which you'll need
to blow the dust off your cheque-
book. There are plenty ot
assembler programs on the
market a n d I'm by no means
familiar with all of them myself,
having settled long a g o on
Hisoft's DEVPAC assembler. I've
also heard of friendlier programs
a v a i l a b l e these days, more
suited to beginners.
 Lm
LISTING 1 LISTING 3
Do n o t h i n g , then return R e a d c o n t e n t s of one a d d r e s s ,
to B A S I C . add one , and put r e s u l t into
another address.
60000 10 ORG 60000
60000 20 NOP 60000 10 ORG 6 0 0 0 0
60001 30 RET 60000 20 LD A , C A D D R 1 )
60003 30 INC A
60004 40 LD (ADDR2),A
60007 50 RET
60008 60 ADDR1 DEFB 2
60009 70 ADDR2 DEFB 0

LISTING 2 LISTING 4
Copy contents of one address A d d t h e c o n t e n t s of t w o
into a n o t h e r . addresses, and store result in
a third address.
60000 10 ORG 60000
60000 20 LD A,(ADDR1) 60000 10 ORG 60000
60003 30 LD (ADDR2),A 60000 20 LD A , ( A D D R 1 )
60006 40 RET 60003 30 LD B, A
60007 50 ADDR1 DEFB 2 60004 40 LD A,(ADDR1)
60008 60 ADDR2 DEFB 0 ' 60007 50 ADD A,B
60008 60 LD (ADDR3),A
60011 70 RET
60012 80 ADDR1 DEFB 2
60013 90 ADDR2 DEFB 3
60014 100 A D D R 3 DEFB 0

Assembler
A good assembler program,
once running, will lake over Ihe
control of your Spectrum to allow
you to enter a n d edit a program
in assembly language, a n d will
then "assemble", or translate,
your program into machine
code. But It should also do
much more. For example, it
should allow you to use line
numbers which, though not
essential, help you to keep track
of what you're doing. It will allow
you to attach LABELS to certain
addresses — which Is yet
another move towards making
your program more closely
resemble English. And it will also
allow you to use certain other
instructions ( a s s e m b l e r directives
o n d assembler commands)
which are not translated into
machine code, bul which
Instruct the assembler program
to take specific actions — a n d
these generally make life easier
for you. There's no short cut here.
I'm afraid. You'll need to spend
a bit ol time reading a n d
absorbing the relevant sections
of the manual tor your
assembler in order to discover
just what editing facilities are
available to you. However, a n
example will make things
clearer — so let's take a look at
Listing 1, which Is what I got
after assembling our "do nothing
and return to BASIC" program.
First, I should point out that in
order to get all the listings given
here I instructed the assembler
to print addresses (these are in
the left hand column of the
listings) in decimal, rather than
the more usual hexadecimal —
a n d incidentally, the facility to
have this option is something
you may like to check when
choosing your assembler, it c a n
make things quite a bit simpler. I
also instructed it not to bother
llsling Ihe machine c o d e that it
produces; the Z80 needs those
numbers, but we don't at this
stage. On, then to the program
proper. You'll see that line 10
contains a n assembler directive
which all assemblers will
recognise, namely ORG 60000.
The ORG directive is important
because it tells the assembler
where to put the machine c o d e
it generates — a n d in our case
this is to be from addresses
60000 onwards.
Line 20 contains the first
actual assembly l a n g u a g e
instruction (NOP), and line 30
completes the program with the
RET instruction. The left hand
column of the listing is
produced automatically when
the program is assembled (ie.
when the assembler is instructed
to translate the mnemonics to
actual machine code) a n d it
shows the addresses at which
e a c h machine c o d e Instruction
has been stored — in this case
our machine c o d e program
uses only two addresses: 60000
a n d 60001.
Registers
Now this Is all very well, but you
could reasonably be asking by
this time "Can we have a
program which actually DOES
something, please?" So let's
move on a n d see what else the
Z80 c a n do. You probably know
already that the Z80 has a
number of REGISTERS, a n d you
may also know that these have
names: there's the "A" register,
"B" register, "C", a n d so on. Each
ol these registers c a n at any
time hold any one number
between 0 a n d 255 (ie. one BYTE
— just like any address In Ihe
Spectrum's memory). And there
are dozens of machine c o d e
instructions which allow the Z80
to copy a number from one
register into another, a n d also to
communicate with the outside
world (ie. the Spectrum's
memory). The assembly
l a n g u a g e instruction LD, 8A. for
example, means "copy (or LoaD)
the contents of the A register into
the 8 register". Similarly, LD C,B
means "copy the contents of the
8 register into the C register".
There are also Instructions (or
putting numbers directly into
registers — so that LD A,23 tor
example means "put the
number 23 into the A register".
As you c a n imagine, we
could write a cheerful little

ZX Computing Monlhly * March 1987

ma
program causing the Z80 to
mutter away merrity to Itself,
swopping numbers b a c k a n d
forth between its registers without
affecting the outside world at all
- but I don't think that's what
you mean by a program that
"does something", so let's move
hastily on. How c a n we pass
information between the Z80
a n d the Spectrum's memory?
The simplest way of d o i n g It is
by means of an Instruction such
as LD A. (address). This would
cause the Z80 to look at the
specified address In the
Spectrum's memory, a n d copy its
contents Into the A register. You
c a n achieve the reverse process
with the instruction ID
(address).A — which would make
the Z80 copy the contents of the
A register Into the specified
address in the Spectrum's
memory. (There's a limit to what
you c a n d o In this line, however,
a n d the A register is the only
single register which c a n
c o m m u n i c a t e directly with
specified addresses in this w a y
LD B (address) isn't allowed, for
instance).
I think you'll see that we
c o u l d use these Instructions to
copy a byte from one memory
location to another, thus:
LD A,(60010)
LD (60011),A
RET
This would l o a d the number In
address 60010 into the A register,
copy it into address 60011, a n d
then return to BASIC (To d o the
same thing in BASIC you'd use
the instruction POKE 60011, PEEK
60010). This would be fine If you
knew In a d v a n c e which memory
locations to specify while writing
your program, but In fact more
often that not, you don't — at
least, not until you've assembled
your code. It's time tor the trusty
assembler program to c o m e to
the rescue again, so let's have a
look at Listing 2.
Labels
There are two new concepts
Involved in Listing 2. both
c o n c e r n e d with the ability of a n
assembler program to give you
an easy ride. The first is the
concept of labels. When I typed
this assembly l a n g u a g e
program in, I d e c i d e d to c a l l my
two addresses ADDR1 a n d
ADDR2 respectively — a n d so
lines 20 a n d 30 contain the
Instructions n e e d e d for copying
the contents of ADDR1 into
ADDR2. The assembler is
perfectly happy about this
provided I tell It what I m e a n by
those labels somewhere — a n d
I've done this In lines 50 a n d 60
using a n assembler directive
"DEFB number". (Think of DEFB as
m e a n i n g "DEFIne Byte".) When
the assembler encounters the
DEFB directive it reserves a single
byte of the Spectrum's memory
a n d Inserts whatever number
has b e e n assigned — so in this
case It will store the number 2 In
ADDR1 a n d the number 0 In
ADDR2. As you c a n see from
Listing 2, the assembler has
a l l o c a t e d ADDR1 the value
60007, a n d ADDR2 the value
6008, neatly tucking our reserved
bytes away at the e n d of the
m a c h i n e c o d e program Itself.
Incidentally, you m a y have
noticed that the addresses In Ihe
left h a n d c o l u m n Increase
initially in steps of three; this is
because the m a c h i n e c o d e
instruction corresponding to LD
A.(address) consists of three
numbers — one to specify the
actual instruction LD A.(number)
a n d two more to specify the
address concerned. Bui don't
worry a b o u t It for the present —
that's the assembler's job, not
yours.
You c a n try this for yourself by
typing the program Into your
assembler, assembling It, then
returning to BASIC Before
running the m a c h i n e code,
check for yourself that PEEK
60007 a n d PEEK 60008 give the
values 2 a n d 0 respectively Now
enter RANDOMIZE USR 60000,
a n d d o your PEEKs again. This
time BOTH addresses should
contain the number 2, providing
that your m a c h i n e c o d e
program has Indeed c o p i e d the
contents of the first address into
the second. POKE another
number Into 60007, try
RANDOMIZE USR 60000 again,
a n d then have another PtEK.
Again, it's Important that you
d o try these things for yourself,
as opposed to merely reading
about them. If only to b e c o m e
familiar with the use of your
assembler program. Try
extending the program in Listing
so that It will c o p y the contents
of ADDR1 into TWO other
addresses (you'll n e e d to a d d
another instruction LD (ADDR3),A,
a n d use DEFB to reserve another
byte l a b e l l e d ADDR3).
When you've mastered the
foregoing, you'll want to stretch
your newly grown m a c h i n e
c o d e wings a little further.
Instead of merely c o p y i n g
numbers from one p l a c e to
another, let's see if we can't ring
a few changes. Actually, It's not
difficult to d o so, because
simple Instructions exist for
Increasing or decreasing the
contents of registers by 1 — for
example, INC A ("increase
contents of A register by 1") a n d
DEC A ('decrease contents of A
register by 1"). Listing 3 shows
how INC A c a n be used in a
program to transfer the number
held in one memory address to
another, increasing It by one en
route. Try It tor yourself. PEEKIng
the appropriate addresses both
before a n d after the m a c h i n e
c o d e has been run to check
that all Is well, a n d then try
writing your own amendments
using DEC A — or try using
16 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
INC A twice In succession to
Increase a number by 2.
Adding
Our last example — listing 4 —
shows how simple addition of
small numbers c a n be achieved
using the Instruction ADD. A.B
("add contents of B register to
contents of A register, leaving
the result in A"). If you follow Ihls
routine through, you'll see that
the contents of the memory
address ADDR1 are c o p i e d
directly Into the A register, a n d
then into the B register using
LD BA. (We need to fake this
Indirect route because there's no
LD B(address) instruction). Then A
reads In the contents of ADDR2,
a n d the addition Is performed
by ADD A,B The result Is now in
the A register, so we finished off
by c o p y i n g It Into a third
address, ADDR3 before returning
to BASIC Again, you c a n check
it all for yourself by PEEKIng
ADDR1 (60012), ADDR2 (60013).
a n d ADDR3 (60014) before a n d
after running the m a c h i n e code.
You c a n also try different
numbers, of course, by poking
them Into ADDR1 a n d ADDR2
from BASIC If you want to fry
subtraction, then by all means
d o so: the instruction you need
Is SUB B ("subtract contents of B
register from contents of A
register, leaving the result in "A")
— but for the present you'd do
welt to ensure that you use
numbers which will p r o d u c e a
positive result.
This Is as far as I intend to go
In this article, a n d you may b e
understandably disappointed
that our progress has been
d e c i d e d l y limited. Well yes. It
has — a n d very deliberately so I
know that you want to learn
about all the other registers; to
b e a b l e to use programming
loops; to h a n d l e numbers In
excess of 255; a n d lots more
besides. That's a j o b for the
future, though, a n d the important
thing for now Is to get your foot
on the first rung of the m a c h i n e
c o d e ladder; to make that
critical transition towards
thinking In terms of registers a n d
addresses. Use the Ideas in this
article to write simple routines
for yourself — no matler how
useless they m a y be except as
practice examples — a n d then
congratulate yourself when you
get them working. Familiarity is
the key.
Once you've got this far, then
you're on your way. But what
next? Well, you c o u l d d o much
worse that to buy " M a c h i n e
C o d e for Beginners" published
by Usborne at a mere £1.99. This
will gently fill in m u c h
b a c k g r o u n d material that I've
omitted here, a n d Indeed will
take you further on. Or. you
c o u l d wait until next month
when I'll be delving further Into
machine code . . .
 s •

Commodore 64 available November 20th

Spectrum & Amstrad available February
Sales dept.. . R.R.P. £9.95
Castle Lodge, Castle Green,
Taunton, Somerset TA1 4AB Trade enquiries t o Qentresoft
England T e l e p h o n e |0823| 54489 * 54029 on 021 356 3388

are getting harder

EXPERT SYSTEMS
Transforming your
Spectrum or QL into an
oracle of advice —
with David Nowotnik.
• _ ast month, in part 1 of this
series, I described the essential
elements that g o to make a
computer 'expert system' As a
reminder, a n expert system
provides the means to p l a c e
into a computer not only the
knowledge but the experience
of a human expert, which a non-
expert c a n interrogate to obtain
benefits such as advise. Table 1
lists the important parts of an
expert system, a n d in this article,
a n d in the next tew months I'll
be examining some of these
elements, providing
demonstration programs for QL
a n d Spectrum computers.
Like any other programming
problem, there is no single
solution to the production of a n
expert system. There are many
algorithms already, a n d many
more ideas are b e i n g
developed, so all I c a n give you
in the next few months is a
picture of what makes a n expert
system. This month we shall
examine two ways in which you
c a n get a computer to c o m e to
a decision.
Go a l o n g to a human expert
for advise, a n d the usual course
of events is something like this:
First of all the human expert
will ask you to define the
problem, to determine exactly
what you wish to know from him.
Next he will ask you questions.
These questions are selected by
the expert to provide him with
Information, which he c a n
match against his own
knowledge base. It is experience
which guides the direction of his
questions. In a n ideal world, he
will end up with sufficient
information to provide a perfect
match with something In his
knowledge base to give you a
single, unequivocal answer.
The real world isn't quite like
that; your expert's knowledge
base may not be perfect for the
problem you have. You may not
be a b l e to provide all the
information required. You are
more likely to end up with one
or more opinions from your
expert, e a c h opinion with
different level of certainty.
Lack of certainty (uncertainty)
is something I'll consider later in
the series; for now, let's consider
ourselves a n d our computer
expert to be perfect!
The majority of computer
Table 1. Main Elements of a n Expert System
1. K n o w l e d g e Base
2. Inference Engine
3. User I n t e r f a c e
4. Use of Statistic
5. A b i l i t y to learn n e w r u l e s / k n o w l e d g e
6. Provide a n e x p l a n a t i o n of its d e c i s i o n
expert systems p r o d u c e d to date
are designed to tackle a fairly
specific problem. So, with the
computer 'expert", you have
already defined the problem
you wish to have solved by
selecting a particular expert
system. When you RUN any
expert system, you should get a
message to tell you what areas
of expertise that program is
c a p a b l e ot d e a l i n g with, a n d
you will immediately start the
question a n d answer dialogue.
How does the expert know
which questions to ask, a n d
what does he d o with the
information he receives? These
are two important questions in
designing a n expert system. In
the rest of this article, I'll b e
considering two solutions.
Consider this rather trivial
problem. You want your expert to
fell you the n a m e of a particular
m o d e of transport. The expert
will ask you a series of questions
relating to fealures of the type of
vehicle you have in mind, a n d
after a number of questions a n d
answers, he is a b l e to name the
type of transport.
Yes, it is trivial, but I have
deliberately chosen an example
in which we should all be
'experts', so that you c a n
understand the logic of
choosing questions, a n d the
interpretation of answers.
In the example programs I
provide, our computer 'expert' is
aware of 13 modes of transport
(see program lines 1500 to 1630
in Fig. 1 or Fig. 4). One strategy
for finding the right answer is to
ask a series of questions, e a c h
answer in turn a b l e to eliminate
a group of vehicles, until only
one is left. This strategy is c a l l e d
serial decision making.
Pathways
For this example, the human
expert on transport (me!) has
18 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
selected a set of questions to
which the user provides yes/no
answers. There is a set path
through a series of questions
from the start of the Interrogation
to any one particular answer.
Fig. 2 shows all the paths
through the question a n d
answers In the expert system
listing given in Fig. 1.
The first question is always the
same; does the vehicle transport
p e o p l e on land? A 'yes' answer
Immediately eliminates water
craft a n d aircraft; the 'expert'
then asks if it travels on rails. If
the answer is "yes", the problem is
solved, a n d the answer 'train' Is
given; if the reply Is "no", then the
expert knows the vehicle travels
on road, a n d two more
questions are required to
determine which of the four road
vehicles known to our 'expert' is
the one in question.
For any expert system using
this serial a p p r o a c h to decision
making, the human expert
designing the system has to be
aware of all possibilities. The
questions have to be un-
ambiguous, so that the user c a n
provide the correct answer every
time; any one incorrect response
always ends in a wrong answer
from our expert.
But, before we examine the
failings of this a p p r o a c h too
deeply, why not try it out for
yourself. The listing in Fig. 1 is
suitable for both the QL a n d
Spectrum. The program was
written on the QL (hence the
c o m m a n d REMark, which will
a p p e a r as REM on the
Spectrum), but tested on both
machines.
QL SuperBASIC perfectionists
will be horrified by all the
GOTOs a n d GOSUBs. but some
allowance h a d to be m a d e for
the Spectrum's less structured
BASIC! Spectrum users should
use '+" instead of '&' for joining
strings (lines 5200 a n d 5210), a n d
Figure 1: QUSpoctrum Listing
IJM
1620 DATA " s u b m a r i n e "
10 REMar k S i m p J o E x p e r t S y s t e m
1630 DATA " h o v e r c r a f t "
2 0 REMark U s i n g s e r i a l decision-maktng
109O REMark
3 0 REMark
1900 REMark K n o w l e d g e B a s e
40 REMark D a v i d N o w o t n i k
2000 DATA 1 0 0 0 , 2 0 1 0 , 2 0 5 0
3 0 REMark J a n u a r y , 1997
2010 DATA 1 0 1 0 , 3 0 0 0 , 2 0 2 0
6 0 REMark
2020 DATA 1 0 2 0 , 2 0 3 0 , 2 0 4 0
100 R E n . t r k I n i t i a l i s e & T i t l e 2O30 DATA 1 0 3 0 , 3 0 1 0 , 3 0 2 < f
H O LET x * 2 0 0 0 2040 DATA 1 0 4 0 , 3 0 3 0 , 3 0 4 0
120 RESTORE t READ t * 2050 DATA 1 0 5 0 , 2 0 6 0 , 2 0 9 0
t 3 0 CLS: PRINT t * 2060 DATA 1 0 3 0 , 2 0 7 0 , 2 0 6 0
140 P R I N T i P R I N T 2070 DATA 1 0 7 0 , 3 0 5 0 , 3 0 6 0
130 P R I N T " I w i l l a s k y o u a s e r i e s o f " 2080 DATA 1 0 7 0 , 3 0 7 0 , 3 0 8 0
160 PRINT " q u e s t i o n s . A n s w e r w i t h y " 2090 DATA 1 0 6 0 , 2 1 0 0 , 2 1 1 0
170 P R I N T " f o r y e s o r n f o r n o f o r " 2100 DATA 1 0 8 0 , 3 0 9 0 , 3 1 0 0
100 PRINT " e a c h o n e u n t i l I provide?" 21lO DATA 1 0 9 0 , 3 1 1 0 , 3 1 2 0
190 PRINT " y o u w i t h t h e solution." 2900 REMark
2 0 0 PRINT i P R I N T 2990 REMark A n s w e r s
2 1 0 REMark 3000 DATA 1 5 1 0 , 0 , O
220 REHark M a i n L o o p 3010 DATA 1 5 2 0 , 0 , 0
2 3 0 RESTORE * 3020 DATA 1 5 3 0 , 0 , 0
2 4 0 READ a , b , c JO30 DATA 1 5 4 0 , 0 , 0
2 5 0 I F b « 0 THEN GO TO 5 0 0 0 304O DATA 1 5 5 0 , 0 , 0
2 6 0 GO SUB 5 1 t o 3050 DATA 1 5 6 0 , 0 , 0
2 7 0 INPUT z « : I F 2 * = " " THEN GO TO 2 7 0 3060 DATA 1 5 7 0 , 0 , 0
2 8 0 I F z » U > « " y " OR z * ( l ) - " V " THEN L E T x « b : PRINT " 3070 DATA 1 5 8 0 , 0 , 0
y*s~t GO TO 2 3 0 3090 DATA 1 5 9 0 , 0 , 0
290 IF z * ( 1 ) « " n " OR z * < 1 > T H E N LET x=c: PRIM - 3090 DATA 1 6 0 0 , 0 , 0
no" t GO TO 2 3 0 3100 DATA 1 6 1 0 , 0 , 0
3 0 0 GO TO 2 7 0 31lO DATA 1 6 2 0 , 0 , 0
3 1 0 REMark 3120 DATA 1 6 3 0 , 0 , 0
6 3 0 REMar I, SOOO REMark P r o v i d e t h e a n s w e r
UOO DATA " D E T E R M I N E THl. 1 VPL Of TRANSPORT" SOlO PRINT
B I O REMark
5 0 2 0 RESTORE a : READ e «
9 0 0 REMark Q u e s t i o n s
5 0 3 0 PRINT " T h e a n s w e r »s a " i
lOOO DATA " D o e s i t t r a v e l o n l a n d "
5 0 4 0 I F e * ( l > « " e " OR e » < 1 ) - * * e " OR e » ( l ) - " » " OR
1010 DATA " D o e s i t t r a v e l o n r a i l s "
e » t l l " " o " OR o « ( I ) - " u " THEN P R I N T " n " t : GO TO 5 0 6 0
1020 DATA " D o e s i t h a v e t w o w h e e l s "
5 0 5 0 PRINT " " ;
1030 DATA " I f . i t p o w e r e d b y a n e n g i n e " 5 0 6 0 PRINT e»
1040 DATA " C a n i t c a r r y m o r e t h a n 6 p a s s e n g e r s "
5 0 7 0 P R I N T : PRINT " A n y m o r e ? < y / n > ";
1030 DATA " D o e s i t t r a v e l m o r e t h a n 2 0 f e e l a b o v e
5 0 8 0 INPUT i *
ttu« s u r f a c e "
5 0 9 0 I F z * = " - THEN GO TO 5 0 B 0
1060 DATA " I t t r a v e l s o n w a t e r ; d o e s i t o n l y float
5 I O O IF z » < l > - - y " OR z » <1 I V " THEN RUN
on t h e s u r f a c e "
5 1 1 0 I F z » ( l ) - M n " OR i * < l ) « " N " THEN STOP
1070 DAI A " D o e s i t h a v e f i x e d w i n g s "
5 1 2 0 GO TO S 0 7 O
lOBO DATA " I s i t w i n d p o w e r e d "
5 1 3 0 RF.Mark
1090 DATA " C a n i t t r a v e l b e l o w t h e s u r f a c e
1300 REMark A n s w e r s 5 1 4 0 REMark P r i n t q u e s t i o n string
I 5 I O DATA " t r a i n " 5 1 5 0 RESTORE a : READ e t
1320 DATA " • o t o r b i f c o " 5 1 6 0 LET i - O : L E T L E - L E N < e * > i L E T L I - U
5 1 7 0 LET x » = - -
1330 DATA " b i c y c l e "
1340 DATA " c o a c h " 5 1 8 0 LET * = » • ! : I F 1 > L E THEN GO TO 5 2 1 0
1330 DATA " c a r " 5 1 9 0 I F e « ( i > = " " THEN GO TO 5 2 1 0
1360 DATA " a e r o p l a n e " 5 2 0 0 LET x * = x f f c e * < l > : GO TO 5 I B O
1370 DATA " h e l i c o p t e r " 5 2 1 0 I F i >LE THEN L E T K * « X * & " ' ' "
1380 DATA " g l i d e r " 3 2 2 0 I F L I * L E N < x S ) > 3 1 THEN P R I N T : LET L l - 0
1390 DATA " b a l l o o n " 5 2 3 0 P R I N T x * ; ; LET L I > - L I « L E N < x « >
1600 DATA " y a c h t " 5 2 4 0 I F L I < 3 1 THEN P R I N T " " j i L E T L l ' L l * )
1610 DATA " s h i p " 5 2 5 * ) I F i < L E THEN GO TO 5 1 7 0
5 2 6 0 RE T u r n

O
figure 2: Decision Tree tor tho transport serial decision m a k i n g oxampie tor QL users, the commands In
italics in lines 280 a n d 290 are z
£
Oon il 1<M«(M Und' optional.
The DATA statement in line 800

DM, >l w l Hu.

ID •—< i t M Ik*
provides the title a n d purpose of
our expert system. Once this Is <
printed (line 130) a n d general
1

rt hm Il ll plMrtlKd .1 only llo#t

instructions appear on the
screen (lines 150 1o 190), the a.
|.tl IM .hHlt' by ' Mt Ihe U»ff«C«> main question a n d answer loop O
is entered. The questions,
answers, a n d knowledge base' O
>, .1 mm* all a p p e a r In DATA lines, a n d a.
RESTORE is used extensively to
retrieve the appropriate piece of a.
information.
i>i hmn Dm
MN
far mhhw1 •)ltll *lDf( li.ad On Ihe first circuit ot the main 5
loop, the variable x Is set to
3
2000, which is the DATA line for
the first question. From this DATA ex.
Aw | Akoik
J LED
jA | A t iH..-
E]
A ». .... ..ti
line, three numeric variables are
READ. a,b, a n d c. 'a' is the line
number ot the question
(character string) to be asked, 'b'
5
ftil
Am
is the appropriate DATA line in a.
the knowledge base if the CO

19 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

 Figure 3: Alternative knowlodgo base for Sorlai Demonstration Program

CIOO DATA " A X I A L AND A P P E N D I C U L A R BONES" 1640 DATA " s t e r n u m "

8 1 0 REMark IH90 REMurk
9 0 0 REMor k U u e s t i o n s 1900 RCMark K n o w l e d g e B a s e
lOOO DATA " K t h i s b o r n * i n t t > e h a n d / a r m " 2000 DATA 1 0 0 0 , 2 0 1 0 , 2 0 6 0
1 0 1 0 DATA " I n t h i s b o n e i n t h e a r m " 2010 DATA 1 0 1 0 , 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 4 0
1 0 2 0 DATA " I s t h i s b o n e i n t h e u p p e r arm" 2020 DATA 1020,3000,2030
I O 3 0 DATA " T h e r e a r e t w o b o n e s i n t h e l o w e r a r m ; • t> 2030 DATA 1 0 3 0 , 3 0 1 0 , 3 0 2 0
i t t h e one n e A r o o t t lie b o d y w i t h p a l m s f o r w a r d " 2040 DA T A 1 0 4 0 , 2 0 3 0 , 3 0 3 0
1 0 4 0 DATA "' II ss t h i s b o n e i n t h e fingers" 2050 DATA I 0 5 0 , 3 0 3 0 , J 0 4 0
lOSO DATA I s t h i s b o n e at t h e e n d o< t h e f i n g e r s " 2060 DATA 1060,2070,2110
1060 DATA Is t h i s bone i n the legs/feet" 2070 DATA 1070,2000,2090
1 0 7 0 DATA I s t h i s bone i n t h e a n k l v t / t e e t " 2O0O DATA 1080,3060,30/0
tOBO DATA I s t i n s b o n e i n t h e iinV I p " 2090 DATA I 0 9 0 , 3 0 B 0 , 2 1 O O
1 0 9 0 DATA I s t h i s lion* i n t h e upper leg" 2100 DATA 1 I O O , 3 0 9 0 , 3 1 0 0
1 IOO DATA " T h e r e a r e t w o b o n e s i n t h i lower leg; is >>110 DATA 1110,2120,5110
i t t h e o u t e r mos t o n e " 2120 DATA 1 1 2 0 , 3 1 2 0 , 3 1 3 0
1 H O DATA " I s t h i s b o n e i n t h e s h o u l d e r s " 2900 REMark
1120 DATA " I s t h i s b o n e a t t a c h e d t o t h e h u m e r o u s " 2990 R E M a r k A n s w e r s
1300 REH.ir k A n s w e r s 3000 DATA 1510,0,0
1 3 1 0 DATA " h o m e r o u s " 3010 DATA 1520,0,O
1 3 2 0 DATA " u l n o " 3020 DATA 1530,0,0
1 5 3 0 DATA " r a d i u s " 3030 DATA 1540,0,0
1 3 4 0 DATA " p h a l a n g e s " 3040 DATA 1330,0,0
1 3 3 0 DATA " m e t a t o r p e l «," 3050 DATA 1560,0,0
1 5 6 0 DATA " c a r p e l s (wfistI" 3060 DATA 1570,0,0
1 3 7 0 DATA " t o r s e l s " 3070 DATA 1580,0,0
13BO DATA " m e t atar s t * l s " 3080 DATA 1590,0,0
1 3 9 0 DATA "Iemur" 3090 DATA 1600,0,0
I t o o DAT A " f t b i l l a " 31OO DATA 1610,0,0
1610 DATA " t i b i a " 3110 DATA 1640,0,O
1620 DATA " s c a p u l a " 3120 DATA 1620,0,0
1 6 3 0 DATA " c I « v i c I e " 3130 DATA 1630,0,0

answer is yes. a n d 'c' is the DATA
line number should the response
be n o If the variable 'b' READs
the value zero, this indicates that
an answer has to be found, a n d
the loop is terminated. The sub-
routine at 5040 ensures thai Ihe
question is neatly printed on the
screen, while lines 5000 to 5120
print the answer, a n d ask you if
you want to run through another
set of questions
Ambiguity
like most 'experts' white I believe
my questions to you (as p l a c e d
in this computer program) are
clear a n d unequivocal, you
may well find them confusing.
This expert has no option for the
user to say "I don't understand
0 that, please re-phrase the
z Perfect M a t c h
knowledge base in Fig. 1. Here, I
assume, there are less experts
a m o n g our readers, a n d you
should, as non experts get some
benefit on terminology on
human bones!
Once you feel you understand
the logic of this expert system
'shell', there Is no reason why you
cannot build your own expert
application. The first step is to
draw up a decision tree, as
shown in Fig. 2, then translate
that to the data required for the
knowledge base.
The more cautious a m o n g us
would say that this a p p r o a c h to
making decisions is for the fool-
hardy; It is a little rash to
eliminate a whole range of
possibilities on the outcome of
just one question, which might
be misunderstood. It might be
not only the title of our expert
system, but two numbers, the
number of questions a n d
answers in our system. These two
numbers set up a string array
(s$) in line 240. This array
contains zeros a n d ones,
corresponding to expected no
a n d yes responses to e a c h
question for all 13 modes of
transport in our knowledge base.
All 10 questions are asked; In
response 1o the user's reply, a
variable (r$) is filled with zeros
a n d ones (lines 300 a n d 310), to
get a string the same lenglh as
the strings in the knowledge
base, once all questions are
answered. This reply string is
then c o m p a r e d with the strings
in the knowledge base.

1<
question" (also the case for most
expert systems). Even the first
question "Does It travel on
land?" may provide uncertainty.
A hovercraft certainly c a n travel
on land, but I. as the transport
expert', d e c i d e d that hovercraft
a. are used principally for sea
transport, therefore would expect
a 'no" answer to the 'land'
0 question if the user were thinking
O of the features of a hovercraft.
at But like this system or not, It is
the way many human experts
CL
work. Not only that, the program
I have given you provides an
expert system 'shell', to which
other knowledge bases c a n be
attached. Fig. 3 contains an
example. This is an alternative
knowledge base which allows
you. using the same program, to
O determine the name of one of
a.
111 the body's axial or
appendicular bones. Lines 800
oo to 3130 replace the transport
more sensible to ask a full set of
questions, then judge all the
information at one time. This is
the parallel a p p r o a c h to
decision making, a n d this
a p p r o a c h is the basis for
decisions m a d e by the program
lisfed in Fig. 4.
There are several passages in
the program In Fig. 4 which are
identical to that in Fig. 1. so start
with the serial decision-making
program in your computer, a n d
delete or overwrite lines 220 to
800, a n d the knowledge base
2000 to 2120. There is slight
modification required to the
questions (lines 1000 to 1090) a n d
to line 5020. The commands in
italics In lines 300 a n d 310 are,
again, optional on the QL, a n d
the string joining operator in
these lines should be replaced
by '+' if you are using a
Spectrum.
DATA line 800 now contains
The first check (lines 330 to 380)
is to determine whether a
perfect match c a n be found, ie.
a string of yes a n d no's matches
exactly the expert's opinion of
the expected string of yes a n d
no's to each of the 13 outcomes.
If a match is found, then the
expert's answer Is given.
If no match is found, the
computer first tells you this, thei.
goes through a routine (lines 420
to 500) to determine which set of
expected yes/no replies in Its
knowledge base most closely
matches the replies given by the
user. To do this, it goes through
each possible outcome,
checking the expected
response, with the one given,
a n d awards a score, d e p e n d i n g
on the match. So, 1 is a d d e d to
the score if a 'yes' answer was
given, when one Is appropriate
for thai particular item a n d

20 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

question (line 450), a n d 1 is
subtracted tor a 'yes' reply when
'no' was expected. In this way
the item with the maximum
'score' is identified (line 480).
Logic might suggest that you
should also award a point tor
two no's which match, a n d
subtract one from the score
when no is given to a question
in which yes is expected from a
certain outcome. Well, the
scoring system used does work
remarkedly well, without these
'logical" additions. In tact, as
there are far less 'yes' answers
than 'no' in every string in the
knowledge base, m a t c h i n g 'yes*
answers are more valid than
matching "no's".
Another argument against this
scoring system is that, for any
outcome, certain questions are
more important lhan others in
differentiating Items, so the
amount a d d e d {or subtracted)
should be weighted to reflect
Figure 4: Q U S p o c t r u m Listing tor Parallel Decision Demonstration
this. That argument would lead
us into the realms ot probability,
which is something I shall save
tor later in the series!
One thing you'll note about
parallel decision making is that
a lot more questions will be
asked, sometimes quite irrelevent
when, in hindsight, you know the
result. In the parallel decision
program, you'll always be asked
10 questions, whereas, the serial
decision program which solves
the same problem asks between
two a n d five questions before
giving its result.
No doubt, a better transport
'expert' than myself c o u l d have
selected a better, a n d smaller,
set of questions to e n a b l e the 13
items to be differentiated in the
parallel program. But as a
general rule, parallel systems will
always ask more questions than
serial systems. But even if the
d a t a match isn't perfect, the
parallel system is more likely to
give you the right answer; one
incorrect response with the serial
system, a n d the expert's reply is
certain not to be the one you
want.
These are expert system
decision making processes in
their simplest form. Many expert
systems allow more than yes/no
answers; decision making c a n
be mixtures of serial a n d
parallel, d e p e n d i n g on the
problem. And these examples
assume no uncertainty in your
reply (or In the knowledge base).
These expert systems are also
rather limited in their
knowledge; there are many
more than 13 different modes of
transport. This 'expert' will have
to learn a lot more about
transport before it really c a n
begin to describe Itself as an
expert. And how expert systems
learn is the subject of the next
part in this series.

10 REMark S i m p l e E x p o r t S y s t e m f l o a t on t h e s u r f a c e "
2 0 REMark U s i n q p a r a l l e l d o c t s i o n - w k i n q 1 0 7 0 OATA " D o e s i t h a v e f i x e d w i n q s "
3 0 REMark lOOO DATA " I s i t Hind p o w i ' r e d "
40 REMark D a v i d N o w o t n i k 1090 DAIA "Can i t t r a v e l b e l o w t h e s u r f a c e o f
SO REMark J a n u a r y , 1907 water"
6 0 REMark 1 5 0 0 Rl-Mar k A n s w e r s
lOO REMark I n i t i a l i s e »< T i t l e 1 5 1 0 DATA " t r a i n "
110 LET x - 2 0 0 0 1 5 2 0 DATA " m o t o r blke"
120 RESTORE I READ t » 1 5 3 0 DATA " b i c y c l e "
130 C L S l P R I N T t t 1 5 4 0 DATA " c o a c h "
140 PR I N I : P R I N T 1 3 3 0 OATA " c a r "
irso PR I N I " 1 w i l l a s k y o u a s e r i e s o f " 1 5 6 0 DATA " a e r o p l a n e "
160 PR I N I " q u e s t i o n s . A n s w e r h i t h y " 1 5 7 0 OATA " h e l i c o p t e r "
170 PRINT " f o r y e r . o r n f o r n o f o r " 1 5 0 0 DATA " g l i d e r "
m o PRINI " e a c h one u n t i l I p r o v i d e " 1 5 9 0 DATA " b a l l o o n "
170 PR I N I " y o u w i t h t h e s o l u t i o n . " 1 6 0 0 DATA " y a c h t "
200 P R I N I : PRINT 1 6 1 0 DATA " s h i p "
2 1 0 REMark 1 6 2 0 DATA " s u b m a r i n e "
2 2 0 REMark Initialise 1 6 3 0 DATA " h o v e r c r a f t "
2 3 0 READ a n s w , q u v v t 1090 REMark
2 4 0 DIM s » ( a n s w , q u e s t ) 1900 RLMark K n o w l e d g e Base
2 3 0 RES1ORE 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 DATA " 1 l O l l O O O O O "
2 6 0 FOR J - l TO a n s w : READ s S < j ) : NEXT j 2 0 1 0 DfiTA " l O l l O O O O O O "
2 7 0 LET r RESTORE lOOO 2 0 2 0 DATA "IOIOOOOOOO"
2110 FOR j " l TO q u e s t 2 0 3 0 DATA " l O O l l O O O O O "
2 0 3 GO SUD 5 1 4 0 2 0 4 0 DATA "lOOlOOOOOO"
2 9 0 INPUT zti LET c h ° O i I F i t - " " IHEN GO TO 2 9 0 2 0 3 0 DATA " O O O l 1 1 0 1 0 0 "
too I F z * ( H » " y " OR / ' » < n - " Y " THEN LET r « = r * V I " : 2 0 6 0 DATA " O O O l 1 1 0 0 0 0 "
LET c h - 1 : P R I N I " y e n " 2 0 7 0 DATA " O O l O O O O l l O "

LET r . h * l :PRINT "

310 If * t l l l » " n " OR z * ( l » - " N " THEN LET r » « r * f O " :

3 1 5 I F c l i > 0 THEN GO TO 2 9 0
f.o"
7 0 0 0 DATA "OOOOOIOOIO"
2 0 9 0 DATA " O O O O I O I O I O "
2 tOO DrtTA " O O O I I O I O O O "
320 NEXT j 2 1 l O DATA " 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 "
330 REMar k P e r f e c t M a t c h ? 2 1 2 0 D A I A " l O O l lOOOOO"
340 DIM q t a n a w ) 2 9 0 0 REMar k
3 5 0 FOR j - l TO a n s w S O O O REMark P r o v i d e t h e a n s w e r

I/O
3 6 0 LET q ( j ) - 0

ZOO I F r l • r,S ( J > I I I E N LET l a r q ^ j : GO TO 5 0 0 0

NEX1 j
SOlO P R I N I
3 0 2 0 RESTORE ( 1 a r g » l O + 1 5 0 0 1 : READ e t
5030 PRINI "The answer i s a " |
390 P R I N I : P R I N I " I d i d n o t f i n d a p e r f e c t m a t c h " 5 0 4 0 I F e * ( l > - " a " OR e t < l > - " e " OR e t ( l ) - " l " OR
4 0 0 P R I N I " w i t h my d a t a ; I an s e a r c h i n g " e $ U > " o " OR e * < l > » " u " THEN P R I N T " n " j : GO TO 3 0 6 0
410 PRINI " f o r t h e h e s t fit." 5 0 5 0 PRINT " " I
4 2 0 LET max » i LET l a r q » 0 5 0 6 0 PRINT o t
4 3 0 FOR i 1 IO a n s w 5 0 7 0 P R I N T : P R I N T " A n y more"> f y / n > " s
440 FOR lO quest s o a o INPUT * «
ISO IF r t l ) l " 1 " rtND « * ( I , J > - " 1 " I HEN q ( i > •= n < > > • 15 0 9 0 I F z $ - " " THEN GO TO 5 0 8 0
160 IF r « C j l " " l " AND s « ( i , j ) - " 0 " THEN q < i ) = q < i > 1 5 1 0 0 I F i * ( l > - " y " OR i « U ) - " Y " THEN RUN
170 NF.X1 j 5 1 10 I F I » I I I " V OR z « < l » - " N " THEN STOP
4 0 0 I F q < i ) > m a x THEN LET « i a x » q ( l l : LET l a r q » i 5 1 2 0 GO TO 5 0 7 0
4 9 0 NEXT i 5 1 3 0 REMark
3 0 0 I F 1 a r q < 1 THEN P R I N T " N i l m a t c h f o u n d 1 " : GO TO 5 1 4 0 REMark P r i n t q u e s t i o n s t r i n q
3070 3 1 3 0 READ L<t
3 1 0 GO TO SOOO 3 1 6 0 LET l = O i LET L E « L E N < e » > i LET L I - 0
OOO DATA "DETERMINE THE TYPE OF T R A N S P O R T " , 1 3 , l O 5 1 70 LET x $ - " "
1910 R E M a r k 5 1 0 0 LET i - » + l l I F i > L E THEN GO TO 5 2 1 0
VOO REMark Q u e s t i o n s 3 1 9 0 I F e t ( i ) » " " THEN GO TO 5 2 1 0
lOOO DATA " D o e s I t t r a v e l em l a n d " 5 2 0 0 LET x t - * x S & e t < i > : GO TO 5 1 0 0
1010 DATA " O i w i i t t r a v e l a n r . » U " 5 2 1 0 I F 1 >LE THEN LET * t - * H " ? »
1 0 2 0 DA1A " D o e s i t h a v e t w o w h o o l o * 5 2 2 0 I F L M L E N ( x * > > 3 1 THEN P R I N T : LET L I = 0
1 0 3 0 DATA " l a i t p o m r p d b y a n o n g i n n " 5 2 3 0 P R I N T x * ; : LET L I - L 1 + L E N (xtl
1040 DATA " C a n i t c a r r y mor«» t h a n 6 p a s s H n q i T i " 5 2 4 0 I F L I < 3 1 THEN P R I N T " " t i LET L l - L I M
lOSO DATA " D o e s i t t r a v e l more.* t h a n 2 0 f e i - t a b o v e 5 2 5 0 I F I CLE THEN GO TO 5 1 7 0
the surface" 5 2 6 0 RE T u r n
1060 DATA " I f i t t r a v e l s o n w a t e r , d r i e s i t only

21 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

Alan Davis explores the
possibilities for printing
graphics.

• n a recent issue ol ZXQ I

wrote o short p i e c e a b o u t the
Kempston "E" interface a n d
Amstrad DMP 2000 printer,
specifically to point out how
painless I d found It to set up
a n d use this combination. Of
course that isn't the e n d of the
tale, b e c a u s e obviously you c a n
d o a great d e a l more with such
a system that merely LPRINT, LUST,
a n d COPY. What I'd like to d o in
this article is to explore some of
the graphics possibilities of the
system, a n d since the Amstrad is
Epson compatible, the routines
should work perfectly well with
any Epson-type printer which Is
c a p a b l e of small (1/216") line
feeds.
Regular readers m a y be
surprised to discover that the
origin of what follows has
nothing to d o with adventure
games at all (Gasp! Shock!), but
the fact Is that I also use the
Spectrum for serious scientific
work — a n d one of my
between point plotting a n d
screen scrolling. But sadly, there's
no single printer c o m m a n d for
d o i n g this. The Kempston
interface will give you a full
screen copy, buf not just one
line, a n d so a bit of
p r o g r a m m i n g is necessary to
achieve this.
Bit images
The key to the p r o b l e m lies In
the "Bit I m a g e Mode" printer
commands. There's a fair c h o i c e
of these on the Amstrad
machine, a n d in the e n d I
settled for "double density"
m o d e This gives a printed dot
s p a c i n g w h i c h is half thai
o b t a i n e d with "single density"
m o d e — a n d therefore a printed
I m a g e of higher quality a n d
crispness. The relevant
c o m m a n d is ESC L + n1 + n2.
Translated into English this
means that we n e e d to send to
the printer the codes CHRS 27
(ESC), followed by CHRS 76 ("LI.
followed by two mysterious
c o d e s n1 a n d n2, These last two
c o d e s tell the printer how many
bytes of g r a p h i c d a t a are to
follow, a n d together they form a
two-byte number where n1
represents the low byte, a n d n2
the high. So if you want to print,
say, 258 bytes of d a t a In

Listing 1
requirements (or this is to be
a b l e to get hard c o p y of graphs
of fairly complex m a t h e m a t i c a l
functions Now if the g r a p h you i'ass 1 errors:
want to plot is fairly simple,
there's no problem. You c a n just 10 * D +
write a program to d r a w it on 20 #C-
screen, a n d then COPY the 30 ; R o u t t n e for c o p y i n g s c r e e n line 2 1 to p r i n t e r
result. But the screen resolution 40 ; A n y g i v e n p i x e l Has i t s s c r e e n c o o r d i n a t e s x a n d y
50 ; h c l d in t h e C a n d B r e g i s t e r s r e s p e c t i v e l y
of 256x176 pixels is too coarse for 60
the applications I have in mind, 65368 70 ORG 6 5 3 6 8 iStart of UDG area
a n d so some way of getting 65368 80 LD A. 3
higher resolution h a d to be 65370 90 CALL 0 1 6 0 1 ;Select thn p r i n t e r for o u t p u t
found. 65373 100 XOR A
The a p p r o a c h I a d o p l e d was 65374 1 10 LD D.A ;Clear D register
65375 120 LD C , A i C l e a r C r e g i s t e r (x c o o r d -0)
fairly obvious: instead of d r a w i n g 130 L O O P )
65376 LD B . 8 ( I n i t i a l i s e B r e g i s t e r <y c o o r d = 8 )
the "y" axis of the g r a p h 65378 140 L 0 0 P 2 DEC B tNext pixel row down
vertically on the screen, I turned 65379 150 PUSH BC
it through 90 degrees a n d drew 65380 160 PUSH DE ;Save r e g i s t e r s
it horizontally, so that the "x" axis 65381 170 CALL POINT tSaec as POINT (c.b)
b e c o m e s vertical (with x 65384 180 CALL FP A ;Resu1t off stack into A r e g i s t e r
increasing downwards). The 65387 190 POP DE
g r a p h is then plotted eight 65388 200 POP BC ; R e c o v e r r e g i s t e r s
points at a time (le. eight 65389 210 CP I lis t h i s p i x e l ( c . b ) s e t ?
successive x values) to line 21 on 65391 220 CALL Z . S E T B I T ;If s o . t h e n s e t b i t 7 o f D
230
the screen, the whole screen 65394
240
RLC D ;Rotate D r e g i s t e r by o n e bit
b e i n g scrolled upwards by one 65396
250
INC B
65397 DJNZ L O O P 2 ; L a s t p i x e l ? If n o t , d o a n o t h e r
line between the plotting of o n e 260
b a t c h of eight points a n d the 2 7 0 ;At t h i s p o i n t u c h a v e a b y t e r e a d y t o p r i n t in D
next. In this way you c a n get 65399 280 LD A, D
any resolution you like a l o n g the 65400 290 RST 16 ;So p r i n t it o n c e . . .
x-axis, if necessary plotting a n d 65401 300 LD A, D
scrolling many screenfuls of 65402 310 RST 16 ; . . . a n d o n c e a g a i n
graphics before the whole 65403 320 LD D . 0 ; C l e a r D r e g . r e a d y for n e x t s c a n
process is finished. Naturally, 65405 330 INC C ;Next pixel c o l u a n to the r i g h t
though, you'll never see the 65406 340 LD A. C
350
entire g r a p h on screen at once, 65407
360
CP 0 ; A r e w e o f f t h e r i g h t e d g e o f screen'''
because the early parts will 65409
370
JR N Z . L O O P 1 ;If n o t , b a c k f o r a n o t h e r b y t e
have scrolled off the top of the 6541 1
380
RET ;Back to B A S I C
screen by the time the thing has 390 SETBIT
6 5 4 12 SET 7,D iSet bit 7 of D register
finished. 65414 400 RET
4 10
What we n e e d then, is a 8910
420
POINT EQU 022CE ;tROM>
m e l h o d of transferring just a 1 1733 FP A EQU U2DD5 ;<ROM>
single line of graphics d a t a (line
Pass 2 errors: 00
21 in this case) from the screen
to the printer, so that we c a n Table used: 73 fron 249
d u m p it out continuously in

22 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
 the screen one pixel at a time,

Listing 2 forming a single byte of data

from e a c h vertical column of
eight pixels a n d then shoving it
1 REM *«* C O N T I N U O U S G R A P H P R I N T I N G R O U T I N E
out to the prinler. You c a n do it
2 REM in BASIC — but frankly, life's too
3 DEF FN f < x > = 1 5 0 « S I N < x / 6 ) * S I N < x / 6 0 ) * E X P ( - X / 2 0 0 ) short! Assuming you'd like to see
4 G O S U B 100® your hard copy this century
7 REK H rather than next, we'd better d o
8 REK «** K e n p s t o n E " - T o k e n s o f f it in machine code, o n d !'ve
9 REM
1® C O P Y : REM C H R * 0
given in Listing 1 an assembler
20 L P R I N T C H R * 2 7 ; • A " ; C H R * 0 ; : REM * D i s a b l e a u t o lino feed program which will solve our
27 REK problem. I've annotated the
28 REM * * * L i n e s 3 0 - 160 d r a w the f u n c t i o n listing in some detail so that you
29 REK should be able to follow it
30 LET o y = 1 2 7 ; P L O T 0 . 7 : D R A U 2 5 5 . 0 : REM * D r a u y - a x i s through without too much
FOR i - 0 T O 5 9 9 S T E P 8 : REM * 6 0 0 v a l u e s of x
50 FOR j=0 T O 7s REM * x v a l u e s in b u n c h e s of 8
difficulty. (As written, the c o d e is
60 LET y = 1 2 7 + 1 NT ( . 5 + F N fli + j l ) : REK » < i + j > = x c o o r d i n a t e organised at the start of the
90 PLOT 1 2 7 , 7 - j : P L O T y , 7 - j : REM * E x t e n d a x l s i P l O t n e x t p o i n t user-defined graphics area:
100 LET l e n = o y - y : IF A B S len>l T H E N D R A U l e n - t l AND l e n > 0 l » < l 65368).
AND l c n < 0 > , 0 : REM * J o i n the d o t s Strictly speaking, all we need
110 LET o y = y : REM * S t o r e c u r r e n t v a l u e of y
120 IF INT ( < i + j ) / 1 0 > = ( l + j ) / l 0 T H E N P L O T 1 2 6 , 7 - j : DRAU 2 . 0 : IF
to a d d to this is a short BASIC
JNT ( ( t t j > / 5 0 > = < ) / 5 0 T H E N P L O T 1 2 3 , 7 - j : D R A U 8 . 0 : REK * S e a subroutine which puts the printer
le inlo the correct bit i m a g e mode,
130 N E X T j calls the machine c o d e to
140 G O S U B 2 0 0 : REM » L i n e f i n i s h e d - p r i n t it out transfer the 512 bytes of screen
150 R A N D O M I Z E U S R 3 5 8 2 : REK * S c r o l l s c r o e n u p o n e line line data, a n d then tells the
160 N E X T I
170 S T O P
printer to d o a carriage return
197 REH a n d a line feed of 8/72"
198 REH *** P r i n t o u t s c r e e n line 21 (equivalent to eight vertical dot
199 REM spacings) at the end, thus:
200 FOR h =0 TO 2 : REM * 3 p a s s e s of p r i n t h e a d
205 L P R I N T C H R * 2 7 ; * L ' ; C H R * 0 s C H R * 2 ; : REM * Bit m a g e a o d e
210 R A N D O M I Z E U S R 6 5 3 6 8 : REM * P r i n t the line 1) LPRINT CHR$ 27; "L"; CHR$ 0;
215 L P R I N T C H R * 1 3 ; C H R * 2 7 ; " J " : C H R * 1;: REM * S e a 11 line feed CHR$ 2; (See above)
220 N E X T h 2) RANDOMISE USR 65368
230 L P R I N T C H R * I 3 ; C H R * 2 7 ; " J " ; C H R » 2 1 ; : REM * Big line feed (Send the data)
240 R E T U R N
500 DATA 6 2 . 3 . 2 0 5 . 1 . 2 2 . 1 7 5 , 8 7 , 7 9 . 6 . 8 3) LPRINT CHR$ 13; CHR$ 27;
510 DATA 5 . 1 9 7 , 2 1 3 . 2 0 5 , 2 0 6 , 3 4 , 2 0 5 . 2 1 3 . 4 5 . 2 0 9 "A"; CHR$ 8; (CR then 8/72" LF)
520 DATA 1 9 3 , 2 5 4 , 1 . 2 0 4 . 1 3 2 , 2 5 5 . 2 0 3 . 2 , 4 , 1 6
530 DATA 2 3 5 . 1 2 2 . 2 1 5 , 1 2 2 . 2 1 5 , 2 2 , 0 . 1 2 . 1 2 1 . 2 5 4 We c o u l d then call this
540 DATA 0 , 3 2 . 2 2 1 , 2 0 1 , 2 0 3 . 2 5 0 , 2 0 1
997 REM
subroutine after every eight
998 REH »** P o k e M a c h i n e c o d e
plotted points, a n d away we go.
999 REM Well, yes — but we c a n actually
1000 R E S T O R E 5 0 0 : F O R 1 = 6 5 3 6 8 T O 6 5 4 14: R E A D x: P O K E (,xs N E X T i do very much better. You see,
1010 R E T U R N the final printed result from this
sequence would turn out to be
a rather "spidery" affair because
graphics mode, then n1 would So. to get a full-size prinled we're using only single density
need to take the value 2, a n d n2 image, then, all we need to d o dot printing in the "x" direction.
and value 1 — because is to send e a c h byte twice — Fortunately it's a simple matter to
(2+1x256) = 258. Yes? Right! a n d so we need to tell the sort Ihis out. All we have to d o is
Now. to copy a single line ot prinler to expect not 256 bytes, to send the same data from the
Ihe screen (eight pixels high a n d but 512, 1o be printed in screen line to the printer three
256 pixels wide), we need to graphics mode. So the times in succession with a very
send 256 bytes of data to the appropriate escape sequence small line feed of 1/216" (1/3
printer — but since we'll be for our purpose becomes: vertical dot spacing) after each
printing in double density mode transmission. At the end of this,
this would produce a final CHR$ 27; "L"; CHR$ 0; CHR$ 2; we send a line feed of 21/216"
image at only half size, which is (making a total of 24/216", or
not so good (dot spacing is The next job is to scan 8/72") to get the printer ready for
halved in this mode, remember). horizontally through line 21 on the next line ot data. What we
achieve by this is effectively
Flguro 1. Hi res graph plotting triple dot density in the x
direction.

Graphs
Listing 2 gives an example
a p p l i c a t i o n of this process, the
important part being the
subroutine at line 200 which
employs all the little tricks we've
just been discussing. The
program as a whole will
produce a graph of the function
defined in line 3 (which is of no
importance except as an
illustration), a n d Figure 1 shows
the final printed result.
Incidentally, the machine c o d e
is so short that it's hardly
worthwhile loading it in
separately — in fact line 1000

23 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

nm
Listing 3 r, .* • . "j

Pass 1 errors: 00

10 * D +
20 *C-
30 i R o u t l n e for p r i n t i n g a v e r t i c a l s t r i p o f screen 8
40 ;pixols w i d e , s t a r t i n g at the pixel w h o s e x-coord so m u c h of the printer h a n d l i n g
50 ; is h e l d in a d d r e s s X C O U N T to BASIC a n d there are two
60 reasons for this. First, given the
65368 70 ORG 6 5 3 6 8 ; S t a r t of U D G a r e a m a c h i n e c o d e routine to transfer
65368 80 LD A, 3 the data, it's the a c t u a l physical
65370 90 CALL #1601 ;Se)ect printer
65373 XOR A
process of printing which takes
100
65374 1 10 LD B. A the bulk of the lime, so that
65375 120 LD D,A ;Zero the B and D r e g i s t e r s there's very little to b e g a i n e d by
65376 13® LOOP1 LD A.(XCOUNT) writing the remaining bits in
65379 140 LD C , A i S t a r t l n g p o s i t i o n in C r e g i s t e r m a c h i n e code. Second, with the
65380 150 LOOP 2 PUSH BC subroutine as it stands you c o n
65381 16® PUSH DE ;Save r e g i s t e r s fiddle about with It easily. You
65382 170 CALL P O I N T : E q u i v a l e n t to P O I N T < c , b ) might, for example, d e c i d e to go
65385 180 CALL FP A iResult off stack into A register for only two passes of the print-
65388 190 POP DE h e a d rather lhan three, In order
65389 200 POP BC ; R o c o v e r r e g i s t e r s
1 ;ls t h i s s c r e e n p i x e l s e t ?
to speed up the printing — a n d
65390 210 CP
65392 220 CALL 2 , S E T B I T ; If s o t h e n s e t b i t 7 o f D
It you d o you'll n e e d to c h a n g e
65395 230 RLC D ; R o t a t e D r e g i s t e r by o n e bit the counter in line 200 (FOR h =
65397 240 INC C ; H o v e to next pixel on the r i g h t 0 TO 1), a n d to c h a n g e the line
65398 250 LD A.(XCOUNT) feed in line 230 to 22/216".
65401 260 ADD A.8
65403 270 CP C ;Have uc done 8 p i x e l s y e t ? Stripper
65404 280 JP N Z . L 0 0 P 2 ;If n o t t h e n p r o c e s s t h i s o n e
290 So much, then, for high
300 ;D register now h o l d s a byte ready to print resolution g r a p h plotting. Is there
65407 310 LD A. D any other use for Ihis i d e a of
65408 320 RST 16 ; S o p r i n t It o n c e . . . printing strips of screen in
65409 330 LD A, D d o u b l e density dots? There
6 5 4 10 340 RST 16 i . . . a n d o n c e a g a i n
654 I I D,0 ;Clear D register
certainly is. How would you like
350 LD
6 5 4 13 36® INC B ; H o v e u p t h e s c r e e n by o n e p i x e l a variable density screen c o p y
65414 370 LD A. B routine so that you c a n
6 5 4 15 380 CP 176 :Are we past t h e t o p of t h e screen'' compensate for the wear on
6 5 4 17 390 JP N Z , L O O P 1 ilf n o t t h e n g e t a n o t h e r b y t e your printer ribbon? You would?
65420 400 RET ;Back to BASIC Then read on!
4 10 SETBIT The Kempston "E" Interface
65421 420 SET 7.D ;Set bit 7 of D register allows you to get two kinds of
65423 430 RET screen c o p y — an e n l a r g e d one
65424 440 XCOUNT DEFB 0 ;x c o o r d o f left e d g e of strip which is fine for most purposes,
8910 450 POINT EQU B22CE ;(ROM)
a n d one of "normal" size which
1 1733 460 FP A EQU 82DD5 ;(ROM)
is OK but c o u l d be better. This
Pass 2 errors: 00 latter is a single density screen
d u m p (which looks rather ghostly
Table used: 86 froi 256 when your r i b b o n is worn) with a
quite b a d l y distorted aspect
just pokes it in from BASIC when does this for the Kempston "E" ratio to boot. If we take
the program runs Just a c o u p l e interface, (b) Lipe 20 is n e e d e d c o m m a n d of the printer
of further points a b o u t the listing: only if your printer is normally ourselves, a n d scan the screen
(a) You need to instruct your set to give automatic line feeds in strips (treating e a c h strip
interface to turn off the tokens with a c a r r i a g e return. m u c h as we d i d in the graph
before proceeding, a n d line 10 You may wonder why I've left plotting example), we c a n
improve matters considerably.
Figuro 2. Variable density screen copy There's some a d v a n t a g e to be
(o) Minimum (b) Maximum
g a i n e d by scanning the screen
In vertical strips rather than
horizontal ones in order to get a
more a c c e p t a b l e aspect ratio,
a n d as before, it's only
necessary to h a n d l e the transfer
of d a t a from screen to printer in
m a c h i n e code. Listing 3 gives
the assembler program we
need. Though similar to Listing 1.
it differs in some important ways
namely (a) It transfers d a t a from
a vertical strip eight pixels wide
a n d 176 pixels high; a n d (b) We
n e e d to tell it which strip to
transfer by poking a suilable x
co-ordinate into 65424 (XCOUNT)
Again, the c o d e itself is so short
that it's readily POKEd in from
within a BASIC program, a n d I've
Incorporated it in this way into
Listing 4.
Listing 4 is a self-contained

24 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

screen copy routine which gives
you the choice of three printing
densilies (effectively you're
choosing the number of print-
Listing 4
1 REM * » * K E N P S T 0 N "E'vDHP 2000 VARIABLE DENSITY SCREES COPY
head passes between the line 2 REH
feeds). Just type it in a n d save to 3 REM
auto-run from line 1 In use the 10 C L S : P R I N T A T 1 0 . 5 ; * S U I T C H O N T H E P R I N T E R ' : G O S U B 1 0 0 0
program assumes that the 15 P R I N T A T 2 1 . 3 ; " P r e s s a n y k e y to c o n t i n u e " : P A U S E 0
screen you wish 1o c o p y is to be 17 R E M
loaded from microdrive, but if 18 R E M * * « K e m p s t o n "E" i n s t r u c t i o n to s w i t c h o f f t o k e n s
you're working with t a p e just 19 R E M
change tine 60 accordingly. 2 0 C O P Y : REM C H R S 0
Whichever density you choose, 3 0 L P R I N T CHRJ- 2 7 ; " A " ; C H R S 0 ; : R E M * D i s a b l e 7 a u t o - h n e f e e d
you'll gel a result of higher 4 0 C L S : INP'JT " S a a e of s c r e e n to be l o a d e d ' " ' L I N E z S
quality than the normal 5 0 IF 2 * = - " T H E N GO TO 40
Kempston screen c o p y would 60 LOAD *-b-; 1 ;zSSCREEN$
give — a n d maximum density 7 0 P R I N T B l . A T 0 . 0 ; " S E L E C T D E N S I T Y 1 / 2 / 3 (3 n a x i m u n ) PRESS 4
will give excellent results wilh to load a n o t h e r s c r e e n "
even the most battered a n d 8 0 P A U S E 0 : L E T > * = I N K E Y » : IF i t < " I " O R i » > " 4 " T H E N GO TO 80
weary of printer ribbons. Figure 2 85 BEEP .1.30
demonstrates the range of 9 0 IF 1 1 - " 4 " T H E N GO TO 40
densities available and. even 95 PRINT n!;AT 0 . 0 . . . . A T 1.11; FLASH 1;"PRINTING*
with the u n a v o i d a b l e distortions 100 LET d e n s 1 1 y = < 1 A N D i » s " 2 " > + ( 2 A N D i * = " 3 " )
of reproduction, may give you 110 F O R i = 0 T O 2 5 5 S T E P 8 : F O R j = 0 T O d e n s i t y
some idea of the possibilities. 120 P O K E 6 5 4 2 4 , i : REM * P o s i t i o n of left h a n d s i d e of s t r i p
In this articte I've only 130 L P R I N T C H R J 2 7 ; " L - ; C H R S 9 6 ; C H R i 1;: R E M * D o u b l e d e n s i t y
scratched the surface of what 140 R A N D O M I Z E U S R 6 5 3 6 8 : R E M * P r i n t a s t r i p
can be achieved, but I hope It's 1 5 0 L P R I N T C H R t 1 3 ; C H R i 2 7 ; " J " ; C H R $ 1;: R E M * S n a i l l i n e f e e d
enough to give you some Ideas 160 N E X T t M
170 L P R I N T C H R * l 3 ; C H R t 2 7 ; J " t C H R » I 2 3 - d e n s i t y ) ; : R E H * B i g LF
— and in any case I find the
180 NEXT i
routines I've given here pretty
190 GO TO 7 0
useful, myself. With only a few 997 REM
modifications, you should be 998 R E M * * * M a c h i n e c o d e for p r i n t i n g v e r t i c a l s t r i p of s c r e e n
able to produce "enlarged" 999 REM
versions using q u a d r u p l e density 1000 FOR i = 6 5 3 6 8 TO 6 5 4 2 4 : R E A D x: P O K E i.x: N E X T RETURN
mode, if you require them. And if 1010 DATA 6 2 . 3 . 2 0 5 , 1 , 2 2 . 1 7 5 . 7 1 . 8 7 , 5 8 , 1 4 4
nothing else, the maximum 1011 DATA 2 5 5 . 7 9 , 1 9 7 . 2 1 3 . 2 0 5 , 2 0 6 . 3 4 , 2 0 5 . 2 1 3 , 4 5
density copy routine might help 1012 DATA 2 0 9 . 1 9 3 . 2 5 4 , 1 . 2 0 4 , 1 4 1 . 2 5 5 . 2 0 3 . 2 , 1 2
you to squeeze just a little bit 1013 D A T A 5 8 , M 4 . 2 5 5 . 1 9 8 . 8 . 185. 194. 1 0 0 . 2 5 5 , 122
more out of your tired a n d worn- 1014 DATA 215,122,215,22.0,4,120,254,176.194
out printer ribbons. 1015 DATA 9 6 . 2 5 5 , 2 0 1 , 2 0 3 , 2 5 0 , 2 0 1 , 0

TROJAN
CAD-MASTER
THE ULTIMATE IN G R A P H I C S T O O L S
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SUPERB GRAPHICS SOFTWAR British Code ot Advertising Practice In respect ot mail order
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PLUS advertisers to fulfil orders within 28 days, unless a longer delivery
period is stated Where goods are returned undamaged w>lhin seven
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Plus many more too numerous to mention in this ad. All these Please do not wail until the last moment to inlorm us When you write
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Instnjction booklet in one reasonably priced package. Easy to use is required
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25 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

 REflT business computers have used
m i c e for years, a n d there are
now a c o u p l e a v a i l a b l e for the
Spectrum (with another on the
way from Saga quite soon). The
AMX Mouse, trom A d v a n c e d
Memory Systems, a p p e a r e d

GRAPHICS
Here it is, the ZX guide
to the best in graphics
equipment for the
Spectrum.
Art Studio £14.95
Unless you're g o i n g to stick to
BASIC (not a g o o d idea) the first
thing you'll n e e d when you start
experimenting with graphics is a
g o o d bit of software, a n d , with
one possible exception,
Rainbird's Art Studio stands h e a d
a n d shoulders above everything
else. Despite the wretched
Lenslok anti-piracy device. Art
Studio is a fast a n d flexible icon-
driven p a c k a g e that will help
you squeeze the best out of the
Spectrum's graphics capabilities.
It's also a v a i l a b l e In two versions
tor both 48K a n d 128K machines
(although the 128 version costs
£24.95).
use it with both Kempston
interfaces a n d the +2's built in
joystick socket. Of course if you
don't have a Plus Two you'll
need...
Kempston Joystick
Interface £6.95
Almost as old as the Spectrum
Itself is the Kempston Joystick
Interface, more or less the de
taclo standard for the Spectrum.
This latest m o d e l trom Kempston
is small, neat, a n d very
Inexpensive.
AMX Mouse £69.95
Everyone's got a joystick (haven't
they?) but the more ambitious
a m o n g you might want to splash
out on a mouse. Most 'real'
shortly before Ralnbird released
Art Studio and, b e i n g incredibly
sensible, Rainblrd m a d e Art
Studio c o m p a t i b l e with the
mouse (though you don't have to
buy Art Studio as well since the
mouse comes c o m p l e t e with its
own b u n d l e d graphics software,
AMX Art). The mouse Interface
plugs into the Spectrum just like
a joystick Interface, Into which
the mouse is p l u g g e d . A g o o d
value-for-money feature Is that
the mouse interface also
includes a printer interface
which c o u l d save you some £30
If you haven't already got one.
Trojan Ligliht Pen £14.95
Not as flexible
le as a mouse, but
less expensive, light pens have
the virtue of allowing you to
'draw' directly onto the surface
of your monitor or TV screen. This
c a n be useful If you're trying to
draw curves, wiggly lines etc.
which can't easily be drawn
using keyboard or joystick
control, as the pen allows you to
draw freehand. Trojan's pen

The Artist II £14.95

Soltek's original Artisl program
was good, but a bit fddly to use.
but the e n h a n c e d Artist tt has
a d o p t e d the same pull-down
menu system as Art Studio a n d
there's now not a lot to choose
between the two programs when
it comes to creating screen
graphics. However The Artist
allows you to take text files trom
Softek's Writer wordprocessor a n d
a d d graphics to them in order
to create a passable imitation of
a magazine p a g e — desktop
publishing on the Spectrum!

Cheetah Mach 1+ £14.95

O n c e you've picked your
software you then have to
d e c i d e how you're g o i n g to
d r a w ' your pictures on the
screen. All graphics p a c k a g e s
allow you to use the keyboard
for positioning a d r a w i n g cursor,
but this c a n get a bit awkward
unless you've got the fingers of a
concert pianist so a joystick c a n
c o m e in handy. People's c h o i c e
of joystick is fairly personal, but
we've found this one to be g o o d
for both delicate d r a w i n g
movements a n d all-out alien
zapping, a n d it has the
additional a d v a n t a g e of having
an adaptor that allows you to

26 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

comes with Its own graphics
software, though this isn't as
sophisticated as it c o u l d be.
Kempston Mouse £49.95
The price of this is a b o u t to
come down to around £49.95
according to Kempston, m a k i n g
It excellent value. At the moment
the mouse comes b u n d l e d with
a copy of the Art Studio, making
It about as powerful a graphics
tool as you're likely to get on the
Spectrum (though when the
price comes down Kempston are
intending to r e p l a c e Art Studio
with their own graphics
software).
The mouse itself is a sleek
white unit with two buttons set
Into its 'head'. It's very solidly
constructed, a n d wouldn't look
out of p l a c e beside a computer
ten times as powerful as a
Spectrum. Like the AMX mouse
this also plugs into the Spectrum
via its own interface which, not
surprisingly looks just like the rest
of the Kempston range of
Interfaces.
Kempston 'E'
Interface £34.95
Where there's an interface there's
bound to be a Kempston. a n d
the Kempston *E' comes highly
recommended by ZX regular
27 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987
Alan Davis. All the software you
n e e d to run it with is held
onboard, it's versatile e n o u g h to
meet just about all your needs
and, most Importantly, it's simple
e n o u g h to use that you don't
have to be a genius in order to
w a d e through endless lists of
control codes — unlike a lot of
printer interfaces this one is
actually 'user-friendly'!
Euroelectronics
ZXLprint III £34.95
We h a d to give this one a
mention since we've h a d one in
our oftices for a c o u p l e of years
a n d never h a d a moment's
trouble with it (this article was
d u m p e d onto our printer with it).
It's c o m p a t i b l e with both
Centronics a n d RS232 printers
(you just have to buy the
relevant cable), a n d like the
Kempston 'E' it has its own
o n b o a r d software.
What about a printer?
Oh dear. This is where It c o u l d
start to get a bit c o m p l i c a t e d .
O n c e upon a time you h a d a
c h o i c e between a b i g expensive
real" prinler or a number of
small c h e a p 'dedicated' printers
which were specifically
Intended for use with the
Spectrum (Sinclair's own ZX
printer, the A l p h a c o m 32 a n d
Seikosha GP50-S). Unfortunately
none of these are still in
production, 'though you might
be a b l e to find one or two still
floaling around In shops.
So. you no longer have any
c h o i c e — if you want to print out
any of your graphics
masterpieces you're g o i n g to
have to fork out somewhere in
the region of £200 for a full-size
printer a n d Interface.
A printer is a fairly serious
p i e c e of hardware and. in
general, the price reflects the
quality of the machine, although
few Spectrum owners are likely
to need to typewriter quality
print ottered by the top-range
machines costing £400 upwards.
If you're only interested in
printing screen dumps you
probably don't need near fetter
quality printing, but It's not
g o i n g to cost you m u c h extra
a n d is b o u n d to c o m e in useful
one d a y — especially if you ever
want to sell your printer as
second hand, so bear that in
mind. However, there are a few
printers that offer high quality at
relatively low prices, our
particular favourites being:
Amstrad DMP2000 £159
About as c h e a p as you're likely
to get, a n d ottering surprisingly
g o o d quality. Like most Amstrad
products they've kept it simple
a n d cheap, so this looks a bit
like a b a b y c o m p a r e d to some
of the heftier numbers around
but it will d o screen dumps a n d
near letter quality text printing —
a n d for under £200 that's g o o d
going.
Compliment LQ £199
Part of Saga's Compliment word
processor p a c k a g e this is an
excellent m a c h i n e that's as
g o o d as some much more
highly p r i c e d printers. Obviously
g e a r e d towards wordprocessing
rather than graphics, but still
c a p a b l e of g o o d quality screen
dumps.
Citizen 120D £235
Starting to get a little pricey, but
this is about as g o o d as most
home computer owners will
need. There is a very g o o d letter
quality m o d e for printing text,
a n d it's c r a m m e d with
international character sets a n d
self-diagnostic tests, a n d takes
single sheets of p a p e r or
perforated printout paper. Some
of these features are luxuries,
rather than necessities, but if you
c a n afford it you're not likely to
have to buy another printer very
soon.
fpREflT
IRAPHICS
Hot on the heels of The
Advanced Art Studio
comes Audiogenic's
graphics package for
the 128 and Plus 2.

Icon Graphix 128

Audiogenic
£12.95

udiogenic's Icon Graphix

p a c k a g e was l a u n c h e d about a
year ago, at the same time as
the Spectrum 128 a p p e a r e d . The
first version to a p p e a r was for the
48K machines but. not
surprisingly. Audiogenic also
a n n o u n c e d that an e n h a n c e d
version for the 128 was on its way
and, now that Amstrad's own
version of the 128 Is well a n d
truly here, they've finally gotten
around to releasing Icon
Graphix 128.

New features
Unlike the e n h a n c e d version of
Art Studio, which uses the 128's
additional memory mainly for
fast data storage/retrieval a n d
which has relatively few new
facilities for actually creating
graphics, the new Icon Graphix
p a c k a g e features a number of
options which were absent from
the original. Mind you, the
original Icon Graphix lacked
certain features that c o u l d be
found in both Art Studio a n d The
Artist (such as text handling a n d
'cut a n d paste' commands] so
the u p g r a d e d version has been
brought into iine with what we've
alt c o m e to expect as standard
from graphics packages these
days.
The layout of the screen
display remains unchanged, a time c a n be held In memory). the paper a n d ink within the
with the central drawing area The other new commands are cutting a n d to then surround
surrounded by a border m a d e mainly for 'cut 'n paste', allowing any solid areas with either a
up of the various FILL patterns you to define small sections of black or white outline
and, along the bottom of the the screen which c a n be 'lifted d e p e n d i n g on the nature of the
screen, icon symbols for the up", moved around, rotated, drawing. This might sound a little
graphics commands. This Icon reflected a n d otherwise abused. pointless but It actually creates
menu now has an a d d e d As I mentioned these c a n be a kind of 'polarised' effect that
feature though — a PAGE Icon, found on ordinary 48K makes even simple drawings
which when selected calls up packages, so while their look more Interesting, a n d it c a n
pages 2 a n d 3 of rhe menu inclusion now is a g o o d Idea it's b e used repeatedly to build up
containing the new commands. not exactly a giant leap forward. some unusual shading effects
The FILL. PEN. a n d shape which might otherwise take
forever to produce If they h a d to
commands (for drawing boxes,
lines, circles a n d ovals) were all
Trace be drawn conventionally.
standard on the 48K version but One new feature which is quite This TRACE c o m m a n d Is the
the new commands include original Is the TRACE c o m m a n d . highlight of the package, and,
some for a d d i n g text to your Once you've defined a window a l o n g with the Icon menus
pictures (and there is an (or a 'cutting' as the manual (which I found simpler to use
impressive variety of fonts calls it) you c a n use this than on Art Studio or The Artist) Is
included on side two of the c o m m a n d on whatever Is drawn one of the areas where It scores
tape, although only one font at within it. What it does Is to invert over the competition. However

28 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

 there are other features which
could be improved upon given
the 128's potential.
Although the program allows
you to control the cursor from
keyboard, joystick or (Kempston)
mouse, the movement of the
cursor is fairly slow a n d it c a n
take a c o u p l e ot seconds to
move the cursor trom one side of
the screen to another (good It
you're d o i n g detailed work using
the MAGNIFY option, but
irritating if you're trying to
quickly move Jrom one icon to
another).
The FILL a n d shape drawing
commands are also slow, a n d if
you're defining a cutting with
the cut a n d paste c o m m a n d s
that is more than about 1/4 of
the size of the screen you c a n
almost hear the poor m a c h i n e
straining to keep up as it tries to
constantly redraw the window.
Finally, the SAVE/LOAD facilities
are a bit of a mess. You c a n
save or l o a d a normal SCREENS,
a document' or a cutting,
though the manual doesn't
really explain how a d o c u m e n t
differs trom a SCREENS. The
loading option is a bit finicky
about a c c e p t i n g names a n d
you can't just l o a d the first
SCREENS that you c o m e to on
tape (ie using LOAD " " SCREENS),
as you've got to know the n a m e
ot the screen to start off with. This
is fine If you've saved a picture
drawn from scratch on the
package, but it you've got some
pictures saved onto t a p e that
are taken from anywhere else
you've got to make sure you
know their names betore you
can get at them. Icon Graphix
128 Is an Improvement upon the
original. I found it easier a n d
more enjoyable to work with
than many other graphics
packages I've h a d to review in
the past, mainly because the
icon menu Is so self-explanatory
and visible on screen all the
time rather than just p o p p i n g up
and down betore you've
managed to figure out what
you're doing.
As I mentioned, the program
could be faster than it is, but on
the other hand it does cost just
£12.95 c o m p a r e d to a fairly hefty
£25 for the 128 version ot Art
Studio, so while It might not
match Art Studio in sheer speed
and number of options It still
works out at quite g o o d value.

s Col-
PUSH LOAD +
PAGE SAVE our

H o i
"Type" Hide 121
| Bold Outline Clear
PUSH
PAGE
LOAD +
SAVE 3 Coll
our | Undo Shapes Magnify "Type" F i x f f f

HA Bold Outl ine

29 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

_
DISCIPLE
John Wase plugs in a
new multi-purpose
interface.
Disciple
Rockford Products
£73.70 ( + VAT)
F = o r several weeks I h a d b e e n
anticipating Its arrival. At last a
cryptic message c a m e — "a
disciple will shortly arrive at your
house". It was on Its way.
My delay in receiving this
Interface was d u e to a technical
problem: the NEC ROM version
of the Spectrum gave trouble
with their first issue, a n d the ROM
in the Disciple h a d to be re-
written. Advantage was therefore
taken of this to Incorporate
several improvements into the
system, a n d it is this version,
version 2, which I tested. Disciple
comes complete with Instruction
manual, guarantee a n d a cas-
sette. As the picture shows, the
interlace itself is a fong, flat
plastic box on which your
Spectrum sits, a bit Interlace
One-ish in shape, with a n e d g e
connector on top to connect the
Spectrum a n d the customary
through-port on the back. To the
right of this are the Joystick port
a n d network connector, with the
printer interface on the e n d of
the box. To the lett are a
standard BEEB-type disc Interface
connector, a second joystick
port a n d network connector, a n d
on the lett-hand end, the inhibit
a n d snapshot buttons.
I a p p r o a c h e d the system with
some trepidation, b e i n g preju-
d i c e d through long familiarity
with the Opus system. So at first I
didn't like the rather creaky
plastic box; a 128K Spectrum+2
overhung this rather a lot, a n d I
was g l a d I h a d left on the b i g
feet which I n e e d with Ihe
Discovery, tor they just supported
In the right places the overhang
from the Disciple. A standard 48K
Spectrum was less lucky a n d
n e e d e d a cassette temporarily
w e d g e d in front of it. The first two
Disciples h a d rough h a n d l i n g in
the mail a n d the snapshot
switch was d a m a g e d in e a c h
case; Rockfort tell me that more
robust switches are now b e i n g
used, a n d that the p a c k a g i n g is
b e i n g modified. Whilst none of
this improved my confidence, as
I used it a n d gradually got used
to it, I b e g a n to like it a n d
a p p r e c i a t e its many virtues.
Hooked
The m a n u a l contains a lot of
useful basic information, but
lacks anything detailed on
m a c h i n e code, although it
mentions that the hook codes
are the same as those tor micro-
drives. I a m told that by the time
you read this, there will be a
new, ring-bound version of the
Instructions which will have
provision for containing compre-
hensive information on m a c h i n e
code. The first operation is to
connect everything up a n d l o a d
30 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
the utilities program supplied on
cassette. After answering various
prompts, you are ready to format
a disc. Two surprises: firstly the
disc is not n a m e d ; you have to
n a m e it on the label; secondly
a small c o d e program c a l l e d
"systems" Is also saved on the
disc at the same time. A c o l d
start involves switching on
computer, Inserting disc a n d
typing RUN. when the systems
program is loaded. This c a n be
a bit irritating but does ensure
that the system c a n b e u p d a t e d
to c o p e with alterations in other
systems. There is provision for one
further auto-running program on
any one disc.
Disciple comes with a truly
comprehensive array of com-
mands. LOAD D1"proaram". tor
instance, works, as well as micro-
drive commands. So does SAVE
d1 " p r o g r a m " SAVE D l - p r o g r a m "
saves a n d then also gives you
the short directory or catalogue,
which numbers e a c h file, tells
you what It Is a n d the start
address a n d length if It is code.
This allows you to use the very
short syntax LOAD p6. when
number 6 in the list is l o a d e d
from the last disc In use. All the
c o m m a n d s one would expect
are there, including wild c a r d
tiles (to ERASE numbersl.
numbers2. numbers 3 eta, enter
ERASE DTn*"). A well thought out
system.
In a d d i t i o n to the disc
Interface itself, one or two other
little gizmos are Incorporated.
Clearly a i m e d at the games
player is a snapshot button; this
takes a c o p y of what is in
memory, a n d , In this case, saves
It direct to disc as a "snapshot
file". This is the only type of file
which will not c o p y from one
disc to another on a two disc
system; thus piracy Is minimised.
The two joystick ports c a n be
configured either as Sinclair or
(lelt hand only) as Kempston.
A great d e a l of thought has
been given to networking.
Disciple has two network ports,
each taking inexpensive
standard 3.5mm jack plugs a n d
standard cable. In this way, a
shored access network c a n be
set up with a master station a n d
pupil stations: the master c a n
transmit programs to the pupils
and even call up their screens
to check their work; they, in turn
can call up programs from a
central disc or print on a central
printer.
Centronics
The Centronics Interface is fairly
unremarkable. The answers to
Ihe Initial utility program involve
information about the printer In
use if It Is not a n Epson com-
patible. The answers are Incor-
porated In the systems program
which has to be used to boost
up the system; a nuisance if you
are using dot matrix for rough
copy and daisy wheel for the
finished document. LLIST a n d
LPRINT are supported, together
with COPY SCREENS which
copies the screen. Any control
codes that you want to send to
the printer are p r e c e d e d by
CHRS27, even if you wish to send
CHRS27 Itself; tortuous but
effective. This can, however, be
c h a n g e d (it has to be for
Tasword, for instance, for version
2 will transmit only four control
codes at any one time).
Now for the meaty bits. I took
one of my son's games a n d
converted It onto disc. This
consisted of a basic loader, a
screen a n d a p i e c e of m a c h i n e
c o d e 38351 bytes long (virtually
a full 48K Spectrum).
Loading this from t a p e took
just short of five minutes. The
same thing took a spectacular
seven seconds from the Disciple!
I l o a d e d the g a m e a g a i n a n d
took a snapshot. Taking it took
between eight a n d nine
seconds. Reloading took five.
When times get as short as this It
is Impossible to be very
accurate: all you c a n say Is that
they are impressively fast. Saving
is equally fast — I used the SAVf
D1 "name" version for the picture
a n d for the c o d e ; in e a c h case
the bulk of the seven or eight
seconds was the time required
to display the directory. Indeed,
the only operation which took
longer was formatting.
Talking of formatting, I found
that there were one or two
Interesting comparisons to be
made. Discovery has a directory
length (110 files) which is
independent of the disc type,
a n d which c a n be extended if
necessary. Disciple allows only
40 entries in single density a n d
80 in d o u b l e The sector length is
similarly Interesting, Discovery
a n d Disciple (80 track) has 512
byte sectors. Although these
bigger sectors a n d the lack of a
c o m p a c t i n g facility on Disciple
c o u l d m e a n more wasteful use
of the disc, this is m a d e up for a
larger formatted capacity,
although d o remember that you
have to put the "systems"
program on the d i s c
My overall impressions a n d
comments? Well, first the b a d
news. It's g o i n g to cost quite a
lot for a c o m p l e t e system, for
you've got the cost of a drive on
top of the £79 o d d for Disciple. I
felt If was a bit plasticky, a bit
flimsy, a n d I m a n a g e d to get the
disc connector in the wrong way
round. M u c h of this was when,
all thumbs, I was trying to
connect up a n d get It going.
Having got used to It. well. It's
great. There are all sorts of
additions: the snapshot, the
comprehensive networking, the
availability ot two Sinclair or one
Kempston joystick ports, the
ability to run mlcrodrive software
a n d to have It transferred by
means of the Inhibit butlon, a n d
above all, the Incredible speed
of transfer. You know. I rather
fancy one myself...

ARE YOU A BUDDING

PROGRAMMER?
X is always looking for top

mre
quality games and utilities for
publication. If you have a top
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31 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

 ^Mini Studio^
A Sound Sampler for
any 48K or 128K
Spectrum by Massimo
Pilia.
T o enter the p r o g r a m :
Type in listing 1 a n d save It with
SAVE "MS-'LINE 5. Then t y p e in
listing 2 a n d save this onto
another t a p e with SAVE "L2".
Run listing 2 a n d w h e n the
saving prompt a p p e a r s , position
your FIRST t a p e (with MS o n it)
just after listing 1 a n d start
recording. Press a key.
Rewind the t a p e a n d l o a d
listing 1. O n c e It has l o a d e d
a n d run itself you are r e a d y to
g o through the following
instructions.
What is Sound
Sampling?
S a m p l i n g Is a way of digitally
r e c o r d i n g a small a m o u n t of
sound, usually for use in m u s i c A
computer's m e m o r y Is a n I d e a l
m e d i u m for this type of
recording, since a sound is In
memory, It c a n b e s u b j e c t e d to
a n y number of bizarre
alterations.
This p r o g r a m allows sound (up
to a b o u t six seconds long) to b e
recorded, reversed, s p e e d e d up.
slowed d o w n a n d sequence-
p l a y e d In a specific order with
other sounds. The basis of the
p r o g r a m is the m a c h i n e c o d e
that records a n d plays b a c k the
sound. This works by r e a d i n g the
cassetle port at high speed, a n d
f e e d i n g the sounds that are
r e a d into m e m o r y In the form of
d a t a bits. By reversing the
process a n d r e a d i n g the bits
from m e m o r y a n d out of the
cassette port a n d buzzer, the
sound is r e p r o d u c e d . C h a n g i n g
the s p e e d that the sound is
p l a y e d b a c k at will also c h a n g e
the pitch of the sound.
There are four m o d e s of
operation:
SOUNDS - this Is the m o d e
where the sounds are s a m p l e d
a n d cut u p for use in the other
modes
PLAY - sounds set u p In SOUNDS
m o d e c a n b e p l a y e d b a c k at
O eight pitches covering a n
i u octave.
Q.
CO BARS — u p to eight bars, e a c h
32
c o n t a i n i n g u p to eight sounds,
c o n b e entered In this mode.
PROGS - bars c r e a t e d in BARS
m o d e are strung together In u p
to 64 steps here.
The SPACE key switches you
b e t w e e n m o d e s a n d the cursors
in SOUNDS. BARS a n d PROGS are
c o n t r o l l e d using keys: 5=left,
6 = d o w n , 7 = u p a n d 8=right with
0 for edit.
Sounds Mode
In this m o d e the p r o g r a m is
controlled with the following
keys:
1 — Selects the n u m b e r of beats
per bar (up fo eight).
2 — Selects the blocks' per b e a t
(see note below).
I — Input (record a sound).
O — Output (playback).
L - Load.
S - Save.
K - Key (musical key In PLAY
mode).
When using I. O a n d S Ihey
o p e r a t e on the sound
u n d e r l i n e d by the cursor, this is
the m o v i n g line w h i c h
underlines various functions a n d
sounds a n d is c o n t r o l l e d by the
keys 5, 6, 7, 8, to move it In the
direction of the arrows.
The m e m o r y that sounds are
s a m p l e d Into is d i v i d e d Into 120
"blocks", e a c h 256 bytes long.
There are ten sound
configurations (0-9) w h i c h are
simply windows o n this memory.
Each of these configurations
has four values as shown o n the
t o p left of the screen. The t o p
right displays the m o d e you are
In. The m e a n i n g of these values
is:
STA - this is the 'block* where
the sound starts In m e m o r y
(0-119).
LEN — fhe length of the sound
(1-120).
Dl — the direction of the sound
(forwards/backwards).
DE — the d e l a y used w h e n
p l a y i n g b a c k or r e c o r d i n g the
sound. This determines the
s p e e d a n d quality.
Another value — BTS — is also
shown but is just the n u m b e r of
beats the sound o c c u p i e s . This is
c a l c u l a t e d by LEN/BLOCKS/BEAT.
Recording
1. Set u p the c o m p u t e r a n d t a p e
recorder as shown in figure 1.
ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
O n most t a p e recorders pressing
PAUSE+PLAY/REC should allow
you to s a m p l e from the
microphone.
2. Configure a sound so as to
use u p the rest of r e m a i n i n g
memory. EG. set u p s o u n d 0 as:
N - STA - L E N - Dl - D E
0— 000 —120—FO—01
by m o v i n g the cursor with keys
5-8 until It Is b e n e a t h the v a l u e
you wish to c h a n g e , press 0 a n d
then enter the value you require.
The d e l a y Is set to 01 for
m a x i m u m quality. If the d e l a y
was higher the sound c o u l d
then b e r e p l a y e d at higher
pitches ( l a lower delays) but
w o u l d b e of poorer quality.
3. Press I for Input a n d reply "y"
to the "sure?" prompt.
4. Press a key to start s a m p l i n g
w h e n you are ready. The s a m p l e
is c o m p l e t e w h e n the "PRESS A
KEY" p r o m p t disappears.
5. Press O to listen to your
sample. It will s o u n d best
through h e a d p h o n e s p l u g g e d
into the ear socket at the b a c k
of the computer.
6. Now you must tighten u p the
sound, le, c h o p off any excess
sound before or after the part
you want. Start by increasing the
start value (STA) bit by bit. you
will have to d e c r e a s e the LEN
value before e a c h increase of
STA as the TOTAL of STA-fLEN Is a
m a x i m u m of 120. Listen to the
sound e a c h time until there Is no
superfluous s o u n d before the
p o r l i o n you wont.
Now d e c r e a s e the l e n g t h
(LEN) value until the s a m p l e is
exactly the portion of s o u n d you
require.
7. Your s a m p l e Is now complete.
You m a y reverse It by m o v i n g the
cursor to the Dl c o l u m n a n d
pressing 0. You m a y also
c h a n g e the d e l a y (speed). I
shall e x p l a i n the various ways of
using a s a m p l e In a moment.
Play Mode
This m o d e uses the following
keys:
1 — Record,
2 - Playback.
In the Record s u b - m o d e the
sound currently u n d e r l i n e d by
the cursor in SOUNDS Is turned
into a m u s i c a l (or not so

EAR LINE
Figuro 1. Sampling set-up
musical) Instrument p l a y e d o n
keys 1-8 in the key s p e c i f i e d by
the K key from the SOUNDS
mode.
0 toggles r e c o r d i n g of lunes
ON/OFF 9 exits the sub-mode.
In the Playback s u b - m o d e a
tune r e c o r d e d in Record c a n b e
replayed by t a p p i n g out the
rhythm on the 0 key. 9 exits.
Bars M o d e
This m o d e uses the following
keys:
0 - Run/Initialise (bars).
E - Toggle Stop/Repeat.
C - Toggle b e a t counter
ON/OFF
Hold down any key on the
bottom row to stop the s e q u e n c e
looping endlessly (Ihis h a p p e n s
when repeat is ON).
When the b e a t counter is ON,
any bar entered that does not
contain the right n u m b e r ot
beats (Ie. w h e n the total BTS
value ot every s o u n d in the bar
Is not the s a m e as BEATS/BAR) will
be rejected. This bar must then
either be entered correctly or
deleted by just pressing ENTER.
In this m o d e eight bars (lists of
sounds) c a n b e e d i t e d a n d
stored. These c a n b e p l a y e d
back in order in this m o d e or in
a more c o m p l i c a t e d s e q u e n c e
from PROGS mode.
Entering bars:
1. Move the cursor under the bar
to be edited a n d press 0.
2. Type In your bar. (Eg. 11134132).
The numbers are the numbers of
Ihe sound samples that you set
up in SOUNDS mode.
3. Enter any another bars you
want to enter.
4. Press O a n d then enter T to
initialise.
5. Press O a n d then "r" for RUN
to listen to your stroke of musical
genius
33 ZX Computing Monthly • M a r c h 1987
The e x a m p l e bar in step 2 will
p l a y sounds 1,1.1.3,4,1,3.2 In that
order. When c o u n t i n g the beats
it counts s o u n d 1 four times a n d
3 twice. Bars are split into eight
parts. I prefer to leave the
counter OFF but it Is there for a
purpose.
Progs Mode
This m o d e is c o n t r o l l e d by keys
O a n d E:
O — Run/Initialise (sequence).
E - Toggle STOP/REPEAT.
Hold d o w n any key on the
bottom row to stop a s e q u e n c e
from p l a y i n g .
Bars c a n b e strung together in
u p to 64 steps. This is for longer,
more c o m p l i c a t e d s e q u e n c e s
a n d for quicker editing.
Entering steps:
1. Position the cursor under the
value to b e e d i t e d .
2. Press 0 to edit a n d enter the
n u m b e r of the b a r you want.
Enter 0 to signify the e n d ot the
sequence.
3. Enter any other steps you want
1o enter.
4. Press O a n d then I to initialise.
Press O a n d then "r" to listen to
the sequence.
Whenever a n alteration Is m a d e
in either PROGS or BARS m o d e
r e m e m b e r to re-inltialise them.
Using a Sample
O n c e a s a m p l e has b e e n
c r e a t e d several things c a n b e
d o n e with It:
The s a m p l e c a n b e used as a
musical instrument In PLAY
mode.
2. The s o u n d c a n b e put into a
simpler s e q u e n c e o n its own. It
you have s a m p l e d some s p e e c h
as: O-OOO-Old-FO-OI Ihen you
c o u l d set u p sounds 1 a n d 2 as
shorter versions ot 0:—
1-000-002-FO-01
2-000-Q04-FO-01
In BARS m o d e enter b a r 1 as:
211220. Initialise a n d run it for a
N-N-N-Nineteen effect.
3. Echo c a n b e s i m u l a t e d by
" l a y e r i n g " the sound. Set u p the
sounds like this:
N - STA - L E N - Dl - D E
0 - 0 0 0 -004—FO —01
1 - 0 0 2 -004—FO —01
2 - 0 0 4 -004—FO —01
3 - 0 0 6 -004—FO —01
4 - 0 0 8 -004—FO —01
5 - 0 1 0 -004—FO —01
6 - 0 1 2 -004—FO —01
7 - 014 -004—FO —01
Enter bar 1 as 01234567. Initialise
a n d run it.
4. The sound m a y also b e used
as part of a more c o m p l i c a t e d
s e q u e n c e using other sounds (ie.
a d r u m beat).
Sequencing a Tune
S e q u e n c i n g a tune poses a
p r o b l e m b e c a u s e w h e n the
sounds p i t c h is c h a n g e d its
length in time is also c h a n g e d .
This m e a n s that the rhythm goes
out the window. As the p r o g r a m
doesn't have a timer another
m e t h o d has to b e used:
Set u p sounds 0-7 thus:
N - STA - L E N - Dl - D E
0-000-008-FO-OO
1 — 008 —008—FO —08
2 - 0 1 6 —008— FO—16
3-024 -008-F0-20
4— 032 —008—FO—28
5-040-008-FO-36
6— 048 —008—FO—44
7— 056 —008—FO—48
Sample the s a m e sound
(presumably a r e c o r d e d sound)
into e a c h area. Now c h a n g e all
delays b a c k to 00.
These d e l a y settings are In
the key of C (at a guess) a n d
represent the notes C,D,E,F,G,A,B
a n d C A d d 4 to a d e l a y for a
flat a n d subtract 4 for a sharp.
Example Rhythm
It you m a n a g e d to take all that
in you are ready for your first
d r u m rhythm using MINI-STUDIO.
1 Enter SOUNDS mode.
2. Set u p sounds 1-3 like this:
1-OOO-OOS-FO-OI
2-003-003-F001
3-006-003-FO-01
3. Input or l o a d a bass d r u m
s o u n d into 1.
4. Input or l o a d a snare d r u m
sound into 2.
5. Input a b l a n k (silence) into 3.
6. Enter BARS mode.
7. Turn the b e a t counter off
(press C).
8. Enter Ihe following bars:
13132313 13332333 13232322 13132133
33132133 11112111 33112111 13222223
9. Initialise.
10. Enter progs m o d e a n d enter
these bar steps:
1213425362736873
11. Initialise a n d run this.
 tL - S T R - L E N - J D L X - B T S M O D E : S O U N D S
0 - A 0 0 - 0 0 4 - F O - 0 1 / 1
1 - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - F O - 0 1 / 1 5 /
6 / 7 / 8
2 - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - F O - 0 1 / 1 F O R
3 - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - F O - 0 1 / 1 C U R S O R S
4- - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - F O - 0 1 / 1
5 - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - F O - 0 1 / 1 S P A C E
6 - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - F O - 0 1 / 1 F O R
~7 - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - F O - 0 1 / 1 M O D E S
S - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - - F O - 0 1 / 1
9 - 0 0 0 - 0 0 4 - - F O - 0 1 / I
1 -- B / B R R : 6 I = I N P U T L. = L O R D K = K E Y
2 •- B L K / B : 4- 0 = 0 U T P U T S = S R U E ( C )

C : = T O G G L E C O U N T ( O N ) S T U D I O © 1 9 8 6
E i = T O G G L E E N D ( S T O P ) M . P i I i a
0 = R U N / I N I T I f l L I S E S E Q U E N C E S

0 G 0 0 0 O 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

F i g u r e 2. E x a m p l e o f t h o s c r e e n d i s p l a y ,

Listing 1
PI-PII 123 IF I N K E Y » - ' 3 ' AND y < V A L '14
43 IF *(a*PI/PI,PI/PI)fVAL '10 • AND y > I N T P I T H E H GO S U B V A L
0' THEN PRINT PI-PII "160*: LET y-y-VAL ' 4 ' : GO S U B V
30 PRINT s ( a » P I / P I , P I / P I ) t " - • ! AL '160'
2 REH MINI-STUDIO ! IF »<a*PI/PI,VAL *2*I<VAL *I0* 130 IF INKEY«-'6' AND x<VAL '10
3 CLEAR VAL " 3 3 7 9 1 L O A D mm
C THEN PRINT PI-PI| ' THEN GO S U B V A L ' 1 6 0 " : LET
ODE 31 I F » < a * P I / P I , V A L ' 2 ' K V A L ' x*PI/PIt GO S U B V A L '160'
10 L E I k - V A L " 8 * : LET k»-*2212 100* THEN PRlNf PI-PI| 132 I F I N K E Y * - ' ! ' THEN GO SUB
2 2 1 " : LET i e - * C D E F G A B * : LET d-PI 32 PRINT •(a+PI/PI,VAL , 2 , l | VAL '300*
-PIS LET n-PI-PIS LET p*-VAl. *20 33 IF s l a + P I / P I , I N T P D - P I / P I 133 IF 1NKEY««.'2' THEH 00 SUB
* : LET p y - P I - P r : DIM c»(VAL 'fil- THEH PRINT "-BA--J VA1. '310'
ls DIH d(VA1 *e*,VAL ' 2 * 1 5 LET t 37 IF s t a + P I / P I , I N T P I I - P I - P I 137 IF 1NKEY»-'B* THEN GU SUB
-PI-PI: LET m » - * r > ' : LET i 1 - P I - P I THEN PRINT *-FO-"| VAl '900-
S LET b a r - V A L ' B ' S LET b l k - V A L " 38 IF s(a+PI/PI,VAL *4•)<VAL ' 130 IF 1NKEY»-'I' 'I H E N GO TO V
4*: LET xI-VAL '14*: LET yl-PI-P 10* THEN PRINT PI-PIl At '910*
IS L E T • - P I - P I : DIH »(VAL '10*,V 3 9 PRINT » ( * + P l / P I , VAL " 4 " U 139 IF lNKfcY»-*k* THEN liU SUB
AL • « • ) : DIH p«<VAL " B - . V A L *8*> 60 PRINT * / " I « f a * P I / P I , V A L ' 2 ' VAL '930*
5 LET x - P I / P I S LET y - I N T PI 1/blkt: LET b«-STR« t*(a»PI/PI,V 140 I F l N K E Y » - * 7 " AND x >Pl/PI T
2 0 FOR a - P I / P I TO V A L * 1 0 " : LE A L *2 m>/btfclI GO S U B VAL '197*: HEN GO S U B V A L " 1 6 0 ' : LET x«x-P
T eta,VAL *2')-VAL *4*S LET «<a, NEXT a I / P I I GO S U B V A L *160-
VAL • 4 " I - I J NEXT FOR a-PI/PI 63 IF +I-PI/PI THEN LET f1=P1 143 IF INKEY«-*0* THEN GO SUB
TO V A L - A 4 - ! L E T c « f a l * " 0 * : NEXT -Pit PRINT OVER P I / P I I AT x , y t * _ VAL "170"
•
•S R E T U R N 147 IF I H K E Y * - " • THEN GO TO V
32 0 0 SUB VAL *V30* 70 PRINT AT V A L ' I 3 ' , P I - P I j : F AL *200*
33 C L S : P R I N T AT 17,201'STUDI OR a-PI/PI TO V A t •8* 148 I F I N K E Y « - * 1 * THEN GO SUB
O l 9 8 6 " I AT 18,231 -H.PI 1!#• 80 a/VALIF * 2 " INT < a/VAL '2* VAL "600*
3 3 P R I N T AT PI-PI,PI-PI»*N:-ST ) THEN PRINT p » < a l I 14V IF IHKEYe-'o* 1 HEN GO SUB
A-LEH-DI-DE-BTS* 90 IF a/VAL • 2 ' O I N T (a/VAL *2 VAL '608'
36 PRINT OVER PI/PHAT PI-PI, •> THEN PRIHT PAPER VAL ' 3 " ! p * 1 3 0 GO TO V A L '110'
P I - P I I * _ • (a) I 151 I F • < x , I N T P I ) " P I - P I THEN
37 PRINT PAPER VAL * 6 * | A T VAL 92 IF a/VAL '4*"INT (a/VAL *4* P R I N T AT x , y I " F O * t A T * , I N T PI|!
•11 PI-PI! M-B/BAR: • |b«r J* I - I t THEN PRINT : PRINT LET b«-STR» s < x , P I / P I > : FOR d-PI
NPUT L-LUAD K-KEY 2-HLK/B:•IbIk 9 3 HEX I a /PI TO I N T P I - L E N b « : P R I N T ' 0 ' I
f * O-OUTPUT S - S A V E C | l « « k > | ' ) 94 IF f.pi/pi THEN RETURN S NEXT d : P R I N T * f x , P I / P I > : GO 6
" I AT V A L " 2 " , V A L •24•J"5/6/7/8* V6 BEEP VAL '. I",VAL "12*: PRI UB VAL ' 1 6 0 ' : RETURN
I AT I N T P I , V A L "24"|• FOR • I AT N T AT PI-PI,VAL *2I"I"MODE:"| PA 132 IF » ( x , I N r P D - P I / P I 1 HEN
VAL * 4 * , V A L •24*1'CURSORS*(AT V PER VAL ' 6 ' r I N K VAL *2'J'SOUNDS P R I N ( AT X , y | ' B A * | AT x . I N T P l f .
AL ' 6 " , V A L ' 2 4 ' S P A C E • I AT VAL •t OO S U B VAL '160' LET b « - S T R * « ( x , P I / P I ) : FOR d-PI
•7',VAL ' 2 4 ' | • FOR • 1 AT VAL " 110 IF INKEY»-'0' AND y-VAL '11 /PI IU 1HI P l - L E N b « : PRINT *0'|
8 ' , V A L " 2 4 " I ' MODES ' I AT V A L M 9 ' THEN OO S U B V A L ' 1 6 0 ' : LET y- : NEXT ds P R I N T a ( x , P I / P I ) : GO S
• f P I - P I C O-RUN/INITIALISE SEQ V A L * 1 4 * S OO S U B V A L '160' UB VAL M 6 0 * S RETURN
UENCE8 1 1 3 I F I N K E Y » - * 8 ' AND y < V A L ' I I 160 PRINT AT x , y I OVER P I / P I f _
4 0 P R I N T AT P I / P I , P I - P I I : FOR ' THEN GO S U B V A L ' 1 6 0 ' : L E T y « •S BEEP VAL *.01",VAL "12": RETU
a-PI-PI TO V A L ' 9 ' 5 P R I N T AT a * P y * V A L " 4 " : GO S U B V A L -160* RN
I / P I , P I - P I I PAPER VAL * 6 * I INK V 120 I F INKEY»-'3' AND y - V A L '14 170 IF y-INT PI THEN LET b-PI /
AL "2"In(: PRINT IF »(a*P - THEN GO S U B V A L '160': LET y- PI
I / P I , P I / P I X V A L '10' THEN PRINT VAL " I I " : GO S U B VAL *I60' 173 IF y-VAL '7 m THEN LET b-VA

34 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
L "2" 3 0 8 I F a - P I - P I THEN P R I N T AT V 6 0 5 I F 3 ( x , V A L " 4 " ) >P1 - P I "IHEN
176 I F y - V A L " 1 1 " AND s ( x , I N T P AL * l f l * , P I - P I I * E - T O G G L E END ( S T O POKE VAL " 6 5 0 3 0 " , V A L " 6 " : POKE
D - P I - P I THEN LET o(x,PI/PI)=s( P) • VAL " 6 5 0 3 2 " , V A L " 1 6 " : POKE VAL *
*pPI/PII+s(x,VAL - 2 " ) : LET six,I 3 0 9 I F s - P I / P I THEN P R I N T AT V 6 5 0 J J " , V A L " 2 5 4 " : POKE VAL " 6 3 0 0
NT P I ) - P I / P i : GO SUB V A L "151": AL ' 1 8 ' , P I - P I ) ' E - T O G G L E END ( R E P 3",VAL " 1 3 3 " ( x , P I / P I ) : POKE VA
RETURN EAT) • L " 6 5 0 0 3 " , s ( x , V A L " 2 " ) : POKE VAL
177 I F y - V A L M i ' AND s i x , I N T P "63031 *,s(x,VAL "4">
3 1 0 BEEP VAL ' . 0 1 ' , V A L ' 1 2 ' : PR
D - P I / P I THEN LET s(x,PI/PI)-s( I N I AT x l . y l l ' 6 0 7 BEEP V A L " . 0 1 " , V A L " 1 2 " : PR
PI/PI)-st*.VAL • 2 * ) : LET s(x,l 3 2 0 I F I N K E Y * - " 8 " AND y l < V A L '2 I N T AT V A L " 2 1 " , P I - P I I PAPER VAL
NT P I I - P I - P I : GO SUB VAL "151": 3 * (HEN P R I N T AT x l . y l j " •6"I" PRESS A KEY
RETURN • : LET y l - y l + V A L ' 8 ' : GO TO VAL • : PAOSE P I " P i : RANDOMIZE
178 I F y - V A L ' 1 4 " THEN LET b=V •310* USR VAL " 6 3 0 0 0 " : P R I N T AT VAL " 2
AL ' 4 * 3 3 0 I F I N K E Y * - " 3 " AND y l > P I - P I 1",PI-PI I,,: RETURN
179 BEEP VAL " . ( t l * , V A L " 1 2 " : IN THEN P R I N T AT x l . y l t " ': 6 0 8 I F • ( x , I N T P I ) - P I / P I THEN
PUT " I s ( x , b ) : P R I N T AT x , y j : I LET y l - y l - V A L * 8 ' : GO TO VAL '3 POKE V A L " 6 3 0 6 7 " , V A L "43"
F b - V A l " 2 " AND s ( x , b ) > V A L '120* 10* 609 IF a ( x , I N T P I I - P I - P I THEN
t HEN GO TO VAL • 1 7 9 * 3 4 0 I F I N K E Y » - ' 7 * AND x 1 > V A L '1 POKE VAL " 6 3 0 6 7 " , V A L "35"
180 I F b - V A L " 4 " AND s ( x , b ) > V A L 3 ' THEN P R I N T AT x t , y l | * 6 1 0 I F • ( x . V A L " 4 " > - P I - P I THEN
* 6 4 * UR b - V A L " 4 " AND m ( x , b X P I • : L E T x 1 — x 1 - V A L ' 2 ' : GO TO VAL FOR h - V A L " 6 3 0 8 9 " TO V A L " 6 3 0 9 2
- P I THEN GO TO V A L " 1 7 9 " "310" POKE h , P I - P l : NEXT h : POKE VA
181 I F * ( x , I N T P I I - P I / P I THEN 3 3 0 I F I N K E Y » - " 6 " AND x X V A L '1 L "63060",VAL "133"*s(x,Pl/PI>:
IF a ( x , P I / P I ) - s < x , V A L "2'XPl-PI 3 " THEN P R I N T AT x l , y l l " POKE V A L " 6 3 0 6 2 " , s i x , V A L "2"): R
THEN GO TO VAL " 1 7 9 " ' : L E T x 1 - x 1 • V A L • 2 ' : GO TO V A L A N D 0 M 1 2 E USR VAL " 6 3 0 4 8 " : RETURN
1B2 I F « ( x , I N T P I ) - P I - P I THEN "310"
IF s ( x , P I / P I ) + s ( x , V A L "2")>VAL * 3 6 0 I F I N K E Y * - " ' THEN GO TO V 613 IF s ( x , V A L "4 * ) > P I - P I THEN
1 2 0 " THEN GO TO V A L "179" AL " 8 0 0 " POKE V A L " 6 3 0 8 9 " , V A L " 6 " : POKE
183 I F i ( K , b ) < V A L " 1 0 " THEN PR 3 6 2 I F I N K E Y « - " » " THEN LET s - N VAL " 6 5 0 9 1 " , V A L " 1 6 " : POKE VAL "
INT P I - P I I OT « : GO TO V A L '300* 6 3 0 9 2 " , V A L " 2 3 4 " : POKE VAL " 6 5 0 6
1B4 I F b - V A L ' 2 * AND s i x , V A L "2 i " ,VAL " 1 3 3 " • • ( x , P I / P I ) : POKE VA
3 6 3 I F I N K E Y » - ' o ' THEN GO SUB
• X P I / P I THEN GO TO V A L "179" L ' 6 3 0 6 2 " , s ( x , V A L " 2 " ) : POKE VAL
VAL " 7 0 0 *
1B6 I F b - P I / P I AND s l x . b X V A L ' "63090",six,VAL "4"): RANDOMIZE
3 6 7 I F I N K E Y « - " c " THEN LET t-N
108- OR b - V A L m2m AND s ( x ( b K V A L USR VAL " 6 3 0 4 8 " : RETURN
OT t : GO TO VAL "303'
• 1 0 0 ' THEN PRINT P I - P I I 7 0 0 INPUT "R o r I ? " I L I N E 1 *
3 7 0 I F I N K E Y « - " 0 " OR • - V A L "2"
187 I F b - V A L * 4 * THEN PRINT s ( )HEN INPUT LINE p * ( ( ( ( x l - V A L * 702 POKE VAL "63119",d+(s-PI/PI
x,b) 11")*VAL "2")+yl/VAL "8">-VAL "3 >
189 I F b - V A L * 4 * THEN GO SUB V ' ) : L E I - f - P I / P l : GO SUB VAL "330 7 0 3 I F l « - " r " THEN : P R I N T PAP
AL * 1 6 0 * t RETURN * : GO BUB V A L " 7 0 " : LET f-PI-Pl ER 6 1 A T 2 1 , 0 1 • PRESS A
I V 0 I F b - V A L * 2 * THEN PRINT s ( 4 0 0 GO TO V A L " 3 2 0 " KEY " : OUT V A L "234",V
x , V A L " 2 " > : P R I N T AT x . V A L "17") 3 0 0 INPUT * B / B A R ( 1 - 8 ) I " | b a r AL " 3 1 " : POKE VAL " 6 3 1 1 6 " , V A L "2
s i x , V A L " 2 " > / b l k i : GO SUB V A L " 1 5 0 2 I F b a r C P I / P I OR b a r > V A L '8* 3 3 " : POKE V A L " 6 3 1 1 7 " , V A L "90":
V 6 ' : GO SUB V A L ' 1 6 0 * : RETURN THEN GO TO V A L " 5 0 0 " PAUSE P I - P i : R A N D O M I Z E USR V A L •
195 P R I N I s ( x , b > : GO SUB V A L * 1 5 0 4 BEEP V A L V 0 1 " , V A L " 1 2 " : PR 6 3 1 1 3 " : P R I N T AT VAL "21",PI-PI,
6li m: RETURN INT PAPER V A L ' 6 * I AT VAL • 1 1 • , V ,: RETURN
196 LET b » - S T R » ( » ( x , V A L '2*1/b AL " 8 " I b a r : RETURN 7 0 7 I F ! • < > • ! • THEN RETURN
Ik) 3 1 0 INPUT "BLK/B:"iblk 7 1 0 LET s p - P I - P I : LET c - V A L "23
197 FOR c - P I / P I TO V A L "6"-LEN 3 1 2 I F b l k O P I / P I AND b l k O V A L 2 9 6 " : FUR a - P I / P I TO VAL " 8 " : Lfc
b » : P R I N T • " > : N E X T c : RETURN " 2 * AND b l k O V A L " 4 " AND b l k O V A T d(a,PI/PI)-c-VAL " 2 3 2 9 3 " : FOR
199 RETURN L * 8 * THEN GO TO VAL " 3 1 0 " b - P I / P I TO VAL " 8 "
7 0 0 BEEP VAL " . 1 " , V A L " 1 2 " : PRI 314 PRINT PAPER V A L " 6 " I AT V A L 711 IP p * ( a , b ) - * • OR p « ( a , b ) > *
NT PAPER VAL * 6 * i I N K V A L " 2 " I A "12",VAL ' B ' l b l k : LET fl-PI/Pi: •" (HEN LET s p - s p t P I / P l : 0 0 TO
T PI-PI,VAL '26*I'PLAY " : GO SU GO SUB VAL " 4 0 " : BEEP VAL ".01* VAL "743"
B VAL " 6 0 8 * , V A L " 1 2 * : RETURN 712 LEI d-I(a-1)*8>»b-sp
202 PRINT PAPER VAL " 6 " ] I N K P 3 3 0 I F t - P l / P I THEN LET b - b a r : 7 1 3 I F s ( V A L p * ( a , b ) + 1 . 3 1 - 0 THE
I - P I J AT V A l - 2 0 * , V A L "0"|"1-PLAY GO TO V A L " 3 8 0 " N POKE c , s ( V A L p«<a,b)+l,l>
/RECORD 'TAT V 720 IF s(VAL p * ( « , b ) + l , 3 ) - l THE
3 6 0 I F p » ( ( ( ( x ! - V A L " I I " ) #VAL *
N POKE c , s ( V A L p*(a,b)•1,1)*133
AL " 2 1 " , V A L "0")
"2-PLAYBACK 2")*yl/VAL "S'l-VAL "3"1-" 723 LEI c—c•1
• : PAUSE P I / P i : " THEN GO 10 VAL "580"
7 3 0 POKE c , • ( V A L p«(a,b>*l,2>
PAUSE P I - P I : L E T 1 I N K E Y * 3 6 1 L E T b - P I - P I : FOR a - 1 TO 8 :
733 LET c - c + 1
2BS I F ! • - • ! * THEN PRINT PAPE IF p * ( ( ( 1 * 1 - 1 1 t # 2 1 + y l / 8 ) - 3 , a ) • "
H VAL " 6 " t I N K P I - P I ) AT V A L '20'
737 POKE c , at VAL p « t a , b ) M , 4 )
* I HEN NEXT A
738 IF •(VAL p * ( a , b ) • 1 , 4 ) < > 0 TH
,PI-PI)" I-6-NOTES 9-EXIT 3 6 2 I F a - 9 THEN GO f O VAL " 5 7 0
EN POKE c | ( P E E K c)+128
• I AT VAL * 2 1 • . P I - P I I *
0-TOGGLE RECORD O N / O F F ": 363 IF p«((((xl-ll>*2)•yl/8»-5, 7 3 9 LET c - c + 1
LET a - U S R VAL - 6 3 3 0 0 * : I F a<VAL •l-"«" THEN OO TO VAL "380" 7 4 3 NEXT b : NEXT a
•Aseee' then poke a,pi-pi 3 6 3 L E T b - b + s ( ( V A L p « ( ( ( ( x 1 - 11 I 7 4 6 I F s - P I - P I THEN POKE VAL *
206 I F 1 * - " 1 " THEN GO TO VAL * *2)+yl/8)-3,a))+1,2)/blk: NEXT a 63119",d
7 4 7 I F s - P I / P I THEN POKE VAL "
202* 3 7 0 I F b O b t r THEN BEEP VAL " .
i * , v a l " - 1 2 " : l e ' t f - p i / p i : go su 6 3 1 1 9 " , d + P I / P I : POKE c*PI/PI,VAL
2 1 0 I F l » - " 2 " THEN PRINT PAPE
M VAL " 6 " I I N K P I - P I t A I VAL "20" H VAL " 7 0 " : L E T t - V A L " 2 " : GO TO
" 128"
, PI-PI I ' 0 - P L A Y B A C K NUTE 7 3 0 I F a - V A L " 9 " THEN LET a - V A
VAL "370*
• I A f VAL * 2 1 P I - P I T * L *S"
3 8 0 B E E P VAL " . 0 1 " , V A L " 1 2 " : RE
9 - E X I T PLAYBACK NODE *: TORN 7 3 3 FOR a — P I / P I TO VAL " 7 " : LEI
HANUUHIZE USR VAL ' 6 5 4 3 8 ' : GO TO 6 0 0 INPUT " S U R E V ' l L I N E s « : IF d <•,VAL " 2 " ) - d ( a + P I / P I , P I / P I ) -d
VAL ' 2 0 2 * • • < > * y " THEN RETURN ( a , P I / P I » ! , NEXT a
2 2 0 P R I N T AT VAL "20",PI-PI,,,, 601 IF s ( x , I N T P I 1 - P I / P I THEN 736 L E I d ( V A L " 8 " , V A L "2")-(c-V
J 0 0 BEEP VAL ' . I ' , VAL ' 1 2 ' : PR I POKE V A L " 6 3 0 1 0 " , V A L "43" AL " 2 3 2 9 5 " > - d ( V A L *7*,PI/PI)-d tV
NT PAPER VAL ' 6 * 1 I N K V A L '2'IA 602 IF s i x , I N T P I I - P I - P I THEN AL " 7 " , V A L "2")
T P I - P I , V A L * 2 6 * I * BARS' POKE VAL " 6 3 0 1 0 " , V A L "33" / 6 0 BEEP VAL " . 0 1 " , V A l ' 1 2 " : RE
3B3 I F t - P I - P I THEN P R I N T AT V 603 IF s ( x , V A L " 4 " ) « P 1 - P I THEN I URN
AL * 1 7 ' , P I - P I | " C - T O G G L E COUNT (0 FOR a - V A L " 6 3 0 3 0 " TO VAL "63033 8 0 0 BEEP VAL " . 1 " , V A L " 1 2 " : PR1
Ml • - I POKE « , P I - P I : NEXT * : POKE VA Nl PAPER VAL " 6 " J I N K VAL "2"IA
30V I F t - P I / P I THEN P R I N T AT V L *6300J•,VAL M33"+«tx,PI/PI): T PI-PI,VAL "26"I"PROGS"
AL * 1 7 ' , P I - P I | ' C - T O G G L E COUNT ( 0 POKE V A L " 6 5 0 0 5 " , s ( x , V A L "2"): G 8 0 2 P R I N T AT VAL *20",PI-PI|c«<
FF)" O IO 6 0 7 TO VAL " 3 2 " M A ( VAL "21",PI-PI)

35 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

c * ( V A L * 3 3 * TO } KEY "J PAUSE PI-Pi: R 140*
8 0 5 0 0 SUB V A L '8V9* A N D O M I Z E USR V A L ' 6 3 2 3 0 * : PRINT 9 0 3 SAVE i * t U D E VAL *3404B*ta(x
6 1 0 I F I N K E Y » - " 6 * AND p x " V A L *2 AT V A L " 2 1 " , P I - P I , , : P R I N T A T VA , P I / P I IttVAL " 2 3 6 * , 1 1 K , V A L *2*»#V
0 * THEN OO SUB V A L * B 9 9 " : L E T p L *21",PI-PI|c*(VAL * 3 3 * TO ) : I AL "236*
x-VAL ' 2 1 GO SUB V A L *899* F p x - V A L ' 2 1 ' THEN P R I N T AT p x , 9 0 4 INPUT ' V t r H y l y / n l V ' l LINE
9 1 2 I F I N K E Y « - * 7 * AND p x = V A t "2 p y l OVER P I / P H " _ " »•: I F » • < > " y * THEN RETURN
1 " THEN GO SUB V A L ' 8 9 9 " : L E T p 833 IF ! • < > • ! • THEN RETURN 903 VERIFY l»CODE
x - V A L " 2 0 * : 0 0 SUB V A L *899" 8 4 0 L E T c - P l / P I : FOR a » V A L • " 3 3 7 9 0 6 OO S U B V A L *33"
8 1 3 I F I N K E Y » - * 8 * AND p y < V A L '3 9 2 * TO V A L - 3 3 9 1 9 * S T E P V A L *2* 9 1 0 INPUT " F l I f n t m t V * t LINE
1* THEN GO SUB V A L " 8 9 9 * : L E T p 842 IF c » ( c > - " 0 " (HEN GU I U 8 b I F L E N 1 • > V A L " 1 0 " THEN GO TO
y-pytPI/PT: GO SUB V A L '899" 1 VAL "910*
8 1 6 I F l N K E Y « - ' 3 ' AND p y > P I - P I B43 PUKE a , d < V A L C * < C > , 1 ) - 1 911 IF l t » ' r ' THEN GO TO V A L *
THEN OO S U B V A L ' 8 9 9 ' : L E T p y - p 830 POKE 1 * 1 , d ( V A L c»Ce>,2)/3: 140*
y-PI/PI: GU SUB V A L *899* LET c - c * l : NEXT a 912 INPUT "StartV*|1: IF 1>VAL
8 1 7 I F I N K E Y » - * 0 * THEN GO SUB 831 IF a-PI-PI THEN POKE a , V A L "119" THEN GO TO V A L *912*
VAL "860" "235" 9 1 3 P R I N T AT V A L *18",PI-PU
8 1 8 I F 1 N K E Y * - * * 1HLN PRINI A 8 3 2 I F a - P I / P I THEN POKE a , V A L 9 1 4 LOAD l « C O D E VAL *34048*M«V
I x , y I OVER P I / P I | ' _ " : GO TO V A L "224" AL "236"
•96* 8 3 3 BEEP VAL * . 0 1 * , V A L *12*i RE 9 1 3 GO TO V A L *33*
8 1 9 I F I N K E Y » « ' o ' THEN 0 0 SUb TURN 9 3 0 I F U O V A L * 8 * THEN LET k - k
VAL *BJ0* 8 6 0 INPUT LINE c*(Cpx-VAL *20* •PI/PI
6 2 0 I F « - P I / P l AND 1 N K E Y * " * • ' I »*VAL * 32 " • p y • P I / P 1 1 9 3 3 I F k - V A L " 8 * THEN LET k-Pl
HEN L E I a - P I - P I : P R I N T AT V A L * 8 6 3 LET a-CODE c » t ( p x - V A L *20*1 /PI
I B ' , P I - P I I ' E - T U G G L E END ( S T O P ) •VAL "32* + p y * P I / P I ) 9 6 B L E I t « - i < * < k TO ) * - ! < • ( V A L *2*
BEEP VAL ' . 0 1 ' , VAL "12* 8 6 7 I F a < V A L * 4 8 * OR a > V A L *56* TO k > : P U K E V A L * 6 3 4 3 0 V A L *4 V
B 2 1 I F a - P I - P I AND I N K E Y » - ' a * I THEN GO TO V A L "860" • : FUR a - V A L " 6 3 4 3 1 " 10 V A L *6b4
HEN L E T a - P I / P I : P R I N T AT V A L • 8 7 0 OO TO V A L "800* 3 6 " : POKE a , P E E K I a - P I / P I I - V A L *
I B * , P I - P I I ' E - T O G G L E END ( R E P E A I ) 8 9 9 P R I N T A T p x , p y | OVER P I / P I l 4*#(VAL t*(a-VAL *63430*>>: NEXI
• ! BEEP VAL * . 0 1 " , V A L '12* B E E P V A L " . 0 1 " , V A L " 1 2 " : RE a : POKE V A L * 6 5 4 3 7 * , P I / P I J PRIN
8 2 3 GO TO V A L *810* TURN T A f VAL * 1 2 " , V A L " 2 8 * 1 PAPER 6 f
8 3 0 I N P U T * R o r 1 7 * 1 L I N E 1«.' I 901 INPUr ' F l l a n a m a V ' l L I N E i*i l * t k ) : BEEP VAL " . 0 1 " , V A L "12*:
F 1 • - • r " THEN OUT V A L "234",VAL IF L E N 1*<PI/PI O R L E N 1«>VAL * RETURN
" 3 1 " : PRINT PAPER VAL * 6 * | A T V 10* T H E N GU T O V A L " 9 0 1 "
AL " 2 1 " . P I - P I I * PRESS A 902 IF l»-*r* THEN GO TO V A L *

Listing 2
2 3 0 DATA 33,24,96,126,87,62,43, 42,203,1279
203,676 4 9 0 DATA 79,40,43,203,87,40,44,
2 6 0 DATA 122,32,8,62,33,93,122, 203,739
198,674 5 0 0 DATA 95,40,45,203,103,40,46
3 REM M i n i S t u d i o MC L O A D E R 2 7 0 DATA 133,87,123,30,43,254,1 ,62,634
10 C L E A R 4 « 4 : FOR a - 6 3 0 0 0 TO 6 22,30,862 5 1 0 DATA 239,219,254,203,103,40
3 4 8 8 S T E P 8 : L E T d » 0 : FOR b - a TO 2 8 0 DATA 36,234,33,126,87,62,31 ,43,203,1304
a * 7 : READ c : L E T d - d + c : POKE b , ,30,681 5 2 0 DATA 93,40,44,203,87,40,43,
c : N E X T b ! READ c : I F d < > c THEN 2 9 0 DATA 32,234,203,122,40,5,62 703,737
GO TO 3 0 ,7,743 0 3 0 DATA 79,40,62,203,71,40,60,
13 NEXT a 3 0 0 DATA 30,32,234,122,30,38,23 24,379
20 PRINT 'SAVING* 4,33,855 3 4 0 DATA 206,38,170,255,24,33,5
3 0 SAVE *MSCODE*CODE 63000,496 3 1 0 DATA 126,203,127,32,14,30,6 8,171,975
4 0 STOP 3,234,871 3 5 0 DATA 233,24,28,58,172,255,2
3 0 P R I N T " T H E R E I S AN ERROR I N 3 2 0 DATA 30,66,254,50,67,254,36 4,23,839
THE C O D E , P L E A S E CHECK D A T A * ,68,839 5 6 0 DATA 38,173,235,24,18,58,17
6 0 STOP 3 3 0 DATA 234,24,20,203,191,30,6 4,233,1013
1 0 0 DATA 243,33,0,133,6,4,197,6 6,234,1062 3 7 0 DATA 24,13,38,173,255,24,8,
,622 3 4 0 DATA 62,6,50,65,254,62,16,5 58,6I5
1 1 0 DATA 0,197,33,6,8,219,234,2 0,563 5 8 0 DATA 176,255,24,3,58,177,25
03,922 3 3 0 DATA 67,234,62,254,30,68,23 3,30,998
1 2 0 DATA 119,40.4,203,193,24,2, 4,229,1238 3 9 0 DATA 66,234,243,213,197,203
203,790 3 6 0 DATA 197,213,203,24,254,209 ,24,234,1438
1 3 0 DATA 131,203,11,16,240,113, ,193,225,1320 6 0 0 DATA 193,209,241,203,66,40,
6,1,723 3 7 0 DATA 16,138,201,35,94,203,1 132,24,1128
1 4 0 DATA 16,234,193,16,228,193, 23,43,873 610 DATA 23,231,201,203,66,40,4
1 6 , 2 2 2 , I 138 3 8 0 DATA 40,133,24,4,203,91,254 ,22,812
1 3 0 DATA 231,201,0,0,0,0,0,0,45 ,201,972 6 2 0 DATA 0,24,4,14,1,22,233,62,
2 3 9 0 DATA 62,62,219,254,230,31,2 382
1 6 0 DATA 243,62,231,219,234,230 38,31,1127 6 3 0 DATA 239,219,234,203,71,40,
,31,238,1308 4 0 0 DATA 40,242,201,0,0,0,0,0,4 248,193,1469
1 7 0 DATA 31,87,33,0,133,6,4,197 83 6 4 0 DATA 23,233,6,233,2,12,62,2
,491 4 1 0 DATA 0,0,33,0,132,126,22,0, 31,844
1 8 0 DATA 6,0,197,33,94,6,0,203, 313 6 3 0 DATA 183,40,3,195,23,253,22
349 4 2 0 DATA 95,1,253,90,233,9,214, ,0,723
1 9 0 DATA 67,40,6,62,31,211,254, 224,1123 6 6 0 DATA 24,249,49,41,33,29,21,
24,693 4 3 0 DAI A 4 0 , 2 4 0 , 2 1 4 , 3 1 , 2 0 0 , 3 4 , 9 13,439
2 0 0 DATA 4,62,7,211,254,203,11, 2,234,1103 6 7 0 DATA 3,1,6,253,14,1,62,239,
16,768 4 4 0 DATA 233,33,126,50,95,254,2 581
2 1 0 DATA 238,6,0,16,234,193,16, 29,205,1229 6 8 0 DATA 219,234,203,79,200,203
226,949 4 3 0 DATA 91,234,225,33,62,62,21 ,71,32,1261
7 2 0 DATA 62,231,219,234,230,31, 9,234,1202 6 9 0 DATA 243,10,30,66,234,214,0
238,31,1296 4 6 0 DATA 230,31,238,31,192,24,2 .200,1039
2 3 0 DATA 146,32,3,193,16,209,23 14,0,960 7 0 0 DATA 197,203,24,254,193,12,
1,201,1033 4 7 0 DATA 0,0,0,0,243,22,0,62,32 121,214,1220
2 4 0 DATA 193,231,201,33,235,90, 7 710 DATA 231,200,24,226,0,0,0,0
6,63,1094 480 DATA 247,219,234,203,71,40, ,681

36 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
 ABSORBER

There are thirty copies

of Martech's Cosmic
Shock Absorber to be
won.
C o s m i c Shock Absorber is a
would-be Superhero with
aspirations to Join the
Supermans a n d Batmans ot this
world. Unfortunately he must
serve his apprenticeship by
taking on foes such as
rampaging carrots a r m e d with
machine guns a n d legions of
bouncing balls. Cosmic Shock
Absorber may b e lacking super-
strength a n d superabilitles, but
with your help he c a n make it
into the Superhero class.
There are thirty copies ot
Martech's ofl-beat 3-D shoot 'em
up to be won. a n d all you have
to do is n a m e the superheroes
who fought the following three
supervlllains.
a) The Penguin
bj lex Luthor
c) Emperor Ming
Just put the names ot the Cosmic Shock Absorber C o m p e t i t i o n
various victorious superheroes
against the appropriate letter on The vanquishing superheroes are:
the entry coupon.
The competition Is o p e n to all a)
ZX readers except employees of
Argus Specialist Publications, b)
Chase Web a n d Martech. The
editor's decision is final a n d no c)
correspondence c a n b e entered
into Name
Send your entries to Cosmic
a.
Shock Absorber Competition. ZX Address
Computing Monthly. No 1
Golden Square. London W1R 3AB
S
o
Please remember to put your
answers on your entry envelope. Send your entries to Cosmic Shock Absorber Competition, ZX

o
The closing d a t e for entries is Computing, No 1 Golden Square, London W1R 3AB
April 10th.

37 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987


KONAMI'S
GOLF
igl
£7.95
Konami's Goll is played over a
course at Ihe KCC' — the
Konaml Country Club. This
rather grand title hides the (act
that all we have here are nine
holes a n d a competent but un-
inspired golt simulation.
All the basic features we've
now come to expect ore here,
There are few (actors to lake
Into accounf when setting up
your shot. You c a n choose to
hook, slice or hit straight a n d
the only external influence Is
wind speed a n d direction,
which in practice, seemed to
have negligible effect on shots
When close to the green the dis-
play shifts to a n overhead view
a n d lactors such as slope a n d
speed of the green come into
play. These are lairly easy to
c o m p e n s a t e (or a n d don't
really a d d to the difficulty.
Konaml's Golf Is only worth
was that it looked a bit d a t e d
but was stilt tun to play.
The same is true of Lunar Jet-
man, the sequel to Jetpac This
was Ultimate's first 48k g a m e
a n d is a bit more complicated,
though it's still essentially a
shoot 'em up. This time around
the Jet Man has a moon buggy
to control, as well as a number
ol objects to collect a n d aliens
to blast. But while the two Jet
Man games have remained en-
joyable over the years, the other
two titles on the tape have
d a t e d rather badly.
really stand up any more being
about the same standard as the
average budget game.
So. whilst the two Jet Man
titles are a tribute to the quality
of early Ultimate games, this
compilation as a whole doesn't
really stand out when com-
pared to some ol the others
a v a i l a b l e On the other hand,
the second Ultimate Compila-
tion (reviewed elsewhere In this
issue) Is worth a closer look.

options tor one player a n d two
players (stroke and matchplay).
choice ol clubs from a b a g of
13. a n animated golfer whack-
shelling out money (or is you
are desperate (o get a Golt
simulation into your software
collection but with only nine
pnnn
PSSST is a variation on the
shool "em up style In which you
have to spray worms with a
number of spray cans while

IJUUIJ
ing the ball off the tee a n d holes, its a p p e a l may fall olf Trans Am was a n early driving
powermeter to adiust the length very quickly. gome. Neither ol these gomes
of shot.
The display design attempts I u p i'UP
to cram everything onto a 0O754.5 O O * 14C o o o o o c
single screen. The overall view
ol the fairway on which you
choose the direction of the ball III

Iiuul)
could just as well have been
put on a separate screen,
leaving more room tor the main
golfers eye view screen display.

LUULi

00
server all but one of them load
in under 16K as they were pro-
LEAGUE
CHALLENGE
Atlantis Software
£1.99
This g a m e (alls into Ihe "so b a d
It's g o o d category". It's a foot-
ball manager type game, so It
the lure ot l e a g u e tables a n d
learn selection problems holds
no fascinalion, read no further.
If you've stayed on you c a n
success
You start off In ihe murky
depths of Division 4 obscurity
a n d by buying players, training
hard a n d selecting a strong
team, you hopefully rise to glory
In the First Division.
Your form c a n be decidedly
quirky, surprise defeats followed
by a run of victories after your
players suddenly gains lots of
stamina a n d fitness points for no
apparent reason, league Chal-
lenge will certainly win no

<
o Jelpoc, a simple but highly
£ US Gold have just released two
compilation tapes of old Ulti-
mate gomes, both entitled
Master Games (and with only
a the track listing allowing you to
tell the two apart). The first of the
two contains the first (our games
duced in the days when Ihe 16K
Spectrum was still going strong).
Ultimate's very first game was
addictive shoot 'em up in which
you have to collect fuel pods
a n d treasure on o number of
planets all ol which are swarm-
ing with deadly aliens At the
lime, Jetpac was h e a d a n d
shoulders above any other
g a m e for the new Spectrum
be initiated Into the mysteries ol awards but if you c a n excuse
a strange new g a m e — "Zom- the graphics, the time It will take
bie Laserbali". When League
Challenge attempts to capture
to gulae your team to the top
will justify the budget price.
the b i g match atmosphere we
are treated to some very o d d
g r a p h i c s i n d e e d . Hulking
shapes lumber across the pitch
aimlessly like zombies but just
when you think they ore totally
lifeless a laser b e a m darts out

15881) - w *
ol one of the zombies boots a n d
O that Uitimate ever produced, m a c h i n e with smooth, fast ani- tries to zap the u n d e a d goal-
UJ which were themselves mation a n d g o o d sound effects keeper. He misses a n d it's a
I showed Jetpac to someone
O. amongst the first proper arcade
games ever produced (or the who didn't see It when It first
goal. These bizarre graphics
d e c i d e your league a n d c u p
CO Spectrum ( a n d II m e m o r y c a m e out a n d their reaction

Alternative Software is the latest
company to start p r o d u c i n g
budget software, a n d so tar
their releases for the Spectrum
hove been passable versions ot
pretty o l d a r c a d e games.
Henry's Hoard, possibly the besl
ol their first b a t c h ol games is a
return to that o l d tavourlte, the
platform g a m e [how long is it
since you've p l a y e d one ol
those?).
It's a 50 screen g a m e In
which you have to send Henry
(o small sprite with wiggly legs)
oft In search of items of treasure
scattered around the various
rooms. As is the way with these
gomes there are lots ot little
spikey o b j e c t s , stairways,
moving walkways a n d d e a d l y
When US G o l d b o u g h t the
licence for ihls hit TV series it
was u n d e c i d e d w h i c h type ot
game w o u l d best suit the
heroic battles of He-man. The
result Is two games. This a r c a d e
adventure a n d a Scoff Adams
style adventure.
Skeletor, arch-enemy of He-
man has found the all-powerful
lllearth stone a n d has over-
thrown Castle Grayskull. You
have to enter the castle llnd Ihe
stone a n d defeat Skeletor a n d
tree the land.
Orko tried to trap Skeletor in
an imprison cell which back-
tired trapping Orko in one of the
castle's stone pillars. You must
find him a n d give the right in-
gredients that he will use to turn
your sword into Atom Smasher!
On screen. He-man is repre-
sented by a feeble yellow c l a d
figure that is surrounded by a
K
1 %
\- Jk
» ;
monsters to avoid, all by resort-
ing to the fiendish strategy of
jumping left a n d right. As Manic
Miner clones g o its fairly aver-
a g e — the graphics are a little
on the small side but it's clear
e n o u g h what's g o i n g on, a n d
some ot the obstacles require a
bit ol thought lo get past.
Henry's Hoard isn't g o i n g to
set the world alight, but I've
always h a d a weak spot for
platform g a m e s (they're so
m u c h more refined than those
nasty shoot 'em ups). so it gets
a modest thumbs-up.
pnnnft
liuulJ
b l a c k o b l o n g that blots out his
Immediate surroundings. How-
ever, you haven't long lo admire
this a m a z i n g breakthrough In
Spectrum graphics, you are
attacked by o n e of Skeletor's
minions, Before you c a n say
"you don't mess with He-man'
you've d e s p a t c h e d it with a
single blow a n d a d d e d one to
your "skulls c r a c k e d " total. This
total lies below Ihe main screen
display a l o n g with the state of
your b o d y shield, the objects
you carry, your sword stalus a n d
the selt explanatory countdown
of the moons till doom.
The way to the castle is short
but hazardous a n d lies beyond
two spiked pits complete with
deadly electrical pulses
b e a m i n g across them. Well
timed leaps will lead you to the
key a n d then the castle but mis-
time one ol the three jumps you
must make a n d your quest
comes lo a n abrupt end.
Inside the castle you are met
by even more nosiies that leap,
tly, j u m p a n d fire at you but
most c a n be d e s p a t c h e d by
ycur fully c h a r g e d sword ot
• r\
• 5 ? In the year 2056 it was com-
Jl • (
i were t h e n t u r n e d into a
LM
>,iv.i\vI',.i'.. i'.. i'.. I'.,p.,n. i'..i<;i',. i'.. !>,. i',.i'...y.: IUIM.IVi'..'*.•;'\> 1'.
'•'••••V' , - v ''' v , '-•••+ • * ' ..'I'll
' * « ift U1 * ". •''.
* I, iiraF>it*v7w)
ti» 1'.« I* t'U'^J'',- h•),''V
1/ti,'
MttcuLtfu ^ i',. t i w t'.. MK! i'.; i<_; i',: >•.
fit IUif>
i.; |i.:'tv> fV *
'. • " V<; '. i < VI }\t •\i ,•ti > *.
m
:t'.;l<. (>. il; us i'.i1
m wi', i»
I *
HENRV'S HOME
power. This leaves you tree to ex- nondescript monsters in yet
plore Ihe platforms a n d rooms another completely silent plat-
ol Ihe Castle Graystoke until you form screened a r c a d e adven-
find Orko with the correct in- ture.
gredients a n d defeat Skeletor. Another wasted licence.
Unfortunately, neither the
g a m e p l a y or the graphics cap-
ture the atmosphere ot He-man
or the rest of the Masters of the
Universe crew a n d your joystick
or keyboard c o u l d b e control-
ling anybody or anything (even
a pumpkin) while you battle
i. ' W
-i t'51>( i>t
6'WOHD &« A » U 'J H I BC.'Vy &Jt I E £ D
UK V i t ' J CRACKED
MOONS' * 1L DOOM
laser firing fighter.
m-mmmm
Saving fhe world isn't going
wrtmmm
to be as easy as it sounds as
you must lake out e a c h ol the
eight satellites that are threat-
ening the world's major cities.
plete. The Star Wars defence
system was at last in position
They c a n only be destroyed by
a Blaster that is only obtained
m a k i n g war on Earth Impos- o n c e you have destroyed a
sible. Weapons were scrapped staggering 144 aliens a n d then
as the Earth settled down to a you've only got one shott
lite of leisure. Until then you must zap
The d a y belore the sche- aliens a n d restrict Ihe destruc-
d u l e d white Christmas they tion by intercepting the satellite
came. An alien torce that took bombs with a Dynoray (ob-
over Ihe defence satellites that tained after only 12 kills).
A menu ol options c a n cus-
w e a p o n a i m e d at Earth. tomise ihe b l a n d display by
One m a n c o u l d save the a d d i n g a score a n d energy dis-
world. In Ouicksilva's shoot play as well as a VDU that
everything that moves game, reports ol heavy alien activity
you are Nick Diamond. Xeno a n d a m a p to plot your course
c h a m p i o n a n d the only m a n The normal Spectrum blips
left who c a n fly a n Eagle Class a n d beeps as the aliens swirl
 past c a n be improved by the
sound option II you hove a
Spectrum 128 or a Fuller or
Tlmedata add-on.
However, most of these
options are little more than
standard lectures In other
games a n d can't help a g a m e
that (alls short of expectations
a n d takes a n a g e to play
SC 00042
HT 00042
XCEL was originally released as
a full price game about a year
a g o a n d II didn't exactly set
the world alight, however as a
budget litle it's worth a look ft
R f f w H I • i H Ml* 4*T>fVQMBS,|uC>
you're into shoot 'em ups. The
g a m e has a few bells a n d
whistles atlached in the form ot
some icons, but these don't
really shift the emphasis ot the
5 g a m e trom much other than
straightforward alien blasting.
Ihe action lakes place on a
group of planets which are con-
trolled by Sentinel computers
a n d it's up lo you to fly from
planet to planet b o m b i n g
everything In sight in order to
return control to the human
S
< its way through the maze
o THE HIVE
s
Firebird
£9.95
The Queen of the hive must be
slain a n d it's your job to d o it In
Firebird's latest twist to the maze
OS g a m e The Queen is In Ihe
middle of a three dimensional
hive that turns a n d spirals
O through eight complex a n d en-
iangied levels.
tou pilot a versatile electro-
to
Q . mechanical Grasshopper ship
that runs, jumps a n d crouches
population. You lly over Ihe
scrolling surface ot the planets,
a v o i d i n g trees a n d other
objects in order to blast the
computers' control centres, a n d
after e a c h b o m b i n g run there's
a Gataxians style wave ot
attacking aliens.
The action Isn't as tost a n d
turious as some other shoot *em
ups. a n d at times the g a m e
looks a little doted, but there
are about 300 planetary loca-
tions to blast your way through
so at least there's a fair bit ot
variety In the g a m e Mind you.
I d i d tind it a bit Irritating that
e a c h time you get killed you
hove lo go right back to the
start of a particular sequence
(rather lhan carrying on from
where you got killed), which
means that you c a n find your-
self g o i n g over the same
screens over a n d over again.
Still, the g a m e is nicely pre-
sented a n d at £1.99 Is much
better value than when it was
first released.
Just running through the
maze is hard enough without
the need to m a p (to make sure
you don't run around in circles)
a n d avoid or blast the nasties
that are naturally out to get you.
These include swarms ot elec-
tronic insects, giant demonic
jailers a n d spikes, webs a n d
stings that block your path.
Contact with any ol these
will drain your energy that c a n
be replenished in you have two
or more energy pylons that can
be found in the maze to re-
p l a c e your original supply. It Grasshopper a major achieve-
you have only one pylon then ment.
d a m a g e Is not repaired, losing Finally should you want to
them all brings the inevitable save your efforts then you only
end as your energy Is quickly have to copy down a code
drained away. number that c a n be entered
The screen display shows when a new g o m e Is loaded.
your view down the tubes a n d
Instruments that show your
current energy level, score a n d
any objects, pylons^ shields a n d
weapons you may have collec-
ted.
Lurking underneath Ihe 3D
display is yet another maze
g a m e that has been complic-
ated by the unpleasant key
controls that make steering the
[
SC IU
7 IOO
i.tCH©
»F J b Z
wn.nnDt
«fc Pa
h tS
until you get Ihe hang ot It, but
AGENT X It's all so fast a n d furious that it's
tun anyway
Mastertronlc
£1.99 The next sections of the
g a m e take you Into the m a d
This turned out to be a pleasant professor's lair, where you have
surprise — another Masterlronlc lo take on the security men
c h e a p l e that compares well (using a n exlremely sllly-looklng
with many ot the expensive flying kick manoeuvre) a n d
g ames thai were churned out
>r Christmas.
then Into confrontation with the
prof himself as he tries to brain
Agent X loads in several you with anything that comes to
parts, e a c h piece of c o d i n g hand.
being a different stage In the It's all rather silly really, but
gome, a n d so the g a m e man- the graphics are good. Ihe
ages to pack qulle a lot into just g a m e Is nicely presented a n d
£1.99's worth of cassette. The the programmer's clearly kept
g a m e starls with a furious car his tongue well Into his cheek,
chase as Agent X sets off in hot making this Mastertronlc's best
pursuit of the k i d n a p p e d Presi- budget g a m e for months.
dent. The g r a p h i c s In this
sequence are excellent — a
large a n d nicely detailed 3D
representation of a highway
with various vehicles travelling
in both directions a n d getting
In the way.
The action is a bit chaotic,
a n d getting through Ihls section
Is more luck that Judgement
 LUJj1
A software 'legend 1
from U.S. Gold?

Crystal Castles
U.S. Gold
£8.99

.S. Gold are releasing this as

a 'special limited edition' in an
attempt to convince us all that if
we don't rush out a n d buy it
straight away we will all have
missed our c h a n c e to
experience this "software
legend" (their advertising
people certainly know their stuff).
The trouble with legends is
that they don't always measure
up to their reputations when you
eventually get to see them in the
flesh — especially when they're
being translated from a
dedicated a r c a d e m a c h i n e
onlo the Spectrum. I'd never
seen the a r c a d e original but
someone told me that it was a
sort of 3D Pac Man. That
sounded promising, despite the
(act that the main character Is
g a m e Is a little more
c o m p l i c a t e d . Benlley has the
ability to j u m p over monsters
rather than simply moving left/
right, forward/backward, a n d it
quite often happens that he will
move b e h i n d a section of the
'castle' structure. When this
happens the program allows
you to 'see through' the structure
so that you c a n follow Bentley's
movements although you are
unable fo see the actual path
that he is on.
The d r a w b a c k with using 3D
structures is that the graphics
are that m u c h more
c o m p l i c a t e d a n d In order to get
everything onto the screen the
moving figures a n d blocks which
make up the structures all have
to b e quite small. This makes the
g a m e quite fiddly to control.
Most of the paths around the
screen are so narrow that it's not
at all unusual for Bentley to
shoot past one when you
actually want him to turn into It.
monster on the screen has
h o m e d in on the hapless bear
a n d sent him to bear heaven. As
a result of this fiddliness the
game's addictlveness suffers
considerably. Instead of trying to
d o an exact conversion the
programmers of the Spectrum
version would have d o n e well to
keep the castle structures a little
less c o m p l i c a t e d (along the
lines of Addictlve's Klrel, which
h a d similar 3D structures but
ones which were drawn larger
a n d more clearly, yet were still
complex enough to present a
challenge).
By trying to p a c k a bit too
m u c h onto the Spectrum's screen
the programmers have m a d e
the g a m e too c r a m p e d to allow
you to build up some speed
a n d get really Involved In It.

GOOD
So you have to slowly d o u b l e
b a c k a n d line him up precisely,
before g o i n g down the path. By
this time, of course, every

called Bentley Bear, so in went

the tape.
The 3D Pac M a n description
was fairly accurate in that
Bentley's task is to wander
around a three-dimensional
'castle* which is m a d e up of
structures of ramps a n d
walkways which b e c o m e
Increasingly complex on e a c h
successive screen, collecting
little pills which are dotted
along the main pathways just as
In Pac Man. As you'd expect
there are various types of
monsters that home In on
Bentley (I hate that name),
Including things that look like
cenllpedes, trees a n d ghosts,
and also additional Items of
Ireasure that c a n be collected
or left where they are In order to
block the path of the pursuing
monsters
Of course, as e a c h screen is
In three dimensions rather than
the original Pac Man's two, the

41 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

LLLLJ

Ray Elder presents

51-1
more programming Scroll Relocate
gems from ZX readers. One of the things I like about
this column is the way readers
often send In a n d share
modifications of previous
M/C Break programs. R. Dorsetl of Middlesex
sent us a short cut which solves
F i r s t up this month is a Two minor points to note: First a problem he found with Lelf
program Irom Andrew Vellacott you will have to reinitialise the Kvernhusvik's Scroll program in
of Essex who got so fed up with routine e a c h time after BREAK is the DEC 86 Issue.
his machine c o d e programs pressed with RANDOMIZE USR
getting stuck in infinite loops 32377. a n d secondly, m a c h i n e The original program Is
during development that he c o d e or BASIC loader programs located in the printer buffer, not
wrote this short routine which must not o c c u p y the addresses g o o d news for printer owners, so
makes use of the Spectrum from 32348 to 32375. Mr. Dorsett's program will
interrupt m o d e two to scan for relocate it to anywhere in
A useful a i d for machine memory that you may desire.
the BREAK key being pressed. c o d e programmers.
First (providing you have a
M/C Brook
M/C copy ol the program on
tape) CLEAR ramtop to the new
start address-1. As an example
1 REM M/C B r e a k we will imagine that we are
g o i n g to move the routine to
10 DATA 2 3 3 , 2 4 3 , 2 4 3 , 6 2 , 1 2 7 , 2 1 9 address 60000, therefore CLEAR
, 2 3 4 , 2 0 3 , 7 1 , 3 2 , 1 3 , 6 2 , 2 3 4 , 2 1 9 , 2 3 4 59999.
Now LOAD "SCROLL m/c"
, 2 0 3 , 7 1 , 3 2 , 7 , 2 4 1 , 2 3 7 , 6 6 , 2 5 1 , 1 9 3 , CODE newaddress (EG LOAD
"SCROLL" CODE 60000).
3, 19,24 1 , 2 3 1 , 2 0 1 , 6 2 , 4 0 , 2 3 7 , 7 1 , 2 3 Type in the RELOCATE program
a n d RUN it.
7 , 9 4 , 2 0 1 Finally SAVE "SCROLL" CODE
20 CLEAR 32347 newaddress, 159. (EG. SAVE
"SCROLL" CODE 60000,159).
30 RESTORE: TOR i = 3 2 3 4 0 TO 323 Don't forget to c h a n g e the
line In your program wnlch
75: READ a: POKE i , a : NEXT i defines the function to call the
new address. (EG. DEF FN
x(aS,1,w,a)=USR newaddress.
Some alterations to the way in
Font 1 REM Font which the program works c a n
10 LCT M C = 6 0 0 0 0 : L E T C H R = 5 5 0 0 0 also be m a d e : POKE
2 0 FOR <f=MC TO M C < 2 6 : READ a ! start+125,201 will return the
program to BASIC if a key is
POKE f , a l NEXT f pressed or when the scrolling is
3 0 DATA 17,0,200,237,03,51,72, finished. POKE start+118,0:POKE
33,0,60,126,10,254,60,32,»3,62,1 start+125,201 prevents Ihe
program from b e i n g interrupted
26, 18, 1 9 , 3 5 , 1 2 4 , 2 5 4 , 6 4 , 3 2 , - 1 6 , 2 0 a n d returns to basic when
1 finished. POKE start+118.192:POKE
4 0 RANDOMIZE CHR: POKE MC* 1 , P E start+125,195 a n d the program
will oniy return to basic when a
EK 2 3 6 7 0 : POKE M C * 2 , P E E K 2 3 6 7 1 : key is pressed.
L E T L=U5R MC

Scroll Rolocalo
Font
9899 REM S c r o l l R e l o c a t e
R. Glavas has been a regular 9900 INPUT " S t a r t A d d r e s s " J s
contributor from the start, his
offering this month is a variation 9 9 1 0 TOR n=1 TO 7: READ a,fc: LET
on a frequently used theme, that
of a redesigned character set. a = a i s ! LET b = b • s
What we liked about this set was
that it was c h a n g e d subtly, 9 9 2 0 POKE a , b - 2 5 6 * I N T ( b / 2 5 6 ) : P
giving a more square effect. OKE a * 1 , I N T ( b / 2 5 6 )
Simply enter Ihe program a n d
RUN it. the character set resides 9925 NEXT n
at address 55000.
9930 DATA 1 0 , 1 2 0 , 2 7 , 1 4 4 , 3 0 , 1 5 9 , 5
9 , 1 6 1 , 7 0 , 1 5 9 , 7 3 , 1 6 1 , 1 2 6 , 0

42 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

 m
Mirror Perspective
Mark Batts who resides In
S. Neili of Angus, Scotland, Watford sent us this little
provides us with a means of program which could enhance
turning the screen i m a g e in a title screens or messages
mere 19 bytes of m a c h i n e code.
Mirror 1
Enter the program MIRROR 1 a n d
RUN it. Type NEW a n d enter 1 REM Mirror 1
MIRROR 2 w h i c h will 10 CLEAR 29999 Perspective
demonstrate the effect. Note that 20 FOR n-30O00 TO 3O01O 3 REM P r o s p e c t H p
the Machine c o d e is l o c a t e d at 30 READ * : POKC n,«! NEXT n
CO DATA 33,0,64,78,6,0,203,17, 10 LET X - 0 : LET Y - 0 : LCT C-2:
address 30000 a n d c a n b e
saved by SAVE "MIRROR" CODE 31,I 6, 231,119,33,124,234,00,32,2 LET F - 1 6 G
30000,19. 41,201 13 INPUT " T y p o a n o r i p l e a s e n
o more than 6 l e t t e r s "iA*
Specific sections of the
2 0 I F L E N A S > 6 T H E N GO TO 1 3
screeen c a n b e mirrored by Mirror 2
4 0 P R I N T AT O , 0 1 A *
POKING the following values to 1 RCM Mirror
the addresses shown. x=start 3 0 FOR S - 0 TO L E H A « K O
io l e t a - i r a : LET b-90: LET r -
address 6 0 FOR T - 1 7 3 TO 1 6 8 S T E P - 1
OO
Whole screen — POKE 30 ron n-0 TO r 7 0 I F P O I N T C S , T > - 1 T H E N GO S U
x+2,64:POKE x+15,88 40 LET I " TUT 1.3' SOI? ( r Kr n)!rt» B 110
Top third - POKE x+2.64;POKE 12) GO L C T Y " Y » C : N C X T T : L C T Y - 0 :
x+15,72 SO LCT * - b t * / 2 L C T X - X * E : NCXT S
Middle third - POKE x+2,72:POKE CO PLOT «tn,x: DRAU O, * 1 0 0 LET F - 9 0 : LCT E - 2 : LCT X - 0 :
x+15,80 70 PLOT «-n,x: DRAU O, GO TO 3 0
00 NEXT r>: RANDOMIZE USR OOO
Bottom third - POKE x+2,80:POKE 03 STOP
110 PLOT X,F-(Y»C): DRAW O.E
x+15,88 90 SAVE * DEMO" LINE 9O0O: GAVE 120 p l o t x , r y : d r a u c , o
Top two thirds - POKE •Mirror"CODE 30000,19 1 3 0 PLOT X i C . F - Y : DRAU 0 , - C
x+2,64:POKE x+15,80 92 STOP 1 4 0 PLOT X « E , F - ( Y * C ) : DRAU C,0
Bottom two thirds - POKE 9000 CLEAR 29999: LOAD "" CODE : 143 LET C-Et.05
x+2.72:POKE x+15.88 RUN 1 6 0 RCTURN

Reflections
Versatile Input on the wrong line) a n d GO SUB
The above mentioned Mr. Batts the routine, for example:
supplied us with a p r o g r a m in a Being a b l e to position a n input 100 PRINT AT 5,10:'ENTER YOUR
previous issue c a l l e d reflections prompt a n d then a c c e p t NAME '|:GO SUB 9000
which reader Stephen Carr has characters a n d display them The resultant entry will b e
modified a n d improved. Another immediately after the prompt returned in variable iS. The
attractive way of presenting short ANYWHERE on screen a n d not variable z$ is used by the
text messages. just at the bottom of the screen routine to act as a temporary
c a n give your program a input string, the DELETE key will
professional touch. delete a character a n d the
Rolloctlons
Andrew Smith of Cleveland ENTER key terminates the input. A
provides us with a means of nice bit of well error t r a p p e d
I REM Reflections d o i n g just that. BASIC
10 L E T Y - 0 The subroutine is l o c a t e d at And so o n c e a g a i n we reach
20 B O R D E R 0 lines 9000 plus but c a n be the e n d of another collection of
30 P A P E R 0 renumbered to suit your own small, but beautifully formed,
40 INK 7 needs. To use It set the screen programs. All that remains is to
30 CLS position a n d provide a prompt nominate our Short Cut of the
(ensure you e n d wilh a month. The prize goes to Mr.
6 0 P R I N T " T y p e in a w o r d u p t o
semicolon else the input will b e Nelll for his Mirror program.
ton • " • l e t t e r s l o n g
70 INPUT A* Input 9 0 0 0 REM INrUT
80 CLS 9 0 3 0 LET i « = " •
7 0 IF L E N A O 1 0 T H E N G O T O 6 0 9 0 4 0 PAUSE 2 0 : P R I N T 07CR l j {
100 P R I N T I N K 0J A T 0 , 0 ( A « CIIRW GJ
110 P L O T 0 , 7 5
9 0 5 0 LCT z « = I N K E Y « : I T z * = " " THE
120 D R A U 2 5 5 , 0
130 L E T D - L E N A * * 0 N GO TO 9 0 4 0
140 L E T X ™ 1 2 7 - < D * 3 / 2 > 9 0 6 0 DEEP . 0 0 5 , 3 0
ISO T O R S - 0 T O D*fi 9 0 7 0 I F z * = C H R « 13 THEN P R I N T "
160 F O R T - 1 6 8 T O 1 7 5 " t C H R * 3 ! : RETURN
170 I F P O I N T < S , T > - 1 T H E N G O S U 9 0 G 0 I F z«=CHRfc 12 AND LEN i t t ) 0
B 240 THEN LET i * = i « < TO LEN i * 1 ) : PR
100 L E T Y - Y » 5
I N T " " } C H R « GJCHRS 8 | I CNR* 6
190 N E X T T
200 L E T Y - 0
I : GO TO 9 1 2 0
210 LET X - X + 3 9 0 9 0 I F z * - C H R * 12 OR zC Z" "OR
220 N E X T S z « ) " z " THEN GO TO 9 1 2 0
230 S T O P
240 TOR L - 3 TO 1 S T E P 1
9 1 1 0 LET i « = i « i r ® : P R I N T z
CltR* 8
o

o
250 CIRCLE X,75«Y,L 9 1 2 0 I T I N K E Y « = Z ® THEN PAUSE 5 :
260 CIRCLE X,75-Y,L P R I N T OVER H " _ " J C H R « 0 | ! GO TO
270
200
NEXT L
RETURN
9120
9 1 3 0 GO TO 904.0
x
00

43 ZX Computing Monthly • M a r c h 1987

 um

however have a limited life span

Cobra
Ocean
£7.95
Sylvester Stallone
converted into fun
cartoon character . . .
Strange but true as
Ocean unveil an off-
beat spin-off
T h i s Is a movie spin off g a m e
that stands up in its own right,
perhaps because It bears so
little similarity to the original
film.
Cobra, a vigilante c o p movie,
with Stallone as the star, was a
failure by Rambo standards
although If c o n t a i n e d the by
now standard quota of mindless
v i o l e n c e O c e a n have m a d e no
attempt to make a c a r b o n c o p y
8 a m e of the film a n d In fact
obra is a tongue In cheek
send up with a ludicrous plot,
absurd characters a n d carloon
logic
The cop. "Cobretti" Is a
musclebound chunky sprite who
Is Initially a r m e d only with a
devastating headbutt which if
he connects send his enemies
/ 1 «2
they are m a d e up of obese
wrestlers, o l d ladies touting
lethal bazookas, knife throwing
assassins a n d the like This Is not
to mention the turbo c h a r g e d
prams that ram Cobretti a n d
sap his energy.
If all this sounds a bit wacky,
wait for the plot. Okay . . .
Cobretti has to rescue fop
fashion m o d e l Ingrid Knutson
from the clutches of the evil
Night Slasher. All right so far but
In order to d o this he's got to find
weapons which are h i d d e n
Inside beefburgers at certain
points in the three p l a y i n g areas
(city, country a n d a factory).
Quite why a knife, pistol, a n d
laser sighted m a c h i n e gun are
c o n c e a l e d In this way is a
mystery. Anyway shaking off the
mince from the weapons,
Cobretti must rescue Ingrid a n d
a n d tend to d i s a p p e a r just when
you n e e d them most.
C o b r a Is a very fast, very well
a n i m a t e d g a m e that's hard to
master at first simply because
you are confronted by so many
bizarre c o m i c hatchet men.
You are given a minlscule
three lives to start out with a n d
a d d i t i o n a l lives c a n b e
o b t a i n e d at 10,000 points a n d
further u p the high score table.
The game, which c a n b e
p l a y e d with keyboard or joystick,
is really enjoyable a n d a r c a d e
fans who are looking for
something a little bit different
will not b e disappointed.
Unfortunately the I m a g e created
by the film Is misleading.
Stallone on the inlay cover with
his laser sighted m a c h i n e gun
a n d the hard m a n phraseology
"Crime is a disease. He's the
cure", look a bit silly o n c e you've
got the Stallone figure
s c a m p e r i n g up the platforms
after the beefburger.
It m a y well hove b e e n the
intention to send the whole thing
up a n d that's fine but those who
like their destructive blasting
untainted by any form of fun
h a d better stick to the film.

i;
w i n g i n g off screen In the completely d e c i m a t e the
direction they c a m e on. As tor attackers before progressing to
these legions of psychopaths, the next section. The weapons

/ \ / \ / \ / \ A /
5 I ^t ' J i I
§ /\/\/\/ /'V /

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11 j? # M & V « f< l

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44 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
It's time to test your
space pilot prowess at
the Academy.
tXJter an unfortunate incident
on 61 Cygnus w h e n a rookie
pilot messed u p his a p p r o a c h
and half the planet w h e n he
tried to dock with its central
reactor the G a l - c o r p set u p the
Academy. Its a i m was to train
rookie pilots to p r o d u c e a n elile
corps ot pilots a n d prevent such
disasters while providing a new
challenge a n d sequel to CRL's
excellent Tau Ceti.
To graduate trom the
Academy a c a d e t must
complete 20 missions a n d
achieve an a v e r a g e rating ot
over 90%! The missions are
grouped into five levels of four
missions that are stored on a
separate d a t a tape. Most players
won't need this t a p e as they'll
still be struggling with the first
four that are l o a d e d in with the
master program.
A main menu allows you to
register as an A c a d e m y c a d e t ,
view a n d select Ihe missions
and the skimmers to c o m p l e t e
them.
The first four missions r a n g e
from the less than subtle "If It
Moves . . . " annihilation run to
the search through a minefield
for base mission c a l l e d "Softly,
Softly". "Meltdown" is a r a c e
against time to close d o w n a
critical reactor on a polar world,
finally "Red Dawn" a Tau Ceti
ACADE
(mm
n-<t L •[ filth
>nnn
0.t;.
>• m m c i t
1. <*t>IKl> O.K.
style mission in w h i c h you must
destroy robot factories in all
quadrants c o n n e c t e d by j u m p
pads.
Whichever mission you
choose ( a n d you have to tackle
them all sooner or later) you'll
b e a t t a c k e d by robot droids of
both familiar a n d new designs.
Four types of laser firing hunters
l e a d the assault supported by
mines, super mines, droids.
hoppers, guardians, trackers a n d
aptly n a m e d kamikazes.
Therefore it's important that your
G a l - c o r p skimmer is a r m e d a n d
shielded for the mission. Three
skimmers are ready for take off,
e a c h offering a different r a n g e
of e q u i p m e n t from the GCS
Wilson c o m p l e t e with j u m p unit
to the w e a p o n s a n d shields tank
known as the GCS Lenin.
If neither of these or the
b a l a n c e d GCS Lincoln suit your
needs or tactics then you c a n
design your own as l o n g as it
remains within the weight a n d
cost limits set d o w n by the
Academy.
Your basic skimmer consists ot
low, m e d i u m or high powered
laser, m a i n drive, shield a n d
steering units w h i c h you c a n
then arm with missiles, anti-
•I |n.ti' 14 ' i
- I .
jiK.ilit I t llrl
missiles a n d d e l a y b o m b s then
a d d whatever anti-missiles, j u m p
units, scanners, compasses a n d
trackers that you n e e d a n d c a n
afford. Finally you c a n customise
the skimmer view screen a n d
save your a m a z i n g design to
t a p e for further missions.
O n c e the newly constructed
GCS Rambo h a d w i p e d out the
robot factories a n d mines that
stood in it's way I was ready for
the next set of missions but still a
l o n g way to g o before
graduation. A h e a d lay the
dubious delights ot such
encounters as " . . . at the OK
Cor rail". "Don't ftinic". "Hide a n d
Seek", a n d "Mission Improbable".
Finally as a bonus the
g a m e p a c k also includes a star
m a p p r o g r a m so you c a n find
your favourite stars a n d
constellations, A g a m e featuring
20 missions e a c h as c h a l l e n g i n g
as the original g a m e doesn't
n e e d a bonus program.
Action above and
below the waves in US
Gold's sub simulation.
Silent Service
US Gold (Microprose)
£9.95
C o m m a n d i n g a US submarine
during the Second World War,
your mission is to sink as m a n y
Japanese ships as possible
while a v o i d i n g the attention of
enemy destroyers.
Armed with 34 torpedoes a n d
a 4" deck g u n you must hunt
down the enemy s h i p p i n g In a
variety of scenarios. These r a n g e
from the training mission to
hunting convoys In the South
China Seas.
Convoy Attack
How you attack the convoy
d e p e n d s on the conditions (day/
night) a n d how well it's
protected. An unprotected
convoy is easy a n d you c a n
steam up to it at full s p e e d a n d
blast a n y t h i n g that moves.
Although you should attack its
centre, so you c a n use both sets
of t o r p e d o tubes. Be r e a d y for a
c h a s e t h o u g h as the convoy will
scatter.
A protected convoy is more of
a c h a l l e n g e particularly if
there's more than o n e destroyer.
Now you must stalk the convoy
at slower speeds while k e e p i n g
a narrow profile to the ships to
a v o i d radar detection.
a b l e to plot your attack run, so
as the destroyer is stuck
helplessly on the wrong side of
the convoy, g i v i n g you a c h a n c e
to strike a n d get away. Your
periscope also gives you speed,
course a n d distance of target so
you c a n make every shot count.
If there's more than o n e
destroyer a n d you can't find a
g a p then you'll have to take one
out. This isn't g o i n g to b e easy as
you'll only have one shot before
the destroyer locks onto you with
it's d e a d l y d e p t h charges. Then
it's DIVE, DIVE. DIVE, as you h e a d
for the safety of the depths.
Cutting the e n g i n e will start the

silent routine a n d you c a n even

release fake debris to d e c e i v e a
persistent destroyer. When you
Your p e r i s c o p e is fitted with a think the coast is clear, b e g i n to
target identifier that you should stalk the convoy a g a i n .
use to m a p out the convoy a n d Your sub c a n travel twice as
p l a n your attack. You should b e quickly on the surface a n d you
Before any w o u l d - b e
Submarine C o m m a n d e r c a n
help America win the war
(again!) he must first learn how
to control the ship. This means
frantic use of the k e y b o a r d
(despite the frequent mentions to
a Joystick In the instructions). In
all, 33 key controls must b e
mastered before you c a n terrify
Japanese s h i p p i n g , a n d so
practice is essential using the
torpedo/gun training mission. The
object Is simply to destroy the
lour old c a r g o ships that are
anchored In position to m a k e
things easlerl
Pressing C a p s Shift a n d o n e
of the number keys moves you
between the b a t l l e stations on
your submarine, that i n c l u d e a
navigation map, b r i d g e a n d
deck gun, p e r i s c o p e Tor a i m i n g
and firing torpedoes, instrument
and g a u g e displays, d a m a g e
reports a n d a captain's log that
reports your "kills".
As you move b e t w e e n these
stations you must plot your
course control, your e n g i n e
speeds a n d submarine depths
as well as p l a n n i n g your attack
run.
 |l[i!l|| .ii'lliHllillili^Jw
r* v.i, <wh» «fcu Hb*.

T O R P E D O D FTT H C O M P U T E R
T H P G E T RFTNGE: YDS
TPRGET SPEED: Kts
&NG L E OR I B O U : DEG
LEHD ANGLE ; D e g
THRGET COURSE: DEQ

should d o this whenever possible

as It saves fhe all-important
battery power. Lose that a n d you
lose your sub.
C o n q u e r the set scenarios
a n d you're r e a d y for the ultimate

An excellent simulation that

will have you sparring with
destroyers until the early hours.

missions — the war patrols, w h e n

f i n d i n g the enemy, is as difficult
as sinking them. Obviously,
lengthy voyages c a n b e time
c o n s u m i n g so you c a n s p e e d
u p the a c t i o n to two, three or
four times the n o r m a l rate until
you're r e a d y for b a f f l e
Finally you c a n m a k e things
S
<
almost impossible for yourself by
a d d i n g in skill a n d reality levels
w h i c h i n c l u d e limited visibility,
d u d torpedoes, zig-zagging
0 convoys, no on-ship repairs a n d

1
the worrying expert destroyers.
The g a m e cassette is
a c c o m p a n i e d by two instruction
sheets that e x p l a i n almost
a everything from the control keys
to convoy routes, tactics a n d a
submarine c o m m a n d e r s ' spotters
O g u i d e to J a p a n e s e shipping.
a. When these sheets are f o l d e d
there's barely room for the g a m e
cassetle In the box!
 Brian Beckett with news
ot Digital Precision's
new flirbocharge
Compiler.
C o m p i l e r Wars" d o e s not star
Harrison Ford, neither d o e s it
feature overly c u t e robots or
assorted other h u m a n o l d s .
aliens, Jedl or whatever. Nor is it
a c o m p u t e r g a m e in the strict
sense — a l t h o u g h it c e r t a i n l y is
in a wider o n e — but it promises
to be Just as a m u s i n g a n d
probably just as l o n g lasting. A
while ago. Liberation Software
released QLiberator, a releases h i g h q u a l i t y p a c k a g e s
superBASIC c o m p i l e r to c o m p e t e
with Digital Precision's long-
standing a n d very well r e c e i v e d
Supercharge. Both sell at £60
and although QLiberator lacks
some of supercharge's finer
features and Is generally slow It
Is a good product which
attracted a lot of interest.
In the meantime, Digital was
developing Turbocharge. This
son-of-Supercharge, m e g a -
compiler is d u e for release at
any t i m e A c t u a l l y It's b e e n d u e
(or release at a n y t i m e tor a
while, a n d s o m e reviewers have
taken to n e e d l i n g the c o m p a n y
a bit. A c c o r d i n g to Digital. Turbo
wilt b e significantly faster t h a n
Supercharge a n d h a v e
numerous a d d i t i o n a l features
and refinements, d e s i g n e d to
justify the p a c k a g e ' s sub-title of
the " e n c y c l o c o m p l l e r " . Turbo will
sell for £84.95 w h i c h I n c l u d e s
Turbo Toolkit, a p a c k a g e of over
60 new c o m m a n d s d e s i g n e d to
extend a n d otherwise
supplement Superbasic. Turbo
Toolkit is a v a i l a b l e now (for
£24.95) but there doesn't seem
much point In b u y i n g It yet if
you're at all Interested In g e t t i n g
the Turbo c o m p i l e r w h e n It's
ready. Digital has sent m e the
manual so Turbo must b e a b o u t
d u e since they never bother to
write me unless they're a b o u t to
release s o m e t h i n g (I didn't even
get a Christmas c a r d ) for m e to
tell you about,
In the m e a n t i m e , the war of
words is h e a t i n g up. Digital has
apparently b e e n a n n o y i n g
Liberation Software by constantly
referring to QLiberator as a
"pseudo-compiler". Digital has
responded with a d e n i a l
(possibly at a lawyer's request)
slating that the term is simply a
technical o n e referring to the
"pseudo c o d e " Interpreted by
QLiberator c o m p a r e d to the
"true 68088 c o d e " p r o d u c e d by
"Irue" compilers like (surprise)
Supercharge a n d the u p - c o m l n g
compller-to-end-all-compilers,
Turbo. The funny bit was that this
gentlemanly qualifier was
printed In a t y p e f a c e a n d layout
so small that It p r a c t i c a l l y takes
a high resolution m i c r o s c o p e to
reaalt at all. Beastly remarks
49 ZX C o m p u t i n g M o n t h l y • M a r c h 1987
a b o u t the c o m p e t i t i o n e m e r g e
r e g u l a r l y from b o t h sides a n d
are likely to Increase as time
goes by. A l t h o u g h it m i g h t prove
a bit c o n f u s i n g to a l l those
p o t e n t i a l customers out there, it
promises to b e l o a d s of fun for
reviewers b o r e d with s t a n d a r d PR
releases.
Obviously we'll b e l o o k i n g at
Turbo w h e n it does c o m e out
but, for a sneak preview, here
a r e s o m e of the (many) features
Digital is promising. N o r m a l l y I'd
hesitate a bit before writing
a b o u t a p r o d u c t I haven't seen
yet but. as Digital r e g u l a r l y
tor the QL. I h a v e little d o u b t
that the p r o d u c t will live u p to its
promises. First of all. Turbo will
b e multi-tasking (as is
QLiberator) a n d — a real favour
to the user — will lack that
infernal lenslok security system
f o u n d o n Supercharge. It
promises to b e m u c h faster t h a n
Supercharge a n d Is s a i d to b e
far m o r e user-friendly with a n
extensive m e n u a n d built-in
flexibility of use. It will adjust for
m a n y structural faults in the
programs under compilation
a n d list corrections m a d e . If
you're w o r k i n g with a n
u n e x p a n d e d QL. lengthy
p r o g r a m s a r e c o m p i l e d in
m o d u l e s as w o u l d b e e x p e c t e d
but there a r e a n u m b e r of
features d e s i g n e d to minimise
the d r a w b a c k s a n d difficulties of
the task. Turbo tasks will b e a b l e
to b o t h r e a d a n d write Into other
Turbo tasks. Error w a r n i n g s will
b e r e p o r t e d by line,, statement
a n d position. This Is just the b a r e
surface of what's p r o m i s e d but
gives a hint of what's c o m i n g
over the horizon in the
(hopefully) very near future.
I have, however, seen the
manual which, although nobody
is g o i n g to g o out a n d s p e n d
£85 for a b u n c h of A4 sheets, is
a n impressive feature in its o w n
right. The w h o l e t h i n g is s o m e
350 p a g e s ( i n c l u d i n g the Turbo
Toolkit m a n u a l ) a n d is very well
written in a r e a d a b l e a n d
humorous style. There a r e s o m e
c a r t o o n s a n d a glossary ( w h i c h
I n c l u d e s a d e f i n i t i o n ol
"reviewer" that makes u p for in
a c c u r a c y w h a t it lacks in b a s i c
h u m a n kindness) c l e a r l y
d e s i g n e d to a m u s e as well as
Inform. The point is that Digital
obviously wants to sell its
p r o d u c t to as w i d e a c i r c l e as
possible a n d has g o n e to a
Q [COLUMN
c o n s i d e r a b l e effort to p r o d u c e
s u p o r t i n g d o c u m e n t a t i o n that
will e n a b l e n o n - p r o g r a m m e r s (or
those less familiar with all the
t e c h n i c a l ins a n d outs a n d
various specialist lingo) to get
the best out ot it. There are
d e t a i l e d e x p l a n a t i o n s of some of
the b a c k g r o u n d maths a n d
s u p p o r t i n g functions w h i c h
u n d e r l i e w h a t is g o i n g o n a n d
m u c h of the m a n u a l is c l e a r l y
a i m e d at those not intimately
a q u a i n t e d with the QL.
Professional software p a c k a g e d
for all users is a virtue that
c o m m e n d s itself a n d Digital
(which always takes this
a p p r o a c h ) deserves full marks
for d o i n g this as a matter of
course. The Turbo m a n u a l excels
in this respect.
If you want another QL to p l a y
a r o u n d with the n e t w o r k i n g
facility ( w h i c h has sort ot d i e d a
d e a t h ) or simply b e c a u s e you
haven't yet got a r o u n d to b u y i n g
one. I've seen them for sale at
£100 o n the High Street. Push it a
bit a n d you c a n p r o b a b l y get
o n e for a fair bit less if the
retailer has gotten sick of the
t h i n g o n his shelves ( a n d I
suspect most have) a n d wants to
get rid of it. More importantly, it
o u g h t to b e time to g o s h o p p i n g
tor a b a r g a i n - b a s e m e n t m e m o r y
e x p a n s i o n and/or disc interface.
A l t h o u g h most (but by no m e a n s
all) of the QL software is
d e s i g n e d for a n u n e x p a n d e d
m a c h i n e , just a b o u t all the g o o d
stuft works a lot better or easier
with extra RAM. There's a lot of
c o m p e t i n g m e m o r y expansions
o n the market a n d most of the
c o m p a n i e s are p r o b a b l y
b e g i n n i n g to flirt with the i d e a of
g e t t i n g rid of a n y surplus stock
as the market starts to d e c l i n e .
At the last c o u p l e ot
Microfairs. I n o t i c e d q u i t e a tew
M e d i c disc Interface/extra RAM
m o d u l e s in service. M e d i c m a d e
a n excellent p a c k a g e but sadly
ran into difficulties but
it looks like some of the o r i g i n a l
stock of m o d u l e s has surfaced. If
you get a c h a n c e to get o n e
c h e a p l y ( a n d I wouldn't p a y
m u c h lor o n e now) get it
b e c a u s e it's p r o b a b l y the best
d e s i g n e d QL e x p a n s i o n
p a c k a g e I've seen. You will have
to tind s o m e o n e to m a i n t a i n or
repair it but, II you c a n get it
c h e a p e n o u g h . It's well worth it
as l o n g as you m a k e sure it
works to b e g i n with.
CO
s
UI
Z
0
 SPEC WORD Listing

The third and final part

48/128 most Centronics printers (with
ZX S p v c t r u n H E X D U M P
SPECUORD 4 8 / / t 2BK L I S T
44000
•14 O0O
4401 A
44074
44032
44040
44040
30 33 44 44 44 44 33
0 0 2 0 AO AO AO AO 3 A
00 43 43 43 43 43 73
01) 2E AO AC 6 8 6 8 7 E
0 0 33 44 44 4 7 44 34
0 0 3 8 A 4 A 4 BO A 0 A 2
0 0 74 4 6 63 4 4 44 74
3
00
OO
00
00
00
OO
00
A6
DA
CE
00
7A
7A
ID

of Stuart Nicholls' menu 44056 0 0 4 9 D3 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 9

built-in software for the Kempston 44064 0 0 9C 3 0 3 0 3 0 3 0 9C
00
00
66
00
interface) a n d RAM! file facilities 44072
44IIC0
0 0 3A 4 3 3 A 4 A 4 A 3A
0 0 7 4 6 A AA 2 A 2A 2 4
00 A3

driven word processor

00 P0
for the 128K Spectrum. 4-irjnn 0 0 c e AO AC AO AO CE 00 40
44096 0 0 7E 4 2 4 2 4 2 4 2 7E 00 04
To LOAD the program use 44904 00 00 00 20 00 00 00 OO 20
including the operating LOAD " " (48K/+) or select the 4491 7
44970
00 00 00 00 00 00 00
0 0 OO 0 0 0 0 0 O OO 0 0
00
00
00
00
Tape Loader option on the 128K 44920 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00

manual. Spectrum. The program loads In

44936
44944
0 0 0 0 OO 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00
00
00
00
two sections a n d will display the 44937
44960
0 0 0 0 OO 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00
00
00
00
"Whls month we put the finishing copyright screen when l o a d i n g 4496A
44""6
0 0 0 0 o o 0 0 0 0 0 0 00
n o 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 00 00
00
00
00
00
touches to Specword with the is complete. The program will 44°n.| 0 0 0O 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 00 00
44"><J7
final chunk of m a c h i n e c o d e recognise automatically which 43000
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 7E 0 4 0 8
0 0 O0 1 0 2 0 7E 2 0 1 0
00
00
96
OL
followed by full instructions on version of the Spectrum is b e i n g 41000
4".0 1 !
00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00
00
00
00
operating the utility. used. Press any key to start. 43074 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00 00 00 00 00 0 0 00
If you have followed the Specword is menu driven a n d 43032
43040 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 00 0 0 00
00
00
program through you should by users of the 128K Spectrum will 43040
43036
0 0 0 0 OO 0 0 0 0 00 0 0
00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00
00
00
00
now have saved a BASIC listing, have no trouble in using the 43064 0 0 1 0 1 0 10 I I 0 O 1 0 00 30
43077 0 0 14 1 4 00 0 0 0 0 0 0
a n d a m a c h i n e c o d e listing menu system as it is exactly the 43000 0 0 14 3 E 14 3 t 14 0 0
00
00
2B
BO
(HEXDUMP LIST TWO). same as the Sinclair start up 43000
43096
0 0 1 0 3C 3 0 3 0 14 7 8
0 0 7 2 3 4 7 0 I E 2A 4E
10
00
70
D4
Full instructions on entering menus. 43104 0 0 20 3 0 24 3 8 46 36 00 6A
4 3 1 12 0 0 I O 1 0 7 0 0 0 0 O 00
a n d Saving Specword were MENUS: To select a menu 43170 0 0 0 0 I D 1 0 10 1 0 0 0
00
00
40
30
printed in Part 1 (ZX January) but option use the UP/DOWN arrow 431 20
431 3*
0 0 2 0 10 10 10 10 2 0
0 0 2 4 1 0 7E 1 8 2 4 00
00
00
80
F6
to r e c a p — Using the HEXLOADER keys to move the blue select line 431 44 0 8 0 0 3 E 0 0 0 0 00 00 3E
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 10
used to enter LIST TWO last to your c h o i c e then press ENTER. 43137
431 60 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 E 0 0 0 0 OO
20
00
40
7f
month enter this month's This will either take you to a sub 43160
4 3 1 76
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 1 0
0 0 0 7 0 4 0 0 1 0 20 4 0
00
00
20
71.
m a c h i n e c o d e as HEXDUMP LIST menu or into word processing. 43104 0 0 3C 4 6 4 A 3 2 6 2 3C 00 BC
0 0 0 0 3 0 08 08 OO 3 E 00
3. This is the m a i n menu a n d 43192
43700 0 0 3C 4 2 0 7 3C 4 0 7E 00
96
7A
Save this block of c o d e as should the program stop d u e to 43200
43216
0 0 3C 4 2 I C 0 7 4 2 3C
0 0 4 0 4 8 4 0 7 E OO OO
00
00
IA
3t
"code2" CODE 44800,2519. any input errors then type "goto 43274 0 0 7 E 4 0 7C 0 ? 4 2 3C 00 BA
0 0 3C 4 0 7C 4 2 4 2 3C
When you are h a p p y that all menu" to restart from this menu. 43737
43240 0 0 7 E 0 2 0 4 0 0 10 2 0
00
0O
SO
BC
has been saved a n d verified (The program will error trap most 43740
43736
0 0 3C 4 2 3C 4 2 4 2 3C
0 0 3C 4 2 4 2 3E 0 2 3C
00
00
7A
3C
Ihen reset your Spectrum a n d illegal Inputs but cannot trap 43764 0 0 0 0 10 10 0 0 t o 10 OO 40
0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 10 1 0
enter CLEAR 32767 as a direct those associated with illegal 43277
43200 0 0 1 0 2 0 4 0 7 0 10 0 0
20
00
60
A0
command. RAM! file names). 43200
43796
0 0 0 0 7 E 0 0 7E 0 0 00
0 0 0 8 0 4 0 2 0 4 08 00
00
00
FC
1A
l o a d the BASIC PROGRAM. This menu has the following 4 9 3 M 00 3C 4 2 0C 10 00 1 0 00 AA
43317 0 0 3C 3 E 3 6 3 E 4 0 3 E 00 CC
Load the C o d e c o d e 1. options: 43320 0 0 3C 4 2 4 2 7 E 4 2 4 2 00 C2
Load the CODE c o d e 2. 1) Create. 45320
43336
0 0 7C 4 2 7C 4 7 4 2 7C
0 0 3C 4 2 4 0 4 0 4 2 3C
00
00
3A
7C
Finally SAVE the c o m p l e t e Before word processing c a n 43344 0 0 7C 4 2 4 2 4 2 4 2 ? C 00 00
0 0 7 E 4 0 7C 4 0 4 0 7E
program using "SAVE b e g i n the text file b e i n g created 43332
43360 0 0 7E 4 0 7C 4 0 4 0 4 0
00
00
30
r a
"WP48/+/128" LINE 9800:SAVE must have a title. Selecting this 43360
43376
00 3€ 4 0 3E 4 2 4 2 3E
00 47 42 42 42 42
00
00
9E
CO
"specode 128" CODE option will p r o d u c e a sub menu 45304 0 0 3£ 0 0 0 0 o n 0 8 3E 00 9C
0 0 IE 04 04 04 44 3 8 00
32768,14600. asking you to confirm your 43392
434O0 00 44 48 70 4 8 44 42 00
A«
CA
Should any of the functions c h o i c e or Exit b a c k to the 43400 00 40 4 0 40 40 40 76 00 BE
00 7 6 4 9 4 9 4 9 4 9 4 9 00
not work then the m a c h i n e c o d e Document menu. If you wish to 4 3 4 16
43424 00 4 2 6 2 3 2 4 A 4 6 4 2 OO
E3
CO
c a n b e c h e c k e d using the continue to create a d o c u m e n t 43432
43440
00 3C 4 2 4 2 4 7 4 2 3C
00 7C 4 2 4 2 7C 4 0 4 0
oo
00
00
FC
HEXLOADER/HEXDUMP d u a l just press ENTER. You will now be 43440 00 3C 4 2 3 2 4 A 4 6 3 E 00 9E
00 7C 4 2 4 2 7C 4 4 4 2
program. The HEXDUMP option prompted to enter a title for your 43436
43464 00 3C 4 0 3C 0 2 4 2 3C
00
0O
02
38
will print out to the screen or document. This must comprise of 4347?
43480
OO 3 E 0 0 08 08 08 08
00 4 2 4 2 4 7 4 7 4 2 3C
00 66
00 86
printer any block of memory in valid ascii characters only (no 43400 0 0 4 7 4 2 4 2 4 2 2 4 18 00 44
the same form as the HEXDUMP keywords). 43496
43304
00 49 4 9 49 49 49 36
0 0 4 2 2 4 1 8 18 2 4 4 2
00
oo
A3
FC
LISTS 2 a n d 3. (The easiest way to The title given to your 43312
43370
0 0 4 1 2 2 1 4 0 0 0 8 OB
0 0 7 E 0 4 80 1 0 2 0 7 E
00
00
OF
30
c h e c k the c o d e is to c o m p a r e d o c u m e n t will stay with the 43320 0 0 t c 1 0 1 8 1 0 10 I C 00 78
0 0 4 0 20 1 0 0 0 0 4 02
checksum bytes). d o c u m e n t at all times unless the 43336
43344 0 0 3 0 08 0 0 08 0 8 3 8
oo
00
7E
90
If all has gone well you are retitle option is used (see Save). 43332
43360
00 0 0 1C 2 A 00 0 0 0 8
0 0 0 0 00 00 0 0 00
00
FF
66
FF
now ready to use Specword. The title will a p p e a r on the top 43360 OO I C 2 8 7 0 2 0 2 0 ? e oo 72
0 0 00 1C 0 2 I C 7 2 I E
tine of your text for reference. 43376
43304 0 0 2 0 2 0 3C 2 2 2 2 3C
00
00
7C
FC
Specword 48/128 O n c e a title has b e e n given 43392
43600
0 0 0 0 I E 20 2 « 7 0 I E
0 0 0 2 02 I E 2 2 2 2 I E
00
00
9C
04
a n d a c c e p t e d you will enter the
Operating Manual word processing m o d e (see
43600
43616
43674
OO 00 I C 2 7 3E 7 0 I E
0 0 0 E 10 3C 10 10 1 0
00 0 0 I E 2 2 2 2 I E 0 2
00
00
BA
OA
3C BE
Specword has b e e n d e s i g n e d to Word Processing). 43632
43640
0 0 7 0 2 0 3C 2 2 2 2 2 2
0 0 0 8 0 0 18 0 0 0 6 3E
00
00
E2
6E
include all the functions most 2) Load. 43640 0 0 0 4 0 0 0C 0 4 0 4 0 4 38 34
00 20 20 74 38 24 7 2
c o m m o n l y n e e d e d by the home This will give a sub menu for 43636
43664 0 0 7 0 2 0 20 2 0 2 2 I C
00
00
E2
BL
user. For example it has insert/ Loading next files, 43672
43600
OO 0 0 3 6 4 9 4 9 4 9 4 9
0 0 00 2C 3 2 2 2 2 2 22
oo
oo
3A
C4
overwrite modes, wordwrap, find, i) Tape 43600 0 0 0 0 IC 22 22 22 IC 00 9E
0 0 0 0 3C 2 2 2 2 3C 20 20
word count, block delete/move' This option will l o a d a text file 43696
437P4 0 0 0 0 3C 4 4 4 4 3C 0 6 04
FC
0A
copy/print, redefinable from t a p e (the BASIC program 43712
43720
0 0 BP 2C 3 2 2 0 20 20
0 0 0 0 I C 2 0 I C 0 7 3C
00
00
BE
96
Centronics control codes (30), c a n be modified to allow 43720 OO t o 3 ( 1 0 1 0 1 2 OC 00 OA
0 0 0 0 7 7 2 2 2 2 2 6 IA
16K text space (blank lines only M/drives etc to be used), 43736
43744 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 2 2 2 14 0 8
00
00
A6
82
o c c u p y 1 character space), lines il) RAM! 43732
43760
0 0 0 0 4 9 4 9 4 9 4V 3 6
0 0 0 0 2 2 1 4 0 0 14 2 2
oo
00
3A
74
of ANY length from one Owners of 128K Spectrums 43760 00 00 22 22 22 IE 02 3C C2
0 0 0 0 3 E 0 4 0 0 10 3 E
character to the full text length, have the option of Loading a 43776
43704 0 0 te 1 0 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 8
00
00
98
70
margins, thirty-one setable TABS, text flte that has b e e n Saved to 43792
43800
OO 0 6 0 0 0 8 0 0 0 8 0 0
t o 08 0 8 0 4 00 0 8 1 0
00
00
40
44
supports both the ZX printer a n d a RAM! file. This option will

50 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

 the 'format' see (iii).
45800 00 14 28 00 00 00 00 00 3C 46B8B 00 77 77 77 77 77 77 00 CA
4 3 6 16 OO 10 10 00 00 00 00 00 28 46096 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ii) Block.
43924
4383?
FF
FF
Ft
FE
FC
FC
F6
FB
FO
FO
E0
CO
CO
co
80
90
01
01
46904
46912
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
O0
00
00
OO
00
00
00
00 If you have defined a block of
43940 OO 29 28 oo O0 00 oo 00 30
20
46920 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 OO 00 text within the word processor
43848 00 08 oo 10 00 00 00 00 46926 22 22 22 22 22 22 22 22 10
43836 PO 10 IO OB 00 00 00 00 28 46936 00 00 OO OO 00 00 00 00 oo m o d e then this c a n be printed
43664
43872
FF
OO
FE
00
3C
OO
42
OF
3C
00
02
00
7C
09
00
09
35
2F
46944
46932
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
EE
22
O0
44
00
00
00
66
EE
using this option.
43890 00 00 00 OO 00 00 00 00 oo 46960 00 00 00 00 00 00 22 00 22 iii) Format.
43988 OO 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 46968 00 00 oo 00 00 00 00 00 00
43896 00 00 00 00 oo 00 00 00 00 46976 00 77 53 35 33 35 77 00 42 This will p r o d u c e a sub menu
43904
4391?
OO
00
OO
00
oo
00
00
00
oo
00
00
00
oo
00
00
00
00
00
46994
46992
00
oo
66
77
22
1 1
22
1 1
22
77
22
44
77
77
00
00
65
CD
which will allow you to set up
43920
43920
00 00
00
00
oo
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
oo
00
47000 00 77 1 1 33 11 11 77 ao 34 the format of text to be printed.
00 47006 00 44 33 35 77 1 1 1 1 00 87
43936 00 00 oo 00 00 00 oo 00 00 47016 00 77 44 77 11 1 1 77 00 CD a) Lines per page.
43944
43932
00
00
00
6C
00
FE
00
FE
00
7C
00
36
00
10
00
00
00
2C
47024
47032
00
00
77
77
44
1 1
77
11
33
22
33
22
77
22
oo
00
33
FF
b) Space between lines.
43960 00 10 38 ?c 7C 39 10 00 08 47040 00 77 55 77 35 53 77 00 64 c) Margin.
43960 OO 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 47049 00 77 33 33 77 1 1 77 oo 20
43976 oo 09 1C 1C 3E 0B 06 00 QE 47036 00 00 00 22 00 22 00 00 44 d) Start at line no.
43984
43992
oo
OO
00
00
oo
00
oo
F0
OO
09
00
08
oo
08
00
08
00
IB
47064
47072
00
00
00
00
00
£>0
22
00
00
00
22
00
44
00
oo
00
88
00
e) Page no. at TOP.
46000 00 09 09 OF 08 06 06 00 47 4 7000 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 f) Page no. at BOT.
4600ft oo 09 08 F0 08 08 09 09 30 47090 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 oo OO
46016 oo oo 00 FF 06 08 oo 08 IF 4 7096 00 00 oo 00 00 00 00 00 OO g) Wait between pages.
46024
46032
00
OO
09
08
00
08
OF
FO
00
oo
oo
00
00
00
00
00
27
10
47104
4 7 1 12
00
00
00
77
00
33
00
77
00
33
00
33
00
33
00
00
00
42
h) Auto line feed.
46040 oo 00 00 oo 00 oo 00 00 00 47120 00 77 33
44
66
44
33
44
33
44
77 00 53 i) Exit.
46040 oo 09 OS 00 08 08 06 08 40 47128 oo 77 77 oo FE
46036 00 00 00 FF oo 00 00 00 FF 47136 00 66 33 35 55 55 66 00 20 Against e a c h of these
46064
46072
00
08
00
06
08
00
FF
FF
00
09
oo
09
00
00
00 17
37
47144
47132
00
00
77
77
44
44
77
77
44
44
44
44
77
44
00
00
31
FE
parameters will be printed their
00
46060 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 47160 00 77 44 44 33 33 77 00 20 current default values. To alter a
47168 00 35 33 77 35 55 33 00 20
46068
46096
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
Oo
00
00
00
oo
00
OO
00
00 47176 00 77 22 22 22 22 77 00 76 parameter use the UP/DOWN
46104
461 12
00
00
00
oo
00
00
00 00 00 00 00 00 47104
47192
00
00
33
33
1 1
33
1 1
66
t 1
33
1 1
33
77
33
00
oo
EE
OF
arrow keys to p l a c e the blue
00 00 00 00 00 00
46120 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 47200 00 44 44 44 44 44 77 00 CD cursor line on your c h o i c e then
47209 00 35 77 77 35 55 55 00 42
46128
461 36
CIO
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
O0
00
00
00
00
00 47216 00 77 33 33 35 33 33 00 20 enter the new value. Parameters
46144 00
oo
00 00 OO 00 00 00 00 00 47224
47232
oo
00
77
77
33
33
33
33
33
77
33
44
77
44
00
00
42
20
a) to d) require a number value
46132 no 00 O0 00 00 00 00 OO
46160 04} oo 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 47240 00 77 33 53 35 77 33 00 20 a n d will allow inputs ot 0 to 999
47248 00 77 33 33 66 33 35 00 31
46168
46176
oo
00
00
00
00
00
00
oo
00
00
00
00
00
oo
00
00
00
0O 4 7236 00 77 44 77 1 1 33 77 00 OF (after entering your required
46184 oo 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 47264
47272
00
00
77
33
22
33
22
33
22
33
22
33
22
77
00
00
21
20
value press ENTER.
46192 oo 00 00 00 oo oo oo 00 00
46200 00 00 00 00 00 oo on 00 00 47290 00 33 33 33 33 33 22 oo CB Should you make a mistake
47288 00 33 33 35 77 77 55 oo 42
46200
46216
00
00
00
no
00
00
00
00
00
00
oo
00
oo
00
00
00
oo
00 47296 00 33 33 22 22 33 33 0O 99 then press DELETE to c a n c e l the
46224 00
00
00
00
00
00
00
oo
00 oo 00 00 00 47304
47312
00
00
33
77
33
1 1
33
22
22
22
22
44
22
77
00
00
63
67
entry. Parameters e) to h) require
46232 00 00 oo 00 00
46240 ao oo oo 00 00 00 oo 00 00 Yes/No enlry. use the Y a n d N
46240
46236
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
oo
00
00
00
00
00
00 display a CAT! of RAM files a n d keys to select your choice.
46264 00 00 00 00 00 oo oo 00 00 ask for your choice. 48K/+ When you are h a p p y with all
46272 oo oo oo oo 00 00 00 00 00
46280 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 oo owners will be told that this the values then select Exit to
46200
46296
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
oo
00
oo
oo
oo
00
00
00
00 option is not a v a i l a b l e on their return to the Print menu.
46304 00 oo oo oo 00 00 00 oo oo computer should they attempt to v) Codes.
46312 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 oo
46320 00 00 00 00 00 OO oo 00 00 select it. This option will allow you to
46320
46336
00
oo
3C
3C
42
3E
0C
36
lO
3E
00
40
10
3E
00
00
AA
CC
Ml) Exit. alter the printer codes that c a n
46344 FF C3 BD BD 81 DD BD FF 36 Return to the Document menu. be p l a c e d in your text file to
46332 FF 83 1)0 83 BD BD 83 FF BE
46360 FF C3 DD BF BF BD C3 FF 7C 3) Save. control the output of text to a
46360
46376
FF
FF
93
01
BD
BF
BD
83
DD
BF
BD
BF
03
81
FF
FF
FB
CO This option gives a sub menu Centronics printer. For example
46304 FF
FF
81 DF
BF
83
A1
BF BF BF FF FE for Saving text files. <Graphics T > in your text wiil lurn
46392 CI BO BD CI FF 3A
46400 FF DD DD 81 DO BD BD FF 30 i) Tape. on the compressed print m o d e
46400
46416
FF
FF
C1
El
F7
FD
F7
FB
F7
FB
F7
DD
Ct
c?
FF
FF
3C
32
Save a text file to Tape using a n d has the codes:
46424
46432
FF BD B? OF B7 BB DD FF 2E the title as the n a m e for saving. 15/255/255/255 a l l o c a t e d to it
FF BF DF BF BF BF 81 FF 3A
46440 FF 89 D6 B6 B6 06 B6 FF 13 ii) RAM! (each control character must
46440
46436
FF
FF
DD
C3
9D
DD
AD
BD
ns
BD
D9
BO
DD
C3
FF
FF
30
78
Save the text file to RAM! have four codes a l l o c a t e d a n d
46464 FF 83 DD DD 93 BF BF FF FC Again this is only a v a i l a b l e on any unused codes must b e sent
46472 FF C3 BD AD B5 B9 CI FF 5A
46400 FF 03 DD BD 03 BB BD FF F6 the 128K Spectrum. to 255).
4 64 09
46496
FF
FF
C3
CI
DF
F7
C3
F7
FD
F7
BO
F7
C3
F7
FF
FF
co
92 NOTE: All text files will b e saved If your printer requires a
46304 FF bo BO BD BO BD C3 FF 72 with their own parameters intact. different set of control c o d e for
46312 FF BD DD BD BD DD E7 FF B4
46320 FF 86 D6 B6 B6 D6 C9 FF 33 That Is if for example the right compressed characters then use
46320
46336
FF
FF
BD
BE
DB
DD
E7
EB
E7
F7
DB
F7
DD
F7
FF
FF
FC
49 margin has b e e n set a n d Insert this option to c h a n g e the set
46344 FF 81 FD F7 EF DF 01 FF C0 m o d e is off then this will be codes. You c a n even a l l o c a t e
46352 00 00 00 00 OO 00 00 00 00
46360 OO 00 00 OO 00 00 00 00 00 saved with the text so that there other control functions to the
46369
46576
00
00
00
00
oo
Oo
00
OO
oo
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
OO
is no n e e d to reset them when Graphics characters. O n c e
46384 00 00 00 00 oo 00 00 00 00 r e l o a d i n g the file. a m e n d e d the codes c a n be
46392 00 00 oo oo 00 00 00 00 OO
46600 FF FF E3 FD E1 DO El FF ?c HI) Retitle. Saved permanently using "Save
46600
46616
FF
FF
DF
FF
DF
EI
C3
DF
DD
DF
DD
DF
C3
El
FF
FF
FC
3C Should you wish to retitle your program'. This will p r o d u c e sub
46624 FF FD FD El DD DD El FF 74 program before saving it then menus to select the Graphics
46632 FF FF E3 DD CI DF El FF 3E
46640 FF F1 EF C3 EF EF EF FF 6E this option will allow just that. For letter required, upper or lower
46640
46636
FF
FF
FF
DF
El
DF
DD
C3
DD
od
El
00
FD
00
C3
FF
3A
16
example you may have l o a d e d case a n d finally a list of the
46664 FF F7 FF E? F7 F7 CI FF OA a d o c u m e n t c a l l e d 'textone' a n d codes for the letter selected for
46672 FF FB FF FD FD FB FB C7 AC
46600 FF DF DF DD C7 DD DD FF 16 after m o d i f y i n g it want to save it you to update.
46608
46696
FF
FF
DF
FF
DF
C9
DF
B6
OF
B6
DD
D6
E3
B6
FF
FF
3A
9E
under a different name. Each sub menu has a n Exit
46704 FF FF D3 CD DO 00 DD FF 34 iv) Program. option which will return you to
46712 FF FF F3 DD DD DD E3 FF 5A
46726 FF FF C3 DD DD C3 DF DF FC If you have customized the previous menu,
46728 FF FF C3 BD BD C3 F9 FB EE Specword In any way using the vi) Initialise.
46736 FF FF D3 CD DF DF DF FF 3A
46744 FF FF E3 DF E3 FD C3 FF 62 various options to d o so then the Should you be using the
46732
46760
FF
FF
EF
FF
C7
DO
EF
OD
EF
DD
ED
D9
F3
E3
FF
FF
72
32
whole program c a n b e saved Kempston Centronics Interface
46760 FF FF DD DD DD EB F7 FF 76 a n d verified using this option. that requires software to drive it
46776 FF FF D6 B6 B6 B6 C9 FF 9E
46784 FF FF DO ED F7 EB DD FF 84 v) Exit. then this option will Initialise the
46792
46000
FF
FF
FF
FF
DD
CI
DD
FD
DD
F7
E1
EF
FD
CI
C3
FF
36
60 Return to the Document menu. computer to use the Specword
46000 00 00 OO 00 00 00 00 00 00 4) Print. software for printing.
46016 OO 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
46024 00 OO 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 This will give a sub menu as If your interface requires
46032
46840
FF
FF
81
81
91
81
01
81
01
81
m
81
81
Ol
FF
FF
04
04 follows: special software then this should
46040 00 00 00 00 OO 00 00 00 00 i) All text. be l o a d e d prior to l o a d i n g
46036 00 44 44 •14 44 00 44 00 34
46864 oo 33 33 00 00 00 00 00 AA This will print out to your Specword.
46072
46000
00
oo
00
00
00
00
00
oo
00
00
O0
77
00
77
00
00
00
EE
printer all of your text file using Note that Specword uses most
the parameters as set up using of the memory of the Spectrum

51 ZX Computing Monthly • M a r c h 1987

but that memory between 43000
a n d 44000 Is tree tor your printer
interface software. The ZX printer
a n d similar printers c a n only b e
used with the 48K/+ computers
a n d require no a d d i t i o n a l
software to run them. DO NOT
use the initialise option when
using the ZX printer,
vli) Exit.
Return to the Document menu.
5) Edit.
If a document has b e e n
created a n d a return has b e e n
m a d e to Ihe Document menu
this this option c a n be selected
lo return you to the word
processor.
6) CAT!
For 128K users only, this will
print a list of text files held in
RAM memory.
7) Customize.
The word processing m o d e of
Specword will Initially use three
different colours to define the
various areas of the file as it
appears on the screen. The
main text will be white ink on a
dark blue background, the text
entry window wilt be white ink
on a back b a c k g r o u n d a n d the
border will b e light blue. Should
this c o m b i n a t i o n of colours not
b e to your liking then you may
alter them using this option. New
values c a n b e saved
permanently using "Save
program'.
Note that when text Is saved
the c o m b i n a t i o n of colours is
saved with It so that when
l o a d i n g b a c k Into Specword the
colours may b e different to those
you m a y be using.
This options also allows you to
redefine the £ sign for your
printer. The c o d e is initially set to
129 {for the SHINWA printer).
8) ERASE!
Again for 128K owners only,
this option wilt list the files held
in RAM a n d ask which one you
want to erase. To skip this option
if selected in error just press
ENTER to return to the Document
menu.
If you enter a filename that is
not valid then the program will
break with an error report.
Should this h a p p e n enter goto
menu' to restart.
Word Processing
O n c e you have mastered the
menu system then you c a n
b e g i n to enter text using the
word processor.
Using 'Create' to title your text
you will be taken Into the word
processing mode. The screen will
clear a n d you will see the
following information displayed
on line one of the screen.
COLOOOOI LIN:00001 G M _ E M
CAPS WW_JNS LMAR:00000
RMAR:00000
COL: will keep a record of the
current cursor column.
LIN: will keep a record of the
current cursor line.
G M _ : will indicate when
Graphics m o d e is selected.
EM : will i n d i c a t e when E.MODE
is selected.
CAPS : will Indicate If caps lock
is on or off.
WW _: will i n d i c a t e if word wrap
is on or off.
INS : will indicate If Insert m o d e
Is on or off.
LMAR: will indicate the c o l u m n
value of the right margin If set.
RMAR: will Indicate the c o l u m n
value of the left margin if set.
The main text screen will be
blank except for a series of dots
at the b e g i n n i n g of e a c h line.
Towards the bottom of the screen
you will see a black line, this is
the text window in which all
typing is c a r r i e d out. Above this
window there is the text title line
to remind you of the n a m e given
to your document. Below the
window is the e n d of text marker
line. A cursor will be flashing
black/white at the b e g i n n i n g ot
the text window.
Initially your text tile is just
one character long, a new line
character c o d e 13 represented
by a dot will b e seen under the
flashing cursor. All margins a n d
tabs will be reset a n d insert
m o d e will be on (indicated by
the white bar against INS in the
status line) a n d word w r a p will
be off.
In word processing there are
three distinct modes which give
access to the various functions.
1) Text Mode
This Is the standard m o d e on
entry to word processing In
w h i c h normal text entry is
carried out. Specword has a
keyboard buffer to ensure that
all key presses are r e a d so that
even the fastest typist will not b e
a b l e to out-type the program.
Use the keyboard as you
would a normal typewriter.
Typing will always a p p e a r in the
text window so that you d o not
have to search the screen to
find out where you are. When
the cursor reaches c o l u m n 29
the screen will scroll left to keep
text entry in view at all limes.
Text entry will continue on line
one until ENTER is pressed to
indicate a new line is required
(see margins). You will notice a
dot p l a c e d at the e n d of e a c h
line, this indicates a new line
character a n d is part of the text,
that Is it c a n be erased to join
two lines together or inserted
into a line to split it into two
separate lines.
In all modes the INV. VIDEO
key has a special function in
that if pressed it will display a
HELP p a g e for that mode. These
HELP p a g e s give brief
Information on all the m a i n
functions a v a i l a b l e In that mode.
Text m o d e functions
I) Arrows; The cursor c a n be
moved a r o u n d the text using the
four arrow keys. Left a n d right
arrows will move the cursor one
52 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
character at a time through the
text In the relevant directions.
The up a n d d o w n arrows will
cause the screen to scroll down
a n d up to p l a c e the required
text line into the cursor window.
When moving up a n d down
through the text the cursor will
try to stay in the same c o l u m n
but If the line to be moved Into
the text window Is shorter than
that c o l u m n then the cursor will
move to the e n d of that line (this
is similar to program editing on
the 128K Spectrum). Note that
the keyboard is buffered a n d If
the arrow keys are held d o w n
too long you will overshoot the
required position,
ii) Delete: This key will delete the
character b e h i n d the cursor and
b a c k s p a c e to that position
closing up the text.
Ill) H u e Video: Move to the next
TAB position (see E.MODE for the
method of setting tabs).
Iv) Graphics: This Is the second
m o d e a v a i l a b l e a n d Is mainly
c o n c e r n e d with the printer
control characters (see
GRAPHICS MODE).
v) Ext. Mode: The third m o d e
a v a i l a b l e mainly c o n c e r n e d
with the text format a n d editing
(see EXT. MODE).
vi) Edit: Return from word
processing to the Document
menu.
In text m o d e all the normal
characters are a v a i l a b l e using
CAPS SHIFT a n d SYMBOL SHIFT.
CAPS LOCK will select capitals In
the normal way a n d indicate
that it Is on by p l a c i n g a white
block against CAPS In the status
line.
2) Graphics Mode
This will b e of Interest If you have
a dot matrix printer that has
standard controls to select
different text formats. Selecting
GRAPHICS will p l a c e a white
block against G M in the status
line.
INV VIDEO will p r o d u c e a
HELP p a g e giving the control
c o d e letters a n d their original
functions. You will see thai for
most functions UPPER case Is
used to switch on the function
a n d lower case to switch It off.
There are 30 characters
a v a i l a b l e all of which c a n b e
redefined to suit your printer.
Printer control characters d o
not affect the line length of the
text sent to the printer.
There are also eleven form
characters that c a n be printed
in this mode. These characters
c a n be used to p l a c e borders
a r o u n d your text. The following
keys are used a n d as you will
see form a k e y p a d to make
them easy to find:
QWER r T ~
A S D F H + H I
Z X C I— _L I
The codes used for these
characters are initially for the
SHINWA CP80 printer but c a n be
c h a n g e d to suit your printer with
a few simple POKE commands.
The Initial codes are:
r 134: T 152: 149: ~ 157
150: + 159: H 151: I 156
l _ 153: J_ 158: _J 154
Each c o d e has two addresses
as follows, the first address is for
UPPER case, the second for lower
case so In fact you c a n re-
program 22 new characters.
36495/6,150
36530/1,154
36532/3,151
36534/5,149
36536/7,156
36558/9,134
36560/1,157
36562/3,159
36570/1,152
36572/3,158
36576/7,153
CAPS LOCK also works In this
mode.
This m o d e also has a 'text'
view which will give a display of
the current screen at 128
characters per line. This will be
in the form of a graphics display
with a letter represented by a
line. This c a n b e used to c h e c k
the format of your text. To obtain
this view m o d e press key 1. The
display will remain o n until
another key is pressed when a
return to TEXT m o d e will b e
mode.
3) Ext. Mode
This m o d e is entered by pressing
the EXTEND MODE key a n d will
be Indicated by a white block
against EM in the status line.
INV VIDEO will display two
HELP pages to give you a
summary of the various functions
available.
The EXTEND MODE key should
not be held d o w n o n c e E. MODE
has been selected.
The characters A / : \ ) I [ J are
available In this m o d e a n d the
copyright symbol w h i c h is non
standard has b e e n r e p l a c e d by
the ' symbol {the symbol ' is
available In text m o d e using
SYMBOL SHIFT/7).
I) Arrow keys have a special
function in this m o d e as follows:
UP will take you to the start of
the text file.
DOWN will take you to the e n d
of the text file.
LEFT will take you to the left
margin or if not set the
beginning of the line.
RIGHT will take you to the right
margin or If not set the e n d of
the line.
li) Q (<=) will set the left margin
to the current cursor value, a n d
display that value against LMAR
In the status line.
HI) E (>=) will set the right
margin to the current cursor
value, a n d display that value
against RMAR in the status line.
Iv) R (<) reset the left margin to
zero.
v) T { » reset the right margin to
zero.
vt) I Insert m o d e ON. This will be
53 ZX Computing Monthly • M a r c h 1987
i n d i c a t e d in the status line by
p l a c i n g a white block against
INS. In this m o d e characters will
be inserted into the text
d i s p l a c i n g the text to the right to
make room for that character.
ENTER in this m o d e will
p r o d u c e a new line in the text
d i s p l a c i n g the text down one
line to make room. The cursor
will flash black/white.
Ill) O Overprint m o d e ON. This
will be I n d i c a t e d by a short
white block against INS in the
status line. The cursor will flash
red/white. Text entered In this
m o d e will overprint the current
text. If the right margin has b e e n
set then this m o d e will not allow
printing to continue on the next
line until ENTER is pressed. This
has b e e n d o n e to stop over-
printing of text on the next line
without confirming that it Is OK
to d o so. A reminder that the
right margin has b e e n set will
b e printed on the screen should
you attempt to e x c e e d the right
margin.
Ix) K (+) Word wrap ON. This will
b e I n d i c a t e d by a long white
block against WW In the status
line. There will also be a c h a n g e
of cursor colour, the white flash
will c h a n g e to blue. That Is:
INSERT O M WW ON = BLACK/BLUE
INSERT ON/WW OFF = BLACK/
WHITE
OPRINT ON/ WW ON = RED/BLUE
OPRINT ON I WW OFF = RED/WHITE
Word w r a p will only function if
the right margin is set a n d Insert
m o d e Is on. Should a word
continue from the e n d of a line
to the b e g i n n i n g of the next line
then that word will a u t o m a t i c a l l y
b e transferred to the next line.
ix) J ( - ) Word w r a p OFF. This Is
i n d i c a t e d by a short white block
against WW in the status line.
Words will remain split between
the e n d of one line a n d Ihe start
of the next providing that the
right margin has b e e n set.
x) C Count (word) Selecting this
function will p r o d u c e a display
of the number of words In your
text. This will not include any
Graphics printer control c o d e
letters or block markers. The
count Is Instantaneous a n d will
remain on screen until a key is
pressed
xl) W Word Find. This will search
through your text FROM THE
CURSOR POSITION to find a word
or phrase of your choice. You
will b e prompted to enter your
search text a n d Specword will
search the file until It finds the
required word/phrase a n d p l a c e
the cursor at the start of that
word. Should the required word/
phrase not b e In the text then
the message WORD NOT IN TEXT'
will b e displayed a n d the cursor
will remain in Its original
position.
xii) 1 Set TAR This will set up a
t a b stop at the current cursor
position. The border will flash
dark blue to indicate that the
c o m m a n d has b e e n a c c e p t e d .
Up to 32 t a b stops c a n be set
BUT they must b e set with
c o l u m n values of less than 256.
xlil) 2 Reset TAB This will remove
a set tab. The border will flash
red to i n d i c a t e that the tab has
b e e n removed.
xiv) 3 Reset all TABS. This
c o m m a n d will remove ALL the
set tabs a n d the border will flash
green to indicate that the
c o m m a n d has b e e n a c c e p t e d .
xv) 8 Set block start. This
c o m m a n d will p l a c e a block
start marker at the current cursor
position. This will be i n d i c a t e d
by a forward f a c i n g arrow.
xvl) 9 Set block end. This
c o m m a n d will p l a c e a block
e n d marker at the current cursor
position a n d will be i n d i c a t e d
by a b a c k w a r d f a c i n g arrow.
Any previously set block
markers will b e removed before
a new block marker is set.
xvil) 0 Reset blocks. This will
remove any set block markers
from the text.
Block markers c a n b e treated
as a character In fhe text file,
that is they c a n be erased or re-
positioned by inserting text into
the block. This will have no
effect on any of the block
functions. Specword will allow for
any c h a n g e in position of these
markers.
xviil) 5 COPY BLOCK. This
c o m m a n d will c o p y a set block
to the current cursor position
o p e n i n g up the text to make
room. A black c a n be any
length from just one character to
the whole text file. If there is not
e n o u g h room left in the text file
to make a block c o p y then a
message to that effect will be
given a n d the c o p y c o m m a n d
will be ignored.
The block copy will b e free
from block markers, these will
remain set on the original block,
xlx) 6 MOVE BLOCK, fhis will
move a set block from its current
position closing up the text, to
the current cursor position
o p e n i n g up the text. This
c o m m a n d will work even on a
full text file. The block will be
moved c o m p l e t e with Its block
markers.
xx) 7 DELETE BLOCK. This final
c o m m a n d will erase a set block
from the text file closing up the
text.
Block c o m m a n d s are almost
Instantaneous but will not work if:
a) The cursor Is p l a c e d inside
the black to be MOVED or
COPIED.
b) The start marker Is positioned
AFTER the e n d marker.
c) There is insufficient text room
to a c c e p t block COPY.
As a n e x a m p l e of the text that
c a n be c r e a t e d in a file, these
instructions were p r o d u c e d on
Specword a n d took 514 lines of
which 406 were p r o d u c e d In
one text file (2819 words). The
remaining 108 lines were
p r o d u c e d In another text file
(854 words).
 It's Impossaball! A new excellently I m p l e m e n t e d by
p r o g r a m m e r John Phillips. You
a n a t t e m p t to c o m p l e t e the
course within a time limit, a n d at
dimension added to control the movements of a
b o u n c i n g b a l l over a scrolling
the same fime as a v o i d i n g the
d e a d l y obstacles you also have
the bouncing ball three d i m e n s i o n a l o b s t a c l e In to 'squash' a series of cylinders

puzzle game by
Hewson.

Impossaball
Hewson
£3.95

• — i k e all the best g a m e s

Hewson's Impossaball is simple
to p l a y but h a r d to master. It's
o n e ot those g a m e s that sort ot
sneaks u p o n you after a c o u p l e
of attempts — you m a y not get
very far at first, but as you c o m e
u p against e a c h new o b s t a c l e
you c a n almost see how to get
through, so you g o b a c k to the
start for o n e more try a n d before
you know it you're hooked.
The basic i d e a b e h i n d the
g a m e Is very simple but it's b e e n
that are scattered over the
course a n d w h i c h are. of course,
surrounded by some of the more
d e a d l y traps a n d barriers.
There are eight courses in the
game, e a c h harder t h a n the
last, though even the first of
these isn't exactly a push-over. At
the start of e a c h g a m e the b a l l
is Just b e h i n d the starting line for
e a c h course a n d . since the
timer doesn't start until you've
crossed the line this m e a n s that
you're given a n opportunity to
b o u n c e the b a l l a r o u n d a bit
a n d get the h a n g of controlling
its movements before you start
the g a m e properly — a n i c e
idea, a n d one w h i c h allows you
to get started quickly (unlike a
lot ot g a m e s recently. Impossa-
ball doesn't force you to r e a d a
50 p a g e m a n u a f before you c a n
get started).
As you cross the starting line
you move from right to lefl
across the screen a n d the
c h e q u e r e d l a n d s c a p e of the
course scrolls smoothly a l o n g to might Improve the playabillty ot the l a n d s c a p e helps with the 3D
reveal e a c h new set of the g a m e is that after you've perspective a n d also helps
obstacles. c o m p l e t e d a course it might w h e n it c o m e s to j u d g i n g
have b e e n a g o o d I d e a to give distances a n d heights of jumps
you a password that allows you past obstacles, a n d , as the b a l l
to enter the next level whenever b o u n c e s a l o n g its shadow
Poles apart you want. As it is, you've got to follows a l o n g , shrinking or
On the first course this consists g o through all the course in a g r o w i n g as the height ot the
of spike-topped poles w h i c h jut fixed order a n d even w h e n jumps varies.
up from the g r o u n d or h a n g you've got the first level sorted There have b e e n similar
from the celling, a n d p l a s m a out you ve still got to g o through g a m e s released recently
bolts (which look like a n i m a t e d it e a c h time in order to get onto (Revolution a n d Action reflex),
Ringos). The cylinders that have the later ones. but Impossaball beats them all
to be 'squashed' are column-like in terms ot g r a p h i c s a n d
structures p r o j e c t i n g from the Flicker free playability, a n d it makes a nice
floor a n d ceiling, a n d c h a n g e from shoot 'em ups too.
The g r a p h i c s a n d a n i m a t i o n are
"squashing' them simply Involves a b o u t as g o o d as I've seen on
bouncing onto t h e m from a b o v e the Spectrum. All the objects are
or below, forcing t h e m to retract large a n d finely drawn, yet the
into the surface. O n later courses a n i m a t i o n is perfectly smooth.
though, there are all sorts of There's not the slightest flicker
deadly traps (most of w h i c h are despite the fact that the whole
moving a n d require expert screen display has to swing
judgement a n d p l a n n i n g to get b a c k w a r d s a n d forwards very
through). quickly in order to create the
Surprisingly for a g a m e where impression of b o u n c i n g move-
you're controlling a m o v i n g ment. The c h e q u e r e d pattern on
object a n d r a c i n g against the
clock, Impossaball doesn't
require dazzling a r c a d e - t r a i n e d
rellexes. Despite the time limit
there are p l a c e s where you're
better off taking things slowly
and thinking your way through
an obstacle rather t h a n just
barging through as fast as you
can. But w h e n the clock's ticking
away a n d you n e e d to hurtle
down the h o m e straight to the
finishing line, control of the b a l l
Is very simple, a n d the way in
which the p a c e of the g a m e
can vary makes it that m u c h
more addictive.
One ot the really n i c e
features of the g a m e is that it
presents you with e a c h course
and then just lets you get o n
with it. There Isn't a single, tlxed
method of solving e a c n
obstacle a n d there's e n o u g h
flexibility in the g a m e to allow
each player to d e v e l o p his or
her own style of p l a y i n g . The
only suggestion I c a n m a k e that
A budget BMX racing
game that's fun from
start to finish

BMX Simulator
Codemasters
£1.99
hlle BMX r a c i n g m a y not have
SIMULATOR
the same status or g l a m o u r as
motorcycle or g r a n d prlx racing,
w h e n it c o m e s to c o m p u t e r
simulations BMX c o m e s into Its
own. Formula o n e r a c i n g
simulations are often a bit of a
let down, your s p e e d o m e t e r m a y
b e saying 240 m p h but the r a c e
a c t i o n doesn't reflect It, but with
BMX racing, a simulation c a n
get closer to the real t h i n g a n d
the Intricacy a n d skill involved
required to n e g o t i a t e the course
m a k e It I d e a l for those w h o want
to use their joystick for more t h a n
mindless z a p p i n g .
BMX Simulator is a n excellent
g a m e that is surely destined to
b e c o m e a b u d g e t hit. There are
seven different courses, seen
from a n o v e r h e a d view a n d
these offer a multitude of
d a u n t i n g features b e c o m i n g
harder with e a c h successive s e q u e n c e where your rider a n d b e e n built in to p e p u p the
track. To q u a l i f y for the next bike part c o m p a n y In after-race d e b a t e on w h o cut u p
track you must c o m p l e t e the s p e c t a c u l a r fashion. Restarting w h o o n the final b e n d ; there Is
course within a given time limit the r a c e c a n b e a p r o b l e m with a n a c t i o n r e p l a y function w h i c h
— this is fairly generous for the a d e l i c a t e t o u c h n e e d e d to will p l a y b a c k the race, or, if you
first course but b e c o m e s more steer yourself clear of the o b j e c t are really into d e t a i l e d analysis,
stringent with track two. you've run into, otherwise you you c a n also w a t c h the w h o l e
There are options for o n e or crash a g a i n . . . a n d a g a i n . . . r a c e a g a i n in slow motion, I'm
two player games. When The two player g a m e brings not sure how often these w o u l d
p l a y i n g the c o m p u t e r rider It's out the full potential of the b e used after the novelty has
gratifying to find that he's very simulation a n d most importantly worn off but they are clever
fallible a n d wipes out fairly there are options to p l a y with a d d i t i o n s nonetheless.
oflen, 'though he does have the two joysticks (KempstonlSinclair) Above all, BMX Simulator Is
a d v a n t a g e in that whenever you this was a wise d e c i s i o n as very realistic a n d the bike reacts
c o l l i d e with him you are always a n y o n e p l a y i n g the k e y b o a r d fo the terrain exactly as It w o u l d
the o n e to g o flying. Crashing Is o p t i o n w o u l d b e at a real o n a real track — the ramps,
illustrated by a n i c e a n i m a t e d disadvantage. Two options have turns, b u m p s a n d water splashes
are not just there for d e c o r a t i o n ,
they c a n b e used for your
advantage.
BMX Simulation will a p p e a l to
a l l those w h o like r a c e g a m e s
even if the i d e a of BMX r a c i n g
seems a bit t a m e Everything
a b o u t the game's presentation is
highly professional from the
g r a p h i c s to course d e s i g n -
another g a m e to a d d to
Codemasters' increasingly
impressive track record.

i L

S ^ P s l . l I T
David Nowotnik tests a
new 3D graphics
package for the QL.
Viewpoint
Rubicon Computer
Systems
£19.95
• f you have ever b e e n
fascinated by the ability of
computers to display three
dimensional images, then a n
excellent new software product
for the QL will permit you to try
out the concepts for yourself.
'Viewpoint' is a m a c h i n e c o d e
program which allows you to
construct 3D wire objects, then
display the object in two
dimensions (the monitor screen).
Objects c a n be viewed from
different viewpoints, a n d you
can zoom In a n d zoom out,
change Ihe perspective, achieve
some h i d d e n line removal, a n d
save a n d l o a d object d a t a to
and from microdrive or disc
A printer d u m p of the screen
display is also possible, a n d
Fig. 1 shows the screen d u m p on
an Epson printer of just o n e of
the example objects supplied
with Viewpoint.
The product comprises a
single microdrive c a r t r i d g e a n d
a 20 p a g e 5" x 3" manual. It is
demonstration of the simplicity
of use of Viewpoint that this
small m a n u a l more than
adequately covers the operation
of the program. The program is
menu-driven, with options
a p p e a r i n g in the menu window
at the base of the screen. Five
main menus are available,
obtained by pressing one of the
function keys.
While the program itself is
easy to use. 3D graphics, In
concept are rather tricky. Here
there are new buzz words to
understand; world coordinates,
spherical polar coordinates,
cartesian axes, vectors, angles O
and O. Built in to Viewpoint Is a n
option to have some of these
terms displayed graphically. This
can be d o n e at any time, even
while you are constructing an
object. Pressing 'F3' a n d 'c'
displays a simple c u b e in three
dimensions, while 'F3' a n d 'a'
displays the axes of a spherical
polar coordinate system. Within
these training options, you c a n
play around with vector R, a n d
angles O a n d O. O n c e you have
gained a feel for these, you c a n
return to constructing your own
object.
57 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
Objects c a n be built up by
d r a w i n g lines between two
points. A number of 2D (circle,
box, polygon) or 3D (sphere)
shapes are drawn automatically
at the cursor position, with sizes
specified by the user. Several
d r a w i n g aids are included, such
as the a d d i t i o n of axes and/or a
c a l i b r a t e d grid. Two vertices
(coordinates) previously defined
c a n be joined by a simple join
c o m m a n d . The mirror i m a g e of
an object c a n be p r o d u c e d ,
with the user defining the p l a n e
of the 'mirror'. And, text c a n be
a d d e d ; this text remains fixed on
Ihe screen display, a n d does not
move if the viewing position of
the object is c h a n g e d .
Mirror Images
Pressing 'F2' brings a search
facility into play, in which the
computer seeks the nearest
defined vertex from the current
cursor position. The search area
is only a 9 x 9 grid of the world
coordinates, which, in effect,
means that the cursor has to be
virtually on the vertex point for it
to be found. A b u g In the review
c o p y meant that the program
crashed if a search was
requested when no vertices h a d
yet b e e n defined; this b u g the
& 1 "5"S6
RUBICON
Compu t e r Sy •: » ?
Scroondump ot a jet aircraft example from Viewpoint
suppliers promise to remove in
all future copies. Each line or
shape c a n a p p e a r in any user
defined colour on Viewpoint's
b l a c k background. Switching
between QLs 4 a n d 8 colour
modes c a n be a c c o m p l i s h e d
within the program, diagrams
b e i n g re-drawn to the same
scale as soon as the m o d e has
been changed.
In moving the view position
relative to the object, the object
has to be re-drawn on the
screen. With large objects, this
c a n be quite time consuming. In
particular, multi-colour displays
are re-drawn quite slowly
c o m p a r e d to monochromic
objects. Therefore, to save time,
Viewpoint allows the user to
temporarily turn off the multi-
colour facility. The resultant red-
on-black display c a n be
redrawn m u c h faster.
For the more experienced
user, Viewpoint has a number of
help facilities to a i d object
construction, such as listing
(screen and/or printer) all stored
vertices or surfaces of the object
under construction.
For a printer screen dump,
Viewpoint has the relevant
control codes built In tor Epson
a n d Seikosha printers.
If you d o not have a printer
c o m p a t i b l e with either of these
printers, then the codes relevanl
to your printer c a n be entered
as a set of 4 blocks. Unfortu-
nately, there is no way of saving
these codes, so if you d o have
to enter special codes, you must
d o so every time you use
Viewpoint. During review. I h a d a
few problems with achieving a
printer d u m p on my Epson RX80.
This turned out to be related to
my printer's d i p switch positions.
So my Epson turned out to be
•1EUPO JN i
-- i - • ——_
( a c c o r d i n g to Viewpoint) non-
Epson c o m p a t i b l e ! It was a
simple matter to cure the fault cc
( c h a n g i n g one switch position),
but worth noting if you are using
Viewpoint a n d experience a
similar problem.
Overall. Viewpoint is a n
impressive package, and. at a
RRP of £19.95, provides excellent
value for money.
Rubicon Computer Systems, 11
Bannerdale Road, Sheffield
S7 2DU. 0
57
 THE VALUE
OF
Pete Cooke, a u t h o r ot
Tau Ceti a n d A c a d e m y ,
lets us in on some of his
m a c h i n e c o d e secrets.
Having got this table into

Listing 1
memory screen addressing now
b e c o m e s m u c h easier. To get a
screen byte address we only
I REM l o o k u p t a b l e f o r s c r c e n a d d r e s s e s . . . Check. CLEAR x x x x x before runninq
n e e d a short segment of c o d e
10 L E T l o o k u p - 6 3 0 2 4 ! REM #FEO0 i n h e x tike the one in (Listing 2).
20 FOR n - 0 TO 1 9 H REM N u m b e r o f t c r v e n L l n e s o n S p e c t r u m In fact we c a n d o even better
30 LET a " I N T ( n / 6 4 ) i REM 1 / 3 * r d s o f screun than this by ensuring the table
40 LET b " * n - 6 4 * a : REM line* within a block starts at a multiple of 256 bytes.
30 LET c - I N T < b / Q ) i REM c h a r a c t e r clocks
60 LET d " b - B » c i REM l i n e w i t h i n character block
In that case the low byte of the
70 LET a d d r e * K - 1 6 3 8 4 + 2 0 4 B * a + 3 2 « t . + 2 5 6 » d table's address is always 0
80 POKE ( l o o k u p + 2 * n > . o d d r o s s - 2 5 6 * I N T (addi ess/256> (Listing 3).
90 POKE U o o k u p + 2 * n + l ) , I N T Uddross/'256i Although this looks as long as
95 POKE a d d r e s s . 2 5 S i REM s h o w s t a b l e b e i n q g e n e r a t e d . . . d e l e t e later' Ihe first version there are several
100 REM p o k e i n t h e b y t e s i n l o w h i q h o r d e r improvements. First the DE
110 NEXT n
120 STOP
register pair is not used. Second
130 SAVE " y t a b l e " C 0 D E lookup,384 most of Ihe instructions are
single byte instructions which
operate m u c h faster a n d take
I » n e of the most effective 95 POKE ADDRESS,255 up less s p a c e on a Z80.
techniques in m a c h i n e c o d e is fills the first byte of e a c h line of Finally here are 2 simple
the lookup table. In Basic lookup the screen as the program examples using the Ytable
tables correspond roughly with calculates it's address. lookup, the first is a fancy clear
single-dimension arrays holding When the program has screen (this won't touch the
tables of data, for example:— finished type GOTO 130 to save attributes) (Listing 4) a n d Ihe
10 DIM A (20) the table. second is a routine to pixel
20 FOR N=1 TO 20 I normally store a table like scroll a window upwards (Listing 5).
30 READ A(N) this as high in memory as The b e a u t y of lookup tables
40 NEXT possible but if your assembler is for screen addresses is that, with
50 DATA < whatever you w a n t > stored at a high address then the table in memory, graphics
In m a c h i n e c o d e lookups are c h a n g e the value lookup to routines b e c o m e m u c h more
m u c h more c o m m o n as they somewhere safe below il (it's best straightforward a n d dozens of
give a way of evaluating to use a multiple of 256 for routines in a long program c a n
complex functions w i t h o u t reasons e x p l a i n e d later). use the same table.
writing masses of complex code.
Two g o o d examples ot the use of
lookup tables that spring to
Listing 2
o
mind are SIN tables a n d SCREEN
ADDRESSES.
10 ORG •cooo

z
20 ENT ttCOOO
3 0 YT A B L E E O U ttFEOO ; W h a t e v e r l o o k u p i s
5

< Screen Addresses

4«.» t
50 :Get Bvte A d d r e s s
6 0 : E n t r y B = L i ne>
One of the biggest hurdles to
graphics p r o g r a m m i n g on the 70 • C=Column
ot Spectrum is the awful layout of 80 ; E x i t HL=Address
o the display file. Anyone

o
90 *
w a t c h i n g a SCREENS l o a d i n g will 100 G E T A D D L D L.6
have seen that the display lines
at
1 10 LD H, 0
are stored in a non-sequential
fashion a n d a great d e a l of time 120 ADD H L , H L ; 2 b y t e s in e a c h t a b l e
Q. a n d eflorl is n e e d e d to write a 130 LD D E , Y T A B L E j B a s e o-f t h e t a b l e
last a n d efficient routine lo work 140 ADD H L , D E ; F r o m o-f-fset i n t o t a b l e
out the screen address of any 150 LD A , ( H L ) ;F'ick u p l o w b y t e
line. 160 ADD A , C ; A d d o n c o l u m n o-f-fset
A m u c h simpler way is to 170 LD E , A ; I n t o l o w b y t e o-f D E
Ot generate a lookup of screen 180 INC HL ; P o i n t HL to hiqh b y t e
addresses in memory. I normally
use a short BASIC program to d o 190 LD D . ( H L ) ; P i c k it up
O this. (Listing 1). 200 EX D E , HL ; T r a n s f e r to HL
UJ As a n a d d i t i o n a l check thai 210 RET ; Done
Q. the program is working the 220 s
00 line:—

58 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

 IM
10 OF>n acooo
Listing 3
20 CNT *coov 240
Z0 YTADLC EQU aFCOO s W t n l t u n l u u k v * 14
4u I 250 (Exit A.BC.HL.IX
SO 6»to Address i inpi'ovtJ ver»ii*>—VTAW.E o . bi/jM.'-iJ 260 I all corrupt
ftO lEntrv t)-Lnn» 270 V
70 t C*Coluitu> 280 ; DE preserved
lEmt HL»A<Jdro«%
•JO : 290
Khj GET ADD LD L,C< i b ' S c i w i L i n e 300 P1XSCR EOU
110 SLA l_ |Z tivtOE per v j I u i f i»cj«>'V> 310 LD A.B ; T e s t s t a r t v
120 LD A, YTA&LII/* 10M 320 CP 24 t -for b o t t o m o f s c r e e n
130 iThia i» tup hinh bvto o< Itit' sUrl *d<l>'(rfc* of ti«* tiiBI*
140 ADC A,0 sAdd any carry I i m the «hi<t 330 RET NC : a n d a b o r t i f t o o 0 1 9
ISO LD H.A [Form i*t)U* oKttl in hl 340 ADD A. D : a l s o tt»st b a s e o t window
160 LD A. iMU (Ticl up low Uvlp 330 CP 24
170 ADD A.C (Add on column oftbol 360 RET NC ; a n d a b o r t i f t o o b i g
100 InC L iNO™ only t oihhI* ihc
190 LD M, 1ML» iF-itl It up 370 I
TOO LD L.A (Put low into L %o = ;eo LD A.C s i m i l a r l y t e s t x s t a r t
fiEt iDofn- 390 CP 32 : s c r e e n 1 6 32 c h a r s w i d f
:ro I •lOO PET NC : a b o r t i f t o o b i o
410 ADD A,E ; a n d checl r i g h t hand
420 CP 32 :i»dqe o f window
430 RET NC

Listing 4 440
430
460
470
: a l l t h e above t e s t a c o u l d
tbe cut out in a f i n i s h e d
! p r o g r a m where you a r e s u r e
t t h a t t h e window s u e
in or.G «LO0<1 480 l i s alwovr. l e n a l .
20 L"Ni iiC-'Oi'
30 wrc-.H' : Mlin t c i " IbOhm is 490
40 y TAfeLC EOU 500
50 510 LD L.B ipick up the y s t a r t
60 l E r a m p l e 1. 320 LD H.O : i n t o HL
7o i U s i n u G( T A D D t o r .. t * n t . v L I l - a i t - I ' O C t i 530 ADD HL.HL (times i t bv H to
80 : < A 1 1 r i b u l e t . n o t touched> 540 ADD HL.HL (convert to a p 1 ::e 1 00s
90 t 550 ADD HL.HL (
l u O FANCY LD B , 192 s No o f t c r e « n 1 m u t , 360 t
no LD C.0 570 ADD HL.HL sand double this to
120 i 380 sIndex into the viable
130 F .LOOP PUSH tfC ( S a v e t h e c u u n t e r 590 EX DE.HL (switch to DE as no ADD IX.hl
131 DEC B ; A * DJNZ o n l y l o o p - , t o [«•] 600 1
140 CALL CETADD : H L » a d d r e s t . o f line o 1U LO IX.vrABLE
170 LD B C . 3 1 : One l e i t . t t u r i n o o f b v t e * / l i f n » 620 ADD IX. DE tPoint IX to thc>
1B0 ( 3 2 U y t o ^ o n e a c h l i n t / 630 :r1gh t place tn the ytable
190 LD C.L 640 EX DE.HL ;qnt DE back
200 LI) D . H ; C o p y HL i n t o DE 650 t
210 INC D t t O E 16 d e s t i n a t i o n f u r L D l f c ft60 LD A,!> ;now convert character
220 LD (HL).O : C l e a r the l e f t m o s t bvte 670 ADD A,A (depth into number
230 LDIR (And c o p v i n t o t h e o t h e r 32 08O ADD A.A (of pixel lines
240 POP t<C ( G e t line c o u n t e r b a d 690 ADD A,A
230 700 DEC A twe move one less than this
260 HAL 1 ; A b h o r t d e l a v . 710 LD D,A ;put t h i s counter into &
270 DJNZ r LOOP (L.Oof u n t i l clone 720
IBO RET 730 (
290 /40 Now B NO Of P1K«1
300 &ETADD LD L,B 750 lines to move
310 SLA L 760 C = X s t a r t poi Of
320 LD A,YTABLE/»10O 770 the window
330 ADC A . 0 700 E - Width ot th*
r.4o I.D H.A 790 window
330 LD A.(HL) l)W IX Points to th*
360 ADD A.C aio position in the
370 INC. L 820 Ytable
380 LD H, ( H L ) 830

o
390
400
LD La A U40 ; the loop below moves each pixel lint* UP 1
RET 850 PIXSC1 PUSH bC :save these registers

Z
410
: 860 PUSH DE las they are corrupted by
870 : t h i s loop
880 LD B,E iget width into b for inner loop

Listing 5
890 LD A,C (9et byte position
900 ADO A. (IX) tof s t a r t of this
910 LD E, A ; p t ::el 1 ine to
920 LD D.CIX+l> t DE rog palr
930 LD A.C (and byte addross m
10 0R(j NC000 <
20 ENT 0C000 940 ADD A,(IX+2) (Of s t a r t of line below
3 0 YTABLE EOU :Whatever
«FE00 l o o t up is 950 LD L.A | i n t o HL register
at
O
40 I 960 LD H,CIX+31 (pair
50 t T h e s * 1 i r i f i f o r m a 9.70 t

O
60 I s h o r t t e s t f o r t h e 980 P1XSC2 LDI (copy (HL) to (DE>
70 t r o u t i n i ' . 990 DJNZ PIXbC2 (for width ot window
00 t 1000 t
90 LD BC.N0208
1010 INC IX (step pointer to ot
100 LD DE,*lO10
1020 INC IX incxt line
110 CALL P1XSCR
1O30 POP DE a .
120 RET
1040 POP BC (restore both req's
130 t
1030 DJNZ PIXSCl (back to move ne»t line
140 iPlxol Scrol1 a window
1060 1
130 I upwui'dt. . . .
1070 LD A.C ( t h i s is byte address of
160 I
1080 ADD A,<IX) (bottom l e f t hand corner
170 t Entrv B ystjrt
1090 LD L,A (Of the window ot
LD H, (IX+11 1 Into HL
O
I lOO
180 I C KtUrt
190 ( D Depth
1 1 10 LD B,E ( width to £> again
200 i Width
1 120 PIXSC3 LD (HL1,O ( f i l l bottom line
210 t
e 1130 INC L (with zero's 111
DJNZ PIXSC3
220 ( A l l hiliMmi'tCr'S i n
2 3 0 ; C h l i * A c t « r P o s 1 11 t i n s
1 140
1130 RET 1 finished.... a.
i/>

59 ZX Computing Monthly • M a r c h 1987


; ACROSS;
•POND:
TI-IIEI
Mark Fendrick previews
America's largest
Sinclair show.
irstly I want to answer those ot
you who have written to ask why
this c o l u m n has not b e e n
a p p e a r i n g every month. This was
not because Bryan h a d asked
for less columns, but because of
the situation c o n c e r n i n g the
Sinclair market here in the
United States, In short, since
Sinclair has left our part of the
market, a n d Amstrad has no
interest in promoting Sinclair
technology in North America,
nothing much has h a p p e n e d .
The number of Sinclair dealers
has remained about the same
— or even h a d Its numbers
reduced. New sales of Sinclair
computers — mostly the QL —
continue to b e to current
Timex/Sinclair owners who have
d e c i d e d to u p g r a d e from their
T/S 2068.
There are sfill a handfull of
new products b e i n g developed,
but not In sufficient numbers to
a p p e a l to new home computer
buyers, a n d lack of IBM
compatibility turns most
potential customers off. The
microdrives which were Sir
Olive's personal favorite have
proven unreliable a n d many
computers which test out fine by
the dealer arrive at the mail
order customer In a n
unworkable condition.
But before you all start
thinking that I have given u p on
the Sinclair computers, let me
assure you that nothing is further
from Ihe truth. More than three
years a g o I promised that North
American Sinclair computerists
will always be a b l e to find
support here, a n d rather than
dwelling on what Is not. we shall
seek out all the new h a p p e n i n g s
a n d report on them here in ZX
C o m p u t i n g Monthly.
Last year one event proved
more of a shot in the arm than
any other h a p p e n i n g . That event
was the first a n n u a l Midwest
Tlmex Sinclair Computer Fest
hed in Cincinnati. Ohio.
Vendors who a t t e n d e d this
event all c a m e away from
Cincinnati with the feeling that
there still is a great d e a l of
interest amongst the Sinclair
computer owners In keeping
their units viable. A few new
products m a d e their
a p p e a r a n c e at this show, a n d a
number of exlremely well
attended lectures rounded out
the weekend's schedule. All
predictions of the long a w a i t e d
demise of the Sinclair computer
in the States were o n c e a g a i n
put to rest.
Mid West Fest
While other shows were p l a n n e d
across the country, none ever
got ofl the d r a w i n g board, but
the Second Annual Midwest
Timex Sinclair Computer Fest has
been announced.
Frank Davis, one of the
organizers of last year's
smashing success has informed
me that this year's gathering will
be even b i g g e r a n d offer more
to the dealers a n d e n d users
than the first fest.
The site tor the 1987 affair will
be the Holiday Inn North in
Indianapolis, Indiana. This
location has many improvements
over last itme. Since many
attendees c a m e by way of air
(more than h a d ever b e e n
expecled) the long drive from
the airport cost many more for
the taxi ride than the airfare. The
Holiday Inn is not only m u c h
closer to the airport, but the
hotel supplies a shuttle services
from the airport,
square feet of show s p a c e
d e d i c a t e d to the show as
o p p o s e d to the 2400 which was
taken up in Cincinnati. There will
be tables available for vendors
a n d users groups so that all
possible aspects of the Sinclair
c o m p u t i n g community will o n c e
a g a i n b e represented.
Because the lectures a n d
60 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
discussions proved so very
p o p u l a r last year, two rooms
have b e e n reserved for this
purpose. The plans c a l l for the
discussions which proved
p o p u l a r to b e r e p e a t e d at
various times throughout the
course of the weekend. (Once
a g a i n I have b e e n asked to
l e a d one or two of these
discussions. I h o p e to have the
c h a n c e to meet many of you at
that time.)
One of the more popular
events which c o u l d have used
more time last year was a swap
meet in which participants
c o u l d swap any form of
software/hardware which they
wanted. As last year,
arrangements have b e e n m a d e
to assure that there will be no
Illegal c o p y i n g of copyright
software. Those c o m i n g to
Indianapolis should be
p r e p a r e d to bring those Items
which have b e e n gathering
dust, a n d possibly m a y be
lurned Into something you c o u l d
use. This m a y be the opportunity
you have b e e n waiting tor to
obtain that product you never
purchased before It was taken
off the market.
The date for this o n c e a year
event is the weekend of May 2nd
a n d 3rd.
For more information
c o n c e r n i n g the show Itself,
i n c l u d i n g rates for tables for
dealers, absentee a n d user
groups, contact show organizer
Frank Davis; 513 East Main Street;
Peru Indiana 46970. Please
include a SASE to help defray
the costs of postage. I h o p e to
see all of you there In
Indianapolis.
I have a number of new
software p a c k a g e s which have
arrived recently which I will
report on In the next few
columns. A m o n g the programs
are music composition tor the T/S
2068, a number of new
telecommunications products for
the entire product line, a n d a
step in the direction of desktop
publishing on the QL. I have
b e e n Informed that there are a
few products which will b e
released In the next few months,
a n d as soon as I receive my
review copies I will give you my
Impressions.
For those of you who want to
let me know a b o u t new products
that you have heard of, or new
a p p l i c a t i o n s that you have
discovered, let me remind you
how to get in touch with m e By
mail I c a n b e r e a c h e d at:
Mark L. Fendrick
Post Office Box 2392
Secaucus. NJ 07094 0992
USA
Electronically I c a n b e found
on THE SOURCE (BCA632),
CompuServe (76417.3264); DELPHI
(MARKFENDRICK); by n a m e on
MCI MAIL or via telex (via WUI)
6502163495. (Products for review
may b e sent to the above
address as well — hint).
U.S. Gold's latest
compilation is an
Ultimate's Greatest Hits
collection.
Master Games
U.S. Gold/Ultimate
£9.99
T h i s is the s e c o n d of the two
compilations of Ultimate g a m e s
released by U.S. G o l d , a n d by far
the better of the two. Ultimate
almost s i n g l e h a n d e d l y
pioneered the a r c a d e a d v e n t u r e
hybrid w h i c h has now b e c o m e
so widespread, a n d the four
titles on this c o m p i l a t i o n r e a d
like a history ot the genre.
Side one of the t a p e kicks off
with Atic Atac, the first real
arcade adventure, a n d the
Sabr* Wul(
HZ
lOc'275
g a m e w h i c h I n t r o d u c e d that
m y t h i c a l hero, The S a b r e m a n , to
the g a m e s p l a y l n g p u b l i c
You h a v e to s e a r c h the live
floors of a castle In search ot the
G o l d e n Key. A l o n g the w a y you
h a v e to m a p the layout of e a c h
floor a n d f i n d the o b j e c t s that
you'll n e e d to o v e r c o m e various
creatures (such as the
Frankenstein monster). Atic A t a c
was also o n e of the first g a m e s
to a t t e m p t s o m e sort of 3D
g r a p h i c s by g i v i n g a n o v e r h e a d
p l a n view of the rooms a n d
objects. This g a m e , like a l l the
others o n this c o m p i l a t i o n , g a v e
birth to a g r e a t h o r d e of
imitations, g a m e s w h i c h were
g r a p h i c a l l y similar but w h i c h
often l a c k e d the a d d i c t i v e n e s s
of the originals. Because of this,
Atic A t a c m a y well s e e m like a
familiar style of b u d g e t g a m e to
p e o p l e w h o didn't c a t c h it the
first t i m e a r o u n d , but you
shouldn't u n d e r e s t i m a t e its
a d d i c t i v e n e s s even If the format
c o o o o o
of the g a m e now seems a little
dated.
Next o n side o n e is Sabre
Wulf. Each time Ultimate
p r o d u c e d a g o o d g a m e this
was often f o l l o w e d by
d i s a p p o i n t m e n t if their next
g a m e wasn't a h u g e
Improvement o n its predecessor,
a n d this was the c a s e w h e n
Sabre Wulf f o l l o w e d Atic A t a c
Both g a m e s were very similar
e x c e p t that the rooms in Atic
A t a c were r e p l a c e d by a maze-
like p a t h t h r o u g h a jungle.
However, g a m e s w h i c h look a lot
like Sabre Wulf are still b e i n g
p r o d u c e d , w h i c h gives you a n
I n d i c a t i o n of how g o o d it was at
t h e time.
Underwurlde
F l i p p i n g over the t a p e you lirst
l o a d u p Underwurlde. Now this
really was a n influential g a m e :
Nodes of Yesod, Starquake a n d
Tremor are a l l a m o n g the hordes
of g a m e s that have a m o r e than
passing r e s e m b l a n c e to
Underwurlde. F a c e d with the
task of f i n d i n g your w a y out of
the u n d e r w o r l d , you h a v e to find
the w e a p o n s a n d m a g i c a l gems
w h i c h a r e scattered a r o u n d the
c a v e r n s a n d w h i c h you'll n e e d if
you're to g u i d e the S a b r e m a n
past the monsters that stand in

, IMimx
your way, For the lirst time
Ultimate b e g a n to I n t r o d u c e

mm series of o b s t a c l e s that n e e d e d
to b e m a n o e u v r e d past (floating

1 u#
gas bubbles a n d swinging
B ropes), a n d g a v e the S a b r e m a n
the a b i l i t y to j u m p so that the
m g a m e involved m o r e t h a n just
shooting monsters a n d
c o l l e c t i n g objects. Now you h a d
to stop a n d think a b o u t where
OCT V Vil s you were g o i n g a n d how to get

aid
there, a n d this a d d e d a n extra
\ a i k V i J? e l e m e n t of difficulty to the g a m e
W W / /
that h e l p e d m a k e it even m o r e
addictive.
/ At this point you'd expect the
(oucth a n d tinai g a m e to b e
Knight Lore, w h i c h was the next
g a m e that Ultimate p r o d u c e d as
welt as b e i n g the fourth in the
Sabre M a n s e q u e n c e (and my
personal all-time favourite).
Unfortunately Knight Lore has
a l r e a d y b e e n i n c l u d e d on
another c o m p i l a t i o n , so this o n e
jumps forward to Alien 8. the
g a m e w h i c h c a m e directly after
Knight Lore.
Alien 8 is Ihe robot w h i c h you
control in a n attempt to save a
s p a c e ship from p l u n g i n g into a
star A b o a r d the craft are the
records a n d last survivors of a
d y i n g planet who put
themselves into c r y o g e n i c
suspension while their ship
sought out a new h o m e world.
But of course c o m p l e t i n g your L i 0 f I t c r
lask involves getting past the
strange creatures w h i c h
Alton 8
p o p u l a t e the ship, a n d finding
your way through the d e a d l y
traps w h i c h o c c u p y the
f 05 cryogenic chambers
By the time they p r o d u c e d
Alien 8. Ultimale's reputation was
at its height, With its two most
recent g a m e s they h a d
p e r f e c t e d a style of 3D g r a p h i c s
that were revolutionary, a n d
w h i c h has more or less b e c o m e
a d o p t e d as the 'standard' way
of presenting 3D graphics:
V Movie, Batman, Sweevo's World.
Nexus, Prodigy a n d m a n y other
g a m e s are simply variations on
the format that Ultimate
pioneered, a n d Alien 8 has still
to b e bettered in its c o m b i n a t i o n
of p r o b l e m solving, difficult
obstacles, a n d d e t a i l e d
graphics.
Sadly. Ultimate never really
progressed from this point a n d
Undeiwurldo while they've p r o d u c e d some
g o o d g a m e s since they've b e e n
u n a b l e to get b a c k to the p e a k
that they r e a c h e d with the
g a m e s on this collection.
V a c r o l H v Because these g a m e s were so
+ influential, p e o p l e who have
only gotten into c o m p u t i n g In
the last c o u p l e of years are
JI T .I M E . likely to b e more familiar with
the large n u m b e r of g a m e s that
o o o : 4 9 have c o p i e d Ultimates originals,
but these g a m e s are still a m o n g
000155 the best ot their various types, so
this c o m p i l a t i o n is worth getting
if you're at all interested in
arcade/adventures.

1 V-> v-> /

cl-i
P5
M . '•IP

Alic A t a c

ULTIMATE G A M E S
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UJJJ
DEBUGGING ARTIST II
Flummoxed by the
BA62 E5
bugs in Artist II? Carol BA63 C5
Brooksbank rides to the BA64 F5
rescue. BA63 CD7BBA CHKBUS
BA6E3 20BF
BA6A F1
fc^"ou may have seen In the BA6B 01BFFF
review of Softechnics' Artist II* In BA6E ED79
the February ZXC, that I
mentioned that there are a BA70 OEBB
number of bugs In the program. BA72 ED79
Certainly, if you have a copy,
you wilt have met some of them. BA74 OEBF
This is such a g o o d graphics BA76 ED79
program without the bugs that I
d e c i d e d to see how m a n y I BA78 CI
c o u l d remove, a n d now have my BA79 El
c o p y In g o o d working order. As
most of the c h a n g e s are quite BA7A C9
small, I a m sure you w o u l d like BA7B 01BFFF BUSY
to c l e a n your copies up too, so
here Is how It is done. BA7E ED78
First, a few bugs that 1 have BA80 E6C0
left a l o n e b e c a u s e their effects
are easily corrected or a v o i d e d . BAB2 C9
After using the 'Up' m o d e to work Routine to a l l o w use ot the Kompston E Interface.
on the part of the screen
normally h i d d e n by the Icon 72 to load from microdrlve/disc
menu, you will sometimes find 74 to load from t a p e
that a c o u p l e of lines from the 82 to save to mlcrodrive/disc
bottom of the screen are 84 to save to t a p e
transferred to the top when you
return to the 'Down' mode. This Is Proceed as usual to save/load.
easily corrected by using the
"Window' option to scroll the The most serious bugs are In
whole screen. When using the the printing operations, in both
'Enlarge' m o d e to work In detail the m a i n p r o g r a m a n d the
on small sections of the screen, Pagemaker. The following
the program m a y crash if you c h a n g e s should b e m a d e
run the cursor off the right h a n d before saving a back-up
e d g e ot the e n l a r g e d window. customised copy.
Avoid running the cursor off the
edge. When you n e e d to work at
the right h a n d side of the
e n l a r g e d area, move the Kempston E
window over a bit so that the
a r e a comes to the centre of the The last c o m m a n d on LINE 97 of
window. It you are on the right the main p r o g r a m BASIC is
h a n d e d g e of your picture, move COPY : REM CHR$ NOT PI
the cursor slowly so that you c a n My interface Is not initialised
control It. a n d keep It inside the by this. I a m not sure whether
window. this is a quirk of my particular
I mentioned the save/load interface, or whether it Is always
b u g in the type font design the case that NOT PI is not
option In the review. The Save' recognised. If your interface is
option saves the wrong block of not Initialised after responding
code, a n d Load' crashes the r to 'KEMPTON PRINT?: then
program. Follow this procedure c h a n g e the last c o m m a n d on
to save/load successfully. LINE 97 to COPY : REM CHR$ 0
Select the save/load option,
a n d give the file n a m e when Enabling the
prompted. Use the BREAK key to screen dumps
return to BASIC (Do not start the
t a p e If saving). Enter as a direct The s h a d e d screen d u m p s work,
command. but the ordinary large a n d small
ones d o not if you are using
LET B = n u m b e r Epson or c o m p a t i b l e printers. For
the technically m i n d e d , this is
number = 62268 for font 3 b e c a u s e there is a mistake In
61500 for font 4 the Epson bit-image g r a p h i c
63036 for font 5 codes. The p r o g r a m makes use
of the ESC ' control code, which
Enter GOTO allows the bit i m a g e m o d e to b e
ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
PUSH HL
PUSH BC
PUSH AF
CALL BUSY
JR N Z , CHKBUS
POP AF
LD BC, FFBF
•UT (C>,A
LD C , B B
OUT ( C ) , A
LD C , B F
OUT ( C ) , A
POP BC
POP HL
RET
LD B C , F F B F
I N A,<C>
AND CO
RET
selected by a number w h i c h
follows "*". This number c a n be
0-4 or 6. or 5 on some of the
latest models. The p r o g r a m uses
7. A c a l l to Epson c o n f i r m e d by
suspicion that there is no such
mode, so the fault c a n b e
corrected by POKEing a valid
number into the locations
c o n c e r n e d . You c a n experiment
lo see the effect of the various
numbers, but I found 1 the most
satisfactory. The only p r o b l e m Is
that the large screen d u m p
does not quite fit on the p a g e -
a b o u t two character squares are
cut off the right h a n d e d g e —
but none of the other modes
produces a large d u m p w h i c h
comes anywhere near to fitting
the page.
These are the POKES you
need:
POKE 65180,1 (Small screen
dump)
POKE 65186,1 (Large screen
dump)
You c o u l d try j u g g l i n g with
the values of the two pairs of bit-
I m a g e d a t a . I c o u l d not find a
more satisfactory c o m b i n a t i o n
l h a n those in the program, but if
you have more p a t i e n c e than I,
the locations a n d present values
are
65181 (0) (Smalt d u m p )
65182 (2)
65187 (0) (Large d u m p )
65188 (4)
The m a i n p r o g r a m c a n now
b e saved. As I have no Opus
disc unit, I c h a n g e d ilne 96 to
make the program auto-run.
96 PAPER 7:INK OrBORDER 0:
CLSiCLEAR 25631:LOAD " a r t 2 "
CODE
SAVE "artistli" LINE 96:SAVE "art2"
CODE 26000,39536.
Pagemaker
The separate Pagemaker has the
same bit-image error. If you have
a Kempston E interface, ignore
Ihe Instructions in the h a n d b o o k
lor making a customised copy,
and p r o c e e d as follows.
Load the Pagemaker from the
tape. As soon as the Instructions
for customising a p p e a r on
screen, stop the t a p e a n d use
the BREAK key. (i.e. before the
blocks of c o d e are loaded).
Change the number of LINE 20
to LINE 21. A d d
20 COPY:REM CHR$ 0
Enter GO TO 20, start the tape,
and the blocks of c o d e will be
l o a d e d . When the whole
jram is l o a d e d , use the
BREAK key to g o to BASIC a n d
enter POKE 64034,1.
(You c a n n o t j u g g l e with the
bit-image d a t a in this program
as they are transmitted by
l o a d i n g A with a number,
followed by RST 10H. To c h a n g e
the 0 d a t a , you would n e e d to
r e p l a c e a one-byte Instruction,
XOR A, with a two-byte one. The
d a t a in the m a i n program is
h e l d in a t a b l e of values w h i c h
are easily c h a n g e d ) .
You c a n now save a back-up
c o p y of the program with:
SAVE " p a g e m a k e r " LINE 20:
SAVE "fonts" CODE 29696,3072:
SAVE " s c r c o d e " CODE
47000,1275: SAVE " s c r d u m ^ 1
CODE 64000,107: SAVE "write-
l o a d " CODE 39700,45.
Your customised Pagemaker will
work perfectly, except that you
must remember when m a k i n g
The Writer text file, the m a x i m u m
number of characters per line
must b e 60. not 64 as stated in
the h a n d b o o k . A full Artist II
screen still covers 32 characters,
so you will n e e d to take a c c o u n t
of the fact that a screen takes
slightly more than half the width
of the page.
If you wish to use the Page-
maker. you will have a copy of
The Writer, a n d those with a
Kempston E interface will also
have found that this does not
work. This Is because, despite
the h a n d b o o k , the c o d e in The
Writer is for Kempston S. To get a
Kempston E g o i n g with it, you
n e e d the bit of c o d e in figure 1,
a n d to l o a d it into the program
at 47714.
I don't normally think it is a
reviewer's j o b to d e b u g
c o m m e r c i a l software, but this
suite is so useful that It is worth
the time a n d effort to get the
programs working properly.

A
Spectrum +2 Machine
Language for the
Absolute Beginner
Melbourne House
£8.95

W h l s book contains Ihe best 1 to a variable on every

and clearest e x p l a n a t i o n of the
280 Instructions that I have ever
come across. In that respect it is
an excellent book for the
beginner, but the author seems
to have forgotten that the
newcomer to m a c h i n e c o d e
also needs to b e shown how to
string the Instructions together to
make the computer a c t u a l l y do
something. The book Is
interrupt, a n d the c h a p t e r ends
by saying that 'there are other
things you c a n achieve with
interrupt driven routines, but they
n e e d some p r o g r a m m i n g
experience.*
The author skates briefly over
keyboard r e a d i n g a n d printing
to the screen, but the chapter
on sound makes the whole book
worthwhile. At last we are given

peppered with short routines, but
most of them simply show that if
you l o a d a c o u p l e of registers
with numbers a n d a d d or
subtract them, you get the right
answers. The beginner might b e
forgiven for thinking thai you
could d o most of this In half the
time with a calculator.
There Is a n excellent chapter
on hex, binary a n d d e c i m a l
arithmetic, a n d it shows clearly
how to c a l c u l a t e the conversions
from one to the other, w h i c h Is
just as well. Most of the
examples are in d e c i m a l , there
Is a d e c i m a l loader a n d no hex
loader, but the tables of
opcodes a n d instructions are in
hex a n d there Is no conversion
table. It seems a certain recipe
for disaster to expect the
beginner to c a l c u l a t e conver-
sions between conventions.
There is a s p l e n d i d chapter
on Interrupts w h i c h makes the
use of vector addresses
absolutely clear, but a g a i n the
examples only show how to a d d
^SSML
routines w h i c h achieve
something a n d show the reader
how to b u i l d on the examples to
make their own routines This
chapter, a n d the sections on
m e m o r y p a g i n g , will be useful
to anyone, even the more
experienced machine code
user, who is new to the 128K a n d
+2. Despite the title, I think Joe
Pritchard is more familiar with
the 128K model, b e c a u s e he
talks of a m p l i f y i n g the sound via
the ear/mic sockets which, of
course, the +2 does not have,
a n d there Is no mention of the
+2's sound socket.
If you are new to the 128K or
+2, then get this book. If you are
a m a c h i n e c o d e novice, buy it
for its clarity, but get another at
the same time with better
examples. This o n e tells you all
a b o u t Z80 instructions but
nothing m u c h a b o u t
programming.
Carol Brooksbank

65 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
 STREAMS
AND
If you thought that you
couldn't use the ZX
Printer with your new
128 then Toni Baker can

CHANNELS
prove you wrong.

V his article contains not one, if you don't have a Spectrum 128 c o m m u n i c a t e freely with a QL
but two new channels which you then you don't n e e d this new via the Local Area Network
c a n use on your Spectrum. The c h a n n e l of course, because you a v a i l a b l e from the ZX Interface
first is a channel which enables c a n use the ZX Printer anyway. One. Of course c o m m u n i c a t i o n
users ot the Spectrum 128 (or the The second Is not really a between these computers via
128+2) to be a b l e to use the ZX new c h a n n e l at all, but a the network is already possible,
Printer — or some other modification to a n existing a n d David Nowofnik has recently
c o m p a t i b l e printer such as an channel. It enables the b e e n d o i n g a n excellent series
A l p h a c o m — even in 128K mode. Spectrum to be a b l e to in ZX C o m p u t i n g on that very
task. It Is not my intention to
Figure 1 d u p l i c a t e any ot his material,
but merely to remove a c o u p l e
ix • oo (2 bytes)t Z_HIIKT Address of channel "Z" output. of deficiencies In the channel
IX • 0? (2 bytes)l REP0HT_J Address or channel "I" Input. Itself. We'll return to this later,
IX • 04 (1 *yt«)i Z_KAffi S u » of channel (1« "Z"). meanwhile back to the ZX
IX • 05 (2 bytes) t Z_IIO Constant 12J4H identifies new channel. Printer.
IX • 07 (2 bjrtes)t Z_CL0SE Address of close buffer routine.
IX • 09 (2 bytes)i Z_LEH Length of channel Info (ie 010E).
IX • 0B {1 byte)t Z_FLACS Various flags. Channel Z
The program as such begins at
Bit 7» Set if leading apace not reqd for keywords, reset otherwise. address B544. If this seems a
Bit 61 Not used. rather arbitrary address to you
Bit Rot used. then I should explain that the
Not used.
reason it starts at B544 is that all
Bit 4t
the c o d e follows on from the stuff
Bit it Set If IKVtSSE status to ON, reset otherwise. In last month's article (which ran
Bit 2i Sat If 0 V W status ia OK, reset otherwise. from BOOO to B543). Indeed, some
Bit It Set If exactly two additional parameters required, reset otherwise. of the subroutines developed
Bit Ot Set If exactly one additional parameter required, reset otherwise.
last month will be used In the
routines given here.
The trick to using the ZX
IX • OC (1 byte) t Z_XCOCRD X coordinate of print poon In buffer.
Printer on the 128 Is to avoid any
IX 4 OS (1 byte)s Z^wiDTH Width of buffer (ie 20h). possibility of erasing or
IX + 0E (lOOh bytes)t Z_BUKKE* New printer buffer. corrupting the OLD printer buffer
(addresses 5B00 to 5BFF) — this Is
ORG B544 because the memory in this
Z_CL0SE
range Is used by the 128 to store
DD7B0C LD A,(Z_XCOORD) At" x coordinate within buffer.
various p a g i n g subroutines,
17 AND A system variables, a n d a n
ce RET Z Return lnacdlately if buffer empty. alternative m a c h i n e stack for
use when accessing the vast
banks of p a g e d memory. If we
CRC B549 c a n arrange things so that we
DDE5 Z_ HEVtIKE PUSH IX c a n avoid corrupting this
El POP KL KLi" address of channel Info.
memory then the g o o d old ZX
Printer c a n still work normally.
010E300 LD BC.OOOE You see, all of the ZX Printer
09 ADD KL, BC HLt points to new printer buffer. software in the ROM was written
rj DI Disable intsrrupto. before fhe advent of the 128 a n d
is not c o m p a t i b l e with the
0608 LD B.Ofl requirements of the new
C5 Z_ NL_LOOP POSH BC machine.
CD7JB5 CALL B575,Z_COP*_LINE Output next row to ZX Printer. AH we really need to d o then
CI POP BC is to create a NEW printer buffer
DJNZ Z_NL_LOOP Output all eight rows.
somewhere in memory, a n d use
10F9
fhe new buffer instead of the old

66 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

one. The best possible p l a c e tor
this butter would be as part of JB04 LD A,04
the c h a n n e l information block DJFB OUT (FB),A Switch printer motor off.
for the c h a n n e l — that would FB EI Enable interrupts.
mean that the area o c c u p i e d
by the new printer buffer would
be r e c l a i m e d whenever you ORG B55*'
closed the channel. DDES Z EMPTY POSH IX
We shall call this new POP in,
E1 HL:- address of channel info.
channel "Z", for ZX-Printer. Take a
look at Figure One — it shows OlOBOO LD BC.000E
the structure of the c h a n n e l 09 ADD HL, BC HL: points to new printer burfer.
Information block tor the new AF XOR A At- 00.
channel. As you c a n see, the first
eleven bytes store completely 77 z EKprr LOOP LD (HL),A Zero next byte of buffer.
standard information, using the 25 ISC HL HLt points to next byte in buffer.
standard which was d e v e l o p e d 10FC DJNZ Z_EKFTY_L00P Zero entire of buffer.
throughout this series. (IX+05/06)
DDCBOHFE SET 7,(Z_FLAGS) Signal "Leading space not required"
contains the constant 1234h,
which identifies this as b e i n g a DD770C LD (Z_XCOORD),A Reset x coordinate in buffer.
user-defined channel. This C9 HET Return.
means that it may be o p e n e d or
closed using some of the
software listed last month. ORG B57J
(IX+OB). (IX+OC). a n d (IX+OD) 76 Z COPY LIKE LD A, B A:= row number to output.
also store information in the ra>3 CP 03
same format as the "W" c h a n n e l
9F SEC A,A A:» FF (last 2 rows) or 00 (otherwise)
given last month — this is so that
we c a n exploit more of last E602 AMD 0? A:» 02 (last 2 rows) or 00 (otherwise)
month's subroutines. As you shall D3FB OUT (FB),A Switch printer motor on, but with
see. a collection of new slow speed for last two rows,
channels Is far more
advantageous than a single 57 LD D, A D:- "last 2 rows" ling.
new channel. CD541F Z_CL_LOOP CALL 1F54,BREAK_KELF Test BREAK key.
Finally, the new printer buffer 380A JR C,Z_CL_NEXT Jump forward unless BREAK pressed.
itself runs from (IX+OE) upwards,
3B04 LD A,04
and is 100h bytes in length
(same as the o l d printer buffer). D3FB 07T (FB),A Switch printer n-otor off.
The variable Z „ X C O O R D FB EI liable interrupts..
(IX+OC) will be zero if the printer CD5FB5 CALL B55F,Z_EHM Empty the new printer buffer.
butter Is completely empty, or
CF0C RST 06/DEFB OC Report D. BREAK - COWT repeats.
non-zero otherwise. If the new
buffer is full It will contain 20h. DHFE Z_CL_NEXT IN A,(FE) At— status of printer.
Z_ WIDTH (IX+OD) remains 67 ADD A,A
constant at 20h — the width of
F6 RET M Return if printer not connected.
Ihe buffer. This is so that the TAB
a n d comma-control routines 30EB JR NC,Z_CL_L00P Wait until printer stylus is ready.
from last month may be C3120F JP OF 12,C0PY_L_2A Jump to print next row froa buffer.
exploited successfully. ORG B594
The program begins at the
DU2A4W SEARCH_CH_ALL LD IX,(CHANS) IXt points to base of channel
label Z _ CLOSE, which is the
routine to perform all ol the inlora.ition area.
peripheral tasks necessary to 011400 LD BC.0014
close the channel. In fact this 57 LD D, A Dt- name of channel to search for.
merely consists of testing
whether or not the buffer is DD09 SCH_CH_LOOP ADD IX,B0 IX: points to next chan info area.
empty, a n d printing a newline if DD7B00 SEARCH CH LD A,(IX+OO)
o
it isn't. PESO
J7
CP 80
SCF
z
Newline C8 RET Z Return with carry set if Channel
5
The Z__NEWLINE routine m a y b e not found.
c o m p a r e d to the ROM routine DD7E04 LD A,(IX+04) At- nano of channel pointed to. <
COPY. BUFF at address OECD. Its
BA CP D
purpose Is to transfer the
contents of the buffer to the ZX Cfl RET Z R o t u m with IX pointing to channel oc
Printer itself, before finally
erasing the previous buffer
Information area, and carry reset,
O
contents. The routine Z-EMPTY
LD C,(LX+09)
if search succesofull.
O
oc
does the a c t u a l erasing. You will DD4B09
notice a c o u p l e of differences DD460A LD B, (1X«0A) BC:- length of channcl info.
between the ROM routine Q .
16EA JR SCH_CH_L00P Loop back to continue search.
COPY BUFF, a n d my routine
Z_ NEWLINE. Firstly, the new
printer buffer is used instead of ORG B5B2
the old one, a n d secondly the DD2A515C Z_PRINT LD IX,(CDRCHL) IXt points to channel Info area.
subroutine Z COPY LINE is CD2FB1 CALL B12F Deal with keywords, control ptruoo, OC
called instead of the original
COPY _LINE. TAB, and conoa control.
In fact Z_COPY LINE is itself F8 RET K Return If task* coaplete. O
very similar to the ROM's m
POSH AF
COPY LINE routine (at OEF4). The CL
only difference in e v i d e n c e is 283B JR Z, Z_GRAPH1CS Jump with graphics characters.
CO

67 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

 STRfAMS
AND
CHANNELS
5055 JR NC, Z_ASC 11 Jump with ASCII characters.
PBOD CP OS
2005 JR HZ, Z_PR_CTRLS Jump unless chr la "enter".
CD49B5 CALL B549,Z_N*VLINE Print a ncwllne.
the ellect of pressing the BREAK
187P JR Z_EKIT And Jump to exit. key — In my routine Z EMPTY is
D614 Z_PR_CTRLS SUB 14 c a l l e d Instead of CL£AR__PRR
597B jr c,2_Btrr Jump with controls 00 to 15> This removes any possible
c h a n c e of corrupting the old
0606 LD B.oe Bt has bit three net. printer buffer area.
2805 JR Z,Z_IHV_0VBR Jump with "inverse control". A general purpose subroutine
5D nBC A is i n c l u d e d next -
LD B,04 Bt has bit two set.
SEARCH CH ALL. It is entered
0604
with the A register containing
200}' JR NZ,Z_AT Jump unless chr Is "over control". the n a m e of a channel. The
CB19 z,_inv_ovm RR C routine will search through the
SBC A,A A:- 00 (INV 0 or OVFR 0),
c h a n n e l information area
9P looking for a c h a n n e l with this
or FF (IKV 1 or OVER 1). name. If If finds one It will return
DBA E0P XOfi (Z_lLAGS) A:« flags byte, but complemented if with IX pointing to the channel
parameter is one. information block a n d the carry
reset, otherwise the carry will be
AO AND B At all bits reset, except thAt bit set. We shall make use of this
J (INV) or bit 2 (OVtB) will be subroutine later.
taken froc flags byte, and
complemented If parameter is one. Z PRINT
DDI BOB XOR (z_mcs) Z PRINT is the routine which
DD770B LD (Z_FLAGS), A Bit 5 (INV) or bit 2 (OVH?) of flags "prints" a character held In the
A register onto the new printer
byte will be assigned with parameter. buffer. Note that the subroutine
1865 JR Z _ E H T Jump to exit. at address B12F comes from last
5D Z_AT DEC A month's article a n d will sort out
all keywords control parameters,
2060 JB N2,Z_EXIT Jump unless control lo "at control". a n d will d e a l with both the
79 LD A,C A t ' required x coordinate. comma-control a n d the TAB
PE20 CP 20 function. On return from this
& r o r if out of range.
subroutine the C register will
D29F1E JP NC,1E9F,REP0RT_B
contain any INVERSE or OVER
DD770C LD (ZJCCOORD).A Assign x coordinate as required. parameters, or the x coordinate
1855 JR Z_EXIT Jump to exit. of any AT parameters The
ED5B565C Z_ASCII LD DE, (CHARS) DEt> addr of character net -lOOh. Z PRINT routine Itself is really
quite simple, b e a r i n g in mind
1811 JR Z_CHR_1 Jump forward.
that it has to d e a l with ASCII
1*90 ZjGRAPHICS SUB 90 characters, block graphics, a n d
5009 JR NC, Z_UDj Jump with user defined graphics. UDG's. as well as OVER. INVERSE.
AT a n d ENTER. Follow it through
47 LD B, A
to see how all the various cases
CDJBOB CALL 0B58,P0_GR_1 Construct graphic in MEHBOT area. are dealt with.
21925C LD HL.MtMBOT HLi points to graphic form. Finally (for this channel) we
180B JR Z_CHR_2 Jump forward. have Z OPEN, which opens Ihe
c h a n n e l a n d attaches it to a
ED5B7B5C LD DE, (UDG) DE t• address of user defined grphes.
zjutc
stream. On entry, the A register

o
6p Z_CHR_1 LD L, A must contain the stream number
2600 LD H,00 to which the c h a n n e l is to be
ADD HL, HL
a t t a c h e d a n d the subroutine will

z
29 d o the rest. It makes use of

s
29 ADD HL.KL another subroutine from last
29 ADD HL, HL article - the OPEN NEW routine

s<
ADD KL,DE HLi points to required' graphic form.
which will o p e n user defined
19 channels
DD7E0C Z_CHR_1 LD A , (Z_XC0CRD) A m current x coordinate in buffer.
FE20 CP 20 Channel Q

o
PUSH HL
E5 When c o m m u n i c a t i n g with the
OC CC49B5 CALL Z, 2_NEVLING Print a newline if buffer full. QL via the normal network
c h a n n e l you will notice a

o
D1 POP DE DEi points to graphic form.
OT7E0C LD A,(Z_XCOORD) At" current x coordinate in buffer.
c o u p l e of problems The first Is
that on the Spectrum the c o d e
oc 5C
DD770C
INC A
LD (Z_XCOOHD),A
A:* new x coordinate.
Store in system variable.
for "enter" is OD (thirteen),
whereas on the QL the c o d e for
a C60D ADD A,0D "enter" Is OA (ten). This means
LD C,A that, for instance, PRINT AS on
4P
the QL c a n n o t be m a t c h e d by
0600 LD B, 00 BCia displacement to posn In buffer. INPUT AS on the Spectrum, nor
DDE5 PUSH IX vice versa. It is normally
El POP HL HL: points to channel information. necessary to use PRINT
AS;CHR$(13); on the QL in order
ADD HL, BC HLi points to current ponn In buffer.
09 that the Spectrum m a y use INPUT
O 0608 LD B, 08 A$. Conversely. INPUT A$ on the
LU
a. EB Z_CHH_LOOP LX DE,HL D E m current buffer position; QL needs to be m a t c h e d by
PRINT AS; CHRS 10; on the
co
HLl points to graphic form.
Spectrum.

68 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

 LLLU
What I intend to d o is to 1A LD A,(DE) A:= byte from buffer.
modify the "N" c h a n n e l DDCBOB56 BIT 2,(Z_FLAGS)
attached fo a particular stream
so that the deficiencies are 2001 JR HZ, Z_CRR_0V£K Junp if 0VH* off.
removed. In a modified "N" AF XCR A
channel these problems DDCB0B5E BiT 5,(Z_KLACS)
disappear. PRINT AS on the 2801 JR Z,Z_CHR_INV Jusp If INVERSE on.
Spectrum may b e m a t c h e d by 2F CPL
INPUT AS on the QL. a n d vice
versa. Other surprising AE XCR (HL) At™ byte from graphic form, with
advantages turn up; if you LIST a 0VK3 and INVERSE taken into account.
Spectrum program over a 12 LD {DE},A Store in buffer.
modified network c h a n n e l then
PUSH HL Stack pointer into graphic form.
the QL will be a b l e to LOAD the E5
program with the single 212000 LD HL.0020
c o m m a n d LOAD NET1_.2 19 ADD HL,DE HL: pointo to appropriate byte in
(assuming that the Spectrum is buffer for next row of character.
station number 2) — or to transfer
the program directly onto a QL D1 POP DE DE: points into graphic form.
mlcrodrive ready for l o a d i n g 13 INC DE DE: points to next byte to use.
later with the single QL 10E5 W N Z Z_CHRJ,OOP Print whole character into buffer.
c o m m a n d COPY NET1 J 1 TO
MDV1 PROG. F1 Z_EXIT POP A¥ A:« character Juot printed.
AND A Reset the carry flag.
The second p r o b l e m is a little A7
more complex, but not m u c h so. C9 RET Return.
The Spectrum c o m m a n d ORG B64A
INPUT AS actually expects to
08 Z_0PH*
receiver a string expression, not EX KF,AF' A ' a t r e a a number to attach channe
the contents of an a c t u a l string 3B5A LD A , "Z"
(although this is not the case CD94B5 CALL B594,SEARCH_CH_ALL Search for another "Z" channel.
with INPUT LINE). Fortunately for D2C415 JP NC 15C4,REP0RT_J Error if one exists.
us, we seldom notice this
because the Spectrum provides DD2144B5 LD IX, Z_CLOSE LX:» close buffer address.
the surrounding quotes — this 21B2B5 LD HL,Z_PRIOT HL: = output address.
converts the string text Into a 11C415 LD DE,REPORT_J DE:- input address.
string expression a n d everything
010E01
Is hunky dory — with one LD BC,010E BCI- length of channel info.
exception! If the string printed
over the network by the QL CD6DB0 CALL B06D,0PEN_KEW Open the channel.
contains a quotes character DDJ60B00 LD (Z_FLACS),00 Reset the flags.
then the Spectrum will b e
unable to evaluate the result as DDJ60D20 LD (Z_VIPTH),20 Specify buffer width - 20h chrs.
a string expression a n d will halt C35FB5 JP B55F,Z_EWTY Bnpty the buffer, and return.
with error C, Nonsense in BASIC
The cure to this p r o b l e m is very
simple. If, during Spectrum INPUT ORG B66E
(as o p p o s e d to INKEYS or INPUT 210007 SHAD0W_DE LD JtL, 0700, ON PAGE
LINE) a quotes character is E5 POSH HL Stack US PAGE address in Shadow ROM.
received from a m o d i f i e d
Stack Shadow subroutine address.
network c h a n n e l THEN IT MUST BE D5 PtISH DE
CONVERTED TO TWO CONSECU- 65 LD H,L in, i- oooo.
TIVE QUOTES CHARACTERS in £5 POSH HI, Stack 0000 signalling "Return
order that the expression will still
to Shadow ROM address".
evaluate.
Let's take a look at the C30800 J P 0008 Jump to call Shadow subroutine.
subroutines now. We b e g i n with
SHADOW DE which will call a ORG B&78
subroutine in the Shadow ROM
DD2A515C LD IX.(CURCHL) IXi points to channel information.
whose address Is DE. It achieves
this by fooling the Spectrum into F5 PUSH AF Stack character to print.
thinking that we are returning fo FE0D C P "enter"
the Shadow ROM from a 2002 JR NZ,^_PRIHT_2 Juap unless character is "enter".
Spectrum subroutine, a n d then
simple p a g i n g out the Shadow SBOA LD A,OA A:« QIi's code for "enter".
ROM on completion. DD5E05 0_HUNT_2 LD E,(lX+05)
CL PRINT Is the routine which DD5606 LD D,(lX+06) DEt> Shadow output address.
"prints" a character over the CD6EBb CALL B66E,SHAD0V_DE Call network output In Shadow R 0 K .
modified network. As you c a n
see It Is extremely simple, merely F1 POP AF At" character Just printed.
testing for a n "enter" character A7 AMD A Reset the carry flag.
and converting such to OA, C9 RET Return.
before using the original
ORG B66F
Shadow-PRINT subroutine to print
the character. DD2A515C q_IHPUT LD IX, (CURCHL) IX: points to channel information.
Q__INPUT is more 2A3D5C LD HL,(EHR_3P) KLj pointo to error return address.
complicated, though not m u c h 5K LD E,(HL)
so. Firstly, the routine tests the
error return address to see 23' INC HL
whether the character-input is 56 LD D, ( HL) DE:* error return address.
due to an INPUT c o m m a n d , or 217F10 LD HL, 107F,ED_EHRCR
due to an INKEYS function. If it
A7 AND A
turns out to be merely INKEYS

69 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

STFTSAMS AND CHANNELS
ra>52 SBC HI,, DE
then things are Just as simple as
for Q „PRTNT. The shadow input
2814 JR Z,q_IKFUT_2 Jump if In a IKPtTT otnttrunt. routine is c a l l e d to r e a d a
DD5B07 L D E, (lX+07) character, a n d if that character
is OA then it Is converted to
DD5608 LD D,(IX+OB) BEi« Shadow input addreno.
"enter".
CD6EB6 CALL B66E,SHADCW_DE Call network input from Shadow R O M . If, however, we are d e a l i n g
47 LD B,A B>- character just input. with INPUT (as o p p o s e d to
PUSH AF Stack the flags.
INKEYS) then the first thing we
F5
must d o is a b a n d o n altogether
FEOA CP OA use of the EDITOR routine in the
2002 JH NZ,<l_INXEY»_2 J u m p unless this is a QL "enter". ROM (which we d o by emptying
060D LD B,0D B«" Spectrum "enter" character. the m a c h i n e stack as far as the
return address from the EDITOR
PI POP AF Restore the flags.
call) a n d then supplying a new
78 LD A,B Ai- character to return. routine to r e p l a c e EDITOR. We
C9 RET Return. c a n call Q INKEYS as a sub-
ED7B5D5C q_INFVT_2 LD SP,(BHH_SP) Qnpty the machine stack down as
routine to fetch a single
character from the network
far an KD_HTR0R. (converting OA to OD) a n d the
El POP HL Drop the addrcaa ED_ERROR. flags will tell us if the character
El POP HL HL I" normal error return address ptr. is valid or not. Then we c a n call
a ROM subroutine
Reatoro pointer to error retn a d d r .
22JD5C 1,D (rafl_SP),HL
A D D _ C H A R _ 1 to actually insert
CM1B6 q_IWP_L00P CALL B6A1,q_INKErt Read next character from network. the character into the input line.
J804 JR C,q_INP_STCRE J u m p if character O K . Quote characters must b e
JR Z,<l_INP_LOOP J u m p if still waiting.
inserted twice, not o n c e (except
28F9
during INPUT LINE). Finally, if a n
CF07 RST 08/DJTB 07 Report 8 , Bid of file. "enter" character is received
FB0D q_lKP_ST0HE CP O D then we m a y relurn, as if from
C8 RET Z Return (INHJT is now finished) if the EDITOR routine, with the
finished string expression in the
character ie "enter". INPUT area of RAM.
CD850P CALL 0F85,ADD_CHAR_ 1 Store the character in the INHtT line. MODIFY N is the routine
FDCBJ77E BIT 7,(FLAG_X) which will convert a "N" c h a n n e l
JR NZ,^_INP_L00P Loop back IT doing INPUT LINE.
to d o as its told. On entry the A
20EB
register must contain the stream
FE22 CP 22 number of a n existing "N"
CC850P CALL Z,0F85,ADD_CHAK_1 Double-up quote characters. c h a n n e l which must nave b e e n
18E4 JR q_INP_LOOP G o back for rest of INHJT. o p e n e d normally. In such a
c h a n n e l (IX+00/01) a n d (IX+02/03)
ORG B6DA will normally contain the value
CD2117 MODIFYJJ CALL 1721,STR_DATA_1 BCib STUMS data for stream supplied. 0008 which, if called, will p a g e
in the Shadow ROM a n d then
78 L D A, B call the actual output or input
B1 OR C subroutine addressed by
280C JR Z,K0D_ERR0R Error if stream not in o n e . (IX+05/06) a n d (IX+07/08)
respectively.
2A4P5C LD KL, (CHANS) HL: points to base of channel
The MODIFY N subroutine will
information a r e a . merely convert these 0008s to
09 ADC HL, BC HL: pta to 2nd byte of chan info. the addresses of Q__PRINT a n d
23 INC HL Q . INPUT, leaving the addresses
of the Shadow routines
IHC HL
25 u n c h a n g e d . The Shadow
23- INC HL HL: pts to 5th byte of chan info. routines will then only b e c a l l e d
7E LD A,(HL) A:> name of channel. when required by Q PRINT or
PE4E C P "N*
by Q INPUT.
Finally, a five byte
2802 JH Z,M0D_QL Jump only if channel io "II". demonstration of the "Z"
CF17 KOD_JKRCR RST 08/DEFB 17 Report 0 , Invalid s t r e a m . channel. Simply c a l l i n g
2B M0D_QL DEC HL Z DEMO from BASIC will o p e n a
new c h a n n e l "Z", a n d attach it
LD (HL),B6
J6B6 to stream number four.
2B DEC HL
568F LD (HL),8F Store new input a d d r e s s . Channel R
2B DEC HL In the next a n d final part of this
}6b6 L D (HL),B6 series we shall examine the use
DEC HL
of the existing c h a n n e l "R",
2B
which m a y only ever be used in
5678 L D (HL),78 Store new output addreso. m a c h i n e code. We shall also be
C9 RET creating a new channel, also
c a l l e d "R" (R tor RAM-disc) which
will e n a b l e you to create READ
ORG B6FC
a n d WRITE files in the Spectrum
5B04 ZJJEKO L D A, 04 A:= stream number to a t t a c h . 128's RAM-disc area, just as you
C34AB6 JP B64A Jump to open channel "Z" and c a n on the microdrlves. Till then,
keep smiling, a n d don't take
attach it to stream four.
anything seriously.

70 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

 THE ULTIMATE TASWORD?
Ta sword +2
Tasman Software
£19.50
X . I last it's here — Tasword +2
on Discovery disc, many of you a
familiar with g o o d old Tasword 2
— a little cumbersome, but very
easy to use a n d thoroughly
reliable. You probably also know
that Tasword 3 is an u p g r a d e of
this, with all sorts ot a d d i t i o n a l
features — rapid cursor
movement, headers, footers,
pagination, word a n d character
count, 128 c o l u m n width, the list
ol options seems endless.
More t e x t
So what's different about Tasword
+2? The major improvement, as
in Tasword 128, is the gigantic
text file. Tasword 2 allowed 320
lines, roughly 10 d o u b l e s p a c e d
A4 pages. It didn't matter if they
were all space; that's all you
got. Tasword 3 improved on this
by using text compression
techniques. If there was a lot of
space, you got more lines in the
file. However, as a penalty. Ihe
"file full" marker c a m e up
without any warning, a n d then
you often h a d to delete several
IMSIII;
Out In The C o l d
Does your Spec/rum feel Ihe
cold? My +2 does! As soon as
I had bought m y n e w toy, I
rushed to try it out, switched on. tried lo
type things in ... Capital N and
M (or NEXT and PAUSE if K cursor was
selected) retused to work, although
and "m" were quite all right. Capital
was tine, but STOP (symbol shitt and A)
also tailed. Rushed back with my new
loy to Evesham Micros (bless 'em). Just
the same problem, but it soon
shed they had a hot-air tan heater /us/
u n d e r the counter: Ihe fault seemed
disappear when the thing warmed
We tested their new cold stock,
also behaved in the same curious
tor a minute or two, no "M", no "N", then
litlully as it warmed up. then all right .
Now, "N" and "M" are associated
with extra circuits which include
diodes and provide single-key
comma and lull stop: I've modified
boards in this way in the past. So I
guessed that perhaps the diodes
a strong temperature coefficient,
their characteristics changed
ally w / i e n the Spectrum was turned on.
However, it wasn't loo much bother,
I didn't worry too much.
I did notice that tor Tasword 2 there
were rather similar effects, but not as
bad. So. on loading this in. I found that
al tirst capitals M and N were
71 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987
lines before you c o u l d even get
the cursor to the bottom of the
text a g a i n . I h a d a number of
files full of lists of scientific
references, e a c h one
incomplete a n d lacking the title
of the article. This is where the
"aut" Insert m o d e in Tasword 3
c a m e in so useful; I was a b l e to
type the title into the m i d d l e of
the reference without having to
split it all first. However, this
meant that I was e x p a n d i n g the
file "from the m i d d l e outwards".
And it suddenly threw up "file
full" a n d j a m m e d solid. I
resolved to test my new copy of
Tasword +2. so I MERGEd the old
Tasword 3 files into it. Well, it's
true what they say. It holds a n
enormous amount of text,
around 45-50 d o u b l e s p a c e d A4
sheets, d e p e n d i n g on the rest of
the s p a c i n g in the text. And
there are other diffferences from
Tasword 3 or Tasword 128, too.
First of all, a lot of little bugs
have been ironed out. That nasty
little buglet which gives a lot of
vertical lines across the screen
when you ask the Opus version
of Tasword 3 to l o a d a tile which
doesn't exist has gone. And lhat
problem Tasword 3 h a d over
sequential printing of text files
with ten character titles (it
refused) has now disappeared,
too. Secondly, there are one or
/erky, and STOP barely worked until Ihe
machine warmed up. However. I got on
with more important things ,..
Tasword 3 duly arrived on disc — no
problems: N and M line trom Ihe word
goi Well, that's not unreasonable Tas-
word 2 uses interrupt mode 2 to scan the
capital keyboard;
mode 3. "Maybe
Tasword 3 uses interrupt
the beast reacts dif-
"n" ferently in the two modes" thought I
A And once again,
things.
got on with other
Shortly after, Tasword +2 arrived, also
on disc. This time. I was, and am m real
vani- trouble. Although it uses interrupt mode
3. lust like Tasword 3, but this time in 128K
to mode. Ihe results are quite different. "M".
up "N" and STOP" are fine. But. instead, the
which "cursor-up" key takes almost an hour to
way. come to fruition! I guess this is a prob-
lem which is worse for me than most. I
keep my +2 in a cold, cold garret.
Back to Evesham Micros (Ihe long-
several suffering Cotteridge branch, this time)
entry Further new (and cold!) slock (totally
key- different, much later batch) was tested
with their rather smaller power supply,
had with mine, with my Discovery unit: as
and many combinations as were possible.
drastic- No dilference. they behaved just the
same as mine.
and Help! Does anyone know what's
going on? Do Ihe old 128's behave
Ihe same curious way?
I guess I'm going to have to keep my
+2 warm in future!
rather John Wase.
two subtle differences in the
control keys. The one which is
the most noticeable is the use ol
the symbol-shift a n d "I" key for
inserting characters or spaces
instead of the "y" key as in
Tasword 2 or Tasword 3. To make
matters worse, in Tasword 3. the
c o m b i n a t i o n symbol shilt a n d "i"
deletes a letter; one needs to be
very careful, the whole thing is a
bit of a nuisance until you get
used to it. Actually, all the
symbol shifted key names have
b e e n replaced.
These are very minor
grumbles, however, a n d to
compensate, there are one or
two lurther improvements. For
instance, the action of symbol-
shifted "a" is now instant; no
delay for Ihe main menu in this
version. Automatic insert also
works much more smoothly. And
the size of the lile! Talk about
impressive! It contained my 170
references with no trouble at all!
It's beautifully p r o g r a m m e d a n d
works like a dream. Tasword 3
files are totally compatible, just
merge them in, one after the
other; Tasword 2 files are readily
converted using the T2T3
program supplied.
If you've got a Discovery disc
a n d you want a wordprocessor,
then get Tasword +2 — it's the
best there is.
Printer Tip
If you have a 128K and a HRS
printer, entering, either as a
direct command or as pro-
gram lines the commands FORMAT
p;300 and POKE 23391.3002 will enable
Ihe printer tor LUST. LPRINT and COPY
The copy is double height and the
—2 eliminates the /oin between lines. It
is also advisable to re-enter or re-run Ihe
commands after each job because Ihe
tirst COPY line may (but not always) be
a little squashed
K.S Schimmel. Nottingham
Writing G a m e s
I have had a Spectrum 48K+
E tor live months and looked at
several computer magazines.
I picked up a copy ot ZX recently
and was impressed with the amount of
varied programs in the magazine
What I have in mind is lo produce a
game of my own and I greatly appre-
ciate Ihe utility programs. May I say
again lhat I find your magazine excel-
lent and I will be placing a regular
order.
PS Are there are any books you
could recommend on writing games?
Ian Barrass. Hull.
Two tilles on Ihe ZX shelves thai
may be of interest are How to
Wnle Spectrum a n d Spectrum
+ Games Programs by W Simisler
(published by Bernard Babani) which
concentrates on writing computer
versions of traditional b o a r d games
in a n d Spectrum Gamesmaster by Kay
Ewbank, Mike James a n d SM Gee
(Granada Publishing) which shows how
to master Ihe rudiments ol Frogger a n d
olher simple a r c a d e games. — Ed
W his month we're moving into
the b i g time! That is as far as the
size of illustrations goes. No more
little minipics. Now we're talking
about full screen Illustrations.
Bui first the b a d news. Big pics
m e a n b i g memory blocks to
store them — 6912 byles
(memory spaces) 1o be precise if
you wanl them in glorious
Sinclaircolor. If you're envisaging
a "Mugsy"style c o m i c strip,
driven by a relatively short
program, this may not matter.
Let's assume for the moment it
doesn't, a n d see how we c a l l
store a n d recall the illustrations.
First of all, how many c a n you
store in memory? Answer — 5,
with about 6K left for the driver
program ("128'' owners will
obviously d o m u c h better than
this). Next, how d o you store
them? In principle what you
have to d o is to transfer the
contents of e a c h byte of Ihe
display file (D FILE) a n d
attributes area (ATTR) where Ihe
on-screen pictured is stored Into
high memory, knowing where
you're putting It. You c o u l d d o
this by PEEKing e a c h byte, then
POKEing the contents up. but this
would be quite slow. The solution
is a short m a c h i n e c o d e routine
which uses the instruction LDIR.
This stands for
load/decrement/increment/
repeat which probably doesn't
To b i o A
0 e* 17 3 0 195 £6
*© 4 6 £54. 0 4 0 32
C many pics. How c a n you
19 as 56
1£4 £ 5 4
£ ? 4 0 40 9 119 35
£ 5 4 56 £ 4 3 £ 0 1 19
££
0 9 5 £ 5 £ 0 9 £ 4
£6 £13 ££ 0 9 5 £ 5
: i* 19 £6 71 54 £55
'1 IA 506
make you m u c h the wiser. In
essence, you set one counter to
the number of bytes to be
transferred, another to the start
ol Ihe D FILE, a n d a third fo the
destination address. LDIR does
the rest, continually transferring
bytes until the first counter is
r e d u c e d to zero.
The necessary c o d e is
i n c l u d e d In Program 1, which
will make the transfers for you,
modify the c o d e to make it work
in reverse, then save it a l o n g
with the picture bytes. Type It in,
a n d let's try it out. If you have
some pics ready m a d e with a
d r a w i n g utility (such as Toni
Baker's l i g h t Screen Designer)
you c o u l d use those. Otherwise
the "rainbow" a n d "logo"
SCREENEs at the b e g i n n i n g of
your "Horizon's" tape will be
quite satisfactory.
RUN Ihe program, a n d you'll
be asked how many pics you
wont to save. Let's try two. Answer
the prompt for a title with the first
pic. then play the tape. The
picture will l o a d in more or less
instantly a n d be transferred to
high memory, the address of
which will be given. Make a
note of this, a n d the POKE
number as well. You'll need this
information later. Repeat for the
second picture, a n d there you
are. You c a n then save the data
for the two pics plus the
m a c h i n e c o d e to drop them
b a c k down.
To make use of this routine
you will n e e d a subroutine in
your program such as:
9999 POKE 65358, h :
RANDOMIZE USR 65356 : RETURN
Where you have set variable
h to Ihe POKE number you noted
for that picture, before you
GOSUB 9999. Try it. but don't
blink at the wrong moment.
You'll miss it!
M e m o r y squeeze
£ 5 4
Now all Ihis Is very well if you
119 have a "128" or don't n e e d
£39 £5
squeeze Ihe proverbial quart
19 ISi
into the Spectrum's pint pot? One
£ 6 £13 way is to have a smaller "quart".
£39 19 In other words, perhaps you
would b e happy with a two
£09 £ 4
colour drawing (INK a n d PAPER),
3 5 16 which takes up 768 bytes less.
You c o u l d g o further by having
only a top third, or two two-thirds
screen picture (many adventures
use this system, leaving the
bottom of Ihe screen clear for
text). The REMs given in Program
1 will tell you the c h a n g e s you
will need to make for these
variations. If you want to mix
various types of illustrations in
one program you'll need to
POKE 65364 with the appropriate
value shown In the line 100 REM
before you call the routine.
This technique obviously
doesn't help if you really want
full screen Illustrations, but there
is a way around that problem if
you're p r e p a r e d to sacrifice a
little speed for a great saving in
space. If you type in the
following line:
LOAD ""SCREENE : FOR f=16384
TO 23295 : PRINT H 0;"Address
";f,"holds PEEK f : PAUSE 20 :
NEXT f
Press ENTER, then LOAD in a
picture. You'll see a series of
numbers a p p e a r at the bottom
of the screen as the program
PEEKs its way through the D FILE,
a n d later the ATTR if you wait
long enough. You'll notice that
the numbers 0 a n d 255 (and
later the permanent attribute; for
example 56 if the b a c k g r o u n d is
black on white) occur more
often than any others. This is
because most of a picture is
either blank space (0) or Inked
in £255), whilst much of the
attributes area remains
u n c h a n g e d . Knowing this, it is
possible to c o m p a c t the d a t a for
a picture by storing, for example,
a line of 32 zeros as 0,32. Using
this technique even a complex
picture, such as Ihe "rainbow"
SCREENE is c o m p a c t e d to about
half its usual length. This Is what
the c o m p a c t o r routine (Program
2) does. Type it in a n d let's try it
out,
RUN the program, a n d answer
72 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
 PROGRAM 1 PROGRAM 2
5 REM picsave 1 REH compactor
10 I N P U T " N o . or* p i c s to store 10 INPUT "Title?" as I F a$ = " '
T H E N STOP
? " ; n 15 INPUT " a t t r i b u t e v a l u e ' " c:
20 P O K E 2 3 7 2 8 , n : L E T a =65367-n Hinot needed for D_FILE o n l y
• 6 9 1 2 - 1 3 : •siJgMr pd I a r e 6912 wi t h LORD aSSCREENS
LET D=16354
for top t h i r d o f s c r e e n , LET a =4.0000 K S a i d a t a s t a r t
4-09* f o r t w 0 t h i r d s , 614-4- f 0 r I F d ' 2 2 5 2 7 T H E N GO TO -iOOO
D_FILE.only ! a d j u s t 22S27 i f altering
m a c h j ne c de
2,5 CLEAR A: LET n =PEcK 1020 I F PEEK d =255 THEN GO TO 20
LET a =65367-n *6912-11: E I 1691^ 00
replaced as a bove 1025 I F PEEK d =0 THEN GO TO 3000
1030 COKE a .PEEK d: LET a = a * l i_
28 LET S =a : P R I N T "CLEAR :' S - i ET d =d +1 GO TO 1010
; " beFO RE LOHD i nG " : FOR F = 6 5 3 5 6 2 0 0 0 POKE a , 2 5 5 : FOR f = l TO 254-.
TO 6 5 3 6 7 : READ I : POKE F , I : NEXT
I F PEEK ' d + f ) < >255 OR d + f > 2 2 5 2 7
THEN GO TO 2 0 5 0
2 0 1 0 NEXT f
3 0 F O R f =1 T O n: I N P U T " T i t l e 2 0 5 0 POKE < a +1) , ( LET d = d * f LE
T 3 = a +2: GO TO 1010
of p i c "; (r");"?", a $ : L O h D * " m " ; i 3000 POKE a , 0 : FOR t"=l TO 254. I
;a S S C R E E N $ F PEEK :d + n <•0 OR d + f > 2 2 5 2 ^ THE
4-0 R A N D O M I Z E a: L E T I = P E E K 2 3 6 N GO TO 3050
3 0 1 0 NEXT f
70: L E T h = P E E K 2 3 6 7 1 : P O K E 6 5 3 5 7 3050 POKE (a +1) , f LET d = d + f LE
. I: P O K E 6 5 3 5 6 , h: R A N D O M I Z E USR T a =a +2 GO TO 1010
4-000 I F d <23296 THEN GO TO 5000
; J* • M i l n o t i r* o m i t t i n g attributes
50 P R I N T " D a t a s t a r t for , l i ^ I; 4-005 PRINT a-4-0000 INPUT " T i t l e
(f) ; " = "; a " (POKES : " . I, ^".as SRUE a tCOOE 4-0000,3-4-0000
L E T a = a + 6 9 1 2 : R E M Ireplace 6 9 1 2 -•TOP Uzu*im 4-0000 =da t a s t a r t
as b e f o r e 4 - 0 r e m a i n d e r n o t needed i f
omitting attributes
60 N E X T f: P O K E 6 5 3 5 6 , 3 3 POKE 4-010 I F PEEK d=C THEN Gu TO 5 0 0 0
F, 5 3 5 9 17 —020 POKE a,PEEK d LET « = a * l L
"70" S T O P : S A U E "Pi CS " C O D E S , n * ET d = d ^ l GO TO 4-000
5 0 0 0 POKE h r FOP t = l TO 2= I
6912+12 ~ PEEK i d + f > •• c OP d + f 2329® "HE
100 D A T A 1 7 , 0 , 0 , 3 3 , 0 , 64 ,1.0 , 27", N GO TO 5 0 ^ 0
237,176,201: e P I a c e 27 w i t h 5010 NE'T i
24 for D _ F I L E o n l y , 16 for top 5 0 5 0 P0>-- E • a * 1 > , f LET d =-a * LE
T GO TO 4-000
t w o ' t h i r d s , 8 for top t h i r d only
9 9 9 9 E a B M C a II w i t h : - P O K E 6 5 3 5 6 , Now you have your
h i g h byte of d a t a s t a r t a d d r e s s : c o m p a c t e d codes separately on
RANDOMIZE USR 65356 t a p e you n e e d to save them as
o n e long c o d e length. Do this
the "attribute" prompt. If you
haven't got the Table I supplied Table B
in the January column, you c a n LD H L , 16384
calculate it yourself. Say the LD DE. dataotart ;POKEd before call
picture is d r a w n in b l u e ink on LOOP: LD A,(DE)
yellow p a p e r the value w o u l d CP
be 1 (Ink) + 6 (paper) • 8=49. 255 jcheck for filled byte
JR 2, PILL
Now l o a d in the SCREENE a n d
wait. From now on the p r o g r a m CP 0 ;check for blank
takes over, a n d the c o m p a c t i n g JR Z , MISS
may lake some time, so g o a n d LD (HL),A
make a c u p of coffee, or have a INC HLHL
stroll around the g a r d e n . You've RET: INC DE
been h u n c h e d over that VDU for LD A ,H o
loo long anyway! When the
transfer is c o m p l e t e the number
CP
JR
88
C , LOOP
;80 for 2/3 ocreen, 72 for 1/3 screen
z
£
of bytes that the picture has LOCPl: LD A,(BE) ;replace with RET if D — FILE only
been c o m p a c t e d Into is CP attribute jattributes Btart here. POKE attr value
displayed. Make a careful note
of this, a n d the title you use to
JR
LD
Z, KISS1
(HL),A <
save the c o m p a c t e d c o d e to INC HL
tape. Repeat with a new
attribute value a n d SCREENE
RET1: INC
LD
IE
A,H
oc
until you have all you need,
then just reply to the "attribute"
CP 91 O
JR C, L00P1
prompt with ENTER. O
RET
MISS1T INC DE {routine to skip attributes not to oc
LD A(DE) ;be altered a.
PUSH DE
LD D,0
LD E,A
5
Clyde Bish presents lips ADD
POP
HL,DK
DE oc
on full screen graphics. MISS:
JR
INC
RET1
DE ;routine to skip D__FILE bytes not
LD A,(DE) ;to be altered O
PUSH DE iii
LD Df0 Q.
00

73 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
 LD E,A article, a n d supply a simple
ADD HL,DE program of the "Kingdom" kind
POP DE for those who want something to
work on to use as a driver for
JR RET their graphics. The listing is
FILl : IMC DE ;routine to f i l l fcytno
given in Program 3. The purpose
LD A,(DE) of the g a m e is to a c c u m u l a t e
LD R,A £100,000 by astute, if somewhat
RACK: LD (HL),255 shady trading practices. The
IMC HLHL scenario is the South China
DJNZ RACK Seas, but c o u l d lust as easily be
JR RET smuggling a l o n g the Cornish
coast, or whatever. Your ship c a r
hold 50 units of cargo, the
PROGRAM 3 buying/selling price of which
fluctuates. You start with £500 of
1 REM T f l d t f from iot) tv qaq-lNT (RND*q> PRINT 80,"YOU C your own. plus £5,000 you have
o . . floods ari o n l y i t I I ";q PAUSE 1 0 0 INP
10 PPINT TPAOEP I N P U T "Lih 0 UT , [ borrowed a n d must ultimately
is the Cat-lai n ? " , n t CLS £150 LET b = b + P * q LE"L<.'«U+< IF pay back. Interest is a d d e d to
37 LET i $ . LET laO LET P*="G" THEN LET g = g - q this whenever you c h a n g e ports.
t = 5 0 0 : LET y a S O O O L E T UaSO LE ££io IP p ® a " A " THEN LET a * a - q
• 9=0: i_ET »iO LET i iO LET u =0 £ £ £ 0 IP Pt>"$" THEN LET i = » - q Oh yes. You may run into storms
L E T taf L E T l«l co sue soop £ 2 3 0 IF p » a " U " THEN LET w s w - q
55 CO SUB 9 3 0 0 £2*0 IF P$="0" THEN LET OSO-Q en route a n d lose part of your
100 P P I N T AT O , 1 0 ; n s Bam £ 1 4 . 5 IF b> 1 0 0 0 0 0 A N D y « 0 THEN GO cargo.
»" b+y,i» "Bflfrcwtd TO 9 0 0 0
» yj£» CtC» i P J C f ' . W . l l
11 0«".' , I j • •General C a r g o
"LOCJ £ 3 0 0 CO T O 9 5
3010 LET t . t + 1 LET i » I N T <y+.l>
The program, which will run
O r » » " , « , i » " S i l t , " , ! , I S "Uhi£»y LET y«y + i LET as listed, is in a very simple
V S I OPIU»",O,S» PRICES 3 0 2 0 I N P U T AT 0 , 0 ; " P o r t s l.Hong
format with a simple text screen
S-. r.f-al 5 , p (1>, j » " S'«S I";p i-or.g Singapore S.Macao A.Ba
£ i t fi: U 1";P(3) St ^ 1 s r, i o » 3 . Sti a n g h a i " ; l display. As listed it takes up
•V » " , P * 4 > , t » ' i u a P ( 5 > , 3 0 5 0 GO S U B 9 9 0 0 : I F R N D > , 2 5 THE
some 3K, but this c o u l d be
11 N GO T O 9 7 0 0
ii
110 PPINT
},$»ii"'r
"'OPTIONS Buy 2.St
Borrow"
3 0 9 0 GO T O 9 5
a 0 £ 0 INPUT B o r r o w or EkpayiR)*
shortened considerably using
flNC- l » H "tc * the byte-saving tricks I
120 INPUT "Choott your opliort 404.0 I F C » S " B " THEN CO TC 4500 demonstrated earlier In this
1 7 0 0 0 TO : # 1 0 0 0 •1050 I N P U T "HOW •och" series. There are a few error
1000 I N P U T Uh»l JO y o u w a n t " •1030
55
L E T y ay - p LET b = b - » CC TO
checks. Writing these in is a
P t
1 0 - 0 ^ £ T p u p 111 A N D p | « " 0 " " ' P ' 4,500
4530
I N P U T "HOW
LET y = y + n
»ych? ";«
LET bab+» CO TO
g o o d p r o g r a m m i n g exercise. I
£ S N D P i = " A " I • ( p i 3< A N D o f 5 " <
- t ' i : AND P $ = " U " P • ( p ( 5 » AND P S a 95 leave it to your imagination to
"0" i 9005 CLS P P I N T "YOU c a n r i l i r t a d d the scenes using picsave,
1075 PPINT 8 0 , "Vow car. a f r o r c t . " I l h »100,100. You t o o l M i
INT P>» PAUSE 1 0 0 IMPU »OVt", C'l" AND t < > l » STOP compactor, or any o f the other
T ,
q
INPUT HOW t j n v JO y o u want 9710 PPINT 30,"STORM""
0 INPUT ,
PAUSE 10
I F R N D c . S T H E N CO T O techniques I've e x p l a i n e d
1 1 5 5" L E
—T LET b=b-<q+P' 9730 earlier.
1170 IP P S a ' G - THEN LET gag+q c.74,0 O P I N T a o , " M a i r y o u r cargo t
1100 IP p » s " A " T H E N L E T a =.a+q S lost" PAUSE 100 INPUT ,r LET One last bit of help, though,
1190 IP P $ « " 5 " T H E N L E T i = i +<i 9 =INT <g/2> LET a aINT (a/2) L
with PRINTS a n d INPUTs. Printing
I" P » « " U " THEN L E T W aw + q ET S • INT "i/2>: LET WSINT hi/£i .
i £ 1 0 IF P » a " 0 - T H E N L E T 0 ao + q LET.0'IHT <o/2»: LET y=50-'9+a+ to the screen (with speech
OC T O 9 5 t +w+0) GO T O 9 5
0 INPUT 'Uhat do yov war.t to 9 7 3 0 P R I N T 8 0 , " S T O R M OUER. ALL 0 bubbles if you wish) is quite
1 ' , Pt .K." PAUSE 1 0 0 INPUT , GO T O easy. Simply use
* V * 0 I P RNC> , 7 T H E N PRINT so IC
•ry - buyc j - PAUSE 100 Inpu 9 ? 0 0 D I M p 151
<15+1'
LET P ( 1 ) a I N T
LET p (2) a 1 0 * INT
<RND
( P N D * 14- +
PRINT AT r, c; " t e x t "
CO T O 1 0 0 5 I LET P ( 3 ) = 1 0 * I N T 1RND* 7 0 0 + 3 0 ) where r=the row, a n d c = t h e
£050 lET p j ' p ' l l ANC' P » a " G " + 'p'
£ AND P L A " f l " ) + I P ( 3 ) AND P S « " S " »
L E T P <4.) - 1 0 0 4 I N T
ET F l S ' a l O O + I N T
(RND+26 + S)
(RNDf91+10' PET
L
c o l u m n you wish the text to
•„ 0 ..
p( i . A N D P S B - - U " ) * IP ' S i A N D P t = UPN " appear.
9 9 0 0 L E T l t > ( " H o n g K j o n g " «ND 1=1
£120 INPUT "HOW «any to J t l l " + ' S i n g a p o r e " AND i*2>•<"Macao" For inputs you'll n e e d to use a
q AND i s 3 • t " B a n l o n . " AND
1 l = 4 i «• < " 5 subroutine to simulate the
21"0 I" q >1 AND RND>.7 THEN LET h t t j h a r 1 AND l a 5 » RETURN
normal input routine, but
wherever you want on the main
by a d d i n g up all the c o d e 65305, PEEK 23670: POKE 65306, screen. A d d Program 4 to your
lengths you noted, a n d a d d i n g PEEK 23671: POKE 65326, c: INK main driver program, a n d set r
67. (This Is for the m a c h i n e c o d e c-INT (c/8) '8: PAPER INT (c/8): a n d c to the row/column you
you'll need later to " u n c o m p a c t " RANDOMIZE USR 65301: RETURN wont the input characters to
them). Let's call the answer T. where variable a Is the d a t a appear, before you c a l l the sub-
CLEAR PI, then l o a d in the first start of the picture you want to routine. C o d e 12 Is delete (see
c o m p a c t e d c o d e to address T call (noted when you m a d e the p.163 of your manual) so CHR£ 8
using one long c o d e length), a n d c is (cursor left) is used to b a c k s p a c e
LOAD "title" CODE T the b a c k g r o u n d attribute value before printing the replacement
Load in subsequent used in the compactor program character. C o d e 13 in line 9995
c o m p a c t e d codes, a d d i n g the (49 in my earliest example). is the c o d e for ENTER, so the
length of that c o d e to the Table B gives an annotated subroutine returns.
previous address, a n d noting Ihe disassembly of the m a c h i n e Now a w a y to the pixel paper,
new l o a d address. So if the Tirst c o d e so that readers who want a n d get sketching!
c o d e was 2000 bytes long, the smaller/two-tone/line drawings
next would l o a d in at T+2000, wilh no filled areas, (AND who
a n d so on.
Hopefully, when all the codes
understands what they are
doing!) c a n alter the m a c h i n e
PROGRAM 4
are in you'll have 67 bytes left c o d e to operate over less of the 10 pem i n p v t sgt-rovir i
11 PEM r«rou, t«Colv"n
below the start of the udgs. Load screen/ignore the attributes/ 9000 PPINT - C
in the data from Table A, ignore 255s a n d so make it run 9010 FOR 0=1 TO £0 RIE'T ,
9020 IF I N K E Y * * " " THEN :-: TC
reading across e a c h line, with: faster. (Program 2 will also n e e d 0
FOR f=65301 TO 65367: INPUT i: adaptation. Refer to the REMs). 9 0 3 0 I P CODE INKEVFALI -HE'4 I S W
EN • $ C THEN PRINT CHP» 3 C
POKE f,l: NEXT f HPJ 3, LET a»=a»> TO L£M i » - l
Now save the whole d a t a a n d Kingdom came ' GO TO 9010
904-0 IP CODE INK EV SALE THE'I CO T
m a c h i n e c o d e block with SAVE 0 9010
9050 IF CODE LNI-EY»A!3 TM£;: P£TU
"title" CODE T. 65368-T. Next time we'll be looking at P><
9 0 6 0 I-ET ITALNKERT IF : j A 0
To use this c o m p a c t e d c o d e make strip-cartoon-type :»D : s • " 2 " THEN _ET n = C M P t
A
ICOD
in your programs you need to adventure graphics, "Redhawk" E iS + 32'
9070 LET i t > i l 4 i ! PRINT i t EE
have a subroutine such as: slyle, but before I g o I'll keep the EP . 1 , 1 4 ; GO T O ? 0 1 0
9999 RANDOMIZE a: POKE promise I gave in a n earlier

74 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

Q-L I b e r a t o r
David Nowotnik reviews
the latest BASIC
compiler for the QL.
Q-Liberator
Liberation Software
£69.95
ol long ago, there was only
one BASIC compiler for the QL;
now there are three. The first.
Supercharge, was reviewed in ZX
Computing a year ago. Next on
the scene was Q-Liberator,
closely followed (at least, in
theory) by Turbo from Digital
Precision.
Q-Liberator Is supplied in a n
attractive vldeo-cassette-slzed
case, with two microdrive
cartridges a n d a n 80 p a g e
manual. Of the two cartridges,
one Is a fuliy working 'copy', the
olher Is a 'master*. The ingenious
security protection system on
Q-Liberator prevents users
obtaining working copies of one
ot the essential compiler files by
all means a p a r t from use of the
master, The user c a n obtain up
to five working copies from this
master, configured to any
chosen storage device. O n c e a
working c o p y is created, it c a n
be used without hindrance from
any other security system.
Using Q-Liberator is simplicity
Itself. The boot program loads
the compiler's run time routines
and SuperBASIC extensions used
by the compiler. O n c e Ihese are
Installed, the BASIC program to
be c o m p i l e d Is l o a d e d as
normal, a n d the program
c o m p i l e d with the 'LIBERATE'
command.
Q-Llberator compiles in two
passes. The first pass produces a
working copy of the BASIC
program; the second pass
produces the c o m p i l e d code.
The user c a n select the second
passes to occur automatically
after the first, if sufficient RAM is
available.
There are several options
available for the c o m p i l e d
code. In program development,
Q-Liberator will p r o d u c e a line
number table andtor memory
usage statistics, which help to
identify errors. These options c a n
be suppressed In p r o d u c i n g the
final version, to save space. The
run time routines c a n be
incorporated into the final code,
producing a totally i n d e p e n d e n t
program, or they c a n be kept
separate. The latter option c a n
save a lot of space if you have
75 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987
several Q-Liberator c o m p i l e d
programs running concurrently.
Extended SuperBASIC
c o m m a n d s c a n b e incorporated
into the Q-Liberator p r o d u c e d
code. Up to eight m a c h i n e c o d e
sets of new c o m m a n d s c a n b e
a d d e d , but you'll n e e d to have
a little knowledge of these
routines (the starl of the
initialisation routine, a n d the
start of the n a m e table relative
to the start of the code) to
supply the compiler with the
a p p r o p r i a t e parameters. Other
compiler options include setting
heap, stack, a n d input buffer
sizes, a n d switching on/off
Integer arithmetic modes. These
options are a v a i l a b l e by
Inserting simple REM lines into
the SuperBASIC program.
A number of SuperBASIC
extensions are supplied with
Q-Liberator, for use specifically
with the compiler. Of particular
interest are c o m m a n d s to turn
on/off the cursor in the c o m p i l e d
program, a n d a useful set of
error t r a p p i n g c o m m a n d s which
c a n r e p l a c e the mixed b a g of
c o m m a n d s in the various ROM
versions ot the QL.
The producers of Q-Liberator
make the c l a i m for their product
that It is fully c o m p a t i b l e with
SuperBASIC (bearing in mind
that there are several
c o m m a n d s e.g. LIST which make
no sense in a c o m p i l e d code).
In reviewing this product, several
programs were c o m p i l e d . All
c o m p i l e d versions worked well,
with little or no modification
required to the BASIC programs
to achieve successful
compilation. The compiler
picked up a missing END SELECT
in one program, which QL's
translator d i d not seem to mind.
The friendly error a n d warning
messages allowed easy
interception of this a n d other
minor problems.
The first thing to note is the
difference memory size c a n
make to operating speed: with
more RAM. BASIC a n d c o m p i l e d
programs work faster. The test
program c o m p i l e d with
Q-Liberator (with all default
options set) p r o d u c e d significant
savings on everything except the
trigonometry test. This is not
surprising, as trigonometry
calculations require a lot of
ROM time — whether in BASIC or
as a c o m p i l e d program.
Inclusion of the run time m o d u l e
into the Q-Liberate c o m p i l e d
program makes no significant
difference to operating speed.
The time saving on integer
maths was disappointing.
SuperBASIC doesn't perform true
integer mathematics (integers
are converted to floating point
numbers before they are used),
so a very large saving with use
of variables with the '%* suflix on
compilation was to be
expected. It seems that
Q-Liberator will not correctly
interpret the '%' in a variable
without the integer maths
directive switched on.
Surprisingly, with the integer
directive, the simple loop takes
longer to perform, so care is
n e e d e d with this directive to
optimise operating speed.
Integer mathematics with
trigonometric functions is
meaningless, but the compiler
c o m p i l e d a n d ran integer trig
functions without complaint!
For comparison, the same
routine was c o m p i l e d with
Supercharge, a n d the operating
speeds are about the same:
Supercharge has the e d g e on
the simple loop a n d integer
maths, Q-Liberator does slightly
better with the FOR/NEXT loop
a n d trigonometry test.
Supercharge failed to c o m p i l e
RESULT procedure correctly (it
provided a n integer result), so
that h a d to be altered to
provide results lor comparisong.
All file sizes were
o b t a i n e d using the INFO option
in iCE. Surprisingly, all
Q-Liberated files were larger
than the corresponding
SuperBASIC file (even without
incorporating the run time
module), a n d their size not
predictable from the size of the
original SuperBASIC file.
Incorporation of the run time
m o d u l e a d d s another 8K to the
size of the c o m p i l e d program.
For the shortest (875K BASIC
file) program, c o m p i l a t i o n took
180 seconds with microdrives
a n d 115 seconds with RAM discs.
In every case, l o a d i n g the
c o m p i l e d program was much
taster than the corresponding
SuperBASIC program. This was
particularly noticeable with the
longer programs.
With its very close
compatibility with SuperBASIC.
a n d simplicity ol use. Q-Liberator
oilers a distinct a d v a n t a g e over
Supercharge. And for
those who simply want their
SuperBASIC programs to l o a d
a n d work faster, Q-Liberator has
a lot to offer. Pity it is not priced
a little more reasonably.
Liberation Software, 43 Clifton
Road, Kingston upon Thames,
Surrey.
 Peter Sweasey is
thawed out temporarily
to review Silicon
Dreams and the first
GAC adventures.
"•""hough the Ides of M a r c h m a y
b e a p p r o a c h i n g as you r e a d
this, the d u n g e o n Is currently
several inches d e e p in snow. No
£5 bonusses for me; I just have to
content myself with m a k i n g snow
figure versions of Bryan, my
b a r b a r i c editor, then Jumping
u p a n d d o w n on them.
It is so c o l d at the moment
that my faithful Spectrum (this
particular m o d e l is over four
years old) has b e e n affected. If
left in its usual position overnight,
half the keyboard behaves as If
symbol shift is permanently
b e i n g pressed; the remedy is to
p l a c e the m a c h i n e in the linen
c u p b o a r d for ten minutes!
Several months a g o I p l u g g e d
a then f l e d g l i n g adventure c l u b
c a l l e d Adventure probe. Well, I'm
g l a d to see the m a g a z i n e has
grown considerably since then.
a n d you get a lot more for your
£1 cover fee (or 75p If you take
out a year's subscription). As
Sandra Sharkey (the magazine's
editor) says, reader f e e d b a c k
has improved it tremendously.
There are various hints, reviews,
a n d opinions; but what Probe
seems especially strong on Is
help. Several p a g e s are
c r a m m e d full of readers' names,
followed by lists of g a m e s that
they are p r e p a r e d to h e l p with.
M a p s a n d solutions c a n b e
b o u g h t from Probe themselves
for the princely sum of a first
class stamp! Enclosed with e a c h
issue is Adventure Shop, w h i c h is
a c a t a l o g u e of amateur g a m e s
for sale, some of w h i c h sound
most Intriguing. Something
w h i c h particularly c a u g h t my
eye was a n a d for The Fix — a n
a d d i t i o n to The Quill which,
though not written by Gilsoft,
a d d s full sentence interpretation
a n d a proper WAIT c o m m a n d .
Generally, interaction between
readers seems better than in
most such clubs, so if you're a n
adventure freak, it c o u l d b e
worth b u y i n g a trial copy. Send
£1 for a s a m p l e Issue to:
Adventure Probe, 73 Merton
76 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
Road, Highfield, W i g a n WN3 6AT.
A product c a l l e d the
Adventure Builder System also
r e a c h e d me this month, courtesy
of CRL's awesomely feeble
b u d g e t division, A l p h a O m e g a .
For just under a fiver, this m a y
a p p e a r to offer a b a r g a i n Quill,
but no such luck. It provides you
with a set of routines a n d
structures for you fo write your
g a m e a r o u n d — in BASIC! The
c o d e d routines are m u c h faster
than BASIC w o u l d be, s p e e d
supposedly b e i n g that
language's m a i n disadvantage.
This really is a pointless release.
G A C the Quill a n d Gilsoft's soon-
to-be-released Professional
Adventure Writer all e n a b l e you
to write m u c h faster a n d more
c o m p l i c a t e d adventures, wifh
almost the same flexibility as
BASIC but less of the hassle.
BASIC p r o g r a m m i n g is time-
c o n s u m i n g a n d wasteful of
m e m o r y — that's why Quill-type
utilities were d e s i g n e d in the first
place. Besides, ABS is only £4
c h e a p e r than the recently re-
p r i c e d Quill. It p e o p l e want to
write for pleasure, I think they will
p a y the extra; if they want to
write commercially, they'll have to.
 E L P L I N E
I've b e e n h a v i n g a little new-
year c l e a n o u t d o w n here, a n d
I've d i s c o v e r e d s o m e t h i n g of a
b a c k l o g of o l d p r o b l e m s to b e
d e a l t with. Sincere a p o l o g i e s to
a n y o n e w h o has h a d to wait for
a reply: I s h o u l d h a v e c l e a r e d
the system by the time you r e a d
this, so y o u will not h a v e to wait
so l o n g in future.
P. Logue from A b i n g d o n asks
how to p a y tribute to Nero in
Roman Eureka. Anthony Dunn
kindly supplies the answer:
simply HAIL him. Another q u i c k i e
from Mick Hitchman, w h o n e e d s
Ihe words to c l i m b out of the lifl
in Interceptor's A f t e r s h o c k , o n c e
he has r e m o v e d the c e i l i n g
p a n e l . Er. CLIMB OUT OF LIFT...
D a v i d Brown of Standord-Le-
Hope w o u l d like to enter the
Ivory Tower in Ocean's Never
Ending Story. As far as I know, it's
impossible in Part O n e — you
certainly d o not n e e d to. A1 the
start ol Part Three you'll find
ourself outside it - UNLOCK
DOOR with the g o l d key from
part two (found west from the
torture c h a m b e r } . Thanks to
Charles J a m e s for a Never
Ending solution.
Peter Davies — w h o d e s c r i b e s
himself, q u i t e a c c u r a t e l y , as "the
hermit w h o is still p l a y i n g P l a n e t
Of D e a t h " — wants to know how
to get the mirror without
b r e a k i n g it. From the c a v e r n its
housed in, g o to the a d j o i n i n g
wind tunnel, a n d take a n d w e a r
the gloves you'll find there. With
these, p i c k u p the m a n a n d
d r o p him. As a result, he'll b e
removed from the mirror, so you
c a n shoot h i m without i n c u r r i n g
b a d luck.
Some H o b b i t q u e r i e s next.
Someone c a l l e d
" V a n d e p e o l t o m " from B e l g i u m
wants to l i n d the m a g i c r i n g In
the dark, stuffy passages. From
the Goblin's d u n g e o n , g o west
out the window, then SW. D, WAIT
lor the g o b l i n to a p p e a r . N, SE
a n d E. Les A c t o n trom the Iste of
Wight has b r o k e n t h r o u g h the
spiders' w e b to the Elves'
C l e a r i n g . "How d o I g o t h r o u g h
the m a g i c d o o r ? " You n e e d to
wear the ring, then EXAMINE
DOOR. Keep WAITing a n d
w e a r i n g the r i n g alternatively;
eventually Ihe d o o r will o p e n as
a n elf sweeps by. G o NE
i m m e d i a t e l y this h a p p e n s ,
before the d o o r closes a g a i n .
N o r w e g i a n Sam M a c D o n a l d
wishes to kill the d r a g o n without
anyone's help. I think this is
impossible: you n e e d to p i c k u p
Bard a l Lake Town (literally! —
CARRY BARD). Then h e a d to the
dragon's treasure hall, a v o i d i n g
him o n your way. II he's there
77 ZX C o m p u t i n g M o n t h l y • M a r c h 1987
w h e n you arrive t h e n SAY TO
8ARD "SHOOT DRAGON". If he's
not, g o east, wait for a few
moves ( w e a r i n g the r i n g m i g h t
help), then east a g a i n a n d he
s h o u l d b e there.
A d a m Cochrane needs help
in Denis T h r o u g h The D r i n k i n g
Glass The i m p o r t a n t t h i n g is not
to g o out t h r o u g h fhe w i n d o w to
start with. Dress, take the letter,
r a d i a t i o n suit a n d Cherry
Blossom, move the sheets from
M a g g i e ' s Den to your own, take
a n d w e a r the teeth, then out into
D o w n i n g Street a n d BUY TICKETS.
K. Thain wants to b o a r d a
train in D o u b l e Play's The
M o r e b y J e w e l s I've never
p l a y e d this, so I'm i n d e b t e d to
the h e l p of Cheshire's J o h n
Hunter. In the g a r d e n of your
house. GET ENVELOPE (it's sticking
out your door), a n d OPEN it. G o
to the railway station, GET a n d
READ TIMETABLE, G O TOILET. USE
TOILET, U, N, SHOW TICKET. ENTER
PLATFORM a n d BOARD TRAIN. "K"
is also stuck in K-Tel's C a s t l e
C o l d i t z , w h i c h a g a i n I have not
p l a y e d , but w h i c h a g a i n J o h n
Hunter helps with. USE GRENADE
in the p a s s a g e of rats. Avoid the
r a d i o room, you don't n e e d to
visit it to c o m p l e t e the g a m e .
J o h n also h e l p e d a r e a d e r out
with Runes Of Zendos (the solu-
tion is too c o m p l i c a t e d to print
here) so m a n y thanks i n d e e d .
HELP!
A n y b o d y out there solved Vera
Cruz or Q u e s t p r o b e 3? Please
s e n d m e a solution if you have
— I'll b e h a p p y to h e l p with
a n o t h e r g a m e in return.
Wave goodbye to
adventuring blues . . .
with new system. Helpline
a u t o m a t i c No a d d i t i v e s or
Title:
Company:
Problem:
) c a n h e l p solve:
Name:
Address:
preservatives! A n d now at
s p e c i a l sale prices — every
solution must go! If you h a v e a
nasty Boggit p r o b l e m , troubles
with vampires in Dracula, or are
u n a b l e to ring that b e l l in
H u n c h b a c k — well M i n d p l a y
(TM) c a n help.
Yes, your super, s o a r a w a y
ZXCM has d e v i s e d this simple
system — even the hamster
c o u l d use it!
Step 1: Take a pen.
Step 2: Fill in Ihe coupon.
Step 3: Send it oft lo the address
below.
Follow those a n d before you c a n
say Sid, your posers will have
b e e n solved. Please r e a d the
small print n o w . . .
British correspondents, p l e a s e
enclose a stamped, addressed
e n v e l o p e if you want a personal
reply rather t h a n wait s o m e
months (or the m a g a z i n e to
c o m e out. If you are w r i t i n g from
a b r o a d , just e n c l o s e a n
e n v e l o p e — I'll a d d the postage.
I try to r e s p o n d within two
months but I c a n lake l o n g e r (on
the other h a n d you m i g h t
receive a n i m m e d i a t e reply). I
ONLY DEAL WITH ADVENTURES. Not
a r c a d e g a m e s ; or t e c h n i c a l
p r o b l e m s (write to Crosswires
a b o u t those); or a r c a d e
adventures ( G a r g o y l e g a m e s
i n c l u d e d , not even Heavy o n The
M a g i c k ) . Please put the n a m e of
the g a m e you're writing a b o u t
o n b a c k of the envelope. A n d
PLEASE don't write letters asking
for g e n e r a l solutions — I just
don't have the time to write
these out for everyone. (They c a n
b e o b t a i n e d , however, from
c l u b s like Adventure Probe —
see this month's introduction).
The address is: M i n d p l a y , ZX
C o m p u t i n g . No 1 G o l d e n
Square, London W1R 3AB How
m a n y other m a g a z i n e s solve
your p r o b l e m s like this AND
l e a v e your h a n d s silky smooth?
O
<

SILICON
Rainbird
DREAMS
£14.95
a n d .-.lit .
" f 1 in K 1 rn b er u 4 , h 1 1 j f I «'. r ,
p c e p tO d 1 • . **
Uh a t n o " ou r
• ou re be s 1 d £ j i. t r j t o<» 1. 1 d e r 1n
a rn a d o w •;< 1 t r
f 1.0 in e r j . E 1 t ? « r
$ ou th . «t e i t j r» d 1 11a
The i \ y h o o • ii-:e nd
Uh ^ t n o w " E VAI 1 C G U N T E P
ft r a d 1 H i O ri i t j t I I I .
U h a 1 r 1 OM U
Following "Jewels o( Darkness"
last year, this Rainbird oflering
is another collection ot three
revamped, repackaged Level 3
adventures This time the games
are in Ihe science-fiction genre,
a n d tell the extraordinary lale
of Kim Kimberly. In Snowball,
you play Kim and. re-awoken
from deep-freeze storage, musl
save the eponymous space-
craft trom crashing into a star
Return to Eden finds you crash
landing on the planet of the
same name, h a v i n g b e e n
wrongly accused ol sabotag-
ing the Snowball. Fight through
Ihe alien jungle, then survive
Ihe deserted tuture city ol
Enoch, built many years ago by
a d v a n c e d robots preparing lor
Ihe colonists' arrival. It's now in
a precarious state a n d staffed
by d r o i d s hostile lo your
intrusion. Worm In Paradise, set
a century later, sees you as a
citizen ol Enoch, an extreme
right-wing state run by robots, in
which all musl conform a n d
Kim is worshipped, Lenin-style
Challenge Ihe system, and save
Ihe world!
IJh I n o w " I.
Vou omn no t h i n g .
i=tnd y o u r ^ M t a r a n 9 a h
g own .
U h - a t n o ' i i " ^ i-i
V Ou r e 1 n a u rwin9 east
corridor be . » d t
Light® h 'H w rs t o v
ttad north thiough
an d e.it.
v o u can h * ar g u i
U h a «. n ~ N
b r i g h t 'j
r 10 1* t h . 6 3 t ,
1g 1 xn .
I searched Ihe box carefully
on receipt — surely Telecom
haven't finally listened to all the
criticisms? Yes they have — to
Ihe unending gratitude ol ad-
venlurers, the d r e a d e d Lenslok
has been scrapped! Otherwise,
I experienced a powerful leel-
Ing of deja vu when reviewing
Silicon Dreams. It contains
almost exactly the same un-
necessary laults as Jewels Ot
Darkness, as well as thai game's
g o o d points.
All three adventures are
large, a n d full of ingenious
puzzles. One of the games
alone would keep most people
o c c u p i e d for months. Vocabu-
lary is large a n d complex sen-
tences are allowed. A highly
readable instruction booklet
also includes a novella — "Eden
Song', which far Irom being
some overblown epic laden
with silly names is unexpectedly
humorous, if not entirely in the
style ot the games.
But the p o t e n t i a l for a
masterpiece has a g a i n been
wasted through silly errors: like
painting the smile on the Mona
P » t
1 Medallion Graphic Adventures {Incentive)
j re e n
1 t. E
1 dO O
* c
Lisa with a blue crayon. First up. RAMSAVE.'LOAD Is standard
my traditional moan: Ihe gra- on Quilled games, so Its omis-
phics are truly abysmal. Blotchy,
often unrecognisable and. In
sion Irom a ma|or release is
disappointing At least II could
this collection, so simple in hove been included in the texl
design as to render Ihem even only version, using some ol the
more pointless than in Ihe past. memory (reed by removing the
The screenshots here d o not d o graphics, its absence wouldn't
them Justice — you have lo be be so b a d it conventional tape
close to the screen (or Ihe lull l o a d i n g was not so drawn out.
impact In Ihe case of Eden, Ihe The security device — giving
graphics are worse than Ihose you a p a g e a n d line reference
included on its original release! from Eden Song a n d asking you
I always thoughl the Spectrum's which word it refers to — Is not
attribute problems were to as Irksome as Lenslok; however,
b l a m e (or Ihe pics' dreadlul* you have lo d o this every time
ness. but the Atari ST screenshols you RESTORE from tape, which
shown on the p a c k a g i n g are (or most advenlureers I suspect
almost as useless. Why Rainbird will be often, as d e a l h lurks
allow this sloppiness in what Is round every corner. Why not just
supposed to be the cream of ask (or a word at certain key
British adventures is beyond me: points In the game?
Ihough at least I see ST users will
be getting digitised Geoffrey As with JOD, I musl express
Dawson graphics on the next how disappointed I a m thai Ihe
joint release. Forlunately, potential ol these games has
n
expanded, <1 versions of
text-only not been realised. I sincerely
e a c h adventure are provided h o p e Level 9 will lake notice o(
The quality ol Ihe text is so much some ot Ihe criticisms — they
better In these versions that they are meant lo be constructive.
feel like different adventures. That said. Ihe p a c k a g e offers
Certainly they are much more improved versions ol three
atmospheric a n d they are excellent adventures at half the
easier, since the strange tech- original cost. Individually Ihey
nology is explained better. would have been Monster Hits
— so together they are, loo.
Presentation Is poor: all text
is printed in yellow on black in
the normal Spectrum character
set. which makes a n untidy
mess. Why no colour, or better
spacing a n d a more r e a d a b l e
character set? Still no l o a d i n g
screen either. Instead ot a n
atmospheric picture to set the
mood we have "Level 9" printed '
in several ditlerenl colours —
(his looked crude even when I
first encountered it several years
ago
Exits are n o r t h . eait., = o U t h.
a n d <•' € s t • • o <j c ;»n ; e d tree.
Uhat n o w C L I M B T PEE
I t ' s t o o S in O O t h .
Uh a t n ow~ EXAM T P E E
fin app i t tree. Hanging from th<
tree 1 £ an apple.
Uh a t n o w I
v ' o u o w n n o t h i n*a h » a l l '
Uh a t n o w GET PIPPLE
I t ' s out of reach.
Uh a t n o w ~ EAST
WINTER WONDERLAND/
THE LEGEND OF
APACHE GOLD
£7.95 e a c h
These two a d v e n t u r e s a r e than your average Quilled
reviewed together b e c a u s e piece?
their laults are similar; a n d A p a c h e Gold sees you as
they're the first I've seen wrillen cowboy Luke Warm (groan), in
with Incentive's Graphic Adven- search of the treasure buried
ture Creator, so are they better with an Indian Chiet. The writer
78 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987
 /////
W o n d e r l a n d ) , w i t h n o re- In short, what we have here
d e s i g n e d c h a r a c t e r set. Com- a r e two u n r e m a r k a b l e adven-
b i n e d with slightly sluggish tures, w h i c h c o u l d have b e e n
printing times, this means that written a year or two a g o They
Ihe g a m e s don't a p p e a r any- w o u l d m a k e ideal, i n d e e d par-
t h i n g like as slick as, for ticularly entertaining, b u d g e t
example. The (Quilled) Colour games. However, eight pounds
Of M a g i c is a ridiculous p r i c e for such
An a d v a n t a g e of G A C e d mediocrity, so steer clear, What
g a m e s over Q u i l l e d ones is the I tind surprising is that these
e d i t i n g facilities: you c a n enter were the best ol the many
c o m m a n d s in upper a n d lower g a m e s Incentive were sent
c a s e punctuate, a n d use cursor ( M e d a l l i o n is Incentive's own
keys. Also, these g a m e s some- label lor such games) Evidently
times require sentences with there are no hordes ol polenlial
more than two key words. How- McNeills a n d Austins out there
ou a r e i n the back of you ever. despite their t e c h n i c a l — unless y o u c a n p r o v e
WRGQU o n a U I L D OPEN P L f t l N . The superiority, the a c t u a l adven- otherwise...
mountain t r a i l t i e s a h e a d . Vou tures are (airly primitive by
f i l l your l ungs with the rich today's standards. Description
sme i t or t h e u u w i l d g r a s s in both is below par. d u l l in
and h o r s e d r o p p i n g s . ( COUGH! ) V o u Winier Wonderland a n d simple
can a l s o s e e a (3RG o f O P T 5 , R E I N 3
almost childish, in A p a c h e
Uha t now then partner*?
G o l d . Torrance STILL has a n
A p a c h o Gold ANNOYING habit ot b r e a k i n g
into CAPITALS lor no APPARENT
is Peter Torrance, d e s c r i b e d as games, a n d r e m a i n o n screen r e a s o n , a n d PUNCTUATION
a "lantasy author" o n Ihe pack- rather t h a n scroll up. The pics problems. Neither g a m e is
a g i n g ; in i a c l a credit aris.-ig are jolly e n o u g h in A p a c h e p a r t i c u l a r l y a t m o s p h e r i c or
from his previous successes. Gold, but poor a n d repetitive in innovative — just fairly tra-
Firebird c h e a p i e s Subsunk a n d Winier W o n d e r l a n d . In neither ditional puzzle solving, m a r r e d
Seabase Delta. Winier Wonder- g o m e are Ihey consistently u p in Winier W o n d e r l a n d by "in-
land casls you as a n anthropo- to the d e s i g n s t a n d a r d of The stant d e a t h locations", a d u m b
logist — original a l least — w h o Hobbit from four years a g o ! The i d e a w h i c h should have d i e d
must investigate a Tibetan civil- text w i n d o w is too small, with no out a e o n s ago. Torrance gives
isation. w h i c h has never b e e n border s e p a r a t i n g il ltom the clues w h i c h a r e l a u g h a b l e tor
in c o n t a c t wilh the rest ol graphics. Because everything their l a c k of subtlety. Both
mankind, yet d e v e l o p e d a l the scrolls out ot sight so soon, you g a m e s have limiled v o c a b u -
same rate. have to k e e p LOOKing, but this laries a n d a disappointing lack
causes the picture to d r a w ol responses. A n d the instruc-
I m m e d i a t e l y you notice the tions are too skimpy — nothing
graphics — a p p r o p r i a t e l y so a g a i n o n top of itself, with a
resulting, unnecessary delay. o n t a p e storage, or (in Winter
considering Ihe utility's n a m e — Wonderland) o n how to c o m -
which are faster, b o l d e r a n d Text display is black o n white (or
o n blue, d e e p e r into Winter municate with other characters
m u c h b i g g e r t h a n In Q u i l l e d

A dvertisements are expected 10 conform 10 rules and standards laid

L down by the Advertising Standards Authority. Most do.The lew that
don't we'd like you to write in about.
And if you'd like a copy of these rules for press, poster and cinema
advertisements, please send for our booklet. It's free.

/
The Advertising Standards Authority.
We're here to put it rightJ
ASA Ltd., Dept. Y. Brook House.Torrington Place. London WCIF. 7HN
This space istk mated in the interests of high standards nl advertising

79 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

Rainbird are probably
the only software house
never to get a bad
review from ZX. So
what's their secret?

hen I went a l o n g to visit

Rainbird Clare Edgeley h a d just
tidied up her desk to keep the
safety officer happy — "my desk
had everything wrong with it".
Depressingly. Clare's bit of
floorspace looked like an oasis
c o m p a r e d to the h e a p that
passes for my own desk. In fact
Rainbird's offices, in a modern
office block in the West End of
London, seemed a bit cheerier
a n d more well organised than
many of the software houses I've
visited in the past. But then,
whereas most UK software houses
b e g a n as back-bedroom outlits
a n d slowly e x p a n d e d into small
companies as the piles of
paperwork a n d machinery got
out of hand. Rainbird c a m e at
the industry from the opposite
direction. As part of the
Telecomsoft group of companies
(which also includes Firebird,
Beyond a n d Odin), Rainbird are
actually a small offshoot of Ihe
vast British Telecom organisation.
But like most software houses
they've m a n a g e d to avoid too
much oflice stuffiness a n d
remain fairly informal.
Clare is Rainbird's P.R.
Manager but she is also a n ex getting a b a d review. Unlike l a n d e d on software houses'
computer journalist, having many companies that make doorsteps as c o m p l e t e games,
worked for Computer a n d Video similar claims, Rainbird have but if someone comes fo us with
Games a n d a n obscure genuinely built up a reputation a scenario or a n idea that we
competitor c a l l e d Sinclair User. for releasing a small number of like, we'll develop it. But we
Former software reviewers high quality products. wouldn't bring out just anything
moving into PR face a potential This is probably d u e to the — if we're offered something
quandary. Do they fact that the label was set up to that's not worth our E14-E17 price
wholeheartedly push a product be the 'quality' part of the range we won't a c c e p t it."
they would have p a n n e d in their Telecom group. But isn't it difficult to
former role? Forlunalely that "We're the top e n d of the continually maintain a l e a d
problem doesn't arise with range — high quality", Clare when you're d e a l i n g with a
Rainbird since I can't remember told me. "We'll look at anything. -machine like the Spectrum
any of their products ever Some of the besl games have which has been taken about as

80 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987


far as it c a n g o by now?
'Yes, but converting down from
big machines help?. We
produce conversions tor about
ten machines a n d some of our
games start on the A m i g a a n d
ST and are converted down onto
Ihe Spectrum so we sometimes
manage to d o things that we
didn't think c o u l d be d o n e on
Ihe Spectrum. Starglider 128 has
digitised speech which we didn't
think we'd b e a b l e to do. I don't
think there's a single bit ol
memory left in there."
An obvious e x a m p l e of this
'converting downwards' policy is
Art Studio, the graphics utility
that brought to the Spectrum a
system of icons a n d menu-driven
controls formerly only seen on
much more powerful business
machines. Mind you, it's not
always a case of converting
down onto the poor little
Spectrum. Rainbird's
collaborations with Level 9 (the
Jewels of Darkness a n d Silicon
Dreams trilogies) started on the
Spectrum a n d have moved
81 ZX Computing Monthly • M a r c h 1987
s
' • A
Mb
onwards a n d upwards through a
whole range of machines a n d
are d o i n g very well in both
America a n d Europe.
UJJJ
The Knight Ore Cometh
The last two Level 9 products
from Ralnbird were u p g r a d e d
versions of earlier releases, but
c o m i n g soon is Knight Ore, a
b r a n d new L9 g a m e in three
parts, a n d something of a
departure trom their o l d style. In
it you play a n Ore setting out to
g a i n revenge on the humans
w h o spend all their time
victimising Ores in lantasy novels
a n d games (there's a twist in
there though, but I'm not g o i n g
to tell you about it). The g a m e
features a number of
independent characters that
you'll have to d e a l with, a n d
whose help you'll n e e d if you're
g o i n g to c o m p l e t e the g a m e so
you can't just g o around KILLing
everything in sight.
After m a k i n g the coffee. Clare
I 1 tf *
kAJtt
m
shuttled me into the computer
room where I met Gary (also ex
C+VG) a n d Paul ("our resident
wiz — he does manuals a n d
things"). The Spectrum version of
the g a m e wasn't yet complete,
but Paul {"he's the resident wiz,
I'm the orch-wiz") b o o t e d up the
graphics for the A m i g a version
to show me.
Pete Sweasey, our resident
advenlure fiend, will be pleased
to hear that L9 have a d o p t e d a
totally new style (or their g a m e
graphics in Knight Ore. They've
commissioned a number of
pieces of original artwork a n d
digitised them. The result, on the
A m i g a anyway, is pretty
impressive, with some pictures
that look almost impressionistic,
a n d others that have almost
photographic clarity of detail
(fingers crossed they won't look
too b a d on the Spectrum).
Knight Ore is d u e out for the
Spectrum shortly, as is the 128
version of M a g n e t i c Scrolls'
adventure. The Pawn. In the
meantime though I d e c i d e d that
I should get b a c k a n d tidy up
my own desk in case the safety
officer d r o p p e d by.
•6 >>> 1
The arcade conversion • " h i s Is the g a m e that everyone
has b e e n w a i t i n g tor. During a
set to make converts of wait (or the official version of
Gauntlet from US Gold, the rest
us all. of the software industry has
d e v e l o p e d a n overwhelming
compulsion to p r o d u c e Gauntlet
Gauntlet Imitations. This chorus of "send in
US Gold the clones" has brought us Storm
(Mastertronic), Dandy (Electric
£9.95 & Dreams) a n d Druid (Firebird).
So, has the market b e e n
saturated to the extent that
Gauntlet is a n anti-climax? The
short answer is no. Despite
a p p r o a c h i n g the g a m e with mis-
givings that it c o u l d b e
d i s a p p o i n t i n g (given the hype its
received) I c a n report that the
if
2- ?
t" tZ
HBE1
H f j
mmm ^ J
nKHn!liWU«r!ir!ir!<r<i£.J
t i l !
official Gauntlet is by far the
most enjoyable a n d a d d i c t i v e of
them all.
The original a r c a d e g a m e
c o u l d b e p l a y e d by u p to four
players. On the Spectrum of
course, this is whittled d o w n to
two (thankfully both c a n play
with a joystick) but it is the
option of cut a n d stash
teamwork as you clear d u n g e o n
after d u n g e o n of nasties that
a d d s a whole new dimension to
p l a y i n g a Spectrum game. You
w o u l d expect this two player
option to slow d o w n the a c t i o n
but surprisingly there is no loss of
s p e e d a n d the a c t i o n is
frenetically fast.
W W
llHjS'
W a S K S i T -
. Sjffi —
6>^ .1
mn
m

A?
fJL
A
THOH the Wdrrior
l i t
You have a c h o i c e ot four
characters a n d , if p l a y i n g the
two player g a m e , it's besi to
choose characters that have
complimentary characteristics.
Thor, tor instance, is a warrior
with excellent muscle power
and g o o d in close c o m b a t but
o d u n c e w h e n it c o m e s lo
casting spells. You might want to
team him with Merlin w h o gets
pummelled b a d l y in h a n d to
hand fighting, but c a n use his
magic power to w i p e out
monsters a n d the generators that
spawn them.
Thyra the Valkyrie's speciality
is hand to h a n d c o m b a t a n d
Questor the Elf relies o n his
magic c h a r m s to m a k e u p for
moderate abilities at fighting.
As for adversaries, the
dungeons are overflowing with
them, r a n g i n g from ghosts to
Death, whose fatal c h a r m s will
drain you of health unless you
have the spell to kill him. In
addition there are Grunts,
Demons, Lobbers a n d Sorcerors
all wilh their own characteristics
and e a c h requiring a slightly
ditferent a p p r o a c h to d e s p a t c h
them most effectively.
lfr-0
U
lrr-0
1 t
Be w a r n e d that d u e to the
c o m p l e x i t y of Gauntlet (512
levels) there is a lot of time spent
r e w i n d i n g a n d l o a d i n g from
tape. If you don't find Gauntlet
compulsive this c o u l d b e a d r a g
but if you b e c o m e a d d i c t e d
these breaks c a n b e c o m e a
w e l c o m e respite from the un-
relenting battle.
Dungeon plays
The a i m of the g a m e of course is
to tight, barge, c h a r m , shoot a n d
p u n c h your w a y through those
500-plus levels. It's not a g a m e
for d e d i c a t e d strategists. For o n e
thing the swarms of d u n g e o n
dwellers threatening you leave
little time for p l a n n i n g a h e a d .
There are, however, ploys you'll
n e e d to i m p l e m e n t if you want
to survive. Unless you are a n
a d v a n c e d player you c a n forget
a b o u t the points tally — worry
instead a b o u t your health score.
G o for all the f o o d you c a n pick
u p (some of it is p o i s o n e d but
afler a while you c a n spot the
difference) initially I found myself
shooting f o o d by mistake in the
heat of the tray (not a g o o d
idea).
THYRA Ihe Valkyrie
If c o r n e r e d by monsters try to
destroy the generators, you can't
c l e a r a screen c o m p l e t e l y until
you have. Mass slaying of
roomfuls of m a g i c ghouls m a y
m a k e you feel g o o d but think ot
your health w h i c h will b e
s a p p e d by e a c h i n d i v i d u a l
contact.
Gauntlet holds a lot of
surprises; the g r a p h i c s are vivid
a n d m a i n t a i n their clarity, even
o n a screen t e e m i n g with detail.
The s p e e d of the g a m e will
satisfy even the h a r d e n e d
a r c a d e player, the lifespan of
the g a m e will k e e p the value-
conscious h a p p y a n d there are
e n o u g h elements to it to satisfy
those w h o want something more
t h a n to just shoot things. Of
course if you just like shooting
things a n d know s o m e b o d y else
w h o likes shooting things too,
then this g a m e will seem very
close to heaven.
O
LU
£L
CO
 DISCOVERY
COLUMN
Advice for Discovery
Disc owners from John
Wase
• suppose I've asked tor it, but
over the last few months quite a
few enquiries have b e e n m a d e
a b o u t the c a p a c i t y of Discovery,
principally, I suppose, because I
mentioned that it is possible to
a d d a Double Sided Double
Density (DSDD) 5.25" drive. So, to
get things straight, let's look at
just what there is inside that
black metal box.
The Drive
As fitted to all standard
Discovery units, this is a 40 Irack
single sided three a n d a quarter
inch drive, known in the
computer trade as a 'quarter
m e g a b y t e drive'. The tracks are
recorded as concentric circles.
The mechanism reads 40 tracks
on just the one side of the disc
So any old three a n d a half inch
disc which has at least 40 tracks
a n d which is the right shape to
fit the mechanism will do. If you
insert a n 80 track disc (that is
merely one in which the oxide
particles are so small a n d the
thing so precise that it is
possible to put tracks m u c h
closer together than the 40 track
disc without there b e i n g
interference between o n e track
a n d the next) the mechanism is
only a b l e to record 40 tracks on
it.
There is a power supply unit
i n c l u d e d on Discovery's circuit
b o a r d which powers both
Discovery a n d Spectrum. The
power supply which c a m e with
early Spectrums h a d so little
power to spare that there was
not always e n o u g h to work
Opus's early Spectrados systems,
so in some cases these would
not work: fhe Discovery was a
refinement of this system a n d its
PSU now has plenty of power to
spare.
The interface contains a r e a d
only memory (ROM) w h i c h
intercepts error messages a n d is
p a g e d in on receiving one of its
own commands. It you look at
the Spectrum's memory map.
you will see that the Spectrum's
ROM occupies the first 16K.
Discovery ROM o c c u p i e s the first
8K, a n d is switched in a n d out
alternately with the Spectrum
ROM. As you know, the Spectrum
ROM c a n be PEEKed to see
what's in e a c h address, but if
you try to POKE a value into a n
address, it takes no notice.
Similarly, the discovery ROM
contains unalterable information.
This m e t h o d of operation is
exactly like interface 1: however,
discs are o p e r a t e d instead ol
microdrives, a n d . as the c o d e is
written rather differently, the
hook codes w h i c h operate from
m a c h i n e c o d e are different. So
the two are c o m p a t i b l e from
any BASIC program, but not in
respect of m a c h i n e code.
Formatting
One of my correspondents
recently was very uptight
b e c a u s e the c a p a c i t y of a
quarter m e g a b y t e drive is only
178K. This, he growled, is grossly
misleading. And so it is, but
there is a g o o d reason.
Information recorded on a
casssette t a p e is recorded
sequentially: you have to grind
through the lot until you c o m e to
what you want. A disc
immediately accesses your
chosen program. This is b e c a u s e
e a c h track on the disc is further
d i v i d e d up by the o p e r a t i n g
system into sectors or blocks,
a c c o r d i n g to a set p l a n d i c t a t e d
by the software (the firmware on
the Discovery ROM), the Directory
or C a t a l o g u e of the d i s c This
directs the drive to r e a d so
many sectors, or, alternatively, to
save to so many sectors at
particular locations. The number
of sectors used is arrived at as a
compromise. Imagine a disc
d i v i d e d up into only o n e sector,
a n d i m a g i n e trying to save 1K
84 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987
programs on it. As you can't
direct the Ihing to start half way
through a secfor, you c o u l d only
save one program, which you
c o u l d access instantly. Moreover,
I guess lhat you c o u l d make this
program almost 250K long by a
bit of fiddling about. Imagine
d i v i d i n g the thing up into o n e
byte sectors. You would n e e d a
c a t a l o g u e miles long for the
thing to read, a n d whilst
e c o n o m i c a l up to a point,
access times would b e
enormous. So the c h o i c e of
sector length, etc, is a
compromise between speed
a n d waste. Discovery is pretty
reliable, has reasonable access
speeds, a n d wastes relatively
little ot the disc.
Second disc
When a second disc is a d d e d ,
the drive m e c h a n i s m printed
circuit b o a r d has provision to
e n a b l e one to configure it as
disc 2. a n d a Random Access
Memory (RAM) c h i p has to b e
a d d e d inside Discovery. This is
b e c a u s e the default values in
Ihe Discovery ROM all refer to
Disc 1. 40 track, single side. The
RAM c h i p o c c u p i e s the memory
locations immediately above the
Discovery ROM a n d is p a g e d in
with it: on sensing the presence
of the RAM chip, the ROM
empties its default values into
the RAM chip. RAM. unlike ROM
c a n be altered: it c a n be POKed
as well as PEEKed. If you r e a d n
a DSDD disc in drive 2, assuming
that that is the mechanism
which you have p l u g g e d In
there, then the firmware senses
that the drive is not 40 track a n d
single sided, a n d the default
values for drive 2 are adjusted in
the RAM to m a t c h those of the
disc r e a d in. Before you c a n use
such a system you must have a
disc to r e a d in or a program to
configure it, h e n c e the frustration
of some w h o hove fitted extra
c a p a c i t y drives but have only
b e e n a b l e to get them to
FORMAT to 178K: the values are
set at default until s o m e t h i n g
tells the system differently. Finally.
If you have only the s t a n d a r d
drive, fitting the RAM c h i p is not
really g o i n g to h e l p you very
much. True, you will b e a b l e to
adjust the sector length a n d o n e
or two other things, but this will
never e n a b l e you fo store a
megabyte, as some of my more
optimistic correspondents h a d
hoped. I h o p e this will h e l p to
clear u p some of the
misconceptions.
I m e n t i o n e d only a c o u p l e of
months a g o that I h a d seen
nolhing w h i c h used Discovery's
random a c c e s s facility, so Jim
Burke of Barnet, Herts, p r o m p t l y
sent m e DISCLIST3. A l t h o u g h this
program lacks some polish a n d
finesse, as Jim w o u l d b e Ihe first
3 REM "DISCLIST3"
J.N.Burks 1906
10 REM DIM (200, 15) (or 19->)
IS LOAD • 1; "discsJ" OAT A n* ()
20 LET r«150: REM Last entry
far
25 OPEN «4;"m";1;"discs2"RND15
,200s CLS
ZO PRINT AT O, 12j "OPTIONS"; AT
2,0["O L i s t Entries.";AT 5 , 0 ; " l
Revisions, Additions or Fresh St
art.";AT 9,0;"2 Pick an Entry By
Number.";AT 13tO;"3 Select by T
i t l e , Cdtoqory or Disc Number. •
[AT 18,0;"4 To SAVE the program
and File.";AT 20,0;"5 To STOP."
35 INPUT "Number ? ";c»
40 IF c * 0 " 0 " THEN GO TO 63
43 IF c*-"0" THEN CLS ; FOR q«
1 TO r : IF g<«9 THEN LET a*-" •
" i PRINT N2; g j ,<f ;n1 (g) ( TO 131
30 IF g>=lO AND g<»99 THEN LET
a*B" <* " j PRINT «2;g;a*;nf(g)(
TO 13)
53 IF g>"100 THEN LET J*="= "i
PRINT «2;q;at;nf(g)( TO 15)
60 NEXT gs GO TO 370t GO TO 30
65 IF c * - " l " THEN CLS i GO TO
lOO
70 IF C* 3 "2" THEN CLS ! GO TO
145
75 IF c l " J " THEN CLS J GO TO
a
1B5 CLOSE 114 s STOP
190 REM OPEN »4;"m";1;"discs3"R
ND13
195 CLS : POKE 2;658,8: INPUT "
Ti tie(T),Catpqory(Ct or Di«sc(D>"
;kt
200 IF k l « " T ' THEN GO TO 220
205 IF k*~"C" THEN GO 10 225
210 IF )$""D" THEN GO TO 240
215 IF k*<>"T" OR kf<>"C" OR k»
"D" THEN BEEP .1,20: GO TO 195
220 POKE 23658,0: CLS : INPUT -
TitleiNP C a s e > " i LINE t«: GO T
0 205
225 CLS : PRINT »2;AT 10,10;"Ca
tegoriesi-"fAT 13,O;"A(rcade).G«
raphic).S(tat iC game>p(atterns).
P(UZZles).F(11ing). M (i seel I .me
ous).U(tlI I t y ) . " 1 POKE 23638,0:
INPUT "CalegorylNB Ca«ie)"» " j LIN
E c*
230 INPUT , "LPRINT'My/n)";««: I
F nt="n" THEN LET q=0l GO TO 280
235 IF w»-"y" THEN LET q-11 LPR
INT " CATEGORY "jc»: GO TO 2
60
240 POKE 23658,OI CLS I INPUT "
Disc? " | d *
245 POKE 23658,O: INPUT ,"LPRIN
T -T (y/nl " ; v*: IF vt = "n" THEN LET
p-Ot GO TO 305
250 IF v t - " y " THEN LET LPR

to admit, it nevertheless does the

trick, a n d that is Ihe o b j e c t of
Ihe exercise. DISCLIST3 keeps a
list of all the p r o g r a m , a n d
associated datafiles, printfiles
and so, w h i c h are kept in
random a c c e s s file c a l l e d
"discs3". O n c e you have this, you
can select a n y item by title, by
Ihe type of Item or by the disc
Ihot it's on. The p r o g r a m is listed
in F l g u r e l It's pretty self
explanatory, a l t h o u g h I f o u n d
that I h a d to put in a n extra line
- 7 OPEN 3!'t" to get it to print,
The REMs in lines 10 a n d 145
also n e e d to b e removed: they
are there to r e m i n d you that
certain parameters n e e d some
alteration to e n a b l e m u c h
longer lists 1o b e
accommodated.
The Program
The first time that you RUN this
program, you will have to d o
GO TO 20 w h e n the p r o g r a m
can't find the r a n d o m access
data file "discs3" asked for in
line 15: not surprising as you
haven'1 m a d e o n e yet. Lines
45,50 a n d 55 line u p the list o n
Ihe screen rather Ingeniously. I
printed it out (Figure 2) so that
you c a n see w h a t this d a t a file
looks like. Each enlry is given a
number, o n the left. Then follows
Ihe n a m e of the entry. Next a
letter i n d i c a t i n g the t y p e of item.
Finally, a n u m b e r for the disc o n
190 INT " DISC "|d»: GO TO 303
00 IF ct="4" THEN CLS S PRINT 235 FOR g»l TO rt REM • • • • • • • • •
AT 10,12;"SAVING": GO TO 380 260 IF nJ(g)(1 TO LEN t * ) » t * AN
95 IF c * - " 5 " THEN GO TO 93 P p=0 THEN GO SUB 340
90 IF c l O " I " OR c « > " 2 " OR c» 265 IF nKg) II TO LEN t * ) = t l AN
<>"3" OR c*< "4" OR c * 0 " 5 " THEN D p-1 THEN GO SUB 345
BEEP . l , 2 0 i GO TO 33 270 IF n»(g)(l TO LEN t t l O t t T
93 CLOSE #4: STOP HEN NEXT q
100 PRINT "NOTEl-"'"DO NOT USE 275 GO TO 330
""RUN""unless the DATA has been
SAVED"''" Revise Lines <20>,4 • 200
* * • CLS I FOR q=l TO r : REM
5,110,255,280 and GOTO 103 tor R
283 IF nf(q) (12)=cI AND q*0 THE
ovisions, Additions or tor .1 Fre N GO SUM 3«Ot NEXT g
sh S t a r t ( G O TO 30 and Selec 290 IF n*lq>ri2>-c« AND q - l THF
t 2 to pick a seleted number)." N GO SUB 345l NEXT g
•'"<GO TO 30 and Select 3 to Sel 295 IF n i (g) (11 TO 12>Oc» THEN
oct by Title,Category or Disc)." NEXT g
'•"(GO TO 30 and select 4 to SAV
E ) . " ! CLOSE »4: STOP 300 GO TO 330
105 CLS : PRINT " T i t l e (ma* 10) 305 PRINT 112;" DISC "}d«
3lO FOR g - l TO n REM • • • • • • • • •
( I I I to STOP)."''"TYPE A-rcade
, S - t a t i c , G-raphic d - t i l i t y , P- 313 IF n»(g)(14>=d» AND p=0 THE
uzzle, p - . i t t e r n , F - i l i n g ) or N GD SUB 340: NEXT q
M-isc. DISC Number" 320 IF nf(g)(14)=d* AND p=l THE
N GO SUB 343t NEXT g
110 FOP g-139 TO r i REM From Nu 323 IF n*(g)(I4)<>d* THEN NEXT
mber that i s "ZZZ" TO ISO e t c « « <1
330 GO SUB 370
115 INPUT "TITLE(<=I0»7 " t n f ( g ) 335 STOP
(I TO I I ) : IF n * ( g , l TO 3>-"ZZ7" 340 PRINT « 2 ; n t ( g ) ( l TO >s GO T
THEN GO TO 140 O 330
170 INPUT "TYPE *>(A,S,G,U,P,p,F 345 LPRINT n»(g)(I TO )
,M» ";n»(g> (12 TO 13) 330 BEEP .02,30
123 INPUT -Disc ";n*(q)(14 TO » 335 RETURN
130 PRINT « 2 ; q j " - " j n t ( g ) ( TO 15 360 CLS J PRINT " /./.
) . " : PRINT nf(118)(l TO )t REM to
135 NEXT q: REM q=I36 26/11/86 check n t l H I TO )
140 PRINT FLASH I i " "Now SAVE ( 365 STOP
GO TO 330>"l CLOSE «4; STOP 370 BEEP .1,20: PRINT dOj"
145 CLS : RIM OPEN "m"; 1 ; "di Press A key": PAUSE O: CLS
scs3-RND13 1 CLOSE «4i GO TO 30
130 PRINT Input "-9V9-- t 0 sto 375 STOP
P" 380 CLS I PRINT AT 1O,12I"SAV1N
155 INPUT which record'*";g G"! SAVE •I;"DISCLIST3" LINE I5i
1AO POINT «4ig SAVE •1)"di»c«3" DATA n»()l VER
163 PRINT "No. ;g;"»"jn*(g)<1 IFY •1;"DISCL1ST3": VERIFY • I j " d
TO ) ISCS3" DATA n i l ) ! PRINT INVERSE
170 INPUT Next-"jq I;AT 10,12;" SAVED "I BEEP .5,20
1/5 IF q=999 THEN GO TO 183 : CLOSE *4: STOP
180 IF gf >999 THEN GO TO 160
Flguro 1

1 = MUSIC M 1 9 —
DRAUGHTS P 1 17 f i l l G 1
2 = DARTS A 1 10 = p a P 1 18 = 1i s t e r U 1
3 = t r a f -fie S 1 1 1 = < < DOOM > > A 1 19 — T.O.H. P 1
4 = HEXCONV u 1 12 = u t i 1 U 1 20 = di sm8kuti1 U 1
5 = f r u i t s 1 13 = d o d g e m s A 1 21 = MOON M 1
6 = j ackpot s 1 1 4 ss r a t c a t c h A 1 22 = make4 P 1
7 = bouncer A 1 15 — l i f e P 1 23 = coindrop A 1
B —
T. K i t 48k U 1 16 = g u a r d i a n M 1 24 = drawer G 1

Figure 2

85 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • M a r c h 1987
 25 TAB Fields U 1 67 = CADMASTER G 4 109= ARTstudio G 6
26 —
ackack A 1 68 = estel1 G 4 1 10= super cat U 6
27 ss headread U 1 69 = • XO P 4 1 1 1 =test M 6
28 = stickdraw G 1 70 = clock M 4 1 12= mouse S 6
29 = Tasword <r > M 2 71 = sort U 4 1 13= draw G 6
30 = pati erice S 3 72 = TRICK M 4 114= shi pt G 6
31 = SHUNTING P 3 73 = noise gen M 4 115= cardl G 6
32 = engine G 3 74 = roadrunner A 4 116= copypri nt U 6
33 —
edi tkey U 3 75 - 3d maze P 4 117= i roner2 G 6
34 = toolkit U 3 76 = eg li 4 1 18= di scli ster F 6
35 = mysterybox P 3 77 = ti ck—tock G 4 1 19= DISASM48 U 6
36 = BETALISTER F 3 78 = EXPLODE G 4 120= ani rnator 2 G 7
37 = BANDIT S 3 79 = EXBASIC M 4 121 = tasword M 7
38 = organ M 3 80 = mandala S 4 122= TLW2(1ast) M 7
39 —
fade G 3 81 = Wi ndowdem G 4 123= 78recds2 F 7
40 = DATA(beta) F 3 82 = betachar M 4 124= DISCLIST F 7
41 —
waves G 3 83 = contmusi c M 4 125= Di scs4 F 7
42 —
dice S 3 84 = shi p* G 4 126= di scs1 F 7
43 = circle G 3 85 = BETALISTER F 4 127= controls M 7
44 = Beta Basic M 3 86 = BETADISCLR F 4 128= /8recds h /
45 = BETADEMO M 3 87 = thick char U 4 129= wr i te M 8
46 = BETADATA F 3 88 = futuristic U 4 130= ADDR F 8
47 PUZZLE P 3 89 = f actors M 4 131 = wordmanage M 8
48 = bri ckyard A 3 90 = TV TEST G 4 132= DISCLIST F 8
49 = ex am.mem U 3 91 = 2;<Hei ght M 4 133= di scs F 8
50 — zoom G 3 92 = deleter U 4 134= di scs2 F 8
51 — datacalc F 3 93 = capypr i nt U 4 135= di scs3 F 7
52 = YS TITLE G 3 94 = ARCHER A 4 136= DISCLIST3 F 8
53 —
CLS G 3 95 = super cat U 4 137= di scs3 F 8
54 —
c1earscrn G 3 96 = Golf S 5 138= renumb U 4
55 = •flash G 3 97 = DARTS A 5 139= ZZZ
56 —
explode G 3 98 = Accounts F 5 140=
57 — udgdef G 3 99 = ki tchen A 5 141 =
58 —
SDUND M 3 100= EFFECT M 5 142=
59 — en 1arger G 3 101 = CHR.LEFT G 5 143=
60 = di sclister F 3 102= DISSEMB U 5 144 =
61 —
alarmc1ock U 3 103= MC AID U 5 145=
62 = wordsearch P 3 104= UDG edit U 5 146=
63 = letter sq P 3 105= arrows G 5 147=
64 = gol f s 4 106= soli tai re2 S 5 148=
65 — Beta Basic M 4 107= TABCALC F 6 149=
66 TROJAN G 4 108= TABDATA F 6 150=

which it's filed. Lines 65 to 85
direct the program to lines 100
(new entries, additions,
corrections): 145 (pick any
number; what's the entry?); 190
(pick entry by title, so that you
c a n find which disc it's on, list
programs, etc, of any particular
category, list what is on any
particular disc): 380 (SAVE
routine); finally 95 (STOP).
In line 105 are Jim's titles — he
says it's fatal to have a
miscellaneous file! The POKEs in
lines 195 a n d 220 are to lock
a n d unlock caps shift;
unfortunately Jim h a d used both
capital a n d lower case "p" in
line 105, a n d didn't feel like
putting all the entries in again.
Lines 230 onwards contain a
number of LPRINT options for
which line 7 is essential if you
have a printer.
Inverse print
This program therefore c o u l d
form a basis for your own
random access program. In this
particular listing, Jim has m a d e
things more difficult tor himself
by inserting inverse printing
directly into the listing — it looks
good, but I can't easily make it
show u p in Ihe printout, whereas
INVERSE 1 always does (do
please remember this when
submitting programs).
Nevertheless, the program does
what it sets out to do. Perhaps a
complete d a t a base will follow.
Who knows?
Errata
The program in last month's
column for the modification to
GENS 3 has a b u g in it: the
following program line will
correct it. 308 IF b$(3 TO
5)="CAT" THEN CLS : CAT 1 :
PRINT 0;"Any Key to Return":
PAUSE 0: LET f = USR((PEEK
23670+256* PEEK
23671)—2514"(A=( PEEK
23670+256* PEEK
23671J+6291)—1857*A
PEEK23670+256* PEEK
23671J+6291): GO TO 65

86 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

CR
More mysteries from the Spectrum's technical
Twilight Zone with Ray Elder.

other's interface. I know XRI have a real- I used Ihe software supplied with it.
Midi matters time p a c k a g e but they have not yet
sent us a copy to review.
Now after a little use it has
working and I would like it repaired.
stopped
I
Dear Sir, XRI are at 10 Sunnybank Road, tried to telephone Rotronics but I
As a new reader to your Sutlon Coldlield, West Midlands (Tel. 021 cannot get a reply and the GPO tell me
magazine I seek advice 382 6048) a n d Iheir system costs around there is nothing wrong with the line.
which has possibly been answered £108. Could you please tell me If you know
before Being the owner of a Spectrum+ whether this company has ceased
128, having climbed the ladder Irom trading?
the ZX81 & Spectrum 48K. my main Also could you tell me the address
reason for purchasing the 128 was tor ol lamleco Computer Sys which is on a
the inbuilt MIDI interlace. Mode muddles label on the back of the printer.
Having a MIDI equipped synthesizer Thank you, yours faithfully,
Dear Sir.
I am Interested in information on the D.H. Pipe. London NW10.
I have a Spectrum coup-
MIDI port. ie. which pin is what and
led to a single Opus Discovery I'm afraid that Rotronics are no
what is needed so that a connecting
disc drive and since recently, a Spec- longer trading, having
lead can be made between the 128
trum 128K +2 which works beautifully. recently gone Into liquidation
and the synth. It appears that there are
There is however, one problem, and that Your best bet is to contact one of the
three connections used at the synthe-
is that the sound is interfered with by a many repair companies, ol which
sizer MIDI port but I do not know what
loud drone for which my supplier has M a n C o m p a n d Video Vault are highly
these are either.
no remedy. recommended.
On another note, are there any inter-
I do not like the way In which there
laces for the 128 which would enable
is no warning in 128K mode as there is
Ihe Commodore printer MPS801 and/or
in 48K mode that Ihe computer is in
Ihe disk drive 1514 to be used.
CAPS LOCK or GRAPHICS modes I was
King regards,
A. Holmes, Exeter.
disappointed in the 128 and I gather
that other readers have encountered
Hard lines
difficulties. I congratulate Toni Baker on Dear Sir.
Last thing first. To my know- Ihe article Keypad Not Required which I have recently bought an
ledge there are no interfaces I read with interest. Opus disc drive for my 128K
which will allow the connec- Hoping to hear from you, Spectrum, and whilst I am happy with
tion of Commodore equipment lo the W.R. Luyks. Netherlands. its performance. I have noticed that it
Spectrum. Commodore went their own causes a slight interference on the TV
way a n d produced peripherals to their I a m afraid there is nothing I screen.
own standards a n d which were incom- c a n do about Ihe lack ol This consists ot faint horizontal lines
patible with just about everything else. CAPS LOCK or GRAPHICS flickering up and down the screen and.
I would slrongly r e c o m m e n d leav- mode indication a n d the drone seems although the interference is slight, once
ing Ihe MIDI port alone as lar as DIY Is lo be a mystery. I aet the impression that noticed it can become maddening.
concerned. I must admit as to only you u p g r a d e d from a standard 48K I would be grateful if you could ex-
having rudimentary knowledge ot it. Spectrum to Ihe 128 +2 a n d I wonder plain the likely cause and how to get
bul preler to buy ready m a d e units if you modified the Discovery? rid of it. Perhaps I have the disc drive too
instead of spending hours slaving over Opus produced an upgrade ROM lo close to the TV?
a hot soldering Iron! replace the existing 48K one for the dis- Yours faithfully,
Cheetah Marketing Ltd. 1 Willow- covery. I tried it out a n d it worked with- Philip A. Clark. Newcastle.
brook Science Park. Crickhowell Road. out any p r o b l e m , i n c l u d i n g any
SI. Mellons, Cardiff. (Tel. 0222 777337) will unwanted sound effects If you have not ^ ^ You are right, this is one of
sell you such a c a b l e lor £9.95. Most fitted the ROM u p g r a d e then I suggest those things that c a n drive
larger branches ot Boots also stock their you contact Opus a n d d o so forthwith, you mad! However there is not
wares. If the u p g r a d e has b e e n done or if m u c h you c a n do a n d I suspect that It
The MIDI port is very limited a n d all the Opus was supplied specifically lor is due to one of the components of your
you are likely to be a b l e to d o is send the 128K then I suggest you try the Opus Spectrum suffering a small, non fatal,
Ihe PLAY strings out lo your synlh. To d o with another 128 a n d if the fault persists h i c c u p Sir C, in his wisdom, used com-
anything more interesting, such as fhen Ihe tault is in Ihe disc drive a n d it ponents which olten were only jusl on
record, arrange a n d sync equipment should be returned for checking a n d the operational side of the specifica-
together you need a unit with al least repair. tion. Any slight c h a n g e Irom the usual
IN. OUT (possibly THRU) sockets a n d a If there are no unwanted sounds with m o d e of operation could cause such
clock or sync device. another Spectrum then your computer irritating effects.
As you have a real synlh, I would has a fault a n d that should be checked Bul before you give up hope, chang-
slrongly advise you lo invest in a sep- a n d repaired. ing the position as you suggest, not only
arate MIDI interface a n d software, ol the Opus but also of e a c h ol the other
Cheetah do a very impressive looking components that make up your system,
MIDI interlace p r i c e d at £44.95. in relation to e a c h other may ease the
EleclroMusic Research Ltd. ot 14
Mount Close. Wicktord. Essex SS11 8HG Rotronics runaround degree of the effect a n d perhaps cure
It.

Q
(Tel. 0702 335747) produce the PER- Dear Sir, I would also suggest thai you try
FORMER which in my opinion Is the best A few months ago I pur- cleaning the e d g e connector at the
real time p a c k a g e a n d costs around chased a DX85 printer 7froi
*
Irom back ol Ihe Spectrum with a cotton bud
£120. whilst XRI syslems a n d Iheir MICON Rotronics ot High Wycombe, Bucks. At d i p p e d in Isopropylalcohol or some
Interlace have Ihe best step time soft- first I could not get the machine to work "pure" clear, or using a n eraser to
ware available. Unfortunately the two using Ihe various commands In the gently remove any dirt. You c a n lose
are not software c o m p a t i b l e with e a c h manual, bul it worked really well when nothing by experimenting!

87 ZX Computing Monthly • March 1987

 ZX COMPUTING
F U L L C R E D I T F A C I L I T I E S FOR A C C E S S A N D BARCLAYCARD.

L i n e a g e : 48p per w o r d . ( V A T i n c l u s i v e )
S e m i d i s p l a y : £9.50 per s i n g l e c o l u m n c e n t i m e t r e +
^ ^
01 - 437 0699
V A T . R i n g for i n f o r m a t i o n o n series b o o k i n g s /
discounts ( m i n i m u m 2.5cm). Send your requirements to:
NICOLA BATY
All advertisements in this section must be prepaid.
Advorlisements are accepted subject to the terms a n d c o n d i t i o n s A S P Ltd., 1 G o l d e n Square,
printed o n the advertisement rate c a r d (available o n request). London W1

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S P E C T R U M TAPE and
UTH DUO PIUS
SM ire most tmttk 41k Sprttrjn uthty pDgrv
DRIVE T R A N S F E R UTILITIES to dtt-gn and pnnl you own buiirett t :<rwr\i'
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Simple operaten lor last loaders — actuate even * over 46K (tone and rale measurer) afubett
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' — converts COMPLETELY 10 normal lor tapetoed(pkA easy drive tranaier tonti
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COST only £6.99 on tape OR £7.99 on m/drivo cart. • Baifunct<incrciMaanyaw>aboio(9nyltKk'
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T R A N S F E R PACK 2 — FOR TAPE TO DRIVE T R A N S F E R • Grcpr<i«» JK cjrtlr r-oi fit tor logo«rvgn
• load t uw try SCflf f W r'om rctf prc^-jr-
Package ol programs including TU8. other utilities, allows drive • P mftaiangifi a thotr e> II WW
transfer ot many programs
• Dew ta£e« up to 4 * T m vjv
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• Detail* given on transfer o* 40 programs • Cfcxr <4 6M»r<rt properi>oniKy i<ot«l
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INFORMATION SHEETS £t each (up 10 No IB a/Mabte) rduM manytop20 has — SAE lor lot
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LERM. DEPT ZX. 11 BEACONSFIELD CLOSE, WHITELEY BAY, » «•' r you progim No need 10 iRkrnmJ
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TYNE AND WEAR NE25 9UW. viKnon now intlu)«
• Wrdew Ajtv Of mtle ;u»r J meet bo» t^umn
S In-
• O^tcral autwutc tow via omrmrat-on
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• Se!«ct (rem ip to 7 (Vftn! frri fcr-iiv-i
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SOFTWARE • fab to any peul«n re. "r ra(»f
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• Vrrtcal or udrwiyt dwrps ttor bf t«'r".|
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WD Software Me itytr to you aritttn »wtT frrf out any were
p«r-or ti* «i drmity NtO in a chMt or ti
FOR THE OL: «oe« Tuti yeu S«rti<r t>k> jt eVti-or>c
'i^irb tor awifinc trvf^pn t.Bnj m
JOSS base £13 terms or wn-eg (herr rem
Forgot that tedious, time-consuming syntin' Jus! move the cursor and press SPACE lor ail • Fi • or v.rrr WV5W I VC r» eSt>
your hie commands Cursor key* Or your |Oyst ick allow you to access microdr iv es (up to 81 • 1'flry or ?5 rVVrA- Mi ndudng lowgn
and lloppy discs (as many as our interlace allows) with upto ISO Meson each1 Scroll and itr<tiii
print directories. COPY DELETE or PRINT any rue MMoCl TV or Monttor mode before > Up so w 'on!-, irjy br m«4 on rich irr
LOADing or RUNnmg any program Vou only use the keyboard to set Ihe DATE or label a
di-wiCO »wn FORMATlirirj Easy lo us« with Psion and olher software No silly k in-, to
• Fast fert^WcnTrt'torL' rorjtyjndr'rj-rr**
lentt
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printing utilities also supplied Specify microdrivo-only. Micropcipheral or CST- • true p epwmeal ipMmg jn( r^t nr ••< ' ar»on
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• OcttV em-.t, p.mt
• Pr.rt-ng it
N10 nwJ lonti
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Mdv Extension Cable £5.50 . F>r<rft»
Eight inches long, allows addition ol oitramicrodnvos to your OL Twist it to put their slots
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Written lo leach amateurs, now used by professionals too1 Absolute bog inner, or
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stretching your speed to tSwpm. you won't I ind anything with more helpful features Wh.it
else can oiler too random sentences as well as all the basics'' Disc version unsuitable lor
m<m» ws w OPUS DS l COVfR*
• Fjl IOTBI (mflpiOtHW My* Bj.tor
BBC 8< • TMcokmHwdr'orpopflyaod^nentrdtoutr
FOR THE SPECTRUM: ccdr
WorDfinder (Microdrive/disc only) base £8 • Seath & itplace Bo l ck cepy (Me* 1 mvr
For CHEATING at crosswords Finds m-ss-ng letters, solves, anagrms 13.000 word • UrtmtMt t j» Him rode * 10k pages
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Tradewind base £3 csdr
Sailing, trading strategy game with graphic surprises > brgt tmjrirr- « vt ledftW • «lud»i«
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Jersey Quest base £3 • Inctudr •««« lilts wntwi with most crhtr
Toil adventure in time Background ol Jersey folklore Irom Stone Age to Bergerac lUnld^n
For export: • Wiri'H Vatim up to 9 bukponti wtglt
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QL hardware and software from many sources Ask tor iisbquolahon • rid tjtill, w.t, 1 trrAconn « «
ORDERING ADD COST OF MEDIUM. POSTAGE £1 OUTSIOE EUROPE HOW (I)
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Wide range ol business/practical utilities, adventures, books, our Crtv«uS vtnom (ehtrt at^ieprutrl C? 00
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Herts. NN3SAT
m j
THE BETTER LETTER
Modifications to the Tasword TWo: Improved
Tasword character set character set
POKE 41764,1 PUKE 41764,7
by John Wase and
•B": 41714,7 ' 41715,5 POKE 81716,7
Colin Laycock •c 1 : 11733(7 <17}<,7
41716,7 <1731. J <1734,7
V i 6l7l»,7or 1 (11744,7 <1743,7
•I'l 41745.< or 1
iim.i 117*7,7 <1754,7
^ * o t h Tasword 2 a n d Tasword 3
utilize the same 64-column "K'T <1 74},7 41741,I
character set: Tasman software <17<8,2 <17»,(T 1
<1776,4
didn't alter it (or Tasword 3; they 61771,2
merely c h a n g e d the location. In V i "<irf!;i" <1777: A <1771,1
both cases, therefore, Tasword's 6178},3
actual on-screen letters c a n be "E'i No c h a n g e
c h a n g e d if one wishes: In this
example many ot the lower case •l1! <1755,4 617*4,1 <1745,5
61796,2 61797,2 61798,7
letters have been redefined
Figure 1 to provide a character •n't 61 £65,5
set which has m u c h improved No c h a n g e
legibility when c o m p a r e d with
the original Tasword tetters. <1111,7 <1111,7
V i 414J4,7 61129,7
Tasword 2 V« 61814,7 (1617,7
For Tasword 2. all you have to dc *F*! i\U'17l"ot 1 <1641,4 or 4
is to enter BASIC alter l o a d i n g • ' 41856,-7 61652,7 61854,7
a n d d o the POKES listed in
Figure 2. To save the new •t1! ilflU, J
character set, select the "save • u « . No c h a n g e
Tasword" option from the m a i n lv». No c h a n g e
menu, a n d the c o d e thus saved
• v ».
includes the new characters.

Tasword 3
No c h a n g e

V» ' erwr.T ««),7

Tasword 3 Is only a little less
straightforward. Subtract 22784
from e a c h of the addresses
given In Figure 2. This is
conveniently d o n e by: "LET z =
22784: POKE 61706-z:, 7: POKE
. . . etc.
Vive La France
All this gives you a c l u e as to
how the Tasword letters are
stored. Moreover, if you check in
your Epson m a n u a l (or possibly
the o n e for your printer if it's not
a n Epson), you will find that
certain character codes
corresponding to such things as
curly brackets In the English
character set correspond to
a c c e n t e d letters In, say, the
French or G e r m a n set. It's then
not too dilficult to incorporate in
Tasword 2 a n a d d i t i o n to line 15
to soft-switch the printer to, say,
the French character set;
similarly a line 60 or 70 c a n be
readily a d d e d to Tasword 3. By
appropriate POKEs to the
addresses for the curly bracket
in the Tasword character set. you
c a n convert this into a n
a c c e n t e d letter. Et volla! A
French Tasword. both on screen
a n d printer.
No c h a n g e
Fig 2
Tasword 128
in u n p a g e d RAM, I would expect
Finally, I don't know If Tasword it to be tne same for Tasword
128 has the characters in the 128. Tasman assure me that
same addresses as Tasword 3: for Tasword 128 will shortly b e put
the latter the set starts at base on Opus disc, a n d as soon as
address 38144, a n d since this is this happens, I'll find out.
a bc def g h i j K l M n o p q r s t u v k x y z Fig 1
This is a test of the DCM character set For TasMord TNO. Only
the snail letters have been changed, but there is a significant
ihprauBHent in dn-screen legibility.
All one has to do is td enter Basic and paf.e the locations Hith
the nunbers given and then SfiUE the neH version using option t
oF the Main Menu.
In sotte cases alternative POKEs are given. They should be tried
and the hdst pleasing version selected before saving.
This character set has Much iwproved the letters "n", "1" and
"N". If ydu do ndt like the "i" and the " j " (they are now of the
sane height as the other letters, but Merge occasionally Hith
descenders of the line above), then do not Make the POKEs For
these letters.

90 ZX C o m p u t i n g Monthly • March 1987

 SneToM/isend
v.
tc.

fns n

GROWING ?AW
APR/AN, HOLE
PROGRAM BY L E V E L 9

" T h e G r o w i n g P a i n s of
A d r i a n Mole*'
TV series, the g a m e aNows you l o help Adrian with day-to-day decisions. It's a
text-based g o m e with beautiful illustrations . m d your aim is to moke Adrian as
popular as possible through your answers to multiple-choice questions. This
(our part game c o v e r s 18 months in the life ol aspiring intellectual. Admin, and is
available (or 7 different computers.

BBC B v e r s i o n is n o t Illustrated.

The G r o w i n g P.iins of Adrian M o l e is available from .ill g o o d software stockists.

If you have trouble finding it y o u c a n buy directly from Virgin Games.
Please e n c i r c l e the s o f t w a r e y o u r e q u i r e and send this tear-off to
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