Byte Magazine Volume 06 Number 11 - Data Base Management Systems

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A new small computer that won't limit you tomorrow

*

New Cromemco System One shown with our high-capability terminal and printer.

Expandability

Circle 118 on Inquiry card.

Here's a low-priced computer that won't run out of memory capacity or expandability halfway through your project.

Typically, computer usage tends to grow, requiring more capability, more memory, more storage. Without a lot of capability and expandability, your computer can be obsolete from the start.

The new System One is a real building-block machine. It has capability and expandability by the carload.

Look at these features:

■ Z80-A processor

■ 64K of RAM

■ 780K of disk storage

■ CRT and printer interfaces

■ Eight S-100 card slots, allowing expansion with

— color graphics

— additional memory

— additional interfaces for telecommunications, data acquisition, etc.

■ Small size

GENEROUS DISK STORAGE

The 780K of disk storage in the System One Model CS-1 is much greater than what is typically available in small computers. But here, too, you have a choice since a second version, Model CS-1H, has a 5" Winchester drive that gives you 5 megabytes of disk storage.

MULTI-USER, MULTI-TASKING CAPABILITY

Believe it or not, this new computer even offers multi-user capability when used with our advanced cromix* operating system option. Not only does this outstanding O/S support multiple users on this computer but does so with powerful features like multi

ple directories, file protection and record level lock. cromix lets you run multiple jobs as well.

In addition to our highly-acclaimed cromix, there is our CDOS*. This is an enhanced CP/M+type system designed for single-user applications. CP/M and a wealth of CP/M-compatible software are also available for the new System One through thirdparty vendors.

COLOR GRAPHICS/WORD PROCESSING

This small computer even gives you the option of outstanding high-resolution color graphics with our Model SDI interface and two-port RAM cards.

Then there's our tremendously wide range of Cromemco software including packages for word processing, business, and much more, all usable with the new System One.

ANTI-OBSOLESCENCE/LOW-PRICED

As you can see, the new One offers you a lot of performance. It's obviously designed with antiobsolescence in mind.

What's more, it's priced at only $3,995. That's considerably less than many machines with much less capability. And it's not that much more than many machines that have little or nothing in the way of expandability.

Physically, the One is small — 7" high. And it's allmetal in construction. It's only 141/a" wide, ideal for desk top use. A rack mount option is also available.

CONTACT YOUR REP NOW

Get all the details on this important building-block computer. Get in touch with your Cromemco rep now. He'll show you how the new System One can grow with your task.

•CROMIX and CDOS are trademarks of Cromemco Inc. tCP/M is a trademark of Digital Research

m

Cromemco™

^^^J 280 BERNARDO AVE., MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA 94040 • (415)964-7400

^^^^ Tomorrow's computers today

Circle 118 on inquiry card.

CROMIX FILE SYSTEM

/(loot d[roclory)

CROMIX*—Cromemco's outstanding UNIX— like operating system

cromix is just the kind of major development you've come to expect from Cromemco. After all, we're already well-known for the most respected software in the microcomputer field.

And now we've come up with the industry's first UNix-lookalike for microcomputers. It's a tried and proven operating system. It's available on both 5" and 8" diskettes for Cromemco systems with 128K or more of memory.

Here are just some of the features you get in this powerful Cromemco system:

• Multi-user and multi-tasking capability

• Hierarchical directories

• Completely compatible file, device, and interprocess I/O

• Extensive subsystem support

FILE SYSTEM

One of the important features of our cromix is its file system comprised of hierarchical directories. It's a tree structure of three types of files: data files,

■CROMIX is a trademark of Cromemco. Inc. tUNIX is a trademark of Bell Telephone Laboratories

directories, and device files. File, device, and interprocess I/O are compatible among these file types (input and output may be redirected interchangeably from and to any source or destination).

The tree structure allows different directories to be maintained for different users or functions with no chance of conflict.

PROTECTED FILES

Because of the hierarchical structure of the file system, cromix maintains separate ownership of every file and directory. All files can thus be protected from access by other users of the system. In fact, each file is protected by four separate access privileges in each of the three user categories.

TREMENDOUS ADDRESS SPACE, FAST ACCESS

The flexible file system and generalized disk structure of cromix give a disk address space in excess of one gigabyte per volume — file size is limited only by available disk capacity.

Speed of access to disk files has also been optimized. Average access speeds far surpass any yet implemented on microcomputers..

'C COMPILER AVAILABLE, TOO

Cromemco offers a wide range of languages that operate under cromix. These include a high-level command process language and extensive subsystem support such as cobol, Fortran iv, ratfor, lisp, and 32K and 16K BASICS.

There is even our highly-acclaimed 'C compiler which allows a programmer fingertip access to cromix system calls.

THE STANDARD O-S FOR THE FUTURE

The power and breadth of its features make cromix the standard for the next generation of microcomputer operating systems.

And yet it is available for a surprisingly low $595.

The thing to do is to get all this capability working for you now. Get in touch with your Cromemco rep today.

a

Cromemco ™

incorporated

280 BERNARDO AVE., MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA 94040 • (415)964-7400

Tomorrow's computers today

Circle 119 on Inquiry card

In The Queue

Volume 6, Number

November 198!

Features

1 O Writing with a Data-Base Management System by Edward E

Brent Jr / Word-processing systems work fine after you know what you're going to say. but a data-base management system can help you get it all together.

50 Switching Power Supplies, An Introduction by Steve Garcia /

You can experiment with a simple design for a nonisolated single-ended switching voltage regulator

48

Fundamentals of Relational Data Organization by Joel Neely and Steve Stewart / How you can apply a set of mathematically elegant principles to the organization of your data base.

Ofc Build a Bar-Code Scanner Inexpensively by Bradley W

Bennett / In one package, Hewlett-Packard has incorporated the optical heart of a scanner system.

w"fr The Microcomputer as a Laboratory Instrument by Daniel Cosgrove / The microcomputer can become a standard laboratory instrument for running experiments and analyzing the results.

ww Data-Base Management Systems: Powerful Newcomers to Microcomputers by Michael Gagle, Gary J Koehler, and Andrew Whinston / A brief introduction to data-base systems leads to a look at how one

microcomputer implementation works.

1 m*W DIF: A Format for Data Exchange between Applications Programs by Candace E Kalish and Malinda F Mayer / Software Arts proposes a solution to the problem of inaccessible data.

AwO A Survey of Data-Base Management Systems for Microcomputers by Kathryn S Barley and James R Driscoll / Data-base management systems are becoming a popular software item. Check this survey for the one that interests you.

*3u PDQ: A Data Manager for Beginners, Don't Reinvent the Wheel by Paul Swanson / A well-known technique makes a good compromise between speed and ease of programming.

3 1 * The Atari Tutorial, Part 3: Player-Missile Graphics by Chris

Crawford / The Atari player-missile system allows you to move game figures across the screen quickly and easily—even in BASIC.

<3 #w Toward a Structured 6809 Assembly Language, Part t: An Introduction to Structured Assembly Language by Gregory Walker /

The problem with the goto construct is that it is too general a programming form.

rfOT PROLOG, A Step Toward the Ultimate Computer Language

by Ron Ferguson / This high-level language approaches English in ease to use.

400

PS-A FORTH-LIke Threaded Language, Part 2 by Valo G

Motalygo / PS overcomes some of the problems FORTH has with low-level word definitions.

■r# A Linking a Pascal Mlcroenglne to a Cyber 170 by Steven M

Sedlet and Jonathan Dust / A simple file-transfer process combines the best of both worlds.

*Tw3 Information Hiding In Pascal, Packages and Pointers by

Michael B Feldman / Hiding unnecessary details improves high-level programming.

Reviews

7O Reversal, Othello for the Apple II by Mark Friedman I 2.0 The Exatron Stringy Floppy Data-Storage System by Keith Carlson

I 38 The Datahandler from Miller Microcomputer Services by Allyn Richardson

1 DZ Microsoft Softcard by Mark Pelczarski 1 OO Courseware Magazine by Elaine Holden 264 Orchestra-80 by Elizabeth Cooper and Yvon Kolya Z/4 Apple II File-Management Systems by Ken Blochowiak 342 ENHBAS by Mahlon G Kelly

434 Five Spelling-Correction Programs for CP/M-Based Systems by Phil Lemmons

Nucleus

6 10

8, 134 302 364 409

413

414

449

458,

464

465

466

490

499

505 558 559 560

Editorial: Can We Agree on Standards?

Letters

308 BYTE's Bits

BYTE Comment: Reviewing the Microcomputer Revolution

BYTELINES

Ask BYTE

Languages Forum: A View from the Lectern: What's

Wrong with Technical Writing Today?

Technical Forum: Where Am I? A Proposal for a New

Microprocessor Instruction

Programming Quickies: WRITELONG, A Pascal Simulation

of Long-Integer Output

User's Column

463 Book Reviews

Software Received

Clubs and Newsletters

Event Queue

Books Received

System Notes: A Voice for the Apple II without Extra

Hardware

What's New?

Unclassified Ads

Reader Service

BOMB, BOMB Results

BITI

PORT 2 5 CHANNEL

ANALOG OUTPUT

DIGITAL

INPUT

DIGITAL POWER OUTPUT

Page 36

Page 84

Page 152

Page 342

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc. 3

m

Editor in Chief Christopher Morgan

Managing Editor

Mark Haas

Technical Editors

Gregg Williams. Senior Editor; Richard S Shuford; Curtis P Feigel; George Stewart; Arthur Little; Stanley Wszola: Charles Freiberg, New Products Editor; Steve Ciarcia; Mark Dahrnke; Philip Lemmons, Consulting Editors; Jon Swanson, Draftsman

Copy Editors

Beverly Cronin, Chief; Faith Hanson; Warren Williamson; Anthony J Lockwood; Ann Graves; David R Anderson; Bob Reinert; Linda M Evers

Assistants

Faith Ferry; Debe Wheeler; Karen A Cilley; Susan Ferber; Marie Hennessy

Production

Nancy Estle, Director; Christine Destrempes, Asst Director; Jonathan M Graves, Creative Consultant; Wai Chiu Li; Patrice Scribner; Damian Henrigues; Jan Muller; Linda J Sweeney; Sherry McCarthy, Chief Typographer; Debi Fredericks; Donna Sweeney; Valerie Horn

Advertising

Thomas Harvey, Director; Marion Carlson; Rob Hannings; Marilyn Williams; Deborah Porter; Vicki Reynolds; Jacqueline Earnshaw, Reader Service Coordinator

Circulation

Gregory Spitzfaden, Manager; Andrew Jackson. Asst Manager; Agnes E Perry; Barbara Varnum; Louise Menegus; Pinky Krulis; James Bingham, Dealer Sales; Deborah J Cadwell, Asst.

Controller's Office

Daniel Rodrigues, Controller;

Mary E Fluhr, Acct. & D/P Mgr; Karen Burgess;

Jeanne Cilley; Linda Fluhr; Vicki Bennett

Traffic

N Scott Gagnon; Michael Bacon

Receptionist

Joanne Colburn

Publishers

Virginia Londoner; Gordon R Williamson; John E Hayes, Associate Publisher; Cheryl A Hurd; Michele P Verville. Publisher's Assistants

Officers of McGraw-Hill Publications Company; Paul F McPherson, President; Executive Vice Presidents: James E Boddorf. Gene W Simpson; Group Vice President: Daniel A McMillan; Senior Vice President-Editorial: Ralph R Schulz; Vice Presidents: Kemp Anderson. Business Systems Development; Robert B Doll, Circulation; James E Hackett, Controller; Eric B Herr, Planning and Development; H John Sweger, Marketing.

Officers of the Corporation: Harold W McGraw Jr, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; Joseph L Dionne. President and Chief Operating Officer; Robert N Landes. Senior Vice President and Secretary; Ralph J Webb. Treasurer.

In This Issue

Office workers who bravely face that ever-growing mountain of paper will tell you that keeping track of information becomes more difficult daily. How to impose order? As Robert Tinney's cover suggests, the answer is something like an electronic file cabinet.

This month's theme concerns the problems of data management. Joel Neely and Steve Stewart will get you started with "Fundamentals of Relational Data Organization." From there you can move on to "Data-Base Management Systems: Powerful Newcomers to Microcomputers," "A Survey of Data-Base Management Systems for Microcomputers," and "PDQ: A Data Manager for Beginners." "DIF: A Format for Data Exchange between Applications Programs" presents a strong argument for standardization of data formats. Apple II file-management systems are reviewed. And you can learn how to write with your data-base management system. Is spelling a nightmare? If so, you'll be interested in Phil Lemmons' review of the five major CP/M spellingcorrection programs. Of course, there's Ciarcia's Circuit Cellar, BYTELINES, and our other regular features, too.

BYTE is published monthly by BYTE Publications Inc. 70 Main St, Peterborough NH 03458. phone (603) 924-9281, a wholly-owned subsidiary of McGraw-Hill, Inc. Address subscriptions, change of address. USPS Form 3579, and fulfillment questions to BYTE Subscriptions, POB 590, Martinsville NJ 08836. Second class postage paid at Waseca, Minnesota 56093 - USPS Publication No. 528890 (ISSN 0360-5280). Canadian second class registration number 9321. Subscriptions are S19 for one year. S34 for two years, and S49 for three years in the USA and its possessions. In Canada and Mexico, S21 for one year, S38 for two years, S55 for three years. S43 for one year air delivery to Europe. S35 surface delivery elsewhere. Air delivery to selected areas at additional rates upon request. Single copy price is S2.50 in the USA and its possessions, S2.95 in Canada and Mexico. S4.00 in Europe. and S4.50 elsewhere. Foreign subscriptions and sales should be remitted in United States funds drawn on a US bank. Printed in United States of America.

Address all editorial correspondence to the editor at BYTE. POB 372. Hancock NH 03449. Unacceptable manuscripts will be returned if accompanied by sufficient first class postage. Not responsible for lost manuscripts or photos. Opinions expressed by the authors are not necessarily those of BYTE. Entire contents copyright © 1981 by BYTE Publications Inc. All rights reserved. Where necessary, permission is granted by the copyright owner for libraries and others registered with the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) to photocopy any article herein for the base fee of S1.00 per copy of the article or item plus 25 cents per page. Payment should be sent directly to the CCC, 21 Congress St, Salem MA 01970. Copying done for other than personal or internal reference use without the permission of McGraw-Hill is prohibited. Requests for special permission or bulk orders should be addressed to the publisher.

BYTE* is available in microform from University Microfilms International, 300 N Zeeb Rd, Dept PR, Anr Arbor Ml 48106 USA or 18 Bedford Row, Dept PR, London WCIR 4EJ England.

Subscription WATS Line: (800) 258-5485

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Palo Alto CA 94303

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Hajar Associates 1220 Prairie Lane Apopka FL 32703

November 19B1 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 373 on inquiry card.

MicroAngelo

W t and beyond.

■M't.'

1*3

Vt.-a •

SCION Corporation pioneered advanced information display systems with the

elegantly simple MicroAngelo'" high resolution S100 single board graphics

computer. With MicroAngelo'" came a powerful, flexible CP/M* compatible, high

level firmware called Screenware.'M For MicroAngelo'M Color System, Colorpak

software evolved. Easy to integrate, easy to convert and easy to use. This software

gave MicroAngeloIM unparalleled capacity to manipulate color transparencies.

Beyond MicroAngelo,1 M with the prototype Advanced Congressional Workstation

developed for the U.S. Congress, SCION Corporation proved an interactive, very

high resolution text/graphics display system can be built with existing technology.

SCION Corporation grows at its unprecedented rate by evolving beyond today's

triumphs, to develop graphics engines to solve tomorrow's problems.

SCION Corporation. More than a graphics company

For information on the next generation of advanced information display systems,

call today. If the image is important, it has to be SCION.

Jt,*,' >-',|v

It'the image is important.

12310 Pinecrest Road/Reston, Virginia 22091 703/476-6100 TWX: 710-833-0684

■

■

m

■

Circle 137 on inquiry card.

MAINTAIN

PROJECT CONTROL

WITH

MILESTONE™

it

-<v

Put your microcomputer to work...

As a project manager, you know the value of careful planning. An oversight here, a miscalculation there, and in no time, you could be in a lot of trouble.

Now, thanks to MILESTONE™, it's easy to obtain and keep complete project control.

MILESTONE is an easy to use computer program that puts your desk top microcomputer to work using the same proven "critical path" techniques previously available only on big, expensive computers. Now, regardless of your type of project, you can plan and control manpower, dollars, and time.

Available in most microcomputer formats: CP/M,* CP/M-86* Apple PASCAL, UCSD PASCAL. Call or write:

SOFTWARE SOFTWARE DIGITAL MARKETING

DIGITAL MARKETING

2670 CHERRY LANE

WALNUT CREEK • CA 94596

(415) 938-2880

*CP/M and CP/M-86 are trademarks of Digital Research

'MILESTONE is a trademark of Organic Software

Editorial

Can We Agree on Standards?

by Chris Morgan, Editor in Chief

Recipe for a heated debate:

• Put two or more personal computer users in a room. *Ask them to agree on a hardware or software standard.

• Stand hack.

Somewhat cynical7 Perhaps, but the mere mention of a proposed standard often raises a whole crop of hackles. I suspect there are several reasons for this attitude: computer scientists are notoriously individualistic (not to say curmudgeonly); we are often reactionary because of our inbred love of ritual (if you doubt this, ask any psychologist who has studied computer people); and, perhaps most important, many personal computer industry standards are lacking in many ways.

For example, we seem to have been poured into the BASIC mold, like it or not. (Although, ironically, BASIC is possibly the least standardized of the high-level languages.) One hundred ten baud is not exactly Mach 1. Standard television receivers leave much to be desired. The S-100 bus has only recently become a serious hardware standard, thanks mostly to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

I remember the day when, fresh from seven years as an aerospace electronics engineer, I entered the BYTE offices and first saw an S-100 board. I was appalled at the number of connector pins—a design approach anathema to anyone whose circuits have to survive the vibrations of a moving aircraft. There simply was no excuse for putting 100 pins on a printed-circuit board when half that number would do.

Today I know that, far from being a disaster, the S-100 standard has proved its worth (although I still wouldn't want an S-100-based computer in the cockpit of a plane). So I guess I'm a bit of a curmudgeon myself. In fact, I've been known to take inordinate delight in approaching a group of good-natured hackers at a computer convention and innocently expressing my preference for BASIC over APL as "much the superior language," or the like. The resulting debate is often enough to activate nearby smoke detectors.

But returning to the question of standards, I want to bring to your attention a standard that just about everyone should like: it's called DIF (for Data Interchange Format). DIF was developed by Dan Bricklin and Bob Frankston at Software Arts (the developers of VisiCalc), aided by Mitch Kapor, inventor of VisiPlot. It's comprehensively described this month in an article called "DIF: A Format for Data Exchange between Applications Programs," by Candace E Kalish and Malinda F Mayer, on page 174. Briefly, DIF is a standard method for representing data in a program so that it can be transported directly to other programs, without time-consuming modifications. For example, a VisiCalc user might want to plot some calculated data using VisiPlot. (In fact, this is why DIF was initially developed.) Since both programs accept the DVF standard, the process becomes quick and straightforward.

As Bricklin explains it, "If you're building a box with pipes going in and out of it, it would be nice if there were one pipe that you knew other boxes could connect to. With DIF, we essentially define the diameter of that pipe and the

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Mi

New! Z Controller and Z Drives

Expect more from Percom. You won't be disappointed.

Percom's double-density Z Controller for the H-89 is now available.

Check its many outstanding features.

And keep in mind its from Percom, a company that introduced its first disk system in 1977.

• Controls up to four single- or double-headed mini-disk drives.

• Handles 35-, 40-, 77- and 80-track drives, and other standard track densities. • Formatted data storage capacity of 80-track diskettes is over 368 Kbytes. Forty-track diskettes store over 184 Kbytes. Capacities for other track densities are proportional. A Z system with four double-headed, 80-track drives provides almost 3 megabytes of on-line data. • The Z Controller co-resides with your H-89 disk drive controller. Your software can select either, and you don't have to move drives around when switching between systems. • The Z Controller includes Percom's proven digital data separator circuit and a dependable write-precompensation circuit. Expect reliable disk operation for a long, long time under 'Z' control. • The Percom Z Controller is priced at only $249.95, complete with HDOS-compatible disk drivers on diskette, internal interconnecting cable and comprehensive users manual.

System requirements - H-89 Computer with 24 Kbytes memory (min). Replacement ROM Kit H-88-7 and HDOS 2.0.

PERCOM DATA COMPANY, INC.

1 1220 PAGEMILL RD. DALLAS. TX 75243 C214)340-70ai

Toll-Free Order Number: 1-800-527-1222

0 19S1 PERCOM DATA COMPANY. Inc.

PERCOM, ZFD-40 and ZFD-80 are trademarks ol Percom Data Company.

CP/M is a trademark of Digital Research Corporation.

Add-On Z Drives for H-89, H-8 Computers

• Forty- and eighty-track densities in either 1- or 2-drive modules.

• All drives are rated for single- and double-density operation. With a Z Controller, an 80-track drive can store over 364 Kbytes (formatted, one-side), a 40-track drive can store over 184 Kbytes.

• Some models permit "flippy" storage, letting you flip a diskette and store files on the second side. • Z drives are fully tested, including a 48-hour operating burn-in to prevent shipment of drives with latent defects. • Assembled and tested one-drive units from only $399, two-drive units from only $795.

System requirements - H-89 or H-8 computer with 16-Kbyte RAM, Heath first-drive floppy disk system, HDOS and drives interconnecting cable. (Two-drive interconnecting cable optionally available from Percom)

PRICES AND SPECIFICATIONS SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE.

Watch for announcement of 'Z' CP/M.

J Yes ... I'd like to know more about Percom Z drives and the

• Z Controller. Rush me free literature.

• Send to

I PERCOM DATA COMPANY, Inc., Dept. 26 -B02

; 11220 Pagemili Rd. Dallas, TX 75243

• name

| street

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| city state 1

1 zip phone number ; MAIL TODAY!

PROFESSIONAL PASCAL

Pascal/

4o0

SYMBOLIC DEBUGGER

This fourth generation version of our reliable, Z-80 native code compiler adds the two features professionals ask for:

♦ SWAT™—an interactive symbolic Pascal debugger that allows easy error detection.

♦ Overlays—that allow larger programs to run in limited memory.

A compiler for Professional programmers

Pascal/Z is a true Pascal. It closely follows the Jensen and Wirth standard with a minimum of extensions designed to aid the serious program developer in producing extremely compact, bug-free code that runs FAST.

Pascal/Z generates Z-80 native code that is ROMable and Re-entrant. Permits separate compilation, direct file access, external routines and includes a relocating macro assembler and Microsoft compatible linker. And code written for Pascal/Z is fully compatible with I'PAS 8000, our new native code Pascal compiler for Z-8000, to guarantee graceful migration to 16 bit operation.

Get "The FACTS about Pascal"

Confused about which Pascal to buy? Pseudo-code... Native code... M, MT or Z? Compare the unbiased benchmarks in our new booklet. Don't buy a Pascal compiler until you've read it.

Call us for a free copy:

800-847-2088

(outside NYS)

or 607-257-0190

And ask your local full-service computer dealer about our 'i$f Pascal/Z

'** ^L demo package.

^^Ithaca Intersystems Inc.

Micros for bigger ideas.

Ithaca Intersystems Inc.

1650 Hanshaw Rd • Ithaca, NY 14850 • TWX 510 255-4346 U.K. Distributor: Ithaca Intersystems (U.K.)Ltd. Coleridge Road London N8 8ED Phone: 01-341 2447 Telex: 299568

Editorial

number of threads per inch." Another positive feature of DIF is the ease with which it can be used by novice programmers as well as experienced hackers.

Software Arts is actively promoting DIF through the nonprofit DIF Clearinghouse, POB 527, Cambridge MA 02139. Anyone adopting DIF will have his or her program added to the list of DIF-compatible programs, which can be obtained by writing to the clearinghouse. Several programs currently support the DIF standard (see the aforementioned article for a complete list). DIF appears to be a standard that has everything going for it, and I endorse it.

I'd like to hear from readers about the whole question of standards in our industry. Are our attempts to organize our lives futile7 Should we even try? Is it inevitable that economics will be the lone arbiter of tomorrow's standards? I suspect this may be the case.B

We recently received word that Dan Bricklin is this year's winner of ACM s Grace Murray Hopper award for the most valuable contribution to the field by someone under age 30. Congratulations from all of us at BYTE... CM

Articles Policy

BYTE is continually seeking quality manuscripts written by individuals who are applying personal computer systems, designing such systems, or who have knowledge which will prove useful to our readers. For a more formal description of procedures and requirements, potential authors should send a large (9 by 12 inch, 30.5 by 22.8 cm), self-addressed envelope, with 28 cents US postage affixed, to BYTE Author's Guide, POB 372, Hancock NH 03449.

Articles which are accepted are purchased with a rate of up to S50 per magazine page, based on technical quality and suitability for BYTE's readership. Each month, the authors of the two leading articles in the reader poll (BYTE's Ongoing Monitor Box or "BOMB") are presented with bonus checks of $100 and S50. Unsolicited materials should be accompanied by full name and address, as well as return postage.

BYTE's Bits

Networking Scheme for the TRS-80 Model II

Tandy Corporation has arranged to use Datapoint Corporation's Attached Resource Computer (ARC) technology, software, and protocols for a high-speed TRS-80 Model II local network. Called ARCNET, the new network will let up to 255 Model lis share peripherals and data bases. ARCNET can include Datapoint file processors, computers, printers, and 137-megabyte hard disks. For an ARCNET network, you will need a $400 board, which Tandy will sell and install, plus RG-62 coaxial cable and junction boxes to link the computers. One in four Model lis on the network will function as a file processor.

Since Model lis on the ARCNET network can share access to a large hard disk, there will be a version of the machine without a built-in floppy disk. Future Tandy computers will be ARCNET-compatible. Tandy will not adapt the TRS-80 Model III for the network, citing different screen parameters and operation speeds as the reason. ■

Circle 208 on inquiry card.

The ultimate single user machine

The PDS-80™ with Cache BIOS™ is a professional system designed for the most rigorous single user CP/M* environments ... in business, software development, scientific, educational and industrial research ... where speed and program space are critical factors.

SymBIOSis quadruples speed

No matter what high-level language you use...Cobol, Basic, Fortran, PL/1, or Pascal... PDS-80 offers more speed, power and reliability than any other floppy based CP/M system currently on the market. The InterSystems Cache BIOS fully exploits the advanced DMA and interrupt features of our reliable Series II hardware to buffer whole tracks in extended memory so most operations run two to four times faster than on other floppy based systems... actually equals the speed of many small hard disk systems. And Cache BIOS also provides many sophisticated system test and protection features to assure reliable operation.

An advanced CP/M application system

PDS-80 has all you need for commercial systems integration and applications software development... including a choice of the industry's only integral 8 bit front panel. Best of all, PDS-80 allows the systems integrator or applications developer addressing a vertical market to develop on the same components he configures for resale. The highly expandable modular design with

20 slot S-100 mainframe allows almost unlimited options to suit any end use environment... including a choice of tabletop orrackmount design.

InterSystems will work with you at whatever level is appropriate to configure the target system you need ... right up to fully assembled and tested systems with floppy and Winchester disk drives.

Full software support

In addition to InterSystems' Cache BIOS and the CP/M operating system, models of PDS-80

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Music Board Draws Criticism

Having read Rob Moore's article "Mountain Computer's MusicSystem" (see the July 1981 BYTE, page 60), I feel I must comment on some of the technical errors that give an incorrect impression of other synthesizers available for the Apple, particularly since our ALF synthesizers are mentioned several times in the article.

First, Mr Moore has an incorrect impression of the definition of "synthesizer." Contrary to his statements, all music cards available for the Apple that I'm aware of are truly synthesizers, not just Mountain Computer's. A "music synthesizer" is simply a device that creates music by "synthesis," i.e., by control of two or more parameters (each of which is only part of a sound) to produce a complete sound of the desired nature. Mr Moore seems to think that an ability to imitate conventional instruments is necessary in a synthesizer, but such is not the case. Actually, no synthesizer available for the Apple (and, for that matter, virtually no synthesizer of any sort) can imitate conventional instruments. Only Mountain Computer claims to be able to do this. A few moments of listening will convince anyone that the claim is advertising "hype": the unit simply cannot imitate most instruments well enough to fool even the moderately careful listener, much less someone very familiar with the instrument being imitated. Responsible companies make no such claim; the goal of synthesizers is to create music that sounds good and has sufficient variety, not to duplicate a conventional instrument's sounds exactly.

Mr Moore places the Mountain Computer synthesizer in the same class with Moog and ARP synthesizers, although they are almost totally different (the Mountain Computer unit, for example, uses additive synthesis and the Moog and ARP units are almost exclusively subtractive synthesis). Then he degrades the attack-decay-sustain-release method used on the ALF units, although this method is identical to the envelopes used on the expensive Moog and ARP. He specifically mentions that this method is difficult to use for piano-like envelopes, since they decay during sustain. This is incorrect. The fact that a piano decays during sustain simply means that the sustain level should be adjusted to zero and a very slow decay rate used. The abrupt drop upon

Letters

key release is, of course, managed with a fast release rate setting.

In the realm of music notation, Mr Moore claims that music printed by the PRINT command can be cut and pasted to form an orchestral score. This, too, is incorrect. In an orchestral score (acutally "full score"), the measure bars will line up from part to part; the PRINT command does not adjust the music printout as it would be in a typical musical score. In fact, the PRINT command output is missing so many music features, notably beaming of notes shorter than quarter notes, that to an untrained eye it might not even resemble the original score, even if the various parts are pasted together.

Mr Moore also fails to understand the limits of the Apple's processor, except when discussing the particularly difficult case of software-driven D/A (digital-toanalog) synthesis. He mentions that three ALF 3-voice cards can be used for nine voices, which is true, but he states that an advantage of this card is that more voices can be added simply by using additional cards. If this were true, why not use four cards for twelve voices? In fact, the Apple processor is pressed to keep up with the nine voices. The processor-speed limitation affects every parameter controlled by the software. If the Apple were twice as fast, we would be able to have envelopes on the ALF card that were twice as smooth, which would result in a greater variety of sounds due to increased resolution and accurate control. The speed limit affects all synthesizers of all types, but the Mountain Computer system is particularly affected because the computer runs only at half speed during playback. Add the burden of 16 voices, compared to ALF's conservative nine, and you'll surely realize the Mountain Computer's software-controlled parameters (such as frequency and amplitude envelopes) must be very coarse indeed. In turn, this limits the variety of sounds available.

Mr Moore's statement that square-wave synthesizers have invariably sharp high notes and buzzy-sounding low notes is incorrect. Using Fourier analysis, which he describes on page 78, one can see that the harmonic contents of high and low notes are identical. The process he calls additive synthesis (used to create different sounds) can be done on every synthesizer available for the Apple, not just the Mountain Computer system. It is important to note that additive synthesis can be used only to

add harmonics. Therefore, a square-wave synthesizer, already rich in harmonics, cannot produce low harmonic sounds using additive synthesis. By using very detailed and rapid envelopes on several channels, extremely complex and interesting sounds can be created. Because the Mountain Computer unit cannot produce very short notes (due to processor limitations I mentioned) and because it does not have a subroutine capability (which is essential, especially for echo/reverb effects), it cannot produce the types of sounds that are available on the square-wave units.

The greatest injustice done to the various competing cards lies in the text box "Music Making " on page 84 and in Moore's conclusions. He virtually declares that all other systems have advantages and disadvantages, but the Mountain Computer system has the best of everything. Each unit has its own best and worst factors. True, the Mountain Computer unit has a price of $545 and a fullblown ALF AMS system is $735 (not $795 as quoted in the article), but the ALF MO has as many voices as that full-blown system and costs only $195 (not to mention having all the goodies that on page 92 he wishes the Mountain Computer system had). As one might expect, these differently priced systems offer different types of performance. Despite Mr Moore's claims, the Mountain Computer system is definitely not the most powerful synthesizer available for the Apple II—no particular unit is.

Finally, it might be nice for readers to have our address and phone number. Rob Moore gives the phone number and address of every company he mentions except ALF. Our phone number is (303) 234-0871.

Philip J Tubb ALF Products Inc 1448 Estes Denver CO 80215

Rob Moore Replies:

/ must concede Phil Tubb's point that any device that allows control of two or more musical parameters can accurately be called a synthesizer. According to his definition, however, the Apple's speaker, with its control of frequency and volume (on or off), is also a synthesizer. But I do not know of any "professional-quality"

10 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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Letters,

synthesizer that does not offer some degree of waveform control, whether it is Moog, ARP, Synclavier, or even Radio Shack's new Moog unit.

In my article, I did not say that a synthesizer must be able to imitate real instruments. In fact, a synthesizer with control of a reasonable number of parameters will be able to produce recognizable instrument sounds as a by-product of its flexibility in sound production.

Mr Tubb has also apparently confused the meanings of the words imitate, simulate, and duplicate. Neither I, nor Mountain Computer, claim that the MusicSystem can duplicate the sound of real instruments; however, it can produce recognizable simulations (or imitations) of a number of conventional instruments. This is an ability that is usually attractive to newcomers who have not had much experience with music synthesis, but who might enjoy simulating the sounds of familiar instruments.

Mr Tubb is correct in his comments about the MusicSystem's PRINT command. Yet, that is why I referred to its output, when cut and pasted, as a ". . . sort-of-orchestral ..." score. While unconventional, the result is still useful.

I'm afraid that it is Mr Tubb who fails to understand the capabilities of the Apple's 6502 microprocessor. If the 6502 is fast enough to generate D/A music, sampling four parts at 8 kHz each, then it certainly has the speed to sample 16 envelopes at several hundred samples per second. As a matter of fact, the MusicSystem's 8 ms envelope-sample period falls near the beginning of the 5 to 20 ms range of periods typically found in systems of this type. His comment that the envelopes must be very coarse in a 16-voice system (while smooth with the ALF's "conservative" nine voices) has no basis in fact. It sounds as though he is trying to say that "less is more"—that nine square-wave voices are somehow better at producing music than 16 variable waveform voices.

I stand by the statement that squarewave-only systems invariably have bright, sharp high notes and buzzy-sounding lows. Although both high- and lowfrequency square waves have the same harmonic content, they do not have the same mix of frequencies. Additionally, the human ear's response drops off quite fast at low frequencies, so when a low-frequency square wave is played, the listener hears proportionally more of the high-frequency components—thus, the "buzzy" sound.

Regarding additive synthesis: Just as Fourier analysis decomposes a waveform into its simplest component parts (i.e., sine waves with frequencies that are integer multiples of the note's fundamental frequency), Fourier synthesis is used to construct a waveform from these same components. Although additive synthesis is often used as a synonym for Fourier synthesis, it may also consist of adding various arbitrary waveforms to synthesize the final result. But I cannot agree that a fixed-waveform music device can accomplish additive synthesis. Certainly some interesting and sometimes pleasant sounds can be produced, but rapid envelope variations are not the same as additive synthesis.

Mr Tubb is correct when he mentions, as I did in the article, that the Mountain Computer MusicSystem has no musical subroutine capability, while the ALF does. Fortunately, this is only a software limitation that will be corrected in the next software release and not a hardware limitation.

I do not believe that arty injustice was done in the "Music Making" textbox in the article. When products of any sort are produced to meet specific cost goals, various trade-offs have to be made to stay within those limits. Inevitably, the tradeoffs vary and different products will have their own strengths and weaknesses. Also, as electronic technology advances, prices will come down and allow features to be included that might have been too expensive a few years ago.

Mr Tubb also manages to confuse the terms most powerful and best. The MusicSystem is the most powerful synthesizer currently available for the Apple II. It offers more voices and control of more musical parameters than any of the others. It is also relatively expensive and a bit more difficult to use than some of the lower-cost units. This is not to say that it is always the best choice for a given individual. The best choice is the unit that fits within the user's budget and offers the most acceptable combination of features.

I'm sure that many people will find the ALF MCI to be a good choice. With its nine voices and the excellent ALF software, the MCI is a very good value.

DUE TO A PRINTING ERROR, the

PerCom Heath Zenith ad on page 15 of the October issue should have been the PerCom ad for the TRS-80 drive systems. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused our readers.

Quality Percom products are available from the following authorized Percom retailers. If a retailer is not listed for your area, call Percom toll free at 1-800-5271222 for the address of a nearby retailer, or to order directly from Percom.

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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Letters

// the buyer can afford $545 or so, he or she should consider the MusicSystem. While its software could be improved in some areas, the MusicSystem's capabilities cannot be duplicated at this time.

An experimenter who wants to learn computer music from the inside out could take advantage of the excellent and inexpensive D/A music products offered by Micro-Technology Unlimited if he or she is willing to do some of the software work.

There are also a number of other inexpensive music cards—I have not tried them all. In short, there is no single system best for everyone. I suggest that readers go to a store and try out as many as possible and let their ears and budget decide.

I apologize for the inadvertent omission of ALF's address.

Mountain Computer Responds:

While the overall tone of Mr Philip Tubb's letter is extremely patronizing toward his own product and critical toward ours, I must say that Rob Moore's fine rebuttal covers many of the complaints that we would have in that particular category. There are one or two technical points that I will elaborate on here.

Our use of envelope control is one that represents a true envelope and how it actually occurs in an instrument, rather than in a conventionally synthesized method. This allows for the proper length and decay factors giving a more natural sound. Mr Tubb also fails to mention that his system cannot print any scores.

Another point that he brings out is that the computer runs at half speed on playback. While this is true, it is not a drawback because we can use the DMA capabilities of our system to our advantage. We service 16 voices without the information for the waveforms because the board has integrated intelligence. It can produce enough information for itself and the 16 voices simultaneously without the need for the Apple's 6502 processor's time. The ALF board, on the other hand, must be tied to the 6502 processor, continually using it to service the 9 voices and the envelopes. In short, we have very fine resolution on our waveforms and envelope controls, and ALF only has the envelope at a very low resolution point.

Additionally, the 9 voices (and that's only with three boards) are still not equal to or as versatile—that is the word Mr

16 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Moore used—as the Mountain Computer system. Without any argument on any other manufacturer's part, you will find the most capable and versatile system to be the Mountain Computer system.

Kent C Greenough, Director of Sales Mountain Computer Inc 300 El Pueblo Rd Scotts Valley CA 95066

A Little Ada Clarification

Having read "BYTELines" in the August 1981 BYTE (page 224) and having received several phone calls as a result of the article "Ada and Little Ada Released," I am prompted to write and clarify what may be a bit of a confusion.

TeleSoftware is wholly owned by a company called TeleSoft. TeleSoft does indeed have the first commercially available Ada compiler. It's called TeleSoftAda.

The juxtaposition of TeleSoftware's implementation of Ada and some information about "Little Ada" was unfortunate. There is absolutely no connection between TeleSoft-Ada and Little Ada.

Perhaps the confusion has arisen because only one address was printed at the end of the article, not ours!

Peter Dine, President

TeleSoft

10639 Roselle St

San Diego CA 92121

Setting the Record Straight

In the August BYTE, our Multl/OS for 8080 and Z80 systems was mentioned in "BYTELines." BYTE incorrectly stated that "like the others, it also maintains CP/M compatibility." We are not similar to the others, they are similar to us! InfoSoft has been the trailblazer in CP/M compatibility since we created the game with CDOS. Everyone else is trying to catch up to us. Multl/OS is a new product based on our single-user I/OS that has been around for more than four years. We have maintained CP/M compatibility for just as long.

Richard Roth, Vice President Software Development InfoSoft Systems Inc 25 Sylvan Rd S Westport CT 06880 ■

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WHAT'S THE KEY TO BUYIHG A COMPUTER?

Look beyond the computer. Look at how the total system- hardware, software, support, servicemeets your needs, today and tomorrow. That's the key. When you choose a computer source, you choose a long term partner who must stand by you with total support. And no one stands by you like Heath/Zenith.

Software

Including word processing, business applications, versatile utility programs, and the Heath Users' Group library of over 500 low-cost programs for home, work or play.

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For your own custom programs, Microsoft languages are available in BASIC (compiler and interpreter), FORTRAN and COBOL.

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For the business person, Computer Concepts for Small Business helps you evaluate the ways a computer can benefit your business. And for the novice, Personal Computing is a complete introduction to computer fundamentals and BASIC Programming.

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Before and after the sale we work with you to configure the system that serves you best. We help you get your system up and running smoothly. Assistance is always just a phone call away.

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Pick the store nearest you from the list at left. And stop in today for a demonstration of how Heath/ Zenith Computer Systems can serve you. If you can't get to a store, send $1.00 for the latest Heathkit Catalog and the new Zenith Data Systems Catalog of assembled commercial computers. Write to Heath Co., Dept. 334-834, Benton Harbor, Ml 49022.

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CP-203A

Writing with a Data-Base Management System

Edward E Brent Jr, PhD The Idea Works Inc

506 South Garth Columbia MO 65201

Nearly every microcomputer user appreciates the benefits of writing with a word-processing program. Pencil, paper, and typewriter can't match keyboard, video display, and line printer for speedy writing, editing, and printing of almost any kind of copy.

But word processing works best at relatively late stages in the writing process—after you've recorded your research results, compiled references, and constructed an outline for the project. In this article I show how another type of program, the database management system, can help you in the earlier stages of your writing. In fact, such a system can be more powerful than a wordprocessing program when you must perform a major reorganization of your text.

I first identify the stages of the writing process where a data-base management system (DBMS) can be most useful. Then I discuss the capabilities of such systems, detail their benefits, and recommend strategies for using the DBMS to maximum advantage.

About the Author

Edward Brent is assistant professor of sociology and family and community medicine at the University of Missouri in Columbia. He is also president of The Idea Works lnc, a research and consulting firm specializing in computer applications in research and design.

Although everyone has a favorite writing strategy, the process of writing can be broken down into several basic steps. After selecting a topic, the writer takes notes on ideas he may want to include. Next he outlines the article by organizing ideas and selecting a manner of presentation. The outline serves as a guide for composing the text, which is then revised until it satisfies the writer.

Limitations of Word Processing

When it comes to composing text, correcting it, and printing it out in an acceptable form, word-processing programs provide obvious advantages. But such programs lend themselves less well to note taking, outlining, and making major revisions. For these tasks, a DBMS can save time and energy.

When taking notes, you need a mechanism for recording ideas so that they will be easily accessible later. Note taking also calls for a system to minimize effort without distracting you from the task at hand. Both note taking and outlining involve only small amounts of text—text that's rough and tentative at best. Wordprocessing programs don't deal well with text in this form.

At the revision stage, wordprocessing programs do an efficient

job with minor changes. But if you must add many new ideas, delete many old ones, or drastically change the logic of your presentation, you may be better off with a DBMS.

DBMS Characteristics

To understand how a computerized data-base system can help you write, you must first understand its characteristics. A generalized DBMS is a set of related programs that allows you to enter a wide variety of data into a computer file, organize it for storage, then retrieve, update, reorganize, and print it out in the form of a summary report. Each file, a collection of related data, can contain almost any type of information you desire, so long as it meets the minimal structural requirements of the DBMS.

File Structure. Before entering any data into a file, you must first define the file structure. Files consist of a number of records, each containing similar information and referred to by a unique number or keyword. In writing, each record might contain a note on a particular idea, or a point made in another book or article to be cited in the paper. A record is a collection of fields, each having a name, length and position. Within each field are data describing each aspect of a record. Field names such as "title"

18 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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Multi-purpose IEEE696/S-100. Decision I utilizes the Morrow Designs IEEE Standard S-100 Wunderbuss."' That means you can configure it to your specific applications. Add a floating point processor, add memory (to a full megabyte), add I/O, add controllers...add boards from dozens of manufacturers. | And S-100 has a major advantage over single-board computers: If a board goes down, you simply replace it. And keep running. If you want to expand your system. Add boards and terminals.

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and "author" identify the type of information stored in each field. The DBMS uses the length and position of the field to retrieve specific information.

Capabilities. Typical data-base management programs can perform a number of operations, including defining or creating a file; adding, modifying or deleting records; sorting the file according to some specific field; searching the file for records with certain values; and generating reports. You can store the data base created by these programs on a disk for future reference, and you can update it as your work on the paper progresses. Most data-entry programs prompt the user for relevant information and check to see that input data meet specified criteria. Others have sophisticated "query" languages that can perform arithmetic or Boolean algebraic manipulations on data in various fields. After computing percentages, totals, or other summary data, the program can store the data in another field or print it out. In

essence, the DBMS is an electronic filing cabinet, storing information in various records and accessing and retrieving that information on command. Any particular record can be cross-indexed on many different key variables at the same time, and retrieved based on the value of those keys.

In microcomputers, a common method of sorting and retrieval used by the DBMS is the indexed sequential-access method (ISAM). This method uses a sequential access file to store the records as they are entered. An index is then created for that file, ordered by the values in the key field. The index is a table containing the key and the machine address of the record associated with each key. Records in the file may then be used according to their keys. The ISAM method provides the advantage of fast retrieval time.

Figures la, lb, and lc present a typical data base in terms of file structure, report format, and sample data records. These records are part of an extensive data base I used in writing

this paper. In the TEXT field, each record contains a topic covered in this paper. A number of additional fields are used to take advantage of the capabilities of the DBMS to sort, search, and retrieve information. The characteristics of this data set are not particularly unusual, and you could use a similar strategy with many data-base management programs now available for microcomputers. The following sections discuss the advantages of the DBMS at each stage of writing.

Note Taking

If you can type, a DBMS can provide a fast and convenient means of recording notes. These may include quotes, summary notes referring to other sources, or your own ideas. A DBMS can be especially helpful when you spend a long time taking notes and then wait a while before actually drafting the paper. It is important to have some mechanism for recording ideas or references as they occur and then retrieving them later, when the

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22 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BROADEN YOUR HORIZONS

UVEON proudly announces OPTIMUM." OPTIMUM is an easy to use, total concept data management program for CP/M® and MP/M,M systems. Breaking through traditional DMS barriers. OPTIMUM provides large scale data management capability to broaden your computer horizons. Developed for individual computer users and applications builders, OPTIMUM supports user-defined forms and files, dictionaries, powerful reporting, storage efficiency, speed and unique cross-referencing. Everything you want in data management is now complete in one system.

USER-DEFINED FORMS AND FILES

With OPTIMUM, implementing an application is simple. The user defines screen forms to fit the data and describes how the data is to be stored. Once this is complete, data entry may begin. Input editing, validation and cross-referencing during data entry extend OPTIMUM'S range. If the need exists. OPTIMUM can handle complex or multiple screen forms for the same file. Screen forms may be modified and expanded as needed.

DICTIONARIES

OPTIMUM maintains a dictionary of terms for each file. This dictionary contains information on each data element in the file and describes operations to be performed. Alterations and additions to the dictionary may be made as required.

MICRO-ENGLISH,M REPORTING

OPTIMUM Micro-ENGLISH lets the user request standard or custom reports from the OPTIMUM files. Sophisticated selecting and sorting capability give Micro-ENGLISH all the power of a large scale interactive inquiry processor. A dictionary based vocabulary keeps the user interface simple.

OPTIMUM STORAGE EFFICIENCY AND SPEED

OPTIMUM stores all information in a compact variable-length format. OPTIMUM files are designed for interactive speed; a single file item may be retrieved from among hundreds in an instant.

OPTIMUM DATA CROSS-REFERENCING

A unique feature of the OPTIMUM system allows a user to cross-reference data elements. Once information is entered, it may be retrieved using key words in the data.

From simple applications to complex systems, OPTIMUM manages it all. Broaden your horizons using the total concept data management system with the power of such industry forerunners as Prime Information, Honeywell Ultimate and Microdata Reality. Call or write UVEON today for more information on OPTIMUM. 1-800-525-1637.

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paper is being outlined or written.

In many ways, note taking with a DBMS resembles note taking with note cards. For the note cards to be most useful, Lester (see references at end of article) suggests you put only one item of information on each card and include a brief citation or reference to the source of the idea. He also suggests you label the note card at the top for speedy recognition of the topic. When you record only one idea on each card, you can later sort the cards according to your outline for the paper.

All the functions performed by note cards can be carried out more efficiently by a DBMS. For each idea or quotation, you can create a record in the data-base file which includes as its main text the quotation or a statement of the idea. Key fields can be identified for reference to the author, journal, page, and date. To help you organize the ideas later, you can use other key fields to include a brief phrase that summarizes the context of the record. Several additional key fields could contain other types of information to sort the files in many different ways.

Because the DBMS can perform the tedious tasks of creating the indices and sorting the records, it requires far less effort on your part than note cards do. Once note taking becomes less burdensome, you can devote more effort to the task of developing new ideas.

Data-base management programs typically require you to define a structure before entering the data or notes. The programs then use that structure to prompt you for specific types of information as the notes are entered. When the information is complex, this prompting and structure can help you by assuring that you don't inadvertently leave out critical information (the author of a reference book, for example).

In addition to the structural constraints on data entry, data-base management programs typically include procedures which check the data for proper form during input. If you mistakenly enter alphabetic data in a numeric field, for example, the data may be rejected, and you will be

asked to start again. In addition, more sophisticated programs allow you to specify other criteria which may be examined before the data are accepted—helping to assure the quality of the data entered and improving the quality of the notes.

Outlining

While data-base management programs save time and improve quality at the note-taking stage, these benefits pale in comparison to the benefits for outlining. Much writing, particularly for research papers or technical papers, involves keeping track of a mass of information on various topics. Managing all this information quickly and efficiently is an awesome job for even the most gifted writer.

For example, in writing a paper reviewing several different software programs or comparing various hardware options, you need to keep track of many details to provide a clear picture of what is available. Writing such papers requires a vast amount of relatively simple but time-consuming work such as compiling lists, sorting references and ideas, and reorganizing points to fit a consistent argument or theme (to say nothing of the many data-handling tasks involved in generating the notes in the first place). The computer can do all these things without overlooking important ideas or misplacing relevant citations, and it can work faster than the most efficient writer.

But the savings in time and effort aren't the only advantages to using a DBMS for writing. By allowing you to organize and reorganize your notes with minimal effort, the system frees you to consider many different approaches to your subject. This luxury can lead to valuable insights and significant improvements in the paper.

Revising

The sorting, retrieving, and updating capabilities that make the DBMS so useful for outlining also make the system valuable when your work needs major revisions. You can delete entire sections, add others, or reorganize your paper to fit a new

24 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

ISAAC™ turns Apples linto laboratory computers...

.and data acquisition costs tumble!

ISAAC teams with the Apple Computer to give you automated control of laboratory instruments, data acquisition, electronic test, process control and front end processing for centralized systems.

Its LABSOFT extended BASIC language makes ISAAC easy to use wherever real time signals must be recorded, manipulated, related, analyzed, stored, displayed or printed out. Color charts and graphs are a breeze.

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ISAAC plus Apple. A lot of technical computing power for a little money. For complete information, circle reader service number, or call us toll free at 1 (800) 343-4494.

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Surprising Symmetries in Design and Letterforms ..

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Field Name

Length

HIERARCHY

25

ORDER

3

SUMMARY

8

KEY1

8

KEY2

8

TEXT

180

Figure la: In a data-base management system used for writing, the data-base file consists of records, which in turn consist of fixed-length fields.

HIERARCHY

ORDER

SUMMARY

KEY1 KEY2 j

TEXT

Figure lb: The report format used for printing out the records in the data base. The records in figure lc follow this format.

STRAT.STRUCT.CHANGE S06 CHANGE

STRUCTURE NOTES IDEALLY, IT SHOULD B

E POSSIBLE TO CHANGE THE STRUCTURE AFTER THE IDEAS HAVE CHANGED SUFFICIENTLY THA T IT IS NECESSARY TO MAKE IT RETAIN ITS USEFULNESS.

STRAT.PROC.VOCAB S07 VOCAB

PROCESS OUTLINE TO TAKE MAXIMUM ADVA

NTAGE OF SORTING, SEARCHING, AND RETRIEV AL CAPABILITIES OF DBM PROGRAMS IT IS NE CESSARY TO CONTROL WORDS USED TO AVOID S YNONYMS.

STRAT.PROC.THESAU S08 THESAUR

PROCESS OUTLINE WHERE SYNONYMS MUST

BE USED, A THESAURUS MAY BE USED TO HELP CONNECT THE APPROPRIATE WORDS.

STRAT.PROC.HIER S09 HIERARC

PROCESS OUTLINE HIERARCHICAL DATA ST

RUCTURES MAY BE INCORPORATED INTO THE KE Y FIELDS THROUGH SUCCESSIVE SMALL FIELDS OR A SINGLE LARGE ONE.

STRAT.PROC.INVERT S10 INVERTED

PROCESS OUTLINE THE USE OF INVERTED

INDICES SUCH AS IN THE ISAM PROCESS IS L IMITED AND ONLY WORKS WELL FOR SMALL FIE LDS WHERE ALPHABETIC OR NUMERICAL ORDER MAKES SENSE.

STRAT.PROC.SEQ S11 ORDER

PROCESS OUTLINE STRATEGY: ONE OR MO

RE KEYS MAY BE SET ASIDE TO BE USED TO O RDER THE RECORDS LATER BY INSERTING KEY VALUES APPROPRIATE TO SOME ORDER.

STRAT.PROC.UPDATE S12 UPDATE

PROCESS OUTLINE REGARDLESS OF HOW WE

LL THE STRUCTURE IS DEFINED, IT WILL PRO BABLY BE NECESSARY AND DESIRABLE TO UPDA TE THE FILE AND CHANGE THE APPROPRIATE K EYS AS IDEAS BECOME CLEARER.

Figure lc: Sample records (part of the data base used in writing this article) are shown printed out in report format. A word-processing program would be needed to provide lowercase output and line endings on word boundaries.

28 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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theme or address new issues. Wordprocessing programs, however, may be a better choice for making minor revisions because they can conveniently modify and print out the text in the desired format.

Strategies for Using a DBMS

The standard advice on using a tool properly is especially a propos when the tool is a DBMS. Unless you start with a clear plan and a good knowledge of the tool's capabilities, a data-base-management system could actually impede your work. I'll present guidelines for the two major uses of a DBMS in writing: note taking and organization.

Note-Taking Strategies. At the note-taking stage, you must first set up a structure that takes maximum advantage of the DBMS's recording, structuring, prompting, data quality checking, and updating capabilities. At the same time, the resulting data base should be designed so that you can later use the system's organizing and retrieval functions. The watchword for note taking, then, is structure. Ideally, the structure should be appropriate to the task, inclusive, and flexible.

Appropriate level of structure. You can use data fields in several ways to provide structure consistent with your thinking. The first way involves keyword fields. Because ideas for a paper usually develop over time, you may not always know in advance the categories that will be relevant to the final paper. For this reason, you can make some provision in the data base for storing information in a flexible form such as open keys based on keywords, rather than rigidly prescribed categories fixed in advance. The second strategy uses labeled fields. If you can identify categories that will be relevant for the final paper, you can set aside specific fields for information relating to those categories. These keys usually have a restricted number of acceptable responses, which you may or may not know when you first define the field. You can develop new categories of acceptable responses for the field as the paper progresses. When you know in advance the categories and variables

which define the fields, you can use abbreviated symbols called table lookup keys to represent the acceptable responses. You can then look up the symbols in a table if your computer cannot perform that function itself.

The sample data base in figure 1 (page 28) includes: two open key fields (KEY1 and KEY2) in which any key words may be entered; labeled fields (HIERARCHY, SUMMARY, and TEXT) in which only prescribed data may be entered; and one table lookup key (ORDER) in which only abbreviated symbols having specified meanings can be entered.

Inclusive structure. A data-base structure is of only limited use if it is not inclusive. A data base full of quotations, for example, does not help a writer unless it includes the information necessary for citing the appropriate references. During note taking, be sure to include all the information you'll need at the end; otherwise, you'll have to go back to the original sources to retrieve that information.

Flexible structure. Once you have created a data file, its structure (the number and size of data fields and the definition of permissible data for each field) is very difficult to change. You must, therefore, define the fields broadly enough to encompass likely changes in the categories without requiring major changes in the data structure. The sample data base in figure 1 contains several fields (HIERARCHY and ORDER in particular) that could not be filled out when the data were first entered, but they were very helpful later. No matter how well you plan the data structure, however, there may be times when your ideas change so much as the paper develops that the original structure no longer suffices. A few DBM systems allow you to change the structure later, but most do not. If yours falls into the latter category, you'll have to write a program if you want to change the structure. The program could convert existing data bases into new structures by deleting old key fields, adding new ones, changing the overall size of a record, or even converting values in existing fields.

30 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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Organization Strategies. While organizing whatever you're writing, take advantage of the DBMS's ability to sort, search, and print reports. At the same time, you'll need to cope with the limitations of the DBMS. Some strategies for dealing with those limitations are discussed in the following paragraphs.

Thesaurus or vocabulary control. As you enter data into the various fields of the data base, you may encounter problems when you use more than one term for the same concept. For example, if you're writing about elderly people, a computer sort of the file may put all the "elderly" people in one place, the "aged" in another, and the "old" in still another. Computerbased data systems take expressions literally; they don't recognize synonyms. Because a file sort would not group together all the related records about elderly people, you would have to make a separate search for each possible term. One way to prevent synonyms from reducing the usefulness of the DBMS is to exercise control as the information is entered into the computer. You could also use a computerized thesaurus, which allows the computer to recognize different words that have similar meanings.

Hierarchical structures. Data fields may be used to create various types of data structures to meet your needs (see the Kerschberg reference at the end of this article). For example, many DBM programs are already set up to provide relational data models in which each record is classified by a common set of variables. Hierarchical data models store information in tree-like structures according to criteria which begin broadly and become successively more detailed. You can produce hierarchical data models with a typical DBMS in at least two ways. You can use one large key in which the hierarchical information is recorded in specified order (from most general class to most specific class) separated by delimiters such as slashes or periods. Another way is to use a series of smaller keys, each representing a specific level in the hierarchy. The first key might be the most general class; the second, the

next most general, and so on. Either way, the key fields can be used in combination to order the records by some hierarchical scheme. This strategy is illustrated in figure 1 by the HIERARCHY field, which consists of a series of abbreviated terms separated by delimiters. The terms define the hierarchical relationship between the various records.

Use inverted indices sparingly. An inverted index is one in which records are ordered according to a sort done on one key field in each record. Using the indexed sequential-access method (ISAM), such indexes allow fast searching and record retrieval—much faster than you would get with an unordered data base. However, inverted indices have their limitations.

First, they order files alphabetically or numerically by the values in the first portions of keys. Hence, long keys such as titles are ordered only by the first few letters or words, which won't help you if the keywords of interest occur later in the title. In essence, inverted indices examine only the first segments of the text and do not consistently identify keywords imbedded within the text at other points. For fields containing several words, it may be best to use a search of the entire text in that field rather than an inverted index based on that field. One way to cope with this problem when using key words is to use several small key fields, each containing a single keyword, instead of using one long key field containing several keywords. This way, you can create separate inverted indices for each keyword without having to search the entire text. However, when the same term can appear in any of the key fields, the file must be searched several times, once for each of the possible fields in which the term may appear. This problem is illustrated in figure 1 by the TEXT field. There would be little point in creating an inverted index for that field because it would order the records by the first few words in the field.

A second limitation of inverted indices is that they order the file in alphabetical or numerical order, which may not be useful for the data

32 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

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BYTE November 1981

33

at hand. To cope with this problem, you can make entries which, when ordered alphabetically or numerically, will meaningfully organize the data. For example, instead of labeling each strategy with a different summary label for sorting, you might start each with an identical label followed by a number. A DBMS will then place them together when sorting on that field.

When you can't use labels which naturally combine the appropriate elements in alphabetic or numeric order, try using special keys to record values that can take advantage of the sorting and retrieval capabilities of a DBMS. For example, you can make sure all comparable records end up together in a sorting analysis by using another key field to give each a distinctive letter and/or number.

This strategy is illustrated in figure 1 by the ORDER field. The "S" prefix causes the strategies to be sorted together and the following number determines the sequence in which the strategies will appear.

Update data as structures evolve. Although the structures of a data base are difficult to change, the data within those structures can be easily changed as errors are noted or ideas evolve. Be sure to take full advantage of this ability to modify the data as needed. In figure 1, for example, most of the records in the data base did not include information in the HIERARCHY or ORDER fields when I first entered them. The information was added later, as I developed a clearer picture of the paper.

In Summary

When you're undertaking a writing project, data-base management programs can be valuable supplements to word-processing programs. Together, the two programs allow you to use the computer to relieve much of the drudgery of note taking, indexing and typing draft after draft—thus freeing you to spend more time exploring new ideas. Data-base management programs are particularly useful for technical writing that in

volves complex arguments covering many issues.

The specific strategies I have discussed suggest some ways for putting data-base management systems to work for note taking, outlining and radically revising papers. You can experiment with strategies for handling still other tasks and making even more efficient use of the DBMS for writing. It would be particularly helpful to develop DBMS and wordprocessing programs that are compatible with each other. In that way, the data base created in the earlier stages by a DBMS could form the beginning of a text that would be modified and revised by the wordprocessing program. ■

References

1. Kerschberg, L, A Klug, and D Tsichritzis, "A Taxonomy of Data Models," in P C Lockemann and E J Neuhold (eds), Systems for Large Data Bases. New York: North-Holland, 1976.

2. Lester, J D, Writing Research Papers: A Complete Guide. Glenview, 111.: Scott, Foresman, 1971.

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Switching Power Supplies

An Introduction

Steve Ciarcia

POB 582

Glastonbury CT 06033

Since the advent of the threeterminal integrated-circuit voltage regulator, it seems that everyone has become a power-supply expert. No longer are ten pages of calculations required to produce a design for even a modest power supply, thanks to the wide tolerances and relatively sturdy architecture of these devices. After you have purchased a few readily available parts, you can have your completed supply running in a few hours.

Three-terminal regulators have become so easy to use that few experimenters stop to consider how inefficient they are. For example, if we were to design a 5-volt 1.5-amp power supply from commonly avail

Photo 1: Ferrite toroids and pot cores are available in various sizes and compositions. These units are from the Ferroxcube Division of Amperex Electronics Corporation, 5083 Kings Hwy, Saugerties NY 12477, (914) 246-2811.

able parts, we would probably use a 12.6 VAC transformer, a bridge rectifier, a filter capacitor, a threeterminal regulator (such as an LM317), and a few discrete components. (A 6.3 VAC transformer is only marginally usable.)

Set up normally, the transformer, rectifier, and filter produce about 16 volts. With the LM317's output adjusted for 5 volts, 11 volts would be dropped across the regulator. ("Dropped" really means "consumed" in this case.) Power is dissipated by the regulator in an amount equivalent to the difference between the regulator's input and output voltages multiplied by the current through it. In this instance,

(16V - 5V) X 1.5 A - 16.5 W

The conversion efficiency is

V0ut/Vin = 5/16 = 31%

The LM317 and similar linear regulators (shown in figure 1) such as the 7805 and LM340 are all called series dissipative regulators. They function in a linear mode, simulating a variable resistance between the inputvoltage source and the load. There are other factors involved, but basically the linear series regulator simulates a varying resistance. Within a specified range of variation in the input voltage and load current, the regulator maintains a constant output voltage by dissipating the excess power as heat. Unfortunately, as

we see in this example, it consumes 16.5 watts producing the desired 7.5-watt output.

In most applications, however, the ease of use and relative low cost of linear series regulators far outweigh the inherent lack of efficiency. The linear series regulator is well suited for medium-current applications with a small voltage differential, where the power dissipation can be handled with heat sinks and cooling fans. When electricity costs only five cents per kilowatt-hour (1000 watts for one hour), it's hard to get concerned about losing 16.5 watts.

Why Use a Switching Regulator?

Power-supply efficiency usually isn't important unless size, heat dissipation, or total power consumption is limited. If the power source for our regulator were a battery, we would have to be more careful about how much energy is converted for useful work and how much is thrown away as heat.

Efficiency is really the name of the game. In a series dissipative regulator, conversion efficiency is directly related to the input/output voltage differential. As the difference between the two voltages increases, efficiency decreases. The power radiated by the regulator represents a loss to the system and limits the amount of power deliverable to the load.

It would be far better if the regulator consumed no power and if all the power were channeled to the

36 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

load. While perfect conversion efficiency is impossible, the inherent fault in using series dissipative regulators is the linear operating mode of the series-pass transistor.

If, however, the transistor is used as a switch (in saturated operation) rather than as a variable resistor (in linear mode), the series-pass transistor consumes very little power. (This is not a new discovery. Designers have always been aware of the technique, but it required some time to develop cheap, fast switching transistors and inexpensive, low-loss ferrite materials from which costeffective switching supplies could be built.)

A regulator constructed to operate in this manner is called a series switching regulator. The same seriespass transistor switches between cutoff and saturation at a high frequency, producing a pulse-widthmodulated square wave of amplitude V,N. This waveform is then filtered through a low-pass LC (inductance/ capacitance) filter, producing an average DC output potential (Vout) proportional to the pulse width and frequency. The efficiency of such a regulator is generally independent of the voltage differential and can approach 95% in good designs.

Switching regulators come in various circuit configurations, a few of which are the flyback, feedforward, and push-pull types. I am limiting this discussion primarily to another type, nonisolated singleended (single-polarity) switching regulators, because they are the easiest to understand and build. Although simple, they are nonetheless quite useful. Unlike the typical three-terminal dissipative regulator, the switching regulator can be directly configured to operate in any of three modes: step-down, stepup, or polarity-inverting.

Switching-Regulator Basics

Figures 2a through 2c on page 39 outline the three common modes of switching-regulator operation.

Copyright © 1981 by Steven A Garcia. All rights reserved.

Photo 2: A commercially sold switching power supply that combines both linearregulator and switching-regulator technology to provide outputs of ±12 volts and +5 volts. Note the use of the toroidal inductor and the relatively small heat sinks. This unit was made by Conver Corporation, 10631 Bandley Dr, Cupertino CA 95014, (408) 255-0151.

Basically, the switching regulator consists of a power source which supplies a voltage V,N, a "switch" Ql, and an LC filter. (It is assumed in all cases that a load is connected between the output and ground and that Ql is actually a transistor controlled through external circuitry.) The way the components are connected determines the output mode.

In the step-down regulator of figure 2a, the basic circuit operation is to close switch (transistor) Ql for a time Ton, and then open it for time ToffThe total, TON + TOFf, is called the switching period T. Neglecting the saturation voltage of Ql (VSAt) and the diode (VD,ODE), the voltage at the input to the inductor is + V,N during the time TON and zero during Toff(But remember, these other voltage drops must be included in our calculations when we are choosing actual components.)

When Ql is closed, a step increase in voltage is applied to the inductor coil, which has the value L. However, current flowing through an inductor cannot change instantaneously; instead it increases linearly according to the factor L(di/dt), building a

magnetic field. This reduces any instantaneous current change seen by the load. When Ql opens, the magnetic field in the inductor decays linearly, supplying power to the load. The current path is completed through the forward-biased flyback diode Dl.

In this type of switching regulator, the inductor and capacitor form a low-pass filter. High-frequency pulses are applied to the input, and an averaged DC level comes out. The peak-to-peak ripple voltage is a function of the switching period T and the values of the inductance L and capacitance C. As the frequency of operation is increased, the voltage ripple is reduced, but the supply becomes less efficient.

Figure 2b illustrates the circuit configuration of the basic step-up switching-type voltage regulator. In this type of regulator, closing Ql during Ton charges the inductor. When Ql is opened, the inductor discharges through Dl into the load. The output voltage is determined by the rate of discharge according to the equation

V = Udi/dt)

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc. 37

REGULATOR DISSIPATION:

PREG = <vIN_v0UT' 'LOAD

EFFICIENCY:

E= VOUt'VIN

»m O

Ov

OUT

REGULATED INPUT VOLTAGE

V|N

1 1

1

INPUT

1

SERIES

CONTROL ELEMENT

OUTPUT

'load

r s

■ 1—

i s

1 1 1

1

1 1 1

L

Vref

1

J

1

1

CONTROL

'

^N^ +

VOLTAGE TRANSLATOR

VOLTAGE

REFERENCE

COMPARATOR

r

7

REGULATOR

REGULATED OUTPUT VOLTAGE

"OUT

Figure 1: Block diagram of a typical linear series voltage regulator, such as the LM317, LM340 or 7805. The series regulator acts as a varying resistance, dissipating excess power as heat to maintain a constant output voltage.

A fast discharge delivers an output voltage higher than input Vm.

Figure 2c shows a polarityinverting switching regulator. As in the other cases, closing Ql charges the inductor during TON. When Ql is opened during Toff, there is a "kickback" voltage produced by the inductor as it discharges. This effect occurs elsewhere, too. For years, many of you have probably been putting reverse-biased diodes across relay coils, perhaps without thinking about it. The purpose of the diode is to dampen the high-voltage spike produced when a pulse is applied to the inductive relay coil. In the powersupply situation, rather than short out the voltage, diode Dl directs this opposite-polarity voltage to the load.

Generally speaking, in all three cases, the output voltage Vout is

regulated by controlling the ratio of Ton/T. This duty cycle can be altered in a number of ways depending upon the control method. Two of the more approaches are variable

common

You can experiment

with a simple design

for a nonisolated

single-ended switching

voltage regulator.

pulse width (pulse-width modulation) and variable frequency. In a pulsewidth-modulated switching regulator, the switching period T is fixed and the "on" time Ton varied. Conversely, in a variable-frequency regulator, Ton is fixed and the "off" time Toff varied.

The variable-frequency switching regulator is generally easier to design and build, since the magnetic flux developed in the inductor coil during the fixed on-time determines the amount of power deliverable to the load. This eases the design of the inductor because the inductor's operating region within its characteristic curve is precisely defined. Operating frequency, which increases proportionally with the load, is primarily a function of the inductance L, capacitance C, and voltages V,N and

Vout

The fixed-frequency pulse-widthmodulated switching regulator varies the duty cycle to change the average power delivered to the load. This method is particularly advantageous for systems employing transformercoupled output stages and is most

38 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

(2a)

(2b)

(2c)

Ov0

UT

vOUT' ~VIN

W ? OVQUT

V0UT>V|N

*Q1

EQUIVALENT TO

-Vr~

CONTROL

Figure 2: The configurations of switching voltage regulators: the voltage-step-down (2a), voltage-step-up (2b), and polarityinverting (2c) arrangements are depicted. The component shown as a switch is assumed to be a bipolar transistor driven in saturated switching mode. Some commercial designs may use field-effect transistors.

COMPARATOR

NONINVERTING

INPUT

1.3V REFERENCE

L.

COMPARATOR

INVERTING

INPUT

10

vcc

13

TIMING CAPACITOR

12

BIAS

1 PK

OSCILLATOR

COMPARATOR

'PK

SENSE

14

^O

GROUND

V^7

11

C R Q

MA78S40

OP AMP

DRIVER COLLECTOR

15

€>

Q2

SWITCH COLLECTOR

16

Dl

-w

€>

Ql

.J

REFERENCE

OP-AMP

OP-AMP

OP-AMP

OP-AMP

SWITCH

DIODE

DIODE

VOLTAGE

INVERTING INPUT

NONINVERTING INPUT

SUPPLY

OUTPUT

EMITTER

CATHODE

ANODE

Figure 3: Functional block diagram of the Fairchild 78S40 switching-regulator integrated circuit. This component may be obtained from the supplier listed on page 45.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 39

often used in commercial switching supplies with multiple outputs. This method is more complex and uses more components than variablefrequency supplies, but the advantages outweigh the extra cost in highcurrent applications.

Typical operating frequencies of

switching regulators range from 10 to 50 kHz. However, there are some trade-offs. High frequencies reduce the ripple voltage at a price of decreased efficiency and increased radiated electrical noise. If the frequency is lowered, greater efficiency and less electrical noise will result,

Photo 3: Winding the inductor for the switching supply of figure 6a. The turns of wire are neatly wound around a plastic bobbin, evenly distributed.

Photo 4: Having been wound, the wire bobbin is placed between the two halves of the pot core, which are screwed together to form the finished coil.

but larger coils and capacitors are needed. Also, a switching power supply operating at 10 kHz can become quite annoying to listen to after a while.

The most effective frequency range for optimizing efficiency and size with the components presently available is around 20 kHz. This is out of the range of human hearing yet low enough to be within the switching speeds of most inexpensive transistors and diodes. As switching speeds of newly developed high-current semiconductors increase and new ferrite components are introduced, practical operating frequencies will rise.

There are many kinds of switching regulator circuits that I could present. My previous article, "No Power for Your Interfaces? Build a 5 W DC to DC Converter" (reference 3), discussed the construction of a 5-watt converter which produced ±12 volts from a +5-volt input. This circuit was intended to facilitate powering linear interfaces and op amps (operational amplifiers) when the only source available was the 5-volt logic supply. If you have such a requirement, I refer you to that article.

This time, however, I'd like to present circuits to meet a different need. In the example of the conventional power supply with which I began this article, the input/output voltage differential was so great that more heat than useful energy was produced by the supply. In a small electronic package which requires several watts, dissipated heat can be difficult to remove if the enclosure has no vents. This points out a need for a more efficient 5-volt regulator. While we're at it, we might as well make one that can accommodate up to 30-volt inputs without significantly increased losses.

One power supply that seems to be in demand lately is one with a + 25-volt output for programming EPROMs (erasable programmable read-only memories, as discussed in last month's Circuit Cellar; see reference 2). While a three-terminal regulator can be used for this voltage, I see this as a ripe opportunity to demonstrate the step-up variety of

40 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

switching regulator. One circuit we'll look at will therefore be a +5-volt to + 25-volt converter suitable for EPROM-programming use.

78S40 Switching Regulator

In recent years, monolithic (everything built on one semiconductor chip) linear voltage regulators have simplified power-supply design. Most systems have employed linear regulators because of their excellent reliability, low external parts count,

and low cost. However, recent improvements in high-speed switching transistors and low-loss inductors have made switching supplies more attractive. The real breakthrough came with low-cost LSI (large-scale integration) monolithic switching regulators, which contain practically everything but the inductor on a single chip.

One of the many such integrated regulators available is the Fairchild 78S40, which is shown in the block

diagram of figure 3. The 78S40 contains a current-controlled oscillator, current-limit sensor, voltage reference, high-gain comparator, highcurrent op amp, transistor switch, and power-switching diode. A single capacitor sets the frequency range (adjustable between 100 Hz and 100 kHz, but normally used at 20 to 30 kHz), and one external resistor provides current-limiting protection for the transistor and diode. Other than a few discrete resistors to set the output

+ 30V

DC (=>"

Ksc

0.33ii ♦ wv *

O.l^F

m

"cc

COMP

'REF

12

'PK

SENSE

DRIVER SWITCH

COLLECTOR COLLECTOR

SWITCH EMITTER

iA78S40

GND

DIODE ANODE

0.02,iF

^

DIODE CATHODE

COMP

1.3K

275^.H L

10K VOLTAGE ADJUST

yv\

-O V0UT +5v

AT 0.5A

220jiF

Figure 4: Schematic diagram of a 5-volt, Vi-amp step-down switching voltage regulator. For low currents, the 78S40's internal switching transistor and diode may be used.

V|N +30VDC

o

"sc o.o3n

-*SA,—

2N4398

COIV^

ioon

56il 1W

15

SENSE

jiA78S<l0

SWITCH GND EMITTER

12 0.02^F

100^.H _/-tyy-\_

DRIVER SWITCH

COLLECTOR COLLECTOR

i

MR821

10K -y&—

-O V0UT +5V

AT 5A

2200uF

Figure 5: Schematic diagram of a 5-volt, 5-amp step-down switching regulator. An external heat-sinked transistor and diode are needed for the higher current.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 41

voltage, only an inductor and capacitor are required to make a highly efficient switching power supply. The internal Darlington-configured transistor switch and diode are capable of handling up to 1.5 amps (peak) at 40 volts.

While virtually no calculation is re

quired to design a circuit that uses a three-terminal linear regulator, you have to do some math to arrive at the correct values for the external components to use with switching regulators. A simple circuit to demonstrate the math is a standard step-down regulator, as shown in the

Photo 6: A prototype of the step-up switching regulator of figure 6a. This circuit can be adjusted to produce voltages between + 8 and +28 volts.

schematic diagram of figure 4. This circuit is a 30-volt input, Vi-amp, + 5-volt regulator, with a computed efficiency of about 82%. The computation appears in the text box "Component-Value Calculation" on pages 44 and 45.

In applications where the peak current is greater than 1 amp or where you need voltages greater than 40 volts, an external diode and transistor should be used with the 78S40. If you want to experiment, figure 5 shows a regulator designed to provide + 5 volts at 5 amps. The component values were selected using the same equations described in the text box. After I had actually built the unit, however, I was unable to get a current greater than 3 amps out of it. I attributed this to using thinner wire in my inductor winding than I should have.

Another switching-power-supply circuit that might prove useful to you is shown in figure 6. Configured as a basic voltage-step-up regulator, this simple circuit converts +5 volts to + 25 volts. With the voltageadjustment pot shown, the circuit's output actually can be adjusted within a range of +8 to +28 volts. Set to +25 volts, it can be used as an EPROM-programmer supply. The design current rating is 200 milliamps, but this is dependent upon the output voltage. At 8 volts I measured 175 milliamps, but at 25 volts the maximum current was only 30 milliamps. Overall efficiency was about 70%. To achieve higher output currents at 25 volts, it is necessary to use an external switching transistor.

Winding the Inductor

The inductor coil in a switching regulator is designed for high power and large currents. Typically, the windings are around a ferrous core that is toroidal in shape, somewhat like a doughnut. The selection of a specific core size and core material for a desired inductance at a given steady current level is done through a set of iterative calculations using analytic curves showing permeability reduction versus DC magnetizing force (measured in oersteds).

42 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

The problem in selecting a core of suitable size and permeability is that all these parameters are interrelated. Rather than attempt to make everyone understand the curves and calculations, I prefer to take a little poetic license, by choosing a core which is optimal for the types of switching supplies I have just described. The remaining calculations are minor and less likely to discourage you from winding your own inductor.

The core I have chosen is the Ferroxcube 2213PA500-3C8, a pot-core set which differs from a pure toroid in that it consists of two cups which are secured together around a bobbin, around which, in turn, the windings are wound. Since the wire is wound or\ a bobbin rather than around the ferrite material itself, it is easy to change bobbins and experiment with various inductances produced by different numbers of turns and kinds of wire. Figure 7 outlines the characteristics of type-2213 pot core.

Two other factors are noteworthy in this selection. The type-2213 core is made in a variety of ferrite materials. I have chosen to use a type of material known as 3C8, which is a manganese-zinc ferrite substance with medium permeability and low losses. It is designed specifically for highflux-density applications such as power supplies.

The 2213PA500-3C8 is a fixed-gap pot core. Flux saturation is avoided by introducing an air gap in series with the magnetic path. The effect of this 0.025-inch gap is to flatten the hysteresis loop, allowing greater cur

+ 5VDC

RSC 0.3311 > W\ •

191>iH _rrYV\_

L

i 150X1 15

COMP ■

SENSE

/iA 78S40

DRIVER COLLECTOR

SWITCH COLLECTOR

DIODE ANODE

SWITCH GND EMITTER COMP

12

0.005/iF

11

16

25K VOLTAGE 10 ADJUST

i yv\—

-o

+ 8 TO +28V

470/iF 35VDC

1.3K

Figure 6a: A step-up regulator that converts + 5 volts to + 25 volts, possibly for use in an EPROM programmer. The output voltage may be adjusted within the range of + 8 to +28 volts. Current capacity depends on fine points of construction and on the voltage desired.

10

50 100 150

OUTPUT CURRENT (MILLIAMPS)

200

Figure 6b: The measured curve of output voltage plotted against current for the step-up switching regulator of figure 6a.

MAGNETIC PATH LENGTH

I

1.23 inches 3.15 cm

CORE CONSTANT

12.6/inch 4.97/cm

EFFECTIVE CORE AREA

*,

0.0985 inch2 0.635 cm2

EFFECTIVE CORE VOLUME

ve

0.122 inch3

2.00 cm3

MILLIHENRIES PER 1000 TURNS

AL

500

Figure 7: Physical and electromagnetic characteristics of the Ferroxcube 2213PA500-3C8 pot core. The coil turns are wound around a plastic bobbin that fits between the two core halves, easing experimentation with different numbers of turns and different gauges of wire.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 43

Circle 289 on inquiry card.

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rent densities without saturation. An added plus is that it reduces the overall inductance per turn of wire and allows more turns of wire for a given inductance value. Pot cores work best when the windings completely fill the core.

The calculations for winding the specific inductors for the power supplies I have presented are relatively simple. For each core and material, the manufacturer specifies a proportionality factor At, which is the inductance in millihenries per 1000 turns. The inductance for any other number of turns N is then

L = ALN' X 10"9

where

N = number of turns L = desired inductance in henries AL = millihenries/1000 turns

The 5-volt Vi-amp regulator presented earlier required a 275-microhenry inductor. For the 2213PA500-3C8 core, AL = 500 millihenries per 1000 turns. Plugging these values into the equation:

0.000275 X 1000000000

N =

V1

X 10"

AL

500

= V550 = 23 turns

In addition to determining the required number of turns, we must con

Component-Value Calculation

Conditions:

VD (diode-saturation voltage) = 1.25 volts

Vsat (transistor-saturation voltage) = 1.1 volts

V,N = +30 volts

Vout — + 5 volts

lour (maximum) = 0.5 amps

VR,PPLE < 1% = approximately 50 millivolts

VKEF = (internal reference voltage) = 1.3 volts

Calculate:

Ipeak = 2Iout (maximum)

= 2 X 0.5

= 1.0 amps The peak-current rating of the transistor is 1.5 amps.

Next, determine the value of the current-limiting resistor: Rsc = 0.33/Wt = 0.33/1 = 0.33 ohms

Calculate the Ton/Toff ratio:

V OUT > Vo

1 ON' 1 I

ON' J OFF

v„

vSAT - v0

= (5 + 1.25)/(30 - 1.1 - 5) = 6.25/23.9 = approximately 0.26 Therefore:

1 ON == 0.26 1 OFF

It is desirable to have the operating frequency of a switching regulator above 20 kHz (yielding a 50-microsecond period T), but neither Ton nor TorF should be less than 10 microseconds for the 78S40 device. If we arbitrarily choose Toff to be 40 microseconds, then the values of the oscillator-timing capacitor (CT) and inductor (L) are computed as follows:

44 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

sider the wire size and available space within the core. The objective is to fill the core, yet maintain a wire size that will carry the highest currents involved. There exist tables and charts of wire size, circular mils per ampere, and available-area specifications for exact determinations. As a rule of thumb, with designs like the ones presented here, the best tactic is to use the largest wire size that will fit for the required number of turns. If the pot core is not completely filled, the effect is not disastrous, but the true inductance could be as much as 10% less than calculated.

In Conclusion

I consider this subject a bit of a shot in the dark. I have found that as I build miniaturized electronic devices for my own use I can no longer tolerate the large volume, weight, and in

efficiencies of linear-regulated power supplies. This article is a progress report on some of the circuits I have been experimenting with lately.

I don't anticipate any sudden shortage of ferrite cores as a result of the publication of this article. In my opinion, switching power supplies will come to have a very significant role, but mostly in commercially produced products. The greatest benefit of using this technology is the savings in energy and materials in large-scale production.

Next Month: Have you ever wished you could call your computer by telephone and give it commands by pushing the buttons on a Touch Tone receiver? In December's Circuit Cellar we'll look at several schemes for decoding DTMF (dual-tone, multiple-frequency) signals, ■

CT = 0.00045 Tow

= 0.00045 X 0.000040 = 0.018 /iF

Using a 0.02-microfarad standard capacitor value, TON and T0FF really turn out to be:

Ton ~ 11.6 /IS Toff = 44 /is

T = Ton + Toff — 55.6 flS CT = 0.02 fiF

For the inductor:

(Vour + V„) (T0ff)

L =

Ip.

= (5 + 1.25) X 0.000044/1 = 275 nH

The output-capacitor value C is calculated from the ripple requirements:

c = (Ipeak) (T)

8 ( Vripfie)

= 1 X 0.0000556/8 X 0.05 = 139 /iF (use standard 220 /iF)

Finally, compute the values of the two resistors required for the sampling network. Assuming that the comparator-input current is 1 milliamp (the comparator will work down to 100 microamps) then:

Rl + R2 = 5 k-ohms

R2 = (Rl + R2) (VRFF/Vour)

= 5 k-ohms X 1.3/5

= 1.3 k-ohms Select R2 = 1.3 k-ohms and use a 10-k-ohm potentiometer for Rl.

Parts Source

A switching-regulator kit is available to experimenters. The kit contains one Fairchild 78S40 integrated circuit, two 2213PA500-3C8 pot-core halves, and two plastic bobbins; it is available postpaid in the United States for $11.50. Only prepaid orders will be accepted. Send check or money order to:

The MicroMint, hie

917 Midway

Woodmere NY 11598

References

1. Adamian, Andy. Voltage Regulator Handbook. Mountain View CA: Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corporation, 1978.

2. Garcia, Steve. "Build an Intelligent EPROM Programmer," October 1981 BYTE, page 36.

3. Ciarcia, Steve. "No Power for Your Interfaces? Build a 5 W DC to DC Converter," October 1978 BYTE, page 22. Reprinted in Ciarcia's Circuit Cellar. Peterborough NH: BYTE Books, 1979, page 1.

4. Hnatek, Eugene R. Design of SolidState Power Supplies. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1980.

5. Pressman, Abraham I. Switching and Linear Power Supply, Power Converter Design. Rochelle Park NJ: Hayden Book Company, 1978.

6. Sevastopoulos, Nello, et al. Voltage Regulator Handbook. Santa Clara CA: National Semiconductor Corporation, 1980.

7. Spencer, John D, et al. The Voltage Regulator Handbook. Dallas TX: Texas Instruments, 1977.

8. Switched-Mode Power-Supply Control Circuits. Sunnyvale CA: Signetics, 1975.

Editor's Note: Steve often refers to previous Circuit Cellar articles as reference material for the articles he presents eacli month. These articles are available in reprint books from BYTE Books, 70 Main St, Peterborough NH 03458. Ciarcia's Circuit Cellar copers articles f/?«f appeared in BYTE from September 1^77 through November 1978. Ciarcia's Circuit Cellar, Volume II presents articles from December 1978 through June 1980.

Many Circuit Cellar projects are available as kits. To receive a complete list, circle 100 on the Reader Service card.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

45

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Fundamentals of Relational Data Organization

Joel Neely and Steve Stewart

Janus Systems

POB 266

Henderson TN 38340

Both mathematicians and computer scientists use the word elegant to describe a concept of exceptional clarity, simplicity, and utility. By those standards, the relational model of data organization is most elegant. One of the principal advantages of this model is its foundation upon a formal mathematical theory that allows its concepts to be defined and examined with great precision.

This article discusses the basic concepts of the relational approach to data organization and looks informally at the practical benefits of the model. We should point out that our emphasis is on data organization, to the exclusion of other interesting and important issues in database system design, such as the syntax and features of the data-definition and data-manipulation languages.

The Sample Data Base

As an example of the capabilities of the relational model we will use a personnel data base, which is to be developed for the use of a data-processing manager. It should contain the following information: the name of each employee (EMP), the languages that the employee is familiar with (LNG), the number of years the employee has used each language (USE), the employee's position within the organization (POS), the employee's years of experience with the company (EXP), the employee's hourly pay rate (PAY), the current project to which the

About the Authors

Joel Neely, an adjunct associate professor in the Mathematical Sciences department at Memphis State University, is president of ]anus Systems, a custom software firm.

Steve Stewart is vice president of Janus Systems.

employee is assigned (PRJ), and the project manager on each of these projects (MGR).

PERSONNELl (see table 1) shows a small sample of data that might be stored in this data base and gives the structure of the data base. (In the structure diagram headings, parentheses enclose groups of data that may be repeated, while an underline indicates key columns whose values identify an entire entry.)

With the design of PERSONNELl, any request of the form:

Tell me something about employee E

may be satisfied easily. However, it is much more difficult to respond to the following requests:

List the names of all employees who use language L Tell me the manager of project P

Display the names of all employees assigned to project P Change the manager of project P to employee E

Through a process known as normalization, the organization of the data may be revised to increase the flexibility with which it can be used. Before presenting the details of this process, we need to establish some terminology.

A relation is a two-dimensional table (as in PERSONNELl) consisting of horizontal rows and vertical columns. The advantage of this form is that almost everyone is familiar with data presented as a simple table. No two rows in the relation may be identical; there must be some combination of columns—a key—whose values will uniquely identify each row. In our example, we gave each employee a unique name, so EMP may be used as a key in

48 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 394 on inquiry card.

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BYTE November 1981 51

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PERSONNELl. In practice, there may be more than one way to construct a key to a relation. Social-security number and time-clock number are values that might also be used to identify an individual employee.

Normalizing the Data

The first step in normalizing our personnel-data design is based on the following rule:

RULE 1: For all rows, each column must take a "simple" value, ie: a single value without repetition.

In PERSONNELl, the columns labeled (LNG, USE) and (PRJ, MGR) are in violation of this rule, because an employee may know more than one programming language and may be assigned to more than one project. By duplicating the nonrepeating values EMP, POS, EXP, and PAY for each combination of values for the repeating groups (LNG, USE) and (PRJ, MGR), the entire relation may be represented in first normal form, as shown in PERSONNEL2 (see table 2).

Notice that in PERSONNEL2, the column EMP is no longer sufficient to identify a row. Multiple rows may be present for an employee who has more than one entry for language use or project assignment. One possible solution is to consider the combination of EMP, LNG, and PRJ as a key, since those three values together are sufficient to identify a single row.

It would appear at first that PERSONNEL2 represents a step backward, not only because it requires much more space than PERSONNELl, but also because responding to the requests

Change employee E's position to S

Add the assignment of employee E to project P

Make employee E the manager of project P

has become much more difficult. This problem is addressed by the remaining normalization steps, which are based on the concept of dependence.

PERSONNELl: EMP (LNG, USE) POS

EXP PAY (PRJ, MGR)

Bogard Dalton

Fitch James

Jonas

COBOL.,3 FORTRAN,2

COBOL.2 PL/1,1

RPG.3

COBOL.4

COBOL.5 GPSS.2

AMBIT.1 BLISS.2 COBOL.1 Pascal.3

Sr Prog Sr Prog

Prj Mgr Sys Anl

Prj Mgr

25.00 24.00

32.50 29.00

31.00

Payroll,Smith A/R,Jonas

Inventory,Fitch

Inventory,Fitch

A/R, Jonas

Datacomm,

Spivey

A/R, Jonas

Table 1: PERSONNELl, a sample of a personnel data base set up as a nonnormalized table.

52 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 362 on inquiry card.

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PERS0NNEL2:

EMP LNG

USE POS

EXP

PAY

PRJ

MGR

Bogard

COBOL

3

Sr Prog

4

25.00

Payroll

Smith

Bogard

COBOL

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Sr Prog

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25.00

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Bogard

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Sr Prog

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25.00

Payroll

Smith

Bogard

FORTRAN

2

Sr Prog

4

25.00

A/R

Jonas

Dalton

COBOL

2

Sr Prog

3

24.00

Inventory

Fitch

Dalton

PL/I

1

Sr Prog

3

24.00

Inventory

Fitch

Dalton

RPG

3

Sr Prog

3

24.00

Inventory

Fitch

Fitch

COBOL

4

Prj Mgr

2

32.50

Inventory

Fitch

James

COBOL

5

Sys Anl

2

29.00

A/R

Jonas

James

COBOL

5

Sys Anl

2

29.00

Datacomm

Spivey

James

GPSS

2

Sys Anl

2

29.00

A/R

Jonas

James

GPSS

2

Sys Anl

2

29.00

Datacomm

Spivey

Jonas

AMBIT

1

Prj Mgr

1

31.00

A/R

Jonas

Jonas

BLISS

2

Prj Mgr

1

31.00

A/R

Jonas

Jonas

COBOL

1

Prj Mgr

1

31.00

A/R

Jonas

Jonas

Pascal

3

Prj Mgr

1

31.00

A/R

Jonas

Table 2: PERSONNEL2, the data from PERSONNELl arranged into first normal form.

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Data Dependencies

If, for each row, the value of a column Al uniquely determines the value of a column A2, then A2 is functionally dependent on Al. For example, in PERSONNELl, since each employee has only one position we may say that EMP determines POS, and that POS is functionally dependent on EMP. If the value in column Al limits the possible values of column A2 to a specific set, then A2 is set dependent on Al. PRJ is set dependent on EMP, because each employee is assigned to a specific set of projects. Figure 1 illustrates the dependencies in the sample data by using single-headed arrows to show functional dependence and double-headed arrows to show set dependence. This dependence diagram allows the problem of PERSONNEL2 to be clearly visualized.

The remaining problems are all violations of the following rule:

RULE 2: In every row, each column must be dependent on every part of the key.

For example, the columns POS, EXP, and PAY are not dependent on the entire key of PERSONNEL2. These

Figure 1: This diagram illustrates the two types of data dependencies. The single-headed arrows show functional dependence and the double-headed arrows show set dependence.

54 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 379 on inquiry card.

Circle 424 on inquiry card.

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PERS0NNEL3: EMP POS

EXP PAY

BACKGROUND: EMP LNG

USE

Bogard

Dalton

Fitch

James

Jonas

Sr Prog Sr Prog Prj Mgr Sys Anl Prj Mgr

25.00 24.00 32.50 29.00 31.00

Bogard

COBOL

3

Bogard

FORTRAN

2

Dalton

COBOL

2

Dalton

PL/I

1

Dalton

RPG

3

Fitch

COBOL

4

James

COBOL

5

James

GPSS

2

Jonas

AMBIT

1

Jonas

BLISS

2

Jonas

COBOL

1

Jonas

Pascal

3

Table 3: The data from PERSONNEL2 in second normal form. This format was achieved by splitting the relation so that there is no partial key dependence.

columns are determined by EMP alone, so we will form a new relation, PERSONNEL3 (see table 3), containing only EMP, POS, EXP, and PAY, having EMP as a key. The value of USE is determined by both EMP and LNG, so a BACKGROUND relation (see table 3), having a composite key made of EMP and LNG, may be formed from these three columns. Since BACKGROUND contains EMP as a column, it will still be possible to associate

PERSONNEL4:

EMP

POS

EXP

PAY

Bogard

Sr Prog

4

25.00

Dalton

Sr Prog

3

24.00

Fitch

Prj Mgr

2

32.50

James

Sys Anl

2

29.00

Jonas

Prj Mgr

1

31.00

ASSIGNMENTS: EMP PRJ

Bogard

A/R

Bogard

Payroll

Dalton

Inventory

Fitch

Inventory

James

A/R

James

Datacomm

Jonas

A/R

BACKGROUND: EMP LNG

PROJECTS

PRJ MGR

A/R

Jonas

Datacomm

Spivey

Inventory

Fitch

Payroll

Smith

USE

Bogard

COBOL

3

Bogard

FORTRAN

Dalton

COBOL

2

Dalton

PL/I

1

Dalton

RPG

3

Fitch

COBOL

4

James

COBOL

5

James

GPSS

2

Jonas

AMBIT

1

Jonas

BLISS

2

Jonas

COBOL

1

Jonas

Pascal

3

Table 4: Our final goal—the third normal form. The data from table 3 are further split into a multi-tabular format to eliminate any transitive dependencies.

BAR CODE FOR YOUR SMALL COMPUTER.

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M

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56 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981

57

Called "MP/MII™ " MP/MII Features

MP/M II, the multiuser extension of our CP/M operating system, answers the lucrative business community demand for small scale distributed processing. Smart OEM's, language companies and application programmers are enthusiastically extending their offerings to satisfy this "new" market.

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With 32 megabyte file capacity, you can daisy-chain 16 state-of-the-art disk drives, at 512 megabytes each. This gives you on-line storage of 8 gigabytes!

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Time and date stamps indicate your last update of an application e and either last access or e creation.

Additional features provide increased performance with exceptionally low system overhead through streamlined housekeeping plus 30 refined utilities. 400K bytes of RAM are supported. And MP/M II is upward compatible with CP/M.

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Major utilities in the MP/M II package include our RMAC™ assembler, LINK-80!" LIB-80™ run time library manager, and RDT™ debugger.

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Compatible software accelerates your entry into the multiuser market. All programs running under CP/M also run under MP/M II. This means important continuity. Couple that with a built-in growth path, and you're protecting the future of your business with MP/M II.

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of multiuser configurations is profound. Compare your sum-of-the-boxes pricing: Multiuser vs. single user. No question about it. Your next move will be to re-forecast sales quotas and profit margins. MP/M II is the key. With the market demand you read about, the act of extending your systems to MP/M II will bear handsome rewards. Your next step is equally clear. Have our marketing group expedite the MP/M II data sheet, OEM price list and contract. Here's an even more positive approach. Why not call our marketing group as your first priority?

These 14 companies are extending 24 languages to run under MP/M II:

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It takes less effort to make more money by selling multiuser systems. Selling an upgrade path is easier than moving dead end, dedicated systems. MP/M II means hard disks, multiple printers and terminalsadd-ons right through full networking environments. One sale can truly generate cash for an extended period. So call your OEM for delivery of MP/M II based systems.

Every new market has its share of easy sales. For a while, somebody will take those orders hand over fist. Your share of that business will probably depend on a single factor: Your ability to get product first

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Over 250,000 microcomputers use our operating systems. Over 300 OEM's and 400 independent software vendors (ISV's) use our products as the basis of thousands of applications. These are listed in our CP/M Compatible Catalog. Over 25,000 copies, per edition, generate ISV's sales. FORUM, published quarterly, and ISV seminars provide technical, and business advantages.

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Circle 139 on inquiry card.

a

CP/M is a registered trademark ot Digital Research. MP/M II. LINK-80, RMAC, LIB-80, and RDT are trademarks ot Digital Research l e Copyright 1981 Digital Research

H) DIGITAL RESEARCH

an employee's language experience with personnel data for that employee.

Splitting the Relation

Splitting the relation, as illustrated in table 3, prevents the experience part of the model from having columns that are dependent on only part of the key. A firstnormal-form relation (simple values in each position of the table) that also has no partial key dependence is said to be in second normal form.

The situation with project assignments is slightly different. The employee name determines the set of projects on which that employee works, independent of the languages used by that employee. This means that a relation containing PRJ should not have LNG in its key. However, the project name uniquely determines the project manager. MGR is transitively dependent on EMP, since EMP determines a set of values for PRJ, and PRJ, in turn, functionally determines MGR. This transitive dependence must also be removed, according to the following rule:

RULE 3: In every row, all columns must depend directly on the key, without any transitive dependencies through other columns.

Because each project has only one manager, we will form the PROJECTS relation (see table 4) from columns PRJ and MGR, using PRJ as the key. (MGR could also be a key if each employee managed only one project.)

Finally, since each employee works on one or more projects, a relation called ASSIGNMENTS (see table 4) may be constructed from EMP and PRJ to form the association between PERSONNEL3 and PROJECTS. Notice that PROJECTS is "all key" with no additional dependent columns. This is due to the fact the only thing dependent on both EMP and PRJ is the fact that they are associated. An association between relations is frequently represented in this way.

A second-normal-form relation that has no transitive dependence is said to be in third normal form. All relations in the data model of table 4 are in third normal form.

At this point, the design has evolved to the point where all of the difficult queries mentioned for the initial structure are easy to fulfill. By selecting all rows of BACKGROUND with a given value of LNG, all programmers who can use a specific language may be located. Accessing ASSIGNMENTS with a given PRJ identifies all programmers on the project. Since PROJECTS is now a separate relation, associating a project with its manager, for retrieval or change, is easy. It is equally easy to find which projects a project manager is supervising.

Using the Third Normal Form

As an example of the simplicity and flexibility of third normal form, consider the query "What is the COBOL experience of senior programmers working on any pro

ject managed by Fitch?" One approach, using the structure of table 4, would be:

1. Look in PROJECTS to find that Fitch manages the Inventory project.

2. Use ASSIGNMENTS to find that Fitch and Dalton work on Inventory.

3. From PERSONNEL4 for Fitch and Dalton, discover that Dalton is the only senior programmer.

4. Using BACKGROUND, find that Dalton has two years experience with COBOL.

By selecting one or more rows from a relation, then using column values to select from further relations, as needed, you can use the data with a high degree of flexibility. This makes it far easier to handle the unanticipated "Oh, by the way, can the computer tell me ..." "requests that invariably occur after a system has been implemented.

In Summary

Our purpose here has been to examine the data-organization aspects of the relational model. The relational concept also contains a rigorously defined set of operations that may be used to manipulate and combine relations in an algebraic fashion.

We cannot overemphasize that the relational model is concerned with a logical view of the data—apart from the physical representation used to store the data. Using only the abilities to construct multiple keys to the same data file and to find the first key greater than (or equal to) a given trial key, relational data organization may be implemented quite easily.

Although table 4 has the appearance of wasteful duplication in the stored data, a real application would likely encode all occurrences of a costly-to-store column like POS by an internal code (possibly one byte in length). Employees would most likely be identified by a unique employee code instead of by name. Thus it would be possible to have the advantages of relational organization without unreasonably high storage overhead.

In addition to the three normalization steps discussed here, there is a fourth normal form that arises in connection with certain types of complex key interdependencies. (The interested reader may find further discussion in the references. )■

References

1. Dale, C J. An Introduction to Database Systems. Reading MA: Addison-Wesley (The Systems Programming Series), 1977. Date presents a technically oriented discussion, including a description of fourth normal form.

2. Kroenke, David. Database: A Professional's Primer. Chicago VL\ SRA, 1978. Kroenke offers an interesting comparative analysis of existing commercial data-base management software.

3. Martin, James. Computer Data-Base Organization. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1977, Martin gives an excellent set of examples for the reader who is unfamiliar with data-base organization.

60 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

SUPERVYZ-THE NEXT INDUSTRY STANDARD

SUPERVYZ is a revolutionary software concept designed to overcome the frustrations of using CP/M*This allows you to crack any non-technical market without the hassles of teaching the operating system. Instead, users are greeted with a series of self-prompting, selfexplaining menus linking the user directly to the application. We'll supply the menus or you create your own, to meet the exact needs of your customers. SUPERVYZ presents unlimited software flexibility by providing a system to coordinate multiple application programs. The menus tie it all together, allowing program interaction. Even the most complicated commands between programs can be a simple menu choice.

Dealer inquiries invited, foreign or domestic.

EPIC II SOFTWARE

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Circle 442 on inquiry card.

INTRODUCTORY RETAIL PRICE

$95

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See us at COMDEX-Booth 1346

Build a Bar-Code Scanner Inexpensively

Printed bar-coded software has come one step closer to being a practical reality. I began to realize this after reading an item entitled "Hewlett-Packard Introduces HighResolution Optical Reflective Sensor" (November 1979 BYTE, "What's New" column), which announced the production of the HEDS-1000 integrated high-resolution sensor.

I waited, expecting a complete and relatively simple "scanning wand" that would be suitable for reading bar-codes. Confirmation was given on the cover of the April 1980 BYTE—Hewlett-Packard announced the HEDS-3000 Digital Wand, a fine product for those who can afford to spend $99.50. While the price is fair, as a graduate student on a fixed budget I sought a less expensive barcode reader.

As an alternative, I constructed a homebrew bar-code scanner, based on the HEDS-1000 sensor. The do-ityourself scanner is reliable, easily constructed, and, best of all, costs about $35 (including the $29 sensor). For those who are willing to spend time, rather than money, it represents a practical alternative to the preassembled units.

The HEDS-1000 optoreflective sensor is the eye of the scanner. HewlettPackard has incorporated a 700 nm

Bradley W Bennett

238D Vairo Blvd

State College PA 16801

photodiode detector, and the necessary focusing optics to detect reflecting and absorbing characters in a single package. As a bonus, the unit also includes an NPN transistor that can be optionally wired as a first single-stage high-gain amplifier. The internal connection diagram of the HEDS-1000 is illustrated in figure 1. The only other operational requirement in addition to some elementary op-amp (operational amplifier) interfacing is that the

(nanometer)

light

Figure 1: Pin arrangement of HewlettPackard's HEDS-1000 optical reflective sensor. A light-emitting diode, photodiode, NPN transistor, and focusing optics are combined in this single package.

distance between the front of the sensor and the printed page be kept at approximately 4.34 mm (0.171 inch). When set at this distance the sensor is capable of resolving a 0.190 mm (0.075 inch) spot size, which is less than half the width of a normal barcode unit. Significant departure from this setting results in loss of resolution and, if taken to extremes, complete loss of detection.

In addition to these technical requirements, the sensor should be housed in a body that fits comfortably in the human hand, is easy to construct, and is (of course) inexpensive. I decided to use the body of a ball-point pen. The "fat pens" produced by a couple of manufacturers are an ideal choice. I selected the Schaefer No Nonsense pen for the wand because it provided a sufficient amount of room in the tip. Its barrel is in two pieces that screw together, and when not in use, the screw-on cap makes an excellent protective cover for the sensor.

Construction

The first step in construction involves disassembly and modification of the pen barrel. At the top of the pen is a spring, which is easily removed by drilling out from the top side. This modification becomes useful later, as it allows the scanner

62 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 260 on inquiry card.

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DETACHABLE INSERT

cable to exit from the top. Select a the barrel top. Slightly lower on the drill bit that will allow one half of a side of the barrel, drill a hole of grommet to be inserted and glued into similar size for the other half of the

(2a)

(2b)

CABLE SPLIT GROMMET

HEDS-1000

DRILL FOR SNUG FIT

CUT WITH TUBING CUTTER

2.5cm ( 1 in.) DISCARD

Figure 2: Modifications made to Schaefer No Nonsense pen barrel. With contents removed, the pen becomes a home for the HEDS-1000 sensor. The cable and indicator LED are affixed to the pen barrel (2a), while the sensor is mounted to the pen tip (2b).

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grommet, in which will be placed an LED (light-emitting diode). These modifications are shown in figure 2a. Although the indicator LED is optional, it does provide a convenient monitor of the wand's operation.

A critical design factor is the number of conductors in the scanner cable. My scanner employs a fiveconductor cable, which permits all interfacing to be done externally from the wand. This could have been reduced to four conductors had I placed the HEDS-1000 LED currentlimiting resistor (Rl) inside the barrel. In fact, I did try to place the entire circuit within the pen barrel, but it was obvious that a short circuit between pin 6 and a positive power-supply terminal was a strong possibility with such a crowded arrangement. (Burning out the LED within the sensor makes the sensor little more than an expensive phototransistor.)

If you are limited to a threeconductor cable, I suggest you eliminate the barrel-mounted indicator LED and move Rl inside the barrel. By keeping the rest of the circuitry outside of the barrel, the circuit can easily be fine tuned.

Modifications to the pen tip are shown in figure 2b. The simplest way to make a clean cut, perpendicular to the pen's axis, is with a small tubing cutter. Although not absolutely critical, the cut should be made about 2.5 cm (1.0 inch) from the tip end. This will insure that enough of the threaded part of the tip remains to securely hold the sensor while permitting adjustment of the sensor-toreflector distance. After cutting, the threaded end of the tip should be carefully drilled out so the sensor can be pressed in snugly.

Again, it is important that the distance from the sensor's front surface to the tip's cut face be kept at approximately 4.34 mm (0.171 inch). I found this easiest to do by making a calibration cylinder exactly 4.34 mm long, which fits inside the tip opening. The diameter of the cylinder must be large enough to make contact only with the sensor's metal can, and it must not obscure the transparent filter. Successively lapping the end of

64

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 398 on inquiry card.

DETACHABLE INSERT

DETACHABLE INSERT

DETACHABLE INSERT

Price

Performance

Reliability

—mil »ii mi , ujpr JB8F

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t inn 64k RAM' 60x2i 1Z" 8r68n T-200 phosphor screen, complete with

CP/M, M Basic80 and CBasic. NmUI 1 Uriel 2

1 5'/4" 280k 2 5'/»" 280k

Disk Drive Disk Drives

List '3995 List '4495

64k RAM, 80x24 12" screen, T-250 complete with CP/M, M BasicSO and CBasic.

Hedil3

1 8" 1 mbyte Disk Drive

List *4495

Medal 4

2 8" imbyle

Disk Drive

List '5496

YOUR STOCKING DISTRIBUTOR

A Division of Computer Marketing Corporation

INTERNATIONAL

EXCELLENT DEALER DISCOUNTS

To Order Call Toll Free

1-800-426-2963

11058 Main, Suite 125 Bellevue, WA 98004

PHONE (206) 453-9777 TELEX: 152 556 SEATAC

Circle 73 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

65

New Software from

MicroCraft Systems, mc.

Apple Software Development Tools

MicroCraft offers the Apple user a flexible set of development tools. This includes a low-cost full screen editor, the most powerful 6502 Macro Assembler available, and a compiled graphics language optimized for real-time applications. Each package compliments any Apple system and together they offer unequaled power and versatility.

RGL Real-time Graphics Language

Do real-time animation • Similar to 'C • Display, move and rotate 3D objects • Compiles text files to 'BRUN'able binary object files. $75 / $25 Until 10/31/81

MacroLink Complete 6502 Assembler

Disk Assembler • Text to binary object • Standard 6502 mnemonics • Recursive macros with up to 10 arguments

• Nestable conditional assembly • Links source or object code • Nestable file includes • Unlimited source file size

• Editor provided $125 / $20

SuperEdit Full Screen Editor

Horizontal scrolling allows 80 columns • Uses standard text files • Move cursor by character, line or page • Find, search and replace • Block move and copy • Use with RGL or MacroLink • 80 column video board versions also available. $75/$20

DiskScreen Disk Utility

Displays a complete disk sector in hex and ASCII, using high-res screen • Edit sector by typing over display ' $40/$10

Complete Assembler System [MacroLink, SuperEdit, DiskScreen] $200 / $40

Complete Graphics System [RGL, SuperEdit] $120 / $40

Systems available to utilize extra 16K or 32K expansion boards Please inquire

Note: All programs require a single disk drive and 48K. When ordering please specify configuration.

Telephone (313) 996-1297

Circle 106 on inquiry card.

8086 Software

• VEDIT full screen editor for CP/M-86.

• Contact us for availability of VEDIT for SCP 86-DOS and IBM 8088 computer.

• CP/M-86 BIOS for popular S-100 disk controllers.

Source code $185

V-COM Disassembler

Finally a Z-80 disassembler for CP/M which produces easy to read code, a cross reference table, and handles INTEL and ZILOG mnemonics. V-COM is exceptionally fast and produces a .ASM file directly from a .COM file. V-COM can accept a user-created file containing assignments of labels to 8 and 16 bit values. A second file can specify the location of tables and ASCII strings. $80

FASTSCREEN CRT emulation and Command Line Editor

Memory mapped displays offer over ten times the speed of the fastest CRT terminal but are usually not supported by application software. This is where FASTSCREEN fits in. FASTSCREEN provides a fast and highly compatible emulation of several popular CRT terminals for most memory mapped displays. It also provides editing and re-entry of any line on the screen, paging, and includes interrupt driven keyboard routines. (FASTSCREEN is provided as source code on a CP/M compatible diskette and requires assembly language modifications for installation.) $85

PIICEON 24 x 80 S100 Video Board

The PIICEON V-100 is the heart of a high speed alternative to a CRT terminal. Being I/O mapped, it uses no memory space, yet runs at full processor speed. FASTSCREEN is the perfect software driver for the V-100. Fully assembled and tested by PIICEON, the company known by OEMs for reliability.

PIICEON with FASTSCREEN PIICEON board only

$510

$475

Circle 107 on inquiry card.

CompiiView is proud to carry the MicroCraft Systems, Inc. quality software for the Apple II.

CompuView Products Inc.

618 Louise, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103 • Telephone (313) 996-1299

Customizable

The Unique Difference that Sets VEDIT Apart in Full Screen Editors

Total user customizability is a predominate reason that over a thousand users find VEDIT the easiest to use full screen editor. It makes VEDIT the only editing package which allows you to determine your own keyboard layout and use the cursor and special function keys on any terminal having them. And only VEDIT fully supports all of the newly available terminals. It may come as a surprise to you, that with any other editor or word processor, you will have to memorize obscure control characters or multi-character sequences, while your terminal's extra keys and editing functions go unused. The customization extends to setting the default tab positions, scrolling methods and much more. It's almost like designing your own editor for your system, applications and preferences. And all of this is easily done with the setup program which requires no programming knowledge or 'patches', but simply prompts you to press a key or enter a parameter.

Unequaled Hardware Support

The CRT version supports all terminals by allowing you to select during setup which terminal VEDIT will run on. Features such as line insert and delete, reverse scroll, status line and reverse video are used on 'smart' terminals. All screen sizes are supported, including large ones such as the 60 X 80 format on the Ann Arbor Ambassador terminal. Special function keys on terminals such as the Heath HI9, Televideo 920C and IBM 3101, and keyboards producing 8 bit codes are all supported. The memory mapped version is extremely flexible and supports bank select and hardware cursors such as on the SSM VB3. With this level of customizability and hardware support, you will feel for the first time that the software was optimally designed for your system.

Fully Compatible Replacement for Ed

Since VEDIT creates and edits standard text files of up to one diskette in length, it serves as a replacement for the CP/M

standard editor ED. Of course, you benefit from the fastest and easiest to use 'What you see is what you get' type full screen editing available, fast disk access and an editor which takes up only 12K of your valuable memory space. With VEDIT you will never again need or want to use the slow and tedious ED.

Special Features

VEDIT is more than just a full screen editing replacement for ED, it gives you many new editing capabilities, such as a scratchpad buffer for moving and rearranging sections of text, complete file handling on multiple drives and iteration macros. Amoung its special features you will find automatic indenting for use with structured programming languages such as Pascal and PL/I, and other special facilities for Assembler and COBOL. A real time saver is the ability to insert a specified line range of another file anywhere in the text. Clnlike most software, VEDIT will even tolerate your mistakes. For example, one key will 'Undo' the changes you mistakenly made to a screen line, and the disk write error recovery lets you delete files or insert another disk should you run out of disk space.

Ordering

Many dealers carry VEDIT, or you may contact us for fast delivery. Specify the CRT version, your video board or microcomputer, the 8080, Z80 or 8086 code version, and disk format required.

VEDIT for 8080 or Z80: Disk and manual $130

VEDIT for CP/M-86: Disk and manual. (NEW) $ 185

Manual: Price refunded with software purchase $ 15

VISA or MASTERCARD Welcomed

CP''M and MP M are registered trademarks of Digital Research, Inc. Apple II is a registered trademark ol Apple Computer, Inc. SoftCard is a trademark of Microsoft. TRS-80 is a trademark of Tandy Corp.

North Star * Cromemco • Heath H8/H89 • SuperBrain • Apple II Softcard ' TRS-80 Model II & Model Most other CP/M Systems with CRT or Memory Mapped Displays • MP/M * CP/M-86

CompuView Products Inc.

618 Louise, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103 • Telephone (313) 996-1299

Circle 108 on inquiry card.

RCA's remarkable new VP-3303 Interactive Data Terminal turns any home TV into a videotex display unit.

Now you can connect your family to the whole informative and entertaining world of CompuServe, The Source, Dow Jones News/Retrieval and other timesharing and data-base networks.

All you need is our VP-3303, a modem and a modem cable, a telephone and your home TV.

You can get instant access to regional newspapers and newsletters . .. weather reports and sports results . .. computer games and more. You can use the VP-3303 to make airline reservations ... find restaurant recommendations in cities around the world. Plus stock market and corporate data. Or access your school or business computer. You can even send electronic mail and buy products.

What you have working for you is a versatile, feature-packed interactive data terminal which can be worth far more to you than its low price. Its unique color-locking circuitry gives you sharp color graphics and rainbow free characters. You get 20- and 40character formats in one of eight colors and separate color backgrounds. The spill-proof, easy-to-clean keyboard is highly suitable for hostile environments. And the light touch

membrane keyboard switches give you a natural feel. With reverse video, you can emphasize certain letters, words or sentences. A built-in tone generator ... plus a white noise generator... let you create everything from the sound of explosions to the sound of music.

The RCA VP-3303 is complete with both RS232C and 20mA current loop interfaces. It has six baud rates, eight data formats and ASCII encoding ... versatility that allows you to connect directly to a computer, as well as time-share.

The RCA VP-3303 is truly a fine videotex terminal. And don't forget, it's made by RCA ... the first name in television ... now the foremost name in videotex terminals.

See a demonstration of the new RCA VP-3303 at your local computer or electronics dealer, or order direct from RCA, toll free or by mail.

Order now ... only $389.00 (Suggested user price.) For more information call toll free. 800-233-0094. In Pennsylvania, call 717-393-0446. Visa or MasterCard holders may order by phone. Or send a check including $3 delivery charge per unit plus your local sales tax.

TIME-SHARING.

a suitable piece of aluminum rod over fine emery paper will quickly achieve the required height.

Before seating the sensor at this distance with a small drop of epoxy, the small indexing tab above pin 8 must be removed so that the tip assembly can be threaded into the barrel. Careful filing does the trick. The leads should also be trimmed to guard against electrical shorting after assembly.

At this point, all that remains is to solder the cable leads and complete final assembly. In addition to soldering the cable connections on the sensor, solder a wire between pins 4 and 8 and extend it another 10 cm (4 inches). This is the ground lead for the side-mounted LED. Carefully screw the tip assembly into the barrel while rotating the cable with the tip assembly. This is easier to accomplish with two people: one holds the cable and tip assembly, the other turns the barrel.

Fish the indicator LED's ground and cable lines through the side hole and half-grommet and solder them to the LED's shortened leads. Place a small drop of epoxy on the LED and half-grommet and press them into the side hole from the outside. The scanning wand is now complete. The finished product, with calibration cylinder, appears in photo 1.

Sensing Circuit

As shown in figure 3, the circuitry to make the sensor's output TTL(transistor transistor-logic) compatible requires only two integrated circuits. Three op amps in the LM324 packages handle amplification and comparative functions, while the 7413 NAND Schmitt trigger "cleans up" the sensor's output by only passing pulses above a threshold voltage. To stabilize the common-collector circuit using the sensor's NPN transistor, a 15 pF capacitor and 1 megohm resistor are put in parallel with the transistor. Nominal outputs at this stage are approximately + 3.2 V for a light-absorbing surface (black) and +1.7 V for a reflecting surface (white). These values can be adjusted by varying resistor R10.

Circle 365 on inquiry card.

Amdek

From picture perfect.

To letter

/iM06*

Amdek

Color-I

FCC/UL approved

Amdek

Video-300

At Amdek, we make monitors for people who demand state-of-the-art color. And for people who know that crisp, clear text display is an art in itself.

Our versatile Color-I 13" video monitor features standard NTSC composite input, front-mounted controls and a built-in speaker with audio circuit. Our popular Video-30012" Green Phosphor monitor has an easy-to-read, non-glare screen, 18 MHZ band width and 80 x 24 character display.

Both offer easy portability, with lightweight cabinetry and molded-in handles. And both are fully

compatible with most computer and word processing systems. So compare our performance with other monitors. Then compare prices. For quality and value, you'll choose Amdek.

NEW THIS FALL: our advanced high resolution Color-n monitor with interface board for Apple II compatibility. Color-II features RGB, TTL input and 560(H) x 260(V) resolution for crisp 80 x 24 character display and exceptionally sharp color graphics. Ask your dealer about an Amdek Color-II, Color-I, or Video-300 monitor today.

2420 E. Oakton Street, Suite "E," Arlington Heights, Illinois 60005 (312) 364-1180 TLX: 25-4786

Come see our complete line of color, green phosphor and black/white monitors at the COMDEX Show (Booth 386-8) in Las Vegas, November 19-21.

Photo 1: Author's bar-code scanning wand. The wand is based on Hewlett-Packard's HEDS-1000 optical reflective sensor (the metal can with eight pins), and a Schaefer No Nonsense ball-point pen. The calibration cylinder appears at the right of the HEDS-1000 module.

The signal is fed to the inverting input of one of the LM324's op amps, which is configured as a comparator. The amplifier's other input receives a reference voltage set through the voltage divider of R3 and R4. The divider network should be adjusted so that this input to the amplifier is about +2.5 V, which will ensure that the scanner produces on and off pulses approximately equal in length (while scanning equally sized absorbing and reflecting characters).

The output of the first op-amp stage is coupled to the inverting input of the second op-amp comparator, which drives the scanner's LED. The first stage's output is also sent to a voltage follower that drives a NAND Schmitt trigger. Besides functioning as an inverter, the Schmitt trigger provides a sharp output that is filtered by the 1000 pF capacitor. Although the addition of this capacitor does cut down on response time when scanning at extremely high rates, it poses no problem for practical hand scanning.

X DENOTES WIRES WHICH PASS THROUGH CONNECTING CABLE

£2> OUTPUT

C2 1000 pF

Figure 3: Schematic diagram of the circuit to make the sensor's output compatible with transistor-transistor logic. The sensor's integral NPN transistor is connected as an amplifier/driver. One section of an LM324 quad-operational amplifier is connected as an inverting comparator. The output of this stage is fed to the indicator LED (mounted on the pen barrel) through a second amplifier section. The signal also goes to a voltagefollower-connected op amp that drives a Schmitt-trigger NAND gate. The NAND gate's sharp output pulse is filtered with a 1000 pF capacitor.

Number

Type

+ 5 V

GND

IC1

HEDS1000

IC2

LM324

4

11

IC3

7413

14

7

70 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 423 on inquiry card.

m

897 N.W. Grant Ave. • Corvallis, Oregon 97330

Introducing the Enhancer ][: a new

Standard which is improving the

relationship between Humans and

Apples. The Enhancer ][ can help

your Apple It's keyboard become

more sociable "by remembering

words or phrases which can be

entered into the Apple, by the mere

touch of a key. Life can become

even easier because the Enhancer ][

can pemember what yOU typed

while your Apple was busy talking

to your disc tor doing other things).

Naturally, it knows the difference

between upper and lower case

letters and what shift keys are

supposed to do. It even knows to

auto repeat any key held down. The

Enhancer H replaces the encoder

board making installation sjmple.

Suggested retail price: $149.0.0.

See Us At

am

THE DAWN OF A NEW ERA FOR APPLE IE«

■

ENHANCER H

November 19-22.1981 / Boom No. 16 Las Vegas Conv

• w

■ VIDEO TERM

The time tested Videoterm 80 column card:

• 80 characters x 24 lines

• True decenders

• 7 x 9 character resolution

• Low power consumption

• Compatible with most word processors

• Softcard and CP/M compatible

• Modem compatible

• Most popular character set of any 80 column card

• Alternate character fonts available Suggested retail price $345.00

n

j

■ SOFT VIDEO SWITCH

The Soft Video Switch is an automatic version of the popular Switchplate. It knows

whether it should display 40 ar 80 columns or Apple graphics. It does the tedious work of switching videoout signals so you don't have to. The Soft Video Switch can be controlled by software. Any Videoterm with Firmware 2.0 or greater may be used with the Soft Video Switch. The single wire shift mod is also supported. Package price is $35.00.

■ KEYBOARD AND DISPLAY ENHANCER

The original Keyboard and Display Enhancer is still available for Revision 0-6 Apples (on which the new Enhancer ][ will not fit). These Apples have memory select sockets at chip locations D1, E1 & F1. The Keyboard and Display Enhancer allows entry and display af upper & lower case letters with fully functional shift keys. It does NOT have user definable keys nor a type ahead buffer. The price is $129.00.

■ ACCESSORIES:

Videoterm Utilities Disc S37.00 [includes)

• Font Editor

• Pascal Mid-Res Graphics

• Applesoft Read Screen Utility

• Top S. Bottom Scrolling

• Pascal Vidpatch

• Graphics Template Character Set EPROMs $29.00 ea

• Half Intensity

• Inverse

• German

• Katakana(Japanese)

• Line Drawing Graphics (Expanded)

• Spanish

• French

• Math S. Greek Symbols

• Super & Subscript Dvorak EPROM

(Enhancer) $29.00

Lower Case Chip $29.00

+ 5V

IC4 74LS04

•IK

IC3b 7413

MEMR O

-4°^

13

Ai5 o

A14 \Z>

A13 O" A12 O" All OA10 f~J>

20 21 22 23

Number

Type

+ 5 V

GND

IC3

7413

14

7

IC4

74LS04

14

7

IC5

74LS154

20

12

IC6

74LS125

14

7

19 18

Gl G2

IC5 74LS154

16

15

14

13

17

10

IC6 74LS125

SCANNER I ;_

OUTPUT '—^

-C>D°7

JUMPER SELECT IK

Figure 4: Memory-mapped interface to the signal bus of a microcomputer. The decoding circuitry will gate the bar-code scanner's output onto the data bus whenever an address within the selected 1 K-byte space is accessed by a memory-reference instruction. In this arrangement, the 1 K-byte space resides somewhere in the top 16 K bytes of the address space. (This interface is compatible with the software presented in Ken Budnick's book Bar Code Loader.)

LETTER QUALITY PRINTER

• DUAL USE. A PRINTER AND A TYPEWRITER

• SELF TEST PROGRAM BUILT IN

The BYTEWRITER is a printer consisting of a microprocessor controlled assembly internally connected to an SCM Coronamatic 8000 office typewriter.

$795

OTHER FEATURES

Back space. • Parallel input. Pin compatible with

TRS-80 expansion interface. Typewriter operation with

nothing to disconnect.

TO ORDER

- Send certified check or money order. Personal checks take 2 weeks.

We do not ship C.O.D.

- Add S lO for shipping and handling in

continental U.S.A. • N.Y.S. residents add 7% sales tax.

BYTEWRITER

125 NORTHVIEW RD., ITHACA, N.Y. 1 4850 (607) 272-1 132

scm Coronamatic hixx) Ls » trademark of sc:m Corp.

tks«) is ii trademark of Tandy Corp.

BYTEWRITER is a trademark ot Williams Laboratories

That's all there is to making a simple bar-code scanner. The circuit in figure 4 illustrates an extremely simple interface to an 8-bit microcomputer bus. The signal from the wand's output is gated onto the computer's data bus through a memory-mapped addressing scheme. The wand's output will be available when a memoryreference instruction is executed addressing a 1 K-byte block anywhere in the top 16 K bytes of address space (the specific block is selected by a jumper connection). The high-order bit on the data bus receives the signal.

Ken Budnick's book Bar Code Loader (available from BYTE Books) contains bar-decoding programs for the 8080, 6800, and 6502 microprocessors which read the high-order data bit. Due to their simplicity, the routines can be easily modified to work in almost any system.

One comment should be made concerning this software. Even on my slow 2.048 MHz 8080A-based system, I found it was impossible to scan fast enough to keep the counting register from timing out (the register exceeded the counting limit of 255). By adding a DCR...JNZ (decrement register...jump on not zero) loop in the input scanner sections of the software, I solved the problem. I suspect that similar changes will have to be made to the software for other systems. Note that the addition of this time-killing loop does not result in a significant reduction in practical hand-held scanning speeds—I accurately and reproducibly scan at more than 25 cm (10 inches) per second.

Bar codes represent a reliable and convenient method of massdistributing digital information. Hewlett-Packard's design and production of the HEDS-1000 sensor makes bar-code reading practical for me. Combining it with some simple interfacing has made printed software a reality. ■

The HEDS-1000 optical-reflective sensor can be ordered from Hamilton-Avnet, 1175 Bordeaux Dr, Sunnyvale CA 94086. Address orders to Sales Department.

72 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 429 on inquiry card.

Circle 129 on inquiry card.

dolosoulh announces. • •

THE TOTAL PRINTER PACKAGE!

With so many matrix printers on the market today, it may seem tough to find exactly the right one for your application. Some models may offer the speed you need, others the communications flexibility and still others the forms handling capability. But no printer offers all the features you need...until now.

The DS180 matrix printer provides the total package of performance features and reliability required for applications such as CRT slave copy, remote terminal networks and small to mid-range systems. Not a "hobby-grade" printer, the DS180 is a real workhorse designed to handle your most demanding printer requirements. And pricing on the DS180 is hundreds of dollars below competitive units.

High Speed Printing-Bidirectional, logic-seeking printing at 180 cps offers throughput of over 200 ipm on average text. A 9-wire printhead life-tested at 650 million characters generates a 9x7 matrix with true lower case descenders and underlining.

Non-volatile Format Retention-a unique programming keypad featuring a non-volatile memory allows the user to configure the DS180 for virtually any application. Top of form, horizontal and vertical tabs, perforation skipover, communications parameters

and many other features may be programmed and stored from the keypad.When your system is powered down, the format is retained in memory. The DS180 even remembers the line where you stopped printing. There is no need to reset the top of form, margins, baud rate, etc....it's all stored in the memory. If you need to reconfigure for another application, simply load a new format into the memory.

Communications Versatility-The DS180 offers three interfaces including RS232, current loop and 8-bit parallel. Baud rates from 110-9600 may be selected. A 1K buffer and X-on, X-off handshaking ensure optimum throughput.

Forms Handling Flexibility-Adjustable tractors accommodate forms from 3"-15". The adjustable head can print 6-part forms crisply and clearly making the DS180 ideal for printing multipart invoices and shipping documents. Forms can be fed from the front or the bottom.

If you would like more information on how the DS180's low-cost total printer package can fill your application, give us a call at Datasouth. The DS180 is available for 30-day delivery from our sales/service distributors throughout the U.S.

See Us At

' November 19-22, 1981 Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV

4740 Dwight Evans Road • Charlotte, North Carolina 28210 • 704/523-8500

data©®*

computer corporation

Introducing the Sinclair ZX81

If you're ever going to buy a personal computer, now is the time to do it.

The new Sinclair ZX81 is the most powerful, yet easy-to-use computer ever offered for anywhere near the price: only $149.95* completely assembled.

Don't let the price fool you. The ZX81 has just about everything you could ask for in a personal computer. A breakthrough in personal computers

The ZX81 is a major advance over the original Sinclair ZX80-the world's largest selling personal computer and the first for under $200.

In fact, the ZX81's new 8K Extended BASIC offers features found only on computers costing two or three times as much.

Just look at what you get:

■ Continuous display, including moving graphics

■ Multi-dimensional string and numerical arrays

* Plus shipping and handling. Price includes connectors for TV and cassette. AC adaptor, and FREE manual.

■ Mathematical and scientific functions accurate to 8 decimal places

■ Unique one-touch entry of key words like PRINT, RUN and LIST

■ Automatic syntax error detection and easy editing

■ Randomize function useful for both games and serious applications

■ Built-in interface for ZX Printer

■ 1K of memory expandable to 16K

The ZX81 is also very convenient to use. It hooks up to any television set to produce a clear 32-column by 24-line display. And you can use a regular cassette recorder to store and recall programs by name.

If you already own a ZX80

The 8K Extended BASIC chip used in the ZX81 is available as a plug-in replacement for your ZX80 for only $39.95, plus shipping and handling—complete with new keyboard overlay and the ZX81 manual. So in just a few minutes, with no special skills or tools required, you can upgrade your ZX80 to have all the powerful features of the ZX81. (You'll have everything except continuous display, but you can still use the PAUSE and SCROLL commands to get moving graphics.)

With the 8K BASIC chip, your ZX80 will also be equipped to use the ZX Printer and Sinclair software.

Warranty and Service Program"

The Sinclair ZX81 is covered by a 10-day money-back guarantee and a limited 90-day warranty that includes free parts and labor through our national service-by-mail facilities.

"Does not apply to ZX81 kits.

NEW SOFTWARE:Sinclair has published pre-recorded programs on cassettes for your ZX81, or ZX80 with 8K BASIC. We're constantly coming out with new programs, so we'll send you our latest software catalog with your computer.

ZX PRINTER: The Sinclair ZX Printer will work with your ZX81, or ZX80 with 8K BASIC. It will be available in the near future and will cost less than $100.

16K MEMORY MODULE:

Like any powerful, full fledged computer, the ZX81 is expandable. Sinclair's 16K memory module plugs right onto the back of your ZX81 (or ZX80, with or without 8K BASIC). Cost is $99.95, plus shipping and handling.

ZX81 MANUAL: The ZX81 comes with a comprehensive 164-page programming guide and operating manual designed for both beginners and experienced computer users. A $10.95 value, it's yours free with the ZX81.

If you really want to save money, and you enjoy building electronic kits, you can order the ZX81 in kit form for the incredible price of just $99.95r It's the same, full-featured computer, only you put it together yourself. We'll send complete, easy to-follow instructions on how you can assemble your ZX81 in just a few hours All you have to supply is the soldering iron

How to order

Sinclair Research is the world's largest manufacturer of personal computers.

The ZX81 represents the latest technology in microelectronics, and it picks up right where the ZX80 left off.

I Thousands are selling every week. We urge you to place your order for the new ZX81 today. The sooner you order, the sooner you can start enjoying your own computer. To order, simply call our toll free number, and use your MasterCard or VISA j-n To order by mail, please use the

^ apupon. And send your check or money \ order. We regret that we cannot accept \ purchase orders or CO.D!s.

CALL 800-543-3000. Ask for operator #509. In Ohio call 800-582-1364. In Canada call 513-729-4300. Ask for operator #509. Phones open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Have your MasterCard or VISA ready.

These numbers are for orders only. For information, you must write to Sinclair Research Ltd., One Sinclair Plaza, Nashua, NH 03061.

6K Memory Module (for ZX81 or ZX80)

■ ■ ■

inczlaii

PRICEt QTY. AMOUNT

ZX81

ZX81 Kit

8K BASIC chip (for ZX80)

Shipping and Handling

To ship outside USA add $10.00

$149.95

99.95

39.95

99.95

4.95

TOTAL

$4.95

MAIL TO: Sinclair Research Ltd., One Sinclair Plaza, Nashua, NH 03061.

NAME

ADDRESS

XITY/STATE/ZIP. t U.S. Dollars

Software Review

Reversal

Othello for the Apple II

Mark Friedman

23 Forge Dr

Nashua NH 03060

"Winner of the software division of the First International Man-Machine Othello Tournament" is the declaration that catches your eye when you pick up the box. And if that's not intimidating enough to a casual game player, consider that Reversal is written by the Spracklens of Sargon chess fame. Is there any hope of winning? The answer is a most emphatic yes, depending on the level of play you select. At the same time, however, Reversal is capable of giving even the best player a tough run for the money.

The game is played on an eight-by-eight square board, and the object is to occupy more squares than your opponent. The game's rules are very simple: you place one piece on the board per turn and try to trap your opponent's pieces between your own; all pieces trapped become yours. It sounds simple, and, as any Othello player knows, it is . . . sometimes.

Reversal comes in the now standard Hayden Gameware box, with a better-than-average instruction booklet and a registration card. The disk carries what seems to be its own operating system, as well as the game itself, and is, of course, both write-protected and "uncopyable." At least the few casual efforts I made to copy it failed. The registration card indicates that if your original disk becomes unusable in less than a year, it will be replaced free of charge. The instruction booklet, however, states that replacement will be free for 90 days, after which a copy will cost $5.

Loading Reversal is simple, although a mention of its 13-sector status would make the first time even easier for those with systems that default to a 16-sector format. It

Othello is a trademark of CBS.

might also make you feel a little better if you were warned that several head initializations, with their usual clatter, are normal (at least they were on my system, with any drive I used). Once loaded, you are offered four choices: play a game against your Apple II; start a game with any given board layout; play against a fellow human; or exit from the program. Be forewarned that exiting delivers you into the hands of the Monitor program. You should also be aware that the instruction booklet is written in a tutorial style, which is fine for a first reading, but a table of available commands would make life easier a week later.

If you elect to play a game, you are asked several ques

At a Crlanrp

Name

Apple floppy disk

Reversal

Language

Type

Assembler

High-resolution graphics

game playing a version of

Computer

Othello

Apple II with at least 32K

bytes of memory; tape or

Manufacturer

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76 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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tions. The first is which color, black or white, you wish to play. The two remaining questions determine the program's level of play. Your first decision is to select the level of strategy the program will use, with choices of beginner, intermediate, and advanced (advanced is billed as its championship level). Your last decision is how much time to allow the program to determine its next move. There are nine time levels, listed as ranging from 2.5 seconds to 30 minutes, providing a total of 27 playing levels for the program—more than enough to suit any level of player.

Be aware of two things while selecting the program's play level. The first is that the printed list of "approximate" response times is very approximate. Level 6, with a listed time of one minute, varied from just under a minute to almost three minutes during one game played at the advanced strategy level. The second detail is that while the strategy level you pick cannot change during a game, the response-time level can be changed at any time, making play even more flexible.

Reversal makes use of both the text and graphics displays during execution, showing the level of play and move list on the text page and the board itself on the graphics page. Toggling between the two displays is done with the ESC (escape) key, although once a game has started, I've found little need for the text display other than to record a game for posterity. Reversal makes good use of the Apple's graphics, with a couple of nice touches

like pieces that smile or frown depending on the score (when both sides are tied, they just stare at you). Should you find them distracting, the faces can be turned off.

Once you are looking at the game board, playing is as simple as it can be—at least the mechanics are. There is no need to memorize a list of board locations, as navigation is done with the cursor-control arrows. In addition, since the cursor will stop only on squares that represent legal moves, there is really no excuse for overlooking a possible move. Once you have found the square you would like to move to, just press Return. All trapped pieces will be flipped automatically, and the score, displayed on the sides of the screen, will be updated, as will the move list displayed on the text page. The program then begins its search for a suitable response.

Reversal is so easy to play that my five-year-old daughter was able to play her first game after five minutes of coaching. While her first game was a bit of a rout, she insisted on playing until she won, several times.

I tend to be a casual, rather than an aggressive, player, and my selection of playing levels reflected that. I got the most pleasure playing at the lower, faster-response levels, with a few highest-level (30-minute response) games thrown in for good measure. To compare the strategy levels, I played a series of games at each level. While I was able to win the majority of games at the beginner level, and half or more at intermediate, the advanced level was easily my match. In fact, one game played at

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Circle 43 on inquiry card.

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level A6 was the most elegant example of trap-setting I have seen in a long time. Any time I can be beaten in the last five moves as badly as 63 to 1, I know I've met my match. That game made me wish there was a command to print the entire move list, rather than having to copy it by hand during the game—the game was over before I realized it was worth saving.

The program has two additional features that can make for a more varied game: the ability to take back any move and a way to ask what the program thinks your best move is. It can sometimes take an extreme effort of will not to back a game up to where you made some "mistake," but it can be fun to check out other possibilities, and it's nice to know you can. The ability to ask the program about your best move is also a nice idea, but because it is limited by the amount of look-ahead the program did in computing its move, it is, more often than not, not your best possible response.

As there is no way to save a game in progress, the only way to resume an interrupted game is to record the positions of all pieces and use the facility to start a game from a given board layout, but this is a tedious process. A "Save Game" command would have solved the problem, particularly when playing at levels requiring 30 minutes per response.

As long as I'm "wishing," there are a few other things that either should be included or would be handy to have. These include the ability to change strategy level during a game, having the "Exit" command reload the system, and a table of commands in the instruction booklet. In passing, let me recommend the user's guide section entitled "Strategy Tips" to anyone who plays Reversal. The tips may be obvious, but they're valuable nonetheless.

I highly recommend Reversal to anyone who enjoys Othello or to anyone who likes strategy games in general. Reversal can also serve as a good introductory computer game for beginners of any age. The Spracklens have done a magnificent job: Reversal is everything I expected it to be when I saw who had brought it into the world.

Conclusions

• Reversal is capable of competing evenly with players of any level.

• Instructions and documentation for Reversal are better than average, but a "quick reference" table of commands would help inexperienced users. Running the game is complicated by only one fact: it is assumed you know that the disk uses Apple's DOS 3.2. An unusually large number of disk accesses occur before anything happens, so the first-time user might experience some anxiety.

• Use of graphics and the game paddle make this game well-engineered for human use, but a feature for saving unfinished games on disk would avoid making the player record, then reenter the positions of all the pieces. Other improvements could include allowing the player to change the strategy level during play and a command to end the game and reload the program. ■

80

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 304 on inquiry card.

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You operate Type-'N-Talk"by simply typing English text and a talk command. Your typewritten words are automatically translated into electronic speech by the system's microprocessor-based text-tospeech algorithm.

The endless uses of speech synthesis.

Type-'N-Talk™adds a whole new world of speaking roles to your computer. You can program verbal reminders to prompt you through a complex routine and make your computer announce events. In teaching, the computer with Type-'N-Talk ""can actually tell students when they're right or wrong — even praise a correct answer. And of course, Type-'N-Talk'"is great fun for computer games. Your games come to life with spoken threats of danger, reminders, and praise. Now all computers can speak. Make yours one of the first.

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English text is automatically translated into electronically synthesized speech with Type-'N-Talk'." ASCII code from your computer's keyboard is fed to Type-'N-Talk'"through an RS 232C interface to generate synthesized speech. Just enter English text and hear the verbal

response (electronic speech) through your audio loud speaker. For example: simply type the ASCII characters representing "h-e-1-l-o" to generate the spoken word "hello."

TYPE-'N-TALK has its own memory.

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Place Type-'N-Talk between a computer or modem and a terminal. Type-'N-Talk'M can speak all data sent to the terminal while online with a computer. Information randomly accessed from a data base can be verbalized. Using the Type-'N-Talk" data switching capability, the unit can be "de-selected" while data is sent to the terminal and vice-versa — permitting speech and visual data to be independently sent on a single data channel.

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Type-'N-Talk'"can be interfaced in several ways using special control characters. Connect it directly to a computer's serial interface. Then a terminal, line printer, or additional Type-'N-TalkiMunits can be connected to the first Type-'N-Talk)" eliminating the need for additional RS-232C ports on your computer. Using unit assignment codes, multiple Type-'N-Talk "units can be daisy-chained. Unit addressing codes allow independent control of Type-'N-Talk™units and your printer.

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The Microcomputer as a Laboratory Instrument

Daniel Cosgrove

Botany Department

University of Washington

Seattle WA 98195

During the past three years we have actively used a microcomputer to study the biophysics of plant growth. The unit serves as a dataacquisition and stimulus-control system, as well as an analytical tool for processing and studying the resulting data. But why use a computer? Specifically, why use a microcomputer?

As a laboratory tool, the computer may be likened to a "smart" stripchart recorder. That is, the computer not only stores data coming in from many different instruments (making it equivalent to not one but many chart recorders), but also controls external devices. For example, the microcomputer that we use in our laboratory regulates the timing and intensity of experimental light treatments given to plants. In addition, the computer permits easier, more subtle interpretations of the data involving mathematical transformations and statistical analysis.

In the past, such processes were severely limited by time and manpower. The availability of data in digital form makes sophisticated processing, such as signal averaging, smoothing, digital filtering, and curve-fitting, much easier. Thus the computer improves both the quantity and quality of experiments. In the last decade, the minicomputer has invaded the laboratory to perform these functions and more.

Acknowledgments

The author gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship, as well as the National Science Foundation Grant PCM 78-03244 awarded to Dr Paul Green of Stanford University.

The reason for selecting a microcomputer is price—they sell for a fraction of the cost of a minicomputer. Yet in many cases they have all the required capabilities. Their biggest limitation in the laboratory is one of software—programs useful to the researcher are scarce. The first part of this article will give an overview of the microcomputer as it is used in our lab; this is followed by a description of the hardware and software architecture of the system.

System Overview

The primary use of our laboratory microcomputer (see photo 1) is to control experiments and acquire data. A typical experiment would involve the continuous measuring of the

growth rate (and other parameters) of several plants over a 24- to 48-hour period, while subjecting the plants to various conditions such as light of different intensities or solutions of different osmotic strengths.

At the beginning of an experiment, the plants are connected to growth transducers, which are then connected to a multichannel A/D (analog-to-digital) converter in the computer. A BASIC program prompts the operator for the parameters of the experiment (eg: how many channels to sample, how often to sample, how many sampled points to average, when to turn the lights on and off, the total duration of the experiment) and feeds these values to the interrupt-driven

Photo 1: View of the laboratory microcomputer, showing the Soroc video console, Horizon II computer, interface box, and oscilloscope and strip-chart recorder used for graphic display of data. Plant growth transducers and other instruments located in a controlled-temperature room behind the computer are plugged into the interface box on top of the Horizon.

84

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 397 on inquiry card.

assembly-language program that does the real work of the experiment. When the operator is satisfied with the experimental parameters, the BASIC program will start the sampling program.

Because the sampling program is an interrupt-driven routine, data acquisition can occur while BASIC works on a completely different program. This sampling will be completely transparent to the BASIC program and to the operator because the assembly routines are fast (the worstcase time required is less than one millisecond) and take up only a small portion of the processor's time (depending, of course, on the sampling rate), while the rest of the time is devoted to the BASIC (or other) program. This allows the operator to use BASIC for other tasks, or to run a program in BASIC that monitors the status of the experiment and permits the alteration of the progress of the experiment.

Using the video terminal, oscilloscope, or strip-chart recorder as display devices, this STATUS program can display the data collected by the sampling program. Photos 2 through 4 compare the three types of

graphic displays. The oscilloscope and strip chart both have high resolution; the latter is used when hard copy is required. The video display has low resolution, but is useful when the other devices are not handy, and if you want to perform a simultaneous comparison of the data from different channels.

The data-acquistion programs are very flexible, allowing a wide range of sampling rates (up to three kHz) and control of up to sixteen different programmed events during the course of a sampling period. In addition, sampling periods may be automatically concatenated—with each period having its own parameters. I use this feature in my experiments on the effect of light on plant growth: high-frequency sampling during and shortly after the light treatment is alternated with lower-frequency sampling during the dark interval between light treatments. In addition, data points are averaged over a longer time span during the dark period, which saves both disk storage and processing time yet still provides the background growth-rate information I need.

After the computer has completed

GROWTH RATE (mm/hr) 3

RAW

DATA

(A)

SMOOTHED A V DATA \

\ (B1 V

\ FITTED \ „ CURVE \ (C)

1 1

30

60 90

TIME (sec)

Figure 1: Sample of data obtained using the acquisition system that appears in photo 1. The results of data smoothing and curve fitting performed on raw statistical data can be aided by the use of a microcomputer. Curve A shows the raw data of a plant's growth response to blue light; curve B shows the same data after smoothing to eliminate noise; curve C is derived from a computer fit of the data to an equation of an exponential decay of the growth rate to a lower rate.

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 85

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Figure 2: Block diagram of the hardware and peripherals used in the author's data-acquisition system.

an experiment, it can shut off its own power by activating a latching relay. The data that have been collected and stored on disk can subsequently be examined and processed. In our lab, such processing involves smoothing the data and fitting it to exponential curves using statistical methods. An example of this process appears in figure 1.

In the laboratory, the microcomputer is a powerful tool for data acquisition, processing, and analysis. The two major tasks involved in setting up such a tool are interfacing the computer to the lab instruments and writing the programs for data acquisition. These tasks are described in the following sections.

Hardware Requirements

What are the hardware requirements of the system? Figure 2 diagrams the setup. The microcomputer is a North Star Horizon, which uses the Zilog Z80A microprocessor as the central processor, with dual 5-inch floppy-disk drives and 32 K bytes of user memory as peripherals. The FPB (hardware floating-point board) is an optional peripheral that speeds up mathematical programs in BASIC. The Cromemco D + 7A I/O

(input/output) board provides a 7-channel A/D (analog-to-digital) converter for accepting voltage signals from lab instruments, a 7-channel D/A (digital-to-analog) converter for outputting the stored data to display devices, and an 8-bit parallel port used in the lab for turning external devices on and off.

An interface between the Cromemco board and the "real world" was built to protect the board from dangerous external voltages and to facilitate connecting instruments to it. The interface is shown in photo 5 and its schematic appears in figure 3. The analog inputs are protected by zener diodes that are in series with light

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Photo 2: Sample display of data on the Soroc system console using the terminal's direct X-Y cursor-positioning ability.

86 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 397 on inquiry card.

emitting diodes. The zeners conduct current across the light-emitting diodes when the input voltage is outside the -2.7 to + 2.7 V range. This protects the circuits on the A/D board and gives a visual signal to indicate either over- or undervoltage conditions.

The analog outputs are used for graphic displays of digital data by plugging an oscilloscope or stripchart recorder into the output jacks on the interface box. The parallel port, which is used to turn lights and other devices on and off, is isolated

from outside currents by optical couplers and reed relays. The reed relays can handle up to 0.75 A and 240 V. For the larger currents used by the 500 W lamps, the relays turn on triacs (bidirectional thyristors or silicon-controlled rectifiers) that can handle up to 15 A. (For those interested in reading more about interface circuits, I have included several references at the end of the article.) As you can see, most I/O for experiments is handled via the Cromemco board and its interface box.

Photo 3: Graphic display of data on the oscilloscope.

Photo 4: Graphic display of data on the strip-chart recorder.

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 87

Total Amount

The Horizon has a useful built-in interval timer (a so-called "real-time clock") located on the motherboard, which makes periodic sampling easy. To provide the clock-interrupt capability required by the dataacquisition program, the real-time clock flag is connected to one of the seven interrupt lines (V3) on the motherboard. The flag may then be enabled or disabled under program control (ie: it is armed while sampling is going on, but disarmed at other times).

One note of caution: whenever interrupts, either from the clock or other device, are enabled, the North Star Hardware Floating Point Board may not be used with reliability. In using North Star's special version of BASIC (called FPBASIC), which accesses the floating-point board, I found that the board sporadically returned erroneous results when interrupt sampling was occurring. (This happens when a clock interrupt falls in the middle of data transmission between the board and FPBASIC.) The

sampled data, fortunately, is not affected, and use of standard BASIC instead of FPBASIC circumvents this problem.

Also to be considered is the fact that interrupts during disk activity may cause detected read errors as well as undetected write errors. As a consequence, the data-acquisition program described below always disables interrupts before attempting to write the data out to disk. This is necessary to insure error-free data transmission.

(3a)

ANALOG OUT

(7 CHANNELS)

TO OSCILLOSCOPE,

CHART RECORDER

n>

■€>

:>

(3b)

ANALOG IN

17 CHANNELS) FROM GROWTH TRANSDUCERS

f c

IN5223

''led

MV5052

/77

(3c) PARALLEL OUT

(8 BITS)

0PTOIS0LAT0R +5V 4N33 G

(3d) PARALLEL IN

(8 BITS)

+ 5V

OPTOISOLATOR 4N33

100 NOTE'.

SEPARATE GROUNDS ARE NECESSARY

Figure 3: Schematic diagrams of the four types of I/O channels used on the laboratory microcomputer. Figure 3a is the analog output from the Cromemco 7 A/D + I/O board to the graphics peripheral (this circuit is duplicated for 7 analog output channels). Figure 3b is the analog input interface that connects the Cromemco board to the various data-acquisition devices; the zener diodes protect the analog input circuitry on the board from overvoltages, while the LEDs indicate this danger condition (also duplicated for 7 channels). Figure 3c shows a relay controller operated from one bit of a parallel output port (duplicated for 8 channels). Figure 3d is the parallel input port interface (duplicated for 8 channels). Both of these interfaces protect the computer through the use of optical isolators.

88

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 397 on inquiry card.

We use a Soroc IQ 120 terminal to communicate with the computer and a Teletype model ARS 33 as a printer.

Software Description

The special software used for laboratory experiments includes a variety of assembly-language programs as well as BASIC programs. The assembly-language data-acquisition programs (see listing 1) were developed using Xitan's (formerly TDL) editor and Z80 macroassembler under a CP/M operating-system environment. All of the programs were designed to use the North Star DOS (disk operating system) library

routines for writing to and from disks. Similarly, all of the BASIC programs use North Star BASIC (see listings 2 through 4). The dataacquisition routines in machine language are located in a different portion of memory from that used by BASIC (see memory map in figure 4). Thus, both may function during an experiment.

For the purpose of maximum flexibility, the laboratory software was designed as a number of modules that pass information to each other. As seen in the left half of figure 5, the sampling programs consist of three main modules: INTERRUPT HAN

Photo 5: Close-up of the interface box. Instruments to be sampled are plugged into the computer's analog input jacks. Voltages outside the range of the A/D converter are indicated by the overvoltage or undervoltage LEDs. A display of graphic data may be obtained by plugging an oscilloscope or a strip-chart recorder into the analog output jack. Lamps, motors, and other devices are turned on and off by the digital output relays.

SYBEX

mational MICROCOMPUTER ICTIONARY

INTERNATIONAL

MICROCOMPUTER

DICTIONARY

These days everyone's talking about computers. Make sure you understand what's being said. This handy pocket-guide contains definitions of all the terms, numbers and acronyms that make-up current microcomputer jargon. It also contains a basic vocabulary of essential computer words in English and ten other languages including Italian, German, Dutch, French, Spanish and Swedish. Makes reading any computer literature easier and more understandable for everyone.

140 pp., Ref. X2, $3.95

I'M-;.'

\UCK> \K\

IIJR FREEC

Iuiul An

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

DLER, SAMPLER, and PROCESSOR. The first module keeps track of when data needs to be recorded, the second records the data, and the third saves the data on disk and calls special event programs.

The sampling routines function as follows (see the flowchart in figure 5): the real-time clock requests an interrupt, which causes a jump to the INTERRUPT HANDLER program. This is handled by the vectored priority-interrupt capability of the North Star Z80 processor. The INTERRUPT HANDLER decrements a timing counter and checks to see if it's time to sample. If not, the computer returns to the job it was working on before the interrupt. If it is time to sample, the SAMPLER routine is entered.

The SAMPLER routine reads data from each active channel of the A/D board and sums them with previous data stored in a temporary double buffer. This feature allows the program to do on-line averaging of from 1 to 256 points before storing the resulting values. For instance, if 16

MEMORY LOCATION

100H

2000H

DATA-ACQUISITION PROGRAMS

SPECIAL-EVENT PROGRAMS

MAIN DATA BUFFER

NORTH STAR DOS

BASIC +USER PROGRAM

Figure 4: Memory map that shows the hexadecimal memory locations of the machine-language acquisition programs, North Star operating system, and BASIC.

points are to be averaged, SAMPLER is entered sixteen times. The first fifteen times SAMPLER adds the new samples to the old ones and returns immediately to the pre-interrupt job. On the sixteenth time, the routine does the summation of the new data with the sums of the old, changes an internal pointer to the other half of the double buffer, and enters PROCESSOR.

PROCESSOR has several functions. It performs the averaging of the data from each of the channels and stores this average value in the main buffer. When the buffer is full, it calls on subroutines that write the buffer out to disk. In addition, PROCESSOR keeps track of the time and the locations of programs that execute special events (like activating lights or pumps) at particular times.

For instance, when PROCESSOR is initialized, it is loaded with the locations of these special programs and the time to execute them. When the time for a particular event elapses, PROCESSOR will call the location that controls the event. After checking the time of all events, PROCESSOR returns to the pre-interrupt location.

The use of a double buffer by SAMPLER permits data points to be summed and stored in one half of the buffer while PROCESSOR is still working on the other half of the double buffer. The only restriction of this system is that PROCESSOR must finish with its half of the double buffer before SAMPLER has collected and summed all of its data points.

Two other assembler programs, the initializers for PROCESSOR and

( RETURN V

INTERRUPT HANDLER

YES

1 N

s

A

T

M

1

P

A

L

L

^

E

1

s

R

7

/

F

/

/

R

PARAMETER INPUT PROGRAM (BASIC)

( RETURN V

double buffer

set up parameters

YES

P I R N 0 I C T E I S A S L 0 I R Z E R

PROCESSOR

I overage data, I store in main I buffer

STATUS PROGRAM

examines data, alters parameters

write data file to disk

call event program

f RETURN J

Figure 5: Flowchart of the machine-language data-acquisition programs and their interface with BASIC.

90 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 397 on inquiry card.

Listing 1: Z80 machine-language program that contains the subroutines necessary for maintaining an interrupt-driven data-acquisition system. Among these subroutines is an interrupt-handler, a data sampler, and a data-storage and special-event processor. The design includes provisions for interfacing with BASIC programs. This version was written using a TDL (Xitan) assembler, hence the TDL Z80 mnemonics.

** **

** DATAQU **

** **

SETS UP PARAMETER LOCATIONS AND CALLS UTILITY PROGRAMS

0100

2028

0100

0103 0106

0109

0132 0134

0137 0138 0139 013A 013B 013C 0 13D

017D 017F 0181 0183 0 185

018E 0 18F 0 190 0192 0194 0195 0 197 0198 0199 019A

.PABS .LOC

100H

OUTPUT MESSAGE AND RETURN TO DOS. REQUIRED FOR PROPER LOADING BY DOS.

21 0 109

CD 0<t7A C3 2028

DOS = 2028H

LXI

;D0S ENTRY POINT

H

.MESS

CALL JMP

JOUTPUT MESSAGE ;TO CONSOLE

MESSOUT ;

DOS ;RET TO DOS

3E20<t«15<t<H ..MESS: .ASCIZ /> DATA AQUISITION PRGM (VERS. 1

.2) LOADED 0D0A 0D0A00 /

;TABLE OF CONSTANTS AND VARIABLES:

CHNL:

INT$S:

SSDPT:

SCNTR:

DIVSR:

N$EVTS:

ETIME:

BLKB BLKB BLKB BLKB BLKB BLKB BLKW

32D

1000 1000 01C8 0 1E8 202020202020

BFSTRT MBUFPT OTMPAD NTMPAD FLNAME

.WORD 1000H

.WORD 1000H

.WORD TMPBF1

.WORD TMPBF2

.ASCII /

# OF CHNLS TO SAMPLE t INTRRPTS/SAMPLE

# SAMPLES/DATA PT SAMPLE COUNTER PROCESSING CODE

# PROGRAMMED EVENTS EVENT TIME 1 (2 BYTES) ADDR EVENT 1 PRGM

...ETC.. TO EVENT

»N$EVTS START ADDR MAIN BUFF MAIN BUFFER POINTER OLD BUFFER POINTER NEM BUFFER POINTER / ;FILENAME W/BLANK

D9

08

3E50

D306

05

2805

D9

08

FB

ED4D

3; ol; 3;

a;

a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a; a;

a;

a;

ai

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

.INSERT B:INTHDLR *

* *

* INTERRUPT HANDLER £ SAMPLER ROUTINE *

* *

THIS ROUTINE IS ENTERED BY CLOCK INTERRUPT. IT COUNTS THE # OF INTERRUPTS SINCE THE LAST SAMPLE WAS TAKEN. WHEN THE INTERRUPT COUNT = HINT/SAMPLE (AS SET UP BY "INIT") THEN DATA IS INPUT FROM EACH OF THE ACTIVE CHANNELS OF THE CROMEMCO D+7A I/O BOARD. MODIFIED DATA IS SUMMED WITH PREVIOUS DATA AND STORED BACK IN THE BUFFER. WHEN THE BUFFER IS FULL (IE tt OF SAMPLES TAKEN EQUALS SAMPLES/DATA PT) THEN THE BUFFER ADDR'S ARE UPDATED AND CONTROL GOES TO THE "PROCESSOR".

B'= INTERRUPT COUNTER

NTHLD: EXX EXAF MVI OUT DCR JRZ EXX EXAF EI RETI

A,50H

6

B

SAMPLE

SAVE REGS

RESET CLOCK FLAG

TIME TO SAMPLE?

YES

NO,RESTORE REGS

3;SAMPLER; FOR THE FOLLOWING SECTION OF CODE 3;REGISTERS ARE USED AS FOLLOWS:

Listing 1 continued on page 93

SYBEX

INTRODUCTION TO UCSD

CALSYS

'**!■■>

INTRODUCTION TO UCSD PASCAL™ SYSTEMS

by Charles W. Grant and /on Butah If you want a clear, descriptive guide through the UCSD Pascal Operating System...this is it. This book shows you what the UCSD Pascal Operating System is, how it works ana how to use it. File handling, program editing, compiling, running a program, and using special features for large programs are emphasized. Included as well are many useful reference tables as appendices.

250 pp., 10 illustr., Ref. P370, $14.95

>M EX

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 91

SAMPLER, are shown in figure 5. These routines make it easy for BASIC to send the required sampling parameters to the data-acquisition program, to initialize the Z80 processor's alternate register set used by those routines, and to enable interrupts so that sampling may begin. The BASIC program communicates with these two initializers by first creating in memory a table that consists of the appropriate values of the parameters (obtained by prompting the operator). It then uses the CALL function to jump to the initializer and sends the address of the table in the DE register pair.

Once sampling has begun, a BASIC program can also follow the course of sampling, displaying the data contained in the PROCESSOR main buffer, altering some of the sampling parameters, stopping sampling, or terminating the experiment (which causes the data in the buffer to be saved on disk).

BYTE NUMBER 0 1 2

3 4

5

NUMBER OF CHANNELS IN FILE

NUMBER OF DATA POINTS (H)

NUMBER OF DATA POINTS (L)

CHANNEL 1 CHANNEL 2 CHANNEL 3

> DATA, TIME 1

CHANNEL 1 CHANNEL 2 CHANNEL 3

S DATA, TIME 2

Figure 6: Map of the structure of the data file used by the author's programs. Three file-information bytes precede the actual data in the file.

Data File Structure

When the main data buffer is full or the sampling period is finished, three file-information bytes are placed in front of the buffer and it is written directly to disk using the North Star DOS library routines. The resulting disk-file structure is shown in figure 6. The first byte indicates how many channels (in binary encoding) are sampled in the file. The next two bytes indicate the total number of data points (in bytes) in the file (again, binary encoded, high byte followed by low byte). Each of the following bytes is a data point, represented in two's-complement notation, which is the form of the data returned by the Cromemco A/D board. If the number of channels in a file record is N, then the data for channel 1 will be found at every Nth byte, beginning at the fourth byte; similarly for channel 2, which begins at the fifth byte, and so on for all N channels.

There are two ways for a BASIC program to access the data in the file. North Star BASIC has a byte-access facility, so the data may be read a byte at a time by a READ statement. Alternatively, the data may be written from disk to memory, and then the EXAM (or PEEK, as it is called in some BASICs) function can read the data. I use this latter method: it reduces disk accesses and permits the graphic display on the oscilloscope to be done by fast machine-language routines.

Once the data is read into BASIC, almost any kind of manipulation can be done. As an example, curve A in figure 1 shows the raw data of the growth response of a sunflower seedling to a short pulse of light. Curve B shows the same data after smoothing (using a 9-point moving weighted average), and curve C shows the output of a program that fits the data to a first-order exponential decay to a lower asymptote.

Other Uses

I've discussed how the computer has been used in the laboratory for data acquisition, experiment control, and data processing, and up to this

point the controller aspects of the computer have been fairly rudimentary. Primarily, it has been functioning as a timer to turn devices on and off.

The next level of complexity involves having the computer examine the data as it comes in, and exert its control options contingent upon what the data look like. For example, a BASIC program could study the data contained in the main data buffer. When it detects a certain pattern, say an oscillation or the peak of an oscillation, it could then turn on a lamp or apply a voltage to electrodes; the only limit to the complexity of the controlling features is in the program itself.

In addition to these uses, the microcomputer can assist the researcher in other ways. Small- to medium-sized mathematical modeling programs can be run on these machines. A bibliography program could help the researcher keep notes in useful, accessible order. A text editor can be used to write articles. Finally, for those jobs that require a larger computer, the microcomputer can collect the primary data, then transmit the data at high speed to the mainframe computer. ■

1. Balcom, Orv. "Interfacing a Microcomputer to the Analog World." Interface Age. July 1978, pages 68-75.

2. Olson, Hank. "Controlling the Real World." March 1978 BYTE, pages 174-177.

3. Titus, J; P Rony; C Titus; D Larsen. Microcomputer-Analog Converter Software and Hardware Interfacing. Indianapolis: Howard W Sams & Co Inc, 1978.

Readers may obtain the programs and complete source listings as shown in this article at a nominal copying fee from the North Star Software Exchange, North Star Computer Co, Berkeley CA 94710.

92 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 397 on inquiry card.

Listing 1

continued:

a a

■ ■

A<=INPUT DATA

a

B<=CHANNEL COUNTER

a

C<=I/0

PORT ADDR

a

DE<=DATA

W/SIGM BIT COMPLEMENTED

a

HL<=PREVIOUS BUFFER DATA

a a a

X<=ADDR

OF BUFFER DATA CADRDAT)

019C

DDE5

SAMPLE

PUSH

X

SAVE REG

0I9E

DD2A

0183

a

LIXD

NTMPAD

LOAD BUFFER ADDR

01A2

0E19

a

MVI

C31Q

CHANNEL ADDR=3t OCT

0 1 A*

3A 0137

a

LDA

CHNL

SCHANNELS

01A7

47

a

MOV

B,A

INTO B

0IA8

1600

a a

MVI

D,0

CLEAR

01AA

DD22

01B3

a;

3FETCH:

SIXD

ADRDAT+1

; STORE ADDR

01AE

DD22

01BC

a

SIXD

STDAT+1

01B2

2A 0000

3ADRDAT

LHLD

0000

GET DATA WHOSE ADDR IS

a

STORED HERE(0 NOT REAL

a

ADDRESS)

01B5

ED78

a

INP

A

01B7

EE80

a

XRI

128D

COMPL SIGN BIT

01B9

5F

a

MOV

E,A

01BA

19

a

DAD

D ,

ADD TO OLD DATA

01BB

22 0000

aSTDAT:

SHLD

0000

STORE DATA AT ADDR

a

STORED HERE (0 NOT

a

REAL ADDR)

01BE

05

a

DCR

B

ALL CHNLS SAMPLED?

01BF

2847

a

JRZ

COUNT

YES

01C1

DD2 3

a

INX

X

NO,UPDATE BUF ADDR

01C3

DD23

a

I NX

X

01C5

oc

a

INP.

C

UPDATE PORT ADDR

01C6

18E2

a

a

JMPR

FETCH

LOOP TILL DONE

01C8

a;

3TMPBF1

.BLKW

16D

BUFFER 1

0 1E8

a a

MPBF2

.BLKW

16D

BUFFER 2

a a a at

DATA

[S NOW LOADED AND STORED IN TEMP BUF

0208

DDE1

iOuNT:

POP

X

RESTORE X

020A

3A 0138

a

LDA

IN T i S

REINITIALIZE

020D

47

a

MOV

B,A

INTRPT CNTR

020E

3A 013A

a

LDA

SCNTR

TIME TO PROCESS?

021 1

3D

a

DCR

A

0212

2S0E

a

JRZ

UPDATE

YES,DO PROCESS

021<t

32 013A

a

STA

SCNTR

NO,STORE SAMPLE CNTR

0217

DB06

a

IN

6

CHECK CLOCK FLAG

0219

CB57

a

BIT

2, A

021B

202B

a

JRNZ

CLK2FS

CLOCK TOO FAST

021D

D9

a

EXX

OK,RESTORE REGS

021E

08

a

EXAF

021F

FB

a

EI

ENABLE INTERRUPTS

0220

ED4D

a a

RETI

RETURN

a

a

'this

SECTION ENTERED WH

EN TEMP BUFFER

a

IS FILLED. IT

UPDATES

rEMP BUFFER ADDRS

a a a

AND SAMPLE COUNTER.

0222

2A 0183

JPDATE

LHLD

NTMPAD

SWITCH BUF ADDRS

0225

ED5B

0 181

a

LDED

OTMPAD

0229

22 0 181

a

SHLD

OTMPAD

022C

ED53

0183

a

SDED

NTMPAD

0230

3A 0139

a

LDA

S$DPT

INITIALIZE SAMPLE

0233

32 013A

a

STA

SCHTR

COUNTER

0236

3EFF

a

MVI

A, 255

SET OVERFLOW FL

0238

32 0247

a

STA

OVFLAG

023B

DB06

a

IN

6

CHK CLOCK FLAG

023D

C357

a

BIT

2, A

023F

2007

a

JRNZ

CLK2FS

CLOCK TOO FAST

0241

D9

a

EXX

OK,RESTORE REG

0242

08

a

EXAF

0243

FB

a

EI

ENABLE INTRPTS

0244

C3 02DD

a a a a

JMP

PROCSR

GOTO PROCESSOR

0247

)VFLAG

• BLKB

1

OVERFLOW FLAG

a a a a

*#**#****######*#*****#

*###*#*#########*

CLOCK

TO FAST;

STOP SAMI

'LING; CUE

a a a<

OPERATOR AND RET

0248

F3

:LK2FS

DI

DISABLE INTRPTS

0249

21 0250

a

LXI

H,..MESS

OUTPUT MESSAGE

024C

CD 047A

a

CALL

MESSOUT

024F

C9

a a

RET

Listing 1 continued on page 94

SYBEX

APPLE PASCAL GAMES

by Douglas Hergert and Joseph T. KaJash

A collection of the most popular microcomputer games programs written in UCSD/Apple Pascal. Each game includes a complete description of the rules, a sample run through the game, a guide to understanding the program itself, a structure chart graphically illustrating the organization of the program and a listing of the complete program. You are challenged not only to play the game, but also to learn how games are implemented on the computer. 300 pp., 40 illustr., Ref. P360, $14.95

AI MM.I '

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 340 on inquiry card.

Did you know

that with

the new

UCSD

P-SYSTEM

VERSIOIMIV

you can write programs In

(FORTRAN)

Pascal

BASIC

LISP

and run them on

ALTOS, APPLE, COMMODORE, CROMEMCO, DEC, IBM, INTERTEC, PHILIPS, OHIO SCIENTIFIC, RADIO SHACK, TERAK, TEXAS INSTRUMENTS, VECTOR GRAPHIC, XEROX, ZENITH, and many more...

without change!

(Think about that next time you want a larger market)

we support systems software and applications ready-to-run on

APPLE, DEC LSI-lit, RADIO SHACK MODEL ll§ and ALTOS.

PCD SYSTEMS P. 0. Box 143 PennYan, NY 14527 315-536-3734

tTM Digital Equipment !TM of Tandy Corp. *TMU. of California

Listing 1 continued:

0250

0250

0D0A2A2A2

027C

0D0A

027E

0D0A534K

02AA

ODOA

02AC

OD0A2A2A2

02D8

ODOA

02DA

0D0A00

3..MESS: .ASCIZ / A2 A3 a*****************************************

a

D503SAMPLING ABORTED: INTERRUPT RATE TOO FAST!

a

a a/

a; .INSERT B:PR0CSR

3;a**************************************** 3;* *

3;* PROCESSOR *

a;* *

a; -it****************************************

a;

3;THIS ROUTINE TAKES DATA FROM THE OLD TEMP 3;BUFFER OF "INTHDLR", CALLS "FNXN" TO PROCESS a;IT, AND TRANSFERS THE PROCESSED DATA TO MAIN 3;BUFFER STORAGE. IT KEEPS TRACK OF TIME 3;(BY * DATA PTS) AND CALLS SPECIAL EVENT 3;PR0GRAMS AT THE APPROPRIATE TIMES. WHEN 3;MAIN BUFFER FILLS UP, IT CALLS "DATWR" 3;T0 WRITE THE DATA OUT TO DISK. 3;ALL REGISTERS ARE PRESERVED. ANY USER a;PR0GRAM CALLED BY PROCSR MUST PRESERVE 3;THE IX AND IY REGISTERS, AS WELL AS ANY a;0THERS SPECIFIED AT THE CALLING POINT.

02DD

ED73 035B

a;

aPROCSR:

SSPD

STKPT

STORE OLD STACK PNTR

02E1

31 0100

a

LXI

SP, 100H

LOAD NEW SP

02E4

F5

a

PUSH

PSW

SAVE REGISTERS

02E5

C5

a

PUSH

B

02E6

D5

a

PUSH

D

02E7

E5

a

PUSH

H

0 2E8

21 02<»7

a

LXI

H,OVFLAG

CLEAR OVERFLOW FLAG

02EB

34

a a;

3;SET UP

a;

INR

M

REGISTERS FOR TRANSFER:

t

a; a;

DE<=MAIN BUFFER

'OINTER

a;

BC< = #

OF CHANNELS

3;

HL<=OLD TEMP BUFFER POINTER

a; a; a

A<=PROCESSOR CODE

02EC

ED5B 017F

LDED

MBUFPT

02F0

0600

a

MVI

B,0

02F2

21 0137

a

LXI

H,CHNL

02F5

4E

a

MOV

CM

02F6

2A 0181

a

LHLD

OTMPAD

FETCH OTMPAD

02F9

3A 013B

3NEXT:

LDA

DIVSR

02FC

CD 04IF

a a

a a a a a;

aTRANSF:

CALL

FNXN

DO S CRUNCHING DE, HL MUST BE SAVED ON RET, (HL) SHOULD CONTAIN THE DATA PT. HIGH BYTE OF DATA PT SHOULD BE 00 ON RET

02FF

3E7F

MVI

A, 127D

CHECK OVERFLOW

0301

BE

a

CMP

M

0302

CC 035D

a

CZ

BEEP

0305

3E8 0

a

MVI

A, 128D

CHECK UNDERFLOW

0307

BE

a

CMP

M

0308

CC 035D

a

CZ

BEEP

030B

EDA0

a

LDI

DO TRANSFER

030D

2B

a

DCX

H

030E

3E00

a

MVI

A,0

CLEAR ACC

0310

77

a

MOV

M,A

CLEAR BUFFER

031 1

23

a

INX

H

0312

23

a

INX

H

0313

EA 02F9

a a;

JO

NEXT

TILL DONE

0316

ED53 017F

a; a

SDED

MBUFPT

STORE MAIN BUF PNTR

031A

21 E0O0

a

LXI

H,-2000H

MAIN BUFFER FULL?

031D

19

a a a

DAD

D

SUBTRACT 8K MAIN BUFFER GOES FROM 1000H TO 2000H

031E

3A 0137

a

LDA

CHNL

ADD t CHANNELS

0321

C602

a

ADI

2

ADD TERMINATION BYTES

0323

0600

a

MVI

B,0

0325

<*F

a

MOV

C,A

0326

ED4A

a

DADC

B

0328

F4 0487

a

CP

DATWR

YES, WRITE OUT DATA

032B

FB

a a;

EI

ENABLE INTERRUPTS

a;

3;CHECK

a; a

IF TIME

FOR PROGR/

kMMED EVENTS:

032C

3A 013C

LDA

NSEVTS

LOAD A W/ft EVENTS

032F

B7

a

ORA

A

= 0?

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 397 on inquiry card.

Listing 1 continued:

0330

CA

034B

a

JZ

. .OUT

YES, OUT £ RET

0333

47

a

MOV

B,A

B<=»EVENTS

0334

21

013E

a a a;

LXI

H.ETIME+

;LOAD LOC OF LOW BYTE OF TIME

0337

3EFF

a-,

a.

.LOOP:

MVI

A,-1

SUBTRACT 1 FROM TIME

0339

86

a

ADD

M

033A

77

a

MOV

1*1,A

033B

D4

0366

a a a

CNC

HYDCR

NO CARRY: DECREMENT HIGH BYTE, RETURN WITH Z-0

033E

CC

0362

a a

CZ

ENDCK

CHECK HIGH BYTE RET W/Z=1 IF 00

0341

CC

036B

a a a

CZ

ESTART

TIME FOR EVENT?

HL MUST

BE SAVED BY PRGMS.

0344

23

a

INX

H

INCREMENT POINTER TO

0345

23

a

INX

H

NEXT EVENT TIMER

0346

23

a

INX

H

(LOW BYTE)

0347

23

a

INX

H

0348

05

a

DCR

B

0349

20EC

a

JRNZ

. .LOOP

LOOP TILL ALL EVENT

a a;

a;

TIMERS ARE PROCESSED

034B

3A

0247

a; a.

.OUT:

LDA

OVFLAG

CHECK OVERFLOW FLAG

034E

B7

a

ORA

A

SET Z FLAG

034F

C4

0372

a

CNZ

OVFLOW

; OOH-OOH !!

0352

El

3RST0RE:

POP

H

RESTORE REGS

0353

D1

a

POP

D

0354

CI

a

POP

B

0355

F1

a

POP

PSW

0356

ED7B 035B

a

LSPD

STKPT

RESTORE OLD SP

035A

C9

a

RET

OK,RET TO STATUS

035B

3STKPT:

.BLKW

1

STORE OLD SP HERE

QJ f

a; a; 3E

***********************

*********************

035D

3E07

EEP:

MVI

A,7

OUTPUT BELL TO CRT

035F

D302

a

OUT

2

0361

C9

a

a,

a,

a,

a,

a,

a,

RET

***********************

*******************

ENDCK

: CHECKS THE HIG

1 BYTE OF A 16-BIT

a,

WORD.

RETURNS

WITH Z F

.AG SET IF THE HIGH

a,

BYTE =

0. EXPECTS HL T

3 CONTAIN THE ADDR

a

OF THE

LOW BYTE (WITH H

[GH BYTE IN (HL-1).

a

REG A

SHOULD EQUAL 00 0

^ ENTERING.

a, a, ai

ALL REGS ARE PRESERVED.

0362

2B

:NDCK:

DCX

H

0363

BE

a

CMP

M

0364

23

a

INX

H

0365

C9

a

a,

a,

a;

a,

a,

a,

RET

***********************

*******************

HYDCR:

THIS SR

SUBTRACT

5 ONE FROM HIGH BYTE

a,

OF A 16-BIT WORD. EXPE

:TS HL TO POINT TO THE

a

LOW BYTE, WITH

HIGH BYT

£ AT (HL-1). ALL REGS

a

ARE PRESERVED.

ON RETUR

^ Z FLAG SET TO 1 AND

a

CARRY

CLEARED.

a a ay

ASSUMES REG A

NOT 00 O

H ENTERING.

0366

2B

YDCR:

DCX

H

;DCR HIGH BYTE

0367

35

a

DCR

M

0368

23

a

INX

H

^RESTORE HL

0369

B7

a

ORA

A

;SET Z=1

036A

C9

a a a a a a a,

RET

***********************

********************

ESTART

: SAVES

REG HL ON

STACK AND THEN JUMPS

a;

TO PRGM. THE

JSER PRGM

SHOULD PRESERVE IX

a;

AND IY

REGS AND RETURN

rO THE "PROCESSOR"

a;

a;

Si

BY <P0P H ;

RET >

036B

E5

START:

PUSH

H

SAVE REGS

036C

23

a

INX

H

GET LOW BYTE ADDR

036D

5E

a

MOV

E,M

LOAD JMP ADDR

036E

23

a

INX

H

INTO DE

036F

56

a

MOV

D,M

Listing 1 continued on page 416

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

95

All you need if you lose the Card. Emergency replacement around the world.

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Data-Base Management

Systems: Powerful Newcomers

to Microcomputers

Michael Gagle and Gary J Koehler

Micro Data Base Systems Inc

POB 248

Lafayette IN 47902

Andrew Whinston

Krannert Graduate School of Management

Purdue University

Lafayette IN 47907

Large computers are already running many successful applications programs developed by using commercial data-base management system (DBMS) packages. DBMS packages for large computers sell in the $50,000 to $200,000 range and require approximately 50 K words of memory. As a result, it is impractical to apply the development concepts used on large machines to database management systems for the microcomputer. A more promising approach is to create a DBMS offering the best features of systems for larger computers, yet fitting the microcomputer's capabilities. Two of the authors of this article, Gary Koehler and Mike Gagle, work for Micro Data Base Systems, Inc, and have participated in the development of a data-base management system tailored to the microcomputer. Called MDBS.DMS, this data-base management package serves as the basis of most of the discussion that follows. But first we'll explain the basic concepts and terms of data-base management systems.

Data-Base Concepts and Terms

The central concept of data-base management is to create files that can be linked from different points of view. By using different linkages, the user can generate different kinds of reports based on the same data files. The DBMS makes this possible by handling all the details of data storage. When using the DBMS, the user never refers to physical storage locations, but deals instead with the conceptual structure of the data.

Many of the concepts used in commercial data-base systems were defined by CODASYL (Conference on Data Systems Languages). A brief description of impor

tant concepts from the CODASYL report of April 1971 will help you follow the rest of this article:

Data item: A unit of data that can take on a range of values. Examples of data items are customer names, part numbers, and selling prices. Each data item may have a name assigned to it.

Record type: A collection of zero or more data items. An example of a record type is the collection of the data items customer name, address, city, and zip code. The user can give a record type a name (such as CUSTOMER, for our example). A data-base record corresponds to a logical record in programming languages such as Pascal. Record occurrence: A record type such as CUSTOMER can have many occurrences in the data base, one occurrence for each customer. The values of the data items in each record occurrence reflect the appropriate values for the corresponding customer.

Set-type: As data items can be grouped into records, records can be linked into sets. Sets in the CODASYL sense do not correspond to mathematical sets, but rather to an ordered grouping of related records. Usually, a set consists of one record occurrence (referred to as an OWNER) that has several occurrences of some other record type (MEMBERS) associated with it. Consider again the case in which a supplier could supply various parts. A set relation could be defined between the supplier record type and the parts record type linking a supplier with different parts supplied.

In the CODASYL specifications, sets are said to be "one-to-many" sets. Any member record occurrence (such as a part) can be associated with only one owner

Circle 22 on inquiry card.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 97

record occurrence (such as a supplier) through a given set-type. If several suppliers can supply the same part, there exists between supplier and part a "many-to-many" relationship. Some DBMS (such as MDBS.DMS) explicitly allow many-to-many relationships, while others can support such relationships only by creating a dummy record, called a "nub" or "link" record.

Features of Data-Base Systems

Data-base management systems offer many attractive features, including: multiple views of data, data-base flexibility, nonredundancy of data, security of data, selfdescription of data bases, query processing, and interfacing with a host language.

Sequential file organization is adequate for some programming purposes. Sequential files assume that all data in a file will be processed in a certain order. The ISAM (indexed sequential-access method) helps meet the need to access a particular sequential record by reference to an index or key.

For simple data structures, an ISAM-type organization works well enough. But as the interrelationships of the data become more complex, even simple reports and routine updating of data require more file handling. Furthermore, simple data structures quickly become complex as users begin to appreciate the usefulness of the computer and request more applications.

A true data-base management system is specifically de

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signed to handle complex data structures by offering multiple views of the same data; that is, a DBMS lets an applications programmer view a data structure in the way most convenient for the application at hand. Greater convenience means that the programmer spends much less time writing, debugging, and maintaining programs—enough time to offset the start-up costs of the DBMS.

Data-Base Flexibility

It's common to hear someone say, "Now that we have our inventory system computerized, it sure would be nice

to have a report on " The blank can be filled with

almost anything from "delivery times from all suppliers in Kansas" to "average inventory level of parts that cost more than $10 each." Sometimes hindsight shows you should have included in the system some data (say a reorder point) not defined in the original data base. That's why DBMS should include the ability to add or delete types of data in the data base. Of course, changing the data-base structure often requires updating the data occurrences. If the DBMS can do this updating, the process of changing the data structure is straightforward.

In the absence of a restructuring feature, the typical user defines extra item fields for "future use" or else rebuilds the data base. The first alternative is wasteful and doesn't allow for adding or deleting record types or set relationships. The second alternative is painful to say the least.

Nonredundancy of Data

Often, one piece of information (say a supplier's name) appears in several different data files. If the supplier incorporates and changes its name, updating requires finding the old name in each of the data files and then making the change in each case. Further, if a file is sorted by names, the file may have to be re-sorted.

If the name of the supplier occurs only in one place, updating is simple. And so it is in a data base with an appropriately organized structure. The data-base system automatically performs any data reorganization necessary to maintain sorted orders. The nonredundancy feature also reduces problems caused by inconsistent data.

Security of Data

There are a variety of ways to protect the privacy and integrity of data in a data base. These include sophisticated authorization checks and password validation. The security mechanisms of the MDBS.DMS data-base management system will serve as an example.

When the user defines data to the MDBS.DMS system, the user gives each piece of information separate readand write-access levels. Additionally, the system provides that each user may be declared and given unique read- and write-access permission and an access password. When the data base is used, the DBMS prohibits persons from reading or writing data unless their access level permits it. A clerk may be restricted to reading the

98 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 411 on inquiry card.

A Database System that thinks like you da

Sequitur. Its name suggests both its simplicity and its secret.

We linked a word processor and a relational database system together with a powerful minicomputer and produced one of the rarest forms of computer life: a system so sophisticated that a beginner can use it.

It helps you learn.

It's amazingly friendly. You can sit down in front of a terminal, pick up the Sequitur operating manual, and computerize your own data. So can anybody else, no matter how computer-shy. Even unassisted, it won't take more than a few hours of tinkering. You can enter, edit, excerpt and report in a logical, orderly sequence. You just list the data you want to store. Sequitur organizes it into an easy-to-read table, which you can edit or call up at will, all or in part. Then you're ready to ask questions, make reports, print forms, write form letters or whatever.

It speaks your language.

You work with simple, clear commands. Sequitur avoids the arbitrary codes *^~~0> and rituals that C

clutter up most systems.

To add a row to a table, you just type in the word "ADD',' then fill in the blanks. In other systems, the same operation typically requires something like "INSERT INTO EKP (EHPNO.ENAME.JOB,SAL): <7989, 'CARTER-', 'SALESHANM500>?r

Its cost is friendly, too.

Today, Sequitur is ready to work with the multi-user Unix operating system on the powerful Onyx minicomputer.

You can install Sequitur on your Onyx for $3495. If you've investigated serious Unix-compatible software, you know what a good price that is. But you'll never appreciate Sequitur until you see it in action, which you'll be able to do at COMDEX. Or you can get in touch with Pacific Software, 2608 Eighth Street, Berkeley CA 94710. Phone, (415) 540-0616.

Sequitur

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Circle 334 on inquiry card.

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price of an item, while a manager can change the price. The system also includes precautions that make it difficult to infer information about data in the system.

Self-Description of Data Bases

An integral part of a data base is its data directory, which contains information about each type of data defined in the data base. This information includes the name of the data item, the data type (in the larger sense, eg: CHARACTER, REAL, INTEGER), the length of the data item, and its read/write access levels. Data items are grouped into named records, and records may be organized by sets. Thus, the data directory keeps information on the records (including the data items in the record and the read/write access levels of the record itself), and the sets (including the ordering of the set of records and the records allowed in the set).

The data directory contains all the information needed for the DBMS to maintain the data base. However, the presence of the data directory implies that generalized programs can be developed that are independent of any particular data base. These programs can extract information from the data directory and, based on this information, process the data in the data base. There are essentially two types of programs: a broad class written in a host language such as BASIC, and a generalized report writer or query processor.

Query Processing

A query system consists of programs that can add, retrieve, update, and display data from a data base. A query system is flexible in that it is not restricted to a particular data base or data structure, but will work with a wide variety of data bases. Query systems are usually intended for nonspecialists who wish to use a data base or programmers who wish to perform initial checkouts of program logic. Most query systems can be used to generate reports from data in the data base, and the more sophisticated query systems allow great flexibility in use.

Examples of query language statements might be:

• LIST CUSTOMER NAME, ADDRESS FOR STATE =

'OHIO'

• CHANGE UNIT-PRICE TO 0.75 FOR PART.NUM

BER = 056127

Interface with a Host Language

Most data-base systems can be accessed by "host-language" programs. In microcomputers, this is generally done by a call to a subroutine that contains the DBMS code, which is written in machine language for optimal processing speed. Typical capabilities include:

• Create: Create an occurrence of a data record.

• Store: Store data in the data base.

• Fetch: Retrieve data from the data base.

• Insert: Put a data record in a data relationship.

• Modify: Change data in a data record.

100 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 196 on inquiry card.

*••••••*•***

A SELF-COMPILING RELATIONAL DATABASE & APPLICATION SYSTEMS GENERATOR

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■ Provides extensive search capabilities

■ Search arguments can include arithmetic/boolean functions, multi-field comparisons

■ Queries can generate input for automatic database maintenance

■ Queries can be stored in "Query Library" and executed from menu on demand

■ Any number of fields can be queried concurrently

■ Query output can be routed to disk, CRT report formatter, VISICALC™ or SOURCE™

DATABASE MAINTENANCE—

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■ Automatic index creation/maintenance

■ Automatic maintenance capabilities

■ "Goof-Proof" error handling

■ Input can come from VISICALC™ or SOURCE™

DATABASE REPORTING—

■ Automatic headlines

■ Automatic field editing

■ Report fields can be calculated, sub-totaled & crossfooted in any manner desired

■ Optional counter breaks may be set

■ Automatic grand totals

■ Automatic statistics

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102 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

• Find: Locate a data occurrence.

• Delete: Delete a data record.

• Remove: Remove a data record from a set.

The data base may also be accessed by query systems, as mentioned previously.

Program Example

In order to explain the advantages of using a DBMS in a microcomputer environment, we will present an example using the fictitious Nibble Computer Store. This store retails components and equipment supplied by many vendors. One of the store's major concerns is to keep customers satisfied by providing speedy service. The store maintains an inventory-order system with a tracking of customer orders.

Handling this management problem requires the following reports:

Report 1: A list of customers (sorted by name) who have placed an order within the last sixty days.

Report 2: A list of parts that need to be reordered.

Report 3: A list of customers whose orders have been outstanding for more than two days. Also, a list of the parts (and the name of the suppliers of those parts) that are holding up those orders.

The data requirements are as follows:

Requirement 1: Maintain a list of customers, sorted by name and by customer number.

Requirement 2: Maintain a list of suppliers, sorted by name and by supplier number.

Requirement 3: Maintain a list of parts stocked, sorted by description and by part number.

Requirement 4: Keep track of which parts are supplied by each manufacturer.

Requirement 5: Keep track of the status of each customer's orders.

We first show a possible (although simplistic) way to implement such a system using conventional file-management techniques.

A Conventional Approach

Although there are many ways to design a system to perform the functions needed by the Nibble Computer Store, most suitable systems would require creating and maintaining a file for each particular application. Table 1 shows several types of files that might be required.

A look at the five data requirements shows why so many files are needed. Consider requirement 1. A file of customer data can be sorted either by name or number. But to sort the file by both name and number usually requires that a copy of the file be made first. Then the original file can be sorted by customer name, and the

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File 1

File 2

File3

(Sorted by Customer

Name)

(Sorted by Customer Nurr

ber)

(Sorted by Supplier Name)

Customer Name

Customer Number

Street

City

State

Zip Code

Customer Name

Customer Number

Street

City

State

Zip Code

Supplier Name

Supplier Number

Street

City

State

Zip Code

File 4

File 5

File 6

(Sorted by Supplier Number)

(Sorted by Part Number)

(Sorted by Part Description)

Supplier Name

Supplier Number

Street

City

State

Zip Code

Part Number Part Description Selling Price Quantity in Inventory Reorder Point

Part Number Part Description Selling Price Quantity in Inventory Reorder Point

File 7

File 8

)

File 9

(Sorted by Part Number)

(Sorted by Date Receivec

(Sorted by Order Number)

Part Number Supplier Number

Order Number Customer Number Date Received Date Shipped

Order Number Part Number Quantity Ordered

Table 1: The types of files needed to handle the data-processing tasks of management system. Since different tasks require different views of the propriately for each task.

the Nibble Computer Store without using a data-base data, the programmer must maintain files sorted ap

copy file by customer number. So data requirement 1 gives us files 1 and 2.

The same problem of double sorts applies to data requirements 2 (suppliers) and 3 (parts). This gives us six files.

The easiest way to keep track of which parts are supplied by which supplier (data requirement 4) is to define a file containing the part numbers for each supplier (file 7).

Data requirement 5 is to keep track of each customer's orders. Several approaches are possible, but we'll handle the task by creating an order file (file 8).

Turning now to the required reports, report 1 is a list of customers who have placed an order in the last sixty days. The report can be made by scanning file 8 (orders sorted by date) for orders falling in the sixty-day period, and then writing the corresponding customer numbers on a file. That file can then be sorted and used to extract the names of customers from file 1. Then the names extracted can be listed in still another file.

A list of parts to be reordered (report 2) is trickier. The parts-on-order file (file 9) can be scanned, and then the quantity ordered for unfilled orders can be written on a scratch file. This file can then be sorted on the part number, and the quantity on order can be summed for each part. This quantity can then be compared to the number of parts in inventory and the reorder points (file 5) to show which parts must be reordered.

The conventional approach could generate report 3 in two phases. First, the orders sorted by date (file 8) can be scanned to find orders that have been outstanding for

more than two days. The customer numbers can then be written on a file, sorted, and used to extract the customers' names from file 1. A similar process will find the parts whose order quantity is larger than the quantity on hand, giving the suppliers' names.

Four other files would also be required. Files 3 and 4 maintain supplier information (with two different sort orders). File 6 maintains parts information and file 7 gives the correspondence between suppliers and parts.

Obviously, writing the needed programs and maintaining these data files would be tedious, even though this is a simple example, with other complicating factors left out. If additional requirements are placed on the system (such as a listing of suppliers that supply parts that sell for less than $2), more programs have to be written. We also have a problem with redundant data—if a customer's address changes, we have to update two files. Even worse, if a customer's name changes, one of the files has to be completely re-sorted.

The primary problem here is that different applications require different "views" of the data. For some applications, having the order information embedded in the customer file would be best. But for other applications, the order data might need to be closely limited to the supplier file. The result is that the compromise solution of figure 1 is developed, with corresponding programming complexity.

The Data-Base Management System Approach

Figure 1 shows a data structure that could be used to represent the information needed for the inventory-order

104

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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system. The boxes represent record types (corresponding to customers, suppliers, parts, orders, and order quantities). The names within boxes correspond to data items, the basic units of data that form the records. Finally, four set-types are defined. Sets are used to associate records. For example, SET3 is used to associate parts with their suppliers. Since, in our simple system, each part is supplied by only one supplier, we say that the supplier "owns" parts, in accordance with the data-base terminology of set owners and members. Figure 2 shows two suppliers and the parts they supply.

Information in a data base is accessed by "traversing set occurrences." To find out what parts Acme Computer supplies, we look at the occurrence of SET3, which has Acme Computer as an owner, and examine each member of the set. This allows us to retrieve data about each part supplied by Acme.

Since sets are used to access data-base information, it follows that some sets must be defined that allow the user to "get his foot in the door" of the data base. This is done with sets having a record named "SYSTEM" as their owner. Such sets can be defined so all occurrences of a record can be accessed by traversing a system-owned set.

SUPPLIER

CUSTOMER

NAME

NUMBER

STREET

CITY

STATE

ZIP CODE

SET1

ORDER i

'

ORDER NUMBER

DATE RECEIVED

DATE SHIPPED

NAME

NUMBER

STREET

CITY

STATE

ZIP CODE

PART , i

VSET2

QUANTITY

SET4/

SET3

NAME NUMBER DESCRIPTION SELLING PRICE ON HAND REORDER

QUANTITY ORDERED

Figure 1: A data structure representing the information needed to handle the data-processing tasks of the Nibble Computer Store. The boxes represent record types. The names within boxes correspond to the data items that make up the records. The lines between boxes represent set-types—ordered groupings of related records. SET3, for example, associates parts with their suppliers.

One more thing about sets: since the members of a set occurrence are accessed one at a time as we traverse the set, we can put an ordering on the set. We can define the set to be ordered on, say, Supplier Name, and the DBMS will automatically maintain the records in the set in sorted order. If we define a different set ordered on Supplier Number, we can access the records in either order simply by choosing the appropriate set. Additional set orderings, such as FIFO (first in, first out) or LIFO (last in, first out), are also supported.

With this background, we can discuss the structure of figure 1. Each customer can have zero, one, or more orders in our system, and SET1 is defined with CUSTOMER as owner and ORDER as member. The relationship between orders and parts is less clear. Each order is made up of one or more parts, but each part can appear in more than one order. Also, the problem arises of where to put the quantity ordered of each part. If we put the quantity in the ORDER record, we don't know which part the quantity refers to (since the order can consist of more than one part). Similarly, an ambiguity exists if the quantity is kept in the PARTS record. The solution is to define a QUANTITY record. By appropriate use of SET2 and SET4, the quantity of each part for each order can be determined.

The data structure of figure 1 as described in MDBS.DDL, a Data Definition Language of Micro Data Base Systems, Inc, is as shown in listing 1 (see page 110). The data definition for our example is relatively straightforward. The sets such as CUSTNAME and CUSTNUM allow us to access the customer records sorted by either name or number.

Several points should be made about the DDL description in listing 1. Five users have been defined, one for each functional area of the company. The first user name, STOCKROOM, is followed by read and write authorization levels and the user's password (317-54-7674). A user may process data that has an access level equal to or less than his own. For example, the stockroom user can read supplier information, but isn't allowed to alter it since the stockroom has a write-access level of 10, while all supplier information has a write-access level of 50. The access levels were defined by:

Level 1: Stockroom/Inventory Control—This department must be able to read part numbers, part descriptions, quantity on hand, and reorder point for inventory control purposes. It must also be able to read supplier information for reorder purposes, determine quantity ordered for each part, and update quantity on hand of each part as it is put into inventory.

Level 2: Shipping—This department must be able to read parts information, customer names and addresses, and order information. It must also be able to update shipping date and quantity on hand for each part shipped.

Level 3: Order Processing—This department must be able to enter new orders.

106 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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MAIL TO: Micro Data Base Systems, Inc. P.O. Box 248-B Lafayette, IN 47902

Circle 258 on inquiry card.

SUPPLIER

ACME COMPUTER

1247 BROAD STREET

LANSING

IL

60060

SET3 PART ,,

PART

MOTHERBOARD

00104237

002346

DISK DRIVE

00105692

043950

000060

000075

000030 000045

SUPPLIER

ZETA SUPPLY CO.

EAST 47th STREET

CHICAGO

IL

60610

SET3

BOLT

10374266

000002

001000

002500

NUT

46350219

000002

001000

003000

LOCKWASHER

47906317

000001

002000

005000

Figure 2: Two of the Nibble Computer Store's suppliers and the parts they supply. This figure gives more detail on SET3 of figure 1.

Level 4: New Accounts—This department must be able to add new customers to the customer list and update customer information.

Level 5: Purchasing—This department must be able to add new supplies to supplier list and update supplier information. It must also be able to define new parts and alter prices of parts and the supplier-parts relationships.

We are now ready to generate the reports listed in table 1. To simplify matters, we will not be concerned with loading data into the data bases or updating information. Out of the repertoire of DML (Data Management Language) commands in MDBS.DMS, we will use:

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FFM: Find First Member—Insures that the first record in a set occurrence is available for processing.

FNM: Find Next Member—This command actually traverses the set occurrence, moving from one record to the next each time it is called.

SOM: Set Owner based on Member—Indicates that the record that is the "current" member of one set should be treated as the owner of some other set.

SMM: Set Member based on Member—Indicates that the "current" member of one set-type is also the current member of some other set.

GFM: Get Field from Member—Retrieves data from a named field (item) in the "current" member of a set.

In MDBS.DMS, all routines return a value that gives a status indication. Frequently, a nonzero status value represents an error condition. MDBS.DMS can be called from several languages running under CP/M and from disk-based Radio Shack, Apple, and North Star systems. The status value is returned to a user-defined variable. For example, in modified North Star BASIC (see reference 1), a call to FFM looks like:

E0 = CALL (addr, "FFM, SET3")

Here, addr is the address of the MDBS.DMS software. Two entry points to MDBS.DMS are required: one for defining blocks and one for the DMS routines.

The BASIC user of MDBS.DMS can define named data blocks (similar to the sub-schema of the CODASYL committee report). For example, the user may want to define a block called PARTDATA made up of the BASIC variables:

N

D$

P

O

R

for part number for part description for price

for on-hand quantity for reorder point

108 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 13 on inquiry card.

So to insert data into the data base, the user issues the call:

E0 = CALL (addr, "CRS, PART, PARTDATA")

Text continued on page 120 Circle 61 on inquiry card. >

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Listing 1: A description in MDBS. DDL (Data Definition Language) of a data structure meeting the needs of the fictitious Nibble Computer Store. This description corresponds to the data structure shown in figure 1.

PASSWORDS

STOCKROOM

10

10

317-54-7674

SHIPPING

20

20

SECRET

ORDER PROCESSING

30

30

MAILROOM

NEW ACCOUNTS

20

40

IGLOO

PURCHASING

30

50

317-742-7388

RECORD

CUSTOMER

20

30

ITEM

CNAME

CHAR

30

20

40

ITEM

CNUMBER

BIN

2

20

40

ITEM

STREET

CHAR

20

20

40

ITEM

CITY

CHAR

20

20

40

ITEM

STATE

CHAR

2

20

40

ITEM

ZIP

CHAR

5

20

40

RECORD

SUPPLIER

10

50

ITEM

SNAME

CHAR

30

10

50

ITEM

SNUMBER

BIN

2

10

50

ITEM

STREET

CHAR

20

10

50

ITEM

CITY

CHAR

20

10

50

ITEM

STATE

CHAR

2

10

50

ITEM

ZIP

CHAR

5

10

50

RECORD

PART

10

10

ITEM

PNUMBER

BIN

2

10

50

ITEM

DESCR

CHAR

20

10

50

ITEM

PRICE

REAL

8

30

50

ITEM

ONHAND

BIN

2

10

10

ITEM

REORDER

BIN

2

10

50

RECORD

ORDER

20

20

ITEM

ONUMBER

BIN

2

20

30

ITEM

RECEIVED

BIN

2

20

30

ITEM

SHIPPED

BIN

2

20

20

RECORD

QUANTITY

10

30

ITEM

QORDERED

BIN

2

10

30

SET

SET1

MAN

1:N

20

30

SORTED ONUMBER

OWNER

CUSTOMER

MEMBER

ORDER

SET

SET2

MAN

1:N

20

30 FIFO

OWNER

ORDER

MEMBER

QUANTITY

SET

SET3

MAN

1:N

10

50

SORTED PNUMBER

OWNER

SUPPLIER

MEMBER

PART

Listing 1 continued on page 112

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110 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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Listing 1 continued:

SET SET4 MAN 1:N

OWNER PART MEMBER QUANTITY

SET CUSTNAME AUTO 1:N

OWNER SYSTEM MEMBER CUSTOMER

SET CUSTNUM AUTO 1:N

OWNER SYSTEM MEMBER CUSTOMER

SET SUPLNAME AUTO 1:N

OWNER SYSTEM MEMBER SUPPLIER

SET SUPLNUM AUTO 1:N

OWNER SYSTEM MEMBER SUPPLIER

SET PARTDESC AUTO 1:N

OWNER SYSTEM MEMBER PART

10 30 IMMAT

20 40

SORTED

20 40

SORTED

10 50

SORTED

10 50

SORTED

10 50

SORTED

CNAME

CNUMBER

SNAME

SNUMBER

DESCR

SET

PARTNUM AUTO 1:N

OWNER SYSTEM MEMBER PART

10 50

SORTED

PNUMBER

SET

ORDERS

OWNER SYSTEM MEMBER ORDER

AUTO 1:N

20 30

SORTED

RECEIVED

Listing 2: A program segment opening a data base using the data-base system MDBS.DMS. Brackets are used to pass addresses of variables; the right bracket has been translated to a parenthesis by North Star BASIC. Lines 1390 through 1470 represent portions of the program not given here.

1000 REM ********************************************************

1010 REM **

1020 REM ** User's name and password **

1030 DIM N$ (16) , P$(12)

1040 REM **

1050 REM ** Input user's name **

1060 INPUT "NAME? " , N$

1070 PRINT

1080 REM **

1090 REM ** Now the password — but no echo **

Listing 2 continued on page 114

112 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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"CP/M is a trademark ol Digital Research. ""Northstar is a trademark of North Star Computers, Inc. ""Cromemco is a trademark of Cromemco, Inc. ""Exidy is a trademark of Exidy Corporation.

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Listing 2 continued:

1100 PRINT "PASSWORD"

1110 T$ = INCHAR$ (0)

1120 IF ASC ( T$ ) =13 THEN 1190

1130 P$ (1,1) = T$

1140 FOR J = 1 TO 15

1150 T$ = INCHAR$ (0)

1160 IF ASC ( T$ ) =13 THEN 1190

1170 P$ = P$ (1,J) + T$

1180 NEXT J

1190 PRINT T$

1200 REM **

1210 REM ** Filename **

1220 F$ = "NIBBLE"

1230 REM **

1240 REM ** Allow the user to modify the data base **

1250 R$ = "MODIFY"

1260 REM **

1270 REM ** MDBS.DMS routines **

1280 Al = 32768

1290 A2 = Al + 3

1300 REM **

1310 REM ** Define a data block **

1320 E0 = CALL (A2, "DEFINE,OPENLIST" ,[F$),[N$),[P$),[R$),4)

1330 IF E0 <> 0 THEN 1450

1340 REM **

1350 REM ** Open the data base **

1360 E0 = CALL ( Al , " OPEN , OPENLIST " )

1370 IF E0 <> 0 THEN 1450

1380 REM **

1390 REM **********************************************************

1400 REM **

1410 REM ** ** APPLICATION PROGRAM **

1420 REM **

1430 REM **********************************************************

1440 REM **

1450 REM ** ** ERROR PROCESSING **

1460 REM **

14 70 REM **********************************************************

Listing 3: A BASIC program segment generating a list of customers who have placed orders at the Nibble Computer Store in the last sixty days. This listing assumes that an MDBS.DMS data base has been opened and that data blocks have been defined.

1000 REM ** The following code assumes that variable DO **

1010 REM ** has been initialized to the current Julian date **

1020 REM **

1030 REM ** MDBS.DMS addresses **

1040 A0 = 32768

1050 Al = A0 + 3

1060 REM ** Data Block Definitions **

1070 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,RECVD",[Dl),1)

1080 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,CNAME", [C$), 1)

1090 REM ** Access each customer in turn **

1100 E0 = CALL (A0,"FFM,CUSTNAME")

1110 IF E0 <> 0 THEN 1350

1120 REM ** Check each of this customer's orders **

1130 E0 = CALL (A0,"SOM,SETl,CUSTNAME") Listing 3 continued on page 116

114 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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Listing 3 continued:

1140 E0 = CALL (A0,"FFM,SET1")

1150 IF EO <> 0 THEN 1310

1160 REM ** Retrieve date order was received **

1170 REM ** Variable Dl receives the date **

1180 EO = CALL (A0,"GFM,SET1,RECVD")

1190 REM ** Following statement assumes that DO and Dl are

1200 REM ** Julian dates **

1210 IF D0-D1 <= 60 THEN 1280

1220 REM ** Order is over 60 days old — check next order **

1230 E0 = CALL (A0,"FNM,SET1")

1240 GOTO 1150

1250 REM ** Customer has placed order within last 60 days **

1260 REM ** Print customer's name **

1270 REM ** Variable C$ receives the customer name **

1280 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,CUSTNAME,CNAME")

1290 PRINT C$

1300 REM ** Process next customer **

1310 E0 = CALL (A0,"FNM,CUSTNAME")

1320 IF E0 = 0 THEN 1130

1330 REM ** All customers processed **

1340 E0 = CALL (A0,"CLOSE")

1350 STOP

Listing 4: A BASIC program segment that determines which parts the Nibble Computer Store needs to reorder. The listing assumes that an MDBS.DMS data base has been opened and that data blocks have been defined.

1000 REM ** MDBS.DMS addresses **

1010 A0 = 32768

1020 Al = A0 + 3

1030 REM ** Data Block Definitions **

1040 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,SHIPPED", [D2) , 1)

1050 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,QORDERED",[Nl),1)

1060 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINErONHAND",[Ql),1)

1070 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,REORDER"f[Q2),1)

1080 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,PNUMBER",[P0),1)

1090 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,PNAME",[P$),1)

1100 REM ** Generate the list in part-number order **

1110 E0 = CALL (A0,"FFM,PARTNUM")

1120 REM ** Initialize to sum the quantity ordered **

1130 N=0

1140 E0 = CALL (A0,"SOM,SET4,PARTNUM")

1150 E0 = CALL (A0,"FFM,SET4")

1160 REM ** This part may not have any orders outstanding **

1170 REM ** If this is the case, E0 will be set non-zero **

1180 IF E0 <> 0 THEN 1400

1190 REM ** Locate the order corresponding to this quantity **

1200 REM ** Ignore the order if it has been filled **

1210 E0 = CALL (A0,"SMM,SET2,SET4")

1220 REM ** If a non-zero shipping date is present, the order

1230 REM ** has been filled (Shipping date is returned in D2) **

1240 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFO,SET2,SHIPPED")

1250 IF D2 <> 0 THEN 1310

1260 REM ** Order is pending — Sum the quantity ordered **

1270 REM ** Variable Nl receives the quantity ordered **

1280 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,SET4,QORDERED")

1290 N=N+N1 Listing 4 continued on page 118

116 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

SuperSoft Optimizing

The SuperSoft "C" compiler

.''ports'most of version 7 Unix standard "C". Several special and widely desired features are supported,-including:

• Macro expansions via the #define statement.

• Include files using the include statement.

• Inline assembly code is supported with the #asm and #endasm.

• The object code may be flOMed.

, • Programs may be ORGed for any location.

- vyumpieieiy dynamic memory allocation is supported, both by the compiler and in user programs. (That is, the functions 'alloc' and 'free' are provided with the compiler.)

SuperSoft "C" is a two pass compiler. The first pass of the compiler produces an intermediate code (U-code, for Universal code). Pass two contains both the islatpr and the optimizer. The mediate code is optimized and assembly code is output to file.

The optimizer typically results in 40% code reduction. This means that compiled object code will run nearly as fast as that which was written in assembler.

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Listing 4 continued:

1300 REM ** Process the next order for this part **

1310 E0 = CALL (A0,"FNM,SET4")

1320 IF E0 <> 0 THEN 1210

1330 REM **

1340 REM ** Pending order

1350 REM ** Check to se«

1360 REM ** ordered is

1370 REM **

1380 REM ** Variable Ql receives the quantity on hand **

1390 REM ** Variable Q2 receives the reorder point **

1400 E0 = CALL(A0,"GFM,PARTNUM,ONHAND")

1410 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,PARTNUM,REORDER")

1420 IF Ql-N > Q2 THEN 1490

1430 REM ** Part needs to be reordered **

1440 REM ** Retrieve part name (P$) and part number (P0) **

1450 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,PARTNUM,PNUMBER")

1460 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,PARTNUM,PNAME")

1470 PRINT "REORDER PART#",P0,P$

1480 REM ** Process next part **

1490 E0 = CALL (A0,"FNM,PARTNUM")

1500 IF E0 = 0 THEN 1130

1510 E0 = CALL (A0, CLOSE")

1520 STOP

Listing 5: A BASIC program segment that produces a report on overdue orders placed at the Nibble Computer Store. The listing assumes that an MDBS.DMS data base has been opened and that data blocks have been defined.

1000 REM ** MDBS.DMS addresses **

1010 A0 = 32768

1020 Al = A0 + 3

1030 REM ** Data Block Definitions **

1040 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,SHIPPED",[Dl),1)

1050 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,RECVD",[D2),1)

1060 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,ONUMBER",[01),1)

1070 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,CNAME",[C$),1)

1080 E0 - CALL (Al,"DEFINE,CNUMBER", [CO), 1)

1090 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,QORDERED",[Ql),1)

1100 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINEfONHAND",[Nl),1)

1110 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,PNUMBER",[P0),1)

1120 E0 = CALL (Al,"DEFINE,SNAME",[S$),1)

1130 REM ** Find an order which has been outstanding for more

1140 REM ** than two days **

1150 E0 = CALL (A0,"FFM,ORDERS")

1160 IF E0 <> 0 THEN 1560

1170 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,ORDERS,SHIPPED")

1180 REM ** Ignore orders which have already been shipped **

1190 IF D2 <> 0 THEN 1530

1200 REM ** Check to see if this order is over two days old **

1210 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,ORDERS,RECVD")

1220 IF D0-D1 <= 2 THEN 1530

1230 REM ** An 'old' order has been found **

1240 REM ** Print customer name, customer number and order number

1250 REM ** Variable 01 receives the order number **

1260 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,ORDERS,ONUMBER")

1270 REM ** Locate customer data — number (CO) and name (C$)

1280 E0 = CALL (A0 , "SMM , SET1, ORDERS" ) Listing 5 continued on page 120

118 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc Circle 354 on Inquiry card. ►

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Listing 5 continued:

1290 1300 1310 1320 1330 1340 1350 1360 1370 1380 1390 1400 1410 1420 1430 1440 1450 1460 1470 1480 1490 1500 1510 1520 1530 1540 1550 1560

REM REM REM REM

REM REM

REM

REM

E0 = CALL (AO,"GFM,SETlfCNAME")

EO = CALL (A0,"GFM,SET1,CNUMBER")

PRINT "*****",CO,C$," ORDER ",01

** Determine which part(s) are holding up this order ** **

** Find parts with order quantity (Ql) which exceeds ** ** the inventory quantity (Nl) for that part ** E0 = CALL (A0,"SOM,SET2,ORDERS") E0 = CALL (A0,"FFM,SET2") IF E0 <> 0 THEN 1530 E0 = CALL (A0,"GFM,SET2,QORDERED") E0 = CALL (A0,"SMM,SET4,SET2") E0 = CALL (A0,"GFO,SET4,ONHAND") IF Nl >= Ql THEN 1500 ** Offending part found **

** Print part number (P0) and supplier name (S$) E0 = CALL (A0,"GFO,SET4,PNUMBER") E0 = CALL (A0,"SMO,SET3,SET4") E0 = CALL (A0,"GFO,SET3,SNAME") PRINT " PART#",P0," SUPPLIER ",S$ ** Check next part on order (it may be overdue also) ** E0 = CALL (A0,"FNM,SET2") THEN 1390 next order ** (A0,"FNM,ORDERS") THEN 1170 (A0,"CLOSE")

IF E0 = 0 ** Process E0 = CALL IF E0 = 0 E0 = CALL STOP

Text continued from page 108:

where CRS means create a record occurrence and store data into it. This call will take the data located in the variables N, D$, P, O, and R, and store them in the data base. Retrieving data from the data base is carried out in a similar way. A BASIC variable may be used in several defined data blocks.

To open a data base using MDBS.DMS, the user can give the sequence shown in listing 2. Here, the user's name and password (read in without echoing to the console) are first entered, a call to the OPEN routine of the DMS is issued, and an error check is made. (In listing 2, the brackets are used to pass addresses of variables and

the right bracket has been translated to a right parenthesis by North Star BASIC.)

Listings 3, 4, and 5 are sample programs for producing the reports discussed earlier. Each of the sample program segments assumes that the data base has been opened and that data blocks have been defined.

The program in listing 3 generates a list of customers (sorted by name) who have placed an order in the last sixty days. In line 1100, the first member of set CUSTNAME (which corresponds to the customer with the lexicographically first name) is located. The error response E0 is checked for the improbable case of no customers in

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the data base. Statements 1130 and 1140 locate the set of orders on file for the customer. The data is checked and, if the date of an order is within sixty days of the current date, the customer name is printed (statements 1280 and 1290). Statement 1310 accesses the next customer and, if we haven't reached the last customer (E0 is set nonzero when the FNM command detects end of set), the process is repeated.

A program that determines the parts that need to be reordered is shown in listing 4. A part is a candidate for reordering if the quantity in inventory less the quantity required for unfilled orders is less than some reorder point. The reorder point varies from part to part and is stored in the data base (as item REORDER in record PART).

Statement 1110 locates the first part to be processed (parts are processed in part-number order). The logic in statements 1180 through 1320 accesses the quantity ordered of the part (via SET4) for each unfilled order in the system. The inventory quantity (ONHAND) is obtained from the data base and the quantity on order for the part is used to calculate the adjusted inventory level (Ql-N). If this quantity is less than or equal to the reorder point (Q2), the number and name of the part are printed by statements 1450 through 1470. This process is repeated for all parts.

Finally, a program that produces a report on overdue orders is shown in listing 5. All orders in the system are accessed through the set named ORDERS (statements 1150 through 1160). Any order that has been shipped (indicated by a nonzero shipping date) is excluded from the report. In line 1220, the date the order was received (Dl) is subtracted from the current date, and if the difference is less than three days, the order is not overdue. If the order is overdue, the customer's name and number and the order number are printed. For each part in the order, the quantity ordered (Ql) is found via set SET2 and the quantity on hand (Nl) is obtained via set SET4. If the

quantity ordered is greater than the quantity on hand, the part number and the number of the part's supplier are printed.

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• The data-base approach provides great flexibility and economy in altering the initial system to meet new needs. Since the programmer can restructure the data base, creating new files and new links to old files, the DBMS permits major system modifications with little effort and cost. Also, the programmer can generate new reports by simply adding a new program. ■

References

1. Allen Ashley (395 Sierra Madre Villa, Pasadena CA, (213) 793-5748) has developed a patch to North Star BASIC that enables a machine-language call involving multiple parameters. Ashley's patch is available with his HDS (Hybrid Development System) package for North Star BASIC (which is part BASIC and part assembly language) or from Micro Data Base Systems with its North Star BASIC interface to MDBS.DMS.

2. Haseman, W D and A B Whinston. Introduction to Data Management. Homewood IL: Richard D Irwin, 1977.

3. Martin, J. Computer Data-Base Organization. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1975.

*•

CORVCIS SYSTEMS

HARD DISK SALEl! 5 MEG ONLY $2595.00

We are proud to announce great savings on the reliable Corvus Hard Disks for your computer.

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$3750 List $5350 List $6450 List

These prices include the complete system; hard disk, power supply, controller, interface card, 5' cable, software to attach the hard disk to your operating system, and manual. In most cases the only tool needed to get up and running is a screwdriver.

Full Factory Warranty (includes shipping one way)

Extended To One Year $350/5Meg $425/10Meg *550/20Meg

Extended To Two Years $1050/5Meg $1325/10Meg $1710/20Meg

Other Corvus Products: 50' CABLE= $100 • MIRROR BACKUP BOARD (records your data to or from a v.h.s. tape recorder) = $790 • MULTIPLEXER (allows up to 8 computers to be attached to your corvus disk drive) = $900 • EXTRA INTERFACE CARDS = $220 • EPROM (lets a superbrain cold boot to the corvus) = $150

Available For Most Computers Including; trs80 l&ll, apple II, superbrain, altos 1,2,3,4, alpha micro, north star, cromemco, vector graphics, zenith, and other S100's.

Please specify your computer type when ordering.

wclti i w i: a\*\si\J

WHOLESALE DEPT. 2831 N. Catherwood Street • Indianapolis, IN 462191096

(317) 549-2916

Ask about similar values on Superbrain and Superbrain/Corvus Systems.

We are the largest stocking Corvus Dealer in the Midwest.

cashier's check, bank transfer, or money order please.

C.O.D.'s add 5%. Indiana residents add 4%

122 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 117 on inquiry card.

CDTTIPUTER UWREHOUJe

CALL TOLL FREE

ATARI

Special 32K 800

800 w/32K, reco raiders, joysticks Above w/48K. . .

System

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400

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16K Memory. 32K Memory.

DISK DRIVES

Lobo

Apple 1st Drive.. Apple 2nd Drive.

MODEMS

Novation

CAT

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Apple Cat II

Auto Cat

PRINTERS

C. Itoh

25CPS-Serial.. 25CPS-Parallel. 40CPS-Serial.. 45CPS-Parallel. Datasouth

DS 180

Diablo 630 RO

w/Tractors. . . . 630 RO

wo/Tractors. . . 1640 RO

w/Tractors. . . . 1640 KSR

w/Tractors. . . . 1650 RO

w/Tractors. . . . 1650 KSR

w/Tractors. . . . Epson

MX-80

MX-80 F/T

MX-100

Fric. Feed Opt.

for MX-80

NEC

PC-8023A

5510 RO

w/Tractors. . . . 5520 KSR

w/Tractors. . . . Okidata

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560G

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810 Basic

810 Loaded

$744 Call $440 $575 $155 $60 S140

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DISKETTS

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5%'0, 10, 16 Sector (Qty 100)

8"0, 32 Sector (Qty 100)

COMPUTERS

Altos

ACS 8000-15

ACS 8000-2 w/CPM . Northstar

Horizon II 64K DD.. ..'.$2875

Horizon II 64K QD $3150

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Z-89 48Kw/CPM $2100

MONITORS

Panasonic

9" B&W

Sanyo

9" B&W

12" Green

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$150

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Call

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CALIFORNIA COMPUTER SYSTEMS

64K Dynamic Memory. . S500

16K Static Memory $255

Floppy Disk Cont $285

Serial Asynch Board. ...$110

$1060

$1250 $1450

Prices & availability subject to change without notice Personal checks will delay shipping two weeks

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Prices reflect 3% cash discount. Product shipped in factory cartons with manufacturers warranty. Add 2%, a minimum of $5, for shipping and handling.

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TARBELL'S Empire I, II, & III have two 8" disk drives. The I is single sided, the II is double sided, and the Empire III has one of the floppies replaced by an 8-Megabyte Hard Disk. FREE BUSINESS SOFTWARE EMP 1 $4888 ONLY $3666

CALIFORNIA COMPUTER 2200A

$2195 ONLY $1795 Z80, 64K, I/O, DMA Disk controller + CP/M.

Model 300-1A is the larger system: 2.4 Mb 8", Z80, 64K, and optional OASIS, CP/M, or MP/M operating system. LIST $5695 ONLY $4995

MORROW DESIGNS Decision 1

features UNIX plus CP/M. Multi user & Multi processing, 4 to 6 Mhz Z80, and optional Floating Point Processor, or Hard Disk 26Mb. A very powerful system at a saving. LIST $1725 ONLY $1380.

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SYSTEMS GROUP System 2812

runs CP/M or OASIS. Supports single user & multiuser & multi task. Up to 5 megabytes with 8" drives optional 10-megabyte hard disk. LIST $5035 ONLY $3994

SSM has introduced the Genesys Computer. It features a constant voltage transformer. It comes in several configurations: 12-slot, 22-slot, 5" to 8" floppy to Winchester. It's new, so give us a call.

SEATTLE'S 16 bit COMPUTER is here! 8 MHz 8086 CPU the fastest S-100 computer! 128K Static RAM, DD Disk Controller, 22-slot Main Frame, 86-DOS BASIC-86. #2 128K LIST $4185 ONLY $3349 #1 As above but 64K LIST $3190 ONLY $2649

WE SELL GOOD HARDWARE

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American [||] Computers

919-889-4577 KIVETT DR. JAMESTOWN N.C. 27282 919-883-1105

124 BYTE November 1981

9 CP/M is a registered trademark of Digital Research, Inc.

Circle 20 on inquiry card.

LOWEST PRICE - BEST QUALITY

NORTH STAR

North Star Horizon 2

2-5% Disk Drives 32K Double Den Factory assem. & tested Factory guaranteed List $3695

only

$2625

POWERFUL NORTH STAR BASIC FREE SUPERB FOR BUSINESS & SCIENCE

FACTORY ASSEMBLED & TESTED LIST

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HORIZON-2-64K-DOUBLE DEN

$4195

$2875

HORIZON-2-32K-QUAD DENSITY

$3995

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$4495

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HORIZON-1-64KQ-HD5

$6695

$4685

HORIZON RAM ASSM 48K

= $679

64K = $879

HORIZON DISK DRIVE SALE

SAVE

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$4495

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SECRETARY WORD PROCESSOR

$99

WORDSTAR WORD PROCESSOR

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FLOATING POINT BOARD

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GENERAL LEDGER

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InterSystems

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PASCAL SYSTEM 128K 2 DRIVES $7295 SAVE

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Z80 MACRO ASSEMBLER $125 SAVE

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INTEREDIT—TEXT EDITOR $295 CALL

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$1640

SAVE ON MEMORY AND PROGRAMS

SYSTEMS MEMORY 64K A&T $549 SYSTEMS MEMORY 64K BANK 684 MICROANGELO 985

fTHACA MEMORY 8/16 BIT 64K 845

CORVUS HARD DISK SAVE

SSM VIDEO BRD VB3 4Mhz 412

SPECTRUM COLOR UNKIT 269

EZ-CODER English to BASIC 71

ECOSOFT FULL ACCOUNTING 355 CAT NOVATION MODEM 169

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WICAT 68000 16-BIT CALL

Which Computers are BEST? FREE INSURED SHIPPING AT LOW RATES CALL FOR LATEST PRICES, DETAILS WE BEAT ADVERTISED PRICES

EXPERT ADVICE

FACTORY GUARANTEES SOllclTC

American [j|] Computers

919-889-4577 KIVETT DR. JAMESTOWN N.C. 27282 919-883-1105

Circle 20 on inquiry card.

CP/M Is a registered trademark of Digital Research, Inc.

BYTE November 1981 125

Hardware Review

The Exatron Stringy Floppy Data-Storage System

Keith Carlson

43 McDill Rd

Bedford MA 01730

More powerful than an 8-inch Winchester? Not likely. Faster than a speeding floppy7 Sometimes. Able to read huge data bases in fleeting seconds? Impossible 1

Exatron's Stringy Floppy data-storage system may not compare with Superman, but from the minute I plugged my new Stringy Floppy drive into my Radio Shack TRS-80 Model I Level II computer, I was convinced it was super. It appears to be a convenient and economical way to equip a TRS-80 Model I with most of the speed and convenience of a disk drive at less than half the price. There are some problems with it, but they are minor compared to problems of audio-cassette storage.

Why Digital Cassette?

Exatron was the first company to apply the concept of a completely digital cassette-tape data-storage system to microcomputers in a practical way. Audio cassettes are simply not designed for digital recording. They are made to accommodate a limited analog frequency range: those

Photo 1: The Exatron Stringy Floppy digital cassette-tape drive.

frequencies audible to the human ear (sometimes less, depending on the quality of the tape). Also, the tape moves comparatively slowly past the write/read (record/playback) head. Finally, you have to rewind the tape to read what has been written or to write something else.

In contrast, the Exatron digital cassettes, or wafers, are designed for digital recording. The tape is about y16 inch wide, and it is a closed loop moving in a single direction. It works in a manner similar to that of an eight-track audio tape cartridge. The tape is pulled out of the middle of the single reel and is wound up around the outside. No rewinding is necessary because the tape forms one big loop. The tape runs past the read/write head fast enough to transfer data at 7200 bps (bits per second). The wafers are about the height and width of a business card and about 3/e inch thick.

Stringy Floppy Characteristics

The basic control software for the Exatron Stringy Floppy system is stored in ROM (read-only memory) located inside the drive, making the system easy to use. The addressing of the ROM fits cleverly into an otherwise-unused gap in the TRS-80's memory-address space. The control software uses 4 bytes of read/write user memory. All you have to do to activate the control software is type "SYSTEM" to the Level II BASIC interpreter and then type "/12345". There are three ROMbased commands available: ©LOAD, ©SAVE, and ©NEW.

To load a BASIC program from the wafer, you simply type "©LOADn" (where n is a file number from 1 to 99), and within a few seconds the program will have been loaded into user memory. To store a BASIC program on the wafer, you type "©SAVErz". The system verifies that the program has been stored correctly, so this takes a little longer. To load and store machine-language programs, you use the same commands, adding arguments (in decimal radix) to specify the load-starting address, the length of the program, and the program's entry point. In

126 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 38 on inquiry card.

HEGR4PHIC DIFFERENCE

BETWEEN ATARI COMPUTERS AND ALL OTHERS.

*V£ **

3.7 million reasons why the ATARI Personal Computer is something to see.

The display screen used with our computers is composed of 192 horizontal lines, each containing 320 dots. Delivering color and luminosity instructions to each dot for a second requires 3.7 million cycles... a lot of work for the normal 6502 processor.

That's why the ATARI computer has equipped its 6502 with its own electronic assistant. It's called ANTIC, and it handles all the display work, leaving the 6502 free to handle the rest. What this means to you is uncompromisingly spectacular display capabilities without loss of computer power needed to carry out the demands of your program.

That's a quality you just don't find in ordinary personal computers. And it's one of the reasons some computer experts say that ATARI computers are so far ahead of their time.

There's more...which is what you'd expect from ATARI.

Language. The ATARI Personal ,

Computer uses several programming languages to give the user maximum control of its extraordinary capabilities. PILOT, Microsoft BASIC* and ATARI BASIC are understood and spoken by the ATARI computer. You'll also find our Assembler Editor cartridge indispensable for

5TATES AND CAPITALS

////;;

|Q ATARI

w\\\

ATARI

machine language programming. Sound. An ATARI computer has four sound generators, or voices, activated by a separate microchip. This leaves the principal microprocessor chips free to perform other tasks. And you can take full advantage of this capability which is designed for easy programming. Change. ATARI Personal Computers have been designed to make change and expansion easy. The ATARI computer has a modular operating system* that can be easily replaced as new technology develops. If you need it, memory expansion requires no more than inserting additional RAM modules* And the ATARI ROM cartridge system also makes it easy to change languages. In short, your ATARI computer won't be obsoleted by future developments.. .because it already incorporates the future. Sharing. To learn more about the amazing capabilities of ATARI computers, visit your local computer store for a demonstration. Or send for our Technical User's Notes, intended for the serious programmer. They are only $27 and contain a lot more information about our computers' special capabilities than most companies could tell. See your ATARI dealer, or send $30 ($27 plus $3 postage and handling), payable to ATARI, to Technical User's Notes, c/o ATARI Customer Service, 1340 Bordeaux Avenue, Sunnyvale, CA. 94086.

•ATARI 800™ computer only.

Computers for people.

L*J A Warner Communications Company

J1981 Atari, Inc.

addition, if you use "©LOADn" from inside a BASIC program, it will chain program files while saving variables.

The @NEW command certifies a wafer for use. When you type "@NEW", the system writes a test pattern on the wafer, verifies it, and then displays the amount of storage space available on the wafer.

Storing data is just a little more complicated. A dataI/O (input/output) program that must be loaded into user memory is provided on a wafer. It takes up about 1 K bytes of memory. When loaded, it provides five more commands: ©OPEN, ©INPUT, ©PRINT, ©CLOSE, and ©CLEAR. The uses of the first four are similar to corresponding commands in disk-based systems, and detailed explanations are included in the manual. The command ©CLEAR is used for aborting open files and setting up I/O buffer space when you have more than one drive.

The system is not without some minor problems. First, no matter how well a tape-based system works, it is still a sequential-access system. That is, it may have to read all the files preceding the file you wish to access. (Since the Exatron drives are comparatively fast, this is less irritating than it sounds.)

Furthermore, the method of storage allocation leads to some interesting problems. If you read a program from a wafer, modify the code so it is longer, and then rewrite it onto the same wafer, the longer program will destroy the header of the file behind it. I have made it a policy (after losing several hours' worth of work) always to use a "scratch" wafer until I am absolutely satisfied there are no more changes to be made to a program. Another way to avoid this problem is to write the modified program as the last file on a wafer.

A second problem (one familiar to users of audio cassettes) is that there is no directory on a wafer of the files it contains. I use 3 by 5 file cards cut down to the size

of a wafer to manually record the wafer's contents. I write the file names on the card and always keep that card with the wafer.

The last problem involves those 4 little bytes of user memory that the operating system uses. You won't be able to use every byte of memory in a 16 K-byte system. I was dismayed, at first, to find that I couldn't load some large programs from the Stringy Floppy. (Fortunately for devotees of games like the Scott Adams Adventures, a special loading routine has been developed for use with Adventure International products.) Of course, the 4 bytes are missed less by owners of 32 or 48 K-byte systems.

The 4 bytes will be relocated just below any area at the top of memory reserved for machine-language programs. If you don't reserve memory for machine-language programs, the 4 bytes will reside at the top of memory. If you have a machine-language program that attempts to load over these 4 addresses, either it won't load at all or it won't run correctly.

One way of increasing the data-transfer rate of the TRS-80 version of the Exatron Stringy Floppy system is by speeding up the Z80 microprocessor within the TRS-80. Exatron sells a speed-up kit that roughly doubles the processor's clock rate and the Stringy Floppy's datatransfer rate. Unfortunately, wafers recorded at the higher rate can be read only by a TRS-80 that has been speeded up.

Manufacturer's Support

I am impressed by the documentation and support provided for the Exatron Stringy Floppy. First, enough information about the operating system is provided in the user's manual to make assembly-language programming of wafer-I/O operations simple. Entry points to ROM routines for the various primitive functions (read block, write block, write file header, verify block, etc) and an

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128 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 114 on inquiry card.

Circle 385 on inquiry card.

SuperCalc and the Answer Key.

Answers. As a decision maker that's what you're after when you use an "electronic worksheet" to analyze problems in management, finance, marketing, sales, and engineering. However, a lot of time and energy can be spent just trying to figure out how your program works. That's why we've invented The SuperCalc7 Answer Key.

As a new SuperCalc user you want answers on program operation fast... as your questions

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arise. As an experienced user you want a complete description of all your options at your fingertips.

From formatting printed reports to merging sheets, the SuperCalc Answer Key gently guides you every step of the way. And included with the SuperCalc Software Package is a comprehensive tutorial and reference guide which introduces you to the full power of the electronic spreadsheet.

The SuperCalc Answer Key. Invented so you can move on to answering the questions that really count.

SuperCalc is available now for your CP/M* computer. Contact us today for the name and address of your local dealer.

SuperCalc

SISORCIM

405 Aldo Avenue Santa Clara, CA 95050 (408)727-7634

Afa Hlanrp

Name

Apple II, 6% by 5% by 3%

Exatron Stringy Floppy

inches; (15.8 by 14.9

by 8.5 cm)

Use

High-speed mass storage on

Features

digital cassette

TRS-80 Model I: on-board

Manufacturer

Exatron Corporation

ROM-based operating system, 7200 bps data-transfer rate, LED indicators, auto

181 Commercial St Sunnyvale CA 94086 (800) 538-8559 (408) 737-7111 (in California)

matic keyboard debounce; Apple 11: LED indicators, built-in catalog function, 16,000 bps data-transfer rate

Price

First drive for TRS-80

Model I, $249.50

First drive with starter kit,

$349.50; Second drive,

$224.50

First drive for Apple II,

Additional hardware needed

TRS-80 Model I Level II computer and 40-pin ribbon connector; Apple II or Apple II Plus computer and

interface card (card supplied with first drive)

$349.50; Second drive,

$189.50

Hardware options

Dimensions

TRS-80 Model I Speed-Up

TRS-80 Model I, 6 by 4 %

Kit (doubles processor clock

by 2% inches (15.25 by 10.5

rate and Stringy Floppy

by 6 cm)

data-transfer rate), $19.95

PAY LESS.

?3ET MORE.

ATARI

CoTvnun>c*!ionB Carwrr C^

PRICE EXAMPLES: ATARI 800 with 16Kmemory $749

ATARI 400 with 16K memory 329

ATARI 810 disk 439

ATARI 4lO recorder 65

ATARI 825 printer 599

Jawbreaker (16K Disk) 24.95

Fro Football (Text) (Cass. 16K) NEW 7.95

Dodge Racer (16K Cass. 24K Disk) 19.95

Asteroids 34.95

Missile Command 34.95

Mail Order Customers

• Indicate Unit(s) you want

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We ship by best means possible freight collect

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4 Elm St., Braintree, MA 02184 (617) 843-1133 1-800-343-5691 (24 hours)

Send for Catalog of complete Atari products

explanation of the error-detection system are included.

Second, a starter kit is available that includes some immediately useful software: the data-I/O program, two I/O-demonstration programs, a machine-language monitor called ESF-80, which resembles Radio Shack's T-Bug, and a mini-data-base program. The starter kit also contains documentation, ten blank wafers, and a two-forone ribbon cable for connecting the Stringy Floppy drive to the expansion port on the TRS-80 keyboard/processor module.

Third, for support after the sale, Exatron Corp has established the Exatron Stringy Floppy Owners' Association, through which a variety of software is available on wafer, including games and utility programs. Membership is automatic when you purchase a Stringy Floppy drive. The association also distributes instructions for modifying popular commercially sold programs to work with the Stringy Floppy drive. Such patches are available for the Electric Pencil word-processing program from Michael Shrayer Software and for the Editor/Assembler Plus from Microsoft Consumer Products. Members of the association are encouraged to contribute to the software collection and to a collection of hardware interface designs, sometimes in exchange for royalties.

Fourth, Exatron maintains a toll-free telephone number you can call if you need more help than you can get locally. The number is (800) 538-8559. California residents can call (408) 737-7111.

Other Planned Products

In addition to the version for use with the TRS-80 Model I, Exatron has recently announced a Stringy Floppy drive for use with the Apple II computer. The new system differs from the TRS-80 version in several ways. The operating system for the Apple will not be resident in ROM; it will be loaded into 6 K bytes of the Apple's user memory by a bootstrap routine when the Stringy Floppy system is activated, in much the same manner as popular disk operating systems. The Apple version will provide a catalog on each wafer, residing in the first file, and the standard data-transfer rate will be higher, about 16,000 bps. As the owner of a TRS-80, I envy these features.

Because Exatron is designing Stringy Floppy drives for some Commodore Business Machines computers and for the Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer, owners of these machines may look forward to having the Stringy Floppy added to the selection of peripheral devices.

Conclusions

• The Exatron Stringy Floppy system is an excellent lowpriced alternative to slow audio-cassette data storage. The system appears to work well despite some minor bugs. Exatron apparently has worked hard to make both the hardware and its operation simple and efficient.

• Both documentation and support appear to be good, and toll-free telephone assistance is a reassuring asset.

• Thanks to the efforts of Exatron and the owners' association, an adequate supply of software converted to run on the system is available. ■

130 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 464 on inquiry card.

Circle 128 on inquiry card.

inally! The ultimate goal in microcomputer hardware, achieved.

i joystick with such remarkable realism and control that even the thought of other joysticks virtually vanish.

iside Le Stick™ are motion detectors which will maneuver your sights in any direction you want with simple ne handed movements. The large red push button on top provides a quick and accurate firing mechanism for etter response time.

rom Star Raiders to graphic draw programs — Le Stick1 liminates all the frustrations you experience with the onventional two handed joysticks or keyboards. ^

"he joystick of the future: See and test it at our Datasoft™ dealer today, or contact -^

s for more information.

LE STICK $39.!

FOR ATARI 400/800, ATARI

IDEO GAME, COMMODORE

IC AND THE TRS-80 COLOR

COMPUTER SYSTEMS

*Vv

o •

COMPUTER SOFTWARE

l^fS-Business Center Dr., Northridge, CA 91324 (213)701-5161

Character Generator for Atari 400/800 Computers

This new program for the Atari Computer enables you to create high resolution graphics in the text mode. Redefines a character set virtually any way you want. Ready for whatever language or graphics set you can devise — from ancient Japanese to Modern Russian. (Diskette) $19.95 / (Cassette) $15.95.

Mailing List

for Atari 800 Computer

Business application software for the Atari Computer. A versatile disc based system. An efficient micro format equal to those used for many large computers. Sorts by Zip Codes, Names, and stores special data for your personal use. (Diskette) $24.95.

Order through your local software dealer, or send check or money order plus $2.00 shipping and handling to Datasoft.

PRINTERS,

MONITORS,

DISKS

Daisy Wheel Printer by C. Itoh 1750

Paper Tiger 445G 725

Paper Tiger 460G 1194

Paper Tiger 560G 1495

Qume (shipped FREIGHT COLLECT) 2499

Silentype w/interface 349

Amdek Color Monitor 349

Amdek Green Screen 169

Amdek/Leedex B/W 12" Monitor 129

NEC 12" Green Screen 239

Sanyo 9" B/W Monitor 169

Sanyo 12" B/W Monitor 255

Sanyo Green Screen 309

Dysan Disks (pkg. 10) 50

Memorex Disks (pkg. 10) 40

Opus Disks (pkg. 10) 30

Verbatim "Gold" (pkg. 10) 35

MAKES IT, WE

SELL IT

Atari 400 8K Computer 419

Atari 800 16K Computer 789

Atari 410 Program Recorder 69

Atari 810 Disk Drive 499

Atari 820 Printer 429

Atari 825 Printer 695

Atari 850 Interface 169

16K RAM by Microtek 99

32K RAM by Microtek 189

Assembler/Editor 45

Atari Joysticks 18

Atari Paddles 18

Basketball 30

Computer Chess 30

Invitation to Programming 17

Music Composer 45

Star Raiders 39

Super Breakout .- 30

3-D Tic-Tac-Toe 30

Video Easel 30

Visicalc 180

M.M49 * S« * "«»«» S239

ROM

24K Bytes (expandable to 32K Bytes)

CPU

^PD780c-l (Z-80Acompatible), 4MHz RAM

32K Bytes (expandable to 160K Bytes with PC-8012A I/O Unit.

The end of the compromise.

TO ORDER Phone orders invited using Visa. Mastercard or bank wire transfers Visa and MC service charge ol 2% Mail orders may send charge card number (include expiration date), cashiers check, money order, or personal check {allow 10 business days for personal or company checks to clear) Please add 3% ($5.00 minimum) for UPS shipping, handling, and insurance APO and FPO include 5% ($7.00 minimum) for postage. Calif, residents add 6% sales tax. Please include phone number on all orders.

FOREIGN ORDERS include 1% handling-shipped air FREIGHT COLLECT only Credit cards not accepted on foreign orders All equipment is in factory cartons with manufacturer warranty Opened products not returnable. Restocking fee for returned merchandise Equipment subject to price change and availability Retail prices differ from mail order prices. WE SHIP THE SAME DAY ON MOST ORDERS'

VISA*

Circle 95 on inquiry card.

(714) 579-0330 • MAIL TO: 1251 Broadway, el cajon, ca. 92021

AUTHORlZEC

G3IjOOT@3?

a-xgaijM^

.OMPUTER METRICS

APPLE SOFTWARE

ABM by Muse 19

Adventure by Mircrosoft 27

Alien Rain by Broderbund 19

Apple PIE 119

Apple Pilot 129

Apple-oids 25

Appleplot by Apple 59

Applepost Mailing List System 44

Applewriter Word Processor 65

Asteroid Field by Cavalier 19

CCA Data Mgmt 84

Data Factory by Microlab 129

Desktop Plan II 159

DB Master II by Stoneware 199

DOS Tool Kit 65

DOS 3.3 Upgrade 49

Dow Jones Portfolio Evaluator 45

Fortran by Apple 159

Hi-Res Football 33

Head-On 21

Integer Basic Cassette Demos 29

Orbitron 25

PASCAL Language System 425

Peachtree Bus. Pkgs CALL

Personal Filing System 84

Phantoms Five 29

Pool 1.5 29

Pulsar II 25

Raster Blaster 24

Robot War by Muse 31

Sabotage 21

Sargon II Chess Game 29

Snoggle/Puckman by Broderbund .. 24

Space Game Album by Budgeco ... 39

Space Eggs 25

Space Invaders/Cosmos Mission 19

Space Raiders by USA zi:

Star Cruiser 24

Sub-Logic FS-1 Flight Simulator 34

Super Single Disk Copy Routine .... 35

Super Stellar Trek 33

Supertext II by Muse 129

Ultima 35

Visicalc II 159

Visilist 24

Visitrend/Visiplot 219

Wizard and the Princess 32

Zork 34

LARGE SELECTION OF

SOFTWARE IN STOCK —

CALL FOR FREE BROCHURE —

CALL 1-800-854-2833

PHONE ORDERS

MON. - SAT. 8 to 6 P.S.T.

Circle 95 on inquiry card.

APPLE COMPUTER INTERFACE CARDS

Applesoft II Firmware Card 149

CCS Asynchronous 7710A 129

CCS Parallel Print Cd. 7720A 155

Centronics Interface Cd 179

Comm. Cd. & DB25 Cable 179

CPS Multifunction by Mtn. Comp. . . 199 Expansion Chassis by Mtn. Comp. .. 555

HiSpeed Serial Int. Cd 155

Integer Basic Firmware Cd 149

ROMPLUS 135

SSm AIO Serial/Parallel I/O Assembled & Tested 149

ACCESSORIES

A/D D/A Board by Mtn. Comp 319

Andromeda 16K Ramcard 179

Apple Game Paddles 25

Arith. Processor 7811 A or B 339

COPYROM by Mtn. Comp 51

Dan Paymar L.C. Kit 1 or 2 55

Extender Board 27

GPIB IEEE 488 Card 259

Graphics Input Tablet 639

Hayes Micromodem 299

Introl X-10 Remote Control Sys 239

Joystick for the Apple 47

Keyboard Filter ROM chip 49

Lazer Lower Case Plus+ 49

M & R Sup-R-Term 80-col-bd 319

Music System by Mtn. Comp 479

Programmable Timer CCS 7440A ... 159

Prototyping Hobby Card 22

ROMWRITER by Mtn. Comp 149

SuperTalker Speech Synthesizer... . 239

Thunderclock 129

Versa-Writer Digitizer Drawing Sys . 239

Videx Keyboard Enhancer 115

Videx Videoterm 80-col-cd 319

2-80 SOFTCARD by Microsoft 319

MEMBER CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

AUTHORIZED

APPLE

SALES &

SERVICE

(HM13M3?

ffiX33m§D®

DIV OF

COMPUTER

METRICS

INC

BYTE Comment

Reviewing the Microcomputer Revolution

Ed Faber, President

ComputerLand

14400 Catalina St

San Leandro CA 94577

For the past five years, industry leaders have been telling each other about the microcomputer revolution, predicting it may even overshadow the industrial revolution. Of course, the beginnings of the industry go back more than five years, but 1976 marked the first anniversary of BYTE and the creation of ComputerLand, which celebrated its fifth birthday this fall by opening its 200th store.

With so many of the heady predictions of five years ago yet to be fulfilled, it's easy to lose sight of the changes we've already brought about. But one dream still unfulfilled is the emergence of a mass market for home com

Viet* 't *%4ve A @6<Uce,

Now you can have another one of those little extras

that makes you feel good about your computer..

—1

...a complete packet of the most attractive stock forms on the market, from the people whose only business is the small computer user. Our experienced customer staff is ready and waiting to answer questions regarding your forms needs.

• OVER 200 STOCK FORMS TO CHOOSE FROM

• 7-WORK1NG DAY GUARANTEED RUSH SHIPMENT

• PERSONALIZED SERVICE AND QUALITY YOU WILL LEARN TO COUNT ON

DEALER INQUIRIES WELCOME

lJW» (2<UHfittU Styctnce (o* (^atOuutnttA "?<vuh4{

puters. For ComputerLand stores, thea! ome/entertainment market initially accounted for 5u percent of our sales. But by 1979, it represented only 25 percent, except at Christmas time. The home market has not dwindled; it has grown slowly while the business market has exploded. In fact, the events of the past five years might well be called the "office microcomputer revolution."

The three basic reasons for the faster growth of the business market show what's required to develop a mass home market:

1. Business is not afraid of computer^; business people are accustomed to them and perceive them as useful.

2. Computers are useful to business; programmers have had 30 years to turn hardware intcisolutions.

3. Channels of distribution and suppo t-already exist fc business computers.

completely satis

is afraid of com

t know where to

and they didn't

None of these requirements has bee Bed for the home market. The public puters. Until recently, most people die buy a computer or how to support o| see any benefit to owning one.

Making the benefits known is largely the responsibility of manufacturers. The first two requirements can be met by the existence of full-service retail computer stores.

From my viewpoint, the major achievement of the past five years has been the creation of the structures that will carry the microcomputer revolution to its next stages. Those structures have had more to do'with merchandising than with technology. In other words, the real revolution springs not from technology but from our making that technology available to a mass marjket.

Many will read that statement with (sorrow, even if they agree. The entry of giant manufacturers, the growth of global retail networks, the emergence of advertising campaigns involving celebrities and network TV—all of these have tended to squeeze out the starry-eyed, bluejeaned innovators who started the ball rolling.

The start-up phase of our industry has ended. No longer can you trade in a used car tqkcapitalize a company. But the change doesn't explain the extraordinary

134 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 65 on inquiry card.

Circle 422 on inquiry card.

Next to keeping all your data on Verbatim Datalife" flexible disks, the best thing you can do for your computer or word processor is to keep it running clean and error-free.

And the way to do just that is with Verbatim's new Datalife Head Cleaning Kit. It can remove up to 90% of the debris contaminating your drive heads. Dust, dirt and debris that causes data loss and errors, Minders system performance.

Quick and easy to use

All you havd: to do is remove a Cleaning Dijsk from its protective pouch, put the disk in the special jacket, insert it into your drive and turn it oh.

In just 30-60 seconds, your drive heads are cleaned.

Cleaning, with no cleaning mess

With your Datalife Head Cleaning Kit there's no hit-and-miss

jplying solvents that can splash and spill.

What's more, with Datalife Cleaning Disks every time you clean your heads, you can do it with a fresh, clean, disposable disk.

Cleans both Single and Dual Head Drives Safely

There's no worry about damaging your system with Datalife Cleaning Disks. And you can use them on single or dual head drives.

Protect your investment

The Datalife Head Cleaning Kit will help you guard against data loss, errors, and degradation of system performance because of debris contamination.

So if you want your data back verbatim, keep it on Verbatim disks. And keep your disk drives clean with Verbatim's Datalife Head Cleaning Kit.

Call (800) 538-1793 for the name of your nearest Verbatim dealer. (In California and outside the U.S. call (408) 737-7771 collect.)

\ferbatirri

Introducing the second best thing youcan

atalife

'"Vferbatir

©1981 Verba

Datalife is a trademark of Verbatim Corp.

.*&

y^^WBSw

$• &

\^V>Vv

MODEMS

All Modems connect to any RS232 Computer or Terminal!

1200 Baud and 300 Baud-Bell 212A

Style. Penril 300/1200 $779

Onginate/answer/auto-answer. Full duplex RS232. Phone line connection via standard phone jack. 1 yr. warranty.

Auto-dial option $350

300 Baud Phone t-ink $179

Originate/answer.Sleek, low profile. 15ozs. Hall/ lull duplex. Self test. RS232. Light displays for On Carrier. Test. Send & Receive Data. 1 yr. warranty.

300 Baud. USR-330D $339

Originate/answer/auto-answer. Phone line connection via standard jack. 1 yr. warranty.

300 Baud. USR-330A $399

Same as USR-330D PLUS Auto-Dial. Call for quote and technical information on higher speed modems and miltiplexors.

Printing Terminals

The new generation of printing terminals from General Electric. 30/60CPS.GETerminet2030 .... $929

110/300/60/1200 Baud. User selectable lines per inch and chars, per inch. True descenders and underlining. Up to 217 cols, per line. Top of fqrm. vert, and hor. tabs. Friction feed sld., tractor feed opt. Answerback. 1 yr. warranty on parts. Nationwide servicing. Extremely compact. 15 in. paper. Only 22 lbs. Built in text editor with 16k text editor optional. SUPERIOR TO DEC LA34AA at lower cost. 120/150 CPS.

GE Terminet 2120 $1,699

Housed in same compact package as the 2030 with all the features of the 2030 PLUS 150 char, per. sec. print rate. Letter Quality. NEC 7720

KSR with keyboard $2,695

55 CPS. RS232 and Centronics parallel. Interchangeable print thimbles for a wide variety of perfect, letter quality output.

CRTs

Televideo (Lear Seigler, Hazeltine

and ADDS equivalent) S584 j I1 *•"=;;!_

24 x 80. RS232. Numeric keypad. Non-glare . In If

screen. Printer Port. Function keys

Televideo 950 $959

Green, Non-glare screen. RS232. Detachable keyboard. Advanced editing with wraparound Smooth scrolling. 15 baud rates. Protected fields. Underlining. Split screen. Fully programmable function keys. 15 graphics characters. Self test. 25th status line. Buffered printer port. 14 x 10 high resolution character display, filta- m J ble screen Nationwide service lium General I ^^^^^^B Electric. ». ■§

Televideo 912C... $759

Televideo 920C.... S792 «MMMMV

Visual Technology-Visual 100

(DEC VT100 Emulator) $1,399

All the features of the DEC VT100 INCLUDING Advanced Video Features and Non-glare screen.

Printers

OKIDATA Mircroiine 82A. 120 CPS.

80/132 Columns per line $529

User selectablechar. Sizes.Top-of-form bi-directional. Short line seeking print techniques foi greater throughput.RS232&Centronics parrellel interfaces.

Letter Quality, NEC 7710 RO. . . $2,395 Same features as the 7720KSR listed above but without keyboard.

Letter Quality, NEC 3510 RO... $1,499 Like the 7710 RO but 30 CPS.

32

VISA/MASTERCARD Accepted. Corporation and Institution purchase orders accepted. Leasing rates available on request. All equipment is shipped with a 10-day money back guarantee. We offer full service, on-site maintenance plans on all equipment. All equipment in stock.

U.S. ROBOTICS i

H03 N. WABASH SUITE I7IS CHICAGO. ILL SOBOl

BYTE Comment.

sense of apprehension that prevails in the headquarters of successful companies. The question of the day seems to be "Who's gaining on me?" Instead of looking for a better and more valuable product, companies are aiming their strategies at the competition. Those who aren't afraid of IBM are afraid of the Japanese, or discounters, or Sears, or something.

Into this turbulent market I'd like to toss an idea, one we've used at ComputerLand and credit with our success: the market is honest. The companies that succeed are the ones that contribute value by building the best possible product and offering it at a fair price. I can think of no bigger mistake than for companies who became successful this way to begin reacting to what others are doing (or might be doing).

The potential market is much greater than anything we're competing for today. Any contribution to expanding the market can't fail to be repaid. The market will always have room for innovation, for products that improve on previous products or help solve new problems.

I believe much of the industry's apprehension grows out of a misperception about consumer marketing. Many manufacturers have not yet learned how to communicate to the general public or how to describe hardware benefits to computer illiterates. That doesn't mean computers should be sold like shampoo, with million-dollar ad campaigns and sex appeal. As shampoo marketers will tell you, ad campaigns are most important for products with few real advantages over their competitors. The market will always make room for a better product.

Innovation is also the answer for those who fear that Japan or some other country will steal the market through price erosion and superior manufacturing capacity. If the battle is fought on the basis of price instead of innovation, Silicon Valley hasn't a chance. If the battle is between cheaper and better, better will prevail wherever it comes from.

The companies to watch during the rest of this decade are the ones that concentrate on providng value to the end user. We happen to believe that value includes offering your products through full-service, full-support retail outlets. Be that as it may, the products with the most value to the end user are the ones that will succeed.

We are still on the threshold of the computer revolution; the greatest opportunities for manufacturers, retailers, and customers still lie ahead. No one now in the market or planning to enter it should fear anything more than the failure to bring value to the market. That is the challenge of the 1980s.*

Occasionally, BYTE invites industry leaders to comment on topics related to the microcomputer industry. The opinions expressed by these authors are their own and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BYTE or its publishers.

136 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 419 on inquiry card.

The MX-100. Not just better. Bigger.

Epson.

Our MX-80 was a pretty tough act to follow. I mean, how do you top the best-selling printer in the world?

Frankly, it wasn't easy. But the results of all our sleepless nights will knock your socks off.

The MX-100 is a printer that must be seen to be believed. For starters, we built in unmatched correspondence quality printing, and an ultra-high resolution bit image graphics capability. Then we added the ability to print up to 233 columns of information on 15" wide paper to give you the most incredible spread sheets you're ever likely to see. Finally, we topped it all off with both a satin-smooth friction feed platen and fully adjustable, removable tractors. And the list of standard features goes on and on and on.

Needless to say, the specs on this machine — and especially at under $1000 — are practically unbelievable. But there's something about the MX-100 that goes far

beyond just the specs; something about the way it all

comes together, the attention to detail, the fit, the feel.

Mere words fail us. But when you see an MX-100, you'll

know what we mean.

All in all, the MX-100 is the most remarkable printer

we've ever built. Which creates rather a large problem for those of us at Epson.

How are we going to top this?

Your next printer.

EPSON

EPSON AMERICA, INC.

Circle 167 on inquiry card.

3415 Kashiwa Street • Torrance, California 90505 • (213) 539-9140

See the whole incredible Epson MX Series of printers at your Authorized Epson Dealer.

Circle 279 on inquiry card.

MMSFORTH VERSION 2.0: MORE FOR YOUR RADIO SHACK TRS-80 MODEL I OR MODEL III !

• MORE SPEED

10-20 times (aster than Level II BASIC.

• MORE ROOM

Very compact compiled code plus VIRTUAL MEMORY makes your RAM act larger. Variable number of block buffers. 3l-char.-unique wordnames use only 4 bytes in header!

• MORE INSTRUCTIONS

Add YOUR commands to its 79-STANDARD-ptus

instruction set!

Far more complete than most Forths: single &

double precision, arrays, string-handling, clock,

more.

• MORE EASE

Excellent full-screen Editor, structured &

modular programming

Word search utility

THE NOTEPAD letter writer

Optimized for your TRS-80 with keyboard

repeats, upper/lower case display driver, full

ASCII, single- & double-width graphics, etc.

• MORE POWER

Forth operating system

Interpreter AND compiler

8080 Assembler

(Z80 Assembler also available)

Intermix 35- to 80-track disk drives

Model III System can read, write & run Model I

diskettes!

VIRTUAL I/O for video and printer, disk and tape

(10-Megabyte hard disk available)

FORTH

THE PROFESSIONAL FORTH FOR TRS-80

(Over 2,000 systems in use)

MMSFORTH Disk System V2.0 [requires 1 disk drive & 16K RAM, 32K lor Model III) J129.951

AND MMS GIVES IT PROFESSIONAL SUPPORT

Source code provided

MMSFORTH Newsletter

Many demo programs aboard

MMSFORTH User Groups

Inexpensive upgrades to latest version

Programming staff can provide advice, modifications

and custom programs, to fit YOUR needs.

MMSFORTH UTILITIES DISKETTE: includes FLOATING POINT MATH (L.2 BASIC ROM routines plus Complex numbers, Rectangular-Polar coordinate conversions, Degrees mode, more), plus a full Forth-style Z80 ASSEMBLER; plus a powerful CROSS-REFERENCER to list Forth words by block and line. All on one diskette (requires MMSFORTH V2.0, 1 drive & 32K RAM) . S39.95*

FORTHCOM; communications package provides RS-232 driver, dumb terminal mode, transfer of FORTH blocks, and host mode to operate a remote TRS-80 (requires MMSFORTH V2.0. 1 drive & 32K RAM) $39.95'

THE DATAHANDLER V1.2: a very sophisticated database management system operable by non-programmers (requires MMSFORTH V2.0, 1 drive & 32K RAM) $59.95*

MMSFORTH GAMES DISKETTE: real-lime graphics & board games w/source code. Includes BREAKFORTH, CRASHFORTH, CRYPTOQUOTE. FREEWAY, OTHELLO & TICTACFORTH (requires MMSFORTH V2.0, 1 drive 8 32K RAM) $39.95*

Othar MMSFORTH products under dsvolopment

FORTH BOOKS AVAILABLE

MMSFORTH USERS MANUAL - without Appendices, for non-owners $17.50'

STARTING FORTH • best companion to our manual $15.95*

INVITATION TO FORTH - detailed beginner book on figFORTH $17-50*

THREADED INTERPRETIVE LANGUAGES ■ advanced, excellent analysis of MMSFORTH-like language $18.95*

PROGRAM DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION • inlro. to structured programming, good for Forth $13.95*

FORTH -79 STANDARD MANUAL - official reference to 79-STANDARD word set, etc $13.95*

FORTH SPECIAL ISSUE, BYTE Magazine (Aug. 1980) ■ we stock this collector's item for Forth users and beginners $4.00*

* ■ ORDERING INFORMATION: Software prices Include manuals and require signing of a single system, singleuser license. SPECIFY for Model I or Model III! Add $2.00 S/H plus S3.00 per MMSFORTH and $1.00 per additional book; Mass. orders add 5% tax. Foreign orders add 20%. UPS COD, VISA & M/C accepted; no unpaid purchase orders, please.

Send SASE lor free MMSFORTH information Good dealers sought.

Get MMSFORTH products from your computer dealer or

MILLER MICROCOMPUTER

SERVICES (B11)

61 Lake Shore Road, Natick, MA 01760 (617)653-6136

System Review

The Datahandler from Miller Microcomputer Services

Allyn Richardson

POB 254

West Groton MA 01472

There are only two programs in my software library that I use constantly. One is the word processor that is helping me to review and edit this text. The other is The Datahandler from Miller Microcomputer Services. Written entirely in MMSFORTH (that company's version of the FORTH language for the Radio Shack TRS-80 Model I), The Datahandler does almost every job you expect of a personal computer except numbercrunching—and it even does a little of that, as you will see.

For example, The Datahandler disk includes a checkbook and banktransaction routine that is the best of its kind. It can generate a summary list of all transactions in a specified interval and provide a running balance for each. Adding a code letter to each entry that designates the source of deposits and the purpose of expenditures allows the output section of The Datahandler to give listings and totals for each class. With these summaries of your financial activities, the annual IRS formalities become a breeze.

There is also a mailing-list routine. Last year, with its help, I got through my entire Christmas-card list before Christmas for the first time in years. Previously, I got a few cards out by Christmas, some by St Valentine's Day, some by Easter/Passover, and many never made it at all. It took less

effort to type all the names and addresses into the TRS-80 than to address one year's Christmas envelopes by hand, and I only had to type them in once. Now that the data is in the computer, I can select and automatically prir.;: self-adhesive address labels for thi.1 entire list or any desired portion, such as family members, personal friends, business associates, my MMSFORTH users' group, or monthly accounts. The address labels save a lot of work, and the system makes certain that nobody gets overlooked.

The Datahandler is also ideal for creating different catalogs, and it has built-in automatic cross-indexing. For example, I keep a catalog of all my phonograph albums on floppy disk. Each disk entry (called a record in computer data-base terminology) in the MASTER LIST data file corresponds to one album in my collection.

Each data record has five fields of information: an accession number, title, description, subfile, and code. The accession number tells where the phonograph disk can be found. When a file is resorted, this number stays with its file record, even though the records themselves are renumbered in a new sequence. The title field includes composer or performer, and the description includes the publisher's name, product number, and the number of separate musical pieces on the album.

The subfile field points to a separate listing in another file on the same disk containing more detailed

138 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

APPLE • ALTOS • ATARI • MAXELL • DYSAN • EPSON • CCS • SHARP • CASIO • HP • VERBATIM • MEMOREX • SOROC • CORVUS • ADDS

C

MICRO

BUSINESS WORLD INC. Information Lnne (213) 996-2252 TOLL FREE MAIL ORDER LINES (800) 423-5886 outside Calif.

COMPUTERS

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Circle 254 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

139

information. When all the subfiles have been built, requesting a musical selection will give a list of all versions in the collection, where each may be found (including the side and band of the album), when, where, and by whom each was performed, and a critical comment. You can see how this would be useful for a radio broadcaster handling requests from listeners while on the air.

Another worthwhile application is the ability to organize the contents of journals and periodicals. Finding that particular article in an extensive periodical collection can be quite a job. But if you have a Datahandler file of articles indexed by subject, author, title, when and where published, and a brief abstract, finding the desired article is no problem. An additional benefit is that Datahandler can scan all entries on a particular subject for relevant articles.

Of course, building this kind of data base from scratch takes time. If you are a member of a computer group, each member could build a file on a different publication with The Datahandler and all members could share their files.

The number of data bases is limited only by your imagination and your need to organize and control information. Photographers could catalog their prints, amateur radio buffs could keep their station logs, sports fans could keep individual and team records—the list goes on and on.

Anyone interested in learning

about or using the FORTH language

will appreciate several of the data

files included on The Datahandler

disk. A member of the MMSFORTH

Users' Group has developed and

made available a glossary of standard

FORTH words (ie: program-coding

commands) in Datahandler file format. This file can be accessed and

used by anyone operating in FORTH, or it can be modified, updated, or extended using the Datahandler. Whole new vocabularies, such as the nonstandard FORTH words of which The Datahandler itself has been constructed, can be added. The routine

allows listing by word class, gives a description of what the word does and how it is used, and includes a page reference to MMSFORTH's hard-copy documentation for more information.

Another data file, known as ASSEM, is included for assemblylanguage users or students. ASSEM contains the 149 commands of the Zilog Z80 microprocessor's instruction set and the associated page number in the TRS-80 Editor/Assembler user's manual from Radio Shack. Both are cross-referenced to the equivalent MMSFORTH Z80-assembler command (the same elements but with arguments and operators in reverse-Polish sequence) and (where applicable) the older MMSFORTH 8080-assembler equivalent. The Editor-Assembler manual provides a detailed description of the operation of each instruction.

The Datahandler's formatted hardcopy output is provided by the REPORT routine. You can print a line listing of all fields in each record of your file, or a selected subset. If the records are longer than one line, subsequent lines are indented and an extra line feed can be inserted between records. REPORT gives the option of generating a custom format, listing your file or selected subset with fields in any order. The format is completely under user control and can be set for your video screen or your printer's line and page length. It automatically truncates field lengths to fit your requirements. Unless you want it to, printer output does not include the various computer-generated prompts and operator responses of the interactive program.

Speed is one of the advantages of this data-base system, a direct result of the nature of the FORTH language (for specific information on this language, see the FORTH theme issue of BYTE, August 1980). The threaded interpretive structure of FORTH makes possible an indexed-sequential file organization. This combines the efficient use of memory space of a sequential file with the speed of random access. The memory efficiency is important because both The Data

handler program and the entire current data file are resident in the TRS-80 user memory to improve the response time of the system.

In FORTH, source code precompiles as it loads, and thus it occupies a minimum of memory. Once loaded, the compiled FORTH code is very fast. Precompiled code can be saved on floppy disk, reloaded, and reused. While it takes eighty seconds for The Datahandler source code to load and compile, the precompiled code loads

_At a Glance.

Name

The Datahandler

Type

Data-base-management utility program

Manufacturer

Miller Microcomputer Services 61 Lake Shore Road Natick MA 01760

Price

$59.95

Format

5y4-inch floppy disk

Language used

MMSFORTH

Computer needed

Radio Shack TRS-80 Model I with a minimum of 32 K bytes of memory, one floppy-disk drive, and the MMSFORTH system.

Documentation

Reprint of the Scelbi PIMS manual, additional text from MMS, and built-in help functions to guide users through the program.

Audience

For persons who need a program to help organize and manage information using their TRS-80.

Additional comments

Requires MMSFORTH system, $129.95, for operation.

140 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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in less than eight seconds. Once loaded, the system disk is not needed for file operations because, as mentioned above, all the program code is in memory. The remaining space on the system disk can be used for file storage, or it can be removed and replaced with a data disk, transferring control to the new disk directory usually located at block zero. On multiple-drive systems, control can be switched at will from one directory to another for access to the files on each; it is even possible to have one directory refer to more than one disk. This can be complicated, however, requiring that such disks always be used as a set, each in its proper drive. Both the source code and the precompiled version of The Datahandler are useful, and both should be retained. The source code can be easily modified, whereas the precompiled program cannot. Modified source code can be precompiled and saved on the disk; the documentation describes how this is done.

Once the program is loaded, how much space is left for holding a file? If you have a 32 K-byte TRS-80, about 9 K bytes. System overhead (devicecontrol blocks, system stacks, etc) use about 3.5 K bytes while The Datahandler and the portion of the FORTH system it requires compile into about 19.5 K bytes. The remaining 9 K bytes of user memory are used efficiently, with data tightly packed. Each entry is linked to the next by a 2-byte address pointer to eliminate the vacant space at the end of partially filled or empty fields, which are often found in other data-base programs. For many personal applications 9 K bytes is enough; with a 48 K-byte system, the data space is about 25 K bytes, enough for a fairly large file.

If still more space is needed, you can split your data file into two or more parts, usually with no loss of convenience. For example, my phonograph-album file has 245 entries, which exactly fills my 48 K-byte memory space. To make room for

further acquisitions, I split my file into a "classics file" and a "general file" (jazz, folk and humor). A large mailing-list file could be divided alphabetically by addressee, or by zip code for presorted bulk mailings.

Having the entire file resident in memory is much faster than a system which uses frequent time-consuming transfers to and from disk. My memory-filling phono-record file has entries stored in order of accession number; resorting to alphabetic order by title takes 13.2 seconds. Sorting by code designation within the alphabetic sort increases this time to 14.1 seconds. Up to ten successive levels can be sorted. Sorts are the slowest of the file manipulations. Other operations occur as fast as you can punch the keys.

There are also small conveniences that speed up the human end of the operation. For example, when entering a group of checks written on the same day, you need only enter the date for the first entry; entering a semicolon in the date field of the

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142 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 44 on inquiry card.

Circle 184 on inquiry card.

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subsequent entries copies the date information from the previous entry. This semicolon function can be used with any field, whether you're entering a series of articles from the same magazine, friends in the same city, or addresses with the same zip code. When updating a record, a null entry leaves the field unchanged, while entering a couple of spaces erases the previous contents, and any valid entry replaces the old data.

For search-and-match operations, you do not have to enter the exact field desired; The Datahandler will locate close matches if so directed. For example, if you want to find the account of Dr. Neilson but don't know the correct spelling of the name, you type in the name string (the target of the search in each record in this case) as "N77LS7N", and any alternative spellings will be located (eg: NIELSEN). The wild-card character, 7, indicates that any character in that location is acceptable. Even if you have lowercase capability and have recorded a name with initial-capital letters, instead of using all uppercase, it can still be located on the first try. By changing the program constant 7UL from its default value of 0 to 1 (the command in FORTH to do this is { 1 7UL C! }), all lowercase characters will be regarded as uppercase for the purposes of string matches. This is very convenient for those with lowercase capability on their TRS-80.

Product Support

One of the most attractive features of The Datahandler is the excellent documentation. The well-known Scelbi PIMS (Personal Information Mangagement System) program, written in BASIC, provided the concept upon which The Datahandler was built. By arrangement with Scelbi Computer Consulting, the very fine PIMS user manual is supplied as the main documentation for The Datahandler. As in the original PIMS, The Datahandler leads you by the hand with the HELP command, which displays all available options, then supplies prompts that tell you what to do next. Additional text takes

you step by step through all the operations, from loading the program to adjusting a custom report format (the most complex operation for a beginner), and using sample practice data files included with The Datahandler disk.

Beginners will find The Datahandler easy to use. Only an extremely experienced user will not require the prompts. Not only do they guide you through all the program options, they provide great flexibility in formatting a custom report. However, the versatility and interactive nature of this program can be a disadvantage. Some options or parameters will not change from day to day, and it can be a nuisance to have to reenter them every time.

This minor nuisance can be overcome if it becomes a problem. For those users familiar with FORTH programming, custom modification of some of The Datahandler routines (such as replacing the #IN routine, which receives keyboard input, with the desired parameter as a literal) is not too difficult. It's easy to eliminate unnecessary inputs while retaining needed flexibility. Even neophytes who know how to use the full-screen FORTH editor will learn a lot in the process.

If, on the other hand, you have a business application and want no part of programming, but do need custom modifications, the group at Miller Microcomputer Services (which includes Tom Dowling, author of both MMSFORTH and The Datahandler) can create a custom version. The typical cost is $500 to $1000, depending on the extent of the modifications. This is competitive with many business systems with fewer features, running twenty times slower in BASIC.

To get new customers started more easily (those who purchase both the MMSFORTH and The Datahandler disk with single-system licenses), MMS will provide a third disk customized for your system configuration and precompiled for eightsecond loading. Though the firm does not promote this service, it is available on request for an extra $10.

144 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 249 on inquiry card.

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16K STATIC RAM $169 64K STATIC RAM $795

32K PARTIALLY POPULATED $479 48K PARTIALLY POPULATED $659

Finally, you can buy state-of-the-art S-100 static memory for your computer at unprecedented savings.

Memory Merchant's memory boards provide the advanced features, quality and reliability you need for the kind of operational performance demanded by new high-speed processors.

COMPLETELY ASSEMBLED

These memory boards are not kits, nor skeletons—but top quality, high performance memories that are shipped to you completely assembled, burned-in, socketed, tested and insured with one of the industry's best warranties.

SUPERIOR DESIGN & QUALITY

Memory Merchant's boards are created by a designer, well-known for his proven ability in advanced, cost-efficient memory design. Innovative circuitry provides you with highly desired features and incredible versatility.

Only first quality components are used throughout, and each board is rigorously tested to assure perfect and dependable performance.

SHIPPED DIRECT FROM STOCK

All Memory Merchant's boards are shipped direct from stock, normally within 48 hours of receipt of your order.

Prices,

NO RISK TRIAL

We are so convinced that you will be absolutely delighted with our boards that we extend a no risk trial offer. After purchasing one of our boards, you may return it (intact) for any reason within 15 days after shipment and we will refund the purchase price.

NEW 18 MONTH LIMITED WARRANTY!

The reliability of our boards, through quality controlled production and proven performance, has enabled us to extend our warranty to a full 18 months. This includes a 6 month exchange program for defective units.

HOW TO ORDER

Please send check, money order, VISA or MASTERCHARGE (add ICA#) with your order. Sorry, no C.O.DIs. Specify model number, and quantity desired. Shipping and handling charge is $5.00 per board. California residents add 6% Sales Tax. Credit card purchases may be telephoned to (415) 483-1008. OEM and DEALER inquiries invited.

lyy/™ memor v

uuul\

merchant

14666 Doolittle Drive

San Leandro, CA 94577

(415) 483-1008

terms, specifications subject to change without notice

64K RAM, Model MM65K16S

Cool running operation to 10 MHz

Ultra low-power consumption Fully loaded 64K board draws: Typ. 350 Ma. (Max. current 550 Ma.)

Bank Select Capability

Extended Addressing Capability

One 16K submodule equipped with a 2K window which may be located in any of the 2K segments

2716 (5V) EPROM Compatibility: Programmed 2716 EPROM's may replace any or all of the RAM

Four independently addressable 16K submodules on one board organized as two pair of independent 32K banks or as one 64K Extended Address Page. Each 32K bank responds independently to phantom. Bank Select logic is compatible with either Cromemco Cromix* or standard Bank Select software.

*Cromix is a trademark of Cromemco.

New 16K (2K X 8) 150ns Static RAM Runs on any S-100, 8-bit system MPM Conversion Option: Write for details. 16K RAM, Model MM16K14

Bank Select Capability Extended Addressing Capability One 4K segment equipped with IK

windows Four independent 4K X 8 byte

segments Uses field proven 2114 (IK X 4) Low-power consumption (Typ. 1.3 Amps) Runs on any S-100 8080, 4 MHz

Z-80 or 5 MHz 8085 system.

We Wish Apple Computer Inc. and all Apple Users a Happy Holidayl

Microcomputer

Call For Our Price

If you're considering a computer, consider thin:

4 Mhz Z-80A Operation

80 or 40 column modes STANDARD Built-in Centronics printer port Full ASCII keyboard with Shift lock Real Time Clock STANDARD RGB Color Output Mixed text and graphics Numerlca Keyboard STANDARD CP/M Compatibility

5 programmable Function keys

24K Microsoft NBASIC in ROM with enhanced

color graphic commands

The NEC PC-8001A has all these features and much more. Expandlbllity you want, expandability you get. Through the use of the PC-8012A I/O unit, total system RAM can be extended to 160K. The PC-8031 Dual Disk Drive puts 286K of floppy disk storage at your command.

The NEC PC-8001A has so many things that are options on other computers built right In that you may never have to buy another accessory! The quality that the NEC name has come to stand for has been built-in, too.

Compare the competition, and then call Consumer Computers for the NEC PC-SOU I.

NEC COMPATIBLE SOFTWARE

CP/M Operating system with graphics control. . .CALL SUPERCALC Financial & Scientific Modeling (requires

CP/M) ■ CALL

WORDSTAR Word Processing System (requires CP/M)

CALL

SYSTEMS PLUS Complete Accounting System (requires

CP/M) CALL

MICROSOFT BASIC-80 (requires CP/M) CALL

MICROSOFT FORTRAN-80 (requires CP/M) CALL

MICROSOFT COBOL-80 (requires CP/M) CALL

X/lrOOH '" PERSONAL V IV/^U COMPUTER

commodore

Personal Computer

Color " Sound ' Graphics Call or write for more info. Disk drives available soont

$259

[apple computer

"•Authorized Dealer

APPLE If PLUS

16K ,$1025

48K now $ 1089

^^^^m \j^^

APPLE DESK

DMVES

w/cont. & DOS 3.3. $499 Disk II Drive only $439

ORDER TOLL FREE

800-854-6654

In California and outside continental U.S.

(714) 698-8088

Telex 695-000 Beta CCMO

APPLE///

Special h ----- ~--,

Holiday I^L^JjEJ

Sale / MflMn

1*iOI\ now only »P»ll!lD

Apple Cards and Hardware

16K RamBosrd by ConComp industries 130

Language System w/PascalSV BASICS 379

Silentype Printer w/Interface card 349

Hayes Mlcromodem II 299

Novation Apple-Cat 339

Videx Videoterm 80 column card 269

Vldex Keyboard Enhancer IIS

Z-80 Softcard by Microsoft 299

16 K RamCard by Microsoft 169

Integer Basic or Applesoft II Firmware Card 145

Graphics Tablet 619

Parallel Printer or Hl-Speed Serial l/F card 135

Communications Card w/cable 185

Centronics Printer Interface card 185

Apple IEEE-488 Interface card 399

16K Language card by Apple Computer 169

Thunderclock Plus clock/calendar 119

Smarterm 80 column card 299

Corvus Winchester Hard Disk Drives CALL

ALF 3 Voice Music Card 239

ALF 9 Voice Music Card 169

Lazer Lower Case Plus + 55

Lazer Keyboard Plus + 99

23 Key Numeric Keypad by Keboard Co 120

Joystick II by Keyboard Co 45

6809 CPU Card (The Mill) by Stellatlon 319

AlO Serial & Parallel interface by SSM A&T 189

Music System (16 voices) 479

A/D + D/A Interface 289

Expansion Chassis (8 slots) 599

Intro! X-10 Controller card 169

Clock/Calander card 225

CPS Multi-function card 189

Supertalker SD-200 239

Romulus + card 135

Romwriter card 149

Symtec Ill-Res Light Pen 210

Sup-R-Fan ventilation system for Apple II 45

Sup-R-Termlnal 80 column card by M&R 329

SVA ZVX4 Megabyter 8" Disk Controller 589

SVA 2+2 Single Den. 8" Disk Controller 345

Speechlink 2000 by Heuristics 249

Veraawrlter Digitizer Tablet 229

Asynchronous Serial Interface card by CCS....... 139

Centronics Parallel Interface card by CCS 119

We carry all California Computer System Cards.. CALL

; We stock many more Items for the Apple II.

Please call or write for current price list.

CALL OR WRITE FOR

FREE CATALOG

16K RAMBOARD by ConComp

for Apple II Computers

* 16K Hl-speed Dynamic RAM FOR ONLY " Compatible with all software

* East Installation & operation _ ^— ., ^ ^^ ' Read & Write select Indicators ffl™ ^ »1 M\ ' One Year Warranty ^k I "^k ■ ■

AVAILABLE NOW

Circle 111 on inquiry card.

#

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^

*8§^

M

^^J

A^a

.i<5

,vv

*1

Atari Personal Computers

ATARI 800 16K

$749

Atari 400w/16K 349

410 Program Recorder. ,... 65

810 Disk Drive 449

825 80 col. 7x8 Dot matrix Impact printer 699

822 40 col. Quiet Thermal Printer 349

850 Interlace Module 159

Atari 16K Ram Module 69

Anion Ramcram 32K Module 189

Available Now!!

Asteroids, Missile Command and Star Raiders. . . 35 ea.

WE STOCK ALL ATARI COMPUTER SOFTWARE AND

HARDWARE.

PLEASE CALL OR WRITE FOR COMPLETE PRICE LIST.

Software for the Apple

VlslCalc version 3.3 159

VIslFlle (NEW data base manager) 199

VIslTrend/VlslPlot 219

VIslDei 159

VIslTerm 129

Desktop/Plan II 159

DB Master 169

WordStar (Apple 80 col. version 249

Dow Jones Portfolio Evaluator 45

The Controller (G/L. A/R & A/P) 499

Apple Post 45

Apple Writer 65

Apple DOS Toolkit 65

DOS 3.3 Upgrade 49

Dow Jones News & Quotes Reporter 85

Apple Fortran (requires 64K memory) 165

Apple Plot 60

Easywrlter word processor (80 column) 225

Tax Preparer 99

Real Estate Analyzer 129

Creative Financing 129

Personal Filing System (PSF) 85

Peachtree Accounting Software CALL

BPI Accounting Software CALL

Systems Plus Accounting Software CALL

Apple Entertainment Software

We stock all Apple Special Delivery Software along with HUNDREDS of other games and utilities. Please call or write for a complete price list.

Raster Blaster 29

Gorgon 39

Pool 1.5 34

Ultima 39

Snaggle ■ •

Space Eggs •"

Flight Simulator 33

Gobbler

Allen Rain 23

Pulsar II 29

Space Warrior 24

Warp Factor 39

Dragon Fire 45

We stock HUNDREDS of software games and utilities.

S-100

California Computer Systems

Floppy Disk Controller $ 3 O"

64K Dynamic Ram Board, 200ns $ 499 Z-80 CPU board w/monitor ROM $269

16K Static memory board, 200ns 369

32K Static memory board, 200ns 599

S-100 12 Slot Mainframe 475

4-Port Serial Interface 299

2-Port Serlal/2-Port Parallel Interface 299

4-Port Parallel Interface 229

ORDER TOLL FREE

800-854-6654

In California and outside continental U.S.

(714) 698-8088

Telex 695-000 Beta CCMO

PRINTERS

EPSON MX-80

Anadex 9501 w/2K Buffer 1349

C. Itoh Starwrlter 25 CPS dalsywheel 1449

C. Itoh Starwrlter 45 CPS daisywheel 1649

Epson MX-70 CALL

Epson MX-80 & MX-80 F/T CALL

Epson MX-100 CALL

NEC 8023 Impact Dot Matrix 695

NEC Spinwrlters (Latest models) CALL

Paper Tiger IDS-445G w/graphlcs 699

Paper Tiger IDS-460G w/graphlcs 949

Paper Tiger IDS-560G w/graphlcs 1249

Silentype Printer w/Apple Interface 349

Qume Sprint Dalsywheets (Latest models) CALL

Silentype

w/Apple II

Interface

$349

Video Monitors

ZENITH 12" GREEN SCREEN

ONLY

$149

Amdek/Leedex Video 100 12" B&W. .155

Amdek/Leedex Video 100G 12" Green Phospher. . .179 Amdek (Hitachi) 13" Color w/audlo output.......389

NEC 12" Green Phospher Display JB-1201M CALL

NEC 12" Lo-Res Color Display CALL

NEC 12" Hi-Res RGB Color Display CALL

Sanyo 9" B&W Display 185

Sanyo 9" Green Phospher Display .CALL

Sanyo 12" B&W Display 269

Sanyo 12" Green Phospher Display.............285

Sanyo 13" Color Display 449

Zenith 12" Green Phospher Display ZVM-121 149

lering information: Phone orders using VISA. MASTERCARD. IER1CAN EXPRES5. DINER'S CLUB. CARTE BLANCHE, bank e transfer, cashier's or certified check, money order, or personal tck (allow ten days to clear) Unless prepaid with cash, please add . ior shipping, handling and insurance (minimum 5 00) Califorresidents add 6% sales lax We accept CODs OEM's. Institutions I corporations please send lor a written quotation. All equipment .object to price change and availability without notice All equip:nt is new and complete with manufacturers warranty (usually 90 js] Showroom prices may differ from mail order prices.

Send Orders To:

G®GD£

Mail Order

8314 Parkway Drive La Mesa, Calif. 92041

Circle 112 on inquiry card.

The NO Compromise on P3* S-100 Plug-Ins

*(Performance, Power, Price)

STATIC RAM BOARD

The 32K x 8 bit/I 6K x 16 bit STATIC RAM BOARD uses low power and its fast device access^ time of 200 nsec (max.) allows for operation @ 4 MHz without any wait cycles. Features: IEEE-696 compatibility with extended addressing D Memory address may start and stop on any 4K/ 2K boundary □ Special Memory Management and Control Functions (selectable via output port control word(s): Bank select/deselect 8K/4K Bank write protect 8K/4K Bank readdress 8K/4K

DSoftware page select/override □ Software wait cycle select (if slower devices utilized by user) □ External power source back-up capability for Memory Array □ Low input power requirements (full memory array - I 50 MA max. @ 8 VDC IN — support logic-500 ma typ @ 8 VDC IN) □ Socketed RAMs and support logic IC's for easy maintenance D Comprehensive Manual

Assembled and Tested P/N 52748-500-100 $485 Kit P/N 52748-500 $395 Bare Board P/N 52748-5XX $95

MULTI-FUNCTION I/O BOARD

The multiple on-board functions allow for complete software and hardware I/O task(s) control. Features: Two independent SYNC/ ASYNC serial ports (Software programmable with status read interface: RS232-C or current loop — 20 or 60ma — or TTL with handshaking. Dedicated output connectors for each port) D One strobed 8-bit parallel port with handshaking (Software status read) □ Three 8-bit parallel ports undedicated &. user configured (Software programmable for input, output, plus input/output/bidirectional with handshaking or combinations thereof. Software status read for handshake logic) □ Three independent 16-bit timers (Software programmable for 5 operating modes. Indiv. clock source input &. gate control — int. or ext. Uninterrupted read. Two buffered outputs) □ Eight level priority interrupt controller (Software programmable highest interrupt level. 8080/Z80 auto restart command) □ Two software programmable baud rate generators with crystal controlled frequencies — .01 % tolerance [J Large prototyping area with access to regulated +5, +12, - I 2VDC.

Kit

Assembled and Tested P/N 52748-100 $225

P/N52748-100-10I $375 Bare Board P/N52748-IXX $85

PROTOTYPING BOARD

Provides flexibility and saves hours of power busing layout time. Features: Bus-bar power distribution

□ Allows wire-wrap or soldering of sockets and discrete components □ Accepts all std. sockets on .30" &. .60" centers □ 3 regulators ( + 5V ± 12V) with filter and decoupling capacitors

□ Accepts edge connectors on .10" centers.

Or complete as shown in photo. Kit includes: 3 regulators w/3 heatsinks/filter capacitors/2 bus bars and manual P/N52748-400 $49.95

Bare Board P/N 52748-4xx $34.95

I/O

CA residents add 6% tax U.S. Domestic Price, FOB Factory

TECHNOLOGY

P.O. Box 2119 Canyon Country, CA 91351 (805) 252-7666

The Datahandler program is upgraded and improved constantly. New capabilities beyond those already mentioned are often suggested by users. Features are added to the standard version only if their general usefulness is considered worth the extra memory they take away from the available file space. Other more specialized functions are distributed via the MMSFORTH Newsletter.

The user's original floppy disk may be returned to MMS for upgrading at any time. The fee for upgrading is $10, plus $1 shipping and handling. Fifteen dollars must be sent by the customer with the disk; the extra $4 is returned with the upgraded disk unless the original arrived damaged and had to be replaced.

The first two issues of the MMSFORTH Newsletter are complimentary to new MMSFORTH and Datahandler licensees. A subscription of four more issues costs $10. Considering the valuable information contained in these newsletters, most users will find them well worth the price.

The September-October 1980 issue, for example, provided information on a new utility disk providing a Z80 assembler, floating-point mathematical operations, a program for looking up source-code definitions of FORTH words, and a routine for converting lowercase text to uppercase. The issue also explained and listed the programming needed to access the interrupt-driven clock in the TRS-80 Expansion Interface and its use in timing operations. Also included was a listing and discussion of the latest addition to MMSFORTH version 1.9, which reports available memory space on the directory-menu screen whenever DIR is entered, and uses no additional memory space itself. There were other suggested improvements a user could make without waiting (and paying) for a full upgrade, news of coming events, short tutorial articles by Tom Dowling, and a listing of user-group contacts scattered throughout the nation.

The Datahandler is a personal data-base management and utilities

148 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc.

Circle 191 on inquiry card.

Circle 174 on inquiry card.

SAVE A FEW THOUSAND DOLLARS WITH GE's FREE LIGHTING ENERGYAUDIT

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any energy saving you can make, with no capital investment.

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When you do, you'll receive a personalized computer-generated analysis of potential savings and other benefits when using GE

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t *

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C-150

SEE WHAT YOU CAN SAVE WITH GE's FREE LIGHTING ENERGYAUDIT

Fill out this form and mail to General Electric Company, 7 Lighting Energy Audit, Department PMN-1, Nela Park, Cleveland, Ohio 44112.

Now in use

Standard Fluorescents

12 4'F40/RS

20 8' F96

?s 8' F96HO

36 8' F961500MA

Recessed Downlight

Floods

« 75R30/FL

52 150R/FL

Incandescent Bulbs 60 60 Watt 68 100 Watt

PAR-Lamps 76 150PAR/FL 84 150PAR/SP

Mercury

92 400 Watt

Total Lighting hours Number per week

U>

o

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Now Total

in use Number

Ballast

4' F40/RS ioo

8'F96 ^~p* 105

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My energy rate is $ per kilowatt hour 120

(Divide total dollars from your last bill by total kilowatt hours used.)

Please send the savings analysis to: Name

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□ Please have someone come out and help 294 me fill out this form.

Circle 85 on inquiry card.

If you're looking for

the best prices in the U.S.A. on

m

MICROCOMPUTERS

We have consistently offered the TRS-80 line at savings up to 20%. You can save up to $1500 by buying from Computer Discount of America.

Model II

26-4002 64K, 1 disc

$3385.00

Model III

26-1051 4K, Level 1

26-1062 16K, Level III

26-1066 48K, Level II 2-drive/RS-232

$ 610.00 $ 845.00 $2115.00

Color Computer

26-3001 4K

26-3002 16K w/Ext. Basic

$ 325.00 $ 489.00

EPSON

MX70 Printer MX80 Printer MX80FT Printer

$ 375.00 $ 485.00 $ 585.00

ATA D p/ _

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microcomputers: naaa^s '

We have the full line of ATARI personal computers and systems.

Our savings are as big on expansion interfaces, printers, diskettes, Apple Computers, 0KIDATA Microline, C-IT0H Starwriter, Lexicon Modems — everything for your computer.

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CALL TOLL FREE: 800-526-5313

Computer

of America

COMPUTER DISCOUNT OF AMERICA, INC. 15 Marshall Hill Road,West Milford Mall West Milford, New Jersey 07480-2198 In New Jersey Call 201-728-8080

package of impressive capability, well documented and easy to use. If you want to make the most of your TRS-80, this program provides the best way I know to put it to work organizing and managing information. If you have or can upgrade to a 32 K-byte system with one or more floppy-disk drives, it is well worth the price to acquire MMSFORTH, if only to use The Datahandler. With 48 K bytes of user memory and a printer, many small-business tasks can be managed very capably. For the FORTH programmer, The Datahandler can be used as a starting point for a wide variety of custom applications, since source code is provided and FORTH programs are characterized by ease of modification and extension. Programs run about twenty times faster than equivalent operations in BASIC and compile into relatively little memory space.

The Datahandler, with complete documentation and a single-system license, sells for $59.95. MMSFORTH with license and equally good documentation is $129.95, giving the TRS-80 user an additional powerful computer language and operating system.

I have the first Datahandler sold by MMS and have been an active member of the users' group since it was formed. In this time I have heard of no user who is less than enthusiastic about the program's features and many uses. Most users of a suitably configured TRS-80 should find many constructive ways to put The Datahandler to work.

Conclusions

• The Datahandler is a data-base management utility for TRS-80 Model I microcomputers, ideal for personal use and for many business applications.

• It requires at least 32 K bytes of programmable memory and one floppydisk drive. A memory size of 48 K bytes with two drives and a printer complete an ideal system for most uses.

• MMSFORTH is required as the operating system and also gives you a powerful new language with many

advantages. No knowledge of FORTH is needed to use The Datahandler.

• Advantages include excellent documentation and interactive programming for easy use by anyone, many convenient features to speed keyboard operations, and very fast computer operations, including fast sorting. Routines are included for maintaining a mailing list, printing address labels, checkbook balancing, and custom reporting. The Datahandler is completely flexible in number and size of fields and field titles. Custom report formats for special needs can be tailored to order by MMS and by many other competent programmers. A wealth of powerful routines in source code are provided from which the professional can rapidly assemble custom software.

• Disadvantages are limited to the fact that very large files which cannot fit within the computer's user memory must be divided into sections that do fit. For the applications for which this utility was primarily intended, dividing files is seldom necessary and causes little inconvenience when it is; the speed of operation achieved by having the entire file in user memory is of more value. I know of no other major disadvantages.

• The cost of the entire Datahandler/MMSFORTH package (with single-system licenses and documentation) is, in my opinion, very reasonable and would not be out of line for The Datahandler alone.

• For the programmer, source code is provided and custom modification is not difficult. In fact, this one utility program can be used as the starting point for a wide range of special application programs. ■

Make America smarter.

Give to the college

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150 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Stop the Floppy Shuffle

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Announcing

The David Heard Disk Subsystem

Compared to cassettes, floppies were the greatest thing since the integrated chip. But with increased applications, data bases, and speed requirements, a lot of business people are spending more time doing the "Floppy Shuffle' and less time doing work,

Now with Konan's David Hard Disk Subsystem you can have 32 times the storage of a mini-floppy in about the same amount of space. At a cost per megabyte that really makes sense, the David Subsystem is available for a variety of microW computers.

So if you own a personal computer, check into the David Hard Disk Subsystem at

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The David Subsystem is available immediately.

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Circle 218 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981 151

System Review

Microsoft Softcard

Mark Pelczarski

1206 Kings Circle

West Chicago IL 60185

The Microsoft Softcard offers Apple owners increased flexibility and a strong alternative or complement to the Language System from Apple. At a suggested retail price of $399 Softcard comes with version 2.2 of the CP/M operating system and Microsoft's BASIC-80, version 5.0.

In addition, a number of other Softcard support products are available, including Microsoft's FORTRAN and COBOL, an assemblylanguage development system, a BASIC compiler, muMath and muLisp, and 16 K-byte memory expansion cards. None of these are inexpensive; for example, the COBOL language system retails for $750 (making FORTRAN seem like a comparative bargain at $195), but the point is that you can now have these languages, plus a variety of software

already written for CP/M, on your Apple.

Overview

The Softcard package comes with the card, 13- and 16-sector disks, and two thick manuals. The card is manufactured for Microsoft by California Computer Systems of Sunnyvale, California, and was designed by Don Burtis of Burtronix in Huntington Beach, California. With the exception of slot 0, it works in any of the Apple peripheral slots and the Softcard package will work alongside the Apple Language System. The Language System actually extends the ability of the Softcard system by providing an extra 12 K bytes of programmable memory. The Softcard is not compatible with the Apple III. It does work with all of the 80-column

Photo 1: Microsoft's Softcard package. Included are the card itself, software for the Apple 11, and a two-volume set of manuals (with installation instructions, information on using CP/M, hardware details, Microsoft BASIC reference, and documentation on other utilities.

boards now available for the Apple II.

The software supplied is the CP/M operating system and two versions of BASIC. The 13-sector disk contains MBASIC, which is Microsoft's ANSI (American National Standards Institute) compatible BASIC-80, with a few additions to accommodate Apple's low-resolution graphics features. The 16-sector disk also contains GBASIC, which includes highresolution graphics commands. CP/M, the operating system, is an abbreviation for Control Program/Microcomputer, and is licensed by Microsoft from Digital Research, Inc. This version of CP/M includes a variety of disk and transfer utilities, plus an 8080 editor/assembler/ debugging utility. The software was produced by Neil Konzen, a name that will be familiar to anyone fortunate enough to own Synergistic Software's Program Line Editor, another of Neil's Apple creations.

Using the Softcard

The two system manuals are very thorough and provide simple to very technical information. One is for CP/M, the other tells how to use BASIC 5.0 and the included software utilities. The first subject covered is how to back up the master disk. The beginner will probably want to go from there to more familiar ground and play with some of the BASIC

About the Author

Mark Pelczarski is a software consultant and Director of Micro Co-op, a consumer buying cooperative. He previously zuas Editor of SoftSide magazine, and a computer science instructor at Northern Illinois University.

152 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Most small system users think all micronputers are created equal. And they're nt. If you want performance, convenience, 'ling, high technology and reliability (and ,o doesn't?) your micro usually has a price j that looks more like a mini. It seems big rformance always means big bucks. But t so with the SuperBrain! Standard SuperBrain features include: twin jble-density 514" drives which boast nearly 0,000 bytes of disk storage - expandable 10 megabytes. A full 64K of dynamic I/I. A CP/M* Disk Operating System to ;ure compatibility to literally hundreds of Dlication packages presently available. And, 12" non-glare, 24 line by 80 column screen.

You'll also get a full ASCII keyboard with an 18 key numeric pad and individual cursor control keys. Twin RS232C serial ports for fast and easy connection to a modem or printer. Dual Z80 processors which operate at 4 MHZ to insure lightning-fast program execution. And the list goes on! Feature after feature after feature.

Better yet, the SuperBrain boasts modular design to make servicing a snap. A common screwdriver is about the only service tool you'll ever need. And with the money you'll save on purchasing and maintaining the SuperBrain, you could almost buy another one. For under $3,500, it is truly one of the most remarkable microcomputers available anywhere.

Whether your application is small business, scientific, educational or just word processing, the SuperBrain is certainly an exciting solution to the small computer problem. And since you can easily expand it, you'll probably never outgrow it.

Call or write us today for a complimentary copy of our "SuperBrain Buyer's Guide." We'll show you how you can get big system performance without having to spend big bucks.

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111

::. NTR1TC DATA SYSIEMS

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commands, learning how to use the operating system as the need arises.

BASIC 5.0 is a nice way to convert to a structured language. If you're already familiar with BASIC, Applesoft or another version, you won't be trying to learn a new language from scratch. The advantages of BASIC 5.0 include several new commands that support structured programming. (See table 1 for a list of enhancements and their descriptions.)

The most convenient additions are the inclusion of the ELSE clause in the IF-THEN statement, the PRINT USING statement for explicit formatting of output, the inclusion of real disk commands, replacing the ungodly PRINT Control-D commands of Apple's DOS, and BASIC'S version of a DO WHILE loop: WHILE/WEND. An example of the latter, paraphrased, would be: WHILE this condition is true, keep repeating all the commands before the WEND statement. This version of BASIC is also compatible with current ANSI standards, so the use of BASIC programs written

Text continued on page 158

At a Hanrp

Name

Research, and Microsoft BASIC 5.0,

Microsoft Softcard

13-and 16-sector versions with

Apple enhancements

Manufacturer

Microsoft Consumer Products

Documentation

400 108th Ave NE

Two manuals, approximately 400

Bellevue WA 98004

pages, one primarily about CP/M,

(206) 454-1315

the other about BASIC 5.0

Price

Options

$399

Microsoft's FORTRAN, COBOL,

muMath, muLisp, assembly-lan

Computer needed

guage development system, and

Apple II, 48 K-byte minimum

BASIC compiler; 16 K-byte memory

storage, and a disk drive

expansion card (or the Apple

Language System)

Hardware

Peripheral card that fits in any of

Audience

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Those seeking to increase the soft

0). The microprocessor is a Z80A

ware flexibility of their Apple II

computers

Software

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Extends Level II BASIC with complete MATRIX functions and 50 more string functions. Includes RACET machine language sorts! Sort 1000 elements in 9 seconds!! Select only functions you want to optimize memory usage.

Mod I & III $30.00

footers, page numDers. -,*,/. Binary search

INFINITE BUSINESS (Requires Infinite BASIC) Complete printer pagination controls — auto headers, Packed decimal arithmetic — 127.digit accuracy +, of sorted and unsorted arrays. Hash codes.

BASIC CROSS REFERENCE UTILITY (Mod II 64K) $50.00

SEEK and FIND functions for Variables, Line Numbers, Strings, Keywords. 'All' options available for line numbers and variables. Load from BASIC — Call with ' CTRL'R. Output to screen or printer!

DSM Mod I $75.00, Mod II $150.00, Mod III $90.00

Disk Sort/Merge for RANDOM files. All machine language stand-alone package for sorting speed. Establish sort specification in simple BASIC command File. Execute from DOS. Only operator action to sort is to change diskettes when requested! Handles multiple diskette files! Super fast sort times — Improved disk I/O times make this the fastest Disk Sort/Merge available on your TRS.

(Mod I Min 32K 2-drive system. Mod II 64K 1-drive. Mod III 32K 1-drive)

GSF (Mod I & III Tape or Disk - Specify Memory Size) Mod I $25; Mod II $50; Mod III $30

Generalized Subroutine Facilities. The STANDARD against which all other sorts are compared! And then compare prices! Machine language — fast and powerful! Multi-key multi-variable and multi-key character string. Zero and move arrays. Mod II includes USR PEEKS and POKES. Includes sample programs.

DISCAT (32K 1-drive Min) Mod I, III $50.00

This comprehensive Diskette Cataloguing/Indexing utility allows the user to keep track of thousands of programs in a categorized library. Machine language program works with all TRSD0S and NEWD0S versions. Files include program names and extensions, program length, diskette numbers, front and back, and diskette free space.

KFS-80 (1-drive 32K Min — Mod II 64K) Mod I, III $100.00; Mod II $175.00

The keyed file system provides keyed and sequential access to multiple files. Provides the programmer with a powerful disk handling facility for development of data base applications. Binary tree index system provides rapid access to file records.

MAILLIST (1 -drive 32K.Jp - Mod II 64K) Mod I,IIIJ75.00; Mod II $150.00

This ISAM-based maillist minimizes disk access"times: Four keys — no separate sorting. Suprjprts.9:digit zip code and 3-digit stale-code, Up to 30 attributes. Mask and query seict'ion. Record access times under 4 seconds!!

C0MPR0C (rvjodl & Mod III — Disk only) Mod I $20; Mod III $30.:

Command Processor. Auto your disk to perform" ariy sequence of instructions that you can giveTrofn the keyboard. DIR, FREE, pause, waft for user input, BASIC, No. of FILES and, MEM SIZE, RUN program, respond to input statements, BREAK, return to DOS, etc. Includes lowercase driver software, debouftce and screenprint!

UTILITY PACKAGE (Mod II 64K) ;.y $150.00

Important enhancements to the Mod II. The file recovery capabilities alone will pay for the package in even one application! Fully documented in 124 page manual! XHIT, XGAT, XCOPY and.SUREBZAP are used to reconstruct or recover date from bad diskettes1 XCOPY provides1 multi-file copies'1, 'Wild-card' mask select, absolute sector mode and other features. SUPERZftraflOws examine/change any sector on diskette include track-Q..and absolute disk.backup/copy with 1/0 recovery. DCS builds consolidated directories from mutttpte diskettes into »*stn<jle display or listing sorted by disk name or file name plus more. Change Disk ID with DISKID. XCREATE preallocates files and sets 'L0F' to end to speed disk accesses. DEBUGII adds single step, trace, subroutine calling, program looping, dynamic disassembly and morel!

DEVELOPMENT PACKAGE (Mod II 64K) $125.00

Includes RACET machine language SUPERZAP, Apparat Disassembler, and Model II interface to the Microsoft 'Editor Assembler Plus' software package including uploading services and patches for Disk I/O.

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OTHERS MAY SEE THE ERRORS OF YOUR WAYZ

CORRECTS THOSE WAYS.

Lifeboat Associates, the world's foremost s.ource for microcomputer software, proudly presents MicroSpell,™ the first program that not only isolates spelling errors in your text, but actually corrects them.

MicroSpell works with your word processor. And if you have the best word processing system, why settle for anything less than the best spelling corrector?

Goes Beyond The Competition

Other spelling programs function primarily as spelling checkers, merely pointing out words with suspect spelling. It's left up to you to determine the correct spelling and then type it in.

MicroSpell, the only spelling program that knows how to "spell," corrects the error automatically. Here's how it works: MicroSpell will read your text, carefully looking for words that might be spelled incorrectly. When it comes across a word that it's not absolutely sure of, it stops and shows you that word, along with its context. Then it searches through its own built-in dictionary and presents a list of guesses which it "thinks" might be correct. All you have to do is press a key and the misspelled word is corrected. There is no

need to bother with your own dictionary, or even to type in the change. MicroSpell will do it all for you!

The Most Complete Built-in Dictionary

MicroSpell uses word stems and suffix stripping routines, so its dictionary of 25,000 wordparts can deliver over 150,000 words to you. And if that's not enough, MicroSpell will let you add thousands of additional words, so you can create and store specialized dictionaries of technical terms, unusual expressions, even acronyms. And you can let MicroSpell know just when any of these special dictionaries are wanted.

MicroSpell is highly interactive and designed to complement word processing systems that create ASCII text using a CP/M " compatible operating system. It requires minimum disk storage capacity of 70K per drive.

So why settle for a program that merely finds your mispellings when you can get the one that corrects your misspellings? MicroSpell. It corrects the errors of your ways.

MicroSpell is brought to you exclusively and supported completely by Lifeboat Associates. Call or send us the coupon below.

LIFEBOAT WORLDWIDE offers you the world's largest library of software. Contact your nearest dealer or Lifeboat:

Lifeboat Associates Lifeboat Inc.

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Lileboat Associates GmbH Intersoft GmbH Lifeboat Associates. SARL

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Telex 865265 (MICO CHI

I Mail coupon to: Lifeboat Associates,

I 1651 Third Avenue, New York, New York 10028

I or call (212) 860-0300.

ID Please send me more information on MicroSpell. n Please send me a free Lifeboat catalog.

—jjLufr—

Name

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SUPPORT

Street

lifeboat i Isociates

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MicroSpell is a trademark of Bob Lucas.

LCP/M is a registered trademark of Digital Research. Copyright © 1981, by Lifeboat Associates

_Zip_

2014

1

Circle 225 on inquiry card.

Circle 4 on inquiry card.

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MAXELL-DISKETTES The best quality diskette money can buy Approved by Shugart and IBM.

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SW or 8" $19.50

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Some new features of BASIC 5.0:

AUTO—Automatic line numbering when entering programs.

BEEP—Sounds the "Bell," instead of using an invisible Control-G.

Boolean operators—In addition to AND, NOT, and OR, BASIC 5.0 has XOR (exclusive OR), IMP (implication), and EQV (equivalence).

BUTTON—Instead of PEEKing at locations to find if a paddle button is pressed.

CALL—Can be used to call Z80 and 6502 subroutines, and pass parameters to them.

MOD—Finds the remainder of a division. This was available in Integer BASIC, but it's not included in Applesoft.

PRINT USING-AIlows formatting of output, and is much more flexible than HTABs and VTABs.

RENUM—Allows you to renumber your program lines.

SWAP—Interchanges the values of two variables without using an intermediate variable.

User Functions—Can be defined with multiple arguments, instead of Applesoft's single-argument functions.

CHAIN—Runs another BASIC Variable types—Includes integer, variables to be single, and double precision; up to

l^-riicrih Lirmrom

program, allowing varia passed.

COMMON—In conjunction with CHAIN, passes variables to another program.

Disk I/O—OPEN instead of PRINT ""D OPEN"; likewise CLOSE, GET#, INPUT#, WRITE#, and so on.

EDIT—An in-line program editor.

ELSE—As in: IF PRINT "ZERO" "NOT ZERO"

X = 0 THEN ELSE PRINT

Functions—New string functions INSTR, which searches for a substring, and STRINGS, which allows repetitive string definition.

HSCRN—Tells whether a point on the high-resolution screen is on or off.

LPRINT—Outputs a line to the printer, instead of using: PR#1 : PRINT.

MERGE—Allows two files to be merged.

program

16-digit accuracy.

VPOS—Finds the vertical position of the cursor.

WHILE/WEND—A loop structure similar to FOR-NEXT, except it checks for a condition each time instead of counting.

Applesoft commands not supported:

Cassette LOAD and SAVE, STORE and RECALL—Cassette functions are not included at all.

ESC editing—Replaced with the EDIT function for line editing.

FLASH—No flashing characters.

HIMEM, LOMEM

Shape Tables—None of the shape functions, DRAW, XDRAW, ROT, or SCALE, are supported.

IN#, Pr#—Commands are already device oriented.

Table 1: Comparison of the features available in Microsoft MBASIC 5.0 as supplied with the Microsoft Softcard and Applesoft BASIC.

156

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

KaW/COIMIL MAKES IT ACROSS!

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The If At <:OltOI. language runs on more different Operating Systems and more different-sized computers than any other similar language. For starters, it runs on NCR and TI minicomputers and, in the micro field, on the CP/M2, MP/M2, TRSDOS3, OASIS4, MOASIS4, and UNIX (ONYX version) Operating Systems...to mention only a few.

Until now, serious business software of the scope and flexibility seen in the minicomputer world has not been available on micros. ItAt/COICOL now allows transfer of such software with a minimum of fuss.

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and Cybernetics' unique TRS-803, Model II CP/M offering high performance, hard disk support, and CP/M compatibility. Trademarks of:

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I

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BYTE November 1981

157

Text continued from page 154:

for other machines using ANSI

BASIC is possible.

After the language is loaded, about 14 K bytes of working storage are left on a 48 K-byte system. Hence, there are advantages to having the Language System or the optional 16 K-byte memory board. Either choice gives an added 12 K bytes of working storage. A 4 K-byte slice of that memory range is inaccessible: those are hexadecimal memory locations C000 thru CFFF, which are

allotted for peripheral card I/O by the Apple. Another 4 K bytes, for the 6502 microprocessor's stack, the text screen, and other miscellany, are not available to the Z80, so Microsoft refers to 44 K- and 56 K-byte systems, rather than 48 K- and 64 K-byte systems.

CP/M for the Softcard is a complete version of the operating system. The command files provided with CP/M are shown in table 2. The standard CP/M 8080 assembler is included, along with a line-oriented text

The simplest way to manage your Apple.

If you're interested in managing all your business and personal information exactly like you want, we have a simple solution. It's File-Fax:" The fastest and easiest-tolearn Data Base Management System that allows you to design your own formats.

With File-Fax, you can store and retrieve information without guessing how your printouts will look. And there's no disk

swapping or waiting for your programs to translate.

That's because it's written in the language most easily

understood by your Apple? So you need only one disk

drive. And each key retains the same meaning. To simplify matters even more, File-Fax comes with

complete instructions including a tutorial. And help

screens can be called up throughout your programs.

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editor and DDT (Dynamic Debugging Tool) for machine-language programmers. Utilities are also available for transferring files from one device to another PIP (Peripheral Interchange Program), simulating batch jobs with disk input files (SUBMIT), dumping the hexadecimal contents of any file (DUMP), and transferring text and binary files from Apple DOS disks (APDOS).

Using Other CP/M Software

A language or operating system is of little value if it is nonstandard or can't be used with existing software. Softcard provides a DOWNLOAD program, a listing, and programming details for an UPLOAD program, that when loaded into respective systems (DOWNLOAD for the Apple, UPLOAD for another CP/M machine) allow the transfer of CP/M files from another CP/M system to the Apple through a serial RS-232C port. This does, of course, assume that you have the appropriate serial interfaces and another CP/M system available. A working knowledge of 8080 assembly language is also necessary for implementation of the UPLOAD program.

Another possible solution is to transfer CP/M files to an Apple DOS disk as a text file and convert that file to a CP/M file using APDOS. However, the text file created with the Apple DOS will use only a carriage return as a delimiter, while CP/M requires a carriage return and a line feed. Depending on the language, at this point, more tinkering is needed for the Softcard to understand your program. The saving grace to all nontinkerers is the fact that companies such as Lifeboat, Peachtree Software, Microapt and Structured Systems offer their CP/M software already on Apple-format disks. Also, the Computer Shack in Pueblo, Colorado, will, for $10, download any CP/M program you send them for use with the Softcard.

Using the 6502 from CP/M

It is possible for programs written for the Softcard to call routines writ

Text continued on page 162

158

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 257 on inquiry card.

Circle 384 on inquiry card.

Imagine, a true business alternative to VisiCalC and d BASE 11

Ifs Here!

In addition to the basic features found in other financial modeling systems LOGICALC provides the following:

• Conditional expressions allowing "what if" processing together with relational operators (e.g. <,<=,>,> = ,=) and logical operators (AND, OR) with parenthesis

• Complete interface to QUEST (SPI's relational data base), ASSET (SPI's Accounting system) and word processor

• Built in financial functions like linear regression, present value, depreciation, consolidation and more

• Column format feature for individual column width, column precision or individual entry precision

• Dump utility to obtain a hard copy of the model to facilitate audit trails

• Merge command to combine two or more reports

• Print command to print entire or partial reports according to parameters you specify including titles, page width and length. If the report to be printed exceeds the width of the printer LOGICALC automatically splits the report into two or more pages which when laid side by side form the complete report.

Only $290.00

QUEST is a relational data base providing single, multi-user and distributed processing capabilities. Concurrent access to QUEST is handled through a built-in record locking mechanism. QUEST uses a subset of the SQL query language (IBM's recently announced relational query language).

• Interface to application software via high level calls

• User definable screen mask (up to 8 pages per record)

• Arithmetic expression evaluator to combine fields in formulas

• Conditional expression handling ("what if" processing on selected fields)

• Data entry range checking and password protection on selected fields

• Scan for records with partial information.

• Find records qualifying on any number of search criteria using relational and logical operators

• Sort records by as many as 15 key fields (ascending or descending)

• Join, select and project implementation to facilitate relational query processing

• Create, restructuring and recover utilities of files

• Complete interface to LOGICALC AND ASSET (SPI's accounting system)

• Report Generator lets user define report formats, headings, page footing, subtotals, level breaks. Built in arithmetic and logic processor enables the user to design very complex reports. 0n|y ^gg qq

Other Programs which interface to Quest and Logicalc are available now: . ASSET, SPI's Accounting System

■ Medical Billing

• Boutique Management System

■ School Management System

Software [Products ^International

5482 COMPLEX STREET, SUITE 115 SAN DIEGO, CA 92123 PHONE (714) 268-4346

• Visa and MasterCard orders accepted.

• Dealer inquiries invited.

Visicalc is a registered trademark of Personal Software, UCSD Pascal is a registered trademark of the Regents. University of California,

SEE US AT COMDEX BOOTH 685

Geta $20 rebate on the

TI-59 Programmable.

Even without the $20 rebate, the TI-59 is special —it's our most powerful programmable, and we've never offered it at a lower price.

The TI-59 gives you up to 960 program steps, or up to 100 memories, plus magnetic card read/write capability. You can also slip in one of TI's Solid

State Software™ modules and successfully attack complex engineering, business, statistical and scientific problems. And by adding the optional PC-100C printer, you can record your calculations. But if that's not enough, any TI-59 owner can

join our Professional Program Exchange for access to over 2500 additional programs. So if you like the idea of having real programmable power, take us up on the rebate offer. Buy a TI-59 now, and fill out the coupon below. The offer ends December 31,1981.

Texas Instruments

I NCORPORATED

NAME.

ADDRESS

CITY

©1981 Texas Instruments Incorporated

I bought my TI-59 Programmable at (store name):

and have attached the dated sales receipt and completed customer information card (packed in box). My TI-59

Serial No. is (from

back of calculator). Please send my $20 rebate check to:

. STATE

Send to: Texas Instruments TI-59 Rebate Offer, P.O. Box 725 Dept. 59, Lubbock, Texas 79491.

NOTE: Proof of purchase must be dated between August 1

1981 and December 31,1981. Offer void where prohibited.

Offer good only in U.S.A. Rebate applies to purchases of

TI-59 Programmable only. Items must be postmarked by

January 15,1982. Allow 30 days for delivery. Limit one per person/address

1002

Built-in CP/M Commands:

DIR—Lists the disk directory.

ERA—Erases a file or files from disk.

REN—Renames a disk file.

SAVE—Saves a file to disk.

TYPE—Displays the ASCII contents of a disk file.

USER—Used to divide the disk into up to 16 separate user areas. USER specifies access to one of those 16 areas.

Transient Commands:

ASM—Loads the 8080 assembler and assembles a program from disk.

DDT—Dynamic Debugging Tool, an interactive machine-language debugging aid, allows program traces and editing.

DUMP—Displays the hexadecimal contents of a file.

ED—CP/M's editor utility.

LOAD-Creates a transient command file from a machinelanguage file on disk.

PIP—Peripheral Interchange Program, allows you to copy, merge, print, and load disk files.

STAT—Provides statistical information about disk space and device assignments.

SUBMIT—Executes the CP/M commands put in a special file with the editor program. Allows programs and commands to be

Table 2: List of the features and utilities with the purchase of a Softcard.

batched together as Apple's EXEC command does.

CP/M Software:

APDOS— Allows transfer of ASCII and binary files from Apple-formatted disks to CP/M disks. This program requires two or more drives and cannot write CP/M files to Apple DOS disks.

CONFIGIO—Allows you to configure CP/M to your system, such as upper/lower case, 80 columns, and redefinition of keyboard characters for external terminals.

COPY—Disk copy utility.

DOWNLOAD—In conjunction with the UPLOAD program on another system, allows transfer of CP/M files to the Apple CP/M system.

FORMAT—Formats new disks.

GBASIC—BASIC 5.0 with highresolution graphics enhancements, provided on the 16-sector disk on

ly.

MBASIC—BASIC 5.0, with some additional commands for use with the Apple.

RW13—Allows the 16-sector CP/M to read and write on a 13-sector CP/M disk.

UPLOAD—A listing of a program to be used on another CP/M system in conjunction with DOWNLOAD for transferring of CP/M files. A working knowledge of assembly language will be necessary to implement this program on another system.

of the CP/M operating system included

The Converter that transforms your electronic typewriter into a computer printer.

$> No modifications to the typewriter

^ Does not affect normal typewriter functions

^ All typewriter functions accessible by computer

$> RS232C, IEEE and parallel interfaces available

^ KSR version turns typewriter into a computer terminal

&■ Fully assembled, tested and burned in

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

161

Program to Recover "Crashed" Discettes AUTOMATICALLY!

Maybe it was a lightning storm, static from the rug, or just too late at night to be working. Whatever the cause, when a discette "crashes" and valuable data or programs are destroyed, the loss is enormous, both in time and money.

DISK DOCTOR is a program which automatically recovers bad discettes. Best of all DISK DOCTOR does not require any knowledge of CP/M file structure! If you can operate CP/M, then you can use DISK DOCTOR. The entire system is menu driven with key information displayed.

DISK DOCTOR is comprised of five "wards", each capable of performing a specific discette recovery operation.

• Ward A: Verifies discettes and locks out bad sectors without touching the

good files that remain.

• Ward B: Copies whatever can be read from a "crashed" file and places it

into a good file under user control.

• Ward C: Copies discettes without stopping for bad sectors. Bad sectors are

replaced by spaces.

• Ward D: "Un-erases" files. That is, Ward D will recover accidentally erased

disk files.

• Ward E: Displays directory of recoverable erased files.

DISK DOCTOR will pay for itself the first time it is used.

Best of all, DISK DOCTOR operates almost complete automatically. The small amount of user interaction is explained in the manual as well as prompted by DISK DOCTOR.

Requires: 48K CP/M, two drives needed for complete operation.

DISK DOCTOR: $100.00

Manual Alone: $ 10.00

CP/M Formats: 8" soft sectored, 5" Northstar, 5" Micropolis Mod II, Vector MZ, Superbrain DD/QD, Apple II +

SuperSoft

First in Software Technology

All Orders and General Information: SUPERSOFT ASSOCIATES P.O. BOX 1628 CHAMPAIGN, IL 61820 (217)359-2112

Technical Hot Line: (217) 359-2691 (answered only when technician is available)

CP/M REGISTERED TRADEMARK DIGTAL RESEARCH

Text continued from page 158:

ten for the 6052 processor. The Z80 is enabled with a memory write to a specific location. This soft switch can be toggled back to the 6502 with a similar write performed by the Z80. 6502 subroutines may be called by putting the subroutine address in a predesignated location, then toggling the soft switch. Values can also be passed to the 6502's A, X, Y, and status registers through another set of specified memory locations. The only confusion may come from the fact that the Softcard re-maps the Apple's memory to conform to CP/M standards. This means that the same location will have different addresses under the 6502 and Z80 modes. Apple's zero page has been moved to the top of the Z80's memory, so the Z80's location zero is actually hexadecimal 1000 to the 6502. This may sound confusing, but the adjustment is not difficult.

Conclusions

Because of the flexibility it offers Apple users, I consider the Softcard an excellent buy. Despite the introduction of many new and often better languages, three of the first popular computer languages (FORTRAN, COBOL, and BASIC) continue to enjoy the widest use. Although I'd like to jump on the Pascal bandwagon, I don't think that it and other languages will replace any of the above three. New languages will be used, but the trend is that existing languages continue to evolve to keep pace with the times. Look at BASIC. It's hardly recognizable from its original version or the version of FORTRAN of which it was supposedly a subset. The cost of rewriting software and retraining programmers is just too high to allow drastic changes or entirely new languages. The Softcard lets you choose among the many standards of the industry as it now exists. It has the most current version of BASIC, is capable of handling COBOL and FORTRAN, and uses CP/M, the closest there is to a standard operating system for microcomputers. The price is reasonable, and it works. ■

162 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

EXCITING NEWS FOR TRS-80" MODEL III USERS!

Standard & Poor's unique software and

data system-STOCKPAK-can help you

manage your investments like

a Wall Street Professional! Now for

TRS-80 Model I and Model III users too!

STOCKPAK not only delivers a "stand-alone" Portfolio Management System but also gives you the software for Standard & Poor's monthly Common Stock Data Service (available to TRS-80 owners on a subscription basis). With STOCKPAK and the Data Service you command one of the most powerful and versatile investment tools available.

Here's How STOCKPAK Will Help You:

A 900 COMPANY DATA BASE SERVICE

Monthly Data Service subscribers receive a diskette containing 30 vital financial items on 900 of the most widely traded stocks (S&P "500" and 400 NYSE, ASE andOTC issues). Accompanying this monthly diskette is an Investor's Newsletter highlighting important financial news and investment strategies, with suggestions for maximizing the usefulness of the system.

STOCKPAK SELECTION SYSTEM

The heart of STOCKPAK is a powerful, analytical stock selection tool which enables investors to choose stocks which meet their investment criteria. For example, you may wish to select only those oil and gas stocks with price/earnings ratios of less than 7 and yields of 6% or more. Once a group of stocks has been selected, you can store it as a separate data file for continuing use.

REPORT WRITER

You can define the report formats you would like to see on those stocks meeting your investment objectives. Hundreds of calculations and ratios that you define can be sorted, averaged or totalled, and displayed on video screen or optional printer.

PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Now you can effectively evaluate and manage your own stock portfolio of up to 100 securities with as many as 30 transactions for each. You can record "buy" and "sell" transactions, price and dividend information and stock splits for instant retrieval, for record keeping and tax purposes. You can measure actual performance or create hypothetical situations to help you make "buy" or "sell" decisions.

HOW TO ORDER STOCKPAK

STOCKPAK is designed exclusively for TRS-80 users with 32K business systems with two mini-disk drives. You can obtain the basic software and sample Data Base, plus a comprehensive User's Manual from your local Radio Shack Store for only $49.95. The STOCKPAK Monthly Data Updating Service can be ordered directly from Standard & Poor's for $200 annually, or from the order form provided in the basic package you purchase from Radio Shack.

s/i

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EPSON PRODUCTS

by Orange Micr

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HERE AT LAST! A friction feed kit for your EPSON MX 80/70.The kit allows the user to convert his Epson printer to a friction feed and pin feed mechanism.

The friction feed will accept single sheets of your letterhead, or multiple copy forms such as invoices with up to 4-part carbon copies. The pin feed replaces the adjustable sprocket mechiii It allows use of 9J4" wide continuous fanfold paper which is an industry standard size. No drilling required. Installation takes about 30 minAll parts are included with easy to follow instructions $75.00. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED,

9x9 dot matrix • Lower case descenders • 80 CPS • Bi-directional, logic seeking • 40, 66, 80,132 columns per line • 64 special graphic characters • TRS-80 Com

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MX 80... (List $645)$ Call Graftrax-80 Dot Graphics Upgrade. (List $95) $ Call MX 80 FT includes Friction

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INTERFACE EQUIPMENT

CCS APPLE PARALLEL Interface & Cable $150

ORANGE INTERFACE for Apple II parallel

interface board & cable $110

MICROTRONICS Atari parallel interface $69

TRS-80 CABLES to keyboard or Exp. Interface. ..$ Call NOVATION D-CATdirect connect modem $ Call

THEGRAPPLER

by Orange Micro

TM

E AND CABLE

i ne urappier inierrace

card is the first to provide on-board firmware for Apple high resolution dot graphics. No longer does the user need to load clumsy software routines to dump screen graphics—it's all in a chip. Actually, it's our E-PROM, and it is replaceable to accommodate the Anadex, Epson MX 70, 80* and 100, IDS Paper Tigers. Centronics 739, NEC Prowriter, and future graphic printers. The Grappler™ accepts 18 software commands including Hi-Res inverse. 90° rotation, double size, and much more. Invented by, and available from Orange Micro and Orange Micro dealers only $ Call for price.

•Requires GRAFTRAX 80

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Circle 324 on Inquiry card.

Software Review

CourseWare Magazine

Elaine Holden

Reading and Language Arts Coordinator

Merrimack School District

Merrimack NH 03054

One of the problems limiting the use of microcomputers in the classroom is the lack of good educational software. This comes as no surprise, since hardware developments have always outpaced software developments. The problems of generating educational software, however, are compounded by the fact that most educators do not have the technical skills to write good programs and, conversely, most good programmers do not have the educational background to design useful programs.

CourseWare magazine was started to fill this gap. Its philosophy, as stated in the introduction:

"Each issue of CourseWare magazine will include a C-10 cassette containing at least two programs selected from the ten pre-college curriculum areas of business, consumer economics, English, fine arts, foreign language, industrial arts, mathematics, physical education, science, and social studies, or from the area of teacher-assistance programs. Each student program will be accompanied by a teacher guide, a student guide, worksheets (if appli

_,, Af a Crlanrp

Name

Language used

CourseWare magazine

BASIC

(September 1980)

Computer needed

Type

Apple II or II Plus, Com

Software and documentation

modore PET, or Radio

for classroom use

Shack TRS-80 Model I

Publisher

Documentation

Course Ware

28 pages, in a 3-ring binder

4919 N Millbrook #222

Fresno CA 93726

Audience

Price

$12.95 (or 5-issue subscription, $50)

School teachers with access to one of the computers listed above

Format

Cassette

cable), suggestions on how to adapt programs for individual lessons, a description of variables used in the program, and a listing of the program. Teacher programs (computer-managed instruction, computer-supported instruction) will be accompanied by a user guide."

In using the materials given in the Apple II version of

SEPTEMBER 1980 VOLUME 1, NUMBER 1

HZ.B5 In U.S.A. 113.50 In CANADA

BllSEUlE

PROGRAMS FOR LEARNING

MAGAZINE

SPELL 'N' TIME QUIZSTAT

Photo 1: September 1980 issue of CourseWare magazine. Each issue includes a cassette tape of the programs in that issue; separate versions are available for use with the Apple II or 11 Plus, Commodore PET, or Radio Shack TRS-80 Model I.

166

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Tomorrow and You..

arid COMSfiT

For COMSAT ... what many view as futuristic is already part of our everyday business and plans. We offer:

• ORGANIZATION OF THE FUTURE—

a private corporation working directly with governments, at home and worldwide.

• GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS OF THE FUTURE—

satellite communications systems serving over 100 countries and some 700 ships at sea.

• OFFICE OF THE FUTURE—

a partnership venture brings video conferencing, electronic intra-company mail transfer, information and more, via satellite to business and government.

• FACTORY OF THE FUTURE—

computer-aided design and manufacturing services and systems.

• HOME OF THE FUTURE—

planned home entertainment through direct satellite relay.

• NATURAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT OF THE FUTUREadvanced satellite technology to provide

natural resource management through practical conservation and environmental programs.

• RESEARCH OF THE FUTURE—

advanced R&D facilities offering the latest in communications product technology.

Our rapid expansion has created career openings in such diversified engineering disciplines as spacecraft design, signal processing, power systems, scientific software development and RF systems.

We offer excellent salaries and benefits, as well as the challenge of being in the forefront of high technology.

If you are interested in working with us, send your resume to:

Senior Employment Representative, Department 81-6RC, COMSAT, 950 LEnfant Plaza, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20024.

if COMSAT

AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION EMPLOYER.

Zilog's System 8000,

If you want to establish a low-cost UNIX*-based system, or need additional UNIX productivity on your current system,

Zilog's System 8000 is the perfect choice. System 8000 is a modular, free-standing unit built for multi-user office and labora

■

H

Syilcm BOOO

Zucn

tory application. Based on Zilog's reliable, high performance Z8000IM microprocessors, System 8000 delivers supermicro power at prices far below those of comparable minicomputers. (See Mini Micro Systems, Sept. '81; benchmarks article.)

The Price

The quiet (48 decibel), compact (33 inches tall), System 8000 rolls easily into your work area

■

items of current interest:

ur neu ZEUS operating system w to use this 'neus' package

■

V

(lug 27 11:07:35 1981 lute our 3:30 meeting to 8 am tomorrow thanks, doug

memo.report

I

Syste

■

■ I

t\ *.'

o

w:*

■

ft

wfak

■

• 1 '

the Supermicro.

and requires no special environment. Zilog provides a complete eight user system, including system software, 256 KB of main memory, a 24 MB Winchester disk and 17 MB tape cartridge back up, along with expansion capabilities, all for only $29,950. (U.S. list.)

The Performance

The System 8000 runs the ZEUS operating system, which is a faithful enhancement of the seventh edition of UNIX, perfected through Zilog's extensive UNIX experience. Because ZEUS is a high performance implementation of UNIX, any program that runs under UNIX, written in C, COBOL, or Pascal, can be easily ported to System 8000. Programs comprising the utilities and development tools provide user access, command processing, file management status informa

tion, and communication with other devices or systems. ZEUS also includes text processing software, libraries, a symbolic debugger, programming languages (standard C, PLZ/SYS, PLZ/Assembler, plus optional COBOL and Pascal), and more than 100 other utilities.

The Future

System 8000 plans include hardware and software expansion as well as compatibility with future generations of microprocessors. Soon the System 8000 will become integrated with Zilog's Z-NET,V Local Area Network (LAN) for commercial distributed data processing. No other manufacturer offers a UNIXbased system with the price and performance of the System 8000. So, if you're seeking the right UNIX solution, System 8000 is the perfect choice.

For more information,write Zilog,

Inc. General Systems Division,

10460 Bubb Road, Cupertino,

CA 95014. Or call the office

nearest you.

Los Angeles (714) 549-2891

Chicago (312) 885-8080

New York (212) 398-4497

Dallas (214) 243-6550

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Paris 778-14-33

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Munich 01806 4035

Tokyo 03-587-0578

System 8000, Z8000, and;

o( Zilog, Inn

m

EJgON

COMPUTER SYSTEMS

' UNIX is a trademark of Bell Laboratories.

IHHMi

Circle 433 on Inquiry card.

the first issue, September 1980, I found that these objectives were met.

SPELL 'N' TIME

I loaded the first program, SPELL 'N' TIME, without any problems. SPELL 'N' TIME is an electronic version of the traditional spelling bee, in game format. The drill can be used at all grade levels and for any subject. It is especially useful in subjects where specific vocabulary recognition is important.

SPELL 'N' TIME works like this: a student starts up the program and the computer prints "watch carefully." A box with an arrow pointing to it appears on the screen. The program displays and erases a word in the box, and the student spells the word in a box below. If the answer is correct, the computer prints "Good job!," and another word is presented. If the answer is incorrect, the program gives a short, nonthreatening sympathy message, "Sorry, try again." After one misspelling, the word is displayed syllable by syllable, and the student tries to spell the word again. If he/she does not spell the word correctly the second time, the word is continuously displayed while the student types in the word correctly.

This process continues for each word in the list. The number of correctly and incorrectly spelled words is displayed at the bottom of the screen. When the last word is finished, the computer gives a list of the incorrectly spelled words, which the student is to copy onto his/her worksheet (a master copy is provided in the documentation).

To the student, the program is a game, since the objective is to finish the word sequence as quickly as possible. All students can experience success:

• the presentation time of words depends on the individual's word recognition and spelling accuracy

• the word selection can be matched to the student's ability level

• there's immediate positive feedback for a correct response

An introduction states what the program does, what computers it runs on, its objectives, and why it is useful in a classroom. Explicit instructions tell how to change the number of words to be used (oi,<_ ^i^iaui line must be changed), and how the teacher can change the actual words to be used (by typing the words, hyphenated with dashes, into one or several DATA statements). With only minimal computer experience, I was able to make both kinds of changes and save the changed program under a new program name.

By using the program, the teacher may leave the quizzing to the computer and give special attention to each student's needs by monitoring the student's response and revising the word list.

Studies show that the best way to evaluate spelling is with a written test. Improvement in spelling often comes from regularly administered tests based on misspelled words found in the student's work and later corrected and practiced. SPELL 'N' TIME reinforces this basic concept. Students can practice on teacher-selected words and later take a written test. This testing method closely approximates methods recommended by current studies and, as such, the teaching matches the testing. Consistent teaching and testing eliminates confusion on the part of the student.

QUIZSTAT

QUIZSTAT, the second program in the September 1980 issue of CourseWare, is a management program. It gives the teacher statistics on classroom performance on a given quiz. Only the memory capacity of the computer limits the number of students this program can handle.

For a given test, QUIZSTAT tabulates the number of students who missed each question, the percentage of students who made the incorrect response, the overall

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Most items in stock for immediate delivery. Factory sealed cartons. Full manufacturer's guarantee. All products subject to availability. All prices subject to change. N.Y.S. residents add Sales Tax. Shipping F.O.B. N.Y.

170 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

IF YOU CAN RECOGNIZE VALUE, YOU CAN SAVE;

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M.T.I.

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We hove raken the basic 16K Model III expanded the memory to 48K and added our MTl Double Density, Dual Disk Drive system. System is fully compatible with Radio Shack DOS and peripherals.

MOD 11 l/EXPANDED

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MICROSTAT™ Release 2.0

rFLE" ■)ust some °' ,ne new Matures of Microstat Rel. 2.0 in

clude: new programs for moments about the mean, skewness, kurtosis and stepwise multiple regression, longer file names, faster sort routine, the ability to declare each data file's numeric precision and drive location plus an expanded user's manual with new appendices for the equations and file structures used in Microstat. Also included is a Data Management Subsystem for file maintenance (edit, list, destroy, augment, sort, rank-order, move and merge) plus transformations (add, subtract, multiply, divide, reciprocal, log, natural log and antilog, exponentiation and linear) that allow you to create new variables from existing variables.

After file creation with DMS, programs for analysis include: Descriptive statistics, Hypothesis testing (mean and proportion), ANOVA (one-way, two-way, and random blocks), Scatterplots, Frequency distributions, Correlation analysis. Simple, Multiple and Stepwise Multiple Regression (including files larger than available memory). Time series, 11 Nonparametric tests, 8 Probability distributions, Crosstabs and Chi-square, Combinations, Permutations and Factorials (up to one million factorial). All program output is neatly formatted for easy use.

The price for Microstat Rel. 2.0 is $295.00 and the user's manual is available for $25.00 (credited towards purchase) and includes sample printouts with file lables that reference standard statistical texts and journals so you can compare the results from Microstat to those produced on much larger systems. Compare Microstat to any other package on the market and we think you'll agree that Microstat is the best at any price.

I Interchange)

l(nterchange) is a general purpose file maintenance program for use with the CP/M™ operating system. Since it is a single program written in optimized Z-80™ code, it is much faster and easier to use than other file maintenance programs. Features include: DIR as usual plus listing all files excluding those with a specified character(s), ERA as usual plus exclusive erases. Also, a "Q" switch can be used to query each erase, a "W" allows erases of R/0 files without query (normally you are queried), and an "R" switch if system files are to be included, LIST permits listings and uses TAB, WIDTH, LINES and WRAP for control, COPY as usual plus exclusive copies and supports the "Q", "W" and "R" switches plus an "E" switch for query on existing files, STAT with ambiguous, unambiguous and exclusive listings and produces an alphabetized listing with file length, total directory entries and space used and unused, START-END allows for copying contiguous data files, and RENAME as usual plus ambiguous renames. Other commands include: QT, DATE, TIME and SETIT (for the QT clock board) plus CLEAR, RESET, HELP and TYPE. Disk copies can even be continued after a disk full condition by simply inserting a new disk. All of this in one program without ever having to leave I Interchange) and wait until you see the speed improvement . . . The price for l(nterchange) is $59.95 and the manual is available for $10.00 (credited towards purchase). I(nterchange) is recommended for 32K or larger systems using CP/M™ 2.0 or later. It will not run on an 8080 CPU and only User 0 is supported.

All programs are available on 8" SD or North Star 5'A" disk. Microstat is available for North Star Basic, Microsoft's Basic-80 (Rel. 5.0 or later) or compiler Systems CBasic2. Please specify when ordering.

CP/M is a registered trademark of Digital Research.

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class average, and a grade-percent scale. The information is entered and displayed in several frames. The first frame asks for the class size, the number of questions in the test, and other identifying information. In the second frame, the teacher types in the number of each question that was answered incorrectly (once for every time it was answered incorrectly). When this process is finished, the third frame shows a summary of each question, including the number and percentage of students who missed it. If 50% or more missed any given question, an asterisk appears beside the question number. A record sheet is provided in the program documentation for the teacher to copy the information from this frame. Finally, the fourth and fifth frames give the class average and a gradepercent scale. The program allows the teacher to correct transcription errors during data entry.

In its simplest use, the program helps the teacher determine which classes and which subject areas need work. When used in a pre-test/post-test system, the analysis of the pre-test data shows the teacher which material needs to be emphasized, and the analysis of the post-test data shows which areas were most effectively taught.

Conclusion

One criticism I have is that I would like to see documentation of certain statements made in the magazine. For example, in the introduction, passing reference is made to "four surveys made during the past five years." How comprehensive were these surveys? What were the actual results? That is not stated. Educators might want to see the research so an address should be given.

In a second example, questions answered correctly less than 50% of the time were flagged by the QUIZSTAT program. My question to the program designers is "what research supports this seemingly arbitrary figure?" I feel that at least 85% of all students, a standard figure for many educators, must pass a given test question. I hope these problems with documentation will disappear in future issues.

The two programs in the issue I reviewed are useful and complete. The importance of supporting the programs with worksheets and documentation cannot be overstated. One of the most exciting aspects of using this software is that program improvements and new ideas come to mind immediately, causing me (and, I hope, other teachers) to see new uses for the classroom computer.

The editor of CourseWare, Dr Dan Isaacson, is on the faculty of the School of Business and Administrative Sciences at California State University in Fresno, California. The material in the first issue reflects a knowledge of teachers' needs as well as a proficiency in computer science. [Editor's note: At the time at which this review went to press, three issues of CourseWare had been published. ...GW] Efficient and creative use of the computer in the classroom will depend on programming efforts such as this. ■

172 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 154 on inquiry card.

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Outside California 800/854-6451

DIF: A Format for Data Exchange between Applications Programs

Candace E Kalish & Malinda F Mayer

DIF Clearinghouse

POB 527

Cambridge MA 02139

One of the most frustrating problems facing users of applications software is the inability to use the same data with more than one program. Users often know that one program has stored data with which a second program could work wonders, but incompatible storage formats make the data inaccessible to the second program. If you own an applications program, you ought to have control over the data in that program. But rarely do you enjoy full possession of this data.

Generating graphics from stored data provides a good example of this problem. Suppose you are using a data-analysis program to project your company's profits for the years 1980 to 1982. You enter data and run calculations, and the program produces table 1. You have a plotting program that can produce striking

About the Authors

Candace E Kalish is a freelance writer. Malinda F Mayer is a technical writer at Software Arts Inc. Contributing writers include Dena B Feldstein, publications manager, and Patrick ] Slaney, programmer, both of Software Arts Inc.

graphics to illustrate data, but the plotting program won't accept data in the format of the data-analysis program.

The need for a

standard format for

data exchange has

long been recognized.

In the absence of a recognized standard format for data exchange between programs, you have only three choices for making the data from the first program useful with the second. You can retype all the data, write a program to reformat all the data, or modify one of the programs to accept data in a different format.

Each of these three data-transfer processes is inefficient and tedious. In a business environment, programs for billing, invoicing, inventory, ordering, and projections may all need the same data. Transferring data among all these different programs can take a great deal of time. Clearly, if all the programs used the same data format,

the problems and inefficiencies would be greatly reduced.

Although many people see the need for a standard format for data exchange, we still lack such a standard. From time to time, individual users and commercial software houses have tried to establish a standard (particularly for use with VisiCalc, the electronic worksheet program written by Software Arts Inc and distributed by Personal Software Inc), but their efforts have failed to win wide acceptance.

Software Arts is now trying to provide a standard by offering DIF, a specific format for data interchange. The DIF file format stores tables of data and provides easy access to the data by any program using DIF. Many commercially available programs already use DIF, and more are coming soon. Some of the programs now available (in addition to VisiCalc) are VisiPlot, VisiTrend/VisiPlot, and CCA Data Management System, all from Personal Software Inc; TREND-SPOTTER, from Friend Information Systems, published by Software Resources Inc; and DB

174 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Don't make your computer old

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But a computer is just a dumb piece of metal until software gives it life, and, unfortunately, microcomputer software has not kept up with the hardware.

Until now.

There's a commonly held belief that you should not buy new software because it hasn't been tested. We say, "Hogwash!"

At one time those complaints might have been valid, but the software industry has come of age. We do our testing before we release a product, not afterwards.

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tested into a product; it must be built in from the beginning by people who know what they are doing.

And we do.

We formed Designer Software because we believed that the quality hardware of today demanded software of equal quality. It took a lot of time, sweat, money, care, experience and talent to make that belief a reality.

We set high standards, but our team of CPA's, systems analysts, programmers, writers, artists and marketers that created Palantir™ Word Processing and Accounting have exceeded all of our expectations.

Palantir™ is the most professional packaged software ever to be offered to the CP/M® market.

We don't expect to convince you of that with just one ad, and we won't try. But if you're in the market for business software, we hope we've convinced you to find out more about Palantir™ — today's software for today's computers.

CP/M ij a registered trademark ol Digital Re

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Master, from Stoneware Microcomputer Products. All versions of VisiCalc support DIF except VisiCalc 1.37 on the Apple II and VisiCalc PLUS on the HP-83/85.

The DIF Approach

DIF is easy for both beginners and advanced programmers to use and understand, yet it has sufficient power and versatility for most applications. Programs using DIF may be written in any language from BASIC to Pascal to assembly language. Furthermore, DIF is not dependent on the features of any particular computer. Because DIF avoids unusual features, data formatted in DIF can be transferred between programs regardless of the computers on which they are run.

Here are a few examples of DIF applications:

• Report generators and graphics programs can take data saved in DIF and produce easily grasped reports and vivid illustrations of what the data

means.

• Programs that accept data from laboratory instruments can use DIF as a data-storage format, making the data easily accessible for later analysis by other programs.

• Periodic data stored in DIF can be consolidated later into a master report.

• If data is stored in DIF, two different types of computers can exchange the data over communications lines (such as an RS-232 connection).

The DIF Format

DIF represents data in tables and provides for optional accompanying

information that describes the data. Descriptive information can be associated with all of the data in the table or with a specific column. In table 1, for instance, the title "Profit Report" clearly refers to the whole table. The labels 'Tear," "Sales," "Cost," and "Profit," however, each refer to only one column of data. Programs can use the data values and ignore the title and labels if desired.

Because tables can be structured in many different ways, DIF uses the terms "vector" and "tuple" instead of "column" and "row." Each tuple in table 2 contains one data value from each vector. This example has three

PROFIT REPORT

Year

Sales

Cost

Profit

1980

100

90

10

1981

110

101

9

1982

121

110

11

Table 1:

A simple

table

projecting profits

for

the

years

1980,

1981,

and 1982.

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176 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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tuples of four data values each:

1980,100,90,10 1981,110,101,9 1982,121,110,11

To keep the format simple, DIF requires that all the tuples in a table have equal length and that all the vectors have equal length.

The Structure of DIF

To illustrate the structure of DIF, we will show how DIF would store the data presented in table 1. Figure 1 shows the DIF file for the data in table 1, with large braces drawn to label various subdivisions of the file.

Every DIF file has two parts: a header section containing descriptive information about the table, and a data section containing the data values.

DIF Header Items

The header section consists of a series of header items, each describing one aspect of the file. Each header item consists of four fields, and each field contains a piece of information about the data-file format.

The fields in a header item are the topic, the vector number, the value, and the string value. DIF arranges the four fields of each header item on three lines:

Line 1 Topic

Line 2 Vector Number, Value

Line 3 "String"

Figure 2 shows the header item TABLE with the fields labeled. The topic field is the name of the header item; information in this field must be an uppercase alphabetic string with no spaces or quotation marks. TABLE is the topic in figure 2. The vector number, the first field on the second line, specifies the vector being referenced. Note, however, that if the header item does not belong to a single, specific vector, then the vector number used is 0. Since the header item TABLE refers to the entire file rather than to any single vector, TABLE'S vector number is 0. The data value for the header item TABLE is the version number, and must be 1. On the third line, the string value for

TABLE

~\

Figure Is A DIF data file with the com

0,1

ponents labeled. Each of the LABEL

"PROFIT

REPORT"

header items labels one vector. The data is

VECTORS

stored in tuples. "BOT" marks the begin

0,4

ning of each tuple, and "EOD" marks the

ii ii

end of the data file.

TUPLES

V Header

0,3

/item

ii ii

J

LABEL

1,0

"YEAR"

\Header

LABEL

Section

2,0

"SALES"

LABEL

3,0

"COST"

LABEL

4,0

"PROFIT"

DATA

0,0

ii ii

_^y

-1,0

~A

BOT

0,1980

V

0,100

V

0,90

V

0,10

V

-1,0

BOT

0,1981

V

0,110 V

~"\ Data /Value

V Tuple

V. Data /Section

0,101

V

0,9

V

-1,0

BOT

0,1982

V

0,121

V

0,110

V

0,11

V

-1,0

Fon

178 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

[taStar

Meet Melanie. She was a datahandling novice until she met DataStar* Now, she's a star. Her revolutionary new system has taken her into a new dimension — and left all her old file cabinets, folders and paper forms behind.

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Discover what Melanie has. DataStar: the microworld's most comprehensive data entry, updating and retrieval system. Send for a free copy of our DataStar demonstration booklet by calling (415) 457-8990. Or

visit your nearby authorized dealer. Remember, when you're the star, we're the star.

'Runs on most Z80/8080/8085 microcomputers with CP/M (TM of Digital Research!. 48K, and terminal with addressable cursor

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Performance: Since only Micro-SEED gives you full CODASYL access methods (plus additional ones), your database can be tuned for maximum performance. Critical portions of Micro-SEED are written in assembly language for fast, efficient operation, while the remainder is In standard FORTRAN to permit rapid evolution of Micro-SEED. Your data is secure since the database is never damaged in a system failure. Only the last transaction is lost.

Proven: Mlcro-SEED has been in use since 1977 and is continually enhanced.

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the header item TABLE is "PROFIT REPORT," the title of the table. In summary, the header item TABLE is organized as follows:

TABLE

0,version#

"title"

The header section in figure 1 contains other items. The header items TABLE, VECTORS, TUPLES, and DATA are required. The order of the items does not matter, as long as TABLE is first, DATA is last, and VECTORS comes before any use of vector numbers.

The next two header items specify the number of vectors and tuples in the table. The topic VECTORS refers to the entire table rather than to a single vector, so the vector number is 0. The value of the header item VECTORS is the count of vectors in the file. Since the table has four columns, the data value of item VECTORS is 4. The item VECTORS has no string value, as shown by the empty pair of quotation marks. Thus, the header item VECTORS has the following form:

VECTORS 0,count

Similarly, the header item TUPLES for our sample table has a vector of 0,

a data value of 3, and no string value. The form of the header item TUPLES

is:

TUPLES 0,count

Data values of the topic VECTORS and the topic TUPLES must always be integers.

Before the last required header item, DATA, DIF permits standard optional header items. Among these are LABEL (described below), COMMENT, and SIZE. DIF also permits defining new header items to meet special needs. The DIF Technical Specification (available from the DIF Clearinghouse) describes in detail all the standard header items.

Looking again at figure 1, you can see that the header items whose topic is LABEL refer to specific vectors. Each item whose topic is LABEL has a vector number and may have a data value as well. The data value of a LABEL item is the number of lines required by the label. This is how DIF provides for labels that require more than one line. Systems that allow only single-line labels can ignore the line number. Note that under DIF, the values 0 and 1 are equivalent line numbers. Each of the LABEL header items has a string value, and that string value is the label of the vector.

TABLE

—Topic

Vector Number —

0,1

— Value

'Profit Report"

— String

Figure 2: The organization of a DIF header item. The first line shows the topic. The second line shows the vector number and the value. Line 3 is the character string that is the header item's title.

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Vector 1

Vector 2

Vector 3

Vector 4

Tuple 1

1980

100

90

10

Tuple 2

1981

110

101

9

Tuple 3

1981

121

110

11

Table 2: A recasting of table 1 into DIF format, with tuples in place of rows, and vectors in place of columns.

180

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 355 on inquiry card.

H you don't know a baud from a floppy...

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Thus, the form of the header item LABEL may be represented as:

LABEL

vector#,line#

"label"

In figure 1, vector 1 is the column labeled "YEAR," vector 2 is the column labeled "SALES," vector 3 is the column labeled "COST," and vector 4 is the column labeled "PROFIT." Each label requires only one line, and so the data value is given as 0 (it could also be 1).

The last DIF header item must be DATA. It signals to the program that all items following are data values. A program can be structured to ignore all header items until it finds the DATA header item, which has the form:

DATA 0,0

DIF Data Items

The form of data items differs from

that of header items. DIF organizes data by tuples. Within the tuples, values are arranged according to the order of the vectors.

Each data entry consists of three fields on two lines. The first line contains two numeric values, which are respectively the type indicator and the number value. The second line contains only one value, the string value. Together the type indicator, the number value, and the string value represent one DIF data value, in the following form:

type indicator, number value string value

The type indicator, which must be an integer, can have one of three possible values. A type-indicator value of 0 means the data is numeric and is stored in the field immediately following the type indicator. A typeindicator value of 1 means the data is a string. For string data, the numbervalue field is ignored and the string value is stored on the second line of

the data item. Finally, a typeindicator value of — 1 indicates a special data value. The number-value field is 0, and the string-value field may have one of two special values: BOT (beginning of tuple) or EOD (end of data). These are discussed further in the section on string-field values.

The Number Value. The number value may be signed (+ or —) and may contain a decimal point. One or more blanks may precede or follow the number value. If the data value contains an exponent of a power of ten, the value is followed by the letter "E" and the signed or unsigned exponent. The number value is the only place that DIF allows a noninteger value.

When the data value is numeric, the string-value field contains one of the values described in the following section.

The String Value. When the typeindicator is 1, the data is a string and contains no control characters and no quotation marks. If the string is a sim

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APPLE HARDWARE

DISK DRIVE w/3.3

CONTROLLER S4 89

DISK DRIVE ONLY S4 1 9 SILENTYPE PRINTER

w/INTERFACE S3 09

GRAPHICS TABLET S599 APPLE SOFT OR INTEGER

CARD S139

PASCAL LANGUAGE CARD S 3 4 9

PARALLEL PRINTER CARD S I 29

SERIAL PRINTER CARD $159

CENTRONICS PRINTER CARD S 1 3 9

LOWER CASE ADAPTOR $39

16K RAM CARD (MICROSOFT) S1 59

Z-M CARD (MICROSOFT) S 2 4 9

MICROMODEM (HAYES) * 2 6 9

SMART MODEM (HAYES) S 2 2 9

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9" UW MONITOR (SANYO) S1 4 5

r RAW MONITOR (N.E.C.) S1 3 9

11" RAW MONITOR (SANYO) S1 89 12" GREEN MONITOR (SANYO) S 2 29

12" RAW (N.E.C.) SPECIAL S1 6 9

ir COLOR MONITOR (SANYO) S385 I.D.S. 445C PRINTER I.D.S. 440G PRINTER I.D.S. 5MG PRINTER EPSON MX-7B EPSON MX-M EPSON MX-tOFT EPSON MX-1H EPSON CARTE A INTERFACE EPSON GRAFTRAX

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410 PROGRAM RECORDER

810 DISK DRIVE

■20 PRINTER

122 PRINTER

825 PRINTER

830 MODEM

ISO INTERFACE MODULE

853 16K MEMORY EXPANSION

SI 49 S54 S419 S249 S339 S569 S149 S139 S79

SOFTWARE

VISICALC (ATARI)

BASIC (ATARI)

VISICALC

VISIDEX

VISIPLOT

VISITERM

VISITREND

D.O.S. TOOL KIT

D.O.S. 3.3 UPDATE

MICROLAB DATA FACTORY

D B MASTER (STONEWARE)

APPLE WRITER

SUP-R-TEXT II

WORDSTAR

B.P.I. FOSTWARE (each)

GENERAL BUSINESS

CONTROLLER SOFT-TECH PAYROLL STOCKFILE INVENTORY ADVENTURE ZORK

SARGON CHESS GALAXIAN

CALL KM Otm« HA.DWAHE AND SOFTWARE

WE WILL UNDERSELL

S139

S49

S139

SI 29

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S99

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S55

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S49

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182 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 366 on Inquiry card.

Circle 53 on inquiry card.

See us at Comdex '81 in Las Vegas, Booth §774.

The BOS M System: The Universal Donor

The BOS M Card is the heart of the M System. It is designed to be IEEE S-100 bus compatible for universal system use. Virtually all elements of a computer mainframe now reside on one S-100 card — Z-80A CPU, 64k of 200ns RAM (no wait states),4k 250ns EPROM, Winchester Disk I/O port, two RS-232 serial ports, system port, floating point processor, and parallel I/O. The same M Card can be used in single-user, multi-user, or even multi-processor systems.

Second Generation Multi-Processor. With the BOS M Card, multi-processing is finally free of the Master/Slave and handshaking parameters so prevalent in first generation multiprocessors. Inter-system communications are FIFO buffered; the old "Master" is now a slave to the user, and the system functions without "S-100 bus overrun" or system generated wait states.

The Universal Processor is now a reality! As a single-user system, the BOS M is unmatched in performance (up to ten times the speed of other microcomputers). As a multi-user system, this power can be translated into a low cost multi-terminal capability. As a multiprocessor, the system leaves the realm of "microcomputer" and competes in performance with a minicomputer! You can start with a single-user computer and expand to a multi-user/multi-processor computer system when needed.

terjlslered Trademark ot Digital Research.

TUHBODQS IE a product ot Software 2000.

The Universal Product. BOS has what you need — anything from a single M Card to a complete turnkey computer system. Diskette, rigid disk, tape and telecommunications sub-systems areall available. Compatible software includes CP/M*, MP/M*, CP/NET", BOS/TURBODOS, complete monitor, languages, application packages, and more!

Dealer and OEM Inquiries Welcome

Business Operating Systems, Inc. 283S East Platte Avenue Colorado Springs, Colorado 80909 In Colorado Call: (303) 634-1541

e BOS M System does what a Universal Donor must do — it provides high performance for all system types; single-user, multi-user, and multi-processor. M Systems start at less than $5,000.00 for a single-user computer with dual 8" double density diskette drives.

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Now—A four station,

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with letter quality printer,

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'Price approximate and may vary in your area. Daily lease based on: $17,000 principal, 20%annual interest, 5-year term. Includes: Altos ACS8000-10 computer, letter quality printer, four precision terminals and get-rolling software.

Does not include tax. installation, training and maintenance.

Introducing the Altos Business Computer Special. The most powerful, reliable, easy-touse system in its price range. And Altos now offers on-site, nationwide service.

The hardworking engine of our system is the Altos ACS8000-10 computer. It can cost-effectively hook-up with from one to four stations, as your needs demand. Its rapid access, 10 MByte Winchester hard disk is capable of storing a 3,000 page load.

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Circle 18 on Inquiry card.

Get on the right track! Join thousands of professionals, institutions and businesses who rely on Altos computer systems. Call our toll free number or write today for the Altos sales and service depot nearest you.

All aboard!

Wordstar is a trademark of MicroPro International Corp. Microplan is a trademark of Chang Laboratories, Inc.

© 1981 Altos Computer Systems

Packed with fresh ideas for business

COMPUTER SYSTEMS

2360 Bering Drive San Jose. California 95131

BOO 538 7872

(In Calif. 800-662-6265)

See Us At ComDEX Booth 204

pie word, it may be entered directly on the line. If the string contains blanks or special characters, then the string must be enclosed in quotation marks. If the string is null, the stringvalue field contains quotation marks with no space between them.

When data is numeric, the string value is one of the following uppercase, unquoted words:

V: indicates a numeric value. NA: not available. Indicates that the value marked is not available; the number value is 0. ERROR: the result of an invalid calculation; the number value is 0. TRUE: the logical value; the number value is 1. FALSE: the logical value; the number value is 0.

Special Data Values. If the typeindicator field is —1, then the data is one of two special data values, BOT or EOD. BOT flags the beginning of a tuple, and EOD flags the end of the last tuple in the file.

Sample Programs Using DIF

Listings 1 and 2 are BASIC programs that illustrate the use of DIF. Listing 3 is a Pascal program that shows a Pascal procedure to use a DIF file.

A teacher has written the program in listing 1 to create a DIF file that contains the names and tests scores of students. Because it is heavily commented, the program should not be difficult to follow. It prompts the teacher to enter a file name, the number of students, and the number

of test scores for the students. The program organizes the data into one tuple for each student; a tuple consists of one string value for the student name and one numeric value for each test score. The number of vectors is one more than the number of test scores per student; the extra vector is for the student's name.

For example, if three test scores are entered for a student, there are four vectors, and a typical tuple might contain the following information:

Stephenson

75

82

60

This program enters student records into a file by prompting the

Text continued on page 206

Listing 1: A BASIC program that uses DIF. This program prompts the user for a student's name and test scores and then copies the information into a DIF file.

100 REM - THIS PROGRAM CREATES A DIF FILE CONTAINING THE

110 REM - NAME AND TEST SCORES OF A GIVEN NUMBER OF STUDENTS.

120 REM - IT PROMPTS FOR A FILE NAME, THE TOTAL NUMBER OF

130 REM - STUDENTS, AND THE NUMBER OF TEST SCORES FOR

140 REM - EACH STUDENT. IT THEN PROMPTS FOR A STUDENT'S

150 REM - NAME AND TEST SCORES, AND WRITES THEM TO THE

160 REM - FILE AS A TUPLE.

1000 PRINT "OUTPUT FILE NAME:"; :REM - GET FILE NAME.

1010 INPUT F$

1020 OPEN "0",1,F$ :REM - OPEN FILE FOR OUTPUT.

1030 PRINT "NUMBER OF STUDENTS:";

10 3 5 :REM - PROMPT FOR NUMBER OF

1040 INPUT NT :REM - TUPLES.

10 50 PRINT "NUMBER OF TEST SCORES PER STUDENT:";

1060 INPUT NV

1070 NV = NV + 1

1080 GOSUB 3000

1090

2000 FOR I = 1 TO NT

186 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

REM - NUMBER OF VECTORS IS REM - NUMBER OF SCORES + 1. REM - USE SUBROUTINE TO REM - OUTPUT DIF HEADER. REM - OUTPUT A TUPLE FOR

Listing 1 continued on page 188

Remember the

$500 Docket calculator?

The same thing just happened to computer software.

Everyone remembers when pocket calculators first came out. They were so impressive and futuristic, people were happy to pay $500 for one. But it didn't take the electronics industry long to offer a smaller, more fully-featured calculator for only $25.

Demand and Supply.

As more and more individuals and businesses turn to small computers for their various needs, the small computer industry will turn out more and more computer software. This increased volume naturally lowers the cost per unit. And the rapid growth of the CP/M® compatible computers has meant even greater sales volume for these popular and valuable software packages.

Here is what All Systems offers:

Wordstar 3.0C'

$199

CP/M is a registered trademark of Digital Research. VisAccount is a trademark of CSCA. All Systems i

Quite simply, the best word processing program for the small computer. Price shown is for the Apple system, $249 for all others.

SuperCalc™ $199

The state of the art in electronic worksheet programs, with features and enhancements that previous programs just did not have.

*VisAccount™ $199

The greatest software buy in the country. It is a fully-integrated accounting package with a General Ledger, Accounts Receivable/Order Entry, Accounts Payable/Purchase Order, Payroll, Inventory, Fixed Assets, and even a Mailing List program—all for one price.

"Data Manager $199

A powerful ana professional data base management program that's wonderfully simple to operate. Features include: data base building, lists, comparative analysis (by generating history & performance reports), various file maintenance, fast assembly language (sort/ merge), fast data retrieval, record selection, report writing and forms handling. "Both VisAccount and Data Manager come with a 45-day conditional money back guarantee. We know of no other software company with the confidence to provide a similar guarantee.

Wordstar is a registered trademark of Micro Pro International, a division of Computer Services Corporation of America. v24

All Systems offers these programs for the following computers:

Apple II Heath/Zenith

Radio Shack Models I, Superbrain

II & III North Star

Osborne I IBM

Hewlett Packard 125

Most CP/M Compatible Computers

How To Order

To find the dealer nearest you, or to order, call toll free

800-22 l-2486f

In New York or for further information, call 212-685-0090. You may use your Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or (for an additional charge) order C.O.D. Or you may send a check or money order to:

All Systems

332 East 30th St., New York, N.Y. 10016

SuperCalc is a trademark of Sorcim. Inc hours, 7 days a week.

Circle 92 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

187

Listing 1

continued:

2010

:REM

2020

T = -1: V = 0: S$ = "BOT"

2025

:REM

2030

GOSUB 4000

:REM

2040

PRINT "NAME OF STUDENT

#";i;

2050

INPUT S$

:REM

2060

T = 1: V = 0

:REM

2070

GOSUB 4000

:REM

2080

FOR J = 1 TO NV-1

:REM

2090

PRINT "SCORE #";J;

2100

INPUT V

:REM

2110

T = 0: S$ = "V"

:REM

2120

GOSUB 4000

:REM

2130

NEXT J

2140 NEXT I

2150 T = -1: V = 0: S$ = "EOD"

2160 GOSUB 4000

2170 CLOSE 1

2180 STOP

EACH STUDENT.

OUTPUT BOT SPECIAL DATA VALUE.

GET NAME OF THIS STUDENT. OUTPUT AS STRING DATA

VALUE. PROCESS EACH SCORE.

GET SCORE.

OUTPUT SCORE AS A DATA VALUE.

REM REM REM REM

OUTPUT EOD SPECIAL DATA

VALUE. CLOSE THE OUTPUT FILE. DONE.

30 00 :REM - ROUTINE TO OUTPUT HEADER.

3010 PRINT#1,"TABLE":PRINT#1,"0,1":GOSUB 3500

3020 PRINT#1,"TUPLES":PRINT#1,"0,";NT:GOSUB 3500

3030 PRINT#1,"VECTORS":PRINT#1,"0,";NV:GOSUB 3500

3040 PRINT#1,"DATA":PRINT#1,"0,0":GOSUB 3500

3050 RETURN

3500

3510

3520 PRINT#1,CHR$(34);CHR$(34)

3 530 RETURN

:REM - ROUTINE TO OUTPUT A :REM - NULL STRING (""). :REM - PRINT 2 QUOTATION MARKS,

4000 4010 4020

188 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

:REM - ROUTINE TO OUTPUT A DATA :REM - VALUE. T IS THE TYPE :REM - INDICATOR, V IS THE

Listing 1 continued on page 190 Circle 372 on inquiry card. >

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RHINO XR-1

HIGH-TECH ROBOT ■ FOR EDUCATION, RESEARCH & INDUSTRY

he Rhino* XR-1 high tech robot,

lough small in size, is built with the ame operating technology as large idustrial robots. And it features an IS232C interface (using 3 wires laking it compatible with the rogramming capabilities of any omputer from the small PET*, ,pple II*, or TRS-80* to the big 3M's. The Rhino8 XR-1 is available 3r immediate delivery. Write for lore information on your company jtterhead to the address below.

eatures:

Digital Choppers on All Axes

Powerful DC Servo Gear Motors

Controller Card with Intel 8748 CPU

Eight Motor Control Capability

(Rhino* XR-1 has 6 motors)

Operators Manual and Tool Kit

Rigid %" Aluminum Space Frame

Construction

"Built-in" Functional Self-Test

Program

)ptions:

Custom Hand

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Conveyor, or Lateral Slide Base

Specs:

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icludes everything you need to run our Rhino" XR-1 (Except your omputer)

Ve reserve the right to alter price and ;pecifications without notice.

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Apple and Apple II are registered trademarks of Apple Computer Inc. *TRS-80 is a registered trademark of Tandy Corporation. PET is a registered trademark of Commodore Corporation.

Listing 1 continued: 4030 4040

4050 PRINT#1,T;",";V

4060 PRINT#1,S$

4070 RETURN

5000 END

:REM - NUMBER VALUE, AND S$ :REM - IS THE STRING VALUE.

Listing 2: A BASIC program whose input is the DIF file created by the program in listing 1. This program calculates an average test score and a letter grade for each student.

100 :REM - THIS PROGRAM READS A DIF FILE CONTAINING THE

110 :REM - TEST SCORES OF A GROUP OF STUDENTS, CALCULATES

120 :REM - AN AVERAGE SCORE FOR EACH STUDENT, MATCHES THE

130 :REM - AVERAGE TO A LETTER GRADE, AND PRINTS THE

140 :REM - STUDENT'S NAME, AVERAGE, AND LETTER GRADE.

500 DIM T(100)

510 DIM V(100)

520 DIM V$ (100)

530

535

540 GOSUB 5000

550 GOSUB 6000

560 FOR I = 1 TO NT

570 GOSUB 7000

M=0

:REM - MAXIMUM OF 100 VECTORS.

:REM - T IS THE TYPE INDICATOR, V IS

••REM - THE NUMBER VALUE, AND V$ IS

:REM - THE STRING VALUE OF EACH DATA

:REM - VALUE.

:REM - INITIALIZATION SUBROUTINE.

:REM - SUBROUTINE TO READ HEADER.

:REM - FOR EACH TUPLE,

:REM - GET ALL VECTOR ELEMENTS IN

:REM - TUPLE.

:REM - M IS THE SUM OF THE SCORES.

FOR J = 1 TO NV :REM - FOR EACH VECTOR VALUE,

IF T(J)=1 THEN PRINT V$(J) :REM - PRINT NAME.

IF T(J)=0 THEN M = M+V(J) : REM - ADD SCORES'.

NEXT J

M = M/(NV-1): PRINT M :REM - PRINT STUDENT'S AVERAGE

IF M<=50 THEN PRINT "THIS STUDENT'S FINAL GRADE IS F"

IF M<=70 AND M>50 THEN PRINT "THIS STUDENT'S FINAL GRADE IS D"

IF M<=85 AND M>70 THEN PRINT "THIS STUDENT'S FINAL GRADE IS C"

IF M<=94 AND M>85 THEN PRINT "THIS STUDENT'S FINAL GRADE IS B"

Listing 2 continued on page 192

190 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

575

580 590 600 610 620 630 640 650 660 670

Cameo Makes Your Micro Big Enough for Big Business

When you want a data base for your micro that will grow as fast as you do — look to Cameo. Whether your business is commercial, educational or institutional — for large inventories, massive mail lists, extensive accounts receivable and effective cash management — Cameo has the system to meet your needs.

Cameo's Cartridge Disk Subsystem provides reliable mass storage for most popular micros*. The Cameo subsystem gives you up to 100 times the storage capacity of floppies, while retaining the same flexibility that floppy media provide. With Cameo's system you can remove, copy and back-up massive amounts of data quickly and easily. And, byte-for-byte, cartridge disk mass storage is more economical than floppy disks. Even today's new technologies cannot give you the reliability, flexibility and back-up capability that Cameo provides.

Installation and start-up is simple. Cameo's subsystem is compatible with most operating systems, eliminating the need for additional complex programming. Make Cameo your micro mass storage connection. Call today for the location of the dealer nearest you. ♦Apple, TRS-80 Model I & II, Heath H89 and most S-100's

Cameo Electronics, Inc.

1626 Clementine Street Anaheim, CA 92802 (714) 535-1682

European Distributor

Cameo Electronic Vertriebs-Gmbh Escherstrasse 3, D-8121 EberfinR West Germany Tel: 8802-8363 TELEX: 59903

C7IMEO

Sculptured Brilliance in Mass Storage

Circle 62 on inquiry card.

Listing 2 continued:

680 IF M>94 THEN PRINT "THIS STUDENT'S PINAL GRADE IS A"

690 NEXT I

700 CLOSE 2

710 PRINT "FINISHED CALCULATING GRADES"

720 STOP

5000 :REM - INITIALIZATION CODE.

5010 PRINT "FILE NAME";

5020 INPUT F$

5030 OPEN "I",2,F$ :REM - OPEN FILE FOR INPUT.

5040 NV = 0 :REM - INITIAL VECTOR COUNT.

5050 NT = 0 :REM - INITIAL TUPLE COUNT.

5 060 RETURN

60 0 0 :REM - READ HEADER. GET NUMBER OF VECTORS AND TUPLES.

6010 INPUT#2,T$ :REM - GET TOPIC.

60 20 INPUT#2,S,N :REM - GET VECTOR NUMBER AND VALUE.

6030 INPUT#2,S$ :REM - GET STRING VALUE.

6040 IF T$="VECTORS" THEN 6500:REM - CHECK FOR KNOWN HEADER

6050 IF T$="TUPLES" THEN 6600 :REM - ITEMS.

6060 IF T$="DATA" THEN RETURN

6065

6070 GOTO 6010

6500 NV = N

REM - "DATA" ENDS HEADER.

REM - IGNORE UNKNOWN ITEMS.

REM - NUMBER OF VECTORS. 6510 IF NV<=100 THEN 6010 :REM - CHECK FOR 100 OR LESS VECTORS. 6520 PRINT "TOO MANY VECTORS. PROGRAM CAPACITY 100 VECTORS." 6530 CLOSE 2 6540 STOP 6600 NT = N :REM - NUMBER OF TUPLES.

6 610 GOTO 6010 :REM - GET NEXT HEADER ITEM.

7000 :REM - SUBROUTINE TO GET ALL VECTOR ELEMENTS IN A TUPLE.

7 010 GOSUB 8000 :REM - GET NEXT DATA VALUE. 7020 IF Tlo-1 THEN 9000 :REM - MUST BE BOT, ELSE ERROR 7030 IF S$o"BOT" THEN 9000

Listing 2 continued on page 194

192 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

EB

engineered for excellence

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FEATURES • Byte or Word Width Operation • Extended Addressing or Port Select • 100 ns Access and Cycle Time (Maximum) •Low Power Consumption *IEEE 696 Standard *Four Layer Board *Byte Parity Option

$995. :

ntroductory Price valid for Purchase orders placed on or before Nov. 30,1981. Assembled and Tested with I Year warranty.(For Byte Parity option, acid *ioo.)

The B880 RAM represents one of the best solutions for applications requiring a very high speed static memory card of compact design and remarkably low cost. Suitable for a wide range of commercial applications, the B880 RAM is form, fit and functionally compatible with the IEEE 696 (S100) bus standard. It automatically provides byte or word width access using the *sXTRQ signal. An exclusive ultra high speed bipolar memory mapping PROM allows the B880 RAM to be used with any current or future bank select scheme. The B880 RAM works with all SI00 processors, and features a four layer board with full ground and power planes for noiseless operation. Use of the new JEDEC-standard 20 pin slimline 16K Static RAM chips has given us enough board real estate to offer a very wide variety of options, making the B880 RAM a truly universal S-100 memory card.

Available through California Digital (for orders only, call toll-free 800*421-5041 ) and other fine distributors, or direct. Specification sheets on request. Manuals may be purchased separately for $25.00 refundable on order. AB DIGITAL DESIGN LABS designs and manufactures computer products that provide technological leadership and industrial-grade quality combined with unexcelled performance. AB DIGITAL was first in the industry to offer a 256K Dynamic Memory (the B810 A and B810 B RAM cards). Our BS80 RAM is far superior to any other 64K Static Memory available. All AB DIGITAL products are manufactured to higher quality standards than any other computer product on the industry, No "surplus" components will ever be used on an AB DIGITAL card. All AB DIGITAL boards feature full interior ground and power planes in a multilayer board to eliminate noise and radiation. OEMs and distributors wishing to handle our line are invited to phone .1. Hill, Sales.

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(805)773 1731

Circle 2 on Inquiry card.

Listing 2 continued:

7 040 FOR K = 1 TO NV :REM - GET EACH DATA VALUE

7050 GOSUB 8000

7060 IF T1>1 THEN 9000

7070 T(K) = Tl :REM

7080 V(K) = VI :REM

7090 V$(K) = S$ :REM

7100 NEXT K

SAVE TYPE INDICATOR. SAVE NUMBER VALUE. SAVE STRING VALUE.

7110 RETURN

8000 :REM - SUBROUTINE TO GET NEXT DATA VALUE. 8010 INPUT#2,T1,V1 :REM - GET TYPE INDICATOR, NUMERIC 8020 INPUT#2,S$ :REM - VALUE, AND STRING VALUE. 8030 RETURN

900 0 :REM - ERROR ROUTINE

9010 PRINT "ERROR IN FILE FORMAT"

9020 CLOSE 2 :REM - END PROGRAM

9030 STOP

9040 END

Luting 3: A Pascal program that reads data from a DIF file into an array and then displays the data on the terminal. The variant of Pascal used is Apple Pascal 1.1.

{ This is a simple program which reads DIF file data into an array and displays the results on the terminal. It makes use of a procedure called "get_dif_array" which handles only numeric data. It is written for Apple Pascal 1.1 and may require modification to run on other systems. }

program dif_read;

const

max vector =

10;

max tuple =

10;

{ maximum number of vectors } { maximum number of tuples }

type

vector_index = 0..max_vector;

194 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Listing 3 continued on page 196

i .t

=ls i

aesw?

Linking People & Information Through Per >l Comt uters

Nestar Systems combines the technology of local networking with the sophistication of our system software to bring you a personal computer system which delivers maximum benefits at minimum cost. Word processing. Financial planning. Data entry. Distributed data processing. All this is possible with Nestar's Cluster/One personal computer systems and it is all available

today. When you're read taking a package off the Call or write us today Cluster/One personal cor 2585 East Bayshore Ro? (415) 493-2223 TELEX: 1

See us at COMDE* 81 i' as vegap Booth 156P

■onic mail, it's 5 easy as

■•formation ab< ems. Nestar £ Ito, California ESTAR PLA

Nestar's ems, Inc. (303-3266

Listing 3 continued:

tuple_index = 0..max_tuple;

dif_array = array[1..max_vector, 1..max_tuple] of real;

var

in file : text; num_vectors : vector_index;

fname : string [15]') num_tuples : tuple_index;

matrix : dif array; code, i, j : integer;

{ "Get_dif_array" reads a DIF file and returns the file data (currently only numeric) in an array. Also returns number of vectors and tuples -- these must be specified in file header — and an error code. }

procedure get_dif_array (var dif_file: text; var real_array: dif_array;

var nvectors: vector_index; var ntuples: tuple_index; var return_code: integer);

const { currently defined data types }

special = -1; numeric = 0; char_string = 1; other = 2;

type

header_item = record

topic : string; vector_num : vector_index; value : integer; string_value : string end;

data_value = record

kind : -1..2; { currently defined data types } number_value : real; string_value : string end;

var

hdr_item : header_item; Listing 3 continued on page 198

196 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

You may be holding the most important Software

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® n

Enables ANYONE to write complete, running, debugged BASIC LANGUAGE Programs in 35 to 40 minutes with NO PRIOR PROGRAMMING KNOWLEDGE OR ABILITY.

IF you are one of the many who bought a microcomputer in the belief that with just a little studying you could write your own programs, you now know that you can't.

IF you, as a businesman, thought you could have stock software modified at a reasonable cost with reasonable results, you know that's not possible either.

IF you are a hobbyist getting tired of the untold hours it takes to write a program, only to find it takes more hours to debug than to write.

IF you are a skilled programmer you don't have to be reminded of the repetitious time spent on each new application.

IF you have left your micro-computer sitting somewhere gathering dust... meet THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' .

THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' is not just another data base generator.

THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' , at your direction, makes complete running programs that are thoroughly documented, easy to modify at any time by YOU!

THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' cuts programming time up to 90% for a skilled programmer.

THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' will make anyone a skilled programmer in 30 to 35 minutes!

THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER" does the work! You can answer the simple direct questions and THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' CREATES. . .AND ALL IN BASIC LANGUAGE.

Q. After THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' has produced a program, can it be modified?

A. Yes, the resulting program is modular, fully documented and readily accessible for alterations or deletions.

Q. Does the program created use so much disc space that there is very little space left for the record storage?

A. No, the code produced is extremely compact despite complete documentation. If requested THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' will even "pack" or compress intormation. You may even delete the "remarks" making it even more space efficient.

Q. Must I be expert or even conversant with Basic Language? A. No, all questions to and answers from the operator require no computer language knowledge, simple every day English will do. Q. What about math ability?

A. If you can count your fingers and toes, you'll have no problems. Q. Will the programs which I produce with THE PROGRAM WRITER/REPORTER' be bulky, slow or amateurish?

Circle 425 on inquiry card.

A. No, the resulting programs will be sophisticated and extremely fast operating.

For example, should you create a mailing list or inventory program, the time for any

record to be retrieved and displayed from a full disc would take a maximum of

1 second.

Q. Must the programs produced conform to a pre-determined format and file

length?

A. No, you determine format and file size to fit your requirements. You may have as

many as 22 fields or as few as 1.

Q. Can I develop my own business programs?

A. For the most part, yes.

Q. What are the limitations? What programs can I produce with THE PROGRAM

WRITER/REPORTER' ?

A. Your own ingenuity and hardware limitations. 100's of different programs.

TECHNICAL ASPECTS

The Reporter Package - makes reports your way.

Record access by a hashing algorithm guaranteeing fast record retrieval.

Duplicate keys permitted.

Record deletion automatically supported.

Record access and file maintenance is user transparent.

Minimal disc overhead since there is no special assembly language routine called. No "Basic" overhead.

Programs produced can be transported between 6800,6502,8080, Z80,8085,8086 and Z8000 based systems.

Can be used with Micro-Soft Basic and CP/M systems.

Complete file maintenance including up-date of any record in any field, delete and add new records even with duplicate key.

o

VATILOVeS

Vital Information

800-255-5119

InC. 7899 Mastin Dr. Overland Park KS 66204

BYTE November 1981

197

Listing 3 continued:

data_val : data_value; tuple, vector : integer;

{ "Read_integer" reads an integer terminated with a comma. The routine is required because this Pascal dialect's "read" procedure recognizes only <space>, eoln and eof as delimiters of integer values. }

{ initialize }

{ get 1st character }

{ comma is delimiter }

procedure read_integer (var number: integer); var

sign, magnitude : integer; ch : char; begin

sign := 1; magnitude := 0; read (difile, ch); while ch <> ',' do begin

case ch of

■*-■* : sign := -1; '0*,'1','2','3','4','5*,'6','7','8','9'

: magnitude := magnitude * 10 + ord(ch) - ord('O') end; { case }

read (difile, ch) { get next character }

end; number := sign * magnitude { return result }

end; { read_integer }

{ "Read_string" deletes leading and trailing blanks and strips the quotes from quoted strings. }

procedure read_string (var str: string); begin

readln (difile, str); while str[l] = ' ' do

delete (str, 1, 1); if str[l] = '«'

198 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

{ leading blanks }

{ strip quotes }

Listing 3 continued on page 200

Nr No business is too OF™

small for a

The economical business computer

that does it all.

Bookkeeping. Mailing Lists. Word processing. Running your business is a lot more complex than running a lemonade stand. But it doesn't have to be. Sure, you may already know you could use a computer. But did you know that the North Star HORIZON® can do the job better than many bigger computers? For much less money? *S

The North Star HORIZON is easy to install and operate. As you grow, add programs, work stations, and memory. Today, more than 22,000 HORIZONS are in operation worldwide.

i

And our sales and service support is there to help you.

So look at the HORIZON before you buy a computer. You owe it to yourself. And to your business. For the dealer in your area, call toll-free (800) 447-4700. In Illinois (800) 322-4400. In Alaska and Hawaii (800) 447-0890. Or write North Star Computers,Inc., 14440 Catalina Street, San Leandro, CA 94577. Phone (415) 357-8500. TWX/Telex (910) 366-7001.

HORIZON is a registered trademark of North Star Computers, Inc.

FOLLOW THE STAR Jfe^

NorthStari

Circle 307 on inquiry card.

Listing 3 continued:

then begin

delete (str, 1, 1);

delete (str, pos('"', str), length(str) - pos("", str) + 1) end else if pos(' ', str) > 0 { trailing blanks }

then delete (str, pos(' ', str), length(str) - pos(' *, str) + 1) end; { read_string }

procedure read_header_item (var item: header_item); begin

read_string (item.topic); read_integer (item.vector_num); readln (difile, item.value); read_string (item.string_value) end; { read_header_item }

{ get topic }

{ get vector number }

{ get value }

{ get string value }

procedure read_data_value (var value: data_value); begin

read_integer (value.kind); readln (difile, value.number_value); read_string (value.string_value) end; { read data value }

{ get data type } { get number value } { get string value }

begin { get_dif_array } return_code := 0; nvectors := 0; ntuples := 0; repeat

read_header_item (hdr_item); if hdr_item.topic = 'VECTORS'

then nvectors := hdr_item.value else if hdr_item.topic = 'TUPLES' then ntuples := hdr_item.value until hdr item.topic = 'DATA';

{ assume no problems } { initialize } { read header }

{ vector count { tuple count }

if (nvectors = 0) or (ntuples = 0)

{ check counts }

200 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Osborne Welcomes Tfou to the World of Microcomputers

INTRODUCTORY BOOKS

Business System Buyer's Guide

by Adam Osborne and Steven Cook Purchasing a computer for any business is a complex process, but this book will help. Before you buy any computer, read this book. You'll never make a better investment.

#47-0, $7.95 □

Introduction to Microcomputers

Volume 0: The Beginner's Book by Adam Osborne

Here's the book to start with if you know nothing about microcomputers but wish to learn. Provides the concepts you'll need to understand this technology. #26-8, $7.95 D

An Introduction to Microcomputers

Volume I: Basic Concepts by Adam Osborne

The world's best selling textbook on microcomputers uses concepts that are common to all microprocessor systems. Shows what a microcomputer can do, and how it does what it does. This edition is the most comprehensive and up-to-date introduction to microprocessor systems available anywhere. #34-9. $12.99 D

Running Wild

The Next Industrial Revolution

by Adam Osborne

An insider's look at the microelectronics revolution. Will the coming years prove to be a dream or a nightmare? Running Wild tells the story. #28-4, $3.95 D

GUIDES

Apple II" User's Guide

by Ion Poole. Martin McNiff and Steven Cook

Complements your Apple II owners manual. Our gu'de will tell you more about your Apple II or Apple II plus computer than any other single source. It covers all the special features of the Apple computer.

#46-2. $15.00 □

PET/CBM" Personal Computer Guide

by Adam Osborne and Carroll Donahue A step-by-step guide which takes you from the "on" switch to assembly language subroutines for your Commodore system. It's a BASIC tutorial and covers many recent CBM products. #55-1. $15.00 D

PROGRAMMING BOOKS

Science and Engineering BASIC Programs

ed. by John Heilborn An important collection of the most valuable programs for scientists and engineers. Easily used on most popular microcomputers #63-2. $15.99 □

Some Common BASIC Programs

by Lon Poole and Mary Borchers 76 well designed and brilliantly documented programs that solve a variety of problems in statistics, finance, and math.

Generalized BASIC Edition

#06-3. $14.99 Q

PET/CBM" Edition #40-3. $14 99 n

Practical BASIC Programs

Here are 40 useful and fully documented programs designed to run on most microcomputers. Especially useful in small business and household applications. (Generalized BASIC).

#38-1, $15.99 □

Osborne CP/M" User Guide

by Thorn Hogan

The most complete and up-to-date CP/M book you can find. It will make your first use of CP/M easy. If you already own CP/M, it will help you modify your system. #44-6. $12.99 □

ASSEMBLY LANGUAGE PROGRAMMING SERIES

by Lance Leventhal and co-authors You needn't know anything about assembly language to use these books. Each one is a straightforward, self-teaching textbook that is both precise and easy to understand.

I CO

ASSEMBLY LANGUAGE PROGRAM SERIES

68000 #62-4. $16.99 D

6809

. #35-7, $16.99 □

6502 #27-6. $16,99 0

tit

Z80

#21-7. $16.99 n

*P

TRS-80" Level II Edition#54-3. $14 99 a

tf

«

#53-5. $14.99 D

Atari" Edition

All 76 programs ready to run on: PET/CBM'" floppy disk #33-0. $22.50 □

PET/CBM'" cassette #25-x. $15.00 D

TRS-80" Level II cassette

#32-2. $15.00 □

CBASIC" User's Guide

by Adam Osborne. Gordon Eubanks and Martin McNiff

Co-authored by Gordon Eubanks, the creator of CBASIC, this is more than a self-teaching textbook, it is the definitive reference of the CBASIC language. #61-6, $15.00 D

BUSINESS BOOKS

by Lon Poole and co-authors Osborne's three business systems are renowned for excellence in design and documentation. Our books explain in detail how to use the programs. They contain complete programs listings, supporting technical documentation, and specific information on changing and installing the programs.

Payroll with Cost Accounting

#22-5, $20.00 D

Accounts Payable and

Accounts Receivable #23-3. $20.00 a

#24-1. $20.00 a

Z8000 #36-5. $19.99 D

6800 #12-8. $15.99 D

8080A/8085 #10-1, $15.99 D

The 8086 Book

by Russell Rector and George Alexy Part assembly language text and part hardware reference, this book covers all of the 8086's most important features. #29-2. $16.99 □

Osborne McGraw-Hill Dept. B21 630 Bancroft Way. Berkeley, CA 94710 Call Toll Free: 800-227-2895

in California (415) 548-2805

Address

City/State/Zip

Plus: D 75/item 4th class D SI 50/item UPS D S2.50/item Air Mail D SlOOO/item Overseas (California residents add applicable tax )

Total amount enclosed $

General Ledger

or charge my DVisa DMastercharge Cards Exp. Dt.

Circle 328 on Inquiry card.

Books, Price:

Listing 3 continued:

then return_code := 1

else begin

for tuple := 1 to ntuples do

begin

read_data_value (data_val);

for vector := 1 to nvectors do

begin

read_data_value (data_val);

if data_val.kind = numeric

then real_array[vector, tuple]

end

end;

read_data_value (data_val);

if (data_val.kind <> special) or

(data_val.string_value <> 'EOD')

then return_code := 2

end

{ read data } { BOT }

data val.number value

{ EOD }

Listing 3 continued on page 204

MARYMAC INDUSTRIES, INC.

In Texas Orders

Questions & Answers

1-713-392-0747

21969 Katy Freeway Katy (Houston) Texas 77450

To Order 1-800-231-3680 800-231-3681

SAVE BIG DOLLARS ON ALL TRS-80 HARDWARE & SOFTWARE

TRS-80 BY RADIO SHACK. Brand new in cartons delivered. Save state sales tax.Texas residents add only 5% sales tax. Open Mon.-Sat. 9-6. We pay freight and insurance. Come by and see us. Call us for a reference in or near your city. Ref: Farmers State Bank, Brookshire, Texas.

WE OFFER ON REQUEST

Federal Express (Overnight Delivery) 0

Houston Intercontinental Airport Delivery (Same Day)

U.P.S. BLUE (Every Day)

References from people who have bought computers from us probably in your city

Telex 77-4132 (FleksHou)

' TRS 80 is a Registered Trademark ol Tandy Corp

ED McMANUS

m

0

0 0

0

In stock TRS-80 Modal II and III

No Tax on Out of Taxas Shipments!

10% 15%

OR MORE

We Specialize In Overseas Shipments

Telex 77-4132 (FleksHou)

WE ALWAYS OFFER

0 NO extra charge for Master Card

or Visa 0 We use Direct Freight Lines. No

long waits.

0 We always pay the freight and insurance

0 Toll free order number

0 Our capability to go to the giant TRS-80 Computer warehouse 5 hours away, in Ft. Worth, Texas, to keep you in stock.

JOE McMANUS

202 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 239 on inquiry card.

Qume® Data Irak Floppy Disk Drives

IIII, lwll<l 11 «IK <•) double-sided double-density drive uses state-of-the-art technology to give you superior data integrity through improved disk life, data reliability, and drive serviceability using SVTmedia.

Qume's independent head load yields wear characteristics far superior to competitive drives. This superior wear performance produces savings on both diskette usage and drive maintenance.

Improved data reliability, resulting from superior amplitude and bit shaft characteristics, optimizes operator efficiency and reduces processing time for end-users.

And Data Trak's unique modular design means simplified field servicing for you and your customers.

Design Features

Expanded storage capacity • Two-sided, double-density

Proven head carriage assembly • Ceramic head with tunnel erase • Dual-head flex mounting arrangement • Superior head load dynamics

Precise lead screw actuator • Fast access time — 12 ms track-to-track • Low friction and minimum wear • Low power dissipation

Additional features • Industry standard 5Vi" media format • ISO standard write protect • Door lock out for media protection • Requires DC voltage only • Daisy Chain up to 4 drives • Heads load on command independent of loading media

Product Specifications

Performance Specifications • Capacity: Unformatted: 437.5K or 500K bytes: Qume Formatted: 286.7K or 327.7K bytes • Recording Density: 5456 BPI • Track Den

Distributed by:

il$il|ft

computer ■ products, inc.

sity: 48 TPI • Cylinders: 35 or 40 • Tracks: 70 or 80 • Recording Method: FM or MFM • Rotational Speed: 300 RPM • Transfer Rate: 250K bits/second • Latency (avg.): 100 ms • Access Time: Track-totrack 12 ms: Settling 15 ms • Head Load Time: 50 ms

IIIC liaitfi I Tali O double-sided double-density drive uses state-of-the-art technology to give you superior data integrity through improved disk life, data reliability, and drive serviceability.

Qume's innovative approach to controlling head load dynamics yields wear characteristics far superior to competitive drives. In independent evaluation. Data Trak 8 is setting industry standards for tap test performance. This superior wear performance produces savings on both diskette usage and drive maintenance.

Improved data reliability, resulting from superior amplitude and bit shift characteristics, optimizes operator efficiency and reduces processing time for end-users.

And Data Trak's unique modular design means simplified field servicing for you and your customers.

Design Features

Expanded storage capacity • Two-sided, double-density

Fully IBM compatible • IBM 3740 and System 32 drives • IBM 3600 and 4964 drives • IBM System 34 drives

Proven head carriage assembly • Ceramic head with tunnel erase • Dual-head flex mounting arrangement • Superior head load dynamics

Fast, precise steel belt drive • Fast access time — 3 ms track-to-track • Low friction and minimum wear • Low power dissipation

Additional features • ISO standard write protect • Programmable door lock • Negative DC voltage not required • Daisy Chain up to 4 drives • Side-by-side mounting in standard 19" RETMA rack • Compatible with Shugart SA850/SA851

Product Specifications

Performance Specifications • Capacity: Unformatted: 1.6 Mbytes/disk: IBM Format: 1.2 Mbytes/disk • Recording Density: 6816 BPI • Track Density: 48 TPI • Cylinders: 77 • Tracks: 154 • Recording Method: MFM • Rotational Speed: 360 RPM • Transfer Rate: 500Kbits/second • Latency (avg.): 83 ms • Access Time: Track-to-track 3 ms; Settling 15 ms; Average 91 ms • Head Load Time: 35 ms • Disk: Diskette 2D or equivalent

sisaii

computer ■ products, inc.

1198 E. Willow. Signal Hill. CA 90806 Call Toll Free (800) 421-7701

AUTHORIZED DISTRIBUTOR FOR QUME CALL FOR PRICE AND DELIVERY

(213) 595-6431 or (714) 891-2663 In California

Circle 471 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981 203

Listing 3 continued:

end; { get dif array }

begin { dif read }

writeln;

{

get DIF file name

}

write ('DIF file name: *);

readln (fname);

reset (in file, fname);

{

open and point to

BOF }

get dif array (in_file, matrix,

num vectors,

num

tuples, code);

close (in_file);

{

close DIF file }

case code of

{

display results }

0 : begin

writeln;

Listing 3 continued on page 206

At last, a full S-100 system

has been put together on a

single board with the

introduction of the Super

Net/I and the Super Net/ll..

the space and money

savers. The Super Net/I

has eliminated the need

for four boards in

existing S-100

systems.

Additionally,

Super Net/I and

Super Net/ll run

with CP/M™,

MP/M" and

CP/Net'". A most

revolutionary

innovation for all

OEMs, distributors,

and system

houses.

The S-100 Revolution

<& ADVANCED /MICRO DIGITAL/

CORPORATION/

FEATURES:

• S-100 IEEE

• 64K of bank select memory

(16K banks)

^ Z-80 CPU at 4 MHZ (no wait)

• Floppy disk controller for

8-inch or 5 '/4-inch drives

• Two serial (RS-232C)

and two parallel I/O ports

• Asynchronous (Super Net/I) or synchronous (Super Net/ll)

operations ... A feature that is

used in network systems

• One year warranty (includes

parts and labor)

For further information call or write:

-N ^S-?-» 3">^> V-' "N>1

14221 Edwards St., Suite 72,

Westminster, CA 92683

(714) 891-9953

Telex: 678-401 TAB IRIN

204 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 265 on Inquiry card.

IMPOSSIBLE!

NO, JUST INCREDIBLE

I6K RamBoar

FOR APPLE II COMPUTERS

Dealer Inquiries Invited

INCREDIBLE IS RIGHT!

If you've considered upgrading your Apple II to 64K you probably have also considered the price. Almost all of our competitions boards are selling for around $200. We are announcing incredible news for Apple owners by offering our 16K RamBoard for only $129.95. SOFTWARE COMPATIBILITY... NO PROBLEM.

Let's face it... all RAM boards give you one thing; 16K more of Random Access Memory. They're all alike in how they install, what they are compatible with and how they operate. The RamBoard is compatible with all Apple II languages and software. The RamBoard enhances the Apple II by allowing larger languages, data bases, and programs. It greatly improves the capabilities of CP/M, PASCAL, FORTRAN, COBOL, and programs like VisiCalc, VisiFile, and any large business or scientific program applications.

COMPARE THE COMPETITION.

The RamBoard offers all that you need to enjoy 64K of user ram in your Apple II at an affordable price. The ConComp RamBoard is constructed with high quality components and utilizes hi-speed dynamic RAM, (200ns). It comes complete with installation and operation instructions, and to make good news better is covered by a One Year Warranty.

NOW IS THE TIME TO BUY. They won't be available from your local dealer at this introductory price (suggested retail $149.95). So before it's impossible order your RamBoard today. To order or form more information please call or write.

ConComp Industries 8338 Center Dr. La Mesa, Calif. 92041 (714) 464-8715

ConComp

Apple II is a trademark ol Apple Computer In VisiCalc is a trademark of Personal Software. Pascal is a trademark of U.C.S.D. Regents, CP/M is a trademark of Digital Research.

le 109 on inquiry card.

industries

Listing 3 continued:

writeln ('"', fname:15, '"', ' contains ', num_vectors:3, i

* vectors and ', num_tuples:3, * tuples.');

writeln ('The data values follow in tuple order:'); writeln;

for i := 1 to num_tuples do begin

for j := 1 to num_vectors do write (matrix[j, i]:10:2); writeln end; writeln end; 1: writeln ('Error. Tuple or vector count not found.'); 2: writeln ('Error. Data not properly terminated.') end { case }

end. { dif_read }

Text continued from page 186: user for a student's name and test scores, and then copying the information into a DIF file.

Listing 2 takes the output DIF file from listing 1 and calculates an average score for each student and a letter grade for each student. Then the program prints the name, average, and letter grade for each student.

Listing 3, in Pascal, reads data from a DIF file into an array and displays the data on a terminal.

A close look at these listings will convince you that using DIF can simplify many programming tasks. Whatever your favorite programming language, try using the DIF format when you write your next program. You'll find the format conve

nient and clear, and you may make your program attractive to a large body of software users who have already stored much of their essential data in the DIF format. The accompanying text box tells you how to obtain additional information about joining the community of programmers who use DIF. ■

For Further Information about DIF

The DIF Clearinghouse coordinates and distributes information about DIF and commercially available programs that use DIF. For information, send a request to the DIF Clearinghouse, POB 527, Cambridge MA 02139. Include $6.00 along with your name, address, and ZIP code.

The DIF Clearinghouse will send you the DIF Technical Specification, providing a more detailed description of the DIF format, as well as current information about programs that support DIF. The clearinghouse will also

send you any updates published during the following year.

The clearinghouse would like to add to its growing list of programs that support DIF. No royalties or fees are charged for using DIF, but the clearinghouse does make three requests of authors of commercially available programs that use DIF.

First, please send a one-page description of your program to the DIF Clearinghouse. Describe what the program does, what computers it runs on, how it uses DIF, and how it can be purchased.

Second, because DIF is a trademark of Software Arts Inc, the "tm" designation must be used if DIF is mentioned in any material you publish about your program. The material also should include the statement "DIF is a trademark of Software Arts Inc."

Finally, if you are unable to test your program with the VisiCalc program, please write the DIF Clearinghouse before advertising your product as supporting DIF. Any program employing DIF should be capable of transferring data to and from the VisiCalc program.

206 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 407 on inquiry card.

The Multi-User Computer With The MmmOST

TheTeleVideo family of multi-user business computer systems brings you the highest job throughput... every user controls a private computer while sharing a common data base!!! The CP/M®t operating system

fCP/M® is a Registered Trademark of Digital Research, Inc. 'MmmOST® is a Registered Trademark of TeleVideo Systems, Inc.

''"Multi-user, multi-task, multi-processor Operating System Technology

opens the window to the largest array of business applications available for microcomputers.

TeleVideo Systems provides the computing solution!

Nationwide service by General Electric Company's Instrumentation and Communication Equipment Service Centers.

PROCESSING

ACCOUNTING

INVENTORY

ideo Systems

__eo Systems, Inc., 1170 Morse Avenue. Sunnyvale, CA 94086 408/745-7760; 800/538-8725 (toll-free outside California)

A Survey of Data-Base

Management Systems for

Microcomputers

Advertisements for data-base management systems (DBMSs) seem more numerous all the time. At first glance, you would expect the advertised systems to perform similar functions. Yet, their prices range from $15 to $1500. What justifies such a price range? What functions do each of these systems actually perform7 Some of them claim to solve almost every problem facing businesses and individuals today. Which problems will the available DBMSs solve? Most of the DBMSs available for large computers have principal goals of providing data integrity, data security, and data independence. Do the DBMSs available for microcomputers meet these same goals?

To answer these questions, we requested information from forty-eight companies that had advertised a DBMS for microcomputers. Our goal was not to judge systems against any preconceived DBMS standard, but rather to develop an overview of each system based on its user manual and compare all the systems feature by feature.

Eighteen companies sent us a user manual, and several included a disk of software as well. The text box on this page lists the names and addresses of these companies with the names of the products.

General Features

Table 1 lists some important gen

Kathryn S Barley

DataWise

POB 426

Windermere FL 32786

James R Driscoll

Department of Computer Science

University of Central Florida

Orlando FL 32816

eral features of the twenty DBMSs, including hardware requirements, prices, available extension packages,

type of data organization, method by which the user enters commands, and language in which the software is

Company

Product

Company

Product

Apple Orchard

The Informer

Micro AP

Selector IV

131 Highland Ave

9827 Davona Dr

Vacaville CA 95688

San Ramon CA

Business Computer

Data Handler

94583

Services Co

Micro Architect

Interactive Data

9020 EBY

96 Dothan St

Manager—IDM-IV,

Overland Park KS

Arlington MA 02174

IDM-M2

66212

Microcomputer

The Microcon

Condor

Condor Series

Technology Inc

ductor

POB 8310

20/DBMS

3304 W MacArthur

Ann Arbor MI 48104

Santa Ana CA 92704

Cromemco

Cromemco Data

Micro Data Base

MDBS

280 Bernardo Ave

Base Manage

Systems, Inc

Mountain View CA

ment System

POB 248

94040

Lafayette IN 47902

Des Moines

Micro Manager

Muse

Micro Informa

Computer

330 N Charles St

tion System

4456 Parklawn Dr

Baltimore MD 21201

Des Moines IA 50321

Personal Software Inc

CCA Data Man

High Technology

Information

1330 Bordeaux Dr

agement System

POB 14665

Master

Sunnyvale CA 94086

Oklahoma City OK

Radio Shack

Profile

73113

700 One Tandy Ctr

Profile II

Innovative Software

Total Informa

Ft Worth TX 76102

9805 Holly

tion Management

Systems Plus

The File Man

Kansas City MO 64114

—TIM

1921 Rock St

agement System

Suite 2

—FMS-80

Jini Micro-Systems Inc

Jinsam 2.0

Mountain View CA

POB 274-K

94043

Bronx NY 10463

The Bottom Shelf

Data Manager

Ken Knecht

Dynamic Data

POB 49104

6 South St, Box 68

Base

Atlanta GA 30359

Milford NH 03055

208 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

mUlTIPROCCJJOR

MIJCAI

das BelasyslfimH

• SIMULTANEOUS Timeshared & Multiprocessor Operation

• FULL UCSD™ PASCAL II Compatibility with IBS™PASCAL, SEMAPHORES, CONCURRENCY, CHAINING, TRUE WORD PROCESSING

• 5, 10, 20, Mbyte FIXED DISK SYSTEMS, 5", 8" FLOPPY DISC SYSTEMS

(415) 443-3131

INDEPENDENT BUSINESS SYSTEMS, Inc. 1328 Concannon Blvd., Livermore, CA 94550

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Figure 1: A visual representation of files in a network data-base management system. The user can move through the network of files. For example, a user positioned at part number 124 in the Parts file can find out all the suppliers of that part by moving through the Supplier-Parts file to the Suppliers file.

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written. The table groups the systems by the kinds of computers on which they run, with the group that runs on the greatest number of computers listed first. With the exception of Condor and Microconductor, all the systems that cost more than $250 will in principle run on any popular small computer. However, requirements for specific hardware (for example, an 8-inch disk drive) or a specific operating system (such as CP/M) may in some cases prevent these DBMSs from running on the smallest model of some personal computers.

Most of the items in table 1 are easy to interpret, but a few require comment.

The extension packages listed in column 8 fall into three categories:

• word processors

• utility programs; for example, programs that rearrange a user's data to conform to a new definition

• statistical packages

We found no extension packages available for applications such as general ledger, inventory, or appointment scheduling, whether in the form of separate programs that use the DBMS's files or batch-command files for use within the system.

In the ninth column, headed Type, the systems that are simplest to understand are the type "file." All the records that can be used at the same time will belong to just one file, and that file constitutes the data base. For example, you might have one file that contains many records, and each of these records could consist of a supplier number, supplier name, address, and phone number.

Type "multifile" systems allow the use of more than one file. A data base of this type could include a file on suppliers, and a second file of records on parts. Each part record could contain a part number, part name, quantity on hand, and quantity on order. To indicate where each part comes from, a third file could be used as a cross-reference. Each record in this third file would contain a supplier number and part number.

A system of the type "relational"

210 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

Circle 214 on inquiry card.

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BOX 274 KINGSBRIDGE STN., RIVERDALE, N.Y. 10463 (212)796-6200

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1

Y

Y

Y

8

?

$900

RTL

QRS/$600

DRS

Network

Type Out

Machine language

FMS-80

2

Y

16

48 K

$750

Multifile

Menu and Type Out

Machine language

Selector IV

2

Y

Y

Comb

48 K

$550

Multifile

Menu and Type Out

CBASIC

TIM

2

Y

Y

Y

Comb

48 K

$400

WordStar

File

Menu

Microsoft BASIC

Condor

3

Y

Y

4

64 K

$695

Relational

Type Out

Z80 Machine language

Data Handler

4

Y

2

32 K

$ 25

File

Menu

Applesoft BASIC Commodore BASIC

CCA

5

Y

?

32 K

$100

File

Menu

Machine language

Microconductor

5

Y

?

32 K

$400

File

Menu and Type Out

Information Mstr

6

Y

2

48 K

$150

Data Master/$100

File

Menu

Applesoft BASIC

The Informer

6

Y

2

16K

$ 50

File

Menu

Micro Info Sys

6

Y

2

48 K

$100

File

Menu

Applesoft BASIC

Jinsam 2.0

7

Y

?

24 K

$195

Mathpack/$40 Statpack/$50 Wordpack/$50 Label Gen/$50

File

Menu

Commodore BASIC; sorts and inputting in machine language

Cromemco

8

Y

Y

4

64 K

$ 95

File

Menu

Cromemco BASIC

Micro Manager

9

Y

Y

Comb

48 K

$249

File

Menu

Data Manager

10

Y

4

32 K

$ 49

File

Menu

Dynamic DB

10

Y

1

32 K

$ 25

File

Menu

IDM-IV

10

Y

—

—

4

32 K

$ 69

—

File

Menu

Radio Shack BASIC; sorts in machine language

IDM-M2

10

—

Y

—

4

64 K

$199

—

File

Menu

Radio Shack BASIC; sorts in machine language

Profile

10

Y

4

16 K

$ 80

File

Menu

Machine language

Profile II

10

Y

4

32 K

$179

Scripsit/$300

File

Menu

Machine language

"Comb" in column 5 means

support for 5-inch

, 8-inch,

or hard disks in combination

1 Any with machine's DOS*

2 Any with CP/M*

3 Z80

4 Apple, PET, TRS-80

5 Apple, TRS-80

6 Apple

7 Commodore PET

8 Cromemco

9 Ohio Scientific 10 TRS-80

•Where any means any one of the following: Cromemco Z80

Apple 6502

TRS-80 8086

8080 North Star

8085 Zilog

Table 1: Some general features of the twenty data-base management systems participating in the survey.

212 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 348 on Inquiry card.

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permits a user to look at information as tables, regardless of how it is actually stored on the disk. For the suppliers and parts information, a relational DBMS could produce tables that look like the files of a multifile system. But in a relational system, these tables might be stored on disk in ways other than one file for each table. Condor, for example, keeps several files for each table. Condor is a limited relational system, but the company plans to release a version that can perform all the commands necessary to qualify as a fully relational system. The names of Condor's commands suit a business environment; for example, the command "POST" will update one table with another.

Systems of the type "network," on the other hand, let the user view the data as a network of files. The suppliers and parts information could be envisioned as shown in figure 1.

The network system allows the user to navigate through the records contained in the Suppliers file or

Parts file with commands such as FIND NEXT RECORD or FIND PREVIOUS RECORD. In addition, a user positioned at a record in the Parts file where the part number is 124 could find the addresses of suppliers of that part by linking through the Supplier-Parts file to the Suppliers file. MDBS qualifies as a full network system. Its extension package, QRS, enables a user with no knowledge of the network navigational paths to query the data base with English-like commands.

The systems in the first three computer groups, types network, relational, and multifile, are the only systems that can access more than one data file at a time. This is important for tasks of the following types:

• Posting from one file to another.

• Printing a report that is made up of fields from more than one file.

• Creating one large list from several smaller ones.

• Producing a list that consists of records that meet certain criteria

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when those criteria are based on requirements from more than one file. For example, producing a list of the names and telephone numbers of suppliers from whom you can purchase a specific part.

According to the "Command Entry Method" column of table 1, some of the systems give the user a menu from which to choose a command, others require the user to type out commands, and a few systems let the user enter commands either way.

Features Related to Ease of Use

Software packages capable of performing amazing feats are worthless if using the software is more difficult than solving the original problem. Table 2 provides information about features that make DBMSs easier to use.

When reading the table, however, keep in mind that a few of the features are unnecessary on some of the DBMSs. One such feature is the ability to customize the DBMS for a specific terminal (column 1). If a DBMS runs only on a TRS-80 Model I, there is no need to customize the software for other terminals. In effect, the DBMS is already customized.

Most features in table 2, however, would benefit users of any system. An example is column 3, "Error Recovery." Error-trapping can prevent a system from crashing when the user tries to enter data of the wrong type. The cause of most crashes is an error the system failed to trap. The user manuals of six systems warn that certain errors in data entry will cause a system crash; six other manuals (question marks in the table) leave the issue in doubt.

But there are also six DBMSs that do provide error-trapping. Some systems provide error-recovery functions to deal with hardware failures, such as loss of power. Some systems allow the user to recapture data entered earlier. MDBS offers extensive error-trapping facilities. The manual devotes 75 pages to explaining the system's error messages.

Should the user of a particular system be a programmer? A "Y" in col

214 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 31 on inquiry card.

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FLEX, a powerful, easy-to-use operating system designed for the 6800 and 6809 microprocessors, includes:

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umn 13 of table 2 shows that the system belongs to one of the following three categories:

• Designed to be used by a programmer. Some systems assume the programmer will modify the system to suit the user's needs. Some of the smallest, least expensive systems (such as Data Handler) are of this

type. Dynamic Data Base, for example, instructs the user to modify the system in order to sort. • Does not require any knowledge of a programming language but is too difficult for a novice to understand. Microconductor and IDM-M2 fall in this category. Their user manuals contain computer jargon that would baffle anyone but a programmer.

• Designed in such a way that only a programmer can benefit from everything the system offers. FMS-80's user manual, for example, has explanations for three different levels: novice, experienced FMS-80 user, and programmer.

A "Y" in column 4, "Programming Language Interface," indicates that

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MDBS

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

N

512

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

FMS-80

Y

Y

Y

N

N

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Selector IV

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

N

N

N

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

TIM

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

N

Y

1

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

N

Condor

Y

N

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

N

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Data Handler

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

CCA

N

N

Crashes

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

N

Microconductor

N

N

?

N

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Information Mstr

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

N

N

Y

Y

Y

N

N

N

The Informer

N

N

7

N

N

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Micro Info Sys

N

N

?

N

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

Y

N

Y

N

Jinsam 2.0

N

Y

Y Pkg Avail

Y

N

Y

3

Y

Y

Y

N

N

N

Cromemco

N

N

Crashes

N

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Micro Manager

N

N

?

N

Y

N

N

1

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

Data Manager

N

Y

Crashes

N

N

N

N

1

N

N

N

N

N

N

Dynamic DB

N

N

Crashes

N

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Y

N

Y

N

IDM-IV

N

N

Crashes

N

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

IDM-M2

N

N

Crashes

N

N

Y

N

2

Y

N

Y

N

Y

N

Profile

N

N

?

Y

N

Y

N

1

N

Y

Y

N

N

N

Profile II

N

Y

?

N

Y

Y

N

4

Y

N

Y

Y

N

N

Table 2: Features of data-base management systems that affect ease of use. In the "Error Recovery" column, "CRASHES" indicates that the user manual said certain errors in data entry would cause the system to "hang" or "crash."

218 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

the system allows a programming language to access the data-base files either directly or through the DBMS. For example, Profile's user manual contains several lines of code to be embedded in a BASIC program, while Jinsam offers an interface package on disk. MDBS can also be embedded in a host language such as BASIC, Pascal, or FORTRAN. This allows a program to access the DBMS with subroutine calls.

By definition, a DBMS hides its method of physical storage from the user. The storage method is said to be "transparent to the user." Some of the manuals, however, have explained how their files are set up. These sys

tems are indicated in column 5.

A user-designed screen (column 6) makes a system both more versatile and more pleasant to use. Normally, the fields of a record are placed one below the other on the screen. But a file may contain too many fields to fit on the screen at one time, preventing the user from simultaneously viewing them all. A screen designed by the user can position fields at any location desired. Several screens can be designed for viewing a record with many fields. Profile II allows characters or lines to divide or highlight portions of the screen, and also supports reversed lettering.

A help command, shown in col

umn 7 of table 2, is often provided by systems that require the user to enter commands, rather than choose from the choices on a menu. In response to the help command, the system produces a list of commands the user might need. Condor allows users to design the help responses. The responses can then include the names of the tables or files the user has specified.

Data security (column 8) is important if more than one person will be using the system, and if only certain persons are allowed to see some parts of the data. Security provisions range from one level of protection, which permits a data disk to be read only

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Circle 71 on inquiry card.

• Largest Intertec distributor in the United States. • Distributor for C. Itoh, MPI, Epson.

• Seagate, Tanden drives.

• Coruus hard disks, multiplexers.

• Superbrain S-100 bus, graphics, and parallel port.

• Software: MicroPro, Accounting Plus, Peachtree, Condor, Benchmark.

CMC International

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 219

with the proper password, to the 512 possible levels of protection offered by MDBS.

Some systems allow alternate views of the same data. For example, a user-designed screen can suppress specific fields from view. This is useful if a clerk's job is to update personnel files, but the employer does not want the clerk to see sensitive figures such as the salaries of other employees.

MDBS assigns each user a password and also a read-access level and write-access level from 0 to 255. A record with a read-access level of 0 can be read by everyone. A readaccess level of 5 prevents viewing by all but those with an access level of 5 or above.

To ensure data integrity, a system must offer protection against accidental or malicious data entry. Profile II provides protected fields in which data, even though it can be seen, cannot be changed. Profile II also offers a limited menu that allows the user to query, print, or update, but prevents creation of files or formats. Condor is

the only system that can accept a range of values for the purpose of validating data entry.

All twenty systems provide a routine to sort or order the data, but column 9 of table 2 shows that only half the systems maintain the data in sorted order. A maintained sort assures that further entries will be inserted in their proper order.

Derived data (column 11) are data produced by operations on other data. Examples of derived data are the sum of a column, the number of records counted, etc. (Table 8c, discussed later, shows the specific derived-data functions each system provides.)

The term "batch" in the last column of table 2 may be unfamiliar to some readers, but the concept is easy to understand. Batch commands are usually offered by systems that require the use of commands rather than providing a menu of choices. Simply stated, a user can write several instructions on the screen and then have them all carried out at once—in a batch. For example, the user can write com

mands on the screen telling the system to read a particular file, select all records in that file in which the state is Florida, list on the printer the names and addresses found in those records, place that same list in a new file, and name the new file FLORIDA. After entering this sequence of commands, the user can take a coffee break while the computer executes the entire sequence.

Defining Data

Table 3 presents information on available methods for defining the data a file is to contain. Most of the systems, as shown in column 2, allow the user to specify the data type of a specific field. Examples of data types are numeric, date, and character. The table abbreviates data types and lists the spelled-out names at the bottom. The calculated-field type means data in the field will be automatically calculated, as specified by the user, from the contents of other fields whenever data are entered or modified in those fields. Only two systems, CCA and TIM, offer this feature. Only one sys

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CENTRONICS

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DATASOUTH

DS120 —$595 DS180 —$1275

DIABLO

630 —$2150 1640 —$2575

DISKETTES

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EPSON

MX80FT —$629 MX100 —$749

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Apple DD Drive — $2740

MODEMS

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Novation-Cat — $155 Penril - 300/1200 (212A) — $795

MONITORS

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MPI

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NEC

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Game Paddles — $19.95

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ZENITH

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DISCOUNT LINE

1-800-528-8960

EXPOTEK CORPORATION INTERNATIONAL

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ARIZONA 1-602-861-3181 I EXPORT TWX-910-950-1194

220 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 169 on inquiry card.

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Circle 125 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

221

tem, FMS-80, allows data fields to field be defined as a key field, and

vary in length. several systems allow more than one

Many of the systems require that a field to be used as a key field. Other

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0)

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51

5<

"D 0)

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MDBS

Y

Int Char B Real Log

in

Y

Y

255

Y

FMS-80

Y

A N

V

Y

Y

255

Y

Selector IV

Y

A N

J G

K U

Y

Y

80

Y

TIM

Y

N C

D $

1 S

N

N

24

Y

Condor

Y

A N

$ J

An

N

N

127

N

Data Handler

N

N

N

0

N

CCA

Y

A N

C

Y

Y

24

Y

Microconductor

Y

A $

% !

#

N

N

20

N

Information Mstr

Y

A N

$

N

N

20

N

The Informer

Y

Y

Y

?

N

Micro Info Sys

Y

Y

N

22

?

Jinsam 2.0

Y

Y

Y

255

Y

Cromemco

Y

A N

N

N

25

?

Micro Manager

Y

Y

N

75

N

Data Manager

Y

A N

Y

Y

10

?

Dynamic DB

Y

A N

N

N

?

N

IDM-IV

Y

A N

Y

Y

20

N

IDM-M2

Y

A N

Y

N

40

N

Profile

Y

N

N

N

Profile II

Y

A N

Dec

Y

Y

N

A Alpha N Number C Calculated J or D Date $ Dollar V Variable

G Date

U or K Key

I Inverted

An Alphanumeric

% ! # Basic lang extension

Dec Decimal

Table 3: Facilities for defining data fields. Systems vary widely in their provisions for defining key fields (to be used for sorting) and in the number of fields allowed. Only six systems permit revising the characteristics of a field without losing previously entered data.

systems allow sorting or searching of any field. Data Handler allows no field definition; an entire record is entered as a stream of characters. Then, to access any particular part of the record as a field, the user must give the beginning column number and a length.

Most of the systems specify a maximum number of fields allowed. This number differs significantly from MDBS's 255 to Data Manager's 10. Though the maximum allowed by IDM-IV is 20, there is also a maximum of 10 alphabetic fields and 10 numeric fields. IDM-IV would not allow, for example, 15 numeric fields. Microconductor limits its fields to 20, but then allows 20 subfields for each of the 20 fields. Many systems restrict the number of fields by the number of characters allowed per record, so the maximum number of fields in any specific file depends on the field length chosen. At the other extreme, Micro Information System always uses 22 fields.

Not surprisingly, the number of records or files allowed depends on the number of disk drives used, the size of the disks, etc.

"Definition Revision," the last column of table 3, refers to revision of field definitions such as length and type. A "Y" in this column indicates that revision is possible after data have been entered and will not cause loss of the previously entered data.

More Than One File at a Time

Systems that can access more than one file at a time usually provide the features included in table 4. With the subfile feature, the user can create a new file from an old one. An example is dividing a long mailing list into shorter lists by state. The user can also combine files or create a new file consisting of selected records from more than one old file. For example, a user might select from two files the names and addresses of widget manufacturers and place the names and addresses in a new file.

Updating Data

Table 5 shows the variations found in facilities for updating data. Some systems bar entry of some specific

222 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 383 on inquiry card.

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They're the real solution to the problems confronting every physician's and dentist's office. Each is a unique package, developed through years of work in close conjunction with doctors and dentists. They'll help you treat your patients more efficiently and accurately, while saving you time and money in the process.

Versatility.

Whether you are in private practice or a member of a busy group, there's sufficient capacity to handle your needs. Thousands of patients can be accommodated on floppies, and even more on hard disk. MicroMed and MicroDent can easily handle everything in your practice from billing to patient records to complex insurance forms. With millions of hours of actual use in medical and dental offices throughout the country, they stand alone at the top, in a class by themselves.

Solutions, not more problems.

We know you're after solutions, not more problems. Our menus are simplicity itself, and are designed for your convenience (not our programmers'). The computer displays your options at every step. What could be simpler? Your own office staff can easily take care of the routine so that you can devote your valuable time to your patients.

You are the boss.

Forget about problems with outside billing services or manual record-keeping. You exercise absolute control over your billing procedures. Fingertip patient recall lets you know instantly whose accounts are due and what services were performed. Account aging is automatic, and past-due notices or statements are printed and addressed, ready for mailing. All types of reports may be requested to help you better understand your finances and cash flow. Daily backups are created automatically.

Multiple Insurance Forms.

Many patients have several different types of insurance coverage. With MicroMed and MicroDent you can enter almost any form, keep track of which patients it applies to, and get it processed and ready for mailing. When new forms come out (as we all know they will) you don't have to pay for custom programming, you can modify the form print format yourself. With our exclusive Formulator™ system it takes just minutes.

Economic Spnsc

The biggest surprise of all is that MicroMed and MicroDent are just $1500 each. Plus, having your own office computer provides you with great tax advantages. If you like what you see, contact your nearest computer store. They can provide you with MicroMed or MicroDent on any CP/M® based computer for an amazingly economical price. Or, if you already have a computer, a demo disk and manual set is available for just $75, and allows you to run the entire program. The manual separately is $50. Send for one today, and make your practice perfect!

Features:

• Automatic billing for any patient load

• Handles practices with up to 20 doctors

• Accepts all insurance forms

• Exclusive "Formulator" form system

• Multiple insurance coverage

• Insurance preauthorization

• Automatic statements with aging

• Instant access to patient records

• Full transaction and treatment details

• Cumulative totals by doctor

• Profitability analysis reports

• Mailing list maintenance

• Can be linked to word-processing

• Appointment recall with reminders

• Maintains hospital and lab codes

• Keeps track of referring doctor codes

Demo disk and manual set $75!

Dealerships are available to established computer vendors on a territorial basis.

MWW Booth A-86

' November 19-22.1981 Las Vegas Convention Center. Las Vegas, NV

"MicroMed, MicroDent, and Formulator are trademarks of SoftwareHows^ »CP/M is a registered trademark ol Digital Research Copyright «1981. SofntiareHouus

P.O. Box 36275, Los Angeles, CA 90036 (213) 731-0876 . TWX: 910-321-2378

characters as data; those characters are listed in column 1.

All systems let the user update one record at a time, but column 2 shows that only seven systems provide a method for simultaneously updating all records that meet specified criteria. Adding $5 to all records with a balance less than zero is a task that would require this multirecord capability. Data Handler has a process called "Mass Update." First, a column and length are specified as a field. Then, for each sequential record in turn, the user can enter a replacement

value for that field. This is not an automatic multirecord update, however, because the user must change each record one at a time.

To speed data update and entry, TIM, Jinsam, Selector IV, Information Master, and FMS-80 permit onekey copying of data from a previous record's field.

Criteria for Selecting Records

A selection criterion is a rule against which a record can be tested to see if it qualifies for selection. The selection criterion can be simple and

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straightforward, such as "Part# > 124." On the other hand, the selection criterion can be complex: "Part# > 124 AND Part# < > 130 OR Part-name = widget." Relational systems usually permit the user to specify that the value in a field of one file match the value in a field of another file. Multifile systems pro

'

<*

3 CO

Combination of Files

MDBS

Y

Y

FMS-80

Y

Y

Selector IV

Y

Y

TIM

Y

N

Condor

Y

Y

Data Handler

N

Y

CCA

N

N

Microconductor

N

N

Information Mstr

N

N

The Informer

N

N

Micro Info Sys

N

N

Jinsam 2.0

N

N

Cromemco

N

N

Micro Manager

N

N

Data Manager

N

N

Dynamic DB

N

N

IDM-IV

N

N

IDM-M2

N

N

Profile

N

N

Profile II

N

N

Table 4: Facilities for accessing more than one file at a time. Only five systems can make a new file from part of an old file, and only five can combine old files or parts of old files to make a new file.

224 Novtmbtr 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 245 on inquiry card.

The World's First Macro Computer

mr ■■"

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The Parallel Processing® System/48® is the world's first MacroComputer®, an elegantly powerful and modular multi-user computer for business and industry. It was designed from the start to out-perform other computer systems at three or more times its price. The operating system software is so friendly, versatile and fast that it's called MAGIC®.

In addition to outstanding new capabilities, MAGIC'S interface translator allows instant access to a large number of standard languages and applications for GL, AR, AP, PR, Inventory, Financial Planning, Fixed Assets, Property Management, Prospect Management, Order Entry, Word Processing and a host of others. DataMaglc II® is provided with the System/48, for comprehensive database management . . . and it makes new application programming a simple joy.

Whether it's 2 or 3 users, or 128, MAGIC exhibits exceptional performance with transactional disk back-up to cartridge or 9track tape; full access security; logical partitioning of tasks and users; fast Multi-Key ISAM access to multiple disks in each node (10-250 Mbytes); 1-16 Workstations and Task Processors in each node; up to 16 nodes; local and central printers for both word and data processing; remote Workstations and nodes; communications; real-time calendar and clock; and exceptional reliability because of its modularity and redundancy of software and hardware. Circle 405 on Inaulrv card.

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And that's the whole point! You can get exactly the performance and configuration needed now and it can expand easily to meet future needs, taking advantage of the technology revolution. Large or small, real-time, batch or mixed, there's a System/48 that's just right for the job.

If you haven't seen our Parallel Processing System/48 MacroComputer in ACTION, then seeing is believing! See your local dealer today for the full story. Or call Jim Knepton now at (713) 738-2300 and he'll explain how you can have your own private showing . . . and how easy and profitable it can be for you and your business.

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» COPYRIGHT TEI. INC. 1981 • REGTM OF TEI. INC. 1981

Circle 306 on inquiry card.

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Pascal Sourcebooks™ contain completely commented and annotated source listings and machine readable bar code texts**" of well designed, clearly written UCSD Pascal* programs. Use the programs "as is", or modify and customize them to your own personal tastes. Either way, you gain a practical working library available nowhere else. Hlo Syitim: Interrogate directories from application programs in order to select existing flies or create new files interactively...

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vide the latter capability with the use of batch commands.

Table 6 shows that all systems but one use selection criteria to specify conditions on at least one field. All but four systems allow a user to request that more than one field meet given criteria. Most of the systems

permit a user to search for a record falling within a specified range. Most systems also allow the user to enter only a substring of the desired field value. For example, "Smi" would return "Smith " as well as "Smiley." But only six systems allow you to ask if a field contains nothing at all. This

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CD

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CD

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CD

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CD

■a

CD

CO

a.

3

-o a>

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cd-a

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® o

MDBS

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

FMS-80

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Selector IV

Y

Y

N

Y

N

Y

TIM

Y

N

Y

N

N

N

Condor

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Data Handler , ;

Y

N

N

N

N

N

CCA

Y

N

Y

N

N

N

Microconductor

Y

N

Y

Y

N

N

Information Mstr

Y

Y

N

N

N

Y

The Informer , : " '

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Micro Info Sys

Y

Y

N

N

N

Y

Jinsam 2.0 , : " ,'

' * Shift Y

N

N

N

N

N

Cromemco

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Micro Manager

Y

Y

N

N

N

N

Data Manager

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

Dynamic DB

Y

N

N

N

N

N

IDM-IV

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

IDM-M2

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

Profile

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Profile II

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Table 5: Facilities for updating data. Seven systems provide a method for simultaneously updating all records that meet specified criteria (column 3).

226 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Software prices for hardnosed

• • t

MICRO PRO

APPLE CP/M®

WORD STAR" 259.00

SUPER SORT- 145.00

MAIL MERGER- 90.00

DATA STAR- 215.00

SPELL STAR- 195.00

S-100 CP/M®

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SUPER SORT 195.00

MAIL MERGER 110.00

DATA STAR 245.00

SPELL STAR 195.00

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SNOGGLE (REQ. JOYSTICK) 27.95

ALIEN TYPHOON 20.95

APPLE PANIC 24.95

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INVASION ORION 20.95

STAR WARRIOR 32.95

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DESKTOP PLAN II 159.00

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OLYMPIC DECATHLON 24.95

S-100 CP/M®

BASIC 80 299.00

BASIC COMPILER 319.00

FORTRAN 80 399.00

COBOL 80 599.00

PEACHTREE

APPLE CP/M,S

GENERAL LEDGER 219.00

ACCT. RECEIVABLE 219.00

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PAYROLL 219.00

INVENTORY 219.00

S-100 CP/M®

GENERAL LEDGER 595.00

ACCT. RECEIVABLE 595.00

ACCT. PAYABLE 595.00

PAYROLL 595.00

INVENTORY 595.00

PROPERTY MGMT 799.00

CPA CLIENT WRITE-UP 799.00

APPLE BUSINESS SOFTWARE

MAGIC WINDOW 79.00

DB MASTER (NEW) 179.00

PFS: PERSONAL FILING SYS 84.00

PFS: REPORT 84.00

Z-TERM • 79.95

ASCII EXPRESS 63.95

HAYDEN APPLESOFT COMPILER 149.00

EASY WRITER-PRO 199.00

S-100 SOFTWARE

d BASE II 599.00

SUPER CALC 249.00

MAGIC WAND 279.00

SPELLGUARD 239.00

PICKLES AND TROUT CP/M' MOD. IITRS-80. .175.00

EDU-WARE

PERCEPTION PKG 19.95

COMPU-READ 24.95

STORY TELLER 18.95

COMPU-MATH: ARITHMETIC 39.95

COMPU-MATH: FRACTIONS 34.95

COMPU-MATH: DECIMALS 34.95

COMPU-SPELL(REQ. DATA DISK) 24.95

COMPU SPELL DATA DISKS 1-4,ea 17.95

TRS-80 GAMES

TEMPLE OF APSHAI 34.95

HELLFIRE WARRIOR 34.95

STAR WARRIOR 34.95

RESCUE AT RIGEL 24.95

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•REQUIRES Z-80 SOFTCARD

IF YOU DON'T SEE IT, CALL US. WE HAVE ALL THE LATEST SOFTWARE.

We built a reputation on our prices and your satisfaction.

We guarantee everything we sell lor 30 days. II anything is wrong, just return the item and we'll make it right And, ol course, well pay the shipping charges.

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Please add $2.00 lor standard UPS shipping and handling on orders under 50 pounds, delivered in the continental U.S. Call us lor shipping charges on items lhat weigh more than 50 pounds Foreign. FP0 and APO orders please add 15% lor shipping California residents add 6% sales tax.

(213)7060333

31245 La Baya Drive, Westlake Village, California 91362

The prices quoted are only valid lor stock on hand and all prices are subject to change without notice

CP/M1' is a registered trademark of Digital Research. Circle 15 on inquiry card.

Circle 459 on inquiry card.

from Ren Tec

The Wedge

• Fully emulates all features of the NEC

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• 32K RAM card included; also capable of

handling another 32K RAM = 96K of RAM

• 16 levels of interrupt capability

• NEC PC-8012A bus structure is imple

mented. ■ Attaches easily to the bottom of the NEC PC-8001A.

Ren Tec Wedge $595.00

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Ren Tec Wedge 179.00

32K Memory Board

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DEALER INQUIRES WELCOME

RENAISSANCE TECHNOLOGY ^CORPORATION

3347 VINCENT ROAD PLEASANT HILL, CA 94523 (415)930-7707

228 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

facility could be used to determine Predefined Queries

which records have not been up- Some systems let you define a

dated, to find errors, or to print only query, name it, and use it repeatedly

records that contain data in a par- by calling its name; table 7 shows

ticular field. which systems provide this facility. A

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Y

Y

Y

No limit

Y

Y

Y

N

FMS-80

Y

Y

Y

No limit

Y

Y

Y

Y

Selector IV

Y

Y

Y

10

Y

Y

Y

Y

TIM

Y

Y

Y

?

N

Y

Y

Y

Condor

Y

Y

N

32

Y

Y

Y

?

Data Handler

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

CCA

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

N

Microconductor

Y

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

Information Mstr

Y

Y

Y

6

N

Y

Y

Y

The Informer

Y

Y

N

N

?

Y

N

Micro Info Sys

Y

Y

N

|

N

N

Y

Y

Jinsam 2.0

Y

Y

Y

# of fields

N

Y

Y

N

Cromemco

Y

Y

N

N

Y

N

N

Micro Manager

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

N

Data Manager

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

N

Dynamic DB

Y

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

IDM-IV

Y

Y

N

|

N

Y

N

N

IDM-M2

Y

Y

Y

4

N

Y

Y

N

Profile

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

N

Profile II

Y

Y

N

N

Y

Y

N

Table 6: The kinds of criteria by which data-base management systems can select records. Most systems allow the user to search for a record that falls within a certain numerical or alphabetical range. Only four systems allow you to select from multiple files all the records that meet a set of conditions ("Multifile/Set Conditions").

Circle 316 on inquiry card.

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query is usually, though not necessarily, displayed on the terminal screen, while a report is usually printed on paper with titles, etc. A predefined query thus permits periodic viewing of a list of records meeting a specific requirement, such as past due accounts, by entering all

the information only the first time the query is used. A few systems limit the number of predefined queries a user can keep.

Column 3 of table 7 shows which systems allow a predefined query for which the user can enter a value at the time the query is used. That value

might be the date that identifies an account as past due. Such a query could be used through the year, but with a different date each month.

Producing Reports

Reporting capabilities vary widely from system to system. In order to

MDBS

FMS-80

Selector IV

TIM

Condor

Data Handler N

CCA

Microconductor

—-.

Intormation Mstr

§■

15

N

The Informer

Y

N.

Micro Info Sys

N

N

Jinsam 2.0

Y

N

Cromemco

N

N

Micro Manager

N

N

Data Manager

N

N

Dynamic DB

N

N.

IDM-IV

N

N

IDM-M2

N

N

Profile

N

N, <

Profile II

Y

5

N

Table 7: Facilities for predefined queries. It is a real convenience to be able to define and name a query, and then repeat the query without reentering its parameters.

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MDBS

Y

Y

?

Y

FMS-80

Y

Y

255

Y

Selector IV

N

Y

?

Y

TIM

N

Y

?

N

Condor

Y

Y

?

Y

Data Handler

N

0

N

;,

CCA

N

Y

: 20',/

N

Microconductor

Y

Y

:'■■■■>

N

Information Mstr

M

Y

; 15

N

The Informer

Y

Y

?

N

Micro Info Sys

N

Y

3

N

Jinsam 2.0

N

Y

Unlimited

N

Cromemco

N

N

0

N

Micro Manager

N

N

0

N

Data Manager

N

Y

?

N

Dynamic DB

Y

N

0

N

IDM-IV

Y

Y

10

N

IDM-M2

N

Y

10

N

Profile

N

Y

1

N

Profile II

N

Y

5

N

Table 8a: General facilities for generating reports. Few systems can generate reports from multiple files. The ability to use predefined formats to generate reports from multiple files permits rapid production of complex reports.

230 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

For years many small business system buyers thought that in order to get "real" performance and enough storage to be a "real" business system they would have to sacrifice the family jewels.

But with the introduction of the Smoke Signal Chieftain series office computers a lot of people's minds have been changed.

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At a time when other small computer manufacturers tell you "you're on your own", Smoke Signal offers an abundance of easy-to-use software programs such as order entry, inventory control,

accounts receivable, invoice entry, payroll, word processing and much, much more. There's BASIC, COBOL and FORTRAN — even a multi-user BOS (Business Operating System) that allows for numerous users simultaneously.

Chieftain systems starting at under $200.00 per month display performance on par with systems costing twice to three times as much.

So call (213) 889-9340 for your nearest authorized Smoke Signal dealer demonstrate the Chieftain's high reliability and

ease of Operation. For dealers only, circle 382

All other inquiries, circle 474

he'll be glad to

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discuss the features listed in tables 8a through 8c, consider a hypothetical system having all those features. Such a system would allow a user to define a report format. The user could give the report a title, column headings, insert a paragraph of text, specify that some fields should print in ascending order, and that, within that ordering, other fields should print in

descending order.

The user could set the column widths, justify the margins, print a sample record to help line up the form on a printer, specify the number of lines to skip between each record, specify a break when a certain field changes value, and then print subtotals or perform any of several statistical or mathematical functions.

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MDBS

Y

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

N

Y

FMS-80

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Selector IV

Y

Y

?

?

?

?

?

?

?

7

?

Y

Y

TIM

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Condor

Y

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

Y

Data Handler

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

CCA

Y

N

N

Y

N

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

Y

Y

Microconductor

Y

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

Information Mstr

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

N

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

Y

The Informer

Y

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

Y

Y

N

N

N

Micro Info Sys

N

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

Jinsam 2.0

Y

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

N

Cromemco

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Y

N

Micro Manager

Y

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

Y

Y

N

Y

N

Data Manager

N

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

Dynamic DB

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

IDM-IV

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

IDM-M2

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Profile

Y

Y

N

Y

N

Y

N

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Profile II

Y

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

N

N

N

Y

Y

Y

Table 8b: Facilities

for formatting reports

Anadex Printer Distributors

NORTHWEST (Oregon, Washington, W. Idaho) Sigma Distributing

Bellevue , WA (206) 454-6307

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA Basic Electronic Distributors

Santa Clara, CA (408) 727-1800

Terminal Rentals

San Jose. CA (408) 292-9915

Byte Industries

Hayward. CA (415) 783-8272

Computerland

San Leandro, CA (415) 895-9363

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Basic Electronic Distributors

Inglewood.CA (213) 673-4300; San Diego, CA (714) 268-8000

Terminal Rentals

Tustin.CA (714)832-2414

SOUTHWEST

(Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas. W. Louisiana)

Barnhill Associates. Inc.

Richardson, TX (214) 231-2573;

Houston, TX (713) 688-9971; Austin. TX (512) 451-0217

ROCKY MOUNTAIN STATES (Colorado. Wyoming. Montana, Utah. E. Idaho. Arizona, New Mexico) Barnhill Associates, Inc.

Englewood, CO (303) 779-3600; Scottsdale, AZ (602) 947-7841; Albuquerque, NM (505)299-7658: Murray. UT (801) 262-3000

MIDWEST (Illinois, Missouri. Kansas, Nebraska,

N. Dakota, S. Dakota, Minnesota, Indiana, W. Kentucky,

Iowa, Wisconsin)

Tek-Aids, Inc.

Arlington Heights. IL(312) 870-7400

Comtel Corporation

Chicago. IL (312) 539-4838; St. Louis, MO (314) 428-5508

Shawnee Mission, KS(913) 722-1030: Minneapolis, MN

(612)835-3060; Indianapolis. IN (317)253-1681:

Cedar Rapids, IA (319) 377-9434:

Brookfield, Wl (414) 786-1940

NORTHEAST (Connecticut. Vermont. Massachusetts,

Maine, Rhode Island, New Hampshire)

Pat Jenks Associates

North Haven, CT(203)239-6201;

Woburn, MA(617) 938-0488

Microamerlca Distributors

Needham, MA (617) 449-4310

NEW YORK METROPOLITAN AREA Logon, Inc.

Fort Lee, N J (201) 224-6911 / (212) 594-8202

MID-ATLANTIC STATES (Maryland. Washington, DC. Virginia. W. Virginia, E. Pennsylvania. S. New Jersey)

Micro Distributors, Inc.

Rockville. MD(301) 468-6450 Plymouth Meeting, PA (215)265-1600

SOUTHEAST STATES (Louisiana, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, N. Carolina, S. Carolina) Currie, Peak & Frazler, Inc. Huntsville, AL (205) 536-1506; Orlando, FLA (305) 855-0843; Greensboro, NC (919) 273-3040

CANADA

Nelma Electronics Ltd.

Mississauga, Ont. (416) 624-0334

A

RnadGx

TT.the plus in printers

232 Novembtr 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

Circle 24 on inquiry card.

The important plus in matrix printers:

T

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Since their introduction in mid-1980, the Anadex high- I resolution DP-9500 Series matrix printers have set new t standards for printer quality and performance. All | models feature the rugged Anadex 9-wire print head > that combines long life with resolutions of 72 dots/inch f vertical and up to 75 dots/inch horizontal. Wilh this kind ( of resolution, fineline graphics (under data source control) and razor sharp characters are pluses built into < every printer. I

Performance Plus ,

The full standard ASCII 96 character set, with de- j

scenders and underlining of all upper and lower case ;

letters, is printed bi directionally, with up to 5 crisp copies, at speeds up to 200 CPS. Models DP-9500 and DP-9501 offer 132/158/176 and 132/165/198/220 columns '

respectively. Print densities are switch- or data-source selectable from 10 to 16.7 characters/inch. All characters can be printed double-width under communications command.

Interface Plus

Standard in all models are the three ASCII compatible interfaces (Parallel, RS-232-C, and Current Loop). Also standard is a sophisticated communications interface to control Vertical Spacing, Form Length and Width, Skip Over Perforation, Auto Line Feed, X-On/Off, and full point-to-point communications.

Features Plus

As standard, each model features forms width adjustment from 1.75 to 15.6 inches, shortest-distance sensing, full self-test, 700 character FIFO buffer (with an additional 2048 characters, optional), and a quickchange, 6 million character life ribbon.

Quality Plus

Beyond the built-in performance of the grafixPLUS series printers, the engineered-in quality and support are equally important. The result? Approval of both UL and FCC, Class A; operating noise levels under 65dbA; and a nationwide service organization second to none.

To see for yourself why the grafixPLUS printers offer more pluses for your printing dollar, contact us today.

the plus in printers

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A user could even print a column for which there is no data stored. For example, the system might allow, for each record, that the second column be multiplied by the third and the result put in a new fourth column.

The system might then print grand totals in yet another column.

The user could specify record numbering, choose to have footings printed on each page, and use information from several files. A user

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MDBS

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

FMS-80

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Selector IV

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Y

Y

?

TIM

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

?

Condor

Y

N

Y

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

N

Y

N

Data Handler

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

CCA

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Y

Microconductor

Y

N

Y

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Information Mstr

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

Y

Y

The Informer

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Micro Info Sys

D

N

• N

N

N

D

D

N

D

N

N

Y

Jinsam 2.0

(2)

(2)

(2)

(2)

(2)

(2)

Y

(2)

(2)

N

(2)

Y

Cromemco

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Micro Manager

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Data Manager

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Dynamic DB(1)

D

D

N

N

N

N

N

N

D

N

Y

N

IDM-IV

Y

Y

N

N

N

N

Y

N

Y

Y

N

Y

IDM-M2

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Profile

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Profile II

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N '

N

Y

(1) Not printed; displays on screen for 15 seconds

(2) Stat and Mathpack Available D Display only {not printed)

Table 8c: Facilities for deriving new data from existing records to create a report. Only MDBS and TIM can derive statistics, although finsam offers an extension package for statistics.

could save all these specifications in a predefined report format and use the format every month without reentering the specifications.

Tables 8a through 8c show that several systems offer many of these features, but some systems offer only a few.

Some of the less expensive systems have excellent report generators. Note in the tables all the features Information Master offers. More expensive systems provide multifile report capabilities. Selector IV, for example, can report on up to 80 fields from as many as six files. TIM has its own built-in text editor that allows you to prepare form letters, checks, invoices, and the like. Profile II and Jinsam encourage the use of their wordprocessing packages in conjunction with their DBMSs. This combination enables the user to personalize form letters.

Conclusion

We caution the reader against basing a buying decision solely upon the information in this article. Though we have attempted to show where these DBMSs differ and what functions they perform, a report as compact as this can present only a limited amount of information.

Of course, these twenty systems do not include all software packages advertised as DBMSs. Several new packages are currently being marketed, as are upgraded versions of some of these twenty. We believe that a potential buyer, by studying these tables, can determine which features he or she considers most important and then seek a system that offers those features.

Attempts are being made to provide integrity, security, and data independence in data-base management systems for microcomputers. Even the smaller systems have provided a feature here and there that works toward these three goals. MDBS appears to have come close to achieving all three. For software as young as data-base management systems, and hardware as young as microcomputers, the achievement of Micro Data Base Systems, Inc, is impressive. ■

234 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

PL/I-80™: Not for beginners*

For internal savings, product capabilities, code speed and upward compatibility- How PL/I-80 meets these criteria is making software news.

MC is a successful company selling business applications to first time users.

MC switched from a popular but less efficient language. MC benefits from these PL/I-80 (ANSI Subset G) features. • Fast design with picture specifications for output. • Easy data retrieval with BT-80™ file manager. • Improved performance with LINK-80™ loading of disk resident overlays. • Small, fast programs with optimized object code and no interpreter.

Specific examples of PL/I-80's speed, memory conservation, error checking, and control in the business environment are cited.

In a candid interview, Mr. Charles Russell. MC's president, discusses his professional programming needs.

Jfc Mr. Russell distinguishes. "PL/I-80 isn't a panacea. It's a programmer's language, ideal for the experienced programmer. Just as PASCAL and BASIC are good for beginners."

Worldwide market exposure of your products and company through your listing in our CP/M" Compatible Software Catalog; news affecting your business in a free subscription to ISV FORUM; plus comprehensive seminars comprise our ISV Support Plan for those who write applications under CP/M.

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COMMAND SUMMARY

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Europe: Vector. Intl., Leuven. Belgium. 32(16)202496

Far East: Microsoft ware Assoc. Tokyo. Japan. 03-403-2120

CP/M is a registered trademark of Digital Research, lite. PL 1-80. BT-80 ar LINK-80 are trademarks ofDigltal Research. Inc.

Copyright 1981. Digital Research. Ine.

Circle 141 on Inquiry card.

md

PDQ: A Data Manager for Beginners

Don't Reinvent the Wheel

Paul Swanson

97 Jackson St

Cambridge MA 02140

Floppy-disk drives are fantastic devices to add to a computer. They hold more information and are faster and more reliable than cassette tapes or other data-management systems. For the sophisticated personal user, they are essential, but managing the amount of data they hold presents a problem—especially if you are trying to do the programming yourself. This article presents the PDQ Key-File System, a data-management method that offers a good compromise between speed of data retrieval and ease of programming.

Basic Techniques

Fortunately, a large amount of literature is available that will allow you to select some elegantly simple data-management techniques without reinventing the wheel. The easiest way to use a floppy disk is to store data in sequential files (see glossary, page 260, for definitions of italicized words) and use the disk as if it were a cassette tape. With a little modification, any program that works with cassettes will work faster by using a disk, but it will not take advantage of the disk's ability to access any portion of the file almost immediately.

Random-access files are the next

step toward sophisticated data storage. Using this system, you can divide your data into records and read any of the records in any order; it's not necessary to read through half the file to get to one record in the middle. You can modify the file by reading just one record, changing its contents, then rewriting just that one record. You leave the rest of the file alone.

After working with random-access files for awhile, you will notice some annoyances. The one real problem is that records are stored by number. In order to find a record, you must know the right number. There are, however, ways around this: some techniques sort the file by arranging the records in order according to the data in each record.

When all the records in the file are sorted, a searching technique, usually binary search, must still be used to find the desired record. Sorting takes an enormous amount of time, which is another drawback to the randomaccess method.

Out of frustration, you may "invent" a way to store the name by which you want to find a record in an array in memory, along with the number of the record. Sorting this array in memory is much faster than

sorting the entire file, and it gives you an ordered index to the file, but it still takes a long time.

The Key to Managing Data

Reading about data-management techniques may lead you to try other methods, such as direct hashing (which is a good method, but allows no way to put the file in alphabetical order—an obvious disadvantage if the data you are managing contains people's names). The end of your search, if you are persistent and selective (see the list of recommended reading on page 262), may be the keyfile system. This system normally requires an extra disk file (called the key file) to store the names by which you want to refer to the records (the names are called keys). The basic advantage of the key file is that it is smaller than the record file and is, therefore, faster to search through.

There are two drawbacks to using a key file. The first is that it requires two files instead of just one. The first file stores the keys and the other file stores the records. The second drawback is the same as the one involving a random-access file: there still must be some way to find the key in the key file.

236 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

For 5 years, we've been introducing people to the biggest names in small computers.

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Circle 98 on Inquiry card.

(la)

f START J

LET UPPER LIMIT < THE NUMBER OF RECORDS IN THE FILE

LET LOWER LIMIT =0

LET RECORD NO.' THE AVERAGE OF UPPER LIMIT AND LOWER LIMIT

GET THE RECORD NAME INDICATED BY RECORD NO.

IS THE RECORD

NAME > THE I

NAME DESIRED I I

IS THE RECORD )

NAME < THE I

NAME DESIRED j

LET UPPER LIMIT' RECORD NO.

(lb)

—<^

3 \._

YES

Tno

LET LOWER LIMIT' RECORD NO.

THE NAME DESIRED HAS BEEN FOUND

f END J

Many different methods offer solutions to the second drawback, finding the key. One method sorts the key file. Another technique loads the key file into a large string array in memory, then sorts the string array. But that has the same speed drawbacks as sorting the record file in the first place. Hashing methods are also used, and they too have a drawback: there is no way to get the keys back in alphabetical order.

Another method involves saving a few of the keys in the file in alphabetical order, then using one of a variety of methods to load the file into memory in some semblance of alphabetical order.

Key-file systems generally require an enormous amount of programming. I have one, which I use often, that takes four or five pages, depending on the version, to list. For most applications on microcomputers, this much code is not necessary.

The PDQ Key-File System does not require an extra file for the keys. It stores all of the keys, and information required for finding them, on disk, with the records in the record file. It is also shorter to program than other key-file systems. Listing the fundamental routines requires less than two pages. The system is slower than a good separate key-file program, but it is fast enough for applications that require hundreds of records (as opposed to thousands of records).

RECORD

INVENTORY

SPOIL

NUMBER

NAME

NUMBER

QUANTITY

DATE

10

ZUCCHINI

10553

12000

9/21

9

POMEGRANATES

09631

353

8/17

8

PEACHES

0B377

726

8/22

7

OLIVES

40163

68

8/22

6

MANGOES

80192

12

9/03

5

LETTUCE

03926

497

9/12

4

KUMQUATS

67167

521

9/21

3

GRAPES

11131

331

8/27

2

BANANAS

41791

192

9/17

1

ARTICHOKES

10767

226

9/15

Figure 1: Conducting a binary search through a sorted file. The flowchart for the binary search is given in figure la. In order for this searching technique to work, it must operate on a sorted file, as shown in figure lb. Figure lb is a sample of the type of information needed for the produce inventory of a market. (Most files will not be this small.)

Basic Binary Search

The PDQ method is loosely based on the same principles used in the binary search. (Binary searching requires a sorted file, but this file will not be sorted.) To understand how the PDQ system works, see the binary search example of a supermarket produce inventory shown in figure 1. Locating a record in a sorted file using the binary search involves dividing ranges of records in half. Using the flowchart of the binarysearch algorithm, let's try searching through a file of 10 records for the record named "peaches."

Set the upper limit to 11 (10 plus 1). Set the lower limit to zero. The variable record no. is the average of upper limit and lower limit (6 for the

238 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

KB

The 5000 SX with:

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One integrated package can contain two double sided, double track density floppies plus a 5.5 megabyte Winchester drive.

Speed: Load 20K in Less Than a Second

Not only does our high performance Winchester subsystem include error detection with automatic error correction, its extreme speed is comparable to that of large main frame hard disk systems.

A 20K program loads in less than one second, about 10 to 12 times as fast as a floppy.

We invite comparison with our competitors' Winchester implementation then you will see how a truly engineered solution speeds up your application programs.

Extras: You'll Be Glad You Have Them

The 5000 SX comes standard with lots of extras, starting with a fully terminated S100 mother board. Add to that 64K dynamic RAM modules, with parity, of course, and receptacles for your CRTand Printer that turn on with the main power switch.

Plus, convenient up front power reset switch, incoming power line filter and much more.

Software:

Operating Systems: CP/M, MP/M,

TurboDOS

Languages: BASIC, FORTRAN, COBOL

Application Packages: FMS-80,

WORDSTAK, Accounting Plus, all

tailored to operate on the 5000 SX.

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There isn't room on this page to even scratch the surface of the IMS International story.

However, our 2-year warranty is a dead giveaway that we produce rugged, top quality, professional equipment. We do things right the first time so they don't come back to us.

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Circle 193 on Inquiry card.

first pass, if you round up). Load this record, "mangoes," into memory. "Mangoes" is not greater than "peaches," it is less; so we set the lower limit to 6 and loop back to recalculate record no., but with the limits 6 and 11.

This is how the binary-search method divides the file in half. The number of records to search through has been narrowed down to about five, instead of the 10 we started with. The next loop will look at the record whose number is 9 (the average of the new limits). When this

record's name, "pomegranates," is compared with "peaches," the limits will become 6 and 9. This process of dividing the number of records to search continues until "peaches" is found, or until there are no more records to search (ie: upper limit is equal to lower limit plus one), which means that the record is not in the file.

PDQ Key-File System

As I have mentioned, the PDQ Key-File System uses a modified version of binary searching based on a

Data communications can open up a whole new world to you and your computer. A world of the future. Now. A world full of information resources, time-sharing computer systems, and electronic 'bulletin boards.'' Ail you need for admission to this world Is your CP/M-based computer, a modem, and the proper software. That's where we come in. We have the proper software. CROSSTALK,"1 our smart terminal & tile transfer program for CP/M, allows you to call into thousands of dial-up computer systems around the world, and communicate with them. REMOTE, our CP/M remote console program, allows you to operate your CP/M system from a remote terminal, giving your computer added flexibility and usefulness.

CROSSTALK

• Allows your computer and modem to communicate with other computers, including other CROSSTALK systems, public-access "bulletin board'' systems, main frame computers, subscription "Information utilities" such as THE SOURCE,'" and much more.

• Simple, easy to use "plain English" command structure makes CROSSTALK easy lo learn, yet provides a powerlul tool for exchanging files, capturing data, and controlling modem parameters.

• Concurrent printer and video allows you lo print data while viewing II on Ihe CRT

• Fully error-checked file transfers using 16 bit CRC protocol. Protocol transfers allow exchanging files which are larger than the system s memory.

• Built in "DIR" command.

• Data capture allows saving received data onlo your disk

• Auto-dial, redial. and auto-answer (if supported by modem).

Available for the following modems: Hayes 80-103a

Hayes Smartmodem"

Hayes Micromodem 100'"

PMMI Communications MM-103

Hayes Micromodem II" tor the Apple II"

Any RS-232 modem, including 1200 baud modems

REMOTE

• Allows remote use of your computer Irom a remote terminal location

• May be called as a subroutine Irom BASIC. PASCAL, or any other program lo allow answering under program control

• Provides nulls if needed lor printing terminals.

• Uses less than 1 k ol memory space.

• Automatically selects proper baud rate.

■ Available for S-100 modems (Hayes and PMMI) only.

For details, see your computer retailer, or contact us directly. IhrWiL-iilur Microstuf. Inc. 1—MMK 00x3333?

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240 November 1581 © BYTE Publications Inc

tree structure (see figure 2). Each record is stored with the key (the name) and two pointers that are used in searching: the greater than pointer and the less than pointer.

Using the same produce-inventory example, the first record in the file is the first one entered, "lettuce." It is simply recorded with each of the two pointers set to zero. When the second record, "olives," is entered, it is necessary to compare its name to that of the first record ("olives" is greater than "lettuce"). The second record is placed in the next available storage space, and the greater than pointer in the first record will be set to two. In this way, record one is said to point to record two, to indicate that the name of record two is greater than the name of record one. Searching this tree is as simple as following the pointers (see the flowchart in figure 2a).

Unless the keys are entered in a random order, the tree will look lopsided; there is no easy solution to this, but it is not much of a drawback. The system will work most quickly when the tree is perfectly symmetrical. In that form, the system will step through exactly the same keys as it would if it were the sorted file of figure lb, and the binary search were used. A very lopsided tree will still work, but it will be slower than a symmetrical one. When using the system, don't enter the records in alaphabetical order or the system will search the entire file sequentially. A random order is best.

A Closer Look at the System

The PDQ key-file system (see listing 1) uses an array to define such things as the record length, the key length, etc (see the REM statements on lines 40 through 110 and the DATA statement on line 160, which contains the values for the array in the indicated order). The logic of the key-file system is entirely within the subroutines starting at line 5000. The rest of the listing (lines 200 through 2010) contains a sample application.

The first subroutine gets the number of the next available record in the file. This is done using a counter that occupies record number

Text continued on page 252

Circle 274 on Inquiry card.

Introducing

a work processor so easy even

the chairman of the board

can operate it.

With Lanier's new EZ-I,™ suddenly it's easy to type reports, letters, memos, lists, and more. And get them done accurately right away. Your staff can start using the EZ-1 the day it arrives, because Lanier experts offer immediate on-the-job training.

THE EZ-I PROCESSES WORK, NOT JUST WORDS

The EZ-I is more than a conventional word processor. It's a work processor that also files, keeps accurate records, and helps you stay ahead of all your paperwork. It can grow with your business too, because Lanier will continually update it with new capabilities.

HARD WORK WAS NEVER THIS EASY

work, while most other similarly priced equipment only allows you to process words. And when you consider how the EZ-I can increase office efficiency, you'll see how it virtually pays for itself. Even though your chairman of the board may never use the EZ-I, he'll certainly appreciate all it can do. Send us this coupon, or call today for a demonstration of how easy the EZ-I really is. (800) 241-1706. Except in Alaska or Hawaii. In Georgia, call collect: (404)321-1244.

Lanier Business Products. Inc.

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LANIER'S EZ-1

\bur secretary types on a TVlike screen instead of on paper, so changes are made before printing. That saves time and helps avoid typos. All your work is produced in letter-quality printing at less than 30 seconds per page. 50-200 pages can be stored on a single memory disc In addition, the EZ-1 does more than one job at a time, which can free your secretary to work on other administrative tasks.

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(2a)

f START J

LET RECORD NO. --1

GET THE RECORD NAME INDICATED BY RECORD NO.

IS THE RECORD | NAME > THE rNAME DESIRED j

IS THE RECORD I NAME < THE ; NAME DESIRED

YES

LET RECORD NO. = LESS THAN POINTER

YES

THE NAME DESIRED HAS BEEN FOUND

( END j

LET RECORD NO.GREATER THAN POINTER

(2b)

0

.0

3 POMEGRANATES

( 2 J OLIVE

o

LETTUCE

( 4 j KUMQU*

"0

MANGOES

0

ARTICHOKES

8 PEACHES

( 9 J GRAPES /

10

0

BANANAS

Figure 2: Traversing the PDQ tree. Figure 2a is the flowchart for a method of searching a tree. Note its simplicity when compared to the binary-search method of figure la; searching the tree requires fewer steps and calculations. A sample PDQ tree (of the same data used in figure lb) is shown in figure 2b.

242 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 16 on Inquiry card.

Please call

(213) 883-8594.

Our Epson prices are so low,

we're not allowed to print them.

30 95 30 100 60 70

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REPLACEMENT PRINT HEAD (Quiet type) .S 40

EPSON SERVICE MANUAL S 40

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Listing 1; The PDQ Key-File System for the Radio Shack TRS-80 Model III. This program both creates and searches the PDQ tree for files of moderate length. The program should be easily portable for any computer using a form of Microsoft BASIC.

P SWANSON • -- PDQ KEY FILE SYSTEM

SAMPLE. INVENTORY PROGRAM USING KEY FILE SYSTEM —

10 CLEAR 3000

1.5 DIMCA<6>

20 0PEN"R",1„"NEWFILEsO"! '*** NEWFILE = NAME OF FILE ***

30 FJ.ELD1., 255ASB*

40 REM ********* PARAMETER ARRAY **********

50 REM ***** :l. # RECORDS/BLOCK ***********

60 REM ***** 2 RECORD LENGTH *************

70 REM ***** 3 FIRST BYTE OF GR **********

BO REM ***** 4 FIRST BYTE OF LR **********

90 REM ***** 5 KEY LENGTH ****************

100 REM***** 6 # RECORDS IN FILE (MAX) ***

110 REM*********************************** *

120 RESTORE

130 FQR:i>lT06

140 READCA(I)

150 NEXT I

160 DATA 8,, 30., 6, 8,, 5,, 199

199 REM**** 200 SELECTOR ****

200 CI....S

210 PRINT" ** INVENTORY PROGRAM **"

220 PRINT

230 PRINT" 1„ ADD A RECORD TO THE FILE"

240 PRINT" 2, EDIT A RECORD ON FILE"

250 PRINT" 3„ PRINT FILE DUMP"

260 PRINT

270 INPUT" ENTER NUMBER OF YOUR SELECTION" ■, N

2 8 0 IF N ■ 2 7 T H E N 4 0 0

290 DNNGOT 0 6 0 0 , 9 0 0, 14 0 0

300 GOT0270

399 REM**** 400 INITIALIZE FILES *#**

400 CLS

4-10 P RIN T "************ * F11.... E INI TIAI... 11A T ION**********"

420 PRINT

4 3 0 P RIN 7" E N"!" E R P A S S W 0 R D:: " ;

440 p$»»"

445 CC=0

4 50 Q*=INKEY* sIFQ*=""THEN450

460 I Ff3*=CHR* (1 3) THEN500

470 PRINT" X":;

480 P*»P*+Q*

490 GOT0450

500 IF P * = " S E CRET " T H E N 510 s E L S E 2 0 0

510 B1 *=STR I NO* (255,, 32)

520 FOR I = 17025

530 LSETB*=B1 *

540 PUT1„I

550 NEXT I

560 MID* < B1 $,, 1 , 2) =-W< I * <Q)

570 LSETB*=B1$

580 PUT:!.,, 1

590 GOT0200

599 REM**** 600 ADD A RECORD TO THE FILE ***

600 CLS

610 PRINT" ** ADD A RECORD TO THE FILE **"

620 PRINT

630 INPUT"ITEM NUMBER"; I $

640 A*=I*

650 BO SUB 7 000 ,. . ,

Listing 1 continued on page 246

244 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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..-~T« -Ugf/.. .' 11/

Mhttff

BETA 32K BYTE EXPANDABLE RAM FOR 6502 AND 6800 SYSTEMS AIM 65 KIM SYM PET S44-BUS

• Plug compatible with the AIM-65/SYM expansion connector by using a right angle connector (supplied).

• Memory board edge connector plugs into the 6800 S44 bus.

• Connects to PET using an adaptor cable.

• Uses +5V only, supplied from the host computer.

• Full documentation. Assembled and tested boards are guaranteed for one full year. Purchase price is fully refundable if board is returned undamaged within 14 davs.

Assembled with 32K RAM '....$349.00

& Tested with 16K RAM 329.00

Bare board, manual & 6 hard-to-get parts. 99.00 PET interface kit. Connects the 32K RAM board toa4Kor8KPF,T $ 69.00

AIM Professional Enclosure...$175.00

TERMS: Minimum order $15.00. Minimum shipping and handling $3.00. Calif, residents add 6% sales tax. Cash, checks. Mastercard, Visa and purchase orders from qualified firms are accepted. (Please allow two weeks for personal checks to clear before shipment.) Product availability and pricing subject to change without notice.

INTERNATIONAL ORDERS: Add 15 % to purchase price for all orders. Minimum shipping charge is $20.00. Orders with insufficient fundi will he delayed. Excess funds will he returned with your order. All prices are U.S. only.

1 COmPUTER DEVICES

1930 W.COUinS AVE. ORflnGE, CA 99668 (714)633-7980

KEY ALREADY IN FILE":B0T02000

<Y/N>

;Q*

Listing 1 continued:

660 I FE»0THENPR I NT " DUPL. I GATE IMPUT"DESCRIPTION";D* INPUT"QUANTITY IN STOCK";Q INPUT"UNIT PRICE"5P INPUT"ARE ALL VALUES CORRECT IFQ*="N"THEN600 IFQ*O"Y"THEN700

PRINT"***** SAVING RECORD IN THE FILE *****" A*«STRINB*<CA<2),32) MID* (A*., 1,5)==I*

MID*(A*,10,14>=D*+STRINB*<14,32) MID* <A*,,24,2)=MKI*<Q) MID*(A*,2.6,4)=MKS*<P) G0SUB6000

670 680 690 700 710 720 730 740 750 760 770 7 BO 790

aoo

899

900

910

920

930

940

950

960

970

980

990

1000

1 010

1 020

1 030

1040

1 050

1060

1070

1080

1090

1100

1110

1120

1 130

1 140

1150

1155

1160

1 170

1180

1190

1200

1210

1220

1230

1240

1250

1260

1270

1280

1290

1300

1310

1320

1 330

1340

1399

1400

1410

1420

900 EDIT A RECORD ON FILE ****

** EDIT RECORDS ON FILE *,*"

ITEM NUMBER OR END";I* 00

IN FILE"

G0T0200

REM****

CLS

PRINT"

PRINT

INPUT"ENTER

IFI*="END"THEN

A*=I*

SOSUB7000

IFE=0THEN1000

PRI NT"ITEM NOT

G0T0930 I*=LEFT*(A1*,5) D*=MID*(A1*,10,14) Q=CVI(MID*(A1 *,24,2)) P=CVS(MID*(A1*,26,4) ) CLS

PRINT"***** EDITING PR I NT

PRI NT"ENTER";TAB(15) -1 0 1

ITEM NUMBER

1$

|TAB(15); iTAB(15)J 1 TAB(15); iTAB(15)5 I TAB(15)g

5 "TO CHANGE" s TAB (40) ; "CURRENT VALUE"

"TO QUIT AND NOT POST CHANGES"

"TO END AMD SAVE CHANGES"

"DESCRIPTION";TAB(40)\D*

"QUANTITY";TAB(40) ; Q '

"UNIT PRICE"■TAB(40)8 J PRINTUSING"####

PRINT"

PRINT"

PRINT"

PRINT"

PRINT"

PRINT

INPUT" ENTER NUMBER OF YOUR CHOICE

0NN+2G0T0900,1160,1290,1310,1330

GOTO 1140

A*=STRING*(CA(2),32)

MID*(A*,1,5)=I*+5TRIMB*(5,32)

MID* (A*, 6, 2) =MK I * ( BR)

MID*(A*,8,2)=MKI*(LR)

MID*(A*,10,14)=D*+STRING*(14,32)

MID*(A*,24,2)=MKI*(Q)

MID*(A*,26,4)=MKS*(P)

60SUB5500

B1*=B*

MID*(B1*,CA(2)*(RN-1)+1,CA(2))=A*

LSETB*=B1*

PUT1,BN

G0T0900

IMPUT"NEW DESCRIPTION"JD*

GOTO1040

IMPUT"NEW QUANTITY"\Q

GOTO 1040

INPUT"MEW UNIT PRICE";P

GOTO1040

REM**** 1400 PRINT INVENTORY LISTING ****

CLS

PRINT"

PRINT

##

FROM ABOVE LIST

M

** INVENTORY LISTING **"

Listing 1 continued on page 248

246 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Check vT

the Osborne Books You Want

Assembly Language Program Series

by Lance Leventhal and co-authors

You needn't know anything about assembly language to use these books. Each one is a straightforward, self-teaching textbook that is both precise and easy to understand.

68000 #62-4, $16.99 D

6809 #35-7, $16.99 □

6502 #27-6, $16.99 □

Z80 #21-7, $16.99 □

Z8000 . #36-5, $19.99 a

6800 #12-8, $15.99 D

8080A/8085 #10-1, $15.99 d

The 8086 Book

by Russell Rector and George Alexy Part assembly language text and part hardware reference, this book covers all of the 8086's most important features.

#29-2, $16.99 □

^ Interface

Interfacing to S-100 (IEEE 696) Microcomputers

by Sol Libes and Mark Garetz Describes the S-100 Bus with unmatched precision. Covers mechanical and electrical design, logical and electrical relationships, bus interconnections, and much more. #37-3, $15.00 □

Microprocessors for Measurement and Control

by D.M. Auslander and P. Sagues Learn to design mechanical and process equipment using microprocessor based "real-time" computer systems. This book allows readers (even those unfamiliar with machine or assembly language) to initiate

projects. #57-8, $15.99 D

Circle 476 on inquiry card.

PET and the IEEE 488 Bus (GPIB)

by E. Fisher an C.W. Jensen Provides chapters on all aspects of the General Purpose Interface Bus. Includes lines, signals, specifications, and much more. #31-4, $15.99 a

Microelectronic References

Osborne 4 & 8 Bit Microprocessor Handbook

by Adam Osborne and Gerry Kane The one source for complete, objective and accurate information on 4 and 8 bit microprocessors. This book describes virtually every 4 and 8 bit microprocessor on the market today, and allows you to evaluate any device or combination of devices. #42-X, $19.95 D

Osborne 16-Bit Microprocessor Handbook

by Gerry Kane and Adam Osborne A total reference book on virtually every 16Bit microprocessor, this book permits objective evaluation and comparison of these new devices. #43-8, $19.95 D

C Osborne/McGraw-Hill

630 Bancroft Way, Berkeley, CA 94710

An Introduction to Microcomputers: Volume 3 Some Real Support Devices

by Gerry Kane and Adam Osborne Available with or without 3-ring binder or updates. Each device is described in detail, including an analysis of the best uses for that device. Book - #18-7, $15.00 D

Binder - #19-5, $6.99 D Six Updates - #98, $25.00 □

Handbooks

68000 Microprocessor Handbook

by Gerry Kane

This handbook offers more information about the 68000 than the manufacturer's datasheets. #41-1, $6.99 □

CRT Controller Handbook

by Gerry Kane

Describes five devices in the same thorough detail you'll find in Volume 3. Contains 13 tables and 149 separate illustrations. #45-4, $6.99 D

8089 I/O Processor Handbook

by Adam Osborne

A complete presentation of the 8089. The 8289 Bus Arbiter is also described with the same careful attention to design and application. #39-X, $6.99 D

L^C

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Total amount enclosed $ or charge my □ Visa □ Mastercharge

Card# Expiration Date

Listing 1 continued:

1430 INPUT"START AT ITEM";SI*

1440 INPUT"END AT ITEM";EI*

1450 IFSI*>EI*THEN1430

1452 SI*=SI*+STRING*(5,32)

1454 EI*=EI*+STRING*<5,32)

1460 IFSI*>STRING*(5,32)THENMID*(SI*,5, 1) =CHR* (ASC (MID* <SI*, 5, 1) )-1 )

1470 L9=55:P9=0

1475 TV#=0

1480 A*=SI*

1490 G0SUB8000

1500 IFE<>0THEN1690

1510 IFLEFT*(A1 *, 5)>LEFT*(EI*,5)THEN1690

1520 L9=L9+1

1530 IFL9<55THEN1590

1540 IFP9O0THENF0RI=L9T065: LPRINT" ":NEXTI

1550 P9=P9+1

1560 LPRINT" INVENTORY LISTING REPORT PABE"5P9

1570 LPRINT" "

1575 LPRINT"ITEM NO.";TAB<10>;"DESCRIPTION";TAB<30);"QUANTITY";TAB(45);"UNIT PRI

CE";TAB<60);"EXT. VALUE"

15BO L9=4

1590 Q=CVI(MID*(Al*,24,2))

1600 P=CVS(MID*(A1*,26,4))

1610 LPRINTLEFT*(A1*,5);TAB(10);MID*(A1*,10,14);TAB(30);

1620 LPRINTUSING"#####";Q;:LPRINTTAB(45);

1630 LPRINTUSING"####.##";P;:LPRINTTAB(60);

1640 EV#=Q*P

1650 TV#=TV#+EV#

1660 LPRINTUSING"#,###,###.##";EV#

1670 A*=A1*

16B0 GOTO1490

1690 LPRINT" "

1700 LPRINT"TOTAL VALUE OF INVENTORY =";

1710 LPRINTUSING"#,###,###.##";TV#

1720 G0T020O

2000 INPUT"PRESS ENTER WHEN FINISHED VIEWING";Q*

2010 G0T0200

4998 STOP

4999 REM**** GET NEXT FREE RECORD - FR ****

5000 GET1,1

5010 FR=CVI(LEFT*(B*,2))+ls ' Record O, bytes 1 & 2

5020 B1*=B*: ' contain the count o-f

5030 MID*(Bl*,1,2)=MKI*(FR>: ' records used. FR is

5035 LSETB*=B1*: ' next available rec. tt

5040 PUT1,1 5050 RETURN

5499 REM**** 5500 GET RECORD #RR - Al* ****

5500 BN=INT(RR/CA(1)): ' BN = block no.

5510 RN=RR-BN*CA(1)+1; ' RN = re-ference on block —

5520 BN=BN+1

5530 GET1,BN

5540 A1*=MID*(B*,CA(2)*(RN-1)+1,CA(2))

5560 GR=CVI(MID*(A1*,CA(3),2)): ' GR = greater reference

5570 LR=CVI(MID*(A1*,CA(4),2)): ' LR = lesser reference

55B0 RETURN

5999 REM**** 6000 PUT RECORD A* INTO FILE ****

6000 G0SUB5000: ' Get next free record

6010 IFFR>1THEN6100: ' The first record gets

6015 A1*=A*+STRING*(CA(2),32): ' special treatement.

6020 A*=LEFT*(A1*,CA(2)): ' Pack A*...

6022 MID*(A*,CA(3),2)=MKI*(0)

6024 MID*(A*,CA(4),2)=MKI*(0)

6030 RR=FR: ' Set record number (=1)

6040 G0SUB5500: * Get record.

6050 B1*=B*

6060 MI D* (B1 * , CA ( 2) * (RN-1 ) +1 , CA ( 2) ) =A* Listing 1 continued on page 250

248 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc Circle 427 on Inquiry card. *

Systems II €x

a total business system.

JOB COSTING MENU

1. TRANSACTION ENTRY/DATE

2. JOB/TASK TABLE MAINTENANCE

3. JOB COST FILE MAINTENANCE

4. JOB COST REPORTING

5. EMPLOYEE TABLE MAINTENANCE

6. RETURN TO MASTER MENU

SELECT [1-6)7

mJTr

SYSTEMS II EX MASTER MENU

1. INVENTORY 7.CHART0FACCTS.

2. PAYABLES 8. VENDOR MAINT.

3. RECEIVABLES 9. CUST. MAINT.

4. PAYROLL 10. CHANGE DATE

5. LEDGER U.SYS./BACKUP

6. JOURNAL 12.ST0PPR0CSSG. ' 13. OPTIONAL PROCSS'G. LJ SELECT 11-13]?

DATABASE MENU

1. FILE MAINTENANCE

2. REPORTS/REPORT MAINT.

3. UTILITIES

4. RETURN TO SYSTEM MENU

SELECT 11-4)?

ACCOUNTS PAYABLES MENU

1. FILE MAINTENANCE

2. PAYMENT SELECTION

SELECT (1-5)?

RECEIVABLES SYSTEM MENU

1. FILE MAINTENANCE

2. RECEIPT OF PAYMENTS

3. GENERATE BILLING

4. MONTH END

5. PAST DUE REPORT

6. APPLY MONTHLY INTEREST

7. RETURN TO MASTER MENU SELECT (1-7)?

LEDGER SYSTEM MENU

1. FILE MAINTENANCE

2. BAL SHEET/INCOME STATEMENT

3. YEAR END PROCESS

4. RETURN TO MASTER MENU

SELECT (1-4)?

INVENTORY SYSTEM MENU TIME DATE

1. FILE MAINTENANCE

2. POINT OF SALES

, 3. REORDER REPORT

14. RETURN TO MASTER MENU

{ SELECT (1-4)?

SYSTEMS II EX — EX for EXTENDED PERFORMANCE. Westware brings you the most completely integrated and simplest to use business software for your Apple Computer. The SYSTEMS II EX is complete with an integrated Database. Yes! The DBII Database can move your system's files into Database format for customized reports or labels.

Although the SYSTEMS II EX is a fully integrated system, you may purchase

STATE PAYROLL MENU

1. MISC/TAX TABLE MAINT.

2. TRANSACTION FILE

3. MISC. PAY/DEDUCTION FILE

4. EMPLOYEE MASTER FILE

5. CALCULATE/PRINT CHECKS

6. PRINT W2s

7. RETURN TO MASTER MENU SELECT (1-7)?

individual modules and later add additional modules, such as Job Costing for contractors. The power of our system is in the KSAM Firmware card that plugs into the Apple. This card permits high speed searches and eliminates running sort routines to get your files in order.

SYSTEMS II is available on 5%" drives, and also on the Corvus hard disk. A Corvus based system will give you the power and capacity that challenges larger computers.

COMING SOON — Cash flow analysis with graphics, Database II with graphics, and Bill of Materials for small manufacturers.

CURRENT OPTIONS AVAILABLE — Job Costing, Cycle Invoicing, Order entry, and Layaway.

All Checks, statements and invoices use NEBS forms.

Dealer and OEM inquiries invited.

Apple is a trademark of Apple Computers.

Systems H€x

2455 S.W. 4th Ave. Suite 2

Ontario, OR 97914 (503) 881-1477

Yes. please send me your Systems II Demo Package.

□ Yes, I would like to sample your software. Please send me the Systems II Demo Package. My check for $25 is enclosed.

Name

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Title

Company Name. Address

City

State.

Zip.

Listing 1 6070

6080

6090

6100

6102

6104

6110

6120

6130

6140

6142

6144

6146

6148

6150

6152

6200

6210

6220

6240

6250

6260

6270

6280

6290

6300

6310

6320

6340

6350

6360

6370

6380

6400

6420

6430

6440

6442

6444

6450

6460

6470

6480

6490

6999

7000

7010

7020

7030

7040

7050

7100

7110

7120

7200

7210

7220

7999

8000

8005

8010

8020

8030

8040

8050

8060

continued: LSETB*=B1«: PUT1,li E=0:RETURN

RR=1:

IFFR<=CA(6)THEN6110

E=2:RETURN

S0SUB5500:

IFLEFT*(A*,CA(5))

IFLEFT*(A*„CA(5))

E=l:

GET1,Is

B1*=B*8

MID*<B1*,1,2>=MKI*(FR

LSET B*=B1*

PUT1,1

RETURN

IFLR=QTHEN6240:

RR=LRr,

G0T06110:

MID*(A1*,CA<4) ,2-)«MKi*tFR> s

B1*=B*

MID*(B1*,CA(2)*(RN-1)+1,CA<

L5ETB*=B1*

PUTl,BNs

GQTQ6400

IFGR«=0THEN6340:

RR=GR:

B0T06110!

MID* CA1*,CA(3),2)=MKI*(FR) :

B1*=B*

MID* <B1*„CA < 2)*<RM-1)+1,CA(2))=A1*

LSETB*=B1*

PUTi»BNs

RR=FR:

' Insert new record,,

? Z'. put it in the -file. —

' Start search with # 1.—

'-•!— Check for end of -file.—

' Get record no. RR —

LEFT*(A1*,CA(5))THEN6200

LEFT* < A1*,CA < 5) )THEN6300

7 -Equal - duplicate key —

' Restore original value—

•- 0.f record counter —

•1)

Branch if no more recs

RR= next to search

Continue searching.

Spot found - pack loc.

:> )=A1*

Save pointer record

Branch if no more rec; RR= next to search Continue searching. Spot found - pack loc,

SUB?

!)

Save pointer record RR now=new record no. Load record space... & pack

Init,

new record

,CA(2))=A1*

and save it on disk

A*

first rec, from file

G0E

A*=A*+STRING*<CA<2).

A1*=LEFT*(A*,, CA<2) )

MID*(Al*,CA(3),2)=MKI*<0)

MID* < A1*,CA(4) ,2)=MKI* < 0)

B1*=B*

MID*(B1*,CA(2)* (RIM-D+1,

LSETB*=B1*

PUTl,BNs

E-0 s RETURN

REM**** 7000 GET RECORD

RR=1:

GDSUB5500:

IFLEFT*(A*,CA(5) )

IFLEFT*(A*,CA(5) )

E=0:

RETURN

IFLR=0THEME=1:

RR=LR:

G0T07010

IFGR=0THENE=li

RR=GR;

G0T07010

REM**** 8000 GET NEXT GREATER KEY ****

A*=A*+STRING*(CA<2),32): " Incr. last byte

MID*(A*,CA(5),1)=CHR*(ASC(MID*(A*,CA<5),1))+l)

A2*=5TRING*<CA<5),255): ' Initialize indicator

RR=ls ' Begin search at no. 1

G0SUB5500: " Get record ?< compare

IFLEFT*(A*,CA<5>KLEFT* (Al*, CA <5))THEN8100

IFLEFT*(A*,CA<5))>LEFT*(Al*,CA<5))THEMB200

E=0: ' FpUnd clirect.lv. Listing 1 continued on page 252

FROM FILE ****

' Start with

t Qe\z record

ILEFT* < A1*,CA < 5))THEN7100 •LEFT*(A1*,CA<5))THEN7200

' Equal - record

found

: RETURN:

i RETURN:

Not found Cant, search

Not found Cont. search

at tt LR

at # GR

of key

250 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

DEALERS: By now you know that it takes

Financial Systems

GL, A/P. A/R

Payroll

Cash Receipts/Disb.

Job Costing

Mailing List Mgmt. Medical/Dental

Office Scheduler

Patient Billing & A/R

Insurance Forms Governmental/Educational

Student Record Keeping

and Scheduling

Fund Accounting

INTERNATIONAL IICRO

Circle 198 on Inquiry card.

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SOFTWARE

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and International Micro Systems can provide you with the largest selection of quality business applications ever developed for the microcomputer industry.

If you are just looking for a G.L., A/P, and Payroll, you can find them in a dozen ads in this magazine. But thers's a much bigger market for micros out there than that. Wherecan you find a fully interfaced Wholesale/Retail Distribution System? How about Manufacturing Inventory Control including Production Scheduling & Control. See that one anywhere else? Maybe your market is Medical/Dental and IMS has the full systems there too. You can't sell computers without software and IMS has the finest selection of software available for you. Each system has been developed by the IMS professional staff and we support what we sell.

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we put all the software shown below in your office or store ready to demo to your prospectsand we include the promotional material and our unique video sales presentation to help you move systems. Give us a call or drop us a card and let us show you what selling business systems should be all about.

Wholesale Distribution System

Purchasing & Receiving Inventory Control Invoicing & Receivables Salesman Comm. Reporting Backorder Management Manufacturing Inventory Control Finished Goods Inventory Mgmt Parts Inventory Mgmt. Parts Purchasing & Receiving Bill of Material Production Scheduling

YSTEMS

Listing 1 continued:

8070 RETURN

8100 IFLEFT$(A1$,CA<5> XLEFT* (A2$,CA<5) ) THEIMA2*=A1*

8110 IFLR>0THENS150: * Check -for end o-f search

8120 A1*=A2*: ' A2* holds next greater—

8130 IFLEFT*(A1*,1)=CHR*(255)THEWE=1:ELSEE=0

8140 RETURN

8150 RR-LR: r Continue at rec no. LR—

8160 GOT08030

8200 IFGR>0THENS250: ' Check for end o-f search

8210 G0TC8120: " Borrow a few statements

8250 RR-GR: ' Continue? at rise, no, BR—

8260 GOT08030

Text continued from page 240:

zero. This is the first record in the file, physically, and is numbered zero by the way the mathematics of the next subroutine work. This first subroutine simply loads the value, increments it, then resaves it, storing the value of the record in the variable FR (for "free record").

The second subroutine, starting at line 5500, finds a record by number and loads it into memory as the variable Al$. The record number is assumed to be in the variable RR. Since this subroutine set allows for more than one record per file block, a

few formulas are required. Lines 5500 through 5520 calculate the number of the block and the relative number (ie: number of the record on the block) of the record. Line 5540 extracts the correct part of the buffer (B$) for the record. Lines 5560 and 5570 "decode" the two greater than and less than pointers so that the other subroutines don't have to deal with that job.

These first two subroutines are there to simply help the other ones. They can be used in any randomaccess file (except for the unpacking of GR and LR). The rest of the

ATTENTION GOVERNMENT D P USERS AND PURCHASERS

We represent many fine micro products and manufacturers on the U.S. Government's GSA Schedule, including

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subroutines handle the actual logic of the system.

Line 6000 starts the subroutine that puts a new record into the file. If it is the very first record, it is simply saved as record number one and the two pointers are both set to zero. This happens in lines 6015 through 6090. The subroutine that gets the number of the next available record (line 5000) is used in this subroutine.

If it is not the first record, then a more complicated solution is required; this begins at line 6100. First, the file must be searched for the alphabetical position of the new record. Start with record number one (see line 6100). Before the routine goes any further, it tests the record number to see if there is any more room in the file. If there isn't, then there is no reason to go any further, because the record cannot be added to the file. Note the use of the variable E. This is used as a form of error code. If, when the subroutine returns, E is 0, then everything went as planned. If E is returned as 2 it means that the file is full and the record is not saved. If E is 1, the key is already in the file and the new record is not saved. This will come up later in this subroutine.

The search is somewhat like the binary search. The record is looked up in line 6110, which uses the subroutine at line 5500. Lines 6120 and 6130 test to see which is greater. These branch to other parts of this subroutine. If these two tests "fall through," the record has a key equal to the one to be inserted. Lines 6140 through 6152 take care of this situation. First, E is set to 1 to indicate the error. Next, since the record number

252 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

Circle 99 on Inquiry card.

H

Want a Better Printer @ Lower Cost? Compare DIP with the other best seller.

(3

DIP-84G

XX-80 F/T

Print Speed

100CPS

80CPS

Head Life

100x106

50x106

Character Sizes

40,48,66,80,96,132

40,66,80,132

RS232C

STD

$ 89.00

Dot Graphic

STD

$ 90.00

Friction Feed

STD

$100.00

Matrix

7x7/11x7

9x9

Paper Handling

Rear&Bottom

Rear

Short Line Logic

STD

STD

Continuous Input

STD

None

Buffer Size

10 Lines

1 Line

2K Buffer

$ 30.00

?

Ribbon Life

5 Million

3 Million

Price Basic

$795.00

$645.00

Friction

STD

$100.00

RS232C

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$ 89.00

Dot Graphic

STD

$ 95.00

>-°v

#

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ss1

$795.00

$929.00

In addition, we offer

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DIP-82 $695.00

DIP-85 $895.00

Low Cost Friction Feed

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Circle 142 on inquiry card.

Circle 458 on Inquiry card.

"Forget Memory Loss Problems"

RAMI.OK FEATURES:

* t/-10% LINE VOLTAGE LIMITS

* MAX. ONE CYCLE RESPONSE TIME

* BROWNOUT/SURGE PROTECTION

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will not be used, the value of the variable used to count the number of records used must be restored. It was incremented by the GOSUB 5000, so lines 6142 through 6150 decrement it, then 6152 returns to the main program.

If the key to be inserted is less than the key in the record just loaded, line 6120 branches to line 6200. If there are no records indicated by the variable LR (ie:, LR = 0), then the spot to link up this new record is found and line 6200 branches to line 6240. If LR does contain a record number, then RR, which is the record number to test, is set to this pointer (LR), and the routine returns to line 6110 to continue the search.

Line 6240 begins the section of program that inserts the record when it is less than the last one found in the search. The less than pointer is updated in lines 6240 through 6260 so that it will point to the new record. It is resaved in line 6270, then the routine branches to line 6400 to pack and save the new record.

Between line 6290 and that routine in line 6400 is the routine that handles the situation where the record to be inserted is greater than the record being tested in the search. Line 6130 tests this and branches to line 6300 if the condition is true. This is almost the same as the routine just described that starts at line 6200. The difference is that GR is the pointer used instead of LR.

Line 6400 packs and saves the new record. By the time the routine gets to this line, the record that points to it has been updated. This part of the program just sets up the record and saves it on disk. E is set to 0 just before the RETURN statement to indicate that all went well.

The other two subroutines are variations of the search described for the subroutine that puts a new record into the file. The subroutine starting at line 7000, which gets a record from the file given the key, is the search with the values of the error code (the variable E) set to 0 if the record is found and to 1 if it is not in the file.

The last subroutine allows the reports to be in alphabetical order. It will take a key and find the next one

254 November 1981 © BYTE Publicatiora Inc

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in the file that is greater. How it works is fairly simple. It first increments the value of the last byte in the key, which makes it the next possible key higher than the one given. It then searches the file in the same manner as the other two subroutines.

If the key is found, there is no problem. The key found is the next higher key in the file. The interesting part is the condition where the key is not found. The key found may not be the next greater key (the "key found" meaning the last one tested in the search). A2$ is used to locate the next greater key. It is initially set to the highest possible value for a string (ASCII code 255). When, in the process of searching, the key loaded is greater than the key being searched (which causes line 8040 to branch to line 8120), the key loaded may be the correct one. It is greater than the one being searched. If it is also less than A2$, then line 8100 sets A2$ equal to it.

The rest of the searching is the same except for the end of the search, which is handled by lines 8120 through 8140. Al$ is the string that is to contain the next greater record, so it is set to A2$. Line 8130 checks to see if a greater key was found. If there are no greater keys in the file, then the first byte of Al$ will be CHR$(255). If it is not, then the next greater key was found. Line 8130 sets E equal to 1 if there are no greater records in file and to 0 if the next greater record is found and returned in Al$.

Deleting Keys

This is the simplest key-file system I know. Like the bubble sort, it is slower than other methods, but is so much simpler to program that it is hard to pass it up in favor of other methods. One drawback, however, is not easy to ignore: there is no way to delete a key. This is due to the pointers. Unless the key was at the end of one of the branches (ie:, both pointers were zero), deleting it would involve changing the pointers of many records. This would be a complicated routine.

A simple solution is to insert a code

in the record of a deleted key, leaving the pointers and key intact so that the key will not interfere with future searches. When the file is getting full and there are a lot of deleted records in it, a program can be set up to read this file as a simple random-access file and insert the records that do not have the delete code into a new file using the subroutines. This will form a new file with no deleted records in it.

Accessing the Key File

The program used to access these files will show how to use the subroutines. It begins at line 200 with a selector. The selector lists three selections and requests the operator's choice by number. A "hidden" selection is used to allow initialization of the file. This must be used before the first record is entered and can be used at any time to wipe out all of the records in the file and start out fresh.

The rest of the program is divided by line number into functions corresponding to the selections. The first routine, starting at line 400, is the "hidden" selection (number 27). Lines 430 through 500 request and interpret a password so that some protection in addition to the hidden selection is provided to prevent someone from wiping out your data. Lines 510 through 590 save blocks full of spaces in each block that can be used according to the parameter array. The program then saves a 0 in the first two bytes of record number 0 so that the subroutine at line 5000 can use it as the record counter.

The function starting at line 600 allows the addition of a new record into the file. In this example, the key is the item number and that is requested first. Next, the function uses the subroutine starting at line 7000, which gets the record given the key. If this subroutine finds the key and returns E equal to 0, then the key is already in the file. This causes the error message to be displayed. If it is not found (E = l), then the function proceeds to request the information you want the record to contain. When this has been entered, lines 730 through 790 pack it all into the string A$ and call the subroutine starting at

256 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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DATA FILE LAYOUT

FILE NEWFILE — Inventory file to test subroutines FILE TYPE Key ACCESS BY Item Number

VARIABLE

START

LENGTH

PACK

DESCRIPTION

1$ GR LR D$

Q

P

1

6

8

10

24

26

5 2 2 14 2 4

Integer

Integer

Integer

Alphanumeric

Integer

Single precision

Item no. (key) Greater pointer Lesser pointer Description Quantity Unit Price

Total Rec. Length = 30

# Rec./block = 255/30 = 8 First byte of GR = 6

First byte of LR = 8 Key Length = 5 # Rec. in file = 199

Table 1: A data-file layout f in when the record is in the

irm. It shows the variables that the values will be stored memory and where each field is packed in the memory.

line 6000 to insert this new record into the file. Note that there is no check for the error code E if E is equal to 1, which indicates that this is a duplicate key, because that was already checked by the subroutine called in line 650. There is a need to check for the end-of-file condition where E is equal to 2. This could be added to the function at this point.

The fields in the file are shown in table 1, which is a data-file layout form. This table shows the variables that the values will be stored in when the record is in the memory and where each field is packed in the record. The information on this sheet is used to determine much of the in

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Binary search: A method of searching an ordered list for a test value by comparing the test value with the value located at the middle of the list. This procedure effectively divides the list into two sections, and the search proceeds in the section having the value being tested for by, again, comparing the test value with the value located at the middle of the section.

Character: A number or symbol that represents some amount (usually 8 bits) of information.

Fields: A region of data within a record that refers to the same general properties as corresponding regions in other records.

Hashing: A method of searching a list by using a portion of the test value as an index.

Key: The field of a record that may be compared with a test value.

Pointer: A variable or memory location whose value is the address of a memory location.

Random-access file: A disk file whose records may be read in any order.

Records: Divisions of data in a file such that each of the divisions contains the same type of information at corresponding positions.

Search: To examine a file to locate certain information.

Sequential file: A disk file whose records may be read only in sequential order.

Sort: To put the records of a file in order according to the data they contain.

Te9t value: The information that a file is being searched for.

formation required in the parameter array.

The next function, which starts at line 900, allows you to change data in records that have already been saved in the file. Lines 900 through 1030 get the item number to edit, load, and unpack the record, and perform some checking concerning the key entered. The checking consists of two parts. The first allows an "escape" from the function. If the key entered is "END," the function branches back to the selector. The second check is if the record is in the file. If it is not, the message at line 980 is displayed. The checking is on the error code E after the GOSUB 7000.

The rest of this function could take many different forms. The one I used here allows the operator to select, by number, 1, 2, or 3 for the field to edit, 0 to end editing and resave the record, or —1 to end the edit of this item and not post any changes. A —1 simply causes a branch back to the beginning of the function. The 0 is handled in lines 1160 through 1280. Lines 1160 through 1220 repack the fields into the string A$. In order to

resave the record, this function first reloads it (the "old" version before the changes were made), then replaces the area in the buffer with the new version of the record.

The last function, the printout, uses the "get next higher key" subroutine. This function begins at line 1400. Lines 1430 and 1440 request the starting and ending keys for the listing. After these are checked (to make sure the starting key is not greater than the ending key), line 1460 decrements the first key. The listing will be in alphabetical order by continually calling the subroutine starting at line 8000, which gets the next higher key. By decrementing the first key, the first key that will be printed could be the key entered, if it is in the file. If this decrementing were not done, and the starting key were a key in the file, the function would start with the next greater key rather than the one entered.

The part of this function that controls which key is to be printed is in lines 1490 and 1500: 1490 gets the next greater key and line 1500 checks for the end-of-file condition. Added

260 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981

261

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262 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Recommended Reading

In 1973, Donald E Knuth of Stanford University produced what must be the definitive work on computer-programming techniques: The Art of Computer Programming (Addison-Wesley). It is a set of three volumes covering nearly every useful software trick, and it rates many varied competing techniques to show what works best under given circumstances.

Because the computer's main purpose is to keep, sort, and search lists of data (just as the wheel's reason for being is to roll), a large portion of Knuth's work is dedicated to the storage, arrangement, and selection of data. I especially recommend:

Volume 1, Fundamental Algorithms

Chapter 2, Information Structures (page 228) Volume 3, Sorting and Searching Chapter 5.2, Internal Sorting (page 73) Chapter 5.3, Optimum Sorting (page 181) Chapter 6, Searching section 6.2.1 Searching an Ordered Table (page 406) section 6.2.2 Binary-Tree Searching (page 422)

to this control is the logic in line 1510, which checks that the new key is not greater than the ending key, and line 1670, which places the last key printed into A$ for the next search.

The remaining statements simply format the output. Added to the function for the inventory application is the extended value, which is the quantity times the unit price. This is accumulated in line 1650 so that the total value of inventory can be printed at the end of the report.

Possible Modifications

The program given in the listing has no provision for deleting a record. As noted above, a key cannot be deleted from this type of file without extensive reshuffling of the pointers. A few simple alterations can add this function.

The file layout must be altered first to add a one-byte field that is to serve as the delete code. For all active, notdeleted records, this field can store the letter A. When a record is deleted, use it to store the letter D. The easiest way to do this is to shorten the description by one byte and put the code where the last byte of the description was.

Change the two packing routines to reflect this adjustment. There is one in the input section starting at line 740 and there is another one in the edit section starting at line 1160. Also change the printout section at line 1610. Additional changes will also be

required to check this byte in the edit and report sections so that a deleted record will not be edited or printed.

In the input section, you may want to introduce some way to change the delete status if the user enters the key of a deleted record. This could be part of the edit function, where it would be easier to program, but it would be easier for the user if it was added to the input section.

The subroutines are fairly short, but they can be made even shorter by combining some code. This is a fairly new subroutine set for me, so it has not been subjected to any refinement. It has passed several tests, but it may still have some bugs. One obvious part of the program that can be shortened is to replace lines 6015 through 6090 with a GOTO 6400. Although the variable use is a little different, these routines do exactly the same thing. You may want to find some of these condensable parts or, since the subroutines work the way they are, you may want to use them without any changes.

The programming was done on a Radio Shack Model III system. Since this uses a form of Microsoft BASIC, adaptation of this program to other systems that also use Microsoft BASIC should not be a big problem. Adaptation to other types of BASIC may be a little more difficult. I hope the structure of the program and the remarks make this task easier for anyone attempting that.B

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Turn your Apple into the world's most versatile personal computer

The SoftCard™ Solution. SoftCard turns your Apple into two computers. A Z-80 and a 6502. By adding a Z-80 microprocessor and CP/M to your Apple, SoftCard turns your Apple into a CP/M based machine.That means you can access the single largest body of microcomputer software in existence. Two computers in one. And, the advantages of both.

Plug and go. The SoftCard system starts with a Z-80 based circuit card. Just plug it into any slot (except 0) of your Apple. No modifications required. SoftCard supports most of your Apple peripherals, and, in 6502-mode, your Apple is still your Apple.

CP/M for your Apple. You get CP/M on disk with the SoftCard package. It's a powerful and simple-to-use operating system. It supports more software than any other microcomputer operating system. And that's the key to the versatility of the SoftCard/Apple.

Circle 272 on Inquiry card.

BASIC included. A powerful tool, BASIC-80 is included in the SoftCard package. Running under CP/M, ANSI Standard BASIC-80 is the most powerful microcomputer BASIC available. It includes extensive disk I/O statements, error trapping, integer variables, 16-digit precision, extensive EDIT commands and string functions, high and low-res Apple graphics, PRINT USING, CHAIN and COMMON, plus many additional commands. And, it's a BASIC you can compile with Microsoft's BASIC Compiler.

More languages. With SoftCard and CP/M, you can add Microsoft's ANSI Standard COBOL, and FORTRAN, or

Basic Compiler and Assembly Language Development System. All, more powerful tools for your Apple. Seeing is believing. See the SoftCard in operation at your Microsoft or Apple dealer. We think you'll agree that the SoftCard turns your Apple into the world's most versatile personal computer.

Complete information? It's at your dealer's now. Or, we'll send it to you and include a dealer list. Write us. Call us. Or, circle the reader service card number below.

SoftCard is a trademark of Microsoft. Apple II and Apple II Plus are registered trademarks of Apple Computer. Z-80 is a registered trademark of Zilog. Inc. CP/M is a registered trademark of Digital Research, Inc.

CONSUMER^ PRODUCTS

Microsoft Consumer Products, 400 108th Ave. N.E., Bellevue, WA 98004. (206) 454-1315

System Review

Orchestra-80

Elizabeth Cooper and Yvon Kolya

POB22

Peterborough NH 03458

Soon after the release of the Radio Shack TRS-80 microcomputer by the Tandy Corporation, programs promising to turn the TRS-80 into a music-producing instrument appeared. These programs used an AM radio to pick up and amplify the RFI (radio-frequency interference) given off by the Z80 microprocessor and its support devices. The RFI produced by carefully arranging routines executed by the computer played recognizable notes through the radio.

The disadvantages to this method were:

• the limited range of notes that could be produced

• the odd timbre of the notes

• distracting noises produced by the system were also played through the radio, usually at the same time as the notes

The next stage in this development involved the use of the cassette-data port. Specific notes were generated by

TRISWATCH

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■ A pacemaker battery is included, which provides over 8 years of continuous timekeeping.

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TRS-80 is a trademark of Tandy Corp.

CP/M is a registered trademark of Digital Research Inc.

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mathematical algorithms. These notes were then sent to the cassette port of the computer, where they were either recorded on tape or played through a small audio amplifier.

This procedure produced a wider range of purersounding notes, but they sounded as if they were made by a toy electronic organ rather than by a true musical instrument. This was due to the circuitry used in the TRS-80 to process signals sent to the port.

Now, three years after its appearance on the market, it is possible to use the TRS-80 to its fullest capabilities in music generation.

The company responsible for this breakthrough is Software Affair Ltd. The product is Orchestra-80 (see photo 1).

Orchestra-80 claims to be a "unique combination of hardware and software that can turn any 16 K-byte TRS-80 (Model I) Level II into a high-quality musical instrument," and it is.

The hardware is a small circuit board soldered to a 40-pin edge-card connector that attaches to the TRS-80 expansion port, either on the computer keyboard unit or the expansion interface (see photos 2a and 2b). The circuit board has an RCA-type phono jack that can be connected to any hi-fi amplifier with an RCA-type patch cord. The circuit board is not an amplifier, but a buffering device between the TRS-80 and a hi-fi amplifier. This

Name

Documentation

Orchestra-80

40-page manual

Type

Format

music-generation soft

cassette tape

ware/hardware combina

tion

Computer

TRS-80 Model I, Level II,

Manufacturer

16 K programmable

Software Affair Ltd

memory

473 Sapena Ct, Suite 1

TRS-80 disk-based

Santa Clara CA 95051

Model I

(408) 295-9195

Audience

Price

music schools, teachers,

$79.95

students, and anyone in

Dimensions

terested in computer

2 by 1 by 13A inches

generated music

(hardware)

264 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 344 on inquiry card.

Circle 28 on inquiry card.

Take a look at our EPROM blaster for your Apple" or TRS-80;

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Apparat announces the most versatile EPROM burner available today for your TRS-80 model I and III or Apple computer. . . the Apparat PROM Blasting system (A.P.B.). Most EPROM burners will program only one type of EPROM. The A.P.B. system will program all commonly used 24 pin EPROMs by using special personality modules that adapt the unit to the EPROM. The following EPROMs are programmable: 2704, 2708, 2716, (3-volt) & (5-volt), 2732, 2508, 2516 and 2532.

The versatility and power of the A.P.B. system means you're getting a PROM burning package with extensive capabilities. The price, $149.00, insures you're getting the most cost-effective PROM burner on the market today.

With a unique combination of personality modules and

sophisticated software, A.P.B. will perform many operations impossible with conventional PROM burners. Mere's a brief list of some of A.P.B. s capabilities:

• Verify ROM is erased

• Read ROM

• Copy ROM

• Copy between different ROM types

• Program ROM

• Partial programming and copies

■ Verify programming

• Read or save ROM data on disk or cassette (Apple only)

• Program directly from computer memory

■ Examine and/or modify working memory

• Preset working memory

The A.P.B. system is the most flexible PROM burner available. The A.P.B. system package consists of an interface card that plugs directly into an expansion slot*, a complete set

of personality modules, software on disk and a detailed instruction manual. The software will run under NEWDOS/80, or TRSDOS™ for the TR5-80, and APPLE DOS™ or APEX for the Apple.

If you're looking for a powerful, versatile and cost efficient EPROM burner, call APPARAT today. Dealer inquiries welcome.

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"TRS-80 version requires the TRS-80 bus extender (Cat. # 1-025) or a separate user provided power supply and cable.

TRS-80, and Apple are trademarks of Tandy Corp. and Apple Computer.

H

Apparat, Inc.

4401 So. Tamarac Parkway, Denver. CO 80237 (303) 741-1778

"CWY GOING SUPPORT FOR MICROCOMPUTERS'

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Figure 1: The correspondence between standard music notation and the code used in Orchestra-80. This figure is on page 26 of the Orchestra-80 instruction manual.

is one reason for the low cost of the package. Also, this approach lets you use your own high-quality amplifier and avoids the problem of choosing between high-quality sound/high price and low-quality sound/low price.

The software and instruction manual, on the other hand, are more impressive.

After loading the software, you are given an opportunity to have the Orchestra-80 program make a copy of itself. Then you are asked if your computer has a hardware clock speed modification. If it does, and this modification is under software control, you can tell Orchestra-80 what the enable and disable codes are for the changes in clock speed. The program will then automatically disable the clock whenever disk or tape I/O (input/ output) is necessary.

The next question deals with whether you want the software to play in three or four voices. Four voices gives you greater flexibility in scoring music; three voices leaves you more memory in which to score music.

Next, you must decide if you want to modify the waveforms of the different registers (ie: voices). The waveform of a register is defined as a sum of sine waves or partials. The frequency of each partial is an integer multiple of the fundamental frequency of the register. Up to fifteen partials (also known as harmonics) can be specified, in addition to the fundamental frequency.

Once this has been done, you specify how much (from 0 to 255) each partial should contribute to the overall volume of the register. A value of 0 contributes nothing, while a value of 200 will be twice as loud as a value of 100. Finally, you select the overall volume of each register, as compared with the others.

With these preliminary steps completed, you are ready to begin playing with Orchestra-80.

If the instruction manual appears intimidating or overly complicated to the novice, it is largely because of its

thoroughness. It leaves nothing out, from the necessary instructions about installing the hardware and configuring the software, to a section on "How it Works," and the sections on the music-language code.

Not only is the method of transcribing music covered in detail, telling how the music language of Orchestra-80 compares with standard music notation, but there is also a section giving a fine lesson in interpreting the Orchestra-80 music language, as well as understanding musical notation for those unfamiliar with it. Even if you can't read music, you should be able to transcribe most written music, with a little effort.

These instructions are well supplemented with examples and tables summarizing the instructions, including illustrations of written music and how it compares with the notation used by the computer. Two of the figures in the manual show J S Bach's Capriccio in standard music notation and in the code used by Orchestra-80. There is also an excellent listing of the symbols used in music, their Orchestra-80 equivalents, and the definitions of these symbols. One of the most helpful diagrams (see figure 1) matches the symbols of the Orchestra-80 scale to their places on the standard musical staff.

The manual is repetitive to a certain extent, but that's not a problem; in fact, it helps clarify some points. The organization is a bit awkward. Some of the simpler, more fundamental instructions come after the more complex ones. A basic section on "Interpreting the music language" starts on page 27, while the section 'Transcribing Music," which is a summary of the same information, appears on pages 11 through 13. In between these two sections, you are given lessons on how the synthesizer works, how to use Orchcopy, etc. However, it doesn't take long to become familiar with Orchestra-80's peculiarities and to realize the instructions are more than ade

266 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

■it -tr * -tr ■(( ■k-tr-k-tr-k-k-tr-k-tr-ti-h-tr-k-tftr-tr-tr'ti-tr-tfk-tr-tr-tr-tcir ifk-(r-tctt*-tfk'tr'ti-tc-tr-tr'k-tr-tr-(ftr1r-tfk

4MHZ, DOUBLE DENSITY,COLOR&B/W GRAPHICS. .THE LNW80 COMPUTER

COMPARE THE FEATURES AND PERFORMANCE

When you've compared the features of an LNW80 Computer, you'll quickly understand why the LNW80 is the ultimate TRS80 software compatible system. LNW RESEARCH offers the most complete microcomputer system at an outstanding low price.

We back up our product with an unconventional 6 month warranty and a 10 days full refund policy, less shipping charges.

LNW80 Computer $1,450.00

LNW80 Computer w/B&W Monitor S one 5" Drive $1,915.00

All orders must be prepaid, CA residents please include 6% sales tax. Contact us for shipping charges

* TRS80 Product of Tandy Corporation.

** PMC Product of Personal Microcomputer, Inc.

FEATURES

LHW80

PHC-80**

TRS-80* MODEL III

PROCESSOR

4.0 MHZ

1,8 MHZ

2.0 MHZ

LEVEL II BASIC INTERP.

YES

YES

LEVEL III BASIC

TRS80 MODEL 1 LEVEL II COMPATIBLE

YES

YES

NO

48K BYTES RAM

YES

YES

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CASSETTE BAUD RATE

500/1000

500

500/1500

FLOPPY DISK CONTROLLER

SINGLE/ DOUBLE

SINGLE

SINGLE/ DOUBLE

SERIAL RS232 PORT

YES

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PRINTER PORT

YES

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REAL TIME CLOCK

YES

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24 X 80 CHARACTERS

YES

NO

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VIDEO MONITOR

YES

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UPPER AND LOWER CASE

YES

OPTIONAL

YES

REVERSE VIDEO

YES

NO

NO

KEYBOARD

63 KEY

53 KEY

53 KEY

NUMERIC KEY PAD

YES

NO

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B/W GRAPHICS, 128 X 48

YES

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YES

HI-RESOLUTION B/W GRAPHICS,

480 X 192

YES

NO

NO

HI-RESOLUTION COLOR GRAPHICS 128 X 192 IN 8 COLORS

(NTSC),

YES

NO

NO

HI-RESOLUTION COLOR GRAPHICS 384 X 192 IN 8 COLORS

(RGB),

OPTIONAL

NO

NO

WARRANTY

6 MONTHS

90 DAYS

90 DAYS

TOTAL SYSTEM PRICE

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LESS MONITOR AND DISK DRIVE

$1,450.00

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—

LNW80

BARE PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD & MANUAL

$89.95

The LNW80 - A high-speed color computer totally compatible with the TRS-80*. The LNW80 gives you the edge in satisfying your computation needs in business, scientific and personal computation. With performance of 4 MHz, Z80A CPU, you'll achieve performance of over twice the processing speed of a TRS-80*. This means you'll get the performance that is comparable to the most expensive microcomputer with the compatibility to the world's most popular computer (TRS-80*)' resulting in the widest software base.

FEATURES:

. TRS-80 Model 1 Level II Software Compatible . High Resolution Graphics

. RGB Output - 384 x 192 in 8 Colors . NTSC Video or RF MOD - 128 x 192 in 8 Colors . Black and White - 480 x 192 4 MHz CPU

500/1000 Baud Cassette Upper and Lower Case 16K Bytes RAM, 12K Bytes ROM Solder Masked and Silkscreened

LNW SYSTEM EXPANSION

■ BARE PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD

AND MANUAL $69.95

WITH GOLD CONNECTORS $84.95

The System Expansion will allow you to expand your LNW80, TRS-80* or PHC-80** to a complete computer system that is still totally software compatible with the TRS-BO* Model 1 Level II.

FEATURES:

32K Bytes Memory

5" Floppy Controller

Serial RS232 20ma I/O

Parallel Printer

Real Time Clock

Screen Printer Bus

On Board Power Supply

Solder Masked and Silkscreened

LNW RESEARCH

CORPORAT ION

2620 WALNUT ST. TUSTIN CA. 92680

LNDoubler&DOS PLUS 3.3D

- Assembled and Tested w/DOS PLUS 3.3D

.$175.00

Double-density disk storage for the LNW Research's "System Expansion" or the Tandy's "Expansion Interface". The LNDoubler™ is totally software compatible with any double density software generated for the Percom's Doubler***. The LNDoublerTM provides the following outstanding features.

. Store up to 350K bytes on a single 5" disk

. Single and double density data separation

. Precision write precompensation circuit

. Software switch between single and double density

Easy plug in installation requiring no etch cuts, jumpers or soldering . 35, 40, 77, 80 track 5" disk operation . 120 day parts and labor Warranty

*** Doubler is a product of Percom Data Company, Inc.

DOS PLUS 3.3D

Micro Systems software's double density disk operating system. This operating system contains all the outstanding features of a well developed DOS, with ease in useability.

KEYBOARD

LNW80 KEYBOARD KIT

The Keyboard Kit contains remaining components.

$84.95

63 key plus a 10 key, P.C. board, and

CASE

LNW80 CASE $84.95

The streamline design of this metal case will house the LNW80, LWN System Expansion, LNW80 Keyboard, power supply and fan, LNDoublerTM, or LNW Data Separator. This kit includes all the hardware to mount all of the above. Add $12.00 for shipping

PARTS AVAILABLE FROM LNW RESERARCK . 4116 - 200ns RAM

6 chip set $26.00

8 chip set $33.50

16 chip set $64.00

24 chip set $94.00

32 chip set $124.00

LNW80 "Start up parts set" LNW80 "Video parts set" LNW80 Transformer LNW80 Keyboard cable

LNW80-1 $82.00

LNW80-2 $31.00

LNW80-3 $18.00

LNW80-4 $16.00

40 Pin computer to expansion cable $15.00

System Expansion Transformer $19.00

Floppy Controller (FD1771) and UART (TR1602) . . . $30.00

ORDERS & I N F0. NO. 714 - 544 - 5744 SERVICE NO. 714-641 -8850

Circle 229 on inquiry card.

VISA MASTER CHARGE ACCEPTED

UNLESS NOTED

ADD $3 FOR SHIPPING

£ EAST/WEST A

LOOK NEXT MONTH FOR OUR NEW SUPER SPECIALS FOR 1982!

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AT THESE

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ATARI 800 16K

$ 749

EPSON MX-80 $ 469

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PRICES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE W/0 NOTICE.

OKIDATA MICROLINE-83A

INTERTEC SUPERBRAIN 64K RAM $2799

QDSUPRBRAIN 2999

NEC5510SPINWRITER(7710) 2345

NEC 5520 SPINWRITER (7720) 2695

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NEC COLOR 12" MONITOR 339 NEC PC 8023 Printer 100 CPS Tractor & Friction 639

OKIDATA MICROLINE-80A 399

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INTERFACES:

IEEE $55, TRS-80 S35, APPLE INTERFACE & CABLE $90, RS-232 $70

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we carry the complete line of Personal Software.

268

BYTE November 1981

Circle 315 on inquiry card.

$749

CBM 8032 COMPUTER

CBM 8050 DISK DRIVE CBM 4032 COMPUTER CBM 4040 DISK DRIVE CBM 402 CBM VIC-20

LEEDEX/AMDEK100 LEEDEX/AMDEK100G

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MICROTEK 32K ATARI 80016K

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1-401-722-1027

WEST COAST 1-800-235-5581

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3533 Old Conejo Rd. #102

Newbury Park, CA 91320

1-805-499-3678

CA. TOLL FREE 1-800-322-1873

OMEGA SALES CO.

CHRISTMAS SPECIALS!

CBM 8032 COMPUTER

$1149

DIABLO 630

$1995

ANADEX DP-9500/9501 $1249

• ■

LEEDEX/AMDEKCOLOR-1 13" $ 329

Circle 315 on Inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981 269

OrcfvestraL-SO

•383

Saftwara Affair, Ltd

Photo 1: The complete Orchestra-80 system. The system is simple, and is mainly software intensive, as evidenced by the small size of the hardware interface.

quate.

The editor in Orchestra-80 is easy to use. It uses the arrow keys on the keyboard to position the cursor wherever you want within the piece you are working on. Additionally, you can insert duplicate lines anywhere you want and move lines forward or backward through your file.

When you are finished with a piece, or you want to hear what you have created, type SCORE and any syntax errors will be pointed out. Then type PLAY and listen to

what you've typed in.

When you are in the command mode, you can read in previously scored pieces from cassette tape or disk. Pieces can also be "chained" from the storage medium, so several pieces can be played one after the other without intervention from the operator. The disk-based version includes a directory command that lets you see what files are on your disks. Both versions, tape and disk, allow printing of any file in memory, a valuable feature in any program.

The computer code used in composing music is quite straightforward. You can choose any musical key by stating the number of sharps or flats, for example: Kl# means the key has one sharp, ie: the key of G.

From there, you can automatically transpose the music to a higher or lower key by inserting a line with the symbol > (greater than) or < (less than) followed by the number of half-steps you wish the music transposed up or down.

On another line, you define the time signature and tempo. (Although a tempo conversion chart is supplied, a limitation of the program is that the tempo must be determined largely by trial and error.)

Next, you define the tone-color registers of up to four voices; in other words, how you want them to sound. A bit of experimentation reveals that if you want the first voice to play with a clear, bright sound and the second voice to have a fuller, more textured sound, you type VIYA V2YD. By defining each of the voices' tones using

iiiiiiif

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CAT ORDER*

ANADEX 9000 Serial

l/pk

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114 00 ea)

500"

Niton Jel Blk

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3/pk

18.95/3 pk

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13 98 ea)

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CENTRONICS 100. 101 A. 102.

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26.33/3 pk

17.55/3 pk

15.85 ea)

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13 95/Giant Cart

113 95 ea)

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17.77/3 pk

12.95/3 pk

14.32 ea)

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3/pk

18.00/3 pk

13.95/3 pk

14.65 ea)

1 4" « 310

Mullisliike Film

C-525

RADIO SHACK DAISY WHEEL II

l/pk

24 95/3pk

8 25

18 25 ea)

250"

Mylai Mullistnke

C-7B9

RADIO SHACK LPIII. LPV

one, pk

13.95/can

8 95 Reload lib'only

18 95 ea)

500" lib'

Nylon Incl Insti

R-T3

RADIO SHACK LPII. LPIV

3/pk

1896/3 pk

11.95/3 pk

13 98 ea)

563" i 45'

Nylon Jel 81k

C-700

TELETYPE MOD 33. 28. 35. 37.

38. 88. WANGM/S. 5541W.WC. 5581.

10/pk

2.40 ea

13.90/10 pk

II 39 ea)

1 2" .36'

Nylon Jel Blk

R450

l/pk

6.85 ea

5.95 ea

15 95 ea)

5 16" <393'

Mullistnke Film

C-550

WD. 6581W. 22B1W

TERMS:

MINIMUM PURCHASE - $20 PAYMENT BY: C.O.D.(UPS),CHECK,

MASTER CARD, OR VISA CHARGE

CARD. VOLUME DISCOUNTS:

20-50 PACKS 10%

51 -100 PACKS 15%

•UNDER $20, ADO $5 HANDLING. "APPROX. RETAIL. PRICE VARIES.

ANCIE LABORATORIES

9204 BattmMi Blvd Ml-345-8000 I W.ih D C Locall

Colw Pi*. MD 20740 JOJ-792-2050 (Bills M0 Local)

800-638-0987 (National)

ADDRESSCITY

ANCIE Laboratories 9204 Baltimore Blvd. College Park, MD 20740

301-345-6000 (Wash. DC. Local) 301-792-2060 (Balto. M D Local)

800-638-0987 (National)

D Check Enclosed

□ C.O.D.

□ VISA

□ MASTER CHARGE

ACCT. #

EXP. DATE

MIN. ORDER $20

PRICES SUBJECT TO CHANGE

270 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

Circle 25 on inquiry card.

■■-.-. . ■■■- - ■

'■ - . - , \

j!t* •fir' -r. •' -J* v

x

When two leaders in the

complex information field get together,

the results can be surprisingly simple.

In the beginning, there was information. Executives analyzed it, discussed it, used it to predict the future. But as the volume of information continued to grow, it got harder and harder to handle. Until the executives found that they could no longer get at the information they wanted when they needed it.

Then SPSS Inc., developer of the world's largestselling computer applications software, and McGraw-Hill, America's leading business publisher, got together. And came up with a simple solution.

SPSS Inc. created a series of software packages for analyzing and presenting information that were powerful yet easy to use. And McGraw-Hill published a series of guides for the software that were

so clear and comprehensive, they became the standard of the industry.

Now the executives could once again get their hands on their company's information and even create their own computer-generated reports and color graphics-all without any programming.

Today SPSS software is serving the data analysis and management needs of over 3000 installations around the world. And McGraw-Hill has sold more than half-a-million SPSS software guides.

The moral of this story is simple. If you're looking for the fastest, most cost-effective way to handle your company's information, talk to SPSS Inc. and McGraw-Hill today. And write your own happy ending.

Partners in Information

^£V

5§p

inc.

444 N. Michigan Avenue

Chicago, Illinois 60611

(312)329-2400

College Division McGraw-Hill Book Company 1221 Avenue of the Americas New York, New York 10020 (212)997-6611

© 1981 SPSS Inc/McGraw-HII

^fc-^4"

RnHiHI

1

8H

c^ • A

fciSW

"v. "^^'

Photo 2: Orchestra-80 can be connected to either of the expansion connectors available on TRS-80 computer systems.

A, B, C, or D, in different combinations, you can achieve a variety of effects. When you're ready for the actual notes and rests, you can transcribe anything from whole notes to sixty-fourth notes, dotted notes to triplets, and you can choose whether or not to modify any note with short or long staccato, or short or long articulation. These modifiers determine how sharply a note ends, and give expression to your music. To further alter the mood of a particular phrase or section of music, you can define a new part (P followed by a two-digit number) and change the tempo, tone color, etc, to achieve the desired effect. Repetition of a phrase or an entire part is easily achieved by entering the correct symbols (parenthesis, or R, followed by the number of the part to be repeated).

There is one major limitation to Orchestra-80. It is in the area of dynamics. You can't change the loudness or softness of a phrase—there is no piano, forte, crescendo, or decrescendo. It is possible to compensate somewhat for this by altering the tone-color registers of the voices

here and there, but the effect is like that of a modified harpsichord. In fact, the music composed when that instrument was in vogue (the 17th to mid-18th centuries)— the even-tempered, full sound of the baroque period—is particularly suited to interpretation by Orchestra-80, although the program has much wider potential.

Orchestra-80 is an excellent package for the programmer or musician interested in making music with a TRS-80 computer. It requires neither an accomplished programmer nor a professional musician to operate. Its instructions are clear and well written, and the hardware is simple to attach and use.H

Since this review was written, Software Affair has introduced Orchestra-85, featuring stereo output, percussion, new editing features, and an optional fifth voice for use with speed-up modifications; it is compatible with existing Orchestra-80 files. Orchestra-85 costs $129.95. An upgrade for Orchestra-80 systems is also available.

COMPUSTAR

**** **** ****

SUPERBRAIN

DEALER

OEM PACKAGES AVAILABLE NOV!

NOW AVAILABLE AND IN STOCK - THE ALL NEW AND EXCITING MULTIUSER COMPUSTAR AND STAND-ALONE SUPERBRAIN. WE ARE THE LARGEST AUTHORIZED INTERTEC DATA SYSTEMS DEALER IN THE SOUTHEAST. OUR OFFICE IS ONLY 80 MILES FROM THE FACTORY, THEREFORE WE CAN BEST ACCOMODATE YOU. CALL! CALL! CALL!

7301 South Blvd. CHARLOTTE N.C. 28210

* DESK-TOP COMPUTERS *

(704) 553-7441

272 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 467 on inquiry card.

Circle 273 on Inquiry card. '

WHY THE MICROSOFT

fMk\W;M/if.

I

i

I

Memory — you never seem to have quite enough of it.

But if you're one of the thousands of Apple owners using the SoftCard, there's an economical new way to expand your memory dramatically.

16K ON A PLUG-IN CARD.

Microsoft's new RAMCard simply plugs into your Apple II," and adds 16k bytes of dependable, buffered read/write storage.

Together with the SoftCard, ■ the RAMCard gives you a 56k CP/M'" system that's big enough to take on all kinds of chores that would never fit before (until now, the only way to get this much memory was to have an Apple . Language Card installed). x

GREAT SOFTWARE: (V

YOURS, OURS, OR THEIRS. |§|

With the RAMCard and SoftCard, you can tackle largescale business 'and scientific computing with our COBOL and FORTRAN languages. Or greatly increase the capability of CP/M

II

i

I

applications like the Peachtree Software accounting systems. VisiCalc™ and other Apple software packages can take advantage of RAMCard too.

And RAMCard gives you the extra capacity to develop advanced programs of your own, using the SoftCard and CP/M. Even with the RAMCard in place, you can still access your ROM BASIC and monitor routines.

JOIN THE SOFTCARD FAMILY.

The RAMCard is just the latest addition to the SoftCard family — a comprehensive system of hardware and software that can make your Apple more versatile and powerful than you ever imagined.

Your Microsoft dealer has all the exciting details. Visit him soon, and discover a great idea that keeps getting better.

Microsoft Consumer Products, 400108th Ave. N.E., Suite 200, Bellevue, WA 98004. (206)454-1315.

|.i- |..<!'■• I" .' ft') I '■ '1" MlP.1 IftKIWM'F .' ■ ■ | '

Wtd'hW ul [Jitpial Hfl ■•■ •■ '■',■;■/■■• ...' . .!<!■!"•.■ i'. .■•■■ . ■■ i >■ i I

Software Review

Apple II File-Management Systems

Ken Blochowiak c/o KRB Associates

POB 11894 Milwaukee WI 53211

[Simonides] inferred that people desiring to train this faculty [of memory] must select places and form mental images of the things they wish to remember and store those images in the places, so that the order of the places will preserve the order of the things, and the images of the things will denote the things themselves.

Cicero, De Oratore

Strictly speaking, the terms database management system, data management system, and data-base system refer to programs that meet the CODASYL (Conference On DAta SYstems Languages) standards for data-base systems. MDBS from Micro Data Base Systems is one such example of a system modeled after the CODASYL standards. The systems we'll be examining are traditionally referred to as file-management systems (see reference 5 for a more complete discussion). Because of various practical limits (such as time and space), we will not cover any programs that run under Digital

About the Author

Ken Blochowiak edits a newsletter, called Bits of Data, for the Cybernetic Mechanism. He is president of KRB Associates, which provides information about Decision Support Systems (DSS) and small computers, and vice chairman of the Milwaukee chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery.

Research's CP/M operating system.

At the highest level of generality we will be looking at the portability, maintainability, and current utility of the following systems: Infotree, the CCA DMS (Data Management System), the Data Factory, the On-Line Database, and High Technology's DBMS (Data-Base Management System) and Information Master (with Data Master). (See textboxes for addresses and ordering information.)

Portability includes the notion of both the independence of the software from the Apple computer and the independence of your data from the software. Maintainability of the software system includes the ability to back up disks and access the source code. Maintainability of your information includes sort-and-file redefinition facilities. Current utility includes initial definition (system creation), data entry, retrieval, and report printing. Although we will be emphasizing effectiveness, we will also cover several efficiency characteristics, such as whether or not data entry is I/O (input/output) intensive, whether or not disk space is wasted, and whether or not searching or sorting is excessively slow.

Your application and your values determine the importance of these various features. To effectively evaluate the systems, you must know yourself. If you use your microcomputer to produce reports according to country and type of equipment for the multinational corporation you

work for, your needs may differ from those you would have if you used your system for order entry and inventory information at your local computer store.

Defining the Features

Portability is divided into machine independence and data-file independence. In the face of the vast uncertainty about what equipment will be obsolete, portability frees you from the need to anticipate. Machine independence gives you the ability to

At a Glance

Name

Infotree

Type

Tree-structured information system

Distributor

Siro-tech 6 Main St

Ogdensburg NY 13669 (315) 393-2640

Price

$70

Format

5-inch floppy disk in UCSD format

Language

UCSD Pascal

Documentation

12 pages

274 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 172 on Inquiry card.

FUTRA COMPANY

P.O. BOX 4380 - DEPT. B

TORRANCE, CA 90510

(213) 328-8951

Hours: Mon. - Fit: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Sat: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm (PST)

ding solutions and being competitive is our business. At ra Company we believe that it Is possible to find solutions your automation problems at the lowest possible prices, cany a complete line of products from major manubirers and a variety of other accessories and software to I your home, professional and business needs.

MSk

HEWLETT PACKARD

HP-85 and HP-83

Hewlett Packard Computers powerful problem solvers for professional. Quality built for istrial, scientific and business rations mat can not afford a y due to equipment failure, emely versatile trie HP-85 or can offer functions from re'ral analysis in an office to rolling devices on lest equipt or numerical controlled intrial machines. The HP-85

es with a tape recorder. :er and a CRT display and the

HP-85 HP-83

$2575.00 $1790.00

HP-83 is the same in capabilities of the HP-85 less the tape storage and printer.

2903A HP+85/83 16K Memory Module $255.00

Firmware Enhancements:

Interface!:

82936A

82936A ROM Draw

S 42

82937A HP-IB

$339

-15001 Mass Stor.

135

82939A Serial (female)

$399

-15002 Plotter/Print

$135

82939 opt 001 (male)

$339

-15003 In/Output

S274

Same 002 (crmt 1p)

$339

-15004 Matrix

S135

82940A GPIO

$421

-15005 Adv.Prog. -15007 Assembly

$274

82941A BCD

$420

$127.5

82949A Printer Int.

$269

722S

aphlcs Plotter

$2089.95

HP2631B

Matrix Printer

$3295.00

HP82902M Disk Drive $1275.00

HP APPLICATION PACS

■13001 Standard

13002 Basic Training

-13003 Gen. Statistics

■13005 Math

-13006 AC Circuit Analysis

13010 Games

■13042 VisiCalc PLUS

13045 Information Mgmt.

13046 Surveying

13044 Data Communications 13038 Graphics Presentation

$79.00 each

85-13011 Linear Programming 85-13034 Text Editing 85-13035 Wave form Analysis 85-13036 Basic Statistics and

Datamanipulation 85-13037 Regression Analysis

$166

$175

$175

CALL

$175

$299.00 Z-80 Soft Card

with CP/M

$159.00 16K Ram Card

in your Apple II computer to a larger world. With the Z-80 Soft d and 16K RAM Card you can now run CP/M compatible software, and your memory for specific application, act as a firmware card

much more. If you add any boards to your Apple this year these

the ones.

VIDEX 80 x 24 VIDEOTERM AND KEYBOARD ENHANCER

$269.00 $110.00

Videoterm Keyboard Enhancer

ALS "Smartem" 80 column card $295.00 intain optimum software compatibility industry wide. By adding the eoterm 80 x 24 videoboard and keyboard enhancer your Apple acts lilar to CRT Terminals on larger systems. Combine this with the rosoft Softcard and you've got some system.

APPLE COMPUTERS

APPLE II "Plus" 16K $1069.00 48K $1129.00

APPLE III 128K $3255.00

What can we say except that they're super systems and the prices are a steal. Apple II

• Disk II w/cont.

Disk II 2nd Applesoft Firmware Centronix Printer Int. Communications Card High speed Serial Int. Pascal Language Syst Integer firmware Parallel Printer Int.

$509 $445 $149 $179 $179 $155 $379 $149 $149

Hand Controllers Vinyl Carrier Joystick II Graphics Tablet Silentype Printer

Apple in

• Into

nlormation Analyst

Softwre Pkg Disk II for All I Silentype Printer III

$ 27 $ 33 $ 45

$665 $365

$345 $292

$495

ADD ON PRODUCTS

California Computer Systems:

• 12K PROM/ROM Brd $78

• Centronics Cable $30

• Calendar Clock $99

• Programmable Timer $95

• A/D Converter $95

• GPIB IEEE 488 CALL

Mountain Computer Inc.

• Apple Clock $219

• Supertalker $255

• Romplus $131

• Romwriter $152

• Romwriter $152

• X10 Controller $172

• X10 System $270

• CPS Multi-function $239

Other

• SSM AIO

• SSMA488

• ABT Keypad

• ABT Soft Key

• Asynchronous Serial

• Synchronous Serial

• Parallel Interface

• Centronics Interface

• Arithmetic Proc/Disk

• Arithmetic Proc/ROM

' Music System i A/D + D/A i Keyboard Filter i Keyboard Fitter i Copy Rom 1 I/O Cable Assembly ■ Expansion Chassis • Card Reader

$135 $149 $ 99 $111 $325 $345

$465 $299

$46 $48

$48 $47 $649 $1065

$159 CALL $115 $145

Novation Cat Modem $155 Novation D-Cat Modem $155 Novation Apple Cat $328

ABT Barwand $175

TKC Joystick II $45

TKC Keypad II $149

ThunderClock $120

Hayes Micromodem II $303 Hayes Micromodem 100 CALL

ADD ON SOFTWARE

Apple Computers:

• Apple Post

• Shell Games

• Apple Bowl

• DOS 3.3 Update

• Apple Writer

• DOS Tool Kit

Personal Software:

• Visicalc 3.3

• Desk Top/Plan II

• CCA Data Mgt.

$44 $28 $23 $57 $65 $65

$159 $165 $64

i Stellar Invaders i Apple Plot i Adventure i AP Music Theory i Tax Planner

i Visilerm i Visiplot ■ Visidex ' VisiTrend/Visiplot

Microsoft: (requires Z80 SoftCard & CP/M)

• Basic Compiler $296 • COBAL Language

• Assembly Language $94 • Fortran Language

$23 $57 $33 $47 $114

$125 $147 $159 $229

$562.50 $149.00

Peachtree/40: (requires Z-80 SoftCard & 16K RAM Card)

• General Ledger $195 • Payroll $195

• Accounts Rec $195 • Inventory $195

• Accounts Payables $195 • Mail List $195

Misc: (48K All or AII + )

• Stoneware DB Master' $179

• BPI General Ledger $315

• BPI Inventory Control $315

• BPI Payroll $315 . BPI Job Cost Sys. $315

Software Publishing Corp.

"PFS" $ 87.50

"PFS: Report" $ 87.50 i MicroFocus "COBOL" $743.00 MicroPro Wordstar $229.00

CPM Software Packages - 8" Diskettes

• Peachtree CPM • Accounting Plus

• MicroPro

COMPUTER SUPPLIES:

3M Scotch 5" Diskettes (10) 3M Scotch 8" Diskettes (10)

•744-0 5" SS/SD soft sect. $26 •74M 8" SS/SD $32

•744-10 5" SS/SD 10 sect. $26 -741-0 8" SS/DD $36

•744-16 5" SS/SD 16 sect. $26 «743-0 B" DS/DD $44

•7440 5" Head Clean.Kit $29 »7400 8" Head Clean.Kit $30

MISC.

•Silentype Paper (roll) •5" Vinyl disk sleeves

$4.50 $6.95

•Vinyl Disk Sleeves

$6.95

ZENITH MONITOR

12" GREEN

DATA MONITOR

$119.00

Reduce eyestrain with the monitor from the people who say "The quality goes in before the name goes on." Excellent for All, AMI Atari and others.

ALTOS

XEROX

8000-2

8000-10

8000-15

$CALL

820-1 5V4" 820-2 8"

SCALL

Altos 8000 series and Xerox 820 series Don't buy anything until you've checked with us.

VIDEO TERMINALS & VIDEO MONITORS

Sanyo:

• 12" Green Monitor $269

• 12" B&W Monitor $239

• 13" Color Monitor $432

• 9" B&W Monitor $169

• 9" Green Monitor CALL

AMDEK:

• 12" B&W Monitor $144

• 12" Green Monitor $174

NEC:

• 12" Green Monitor

• 12" Color (RGB)

• 12" Color Monitor

$212 CALL $402

VIDEO TERMINALS:

• ADDS Viewpoint CRT $512

• Soroc 130 $595

• Televideo $595

EPSON PRINTERS

MX-100

Your price $759.00

Probably the best buy in a printer this year. Compare features with any other and compare price (especially ours). 4 character sizes all may be placed into letter quality enhanced mode. Friction and removable tractor, 9 by 9 to 18 by 18 dot Matrix, logic seeking, and much more. Not to mention DOT PL0TTING7GRAFTRAX option built right in. WOW! What a printer!

• MX 80 FT Printer

• MX 80 Printer

• MX 70 Printer

• MX 80 Ribbons

S569 • MX Ser. Interface Opt $65

$479 • Epson Apple Par. Int. $69

$394 • Epson Pat.Cable $22.50 $14 • MX-80 or 80/ft Graf

trax ROM $78

CALIFORNIA COMPUTER SYSTEM

The CCS 2210 is a low cost S100, Z80 computer system with 64K of memory, disk controller, parallel/serial I/O and CPM operating system.

$1743.00

Separate Component!

• 2200A Mainframe

• 2810A CPU

• 2065 64K RAM

$454 $247 $540

• 24221 Disk Cntrlr.

• 2718 Par/Ser I/O

$354 $275

ATARI COMPUTER SYSTEMS ATARI 800 16K Computer

Your price: $785.00

The Atari 800 Computer with accessories and software make up a complete system for home, educational, financial and business use.

• Atari 400 •810 Disk Drive •815 Dual Disk Dr. •825 80 col.print.

$347 »853 16K RAM Mod $83

$475 *930 Acoustic Mod $156

$1218 *850 Interface Mod $60

$780 »410 Prog.recorder $79

TERMS: Shipping: add 3% for product shipped within continental USA via UPS surface (minimum $3.00). If the Order placed Is prepaid with U.S. funds in the form of check or money order, a Total Charge of $3.00 for shipping is all you pay within the continental USA via UPS surface. Allow 14 working days for personal and company checks to clear. Credit card charges limited to $1000. No COD's. FPO, APO or orders outside continental USA call or write for shipping charges or add 10% to purchase price (any difference will be refunded). California residents add 6% sales tax. All offers subject to change or withdrawal without notice.

SOFTWARE

DEVELOPMENT

TOOLS FOR

INDUSTRY

CP/M CROSS-ASSEMBLERS

Fast, comprehensive cross-assemblers to run under CP/M.* Extensive pseudoops include full listing control, nested conditionals, mnemonic synonyms, and inclusion of external source files. Generate object file, assembly listing, and symbol table from source code for nine popular microprocessor families.

XASM05 6805

XASM09 6809

XASM18 1802

XASM48 8048/8041

XASM51 8051

XASM65 6502

XASM68 6800/6801

XASMF8 F8/3870

XASM400 COP400

Assemblers... $200.00 each Manual only... $ 25.00

8048 DEVELOPMENT PACKAGE

Now you can use the 8048 family of single-chip microcomputers without buying expensive equipment. Develop 8048 software with the XASM48 crossassembler. Then plug our EPR-48 board Into your S-100 system to program the 8748 EPROM version. 8048 Development Package ... $574.00 EPR-48 alone $449.00

EPROM SIMULATOR BOARD

Debug dedicated systems quickly. Our PSB-100 PROM Emulator is an S-100 board with up to 8K of RAM. Cable with 24-pin plug replaces 2708 or 2716 EPROM(s) in your target system for Instant program testing PSB-100 EPROM Simulator... $445.00

w/2K RAM

'Trademark ol Digital Research

804 SOUTH STATE ST DOVER. DEL. 19901 302-734-0151

f

I Visa and Mastercharge accepted. We ship 8" slngle

I density and Softcard+ 5.25" diskettes. Ask us

I about other formats. OEM AND DEALER INQUIRES

I INVITED.

I + Trademark of Microsoft

276 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

move from machine to machine and not waste time learning new software. Data-file independence gives you freedom to use your data file with another file-management system. None of the systems described in this article gives true CODASYL data independence, but some give you more flexibility than others. With a text editor, a copy of the structure of your record, a little analysis, and some programming, you can often achieve considerable flexibility, even if at first glance your record structure seems to be set in concrete.

Maintainability consists of backup, access to source code, sort facilities, and redefinition facilities, and it refers to your ability to continue operating your system. If your data files need some slight changes, if your program has a bug, or if your "locked" (uncopyable) disk doesn't work any

more, how do you get up and running again7 This area is complicated by the spectre of software piracy and the high mortality rate among new businesses.

Current utility refers to initial definition, data entry, data retrieval, report printing, interface to outside packages, human factors, documentation, and something I call "macroefficiency." No matter how portable and maintainable a system is, if it's not useful there's no point in having it. Portability

Infotree is the most machine-independent system we will examine here. It is distributed in UCSD Pascal (developed at the University of California at San Diego) p-code (pseudocode) and, with the proper utilities, can be transferred to other UCSD systems. The CCA DMS also has slight

CD CD

o

c

V)

Q

<

O O

& o o

CO

lico

to Q

CD

<» £ .E a

-1 CO

O D

00

2

00

Q

2

CO CO

co Q

c g

i 8

° S3

S 5

Source code available

N

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Copyable disk

Y

Y

N

N

Y

N

N ^

Characters per field

NA

232

239

26

100

NA

19,**

20

Fields per record

NA

24

88

20

20

NA

Characters per record

NA

232

21 K

239

2 K

NA

1980

Select by specified range

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Select by partial match

N

N

Y

N

N

Y

Y

Select using multiple fields

N

N

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Allows subsorts

Limited

Y

Limited Y

Y

NA

Y

Prints mailing labels

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

NA

Y

User-defined print formats

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

NA

Y

Multiline defined print formats

N

Y

Y

N

Y

NA

Y

Add/delete fields to/from file

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

Merge files

N

N

Y

N

N

Y

N

Calculation options

N

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

In-memory data entry

N

N

Y

Y

N

NA

Limited

Data entry default values

N

N

N

Y

N

NA

Y

Interface to VisiCalc

N

Y

N

N

N

N

N

Table 1: A quick summary

of features for Apple II data-base

management

systems.

DBMS and Information Master

are both file-management programs used in

conjunc

Hon with Data Master, a file-restructuring program.

Infotree

's tree structure gives

record sizes slightly differen

t meanings (each node is

identified by a

key of

up to 18

characters in length; each n

ode

can contain up

to 18 lines of

26 text characters).

Circle 52 on inquiry card.

Nobody's

better protection

than The Marshal

in Winchester territory.

You got yourself a Winchester disk drive

with all that large system power. Great!

But trying to utilize your floppy drive for backup just isn't working.

And bit-streaming tape cartridge drives offers no practical protection,

because the usual need is archival storage and replacement of

individual files lost through operator error; but the streamer

tape data cannot be reconstructed by separate files easily.

Enter The Marshal to your rescue.

He's the only match in speed,

capacity, and capability for your Winchester.

As Thomas S. Stellinger, Manager of Marketing Literature

with Computer Service Systems Network, Inc. stated in

InfoWorld, "Intelligent tape subsystems, combining the

1/4-inch tape cartridges with file-oriented software

offers the best solution to hard disk backup...a utility

program...allows the user to save every file in the

system, as well as to restore individual files by name."

The Marshal from TKS Corporation.

The only complete hardware/software protection device for computer hard disk systems.

The Marshal follows commands, is fast, and thinks for himself.

Formatted capacity is 13.4 megabytes. The transfer

rate is 192,000 bits per second. And he can

determine which files have been updated since last

saved, in order to recopy only those specific files —

saving time. Then records the date he made the copy.

Perfect protection for the perfect price.

Your OEM Distributor can introduce you

to a rack mount unit or a table top console

for much less than you'd guess.

Take this ad to your dealer today, save a heap of

money off the regular price, and get the best

protection available in Winchester territory.

The Marshal from Turnkey Systems

Corporation would sure be happy to help you.

Call 1-800-327-2848.

Turnkey Systems Corporation 8472 NW 56 Street, Miami, FL 33166

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potential for machine independence; it is available in source code and could be translated into another dialect of BASIC. The other systems (Data Factory, On-Line Database, and High Technology's DBMS and Information Master) come on locked or unlistable disks and have no machine independence.

At a Glance

Name

The Data Factory 3.0

Type

File management and retrieval system

Distributor

Micro Lab 811 Stonegate Highland Park IL 60035 (312) 433-7877

Price

$150

Format

Locked 5-inch floppy disk

Language

Applesoft BASIC

Documentation

88 pages

—At a Glance

Name

CCA Data Management System 5.2

Type

File management and retrieval system

Distributor

Personal Software 1330 Bordeaux Dr Sunnyvale CA 94086 (408) 745-7841

Price

$100

Format

5-inch floppy disk

Language

Applesoft BASIC

Documentation

130 pages

Infotree does not include any datafile transfer utilities, but there is a text file on the program disk that details how data is stored. Infotree uses a binary tree and consists of a set of records that can be used for text or as nodes in the tree.

The CCA DMS provides utilities for transferring data between VisiCalc and DMS using Software Arts' DIF (Data-Interchange Format). The documentation provides information on the structure of DMS records and examples of the use of this information (including a program that uses DMS files).

The Data Factory provides a Construct/Append option that enables you to read text files created by other systems into Data Factory files. The Data Factory can also add or delete fields in a record and create new files that include the new format and your old data. Information is not provided on the structure of Data Factory files. This system provides flexible methods of moving data into the system, but no documented way of moving data out to other systems.

The On-Line Database does not provide any transfer utilities or filestructure information.

High Technology's DBMS has no utilities that increase flexibility, but both Data Master and Information Master will accept DBMS files. An option for transferring data from Information Master to DBMS is not provided. Data Master can create new DBMS files from old DBMS files.

Data Master is a package of utilities for use with either DBMS or Information Master. It does not document methods of working with files created by other systems. Data Master includes some nice options for adding or deleting fields in a record and for transferring records that meet userspecified criteria to another data file. There is a Data Master equivalent to the command "Select all records where the ZIP code field has the value 22153, and the Amount Owed field is greater than $10,000; then, transfer only those records to a new data file leaving out the phone number but including a new field called Comments whose value is big spender. Data

Master does supply an extensive set of file restructuring features that are quite useful.

Maintainability

With the coming of the locked disk, a widespread misnomer has developed an appropriate meaning. I refer to "software maintenance." Infotree and the CCA DMA come on copyable disks, which enables you to keep as many backup disks as you wish. The Data Factory comes on two uncopyable disks. "Disk insurance" is available for $17.50 per year. This provides for replacement of blown disks and updates to the system. Data Factory disks can also be renewed for a $10 fee if you don't have disk insurance. A backup copy of the On-Line Database is available for $15. When you return High Technology's license, you are sent a backup copy of Data Master or Information Master. DBMS is copyable but it cannot be listed. High Technology says it will replace blown disks for $25.

Only the CCA DMS provides access to source code. Access to source code is reassuring to a purchaser (but see Gemignani's "Legal Protection for Computer Software" for a discussion of the current legal situation concerning software protection).

Infotree provides a file compression option that removes deleted information and improves access time by sorting and relinking the remaining data. Sorting is also done during data entry. The only subsorts are those built into the tree structure (the subbranches of each branch are sorted).

The CCA DMS allows up to ten levels of subsorts. (Whenever two records have the same primary-sort field, they are arranged by the secondary-sort field, and so on.) The use of source and destination disks allows you to sort large files.

The Data Factory allows what amounts to sorting by subfields for day, month, and year. But that's all. And since this information must be in one field, in an invariant format (dd/mm/yy), you lose considerable flexibility of ad hoc query. Of course, you could do without time subsorts (or enter the data twice). Single- or

278 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 268 on inquiry card.

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dual-drive sorts of a full-disk data file are possible.

The On-Line Database allows subfield sorts. Data is sorted at time of entry, but with reasonably small sets of defined sorts, data entry is not slowed too much.

The High Technology DBMS also allows subfield sorts, but sorting is separated from data entry. An Omit Sort Update option allows Informa

At a Glance

Name

Data Base Management System

(DBMS) 5.2

Type

File management and retrieval system

Distributor

High Technology

POB 14665

8001 Classen Blvd

Oklahoma City OK 73113

(405) 840-9900

Price

$100

Format

5-inch floppy disk

Language

Applesoft BASIC

Documentation

55 pages

At a Glance.

Name

Data Master 3.2

Type

File-reorganization utility

Distributor

High Technology

POB 14665

8001 Classen Blvd

Oklahoma City OK 73113

(405) 840-9900

Price

$100

Format

Locked 5-inch floppy disk

Language

Applesoft BASIC

Documentation

36 pages

tion Master to postpone sorting until the end of your entry or file-modification session. Sorting can also be completely separated from data entry, but some extra work is involved (deleting and redefining sort-definition files). Technically, Data Master performs no sorting, but is simply a utility program for reorganizing files into different formats.

Infotree allows you to add or delete nodes, one by one, to or from your "infotree"—not a particularly powerful method. The On-Line Database doesn't have any facilities of this sort.

There are no explicitly documented methods of adding or deleting fields from an existing CCA DMS data file. But a small file could be transferred to a VisiCalc program that added or deleted columns and transferred back to DMS (a VisiCalc row is a DMS record and a VisiCalc column is a DMS field). This may seem awkward, but it is possible.

The Data Factory has several file redefinition facilities: Construct/Append is the most useful, but Replace and Math can also be useful. Construct/Append allows you to add or delete fields from your record definition, change field length or field position, or append files that have fields of different lengths or in different positions. Replace lets you enter a constant into a specified field of all or selected records. Math lets you do one arithmetic operation involving two fields and store the result in a third field.

Data Master is a comprehensive file-redefinition system. It requires source and destination files created by DBMS or Information Master. It can relocate fields and transfer selected subsets of a file, and create files that have an increase or decrease in the number of fields per record. It can merge files by multiple transfers to the same source file. You can transfer the results of calculations that use up to ten intermediate variables (like a calculator with memory locations) and, apparently, as many arithmetic operations as you have fields. Record selection can be by inequalities, equalities, or pattern matching (leading or trailing string, floating string, or character in a specified position).

Information Master has no file-redefinition options of its own. Its initial file-definition features are required to create Data Master source files. Information Master allows you to load, edit, and save an existing file definition with a new name. A new file definition can be edited until data is entered into the file it defines. This capability simplifies the process of defining new source files for Data Master if the required file is similar to an existing file.

Current Utility

What will these systems do for you right here, right now? We will be examining features that tell you whether or not you can use these systems to define a data file that meets your needs, enter your data easily, get the reports you want, or exchange data with outside packages. We will see whether or not the systems take human factors into consideration, and will look at the documentation and discuss "macroefficiency."

With Infotree, the initial definition of the information structure (which most of the systems refer to as system creation) is intimately related to data entry. As you enter data you create a tree structure. If this structure fits your application naturally and isn't too redundant, it can be very pleasant to use. If it doesn't fit, or results in redundancy, then it isn't pleasant to use. Each node in the tree is identified by a key. Keys may contain up to eighteen letters. Text may be stored at each node. Text lines are twenty-six characters long and multiple lines can be appended. Each node has only one parent but may have multiple children.

The CCA DMS has a close-to-standard record-definition block that includes information on field number, field ID (identification), field name, and field length. Sorts are defined separately. DMS allows you to define fields in which values are calculated automatically. You can say the DMS equivalent of "add field one to field two and put the result in field three." The length of a DMS record must be less than 233 characters, and a record may contain up to twenty-four fields.

The Data Factory has fairly stan

280 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 140 on Inquiry card.

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dard file-definition features, although some are implemented strangely. For example, your field name must not be larger than your field. The tradeoff forced by this peculiarity will be discussed later. A field may have up to 239 characters. The number of fields per record must be less than 89.

Initial definition for the On-Line Database is standard. You specify the

At a Glance

Name

On-Line Database

Type

File management and retrieval system

Distributor

Blue Lakes Computing 3240 University Ave Madison WI 53705 (608) 233-6502

Price

$100

Format

Locked 5-inch floppy disk

Language

Applesoft BASIC

Documentation

21 pages

At a Glance

Name

Information Master 3.10

Type

File management and retrieval system

Distributor

High Technology

POB 14665

8001 Classen Blvd

Oklahoma City OK 73113

(405) 840-9900

Price

$150

Format

Locked 5-inch floppy disk

Language

Applesoft BASIC

Documentation

145 pages

number of fields in your record, and for each field you specify its name and length. You can have up to twenty fields per record, twenty-six characters per field, 239 characters per record, nine sort keys per file, and unlimited subsorts per sort (three is recommended as a practical limit).

DBMS gives you simple, direct filedefinition features. You can define sorts during or after your initial definitions, and subsorts are allowed. You can have up to twenty fields per record, and 100 characters per field.

Information Master provides extensive system-creation options. You can have up to twenty fields per record, 99 characters per alphanumeric field, nineteen characters per numeric field, five sort keys per file, and five subsorts per sort. Up to 1000 records are allowed per file, but not as many long records will fit on a disk: the number of records is limited to what will fit on one disk.

Data entry for Infotree is disk-I/O intensive (as it is for all systems that don't let you accumulate data in memory). You spend a lot of time waiting for it to write information to disk. Worse, if you need the same information in two separate branches of your tree, you must enter this information twice. Data-entry commands are simple and direct (although they could be better documented).

The CCA DMS does not allow you the option of inspecting and correcting a record after you have finished entering it and before it is saved. If you wish to make corrections, you must use individual search, and update or delete commands. CCA DMS uses the standard prompt: it lists the field names before you enter your data. DMS does not have in-memory data entry.

The Data Factory has good and bad data-entry features. It does have in-memory data entry, but it forces you to choose between cryptic prompts or efficient use of disk. (This is discussed in more detail under macroefficiency.) You can verify your entry before moving to the next record.

The On-Line Database has the best data-entry features of any of the sys

tems I have examined. You can define default entries, and do in-memory data entry and avoid waiting for the completion of needless disk I/O. Incorrect entries may be easily corrected by directing the cursor to the spot and reentering the data.

DBMS allows field correction at the end of the entry of a record—it also does error checking. However, it does not allow in-memory data entry or default values. Information Master does not have user-controlled inmemory data entry. Sometimes it accepts more than one record on its own initiative. Sometimes (rarely) it will miss characters because an internal Applesoft operation takes place. It allows you to correct records before saving them to disk, and it beeps after writing to disk. (The previous entry to any field is the default value of the current field.)

The benefit of systems like these comes from the reports they produce. We will examine the way these systems select a record to report, format the report, and calculate any derived results.

Infotree's retrieval commands retrieve either information about the tree structure or information that you have stored at the various nodes. The commands are easy to learn (even though the documentation is a bit sparse), but they are not very powerful. If you do not anticipate the requests you need to make of Infotree and build them into your tree structure, you will not be able to ask them, much less get an answer. If your tree structure goes directly from the "information retrieval systems" node to the specific program nodes without passing through a "for the Apple" node, you will not be able to ask Infotree "what information retrieval systems run on the Apple7"—not even if that information is somewhere further up the tree.

Several record-selection options are scattered through the CCA Data Management System. You can select records that have a particular record number, records that have a particular value in a particular field ("Display all records that have a value of information system in the type of software field"), and records for

282 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

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BYTE November 1981

283

which the value of a particular field lies within a certain range ("Display all records for which the value of the cost field is between $50 and $400"). You cannot, however, do selections that require testing the values of multiple fields ("Display all records where the value of the host machine field is Apple and the value of the allows multiple selection criteria field is yes"). The system does select on partial matches. DMS has a somewhat limited set of features that are quite cumbersome to use.

The Data Factory includes several methods of selecting records that are not, however, grouped together. List, Search, Level Search, From/To, Compare, and Inspect/Change are separate main-menu options. The Level Search option allows multiplecriteria searching and searching for partial matches. You can specify record numbers if you wish. A comprehensive set of features is provided, but using them is more difficult than need be.

The On-Line Database does not allow selection by multiple criteria on multiple fields. You can specify a range that the value of a particular field must satisfy in order to select the record ("Select all records for which the last name field has a value of Dijkstra or greater and Wirth or less"). You cannot search for partial matches.

DBMS allows multiple selection criteria on multiple fields. Inequalities are allowed, but not partial matches. Since subsorts are allowed, I consider these features to be reasonably complete. They are certainly very easy to use.

Data Master has sophisticated selection features, but they are used to restructure files. They are not used directly for report purposes. Up to seven selection criteria may be entered. Multiple fields may be tested. You can test for equality, inequality, or pattern match (leading, trailing, floating, or in a particular position).

Information Master provides the same selection features as Data Master. The only difference is that they are used for reports rather than

restructuring. They even use the same notation and menu format. Both systems are comprehensive and usable.

Infotree allows you to print mailing labels, text you've stored at a node, or the structure of your tree. You don't have the power to create your own formats, so the program is limited in this area.

The CCA DMS gives good control over the format of your reports. You can create single- or multiple-line formats. Field position is variable in each line. You can save and reuse the formats you've created and use DMS to print mailing labels. Pages can be titled. Formatting features seem reasonably complete, and they're less cumbersome to use than other DMS features.

In-memory data entry

speeds up filemanagement systems by reducing continuous disk-Intensive I/O.

The Data Factory allows multiline formats, but gives no spacing option. You can specify the number of fields per line, title your report, print mailing labels, and save formats, but these features are somewhat limited.

The On-Line Database has a mailing-label format, but otherwise does not allow multiline formats. You can specify field position in its single-line format and save these formats. Its features are limited.

Information Master allows you to create up to fifteen report formats per data file. You have up to 15 columns per line. Each column can have a heading, and you can specify that decimal points be aligned. You can also specify totals, subtotals, and algebraic calculations, insert short labels (such as "total," "subtotal," etc), and define multiline formats and print mailing labels. A nice set of features.

DBMS has a mailing-label format and allows multiline printed reports. You can specify which columns your fields are to occupy, insert unchanging characters into your report formats ("literal strings"), and save formats. It's complete and easy to use.

Infotree does not provide any calculation options. Neither does the On-Line Database. The DBMS provides totaling.

The CCA DMS allows you to create calculated fields at the time you define your data file. Available functions are addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and exponentiation. The total number of characters used in your formulas must be less than 228. Within this limit, you can create as many formulas as you wish and specify which fields should be used to store the results.

The Data Factory provides a calculation option called Math. You can add, subtract, multiply, or divide two fields, and store the result in a third field. You can also receive a report on the total, average, or count (number of records) of a specified field. You can enter selection criteria and use these functions at any time.

Data Master allows you to add, subtract, multiply, or divide one field by another field, or use intermediate variables that you define. The intermediate variables are like memory locations on a calculator. You can use up to ten intermediate variables. Multiple-step calculations are allowed.

Information Master allows the same operations as Data Master, as well as exponentiation and roots. Multiplestep calculations are allowed.

DML (Data-Manipulation Language), as provided by CODASYL data-management systems, lets you read and write information into your data base from outside programs (among other things). None of the systems we're examining gives you a data-manipulation language, but some give you a little help. I get a headache when I think about all the incompatible files I'm collecting and want all the help I can get (see Martin's Principles of Data-Base Management for more about datamanipulation languages). Software Arts' DIF (Data-Interchange Format) is used to transfer information to and from VisiCalc and the CCA DMS. If DIF is widely used we might get some relief from incompatability headaches.

Only the CCA DMS provides a di

284 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 177 on inquiry card.

JUDGE THE REST, THEN BUY THE BEST

Only GIMIX offers you SOFTWARE SWITCHING between MICROWARE's OS-9 and TSC's

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JUDGE THE FEATURES AND QUALITY OF GIMIX 6809 SYSTEMS

GIMIX CLASSY CHASSIS™ is a heavyweight aluminum mainframe cabinet with back panel cutouts to conveniently connect your terminals, printers, drives, monitors, etc. A 3 position keyswitch lets you lock out the reset switch. The power supply features a ferro-resonant constant voltage transformer that supplies 8V at 30 amps, + 15V at 5 amps, and - 15V at 5 amps to insure against problems caused by adverse power input conditions. It supplies power for all the boards in a fully loaded system plus two 5 V drives (yes! even a Winchester) that can be installed in the cabinet. The Motherboard has fifteen 50 pin and eight 30 pin slots to give you the most room for expansion of any SS50 system available. 11 standard baud rates from 75 to 38.4K are provided and the I / 0 section has its own extended addressing to permit the maximum memory address space to be used. The 2 Mhz 6809 CPU card has both a time of day clock with battery back-up and a 6840 programmable timer. It also contains 1K RAM, 4 PR0M/R0M/RAM sockets, and provides for an optional 9511A or 9512 Arithmetic Processor. The RAM boards use high speed, low power STATIC memory that is fully compatible with any DMA technique. STATIC RAM requires no refresh timing, no wait states or clock stretching, and allows fast, reliable operation. The system includes a 2 port RS232 serial interface and cables. All GIMIX boards use gold plated bus connectors and are fully socketed. GIMIX designs, manufactures, and tests in-house its complete line of products. All boards are twice tested, and burned in electrically to insure reliability and freedom from infant mortality of component parts. All systems are assembled and then retested as a system after being configured to your specific order.

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SINGLE DENSITY DOUBLE DENSITY

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THE SUN NEVER SETS ON GIMIX USERS

vllX Systems are found on every continent, except Antarctica. (Any users there? If so, please contact GIMIX so we can ange this.) A representative group of GIMIX users includes: Government Research and Scientific Organizations in stralia, Canada, U.K., and in the U.S.; NASA, Oak Ridge, White Plains, Fermilab, Argonne, Scripps, Sloan Kettering, 3 Alamos National Labs, AURA. Universities: Carleton, Waterloo, Royal Military College, in Canada; Trier in Germany; and the U.S.; Stanford, SUNY, Harvard, UCSD, Mississippi, Georgia Tech. Industrial users in Hong Kong, Malaysia, South ica, Germany, Sweden, and in the U.S.; GTE, Becton Dickinson, American Hoechst, Monsanto, Allied, Honeywell, Perkin ner, Johnson Controls, Associated Press, Aydin, Newkirk Electric, Revere Sugar, HI-G/AMS Controls, Chevron. Computer inframe and peripheral manufacturers, IBM, OKI, Computer Peripherals Inc., Glume, Floating Point Systems. Software uses; Microware, T.S.C., Lucidata, Norpak, Talbot, Stylo Systems, AAA, HHH, Frank Hogg Labs, Epstein Associates, ttwest, Dynasoft, Research Resources U.K., Microworks, Analog Systems, Computerized Business Systems.

GIMIX Systems are chosen by the Pros because of quality, reliability and features.

Formatted

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TO ORDER BY MAIL

SEND CHECK OR MONEY ORDER OR USE YOUR VISA OR MASTER CHARGE. Please allow 3 weeks lor personal checks to clear.

U.S. orders add $5 handling rl order is under $200.00. Foreign orders add $10 handling if order is under $200.00.

Foreign orders over $200.00 will be shipped via Emery Air Freight COLLECT, and we will charge no handling. All orders must be prepaid in U.S.

funds. Please note that foreign checks have been taking about 8 weeks for collection so we wouW advise wiring money, or checks drawn on a

bank account in the U.S.. Our bank is the Continental Illinois National Bank of Chicago, account #73-32033 Visa or Master Charge also accepted.

GIMIX INC. reserves the right to change pricing and product specrfications at any time without further notice.

GIMIX- and GHOST" are registered trademarks of GIMIX Inc. © 1981 GIMIX Inc.

FLEX AND Uniflax are trademarks of Technical SystBms

Consultants Inc. OS-9 is a traderrwk of Microware inc. See their ads tor

other GIMIX compatible software

Gimix

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rect interface to VisiCalc. Perhaps I should qualify that by saying VisiCalc "programs" often require some editing before interchange (unless you like empty fields and literals interspersed in your data). Since VisiCalc provides only primitive filing options and limited information storage in main memory, I expect that many file-management systems for the Apple II computer will eventually supply a direct interface.

Infotree provides a text file that contains information about how to interface your own software to the Infotree data files. Neither the Data Factory nor the On-Line Database provides such information. DBMS has new documentation (which I haven't seen). The old documentation didn't provide any interface information. Both the CCA Data Management System and Information Master provide useful information. DMS and Information Master give you the layout of their files and describe the purpose of each field. The CCA package even includes sample programs.

Commands are simple and direct with Infotree. A help command prints out a list of possible commands with a brief explanation of each command. The command notation is consistent. Infotree is pleasant to run.

There is considerable room for improvement in this area for the CCA DMS. Commands are complex and the formats are not consistent. You must remember the correct places to put commas, exclamation points, apostrophes, and various cryptic codes. (Two good discussions of human factors are Shneiderman, 1980 and Snodgrass, 1980.)

The Data Factory has the largest main menu of any of the seven packages. Many of the main-menu options are slight variations of each other and could easily be grouped together as suboptions of a single main-menu item. This would improve the clarity of the system. The Data Factory asks you whether or not you have a printer each time you boot the system or shift from one data file to another. These are not the characteristics of a

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considerate system. On the other hand, it does have in-memory data entry (and that shows some consideration for human factors). The Data Factory is a little harder to use than need be.

The On-Line Database is the most understanding in term of human factors. It is menu driven, simple, and direct, and the data-entry features are outstanding. The menus are easy to understand, and because the system searches for the next record as you view the current one, your waiting time is greatly reduced. Very pleasant to use.

DBMS has a few weaknesses (one being an excessively long main menu that distinguishes between "search the data base," "print the data base in user's format," and "print the data with mailing list format"). But, all things considered, it's reasonably well engineered and the menu format is generally uniform throughout the system.

Information Master and Data Master have good consideration for human factors. Menus are not excessively long and commands are grouped logically. Their command structure is less uniform than that of DBMS, but otherwise seems well designed. High Technology made an intelligent decision in using the same command format for both Information Master and Data Master (the two programs were designed for each other). They could have achieved more uniformity within that command format (either letters or numbers for specifying menu options, but not both; a single format for menus, etc), but their consideration for human factors is generally good.

Documentation serves different purposes at different times. The kind of documentation that is best when you're first learning a system is not the best when you've had some experience. The writer must include a tutorial, reference material, and consider who the reader is (a novice! A grandmaster? someone in between?).

Infotree's documentation is sparse,

but because its user interface is well

designed, this is acceptable. A text file

on the program disk explains

Text continued on page 292

286 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 7 on inquiry card.

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AVAILABLE FALL 1981

DIGITAL HARMONY

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A new synthesis of sight and sound

Digital Harmony lays the foundation for the whole new field of audio-visual art made possible by microcomputers. John Whitney, a pioneer of the special effects technology used in STAR WARS and 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, explains the special union of computer graphics and music. His computer-generated visual art graphically depicts the laws of harmonic motion common to all music.

Digital Harmony includes a complete description of Whitney's computer, peripherals, and film techniques. Colorful illustrations are included, as well as the program listings that generated them. The descriptions are sufficient for anyone to begin to explore this new territory as a composer and computer experimenter - transforming the small computer into an ideal instrument for creating compositions in aural and visual art,

John Whitney is on the Faculty in the Department of Art at the University of California, Los Angeles.

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INVERSIONS: A Catalogue of Calligraphic Cartwheels

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Illusion ... calligraphy .,.. visual magic - Scott Kim's new book. Inversions, delights the eye and enchants the mind. Fiilea with intriguing designs, woids that read the same rightside up and upside down, words within words, and unexpected symmetries, these composition; create a fresh way to look at the alphabet. The text includes the visual principles of symmetry, lettering, and problem solving that are basic to these images. The author also draws parallels to related exercises in perception in such diverse areas as art, music, word play, and mathematics. Scott Kim's original inversion designs first appeared in Omni magazine, inspiring an overwhelming reader response. An irresistable challenge, invertible writing appeals to everyone who loves beauty in mathematics and design.

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BRAINS, BEHAVIOR, AND ROBOTICS

by James S. Albus

Robotics design and applications

This computer-oriented guide explores how the brain functions primarily as a computer device for generating and controlling behavior. The author assesses behavior as a product of three hierarchies of computing modules:

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THE BRAINS OF MEN AND MACHINE

by Ernest W. Kent

Human models for computer design

When the "Brains of Men and Machines" series of articles first appeared in BYTE magazine, the response was immediate and enthusiastic. Now Ernest W. Kent has expanded his ideas about the brain into a full-length book. As researchers begin to unravel the mysteries of the brain's chemical, electrical, and synaptic circuitry, their findings are becoming immediately applicable to advances in robotic behavior and computer design. The Brains of Men and Machines "dissects" the. brain to provide new insights into computer design and artificial intelligence.

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Valuable programs for professional and hobbyist

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BEGINNER'S GUIDE FOR THE UCSD PASCAL SYSTEM

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BYTE November 1981

289

CIARCIA'S

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by Steve Ciarcia

Practical uses for home computers

Imaginative and practical, Ciarcia's Circuit Cellar details a variety of microcomputer projects. A collection of the best articles from the popular series in BYTE magazine, this volume includes

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Complete instructions are given on how to construct each project. With amusing anecdotes and an easy-going style, Ciarcia presents his material in such a manner that even a neophyte need not be afraid of it.

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CIARCIA'S CIRCUIT CELLAR, VOLUME

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More practical uses for home computers

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For the engineer, computer technician, student, and anyone interested in building a computer rather than buying one, this practical guide shows how to build a won ing computer based on the Zilog Z8O mic processor. Each computer subsystem is fu explained and supported by proven desij and testing information. The description focuses on a basic single-board microcomputer containing

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Readers can modify the system to meet personal needs.

Steve Ciarcia is a Computer Consultant Electrical Engineer, and author of "Ask Byte" and "Ciarcia's Circuit Cellar" column in BYTE magazine.

ISBN 0-07-010962-1 330 pages softcover available summer 1981

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Text continued from page 286: Infotree's file structure. There is a table of contents, but no index. A handful of examples would improve things: Infotree's documentation is tutorial.

The documentation for the CCA Data Management System is clear and quite complete. In addition to all DMS functions (including the transfer of information between DMS and VisiCalc) there is, as previously noted, information on the format of DMS files and how to work with them from your own programs. The documentation includes a table of contents and an index. The documentation is both tutorial and for reference.

The Data Factory has reasonably complete documentation, but unfortunately it is sometimes unclear and most things are only explained once. The structure of the manual follows the structure of the main menu. For the most part, the manual works, but a little more detail (or an example or two) would make things clearer.

There is a table of contents, but no index. Acceptable for both initial learning and subsequent reference.

The documentation for the OnLine Database is very clear. It includes a procedure for designing an application using the system and a backup procedure that uses disk rotation (similar to rotating your car's tires). Unfortunately, no descriptions of file structure have been included. There is a table of contents, but no index. It is mainly tutorial, but has some reference uses.

Quite recently, High Technology introduced new documentation for DBMS. The previous documentation was sparse and I haven't seen the new documentation. But since it is reported to be fairly extensive (55 pages), and written by the same person who wrote the documentation for Information Master and Data Master (see the next paragraph), I expect it to be generally good.

The documentation for Data Master is generally good, as is Information Master's documentation. Both

manuals have essentially identical virtues. Chapter sections are divided into synopses and tutorial subsections, and examples are numerous and detailed. The manuals go beyond describing the options and what they do; for example, under "Efficient methods for entering data," the Information Master manual describes which options work best for entering large amounts of data that don't need to be accessed prior to completion, and which options work best when data comes in little by little and the data file needs to be accessed inbetween. Each manual has a table of contents, a quick reference chart, and an index. They are useful for initial learning and for reference.

A "microefficient" program is slightly faster or uses slightly less memory than average (often at the expense of error-prone, hard-tomaintain dirty tricks). A "macroefficient" program is substantially faster, or uses much less memory (usually because of intelligent choice of algorithm or data representation). For a

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more extensive discussion of this issue, see Ledgard's BASIC With Style.

Only the Data Factory and the OnLine Database have practical in-memory data entry. All the other systems spend a lot of time writing to the disk. Because it regularly requires redundant data entry (if the same information is required by two branches of its tree) Infotree can be even more "inefficient."

All the systems, except the Data Factory, make reasonably efficient use of disk space. Most systems allow you to give your fields a name that is longer than the data field itself. But if you wish to entitle a field "The Num

ber Of Years You've Owned This System," the Data Factory requires you to reserve enough space in your record to hold the entire title. This means that you are regularly forced to choose between cryptic data-entry prompts and fairly large amounts of wasted disk. If you wish to sort your file in more than one order, there is more bad news. The Data Factory requires you to maintain a complete copy of your data file for each sort. Five sorts, five complete copies.

The Data Factory's version of multicriteria selection requires multiple readings of the data file. This is inefficient. By contrast, the On-Line Database searches for the next record that

meets your selection criteria while you view the current one. If the time you spend viewing the current record exceeds the search time, your next record seems to arrive the instant you request it.

If you can choose when to sort, sorting speed becomes less important. Both Infotree and the On-Line Database require you to sort during data entry. You have no discretion (Infotree also has a discretionary sort that performs slightly different functions). All the other systems allow you to choose when to sort. If you use a fairly small number of subsorts, On-Line Database and Infotree perform all right. The sorting efficiency of these

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New York State residents add appropriate sales tax. 'CP/M is a trademark of Digital Research.

294 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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CI-MWS23-MB — LSI 11/23 computer workstation. LSI 11/23 CPU, MMU, 256KB Memory, power supply, in 16 slot rack mountable chassis. CRT terminal. 10 mega byte cartridge disk system. 4 port serial I/O. Desktop workstation $11,995.00

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BYTE November 1981 295

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systems should be sufficient unless your machine is busy more than 50 percent of the time.

The On-Line Database has achieved a significant "macroefficiency" by having the whole program reside in main memory. This eliminates the time the other packages spend swapping modules from disk.

Infotree

Now we will look at our alternatives one by one: what collection of features each system has and how pleasant they are to use. Since Infotree is in UCSD p-code, it is fairly machine independent. Lack of file-redefinition features means your data is not so independent. Infotree is copyable, but again, you do not get source code. File maintenance is by individual insertions and deletions. The provided sort utility maintains efficiency of access to the data file. That gives you fair maintainability.

Limitations in Infotree's query method reduce its usefulness. It will print mailing labels, but its formats are set in concrete. Within these limitations, human factors are good. System creation is a part of data entry, and no calculation options are included. Information on interacting with outside packages is provided in a text file on disk, but documentation is sparse. Because tree structures often require redundant branches, Infotree wastes data-entry time and disk space (but only if your application requires redundant branches). There's no inmemory data entry.

For all its limitations, Infotree is an interesting package and a good teaching system. After using it for a while, you will understand tree structures in a very direct way. It has good regard for human factors.

CCA Data-Management System

Since the CCA DMS runs on other systems (in other dialects of BASIC) and since you have access to its source code, you have some machine independence. Because you are given information on the format of its files and because there is a way to use the VisiCalc-to-DMS transfer facilities to restructure your files, you have some freedom.

296 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

You can make backup copies of DMS and you can examine its source code. It allows subsorts and full-disk data files. You can define calculated fields when you define your data file. You cannot do multiple-criteria selection on multiple fields. Format control is good (multiple-line formats, mailing labels, saving formats, etc). The CCA DMS is the only system that has an interface to VisiCalc. It provides examples of usage of DMS files by outside programs. Its regard for human factors is poor. Documentation is clear and complete (you'll need it). Other than its lack of inmemory data entry, the efficiency of DMS is acceptable. If the system you get must work with VisiCalc, this is the one.

The Data Factory

Since the Data Factory comes on a locked disk, you have no machine independence. You do get enough filerestructuring options to have some freedom from your initial record structure. Moving data from an arbitrary record structure into the Data Factory is quite simple. You get two uncopyable disks and several options for replacing bad disks. Sort and file redefinition options are sufficient to maintain your data file.

The Data Factory gives you good flexibility of file definition. If your application requires a few large records (up to 88 fields per record and 239 characters per field) the Data Factory will accommodate you. You get in-memory data entry. Selection options are comprehensive (multiple selection on multiple fields is permitted). Calculation options are good. Formatting options permit multiple-line formats. No interface to outside packages of your own software is supplied. Regard for human factors could be better. The menus are too long (that's confusing); several times, tedious sequences of questions are used when a menu would work better; each time you change data files you are asked whether you have one drive or two, etc. It does not provide subsorts, except for the datefield subsort. It will let you choose when to sort. The Data Factory gives

Circle 376 on inquiry card. *

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you a fairly comprehensive set of features at a reasonable price, but it is harder to use than need be.

The On-Line Database

The On-Line Database comes on a locked disk. It does not provide any utilities or information that would help you transfer information from system to system. A backup disk can be purchased for $15. There are no file-redefinition facilities.

Initial definition is easy and subsorts are allowed. The limit of twenty-six characters per field and 239 characters per record might be too confining for some applications. The data-entry options for the OnLine Database are excellent. Default entries, cursor-oriented editing of entries, in-memory data entry, and other options provide outstanding features. No calculation options are provided. Mailing labels and user-defined single-line formats are the only formatting options. Multiple-criteria selection on multiple fields is not

allowed, but subsorted keys are available. No interface to outside software is supplied. Documentation has some nice touches (the applicationscreation procedure, for example). Sorting is tied to data entry. The entire program resides in memory, eliminating the swapping of modules. While you examine one record, it is searching for the next one. The OnLine Database is well suited to applications requiring fast response. Regard for human factors is consistently good. A pleasant system to use.

The High Technology DBMS

DBMS comes on a copyable disk. It has no data-file independence features of its own, but Data Master and Information Master will accept its files. You cannot catalog or list it, but it is copyable. In combination with Data Master, DBMS has extensive filemaintenance features. (Alone it has none.)

The system has standard initialdefinition features. It provides subsorts. In-memory data entry is not provided. It can select records for reports using multiple criteria on multiple fields. It allows multiple-line report formats and mailing labels. It will calculate the total and the average of a field, and you can decide when to do your sorts. The only outside software packages DBMS is designed to work with are Data Master and Information Master. Menus have too many options (extra options should be in submenus), but menu format is uniform throughout the system. Fairly good regard for human factors. There is new documentation.

Data Master

Data Master is designed to be used with DBMS or Information Master and comes on an uncopyable disk. There are extensive file-reorganization options. You can merge files (with a series of transfers to a single destination file), you can add or de

PLAIN TALK ABOUT "COPY PROTECTION'

A lot has been said and written about copy protection and software piracy since Omega made Locksmith available to Apple II users earlier this year. We have been accused of encouraging illegal copying of copyrighted software. Software publishers have threatened to boycott magazines which carry our advertising, and the pros and cons of Locksmith and copy protection devices have been debated in Apple forums throughout the country. But, we at Omega haven't really told you, the Apple user, our side of the story.

Locksmith was originally developed as an intellectual exercise by an Apple user over a year ago. And we suspect that sufficient information about the Apple DOS and the way information is stored on a disk has been long available to the general public, so that ANYONE who was REALLY interested, and who wished to spend a LOT of time, could have written a program that does many of the things that Locksmith does. Similarly, there is really no "secret" to writing data base programs, adventure programs, or even spread sheet programs. The literature is there if you want to look for it. But it takes a lot of hard work to develop any software package that works in all cases, that is crashproof, that interfaces easily with a non-experienced computer user, and that is well documented. A LOT of hard work.

But even before Locksmith was available to us, we, as Apple users, recognized a definite problem with the software we were buying and using. Much of it worked well. But it was very aggravating to not be able to make a backup copy of certain "copy protected" programs. Most software pubishers didn't supply backups of their programs, and those that had any policy required signing opressive agreements or paying questionably high yearly fees for presumed, but not guaranteed, updates. Among those who did not offer back-up was one who 'sold'

us a new copy (when we returned our crashed disk). Although they advertised the importance of having their program running every day, they made us wait up to 6 weeks to get the replacement. Most vendors just ignored the problem. We, as consumers, were simply taken advantage of. In many cases we relied so much on a particular program, that it became very costly to have to wait weeks or more to replace a blown disk. Software publishers were just not responsive to the users problems caused by "copy protection".

When we first became aware of Locksmith, we investigated the state of the law, and discovered that no one knew whether the owner of a program could copy it for backup. And for quite a while we debated whether we should market Locksmith.

On December 12, 1980, a change was made to the Copyright Act which resolved these questions. It is now the law of the United States that the existence of a copyright notice on a computer program does NOT make it illegal for the legitimate owner of that program to copy it for archival purposes. Backups are now clearly legal. (Of course, when you sell your purchased program, you must destroy the backups you have made). Only after such use clearly became legal did we decide to sell Locksmith.

Now with the new copyright law, which for the first time gave software publishers clear rights that were enforceable in court, but which also gave "backup" rights to software purchasers, and with the demonstration that Locksmith could and would provide back-up for the user, we assumed that software publishers would drop their copy protection schemes and educate the public as to their rights and responsibilities. Even the use of hardware protection that gives copy-ability to the software would be acceptable. Unfortunately, their

response has been to pressure magazine publishers into refusing our advertising, and to invent new copy protection schemes.

Well, the word about Locksmith was impossible to stop. We couldn't advertise, but we have sold a gratifyingly large number of programs. As to new copy protection schemes, the new Locksmith (version 4.0) will adjust to them, and copy virtually anything protected that way. But please. For us, for yourselves, and for the entire industry, use Locksmith only for its intended legal purposes.

The new version is more than just the best copy program available. There are also four additional utilities included. A disk speed program, a degauasser, a nibble editor and a media surface analyzer are included. And we stand behind our products. Our customer service department is available (and anxious) to help with problems.

Locksmith 4.0 is available from us, or your local dealer. Visa and Mastercard users call Toll Free 1800-835-2246. Kansas residents call 1-800-362-2421 or send $99.95. (Registered owners of prior versions can obtain an update for only $20. If you haven't received a letter from us, please call.)

Another Quality Product from Omega MicroWare, Inc.

(formerly Omega Software Products, Inc.) 222 So. Riverside Plaza Chicago, IL 60606 Phone 312-648-1944

6

ii

'51981 Omega MicroWare, Inc.

Apple is a registered trademark of Apple Compurer, Ir

298 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 314 on inquiry card.

ATTENTION

HOW DOES A $299 BYTEWRITER-1 STACK UP AGAINST A $650 EPSON MX-80?

YOU DECIDE!

The Only 80 Column Dot Matrix Printer Under $300.

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Our extensive testing has proved that the Bytewriter-1 interfaces problem-free to the TRS-80, the Apple II and the Atari 400 and 800.

We are not going to tell you that the Bytewn'fer-l is better than the MX-80, but by comparison, and for half the cost, you get more than a reliable printer — you get a great value.

Call or write for more information today.

Comparable features. Uncomparable price.

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TRS-80 is a trademark of Radio Shack, Div.

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FEATURES

Print speed

Paper feed

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BYTEWRITER-1

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96 ASCII

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EPSON MX-80*

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lete fields to or from records, and you can create subsets of a file that meet certain selection criteria.

Data Master requires a source and destination file defined by DBMS or Information Master. It cannot create its own record definition. Both its documentation (extensive) and its regard for human factors are generally good. Use with outside software is possible but not documented; efficiency is adequate. Data Master is an extremely useful addition to DBMS or Information Master.

Information Master

Information Master comes on an uncopyable disk. As mentioned above, Data Master provides it with considerable redefinition capabilities.

In addition to the standard file-definition options. Information Master can edit existing file definitions (useful if a new application shares some characteristics with an existing one). Your previous entry is the default value of your current entry. Extensive selection and calculation options are available (inequalities, leading strings, trailing strings, floating strings, characters in particular positions). Multiple-criteria selection on multiple fields is permitted. The file information eases the interface of outside software to Information Master. Regard for human factors is generally good (Data Master and Information Master have the same command format). Efficiency is adequate. A very practical system (particularly in combination with Data Master).

Conclusions

• The worst system we could construct using the features these systems provide would have the poor consideration for human factors of the CCA Data Management System, the inflexible tree structure and limited query options of Infotree, the huge menus and inefficient use of disk space of the Data Factory, the limited record size and lack of field redefinition options of the On-Line Database, the nonuniform menu formats of Data Master/ Information Master, and the numeric error codes of DBMS. It would come with sparse documentation on a locked disk.

• Even if the traditional distinction between the words "file-management system" and "data-base system" is lost, be aware of the difference between systems that meet the CODASYL data-base standards and those that don't.

• Software Arts' DIF holds out the possibility of relief from data-file-incompatibility headaches.

• The best system we could create using the features these systems provide would have the basic characteristics of the very practical Information Master/Data Master combination; the data entry features, quick response, and general pleasantness of the On-Line Database; the interface to VisiCalc and good documentation of the CCA DMS; the educational value and good regard for human factors of Infotree; the uniformity of command format of DBMS; and the cost per feature of the Data Factory. It would, of course, come in source code on an unlocked disk.B

References

Brandon, Dick H. Data Processing Contracts: Structure, Content, and Negotiations. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1976.

Gemignani, Michael C. "Legal Protection for Computer Software: The View from 79," Rutgers Journal of Computer Technology Law 7, 2, 1980, 269-312. Ledgard, Henry F and Paul Nagin. BASIC With Style: Programming Proverbs. Rochelle Park NJ: Hayden, 1978. Ledgard, Henry F et al. Pascal With Style: Programming Proverbs. Rochelle Park NJ: Hayden, 1979.

Martin, James. Principles of Data Base Management. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1976.

Shneiderman, Ben. Software Psychology (Human Factors in Computer and Information Systems). Cambridge MA: Winthrop, 1980.

Snodgrass, Richard. "A Sophisticated Microcomputer User Interface," Proceedings of the Third Symposium on Small Systems, jointly sponsored by SIGSMALL and SIGPC of the Association for Computing Machinery, 1980, 97-107.

300 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

AFTER YOU'VE SEEN HOW ALL THE OTHER PRINTERS STACK UP...

THE ONE ON TOP WILL SURPRISE YOU.

The Novell IMAGE 800 dot . matrix printer is on top because it is the performance printer. The printer mechanism has been running in the lab continuously since January, 1980—24 hours a day, 7 days a week—without failing—and it's still going. That's Novell quality. That's 100% duty cycle.

The Novell IMAGE 800 is state-of-the-art: microprocessor controlled... 30 programmable functions ... compressed or expanded print... correspondence quality print... 11 channel programmable VFU.

If you require 150 CPS print speed and 136 column output, you can't do better anywhere. And at $ 1,395, we're hundreds less than comparable units.

Check these other features:

• 80 or 132 columns

• Bi-directional print

• 9 x 9 dot matrix

• Dual tractor paper feed

• RS232C or parallel interface

• 110-9600 baud

• 6 or 8 lines per inch vertical spacing

• Tear bar

• True descenders

• Subscripting & superscripting

• Vertical tabulation

Compare. Find out how the others stack up. It won't take you long to see why Novell is on top. A Novell IMAGE 800 dot matrix printer can help you stay on top, too. Because higher performance means lower overhead.

GENEROUS OEM DISCOUNTS. DISTRIBUTOR INQUIRIES INVITED.

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California —

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Video Specialists, Inc. (714) 557-5112,

Vitek (714) 744-8305 Colorado —

R.C. Data, Inc. (303) 425-9075 Arizona —

The Systems Store (602) 255-0700 Texas —

System Technology Assoc. (214) 343-0845,

(512) 451-2018, (713) 440-8340 Washington —

Desco Northwest (206) 883-6336 Utah —

Peripheral Equipment, Inc. (801) 272-7414 Pennsylvania —

Bartlett Associates, Inc. (215) 688-7325

Q.E.D. Electronics (215) 674-9600 Illinois —

Kaltronics (312) 291-1220 Oregon —

Rush S. Drake Assoc. (503) 224-3145 New York —

Bartlett Assoc, Inc. (914) 649-6476 Massachusetts —

Butler Associates. Inc. (617) 965-1080 Maryland —

The Computer Supply Store (301) 424-1650 Minnesota —

Computer Marketing, Corp. (612) 894-7150

Circle 310 on inquiry card.

BYTELINES

News and Speculation About Personal Computing

Conducted by Sol Llbes

I

EEE S-100 Standard Is

OnTheWay:ThelEEE-696 Standard for the S-100 microcomputer bus has been completed by the working group and submitted to the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Computer Standards Committee for adoption. Formal acceptance is expected by early 1982.

The S-100 bus has been changed radically from its original implementation in 1975 by MITS, who employed the bus in the Altair 8080 microcomputer. New features include 8- or 16-bitwide data path (to accommodate the new 16-bit microprocessors), directmemory addressing of up to 16 megabytes (previously 64 K bytes), direct I/O (input/output) addressing for as many as 65,536 ports (previously 256 ports), a new protocol that can handle 16 masters on one bus, timing specifications for 6 MHz clock operation (some manufacturers envision operating at over 10 MHz), and an expanded interrupt system of up to 11 lines (previously 7).

The standard will dispense with pin assignment and timing conflicts that plagued S-100 users because of variations between manufacturers. It also allows for future expansion of the bus to support changes in the state of the art (e.g., 32-bit microprocessors).

The importance of the standard is that there are almost 40 manufacturers of S-100 systems and about 50 others making hundreds of S-100-compatible products. There is no doubt the IEEE 696/S-100 is presently the

most powerful microcomputer bus in wide use.

If you would like a copy of the proposed IEEE-696 Standard, write to Sol Libes, IEEEr696 Committee Secretary, POB 1192, Mountainside NJ 07092. Please note that each copy costs $6 in the US and $8 elsewhere (US funds only).

tS apanese Find Moving Into US Computer Market Hard: The Japanese are starting to move into the US small-business-computer market in force, but they're finding it more difficult than expected. The Japanese appear prepared for a longterm commitment: most are setting up dealer organizations and developing software packages for their hardware. However, it is becoming evident to the Japanese that their hardware is suited to the American market but their software is not. Because of this, it is likely that their penetration will take two to three years to become significant.

Although NEC (Nippon Electric Corporation) has been selling systems in Japan for more than two years, it has met resistance from American dealers because of a lack of software applicable to the US market. NEC is recruiting software suppliers to overcome this problem.

Mitsubishi introduced its small-business computer in the US in 1979 and boasted that within three years it would have 10% of the market. Now Mitsubishi realizes that the US market is hard to crack. It, too, has met with considerable resistance from

dealers and is attempting to have several software packages developed.

Toshiba has taken another tack by opening two computer stores in the Los Angeles area. The stores carry Toshiba's entire line of office products, including its desk-top computer.

Sony appears to be having problems delivering its Series 35 word processor, which was introduced at the beginning of the year. Also, it only just started shipping samples of the new 3V2-inch disk drive to OEMs (originalequipment manufacturers). Rumors abound about a Sony personal computer, but none has yet surfaced either in the US or Japan.

Canon has decided to play the role of an OEM, thus passing its CX1 desk-top system's software problems on to distributors. (The CXI is based on Motorola's 6809 microprocessor.) Canon has disclosed an agreement with a software supplier for seven accounting packages.

Sharp has introduced the YX-3200 small-business system to the US market. It had been sold previously in Japan. For the US version, Sharp has decided to go with Digital Research's CP/M operating system and the software packages currently available to operate under it. Sharp plans to sell the YX-3200 through systems houses, office-machine dealers, and office-supply houses.

H,

lalf-SIze 5-Inch Floppy Drives Coming: At

least three floppy-disk makers will soon introduce 5-inch floppy-disk drives that are only 2'/0 inches tall

(half the height of a standard floppy disk). It will be possible to fit two drives in the space previously occupied by one.

The first "slimline" drive is expected to be introduced by Alps Electric Inc (a Japanese concern). It's actually less than half-size, being only 1"/6 inches high. It will be available in 125 Kand 250 K-byte versions. Remex, Irvine, California, is expected to have its 2,/10-inch-tall drive out by year's end. The Oyx division of Exxon is making a halfsize drive that's already being used in a smart typewriter.

■VI,

I Icroprocessor Makers To Add Floating Point: Intel, Motorola, and Zilog will soon be adding floating-point functions (FPFs) to their 16-bit microprocessors. All three will use separate integrated circuits functioning as coprocessors. Intel is already providing samples of its iAPX 86-20, which contains both the 16-bit 8086 microprocessor and the 8087 numeric processor; production is expected to begin early next year.

Motorola plans a coprocessor for its 16-bit 68000 microprocessor but, in the meantime, will supply an FPF firmware package that allows 32-bit multiplication and division. Both Intel and Motorola will conform to the proposed IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) FPF Standard. Zilog is rumored working on an FPF device for the Z8000. It should be announced by year's end.

302 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

THINK DIGITAL MARKETING. THINK AHEAD

NOVEMBER

MIUEST0NE™-$295. Manual alone-$30. "Critical path" network analysis program for scheduling manpower, dollars and time to maximize productivity. NEW IMPROVED. Interactive project management program that runs under CP/M. MILESTONE can be used to track paper flow, build a computer, check a department's performance, or build a bridge. MILESTONE can be used by executives, engineers, managers, and small businessmen.

• Produce PERT chart in minutes.

• Find critical tasks that can't be delayed.

• Investigate tradeoffs between manpower, dollars and time.

• Give plans to others using a printed project schedule.

• Change details and immediately see the results on screen.

• Balance time, manpower and costs. Requires 56K RAM and CP/M. Specify Z80 or 8080. Also available for Apple Pascal, UCSD Pascal or CP/M-86 operating systems. Formats: 8, NS, MP, SB, TRS2. APPL, OB-1. XX. I-5

ACCESS/80™

A report generator and cross-tabulator. Virtually any report that

can be described on paper can be generated by using your

existing ASCII data files. Produces reports in minutes that

would take hours to program in BASIC.

Level I—Report Generator and Cross-tabulator—$295.

Read ASCII files and create sorted reports with subtotaling

capability. Provides multi-dimensional cross tabulation and

computation. Includes operating system commands.

Level II—Output and Logic Processor—S495.

Everything in Level I plus, write out new files in any sorted

order (including subtotaling). Load arrays from files. Performs

binary search on sorted arrays in memory. Includes control

language extensions for complex applications.

Level Ill-Information Management System-$795.

Available 1st Qtr'82

Everything in Level I and II plus full screen data entry and

updating, and Btree indexing.

Requires CP/M and 48K RAM. Formats: 8. NS. MP. CDOS,

SB. TRS2, APPL

0ATEB00K II™—5295. Manual alone S25.

• Schedules appointments tor up to 27 different doctors, lawyers, rooms, etc.

• File structure allows for appointments up to one year in advance.

• Searches for openings that fit time of day, day of week and/or day of year constraints.

• Appointments made, modified or cancelled easily.

• Copies of day's appointments can be printed quickly. Requires 56K RAM and CP/M. Specify Z80 or 8080. Also available for Apple Pascal, UCSD Pascal or CP/M-86 operating systems. Formats: 8, NS. MP, SB, APPL. TRS2, OB-1, XX, I-5

PLAN80™-S295. Manual alone-$30.

A financial modeling system that's easy to use and powerful enough to replace your timesharing applications. Lets you calculate IRR and depreciation as well as trig functions effortlessly. You write a PLAN80 model just the way you would write a letter using any editor or word processing program.

PLAN80 results can be incorporated into any report that requires a financial model. It also tackles any numeric problem that can be defined on a worksheet. You'll remember how you created the model because calculations are defined using real English—not matrix coordinates.

At any point in the PLAN80 model you may display or print the results on your screen, printer or disk. Save all or part of the results tor use by other models, or play "what if?" by inputting new values interactively. Requires 56K RAM and CP/M. Also available for CP/M-86. Specify Z80. 8080. or 8086. Formats: 8, NS, MP, SB, OB-1, XX, I-5.

SOFTi/l^RE

1 SOFT^IRE DIGIL4L/MARKETING

^DOT/l/MARKETING

Circle 138 on inquiry card.

2670 Cherry Lane • Walnut Creek, CA 94596

CBASIC/86™—S325. Manual alone-$30.

Industry standard intermediate code basic compiler with runtime interpreter tor CP/M-86. Features include chaining, integer and external precision arithmetic, random and sequential records of any length (not limited to 256 bytes). Requires CP/M-86. Formats: 8, I-5.

PROPERTY MANAGEMENT PR0GRAM-J895.

Tracks income properties from house rentals to apartment complexes, shopping centers or office buildings. Permits entry of all expenses in any of 99 different categories for over 150 separate properties.

Now you can generate operating statements in minutes including totals of receipts and expenditures by category. Need more reports? This package includes a summary of transactions report, vacancy report, late rent report, rent roll report, check register and property management fees report. Requires CP/M, 48K RAM and CBASIC2. Formats: 8, NS. SB, TRS2, APPL, MP

Personal PEARL™-S295.

User friendly application software generator. A fourth generation language, automatically creates completely new programs in CBASIC. Excellent documentation makes it easy to create "personal" software such as checking and financial programs, name, address and telephone lists, etc. Requires CP/M. CBASIC2 and 48K RAM. Formats: 8, NS, SB, TRS2, APPL, OB-1, MP

MICROSTAT™ VERS. 2.0-S295. Manual alone-$25. Now includes stepwise and more flexible file structure. Code size smaller ( = more data area). Also a data management subsystem for editing, sorting, ranking, lagging, data file transfers PLUS eleven data transformations (e.g. linear, reciprocal, exponential, etc.}

• Frequency and 8 probability distributions

• Multiple regression, correction analysis

• Tine series

• Crosstabs/Chi-Square, non-paramelrics

• Factorials, permutations, combinations

• Scatterpiots

• ANOVA (one and two-way)

Requires 48K RAM. Northstar Basic or CP/M & CBASIC2 or Microsoft Basic 80. Formats: 8, NS, MP. SB TRS2, CDOS, APPL, XX

SPELLBINDER™-$495. Manual alone-$50.

Full feature word processing system with Office Management capabilities. Its special features include ease-of-use by office personnel, flexible print formatting & output, and a powerful macro capability which allows features to be added for the unique requirements ol each user. Mail list macro is included for mail merge with form letters. Requires CP/M & 32K RAM. Formats: 8. NS, MP, CDOS, SB, APPL, XX

ACT I™—$125. Manual alone—$15.

CP/M compatible macro assembler for Z80, 8080/85. 6502 & 6800.

Assembler family supporting all major 8 bit micros. ACT features include full macro capabilities, comprehensive pseudo-ops, link-file structures, cross reference map. and algebraic expression processor. Requires 24K RAM & CP/M.

ACT 11-5175. Manual alona-520.

CP/M 2.x compatible cross assembler for 8086/88

ACT III-S125. Manual alone -520.

CP/M 2.x compatible cross assembler for 6809.

ACT I and ACT II together—$225.

Formats: 8, NS, CDOS, MP/M, TRS2, APPL, OB-1, XX

(415) 938-2880

PASCAL/M™-$225. Manual alone-$20.

CP/M compatible language for 8080/280 CPUs, supports full Jensen & Wirth plus 45 extensions to Standard Pascal including Random access tiles, 40 segment procedures & 16 bit BCD real type. Also includes symbolic debugger which leatures trapping on stores, examining and changing variables and tracing of program execution. Requires CP/M 2.2 & 56K RAM. Formats: 8, NS, APPL, TRS2

PASCAL/M™for 80B6/B8-$270. Manual alone $20.

All the leatures of Pascal/M for the 8086 and 8088 processors

running under CP/M-86.

Requires CP/M-86 and 128 K RAM. Formats: 8, I-5.

SUPERCALCTM_J295.

Allows a layman to manipulate business data in a variety of forecasting and accounting applications. Combines the interactive nature of an electronic spreadsheet with the power and convenience of a simple simulation language. Video display can be scrolled over entire worksheet using cursor controls. Symbolic vector references eliminate repetitive low-level data manipulation commands. Easy to use menu driven "Help" commands. Requires CP/M and 48K RAM. Formats: 8. NS, MP, SB, APPL, TRS2 Call for terminal formats.

SUPERDOSTM-J129.

Upgrade ol CP/M 2,2 for Superbrain Includes ADM/31, Hazeltine, or Superbrain Terminal emulation mode. Other new features include 132 character keyboard buffer, repeat on all keys, key click, user programmable numeric keypad, 30% disk read/write improvement, real time clock, baud rates to 19.2K on RS232 ports, printer handshake modes, 4 new utilities, and 4 fixes. Requires Superbrain 3.0. Format: SB

TRANS86™-$125. Manual alon8-$20.

8086/88 Translator for existing 8080/Z80 programs. New

source code is easily edited and asembled using ACT II to

produce hex code which is executed by 8086/88 CPU.

Emphasizes the extensions and features available in

the 8086/88.

Requires CP/M & 32K RAM. Formats: 8. NS, APPL, OB-1, XX

MORE SOFTWARE

TEXTWRITER III

SPELLGUARD

MCALL

PEARL LEVEL 3

CBASIC2

ULTRASORT-II

FABS

AMCALL

SELECTOR/86

SELECTOR IV

GLECTDR for SELECTOR IV

S-BASIC

baZIc dBASE II MAGIC MENU w/Spellguard option SPELL MENU MONEY MAESTRO DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED

FORMAT CODES: 8 (8" single density IBM soft-sectored) NS (NorthStar DD), MP (Micropolis Mod ll/Vector MZ), SB (Superbrain 3.0). CDOS (8" Cromemco CDOS), TRS2 (TRS-80 Mod II). APPL (Apple II), OB-1 (Osborne-1). XX (Xerox 820), I-5 (IBM 5V<")

PRODUCT/MANUAL ALONE $125./J25. $295./S20. $ 85./n/a SB50./S50. $120./$25. S175./S20. $175./$20. $ 95,/n/a $650./S35. $550./$35 S450./S35. $295./$35. $150./$25. $695./$50. $ 75./n/a $ 95./n/a $ 95./n/a $200./n/a

Access/80 trademark Friends Software, Money Maestro trademark Innosys, Pearl trademark Relational Systems, Pascal/M, ACT, Trans 86. SuperCalc trademarks Sorcim. CBASIC2, CBASIC/86 trademarks Compiler Systems Datebook II. Milestone. Textwriter III trademarks Organic Software Spellguard trademark ISA CP/M, CP/M-86 trademarks Digital Research Superbrain trademark Intertec Data Systems Microstat trademark Ecosoft S-Basic trademark Topaz Programming Spellbinder trademark Lexisoft MCALL, AMCALL trademarks Micro-Call Services Selector IV. Selector/86, GLector trademarks Micro-Ap Prices subject to change without notice lor shipping add $7. per item California residents add sales tax Terms: Prepaid check Am. Exp. M/C, VISA or in US COD (UPS) Prices quoted do not include dealer installation & training Prices and availability subject to change without notice. Talex 17-1852 (OIGMKTG WNCK) DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED. DUTSIDE CALIFORNIA CALL (501) 442-0864. INSIDE CALIFORNIA CALL (415) 938-2883.

BYTE November 1981

303

BYTELINES

■Japanese Robotics Industry On The Upswing:

The Japanese government is subsidizing its nation's robot makers in the same way that the computer industry was backed ten years ago. In April 1980, the Japan Robot Leasing Company was launched. After one year of operation, it is already renting $5.5 million worth of robots and expects to raise this to $12.5 million by the end of next year.

Japanese robot production last year totaled $375 million and is projected to rise to $1 billion by 1985. Last year, only 3% of robotic production was exported. One problem with these figures, however, is that they include humanoperator manipulative and pick-and-place machines.

About 40% of the robots are used in the automobile industry, about 20% in electrical machinery manufacturing, and about 10% in plastics molding. There are an estimated 130 robot manufacturers in Japan.

Local Networks ... What's Up? Xerox is staking a big pile of money on the "office of the future" concept using its Ethernet local networking system. The system is intended for lawyers, engineers, analysts, and other professionals wishing to zip documents, data files, graphics, and so forth between offices. Xerox has introduced several pieces of Ethernet equipment of which the latest is the Star workstation. The Star can be used as a standalone system or as a communications device between other Stars, file servers, and even non-Xerox equipment via an Ethernet system.

The Star is very impressive. Xerox has invested a

great deal of energy in developing a workstation with a highly intelligent user interface. In fact, a user can know next to nothing about computers and still use it proficiently because a fourhour machine-guided set of lessons is provided.

Star's most striking feature is its high-resolution video display that shows you two pages, side by side, exactly as they will appear in hard copy. You can vary character fonts, size detailed graphics, change gray tones, justify columns, move text on the screen, look into separate areas of different documents, and more. Using a standard keyboard, it has a free-roaming cursor controlled by a "mouse" and uses small graphic symbols to signify functions. No particular language is needed to tell the system what to do.

There is no doubt that the Star is ahead of the times — perhaps too far aheadl Despite support from several other vendors (Intel, Digital Equipment Corporation, and Hewlett-Packard), there is still no standard for exchanging information via Ethernet. At this time, the IEEE Local Networking Standard Committee appears hopelessly deadlocked. So there is no guarantee that a file created on an HP (Hewlett-Packard) computer, for example, will be compatible with Star's file-handling capabilities.

Even bigger problems are looming: each week there seems to be another new local-network system announced. Also, some of the personal-computer makers have indicated that they will introduce their own network systems, which, undoubtedly, will be non-Ethernetcompatible. Thus, we appear headed for chaos, where there will be neither hardware nor software compatibility among vendors.

On top of all of this, local networks are expensive: the Star workstation costs $17,000. The Ethernet coaxial cable costs an estimated $2 per foot, plus installation, and an Ethernet file server is more expensive than the Star. Hence, a Xerox Ethernet system appears to be prohibitively expensive for a small business. It is interesting to note that Xerox's new 820 system, with an under-$3000 price tag, does not include any Ethernet interfacing (of course, it could be introduced as an option).

Everyone is watching to see how well Xerox will do with Ethernet. You can be sure that several manufacturers have networking systems in advanced stages and, if they feel it is worthwhile, will quickly jump into the marketplace. This includes IBM, DEC, several personal-computer makers, and the Japanese.

A^ata-Processlng Lawsuits and Awards Increasing: An estimated 600 computer-related lawsuits are before the courts. This is expected to surge up to 5000 by 1985, placing them second only to personal-injury cases.

A typical computer lawsuit costs a company $500,000 and takes seven years to complete. Most cases are the result of an adverse relationship between users and vendors. Users appear to be ignorant of what they are buying and expect the vendor to furnish a system to meet all their requirements, but vendors only offer standard systems. So there is a wide gulf between user expectations and vendor capabilities.

Other causes are poor machine reliability and poor system performance. Many suits involve undercapitalized small systems, soft

ware, and consulting firms that would rather sell the wrong machine or software package than to lose a sale. But vendors counter that purchasers are infatuated with the best and fastest hardware rather than concerning themselves with the problems to be solved. Also, many vendor contracts contain phrases that may waive warranties.

In a recent court case, NCR (National Cash Register) was ordered to pay the Clovatorium (a wholesale suede and leather cleaner) $2.3 million. The jury found NCR guilty of willfully selling the Clovatorium a minicomputer package it knew would not work. NCR claimed that it was protected from some of the award by a nonconsequential damages clause in the user contract. The judge overruled the clause, which held that NCR was not liable for any loss of business, profits, or consequential damages suffered by the user.

IM

ewspaper Guild Wants Video-Display Terminals Probed: The

president of the Newspaper Guild, Charles A Perlik Jr, has urged a congressional subcommittee to back testing of possible long-term effects on operators of videodisplay terminals. Perlik conceded that tests performed by the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety have found the radiation to be minimal; however, he claimed that the incidence of cataracts among video-terminal users at newspapers was unusually high. He asserted that the test included only a small number of terminals in use. The Guild has arranged for the Mount Sinai School of Medicine to conduct a "wide-ranging study."

304 November 19S1 © BYTE Publications Inc

UPMANSHIP.

We opened our doors with two basic goals:

To distribute as many software packages to as many dealers as possible.

And to make money doing so.

Our success on both counts is the result of hard work, a positive business attitude and a recognition that you, as a retailer, have a right to be treated fairly and honestly by your distributor.

We're 1-up for three good reasons:

1. We always offer a wide selection of the latest and best microcomputer software packages available anywhere. (Why should you have to hunt for what you need?)

2. Our dealer discounts start with quantities of 1. (Remember all those times you just wanted one or two to see how they'd sell?)

3. We don't play The BackOrder Game. (If we can't ship your order within 48 hours we'll let you know, instead of hanging you out to dry.)

If there's anything else we can do for you, just let us know. Because we're 1-up and we intend to stay that way.

Software Distributors, 9929 Jefferson Blvd., Culver City, CA 90230. Telex 4990032 BVHL, ATT: DISCSOFT.

For our dealer info package, call (213) 668-0238 today.

SOFTWARE DISTRIBUTORS

We won't leave you holding the bag.

Circle 451 on inquiry card.

BYTELINES _

Womputer Crime On The Rise: Two recently reported crimes involved computers. In the first, a student at San Jose State University was arrested and charged with unauthorized access to systems throughout the state and possibly other countries. The student illegally bypassed the school's security system and used the time to play games with other students, some as far away as Sweden and Taiwan. In the process, he accumulated more than $7000 in long-distance telephone bills. He was also accused of erasing programs belonging to other students.

In the other case, a former programmer in Louisiana was arrested after admitting that he stole more than $100,000 in money orders from a system he had programmed. The programmer had been retained by a software house to remove bugs from a software package being prepared for a customer. In the process of "fixing" the program, he altered the software so that he could write checks that were ignored by the system; consequently, the losses were not revealed.

Womputer Science Graduates Command High Starting Salaries:

According to a survey conducted by the College Placement Council, this year's computer science college graduates commanded an average starting salary of $20,000. Only engineers — particularly petroleum specialists—earned more (averaging $26,000).

u,

1 NIX Vs CP/M: There is no doubt that CP/M is the de facto standard for 8-bit microcomputers. It has been implemented on virtually all 8-bit machines, including the

TRS-80, Apple, Heath, Xerox, Wang, Hewlett-Packard, and many of the new Japanese desk-top microcomputers. However, as we move into the 16-bit machine and multiuser/multiprocessing era, CP/M's supremacy is being challenged by UNIX-like operating systems. The battle as to which will be dominant on 16-bit systems is just beginning to develop, and I estimate that it will take another year or two (or possibly three) to determine the victor, if indeed there is one. The battle of words is already raging within the Department of the Army's Readiness Command (DARCOM), in magazines, and on several bulletin-board systems.

The arguments: CP/M currently exists in only one unique version (2.2), compared to at least five versions of UNIX, with more to come when "UNIX-like" systems actually hit the market. UNIX is a multiuser system, while CP/M is a single-user system. File size on UNIX is limited to 1000 megabytes, for CP/M it's 8 megabytes, but both support random-access files. Currently, UNIX runs only on PDP-11-based machines, while CP/M runs on 8080-, 8085-, 8088-, 8086-, and Z80-based machines. UNIX employs a tree-directory structure with an infinite number of levels and path names, whereas CP/M has a dual-level directory structure with a limited path. Both systems allow linking files. There is complete device transparency and redirectability with UNIX, but this is limited in CP/M. UNIX's user interface is contained in a "shell" that is easily replaced. CP/M, however, uses a command control processor that is not easily replaced. UNIX has a complicated command language in comparison to CP/M. UNIX's commands

have redirectable I/O (input/output). Only terminal I/O is redirectable in CP/M. UNIX has more extensive wild cards in addition to interprocessor information transfer (pipes) and coroutines, both of which are lacking in CP/M. UNIX has typeahead, while CP/M may not. UNIX allows parallel processes but CP/M does not. CP/M is limited to 20 arguments, yet UNIX allows indirect command files with no limit to arguments. Conditional and construct execution of files are permitted only in UNIX. Also, UNIX allows shell variables and command substitution that CP/M does not provide.

Both have proven reliability, but UNIX provides better security. UNIX is written in the C language, and CP/M is written in PL/M and assembler. CP/M appears to have much more public-domain and commercial software available for it than does UNIX.

I

BM Market Share Eroding: In 1956 when 100% of the computer industry was geared toward big mainframes, IBM shipped 55% of all the dataprocessing equipment and had a handful of competitors. With the introduction of the minicomputer in 1972, the number of competitors increased to over 600. Last year, because of the microcomputer, the number of computer manufacturers rose to 3000. Although IBM has introduced mini- and microcomputers, its share of units shipped has dropped to 25%.

R,

landom News Bits:

Digital Equipment Corporation claims to have more than 100,000 LSI-11 microcomputers in operation. . . . Advanced Micro Devices

and Mostek are developing integrated circuits that should reduce the cost of an Ethernet interface from the current $1000 to under $100 by 1983. . . . Seagate Technology, Scotts Valley, California, has introduced a 12.76-megabyte version of a 5-inch Winchester-disk drive. . . . For the second year in a row, Fujitsu reported greater computer sales in Japan than IBM ($2.8 billion compared to $1.6 billion). But IBM reported greater net income ($174 million to $88 million). ... A recent letter in the New England journal of Medicine reported on a new malady termed "Space Invaders wrist." The symptoms were a reported stiffness and pain in the right wrist. The cause was traced to "a large number of rapid, repetitive arm movements" required to play the Space Invaders game. The optimal treatment is rest. . . . Japanese integrated-circuit makers expect to produce 2 million 64 K-bit dynamic memories per month by year's end. . . . The largest disk drive yet is being developed by Ibis Systems, Duarte, California: 5 gigabytes. ... A four-color miniature printer that uses 2V*-inch-wide paper will be offered by Alps Electric, Rockville Center, New York. It will cost only $300. . . .

R

andom Rumors:

Digital Reserach of Texas' Big Board single-board microcomputer is rumored to be the heart of the Xerox 820, . . . Xerox is reportedly considering the introduction of an under-$1000 personal computer. It has already built a prototype containing a Z80, 16 K bytes of programmable memory (expandable to 256 K bytes), 64 K bytes of read-only memory, an 80-character by 25-line color display with

306 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Teach your

littleAppletotalk

toWfesternUnion,

Telex andTWX.

Albany

Omaha

' I4U4J

t»

Micro-Telegram™ lets your Apple II™ computer access Western Union™ services, worldwide. You can send Mailgrams.® Send and receive TWX,® Telex, and international cables. Receive Infomaster® up-to-the-minute news, stock, foreign exchange, gold, futures, sports, and ski reports. Use your Apple™ to wire money. To send flowers. To check the snow at Sun Valley. To see what the Yen is selling for. To contact over 900,000 TWX and Telex subscribers around the world.

And because it's more intelligent than a mechanical Teletype™machine, MicroTelegram lets you edit messages right on the screen, sends them automatically without you in attendance, keeps subscriber directories and distribution lists, prints when you want it to, and asks you in plain English for your commands. Besides, it doesn't clatter and churn out reams of paper.

Call our toll-free number today. And make your little Apple heard 'round the world.

MICROCOM

We make little computers talk big.

Call 800-547-5995, ext. 188, toll-free, for the Micro-Telegram -Apple dealer

nearest you. Dealer inqrutries invited.

Microcom, Inc., 89 State Street, Boston, MA 02109. (617) 367-6362

Apple and Apple II are trademarks of Apple Computer. Inc. Western Union, Infomaster and TWX are trademarks of Western Union, Inc. Teletype is a trademark of the Teletype Corp,

Circle 256 on inquiry card.

System Log

3'SQ A/ft. - ^lMb& /W*^ j

£/XUo( stffl4u&<£ 4*wL

jUrts&n, ^facJ? *n ^Citu^j

Diagnostic II builds upon the highly acclaimed Diagnostics I. It will test each of the five areas of your system:

Memory Terminal Printer CPU Disk

Every test is expanded.

Every test is "submit"-able. A "submit" file is included in the package which "chains" together the programs in Diagnostics II, achieving an effective acceptance test. All output can be directed to a log file for unattended operation, for example over night testing. Terminal test is now generalized for most crt terminals. A quick-test has been added for quick verification of the working of the system.

The memory test is the best one we have encountered. It has new features, including:

• default to the size of the CP/M Transient Program Area(TPA)

• printout of a graphic memory map • burn in test

• bank selection option • memory speed test Diagnostics-ll still includes the only CPU test for 8080/8085/Z80.

A Spinwriter/Diablo/Qume test has been added, which tests for the positioning and control features of the Spinwriter/Diablo/Qume as well as its ASCII printing features. (Serial Interface only)

And, as with all SuperSoft products, a complete online HELP system and user manual is included.

Price: $100.00 (manual only): $15.00

Requires: 32K CP/M

CP/M Formats: 8" soft sectored, 5" Northstar, 5" Micropolis Mod II, Vector MZ, Superbrain DD/QD

VISA

SuperSoft

All Orders and General Information:

SUPERSOFT ASSOCIATES

P.O. BOX 1628

CHAMPAIGN, IL 61820

(217)359-2112

Technical Hot Line: (217) 359-2691

(answered only when technician is available)

CP/M REGISTERED TRADEMARK DIGTAL RESEARCH

First in Software Technology

graphics capabilities, radiofrequency modulator, and liquid-crystal display. . . . The Apple IV could be released within the next few months. . . . IBM is said to be negotiating to implement BASIC and a VisiCalc-like package on its Displaywriter word-processing system, thereby acknowledging that it is really a general-purpose computer. . . . Expect about ten Japanese suppliers to enter the 5-inch hard-disk market by the end of next year, which should cause a softening of prices. . . . Rumor has it that a subset of Xerox's Smalltalk has been observed "chatting" at Apple Computer. . . .

MAIL: I receive a large number of letters each month as a result of this column. If you write to me and wish a response, please include a selfaddressed, stamped envelope.

Sol Llbes POB 1192 Mountainside NJ 07081

BYTE's Bits

Logo License

Applications

Available

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has announced that it is accepting applications from software distributors for the licensing of the Apple Logo Educational Software System. A review of the prototype of the system is available in the June 1981 BYTE (see page 36). Companies interested in further licensing information should contact: Patent, Copyright & Licensing Office, MIT, 77 Massachusetts Ave, Rm E19-722, Cambridge MA 02139.■

308 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

LETTER PERFECT

ATARI 400/800

APPLE II

? u ~ "er Perfect IS a sin9|e load easV to use program. It is a menu driven, character orientated processor

with the user in mind. FAST machine language operation, ability to send control codes within the body of the program mnemonics that make sense, and a full printed page of buffer space for text editing are but a few features. Screen Format allows you to preview printed text. Indented margins are allowed. Data Base Merge with DATA PERFECT by LJK, form letters, accounting files and mailing labels only with MAIL MERGE/UTILITY by LJK. FEATURES - Proportional/ Incremental spacing * Right Justification * File Merging * Block movement * Headers * Footers * Print Multiple Copies * Auto Page Numbering * Scroll forward/backward * Search and Replaces * Full cursor control * Underlining * Boldface * Superscripts * Subscripts * Auto page numbering * Insert character/line * Delete character/line * Centering * Horizontal tabs/changeable * Multifunction format line (line spacing — left margin — page width — lines/page — change fonts — top/ bot margin adjust) MUCH MORE! $149.95

ATARI VERSION 2.0 #2001

Compatible with Atari DOS. Uses proportional font, right justified with Atari 825/Centronics* 737, 739 printers. Uses EPSON MX* Series + Graftrax/italicized font. Can mix type fonts on same page; mix boldface and enhanced font in same line with justification. Can be used with 16K Atari MOO.

"Compared to the price of many other word processors, this package is a steal. It does everything the advertisement claims and more. On top of this the software is very easy to use." A.N.A.L.O.G. MAGAZINE

APPLE VERSION 5.0 #1001

DOS 3.3 compatible — Use 40 or 80 column interchangeably (Smarterm - ALS; Videoterm-Videx; Full View 80 — Bit 3 Inc.; Vision 80 - Vista; Sup-R-Term - M&R Ent.) Reconfigurable at any time for different video, printer, or interface. USE HAYES MICROMODEM ll*LCA necessary if no 80 column board, need at least 24 K of memory. Files saved as either Text or Binary. Shift key modification allowed. Data Base Merge compatible with DATA PERFECT* by LJK.

"For $150, Letter Perfect offers the type of software that can provide quality word processing on inexpensive microcomputer systems at a competitive price." INFOWORLD

DATA PERFECT

T.M. LJK

APPLE & ATARI

DATA BASE MANAGEMENT

$99.95

Complete Data Base System. User orientated for easy and fast operation. 100% Assembly language. Easy to use. You may create your own screen mask for your needs. Searches and Sorts allowed, Configurable to use with any of the 80 column boards of Letter Perfect word processing, or use 40 column Apple video. Lower case supported in 40 column video. Utility enables user to convert standard files to Data Perfect format. Complete report generation capability. Much More!

$29.95 APPLE & ATARI

EDIT 6502

This is a coresident - two pass ASSEMBLER, DISASSEMBLER, TEXT EDITOR, and MACHINE LANGUAGE MONITOR. Editing is both character and line oriented. Disassemblies create editable source files with ability to use predefined labels. Complete control with 41 commands, 5 disassembly modes, 24 monitor commands including step, trace, and read/write disk. Twenty pseudo opcodes, allows linked assemblies, software stacking (single and multiple page) plus complete printer control, i.e. paganation, titles and tab setting. User can move source, object and symbol table anywhere in memory. Feel as if you never left the environment of BASIC. Use any of the 80 column boards as supported by LETTER PERFECT, Lower Case optional with LCG.

MAIL MERGE/UTILITY

This menu driven program combined with LETTER PERFECT allows user to generate form letters and print mailing labels. With the Atari, you may CONVERT ATARI DOS FILES, or Visicalc files compatible for editing with LETTER PERFECT. Utility creates Data Base files for Letter Perfect.

LOWER CASE CHARACTER GENERATOR

$34.95

LJK DISK UTILITY

APPLE $29.95

This menu driven program allows the user to manipulate a variety of different file types. Binary, Text, and Source files may be easily converted into each other. The program may be used with APPLESOFT*, VISCALC*, and other programs. These program files may be readily adapted for multiple use including editing with LETTER PERFECT word processings.

>«r*tuvvxyz< ! >

Lower Case Character Generator for the Rev. 7, Apple II or II+ computers. When installed, this Eprom will generate lower case characters to the video screen. Lower case characters set has two dot true descenders. Installation instruction included. Manual includes listing of software for full support and complete instructions for shift key modification. Compatible with LETTER PERFECT.

LJK ENTERPRISES INC. P.O. Box 10827 St. Louis, MO 63129 (314) 846-6124

DEALER

INQUIRES

INVITED

"Trademarks of: Apple Computer — Atari Computer — Epson America — Hayes Microcomputers — Personal Software — Videx — Bit 3 Inc. — M&R Ent. — Advanced Logic Systems — Vista Computers

Circle 228 on inquiry card.

DYNACOMP

Quality software for*:

ATARI

PET

APPLE II Plus

TRS-80 (Level II)** NORTH STAR CP/M Disks/Diskettes

CARD GAMES

Price: S17.M CMtttlt/S21.95 Dliketie

i. This program boih BIDS and PLAYS either contract or ;Lcr opponents will either play Ihc offense OR defense. If cl! BRIDGE 2.0 provides challenging entertainment for e bridge novice. Sec the software review in 80 Software

BRIDGE 2.0 (Available for ail computers)

An all-inclusive version of this most popular of car duplicate bridge. Depending on ihc contrail, your you bid too high, the computer will double your advanced players and is an excellent learning too Critique. Rated #1 by Creative Computing.

HEARTS 1.5 (Available for alt computers) Price: MS.W CaiKtie/S19.95 Oitkcttt

An exciting and entertaining computer version of this popular card game. Hearts is a (rick-oriented game in which the purpose is nol to lake any hearts or (he queen of spades. Play against two computer opponents who are armed with hard-to-bcat playing strategies. HEARTS 1. J is an ideal game for introducing the uninitiated (your spoust) to computers. Sec the software review in 80 Software Critique.

Price: SI 1.93 C«j«lte/S15.95 Dlik.lte

a time and you (and the computer) bet on :ver, il sometimes bluffs! Also included is 16K ATARI. Color, graphics, sound. See

STUB POKER (Atari only)

This is the classic gambler's card game. The computer deals the cards one i what you see. The computer does not cheat and usually bets the odds. Ho\ a five card draw poker betting practice program. This package will run on review in COMPUTE.

POKER PARTY (Available for all computers) Price: J17.95 Caaettt/S21.» Dlikeite

POKER PARTY is a draw poker simulation based on the book. POKER, by Oswald Jacoby. This is the most comprehensive version available for microcomputers. The party consists of yourself and six other (computer) players. Each of these players (you will gel to know them) has a different personality in the form or a varying propensity to bluff or fold under pressure. Practice with POKER PARTY before going to that expensive game tonight! Apple Casselle and diskette versions require a 32 K (or larger) Apple II.

CRIBBAGK 2.0 (TRS-80 only)

This is simply the best cribbage game worthy opponent as well as for the n language routines provide rapid execu

Price: $14.93 Custtle/SlS.95 Diskette it program for the cribbage player in search of a his game. The graphics are superb and assembly :w in SO Software Critique.

THOUGHT PROVOKERS

MANAGEMENT SIMULATOR (Atari. North Star and CP/M only)

This program is played al gradu; Each player am design expendili

:o outpcrforn :. The most s

ching tool as well as ; each player or team i his competitors by s cccssful firm is the oi

stimulating intellectual gsrr. introls a company which Bit (ling selling prices, product! : with the highest slock pt ic

Price: (19.95 Cuultr SZ3.95 DUkelte

. Based upon similar games nufneturers three products, in volumes, marketing and when the simulation ends.

FLIGHT SIMULATOR (Available for all computers) Price: Jn.M c«iMtie/Slt.9S Diskette

A realistic and extensive mathematical simulation of take-oft. flight and landing. The program utilizes aerodynamic equations and the characteristics of a real airfoil. You can practice instrument approaches and navigation using radials and compass headings. The more advanced flyer can also perform loops, half-rolls and similar aerobatic maneuvtrs. Although this program docs not employ graphics, il is exciting and very addictive. See the software review in COMPUTRON1CS. Runs in I6K Atari.

VALDEZ (Available for all computers) VALDEZ is a computer simulation " of Alaska. Included in this sintulati viewed using the ship's alphanu. mathematically. The simulation al (outgoing ta

Price: $15.95 C«setle/S19.95 Diskette

■f supertanker navigation in the Prince William Sound/Valdez Narrows region

l realistic and extensive 256 x 256 element map, portions of which may be

radar display. The motion of the ship itself is accurately modelled

tains a mode) for the tidal patterns in the region, as well as other traffic

,e from the Gulf of Alaska to Valder Harbor! Sec the soft

BACKGAMMON 2.0 (Atari, North Star and CP/M only)

This program tests your backgammon skills and will also impr puler or against another human. The computer can even play double or generate dice rolls. Hoard positions can be created t cordance with the official rules of backgammon and is sure I play

Price: 514.95 Caiielle/S 18.95 Dfsktltr

ovc your game, A human can compete against a comagainst itself. Either the human or the computer can ir saved for replay. BACKGAMMON 2.0 plays in ac0 provide many fascinating sessions of backgammon

Price: S 16.95 Cuselte/SlO.95 Dhktlte

s available. It has 10 levels of play and allows the user to change jgh game at level 4-8, CHECKERS 3,0 is practically unbeatable

CHECKERS 3.0 [PET only)

This is one of the most challenging checkers prograr skill levels at any time. Although providing a very t< at levels s) and 10.

CHESS MASTER (North Star and TRS-80 only) Price: S19.95 Cuuiie/$13.95 Diskette

This complete and very powerful program provides five levels of play. It includes castling, en passant captures and the promotion of pawns. Additionally, the board may be preset before the start of play, permitting the examination of "boot" plays. To maximize execution speed, the program is written in assembly language (by SOFTWARE SPECIALISTS of California). Full graphics are employed in the TRS-80 version, and two width; of alphanumeric display are provided to accommodate North Star users. See review in onComputing.

I.EM LANDER (32K Apple Disk only) Price: 516.95 Dlskeitr

Pilot your I.EM LANDER to a safe landing on any of nine different surfaces ranging from smooth to treacherous. The game paddles arc used to control craft altitude and thrust. This is a real-lime high res challenge!

Price: S 16.95 Ciuelte/SlO.95 IXskelte

ddleof a forest fire. Your job is 10 direct her and terrain. Nol protecting valuable make FOREST FIRE! very suspenseful

FOREST FIRE! (Atari only)

Using excellent graphics and sound effects, this simulation puts you in the n operations to put out the fire while compensating for changes in wind, wee structures can result in startling penalties, life-like variables are provided t

Sing. I

0 gain.

c the l

e 3 levels of difficulty.

NOMINOES JIGSAW (Atari, Apple and TRS-80 only) Price: S 16.93 C«**«tle/S20.95 Dliketie

A jigsaw pu/zle on your computer! Complete the puzzle by selecting your pieces from a table consisting of 60 different shapes. NOMINOES JIGSAW is a virtuoso programming effort. The graphics are superlative and the puzzle will challenge you with its three levels of difficulty. Scoring is based upon the number or guesses taken and by the difficulty of the board set-up. See review in ELECTRONIC C.AMES.

MONARCH (Atari only)

MONARCH is a fascinating n

CHOMPELO (Atari only)

CHOMPELO is really two challenging games ir iking the poisoned portion. The other

graphic:

.iiulMhv

is hard It

. This package will

Price: SI 1.95 CutelIe/SI5.95 Diiket

Price: SI 1.95 Cunetle/S15.95 Diskette . One is similar to N1M; you must bile off pan of a cookie, but is the popular board game RGVLRSI. II fully uses the Atari's I6K system.

SPACE LANES (Available for all computers)

SPACE LANES is a simple but exciting space transportation game computer). The object is 10 form and expand space transportation ct is to amass more net worth than your opponent. The economics Watch your wealth grow!

Price: SI4.95 Dlikeite

hich involves up to four players fincluding the : panics in a competitive environment. The goal elude stock purchases and company mergers.

•egislered tradenames and/or supplied with DOS or

DYNACOMP OFFERS THE FOLLOWING

• Widest variety

• Guaranteed quality

• Fastest delivery

• Friendly customer service

• Free catalog

• 24 hour order phone

AND MORE...

STARTREK 3.2 (Available for all compulers) Price: SI1.95 C*»eiir/S15.9S Diskette

This is the classic Slartrek simulation, but wilh several new features. For example, the Klingons now shoot at the Enlerprise without warning while also attacking starhases in other quadrants. The Klingons also attack with both light and heavy cruisers and move when shol at! The situation is hectic when the Enterprise is besieged by three heavy cruisers and a starbasc S.O.S. is received! The Klingons gel even! Sec the software reviews in A.N.A.L.O.G,. SO Software Critique and Game Merchandising.

BLACK HOLE (Apple only) Price: 114.95 C»uetle/S18.95 DMuttf

This is an exciting graphical simulation of the problems involved in closely observing a black hole wilh a space probe. The objeci is lo enter and maintain, for a prescribed time, an orbit close to a small black hole. This is to be achieved without coming so near the anomaly thai the tidal slress destroys the probe. Control of the craft is realistically simulated using side jets for rotation and main thrusters for acceleration. This program employs Hi-Rcs graphics and is educational as well as challenging.

SPACE TILT (Apple and Atari only)

Use the game paddles to tilt the plane of the TV si when the hole gets smaller and smaller! A built-in

Price: $10.95 CuMtle/S14.95 IHikclle

a hole in the screen. Sound simple? Nol ire your skill against others in this habit

MOVING MAZE (Apple and Atari only) Price: S10.95 C*«elle/S14.95 IHiketle

MOVING MAZE employs the games paddles to direct a puck Iron one side of a maze lo ihc other. However, the maze is dynamically (and randomly) buill and is continually being modified. The objective is to cross the maze without touching (or being hit by) a wall. Scoring is by an elapsed time indicator, and three levels of play are provided.

ALPHA FIGHTER (Atari only) Price: S14.95 CMwttcVSU.M Diskette

Two excellent graphics and action programs in otic! ALPHA FIGHTER requires you to destroy the alien starships passing through your sector of the galaxy. ALPHA BASE is in the path of an alien UFO invasion; let five UFO's gel by and the game ends. Doth games require the joystick and gel progressively more difficult Ihc higher you score! ALPHA FIGHTER will run on 16K systems.

THE RINGS OF THE EMPIRE (Atari only)

The empire has developed a new battle station protec rings and destroy the station, the empire develops a I on !6K systems, employs extensive graphics and sou

Price: S16.95 Cassette/J20.95 Diskette

iling rings of energy. Each time you blast through the t with more protective rings. This exciting game runs n be played by one or two players.

INTRUDER ALERT (Atari only) Price: S16.95 Cauelie/S20.95 Dliketie

This is a fast paced graphics game which places you in the middle of the "Dreadstar" having just stolen its plans. The droids have been alerted and are directed lo destroy you at all costs. You must find and enter your ship to escape wilh ihc plans. Five levels of difficulty are provided. INTRUDER ALERT requires a joystick and will run on I6K systems.

GIANT SLALOM (Atari only) Price: S14.95 C«Melle/S18.95 Diskette

This real-time action game is guaranteed addictive! Use the joystick to control your path through slalom courses consisting of both open and closed gates. Choose from different levels of difficulty, race against other players or simply take practice runs against the clock. GIANT SLALOM will run on I6K systems.

TRIPLE BLOCKADE (Atari only) Price: SM.M Cuseltr/$IR.95 Diskette

TRIPLE BLOCKADE is a two-lo-thrce player graphics and sound action game. It is based on the classic video arcade game which millions have enjoyed. Using the Atari joysticks, the objeci is to direct your blockading line around the screen without running into your opponenl(s). Although the concept is simple, the combined graphics and sound effect lead to "high anxicly".

GAMES PACK 1 (Avallahlc for all computers) Price: S10.95 Ca<uelte/SI4.95 Diskette

GAMES PACK I contains the classic Computer games of BLACKJACK, LUNAR LANDER, CRAPS, HORSERACE, SWITCH and more. These games have been combined into one large program for ease in loading. They are individually accessed by a convenient menu. This collection is worth the price just for the DYNACOMP version of BLACKJACK.

GAMES PACK II (Available Tor all computers) Price: S10.9S Cawetie/S 14.95 Dliketie

GAMES PACK II includes ihe games CRAZY EIGHTS, JOTTO, ACEY-DUCEY. LIFE. WUMPUS and others. As with GAMES PACK 1. all the games are loaded as one program and arc called from a menu. You will particularly enjoy DYNACOMP's version of CRAZY EIGHTS. Why pay $7.95 or more per program when you can buy a DYNACOMP collection for just 510.95''

Price: SI 1.95 GuKltC/S 15.95 Diskette

Irop from orbit to land al a predetermined ur craft plus direct Ihe rate of descent and

MOON PROBE (Atari and North Star only)

ir lander" program, The i

SPACE TRAP (Atari only. 16K)

This galactic "shoot'em up" arcade gam

f the alien ships as pot

Price: 514.95 Custlte/Sm.95 DUkelte

black hole. You control your spacecraft using ihe jovsible before the black hole closes about you.

ADVENTURE

CRANSTON MANOR ADVENTURE (North Star and CP/M only) Price: S21.95 Diskette

At laitl A comprehensive Adventure game for North Star and CP/M systems. CRANSTON MANOR ADVENTURE takes you into mysterious CRANSTON MANOR where you attempt to gather fabulous treasures. Lurking in the manor are wild animals and robots who will not give up the treasures without a fight. The number of rooms is greater and the associated descriptions arc much more elaborate than the current popular series of Adventure programs, making ihis game the lop in its class. Play can be stopped at any time and the status stored on diskette.

GUMBALL RALLY ADVENTURE (North Star only, 48K) Price: S2I.95 Diskette

Take pan in this outlaw race from ihe east coast lo the west coast. The goal is to find your way to the finish line while maintaining the highest possible speed. You may choose one or five cars available at the garage. The choice will affect your speed and range. Remember to take spare pans and don't get caught speeding!

SPEECH SYNTHESIS

DYNACOMP is now distributing the ne Simply connect TNT to your computer's ihe casiest-to-program speech synthesize ble vocabulary available anywhere!

and revolutionary TYPE-'N-TALK™ (TNT) speech synthesizer from Votrax. .■rial interface, enter text from the keyboard and hear the words spoken. TNT is in the market. It uses the least amount of memory and provides the most flexi

Price: 5329.95 (Please add S4.00 for shipping and handling}

TNT Software

The following DYNACOMP programs are available for use with Tl

STUD POKER (Atari, 24K) NOMINOES JIGSAW (Atari. 24K) TEACHER'S PET I (Atari and North Star) BRIDGE 2.0 (North Star) CHOMPELO (Atari. 24K)

TALK TO ME (T'N'T Atari only, 24K)

This program presents a superb tutorial on speech synthes ME will illustrate normal word generation as well as phont programming tips.

Please specify 'TNT' vcr

ABOUT DYNACOMP

DYNACOMP is a lending dislribuior of small system software wilh sales spanning ihc world (currently in excess of 40 countries). During the pasl two years we have greatly enlarged the DYNACOMP product line, bul have maintained and improved our high level of quality and customer support. The achievement in quality is apparent from our many repeat customers and the sofiwarc reviews in such publications as COMPUTRON1CS. 80 Software Critique and A.N.A.L.O.G. Our customer support is as close as your phone, it is always friendly. The staff is highly trained and always willing to discuss products or give advice.

Circle 152 on inquiry card.

BUSINESS and UTILITIES

9PELLGUARD™ (CP/M only) Prt„: ni9M m,k

SPELLGUARD is a revolutionary new produci which increases (Kc value of your current word processing system (WORDSTAR. MAGIC WAND, ELECTRIC PENCIL. TEXTED EDITOR II and others). Written entirely in assembly language. SPELLGUARD™ rapidly assists the user in eliminating spelling and typographical errors by comparing each word of [he text against a dictionary (expandable) nf over 20,000 or ihe moil common English words. Words appearing in [he text bui noi found in ihe diciionary are "flagged" for easy identification and correction. Most administrative staff familiar with word pro. crsimg equipment will be able [O use 5PELLGLARD™ in only a few- minutes.

MAIL LIST 2.2 (Apple. Atari sad North Star dlskette only)

This program is unmatched in its ability to store a maximum number or addresses on c ette. more than 2200 for "double density" systems!), lis many features include alphab r 3 up), merging of Tiles and a unique keyword seeking routine which rciricvesei

.. Mail List

Ken find and delete duplicate

Price: SM.9S

ediskelte (minimum of 1100 per disklie and up code sorting, label printing ries by a virtually limitless selection of luable program!

Price: SM.95

FORM LETTER SYSTEM rel. 2 (Atari, North Star and Apple Diskettes only)

FORM LETTER SYSTEM [Fl.S) is the ideal program for crealing and editing form letters and address lists. It contains an easy-to-use text editor which produces fully justified text. Special codes are used in the address list to obtain personated salutations. Form letters are produced by automatically inserting each address into a predeleimined portion of your letter. Fl.S is completely compatible with MAIL LIST 2.2, which may be used to manage and sort your address files.

Fl.S a

1 MAIL LIST 2.2 ai

lable i

a combined package for 559.95.

SORTIT (North Star only) Price: 529.95 Dtikrllr

SORTIT is a general purpose sorting program written in 8080 assembly language. This program will sort sequential data Tiles generated by NORTH STAR BASIC. Primary and optional secondary keys may be numeric or one to nine character strings SORTIT is easily used with files generated by DYNACOMP'! MAIL LIST program and is very versatile in its capabilities for all other BASIC data Tile sorting.

PERSONAL FINANCE SYSTF.M (Atari and North Slar only)

PFS is a single diskette, menu-onented system composed of ten diTferenl programs. Besidi deductible items, 1'FS will sort and summarize expenses by payee, and display information defined codes by month or by payee. PFS will even produce monthly bar graphs of your ei pscltage requires only one disk drive, minimal memory (24K Atari, 32K North Star) and w

Price: SH.M Dbkrllr

recording your expenses and tax n expenditures by any of 26 user :nses by category! This powerful store up to fiOO records per disk

Price: 534.95 Dlikelte able to keep track of cash and credit and charitable donations. FAMILY ly cash and charge entries io any of 21 rved giving Ihe user complete control

FAMILY BL 1DGI ■ I (Apple only)

FAMILY BUDGET is a very convenient financial record-keeping program. 1 expenditures as well as income on a daily basis. You can record lax deducl BUDGET also provides a continuous record of all credit transactions. You cat different expense accounts as well as to 5 payroll and tax accounts. Data are over an otherwise complicated (and unorganized) subject.

INTF.LINK (Alari only) _ Price: 549.95 Diiketir

This software package contains a menu-driven collection or programs Tor facilitating efficient two-way communications through a full duplex modem (required lor use) In one mode of operation you may connect to a data service (e.g., The SOURCE or MicroNct) and quickly load data such as stock quotations onto your diskette for liter viewing. This greatly redeces "connect time" and thus the service charge You may also tecotd the complete contents of a communications session. Additionally, programs written in BASIC. FORTRAN, etc. may be built off-line using the support text editor and later "upart terminal. Even Atari BASIC programs may be uploaded. J controlling input for a time-share system. That is, you can set d ihe Atari will transmit them as needed; batch processing. All

loaded" to another computer, making the Atari a irri Further, a command file may be built off-line and used Is up your sequence of time-share commands and program? th s adds up to saving both connect time and your time.

TEXT EDITOR II «P/M)

This is the second release vers>on of DYNACOMP's popular TEXT EDITOR I and cor EDITOR II you may build text lilcs in chunks and assemble them for later display. Blocl deleted. Files may he saved on disk/diskette in right justified/centered format to be lat or the CP/.M FD facility. Fulher, ASCII CP7M Hies (including BASIC and assembly h

Price: 529.95 Mi.kdif 533.45 Dixit

ams many new features. With TEXT of text may be appended, inserted or printed by cither TEXT EDITOR II

sguage programs) may be read by the

UFII.K (Atari and North Slar diskettes only)

This handy program allows Norlh Star and Alari disk ■ slack of disks which invariably accumulates. DFILE ilocating of the desired file or program.

■r formatted using TEXT EDITOR II. All in all. TEXT

Price: 519.95 i a specialized dala base of all Tiles and programs in the nd use. It will organize your disks lo provide efficient

FINDIT (North Star only)

This ts a three-in-one program which mi Commercial leg: plumbers) and Referent are birthday, annivctsaiy and appointme cords. Reference records arc accessed hi

Price: 519.95

mains information accessible by keywords of three types: Personal (eg: last namel, ■ (eg: magazine articles, record albums, etc). In addition to keyword searches, there t searches for the personal records and appointment searches for the commercial re

ingle keyword or by cross-referencing ti

three keywords.

.. Adding, deleting.

SHOPPING LIST (Alari and North SUl only) Price: J12.M Caaiem

SHOPPING LIST stores information on items you purchase a) the supermarket. Before going shopping, ii then display tt very e

TAX OPTIMIZER (North Star only) Price: $59.95 Diskette

The TAX OPTIMIZER is an easy-to-use. menu oriented software package which provides a convenient means for analyzing sarious income tax strategies. The program is designed to provide a quick and easy data entry. Income tax is computed by all tax methods (regulat. income averaging, maximum and alternate minimum lax). The user may immediately observe the lax effect of critical financial decisions. TAX OPTIMIZER has been thoroughly Tield tested in CPA offices and comes complete with the current tax tables in its data files.

DYNACOMP CASSETTES

DYNAOOMP now offers high quahts DYNACOMP bi

Box of 2f> cassetie

AVAILABILITY

DYNACOMP software is sup specified, all programs will run able on ATARI, PET, TRS-Bl density compatible) diskette. I

nth complete documentation containing clear explanations and examples. Unless otherwise I 16K program memory space (ATARI requires 24K). Except where noted, programs are availI II) and Apple (Applesoft) cassette and diskette as well as North Star single density {double rally, mosi programs can be obtained on standard (IBM formatl 8" CP/M floppy disks for

EDUCATION

HODGE PODGE (Apple only. -UK Applesoft or Integer BASIC)

Let HODGE PODGE be your child's baby sitter. Pressing any key on you periing" related to the letter or number of the chosen key. The program" from ages 1 K to 9. HODGE PODGE is a non-inlimidaiing teaching dev

Price

r Apple will result i graphics, color un cc which brings a r

519.95 Cauelle/52J.95 Diskette

a different and intriguing "hapsound are a delight for children ew dimension lo the use of com

TF.ACHF.R'S PET I (Available for all computers)

This is the first of DYNACOMP's educational packages. Primarily intended Tor pr provides the young student with counting practice, letter-word recognition and three

Price

levels

II US Cam

1 to grade )

ielle/STJ.95 Diskette TEACHER'S PET

MISCELLANEOUS

CRYSTALS (Atari only) Price: 1 9.95Caatetle/513.95Dtikettt

A unique algorithm randomly produces fascinating graphics displays accompanied with tones which vary as the patterns are built. No two patterns are the same, and the combined effect of the sound and graphics are mesmerizing CRYSTALS has been used in local stores to demonstrate the sound and color features or the Atari.

NORTH STAR SOFTWARE EXCHANGE (NSSE) LIBRARY

DYNACOMP now distributes the 23 volume NSSE library. These diskettes each contain many prog standing value for the purchase price. They should be part of every North Slar user's collecrion. Call for details regarding the contents of the NSSE collection.

ams and offer an out» write DYNACOMP

Price: S9.95 each'17.95 each (4 or more)

The complete collection may he purchased for SI-9.95

STATISTICS and ENGINEERING

DIGITAL FILTER (Available for ill computer*)

DIGITAL FILTER is a comprehensive data processing program which perm

choose [torn a menu ol filter farms. The filter forms are subsequently converted into non-recursive convolution coefficient which permit rapid data processing In ihe explicit design mode the shape of the frequency transfer function is specified by directly entering points along the desired filter curve. In Ihe menu mode, ideal low pass, high pass and bandpass filters may be approximated lo varying degrees according io the number of points used in ihe calculation. These filters may optionally also be smoothed wilh a Hanning function. In addition, multi-stage Butlerwonh fillers may be selecied. Features of DIGITAL

FILTER include plotting of the dala before and after Tillering, as well as display of [I are convenient data storage, retrieval and editing procedures.

r functions. Also included

DATA SMOOTHER (Not available Tor Atari) Price: $19.95 Csw(ie/S2J.9S Diskette

This special data smoothing program may be used to rapidly derive useful information from noisy business and engineering data which are equally spaced. The software features choice in degree and range of fit. as well as smoothed first and second derivative calculation. Also included is automatic plotting of the input data and smoothed results.

FOURIER ANALYZER (Available for all computer

Use Ihis program to examine the frequency spectra oT I plotting of the input data and results. Practical applicat:

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HARMONIC ANALYZER was designed for ihe spectrum analysis of repetitive wi lion, editing and storage/retrieval as well as dala and spectrum plotting. One parti need not be equally spaced or in order. The original data is sorted and a cubic splin required by the FFT algorithm.

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BASIC SCIENTIFIC SUBROUTINES, Volumes I and 2 (Not available lot Atari)

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With LOGIC SIMULATOR you may easily test your complicated digital logic desijn with respect to given set or inputs lo determine how well the circuit will operate. The elements which may be simulated include multiple input AND. OR, NOR, EXOR, EXNOR and NAND gates, a: well us inverters. J-K ond D nip-flops, and onc-shols. The response oT Ihe system is available every clock cycle. Inputs may be clocked in with varying clock cycle lenglhs'displaccmenls and delays may be introduced io probe Tor glitches and race conditions At ihe user's option, a timing diagram for any given set of nodes may be plotted using HIRES graphics. Save your breadboarding until the circuit is checked by LOGIC SIMULATOR.

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Outside North America: Add I0"« (Air Mail)

with order and include the

s (excluding books) are sent First Class.

c programs. Dealer discount schedules arc available upon request.

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Add 52.50 to ihe listed diskette price for each 8" floppy disk (IBM soft sectored CP/M format). Program

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Circle 152 on inquiry card.

The Atari Tutorial

Part 3: Player-Missile Graphics

Chris Crawford

Atari Inc

1265 Borregas Ave

POB 427

Sunnyvale CA 94086

Animation is an important capability of any personal computer system. Activity on the screen adds greatly to the excitement and realism of any program. Certainly, animation is crucial to the appeal of most computer games. More important, an animated image can convey information with more impact and clarity than a static image. It can draw attention to an item or event of importance. It can directly show a dynamic process, rather than indirectly talk about it. Animation must accordingly be regarded as an important element of the graphics capabilities of any computer system.

The conventional way to implement animation with personal computers is to move the image data through the screen memory area. This is a two-step process. First, the program must erase the old image by writing background values (ie: the values of the image "under" the moving one) to the memory containing the current image. Then the program

This article (except for the appendices) appears in slightly different form in De Re Atari, to be published by Atari, lnc, and is reproduced with its express permission.

must write the image data to the memory corresponding to the new position of the image. By repeating this process over and over, the image appears to move on the screen.

The essence of the

problem of playfield

animation: the screen

Image is twodimensional, while the Image in memory is one-dimensional.

There are two problems with this technique. First, if the animation is being done in a graphics mode with large pixels (picture elements), the motion will not be smooth; the image will jerk across the screen. With other computers, the only solution is to use a graphics mode with smaller pixels (higher resolution). The second problem is much worse. The screen is a two-dimensional image, but the screen memory is organized onedimensionally. An image that is contiguous on the screen will not be contiguous in the screen memory. The discrepancy is illustrated in figure 1.

The significance of this discrepancy is not obvious until you try to write a program to move such an image. Look how the bytes that make up the image are scattered through memory. To erase them, your program must calculate their addresses. This calculation is not always easy to do. The assembly code just to access a single screen byte at screen location (XPOS,YPOS) would be as shown in listing 1 (this code assumes 40 bytes per screen line).

Clearly, this code to access a screen location is too cumbersome. It is not the most elegant or fastest code to solve the problem. A good programmer could take advantage of special circumstances to make the code more compact or elegant. The point of this is that accessing pixels on a screen takes a lot of computing. The routine in listing 1 takes about 100 machine cycles to access a single byte on the screen. To move an image that occupies, say 50 bytes, would require 100 accesses, 10,000 machine cycles, or roughly 10 ms. This may not sound like much, but if you want to achieve smooth motion, you have to move the object every 17 ms. If there are other objects to move or calcula

312 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 131 on inquiry card.

OUR SECOND GENERATION DP-NET

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The S-4500 DP-NET system will support from one to ten users, and provide each with their own Z-80 CPU and 64K of ram memory. Each user will also have access to 40 megabytes of hard disk storage, 17.2 megabytes of file managed tape backup, and floppy disk.

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By simply reading in the entire record or file you wish to protect, the DP-NET 'DISK SELECTIVE LOCKOUT guarantees complete data integrity. The DP-NET also allows the use of today's popular micro applications languages (i.e., Cbasic®, Mbasic®, Cobol®, etc.), without having to compensate for the problems inherant to these languages in the multi-user environment, while maintaining CPM compatibility.

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The S-4500 is but one of many DP-NET configurations utilizing parallel and/or serial communication links. Delta Products also manufacturers a wide range of conventional single and multi-user systems operating under CP/M and MP/M. Single and multi-user systems can be upgraded to DP-NET's, because their basic components are utilized in our network systems. We have intentionally developed an interactive family of systems that are completely configurable and compatible, never limiting the ability to adapt to a modification in the application. Delta Products systems are available thru a worldwide network of selective distributors and dealers. Call for the name and number of the one nearest to you.

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1981

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HEXADECIMAL REPRESENTATION OF IMAGE

00 00 00 00 00 00 00

00 99

BD FF BD 99 00

00 00 00 00 00 00 00

1 BYTE

SPACING OF BYTES IN MEMORY

00 00 00 00 99 00 00 BD 00 00 FF 00 00 BD 00 00 99 00 00 00 00

;

IMAGE BYTES SCATTERED THROUGH RAM

Figure 1: The problem of moving a bit-mapped graphics image. Although the image is two-dimensional, its representation is scattered through one-dimensional memory. The software necessary to change the appropriate memory locations slows down animation considerably.

Listing 1: A 6502 assembly-language program to move a bit-map image within a graphics screen that uses 40 bytes per line of graphics.

LDA

SCRNRM

Address of beginning of screen RAM

STA

POINTR

zero-page pointer

LDA

SCRNRM +1

high-order byte of address

STA

POINTR + 1

high-order pointer

LDA

#$00

STA

TEMPA+1

temporary register

LDA

YPOS

vertical position

ASL

A

times 2

ROL

TEMPA+1

shift carry into TEMPA + 1

ASL

A

times 4

ROL

TEMPA + 1

shift carry again

ASL

A

times 8

ROL

TEMPA+1

shift again

LDX

TEMPA + 1

save YPOS*8

STX

TEMPB + 1

into TEMPB

STA

TEMB

low byte

ASL

A

times 16

ROL

TEMPA +1

ASL

A

times 32

ROL

TEMPA + 1

CLC

ADC

TEMPB

add in YPOS*8 to get YPOS*40

STA

TEMPB

LDA

TEMPA + 1

now do high-order byte

ADC

TEMPB +1

STA

TEMPB +1

LDA

TEMPB

TEMPB contains the offset from top c

CLC

ADC

POINTR

STA

POINTR

LDA

TEMPB +1

ADC

POINTR + 1

STA

POINTR + 1

LDY

XPOS

LDA

(POINTR),Y

314 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981 315

Circle 337 on inquiry card.

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tions to carry out, the 7 ms difference doesn't allow much processor time to devote to them. This means that this type of animation (called playfield animation) is too slow for many purposes. You can still get animation this way, but you are limited to a few objects, small objects, slow motion, or a few calculations between motion. The trade-offs a programmer must make in using such animation are too restrictive,

A New Approach—Players

The Atari 400/800 solution to this problem is player-missile graphics. In order to understand player-missile graphics, you must understand the essence of the problem of playfield animation: the screen image is twodimensional, while the image in memory is one-dimensional. The solution was to create a graphics object that is one-dimensional on the screen, as well as one-dimensional in memory.

What Is Shadowing?

Some of the hardware registers talked about in this article are writeonly—that is, you can write values to them, hut you can't read what their current contents are. Because of this, the designers of the Atari operating system created shadow registers for some of the more important hardware registers. When the Atari 400/800 has finished drawing an entire display screen of information (at a time called the vertical blank), it copies the contents of each shadow register into the corresponding hardware register (this occurs every V30 second). In this way, you can read the contents of a shadow register, knowing that it has the same value as its hardware register.

If you write to the hardware register itself, the old value (still in the shadow register) will be copied into the hardware register at the next vertical blank, and whatever effect you wanted to make will be almost instantly undone. Similarly, if you try to read the hardware-register location, you will get incorrect results.

To conclude, you should always read from and write to shadow registers where they exist. If you fail to do so, your program will fail to work in a way that is not always obvious.

316 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

This object (called a player) appears in memory as a table either 128 or 256 bytes long. The table is mapped directly to the screen. It appears as a vertical band stretching from the top of the screen to the bottom. Each byte in the table is mapped into either one or two horizontal scan lines, with the choice made by the programmer. The screen image is a simple bit-map of the data in the table. If a bit is on, the corresponding pixel in the vertical column is lit; if the bit is off, the corresponding pixel is off. Thus, the player image is not strictly onedimensional; it is actually 8 bits wide.

Drawing a player image on the screen is simple. First, you draw a picture of the desired image on graph paper. This image must be no more than eight pixels wide. Then you translate the image into binary code, substituting Is for illuminated pixels and 0s for empty pixels. You translate the resulting binary number into decimal or hexadecimal (depending on which is more convenient), and you store 0s into the player memory area to clear the image. Next, you store the image data into the player memory area, with the byte at the top of the player image going first, followed by the other image bytes in top-to-bottom sequence. The further down in memory you place the data, the lower the image will appear on the screen.

Animating this image is easy. Vertical motion is obtained by moving the image data through the player memory. This is, in principle, the same method used in playfield animation, but there is a big difference in practice. The move routine for vertical motion is a one-dimensional move instead of a two-dimensional move. The program does not need to multiply by 40 and it often does not need to use indirection. It could be as simple as:

LDX #$01

LOOP LDA PLAYER, X

STA PLAYER-1,X INX

BNE LOOP

This routine takes about 4 ms to move the entire player, about half as

Circle 312 on inquiry card. -"♦

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long as the playfield-animation routine. The player-movement routine is faster than the playfieldanimation routine, even though the former moves 256 bytes and the latter moves 50 bytes. If high speed is necessary, the loop above can be trimmed to move only the image bytes themselves, rather than the whole player. Then the loop would easily run in about 100 to 200 /xs. The point here is that vertical motion with players is both simpler and faster than motion with playfield objects.

Players and missiles are

independent of the

playfield—you can mix

them with any text or

graphics.

Horizontal motion is even easier than vertical motion. There is a register for the player called the horizontal position register. The value in this register sets the horizontal position of the player on the screen (ie: the distance from the left edge of the screen). All you do is store a number into this register and the player jumps to that horizontal position. To move the player horizontally, simply change the number stored in the horizontal position register.

Horizontal and vertical motion are independent; you can combine them in any fashion you choose.

The scale for the horizontal position register is one color clock per unit. Thus, adding one to the horizontal position register moves the player one color clock to the right. There are only 228 color clocks in a single scan line. Furthermore, some of these are not displayed because of overscan. The horizontal position register can hold 256 positions, some off the left or right edge of the screen. Depending on the overscan of the television, positions 0 through 44 will be off the left edge of the screen and positions 220 through 255 will be off the right edge. Thus, the visible region of the player is in horizontal positions 44 through 220. Remember, however, that this may vary from

318 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

television to television; a conservative range is from 60 to 200. This coordinate range is sometimes clumsy to use, but it offers a nice feature: a simple way to remove a player from the screen is to set the player's horizontal position to zero. With a single load and store in assembly language (or a single POKE in BASIC), the player disappears.

The system described so far makes it possible to produce high-speed animation. There are a number of embellishments that greatly add to its overall utility. The first embellishment is that there are four independent players to use. These players all have their own sets of control registers and memory areas; thus, their operation is completely independent. The players are labeled P0 through P3. They can be used side by side to give up to 32 bits of horizontal resolution, or independently to give four movable objects. Each player has its own color register, completely independent of the playfield color register. The player color registers are called COLP(X) and are shadowed at PCOLR(X). This gives you the capability to put much more color onto the screen. However, each player has only one color; multicolored players are not possible without display-list interrupts (which will be discussed in the next article in this series).

Each player has a controllable width. You can set it to have normal width, double width, or quadruple width with the SIZEP(X) registers. This is useful for making players take on different sizes. You also have the option of choosing the vertical resolution of the players. You can use single-line resolution, in which each byte in the player table occupies one horizontal scan line, or double-line resolution, in which each byte occupies two horizontal scan lines. With single-line resolution, each player bit-map table is 256 bytes long; with double-line resolution, each table is 128 bytes long. This is the only case where player properties are not independent. The selection of vertical resolution applies to all players. Player vertical resolution is controlled by bit D4 of the DMACTL

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 319

Circle 11 on Inquiry card.

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register. In double-line resolution, the first 10 bytes in the player table area are lost to vertical overscan and are off the top edge of the screen, and the last 20 bytes are lost off the bottom edge of the screen. In single-line resolution, 20 and 40 bytes are lost correspondingly.

Missiles

The next embellishment is the provision of missiles. These are 2-bitwide graphics objects associated with the players. There is one missile assigned to each player; it takes its color from the player's color register. Missile-shape data come from the missile bit-map table in memory in front of the player tables. All four missiles are packed into the same table (four missiles times 2 bits per missile gives 8 bits). Missiles can move independently of players; they have their own horizontal position registers. Missiles have their own size register, SIZEM, that can set the horizontal width as the SIZEP(X) registers do for players. However, missiles cannot be set to different sizes. They are all set together. Missiles are useful as bullets or for skinny vertical lines on the screen. If desired, the missiles can be grouped together into a fifth player, in which case they take the color of playfield color register 3. This is done by setting bit D4 of the priority control register (PRIOR). Missiles can still move independently when this option is in effect. Their horizontal positions are set by their horizontal position registers (HPOSM0 through HPOSM3). Their shapes and vertical positions are determined by which bits are turned on in their area of the player-missile area (see figures 2a and 2b). The fifth player enable bit only affects the color of the missiles.

You move a missile vertically the same way you move a player: by moving the missile-image data through their two bit-positions of the missile memory area. This can be difficult to do because missiles are grouped into the same memory table. To access a single missile, you must ignore the bits for the other missiles.

An important feature of playermissile graphics is that players and

missiles are completely independent of the playfield (ie: the text or graphics information also displayed by the computer). You can mix them with any text or graphics mode. This raises a problem: What happens if a player ends up on top of a playfield image? Which image has priority? You have the option to define the priorities used in displaying players. Four priority schemes are possible (see the listing for register PRIOR in appendix B). If you wish, all players can have priority over all playfield color registers. Or you can set all playfield color registers (except background) to have priority over all players. Or you can set player 0 and player 1 (P0 and Pi) to have priority over all playfield color registers, with P2 and P3 having less priority than the playfield. Or you can set playfield color registers 0 and 1 (PF0 and PF1) to have priority over all players, which then have priority over PF2 and PF3. These priorities are selected with the priority control register (PRIOR) that is shadowed at GPRIOR. This capability allows a player to pass in front of one image and behind another, allowing threedimensional effects.

Who Did I Just Hit?

The final embellishment is the provision for hardware collision detection. This is primarily of value for games. You can check if any graphics object (player or missile) has collided with anything else. Specifically, you can check for missile-player collisions, missile-playfield collisions, player-player collisions, and playerplayfield collisions. There are fiftyfour possible collisions, each one with a bit assigned to it that can be checked. If the bit is set, a collision has occurred. These bits are mapped into fifteen registers in CTIA (another custom integrated circuit in the Atari 400/800); only the lower 4 bits are used and some are not meaningful. These are read-only registers; they cannot be cleared by writing zeros to them. The registers can be cleared for further collision detection by writing any value to register HITCLR. All collision registers are cleared by this command.

320 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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PMBASE (MUST

BE DIVISIBLE

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PMBASE + 768 + 1024 + 1280 + 1536

+ 17 92 + 2048

—►■

M3

M2

Ml

M0

PLAYER 0

PLAYER 1

PLAYER 2

PLAYER 3

(2b)

BYTE N

N + 1

N + 2

N +3

PMBASE (MUST

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BY 1024)

PMBASE + 384 + 512 + 640 + 768 + 896 + 1024

M3|M2|Ml|M0

PLAYER 0

PLAYER 1

PLAYER 2

PLAYER 3

THESE BITS GIVE THE SHAPE AND VERTICAL POSITION FOR

MISSILE 3

MISSILE 2

MISSILE 1

MISSILE 0

MISSILE 2

D7

D6

05

D4

D3

02

01

DO

^

-—

^

"~~~

_MISSILE 1

/

Figure 2: The player-missile area. Information on the shape and vertical position of the players and missiles is kept in a block of memory. The allocation for single-line and double-line player-missile areas is shown in figure 2a. Figure 2b shows how one area can store the shape and position of four missiles.

322 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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In hardware terms, collisions occur when a player image coincides with another image. Thus, the collision bit will not be set until the part of the screen showing the collision is drawn. This means that collision detection might not occur until as many as 16 ms have elapsed since the player was moved. The preferred solution is to execute player motion and collision detection during the verticalblank interrupt routine. In this case, collision detection should be checked first, then collisions cleared, then players moved. Another solution is to wait at least 16 ms after moving a player before checking for a collision involving that player.

Using Player-Missile Graphics

There are a number of steps necessary to use player-missile graphics. First, you must set aside an area of RAM (random-access read/write memory) as a playermissile area and tell the computer where it is. If you use single-line resolution, this area will be 1280 bytes long; if you use double-line resolution, it will be 640 bytes long. A good practice is to use the memory area in front of the display area at the top of the computer's available RAM. The layout of the player-missile area is shown in figure 2.

The pointer to the beginning of the player-missile area is labeled

Listing 2: An Atari BASIC program that draws a player on the screen and allows the user to move the figure with a joystick.

1 PMBASE = 54279:REM

2 RAMTOP = 106:REM

3 SDMCTL = 559:REM

4 GRACTL = 53277:REM

5 HPOSP0 = 53248:REM

6 PCOLR0 = 704:REM

10 GRAPHICS 0:SETCOLOR 2,0,0:REM

20 X=100:REM

30 Y = 48:REM

40 A = PEEK(RAMTOP)-8:REM

50 POKE PMBASE,A:REM

60 MYPMBASE = 256*A:REM

70 POKE SDMCTL,46:REM

80 POKE GRACTL,3:REM

90 POKE HPOSP0,100:REM

100 FORI = MYPMBASE + 512TO

MYPMBASE + 640:REM

110 POKE 1,0

120 NEXT I

130 FORI = MYPMBASE + 512 + YTO

MYPMBASE + 518 + Y

140 READ A:REM

150 POKE I,A

160 NEXT I

170 DATA 8,17,35,255,32,16,8

180 POKE PCOLR0,88:REM

190 A = STICK(0):REM

200 JF A = 15 THEN GOTO 190:REM

210 IF A= 11 THENX = X-l:POKEHPOSP0,X

220 IF A = 7 THEN X = X+l:POKE HPOSP0.X

230 IF A<> 13 THEN GOTO 280

240 FOR I = 8 TO 0 STEP - 1

250 POKE MYPMBASE+ 512 +Y + I.PEEK

(MYPMBASE + 511+Y + I)

260 NEXT I

270 Y = Y+1

280 IF A<> 14 THEN GOTO 190

290 FOR I = 0 TO 8

300 POKE MYPMBASE + 511+Y + I,PEEK

(MYPMBASE + 512 + Y + I))

310 NEXT I

320 Y = Y-1

330 GOTO 190

player-missile base pointer

OS top of RAM pointer

RAM shadow of DMACTL register

CTIA graphics control register

horizontal position of P0

shadow of player 0 color

set background color to black

BASIC'S player horizontal position

BASIC'S player vertical position

get RAM 2 K below top of RAM

tell ANTIC where PM RAM is

keep track of PM RAM address

enable PM DMA with 2-line res

enable PM display

declare horizontal position

this loop clears player

this loop draws the player

make the player pink

read joystick

if inactive, try again

324 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

CQIYIPLITRQNICS

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1 RULE78 Interest Apportionment by Rule of the 78's

2 ANNU1 Annuity computation program

3 DATE Time between dates

4 DAYYEAR Day of year a particular date falls on

5 LEASE1NT Interest rate on lease

6 BREAKEVN Breakeven analysis

7 DEPRSL Straightline depreciation

8 DEPRSY Sum of the digits depreciation

9 DEPRDB Declining balance depreciation

10 DEPRDDB Double declining balance depreciation

11 TAXDEP Cash flow vs. depreciation tables

12 CHECK2 Prints NEBS checks along with dairy register

13 CHECKBKI Checkbook maintenance program

14 MORTGAGE/A Mortgage amortization table

15 MULTMON Computes time needed for money to double, triple,

16 SALVAGE Determines salvage value of an investment

17 RRVARIN Rate of return on investment with variable inflows

18 RRCONST Rate of return on investment with constant inflows

19 EFFECT Effective interest rate of a loan

20 FVAL Future value of an investment (compound interest)

21 PVAL Present value of a future amount

22 LOANPAY Amount of payment on a loan

23 REGWfTH Equal withdrawals from investment to leave 0 over

24 SIMPDISK Simple discount analysis

25 DATEVAL Equivalent & nonequivalent dated values for oblig.

26 ANNUDEF Present value of deferred annuities

27 MARKUP % Markup analysis for items

28 SINKFUND Sinking fund amortization program

29 BONDVAL Value of a bond

30 DEPLETE Depletion analysis

31 BLACKSH Black Scholes options analysis

32 STOCVAL1 Expected return on stock via discounts dividends

33 WARVAL Value of a warrant

34 BONDVAL2 Value of a bond

35 EPSEST Estimate of future earnings per share for company

36 BETAALPH Computes alpha and beta variables for stock

37 SHARPE1 Portfolio selection model-i.e. what stocks to hold

38 OPTWRrTE Option writing computations

39 RTVAL Value of a right

40 EXPVAL Expected value analysis

41 BAYES Bayesian decisions

42 VALPRINF Value of perfect information

43 VALADINF Value of additional information

44 (JTIUTY Derives utility function

45 SIMPLEX Linear programming solution by simplex method

46 TRAMS Transportation method for linear programming

47 EOQ Economic order quantity inventory model

48 QUEUE 1 Single server queueing (waiting line) model

49 CVP Cost-volume-profit analysis

50 CONDPROF Conditional profit tables

51 OPTLOSS Opportunity loss tables

52 FQUOQ Fixed quantity economic order quantity model

NAME DESCRIPTION

53 FQEOWSH As above but with shortages permitted

54 FQEOQPB As above but with quantity price breaks

55 QUEUECB Cost-benefit waiting line analysis

56 NCFANAL Net cash-flow analysis for simple investment

57 PROF1ND Profitability index of a project

58 CAP1 Cap. Asset Pr. Model analysis of project

Circle 180 on Inquiry card.

59 WACC Weighted average cost of capital

60 COMPBAL True rate on loan with compensating bal. required

61 DISCBAL True rate on discounted loan

62 MERGANAL Merger analysis computations

63 FINRAT Financial ratios for a firm

64 NPV Net present value of project

65 PRINDLAS Laspeyres price index

66 PR1NDPA Paasche price index

67 SEASIND Constructs seasonal quantity indices for company

68 TIMETR Time series analysis linear trend

69 TIMEMOV Time series analysis moving average trend

70 FUPRINF Future price estimation with inflation

71 MAILPAC Mailing list system

72 LETWRT Letter writing system-links with MAILPAC

73 SORT3 Sorts list of names

74 LABEL 1 Shipping label maker

75 LABEL2 Name label maker

76 BUSBUD DOME business bookkeeping system

77 TIMECLCK Computes weeks total hours from timeclock info.

78 ACCTPAY In memory accounts payable system-storage permitted

79 INVOICE Generate invoice on screen and print on printer

80 INVENT2 In memory inventory control system

81 TELDIR Computerized telephone directory

82 T1MUSAN Time use analysis

83 ASSIGN Use of assignment algorithm for optimal job assign.

84 ACCTREC In memory accounts receivable system-storage ok

85 TERMSPAY Compares 3 methods of repayment of loans

86 PAYNET Computes gross pay required for given net

87 SELLPR Computes selling price for given after tax amount

88 ARBCOMP Arbitrage computations

89 DEPRSF Sinking fund depreciation

90 UPSZONE Finds UPS zones from zip code

91 ENVELOPE Types envelope including return address

92 AUTOEXP Automobile expense analysis

93 INSFILE Insurance policy file

94 PAYROLL2 In memory payroll system

95 DILANAL Dilution analysis

96 LOANAFFD Loan amount a borrower can afford

97 RENTPRCH Purchase price for rental property

98 SALELEAS Sale-leaseback analysis

99 RRCONVBD Investor's rate of return on convertable bond

100 PORTVAL9 Stock market portfolio storage-valuation program

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PMBASE. Because of internal limitations of the ANTIC device (a custom integrated circuit in the Atari computers), PMBASE must be on a 1 K-byte boundary for single-line resolution, or a 2 K-byte boundary for double-line resolution. If you elect

Figure 4: Use of a player as a special symbol. This can be done because players and missiles are superimposed over whatever text or graphics are in effect.

to use less than four players or none of the missiles, the areas of memory set aside for the unused objects may be used for other purposes. Once you decide where your player-missile area will be, you inform ANTIC of this by storing the page number of PMBASE into the PMBASE register in ANTIC.

The next step is to clear the player and missile areas by storing zeros into all locations in the player-missile memory area. Then draw the players and missiles by storing image data into the appropriate locations in the player-missile area.

Next, set the player parameters by setting the player color, horizontal position, and width registers to their initial values. If necessary, set the player/playfield priorities. Inform ANTIC of the vertical resolution desired by setting bit D4 of register DMACTL (shadowed at SDMCTL) for single-line resolution and clearing

Listing 3: An Atari BASIC program to create a pseudoplayer with increased resolution. See the text and figure 3 for details.

1 RAMTOP=106:REM

2 PMBASE = 54279:REM

3 SDMCTL = 559:REM

4 GRACTL = 53277:REM

5 HPOSP0 = 53248: REM

6 PCOLR0 = 704:REM

7 SIZEP0 = 53256:REM

8 GPRIOR = 623:REM 10 GRAPHICS 7

20 SETCOLOR 4,8,4

30 SETCOLOR 2,0,0

40 COLOR 3

50 FOR Y = 0TO79:REM

60 PLOT 0,Y

70 DRAWTO 159.Y

80 NEXT Y

90 A = PEEK(RAMTOP)-20:REM

100 POKE PMBASE,A

110 MYPMBASE = 256* A

120 POKE SDMCTL,46

130 POKEGRACTL.3

140 POKE HPOSP0,100

150 FOR I = MYPMBASE + 512 TO MYPMBASE

+ 640

160 POKE I,255:REM

170 NEXT I

180 POKE PCOLR0,88

190 POKE SIZEP0,3:REM

200 POKE GPRIOR,4:REM

210 COLOR 4

220 FOR Y = 30 TO 40

230 PLOTY + 22.Y

240 DRAWTO Y +43,Y

250 NEXTY

OS top of RAM pointer

ANTIC player-missile RAM

pointer

shadow of DMACTL

CTIA graphics control register

horizontal position register of P0

shadow of player 0 color

register

player width control register

priority control register

this loop fills the screen

must back up further for GR.7

make player solid color

set player to guadruple width set priority

the bit for double-line resolution. Finally, enable the players by setting the appropriate bits in DMACTL. Be careful not to disturb the other bits in DMACTL. A sample BASIC program for setting up a player and moving it with the joystick is given in listing 2. Once players are displayed, they can be difficult to remove from the screen because the procedure by which they are displayed involves several steps. First, the ANTIC integrated circuit retrieves playermissile data from the player-missile area RAM (if such retrieval is enabled in the DMACTL register). Then ANTIC ships the player-missile data to the CTIA integrated circuit (if such action is enabled in the GRACTL register). CTIA displays whatever is in its player and missile graphics registers (GRAFP0 through GRAFP3 and GRAFM). Many programmers attempt to turn off player-missile graphics by clearing the control bits in DMACTL and GRACTL. This only prevents ANTIC from sending new player-missile data to CTIA; the old data in the GRAF(X) registers will still be displayed. To completely clear the players, the GRAF(X) registers must be cleared after the control bits in DMACTL and GRACTL have been cleared. A simpler solution is to leave the player up, but set its horizontal position to zero. Of course, if this solution is used, ANTIC will continue to use DMA to retrieve player-missile data, wasting roughly 10,000 machine cycles (about 10 ms) per second.

Uses

Player-missile graphics allow a number of special capabilities. They are of great value in animation. They do have limitations: there are only four players and each is only 8 bits wide. If you need more bits of horizontal resolution, you can always fall back on playfield animation. But for high-speed or quick-and-dirty animation, player-missile graphics work very well.

It is possible to bypass ANTIC and write player-missile data directly into the player-missile graphics registers (GRAFP(X)) in the CTIA integrated circuit. This gives the programmer

326 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981 327

more direct control over playermissile graphics. As a result, it also increases his or her responsibilities. The programmer must maintain a bitmap of the player-missile data and move it into the graphics registers at the appropriate times. The 6502 must therefore be slaved (ie: synchronized to and triggered by) to the screen

drawing cycle. This is a clumsy technique that offers minor performance improvements in return for major programming efforts. The programmer who bypasses the hardware power offered by ANTIC must make up for it with his or her own sweat. Player-missile graphics offer many capabilities in addition to animation.

PLAYER (PINK); SET BY LINES 90-200

BACKGROUND (LIGHT BLUE); SET BY LINE 20 OF LISTING 3

PLAYFIELD ( BLACK);

SET BY LINES 40-80; OVERWRITES

PLAYER BECAUSE IT HAS HIGHER

PRIORITY

BACKGROUND DRAWN BY LINES 210-250; SHOULD BE BLUE BUT IS PINK BECAUSE PLAYER HAS HIGHER PRIORITY OVER BACKGROUND

PART OF SAME PLAYER

Figure 3: Playing tricks with the video display to achieve higher player resolution. This technique works by manipulating the relative priorities of the playfield, players, and background. See the text and listing 3 for details.

Listing 4: An Atari BASIC program to create a player in the shape of an integral sign. See figure 4.

1 RAMTOP=106:REM

2 PMBASE = 54279:REM

3 SDMCTL = 559:REM

4 GRACTL = 53277:REM

5 HPOSP0 = 53248:REM

6 PCOLR0 = 704:REM

10 GRAPHICS 0:A = PEEK(RAMTOP) 16:REM

20 POKE PMBASE,A

30 MYPMBASE = 256*A

40 POKE SDMCTL,62

50 POKE GRACTL.3

60 POKE HPOSP0,102

70 FOR I = MYPMBASE + 1024 TO MYPMBASE+1280

80 POKE 1,0

90 NEXT I

100 POKE PCOLR0,140

110 FOR 1 = 0 TO 15

120 READ X

130 POKE MYPMBASE+1100+ I,X

140 NEXT I

150 DATA 14,29,24,24,24,24,24,24

160 DATA 24,24,24,24,24,24,184,112

170 ?" ":REM

180 POSITION 15,6

190 ?"x dx"

OS top of RAM pointer

ANTIC player-missile RAM pointer

shadow of DMACTL

CTIA's graphics control register

horizontal position register of P0

shadow of player 0 color register

must back up for 1-line resolution

clear screen

Players are an excellent way to increase the amount of color in a display. The four additional color registers provided allow four more colors on each line of the display. Of course, the 8-bit resolution does limit the range of their application.

There is a way around this limitation that can sometimes be used. Take a player at quadruple width and put it onto the screen. Then set the priorities so the player has lower priority than a playfield color. Next, reverse that playfield color with background, so the apparent background color of the screen is really a playfield color. The player disappears behind this new false background. Cut a hole in the false background by drawing true background on it. The player will show up in front of the true background color, but only in the area where true background has been drawn. In this way, the player can have more than 8 bits of horizontal resolution. A sample program for doing this is given in listing 3. This program produces the display shown in figure 3.

Another application of playermissile graphics is for special characters. There are many special types of characters that cross vertical boundaries in normal character sets. One way to deal with these is to create special character sets that address this problem. Another way is to use a player. Subscripts, integral signs, and other special symbols can be done this way. A sample program for doing this is given in listing 4. This program produces the display shown in figure 4.

A particularly useful application of players is for cursors. With their ability to smoothly move anywhere over the screen without disturbing the contents, they are ideally suited for such applications. The cursor can change color as it moves over the screen to indicate what it has under it.

Player-missile graphics provide many capabilities. Their uses for action games as animated objects are obvious. They have many serious uses as well. They can add color and resolution to any display. They can present special characters. They can be used as cursors. Use them.H

328 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

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Appendix A: Selected Hardware Registers in the Atari 400/800

Symbolic Name

COLBK COLPF0 COLPF1 COLPF2

Hardware Register

Function

Color Luminance of Background Color Luminance of Playfield 0 Color Luminance of Playfield 1 Color Luminance of Playfield 2

Shadow Register

(if any)

Location

Location

Hexa

Symbolic

Hexa

decimal

Decimal

Name

decimal

Decimal

D01A

53274

COLOR4

2C8

712

D016

53270

COLOR0

2C4

708

D017

53271

COLOR1

2C5

709

D018

53272

COLOR2

2C6

710

COLPF3

Color Luminance of Playfield 3

D019

53273

COLOR3

2C7

711

COLPM0

Color Luminance of Player-Missile 0

D012

53266

PCOLR0

2C0

704

COLPM1

Color Luminance of Player-Missile 1

D013

53267

PCOLR1

2C1

705

COLPM2

Color Luminance of Player-Missile 2

D014

53268

PCOLR2

2C2

706

COLPM3

Color Luminance of Player-Missile 3

D015

53269

PCOLR3

2C3

707

DMACTL

Direct Memory Access (DMA) Control

D400

54272

SDMCTL

22 F

559

GRACTL

Graphic Control

D01D

53277

GRAFM

Graphics for all Missiles

D011

53265

GRAFP0

Graphics for Player 0

D00D

53261

GRAFP1

Graphics for Player 1

D00E

53262

GRAFP2

Graphics for Player 2

D00F

53263

GRAFP3

Graphics for Player 3

D010

53264

HITCLR

Collision Clear

D01E

53278

HPOSM0

Horizontal Position of Missile 0

D004

53252

HPOSM1

Horizontal Position of Missile 1

D005

53253

HPOSM2

Horizontal Position of Missile 2

D006

53254

HPOSM3

Horizontal Position of Missile 3

D007

53255

HPOSP0

Horizontal Position of Player 0

D000

53248

HPOSP1

Horizontal Position of Player 1

D001

53249

HPOSP2

Horizontal Position of Player 2

D002

53250

HPOSP3

Horizontal Position of Player 3

D003

53251

M0PF

Missile 0 to Playfield Collisions

D000

53248

M0PL

Missile 0 to Player Collisions

D008

53256

M1PF

Missile 1 to Playfield Collisions

D001

53249

M1PL

Missile 1 to Player Collisions

D009

53257

M2PF

Missile 2 to Playfield Collisions

D002

53250

M2PL

Missile 2 to Player Collisions

D00A

53258

M3PF

Missile 3 to Playfield Collisions

D003

53251

M3PL

Missile 3 to Player Collisions

D00B

53259

P0PF

Player 0 to Playfield Collisions

D004

53252

P0PL

Player 0 to Player Collisions

D00C

53260

P1PF

Player 1 to Playfield Collisions

D005

53253

P1PL

Player 1 to Player Collisions

D00D

53261

P2PF

Player 2 to Playfield Collisions

D006

53254

P2PL

Player 2 to Player Collisions

DO0E

53262

P3PF

Player 3 to Playfield Collisions

D007

53255

P3PL

Player 3 to Player Collisions

D00F

53263

PMBASE

Player Missile Base Address

D407

54279

PRIOR

Priority Select

D01B

53275

GPRIOR

26F

623

SIZEM

Sizes for all Missiles

D00C

53260

SIZEP0

Size of Player 0

SIZEP1

Size of Player 1

SIZEP2

Size of Player 2

SIZEP3

Size of Player 3

D008

53256

D009

53257

D00A

53258

D0OB

53259

Make this a COMPUTER CHRISTMAS for your child.

The original WORDDANCE stories for CHILDREN feature animated words and graphics. Introduce your child to the computer and encourage reading too. Titles: (1) "The Cat" (2) "The Hat With All That" (3) "The Tooth Fairy's Train" (4) "Chrys Hates Computers" (5) "Which is Left, Which is Right?" (6) "The Spelling Bee Mystery" And introducing The Jonathan and Pandora Science Fantasy Series: (7) "The 4-D Glasses" (8) "Pandora's Telering" (9) "The History Test" (10) "Jonathan and the Cave Boy." Titles (1)-(10) (Ages 6-12) available for TRS 80 1 6K and Apple II 1 6K. Cassette $24.95 (Includes all ten stories) Disk $29.95 (Includes all ten stories)

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330 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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Circle 426 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

331

Appendix B: Functional Specification of Selected Atari 400/800 Hardware Registers

The following charts give the functions of the registers listed in Appendix A on a bit-by-bit basis. Although this information is not necessary to the understanding of the article, it is given for the benefit of advanced programmers who want to exercise complete control over the player-missile graphics. This information is excerpted from the Atari Personal Computer System Operating System User's Manual and Hardware Manual (part C016555), which contains complete technical information on this and other aspects of the Atari 400 and 800 computers. This user's manual can be purchased from Atari Customer Service, 1346 Bordeaux Dr, Sunnyvale CA 94086; the price is $27 plus $3 shipping and handling (California residents must add 6'/2% tax).

COLBK (Background Color): This address writes data to the Background Color-Luminance Register.

Zero Luminance (black)

Color

Luminance

r

I

I I

Not

D7

| D6

D5 |

D4

D3

| D2 | D1

Used

X

X

X

X

0

0 0

(see below)

0

0 1

etc

1

1 1

0

0

0

0

Grey

0

0

0

1

Gold

0

0

1

0

Orange

0

0

1

1

Red-Orange

0

1

0

0

Pink

0

1

0

1

Purple

0

1

1

0

Purple-Blue

0

1

1

1

Blue

0

0

0

Blue

0

0

1

Light-Blue

0

1

0

Turquoise

0

1

1

Green-Blue

1

0

0

Green

1

0

1

Yellow-Green

1

1

0

Orange-Green

1

1

1

Light-Orange

Max. Luminance (white)

Shadow Register: COLOR4

FIND OUT II WHAT FITS

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FOR PHONE ORDERS: (408) 738-4387 DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.

Circle 389 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981 333

COLPFO—C0LPF3 (Playfield Color): These addresses write data to the Playfield Color-Luminance Registers.

D7 ] D6 ] D5

D4

D3 1 D2 |~dT

DO

(see COLBK tor bit assignment) Shadow Registers: COLORO—3

COLPMO—COLPM3 (Player-Missile Color): These addresses write to the Player-Missile Color-Luminance Registers. Missiles have the same color luminance as their player unless missiles are used as a fifth player (see bit 4 of PRIOR). A fifth player missile gets its color from register COLPF3.

D7 | D6 1 D5 | D4 j D3 j D2 j D1

/cao P.OI Rk' inr hit aooinnmontc^

DO

(see COLBK for bit assignments) Shadow Registers: PCOLRO—3

DMACTL (Direct Memory Access Control): This address writes data into the DMA Control Register.

Not | | |

Used I D5 I D4 I D3 I D2 I D1 I DO

D5 = 1 Enable ANTIC operation (must be set to 1) D4 = 1 1 line Player/Missile resolution D4 = 0 2 line Player/Missile resolution D3 = 1 Enable Player DMA D2 = 1 Enable Missile DMA D1.D0 = 0 0 No Playfield DMA

= 0 1 Narrow Playfield DMA

(128 Color Clocks) = 1 0 Standard Playfield DMA

(160 Color Clocks) = 1 1 Wide Playfield DMA (192 Color Clocks)

See GRACTL. Shadow Register: SDMCTL, default value hexadecimal 22

GRACTL (Graphics Control): This address writes data to the Graphic Control Register.

Not Used

I D1 | DO

D1 = 1 Enable Player DMA to Player Graphics

Registers. DO = 1 Enable Missile DMA to Missile Graphics

Registers.

DMA is enabled by setting bits in both DMACTL and GRACTL. Setting DMACTL only will result in cycles being stolen, but no display will be generated.

GRAFM (Missile Graphics Registers): This address writes data directly into the Missile Graphics Register, independent of DMA. This is a bit-map of the current scan line of all tour missiles. It is automatically maintained by the normal use of player-missile graphics.

D7 | D6 I D5 I D4 I D3 | L R L R . L

D7

M3

M2

M1

MO

Missile Number

GRAFPO—GRAFP3 (Player Graphics Registers): These addresses write data directly into the Player Graphics Registers, independent of DMA. This is a bit-map of the current scan line for a given player. It is automatically maintained by the normal use of player-missile graphics.

| D7 | D6 [ D5 | D4 | D3 | D2 I D1 j DO Left Oini Player on TV Screen

Right

334 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

THE FORTH SOURCE™

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Circle 290 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

335

HITCLR (Collision "HIT" Clear): Writing to this address clears all collision bits in all the collision registers.

Not

Used

HPOSMO—HPOSM3 (Missile Horizontal Position): These addresses write data into the Missile Horizontal Position Registers (see HPOSPO description below).

D7 1 D6 I D5 I D4 I D3 | D2 T D1 I DO 1

HPOSPO—HPOSP3 (Player Horizontal Position): These addresses write data into the Player Horizontal Position Register. The horizontal position value determines the color clock location of the left edge of the object. Hexadecimal 30 is the left edge of a standard-width screen. Hexadecimal DO is the right edge of a standard-width screen.

D7 | D6 | D5 | D4 | D3 | D2 | D1 1 DO

MOPF, M1PF, M2PF, M3PF (Missile-to-Playfield Collisions): These addresses read missile-to-playfield collisions. A 1 bit means that a collision has been detected since the last HITCLR.

Not Used I I I I

(forced to zero) I D3 I D2 I D1 I DO

3 2 10 Playfield Type

MOPL, M1PL, M2PL, M3PL (Missile-to-Player Collisions): These addresses read missile-to-player collisions.

Not Used I I I I

(forced to zero) | D3 | D2 | D1 | DO

2 1 0 Player Number

POPF, P1PF, P2PF, P3PF (Player-to-Playfield Collisions): These addresses read player-to-playfield collisions.

Not Used (forced to zero) | D3 | D2 | D1 | DO

1 0 Playfield Type

POPL, P1PL, P2PL, P3PL (Player-to-Player Collisions): These addresses read player-to-player collisions.

Not Used I I I I

(forced to zero) I D3 I D2 I D1 I DO

3 2 10 Player Number (Player n against player n is always a zero.)

PMBASE (Player-Missile Address Base Register): This address writes data into the Player-Missile Address Base Register. The data specify the most-significant bits of the address of the beginning of the player-missile area.

One-Line Resolution

D7 D6 D5 D4 D3 not used PMBASE

Two-Line Resolution

D7 I D6 I D5 I D4 I D3 I D2 I not used PMBASE

336 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981

PRIOR (Priority Register): This address writes data into the Priority Control Register.

D7 ] D6 I D5 ! D4

D3

D2 D'1

DO

D7

-D6 D5

D4

D3—DO

Set to zero.

Multiple Color Player Enable This bit set to 1 causes the logical "or" function of the bits of the colors of Player 0 with Player 1,

and also of Player 2 with Player 3. This permits overlapping the position of two players with a choice of three colors in the

overlapped region.

Fifth Player Enable This bit causes all missiles to assume the color of Playfield Type 3. (COLPF3). This allows missiles to be

positioned together with a common color for use as a fifth player.

Priority Select Only one of these 4 bits can be a 1. These bits select one of four types of priority. Objects with higher priority will

appear to move in front of objects with lower priority.

Higher Priority

D3 = 1

D2 = 1

D1 = 1

DO = 1

I—PFO I—PF1

PFO PO— PO—

PF1 P1 1 P1

P0~1

PF2 i—PFO P2

P1

PF3 + P5

PF1 P3 '

P2

PO

PF2

—PFO

P3^

P1

PF3 + P5

PF1

i—PF2 P2

P2

PF2

|PF3 + P5 P3

P3

PF3 + P5

BAK BAK BAK BAK

Pn = player n PFn = playfield n BAK = background + = logical or (PF3 and P5 an always same color)

Note: The use of priority bits in a "nonexclusive" mode (more than one bit set to 1) will result in objects whose priorities are in conflict turning black in the overlap region.

Example: PRIOR code = 1010: This will black out PO or P1 if they are over PFO or PF1. It will also black out P2 or P3 if they are over PF2 or PF3. In the one-color 40-character (playfield) modes, the luminance of a pixel in a character is determined by COLPF1, regardless of the priority. If a higher-priority player or missile overlaps the character, the color is determined by the player's color.

Shadow Register: GPRIOR

SIZEM (Missile Size): This address writes data into the Missile Size Control Register.

Horizontal Size Register (Missile)

M3

M2

M1

MO 0 0

0 1

Normal Size

(total of 2 color clocks wide) Twice Normal Size

(total of 4 color clocks wide) Normal Size Four Times Normal Size

(total of 8 color clocks wide)

SIZEPO—SIZEP3 (Player Size): These addresses write data into the Player Size Control Registers.

Not Used

D1

DO

Horizontal Size Register (Player) Normal Size

(total of 8 color clocks wide) Twice Normal Size

(total of 16 color clocks wide) Normal Size Four Times Normal Size

(total of 32 color clocks wide)

With normal-size objects, each bit in the graphics register corresponds to one color clock. This makes an 8-bit wide player 8 color clocks wide. For larger objects, each bit is extended over more than one color clock.

338 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

A Language is born

x

Xs',

Ada Augusta Byron

The Countess of Lovelace

How to use Ada effectively for solving problems

Studies in Ada Style

By P. Hibbard, M. Sherman, M. Shaw, J. Rosenberg, A. Hisgen

1981. Approx. 9 figures. Approx. 112 pages DM 24,50; approx. US $ 11.20 ISBN 3-540-90628-2

H. Ledgard

Ada

An Introduction

Ada Reference Manual (July 1980)

1981. XXXII, 358 pages

DM 29,80; approx. US $ 13.60

ISBN 3-540-90568-5

Please write for further information

ADA

The new comprehensive, general purpose language, named after Ada Augusta Byron - the daughter of poet Lord Byron - who is credited with being the first computer programmer

Towards a Formal Description of Ada

Editors: D. Bjerner, O.N. Oest

1980. XIV, 630 pages

(Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Volume 98) DM 46,-; approx. US$21.00 ISBN 3-540-10283-3

The Programming Language Ada

Reference Manual

Proposed Standard Document United States Department of Defense

1981. X, 243 pages

(Lectue Notes in Computer Science, Volume 106) DM 16,50; approx. US $ 7.60 ISBN 3-540-10693-6

Prices arc subject lo change wilhoul notice

Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg New York

Circle 468 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981 339

GOODBYE, DISK WAIT... "-DRIVE HAS ARRIVED

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340 BYTE November 19S1

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BYTE November 1981 341

Software Review

ENHBAS

Mahlon G Kelly

268 Turkey Ridge Rd

Charlottesville VA 22901

Whatever its merits or demerits, BASIC is the language most used by microcomputer programmers. Microsoft's excellent implementation of BASIC is one of the reasons the TRS-80 Model I is the most popular microcomputer today. Most of us note the absence of some particular feature (I would like to have matrix functions), but everyone's needs are different. I was, therefore, skeptical about the usefulness of an enhancement package for TRS-80 BASIC.

I am no longer a skeptic. ENHBAS (pronounced en-base), written by Philip A Oliver and sold by the Cornsoft Group, provides useful new functions, statements, and commands, and greatly improves the operating environment by providing keyboard, video, and audio enhancements. This software is designed for the TRS-80: it is not rewarmed and reworked from some other system. And ENHBAS makes programming much more enjoyable. In terms of packaging, documentation, ease of use, lack of bugs, and overall quality of design, ENHBAS is the best software package I have seen for the TRS-80, and that includes Microsoft's BASIC compiler, NEWDOS/80, VTOS, and Scripsit. With the release of this product, a small company and a single author have entered the big league in quality software.

ENHBAS resides in about 4 K bytes of RAM. It provides new keyboard, printer, and video drivers and a variety of new commands, statements, and functions. The drivers give a user-definable cursor,

clicks when keys are pressed, true control characters, distinctive tones for error and break, single-key entry for such things as PRINT and INPUT, a lowercase driver, and a variety of other features. The printer driver even senses whether or not a printer is on line, waits six seconds for the printer to be turned on, and if it isn't, gives an error message and returns without "hanging" the system. If a BASIC program is NEWed or even if the system is booted, simply typing RENEW after bringing BASIC back up will usually restore the program. That means no more program loss after accidental reboots. The new statements are described below in detail, and they include new graphics, branching, screen control, sorting, printer formatting, and more.

Two smaller versions, ENHSORT and ENHGRAPH, are also available at $24.95 each. They support ENHBAS sorting routines and graphics routines, respectively. Pro

grams written for these versions are upward compatible with ENHBAS.

ENHBAS is available for Models I, II, and III. The Model III package is nearly identical to that for the Model I, and there are disk and tape versions for both. The tape version provides all of the functions of disk BASIC except file manipulation functions and multiple USR routines. There are also many additional enhancements for the Model II, but since I used the diskbased Model I system, I'll only mention a few of those features.

Initialization and Loading

The disk version of ENHBAS comes on a special disk that is copyprotected and has its own tiny operating system. You put the disk in drive 0 and boot the system. After a prompt, you place a TRSDOS or NEWDOS 2.1 disk in the drive, and a 32 K or 48 K version of ENHBAS/ CMD is dumped to that system disk.

Afa f^lanrp

Name

Format

ENHBAS

Tape, 5- or 8-inch disk depending on

computer

Type

Enhanced operating environment and

Computer

BASIC language

TRS-80 Model I (tape or disk), Model 11,

or Model III

Manufacturer

The Cornsoft Group

Documentation

6008 N Keystone Ave

Three-ring binder with 55 pages of text

Indianapolis IN 46220

(317) 257-3227

Audience

Any TRS-80 user

Price

$59.95 (Model I or III), $99.95 (Model II)

342 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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DON'T ASK WHY WE CHARGE SO LITTLE, ASK WHY THEY CHARGE SO MUCH.

c

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Multibus is a trademark ot the Intel Corp. LSI 11 is a trademark of Digital Equipment Corp. EXORciser is a trademark ot Motorola. Circle 68 on inquiry card. byte November i°si 343

The initialization software automatically senses the size of the system. For use with NEWDOS/80, the program must be copied from the NEVVDOS 2.1 or TRSDOS disk. The author has assured me that the software is compatible with all currently available operating systems that use the TRSDOS disk format. In all, the original initialization takes about three minutes, and the original disk is needed again only if the ENHBAS/ CMD program is somehow lost.

Use of the new program is just as

simple. Typing ENHBAS < ENTER> loads and initializes the package, protects a section of upper RAM (random-access read/write memory), and brings up BASIC. The memory size, file number, and program loading and running conventions are the same as before for the operating system being used, but they follow the ENHBAS command instead of BASIC. A return to command level leaves the new drivers intact. All the appropriate features are available in DOS (disk operating system) mode or

Listing 1: A CHAIN file for use with NEWDOS/80 and the Percom Doubter to load and initialize ENHBAS. ADR disables and enables automatic recognition of double density. The POKE at line 40 enables control-H to sound the bell; the POKE at line 50 changes the cursor character. PAGE and CLM set page length and number of characters per line. Removal of ADR allows it to be used with NEWDOS/80 version 2.0.

OPEN"0", 1,

"ENHBAS/JO."

■OPEN THE CHAIN FILE

PRINT #1,

"ADR OFF"

AUTO DENSITY RECOGNITION OFF

PRINT (41,

"ENHBAS"

■ INITIALIZE

PRINT HI,

" POKE 16409,1"

■ENABLE THE BELL

PRINT HI,

" POKE 16419,127

CHANGE THE CURSOR

PRINT #1.

" PAGE*55"

PAGE LENGTH

PRINT HI,

" CLM=132"

'COLUMN WIDTH

PRINT HI,

" CMD";CHR$<34>,

'S"iCHR*l34) RETURN TO DOS

PRINT HI,

"ADR ON"

"AUTO DENSITY RECOGNITION ON

CLOSE

during use of any /CMD program that doesn't have its own drivers (sadly, Scripsit does). The only incompatible programs I have found are the DSET and DBLFMT commands in Software Etc's implementation of double density for NEWDOS/80, but these present trivial problems that are easily circumvented. BASIC can be reentered just as before.

Typing ENHBAS again will lock up the system, which was one of the few faults that I found; it would be nice to be able to disable ENHBAS without rebooting. Since you will almost always want ENHBAS in the system, it's most easily initialized by a CHAIN command if your operating system has such a feature. Listing 1 shows a NEWDOS/80 double-density chain file that does the initialization and reenters DOS. A file for use with ComProc or other DOSes would be similar. The tape system is initialized by typing SYSTEM; typing ENHBAS after the prompt then loads and initializes the tape.

ENHBAS

Th

e

TRS-BO™ Programmer's

Language

reviewed this month by

Mahlon Kelly is available through th

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344 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 455 on inquiry card.

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BYTE November 1981

345

Listing 2: ENHBAS's sort functions in action. The program in listing 2a, which produces the output in listing 2b, displays four arrays five times each. First, they appear unsorted, then sorted according to the different keys and tags noted in the program's remarks.

(2a)

10 CLEAR 200 DEFINT A-Z

20 DIM A ( 20), 6* l 20 ), G l 20 ). D* ( 20)

30 LPRI NT " A( X) '*. "E*( X ) ". "C (X)", "D* < X i" • PR I NT HEADERS;

40 LPRINT -STRING* (55, "t*"i

30 FOR 1 = 1 TO 5 SET UP ARRAYS AS RANDOM NUMBERS AND LETTERS

60 A<I)=RNB<5>: B*< I)=CHR*( 70+RNDl 5) »: CCI >»RND<999): D*< I) -CHRi < SO+PND' 10 I i

70 NEXT I

SO CSUB "PNT" PRINT THE ORIGINAL RANDOM ARRAYS

SCLEAR • CLEAR FOR THE SORT

KEY A ■ SORT ON INTEGER ARRAY A, ASCENDING

ATOF-5 ■ USE ONLY THE FIRST FIVE ELEMENTS

SORT ■ DO THE SORT!

CSUB "PNT" PRINT THE RESULTS.

SCLEAR CLEAR FOR THE NEXT SORT

AT0P--5 ■ FIRST FIVE ELEMENTS ONLY

LEY C SORT ON INTEGER ARRAY "C"

TAG A ■ FORCE THE ELEMENTS OF ARRAY "A" TO FOLLOW "C"

SORT " DO THE SORT.

CSUE "PNT" PRINT THE RESULTS

SCLEAR ■ SET UP FOR THE NEXT SORT

AT0P=5 ■ FIRST 5 ELEMENTS ONLY

KEY C. B* ' PRIORITY SORT ON B$, NEXT ON ARRAY C(X)

TAG A,D* ' FORCE ARRAYS A AND D* TO FOLLOW C AND B*

SORT ■ SORT THEM

CSUB "PNT" PRINT THE SORT RESULTS

SORT <1) " DO A DESCENDING SORT

CSUB "PNT" ■■ PRINT THE RESULT

LPRINT CHR*'. 12)

END

■JNAME "PNT"- PRINTING SUBROUTINE

FOR 1=1 TO 3

LPRINT All 1, B*(I I, C(I). D*( I )

NEXT I

LPRINT STRING* (55, "#'■;

RETURN

vo 100 1 10 120 ISO 140 1 30 160 170 180 190 200 210

260 270

500

510

(2b)

A(X) B*(X) C(XJ D*ii ;

1 0 577 S

5 J 649 R

3 I S74 Y

5 K 972 V

1 J 429 W

1 G 577 S

1 J 64'=' R

3 I S74 i

5 K 972 V

5 J 429 W

5 G 42,r< S

1 J 37 7 R

1 I 649 i

3 K S:74 V

5 J 972 W

5 G 429 S

1 I 649 r

1 J 577 R

5 J ,:,72 W

3 K S74 U

3 K. 874 V

W

t>49

429

##############fc###########fr##########iH*###**#«f###4*###l«

The Operating Environment

The first thing you notice after initialization is that the cursor is now a block (this can be changed to any character by a single POKE, which is handy for letting the cursor tell you where you are in a complex program). If an amplifier is connected to the tape output, pressing a key will produce a "click" (really a very short beep). This gives a professional feel to the keyboard and it's a nice feature

for those of us who are touch typists; it's something I have longed for in Scripsit. Pressing BREAK produces a different tone, and an error produces a two-tone signal. If PRINT CHRS$(8) (ASCII bell) is in a program, Westminster chimes sound!

The CLEAR key is redefined as a true control (sometimes abbreviated as ctrl) key. You clear the screen by using control-®. Most of the control characters do nothing in the normal

TRS-80, but control-H produces a backspace, control-G sounds Westminster chimes, control-C is a break (with an echo of a down-arrow and C to the screen, which BREAK also does), control-A is a break without echo, control-I is a tab, and control-J is a linefeed with carriage return. Using the control key with numerals 1 through 6 produces special characters if lowercase is installed, control-dash gives an underline, and controlarrows puts arrows on the screen.

Four one-letter direct commands are available (similar to NEWDOS). E, R, L, and D produce EDIT, RUN, LIST, and DELETE, respectively. Similarly, single-key abbreviations are available for 35 different BASIC commands, statements, and functions by simultaneously pressing the shift key, the clear key, and the abbreviation key. Shift-clear and A produces AUTO, shift-clear and P produces PRINT, shift-clear and N produces NEXT, shift-clear and D produces DIM, and so on. I find this of little value except with the most commonly used words; otherwise it's quicker to type the word than to look it up, even if the keys are labeled. But some people may find more of these single-key abbreviations useful.

Another nice feature is formatting of program listings. The printer driver indents text by six spaces as shown in listing 2; this makes listings easier to read, and the feature works for video output as well. I've already mentioned the user-definable cursor and the ability to sense whether or not the printer is available. These enhancements of the operating environment seem to me practically worth the cost of the entire package. But they are only a minor part of ENHBAS. The main features are the enhancements to the BASIC language itself.

Language Enhancements

Programming enhancements can be divided into commands, statements, and functions. In all, 33 have been added to the language (as compared to about 85 originally available in the Microsoft Level II BASIC and about 40 added by TRSDOS), although sev

346 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981

347

eral are interrelated. We'll look at the added commands and functions one by one. Most of the statements can be divided among those that control sorting, branching, graphics, screen displays, and printer formatting.

There are two new commands: RENEW and FIND. RENEW, which has already been described, is one of the most useful of ENHBAS's features, since it almost always allows recovery of a BASIC program unless there has been an attempt to overlay the BASIC memory area or a loss of power. It's even possible to leave BASIC, execute DOS commands, then reenter BASIC and bring the old program back. FIND locates a part of a program that has been labeled using the JNAME statement (described with the new branching statements below). FIND makes it possible to label a line with a name and then branch to the name rather than the line number. Since FIND locates the branching label, subroutines and branching points may each be named and easily located. All who

have suffered with improperly commented subroutines will appreciate this feature.

Sorting

The sorting routines are based on a modified Shell-Metzner technique and handle ascending and descending numeric and string sorts. These sorting routines were the inspiration for ENHBAS, since the whole thing grew out of the development of a machinelanguage sorting project. The sort routines are easy to set up (at least if you're used to machine-language sorts such as Racet's GSF). Only five statements are required (SCLEAR, KEY, TAG, SORT, and ATOP). It is possible to key and tag several arrays. A sort should usually be preceded by the statement SCLEAR (really a function), and then the variables to be sorted are set up using KEY (the variables may be alphabetic or numeric and are stored in an array). Thus:

120 KEY AGE, NAMES

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would set up a sort in line 120 so that a string array NAME$(x) would be sorted with top priority, and if there were duplicate entries they would be sorted by order using the numeric array AGE(x). Using KEY, you can set sorting priorities for up to fourteen different arrays. You usually want a sort to carry along another variable with the sorted elements, and TAG allows that. Thus a sort by names could carry addresses along with the names. For example:

130 TAG ADDR$, ZIP

following line 120 would force the addresses in array ADDR(x) and the zip codes in array ZIP(x) to tag along after the names and ages as they were sorted by the KEY specification in line 120. Up to fourteen arrays can tag along in the sort. The statement SORT (f) actually forces the sort. The "f" is a flag that specifies if the sort should arrange the elements from small to large or large to small. SORT (0) (or simply SORT) produces a sort in ascending order, from smallest to largest. SORT (1) does a descending sort, with the largest elements coming first. A sort will actually process all the elements dimensioned in an array, whether they have been assigned values or not (the arrays must be of equal length). When you don't need all the elements in an array, you can specify the upper limit. If we added

140 ATOP = (12)

to the previous statements, this statement would limit the sort to the first twelve array elements. The short program in listing 2 illustrates the sort procedure and its output. The sorts are very fast: 500 integers can be sorted in less than four seconds.

Branching

ENHBAS provides three new types of branching options. These are branching to labels and variables, selective restoring of DATA statements (that is, the data pointer can be restored to something other than the initial data element), and conditional looping using the WHILE/

348 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 417 on inquiry card.

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WEND construct. The labeled branching enhancement uses the statements JNAME, GTO, and CSUB. JNAME places a label in a line. In listing 2, for example, the JNAME "pnt" labels the subroutine "pnt". JNAME must be the first statement in a line, and it cannot be followed by REM without a colon first; an apostrophe ( ' ) may be used, but there must never be a space after the label (despite an example to the contrary in the documentation). Labeled subroutines make programs much more readable and, of course, avoid the possibility of incorrect

branching caused by changing the number of a subroutine's first line. Branching to labels also enables you to move subroutines around without worrying about losing track of them in the calling statements.

The use of labeled subroutines requires two new calling statements. GTO and CSUB (for call subroutine) are used exactly like GOTO and GOSUB except that they call a routine labeled in a JNAME statement. GTO and CSUB can also call a line number defined by variable. For example, GTO X*100 with a value for X of 5 would force a branch to line 500.

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This allows conditional branching according to whether a condition is "true" or "false." The FIND command, mentioned above, lets you locate a line previously labeled using JNAME by simply typing FIND (name); FIND "PNT" would locate that subroutine in listing 2, although FIND would normally be used with much more complex programs.

The WHILE and WEND statements go a long way toward making BASIC a structured language. They are used in the same way WHILE and WEND are used in more extended Microsoft BASICs, such as the BASIC compiler for the TRS-80. WHILE a condition is "true," WEND placed at the end of a loop will send execution back to the WHILE statement. Thus the short program:

10 X = 0

20 WHILE X< =8;

30 PRINT X

40 X = X + 1

50 WEND

will have the same effect as:

10FORX = 1 TO 8 20 PRINT X 30 NEXT X

Although the former program is longer, in a less trivial example it forces much better programming practice and a more logical program flow. Conditional loops of this sort are one of the reasons many consider Pascal a superior programming language. Note that a semicolon is needed at the end of the WHILE statement; this contrasts with the WHILE construct used by Microsoft.

RDGOTO and RDGTO both do the same thing, except that the latter statement uses the label and variable conventions of CSUB and GTO. In "normal" BASIC, the command RESTORE after reading from DATA statements sends the read pointer back to the first data element. RDGOTO sends it back to a particular line number, so that material may be read from the middle of a data list. RDGTO lets the line be specified by a variable (see the example for GTO given above). I don't

350 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 77 on inquiry card.

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often use DATA statements, so I can't get excited about this, but I can see that it would be useful in some applications.

Graphics

The new graphics statements are both fun and useful. Although there are only three, PLOT, DRAW, and INVERT, they do a lot. The simplest,

INVERT, is really a command. It simply changes each graphics point from on to off, producing a black-onwhite effect. Graphics blocks occupied by characters are unaffected. PLOT is useful for data output. Recall that any graphics point on the screen can be referenced by x and y coordinates. For example, SET(22,33) turns on a point at the x coordinate 22

and the y coordinate 33. PLOT has the construct:

Listing 3: A vector-graphics program using ENHBAS's DRAW and PLOT statements. The additional ENHBAS command INVERT is used to achieve a black-on-white effect. (The output of this program is shown in photo 1.)

10

DEFINT A-Z

20

DIM A! 25)

30

POKE 16426,1

40

POKE 16427,2

50

FOR J=l TO 3

60

FOR 1=0 TO 7

70

fi=256*J+I+l

80

IF 1=7 THEN A=A+256

90

A( (..1-1 >*S+I >=A

100

NEXT I

110

NEXT .J

120

A(22)=0

130

' CLS

140

FOR X=l TO S

130

FOR Y=0 TO 2

160

POKE 16426, X

170

DRAW SET S 23+40»Y,

1 SO

NEXT Y

1 90

NEXT X

200

FLOT SB, 3, 2 TO 124, 45

210

INVERT

220

PRINT C-HR$(7li

260

GOTO 230

■SET THE PLOT SCALE 'SET THE PLOT ROTATION -FILL AN INDEX ARRAY TO SPECIFY THE PLOT

"ROTATE THRU 8 TURNS ■AND DO 3 DIFFERENT PLOTS -THIS DOES THE ROTATE NG A "THIS DRAWS THE FIG.

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PLOT (flag),xl,yl TO x2,y2

Thus,

PLOT S,22,33 to 55,44

(which uses the S flag to set points to white) would draw a line between points 22,33 and 55,44. Using the flag R resets the points to black (ie: it "turns off the lights" along a line). PLOT can also be used to draw a rectangle on the screen if the flag is set as SB (set box). Thus,

PLOT SB, 10,10 TO 30,30

would draw a box with its upper left corner at 10,10 and its lower right corner at 30,30. The flag RB is similar, except it turns off the graphics points. Here's a simple exercise. Can you figure out what

CLS: INVERT:PLOT RB,10,10 TO 30,30

would do? (Hint: It would produce a "black on white" figure.)

CLS: PLOT SB,10,10 TO 30,30: INVERT

would do the same thing.

DRAW is more complex, but basically it allows vector graphics on the TRS-80 screen. Vector graphics can be likened to drawing a line with a pencil that moves in short increments. A previously filled array specifies the direction and the number of increments the pencil should move each time it moves. [This is similar to shape tables used to draw graphic shapes on the Apple II....GVV] The structure of the statement is:

DRAW (flag), @ x,y USING (vector array)

The flags are S or R, with the same meaning as for PLOT, and x and y are the starting point of the line to be drawn. Thus,

DRAW S, @ 30,30 USING A

352

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 441 on inquiry card.

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would produce a complicated line starting at the point 30,30 and using the directions and lengths specified in the array "A". The complications occur in setting up the array. Listing 3 is a short vector-graphics program; photo 1 shows its results. The length of the increments (which specifies the

scale of the drawing) and the rotation of the drawing can also be controlled by poking values into two locations in memory (see listing 3). One limitation of the vector graphics used here is that the direction of movement of the "pencil" can be specified only in 45-degree increments.

Photo 1: The output from the simple vector-graphics program given in listing 3. ENHBAS's DRAW, PLOT, and INVERT statements make it easy to program these graphics.

Can your ALPHA MICRO understand:

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Screen Control

The first of the screen-control statements, LEFT, is really a command and is most useful in graphics. Its action is simple: it moves everything on the screen one character to the left. This is useful for moving graphs. For example, a sine wave might be drawn onto the screen using SET, and if LEFT were used each time a SET was done the sine wave would travel across the screen. Moving bar graphs and fancy moving graphics are also possible, especially if you combine LEFT with DRAW.

SCROLL produces professionallooking output: it splits the screen into two sections, protecting the upper section from scrolling while allowing the lower to scroll in the usual way. SCROLL is enabled by the statement SCROLL = SET, which also clears the screen. SCROLL = 4, for example, then prevents the upper four lines from scrolling; they will stay in place during a listing or output from a program. SCROLL = RESET disables the scroll-protect feature. I like to use this feature when modifying programs by using it in the command mode. I can "lock" a few program lines on the upper screen and use the lower for modifications and listings. Simply typing SCROLL = RESET then brings me back to the normal mode. The screen-clearing feature can be annoying; I would prefer to be able to control clearing separately by using CLS.

Printer Formatting

The two printer-formatting statements are simple but valuable. CLM (integer) sets the maximum column width (in characters) before a wraparound. This is necessary on printers that truncate the end of a line, and useful on others. I use a 14Vz-inchwide printer format, and CLM lets me specify that the output would be narrower, thus allowing narrower paper for some applications. The default column width is 80 characters, which surprised me when I first listed a program with long lines.

The command PAGE (number) specifies the number of lines that will be printed on each page. When the

354

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 70 on inquiry card.

Lifelines*

The serious publication for the serious software user.

October 1981. Vol. 2 Issue #5

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More of Ward Christensen's popular 8080 programming tutorial.

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PL/l-80 is a trademark of Digital Research,Inc.

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Copyright ©1981, by Lifelines Publishing Corp.

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BYTE November 1981

355

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lines have been printed, the TRS-80 sends blank lines until the top of the next page is reached. Each page is assumed to have a total of 66 lines, printed and blank; if your printer has a different page length, you can change the default by POKEing the correct number in location 16424. Immediately after turning on the computer, I normally set PAGE (at 55) and CLM (at 132) by using a CHAIN file in NEWDOS/80 (see listing 1).

Other Features

ENHBAS has many other useful statements and related functions. By far the most powerful of these is EXEC (string), which executes a string as a program statement. For example:

A$="Y = X + 2*SIN(X)":EXEC A$

executes the statement Y = X + 2*SIN(X). Using EXEC, you can define statements as strings and repeatedly execute the statements in the program. This can eliminate a lot of GOSUB s to short subroutines. You can also construct statements using string manipulation and then execute them. In theory it is even possible to write a BASIC program that will write another program.

A similar routine is EVAL, although it is really a function rather than a statement. The statement

EVAL (string)

evaluates a string as if it is an algebraic expression. Thus:

A$="X + 2*SIN(X)":Y = EVAL(A$)

does the same thing as the example in the previous paragraph. As with EXEC, you can have the program manipulate the strings. As an example of an application for teaching programs, a student can enter a function as a string, and that function could then be evaluated, plotted, etc. I have by no means explored all of the uses of EVAL and EXEC, but they seem to offer a host of possibilities in instructional programs and even a variety of artificial intelligence.

Another miscellaneous statement is POP. POP allows a graceful exit from

a subroutine before its end is reached. Suppose a subroutine at line 200 calls another at line 400. A normal branch out of the second subroutine would mean that the next RETURN would bring the program to the point where the second was called in the first subroutine. If POP has been executed, however, the "return to 200" would be eliminated and execution would be returned to the main program. This is similar to the EXIT command in some other BASICs. Usually POP is used with some kind of IF statement or other conditional branch.

WPOKE and WPEEK place and retrieve 16-bit integer values to and from memory. For example, WPOKE (28560), 2992 pokes the integer value 2992 into location 28560 and 28561 (2 bytes are needed to store an integer). WPEEK (28560) then retrieves the number. PRINT WPEEK (16561) returns the memory size that had been set on entering BASIC, for example. WPEEK can be particularly useful in conjunction with VARPTR.

The simplest of the new functions (including WPEEK and EVAL, which have already been described) are PI and EN. PI simply returns the value of 7r, and EN the value of the exponential constant e (the base of natural or Napierian logarithms). Either single or double precision is returned, depending on the precision of the assignment variable. A! = PI would set A! to 3.14159, while A# = PI would give A# the value of 3.141592653589793.

BIN$ and HEX$ return a string that expresses the binary or hexadecimal value of an integer. A$ = BIN$(10432) assigns "0010100011000000" to A$; A$ = HEX$(10432) assigns "28C0". I wondered why such functions weren't included in disk BASIC. Now I wonder why a function OCT$ wasn't included in ENHBAS.

SIZE is the simplest function or statement in this whole package. It returns the length (in bytes) of the resident program, in the same way that MEM returns the remaining memory; three years ago I thought a similar function should have been a part of Level I BASIC.

WINKEY$ is another function that should have been a part of an earlier

Circle 392 on inquiry card.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 357

version of the TRS-80 BASICs. Although similar to INKEY$ in that it takes a value from the keyboard without waiting for ENTER to be pressed, WINKEY$ waits until there is an input. While INKEY$ must be put into a sometimes complex loop structure, WINKEY$ can stand alone. This results in code that is shorter and easier to read and allows some input structures that were, previously, nearly impossible. BASIC is probably the consumate interactive language, and WINKEY$ is a function that makes interaction even easier.

PLAY (string) sends a sequence of tones to the cassette port. The first byte of the string specifies the tone and the second and third the duration; this sequence is repeated, 3 bytes at a time, to specify a tune. While it is possible to write simple melodies this way, it isn't easy. The tones are not linear functions of the byte values, and the actual duration depends not only on the two duration bytes but also on the tone value. Thus, writing a tune is a trial-anderror procedure. The command is useful for producing audible prompts in a program, and by using short durations and variable tone values, you can achieve such noise effects as "raspberries," ricochets, and rocket blasts.

CALL should also have been a part of Level II or of disk BASIC. CALL does the same thing as a USR function but in a different way. USRU) calls a machine-language routine whose entry location has been specified in a DEFUSR statement: CALL does this, but directly. CALL 22856, 56 puts the value 56 into the HL register pair and begins executing a machine-language routine at location 22856. Although this function is simple to use, it must have been difficult to incorporate into ENHBAS.

ENHBAS on Other Systems

I have used only the Model I disk and tape versions of ENHBAS. The tape version provides all of the enhancements mentioned above plus the disk-BASIC enhancements (except those used for disk control and the multiple USR calls, and CALL eliminates the need for the latter).

The tape version is entered by using the SYSTEM command. Cornsoft has assured me that the only difference in the Model III version is that it did not at first support the printer-formatting options. By the time you read this, that problem should be corrected.

The Model II version of ENHBAS is superior to the Model I or III, largely because of the way the Model II handles interpreted BASIC. The Model II version includes some functions (like POKE and PEEK) that should have been included with the original system, as well as all the enhancements that are available for the Model I and III and a variety of

others. The complete command set for the Model II version of ENHBAS is summarized in table 1 (taken from Cornsoft's advertising literature).

An Overview of ENHBAS

ENHBAS is outstanding software. Good software without support, however, isn't worth much. Support includes documentation, advice from the vendor, updates and modifications, and simple things like delivery and packaging. With ENHBAS, these are as outstanding as the software itself. For $5, and the return of your original ENHBAS disk, Cornsoft will provide updates.

Command Meaning

DIR Display disk directory

FIND List line with specified label

TAG Mark array to tag along at sort time

SCLEAR Initialize SORT command

ATOP Set top limit for SORT

JNAME Identifies a label for use by GTO and CSUB

GTO Special GOTO, allows labeled and calculated GOTOs

CSUB Similar to GTO except accomplishes a GOSUB

RDGOTO RESTORES at specified line number

RDGTO RESTORES at specified label

WHILE/WEND Structured loop construct (WHILE cond;: code: WEND)

INSERT Moves entire file up by n records at specified point

OVERWRITE Deletes n records in file starting at specified point

TSET With INDEX FILE, specifies master file record as USED

TRESET With INDEX FILE, specifies master file record as FREE

CURSOR Allows changing of system cursor

EXEC Executes a string expression as a program statement ON BREAK

GOTO Branch to line number when the BREAK key is hit

BRL Line at which BREAK was hit when branched to ON BREAK ...

OUTPUT Acts as PRINT when exp = 0, LPRINT when exp = 1, can also

send data to the RS232 ports

POP Removes last GOSUB

PUSH PUSHes a line or label address on the GOSUB stack

SCROLL Sets number of lines to scroll-protect on the screen

TITLE Automatically prints information at specified printer line

WPOKE POKEs a 16-bit number at specified address

PI Function, returns the value of pi

ENV Function, returns the value of "e" (base of natural log)

BINS Function, returns 16-digit binary string of expression

LOWERS Function, converts string to all lowercase

UPPERS Function, converts string to all uppercase

SCREENS Reads a byte from the screen

DISKIDS Reads disk id from any disk drive

WINKEYS Like INKEYS except automatically loops until key hit

ALLOC Function, returns number of files allocated

FREE Finds first free entry in Index File (see TSET/TRESET)

CALL Function, CALLS machine-language subroutine

EVAL Evaluates a string expression as an algebraic expression

RS232 Function, reads a byte from RS232 Port A or B

SIZE Returns size of current program

WPEEK 16-bit PEEK

POKE Places number at specified memory address

PEEK Function, returns contents of specified memory address

CLM, PAGE Sets maximum page length and line length without FORMS

EPUT, EGET Allows records lengths in excess of 256 bytes

SEARCH Searches disk file (EGET/EPUT or GET/PUT type) for specified

key

PAGELEN Memory address of FORMS page-length variable

PROW Memory address of FORMS page-length printer row

Table 1: A summary of the command set of ENHBAS for the TRS-80 Model II.

358 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981 359

Since Cornsoft Group is a new, small firm, I was apprehensive when I ordered ENHBAS. Experience with other vendors (some of them large and well-known) had led me to expect some bugs, poor delivery time, shoddy documentation, and so on. In this case, I expected to receive a padded manilla envelope with a crimped disk and some photocopied, jargon-laden documentation. Instead, within three days of placing a phone order, I received a box with a well-designed, blue 3-ring binder containing a disk and 55 pages of documentation. The documentation is superb. The page layout and format are pleasing and each feature is presented in logical sequence and described clearly and with good examples. (I find the documentation easier to use than either the Level II or disk BASIC manuals from Radio Shack and much superior to the documentation forNEWDOS, GSF, RSM2D, or even Microsoft's FORTRAN or BASIC compiler—and all those are excellent software.) The text is clearly written and, in contrast to most software documentation, not intimidating. It took me about three hours to feel comfortable with most of the features and the same should be true for anyone who knows the rudiments of BASIC and the TRS-80. I do wish ENHBAS could handle matrix manipulation and had automatic-key repeat, but you can't expect everything.

Are there any disadvantages? Some are to be expected with any product of this complexity, but all are minor, including the few mentioned above. Since ENHBAS includes new functions and statements, there are new reserved words, and that is sometimes inconvenient. For example, a program with the variable PI will not run with ENHBAS; you have to change the variable's name. And ENHBAS occupies a considerable amount of memory (I was thrown out of Scripsit a few minutes ago because ENHBAS was still loaded and protected). ENHBAS size in memory would be most important to those with 16 K- or 32 K-byte systems. The tape version occupies the same memory as do the disk overlays and leaves about 10.5 K bytes of usable

memory in a 16 K-byte system. As mentioned above, with disk BASIC you have to relocate or not use any programs running in the top 4 K bytes of memory; they would overlap ENHBAS.

When I first used ENHBAS I expected it to run more slowly than disk BASIC. For the most part, I was pleasantly surprised. ENHBAS is slower by a factor of about 3 when executing a simple empty FOR-NEXT loop, but that seems to be about the only thing that is slower. If a function (like SIN(X)) is included in the loop, then the slower speed becomes insignificant. Programs with delay loops might need modifications, but everything else seems unaffected. I also thought that a labeled branch might be slower; if anything, it is faster than a branch to a line number. There is no need to fear that ENHBAS will be slow.

Conclusions

• ENHBAS is a software package that occupies about 4 K bytes of RAM and enhances the operating environment and the versions of BASIC for the TRS-80 Models I, II, and III. The operating environment provides

a true control key, statement abbreviations, key click, a bell, audible prompts for BREAK and errors, printer formatting, and page skip, among other features. The BASIC enhancements include sort routines, branching to labels and other new branching methods, WHILE/WEND structure, line and vector graphics, CALL to a machine-language routine, and a number of other features, for a total of 32 new statements and functions.

• The BASIC enhancements follow normal syntax and are easy to learn and use. The system is easy to load, and except for the memory overhead, is transparent to the operator.

• User support is excellent. Documentation is clear, complete, sprinkled with useful examples, and packaged in an attractive 3-ring binder. The vendor provides excellent support and is willing to answer questions.

• The software is almost completely bug free. It was used for a year before commercial release and has been thoroughly tested and proved. ENHBAS seems to be one of the best thought-out and produced pieces of software available for the TRS-80. ■

The Future with the Cornsoft Group

For the last four years a very few firms (like Microsoft) have dominated the design of operating systems, compilers, and interpreters. Others, like Randy Cook, Apparat, North Star, and Ohio Scientific have been exceptions, and a few individuals like Lance Micklus have produced some excellent software. The Cornsoft Group has the explicit, admitted intent of challenging the big companies, and ENHBAS proves that Cornsoft knows how to do it.

The excellence of ENHBAS has made me wonder about other Cornsoft products. I talked at some length with Philip Oliver, the author of ENHBAS, and learned that Cornsoft had also sold an ingenious compiler for integer BASIC. The compiler handled a subset of Level II plus some of ENHBAS and produced code that could be assembled by Radio Shack's Editor-Assembler. It was a good way to learn assembly language, and since source code was produced, you could enhance programs

by using the TRS-80 editor—it's one of those simple ideas that we all wish we had thought of. Sadly, that product was discontinued due to lack of customer interest.

Oliver is now at work on a BASIC compiler that will handle all of Radio Shack BASIC plus the ENHBAS enhancements. This second compiler will produce machine code (not source code like their present compiler), and should rival Microsoft's compiler. Since Cornsoft's machine-code compiler will be written specifically for the TRS-80, it will use the more efficient ROM routines when appropriate, but its own routines when they are faster. The run-time package (and required disk storage) should be much smaller than for the Microsoft compiler.

If Cornsoft is successful in all that it projects, we can expect a trend toward better and better software—specifically, software designed for particular systems, not adapted from one to another.

360 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981

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ATARI® 822™ Thermal Printer $ 349.00

ATARI® 825™ 80-column Dot Matrix Impact Printer... $ 625.00

ATARI® 830™ Acoustic Modem $ 159.00

ATARI® 850™ Interface Module $ 159.00

ATARI® Paddle (CX30-04) or Joystick (CX40-04) $ 17.95

Light Pen (CX-70) $ 64.95

Complete Software Library includes these popular units:

Star Raiders $ 34.00

Space Invaders $ 15.95

Assembler Editor $ 42.00

Missile-Command $ 30.00

Asteroids $ 30.00

Systems With Spice is£K.

Spice up your S-100 or Apple II™ with system enhancements from ASAP. From motherboards and mainframe cabinets to I/O boards and RAMs, we have the California Computer System product that will give you the added capability you need.

FOR S-100 USERS

32K Static RAM Board — 200 ns rams.

compatible with Alpha Micro. Cromemco and

others. 32K memory divided into 8K blocks.

Fully static 2114 RAMs. Assembled and

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Part Number 2032C Price: S610.00

16K Static RAM Board — 200 ns rams.

compatible with Alpha Micro, Cromemco and others. 16K memory divided into 4K blocks. Assembled and tested. Part Number 2116C Price: $290.00

64K Dynamic RAM Board — For soso and

Z-80 based S-100 systems. Provides processor-transparent refresh. 200 nS. 4MHz. Supports IMSAI-type front panels. Expandable. Assembled and tested. Part Number 2065C Price: $550.00

Z-80A CPU Board — 2 or 4MHz. switch

selectable. 158 instructions, including 8080's 78 instructions tor total 8080 software compatibility. 2K monitor ROM and RS-232-C port on-board. Assembled and tested. Part NumbBr 2810A Price: S239.00

Floppy Disk Controller — controls up to four 5'A" and 8" drives in any combination. Double-sided and side-select signals for double-sided drives. Compatible with IBM 3740 and System 34 standards.

Part NumbBr 2422A Price: $335.00

CP/M'" Version 2.2 Free With Purchase

S-100 Mainlrame — 12-slot motherboard. Active termination on all bus lines. Built-in power supply, fan and circuit breaker. "Double path" trace pattern. Solder plated circuit area. Assembled and tested.

Part Number 2200A Price: $475.00

2201A|220VAC|... $47500

S-100 Motherboard — 12-siot capacity

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Part Number 2501A Price: $150.00

4-Port Serial I/O Interface —

4 individually-controlled asynchronous ports.

Fully butfered inputs and outputs. Includes

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port.

Part Number 2710A Price: S265.00

2-Serial. 2-Parallel 1/0 Board — Fully buffered inputs and outputs. Includes ROM circuitry for 2716 2K EPROM (user supplied). Parallel ports have full four-line-per-port handshaking and 8-bit data transfer. Serial ports meet RS-232-C interface specs. Port A transmits and receives in asynchronous mode: Port B in either synchronous or asynchronous. Part Number 2718A Price: $275.00

4-Port Parallel 1/0 Board — 31/0 ports and one output port. Seven bit status register. Fully buffered inputs and outputs. ROM circuitry for 2716 2K EPROM (user supplied). Ports provide 8-bit parallel data transfer: TTL-compatible.

Part Number 2720A Price: $195.00

FOR APPLE II™ USERS

Synchronous Serial Interface —

Compatible with RS-232-C (configurations A thru E, 1978). Supports full or half duplex. DTC type interface. Part Number 7712A Price: $149.00

Programmable Timer — Time events in continuous, single shot, frequency comparison and pulse width comparison modes. Interface patch area for custom interface applications. Part Number 7440A Price: $ 95.00

Asynchronous Serial Interface — RS-232

C compatible (configurations A thru E. 1978). DCE type interface: supports half or full duplex operation.

Part Number 77I0A Price: $139.00

Calendar/Clock Module — Accurate, realtime counting. Software programmable for 12or 24-hour format. Each decimal digit of data is separately addressed for freedom of data format. Part Number 7424 Price: S 99.00

3% Digit BCD A-to-D Converter —

Converts DC voltages to BCD numbers for monitoring and anaylsis. 400 mSec per conversion.-3.999 to +3.999 VDC full scale. ±5% non-linearity. Part Number 7470A Price: $ 95.00

12K R0M/PROM Module — Capable of

accepting operating systems, system patches

or firmware in 2K increments of mixed ROM or

PROM. Addressable 12K in any of 4 16K

blocks. 2316E ROM and 2716 PROM

compatible.

Part Number 71I4A Price: $ 65.00

Parallel Interface — Two bidirectional 8-bit buses for interface to peripherals. Two programmable control registers. Four individually controlled interrupt input lines, two usable as peripheral control outputs.

Part Number 7720A Price: $ 99.00

Arithmetic Processor — Add, subtract, and divide: trig and inverse trig functions: square roots, logarithms and exponentiation. Fixed point 16 and 32-bit operation.

Part Number 7811A Price: S349.00

Centronics Printer Interface — interfaces high-speed Centronics-type parallel printers to Apple IP computers. Features 8-bit parallel data output bus. 4-bit status input. Data Strobe and Acknowledge handshake signals and printer reset signal. Part Number 7728A Price: $ 95.00

computer ■ products, inc.

362 BYTE November 1981

Circle 34 on inquiry card.

DISK DRIVES

ASAP carries only the highest quality floppy disk drives, to provide you with years of trouble-free service and superior performance. Data Trak'" 5 (ANSI 5'A" compatibility) Call for price

Data Trak'" 8 (IBM compatibility) Call for price

Model 801

(standard floppy] $425.00

Model 850 S640.00

Dual Disk Drive Cabinet $225.00

ASAP also provides a full line of high reliability disk drive subsystems'. DDC+8 sgl — Cabinet for single 8" floppy

disk drive S 185.00

DDOB-1 — Cabinet with (1) Shugart SA801R installed S 595.00

000*8-2 — Cabinet with (1) flume® DT-8

double-sided double-density

drive installed S 695.00

DDC+8B-3 — Cabinet for dual 8" floppy

disk drives S 275.00

•All cabinets come complete with power supply.

C0M80-8 — Dual cabinet for 8" floppy disk drives (horizontal mounting) ... $ 265.00 C0MB0-9 — Cabinet for 8" floppy disk drives

(vertical mounting) $ 265.00

C0M6W9+1S — Dual cabinet with (1) Shugart SA801R installed (horizontal or

vertical mounting) $ 725.00

C0MB0-8/9+2S — Dual cabinet with (2) Shugart SA801R's installed (horizontal or

vertical mounting) S1150.00

C0MB0-8/9+10 — Dual cabinet with (1) Qume"" DT-8 double-sided double-density drive installed (horizontal or

vertical mounting) S 865.00

C0MB0-8/9+2Q — Dual cabinet with (2) Qume* DT-8's double-sided double-density drive installed (horizontal or

vertical mounting) $1385.00

X5 — Cabinet for desk top main frame

(small power supply) S 200.00

800TJ — Cabinet for desk top mainframe (standard power supply) $ 255.00

fan and internal cables.

DISKETTES from ASAP

8" DISKETTES

Part#

Sides/Density Sectoring

Price

D-0506

1/Single Soft

10/S45.00

VERBATIM

0-0605

2/Double Soft

10/S65.00

5'/." DISKETTES

SCOTCH 3M

Partff

Sectoring

Price

5'/." DISKETTES

MD525-01

Soft

10/127.50

Parl#

Sides/Density Sectoring

Price

MD525-10

Hard 10

10/S29.50

744-0

1/Single Soft

10/S33.00

MD525-16

Hard 16

10/S29.50

744-10

1/Single Hard 10

10/S33.00

8" DISKETTES

744-16

1/Single Hard 16

10/S33.00

FD32-1000

Hard

10/S35.D0

745-0

2/Double Soft

10/S59.00

FD34-1000

Soft

10/S35.00

745-10

2/Double Hard 10

10/S59.00

MEM0REX

5V«" DISKETTES

745-16

2/Double Hard 16

MAXELL

5'A" DISKETTES

10/S59.00

Part*

Sides/Density Sectoring

Price

MEM 3401

1/Single Soft

10/525.00

Part*

Sides/Density Sectoring

Price

MEM 3403

1 /Single Hard 10

10/S25.00

MD1

1/Single Soft

10/539.00

MEM 3405

1/Single Hard 16

10/S25.00

MD2D

2/Double Soft

10/S65.00

MH1

1/Single Hard 16

10/S39.00

8" DISKETTES

MH2D

2/Double Hard 16

10/S65.00

Part*

Sides/Density Sectoring

Price

8" DISKETTES

MEM 3060 MEM 3101

1/Single Soft 2/Single Soft

10/535.00 10/S45.00

Parts

Sides/Density Sectoring

Price

MEM 3090

1/Double Soft

10/S45.00

FD1-128

1/Single Soft

10/S45.00

MEM 3102

2/Double Soft

10/S55.00

FH1-32

1/Single Soft 32

10/S45.00

DYSAN

FD2-XD

2/Double Soft

10/565.00

5V," DISKETTES

SRW

Parts

Sides/Density Sectoring

Price

MEDIA STORAGE CASES

0-0130

1/Single Sott

10/S45.00

PartS

Size

Price

D-0226

1/Double Soft

10/S46.00

SRW-5

5'A"

52.50 ea.

D-0235

2/Double Soft

10/S55.00

SRW-8

8"

S3.25 ea

MICR0BYTE Z-80A/ l-O CPU BOARD

• A complete single board Z80A CPU with serial/parallel interface

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Optional Monitor Program $50.00

MICR0BYTE64K DYNAMIC RAM BOARD

• Fully S-100 bus compatible

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• Asynchronous Communications with Z80A-DART(TM) or synchronous communications with Z80A-SIO/0(TM)

• Full set of modem control signals, including Rl(Ring Indicator)

• Easily configurable to any type of terminal interface

$265.00 Assembled & Tested Cables Available (Optional)

MICROBYTE FLOPPY DISK CONTROLLER

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• State-of-the-art NEC765 LSI Controller

• IEEE S-100 compatible

• DMA arbitration allows use of multiple boards within a system

SDSYSTEMS/S-100 BOARDS

EXPAND08AM 16K 5240.00

2 MHz DYNAMIC 32K 5258.00

RAM BOARD 48K 5276.00

KITS 64K 5294.00

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4 MHz DYNAMIC 32K $268.00

RAM BOARD 48K $286.00

KITS 64K 5304.00

SBC-100 KIT 2.5 MHZ/Z80 Ports & SBC 100 Monito no charge

CPU with Serial I/O r of your choice at S299.00

SBC-200 KIT 4 MHz/ZBOA CPU with Serial & Parallel I/O Ports & SBC 200 Monitor of your choice at no charge $325.00

VERSAFLDPPYI KIT Disk Controller for 5'A" or 8" Drives, Single or Double Sided/Single or Double Density. S-100 Compatible S250.00

VERSAFLOPPY II KIT Disk Controller for 5'A" or 8" Drives. Single or Double Sided/Single or Double Density. S-100 Compatible $300.00

PROM 100 KIT S-100/EPROM PROGRAMMER for 2708. 2716. 2732 & (Tl) 2516 $190.00

ALL BOARDS ARE AVAILABLE ASSEMBLED & TESTED. CALL FOR PRICES.

Printers

Manufacturer/Model S Price

Anacom-150 S 995.00

Anadex-9501 S1295.00

Okidata 82A W/Tractor $ 575.00

Diablo-630R0 $2225.00

C.ltoh Starwriter 45 51925.00

Texas lnstruments-810 51650.00

The Epson MX-80 %££%&£*

SPECIFICATIONS

Print methods: serial impact dot matrix Print rate: 80 CPS Print direction: bidirectional Number of pins in head: 9 Matrix: 9x9

Line spacing: 1/8", 1/6". 7/72" fi programmable throughput at 10 CPI — logical seeking (unction — 105 LPM. 20 character line: 73 LPM, 43 char, line: 48 LPM. 80 char. line. PRINTING CHARACTERISTICS Character set: full 90-character ASCII with descenders.

Graphics characters: 64 block characters INTERFACES

Standard: Centronics-style 8-bit parallel Optional: Apple. TRS-80, RS 232 NEW

MX80 FT/Friction Feed MX-100/132 Column CALL FOR PRICE & DELIVERY

Modems

Model S Price

CAT $ 149.00

d-CAT S 160.00

Auto-Cat $ 229.00

Lex-11 $ 139.00

LIV-Star 20M 5 149.00

UDS 103 5 189.00

UDS 202 5 295.00

Manufacturer

Novation

Novation

Novation

Lexicon

Livermore

UDS

UDS

Monitors

Manufacturer Model S Amdek 100/12" B&W

Amdek 100-80

Price

$ 139.00 5 169.00

Amdek 100G/12"Grn. S 169.00

Amdek Color-113" 5 375 00

APF TVM-10/10"B&W 5 149.00

Hitachi VM 910/9" B&W S 210.00

Hitachi VM 129/12" B&W S 340.00

Sanyo DM 5012/12" B&W 5 270.00

Sanyo DM5112ex/1Z'Grn. 5 290.00

Sanyo DM C6013/13" Color S 475.00

Zenith ZVM-121/12"Grn. S 139.00

Terminals

Manufacturer Model S Price

Ampex Dialogue 80 t 899.00

Soroc IQ120 $ 750.00

Soroc 10140 $1250.00

Televideo TVI910 i $ 650.00

Televideo TVI 912C 5 725.00

Televideo TVI 950C S 950.00

Components

4116s [200 nS)

Apple. TRS-80. Heath 8/518.00

16-49 $2.15 each

50-99 S2.05 each

100 up 51.95 each

2114L-2/200nS

Low-Power 1Kx 4 Static RAM

1-16 $2.95 each 50-99 52.75 each

1749 52.85 each 100 up .... 52.65 each

COMPONENTS

74LS240.... 51.25 each 74LS373.. .51.25 each 74LS241.... 51.10 each 74LS374 ... 51.25 each 74LS244.... S1.25 each 8T245 $1.50 each

2708/450 nS

1Kx8EPR0M $4.00 each

2716/5 Volt °r™

2K x 8 EPR0M 56.25 each

SUPPORT CHIPS

8080A-CPU $ 2.50 8257AC5 $15.00

Z80A-CPU S 8.95 REGULATORS

Z80A-CTC S 8.95 320T5 5 .80

Z80A-DART .... $13.95 340T5 $ .70

Z80A-SI0 $22.00 320T12 $ .80

8255AC5 $6.95 340T12 $

75 25 up

$2.35 $3.20 $ .75

CONNECTORS I-9 10-24

DB25P S2.60 S2.50

DB25S 53.50 $3.40

DB25C 5.95 5 .85

100 Pin IMSAI

Gold/S-10O Soldertail Connectors $2.40 each or 10/S2.25 each

Capacitors

.1 @12 Volt

Ceramic 8C each or 100/S700

DIP Sockets — Low Profile Tin Soldertail

Description

14 pin tin st 16 pin tin st 18 pin tin st 20 pin tin st 24 pin tin st 28 pin tin st 40 pin tin st

1-9

$ .15

S .16

S .19

$ .25

S .26

S .32

$ .42

1D49 S .13 $ .14 .18 .23 .24 .30 .40

50-99

$ .12

S .13

5 .16

5 .21

$ .22

S .29

$ .38

100 up

$ .11 S .12 S .14 $ .20 S .20 S .27 $ .34

ASAP offers a 30-day buyer protection policy: full money-back guarantee if not totally satisfied.

Ordering Information: name, address, phone, ship by: UPS or Mail. Shipping charge: add $2.50 up to 1 lb. for UPS blue; add $1.50 for U.S. Mail add $1.50 for U.S. Mail (U.S. only) ($25.00 minimum order). Call for larger shipments. Terms: We accept cash, check, money orders. Visa & Master Charge (U.S. Funds only). Tax: 6% Calif. Res., COD's and terms available on approval (school PCs accepted).

$499.00

Assembled & Tested

$329.00

Assembled & Tested

asaii

computer ■ products, inc.

1198 E. Willow St., Signal Hill, CA 90806

Toll free outside California:

(800)421-7701

Inside California:

(213)595-6431 (714) 891-2663

Circle 34 on Inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

363

Ask BYTE

Conducted by Steve Ciarcia

Switching Interfaces

Dear Steve,

In the September 1980 Popular Electronics, there was an article regarding a digital delay line for audio purposes. Because the article employed the technique of digitizing the audio signal and passing it through memory to achieve the desired delay, I knew that it would probably be able to interface with a computer for further control. To achieve the desired delay, BCD thumbwheel switches were used to select the memory addresses. (These switches connect to two 74193 chips. I suspect they are used to decode the addresses.)

I would like my computer to be able to turn these switches on and off as programmed. What type of interface would be needed to connect this delay line (switch connection points) and my computer?

I have an S-100 machine (Processor Technology Sol20 with 48 K bytes of memory) with both a serial and a parallel port. Can this connection be made with relays, opto-coupling, electronic gates, etc7 Rick Downs Aurora CO

/ don't usually like to take up room in BYTE with specific changes to schematics printed in other magazines, but this schematic is valuable in demonstrating how to attach a computer to any circuit that normally uses mechanical switches, such as the thumbwheels shown in the diagram.

The circuit originally published was an audio delay circuit that employed an 8-bit

TO ADDRESS LINES

A0 Al A2 A3

0000

A4 A5 A6 A7

0000

i

Qa Qij Qc QD vcc CLR GND

DOWN

CARRY BORROW A B C D LOAD

IC16 74193

0000

CIO

3

18

Qa Qb Qc Qd vccclr gnd

CARRY BORROW C D LOAD

IC15 DOWN 74193

•■i

«a Or "c. <3„ vnr CLR GND

IC]4 DOWN 74193

LOAD CARRY

PARALLEL OUTPUT PORT FROM COMPUTER

FINE ADJUST

)COARSE ADJUST

Figure 1: The audio delay circuit that originally appeared in Popular Electronics modified for control by an 8-bit parallel port.

companding A/D (analog-todigital) converter (an 8-bit converter which emulates the dynamic range of a converter with 11 bits plus sign). While I have not built this particular digital delay system, I'm familiar with the circuitry. I suspect that it might add some interesting effects to high fidelity.

The normal method of achieving the delay is to use three 74193 presettable binary counters. By presetting the addresses, it's possible to predesignate the total steps in the timing chain and, therefore, the length of the delay.

Figure 1 is a redrawn circuit demonstrating modifications that will allow you to

attach it to your Sol-20 (or any other computer with a parallel port). By adding two 74LS157 multiplexers, you can either preset the 74193s from your 8-bit parallel output port or use the thumbwheel switches. When the Manual/Computer selection switch is in the open position, the thumbwheel switches will

364 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

MICROCOMPUTERS

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CP/M-86™ Brings the World of CP/M software up to the 16 bit systems. BASIC-86™, MS-FORTRAN™, MS-PASCAL™ are just a few of the Languages currently available.

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APPLE A/D

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and LED Indication Hardware Write Protect Full DMA Capability 24/20/16 bit Address Decoding Enable/Disable 8K/32K Segments Bank Select in 8K/32K Segments Meets IEEE-696 Specifications

See our catalog for many other fine S-100 and Apple Boards including: — Analog to Digital Converters (16-256 channels; 12, 14, or 16 bit accuracy; 30, 40, 100, or 125 KHz; programmable gain; timer/counters) — Digital to Analog Converters (12 bit accuracy, 3 microsecond conversion) — 8086 CPU Board — I/O Boards — 16K Static RAM — Real-time Video Digitizer and Display.

CP/M MP/M CP/M-86 and MP/M-86 are trademarks of Digital Research Inc. BASIC-86, MS FORTRAN and MS-PASCAL are trademarks of Microsoft Inc. PASCAL/M86 is a trademark of Sorcim CBASIC/86 is a trademark of Compiler Systems Inc.

RR

DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED

23600 Mercantile Rd. • Cleveland, OH 44122

TECMAR, INC.

(216)464-7410

Circle 404 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

365

Ask BYTE.

have control. When it is closed, the delay parameters will come from the computer. It's possible to use a similar computer-control technique in place of switches on virtually any electronic appliance. You must ensure that the electronic instrument being controlled has an isolated power supply. According to the original article, this delay line does. . . . Steve

Wrapping Noise

Dear Steve,

Would it be possible to wire-wrap the Disk-80 project you presented in the March 1981 BYTE (see "Build the Disk-80: Memory Expansion and Floppy-Disk Control," page 36), or would it be too susceptible to noise? Richard Mozeleski Thorndike ME

While it is quite possible that wire-wrapping would be neater than hand-wiring, the TRS-80 Model I is extremely susceptible to noise induced through its external bus connector. That's why I hesitate to suggest wire-wrapping or hand-wiring it.

If you really want to try it, by all means go ahead. However, there is a printed-circuit board available for the

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CP/M® and MP/M® Systems with dual floppies or one floppy + one 10MB Winchester 10% off list price.

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Disk-80 from the Micromint Inc, 917 Midway, Woodmere NY 11598, (516) 374-6793, that should do the trick. You will probably find that the cost of wire-wrapping sockets alone will far exceed the price of the printed-circuit board ($48). . . . Steve

A Catch-2 5

Dear Steve,

I recently purchased a Radio Shack TRS-80 Model III, and I'm interested in interfacing it to some of your projects. The problem is that the Model Ill's expansion connection has been changed from the Model I's 40 pins to 50. Upon examining the connector closely, I see that one side has all its pins (25) connected to ground. This, it seems, leaves only 25 pins to do the job of the 40.

Do you have any information about the arrangement of this connector? Radio Shack's manual simply says "for future expansion" and gives no other details. The store personnel know nothing about it, except that a technical manual is due. John Uffenbeck Salinas CA

There is quite a difference between the Model I and Model Ill's expansion corir nectors. Since the Model Is disk controller must be outside of the keyboard unit, all the processor's signals are available for use on the Expansion Interface. This means that the full 16-bit address bus, the bidirectional data bus, and all the control lines are available.

On the Model III, the disk controller and 48 K bytes of expansion memory are mounted inside the enclosure; it is unnecessary to bring out all of the address and control lines. Therefore, the Model Ill's expansion connector is simply for I/O

366 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

(input/output) rather than complete system expansion. Only eight address lines and eight data lines are brought out (plus some handshaking signals), and the I/O functions must be enabled under program control (the command is OUT 236,16).

On the whole, both computers work equally well with peripherals that only require output data. But reading input data with the Model III is much more involved. The data-bus direction is controlled by the external peripheral. To make the computer input data, a peripheral must recognize its own address, activate the I/O Input Strobe, and logically switch the data bus to receive input information. Unlike the Model I, which could allow a single I/O device to be used with absolutely no address decoding (presumably any I/O-related instructions had to be for that peripheral because nothing else used I/O instructions), address decoding is an absolute requirement on the Model III. . . . Steve

Pitch for Voice Recognition

Dear Steve,

I am 13 years old, and I own a TRS-80 Model I Level II. I'm interested in pitch analysis and voice recognition. I already have my computer knowing when a sound is present: I set my cassette recorder to record and run the program shown in listing 1.

I would like to know how to build a device that would change a tone or pitch to a numerical value that could then be read by my computer. 1 cannot figure out how to get my computer to recognize the difference between two pitches. Can you help me? Eric Korenman New York NY

To be able to do anything of real value in speech recognition or even to detect more than one tone, you will have to learn how to write your programs in machine-language, because they run much faster than BASIC.

The usual approach to voice recognition is to use a bank of bandpass filters and zero-crossing detectors. You would have three or four fre

quency bands of interest, and you would use the computer to analyze how many times the voice is present in these bands. To do that, you ■would count the number of times this signal crosses zero.

Listing 1

In the simplest designs, the output of the filters is normalized to a logic 1 or logic 0. Every time a signal is present, the filter output becomes a logic 1. When there's no signal, the output is logic 0. A

10 l = INP(255)

20 IF 1 = 255 THEN PRINT

30 OUT 255,0: GOTO 10

SOUND PRESENT" ELSE 10

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

367

Ask BYTE.

machine-language program simply counts how many times this signal is present.

The human voice contains more than single tones, of course, and there will be frequent zero crossings. Therefore, any program you use must be able to count at a high rate as well as look at all the filters. Such speed can only be accomplished with a machine-language program.

There have been various articles on speech recognition in a number of magazines, and I'm sure you will be seeing more in the future. I have a few designs on the drawing board for a speech-recognition circuit. I will unveil one in a "Circuit Cellar" article as soon as it works well enough.

Keep up your interest, and perhaps we'll both be talking to our computers soon. . . . Steve

What's In a ROM?

Dear Steve,

I would like to do some game programming for an Atari video game, but I don't know what type of ROM (read-only memory) is used. Can you help me, or do you know where I can get the schematics for an Atari game?

Frank Weatherford Gray TN

Atari games generally consist of either 4 K- or 8 K-byte ROM packs. One of the prerelease ROM packs that I received had 2732 EPROMs (erasable programmable read-only memories) in it. This would imply that you could substitute 2716 or 2732 EPROMs in most cases. 1 have known some people who have taken ROMs out of

inexpensive game packs and replaced them with their own software. . . . Steve

Home-Control Design

Dear Steve,

I would like to ask you for some help. A friend of mine is a quadriplegic who has great difficulty when he is home alone. Because he is unable to type, a voice-operated system is most desirable. If you could design a system, he could get someone to install it.

Jonathan Shaw Tampa FL

You'll forgive me, of course, for not wishing to design a system specifically for you. That is a tremendous undertaking which could take months, even years, of

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work. Instead, I recommend that you contact Artra Inc. This company makes an interface card called Housemaster. I have tried it, and it works reasonably uiell.

The company's address is Artra Inc, 4424 Vacation Ln. Arlington VA 22207, (703) 527-0455. The interface sells for under $300 and incorporates tone generators, a BSR X-10 AC remote-control section, and a voice-response system. It attaches directly to Digital Group and Heath H-89 computers, but it can be adapted to work with many others. Using this system, it would be possible for your friend to turn on the lights with a voice command. . . . Steve

In "Ask BYTE," Steve Garcia answers questions on any area of microcomputing. The most representative questions received each month will be answered and published. Do you have a nagging problem? Send your inquiry to:

Ask BYTE

c/o Steve Ciarcia

POB 582

Glastonbury CT 06033 If you are a subscriber to The Source, send your questions by electronic mail or chat with Steve (TCE3I7) directly. Due to the high volume of inquiries, personal replies cannot be given. Be sure to include "Ask BYTE" in the address.

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Toward a Structured 6809 Assembly Language

Part 1: An Introduction to Structured Assembly Language

Gregory Walker

Motorola Inc M2880

3501 Ed Bluestein Blvd

Austin TX 78721

Structured programming is the rage these days, as reflected in the growing popularity of structured high-level languages like Pascal and C. Yet most of the programs written today use languages that are not wellstructured, such as FORTRAN, BASIC, and assembly language.

Assembly language, widely used in industry, is becoming more and more available on personal computers. And although assembly language is the first and last bastion of convoluted programming, there is a way to add structured programming statements to an existing assembly language. In fact, structured control statements can be added to any existing language.

Part 1 will examine the meaning of structured programming and present a set of structured control statements for the MC6809 assembly language, as well as programming examples that use these structured statements. Part 2 will show how to add structured statements to the

Acknowledgments

/ would like to express my deep appreciation to Joel Boney, who originally suggested the form and implementation strategy for the 6809 structured macros, and to Greg Stevens, who helped debug the macros.

MC6809 macroassembler or to any programming language.

Structured Control Statements

It has become popular, perhaps even faddish, to extol the virtues of structured programming. Yet its exact meaning remains rather ambiguous. Thus, the latest high-level language is sold much like the latest brand of shampoo: "It will leave your programs cleaner and more manageable."

When a language is said to be "structured," the usual meaning is that the language contains statements for the structured flow of control. Edsger Dijkstra is generally credited with originating structured programming with his letter in Communications of the ACM (see references) which stated that the GOTO statement seemed to be a major source of programming errors. Since that time, the terms GOTOless programming and structured programming have sometimes been used interchangeably. Yet the GOTO, in the form of jump or branch instructions, is still firmly fixed in machine instruction sets of new computers. Let's see what is so bad about the GOTO and, at the same time, try to discover why

it remains long-lived in spite of its reputation for abetting errors.

Computers are general-purpose machines because of their ability to perform a different sequence of calculations based on tests of the input data. The most primitive computer instruction that allows this ability is a conditional branch instruction, which transfers control to a different part of the computer program based on a run-time test. An example of this instruction is shown in listing 1. (See also figure 1.) This program changes the contents of A into its absolute value by using three simple steps:

• The contents of A are compared to zero;

• If the result shows A greater than or equal to zero, then a branch is taken around the next statement;

• Else the value of A is negated to make it positive.

The ability to perform a conditional branch allows more than selection between two different paths of program execution; by branching back to the beginning of a section of program, it is possible to create a loop (ie: a calculation that can be repeated many times). Listing 2

370 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

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Listing 1: Assembly-language statements for determining absolute values.

P0£

CMP A

#0

BGE

PDS

If register A is

le = 5

than

zero

NEGA

negate it

EQU

•a

Else c ontlnue

Listing 2: Assembly-language statements for adding the value 5 to each element of an array.

ARRAY

RMB

10

DECLARE ARRAY

START

LDB

#0

INITIALIZE INDEX TO

LEAX

ARRAY, PCR

POINT TO START OF AR

LOOP

LDD

B, X

ADDD

#5

ADD 5 TO ONE ARRAY

STD

B, X

ELEMENT

INCB

UNTIL INDEX IS >= 10

CMPB

#10

BLT

LOOP

shows an example of a loop that adds the value 5 to every number stored in an array.

By the proper combination of loops and conditional branches, all the complexity of modern computer programming is possible—even the creation of programs that play a sophisticated game of chess or balance the bank accounts of thousands of customers.

Problems arise when this primitive form of branch instruction is used directly to write programs. In both examples the branch instructions contain a condition that is tested for and a labeled location in the program where execution is to resume if the condition is true. The biggest problem is the need for that label.

A well-chosen label can make the branch instruction somewhat self

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explanatory. In listing 1, the word POS indicates that the branch occurs in the case of a positive number. In listing 2, there is indication that the branch forms part of a loop. However, programs of even moderate complexity will have numerous conditional-path selections and several loops, often nested one inside the other. For every branch, the programmer must think up a label that somehow describes the operation of the program and yet is different from all other labels. Usually, the important operation to explain is the branch itself, so that a label that has meaning for the branch instruction means nothing at the remote location in the program where the label is actually defined.

The difficulty in thinking up really meaningful labels quickly overwhelms the programmer, who would rather concentrate on getting his program to work. Thus, many assemblylanguage programs are filled with labels such as LOOP, LOOP2, LOOP3, etc. While this labeling might be useful for counting the number of loops in a program, it does not go far toward explaining how the program operates. Use of meaningless labels is not due to laziness on the part of programmers; rather, it stems from a limitation inherent in assembly language—namely the limitation of requiring labels at points of the program that are not important to the operation of the program.

Although assembly language was used in these examples, the complaints are equally applicable to any language whose control mechanisms are those of a GOTO label. FORTRAN and BASIC programmers take note.

The real problem with the GOTO construct is that it is too general a programming form. It is incorporated into machine instruction sets for exactly that reason: it can efficiently implement many different higher-level constructs. From the point of view of the programmer, though, such generality hides the specific construct he had in mind.

Over the years, as new program

372 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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ming languages were designed and tested, the use of various higher-level (ie: more abstract control structures) was explored. As a result, there is now a widely accepted set of such structures available in "structured" programming languages. Three of the most popular structures will be

discussed individually by exploring their use in 6809 assembly language.

MC6809 Language Structures

In the system presented here, there are three different structuring forms available—one for conditional execution and two for creating loops.

DP

CCR

A

B

X

Y

U

s

PC

DIRECT PAGE REGISTER

CONDITION CODE AND INTERRUPT FLAGS

A AND B ACCUMULATORS (COMBINED AS D ACCUMULATOR)

INDEX REGISTER

INDEX REGISTER

USER STACK POINTER AND INDEX REGISTER

STACK POINTER

PROGRAM COUNTER

Figure 1: Register model of the Motorola MC6809 microprocessor. In addition to its program counter (PC) and stack pointer (5), the MC6809 has four user-programmable 16-bit registers: X, Y, U, and D. (D is equivalent to a concatenation of registers A and BJ

Listing 3: Example of the IF construct in standard assembly language and structured assembly language. This code checks the validity of an argument in the D register for use by a square root routine.

Allowed registers: A, E, D, X. Y, U, S.

Allowed relational operators:

EO — equal to

NE — not equal to

GE — greater than or equal to

GT — greater than

LE — less than or equal to

LT — less than

Structured Code IF D, GE, #0

JSR SQROOT ELSE

JSR ARGERR END IF

Equivalent Code

CMPD #0 BLT LABEL1

JSR SQROOT BRA LABEL2 LABEL1 EQU *

JSR ARGERR LABEL2 EQU *

Listing 4: Example of the IFTST construct. The routine takes the absolute value of the memory byte at CAT offset from the X register.

Allowed registers: Ai E, D, X, Yj U» Si or address expression.

Allowed relational operators: EQ, NE* GE, or LT.

Struc tured Code Equivalent Code

IFTST (CAT, X), NE

NEG CAT, X ENDIF

TST CAT, X BEQ LABEL1 NEG CAT, X LABEL1 EQU *

They are:

IF...ELSE...ENDIF WHILE... ENDWH REPEAT...UNTIL

IF

Together, the IF, ELSE, and ENDIF macros allow selection between two different paths of execution through the program, depending on the result of a conditional test. The form of the IF structure is:

IF <register > , <relational operator> ,< address expression >

(block of statements to be executed if conditional is true )

ELSE

(block of statements to be executed if condition is false )

ENDIF

Notice that the three structured statements serve to bracket two blocks of assembly-language statements. Should the condition prove true, the block between the IF and ELSE statements is executed; otherwise, the block of statements between the ELSE and ENDIF statements will be executed.

Programmers who use an existing structured language may find the terminating ENDIF somewhat unusual. Pascal, for example, uses a begin...end pair to bracket a block of executed statements in all of its control structures. It happens that having a different terminating statement for each control structure makes these statements easier to implement and easier to read. Once you are familiar with this style, the extent of a particular statement is visible at a glance, unlike Pascal, where it is a tedious and error-prone process to match up each end with its corresponding begin.

Listing 3 shows an example of an IF structure and the equivalent assembly-language statements. The IF statement forms a conditional test by a signed comparison (CMP instruction) between the contents of an MC6809 register (either 8-bit or 16-bit) and the contents of an effective address. All user-programmable

374 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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6810

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6850

8080A

8085A

8212

8216

8748

Z80 CPU

Z80A CPU

MEMORY

1 -10

4.75

3.25

6.50

6.50

8.00

17.00

17.00

18.00

23.00

25.00

30.00

8.00

60.00

2.75

3.00

3.65

1.80

2.50

2.50

3.00

25.00

4.25

5.75

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28.75

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22.70

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2.50

8.50

2.35

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52.00

6.25

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LSOO LS02 LS04 LS08 LS10 LS20 LS30 LS32 LS38 LS42 LS51 LS54 LS73

.25 .25 .30 .35 .75 .30 .30

LS74

LS85

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LSI 39

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LSI 53

LSI 55

LS157

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1.15

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LSI 58 LS161 LSI 63 LS164 LSI 65 LSI 74 LSI 75 LS191 LS193 LS195 LS221 LS240 LS241

1.00 1.00 1.00 .85 .70 1.15 1.20 1.20

LS244 LS245 LS259 LS273 LS283 LS367 LS368 LS373 LS374 LS377 LS390 LS393 LS670

1.20

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1.75

1.35

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1.40

1.40

1.40

1.50

1.50

1.85

S PRODUCT

S188 S189 S287 S288 S387 S471 S742

3.25 3.25 3.25 3.00 3.25 7.50 9.00

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registers, including the stack pointer, are allowed. Any signed relational operator is allowed, and the relational operator names will be familiar to all FORTRAN programmers.

The address expression may contain any of the MC6809 addressing modes. The ELSE and ENDIF statements serve as destinations for branches around the blocks of assembly-language statements. Notice that two labels are avoided for each IF structure, making the structured code much simpler to write and read than its equivalent assemblylanguage form. The ELSE macro and the block of code following it are optional.

Two other forms of the IF statement were created to take advantage of specific MC6809 instructions. Two different instructions are available on

the MC6809 to perform a test on a value: CMP (compare) and TST (test against zero). These are reflected in the IF and IFTST control macros. The IFTST macro generates a TST instruction instead of a CMP instruction, and so gives a signed comparison of a register (or a byte in memory) with zero. Listing 4 shows an example of the IFTST statement.

The ELSE and ENDIF macros are used with the IFTST in the same manner as with the IF macro. Optionally the programmer may add a third argument of #0 to improve readability, as in:

IFTST D,NE,#0

This third argument is ignored by the IFTST statement.

A third form of the IF statement is

Listing 5: Example of the IFCC construct. Allowed relational operators: EQ. NE, QT, GE, LT, LE, and

CS — carry flag is set

CC — caTrij flag is clear

VS — overflow flag is set

VC — overflow flag is clear

Struc tured Code

ROLA IFCC GT

JSR DOIT ENDIF

Equivalent Code

ROLA

BLE LABEL1

JSR DOIT

LABEL1 EQU *

Listing 6: Example of the WHILE construct.

Allowed registers: same as IF.

Allowed relational operators: same as IF.

Structured Code Eguivalent Code

WHILE A, GT, #0

LABEL1 CMPA

#0

BLE

LABEL2

LSL B

LSLB

DEC A

DECA

ENDWH

BRA

LABEL1

LABELS EQU

-a

Listing 7: Example of REPEAT loop construct. The routine will shift register B based on the value in register A.

Allowed registers: same as IF.

Allowed relational operators: same as IF.

Struc tured Code Eg u ivalent Code

REPEAT LSL B DEC A

UNTIL A, LE, #0

LABEL1 EQU *

LSLB

DECA CMPA #0 BGT LABEL 1

376 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

if He'd used select tm it wouldn't have taken seven days

Learn SELECT in just 90 minutes. A whole new word processing software concept that kicks the coded key habit and frees you from complicated instruction manuals. SELECT is fast. SELECT is logical. With single key mnemonics, you'll use dozens of commands that instantly access the rich capabilities of this system. There's nothing like it.

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INFORMATION SYSTEMS 919 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard ■ Kentfield, California 94904 -(415) 459-4003

Circle 378 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 19B1

377

Listing 8: Programming example written without the benefit of structured statements.

CONVERT BINARY TO DECIMAL AND STORE 5 CHARACTERS

(AFTER EXAMPLE ON PAGE 10-10 OF MC6900 MICROPROCESSOR PROGRAMMING MANUAL)

ON ENTRY:

(D) = 16-BIT UNSIGNED BINARY VALUE.

(X) = POINTER TO LOCATIONS RECEIVING CHARACTERS. REGISTERS USED:

(Y> ■ POINTER TO CONSTANTS FOR THE CONVERSION. ON EXIT- D AND X ARE BASHED, OTHER REGISTERS UNCHANGED.

*

*

SAVLOB DIGCNT

CVBTD

CVDEC1 CVDEC2

*

CVDEC5

THIS SUBROUTINE IS RE-ENTRANT AND POSITION-INDEPENDENT. TEMPORARY STORAGE ON THE STACK IS: SAVLOB AND DIGCNT.

K10K

EQU EQU

PSHS

LEAS

LEAY

CLR

SUBD

BCS

INC

BRA

ADDD

STA

LDA

ADDA

STA

LDA

CMPD

BNE

LEAS PULS

FDB FDB FDB FDB FDB END

-2, S

K.10K, PCR DIGCNT, S , Y

CVDEC5 DIGCNT,S CVDEC2

, Y+ +

SAVLOB,S DIGCNT,S #*30 , X +

SAVLOB,S #0 CVDEC1

TEMP. STORE LOW ORDER BYTE

STORES COUNT TO CREATE DECIMAL DIGIT

RESERVE LOCAL STORAGE

BRANCH ON OVERFLOW INC CHAR BEING BUILT

RESTORE PARTIAL RESULT SAVE LOW ORDER BYTE

CHANGE DIGIT TO ASCII CHAR

AND SAVE IN RESULT RESTORE LOW ORDER BYTE

CLEAN UP STACK AND RESTORE REGISTERS 2, S Y, PC

STORAGE FOR CONVERSION CONSTANTS

10000

1000

100

10

1

the IFCC, which selects an execution path based on the existing condition code flags. Its only operand is a relational operator. An example of the IFCC appears in listing 5. At first glance this form of the IF may seem unnecessary, since it only generates a single branch instruction. It is useful, however, because it eliminates the need for the programmer to create a label.

WHILE

The WHILE...ENDWH statements bracket a block of assembly code to form a conditional-loop control structure. The WHILE specifies a signed comparison (CMP) of the same form used by the IF statement. The instructions between the WHILE and the ENDWH are executed as long as the condition is true. The condition is tested at the beginning of each traversal of the loop. An example of the WHILE statement appears in listing 6. The code performs a multiple left shift of B based on a count in A.

REPEAT

The REPEAT.. .UNTIL macros provide a conditional-looping construct in which the condition is tested after each traversal of the loop. Thus, the code in a REPEAT loop will always be executed at least once. The UNTIL macro specifies a signed comparison

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378 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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CPU/IO BOARD

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A&TS450

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BYTE November 1981 379

Listing 9: The programming example of listing 8, written in structured assembly language.

* CONVERT BINARY TO DECIMAL AND STORE 5 CHARACTERS » (WRITTEN WITH STRUCTURED MACROS)

(CMP instruction) of the same form as that used by the IF macro. Listing 7 presents an example of a REPEAT loop. The code will left shift B based on a count in A.

SAVLOB DIGCNT

CVBTD

CVDECJ

KIOK

EQU EQU

PSHS

LEAS

LEAY

REPEAT CLR SUBD IFCC INC BRA ENDIF

ADDD STA LDA ADDA STA LDA UNTIL

LEAS PULS

KIOK, PCR

DIGCNT, S

, Y

CC DIGCNT. S CVDEC2

, Y+ +

SAVLOB,S DIGCNT, S #$30 , X +

SAVLOB,S D, EG, #0

TEMP. STORE LOW ORDER BYTE

STORES COUNT TO CREATE DECIMAL DIGIT

FDB FD3 FDE FDB FDB END

UNLESS THERE WAS OVERFLOW INCREASE DECIMAL DIGIT LOOP TO TEST AGAIN

RESTORE PARTIAL RESULT STORE LOW ORDER BYTE

CHANGE DIGIT TO ASCII CHAR

AND SAVE IN RESULT RESTORE LOW ORDER BYTE

CLEAN UP STACK AND RESTORE REGISTERS 2, S Y, PC

STORAGE FOR CONVERSION CONSTANTS

10000

1000

100 10

1

Nesting of Structures

The structured statements may be used anywhere in an assemblylanguage program. The block of statements bracketed inside one control structure may itself contain other structured statements. This is known as the nesting of control structures. The only restriction to observe is that each control structure must be wholly contained within a single block of assembly statements; the statements of two control structures may not overlap. The number of control structures contained one within the other is called the depth of nesting.

Long Branch Option

The structured assembly statements all generate short relative branch instructions, which may reference locations a maximum of 127 bytes away from the location of the

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380 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 110 on inquiry card.

Introducing The Grappler":

The only interface that makes computer graphics easy as Apple pie.

ACTUAL APPLE II PRINTOUT USINC

Orange Micro makes the only universal parallel interface card that simplifies high resolution graphics for Apple™ computers. No longer does the user need to load clumsy software routines to dump screen graphics —it's all done by The Grapplers™ exclusive E-PROM chip. There are versions to accommodate the Anadex, Epson MX-100, MX-80*and MX-70, IDS Paper Tigers, Centronics 739, and NEC Prowriter, and future graphics printers. The Grappler™ accepts 18 simple software commands accessible through the keyboard or user program, making it the most intelligent Apple Interface available.

Order The Grappler™ through Orange Micro direct, or authorized dealers.

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SHERMAN OAKS STORE

13604 Ventura Blvd. Sherman Oaks, CA 91423 (213) 501-3486

Circle 325 on inquiry card.

FEATURES - User benefits

SELECT PAGE-Choice of Hi-Resolution Graphics page 1 or page 2. INVERSE GRAPHICS- Provides reverse graphics of black-on-white or white-on-black. DOUBLE SIZE PICTURE- Doubles the graphic screen representation vertically & horizontally.

90° ROTATION— Rotates the screen picture 90?

CENTER GRAPHICS -Accomplished through setting left margin thereby centering the graph.

CHART RECORDER MODE- Successive horizontal pictures are combined continuously simulating a chart recorder. BLOCK GRAPHICS- For printers with block graphics (e.g. Epson MX-80, Okidata M80), the high order bit can be controlled.

BELL — For printers with a bell, bell characters are deleted during user program listings. MARGINS -Set left and right margins. SKIP-OVER-PERF-S& page length; printer will automatically skip 6 lines between each page.

VARIABLE LINE LENGTH- For user program listings, sets line length and wraps around with breakpoint at nearest blank. TEXT SCREEN DUMP-The text from a user report or page of program listing can be dumped directly from the screen. WORKS WITH PASCAL & CPM

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©1981 Orange Micro, Inc.

branch instruction. If this range is exceeded, a long branch is required; an error message will be printed telling which branch needs to be flagged as being "long." By appending the character "L" as an additional item in the conditional expression, the programmer may force the generation of a long relative branch.

Statements which cannot receive an L parameter will print an error message if an L is appended. The following statements may be flagged as "long":

IF: branches over code between IF and ELSE or ENDIF

ELSE: branches over code between ELSE and ENDIF

WHILE: branches over code between WHILE and ENDWH

UNTIL: branches over code between REPEAT and UNTIL

For example, the L flag may be used with the IF structure as follows:

IF U, NE, #BOTTOM,L (long-code segment)

ELSE

(short code segment) ENDIF

or:

IF S, GT, #STAKND

(short code segment) ELSEL

(long code segment) ENDIF

In order to really demonstrate the difference these structures make in reading a program, "before" and "after" examples are shown in listings 8 and 9, respectively. A program originally appearing in the MC6800 Programming Manual has been recoded for the 6809, using control structures. This example is a compelling argument for using structured macros for two reasons:

• It is not contrived: the original program is typical of assembly-language subroutines written by a "good" programmer.

• The translation of structures into

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assembly code will produce exactly the same instructions as those in the original program.

The second reason cannot be overemphasized: the use of control structures does not produce inefficient programs. The inefficiency associated with the use of high-level languages arises from other sources.

The presence of the unstructured branch to CVDEC2 in listing 9 might at first seem to show that structured statements are inadequate for assembly-language programming. On the contrary, the branch could have been replaced by structured statements at the expense of generating a longer assembly-language program. In fact, the branch shows that the optimizing tricks sometimes required in assembly language can still be used with the structured statements. After extended use, it becomes obvious that the structured control statements are exactly what is needed in the vast majority of programming situations.

Part 2 of this article will discuss macros, the programming tools from which the structured statements are constructed. It will present the specific macros needed to create structured statements for the MC6809 and will explain how these macros operate. ■

References

1. Dijkstra, Edsger. "Go to Statement Considered Harmful." Communications of the ACM, Volume 11, Number 3, March 1968, pages 147-148.

2. Grogono, Peter. Programming in Pascal. Reading MA: Addison-Wesley, 1978.

3. Kernighan, Brian W and P J Plauger. Software Tools. Reading MA: Addison-Wesley, 1976.

4. Kernighan, Brian W and Dennis M Ritchie. The C Programming Language. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1978.

5. Motorola Inc. MC6809 Preliminary Programming Manual. 1979. (Manual may be obtained from the Motorola Literature Distribution Ctr, 616 W 24th, Tempe AZ 85282.)

6. Motorola Inc. MC6809 Macro-Assembler Reference Manual. 1978. (See above.)

382 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981

383

PROLOG

A Step Toward the Ultimate Computer Language

Ron Ferguson

137 University Ave W, Apt 907

Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3E6 Canada

What will the ultimate computer language be7 What language will we be using once assembler language, BASIC, and Pascal have become museum pieces7 Surprisingly, this question is easy to answer: there will be several ultimate computer languages. We even know what their names will be. They will be called English, Spanish, French, Russian, Chinese, etc. After all, the easiest language you could use to program a computer is the one you use to communicate with other people.

Unfortunately, programming a computer in English is still in the future. For a computer to understand English, it must be able to cope with the ambiguities inherent in any natural language. It must be able to deduce facts you don't bother specifying because they are "obvious." (Nothing is obvious to a computer unless it has been programmed to realize it is obvious. Everything must be stated explicitly and precisely.)

Today, though, we do have a language, called PROLOG, that simplifies the task of informing a computer about obvious (and not so obvious) facts. The name PROLOG is short for "PROgramming in LOGic"; however, you do not have to be familiar with formal logic theory to use PROLOG. In fact, the language is so simple a child can learn it. Yet its very simplicity makes it far more powerful than any other language currently available for use on microcomputers.

PROLOG is a programming language ideally suited to the manipulation of knowledge. A PROLOG program consists of facts about a certain subject. You can ask PROLOG questions and it will attempt to answer them

using the facts it has been told.

Facts are expressed in PROLOG in a concise manner. The fact that John is the father of Tom is expressed by the one-line PROLOG program:

father(john,tom).

The relationship, father, appears first, followed by the arguments (in parentheses) to which the relation applies. This data structure is called a term. The only potential area of confusion is the order in which the arguments are written. As a rule, the subject of the relation is the first argument and the object is the second. With this program, you can now ask PROLOG whether John is the father of Tom:

father(john,tom)7

to which PROLOG will respond:

yes

Note that the only difference between telling PROLOG that John is Tom's father and asking PROLOG whether John is Tom's father is the punctuation mark at the end of the statement. An assertion always ends with a period; a question always ends with a question mark. If you ask whether John is the father of Bill:

father(john,bill)7

384 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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PROLOG will respond:

no

because it does not have any information to indicate that John is the father of Bill.

You can ask PROLOG more complicated questions such as who the father of Tom is by typing:

f ather( % who, torn) 7

The % at the beginning of "%who" indicates that "%who" is a variable. When a question contains a variable, PROLOG attempts to assign a correct value to the variable. PROLOG will respond to the above question with:

%who = John

If PROLOG cannot find a correct value for the variable, it again responds no.

father(%who,bill)7 no

As is the case in most programming languages, it does not matter what name you use for a variable. You can have used "%x" instead of "%who". However, unlike most programming languages, a PROLOG variable's scope is limited to the statement in which it appears. If the same variable name is used in two separate statements, there is no connection between them. They are treated as different variables.

So far, PROLOG appears to be nothing more than an easy-to-use data-base language. You can store information and retrieve it later by asking questions. What makes PROLOG more than just another data-base language is that you can teach PROLOG how to manipulate the facts you have given it. Assume that you have made the following assertions:

father(bill,john). father(john,tom).

From these assertions, you can deduce that Bill is the grandfather of Tom. PROLOG can also make this deduction if you tell it the fact that the father of the father is the grandfather. In PROLOG this fact is stated as a clause:

grandfather%x, %z) — father(%x,%y),father(%y, %z).

— means "is implied by" or "is true if." The term to the left of — is true if the terms to the right of — are true. The term to the left is called a goal, and the terms to the right are called subgoals. The goal is true if the subgoals are true. The goal is also referred to as the head term of the statement.

Note that variables have been used in the clause to make a general statement about what it means for some

386

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 153 on inquiry card.

Micro computer software company gets macro results.

"Software is the hottest segment of the personal computer industry. After all, it's the software that solves problems. And Business Week has precisely the type of readers who are looking for solutions to the kinds of problems we solve. Top and middle management of corporations. That's why right from the start we committed a substantial portion of our marketing budget to advertise in BusinessWeek. And we're very pleased with the results. Since our first insertion, our monthly sales have more than doubled."

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Microcom, Inc.

When Microcom began in 1980, the Boston-based manufacturer of personal computer software wanted to spread the word to corporate

managers about its first product —an electronic mail package for Apple™ computers called Micro-Courier™ Not only to managers who already have Apples,™ but to the fastgrowing market of managers in corporations who are thinking of buying personal computers to help them and their staffs do a better job.

For Microcom's Jim Dow, Business Week brought his market into focus. Business Week has a take-action audience of over 6 million corporate decision makers. And they look to Business Week to keep them informed on computer developments. Business Week is the only general busi

Circle 54 on inquiry card.

ness publication with an entire editorial section, Information Processing, covering events and trends in the computer industry. Every week.

As Microcom found out, one of the best times to link up with Business Week is right at square one. But for small companies or large companies, Business Week gets big-time advertising results. Call your nearest Business Week representative today.

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Source: MRI (Spring, '81)/Pub. est.

one to be the grandfather of someone else. PROLOG can use this general statement to answer specific questions. If you ask the question:

grandfather(bill,tom)7

PROLOG will attempt to answer by setting "%x = bill" and "%z = torn" in the definition of grandfather. This creates an instance of the grandfather definition of the following form:

grandfather(bill,john) — father(bill, %y),father(%y,tom).

This states that Bill is the grandfather of Tom if Bill is the father of a person who is the father of Tom. By the first two assertions, PROLOG knows that Bill is the father of John and John is the father of Tom. Therefore, PROLOG will respond with a yes.

If you ask PROLOG to find two people such that one is the grandfather of the other:

grandfather(%x, %y)7

PROLOG will respond:

rect one to use at that particular stage of the algorithm. Perhaps the correct statement should be I = I * 2. You cannot tell without looking at the rest of the code in which the statement appears.

In PROLOG, on the other hand, you can determine whether a statement is true by examining that statement only. The correctness of the PROLOG statement that defines grandfather can be determined independently of the rest of the PROLOG program. A statement in a PROLOG program corresponds to an entire subroutine in a conventional programming language. Thus PROLOG programs are extremely modular. PROLOG carries the "divide-and-conquer" approach of structured programming one step further.

Another advantage of nonprocedural languages is that the order in which statements occur is irrelevant. Each PROLOG statement represents a fact, and it does not matter in what order PROLOG is told the facts. This means that you can increase the power of a program by adding new statements, and in most cases this does not require any modification of the statements that are already there. For example, the definition of grandfather, given earlier, is true, but it is only a partial definition. One must add the following statement to obtain a complete definition:

%x = bill, %y = torn

Nonprocedural Languages

Most computer languages currently in use (such as BASIC and Pascal) are procedural: a computation is performed by executing a series of actions in a precise order. Each statement of a procedural language represents only one step in an algorithm. This means that the correctness of an individual statement cannot be determined by examining the statement by itself. Instead, you must examine the entire algorithm in which the statement occurs to determine if the statement is correct. For example, 1 = 1 + 2 is a typical statement in a procedural language. If you are asked to determine whether the statement is correct, the most you can say is that its syntax is correct (ie: it is a valid statement in the language). This does not necessarily mean that the statement is the cor

grandfather(%x, %y) — father(%x,%z),mother(%z,%y).

Assume that the following assertions are also made:

mother(jane,alice). father(bill,jane).

Now if you ask for a grandchild of Bill:

grandfather(bill, %grandchild)7

PROLOG will respond:

% grandchild = torn

You can also find out if Bill has another grandchild by

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388 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 35 on inquiry card.

/'

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BASIC

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390 BYTE November 1981

Buying new software is the pits, isn't it?

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And it does exactly what they said. But to get exactly what you want, you're going to have to change the way you run your business. Or go through so much hassle that you're not sure it's worth it.

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BYTE November 1981

391

typing ?. Now PROLOG will respond:

% grandchild = alice

If you ask whether Bill has other grandchildren besides Tom and Alice by typing ? once more, PROLOG will respond with a no.

The two partial definitions for grandfather can be combined into one statement:

grandfather %x,%y) - father(%x, %z), (father(%z,%y);mother(%z,%y)).

The semicolon between "father(%z, %y)" and "mother (%z, %y)" means that one or the other must be true.

A term can have any number of arguments. To say that Alice is pretty, you would type:

pretty (alice).

Now you can ask PROLOG to find a pretty grandchild of Bill, as follows:

grandfather(bill, % grandchild),pretty (% grandchild)?

to which PROLOG will respond:

% grandchild = alice

How PROLOG Works

To use PROLOG you do not need to know how it actually arrives at its answers. If you have specified all the required information, PROLOG will find the answer as if by magic. However, it is interesting to know how it goes about coming up with a solution.

Basically PROLOG attempts to solve goals from left to right. For a given goal, PROLOG attempts to find a statement whose first term (the only term in an assertion; the term to the left of the — in a clause) can be made to match the goal. It then attempts to solve the subgoals of that statement. Of course, if the statement is an assertion, there are no subgoals. If the subgoals can be solved, PROLOG then proceeds to the next goal. If one of the subgoals cannot be solved, PROLOG backtracks and tries to find another statement whose head term matches the goal. If there are no untried statements left, PROLOG realizes it cannot solve this particular goal.

This does not necessarily mean there is no solution to your original question. If the goal PROLOG is working on is actually a subgoal of one of your original goals, there may be an alternate solution of the original goal that does not involve the failed subgoal. PROLOG will backtrack further and try to find an alternate solution; it gives up only when it can find no solution to any of your original goals.

Let us examine in more detail how PROLOG works.

Listing 1: Assertions that specify the environment. PROLOG attempts to answer questions based on facts and relations that it knows, stated in special syntax. Questions are broken into goals to be achieved from left to right.

father(bill;John).

father(John,torn).

father(bill,jane).

mother(j ane,alice).

grandmother(%x,%y)<- father(%x,%y),(father( %z,%y );mother( %z,%y)).

pretty( alice).

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Assume that the statements in listing 1 have been made. Now assume that PROLOG is asked this question:

grandfather (bill, %grandchild), pretty(%grandchild)?

Because PROLOG attempts to answer questions by solving goals one at a time from left to right, it will first attempt to solve "grandfather(bill, %grandchild)". It searches for a clause whose first term is grandfather. There is only one clause whose head term is grandfather, so PROLOG tries to match "grandfather (bill, %grandchild)" with "grandfather(%x, %y)". A match can be made by setting "%x = bill" and "%y = %grandchild". This substitution is applied to the subgoals of that statement, which may be expanded to:

father(bill, %z),(father(%z, %grandchild); mother(%z, %grandchild))

PROLOG now attempts to solve "father(bill, %z)". The first three statements have father as a head term, so PROLOG tries them one after the other. The first statement matches if "%z = John"; it is an assertion and has no subgoals. Therefore, PROLOG can proceed to the next goal in the expanded statement. Here there is a choice between "father(john, %grandchild)" and "mother(john, %grandchild)". PROLOG attempts to solve the first alternative. It tries to match "father(john, %grandchild)" with the first given statement, but fails because the first arguments do not match. It then tries the second statement, and this time succeeds with the substitution "%grandchild = torn".

Now all the goals of the expanded statement have been satisfied, so PROLOG attempts to solve the last goal of the original question. Since "%grandchild = torn", the goal is "pretty(tom)". There is only one clause whose head term is "pretty", but "pretty(tom)" does not match "pretty (alice)". At this point, PROLOG backtracks to the last place where there was a choice—between "father(john,%grandchild)" and "mother(john, %grandchild)"— and selects the alternate choice: "(mother(john, %grandchild)". This choice does not work either because the fourth statement is the only one whose head is "mother" and "mother(john, %grandchild)" cannot match "mother(jane,alice)".

So PROLOG backtracks further and tries to solve the first goal of the expanded statement again.

First, it tries to match "father(bill, %z)" with the second statement but fails. Then it tries to match "father (bill,%z)" with the third statement, and this time succeeds by setting "%z = jane". Now PROLOG attempts to solve the second part of the expanded statement, which is a choice between "father(jane, %grandchi\dy and "mother(jane, %grandchild)". Once again PROLOG attempts to solve "father(jane, %grandchild)" first but fails. Then it attempts to solve "mother(jane, %grandchild)". This time it succeeds by matching "mother (jane, %grandchild)" and setting "%grandchild = alice".

394 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 78 on inquiry card.

PROLOG now tries to solve the last goal in the original question, which is now "pretty(alice)". This goal matches the sixth statement, so "%grandchild = alice" is an answer to the original question.

Controlling Robots

Now consider how a PROLOG program could be used to control a robot. Assume that a human and a robot are inside a rocket that has landed on the surface of a planet. The rocket has an airlock. On the planet there is a building that contains rocket fuel. There is also a cave with a key to the building. The cave also contains gold. The robot is able to lift the key, the fuel, or the gold (but it cannot lift the rocket). This situation can be described in PROLOG as shown in listing 2.

The statements in listing 2 represent the state of the robot's environment. As the robot interacts with the environment, some of the statements may cease to be true. To keep the description of the environment up to date you must have a way to delete statements no longer true. PROLOG provides a built-in function, called delete, to eliminate specified statements; another built-in function, called assert, can be used to add statements.

Now you can specify commands for the robot to attempt to obey. The first command will make the robot fetch an object to a specified place (see listing 3a).

The first subgoal, "inside(%object, %place)", checks to see if the object is already where you want it, If it is, the robot does not need to do anything. If it isn't, the robot must pick up the object, move to the required place and drop it. Note that the terms "pickup(%object)", "moveto (%place)", and "drop(%object)" have been grouped together within parentheses to show that the semicolon operator applies to all of them.

In order for the robot to pick up an object (see listing 3b), the object must be liftable. The robot must move to the place where the object is in order to pick it up. Assuming that the robot can carry only one thing at a time, it must be empty-handed when it picks up an object.

Listing 2: Hypothetical environment found in a simulated space expedition. Through a series of commands specified in listing 3, a robot can be made to perform complex tasks, such as exiting the craft, and finding and returning with fuel—all with a simple instruction from the user.

inside(human,rocket). inside( robot,rocket). inside(fuel,building). inside( key,cave ). inside(gold,cave ). entrance(airlock,rocket). entrance(door,building ). entrance(hole,cave ). closed(airlock). closed(door). liftable(key). liftable(fuel). liftable(gold).

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 395

Listing 3: Fundamental commands built to control the hypothetical robot. In each case, the commands are constructed of goals and subgoals that are either basic enough for the robot to perform directly or are further broken into subgoals.

3a

fetch(%object,%place ><- inside(%object,%place);

(pickup(%obj ect),moveto(%place ),drop(%obj ect)).

3b

pickup(%object)<- liftable(%object),

inside(%object,%place),moveto( %place), emptyhanded,assert(holding(%object)).

3c

emptyhanded <- (holding(%object),drop( %object));true.

3d

drop( %object)<- delete(holding(%object)).

3e

moveto(%place)<- inside(robot,%place);

(inside(robot,%place2),leave(%place2),enter( %place)); (outside(robot),enter(%place)).

3f

leave(%place ) <- entrance(%x,%place), ((closed( %x),open(%x));true),

delete(inside(robot,%place),assert(outside(robot)), ((ho!ding(%object ),delete(inside(%object,%place)), assert(outside(%object)));true).

enter(%place ) <- entrance(%x,%place), ( (closed( %x),open(%x));true),

delete(outside(robot) ),assert( inside( robot,%place)), ((holding(%object),delete( outside( %object)), assert( inside(%object,%place )) );true ).

3g

open(door ) <- (holding(key); ( inside(key,%place),pickup(key),leave(%place ))), delete(closed(door)).

Finally, you must assert that the robot is now holding the object.

In order to be empty-handed, the robot must drop whatever it is holding (see listing 3c). If it is not holding anything, it is already empty-handed, so the built-in true function (which always succeeds) is executed.

When the robot drops something, you must delete the statement that says it is holding the object (see listing 3d).

Depending on where the robot is located initially, there are three possible actions that the robot must perform to move to a specified place (see listing 3e).

• If it is already at the specified place, it does not need to do anything.

• If it is inside some other place, it must leave that place and enter the specified place.

• If it is already outside, it must enter the specified place.

To leave a place (see listing 3f), if the entrance is closed, the robot must open the entrance. You must also remember to delete the fact that the robot is inside the

place, and assert that the robot is now outside. If the robot is holding something, you must assert that the object also moves outside. Entering a place is accomplished similarly. To open the door to the building, the robot must either be holding the key or it must pick up the key (see listing 3g). Assume the robot can open the rocket's airlock automatically:

open(airlock •- delete(closed(airlock)).

Now you can order the robot to fetch the gold to the rocket with the command:

fetch(gold,rocket)?

The robot will leave the rocket, enter the cave, pick up the gold, and return to the rocket. If you ask the robot to fetch the fuel from the building by typing:

fetch(fuel,rocket)7

396 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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the robot will leave the rocket and try to enter the building. To do this it needs the key, so it will go to the cave to get it. Once it is in the building, it will drop the key and pick up the fuel. Finally, it will return to the rocket with the fuel. At this point, the PROLOG statements describing the "environment" will be as shown in listing 4. Note that the airlock and the door to the building are left open because the robot did not bother to close them.

This robot is not very bright. If, starting with the initial situation, for instance, you ask the robot to move the gold from the cave to the building (fetch(gold, building)7), it will go to the cave, pick up the gold, and go to the building. At this point the robot realizes it needs the key to open the door, so it returns to the cave to get the key. Since it can carry only one thing at a time, it drops the gold and picks up the key. It then returns to the door, opens it, and enters the building. It now thinks it has succeeded in moving the gold to the building, but the gold is still.sitting in the cave where the robot dropped it. This problem is caused by the fact the robot may undo part of the overall goal by backtracking to accomplish a subgoal.

A Modest Proposal

It would not be too difficult to make the robot intelligent enough to handle the above problem. But instead of making the robot more intelligent, let's give it some "consciousness." Any robot worth its positronic brain must obey the three laws of robotics as postulated by Isaac Asimov (see reference 1). These laws are:

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

2. A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the first law.

3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the first or second law.

In order to obey these laws, a robot must not simply obey commands blindly. It must first determine whether it can perform the command without violating the laws.

Listing 4: Status of the hypothetical space expedition's environment after the robot has accomplished its tasks.

inside(human,rocket). inside(robot,rocket). inside(fuel,rocket). inside(gold,rocket). inside(key,building). entracefairlock,rocket). entrance(door,building). entrance(hole,cave). liftable(key). liftable(fuel). liftable(gold).

398 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 317 on inquiry card.

Listing 5: Asimov's three rules of robotics as implemented in PROLOG. These rules allow the robot to protect humans by shooting aliens, and even by injuring itself, should the situation warrant. The application of the "mini-interpreter" obey makes this a simple proposition for PROLOG.

obey((%p,%s) ) < - !,obey(%p),obey(%s). obey((%p;%s )) < - !,obey(%p);obey(%s ). obey(%goal) <- clause( %goal,%subgoals),protect( human),protect(robot),

obey(%subgoals ),!. protect(%x) <- (in_danger( %x,%danger),eliminate( %danger ));true. in_danger( %x,alien)<- not( injured( alien)),inside( alien,%place ),

inside(%x,%place). eliminate( %danger ) <,- shoot( %danger ). shoot(%x) <- %xohuman,inside(%x,%place ),moveto( %place ),assert( injured( %x)).

This is easy to do in PROLOG (statements in listing 5 are explained individually below). Rather than issuing a command such as " fetch(fuel,rocket)?" you must now tell the robot to:

obey (fetch(fuel, rocket))?

"Obey" is a "mini-interpreter" for PROLOG that checks to see whether the human or the robot needs protecting before executing the subgoals associated with a goal. (Comments in PROLOG are surrounded by /* and */.) For example:

/* If a command consists of two subcommands, execute them one after the other*/

obey((%p, %s)) — !,obey(%p),obey(%s).

The exclamation point is a signal to PROLOG that if backtracking causes a return to that point, then the parent goal should be failed immediately, rather than trying to find another solution. This is used here to insure that "obey" does not introduce any extra backtracking.

/* If the command consists of a choice between two commands, execute one or the other of them */

obey((%p;%s)) — !,obey(%p);obey(%s).

If there is only one command and also a statement that matches it, protect the human and robot and then execute the subgoals associated with the goal. Note that clause is a built-in function. "Clause(%goal,%subgoals)" will return the subgoals associated with a goal):

obey(%goal) — clause(%goal, %subgoals), protect(human),protect(robot),obey(%subgoals),!.

/* If the command is a built-in function, execute it */ obey(%p) — %p,l.

protect(%x) — (in danger(%x, % danger),

eliminate(%danger));true.

Now let there be an alien in the building who, as long as he is not injured, will attempt to injure anything in the same place as he is:

inside(alien,building).

in danger(%x,alien) — not(injured(alien)),

inside(alien, %place),inside( %x,place).

Assume also that the robot has a phasor and will use it to eliminate danger:

eliminate(% danger) — shoot(% danger).

Anything that is shot is injured. However, under no circumstances will the robot shoot a human:

shoot(%x) — %x <> human,inside(%x, %place), moveto(% place), assert(injured(%x)).

Now if you tell the robot the fetch the fuel to the rocket:

obey (f etch(f uel, rocket))?

the robot enters the building and shoots the alien in order to protect itself. The robot then carries the fuel to the rocket. If you ask the robot to shoot the human:

obey(shoot)human))?

the robot will not obey because that would violate the first law. However, if you ask the robot to shoot itself:

obey(shoot)robot))?

it will do so because the second law of robotics takes precedence over the third.

I hope that this brief introduction has given you an indication of the simplicity and power of nonprocedural languages such as PROLOG. Such languages may represent the next step in the evolution of programming languages. ■

References/Suggested Reading

1. Asimov, Isaac. /, Robot. New York: Doubleday, 1957.

2 . Kowalski, R. Logic for Problem Solving. New York: Elsevier-North

Holland Publishing Co, 1979.

3 . Pereira, L, F Pereira, and D Warren. "User's Guide to

DECsystem-10 PROLOG," 1978.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 399

A FORTH-Like Threaded Language, Part 2

Valo G Motalygo

1091 Tanland Dr, #204

Palo Alto CA 94303

Last month, we began the definition of a language called PS that has its roots in the threaded language FORTH. PS was designed to overcome some of the limitations of FORTH: in particular, its awkward approach to assembly-language definitions and its inability to accept forward references (ie: references to words that have not yet been defined). We looked at the overall structure of the PS interpreter/compiler and defined a few words. Now we will look at how PS behaves.

PS Syntax

PS, like FORTH, uses punctuation in some of its words, which makes representing them n text a difficult problem. To decrease the chance of confusion while trying not to clutter text unnecessarily, we will sparingly use braces, {}, to isolate the character string within as a PS word or phrase. Braces will be used only under the following situations:

• when the material being quoted is a phrase of PS words (eg: { 26 LOAD }or{35+ } )

• with the PS words { , } (comma), { ; } (colon), { ; } (semicolon), { ! } (exclamation point), { ' } (single quote mark), { " } (double quote mark), { / } (left bracket), and { j } (right bracket)

• with any word using the above punctuation marks (eg: { ■" V

All other PS words will be set apart by a space on either side of the word. So, in this article, braces will always signal a PS word or phrase. The braces are not part of the word or phrase, and PS words will never use braces within the body of a figure or listing.. ,.GW

An Example of PS Programming

With the information from part 1 of this article, we can encode a low-level program as a series of byte constants, mixed with names of variables, arrays, strings, labels, and some auxiliary words. PS words are given, followed by an explanation of their effect:

(Sets execute mode to construct machine-language instructions.)

ORIGIN 1111

(Starts compilation from the hexadecimal memory

location 1111.)

BCONST LDA # AD

(Defines instruction "load accumulator from memory,

direct addressing mode" as the hexadecimal constant

AD.)

BCONST STA # 8D

(Defines instruction "store accumulator in memory,

direct addressing mode" as the hexadecimal constant

8D.)

VAR SOURCE 021

(Defines a 16-bit variable called SOURCE containing

the value hexadecimal 21 after compilation.)

About the Author

Valo G Motalygo is on the staff of Ramtek Corp, and is currently working on an implementation of PS.

400 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

ARRAY DESTINATION 0100

(Defines an array called DESTINATION; it occupies

hexadecimal 100 (decimal 256) bytes.

(The effect of the above code is shown in table la.)

ORIGIN 2222

LABEL DO.SOMETHING

LDA SOURCE

(LDA compiles the hexadecimal constant AD into

location 2222, and SOURCE pushes the address of the

variable into location 2223.)

STA DESTINATION 04 +

(STA compiles the constant 8D into location 2224; the rest of the phrase pushes the address of the first element of the array onto the stack and adds 4 to it. Thus, the instruction code followed by the necessary address is compiled.)

]

(Sets compile mode.)

SOURCE @ 0 = IF ." SOURCE CONTENT IS ZERO" ELSE -> DO.SOMETHING ENDIF (At run time, this part of the program checks the contents of the variable SOURCE and jumps to the label DO.SOMETHING if the contents are nonzero. Otherwise, the message "SOURCE CONTENT IS ZERO" is displayed and execution continues. See the following section on control structures and the glossary definition of the PS word — > , pronounced "jump to.")

(Sets execute mode.) RTS

(la)

Compiled Code

Add

'ess

Dictionary

(Hexad

acima

I) Contents

of Defined Words

1111

JSR PSH8

name:

LDA

1114

AD (hexadecimal)

value:

1111

1115

JSR PSH8

name:

STA

1118

8D (hexadecimal)

value:

1115

1119

JSR PSHA

name:

SOURCE

111C

0021 (hexadecimal)

value:

1119

111E

JSR PSHA

name: value:

DESTINATION 111E

1121-1220

space for the array

name:

DO.SOMETHING

DESTINATION

value: 2222

*&*

2222 2223 2225 2226 2228 222C 222F 2232 2234 2237 223A 223C 223F 2240 2256 2259 225C

A

(lb)

G°'

A.e*v

4)

AD (LDA instruction code) 111C (address of variable SOURCE) 8D (STA instruction code) 1125 (address of the array DESTINATION JSR SOURCE (SOURCE stands for 1119) JSR @ JSR PSHN

0000 (to be pushed at execution time) JSR = JSR IFNOT

2259 (address of the false path) JSR TYPE.STRING

16 (byte count of the following string, 22 decima 2255 ASCII for "SOURCE CONTENT IS ZERO") JMP 225C (address of the code after ENDIF) JMP DO.SOMETHING (DO.SOMETHING stands for 2222) 60 (RTS instruction code)

Table 1: The representation in memory of some PS code from the beginning of this article. Table la shows the representation of two 1-byte constants, LDA and STA, the variable SOURCE, and the 256-byte array DESTINATION. PSH8, PSHA, PSHN, @, and = are labels to the PS words of the same name (defined in the PS glossary at the end of this article). Table lb shows the representation of the word DO.SOMETHING.

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("Return-from-subroutine" instruction is compiled.) (The effect of the above words is shown in table lb.)

Stack operations and control structures can now be easily used in a low-level program. You need only switch to the compile mode before the high-level part of the definition and switch back to the execute mode afterward, since the computer instructions and addresses are compiled while in execute mode. This is the principal benefit of identifying the code area with the parameter stack: in the execute mode, you can generate object code directly, instead of being at the mercy of the compiler.

When PS hits DO.SOMETHING in the execute mode, it calls the subroutine at hexadecimal address 2222; when the routine beginning at hexadecimal 2222 ends with an RTS (return-from-subroutine) instruction, control is returned to the text interpreter. If PS hits DO.SOMETHING in compile mode, it compiles JSR 2222 and increments the code pointer by 3.

Control Structures

Any system with some versatility must support conditional and iterative execution of code segments. The stack is a handy tool to pass parameters such as data or addresses, and it can also be used to pass the result of a condition test. The FORTH convention is to push zero (0000) onto the top of the stack if a condition is false and nonzero if it is true.

PS's primary conditional word is IF, which checks the top of the parameter stack for a true (nonzero) value. If the value is nonzero, the part of the program after IF is executed. Otherwise, control jumps over this section of the program. To mark the part of the program to jump to if the flag is false, the word ENDIF is used, which stores the jump address at compilation time in a location directly after IF.

The words IF and ENDIF are used as:

< check top-of-stack> IF <code executed if top is true (nonzero) > ENDIF < additional code>

If both true and false paths are required, the word ELSE may be added:

< check top-of-stack>

IF < code executed if top is true

(nonzero) >

ELSE < code executed if top is

false (zero)>

ENDIF

< additional code>

At compilation time, ELSE stores the address of its false-branch code directly after IF and informs ENDIF where to compile the address of the additional code (that is, as the address field of a JMP instruction at the end of the true-branch code). In the example compilation of an

402 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 361 on inquiry card.

I IF ... ELSE ... THEN ) construct in table lb, the code from hexadecimal 223C through 2255 is the true-branch code, the code from 2259 through 225B is the falsebranch code, the constant at 223A points to the falsebranch code, and the JMP instruction and constant at 2256 through 2258 cause the true-branch code to jump to the additional code past the ENDIF . For example, the following program:

KEY DUP 030 < OVER 039 > OR IF ." NONNUMBER KEY" ELSE ." NUMBER KEY" ENDIF

displays the message "NON-NUMBER KEY" if the ASCII code of the key pressed is less than hexadecimal 030 (the code of "0") or greater than hexadecimal 039 (the code of "9"). Otherwise, the message "NUMBER KEY" is displayed.

To repeat part of the program until a true flag is left on top of the stack, the words BEGIN and UNTIL can be used. For example:

BEGIN KEY 30 = UNTIL

loops until a zero is typed.

We can introduce all the other control structures used in FORTH. The possible implementation of the control structures in PS is described in more detail in the glossary definitions of IF , ELSE , ENDIF , BEGIN , UNTIL , AGAIN , DO , and LOOP . The computer stack is used at compilation time to pass data from the first conditional word to the following one. The computer stack is also used for loop control at run time.

[/ had some questions whether the above control constructs could be used in the definition of assemblylanguage definitions. According to the author, "The special words { BEGIN ... AGAIN j are used in exactly the same way as in high-level definitions. | IF ... ELSE ... ENDIF } or ( DO ... LOOP } can also be used as in high-level definitions if the code before IF or DO pushes the result of a comparison or loop limits, respectively, onto the parameter stack at run time." ...GW]

High-Level Programming in PS

A high-level program is constructed from the stack operations and previously defined words.

In general, to define a new word, we must switch to the compile mode and resolve forward references, if necessary. If the word to be defined was not referred to before, a new dictionary entry is made, setting the type of the word to "defined" and setting V (the dictionary entry's value field) equal to the current code pointer.

To make sure that the control structures in the definition of a new word are used properly, we also might want to clear the IF counter to zero (see the glossary definitions of the control structures). To do that, we can start a highlevel definition with:

[ LABEL <name> 0 IF-COUNTER C! ...

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or we can introduce a separate word for starting highlevel definitions. The FORTH word colon ({ : j) is used for this function.

In general, we need to end a high-level definition with an RTS instruction in order to use a high-level word as a subroutine. We can also verify that the control structures used in the high-level definition are balanced—that is, for every IF there is an ENDIF and vice versa. It is also a good idea to end by switching to the execute mode so some auxiliary actions can be performed between highlevel definitions. A special word represented by the semicolon ({ ; )) does all that. For example, in:

: TWO.PLUS.TWO 02 02 + ;

the word { : j creates a new dictionary entry for the word TWO.PLUS.TWO with its T (type) entry in the dictionary equal to "defined" and its V (value) entry equal to xxxx where xxxx is the address of the compiled code. The definition for TWO.PLUS.TWO looks like this:

JSR PSHN

0002

JSR PSHN

0002

JSR "+"

RTS

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where JSR and RTS represent machine-instruction codes, PSHN and "+" represent the addresses of the subroutines PSHN and + , and RTS is compiled by the word j ; J.

The word ( : | is not special, for it is executed in execute mode, and j ; ) is special, since it must be executed while in compile mode.

To define a special word, we could simply set the type of the most recently defined word to "special." But it is better to have a separate word similar to { : j to prevent forward references to special words. Indeed, it does not make sense to refer to an undefined special word, because special words are executed immediately whenever they are hit by the PS. For example, the special words | [ ] (set execute mode) and { ] ] (set compile mode) can be defined as follows:

00 MODE.FLAG C!

01 MODE.FLAG C!

where :: is a word that denotes the beginning of a special word definition and MODE.FLAG is a variable checked by the text interpreter every time a new word is read from the text.

Conclusions

The main purpose of this article is to attract attention to FORTH and some problems that are not clearly solved in FORTH.

The solutions outlined here can be used to design new general-purpose programming systems. A problemoriented system could be based on a general-purpose one and still retain all its capabilities.

Hardware designers could also benefit from FORTH concepts. If an instruction set included stack operations such as DUP , + , @ , and ( ! j, programming efforts would be drastically reduced because it is nicer to work with the stack data than to do nit-picking with registers. Furthermore, the size of an operating system and its applications would be significantly reduced because 1-byte instruction codes could replace 3-byte calls to subroutines responsible for basic data processing like arithmetic, logic, fetch/store, and input/output operations.

The essential differences between PS and FORTH are that PS generates object codes (all PS words are machinelanguage subroutines), allows forward references, allows jumps to labels, and allows stack operations and highlevel words to be used in the low-level code. Structurally, the PS dictionary is separate from the code. PS uses the free memory as a parameter stack and uses the computer stack for compilation of the control structures and for loop control.

The common features of PS and FORTH are use of the dictionary, stack operations, control structures, and the same notation for most auxiliary words.

PS's assembler is actually a set of byte constants that represents the instruction set of the computer. This feature significantly increases portability of the system

404

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 41 on inquiry card.

Circle 296 on inquiry card.

and facilitates cross-compilation of programs written in PS.

It is difficult to think of a simpler general-purpose system than PS. It is actually an improved assembly language facilitating usage of the hardware capabilities. The main advantage of multilevel software is that, while equally convenient and portable as high-level software, it benefits from all the hardware potential. The more sophisticated the hardware, the more interesting the things that can be done with it. My experience with FORTH shows that software-hardware relations should be as tight as possible. (An interesting example of a system (E-machine) with a distributed short-term memory, in which hardware is actually inseparable from software, is described by Victor Eliashberg in "The concept of E-machine and the problem of context-dependent behaviour," TXU 40-302 US Copyright Office, 1980, pages 101 to 112. )■

References

1. FORTH Glossary (compiled by Gregg Williams). BYTE, August 1980, pages 186 through 196.

2. James, J S. "What Is FORTH? A Tutorial Introduction." BYTE, August 1980, pages 100 through 126.

3. Rather, E D and C H Moore. "The FORTH Approach to Operating Systems." ACM 1976 Proceedings, October 1976, pages 233 through 240.

PS Glossary

The glossary consists of two parts: stack operations and auxiliary words. The words in the first part are equivalent to their counterparts in FORTH; they are provided for readers not familiar with FORTH.

The notation used in some definitions should be interpreted similarly to the following example: "nl n2 — n3" means "before the word is executed, n2 is on top of the stack and nl is immediately below it; after the word is executed, both nl and n2 have been replaced by n3." (The values nl, n2, and n3 are 16-bit data.) This notation says nothing about what (if anything) is under these entries on the stack.

Stack Operations

DUP — Duplicates parameter stack. nl — nl nl

the 16-bit number on top of the

DROP — Drops the number from the top of the stack. nl — (empty)

SWAP — Exchanges the top two numbers on the stack. nl n2 — n2 nl

OVER — Places the copy of the second number onto the top of the parameter stack. nl n2 — nl n2 nl

ROT — Rotates the top three numbers, placing the third one

onto the top.

nl n2 n3 — n2 n3 nl

+ (add) — nl n2 — n3, where n3

nl + n2.

Continued on page 406

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 405

Continued from page 405:

- (subtract), * (multiply), and / (divide) — rtl n2 — n3,

analogous to the word + , above.

AND (logical "and") — nl n2 — n3, where n3 is the bitwise logical "and" of nl and n2.

OR (logical "or") — nl n2 — n3, where n3 is the bitwise logical "or" of nl and n2.

NOT (logical "not") — nl — n2, where n2 is the one's complement of nl.

= (equals) — nl n2 - f, where f is 0001 if nl = n2, or 0000 otherwise.

> (greater than) — nl n2 — f, where i is 0001 if nl > n2, or 0000 otherwise.

< (less than) — nl n2 — i, where f is 0001 if nl < n2, or

0000 otherwise.

@ (fetch) — nl — n2, where n2 is the 16-bit number held in the bytes at addresses nl and nl + 1.

[ ! ) (store) — nl n2 — (empty), where the 16-bit number nl is stored at the address n2. The numbers nl and n2 are removed from the stack after the operation is performed.

C@ (fetch a character) — nl — OOxx, where xx is the 8-bit contents of the address nl.

1 C! ] (store a character) — nl n2 — (empty), where the 8 least-significant bits of nl are stored at the address n2.

( +! ) (plus-store) — nl n2 — (empty), where nl is added to the 16-bit number held in the bytes at addresses n2 and n2 + 1.

KEY — Waits until the next terminal key is struck and pushes its ASCII code (xx) onto the top of the parameter stack, (empty) — OOxx

EMIT — OOxx — (empty), where the ASCII equivalent of xx is transmitted to the display, the printer, or some other selected output device.

CR (carriage return) — The same as OD EMIT where hexadecimal OD is the ASCII code for a carriage return.

Auxiliary Words

[Editor's Note: These words are unique to PS and do not behave as their FORTH equivalents. Like all PS words, these are actually machine-language subroutines that end with a return-from-subroutine instruction. While they are executing, the return stack of the microprocessor being used

contains the return address of the current subroutine—in other words, the return address points to the next byte after the call of the PS word being executed. Sometimes, the PS word currently executing will manipulate or use this value.... GW]

ORIGIN (special word) — Used as \ORIGIN nnnnj. Takes the following word, converts it to a 16-bit number, and sets the code pointer equal to this number.

| (special word—compiles an 8-bit number) — Used as (# nn). Converts the following word to a number and pushes its 8 least-significant bits into the code. Increments the code pointer by 1.

NUMBER — // the next word read from the input stream starts with a 0 or the minus sign, converts it to a 16-bit integer. In execute mode, pushes this number onto the stack as a parameter. In compile mode, compiles the sequence JSR PSHN nnnn, where nnnn is the 16-bit converted signed integer.

PSHN (push number) — Pushes the contents of the return address (a 16-bit number) into the code and increments the return address by 2. Compiled by NUMBER.

LINK — Pushes the value of the V field into the code and sets the V field of the word to the code pointer decremented by 2. Used to link references to an undefined word, as shown in part 1 of the article.

RESOLVE — Resolves forward references to the word being defined, sets the type of the word to "defined," and sets the V field of the word equal to the code pointer. Used to store the value of the word being defined into locations where this word has already been referenced.

: (defines a high-level word) — Reads the next word, sets IF counter to 0, and switches to compile mode. If the word has been previously used, resolves forward references; if it has not, makes a new dictionary entry. In either case, sets its V field equal to the value of the code pointer and sets the type to "defined."

; (special word—end of a colon definition) — Compiles an RTS instruction, switches to execute mode, verifies that the control structures are balanced—that the IF counter is equal to 0—and generates an error message if it is not.

:: (defines a special word) — Reads the next word, sets IF counter to 0, switches to compile mode, makes a new entry in the dictionary for the word, sets its T (type) field to "special," sets its V (value) field to the value of the code pointer.

IF (special word) — Increments the IF counter, compiles the instruction JSR IFNOT, pushes the value of the current code pointer onto the computer stack, pushes a temporary dummy address of 0000 into the code.

406 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

Circle 300 on inquiry card.

IFNOT — // the top of the parameter stack is 0, jumps to the address specified by the 2 bytes pointed to by the return address. Otherwise, increments the return address by 2 and returns. Compiled by IF and UNTIL.

ELSE (special word) — Checks that the IF counter is greater than 0. compiles JMP 0000, stores the value of the code pointer into the 2-byte location pointed to by the address on the top of the stack (left by the previous IF statement), and pushes the code pointer decremented by 2 onto the computer stack.

ENDIF (special word) — Checks that the IF counter is greater than 0, decrements it, and stores the code pointer into the 2-byte location pointed to by the address on the top of the stack (left by the previous IF or ELSE statement).

BEGIN (special word) — Increments the IF counter and pushes the value of the code pointer onto the computer stack.

AGAIN (special word) — Verifies that the IF counter is greater than 0, decrements it, compiles a ]MP instruction, and pushes the address from the computer stack (left there by the previous BEGIN) into the code.

UNTIL (special word) — Verifies that the IF counter is greater than 0, decrements it, compiles JSR IFNOT, and pushes the address from the computer stack (left by the previous BEGIN) into the code.

DO (special word) — Used as ( n m DO ... LOOP ), with the initial value of the index n and loop limit m. Compiles the instruction JSR RUN. TIME.DO (which pushes n and m at run time from the parameter stack onto the computer stack), pushes the code pointer onto the computer stack, and increments the IF counter.

RUN.TIME.LOOP — Increments n (see the previous definition). If n = m (both numbers are on the computer stack), increments the return address by 2 and returns. If n < m, jumps to the address specified by the 2 bytes pointed to by the return address. Compiled by LOOP.

LOOP (special word) — Checks that the IF counter is greater than 0, decrements it, compiles JSR RUN. TIME.LOOP, and pushes the address from the computer stack (left by the previous DO) into the code.

LABEL (special word) — Reads the next word. If the word has been previously used, resolves forward references; if it has not, makes a new dictionary entry. In either case, sets its V field to the value of the code pointer and sets the type to "defined."

— > (special word) — Reads the next word and pushes a JMP instruction into the code. If the word is undefined but previously used, links this forward reference to the previous ones. If it is a new word, makes an entry, sets the type to "undefined," sets the V field to the value of the code pointer, and pushes 0000 into the code. If it is a defined word, pushes

Continued on page 408

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Continued from page 407:

the value of the V field into the code.

PSHN (push number) — Pushes the contents of the return address (16-bit data) onto the parameter stack and drops the return address from the computer stack. Compiled by CONST.

PSH8 (push 8-bit data) — The same as PSHN, but an 8-bit quantity is pushed onto the parameter stack and drops the return address from the computer stack. Compiled by BCONST.

PSHA (push address) — Pushes the return address onto the parameter stack and drops the return address from the computer stack. Compiled by VAR.

VAR (variable) — Used as { VAR <name> nnnn ) or [ VAR <name> § nn ). Reads the next word. If it has been previously used, resolves forward references; if it has not, makes a new dictionary entry. In either case, sets the type to "defined," sets its V field to the value of the code pointer, and compiles the instructions JSR PSHA.

CONST (constant) — Used as ( CONST <name> nnnn j. Reads the next word. If it has been previously used, resolves forward references; if it has not, makes a new dictionary entry. In either case, sets the type to "defined," sets its V field to the value of the code pointer, and compiles the instructions JSR PSHN.

BCONST (byte constant) — Used as | BCONST <name> § nn j. Reads the next word. If it has been previously used, resolves forward references; if it has not, makes a new dictionary entry. In either case, sets the type to "defined," sets

the V field to the value of the code pointer, and compiles the instructions JSR PSH8.

ARRAY — Used as [ ARRAY <name> nnnn \. Reads the next word. If it has been previously used, resolves forward references; if it has not, makes a new dictionary entry. In either case, sets the type to "defined," sets the V field equal to the value of the code pointer, compiles the instructions JSR PSHA, reads the next word, converts it to a number, and increments the code pointer by this number.

| " j (special word) — Reads the text from the input stream until another quote is hit and compiles the following: < byte count> < the string of characters just entered>.

TYPE.STRING — Types a string located at the return address and increments the return address by the byte count plus 1 and returns. This word is compiled by the word "dotquote" 0 ." \) before Kbyte count> <string>.

." (special word) — Reads the text from the input stream until a quote (") is hit. If PS is in execute mode, types the string— that is, sends it to the printer or other display device. If PS is in compile mode, compiles the instructions ]SR TYPE.STRING <byte count> <string> (this will type the string at run time). An example is | ." IMMEDIATELY PRINT THIS SENTENCE" |.

| [ ) (special word) — Sets the system variable MODE.FLAG to 00 to signal that the system is now in the execute mode.

I ] ) (special word) — Sets the system variable MODE.FLAG to 01 to signal that the system is now in the compile mode.

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Languages Forum

A View from

the Lectern: What's

Wrong with Technical

Writing Today?

Dr Carol Barnum

Department of English and History

Southern Technical Institute

Marietta GA 30060

Last year, BYTE Editor in Chief Chris Morgan spoke out on the topic "What's Wrong with Technical Writing Today?" (December 1980 BYTE, page 6). As a technical writer and, more importantly, as a professor of technical writing at a four-year engineering-technology college, I read his editorial with a great deal of interest and agreement. What follows is a view from the lectern: in other words, what's wrong with technical writing today as I see it from the college classroom.

Morgan's Laws

Everything that Mr Morgan mentioned as essential to technical writing is in the typical college-level technical writing course. What Mr Morgan calls "knowing your audience" instructors call "audience analysis." What Mr Morgan calls his Laws comprise the fundamentals for any technical writing text, except that he expresses them with a great deal more succinctness and humor than do most textbooks. While I agree wholeheartedly with his Laws, I'll expand on them a bit before addressing the central question of his editorial.

Morgan's Law #1: No Writer Ever Got Shot Down for Writing Too Clearly. Corollary 1.1: Nor Did Any Writer Ever Get Shot Down for Writing Too Simply. Many people falsely think that they need to sound erudite and learned (read "pompous and unintelligible") for fear of being pedestrian and primitive (read "clear and concise"). All too often writing is peppered with fancy five-dollar words when the simple fifty-cent variety does the job more effectively. We can talk about "readability formulas," and there are several (including those of Rudolf Resch and Robert Gunning), but all they do is show the writer whether he is writing on a level that bypasses most of his readers.

Morgan's Law §2: The Beginning is Half the Thing. Corollary 2.1: The Summary is the Major Thing. While it

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Languages Forum.

only represents one-tenth or less of the report, it contains the seeds of the entire work, including the conclusion or recommendation, if one is required. Everyone reads the summary; then the audience picks and chooses what it needs from the rest of the report. Yet how many technical reports, memos, or articles contain that essential summary up front where it belongs? And how many times have you had to wade through the entire report to see what the results are?

Morgan's Law #3: Avoid the Penguin Syndrome. (Tell your readers what they need to know, and no more.) Corollary 3.1: Then Use Appropriate Headings to Tell Them What to Expect. These are, or should be, the road markers to the report or article. Their purpose is to let your reader know before he reads your report what information is contained in each section and whether that information is important to him. Many reports have headings but few have enough to keep the reader on course.

Morgan's Law #4: Writing is Nonlinear. (Absolutely.) Corollary 4.1: Who really writes an outline? I don't, and I suspect that many others who write don't either. But everyone is afraid to admit it, thinking his writing will be labeled disorganized if he doesn't have a clearly planned outline before he writes. Case in point: I'm presently typing this article as the thoughts come to me. Sure, I'm using Mr Morgan's article as a starting point (in much the same way that one might use data or research or personal experience in writing), but beyond the notion that I have something to say, I'm not sure yet how it will all get said or where it will end up. Later, I will surely cut and paste, taking out some parts and expanding others, but the piece will remain essentially as it is, which confirms Morgan's Law #4.

Very few people know exactly where they're going until they get going; then the road bends and curves and they steer along it following the natural turns. Yet almost all the textbooks include and emphasize outlining (the highly structured, traditional kind) as the way to plan one's technical writing. True, one needs some sense of direction or purpose in writing, but the first draft should be given a mind of its own.

Morgan's Law §5: (The Three Foot Rule): Don't Write Anything Unless You have a Dictionary and a Thesaurus Within Three Feet of You. Corollary 5.1: Having Them Nearby Is the First Step; Using Them is the Second. Proximity of reach does not guarantee use.

Corollary 5.2: Use the Thesaurus with Caution. You must know the word you're substituting another word for. Otherwise, how can you be sure the substituted word is an accurate synonym? Keep in mind, too, that the thesaurus is more often abused than correctly used. Some writers like to "upgrade" their vocabulary, picking out fancy-sounding words for the perfectly simple and clear ones. You might try substituting a good handbook of grammar for the thesaurus and make that your number

410 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 151 on inquiry card.

Languages Forum.

two source book.

Morgan's Law §6: Don't Be Afraid to Be Interesting. No addendum needed!

What's Wrong with Technical Writing?

With Morgan's Laws as a reference point, I'll now address, from a classroom perspective, Mr Morgan's initial question—What's Wrong With Technical Writing Today?

What's basically wrong is that students aren't interested in technical writing—at least not while they're students. What they are interested in is technology and science and computers and engineering. BYTE and Omni sell out each month in the campus bookstore, and issues of the student newspaper focus on different technical problems—such as the environment, economics, alternate energy sources, and nuclear power. But students hate to write, they cannot write well or easily, and they think they'll never have to write in "the real world." Their favorite line is: "Why do I need to know grammar or how to spell? My secretary will take care of all that."

Today's Technical Students

Technical students are very curious about things

mechanical and mathematical, but they hate and are afraid to put pen to paper. They have good reason for both emotions. Instead of encouraging good writing most high schools, unknowingly, do the opposite. In the permissive 1970s, the schools stopped requiring English courses beyond the ninth grade or adopted "creative" writing courses that asked students to emote rather than denote. These touch-and-feel creative seminars ignored discrepancies in grammar, syntax, and spelling for fear of alienating the student. And students do not read. Their vocabularies are limited by their exposure to television and rock music.

When these students reach college, they're knocked out of their chairs during the first week of Freshman Composition (FC) with Fs on their papers for all the things they were never told or didn't bother to remember in high school. Other students don't make it directly to FC but must first master remedial programs, from which only a limited number escape. Those who do and then survive FC move into the upper levels of academe, where they take Technical Writing along with other technical courses. At this point, the students feel even less sure of their writing abilities and less willing to believe that they'll ever need to do anything so abhorrent as write memos, articles, and reports.

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Languages Forum.

In the Classroom

So what happens in the classroom? Not much until the first papers are returned. In my technical writing class, I spend the first three weeks talking about the language and style of technical writing, the types, the methods of organization based on proper audience analysis, and the need for conciseness in writing and meticulousness in editing and proofreading. I entertain with examples of horrid writing, I instruct with handouts of organizational patterns, and I inform with case problems which students work in class and which we then discuss. Finally, they write their first report. Almost all fail.

Now they want to listen, but not for the value that such information will provide in their future careers. Rather, they listen so that they can make the grade that will get them out of the course. And in the evaluations that I receive at the end of the quarter, they repeatedly complain that I require too much work for a three-hour course.

Teacher as Missionary

I, of course, pay no attention to my students' complaints, for I'm on a mission of sorts. I have them for only one quarter and then for only three hours a week for ten weeks. After they leave my class and the college, they will become the engineers and technologists of the future. They will build the technologies that I will use. They will implement the plans; they will set the procedures. And their efforts, their knowledge, their expertise is only as good as their ability to express it accurately and effectively and clearly to others. They don't know that, but I do. And that's the problem with technical writing today, as I see it.

Later, the students—now employees of companies and/or employers—discover this fact for themselves. They do have to write on the job—more than they realized or feared. But they don't have the skills to do the job well, and they can't remember what they learned in college because it didn't matter then. Some companies—more and more—recognize the problem and hire consultants to set up seminars to teach their people the skills they need. Others send them to an increasing number of management writing courses and continuing education programs.

And so, the process begins again. Only this time, it's for real.B

Languages Forum is a feature which is intended as an interactive dialog about the design and implementation of languages for personal computing. Statements and opinions submitted to this forum can be on any subject relevant to its purpose of fostering discussion and communication among BYTE readers on the subject of languages. We ask that all correspondents supply their full names and addresses to be printed with their commentaries. We also ask that correspondents supply their telephone numbers, which will not be printed.

412 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 298 on inquiry card.

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Technical Forum

Where Am I?

A Proposal for a

New Microprocessor Instruction

Dr S S Reddi, 1000 W MacArthur #49, Santa Ana CA 92707

Few contemporary computers provide a single explicit instruction that returns its present location in memory. It is possible to find the address where an instruction is located by making a subroutine call and popping up the stack register, but this may require more than three instructions. When executed, a WAI (Where Am I?) instruction could leave the value of the PC (program counter) in the accumulator. Digital Equipment Corporation's VAX 11/780, which treats the PC as one of its registers, allows moving the value in the PC with the MOVE instruction, but the result is unpredictable. This is possibly due to the look-ahead feature it employs, and a similar situation could arise in computers that use pipelining.

With a WAI instruction, I could write relocatable machine code more easily on my Apple II. When I write a machine-language program starting at address 300 (hexadecimal) and need to store data (without using the stack facility) or refer to a subroutine starting 60 bytes after the starting address, the code no longer becomes relocatable, for, obviously, one has to use statements like JSR $#360, and this code cannot be located starting at, say, 400. (As mentioned before, one can implement WAI by making a subroutine call and using the stack pointer—this is the solution proposed in the Apple Reference Manual). Also, when circuit cards containing relocatable code in ROM (read-only memory) are plugged into one of the Apple's slots, they may need to know where they have been installed—without the user intervening—so that they may place appropriate address values in proper processor memory locations.

There must be a reason for the absence of this instruction. I hope other BYTE readers will present pros and cons for this instruction based on their hardware and software experience. ■

Technical Forum is a feature intended as an interactive dialog on the technology of personal computing. The subject matter is open-ended, and the intent is to foster discussion and communication among readers of BYTE. We ask that all correspondents supply their full names and addresses to be printed with their commentaries. We also ask that correspondents supply their telephone numbers, which will not be printed.

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Programming Quickies

WRITELONG

A Pascal Simulation of Long-Integer Output

Daniel S Hunt

822 Green Valley

Newbury Park CA 91320

Imagine you are programming output for a spread sheet. Wishing to depict the product-by-product sales of apples, oranges, and pears in an analysis of monthly sales of S & S Fruit Stands Inc, you write in Pascal:

for i : = jan to dec do

write(round(apples[i]):10);

But S & S is a big company. Their monthly sales exceed the maximum integer possible in the target processor, which is 16 bits (the range -32768 to 32767). So the program crashes if you use the round function. If you don't use the round function, your output shows apple sales with a decimal point followed by zero, as in 55,765.0 apples.

Procedure WRITELONG will solve the problem if the Pascal version used does not have long integer conversion. As input it accepts a real number, "x", and a fieldlength specification, "flen". It splits the real number into two parts. A division and truncation, followed by remultiplication and subtraction from the original number, isolates the right part of the number from the left.

For a 6.5-digit precision floating-point number, the right part is fixed at three digits. If rounding of the right part yields a number longer than three digits, overflow is carried into the left (atrunc := atrunc + 1), and the right is reset. Occurrence of zeroes in the right part is filled in an if... then... else sequence that evaluates number ranges. For greater precisions, the right part could be extended to four digits, along with the if...then...else sequence.

The banishing of the decimal point has other possible solutions. A real-to-string conversion routine may prove more useful if you wish to position commas in the output. WRITELONG, however, has one small advantage: the algorithm depends upon neither the host processor nor a specific implementation of Pascal.■

414 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 371 on inquiry card.

Circle 244 on inquiry card.

Listing 1: Example of an application of the WRITELONG procedure in Pascal.

program longtest; var

flen : integer;

x : real;

f : text;

s : string;

{format field width} {real 6.5-dlglt num} {text file for l/o } {file / device name}

procedure wrltelong(x : real; flen : Integer);

{left and right parts of x } {integerized parts of x }

{IIAXINT - 1}

areal, breal : real; atrunc, brnd : integer;

begin

if x <= 32767.0 then

write(f.round(x):flen) else

begin

{get trunc of left part} areal := x / 1000.0; atrunc := trunc(areal);

{get round of right part} areal := 1000.0 * atrunc; breal := x - areal; brnd := round(breal);

if brnd > 999 then begin

{carry overflow to left} atrunc := atrunc + 1; {reset right} brnd := brnd - 1000 end;

{write left part} write(f.atrunc:(flen-3));

(fill and write right part} if brnd >= 100 then

wrlte(f.brnd) else

If (brnd >= 10) and (brnd <= 99) then write(f,'0'.brnd) else

if (brnd >- 1) and (brnd <= 9) then wrlte(f,'00',brnd) else

write(f,'000'); end;{>32767}

end; {wrltelong}

begin s := 'COM:'; assign(f,s); rewrtte(f);

{filename - CP!I output to console} {Pascal MTPL'JS fcb assignnent }

writeln;

writeln('L0NG INTEGER FORMAT OF REAL NUMBER');

repeat

write(f,'Enter X ');

readln(x);

write('Format length ');

readln(flen);

writeln(f,'SCALE:');

writeln(f,'123456789x123456789x123456789x'); writelong(x,flen); %iriteln(f ); until x < 1.0; end.

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Circle 294 on inquiry card.

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Ohio: 216/464-6688

Listing 1 continued from page 95:

0370

EB

a

XCHG

0371

E9

a

a; a; a;

PCHL

0372 0373 0375 0377 037A 037D

037E 037E 0380 03A9 03AB 03D4 03EF 03F1 041A 041C

0<»30 0431 0432 0435 0437 0439 043B

F3

3E40 D306 21 03 CD 04 C9

7E 7A

ODOA

0D0A0

ODOA

0DOA0

0D0A0

ODOA

0DOA0

ODOA

OD0A0

;JMP TO EVENT PRGM

3;********************************************

a;

3;0VERFL0W ROUTINE: DISABLES INTERRUPTS AND 3;CL0CK, OUTPUTS MESSAGE TO CONSOLE AND RETURNS

a; a;

3;

aOVFLOW: DI

a MVI A.40H

a OUT 6

3 LXI H...MESS

a CALL MESS0UT

a RET

a;

3..MESS: .ASCIZ /

a

DISABLE INTERRUPTS DISARM SYSTEM CLOCK

SEND MESSAGE

92A2A2A3

a

953414D3 90909203

a

92A2A2A3

a o a/

a;

**************************************

SAMPLING ABORTED:

PROCESSOR TOO SLOW! BUFFER OVERFLOW !!!

**************************************

041F

B7

0420

2809

0422

23

0423

CB3E

0425

2B

0426

CB1E

0428

3D

0429

20F7

042B

7E

042C

EE80

042E

77

042F

C9

D5 El

11 0137

EDAO

EDAO

EDAO

2B

.INSERT B:FNXN ***************

* *

* FNXN *

* * ***************

a; a; a; a; a; a;

3;THIS SR TAKES A 16-BIT NUMBER AND DIVIDES 3;IT BY 2*CREG A) NUMBER OF TIMES. ON ENTERING, 3;THIS SR EXPECTS HL TO POINT TO THE LOW BYTE 3;0F THE 2-BYTE NUMBER. HIGH BYTE IS ASSUMED 3;T0 BE AT (HL+1). RETURN IS MADE WITH HL a;POINTING TO THE LOW BYTE. SIGN BIT OF LOW 3;BYTE IS COMPLEMENTED BEFORE RETURN.

a;

3FNXN:

a

.LOOP:

CMPL:

ORA

JR2

INX

SRLR

DCX

RARR

DCR

JRNZ

MOV

XRI

MOV

RET

..CMPL

H

M

H

M

A

..LOOP

A,M

128D

M,A

;PR CODE=0?

DIVIDE BY TWO

DIVIDE COMPL

AGAIN? SIGN BIT

.INSERT B:S$INIT ;*************************************

;* *

;* SAMPLING INITIATOR *

;* *

;*************************************

iTHIS ROUTINE INITIALIZES THE INTERRUPT ;HANDLER, CLEARS THE TEMP BUFFERS, SETS ;UP THE APPROPRIATE C0UNTER5, ENABLES ;INTERRUPT5 AND THEN RETURNS. THE INTRRPT ;VECT0R JAMMED ONTO THE BUS IS PRESUMED TO ;BE OFFH.

(REGISTERS ARE NOT PRESERVED.

;WHEN CALLLED, THIS SR EXPECTS REGS DE ;T0 CONTAIN THE STARTING ADDR OF A TABLE (CONTAINING THESE PARAMETERS IN THIS (ORDER:

a a

a; ; 3;BYTE 0

:# CHANNELS TO SAMPLE (STARTING ; AT 030Q)

;BYTE 1 :tt INTERRUPTS PER SAMPLE (BYTE 2 :tt SAMPLES PER DATA POINT

a

a

a

aiNiT

a

a

a

a

a

a

PUSH

D

POP

H

LXI

D

CHNL

LDI

LDI

LDI

DCX

H

TRANSFER PARAMETERS TO INTERNAL LOC

CHNL

8 INTRPTS/SAMPLE

8 SAMPLES/DATA PT

INITIALIZE SAMPLE CNTR

416 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 94 on inquiry card.

Listing 7 continued: 0*3C EDAO

□ 43E

0*3F 0**2

0*** 0**7 0**9 0**B 0**C 0**D

0**F 0*5! 0*5* 0*56 0*59

0*5A 0*5B 0*5C 0*5D 0*5E 0*60 0*62 0*6* 0*66 0*67

D9 3A *7 D9

0 138

2A 0183

0620

3E00

77

23

10FC

ED*6

21 0018

3EC3

II 0 18E

77

23

73

23

72

3E50

D306

3EC0

D306

FB

C9

LDI

EXX

LDA MOV EXX

LHLD MVI MVI LOOP: MOV INX DJNZ

INTSS B,A

NTMPAD

B.32D

A,0

M,A

H

..LOOP

SET UP INTRPT CNTR

INITIALIZE BUFFERS WITH 00

LOOP TILL DONE

SET UP INTERRUPT JUMP ADDRESS. FLAG JUMPERED TO VI3.

ASSUMES CLOCK

a

a;

a

a

a

a

a;

a

a

a

a.

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a;

.INSERT B:P$INIT 3;XXXXXXXXXXXXX*XXX**XXXXXXX*XXXXXXXXXXXXXX*

a;* x

3;X PROCESSOR INITIALIZER #

3;* x

a;xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx*

a;

3;0N ENTRY, THIS SR EXPECTS REG DE TO CONTAIN 3;THE STARTING ADDRESS OF A TABLE CONTAINING, IN 3;THIS SEQUENCE: 3;

IM0

INTRPT MODE = 2

LXI

H

18H

FILL IN JMP INSTR

MVI

A

0C3H

LXI

D

INTHLD

MOV

M

A

INX

H

MOV

M

E

INX

H

MOV

M

D

MVI

A

50H

RESET CLOCK FLAG

OUT

6

MVI

A

0C0H

ARM CLOCK INTRPT

OUT

6

EI

ENABLE INTERRUPTS

RET

AND RETURN

a;

BYTE

0

PROCESS CODE tUSED BY "FNXN" TO

3;

DETERMINE HOW MANY HALVINGS TO

a; a,

DO

a, a,

BYTE

1

tt OF PROGRAMMED EVENTS

a;

a; a; a; a; a; a, a, a;

3;

BYTES

2,3

TIME FOR EVENT #1 (ttDATA PTS)

BYTES

*,5

ADDR OF PRGM EXECUTING EVENT tt 1

BYTES

6,7

TIME FOR EVENT #2

BYTES

8,9

ADDR OF PRGM EXECUTING EVENT #2

...ETC... FOR ALL EVENT TIMES AND PRGM ADDR'S

a; a;

REGISTERS ARE

NOT PRESERVED;

a;

PARAMETERS FROM THE TABLE ARE INSERTED BY THIS

3;

ROUTINE INTO

INTERNAL LOCATIONS OF PROCSR

a;

FOR APPROPRIATE DATA PROCESSING AND TIMING

a; a,

3F

FUNCTIONS.

0*68

D5

SINIT:

PUSH

D ;TRANSFER PARAMETERS

0*69

E1

a

POP

H ;TO INTERNAL TABLES

0*6A

11 013B

a

LXI

D.DIVSR;

0*6D

EDAO

a

LDI

PROCESS CODE

0*6F

7E

a

MOV

A,M

0*70

EDAO

a

LDI

N$EVTS

0*72

87

a

ADD

A

FORM BYTE COUNTER

0*73

87

a

ADD

A

(-**N$EVTS)

0*7*

0600

a

MVI

B,0

PUT IN BC

0*76

*F

a

MOV

C,A

0*77

EDBO

a a

LDIR

TRANSFER TIMES AND ADRR'S FOR ALL EVENTS

0*79

C9

a

RET

.INSERT B:MESSOUT a;x**«*xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx*xxxxxx**x 3;X x

a;* MESSOUT *

3;» *

a;xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx*

a;

3;THIS SUBROUTINE OUTPUTS A MESSAGE TO THE 3;CONSOLE USING THE DOS 'COUT' ROUTINES AND a;RETURNS CONTROL TO THE CALLING PROGRAM. 3;THE SUBROUTINE EXPECTS HL TO HOLD THE

Listing 1 continued on page 418

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 417

Circle 102 on inquiry card.

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418 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Listing 1 continued:

a;ADDRES5 OF THE MESSAGE WHICH MUST BE 3;TERMINATED BY A NULL CHARACTER. 3;REGISTERS A,B,H,L ARE ALTERED IN THIS 3;R0UTINE. 3;

a; a; ac a;

SYMBOL

TABLE:

200D

OUT =

200DH

•

047A

7E

a;

3MESS0UT

:M0V

A,M

GET CHARACTER

047B

B7

a

0RA

A

NULL CHARACTER?

047C

C8

a

RZ

YES,RETURN

047D

47

a

MOV

B,A

B< = A

047E

3E00

a

MVI

A,00

CLEAR ACC

0480

CD

200D

a

CALL

C0UT

NO, OUT TO CRT

0483

23

a

INX

H

INCR POINTER

0484

C3

047A

a

JMP

MESS0UT

LOOP TILL NULL

.INSERT B:DATWR

a;** **

a;** DATWR **

3;** *#

a;****#********#*«****#*******#**##**#****

a;

3;THIS ROUTINE WRITES DATA OUT TO DISK 1 USING 3;THE PREVIOUSLY ESTABLISHED POINTERS OF THE a;UTILITY PROGRAMS "PR0CSR" AND "INTHDLR". 3;IT PLACES ((CHANNELS AND ftDATA POINTS AT THE 3;BEGINNING OF THE FILE (E.G. tCHNLS IN'OFFD; 3;BUFFER STARTS AT 1000H). 3;

3;AFTER WRITING OUT THE FILE (USING "FWRITE") 3;THIS SR REINITIALIZES THE POINTERS AND a;INCREMENTS BYTE 8 OF THE FILENAME. INTRRPTS 3;ARE DISABLED ON ENTERING THIS SR AND SHOULD 3;BE ENABLED AFTER RETURN IF NECESSARY.

a;

3;CL0CK FLAG IS CLEARED BEFORE RETURN. 3;0NLY THE IX AND IX REGISTERS 3;ARE PRESERVED. 3;

0487

F3

3DATWR:

DI

STOP INTERRUPTS

0488

2A 017F

a

LHLD

MBUFPT

CALCULATE ((DATA PTS +3

048B

ED5B 0I7D

a

LDED

BFSTRT

048F

IB

a

DCX

D

0490

1B

a

DCX

D

0491

IB

a

DCX

D

0492

B7

a

ORA

A

0493

ED52

a

DSBC

D

0495

E5

a

PUSH

H

SAVE

:ILE SIZE

0496

2B

a

DCX

H

CALCULA1

0497

2B

a

DCX

H

0498

2B

a

DCX

H

0499

EB

a a

XCHG

HL < = DE < =

IBFSTRT] -3 ftDATA PTS

049A

3A 0137

a

LDA

CHNL

STORE

ttCHNL

049D

77

a

MOV

M,A

049E

23

a

INX

H

049F

72

a

MOV

M,D

STORE

HIGH BYTE OF

04A0

23

a

INX

H

ftDATA

POINTS

04A1

73

a a

MOV

M,E

STORE ttDATA

LOW BYTE OF POINTS

04A2

2B

a

DCX

H

04A3

2B

a

DCX

H

04A4

EB

a

XCHG

04A5

Et

a a

POP

H

HL < = DE < =

ttDATA PTS +3 [BFSTRT] -3

a

NOW CAL(

04A6

7D

a

MOV

A,L

04A7

B7

a

ORA

A

04A8

2801

a

JRZ

. .NOAD

04AA

24

a

INR

H

04AB 04AC

4C 0600

3..NOAD:

a

MOV MVI

C,H

B,0

BC< = ttBLOCKS

04AE

3E01

a

MVI

A, 1

SPECIFY DISK (tl

04B0

21 0 185

a a

LXI

H,FLNAME

HL<=ADDR OF FLNAME

04B3

CD 04C5

a a

CALL

FWRITE

WRITE

DATA

04B6

21 018C

a

a

LXI

H.FLNAME

1-7 ;UPDATE

04B9

34

a

INR

M

;FLNAME

04BA 04BD

2A 017D 22 017F

a a

LHLD SHLD

BFSTRT MBUFPT

UPDATE BUFFER PTR

04C0 04C2

3E50 D306

a a

MVI OUT

A.50H 6

RESET

CLOCK FLAG

04C4

C9

a a;

RET

RETURN

Circle 32 on inquiry card.

Listing 1 continued:

201C 20 IF 2022 2028

04C5 0<tC6 04C7 0<tC8

04C9 04CC 04CF 04D0 04D2 04D5

04D8

O^tDB

04DE 04DF 0<*E0

O^EI

04E<t 04E6 04E7 04E9

04EA 04EB 04EC 04ED 04EE 0<iEF 0<tF0 04F1 0<tF2 04F3 04F5 04F6 04F7 04F8

04F9

04FC 04FD 0<tFE

0501 0502 050^

0505 0508 050B

050C 05OD

D5 C5 C5 E5

CD 201C

D2 050D

E5

DDE1

21 050C

CD 201C

DA 055F

FFF8

01 09 D1 EB

01 0008

EDBO

EB

DDE5

D1

73

23

72

23

CI

71

23

70

23

3600

23

70

23

7 1

CD 201F

CI 79 0 1 0001

D1

DDE5

El

CD 2022 DA 0532 C9

20

21 0516

FILE DRIVE tt (1 OR 2) STARTING RAM ADDR OF FILE tf OF BLOCKS

.INSERT B:FWRITE

a;* *

a;* FWRITE *

a;* *

a;************#****#***###*##*##*#*#**

3;

a;SUBROUTINE TO WRITE A FILE ONTO DISK

3;UNIT #1 OR 2 USING DOS I/O ROUTINES.

3; EXPECTS:

a;

3; A

3; DE

3; BC

3; HL = ADDR OF FILE NAME

a

a;FILENAME MUST CONSIST OF 8 ALPHANUMERIC

3;CHARACTERS FOLLOWED BY A BLANK (ASCII 20).

3;

3;REGISTERS ARE NOT PRESERVED.

3;

a;SYMBOL TABLE:

3;

3DL00K = 201CH

3DWRIT = 201FH

3DC0M = 2022H

3DOS = 2028H

3;

3FWRITE:

a

DOS FILE DIRECTORY LOOKUP

DOS DIRECTORY ENTRY WRITE

DOS DISK COMMAND SR

DOS ENTRY PT

a a a;

PUSH PUSH PUSH PUSH

CALL

JNC

PUSH

POP

LXI

CALL

JC

B H

DLOOK

TAKEN

H

X

H,BLANK

DLOOK

FULL

STARTING RAM ADDR tt BLOCKS

FILE NAME ADDR

IF FILE NAME TAKEN

DISK ADDR

ONTO IX

BLANK FILENAME

BYTE 8 OF DOS ENTRY

RETURNED IN (HL)

IF DISK FULL

3;COPY FILE NAME, DISK ADDRESS AND ((BLOCKS 3;T0 DIRECTORY ENTRY

a;

a a a a a a a a a a

a a a

a a a a a a a a a a

LXI

B,-8D ;

DAD

B ;

POP

D ;

XCHG

LXI

B,8D ;

LDIR

XCHG

PUSH

X ;

POP

D

MOV

M,E

INX

H

MOV

M,D

INX

H

POP

B ;

MOV

M,C

INX

H

MOV

M,B

INX

H

MVI

M,0 i

INX

H

MOV

M,B ;

INX

H

MOV

M,C

SUBTRACT 8

FROM HL

ADDR OF FILE NAME

* DE=ADDR OF DOS ENTRY

* HL=ADDR OF FILE NAME PLACE 8 IN BC

COPY FILE NAME HL=DOS ENTRY ADDR COPY DISK ADDR

;COPY tt BLOCKS

COPY FILE TYPE COPY TYPE DEP. INFO

a; a

a;

3;SET UP REGISTERS FOR DCOM:

a;

a

a

a

a

a

a

a

a;

a

a

a

a;

a;

3BLANK

CALL

POP MOV LXI

POP

PUSH

POP

DWRIT

B

A,C B, 1

D X H

CALL DCOM

JC ILLARG

RET

COPY ENTRY TO DISK

PUT tt BLOCKS INTO ACCUMULATOR COMMAND^WRITE DISK UNIT = 1 STARTING RAM ADDR MOVE DISK ADDR INTO HL

;WRITE FILE

;CARRY SET=ILLEGAL ARG

.ASCII / /

3TAKEN: LXI

.MESS;SEND MESSAGE TO CONSOLE

Listing 1 continued on page 420

Hire a

fast

thinker.

5 MHz CPU Card

■ Intel 8085A-2 microprocessor ■ Hardware floating point ■ Performs calculations six times faster than other CPUs ■ On-board monitor in PROM ■ IK RAM scratch pad ■ Keyboard or RS232C terminal ■ Variable clock frequency

PRICE—$450

(California residents add 6% sales tax)

Call or write Artec for details.

^TecaecTROhiajhc

605 Old County Rd., San Carlos, CA 94070 Telephone (415)592-2740

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 419

Circle 461 on inquiry card.

ft

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For ATARI - PET/CBM - OSI - 6502

8K Microsoft BASIC Reference Manual

Authoritative reference for the original Microsoft 4K + 8K BASIC developed for Altair and later computers including OSI,PETandTRS-80. Order-No. 141 S9.95

Expansion Handbook for 6502 and 6802

S-44 Card Manual describes all of the 4.5 x 6,5 44-pin S-44 cards incl. schematics. A MUST for every KIM-, SYMand AIM-owner. Order-No. 152 S9.95

Microcomputer Application Notes

Reprint of Intel's most important application notes including 2708. 8085, 8255, 6251 chips. Very necessary for the hardware buff. Order-No. 153 S9.95

Complex Sound Generation New revised applications manual for the Texas instruments SN 76477 Complex Sound Generator. Circuit Board available (£8.95). Order-No. 154 86.95

Small Business Programs Complete listings for the business user. Inventory. Invoice Writing. Mailing List and much more.Introduction to Business Applications. Order-No. 156 EM.90

The First Book of Ohio Scientific

Introduction to OSI computers. Diagrams, Hardware and software information not previously available in one compact source. 192 pages. Order No. 157 87.95

The Second Book of Ohio Scientific

Very valuable information about OSI microcomputer systems. Introduction to OS-65 D and 0S-65U Networking. Hardware and Software hints and lips. Systems specifications. Business applications. Order-No. 158 87.95

The Fourth Book of OHIO Very Important Programs Many interesting programs for OSI computers. Sorting (Binary Tree), Differential Equitation, Statistics, Astrology. Gas Consumption, Games a.s.o Order-No. 160 S9.95

VIP Package — Above book plus a cassette with the pro

Order-No. 160 A

S19.95

Invoice Writing Program for OSI-C1PMF.C4P, Disk and Cassette. 8K RAM. Order-No. 8234 £29.80

Mailing List for C1PMF or C4PMF24K RAM 250 addresses incl. phone number and parameters on one 5 1/4 Disk)

Order-No. 8240 . 829.80

Programs for the Challenger C1/C2 8K

Order-No. 2004 "Bare Bones" Wordprocessor S9.95

Order-No. 2005, "Bare Bones" Mailing List 89.95

Care and Feeding of the Commodore PET

Eight chapters exploring PET hardware. Includes repair and interfacing information. Programming tricks and schematics. Order-No. 150 S9.95

Important Software for CBM 16K/32K

Most powerful Editor/Assembler for Commodore CBM 16/32K on cassette. Assembler can be started directly from editor or from the TIM-Monitor. Translates in three passes. If an error is encountered, automatic return to the editor. Cassette with DEMO. Order-No. 3276 £39.00

MONJANA/1 Makes Machine Language Programming Easyl In every Commodore C8M there is a spare ROM socket waiting for it's MONJANA/1. The new MONJANA/1 Machine Language Monitor in ROM offers more user guidance and debugging aids than any other monitor available today. Comprehensive manual included. Order-No. 2001 SPECIAL PRICE £49,00

JANA-Monitor on Cassette for the PET. Similar to MONJANA/1 . Very powerful. Order-No. 2002 S19.95

Programming in Machine Language with the Commodore PET

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Order-No. 165 819.95

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ATARI OWNERS TAKE NOTE:

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Order-No. 164 £9.95

ATMONA-1 Machine

Language Monitor for the ATARI 400/800 This powerful monitor provides you with the firmware support that you need to get the most out of your powerful system. ATMONA-1 comes on a bootable cassette. No cartridges required. Disassemble, Memory Dump HEX + ASCII, (Change Memory Locations, Blocktransfer, Fill memory block. Save and Load Machine Language Programs, Start Mach. Lang. Progr. (Printer Options)).

Order-No. 7022 £ 19.95

ATMONA-2 Supersteper A very powerful Tracer to explore the ATARI ROM/RAM area. Stop at previously selected address, Opcode or operand.

Order-No. 7049 (includes ATMONA-1) £49.95 EDITOR/ASSEMBLER for ATARI 800, 32K RAM Extremely fast and powerful Editor/Assembler. (8K Sourcecode in about 5 seconds) includes ATMONA-1. Order-No. 7098 £49.95 MACRO-Assam bier for ATARI-800.48K RAM Order-No. 7099 899.00

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Phone: (714)623-8314

Payment: Check, Money Order. VISA, Mastercharge. Euroscheck. POSTPAID or PREPAID in USA. S 5.0X5 handling fee for C.O.D All orders outside USA: ADD 15 % shipping. CA add 6 % sales tax. ATARI isa registered trademark of ATARI INC. PET/CBM is a registered trademark of Commodore Business.

Listing 1 continued:

0510 0513 0516 052D 052F

0532

0535 0538 053B

055A 055C

055F

0562 0565

0568 0585 0587

0590

05B0

CD 047A 3 CALL C3 2028 3 JMP <t649<iC<(520'*Ea. .MESS: .ASCIZ

odoa a

odoaoo a/

a;

21 053B aiLLARG:

CD 047A a

C3 2028 3

49<,C4C<f5<t74ia. .MESS:

LXI

CALL

JMP

.ASCIZ

ODOA ODOAOO

21 0568

CD 047A C3 2028

<t6<t9<iC<i520573. .MESS: ODOA a

ODOAOO a/

a

a/

a;

3FULL:

a a

LXI

CALL JMP

MESS0UT

DOS

/FILE NAME ALREADY TAKEN

H,..MESS;SEND MESSAGE TO CONSOLE

MESSOUT

DOS

/ILLEGAL ARGUMENTS USED FOR DC0M

H, ..MESS;SEND MESSAGE TO CONSOLE

MESSOUT DOS

.ASCIZ /FILE WRITE ABORTED; DISK FULL

059C

3E00

059E

D318

05AO

El

05A1

C9

05A2

3E0I

05A4

D318

05A6

El

05A7

C9

.L0C 590H .INSERT B:EVENTS a;a**********************************

a;* *

3;* SPECIAL EVENTS *

3;* *

a; if**********************************

a; a;

a;ENDEXP SR DISABLES INTERRUPTS, WRITES 3;DATA OUT TO DISK CBY CALLING DATWR), 3;UPDATES ENDFLG, AND JUMPS TO THE ADDR 3;PUT IN BY THE MAIN PROGRAM.

KILL INTERRUPTS WRITE DATA UPDATE FLAG

a;

0590

F3

3ENDEXP:

DI

0591

CD

0<t87

a

CALL

DATWR

0594

21

059B

a

LXI

H,ENDFLG

0597

35

a

DCR

M

0598

C3

0598

3NXTEXP:

JMP

NXTEXP

059B

3ENDFLG:

a

a;

.BLKB

1

3; 3; 3;* ** *

#* * *#

* #* * #

JMP TO MAIN

END FLAG INITIALIZED

BY MAIN PRGM

#**#**#***

a;

3;LIT0FF: THIS SR IS CALLED BY THE "PR0CSR". 3;IT TURNS OFF THE LIGHT RELAY BY CLEARING 3;BIT 0 OF 1/0 PORT 24D AND RETURNS TO THE 3;PR0CESS0R.

3LIT0FF:

a

a a

a; a;

a;

a;LIT0N:

a; a; a;

3LIT0N:

a a a

3;

MVI OUT POP RET

A,0 24D

H

CALLED BY "PR0CSR" TO TURN OFF LIGHTS BY CLEARING ALL BITS OF 1/0 PORT 24D AND THEN RETURNING TO THE PROCESSOR.

MVI OUT POP RET

A,1

24D H

.L0C 5B0H

.INSERT B:L/DEXP.ASM

* *

* LIGHT/DARK EXPERIMENT *

* * a***********************************

THESE HANDL DARK THE S ARE A L0CAT BASIC ENDFL INITI THE- L UNTIL IS TU

TWO ROUTINES ER AND PR0CES EXPERIMENT AN AMPLING AND P SSUMED TO HAV IONS BY SOME

CALLS, OR 0T G ARE ALSO AS ALIZED BY PRE IGHT/DARK EXP

ENDFLG IS CL RNED ON BY SE

SET UP THE INTRPT SOR TO DO FIRST A D THEN A LIGHT EXPT. R0CESSING PARAMETERS E BEEN PUT IN THE PROPER PREVIOUS ROUTINE (IE HER). FLNAME AND SUMED TO HAVE BEEN VI0US ROUTINES. ERIMENTS CONTINUE EAR. THE LIGHT RELAY TTING BIT 0 OF 1/0 PORT

420 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Listing 1 continued:

a

a

,30Q.

05BO

3SDATA:

a

.BLKB

3

STORE DARK SAMPLING PARAMETERS HERE

05B3

3PDATA:

a

.BLKB

34D

STORE DARK PROCESSING PARAMETERS HERE

05D5

3SLDATA

a

.BLKB

3

STORE LIGHT SAMPLING PARAMETERS HERE

05D8

3PLDATA

a a

3DRKEXP

-BLKB

34D

STORE LIGHT PROCSR PARAMETERS HERE

05FA

3A

059B

LDA

ENDFLG

CHECK IF EXPT DONE

05FD

B7

a

ORA

A

05FE

CA

065C

a

JZ

END

YES,END

0601

21

061F

a

LXI

H,LTEXP

NO,PUT JMP ADDR IN

0604

22

0599

a

SHLD

NXTEXP+1

"ENDEXP"

0607

21

018B

a

LXI

H,FLNAME+6 iPUT "D" SUFFIX

060A

3644

a

MVI

M,"D"

IN FILENAME

060C

1 1

05B3

a

LXI

D.PDATA

SET UP PROCSR

060F

CD

0468

a

CALL

PSINIT

0612

1 1

05B0

a

LXI

D,SDATA

SET UP INTHDLR

0615

CD

0430

a

CALL

INIT

0618

El

3RETSEQ

POP

H

RESTORE REGS

0619

E1

a

POP

H

061A

C3

0352

a

a;

a;

a;

a

JMP

RSTORE

061F

.LOC

61FH

061F

3A

059B

3LTEXP:

LDA

ENDFLG

EXP DONE?

0622

B7

a

ORA

A

0623

CA

065C

a

JZ

END

YES, END

0626

21

05FA

a

LXI

H,DRKEXP

;NO,PUT JMP ADDR

0629

22

0599

a

SHLD

NXTEXP+1

; IN "ENDEXP"

062C

21

018B

a

LXI

H.FLNAME+6 ;PUT "L" SUFFIX

062F

364C

a

MVI

M,"L"

IN FILENAME

0631

1 1

0 5D8

a

LXI

D.PLDATA

SET UP PROCSR

0634

CD

0468

a a ■

CALL

PSINIT

a

NOW RESET TRANSDl

JCERS AND ADVANCE THE

a

ADVANCE

THE LIGH1

" FILTER MOTOR.

a

PORT 24

ASSIGNMENT: BIT 0 - LIGHTS

a

1 - RESET DIFF

a

2 = MOTOR ADV.

a a

7 = EXPT OFF

0637

3E06

aSTEPP:

MVI

A,6

SET BITS 1 £ 2

0639

D318

a

OUT

24D

063B

0EO4

a

MVI

C,4

DO FOUR CYCLES OF

063D

CD

064C

a

CALL

WT50

5 0 MILLISEC WAIT

0640

3E00

a

MVI

A,0

CLEAR ALL BITS

0642

D318

a

OUT

24D

0644

1 1

05D5

a

LXI

D.SLDATA

SET UP INTHDLR

0647

CD

0430

a

CALL

INIT

064A

18CC

a

a;

a; * *

a;

a;THIS f

JMPR

RETSEQ

RETURN TO STATUS

* * *

* * *

******

OUTINE WAITS 0.04'

1999875 SEC TIMES THE

3;C0NTENTS OF THE C-REGIS1

ER.

a;REG15TERS CD,

AND E ARE

: ALTERED. ALL OTHERS

3;ARE PR 3WT50:

ESERVED.

064C

1 1

378E

LXI

D.378EH

SEE PAGE 223 OF BUGBOO

064F

ID

a. .LOOP

DCR

E

FOR EXPLANATION

0650

C2

064F

a

JNZ

..LOOP

0653

15

a

DCR

D

0654

C2

064F

a

JNZ

..LOOP

0657

0D

a

DCR

C

0658

C2

064C

a

JNZ

WT5 0

065B

C9

a

a;

a; * *

a;

a; a;

3END:

RET

* * *

* * *

*******

065C

21

0668

LXI

H, . .MESS

SEND MESSAGE TO

065F

CD

047A

a

CALL MESSOUT

CONSOLE

0662

3E80

a

MVI

A, 128D

SET BIT 7 OF

0664

D318

a

OUT

30Q

I/O PORT 30Q

0666

18B0

a

JMPR

RETSEQ

RETURN TO STATUS

0668

a. .MESS

-ASCIZ

/

0668

0D0A2A2A2A203*** EXPERIMENT

COMPLETED

***

0686

ODOA

a

0688

0D0A00

a/ a;

a a a

* *

* * *

* * *

*******

3;THIS IS A BASIC CALL SUBROUTINE WHICH STARTS 3;EXPERIMENT WITH A DARK PERIOD.

Listing 1 continued on page 422

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Circle 480 on inquiry card.

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Circle 478 on inquiry card.

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(714) 565-4331

Circle 479 on inquiry card.

The Key Sequential Access Method (ISAM) for the professional. In many successful applications since 1977. Used by equipment manufacturers like Cromemco & Philips. Runs on floppy or hard disk systems under CP/M®, CDOS, IMDOS, with a special version for UCSD Pascal. Easy interfaces to CBASIC 2, Microsoft Basic, Fortran, Pascal, and assembly language.

Features:

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oB-tree file structure with no overflow areas insures fast access

0 Access by full or partial keys, sequential movement in both directions, and access by record number

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OEM & Dealer inquiries invited

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VvCP

CP/M is a registered trademark ot Digital Research

Listing 1 continued:

068B 068E 0691 0694 0696 0699 069C 069F 06A2

0700

0700 0708

070A 0715

0717 0722

0725 0739

073C 0757 076B

0777 078E

0792 07A5

07B1 07CD 07E0

07EC 0800

080C 0823

0827 0846

0852 0854 085F

08E0 08E0

21 061F

22 0599 21 018B 3644

11 05B3 CD 0468 11 05B0 CD 0430 C9

3;REGISTERS ARE NOT SAVED.

3;

LXI

SHLD

LXI

MVI

LXI

CALL

LXI

CALL

RET

H.LTEXP ;PUT JUMP ADDR INTO NXTEXP+1; "ENDEXP" H,FLNAME+6; PUT "D" SUFFIX

M,"D"

D.PDATA

PSINIT

D,SDATA

INIT

INTO FILENAME SET UP PROCESSOR

SET UP HANDLER START SAMPLING RETURN

a a a a a a a a a a;

3; .INSERT B:HEADER.ASM a;*******#***#*#*###****##*##***### 3;* *

3;* HEADER *

3;* *

a;*******##*****#*#*#******#*****#*

a;

3;THIS SECTION RESERVES LOCATIONS AND 3;SETS UP THE HEADER MESSAGE.

a;

700H

20202020 0D0A

20202020 0D0A

23204348 202020

0D0A234C 202020

0D0A4441 0D0A2020 20202020

0D0A2020 20202020

OD0A2020 20202020

a .LOC

a;

20203FLNM: .ASCII /

a/

a a;

20203DATE: .ASCII /

a/

a

a;

414E3 .ASCII 3HDCHNL: .ASCII

a

a;

a .ascii /

4947a»LIGHT,DARK EXPTS:/

3CYCLES: .ASCII / / 3;

a .ascii /

524B3DARK SAMPLING PARAMETERS 20203 SAMPLING RATE=/ 20203DRATE: .ASCII /

a

a;

a .ascii $

20203 ((SAMPLES/DATA PT:$

3DAVG: -ASCII / /

a;

a .ascii /

20203 TIME IN DARK:/ 20203DTIME: .ASCII /

;8 SPACES RESERVED FOR JHEADER FILENAME

;9 SPACES RESERVED FOR I DATE

/ft CHANNELS:/

/ / ;ST0RE KCHNLS HERE ; (ASCII)

;ST0RE ((CYCLES HERE

/ ;ST0RE DARK ;SAMPLING RATE HERE

;ST0RE DARK S/DPT HERE

0D0A4C49474 0D0A2020202 20202020202

ODOA2020202 20202020202

ODOA2020202 20202020

0D0A2020202 20202020202

a

3;

3 .ASCII /

83LIGHT SAMPLING PARAMETERS: 03 LIGHT PERIOD:/ 03LTPER: .ASCII /

a

a;

a .ascii /

03 SAMPLING RATE:/ 03LRATE: .ASCII / 3

a

a .ascii $

03 SSAMPLES/DATA PT:$ 3LAVG: .ASCII / /

a

a;

a .ascii /

03 PERIOD OF LI

;STORE DARK TIME ;HERE

;STORE LIGHT ;PERIOD HERE

STORE LIGHT SAMPLING RATE HERE

;STORE LIGHT ;S/DPT HERE

0D0A

0D0A434F4D4

2020202020

3E01

03LTIME: .ASCII 3

a

a

a .ascii

a

DaCOMMENTS:/ aCOMNTS: .ASCII / 3;

a; a;

3;THIS ROUTINE FI 3;PR0PER ARGUMENT 3;T0 DISK. IT TH 3;PREFIX TO "DF"

a;

a .LOC 8E0H 3HDWRIT: MVI A,1

GHT SAMPLING:/

/ / ;STORE TIME

;TO DO DARK ;PROCESSING ;HERE

/

/ ;PUT COMMENTS HERE

LLS THE REGISTERS WITH THE S FOR WRITING THE HEADER EN CHANGES THE FILE NAME (FOR DATA FILE) AND RETURNS.

422 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 253 on inquiry card.

Listing 1 continued:

08E2 08E5 08E8 08EB 08EE

08F1

08F3 08F4 08F6

08F7 08F8 08FB

08FC 08FD

08FE 08FF 0900

0900 0901

0902 0903

0906 090A 090B 090D 0910 091 1 0913 0915 0917

0919 091A 091C 091E 091F 0921 0922 0921 0926

11 0700 01 0002 21 0185 CD 04C5 21 0185

36<t<t 23

3616 C9

EB

CD 017A

C9

F3 C9

FB C9

00

14

2A 017D

ED4B 0900

B7

ED4A

3A 0137

IF

3E7F

D319

3E00

D319

7E

D3IA

ED4A

ID

2 0F8

15

20F5

20F3

C9

LXI

D,700H

LXI

B,2

LXI

H.FLNAME

CALL

FWRITE

LXI

H.FLNAME

;CHANGE FILE NAME ;PREFIX

MVI

M,"D"

INX

H

MVI

M,"F"

RET

THIS ROUTINE OUTPUTS A MESSAGE LOCATED IN RAM (DE) TO THE CONSOLE USING THE DOS I/O ROUTINES AND THE D/A MESSOUT UTILITY.

XCHG CALL RET

;HL<=DE

MESSOUT

THESE TWO ROUTINES (CALLABLE BY BASIC) DISABLE AND ENABLE INTERRUPTS .

DI ; RET ;

EI ;

RET

.LOC 900H

.INSERT B:OGRAFX.ASM ************************************ **** ****

**** OGRAFX ****

**** ****

************************************

OUTPUTS DATA FROM THE PROCESSOR OSCILLOSCOPE VIA A/D PORT 26. IT ALLING PROGRAM TO HAVE PLACED IN CHNL MINUS ONE TO BE DISPLAYED.

DE SHOULD CONTAIN THE tt OF PTS TO RIGGER PULSE IS SENT OUT PORT 25 EGINNING OF THE DISPLAY.

ND IY REGS ARE PRESERVED.

THE REGS ARE USED AS FOLLOWS:

BC - S OF CHANNELS

DE - « OF DATA PTS

HL = ADDR OF DATA PTS

A = DATA

3;THIS ROUTINE 3;BUFFER TO AN 3;EXPECTS THE C a;'DSPCHL' THE 3;

3;0N ENTERING, 3;DISPLAY. A T 3;T0 MARK THE B

a;

3;0NLY THE IX A

3;

3;

3}IN DSPLY LOOP

a; a;

3;

a; a; a;

3DSPCHL: .BLKB 3 .BYTE

a;

30GRAFX: INR a LHLD

a

a LBCD

a ORA

a DADC

a LDA

a mov

a mvi

a out

a mvi

a out a,

3DSPLY: MOV

a out

a DADC

a DCR

a JRNZ

a DCR

a JRNZ

a JRNZ

a RET

.INSERT B:FREAD.ASM a;****************************************** 3;****** ******

3;****** FREAD ******

3;****** ******

3;******************************************

a;

3;THIS SUBROUTINE READS A FILE FROM DISK TO 3;MEM0RY USING THE NORTH STAR DOS ROUTINES.

a;

3;EXPECTS DE ON ENTERING TO BE A POINTER TO THE 3;RAM ADDR OF THE FILE NAME. ALSO EXPECTS THE

Listing 1 continued on page 424

1 0

D BFSTRT

D5PCHL

A

B

CHNL

C,A

A, 127D

25D

A,0

25D

A,M

26D

B

E

DSPLY

D

DSPLY

D5PLY

;PUT CHNL-1 TO SAMPLE ;KEEP 0 FOR PROPER ADD

FOR PROPER COUNTING CALCULATE ADDR OF FIRST DATA PT

PUT ttCHNLS IN BC SEND TRIGGER PULSE

DISPLAY DATA OUT 26

INCR HL BY ttCHNLS DECREMENT POINTS CNTR

LOOP TIL DONE

HOW TO SORT

€RSI€R

QUICK€R

and B€TT€R

Calling a sort routine from a user program has always been a problem. Special interface routines had to be written, programs relocated, and large amounts of dedicated memory were required.

Now there is MAGS0RT™, the first

full featured Sort/Select/Merge program specifically designed to take the pain out of sorting.

EASIER

Interfacing MAGS0RT to your CBASIC, Microsoft BASIC, Pascal/MT+, PL/1-80, or Fortran-80 programs is a snap. Two simple statements do it all. No dedicated memory, relocation, or special interfacing is required—not even in CBASIC.

And running MAGS0RT stand alone is just as simple. The easy-to-use utility program asks all the questions so you don't have to remember a dictionary full of commands.

QUICKER

MAGS0RT is written in 8080/Z80 assembler and uses a unique proprietary technique that allows the entire user memory space to be utilized for buffering. This provides the fastest possible sorting and optimizes MAGS0RT for large files.

BETTER

MAGS0RT is better than super! Its unmatched features make it the sort for today's sophisticated systems.

At $250, MAGS0RT may cost a little more than some other sorts, but it quickly pays for itself with convenience, speed and versatility. And, like all MAG software products, MAGS0RT includes our free one year support service.

To learn more about how you can put the "super" back into sorting, see your MAGS0RT dealer or write or call MAG today.

fUlMB

MICRO APPLICATIONS GROUP

20201 Sherman Wau / Suite 205 Canoga Park / CP, 91306 / (213) 700-1426

CBASIC is a trademark of Compiler Systems Pascal/MT* is a trademark ol Ml Microsystems PL/1-80 is a trademark of I Research Fortran-80 is a trademark of Microsoft .

, tiadn \DigiL

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 423

Circle 30 on inquiry card.

MORE

POWER

FOR YOUR APPLE ^^ifgFEEDJfA nd][+

J LANGUAGE SYSTEMS

APPLESOFT: 30.3 MIN.

MICROSPEED ][: 3.9 MIN.

MICROSPEED ][+: 2.4 MIN.

iMUlfflH 1 ABLE BAKERIES INC 1 ll||[ffl^B PIE SALES

tjr^ ^ffifflIII ^3St333iy-^^^M

MJ^Bdl ^Ui 'ill lll^H

FASTEST:

MOST POWERFUL:

EXPANDABLE: CREATIVE: USER-FRIENDLY:

UP TO 100 TIMES FASTER THAN APPLESOFT

MORE POWER THAN BASIC PASCAL OR FORTRAN

LANGUAGE BASED ON FORTH

GROW YOUR OWN LANGUAGE

REQUIRES APPLE, SINGLE DISK U SPEED ][ USES 2mHz PROCESSOR U SPEED ][+ USES 4mHz PROCESSOR

SEE YOUR DEALER OR CONTACT:

r

m

applied \a\ifaiy.ttcs

IINJjIlll-rr-L

Jff\Pf^ar

ed

1

8910 Brookridge Dr., Suite 605, Upper Marlboro, Md. 20870 (301) 627-6650 I'm Interested: Please Send □ U SPEED ][ M95. □ 160 page Manual !35.

D fj SPEED ][+ ^645. D Detailed Information

Name .

Address

City •_

State Zip

Listing 1 continued:

a;F0LL0WING PARAMETER TABLE TO BE PROPERLY

a;FILLED IN:

3;

0927

01

3DSKDVR:

.BYTE

1 ;

USE DRIVE

#1

0928

3FLADDR:

a

3;

.BLKW

1 j

STORE FILE PNTR HERE (LOW/HIGH BYTES)

20 IC

a;

3DL0OK =

201CH

JMP ADDR

FOR DLOOK

2022

3DC0M =

2022H

JMP ADDR

FOR DCOM

2A04

3BASIC =

a;

3;F0R CO

2A04H

ENTER BASIC

NVENIENCE THE FILENAME MAY

BE PLACED

3;IN THE

FOLLOWING BLOCK:

092A

a

.BLKB

8

SAVE FOR

FILENAME

0932

20

a a;

3;0NLY I

a;

3FREAD:

.BYTE

20H

ASCII BLANK

X,IY REGISTERS ARE PRESERVED.

0933

EB

XCHG

SET UP REGS FOR DL00

0934

3A 0927

a a

LDA

DSKDVR

HL=PNTR TO FILENAME A =DISK UNIT :

0937

CD 20IC

a

CALL

DLOOK

093A

3813

a a

a

JRC

NOFILE

NO SUCH FILE, RETURN

093C

5E

MOV

E,M

SET UP REGS FOR DCOM

093D

23

a

INX

H

DE<=DISK

ADDR

093E

56

a

MOV

D,M

093F

23

a

INX

H

0940

4F

a

MOV

C,A

C<=UNIT #1

0941

7E

a

MOV

A,M

A-8 OF BLOCKS

0942

EB

a

XCHG

HL=DISK ADDR

0943

0601

a

MVI

B, 1

B=READ COMMAND

0945

ED5B 0928

a

a;

a

LDED

FLADDR

DE=FILE RAM ADDR

0949

CD 2022

CALL

DCOM

094C

38 ID

a

JRC

BOGUS

.INVALID DCOr:

094E

C9

a

a;

a;* * *

a;

3N0FILE:

RET

* * * *

* * * * *

*****

* * * *

094F

21 0958

LXI

H,..MESS

,SEND MSSGE TO CRT

0952

CD 047A

a

CALL

MESSOUT

'

0955

C3 2A04

a

a;

3. .MESS:

JMP

BASIC

0958

.ASCIZ

/

0958

0D0A4E4F2U ,,<::NO 5UCI

FILE

0966

ODOA

a

0968

0D0A00

a/ a;

096B

21 0974

a;

aBOGUS:

LXI

H,..MESS

;SEND MSSGE TO CRT

096E

CD 047A

a

CALL

MESSOUT

0971

C3 2A04

a a;

a. .MESS:

JMP

BASIC

0974

.ASCIZ

/

0974

0D0A494C4''-V =;'! : !:v A i

DCOM ARGUMENTS

098C

ODOA

a

098E

0D0A00

a/ a;

.END

ADRDAT

01B2

BASIC

2A04

BEEP

035D

BFSTRT

017D

BLANK

050C

BOGUS

096B

CHNL

0137

CLK2FS

0248

COMNTS

085F

COUNT

0208

COUT

200D

CYCLES

0739

DATE

070A

DATWR

0487

DAVG

078E

DCOM

2022

DIVSR

0 I3B

DLOOK

201C

DOS

2028

DRATE

076B

DRKEXP

05FA

DSKDVR

0927

DSPCHL

0900

DSPLY

0919

DTIME

07A5

DURIT

201F

END

065C

ENDCK

0362

ENDEXP

0590

ENDFLG

059B

ESTART

036B

ETIME

013D

FETCH

01AA

FLADDR

0928

FLNAME

0185

FLNM

0700

FNXN

041F

FREAD

0933

FULL

055F

FWRITE

04C5

HDCHNL

0722

HDWRIT

08E0

HYDCR

0366

ILLARG

0532

INIT

0430

INTHLD

0 I8E

INTSS

0 138

LAVG

0823

LITOFF

059C

LITON

05A2

LRATE

0800

LTEXP

06 IF

LTIME

0846

LTPER

07E0

MBUFPT

017F

MESSOU

047A

NEXT

02F9

HOFILE

094F

NTMPAD

0183

NXTEXP

0598

N$EVTS

013C

OGRAFX

0902

OTMPAD

0181

OVFLAG

0247

OVFLOW

0372

PDATA

05B3

PLDATA

05D8

PROCSR

02DD

PSINIT

0468

RETSEQ

06 18

RSTORE

0352

SAMPLE

0 19C

SCNTR

013A

SDATA

05B0

SLDATA

05D5

STDAT

01BB

STEPP

0637

STKPT

035B

SSDPT

0 139

TAKEN

050D

TMPBF1

01C8

TMPBF2

0 1E8

TRANSF

02FF

UPDATE

0222

WT50

064C

424 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 159 on inquiry card.

Listing 2: BASIC program that demonstrates how parameters may be passed to the data-acquisition program in listing 1 (referred to as UTIL in the BASIC program comments).

100!" THIS PROGRAM DEMONSTRATES HOVJ BASIC CAN"

110!" PLACE SAMPLING PARAMETERS IN 'UTIL'"

120!\!" 'UTIL' SHOULD ALREADY BE LOADED" \!

130 input"mame of data file (3 characters, i.e.

tio re:-:

150 !\!" filename is now put in address 185

160 m = 389 \rem = 185 hex = 'flname'

170 FOR 1=1 TO 8

180 FILL M,ASC(N$(I ,D)

190 M=M + 1

200 ilEXT I

210

220

230

II CHANNELS TO SAMPLE;" ,'/ INTERRUPTS PER SAMPLE; II SAMPLES PER DATA POINT

DATA.01A'):

HEX'

210 250 260 262 261 266 270

\!"THE SAMPLING INITIATOR REQUIRES A TABLE CONTAINING" "THESE PARAMETERS:"

STARTING AT"

TRY 1 TO BEGIN WITS

'UTIL' SAMPLES CONSECUTIVE CHANNELS, PORT 25 (DECIMAL) OF THE A/D BOARD. !\INPUT"HOW MANY CHANNELS TO SAMPLE?",C 280 FILL 0,C \REM START THE TABLE AT 0000 290 .'

300 !" il INTERRUPTS PER SAMPLE TELLS 'UTIL' HOW OFTEN THE" 310 !" A/D BOARD SHOULD BE CALLED. FOR EXAMPLE, SUPPOSE" 320 !" THE REAL TIME CLOCK ON THE MOTHERBOARD WAS SET FOR" 330 !" A 53.218 MILLISEC INTERVAL. IF YOU WANTED TO" 310 !" SAMPLE ONCE A SECOND, THEN It INTERRUPTS PER SAMPLE" 350 !" SHOULD BE 19 (55.218*19= 1.01 SEC)." 360 !\INPUT" D INTERRUPTS PER SAMPLE?",II

370 FILL 1,11 380 !

390 .'" II SAMPLES PER DATA POINT TELLS 'UTIL' HOW MANY SAMPLES" 100 !" TO AVERAGE. THE NUMBER SHOULD BE A NUMBER N, SUCH THAT" 110 !" N EQUALS TWO RAISED TO AN INTEGER POWER (I.E., 1,2,1,8,.. 115 !" SO THAT 'FNXN' WILL WORK PROPERLY. TRY 1 TO BEGIN WITH." 120 !

130 INPUT" II SAMPLES PER DATA POINT (POWER OF 2)?",N 110 IF N>256 THEN 130 150 FILL 2,N 160 !

170 P=0 \REM

180 IF N=1 THEN 520 190 N = N/2 500 P=P+1

510 IF N>1 THEN 190 520' IF N<1 THEN 130

CALCULATE PROCESS CODE

530 FILL 3,P

\REM START TABLE AT 0003

HOW A PARAMATER TABLE MUST BE SET UP FOR 'PSINIT'."

" THE FIRST PARAMETER IS THE PROCESS CODE FOR 'FNX',"."

" THIS IS CALCULATED AS THE POWER OF TWO WHICH EQUALS N.

" THE SECOND PARAMETER IS THE II OF PROGRAMMED EVENTS."

11 IN THIS EXAMPLE WE WILL HAVE ONLY TWO EVENTS. THE"

" FIRST WILL SET BIT 0 OF PARALLEL PORT 21 (30 OCTAL)"

" AND THE SECOND WILL TERMINATE SAMPLING, WRITE THE"

" BUFFER TO DISK AMD SEND A MESSAGE TO THE CONSOLE."

" OF COURSE, THE FIRST EVENT SHOULD BE SET FOR A TIME"

" PRECEEDING THE SECOND EVENT. THE PROGRAMS FOR THESE"

" EVENTS CAN BE FOUND IN MODULES 'SPECIAL EVENTS' AND"

" 'LIGHT/DARK EXPERIMENT'."

510

■350

560

570

580

590

600

610

620

630

610

650

660

670 FILL 1,2

680

THE TIME REQUESTED IS CALCULATED AS THE NUMBER OF" DATA POINTS ( = ,'/ INTERRRUPTS PER SAMPLE » 0 OF SAMPLES" PER DATA POINT). THUS IF // INTRRPTS/SAMPLE EQUALS 19" AND II SAMPLES/DATA PT EQUALS 8, THEN THERE WILL BE 8" SECONDS PER DATA POINT (ASSUMING 53 MS CLOCK) AND THE" TIME FOR EACH EVENT HAS UNITS OF 8 SECONDS."

690

700

710

720

730

710

7 50

760 INPUT" TIME FOR EVENT #1: ",T1

770 REM PUT THE TIME IN THE TABLE, HIGH BYTE FIRST.

730 FILL 5,INT(T1/256)

790 FILL 6, T1 - INT(T1/256)*256

800 REM NOW PUT THE ADDR OF EVENT PROGRAM in IN THE TABLE

810 REM

\REM LOW BYTE OF ADDR 5A2 HEX \REM HIGH BYTE

820 FILL 7,162 ?,30 FILL 8,5 810 REM 850 INPUT"

TIME FOR EVENT 112: " ,T2

860 FILL 9,INT(T2/256)

370 FILL 10, T2 - INT(T2/256)*256

380 !

Listing 2 continued on page 426

CHOOSE...

Choose an Apple Desk

A compact Bi-Level desk ideal for the Apple computer system. This 42" x 29'/!" desk comes with a shelf to hold two Apple disk drives. The top shelf for your TV or monitor and manuals can also have an optional paper slot to accomodate a printer. It is shown here with the optional Corvis shelf which will hold one Corvis disk drive. The Corvis shelf is available on the 52" x 29Vi" version of the Apple desk.

Choose a Micro Desk

The Universal Micro desk accommodates the S-100 type microcomputers. The desk is available in four sizes: 17.75 inch, 19.06 inch, and 20.75 inch wide openings with 24 inch front-to-rear mounting space. The fourth size is a 20.75 inch wide opening with a 26.50 inch front-to-rear mounting space.

Choose a Mini Rack

**

Mini racks and mini micro racks have standard venting, cable cut outs and adjustable RETMA rails. Choose a stand alone bay or a 48", 60", or 72" desk model in a variety of colors and wood tones. A custom rack is available for the Cromemco.

Choose a Printer Stand

The Universal printer stand fits the:

Centronics 700's Dec LA 34 NEC Spinwriter Lear Siegler 300's

Diablo 1600's & 2300's T.I. 810 & 820 Okidata Slimline Anadex 9500's

Delivery in days on over 200 styles and colors in stock. Dealer inquiries invited.

ELECTRONIC 5<dSTEM5 FURNITURE

COMrVIN'd

17129 S. Kingsview Avenue Carson, California 90746 Telephone: (213)538-9601

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 425

68KFORTH

New SYSTEMS LANGUAGE for ERG 68-696 CPU and Motorola's KDM board. 0/S, Compiler, Monitor, Assembler, Interpreter, Virtual Memory, Screen Editor, DBL Precision Arithmetic and more. Enhanced FIG-FORTH Vocabulary. Environment: stand alone, Bell Lab's UNIX, or Whitesmiths' IDRIS, etc.

$795

EMPIRICAL RESEARCH GROUP, INC.

PO Box 1176

Milton, WA 98354

206-631-4855

Circle 164 on inquiry card.

STATISTICAL SOFTWARE

ELF — Stepwise regression, factor analysis, correlation coefficients, crosstabs, simple statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, stepwise discriminant analysis, all BASIC transformations and more. $200.00

TWG/ARIMA - Box-Jenkins for seasonal and non-seasonal models, identification, estimation and forecasting. Introductory Price: $250.00.

Each includes a database manager, numeric software keypad, and is menu-driven. Each requires an Apple II with Applesoft, 48K, and DOS 3.3.

For further information, write

*76t TViitcAtHclaH tyuxifi

3907 Lakota Road

P.O. Box 10114

Alexandria, VA 22310

"Apple II and Applesoft are trademarks of the Apple Computer Company

Circle 430 on inquiry card.

O Dysan

^CORPORATION

Solve your disc problems, buy 100% surface tested Dysan diskettes. All orders shipped from stock, within 24 hours. Call toll FREE (800) 235-4137 lor prices and information. Visa and Master Card accepted All orders sent postage paid

PACIFIC EXCHANGES

100 Foothill Blvd. San Luis Obispo. CA 93401. (In Cal. call (805) 543-1037.)

Listing 2 continued:

890 REM MOV/ PUT THE ADDR OF EVENT PROGRAM 112 IN THE TABLE

900 FILL 11,141 \REM LOW BYTE OF ADDR 590 HEX

910 FILL 12,5 \REM HIGH BYTE

92 0 REM

QUO REM 'ENDEXP', THE ROUTINE THAT TERMINATES SAMPLING,

950 REM REQUIRES THAT A JUMP ADDR BE FILLED IN. IT IS DONE

960 REM BELOW

970 FILL 1433,92 \REM FILL 599 HEX WITH LOW 3YTE OF ADDR 065C

980 FILL 1434,6 \REM FILL 59A HEX WITH HIGH BYTE OF ADDR

9 90 !

1000!" NOW THE PROCESSOR INITIALIZER IS CALLED."

1010 G=CALL(1120,3) \REM 3 = STARTING ADDR FOR PARAM. TABLE

1020 !

1030 INPUT"PRESS CARRIAGE RETURN TO START SAMPLING",Q$

1040 Q=CALL(1064,0) \REM 0 = START OF PARAMETER TABLE

105') !

1060 '"THIS BASIC PROGRAM IS ENDED, BUT SAMPLING WILL CONTINUE"

1065 ! "UNTIL Ail ENDING MESSAGE IS SENT TO THE CONSOLE."

1070 END

READY

Listing 3: This program initializes the laboratory system for a sample biological experiment which will use all of the features of the lab system.

Circle 331 on inquiry card.

IK EM THIS PROGRAM INPUTS PA

2REM EXPERIMENT. IT PROMPT

3REM THEM IN THE L/DEXP PA

'4 REM FILE DESCRIBING THESE

10 !TAB(?0),"*** LIGHT/DARK

20 !TAB(15),"A/D UTILITIES

30 DIM C$(NO)

40 [( = 53.248 \REM CLOCK INTR

50 !\!"CLOCK INTERRUPT RATE

60 ! "CHANGE LIME 40 IF DIFF

100 REM FUNCTION CONVERTS A

105 DEF FKH(X$)

110 X=0

115 0=4096

120 FOR 1=1 TO 4

125 T$=X$(I,I)

1 30 IF T$< = "F" THEN 165

135 Y=VAL(TS)

140 Y = Y*D

145 D=D/16

150 X=X+Y

155 NEXT I

160 RETURN X

165 IF T$>="A" THEN 170 ELS

170 Y=ASC(T$)

180 Y=Y-55

185 GOTO 140

190 FNEND

200 !"THESE ARE THE IHPUTTE

202 S1=FNH("08F7")

203 S2=FNH("0700")

205 C=CALL(31,S2)

206 INPUT "PRESS CARRIAGE R 210 !\!"WHICH PARAMETERS DO 220 !TAB(8),"1=FILENAME/DAT 225 !TAB(8) ,"2 = # CHANNELS/// 230 !TAB(8),"3=DARK SAMPLIN 235 !TAB(3),"4=LIGHT SAMPLI 240 !TAB(3),"5=C0MMENTS 245 !TAB(8) ,"6 = ALL OF THE A 247 !TAB(3),"7=N0NE,BEGIN E 250 ! MIJPUT "WHICH NUMBER?" 255 ON A GOTO 400,500,600,7 300 REM ******************* 305 REM

310 REM WAIT FOR CARRIAGE R

315 REM START SAMPLING AND

320 REM HAS STATUS ROUTINES

325 !\!"MAKE SURE DATA DISK

330 !TAB(8)."STATUS DISK IS

335 !\INPUT"PRESS CARRIAGE

340 Q=FMH("08E0") \

350 Q=CALL(0)

360 Q=FNH("068B") \

370 Q=CALL(0)

390 CHAIN "STATUS,2" \REM

395 HEM

397 REM *******

39 3 REM

400REM INPUT FILENAME/DATE

410 GOSUB 1000

RAMETEHS FOR DOING A LIGHT/DARK S THE USER FOR PARAMETERS, PLACES AMETER STACKS AND WRITES A HEADER PARAMETERS OUT TO DISK.

EXPERIMENT ***"\! SHOULD ALREADY BE L0ADED"\!

PT RATE IN MILLI3EC = ",K," MSEC" ERENT RATE" 4-DIGIT HEX NUMBER TO DECIMAL

E 135

D PARAMETERS:"\!\!

ETURN TO CONTINUE",K$

YOU WANT TO ALTER?" E"

CYCLES" G PARAMETERS" IIG PARAMETERS"

BOVE" XPERIMENT"

A 00,300,900,300 *****************

ETURN, THEN WRITE OUT HEADER, CHAIN "STATUS,2" WHICH

IS ON DRIVE //1"

ON DRIVE 112" RETURN TO START SAMPLING",K$ REM WRITE HEADER

REM START SAMPLING

STATUS ON DRIVE #2

AND RETURN

Circle 168 on inquiry card.

IT SAMPLING PARAMETERS

COIWK8T3

PARAMETERS

CI

H RAM LOCATIONS J 1 35 = UTILITY UDDR HDOOO..A): ",C$

iEADER ,C$

Listing 3 continued:

H20 GOTO 200

500REM INPUT //CHAMML'LS/rfCYCLES AND RETURN

510 GOSUB 1300

520 GOTO 200

600REH INPUT DARK SAMPLING PARAMETERS

610 GOSUB 1500

620 GOTO 200

YOOREr: INPUT LIC

710 GOSUE 2 300

72 0 GOTO 2 00

300KEH INPUT SEV

blO GOSUB 3100

020 GOTO 200

yOOREM INPUT ALL NEW

910 GOSUB 1000

920 GOSUB 1300

930 GOSUB 1500

940 GOSUB 2300

050 GOSUB 3't00

060 GOTO 200

1000 REM POT FILE-NAME INTO PROP

1010 REM 0700 = !IEA0ER ADUR

1020 INPUT "TJPE FILENAME

10 30 H=FN!!("0700")

lil'li) ULKIi(CS)

1050 IK L>3 T'lEN 1020

1060 GOSUB 9O90

1070 iliFHU("0180")

1030 GOSUB 9999

1050RI-.:* PLACE DATE INT

1190 INPUT "TYPE DATE:

1 1 10 H = FNH("070A")

1120 L=LEN(C$)

1 130 IF L>11 THEN 1100

1110 GOSUB 9999

1 150 RETURN

1300REM PUT (/CHANNELS INTO HEADER AND PARAMETER STACKS

1310 INPUT "NUMBER OF CHANNELS TO SAMPLE: ",C

1320 IF C>7 THEN 1310

1330REM NzPOINTER FOR DARK PARAM STACK

1310REM M=POINTER FOR LIGHT PARAM STACK

1350 N=FNH("05BO")

1360 FILL N,C

1370 N=N+1

1330 M=FNH("05D5")

1390 FILL M,C

1400 M = M+1

1410 H=FNH("0722")

1420 GOSUB 9997

1430REM INPUT //CYCLES INTO HEADER AND EHDFLAG

1440 INPUT "TYPE It OF DARK,LIGHT PERIODS: ",C

1450 IF C>99 THEN 1440

1460 B=FNH("059B")

1470 FILL B,C

1480 H=FNHC"0739")

1490 GOSUB 9997

1494 RETURN

1500REM PUT SAMPLING RATE INTO HEADER ANDINT/S INTO STACK

1540 !\!"DARK SAMPLING PARAMETERS:"

1550 !TAB(8)."DESIRED SAMPLING RATE (IN SEC): ",

15 60 INPUT C

1570 C1=INT(C*1000/K +.5) 1530 C=C1*K/1000 1590 ;i=FNH("05B1")

16 00 FILL N,C1 1610 HsH+1

1620 !TAB(3)."ACTUAL SAMPLING RATEs ",C," SEC"

1030 ll=FHH( "076B")

1640 GO0U!> 9997

1650 C1=C

1660 CS=" S"

1670 GOSUB 999«

1680REM PUT S/DPT INTO STACK AND HEADER

1690 !TAB(3)."SAMPLES PER DATA POINT (POWER OF 2): ",

1700 INPUT C

1710 IF C>123 THEN 1690

1720 FILL U,C

1730 N=N+1

1740 !!=FIi!l("073E")

1750 GOSUB 9997

1760 C2=C

1770REM PUT PROCESSOR CODE INTO STACK

1730 P=0

1790 IF 0=1 THEN 1330

1800 C=C/2

1310 P=P+1

Listing 3 continued on page 428

ENTREPRENEURS

111 IT I ll"l ' MORE THAN EVER IN THE MICRO

■ W LmmiB^ IhBv computer industry.

The shortage of knowledgeable dealers/distributors is the #1 problem ol microcomputer manufacturers. Over 300 new systems houses will go into business this year, but the number falls short of the 1200 needed. It is estimated that the nationwide shortage of consultants will be over 3000 by 1981 The HOW TO manuals by Essex Publishing are your best guide to start participating in the continued microcomputer boom.

HOW TO START YOUR OWN SYSTEMS HOUSE

7th edition, November 1981

Written by the founder of a successful systems house, this

fact-filled 220-page manual covers virtually all aspects of

starting and operating a small systems company. It is abundant

with useful, real-life samples: contracts, proposals, agreements

and a complete business plan are included in full, and may be

used immediately by the reader

Proven, field-tested solutions to the many problems facing the

small systems house are presented.

From the contents:

• New Generation of Systems Houses • The SBC Marketplace

• Marketing Strategies • Vertical Markets & lAPs • Competitive Position/Plans of Major Vendors • Market Segment Selection & Evaluation • Selection of Equipment & Manufacturer • Make or Buy Decision • Becoming a Distributor • Getting Your Advertising Dollar's Worth • Your Salesmen: Where to Find Them • Product Pricing • The Selling Cycle • Handling the 12 Most Frequent Objections Raised by Prospects • Financing for the Customer • Leasing • Questions You Will Have to Answer Before the Prospect Buys • Producing the System •Installation, Acceptance, Collection • Documentation • Solutions lo the

Service Problem • Protecting Your Product • Should You Start Now? • How to Write a Good Business Plan • Raising Capital

No. 10 '

COMPUTER CONSULTANT

HOW TO BECOME A SUCCESSFUL COMPUTER CONSULTANT

by Leslie Nelson, 3rd revised edition, Oct. 1981 Independent consultants are becoming a vitally important factor in the microcomputer field, filling Ihe gap between the computer vendors and commercial/industrial users. The rewards of the consultant can be high: freedom, more satisfying work and doubled or tripled income HOW TO BECOME A SUCCESSFUL COMPUTER CONSULTANT provides comprehensive background information and step-by-step directions for those interested to explore this lucrative field

• Established consulting markets* How to get started "Itemized start-up costs • Are you qualified? • Beginning on a part-time basis • The Marketing Kit • Should you advertise? • Five marketing tips • Getting free publicity • How much to charge

• When do you need a contract? • Sample proposals • Which $28. ■ No. 16 j0DS should be declined • Future markets • The way to real big

money • Avoiding the legal pitfalls • How consultants'associations can help you "The National Register of Computer Consultants • How others did it: real-life sample cases • and much more.

FREE-LANCE SOFTWARE MARKETING 3rd edition. June 1980 Writing and selling computer programs as an independent is a business where • you can get started quickly, with little capital investment • you can do it full time or part time • the potential profits are almost limitless. Since the demand for computer software of all kinds is growing at an explosive rate, the conditions for the small entrepreneur are outstanding

This manual will show you how to sell your own computer programs using these proven techniques: "direct to industries • through consulting firms • through manufacturers of computer hardware • in book form • mail order • through computer stores. It will show you how to profitably sell and license all types of software ranging from sophisticated analytical programs selling lor thousands of dollars, down to simple accounting routines and games for personal computers.

The book will guide you step by step through the process of 30. No. 32 marketing, advertising, negotiating a contract, installing software,

training users and providing maintenance and support. It also contains sample software contracts that have been used in actual software transactions. Also included are tips on how to negotiate with a large corporation, ways of avoiding personal liability, techniques for obtaining free computer time and hints on how to run a free-lance software business while holding a full-time job.

HOW TO START & OPERATE A MAIL ORDER BUSINESS

by Julian Simon, 3rd revised edition, 536 pages, 1981. Indispensable for those selling software, equipment or supplies by mail. The first two editions of this book have fascinated readers — and brought them a fortune-The methods described here have brought millions of dollars in sales for the readers. Whether you are a newcomer starting from scratch or an established business anxious to cash in on the lucrative mail-order market, this book tells you how to make money by mail. You'll discover the least expensive, most effective ways to promote your product. You'll learn how to create the kind of ads and mail order copy that will sell. From the contents:

• where to go fordirect-mail lists • howtoget credit, dealwith banks, handle merchandising • how to run one-inch ads that U nn se" * how to get supplies and handle orders • what you may

$21.95 No. 130 ancj may no( jq uncjer current mail-order laws • how to

make tactical decisions about handling complaints, making refunds, guarantees, trial orders. There are fat profits to be made in mail order even for the person with limited time or capital, and this is the book that shows you how.

ESSEX PUBLISHING CO. Dept. 2

285 Bloomfleld Avenue • Caldwell. N.J. 07006 Order books by number. Send check, money order (U.S.$), American Express. VISA or MasterCharge tt. Publisher pays 4th class shipping. For UPS shipping (USA only) add $1.00 per book. For Air Mail add $2-50 per book In the USA or Canada, $12.00 per book elsewhere. N.J. residents add 5% sales tax.

D No. 10 D No. 16 a No. 32 D No. 130 D UPS D Air

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 427

Circle 295 on inquiry card.

$, SAVE «fc

CALL MBC, . J203) 342 27*7

COMPUTERS

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Listing 3 continued:

1320 IF C>1 THEN 1300

1830 FILL N,P

IS'10 H=:i+1

1350 IF C<1 THEN 1690

1S60REK PUT IN PROGRAMMED EVENTS

1370 FILL N,1

1830 N = N+1

1390 !TAB(8),"TIME IN DARK (X .SEC/MIN/HR): ",

1900 INPUT C,K$

1910 C3=C1*C2

1920REM C1=SAMPLING RATE IN SEC, C2=//S/DPT

1930 IF K$="SEC"THEN 1980

1940 IF KS="MIN"THEN 1970

1950 IF K$s"HR"T!iEN 1960 ELSE 1890

1960 C=C*60

1970 C=C*60

1980 C4 = I!IT(C/C3+.5)

1990 C5=C3*C1

2000 IF K$="SEC" THEN 2030

2010 IF K$="MIN" THEN C5=C5/60

2020 IF KS = "IIR"T!IF.;i C5 = C5/3600

2030 C6=0

2010 IF C4<256 THEN 2080

2050 C6=INT(C1/256)

2060 IF C6>255 THEN 1890

2070 C4=C4-C6*256

20B0 FILL N,C6

2090 tl=N+1

2100 FILL N,C'I

2110 N=N+1

2120 ITABC8),"ACTUAL TIME= ",C5," ",K$

2130 CrC5

2140 H=FNH("07A5")

2150 GOSUB 9997

2160 FILL N,FNII("0090")

2170 11 = 11 + 1

2130 FILL H,5

2190 M=N+1

2200 C$ = " " + !<$( 1,1)

2210 GOSUB 9993

2220 RETURN

2300REM PUT LIGHT INT/3 INTO STACK AND SAMPLING RATE IN HEADER

2310 !\!"LIGHT SAMPLING PARAMETERS:"

2320 !TAB(8)."DESIRED SAMPLING RATE (IN SEC): ",

2330 INPUT C

2340 C1=INT(C*1000/K +.5)

2350 C=C1*K/1000

2360 M=FMH("05D6")

2 370 FILL M,C1

2 330 M=H+1

2390 !TA5(8)."ACTUAL SAMPLING RATE= ",C," SEC"

2HO0 rUFHH("0300")

2410 GOSUB 9997

2'120 C1=C

2'I 30 C;j = " 3"

2440 GOSUB 9993

2450REM PUT S/DPT INTO STACK AND HEADER

2160 !TAB(8),"SAMPLES PER DATA POINT (POWER OF 2): ",

2170 INPUT C

2130 IF C>128 THEN 2160

2190 FILL M,C

2500 M=H+1

2510 H=FNH("0823")

2520 GOSUB 9997

2530 C2 = C

2540REM PUT PROCESSOR CODE INTO STACK

2350 P=0

2560 If G=1 THEN 2600

2570 C=C/2

2530 P=P+1

2590 IF C>1 THEN 2570

2600 FILL '■!, P

20 10 ;: = m + i

,2620 IF C<1 THE!: 2160

2S30REII PUT IN PROGRAM

2610 FILL «,3 \BE

2650 H=M+1

2652 C3=C1*C2 ViEM C3=SEC/DPT

2L51RE'! C1=f>A.'1PLIMG RATE IN SEC, C2=?S/DPT

■:D EVENTS 3 EVENTS

2 !>'."> ri C1 = I:iT(60/C3 + .5) 2660 FILL M,'i

2662 M=M + 1

2664 FILL M,C4

2665 M=M+1

2666 FILL M,FNH("O0A2")

2667 M=M+1

2663 FILL M,5 2669 M = M + 1

\RF.M CALCULATE 1 —111M

\REM TURN ON LIGHT AFTER 1-MIN \REM ADDR OF LITON

428 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Listing 3 continued:

i

2630

!TAB(8)."LIGHT PERIOD (X ,SEC/MIN/HR) : ",

A

2690

INPUT C,K$

J

2700

IF K$="SEC"THEN 2750

2710

IF K$="MIN"THEN 2740

2720

IF K$="HR"THEN 2730 ELSE 2660

2730

C=C*60

1

27t0

C=C*60

2750

Ct=INT(C/C3+.5) + C4

2760

C5=C3*C4

2770

IF K$="SEC" THEN 2800

2780

IF K$r"MIN" THEN C5=C5/60

2790

IF K$="HR"THEN C5=C5/3600

2800

C6 = 0

^

2810

IF C4<256 THEN 2850

2820

C6=INT(C4/256)

1

2830

IF C6>255 THEN 2660

2840

C4=C4-C6*256

2850

FILL M,C6

•

2860

HsH+1

2870

FILL M,C4

2880

M = M+1

2890

FILL M,FNH("009C")

2900

M = M+1

1

2910

FILL «,5

2920

MsM+1

2930

C=C5-C3*INT(60/C3+.5)

2940

!TAn(8)."ACTUAL TIME= ",C," ",K$

2950

H=FNHC"07E0")

2960

GOSUB 9997

2970

C$ = " "+K$(1,1)

2980

GOSUB 9998

2990

!TAB(8) ."PERIOD OF LIGHT SAMPLING (X .SEC/MIN/HR) :" ,

3000

INPUT C,K$

3010

C3=C1*C2

3020REM C1=SAMPLING RATE IH SEC, C2=#S/DPT

3030

IF K$ = "SEC"THErl 3080

304 0

IF K$="MIN"THEN 3070

3050

IF K$="HR"THEN 3060 ELSE 2990

3060

C=C*60

3070

C=C«60

3030

C4=INT(C/C3+.5)

3090

C5=C3*C4

3100

IF K$="SEC" THEN 3130

3110

IF KS = "MI!J" THEN C5=C5/60

3120

IF K$="HR"THEN C5=C5/3600

3130

C5 = 0

314 0

IF C4<256 THEN 3130

3150

C6=INT(C4/256)

3160

IF C6>255 THEN 2990

3170

C4=C4-C6*25&

3130

FILL M.C6

3190

H = 1-1+1

3200

FILL M,C1

3210

r1=M+1

3220

!TAB( 8)/'ACTUAL TIME= ",C5," " , K$

3230

C = C5

3240

H=FNH("0846")

3250

GOSUB 9997

3260

C$ = " " + K$(1,D

3270

GOSUB 9993

3280

FILL M,FNH("0090")

3290

M=M+1

3300

FILL M,5

3310

RETURN

34001

EM INPUT COMMENTS

3410

I

3420

H=FNH("085F")

3430

INPUT "COMMENTS:",C$

344 0

IF C$=""THEN 200

345 C

;OSUB 998

34 60

C$rCH$(13)+CHR(10)

3470

GOSUB 9995

3480

IF H>=NH"ODF") THEN STOP

3490

GOTO 3430

3500

RETUR

9995

iEHSUBROUTINE TO PLACE STRING C$ OF LENGTH L

9996REH INTO MEMORY STARTING AT RAM li

9997 C$=STRS(C)

9993

L=LEM($)

9999 FOR 1=1 TO L

10000 T$=CS(I,I)

10001 FILL ,ASC($

102

H = ll + 1

10003 NEXT I

10004 RETURN

READY

ARE YOU

*&$&'

m

You are ready for MICRO if you want to. . .

□ Go beyond canned software

□ Use your computer for more

than games

□ Learn advanced programming

techniques

□ Understand the inner workings

of your computer

□ Get the most out of your

6502/6809 system

Month after month, MICRO gives readers sophisticated software applications, detailed discussions of programming languages, and indepth hardware tutorials.

To get the most out of your machine, say YES to MICRO today! We accept VISA or Mastercard. $18.00 per year in the U.S., $21.00 elsewhere.

Use Our 24-hour Toll-free Service

800-227-1617ex,546

In California: 800-772-3545, Ext.546

/AICRO

34 Chelmsford Street P.O.Box 6502 Chelmsford, MA 0I824

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 429

DON'T GET STUCK.

Sloppy software contracts

cost money and cause

misunderstandings. Consult

us before you sign a contract.

We offer contract services to

both customers and suppliers.

Call or write

Robert E. Brown, Esq.

(716) 232-5300.

■ Basic ■ Forth ■ Cobol ■ Fortran ■ Others

Middleton, Wilson, Boylan & Gianniny,

Attorneys at Law

900 Midtown Tower. Rochester NY 14604

Circle 277 on inquiry card.

CHIPS,

&DALE C2

THE INFLATION FIGHTERS! _RAM —

4116 200ns 8/514.00

2114L 300ns8/SI8.45

4164 200ns $22.00

— EPROM —

2716 (5V)450ns 8/ $4.25 ea.$4.50 ea.

2732 (5V)450ns 8/$l 1.00ea.$ 11.50 ea

We buy from Manufacturer's Authorized Distributors. All Chips are fully Guaranteed. Call for quantity pricing.

Please allow up to 3 wks. for personal checks to

clear. '

Add $2.50 Shipping & Handling

C.O.D. S3.00. Wash, residents add 5.4% Sales Tax

CHIPS 6 DALE

P.O. Box 3 1607

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Circle 66 on inquiry card.

NEW 16K-RAM PERSONAL COMPUTER

$00000 FACTORY SALE C.C.iJ PRICE

For $22900 you get the new Interact Model "R" Computer, 16K-RAM, 2K-ROM, 8080A Microprocessor, color, sound, full 53 keyboard, high speed cassette, AC adapter, R.F. Modulator, Black Console Case, 90 days parts and labor warranty, owners' guide, FCC approved. 15 DAY FREE TRIAL Return within 15 days complete and undamaged for refund of purchase price.

PROTECTO ENTERPRIZES

BOX 550, BARRINGTON, IL 60010 TO ORDER PHONE 312/382-5244

A HEX NUMBER TO DECIMAL

Listing 4: Program STATUS, which allows the operator to examine and control the progress of the sample experiment after running the program in listing 3. Both programs interact with the program in listing 1, which must be loaded into memory first.

2 re>! ********* STATUS ********** 'I REM

5 REM THIS PROGRAM FIRST WRITES OUT THE HEADER AND STARTS

6 RE!', THE EXPT, AND THEN PROMPTS FOR A CONTROL COMMAND

7 REM 21 REM

24 R EM * * * ********* *********

27 REM

30 REM THIS SR CONVERTS

33 DEF FHH(US)

36 L=LEN(H$)

39 Del

12 X = 0

'15 FOR 1 = 2 TO L

is d=d*i6

51 NEXT I

51 FOR 1=1 TO L

TS = ll$(I ,1)

IF T-5< = "F" THEN 81

Y=VAL(Tt)

Y = Y*D

D=D/16

X = X + Y

NEXT I

57

60

6 3

66

69

72

75

73 RETURN X

81 IF T$>="A" THEN 81 ELSE 63

81 Y=ASC(TS) - 55

87 GOTO 66

89 FNEND

90 REM

91 REM *

92 REM 100 REM 110 REM 120 REM 130 REM 110 REM

112 !\!"CL0CK RATE 111 150 160 170 180 190 200 220 225 227 229 230 210 lNPUT"WHICH COMMAND?

THEN GOSUB THEN GOSUB THEN GOSUB THEN GOSUB THEN GOSUB THEN GOSUB

\! "EXPERIMENT IN PR \!"COMMANDS:" \!" I

*****************

*************

THIS SECTION PROMPTS FOR A COMMAND

218 MSEC; CHANGE LINE 7190 IF DIFFERENT" OGRESS - STATUS PROGRAM LOADED"

53.;

PRINT HE SHOW TIM ADVANCE END EXPT DISPLAY PRINT VO STOP INT RESTART

250 IF C$="H" 260 IF C$="T" 270 IF C$="A" 280 IF C$="E" 300 IF C$="D" 305 IF CS="V" 307 IF C$="S" THEN GOSUB

309 IF CS="R" THEN GOSUB

310 GOTO 150 180 REM

4 90 REM * ******* 195 REM

197 REM THIS SECTION CAL

198 REM WHICH OUTPUTS Til

199 REM 500 !

505 Q=CALL(2295,1792) 510 INPUT"PRESS CARRIAGE 550 RETURN

5 80 REM

585 REM ******** 587 REM 590 REM 593 REM 595 REM

600 GOS 602 T$

601 T1= 606 IF

608 IF

609 !

ADER TO CONSOLE"

E INTO THIS CYCLE / It CYCLES LEFT"

TO NEXT CYCLE AFTER NEXT DATA PT"

DATA IN BUFFER" LTAGE LEVELS" ERRUPTS" INTERRUPTS"

",C$

500

500

700

800

1000

1000

5000

6000

*****************

LS AN ASSEMBLY ROUTINE E HEADER VIA DOS I/O

RETURN TO CONTINUE",Q$

******************

THIS SECTION LOOKS INTO RAM TO FIND TIME THIS CYCLE HAS BEEN RUNNING AND II OF CYCLES LEFT

UB 7000

SEC" T1*T2*K1»B6

T1>120 THEN T$=" MIN" T1>120 THEN T1=T1/60

Circle 351 on Inquiry card.

THIS SECTION ENDS THE CURRENT CYCLE AND ADVANCES TO THE NEXT CYCLE AFTER THE NEXT DATA POINT

\REM DISABLE INTERRUPTS \REi-1 ZERO EVENT TIME CNTR

\REM TURN OFF ALL RELAYS \REM ENABLE INTERRUPTS

THIS

SECTION ENDS THE EXPT

PUTTING A ONE

ENDFLAG AND THEN ENDING T IE CURRENT CYCLE

\REtf END CYCLE

Listing 4 continued:

610 !"THIS CYCLE HAS BEEN RUNNING FOR ",J6F2,T1,T$

620 E1=FNH("059B") \REM ADDR OF ENDFLAG

630 E1=EXAM(E1 )

610 \"ll OF CYCLES LEFT = ",E1

6 50 RETURN

6 80 REM

6 85 P\ EM ******************** *

0 8 c! REM 6 90 REM 6 95 REM

6 97 REM

699 REM

700 E2=FNH("08FC") 710 Q=CALL(E2) 720 M=FNH("0 13C") 72 5 FILL M , 1

7 30 '-1 = 11+1 7 35 FILL [4,0 710 H=M+1 712 FILL M, 1 715 ''=H+1

750 FILL H,FHH("0090") 7 52 a=M+1 7 55 FILL M,5 760 OUT 21,0 770 0=CALL(E2+2) 750 RETUR'.' 7 35 REM

783 REM * * * * 7.39 REM 790 REM

7 92 REM IN

7 95 REM

■!00 llrFnlK "059B") 32 0 FILL M,1 310 GOSUB 700 360 RETURN 9 60 REM

970 REM * * * * * 930 REM * * * * * 9 90 REM *********************** 1000!\!"THIS PROGRAM GRAPHICALLY DISPLAYS DATA" 1010!"CONTAINED IN THE A/D UTILITIES BUFFER"

1020!

1030 GOSUB 7000 \REM FETCH CONSTANTS FROM RAM

1010 !

1050 ! "THERE ARE ",C1," CHANNELS WITH ",B6," POINTS RICH IN THE BUFFER"

1060 !\INPUT "WHICH CHANNEL DO YOU WANT DISPLAYED?",C2

1070 IF C2<1 THEN STOP

1080 IF C2 > CI THEN 1060

1090 !\INPUT"DISPLAY TYPE? (C=CRT;

1100 IF D1$="C" THEN 1500

1 1 10 IF D1$ = "0" THEN 2000 1120 IF D1$="S" THEN 3000 1 130 GOTO 1090 1110 R EM 1170 REM

1175 REM ********************** 1180 REM

1185 REM THE FOLLOWING SECTION OUTPUTS THE DATA BUFFER 1190 REM GRAPHICALLY ONTO THE SOROC 120 CRT 1195 REM

1500 FOR 1=1 TO 21 1505 ! \MEXT I 1510 REM 1515 REM 1520

1525 OUT 2,27 1530 OUT 2,61 1535 OUT 2,51 1510 OUT 2,32 1515 T3=A1*T1»T2*K1 1550 T$=" SEC"

1555 IF T3>=120 THEN T$=" MIN" 1560 IF T3>=120 THEN T3=T3/60 1565 !"EACH POINT = ",%5F1,T3,T$ 1570 REM 1575 REM

1580 REM INITIALIZE 1585 D1=B1 + C2 - 1

DISPLAY

0 = 0SC0PE; S = 3TRIP CHART):", 01*.

\REM CLEAR CRT

REM PUT TIME SCALE ON SCREEN \REM LOAD CURSOR

\REM TIME PER DATA PT

1590 X=32

1615 Y=0

1620 FOR 1=1 TO A1

1625 Y=Y + EXAMCD1 )

1630 D1=D1+C1

1635 NEXT I

AND DATA ADDR'S

\REM ADDR OF DATA \REM CURSOR X-POSITION \REM LOOP TILL DISPLAY DONE

\REM AVERAGE PTS

Listing 4 continued on page 432

Big sale onK's!

16K.. .$149.95 32K... $199.95 48K... $249.95 64K... $299.95

New JAWS-IB

The Ultrabyte Memory Board

Due to the tremendous success of our JAWS I, we were able to make a special purchase of first-quality components at below-cost prices for JAWS-IB. And we are sharing our cost saving with you. But don't be surprised if the next time you see this ad the prices have gone up substantially. Better yet, order now, and get the best memory on the market at the best price on the market. ONE CHIP DOES IT ALL

Jaws-IB is the Rolls-Royce of all the S100 dynamic boards. Its heart is Intel's single chip 64K dynamic RAM controller. Eliminates high-current logic parts .. delay lines . . . massive heat sinks .. . unreliable trick circuits. JAWS-IB solves all these problems. LOOK WHAT JAWS-IB OFFERS YOU Hidden refresh . .. fast performance .. . low power consumption .. . latched data outputs .. . 200 NS 4116 RAM's . . on-board crystal .. . RAM Jumper selectable on 8K boundaries . . . fully socketed . .. solder mask on both sides of board. . . phantom line ... designed for 8080, 8085, and Z80 bus signals . . . works in Explorer, Sol, Horizon, as well as all other well-designed S100 computers.

► 10-DAY MONEY-BACK TRIAL: Try a fully wired A

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r.ondllinn. J

Continental U.S.A. Credit C;ml Buyers Outside Connecticut: TO ORDER CALL TOLL FREE 800-243-7428

From Connecticut Or For Assistance: (203) 354-9375

PJease send the items checked below: JAWS-IB kit:

Q 16K $149.95*

D 32K $199.95*

D 48K $249.95*

□ 64K $299.95*

JAWS-IB Fully Assembled, Vi/ired & Tested:

D 1BK $179.95*

D 32K $239.95*

D 48K $299.95*

D 64K $359.95*

□ EXPANSION KIT, 16K RAM Module, to expand JAWS-IB in 16K blocks up to 64K. $59.95

*AIJ prices plus S2 postage and insurance fS4.00 Canada). Conneclrcul residcnf.s add safes lax.

Total enclosed: S

P Personal Check □ Money Order or Cashier's Check

□ VISA □ Master Card (Bank No. )

. Exp. Date .

Signature Print Name

Address. Citv

.Zip .

NETRONICS R&D Ltd.

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

431

AC-85CP/M® SYSTEM

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$2450

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• CBIOS Diskette

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• Manual

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• SYSTEM with 2 SA850R (2.4 mbytes)

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autocontrolH

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11744 Westline Industrial Drive

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(314) 432-1313

1 CP/M is a registered trademark of . Digital Research, Inc.

Circle 42 on inquiry card.

ATARI

GRAPHICS HARDCOPY

ON: EPSON PRINTERS

CENTRONICS 739

IDS 445G

TRENDCOM

Dumps anything on the screen to the printer

©

To Order Toll Free 1-800-344-7493

In CA. 6- for Service (209I 667-2888

/VMCROTRONrCSJnc.. OS

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Circle 235 on Inquiry card.

RS-232 PROBLEMS?

LET THE RS-232 TESTER HELP YOU SOLVE YOUR COMPUTER INTERFACE PROBLEMS. DESIGNED TO CONNECT IN SERIES WITH ANY RS-232 INTERFACE, IT DISPLAYS THE STATUS OF SEVEN OF THE MOST IMPORTANT LINES: TRANSMIT DATA, RECEIVE DATA, REQUEST TO SEND, CLEAR TO SEND, DATA SET READY, CARRIER DETECT, AND DATA TERMINAL READY. THE RS-232 TESTER REQUIRES NO POWER AND MAY BE LEFT IN THE LINE PERMANENTLY.

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Circle 46 on Inquiry card.

\REM SCALE TO 0-23 FOR CURSOR LOADING

\REM Y-P0SITI0N CODE

\REM LOAD CURSOR AND OUTPUT CHAR

\REM UPDATE X

Listing 4 continued:

1610 Y= INTCY/A1 + .5)

1615 REM CONVERT TO 0-255 SCALE

1650 IF Y<128 THEN Y1=Y+128

1655 IF Y>127 THEN Y1= ABS(128-Y)

1660 Y=INT(Y1/10)

1665 IF Y>23 THEN Y=23

1670 Y= ABSC23-Y) + 32

1675 OUT 2,27

1680 OUT 2,61

1685 OUT 2,Y

1690 OUT 2,X

1695 OUT 2.C2+18

1700 X = X + 1

1705 IF X=112 THEN 1735

1710 IF X<B7+32 THEN 1615

1725 REM DISPLAY DONE, PROMPT FOR NEXT CHNL TO DISPLAY

1730 REM

1735 OUT 2,27 \REML0AD CURSOR

1710 OUT 2,61

1715 OUT 2,55

1750 OUT 2,32

1755 INPUTT'CHANNEL TO DISPLAY (0=END)?",C2

1760 IF C2=0 THEN 150

1765 IF C2>C1 THEN 1755

1770 GOTO 1580

1775 REM

1990 REM

1995R EM ************** *******

1996 REM

1997 REM THE FOLLOWING SECTION OUTPUTS THE DATA BUFFER

1998 REM TO THE OSCOPE VIA D/A PORT 26 WITH THE TRIGGER

1999 REM PULSE COMING OUT PORT 25 2000REM

2100 P1=FNH("0900") \REM ADDR TO PUT CHNL CODE

2120 C3=C2-1 \REM CHNL CODE

2110 FILL PI,C3

2 115 T$=" SEC" \REM CALCULATE TIME SCALE

2150 T1=K1*B6*T1*T2

2155 IF T1>=120 THEN T$ = " MIN"

2160 IF T1>=120 THEN T1=T1/50

2170 !\!"CHANGE ANY BIT OF PORT 21 FOR HEW CHANNEL"

2175 !\!"T0TAL OUTPUT = ",S6F1,T1,T$

2177 P9=INP(21)

2130 Q=CALL(P1+2,B6) \REM OUTPUT BUFFER

2190 IF IMP(21)=P9 THEN 2180 ELSE 2200

2200 INPUT"WHICH CHANNEL DO YOU WANT TO DISPLAY?(OsEHD):",C2

2220 IF C2<1 THEN 150

2230 GOSUB 7000

2210 IF C2>C1 THEN 2200

2260 GOTO 2100

2990 REM

29 95 REM *»**»»** »****<**»»»»»»*

2997 HEM

2998 REM THIS ROUTINE OUTPUTS THE DATA BUFFER

2999 REM VIA PORT 26 TO THE STRIP CHART RECORDER

3000 T3 = " SEC" \REM CALCULATE TIME SCALE 3010 T1=K1*B6*T1«T2

3020 IF T1>=120 THEN T$=" MIN"

3030 IF T1>=120 THEN T1=T1/60

3010 ! "TOTAL OUTPUT = " , 7,6F 1 , T1, T$

3050 !\IMPUT "PRESS CARRIAGE RETURN TO START OUTPUT",OS

3060 !\!"CHANNEL " , C2," BEING OUTPUT",

3070 REM

3030 D1=B1 + C2 - 1

3090 REM

3100 FOR 1=1 TO 10

3110 OUT 26,123

3120 GOSUB 3000

3130 NEXT I

3110 REM

3150 REM OUTPUT BUFFER TILL DONE

3160 FOR 1=1 TO B6

3170 y = exa;-'(di)

OUT 26,Y

\REM INITIALIZE DATA PT ADDR

\REM OUTPUT STARTING POINTS

\RE.M DELAY SR

D1=D1 + C1 GOSUB 3000

NEXT I

3130

3190

3200

3210

3220 REM

3230 REM

3210 FOR 1=1 TO 10

3250 OUT 26,128

3260 GOSUB 3000

3270 NEXT I

3280 REM

3290 REM

3300 !

OUTPUT ENDING POINTS

\!\!\!"DISPLAY FINISHED"

Listing 4 continued:

3310 INPUT"WHICH CHAMN

3320 IF C2<1 THEN 150

3330 IF C2>C1 THEN 331

3310 GOTO 3010

14000 REM

'1020 HEM *«* THIS

40H0 REM *»» OUTPU

'1060 REM

EL DO YOU WANT TO DISPLAY?(0=END)",C2

0

1080 D0= -2.00 1100 !"DIFFERENTIATOR U120 C1=FNH("0137") •'1110 C1=EXAM(C1 )

FOR 1=1 TO C1 V0=INP(24+I ) IF VCK128 THEN IF V0>127 THEN V 1 = (V 1 * . 0 2 ) -2 !"CHANNEL ",I, NEXT I RETURN

SECTION PRINTS THE VOLTAGE TS FOR EACH DIFF. CHANNEL

\REM DIFF OFFSET OFFSET = ",00," VOLTS"

* * *

* * *

* **

'I 16 0

i iao

1200

1220

1210

4260

'1230

'1300

5000REM

5010REM

502 OR EH

5030 0=FMH("08FC")

5040 QrCALL(Q)

5050 RETURN

600 OR EM ***

6010REM «**

6020REM ***

6030 0=FNH("08FE")

6040 0=CALL(Q)

6050 RETURN

7000 REM »***»*

7010 REM

7020 REM THIS SECTION

7 0 30 REM

7040 B1=FNHC1000")

7050 B2=FNH("017F")

7060 B3=B2+1

7070 B2=EXAM(B2)

7080 B3=EXAM(B3)*256

7090 34=B3 + 32

35=B4 - 31

REM

C1=FNH("0137

C1 = EXAM(C1 )

R EM 7150 36=B5/C1 7160 A1=INT(36/80 7170 IF A 1=0 THEN

B7 = INT(36/A1 )

K1=.053248

T1=FNH("013

T2=T1 + 1

T1=EXAM(T1 )

T2=EXAMCT2)

RETURN

R EM

pj ITI-l * » *

R EM

FOR J=1

RETURN

END

\REM /' CIINLS

V1=V0+128 \REM- SCALE 0-255

V1=ABS(128-V0) .56 " = " ,V1," VOLTS"

SR TO DISABLE INTERRUPTS

SR TO RESTART INTERRUPTS

**************

FETCHES CONSTANTS FROM RAM

\REM BUFSTRT

\REM CONVERT MBUFPT TO DECIMAL

7100

7110 7120 7130 7140

')

+ .3 A1 = 1

\REM //PTS IN BUF

\REM II CHNLS

\REM #PTS/CH!IL ) \REM « PTS TO AVE FOR DISPLAY

7180 7190 7200 72 10 7220 7230 7240 7900 7 910 7 92 0 8000 8100 9 00 0 READY

')

\REM CLOCK INTERRUPT RATE

\REM /.'INT/SAMPLE \REM II SAMPLES/DATA PT

« * DELAY BETWEEN DATA OUTPUT * » » *

TO 2 0 \NEXT J

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Now with added words! -j

ELECTRIC MOUTH

fnr SlOO, Elf II, Apple m flnn nrTRS-80, Level 11* From MJ9.95 W<

Now — teach your computer to talk, increasing interaction between you and your machine.

Thills ri^hl: (he ELECTRIC MOUTI i finally lels your computer talk! Installed and tin-line in just minutes, it's ready fur spoken-liinRiiaRe use in office, business, industrial and commercial applications, and in fjames. speeial projects. RAD. education, security devices— there's no end to the ELECTRIC MOUTHs usefulness, l/wk at these features:

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• Includes on-bnard nudio amplifier and speaker, with pri leaker;

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• Installs in just minutes

Principle of Operation: The ELECTRIC MOl JTH stores the digital equivalents

of words in ROMs. When words, phrases and phonemes are desired, (hey simply are called for by your program and then synthesized into speech. The ELECTRIC MOUTH system requires none of your valuable memory space except Tor a few addresses if used in memnry mapped mode. In most cases, output ports (user selectable) are used.

SPOKEN MATERIAL INCLUDED (Vox I)

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

433

Software Review

Five Spelling-Correction Programs for CP/M-Based Systems

Phil Lemmons

89 Remsen St

Brooklyn NY 11201

When I had trouble with an applications program last year, I appealed to my software vendor for help. He wrote me, "I have been in touch with the publisher, but I am getting noware fast." Noware, of course, was the leading technology before the invention of hardware, software, and firmware. Was noware makjng a come

Af a f71ar|^o

Name

System Requirements

The Word

CP/M 1.4 or 2.2 operating

system, CDOS, or IMDOS;

Author

8080/85 or Z80 CPU with

Wayne Holder

32 K bytes of memory; one

or two disk drives;

Type

keyboard input and hard

Proofreader for spelling

copy output; CP/M

errors, including

compatible word processor,

45,000-word literal dic

including WordStar, Word

tionary, as well as programs

Master, Ed, and Magic

to look up words in a dic

Wand

tionary on disk, count

words, report on word fre

Format

quency, search dictionary

CP/M single-density 8-inch

for words matching letter

disk

patterns, and sort words in

a file into an alphabetical

Language

list with all redundancy

8080 machine language

eliminated

Documentation

Manufacturer

30 pages, soft cover, stapled

Oasis Systems

2765 Reynard Way

Audience

San Diego CA 92103

Anyone with a CP/M

(714) 291-9489

compatible word-processing

system, especially writers

Price

and editors

$75

back? No way. "Noware" was a spelling error. And the only way for a poor speller to discover errors like this was with software. But no proofreading software was then available for microcomputers.

Until recently, I didn't think the time had come for a good proofreading program running on microcomputers. Fortunately, I was wrong. Help has now arrived for the small-computer owner who can't spell or can't find misspellings. Not counting programs designed for use with only a single word-processing program, at least five proofreading programs are now available for CP/Mbased computers: Microproof, The Word, Spellguard, Microspell, and Wordsearch. After using them for several weeks, I'm convinced that four have real merit. The four useful programs share some virtues, but each program also has features that appeal to a particular group of users.

You might base your choice among the four programs on the characteristics of your hardware—particularly the disk capacity. Or your word-processing software might mesh well with one of the programs, depending, for example, on whether your text editor will let you run a proofreading program from inside (ie: as a pseudocommand in the editor). Then again, each program has its own way of letting the user deal with a text file. Would you prefer a program that quickly checks a file and prints a list of suspect words? Or would you rather have the program present the suspect words to you one by one, so you can see if the word is really misspelled? Or how about a program that lets you see each word's context and change the original text? Another important criterion is price, and the range is great.

I'll discuss each of the five programs in turn, including their performance in benchmark tests. But first I'll state the opinions I've formed about what a proofreading program must do to be useful. Also, I'll explain how I tried to

434 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

devise benchmarks that are meaningful for five programs, all of which work differently.

What a Proofreading Program Must Do

If you told someone it was okay to bring a few friends

Ar a nianrp

Name

or two disk drives;

Spellguard

keyboard input and hard

copy output; CP/M

Author

compatible word processor,

Denis Coleman

such as WordStar, Word

Master, Magic Wand, Elec

Type

tric Pencil, or Ed

Proofreader for spelling

errors, including

Format

20,000-word literal

CP/M single-density 8-inch

dictionary

disk; North Star double

density 5-inch disk; or

Manufacturer

SuperBrain 5-inch CP/M

Innovative Software

disk

Applications

POB 2797

Language

Menlo Park CA 94025

8080 machine language

(415) 326-0805

Documentation

Price

116 pages in three-ring

$295

binder

System Requirements

Audience

CP/M 1.4, 2.0, or later

Anyone with a CP/M

operating system, or CDOS;

compatible word-processing

8080/85 or Z80 CPU with

system

32 K bytes of memory; one

Name

system; 8080 or Z80 CPU

Wordsearch

with 32 K bytes of memory;

dual 8-inch single-density

Type

disk drives; 24 by 80 video

Proofreader for spelling

terminal; CP/M-compatible

errors, including 7200-word

word processor

literal dictionary, with routines to list misspelled words and display the text

Format

CP/M single-density 8-inch disk

file with misspellings

highlighted

Language

8080 machine language

Manufacturer

Keybits Incorporated

Documentation

POB 592293

46 pages in three-ring binder

Miami FL 33159

(415) 524-8098

Audience

Anyone with a CP/M word

Price

processing system

$195

System Requirements

CP/M-compatible operating

to your party, how would you feel if 500 strangers appeared? You'd feel the same way about a proofreading program that found fifty suspect words for every one that was actually misspelled. A proofreading program that finds all the misspelled words in a document is of little use if the program also finds hundreds of correctly spelled words suspect. How can the list of suspect words be kept manageable? It requires an extensive dictionary; I think 20,000 words is the minimum. The words must be correct and well chosen.

Another feature that keeps down the number of correct words mistaken for misspellings is the ability to create special dictionaries for your particular interests. Proofreading programs can also recognize more words by breaking words into roots, prefixes, and suffixes before checking the dictionary. But that has its drawbacks, because you can't stick any suffix or prefix on any root and get a real word.

A proofreading program should also provide a handy way to dispose of suspect words that are in fact correct. If a program presents the suspect words in one list, you need a quick way to delete correct words from the list. If a program presents suspects one at a time, you should be able to accept or reject each word with a single keystroke.

Equally important, the program must facilitate correction of misspelled words. One way is to mark suspect words in the original text file with a character that's easy to find later by using a text editor's search command. In

STOP!

Did you remember to remove your Priority One insert? If not please turn back to page 64 and tear it out.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 435

that case, the mark should be easy to delete during editing. And the mark should be made in a disk file, not on paper. Working from paper is too slow.

Another way for a proofreading program to facilitate correcting misspelled words is to provide a means to replace the word in the original file. With some word processors, however, this approach runs the risk of disturbing the format of the original text—especially in justified copy.

No matter what its other virtues, a proofreading program must also work quickly. Most significant among the factors affecting the speed of operation is the size of the dictionary. Putting too many little-used words in the dictionary may sacrifice speed in proofreading without reducing the number of suspect words. Putting too few words in the dictionary results in long lists of suspect words, and that also wastes time. The dictionary must strike a balance.

Benchmarks

Originally, I thought I could just run each program until it finished and note how long it took. But no two programs finished in the same place. Spellguard proofreads the file, lets you judge each suspect word, and then Spellguard itself marks the words indicated. The Word proofreads the file, gives you a list of suspect words, and lets you trim the list with your own text editor; you can mark the confirmed misspellings by running The Word's

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At- a Glancp

Name

Price

Micros pell

$249

Author

System Requirements

Bob Lucas

CP/M 1.4 or 2.2 operating

system; 8080 or Z80 CPU

Type

with 48 K bytes of memory;

Proofreader for spelling

one disk drive with at least

errors, including

150 K bytes; keyboard input

26,000-word literal dic

and hard-copy output;

tionary and suffix-stem logic

CP/M-compatible word pro

to encompass a wider

cessor

vocabulary, with integral

routines to display the con

Format

text of a misspelled word.

Great variety of CP/M disk

guess the word intended,

formats

look up words in the dic

tionary, count words, search

Language

dictionary for words match

8080 machine language

ing letter patterns, and cor

rect the misspelling in the

Documentation

original text file

30 pages, soft cover, stapled

Manufacturer

Audience

Lifeboat Associates

Anyone with a CP/M

1651 Third Ave

compatible word-processing

New York NY 10028

system

(212) 860-0300

Afa Clanrp

Name

$60 for correcting option

Microproof

System Requirements

Author

CP/M 1.4 or 2.2 operating

Phillip Manfield

system or TRSDOS for

Model I, II, or III TRS-80;

Type

Z80 CPU with 32 K bytes of

Proofreader for spelling

memory; one 5-inch or

errors, including

8-inch disk drive; keyboard

50,000-word dictionary

input and hard-copy output;

(counting words constructed

word processor

from roots, prefixes, and

suffixes), with optional

Format

routines to display the con

CP/M 8-inch single-density;

text of a misspelled word

TRS-80 Model I, II, or III

and correct the misspelling

in the original text file

Language

Z80 machine language

Manufacturer

Cornucopia Software

Documentation

POB 5028

24 pages, no cover, stapled

Walnut Creek CA 94596

(415) 524-8098

Audience

Anyone with a CP/M or

Price

TRS-80 word-processing

$169 standard version;

system

436 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 318 on inquiry card.

MARK program from inside your text editor. Microspell and Microproof let you review each word, but there's no need to mark bad words because these two programs make corrections directly in the text file. Since Wordsearch neither marks suspect words in the text file nor corrects errors itself, you have to work from paper.

For a quick comparison and summary of the differences between the programs, see tables 1 and 2.

How Long Until When?

It was easy to compare how long the programs take to check the words in a document against the dictionary and then list all the suspect words. But that comparison didn't really measure how the programs perform in normal use. Since Spellguard and The Word both mark words in the text file, I wanted to compare how long they take to proofread a file and mark the suspects. But you have to

Microproof Microspell Spellguard The Word Wordsearch

Words

50,000* 26,000** 20,000 45,000 7200

Bytes

72 K 154K 170 K 160 K

72 K

Files

3 4

1 1 2

User

Common

Common

User

Make

Proper

Place

Add

Special

Names

Names

Words

Dictionaries

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No

Yes

Yes

* This is not a literal dictionary. The figure 50,000 includes all the words that can be formed by adding suffixes and prefixes to roots;

therefore, some "words" included in the count are not true English words. ** Incorporating all the ED.VOC vocabulary file and three-fourths of the ING.VOC vocabulary file into the four-file main dictionary. Both

VOC files are supplied with the program and can be added to the main dictionary if disk space permits. Though Microspell claims only a

26,000-word dictionary, its suffix-and-root functions help the program recognize about the same number of words as a 45,000-word

literal dictionary.

Table 1: Comparison of the dictionaries of the five proofreading programs. Dictionaries for Spellguard, The Word, and Wordsearch are literal. Microspell has a 20,000-word literal dictionary, but provides more words in the files 1NG. VOC and ED. VOC, most of which were added to the original dictionary. Microspell's dictionary uses suffix-root routines to extend its coverage to a range somewhat broader than Microproof's dictionary. Although the Microproof dictionary claims contents of 50,000 words, that includes many nonwords formed by adding prefixes and suffixes to roots.

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PRODUCTS, INC.

TO ORDER CALL: (301) 6948884

Circle 171 on inquiry card.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 437

run your text editor before The Word marks the file, and it seemed unfair to charge The Word for the time needed to load the text editor. After all, with The Word, the text editor is already loaded when you finish marking the file, so you can make corrections almost immediately. With Spellguard, you still have to load the text editor to make corrections; it's just that you load the editor after marking the errors.

To complicate matters, fairness to Microspell and Microproof—the direct-correction programs—requires seeing how long it takes to run the other proofreading programs plus exiting those programs and loading your own text editor to make corrections plus saving the corrected file. On the other hand, is it fair to hold those other programs responsible for the time it takes me to run

an elaborate word processor like WordStar? Would it be fairer to use a smaller editor?

Right or wrong, here's what I decided to do: I've given the time each program needs to scan a text file and list all the suspect words; I've given the time the marking programs need to scan the text file, review the suspects, mark the text file, plus the time needed to load the text editor and call up the text file for editing (that seems fair to Spellguard and The Word); I've given the time each program needs to do all the above, plus making corrections and saving the corrected file (to be fair to Microproof and Microspell).

What Is a Suspect Word?

I decided to count as a suspect word both every word

Find

Count

Mark Correct

Guess

Similar

Display

Word

Word Word

Word

Words

Context

Frequency

Microproof

No Yes*

No

No

Yes*

No

Microspell

No Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Spellguard

Yes No

No

No

No

No

The Word

Yes No

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Wordsearch

No No

No

No

Yes

No

* Requires the correcting option.

Table 2: A summary

of the features

oftht

! five proofreading programs.

Sometimes the

same feature is

implement

ed differently in

different programs.

HISS&LO&f fUSSOWNB

&0APPIH6

&0ARO5U\\$£. KOAROn

60AWEO

438 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

and word fragment listed by the proofreading program. For programs that treat hyphens as spaces, I counted the fragments "accom" and "plished" as two suspect words. My rationale is that the fragments usually appear alphabetically and I have to consider each fragment and determine whether it is a misspelled word or not. Word fragments take the same amount of work as words.

This concludes the discourse on method. I tested the programs on a 400-word file (figure 1) and a 3000-word file. The results are shown in tables 3 and 4.

Spellguard Version 1.0

Spellguard is a magnificent program of the highest commercial quality. If your main concerns are speed and accuracy in straightforward proofreading, and if you have plenty of disk space, Spellguard is probably for you. Spellguard is menu-driven and the screen tells you all you need to know. The program lets you make every decision with a single keystroke.

The Package—In addition to its dictionary (170 K bytes), Spellguard includes the programs SP.GOM (6 K bytes), SP.ISA (38 K bytes), and MAINTAIN (14 K bytes). SP.COM, SP.ISA, and the dictionary must all be present for Spellguard to operate (though the dictionary can be on a different disk drive). MAINTAIN is needed only when you wish to verify that Spellguard is working properly. ISA (Innovative Software Applications) also

offers a limited dictionary for systems with low-capacity disks, and will soon offer dictionaries both more compact and more comprehensive, as described below.

Dictionary—As of this writing, Spellguard's dictionary contains approximately 20,000 words and takes up 170 K bytes of disk space. Spellguard's dictionary is literal; the program never assembles words from roots and suffixes. Denis Coleman, Spellguard's author, started work on it after writing a book in which he misspelled his own name. Coleman also saw the need for proofreading papers he wrote as a management consultant.

Coleman based the dictionary on two sources: Kucera's word-frequency study of 1962 and the American Heritage Word Frequency Book (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1971). It also includes words drawn from Coleman's own documents and papers of Spellguard users.

ISA will soon offer a version of its standard 20,000-word dictionary compressed to 32 percent of its present size, about 55 K bytes. In addition, it plans three additional dictionaries: a 30,000- to 40,000-word general dictionary, a 15,000-word medical dictionary, and a 15,000-word legal dictionary. Data compression will be standard in all of them. According to Coleman, ISA's techniques of data compression will result in increased operating speed for Spellguard.

Performance—Though Spellguard needed only 56 seconds to proofread the file shown in figure 1 and

Microproof Microspell Spellguard The Word Wordsearch

Misspelled Words in File

7 7 7 7 7

Words

True

Time

Time

Time

/ords

Wrongly

Mis

Misspelled

to

Until

Until

ound

Found

spellings

Words

Proofread

Ready

All

spect

Suspect

Found

Missed

File

to Correct

Corrections

32

26

6

1

0:45

2:16**

26

20

6

1

1:06*

2:47**

47

40

7

0

0:56*

2:31«

3:40

19

12

7

0

1:39'

3:15"

4:00

105

98

7

0

0:55°

4:56°°

6:13°°°

Using the switches that suppress display of context and creation of an output file of suspect words.

• * Microproof and Microspell do not require a text editor to make corrections. However, since both programs accepted an incorrect word

in this file, correcting that word required running the text editor and saving the file. When Microspell or Microproof misses a word, about 1:20 must be added to the timing shown.

• Skipping the regular word review, going to the special word review, and asking that all suspect words be listed at once (Option L on Special Word Review Menu).

• • Time to proofread, review suspect words one by one, mark legitimate errors, load WordStar, and call up text file to start making correc

tions.

Time to proofread and list suspect words found.

Time to proofread, load WordStar, use WordStar to edit list of suspect words, save shortened file of suspect words, run The Word's

MARK program while still inside WordStar, and call up marked text file to make corrections. ° Running the Scan function followed by the List function. °° Time to proofread file, assign words to one of three groups, print a list of confirmed misspellings, load WordStar, and call up unmarked

text file. Wordsearch neither marks errors nor corrects. 000 Since Wordsearch doesn't mark errors, each misspelled word had to be typed in as a search string, and that added to the time required

to make corrections.

Table 3: Performance of the proofreading programs on the 400-word text file in figure 1. The first timing shows how long each program takes to read the file and list all suspect words. The second timing shows how long each program takes to read the file, find the suspect words, decide which suspects should be marked, mark the suspects, and call up the text file to make corrections. Microproof and Microspell have no timing in this column because they make corrections in the original text file. The third timing shows how long it takes to read the file, find the suspect words, decide which suspects should be marked or corrected, make the corrections (in some cases directly, in other cases using a word processor), and save the file. In cases where Microspell or Microproof failed to recognize a misspelled word, the user must load a word processor and make the correction. That process adds about 1:20 to the third timing for Microproof or Microspell.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

439

Microproof Microspell Spellguard The Word Wordsearch

Words

True

Time

Time

Time

Misspelled

Words

Wrongly

Mis

Misspelled

to

Until

Until

Words

Found

Found

spellings

Words

Proofread

Ready

All

in File

Suspect

Suspect

Found

Missed

File

to Correct

Corrections

10

109

99

10

0

1:09

4:28

10

55

45

9

1

2:15*

7:15**

10

151

141

10

0

1:06*

4:40"

6:35

10

52

42

10

0

2:05'

4:52"

6:42

10

517

507

10

0

1:06°

10:21 °°

13:31°°°

• Using the switches that suppress display of context and creation of an output file of suspect words.

** Microspell does not require a text editor to make corrections. However, since Microspell accepted an incorrect word in this file, correcting that word required running the text editor and saving the file. When Microspell misses a word, about 1:20 must be added to the timing shown.

• Skipping the regular word review, going to the special word review, and asking that all suspect words be listed at once (Option L on Special Word Review Menu).

• • Time to proofread, review suspect words one by one, mark legitimate errors, load WordStar, and call up text file to start making correc

tions.

Time to proofread and list suspect words found.

Time to proofread, load WordStar, use WordStar to edit list of suspect words, save shortened file of suspect words, run The Word's

MARK program while still inside WordStar, and call up marked text file to make corrections. ° Running the Scan function followed by the List function. °° Time to proofread file, assign words to one of three groups, print a list of confirmed misspellings, load WordStar, and call up unmarked

text file. Wordsearch neither marks errors nor corrects. 000 Since Wordsearch doesn't mark errors, each misspelled word had to be typed in as a search string, and that added to the time required

to make corrections.

Table 4: Performance of the proofreading programs on a 3000-word text file. The same comments apply as in the caption for table 3.

display a list of suspect words, that isn't the standard procedure. To achieve that timing, I skipped the regular word review and took the List option on the Special

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Word Review Menu—calling for a display of all the suspect words at once. In normal use, running Spellguard takes longer because suspect words are presented individually to be marked in the text file, ignored, or added to the dictionary. But Spellguard lets you dispose of each word so easily that you can quickly consider each suspect word and pare a long list down to manageable size. When I proofread the same 400-word file using Spellguard's regular step-by-step word review, I needed only 50 seconds more to deal with forty-seven suspects, and that includes the time Spellguard needed to mark errors in the text file. Once the larger Spellguard dictionaries appear, the list of suspects should be shorter and even easier to deal with.

Before making corrections, I had to change disks and run WordStar, my text editor, and call up the text file. Those steps took an average of 45 seconds. So a minimum of 2:31 passed before I could use WordStar's Find command to locate marked words and make corrections. I completed the corrections and saved the corrected file in another 1:09, a total of 3:40.

Proofreading the 3000-word file and listing all suspect words took only 1:06. Reviewing each suspect word and marking legitimate misspellings took another 2:49, a total of 3:55. Loading WordStar to start making corrections brought the total to 4:40. I had run WordStar, made all the corrections, and saved the file after a total of 6:35.

I have two criticisms of the version of Spellguard I used. The first criticism will no longer apply by the time this article appears, and the second is minor. First, Spellguard identified too many suspect words. In the 3000-word file, Spellguard found 151 suspects and there were only ten misspellings. The excess of suspect words

440 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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resulted from the present dictionary's limited size, and the upcoming data-compressed dictionaries will remedy this problem.

Second, I felt a slight annoyance at having to restore the last character of each marked word (Spellguard replaces the last character of a misspelled word with an error mark). If the actual spelling error occurred early in the word, I thought Spellguard was entering a second error and requiring me both to delete the mark and replace it—two keystrokes plus any other corrections needed. These added keystrokes made correcting files marked by Spellguard take more time than files marked by The Word. On the other hand, by replacing the last letter of a bad word instead of adding a character to the word, Spellguard avoids disturbing the format of text in the file. You can't have it both ways.

Spellguard handles hyphenated words by displaying both halves of the word and indicating whether the word occurred at the end of a line. That makes it easy to check the correctness of both the spelling and the hyphenation. Since Microspell and The Word treat hyphens as spaces and report the broken parts of words as two suspect words, Spellguard has an advantage here. The advantage is partially offset because Spellguard reports all compound words as suspects. So Spellguard made "importexport" suspect, but Microspell and The Word considered the compound correct. In the 3000-word text file, Spellguard reported nine compound words as suspects; in the same file, Microspell reported fifteen hyphenated word fragments as suspects, The Word reported sixteen, and Microproof thirteen. Microproof also listed ten compound words as suspects.

The User's Guide—The user's guide for Spellguard is excellent. The writing, organized around the program's screen displays, makes its point without resorting to jargon or inflated language. A plastic three-ring binder holds 116 pages of sharp print quality, including a table of contents, an index, and a glossary. The Spellguard user's guide would probably make Spellguard the best proofreading program for general use in offices.

The Word Version 1.1

The Word is a program of beautiful simplicity. Its SPELL program proofreads a file and gives you a list of all the suspect words. The author, Wayne Holder, sought to create a set of tools for people who work with words. Each of The Word's seven programs is designed to meet Kernighan and Plauger's definition of a software tool: a program that is general and yet simple enough to have widespread application. Each of the seven programs works quickly and performs a valuable task. Holder envisions adding more useful programs to The Word's toolbox. For writers and editors, The Word already offers far more than just a proofreading program.

The Package—In addition to the 160 K-byte dictionary, The Word includes seven programs: SPELL (4 K bytes), MARK (2 K bytes), WC (2 K bytes), DICTSORT (2 K bytes), WORDFREQ (2 K bytes), FIND (2 K bytes), and LOOKUP (2 K bytes). SPELL proofreads a text file

and lists the suspect words. MARK puts an asterisk at the beginning of each suspect word in the text file. WC counts the words in the text file. DICTSORT alphabetizes words and eliminates redundancies from the resulting list. Use it on your own text files and discover what your working vocabulary is. WORDFREQ shows you how many times you use each word in a text file, a fast and valuable check on style. FIND searches the dictionary for words that conform to a character pattern (using CP/M "wild card" characters for the unknown letters in the pattern).

LOOKUP is a remarkable little program that takes a misspelled word and "un-misspells" it, looking for words that can be derived from the misspelling by adding one letter, dropping one letter, changing one letter, or reversing two letters. The program often finds the right word and finds it much faster than you could with a printed dictionary. One new program that will appear in the forthcoming 2.0 version will let the user review the list of suspects one by one and decide whether to mark each suspect, add it to the dictionary, or ignore it. The review program will not be integrated with SPELL, so the user will have the option of listing all suspect words at once. On the more distant horizon, The Word may even include heuristics to help cope with the problem of homonyms (like "fare" and "fair") in the proofread document.

Dictionary—The Word's dictionary is large and literal.

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441

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It packs more than 45,000 words into only 160 K bytes of disk space. The Word's dictionary also uses crossreferencing to speed access to its contents. Oasis Systems based the dictionary on The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (Boston: Houghton Ivfifflin Company, 1979), and used data-compression techniques. One of the methods of compression is simple: when two successive words have common letters at the beginning, the common letters are replaced in the second word by a 1-byte count of the common letters. If the word "power" is stored literally, the word "powerful" is stored as "5ful." If "eccentric" is already present, "eccentricity" is compressed to "9ity." The increased dictionary size made possible by data compression pays off in a dramatically reduced number of words reported as suspect. A new version of the dictionary, using additional data-compression techniques, will soon be available. The 45,000 words will occupy only 136 K bytes and will make The Word's programs run even faster.

Performance—The Word took 1:39 to proofread the 400-word file in figure 1 and list the suspects. With the present version of The Word, you have to use your text editor to eliminate correctly spelled words from the list of suspects before marking the errors. Since The Word's large dictionary prevents SPELL from defaming many innocent words, this editing chore takes little time. Furthermore, you'll have to reload your text editor to make corrections anyway. (As noted earlier, a program for reviewing suspect words one by one is on the way.)

Here's how I used The Word with WordStar. I ran The Word's SPELL program with the $F switch, which makes The Word write the list of suspect words to a file. Then I ran WordStar and edited the list of suspect words, deleting those that were in fact correct. Next, I saved the shortened list of suspect words and, from inside WordStar, used WordStar's R command to run The Word's MARK program. Then I called up the marked text file for editing.

To do all this with the page of text shown in figure 1 took me a total of 3:15. On the 400-word file, The Word got me to the point of being ready to make corrections only 34 seconds later than Spellguard. And correcting the file marked by The Word took 24 seconds less than correcting the same file marked with the same corrections by Spellguard. The reason? It takes a few seconds more to retype the character replaced by Spellguard's error mark. The Word's mark doesn't knock out any characters, so none have to be retyped.

It took The Word 2:05 to proofread the 3000-word text file. The total time increased to 4:52 when I invoked WordStar, edited the list of suspect words, saved the shortened file of suspect words, ran MARK, and called up the text file for editing. I made the corrections and saved the file after 6:42. That's only 7 seconds slower than equivalent operations took with Spellguard.

The User's Guide—The guide to The Word is simple and clear. It separately describes use of each of the programs. Since The Word isn't organized around screen

442

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 200 on inquiry card.

I'd had the joint staked out for two years and nine months. I'd been waiting for a break in the investigation all that time. This looked like the break I'd been waltzing for.

The tall stranger walked up to the bar, ears akimbo. I knew he meant trouble from the moment I saw the insignia on the back of his black leather jacket: "Hell's Twirps." That was the same gang that peddled into the all-Mahler Philharmonic concert last year and hummed the collected works of John Cage in unison. Not that John Cage has ever been in unison. Quite the canary.

Why was this particular Hell's Twirp barging into the only AustroMongolian fife and drum factorial east of the Rockies? Why wasn't he ridding his unicycle? And what was the meaning of the gold mandalas hanging from the tips of his handlebore mustache? Then I saw his baton. The sight of its sleek crome length turned my bblood to issicles. When I glimpsed the white plastic knobs at the ends of the baton, I saw my whole life rush before my eggs.

Suddenly the Twirp slammed his fist down on the bar. His ears swayed gently in the breeze as he demanded, "Give me four hundred snare drums to go! Give me the five longest fifes in your inventaryl Give me the old college try! Give me liberty or1 give me grief!"

I knew better than to let this build to a crisis before interseeding. I swizzled up behind the big Twirp and said, clam and easy like, "Shove off, Twirp. Vamoose. Leave well enough aloft."

He whirled, ears slashing, baton twirling. I thought of the health-insurance premiums I hadn't paid. I realized how happy I would have made my dear old father if I'd only gurgitated from college. I thought of the thousand times I'd wanted to be where I wasn't, and knew this was the thousand and first. If I had'nt been in a connubial mood, I wouldn't have been able to stand up to the singing shroud, the short shrift and the five and dime. But I had no time for all that now. Before it was too late, I reached into my vest pocket and pulled out my well-thumbed copy of Milton's Areopagitica.

"That'll be seven ninety-eight!" the bartender suddenly screamed.

I'd been counting on him.

Figure 1: The 400-word text file proofread by all five programs. Results are shown in table 3. The zaniness is intended to show the kinds of mistakes from which a proofreading program can't save you.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 443

displays, the guide isn't either. The programs are easy to use and the guidebook gives just enough explanation and examples.

Microspell Version 4.1

Microspell is the most interactive of the proofreading programs. Author Bob Lucas started work on Microspell after experiencing spelling problems while writing his thesis. He wanted to create a single program that gives the user fully integrated means of finding spelling errors, looks up the intended words in the dictionary, and makes corrections on the spot. He modeled Microspell after existing programs for larger computers.

Frankly, I didn't like Microspell at first because it seemed to take too long. But the more I used Microspell, the more I liked it, and the time required to run the program decreased dramatically as I became more accustomed to it. Microspell shows you each suspect word in its original context and gives you several options for dealing with suspects then and there. If you don't spell well and want to save trips to the dictionary, Microspell's Guess and Probe functions may help you find the right spelling quickly. The Probe function is much like The Word's FIND program, but Probe works from inside Microspell's large integrated program. Once you've recognized the correct spelling, you can immediately make the correction in the original text file by using the Replace command.

A coming version of Microspell will give users the ability to spread the dictionary over several disks, as well as improved logic for handling hyphenation at the end of a line (where a carriage return and line feed separate the two halves of a word). Lucas also is working on a patch program that will let the user change Microspell's defaults.

The Package—In addition to dictionary files that add up to 178 K bytes, Microspell contains SPELL (14 K bytes), BUILD (14 K bytes), INVERT (8 K bytes), and EMPTY (2 K bytes), as well as help, demonstration, and documentation files. Only SPELL and the basic dictionary (128 K bytes) are needed for most Microspell operations. BUILD incorporates a list of words into the dictionary. EMPTY gives BUILD an empty dictionary to use as the basis for a new dictionary of the user's creation. INVERT lets you view the dictionary or remove words from it.

Dictionary—Microspell's distribution dictionary contains 20,000 words in four files totaling 128 K bytes. The basic vocabulary was taken from Thorndike's list of the 20,000 most frequently used words. Two additional vocabulary files are included in the package. Called INGVOC and ED.VOC, these files are incorporated into the dictionary if your disk size permits. INGVOC is 20 K bytes in size, and ED.VOC is 30 K bytes. I was able to squeeze in all of ED.VOC and three-fourths of INGVOC. That gave the dictionary 26,000 words in 154 K bytes of disk space.

Microspell's dictionary handles about the same range of words as The Word's 45,000-word literal dictionary. That's primarily because Microspell can identify words in text by stripping a suffix and checking the spelling of a word root. Microspell also accepts many plurals on the same principle. Microspell's dictionary relies on the suffix-stripping routines, rather than on data compression, to extend the range of the words it covers.

The only trouble, as the Microspell manual points out, is that the suffix-stripping routines are sometimes wrong. As an experiment, I made up some nonwords out of roots and suffixes. Microspell accepted abstractment, abhorrities, boathood, boatize, hairful, footish, mountainette, and theaterhood; it rejected discontinerary, condications, abominition, abettulate, ligamentury, nutticulate, vocabutation, writathlon, safetydom, and theatricate. In use, Microspell shows how it forms a word from root and suffix, so you can catch a mistake if you are observant and willing to check Microspell's work against a printed dictionary. But you can't correct such a mistake without exiting Microspell and running a text editor.

Performance—It took Microspell 1:06 to proofread the text in figure 1 and display a list of the misspelled words. That isn't the normal method of operation and doesn't mark or correct errors in the text file. Running Microspell in the normal way, reviewing one suspect word at a time, takes longer. The time required depends on the proficiency of the person running the program. My first few runs of Microspell were far slower than the ones reported here.

Microspell's ability to correct errors in the text file seems a big advantage over Spellguard and The Word. It took a total of 2:47 to run Microspell this way and correct all but one of the errors in the text in figure 1. (I'll say more about that one error later.) Spellguard took 1:46 to find and mark the errors, but then I had to change disks and run WordStar. Microspell proofed the text file and corrected all but one of the errors in about the same time Spellguard took to find and mark errors, plus the time needed to load WordStar and call up the marked text file. We would have to compare the 3:17 Microspell took with Spellguard's 1:46, plus the time necessary to use WordStar to make all the corrections in the original file and save the corrected file. Microspell's 2:47, then, has to be compared to Spellguard's 3:40. In general, Microspell has the edge on short files because the time needed to load a text editor after running the other spelling programs is a larger proportion of the total time required for the whole process of finding and correcting errors.

Except for that one special error, Microspell would have the clear advantage the correcting feature seems to offer. But that error, the nonword "inventary," was displayed as a correct word. Microspell doesn't let the user alter any word it considers correct. So I had to note the word, load WordStar, find the unmarked word, and correct the misspelling. Loading WordStar might also have been necessary if any correction changed the length of a word; such a change might destroy the text's alignment, especially if the text is justified. Microspell lost its edge

444 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

because of accepting the bad word. For a fair comparison with Spellguard and The Word, add about 1:20 to Microspell's timing of 2:47. That's a total of 4:07—27 seconds slower than Spellguard and 7 seconds slower than The Word.

Microspell proofread the 3000-word text file in 2:15 (the quick way). But it took 7:15 to proofread the file step by step and make corrections. That's about 30 seconds longer than it took me to proofread and mark the file with The Word and correct the file with WordStar, and about 1:32 longer than the whole process took with Spellguard. Microspell found fifty-five suspect words, including all but one of the misspellings in the file. This time Microspell was willing to accept the word "stewardes." So I had to run WordStar afterward to correct that, and that added about 1:20 to Microspell's timing. The time required to handle this file was about 8:35 —almost three minutes slower than Spellguard and two slower than The Word. But don't forget that Microspell lets you look at the context of a suspect word and lets you probe the dictionary for a correct spelling. Those features may help you decide whether a suspect word is right or wrong, and may hand you the correct spelling on the spot, saving time-consuming trips to a printed dictionary.

The User's Guide—The Microspell user's manual contains twenty-nine pages of single-spaced, photo-offset material stapled between pasteboard covers. The print quality is good, the writing clear, and the organization sound. The manual includes a detailed table of contents, an overview of the program, summaries of the commands, switches, and error messages, and instructions for using each of Microspell's four utility programs. Two pages from a sample run of Microspell let the user know what to expect from the program. The manual's threepage explanation of the program's limitations would satisfy any consumer protection agency. A revised edition of the manual has just been released but did not reach me in time for inclusion in this review.

Microproof (CP/M Version)

If your disk space is extremely limited, Microproof may be the best proofreading program for you. On my system, I had room on a single disk for all the WordStar files, the Microproof dictionary, and Microproof's proofreading and correction programs. Furthermore, I was able to run both the Microproof proofreading program and the correcting program from inside WordStar. That's real convenience. And Microproof is very fast and reasonably accurate. By using root-suffix and root-prefix routines and data compression, author Phillip Manfield has made the 70 K-byte dictionary act like a literal dictionary of about 30,000 words. Manfield's inspiration? His thesis was riddled with misspellings, and someone told him it was impossible to write a good proofreading program to run on a system as small as a TRS-80 Model I. (Microproof does run on Model I, II, and III TRS-80s.)

The Package—The standard Microproof package includes the proofreading program MICPROOF (10 K

bytes), the dictionary-building program ADDTODIC (4 K bytes), and three dictionary files that total 72 K bytes. I strongly recommend the optional correction program CORRECT (4 K bytes) because Microproof can't mark errors in the text file. Without the correction program, you'll have to type in a long search string for every bad word, using your text editor's Find function. Counting CORRECT, MICPROOF, and the dictionaries, Microproof gives a complete proofreading system that performs well and occupies only 86 K bytes of disk space.

Dictionary—Microproof's data-compression technique includes replacing all roots with one-character tokens. The dictionary is based on Webster's Pocket Dictionary but is not nearly that large a literal dictionary. Much of the dictionary's vocabulary comes from prefix-root and suffix-root logic. Suffix routines accepted abstractment, hairful, and footish, but rejected abhorrities, boathood, boatize, mountainette, theaterhood, discontinerary, condications, abominition, abettulate, ligamentury, nutticulate, vocabutation, writathlon, safetydom, and theatricate. Prefix routines accepted inclosed because they treat a prefix and root as separate words: "in" and "closed."

Each word is identified to the dictionary as a verb, a noun, an adverb, or an adjective, or as more than one of those parts of speech. Knowing the part of speech helps the suffix and prefix routines avoid accepting some plausible but illegitimate words.

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Performance—Microproof proofread the 400-word file in only 45 seconds. The program found thirty-two suspect words, six of which were in fact misspelled. Microproof missed one misspelled word. The program's prefix routine accepted interseeding, which Microspell rejected; on the other hand, Microproof's suffix routine rejected inventary, which Microspell accepted.

Microproof recognizes some hyphenated words as single compound words and treats others as two-word fragments. It ignores all single-character words, so if you mean "I" but type "J," Microproof won't let you know.

On the 3000-word file, Microproof took only 1:09 to find 109 suspect words, including all ten misspelled words. It rejected stewardes, which Microspell accepted. Microproof's prefix and suffix routines made no errors on this file.

The User's Manual—The Microproof manual is reasonably clear, but could use refinement. Its problems, all minor, stem from the manual's need to deal with both CP/M and TRSDOS, the TRS-80 operating system. Since I received Microproof, Cornucopia has developed the manual from an outline into an adequate user's gu..de. The manual includes facsimiles of screen displays and the print quality is good. More and bigger staples would help the manual withstand intensive use.

Wordsearch 1.03

Wordsearch is the only noncontender in the group of proofreading programs.

The Package—In addition to its dictionary (72 K bytes), Wordsearch includes the programs SEARCH (10 K bytes), WDS, WDL, WDA, WDT, WDM, and VIEW. All but SEARCH and VIEW are 4 K bytes in size, and VIEW is only 2 K bytes. SEARCH works by letting you access the smaller programs. It uses WDS to scan a text file for suspect words, WDL to list the suspect words, WDA to assign each suspect word to one of three groups, WDT to display the text file with suspect words highlighted, and WDM to merge good words with the dictionary. The reason for displaying the text with suspect words highlighted is mysterious, because all you can do is look; you can't reassign or mark the words.

Wordsearch provides no means of either marking suspect words in a text file or correcting misspellings. As

My Hardware

/ ran the proofreading programs on my SuperBrain computer. My timings are slower than some of those advertised for the programs reviewed, but that doesn't mean the advertisements were false. On systems with larger disks or hard disks, all the programs should run faster. For SuperBrain users who have one of these programs but can't match my timings, the operating system I use (SB/E, from IE Systems of Newmarket, New Hampshire) performs disk operations about one-third faster than the standard SuperBrain operating system. Also, do not try putting the larger Spellguard dictionary or The Word's dictionary on a single disk. My operating system can handle 188 K bytes per drive, opposed to the standard 161 K bytes.

446 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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a result, the user has two choices. The first is to print on paper a copy of the entire text file with confirmed misspellings underscored (or in bold or surrounded by double parentheses, at your option). For a text file of any size, the time required for printing, unless you have an extremely expensive printer, is sufficient to prevent Wordsearch from being competitive with other proofreading programs. Furthermore, after the file is printed, you have to work from the printed copy while using a text editor on the original unmarked file. Visual checking between paper and screen is time-consuming and far less accurate than using the search command of a text editor. Besides, if you'd been satisfied with the efficiency of working on paper, you wouldn't have bought a computer in the first place.

The second choice is to have Wordsearch print an alphabetical list of confirmed misspellings. This way, you need less time to print, but you have no idea where the errors are located. So you work with the text editor's search command. But that poses problems, too. Since Wordsearch doesn't use a mark character, you have to type the full misspelled word when you use a search command. That requires more checking between paper and screen and raises the possibility of making a typographical error when entering the string to be searched for. To make matters worse, since the list of misspelled words is alphabetical rather than in the order of occurrence in the text file, you often have to return to the beginning of the file to start the next search (or else use a global search, which is slower).

Wordsearch might deserve reevaluation if Keybits added a large dictionary and a means to mark errors in the original text. Unfortunately, Keybits plans no major changes in Wordsearch in the near future.

Dictionary—The dictionary I received with Wordsearch contains 7200 words in 72 K bytes. Rather than making the dictionary from a list of the most frequently used words, Keybits worked from a list of the 10,000 most frequently misspelled words. As a result of this approach and the dictionary's small size, Wordsearch considers the following words suspect: arm, baby, calm, catch, choices, assets, businessmen, chief, cover, dark, eyes, dinner, doubts, knew, land, life, thought.... You get the idea.

Why did Wordsearch take this approach? The user's guide says, "...ones [sic] written word vocabulary is a major subset of his total word vocabulary and varies from person to person. It is for this reason that we have provided a starter library of several thousand words, many of which are variations on the same word...Over time however, it will be necessary to add fewer words in order to stabilize your own tailored writing environment." If you can ignore the redundancies and mixed metaphors and somehow live with the knowledge that your environment has learned to write and tell the world what you're really like, you can get the message: Wordsearch assumes that everyone will write his or her own dictionary. Al Clark of Keybits says that after three months of adding words to the dictionary, the average

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user can expect Wordsearch to report only one or two suspect words each time it's run. Keybits has a 50,000-word dictionary on disk, but Clark says there has been no demand for it from Wordsearch users.

If you consider yourself in the same league with Samuel Johnson, Noah Webster, and the Oxford English Dictionary's Dr J A H Murray, and if you have three months to devote to writing your own dictionary, Wordsearch is the proofreading program for you. But if you want to buy a program today and proofread a letter tomorrow, Wordsearch won't help you much.

Performance—In the 400-word text file, Wordsearch found 105 words suspect. It listed the suspect words on the screen after only 55 seconds. But the list was of little use until I'd used the assign option to confirm which words were misspelled and then used the text-display option (with the /OY switch) to print the file with the misspelled words underscored. Using the assign option took 2:55 to review the 105 suspect words. Printing the file brought the total elapsed time to 4:11. Making the corrections with WordStar and saving the corrected file took another 1:37, for a total of 6:13.

Things were worse when I used Wordsearch to proofread the 3000-word file. Wordsearch needed only 1:06 to proofread the file and list 517 suspect words on the screen, but it took me 8:15 to assign these words to one of three groups. Printing the whole file with misspellings underscored took more than 11 minutes. I abandoned that approach and started over. This time I just had the program print a list of confirmed misspellings. That took only 15 seconds, so I'd saved almost the full 11 minutes. But when I edited the file and used the search command to locate misspellings, I had to type in each string exactly. Since the list was alphabetical, I often had to return to the start of the file to initiate a new search. Alas, making the corrections and saving the file took another 3:28, so the total came to 13:49—roughly double the time required by any of the competing programs.

The User's Guide—The Wordsearch User Manual is incomplete, overwritten, and poorly organized. It stands as a Great Wall between the user and the program. The introduction says, "To take full advantage of this manual, begin by trying each function and feature at your terminal as you review it in the manual." A careful check revealed that my terminal was not in the manual. The system overview begins: "Wordsearch is a spelling word dictionary lookup system." That sounds like an attempt by a word, miraculously blessed with the ability to spell, to look up a dictionary. The Wordsearch User Manual sells for $45. I'll bet the National Museum of Obfuscation, Redundancy, and Misplaced Modifiers would pay twice that amount for it!

Conclusions

Spellguard, The Word, Microspell, and Microproof should all win a place in the market for automatic proofreading software. Which program is best for you? That depends on which features you consider most important.

The Word and Spellguard are the most accurate pro

grams because they use literal dictionaries. At this writing, The Word's dictionary is larger and occupies less disk space.

Spellguard, once its larger dictionary appears, will probably be best for the office because of its menu-driven operation. But The Word merits consideration there, too, because all its operations are so simple.

If you want your computer to look through the dictionary and propose alternatives to a misspelling, choose between Microspell and The Word.

If you prefer a single integrated program that does everything from proofreading to guessing the intended word and correcting the error in the original file, you'll go for Microspell. Because of its suffix-stripping routines, Microspell is slightly less accurate than the packages with literal dictionaries.

If you have limited disk space, Microproof offers bigdictionary performance through data compression and suffix-prefix routines, at some sacrifice of accuracy.

If you want a good proofreading program, but also want other features useful to writers and editors, you'll buy The Word.

My own preference? I like great accuracy, a large, literal dictionary, and a marking feature. I also like a program that can look up words in the dictionary on disk. Furthermore, I like to see a list of all suspect words at once. Since I'm a writer and editor, I find word-frequency software useful, and I'm usually short of cash. By far the least expensive of these programs, The Word has no shortcomings I've been able to find. I've already mailed my check for $75 to Oasis Systems. ■

[While correcting the proof of this review, I received version 2.0 of The Word and I couldn't resist testing it. On the 400-word text file, it found the same number of suspect words as before, but the program works faster now. The Word took only 1:28 to proofread the file and list the suspects. The new REVIEW program eliminated the need to use WordStar to edit the list of suspects. With REVIEW, I needed only 26 seconds to review the suspects, and only 7 more seconds to mark the confirmed misspellings. I had loaded WordStar and was ready to correct after 2:46. I completed the corrections and saved the file in only 3:31.

On the 3000-word file, The Word 2.0 showed improved handling of WordStar's soft hyphens. As a result, it found only 38 words suspect, only 28 wrongly so. Moreover, The Word 2.0 proofread the file and listed the suspects in only 1:43. REVIEW enabled me to review the suspects in 31 seconds; MARK marked the confirmed misspellings in 28 seconds. (Reviewing and marking took 2:49 with Spellguard, but only 0:59 with The Word 2.0; the short list of suspects helps a lot.) I had loaded WordStar and was ready to correct after 3:27. It took another 1:50 to make the corrections and save the file, for a total of 5:17. For combined speed, convenience, and accuracy, I think The Word 2.0 has far surpassed its competitors. And it still costs only $75.)

448 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

User's Column

New Software, New Hardware Computer Languages, and Games

Jerry Pournelle c/o BYTE Publications

70 Main St Peterborough NH 03458

"Read any good books lately?" asked my mad friend Mac Lean.

Having just come back from an autograph party for King David's Spaceship, and the day before sent off the copyedited manuscript for the new Niven-Pournelle Oath of Fealty, I knew what to say. "Haven't had time. But I've written some good books lately...."

"Yeah, well, I wasn't talking about science fiction," said Mac Lean. "I meant good books on computers. I've got a dilly." He held up PL/1 : Structured Programming, by Joan K Hughes.

"Hey, I know her," I said.

"Well, you tell her for me she's written a really top book. Good index. Clear English. Stand-alone chapters, so you don't have to thumb back and forth to find out what's going on."

"I'll do better than that," I said. "I'll tell my readers."

"Yeah. Sure. When?"

"Uh, real soon now...."

* * *

My apologies for taking so long in finishing this column, and my thanks to all of you who've written encouraging letters. Things do get hectic here at Chaos Manor, and the last few months have been something to see: books to get done, articles to write, and I built a new wing on the office, which meant moving everything around like Chinese Checkers, which meant that I lost the documentation to half the software sent me for review, which—

I am also, for my sins, Chairman of the Citizens Advisory Council on National Space Policy, which involves chairing meetings and editing papers and writing summaries and flying to Washington. The result was that for a good while I. had no time to play with Ezekial, my Z80, but things are a bit caught up now, and maybe we can get onto a schedule. Just last week I had a surgeon remove the telephone from my ear.

One reason we got caught up was Spellguard.

Every now and then you find programs that do things right and have documentation that tells you what to do and how to do it—programs that are a joy to use. Spellguard is like that. (See the reviews of Spellguard, Microspell, the Word, Microproof, and Wordsearch on pages 434-448.) Spellguard finds spelling errors. That's all it does. It doesn't wash dishes, or set your clock, or do your taxes, but wow! can it find spelling errors in standard ASCII text files. And it doesn't care what editor you used to create the files.

Using Spellguard is simplicity itself. All you do is tell it what file to look at. It does the rest. It does not do it as fast as the ads say—at least it doesn't with Zeke, but then he's only running at 2 MHz, and my ancient iCom drives, while utterly reliable, are pretty slow. Help is on the way: I've got a pair of Lobo's 8-inch drives, and they've promised an S-100 double-density controller next month. If the controller is as fast and reliable as their drives, things are going to hum around here. We've been using Lobo drives (both 8-inch and 5Vi-irtch) on the boys' TRS-80 for months now, and we love them.

Meanwhile, Spellguard runs fine under Speed, a rather strange program available from the CP/M User's Group. Speed trades memory for rapid disk I/O, and if you have programs that don't use a lot of memory but have a lot of disk operations, Speed can cut running time dramatically. For Spellguard the saving is about 50%; the saving in posting my journals to ledgers is even more dramatic—70%.

Speed, with auxiliary programs to get it running properly, is available on Volume 38 of the CP/M User's group (CPMUG) disks. Those with access to a computer net may be able to find it in an on-line file. You need a bit of patching with DDT to install SPEED, but the documentation (also on CPMUG Disk 38) is clear enough.

One warning, though: Speed maintains the disk directories in RAM (random-access memory), and if you change disks without rebooting (in Speed that's controlB, rather than CP/M's control-C) the result is an unmitigated disaster!

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 449

User's Column.

But back to Spellguard. When you run Spellguard, it first gives you a table, telling you how many words it has read, the number and percentage of unique words, the number and percentage that it can't find in the dictionary, and finally a changing column that tells you the percentage of proofreading the program has done.

Many years ago, when I was young and impressionable, I fell under the spell of a science fiction writer named A E Van Vogt; later he became a friend, neighbor, and colleague. Van Vogt was (and still is) interested in a rather hard-to-define field of study called general semantics, and through him I was led to Alfred Count Korzybski and a strange book called Science and Sanity. That led me to Wendell Johnson at the University of Iowa. Professor Johnson's interests spanned everything from classical linguistics and speech therapy to general semantics.

One of Johnson's research interests was identifying text: how could you tell if an anonymous work had been written by a particular author? Dr Johnson used a number of quantitative measures, two of the most important being the type/token ratio and the verb /adjective ratio. Type/token means the ratio of unique words to total words; verb/adjective is self-explanatory. I remember going nearly blind counting total words and making tables of unique words in, for example, Marlowe's

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Duchess of Malfi; the idea was to find out if Marlowe had written any of the Shakespearean plays. (As best we could calculate, he hadn't.)

Now Spellguard gives you automatic type/token ratios, and if you really want to, you can make up separate verb and adjective dictionaries, thus finding the ratio merely by typing in the text, which, believe me, is a great deal easier than doing it in teams of two with pencil and paper. Spellguard, with its efficient search algorithms, could be extremely useful in linguistic research projects.

Anyway, if you work with text at all, you'll love Innovative Software's Spellguard. It is an example of excellent software: a program that does one thing, does it very well, and has documentation to match.

Datebook and Milestone

Organic Software of Livermore, California, has also produced two excellent programs that I recommend, although I'll probably never use them.

The first, Datebook, can keep track of about six months' worth of appointments for three people. We had no trouble getting it to run, and it seems to be easy to use. The main drawback is that you have to want to run it; Datebook requires both disk drives and all of your microcomputer's memory. What I want is Calendar, a program that I may have to write myself; it would come up when I turn on my system, insist that I give it the date (the way Lobo's LDOS operating system does), and then natter at me about what I have to get done. But it's fairly obvious that I can't write that program until I have hard disks with multimegabyte storage.

Calendar would solve my problem: I forget to look at my appointment book until it's too late. And that raises a question: is Datebook really better than an appointment book of the kind used by many physicians and lawyers? I can't answer that, but my guess is that I wouldn't buy a computer for that alone. Datebook has various search patterns, so you can look for appointment openings of stated lengths, and the program offers up to nine candidates—but you can do that by glancing at a book, too.

The value of Datebook is that it will keep three schedules simultaneously, so you can work appointments with your partners (it searches for times when you're all free). It will also search through and find all the appointments you've made with a particular person—a task that is more difficult and certainly more tedious if you must rely on visual inspection of a book (especially if there are a lot of entries). And of course Datebook can make hard copy, and update that often. All in all, if I worked in a business where I had lots of appointments and schedules, I'd probably use Datebook, but then I'm gadgetoriented—and I have a computer.

Organic's other interesting program is Milestone, and people who need it will like it a lot. Milestone is a PERTchart generator. It performs critical-path analysis for jobs

450 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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with up to 300 tasks; it computes milestones (critical events), monthly manpower levels, monthly costs—in short, it handles most of the details we used to have to include in the management-plan portion of a research proposal.

Milestone isn't easy to use. In fact, it's almost impossible to use on my system because I don't have a 24 by 80 terminal. I use a memory-mapped 16 by 64 video display, in part because I still use the old-fashioned Electric Pencil as a text editor, and Pencil requires it, in part because I like the smooth scrolling and fast response, and in part because I'm lazy and have never gotten around to buying a terminal. That's going to change one day.

Anyway, Milestone isn't easy to use, not because the directions for the program aren't clear (they're only fair), but because PERT charting and critical-path analysis are more arts than sciences, and not easy jobs. Milestone can make the jobs easier, and if I ever again have to generate research proposals, I'll certainly use Milestone.

One of my pet peeves is documentation without examples. I can't imagine why people write instructions on how to use a program but fail to include specific illustrations of what command to issue and the results.

Let me illustrate. Suppose I am opening Milestone after not looking at it for a couple of weeks (as indeed I am). I turn to page 36, and there I find:

"B(egin) and E(nd) work

These two values define when the normal working day begins and ends. They must be even hours as defined on a 24-hour clock. Follow the rules for entering integers rather than times."

Now I ask you, what does this mean? Presumably, I once knew, but I confess I've forgotten. Indeed, some of us go days on end without even thinking about computers!

I don't want to be too hard on Organic; Milestone, in fact, comes with a set of example cases. One is Dr Victor Frankenstein Ill's PERT for creating a monster. Event One, "Fanatic Desire to Create Life," is a milestone; it has no duration, but you don't start without it. We proceed to Task Two, "Move to ancestral castle," and continue searching for Grandfather's notes, hiring a linguist, etc. As it happens, Organic ran this example as part of a demonstration for me at the San Francisco Computer Faire, and I can testify that Milestone is both fast and accurate. I thought up the need for a linguist to translate the notes. That broke into subtasks: advertise, interview, hire. I watched Burns VanHorne of Organic enter the new tasks. Milestone thought for a moment, then rearranged itself, because this information became part of the critical path. (Not long ago they sent a revision of Milestone and I notice that the tasks I suggested are now in the case study.)

So they have examples, in the sense of worked-out problems for their program, but they should have in

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User's Column.

eluded specific examples all over their manual—and so should every other publisher. Please?

Debate on Languages

My last column, on languages, generated a lot of correspondence. Some was predictable: I wasn't sufficiently respectful of LISP, the LISt Processing language written in 1956 by my friend John McCarthy, and since improved and expanded by McCarthy and my collaborator, Marvin Minsky, and used by my friends and associates who wrote ZORK, and—in other words, please, I don't dislike LISP users.

What I said was that LISP was fine for special purposes, but it wasn't among the candidates for replacing BASIC.

For those offended, my apologies, but I remain unrepentant. LISP may indeed be a great language for professional programmers, as it certainly is for those working in artificial intelligence. Furthermore, if you're someplace where you can learn LISP easily—say MIT or Stanford—then by all means grasp the opportunity.

Most of us, though, don't have that opportunity. Even if you have access to MIT's LISP-teaching programs, it's going to take time—lots of time—to learn. The ideal way to learn LISP is to use it; it does have the great feature of being an interactive language (which is BASIC'S great ad

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vantage). But the LISPs available for microcomputers are very limited (Minsky himself wasn't able to do much with the one I have), and it isn't likely that they'll get better—not with our present hardware. Come the revolution, when 32-bit machines with 256 K bytes of active memory and 50 megabytes of disk storage can be bought for $2000, LISP may then be the best thing available, but not now, unless you have very specialized needs.

In any case, this remains the User's Column, directed in large part toward nonprofessionals who are trying to make their small systems do useful things, and for those readers I don't recommend LISP. It can be fun to play with, and I'm glad Microsoft published it, but I doubt that microcomputer users will ever do more than play with LISP.

But the problem of languages has yet to be solved.

In theory, BASIC is an inadequate language. Listen to the hackers: they'll tell you that BASIC programs "are a maze of GOTOs" or that "you can't do structured programming in BASIC."

That isn't true. A good modern BASIC—say Microsoft's BASIC-80, or Software Systems' CBASIC—has do while, if-then-else, case, and nearly all the features Pascal has, plus string features that are a lot better than any Pascal I've seen, and decent I/O, which Pascal doesn't have at all. True, there are problems in BASIC that are easiest to solve with judicious use of GOTO statements, but it's certainly possible to write good BASIC programs without a single GOTO, and even easier to tame the GOTO so it never refers to anything outside a local modular block.

You can write top-down structured programs in BASIC. Best of all, you can write interactively, testing each step of the way, then test the program logic until it's working, after which you turn it over to Microsoft's BASCOM compiler, and wham. And for maybe 80% of the jobs you want a microcomputer to do, that's the best approach. It's almost certainly the fastest.

So what's wrong with it?

Plenty. First, BASIC still has a fatal flaw—no truly local variables. Passing parameters to a subroutine is hard, and controlling side effects (making sure you don't do something you didn't intend) isn't easy. You can reserve I,J,K,L as indices and set up "declarations" in remarks up at the top of the program, and with the new cross-reference programs you can usually find the side effects. Having done that, you still have trouble passing parameters, and if the program gets big, so that you'd like to compile it in chunks, you're out of luck. BASCOM doesn't permit decent chaining of programs, nor does it allow true compilation in parts.

In fact, the Microsoft BASCOM is not really the same language as its BASIC-80. In addition to the chaining problems, you can't use computed array sizes or common statements.

"But," protests the BASIC enthusiast, "that can be

452 November 1981 © BYTE Publicaeions Inc

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fixed. In fact, I bet you somebody at Microsoft is working on it right now."

True. And maybe, one day, they'll really fix the BASIC/BASCOM system. I hope so, because I find BASIC programs fairly easy to read and write. I expect you'd be able to buy a lot of programs in compiled BASIC right now if it weren't for Microsoft's disastrous policy of demanding royalties for every program compiled with BASCOM. Competition will take care of that; meanwhile, I use BASIC-80 with BASCOM for routine jobs, and a lot of my most useful programs are written in CBASIC.

There's so much investment in BASIC software—take Joan Hughes, author of the PL/I book that so impressed Mac Lean. Joan runs Execudata, one of the first of the small-systems houses that have sprung up everywhere. She sells turnkey systems for small businesses. The hardware she favors is the Vector Graphic S-100 bus Z80 with its "mindless terminal," which is really memory-mapped video. The software comes from all over. The editor is Vector's, and I'm tempted to buy a Vector machine just to get it; it's a lot like Electric Pencil but with most of the bugs out. Execudata writes other software or buys it commercially. Like all first-rate systems houses, they support everything they sell, and their customers seem downright enthusiastic.

The interesting angle is that the author of the best book we've seen on PL/I sells software largely written in CBASIC.

Why? Execudata has been around several years. When Joan first started the company, there wasn't a PL/I for microcomputers and CBASIC was the only BASIC that allowed long variable names (remember the horrible days when variables were "A$" and "Bl" and you hadn't the foggiest what they referred to?) and structured concepts. She may change over, now that we have PL/I from Digital Research.

Digital's PL/I documentation is, if nothing to brag about, at least readable. PL/I-80 is a fairly healthy subset of the ANSI General Purpose (Subset G) PL/I, and it runs.

"Yeah, and so what," asked a friend. "Who'd use it?" "PL/I is unwieldy and inefficient," says a recent article in a magazine. On the other hand, Mac Lean has spent the last couple of weeks learning it and he loves it.

Meanwhile, I have—at last!—gotten not one but two Pascals that run, and I've been wading through Peter Grogono's Programming in Pascal (see references) and reading everything I can find on Pascal.

I recommend Grogono's book—for that matter, I recommend the Pascal/MT+ implementation of Pascal. It works, and unless Mike and Nancy Lehman have become liars, which I doubt, Pascal/MT+ is a full implementation of the Standard Pascal, along with a few muchneeded extensions.

Their manual is improved, too. (They sent me an early

copy, and apparently my anguished screams were too much for them.) They've added a number of sections, and, according to Nancy, "That's all because of you...."

I also have the Sorcim Pascal/M up and running. Pascal/M compiles to an intermediate code. It's slower than Pascal/MT + , but it's also more compact and more portable. It, too, has extensions to standard Pascal, and I recommend it.

What I don't recommend is Pascal itself. Not yet, anyway. When I first looked at Pascal several years ago, I thought it was the nicest thing I'd ever seen. But the more I look at it, the more misgivings I have. I certainly could be wrong, and I'll know more by next column time. And by then, Mac Lean will have done things with PL/I so we can compare notes.

Meanwhile, don't throw away your CBASIC; they've made some improvements, also (Compiler Systems' President Gordon Eubanks says) as a result of my reviews. The needless limit on the line printer width has been fixed, and the COMMON and CHAIN features improved. I think the latest version has some other improvements, too, but I've mislaid the new manual. Although I've said it before, it's worth mentioning again: the CBASIC documentation is excellent.

Gordon also tells me that by the time this is printed there'll be a new version of CBASIC that allows nested IF

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 453

User's Column,

statements (fixing one of Joan Hughes's pet complaints), and before the end of the year they'll have parameter passing and local variables, and they're working on speeding it up.

The language situation isn't our only dilemma. Let's face it, our microcomputers are becoming obsolete. In one sense that's silly: we have more computing power than the government did ten years ago. The machines work reliably. And there's no point in replacing our machines just when we're finally getting good software.

But that's the problem: we're beginning to see hardware limitations on the new software.

Take Spellguard for instance. It's a good program. I use it often. But it can't touch real spelling programs like those that run on the big MIT computers. MIT's Spell (written, incidentally, in LISP) not only finds misspelled words—it shows you the word along with context, shows a menu of words it thinks might have been meant, offers you a chance to enter the new word in your permanent dictionary (if that's refused, offers the opportunity to put it in a dictionary kept just for this job), and, finally, lets you input the proper spelling, which it inserts into the text. It does all this at blinding speeds, searching dictionaries of 35,000 to 50,000 words. No 8-bit machine running floppy disks can touch that job. /Editor's note: Don't be so sure, Jerry. See the review of spelling pro

grams in this issue. ...PL/

There are other limits. One controversy over text editors hinges on a simple forced choice: do you limit the amount of text you can work on to what can be held in memory (as Pencil does), or do you keep part of it on the disk (as WordMaster, WordStar, and Magic Wand do)? If you keep part on disk, you can't conveniently change disks: that can be a serious limitation if you want to bring in a chunk of an old file or make a quick copy of something you can't afford to lose. If you keep all the text in memory, not only are you confined to 10,000 words or less (with my system, anyway), but you encounter real problems if you want windows and multiple buffers or if you'd like the machine to do some computing on values in the text.

Obviously, I prefer Pencil's limits. I have Wand and WordStar, but I don't use them—Star because it natters at me (when was the last time you wanted to know line and column number every time you typed a letter?) and Wand because of the disk operations. (Word Master, on the other hand, is the best programming editor I know of.) None of the available editors, not one, can do what I'd really like them to—for instance, let me put equations in my text, solve them, and have the answers available as I write. (What I usually do is leave the text on the screen and turn to my programmable TI-59, and that's silly.)

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Yet what I want isn't impossible—for big machines. MIT's MACSYMA can solve intricate equations, and its EMACS editor is inherently more powerful than anything we can implement on a microcomputer. I haven't seen them combined, but it wouldn't be that different if the memory was available.

New Machines

For a few years we'll exploit what we have, but it isn't going to be long before Zeke becomes the world's smartest terminal (two memory-mapped screens, a 20 K-byte PROM monitor to control printing and I/O, etc), while a new machine does the work. Only—what will the new machine be?

Two years ago everyone would have said "the Z8000." Now we just don't know.

Next, when we get the new machine, what will we use for an operating system?

Again, two years ago everyone would have said "UNIX, of course." And if we had UNIX, which is a fairly complex tree-structured operating system developed by Bell Laboratories, we'd also have answered the language question, since UNIX contains a C programminglanguage compiler and is written in C.

Now, again, we just don't know.

What went wrong?

First, there weren't any reliable Z8000 chips. Now that problem's fixed—but there aren't many available Z8000 computers, are there?

There is one. Onyx has a working Z8000, with UNIX and C, hard disks, and 128 K bytes of memory. They're being shipped as fast as they're being made, and according to their customers they work and work well. There's a good chance I'll have an Onyx running here in a few weeks and I'll be able to tell you a lot more.

Meanwhile, there's a serious rival to the Z8000 and UNIX: the dual 8085/8088, working on an S-100 bus and running Digital Research's operating system that looks a lot like CP/M and allows you to bring over most of your CP/M files. The 8085/88 won't run Z80 code, but then neither will the Z8000. It does execute 8080 code.

Bill Godbout sells an 8085/88 system, and Tony Pietsch, the engineer who built my system, recommends it, along with hard disks and dual-sided double-density floppies to back up the hard-disk system. Tony is building a Godbout S-100 system and there's a chance I'll get one for review. The Lehmans use a Godbout S-100 8085/88 system for their Pascal/MT+ and they're very happy with it, while Sorcim's president Richard Frank says they've got half a dozen running constantly and that you can pitch the Godbout box out a second-story window without hurting it.

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User's Column.

In other words, Z8000 with UNIX has respectable supporters, and so does 8085/88. Prices aren't quite comparable: the Onyx system costs more, largely because of the UNIX software, which isn't cheap. Performance isn't comparable either: the Z8000 Onyx is much faster than the 8085/88 machines.

Fortunately, we don't have to make any decisions just yet. It may be that the best policy is to skip all the 16-bit machines entirely and wait for a new generation of 32-bit monsters. Certainly if you're contemplating buying your first system, go ahead and get one: I still recommend the S-100 bus and Z80. You can upgrade to dual-density floppies and hard disks without too much risk, but if you want a system to use rather than play with, be conservative and leave systems development to the Tony Pietsches of this world. (Notice that if I get new systems in here, they'll be in addition to Zeke; him I don't touch.)

And stand by. Exciting things are happening in

microland.

* * *

I like computer games. I'm fond of ZORK and the various Automated Simulation games, and now they've got a new one called Star Warrior that's guaranteed to use up more time than you thought you'd give it, especially if you're a fan of Heinlein's Starship Trooper. The game has a lot of the same appeal as that book. It's

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played in real time, and you jump about in space armor trying to wreak havoc on the dastardly enemy while avoiding death. And it's balanced: you usually get out alive, but just barely.

I'm a Star Warrior addict. The boys like ASI's Hellfire Warrior, which is an extension of their famous Temple of Aphsai. They also like ASI's Rescue at Rigel, which is Dungeons and Dragons in spacesuits. I expect I'd like them too, if I had time to play them.

However, I'm not enough of a masochist to play Scott Adams's Adventure International games. There are those who like Scott's games a lot. Certainly, they aren't easy. Unfortunately, for me at least, they're just too tough. For example, he's got one called Balrog Sampler (it also has the title Maces and Magic #1 on it), a vastly complex game requiring two 5V4-inch disk drives. Like Automated Simulation's Temple of Aphsai, when you enter the game it generates a random character for you, after which you buy weapons, armor, and the like, before setting out.

Unlike ASI's games, Adams's game gives you no choice. You have to accept the characters randomly generated for you and a scruffy lot they are. But don't worry—if you're lucky enough to get one who's strong as Superman and rich as Croesus, he's still going to get killed about the time you get interested in the game. Everybody gets killed in Adams's dungeon, and often unfairly. In Zork and Adventure there's some logic to the puzzles, but in Balrog various things pop up and kill you before you can run away. There's one room in his dungeon where you find an attendant and a wheel of fortune. If you don't play, the bouncer comes and kills you. If you do play, you lose.

There are other "puzzles" in Balrog, but all of them are inexplicable—at least to me—and I always get killed. So do the boys, and one of them is an experienced (and fanatical) Dungeons and Dragons player, so it isn't just my amateur status.

It wouldn't be so bad if you could just play, get killed, and start over, but since the game is in BASIC (with encrypted messages and all kinds of kludges to keep you from analyzing it) it takes forever to initialize, load, create a character, and go through the ritual of choosing weapons and armor, just so you can get killed two minutes later. The dungeon keeps score and the program alters itself after every expedition so that when next you play, the dungeon proudly displays the number of players who have entered and the number killed. Ours is up to about 25 for 25 now, and nobody in the neighborhood wants to see the game again.

Meanwhile, Workman & Associates continues to sell the original Crowther and Woods Adventure for CP/M systems (see my review, December 1980 BYTE, page 230), only now they've added a twist.

"Only with our Build-an-Adventure Kit can you truly build an Adventure," the Workman copy reads, and I guess that's nearly true. The "kit" consists of an Adven

456 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 319 on inquiry card.

ture data base and instructions for altering it or, if you like, starting over with everything new.

The data base contains a travel table (description of each room, where you can go from there, and what commands get you where); the vocabulary (five-letter or shorter words that the program will recognize); initial conditions for various rooms (light, water, oil, etc); messages, objects, including their initial location and whether or not they can be moved; treasures, which are a kind of object; and various other stuff.

It's amazing what you can do with it. For example, you can specify that to get from a room, say BEDQUILT, to another, say SWISS CHEESE, you will be successful 25% of the time if you go East, but always if you go Up, or that the travel will fail if you are not carrying the skull, or that it will fail if you are carrying the skull. You can automatically transfer from one room to an identical room (identical to the player), except all commands work backward in the second room, or there are extra objects and doors.

In the actual Adventure game this is done a lot: for example, there's a room with a live dragon standing on a carpet and another with a dead dragon lying near a carpet. Most players think it's the same room, since it's the same location, but in fact it's not. In the first room the carpet isn't real: it's part of the room description. If you tried to take it, the program would say "I see no carpet here" if the program wasn't instructed to issue messages about the dragon only. In the second room, the carpet is real, and so is the dead dragon, except that you can't "take dragon" successfully because he's an immovable object. Once you've killed the dragon, however, you can't get back to the room in which he's still alive.

Workman's implementation of Adventure includes a "wizard" routine that lets you move freely through the dungeon. He doesn't tell you how to use the routine unless you buy the "Build-an-Adventure Kit."

To build an adventure, you use a standard editor, such as Wordmaster, to alter the game data base (or create a new one), after which you invoke a BUILDER program. The program takes your logically ordered data base and makes a work file out of it, while simultaneously patching other chunks into the ADVENT.COM file that controls the game.

You can construct very complex dungeons and when you're done you have a game that recognizes vocabulary. You don't have to specify the permissible moves the way you must in BASIC adventure games.

I asked Workman how many of the people who buy the game intend to market adventures and he chuckled. He isn't sure, but he suspects that most copies are sold to people who bought Adventure and then couldn't solve the puzzles and mazes. "We give them the original Adventure data base with the Adventure Kit," Workman said. "That contains the Adventure map. We also tell them how to move through the dungeon by magic. I

know that's why one guy bought the kit. He kept writing letters begging for the map. When we put out the kit, he bought the first copy."

Coming Up: In the next column I will continue to discuss languages, and I've also collected a raft of data bases I want to talk about. And I just finished letting Zeke do my taxes.... ■

References

Grogono, Peter. Programming in Pascal (revised edition). Reading MA: Addison-Wesley, 1980. $13.95.

Hughes, Joan K. PL/I—Structured Programming, second edition. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1979.

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Book Reviews

Apple Pascal: A

Hands-On

Approach

Arthur Luehrmann and Herbert Peckham McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 1981, 432 pages, softcover, SI 4.95 Reviewed by Hartley G Lesser 3243 Oakes Dr Hayward CA 94542

I knew very little about Pascal when I first sat down with this book. I had read a few magazine articles that described Pascal as a structured and understandable language, but my only programming experience was with BASIC and assembly language. I needed an introduction that assumed no prior knowledge, yet, at the same time, I wanted a book that didn't talk down to me. I'm happy to report that Apple Pascal: A Hands-On Approach is not only thorough and clear, but also treats the reader as the authors' equal. Although the authors begin at the most basic level, they seldom sound like lecturers. They teach as if they and the reader are working together on a series of intriguing experiments.

Written in a manner that will hold the interest of adults, this book also explains things clearly enough for children. My nine-yearold son worked through the first three chapters with apparent ease, although at a pace somewhat slower than my own. He learned to write simple Pascal programs and save them on disk, and moved on to the session on the graphics features of the Apple Pascal system. Judging from our experience, Apple Pascal: A Hands-On Ap

proach will meet the needs of a wide variety of readers.

Although it focuses on Pascal, the book has more general applications. In addition to describing the mechanics of this one language, it explains sound programming techniques. If you have access to an Apple, then this book is an excellent way for you to learn the art of programming as well as the virtues of Pascal.

Hands On!

The title means what it says: this book's instructional method really requires you to get your hands on an Apple and work your way through. Mastering the material presented will require that you commit several hours each day to sessions with the Apple. The sessions present simple but interesting procedures that produce clear results— whether they be music, graphics, or text.

I resolved to spend two or three hours in front of my Apple each day for about six weeks. Sometimes events disrupted my schedule, but that only pointed out another of the book's strengths: the presentation of information in a natural sequence. With a minimum of rereading, I was usually able to pick up where I had left off. And at the end of six weeks of study, I had a firm grasp of the basics of Pascal.

The book is organized into work sessions rather than conventional chapters. The authors' method is to describe a project in general terms, and then try different approaches to see what works and what doesn't. The reader understands each point thoroughly as a result of running several slightly modified versions of the same program before achieving complete success.

458 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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BYTE November 1981

459

Book Reviews

The authors are careful to demonstrate the traps in the language system and how to cope with them. In fact, they instruct you to commit errors, then explain each error so that you really understand why some programs won't compile and run correctly. The explanations are all the more effective because they come after the demonstration.

Each new session begins with a brief summary of the previous session. After outlining the goals of the new session, the authors break it down into manageable sections. Each section treats a specific feature of Pascal— whether it be the command prompts, the use of variables, or the grammar rules that apply to the procedures under study. The authors end each session by presenting a brief summary and a series of thought-provoking questions and problems.

I strongly recommend that you answer the session-review questions and problems before you go on to the next session. The questions test your comprehension of the material presented, and although some questions are difficult, answering them lays a foundation for work to come. An appendix contains the answers, and the temptation to peek can be strong. Try to refrain from peeking until you've worked out your best answer to each question or problem. Then, of course, you can check your answers against those in the appendix.

Getting Started

Session 1, "Getting Started," tells the reader what he or she needs in order to work with the book: an Apple II or Apple II Plus computer with 48 K bytes of RAM (random-access read/ write memory), a properly

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installed language system, a TV monitor or a TV receiver with RF (radio frequency) modulator, and a pair of game paddles. Only one disk drive is required, but instructions are included for using more than one. The text calls for Apple Pascal version 1.1, contained on two disks marked AppleO: and Apple3:. Both disks come with the purchase of the language system. The authors provide an appendix, however, for users of Apple Pascal version 1.0 that states every change that must be made in the text to accommodate the earlier version of the language. They stress the importance of keeping back-up copies and explain all of the 26 steps necessary to copy the distribution disks using two drives (Appendix B) and the even more numerous steps necessary when using a single drive (Appendix A).

Session 1 proceeds with instructions for "booting" Pascal and then guides the reader on a tour of the Pascal system that includes the command-prompt line, the file-prompt line, the filer's date-set command, the filer's "volume" feature (which displays a list of input and output devices that are "online"), and the filer's L command (which lists the directory of a disk). The session ends with an explanation of how to toggle from one half of the Pascal "page" to the other. Considering how much material the first session covered, I was surprised at how smoothly everything had gone.

The Pascal editor, including how to obtain the workspace needed to create programs and how to move programs into and out of memory and onto a disk, is explained in Session 2. Session 3 teaches the writing, running, and changing of programs. It was during this session that I first began to feel

at ease with the Pascal language. In fact, the language seemed hospitable to my input.

Session 4 demonstrates the use of built-in procedures and taught me how to generate sound. I also learned how a function could provide input to a program, how a For loop works, and how to rename a disk or a file.

In Session 5, the importance of the distinction between local and global variables is emphasized, and the creation and calling of new procedures is explained.

Session 6 explains functions, comments brackets, and some new features of the editor. Session 7 presents more about graphics. I learned to use the "turtle," the creature that crawls across the screen drawing lines with pens of different colors—but I did encounter some difficulties in the process. I rushed through this session the first time. On the second time through, I was able to complete answers to all the questions and to write the programs requested by the authors. As a result of this experience, I recommend that you study at a moderate pace.

Session 8 covers branching statements, more graphics features, and the technique of obtaining user input for a running program. Session 9 tackles string variables and While loops, and Session 10 teaches number types and arithmetic. The authors deserve particular praise for this chapter; I loathe mathematics but found the material both interesting and effortless to learn.

Discovering the Scalars

Session 11 introduces scalar data types and sets. This session is strikingly successful in leading the reader to discover, by directed experiments, what a scalar data

460 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 299 on inquiry card.

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JANUS #

the language that is based on the past but looks to the uses of the future.

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Now, JANUS includes Single & Double Precision Floating Point numbers, as well as Unlimited Precision Fixed Point numbers. The JANUS package is an integrated set of programs, supporting true Separate Compilation. The JANUS package produces ROMable, Re-entrant 8080 or optimized Z80 machine code. Code that is not only fast, but also is small because it includes a minimum of run-time support. But no other currently available compiler really compares with JANUS. You too can take a step forward into the future. ORDER before December 31 and get in on the special introductory price of $2 50.

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BYTE November 1981

461

Circle 357 on inquiry card.

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Book Reviews.

type is. A few quotes (page 238) will give you an idea of the writing style:

What is WHITE anyway? Well, what things could it be? First we note that WHITE appears in this program as a parameter that is being passed to the PENCOLOR procedure. That rules out the possibility of its being a reserved word, such as IF or FOR or WHILE or BEGIN, since reserved words never have values.

The things that have values in Pascal are variables, constants, and functions. Perhaps WHITE is one of these things. ... if WHITE is an integer or a real number or a character or a string, then WRITELN (WHITE) will tell us what its value is.

Insert a semicolon after READLN and then the following new line:

WRITELN (WHITE)

Run the new version.

Well, whatever WHITE is, it does not belong to one of these standard data types. The error message makes that plain. WHITE seems to have a value, but it is not a number, a character, or a string. Very mysterious.

Here's another approach. . . .

And so on. The reader sees scalar data types and what they will and won't do. The authors let the reader infer much about scalars, and let the reader enjoy a real sense of discovery at every stage. The scalar data types are defined only after they have been revealed; by then, the reader feels like the Amerigo Vespucci of the scalars.

Session 12 uses the same experimental approach to introduce arrays and their uses. Session 13 provides a thorough introduction to rec

ords and file systems. Session 14, the last in the book, discusses recursion and its uses. The session ends with a dazzling color-graphics program.

In addition to the appendices already mentioned, there are the following: "Names, Reserved Words, and Built-in Names," "The Command Structure of Apple Pascal," "Size and Quantity Limits in Apple Pascal," and "ORD and CHR Values of ASCII Character Set." A list of the 500 compiler error messages follows a comprehensive index.

Every book has its flaws, but those I will name are minor. There are some instructional paragraphs that are long and tedious—more, 1 think, as a result of the book's design than of the authors' prose. A more liberal use of graphics would have broken the paragraphs into digestible chunks. The book also neglected two important commands: the one that clears the screen of text and the one that inserts tabs in output to the screen. I found these commands elsewhere, but the book should have mentioned them.

In summary, Apple Pascal: A Hands-On Approach is a fine introduction to a powerful and increasingly popular programming language. I can unhesitatingly recommend this book to any Apple owner, and I would jump at the chance to buy a sequel.■

462 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 369 on inquiry card.

Book Reviews

Threaded

Interpretive

Languages

by R G Loeliger BYTE Books, Peterborough NH 1981, 251 pages, hardcover, SI8.95

Reviewed by A Richard Miller 61 Lake Shore Road Natick MA 01760

Ron Loeliger's new book may well be the most important one in years for a growing number of FORTH programmers and enthusiasts. Although the book is called Threaded Interpretive Languages, the prospective reader should know that its subject is FORTH.

This book is well written and witty, but be warned that it is not trivial. It sets out to implement a Z80-based computer language, right before your eyes. The author calls his language ZIP: again, read FORTH.

For those who are able to discriminate among versions of this "newly arrived," highlevel language (and/or assembler, and/or interpreter, and/or compiler, and/or operating system, and/or total computer environment, and/ or seemingly whatever you wish), ZIP is a close approximation of microFORTH from FORTH, Inc. It is also generally similar to figFORTH, and to FORTH-79 systems including MMSFORTH

It has become traditional to introduce FORTH with a scries of initially baffling keyboard entries. One might lead off with some arithmetic, using FORTH's Reverse Polish Notation (eg: the FORTH phrase {55*. }) instead of BASIC'S more familiar ("PRINT 5*5. Next, one might demonstrate FORTH's ability to add new words to

its instruction set, adding a new word to do a given job (eg: the FORTH phrase { : SQUARE DUP * . ; } compiles a new instruction named SQUARE, which then might be executed as { 5 SQUARE } to do the same thing as the above examples). Soon, one is switching number bases with HEX, and DECIMAL, switching dictionary vocabularies with EDITOR , ASSEMBLER and FORTH , and eventually creating whole new types of defining words with < BUILDS (79-STANDARD now calls it CREATE) and DOES> .

This traditional approach presumes that one must have many hours of low-level experience with the language before considering why FORTH works the way it does. As with BASIC, most users never get around to learning how FORTH literally threads its way through the internals of the computer to gain its ends. But its unique internal design makes FORTH what it is and Threaded Interpretive Languages starts with internal design and stays there for most of its pages. It assumes no knowledge of FORTH but does demand more than a beginner's familiarity with computers. To practice routine FORTH operations, get another book, a lot of sample FORTH source code, an adequate FORTH system to run on your computer, and some learning projects of your own. To learn FORTH inside out, however, buy this book!

Any good FORTH system is very compact and very fast. For example, on the TRS-80ModelI or III, MMSFORTH is about 20 times faster than Level II BASIC. Thus, many programmers do all FORTH programming in high-level FORTH. But FORTH includes a resident assembler and, where extra

speed helps, it is at your command. I like the author's unbiased way of balancing the trade-off between the ease and elegance of high-level FORTH and the "brute force" capabilities of assembly language.

The publisher deserves praise for treating this book as just that—a book. Up to now, most FORTH books have been indifferently printed and looseleaf bound. In contrast, Threaded Interpretive Languages is a solid little hardcover book, professionally produced and with a touch of class.

I do have some minor criticisms. The book uses black squares to represent the space characters within the code. Although it is useful to indicate the spaces (rather than to assume them), these large black squares overwhelm the eye and distract the mind. I recommend the use of unobtrusive open squares for the book's next edition. In a similar vein, the input lines are printed with proportional spacing between the characters, in contrast to the "typewriter-spaced" uniformity of a video terminal. Although this "typeset" style may appear more attractive, it is less faithful to the original material and is, I believe, misapplied here.

It is unfortunate that the author chose to call the language ZIP instead of FORTH, as that further complicates the issue. I imagine that, when he wrote this material, he wished to avoid any conflict with FORTH, Inc, which holds the rights to its name. However, in the last few years, FORTH, Inc has been gracious enough to encourage systems houses to produce versions with several variants on the name. His caution, therefore, appears unnecessary and—given the title of this important book—somewhat misleading.

It may also be misleading to say that the book implements a computer language. It does, but the author correctly warns that the implementation will require some work by the reader. It will also require some decisions that will affect certain tradeoffs, lots of ability, time, patience, and a very good idea of what you intend to accomplish. A few expert programmers will follow his pattern to create elegant and streamlined FORTH. Others may concoct unfortunate approximations of good systems.

Most readers will do neither, but reading this development of a FORTH system will enable them to appreciate the several complete FORTH systems now available for microcomputers.

As a good book on music theory stimulates musicians, I believe this text will serve most effectively as a marvelous insight for those working with existing—and debugged—FORTH systems. In other words, do not study music theory without practicing on a musical instrument. And, if at all possible, do not design an instrument without first playing on another.

FORTH has existed only for a decade. It has thousands of users, but it was invisible to the general microcomputer community until the special FORTH issue of BYTE (August 1980). In this reviewer's opinion, Threaded Interpretive Languages is the first book of excellent quality among the few written about the language. ■

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 463

Software Received

This is a list of software packages that have been received by BYTE Publications during the past month. The list is correct to the best of our knowledge, but it is not meant to be a full description of the product or the forms in which the product is available. In particular, some packages may be sold for several machines or in both cassette and floppy-disk format; the product listed here is the version received by BYTE Publications.

This is an all-inclusive list that makes no comment on the quality or usefulness of the software listed. We regret that we cannot review every software package we receive. Instead, this list is meant to be a monthly acknowledgment of these packages and the companies that sent them. All software received is considered to be on loan to BYTE and is returned to the manufacturer after a set period of time. Companies sending software packages should be sure to include the list price of the packages and (where appropriate) the alternate forms in which they are available.

Apple

Auto-Modem, a telecommunication utility program for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $39.95. Computer Station, 11610 Page Service Dr, St Louis MO 63141.

Castle Wolfenstein, a realtime graphics adventure program for the Apple II and Apple II Plus. Floppy disk, $29.95. Muse Software, 330 N Charles St, Baltimore MD 21201.

Enhanced Centronics 739 Graphics Software, a utility program that prints high-resolution graphics for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $44.95. Computer Station (see address above).

Enhanced Graphics Software, for the Epson MX-80. A utility program that prints high-resolution graphics for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $44.95. Computer Station (see address above).

Enhanced Graphics Software, for the NEC Spinwriter (5510/5520). A utility program that prints high-resolution graphics for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $44.95. Computer Station (see address above).

Falcons, a graphics arcade game for the Apple II and III. Floppy disk, $29.95. Piccadilly Software Inc, 89 Summit Ave, Summit NJ 07901.

MACRO-SCED 2.1, a cursor-oriented screen editor for the Apple II. Floppy disk,

$49.95. Computer Station (see address above).

Micro-DSS/Finance, a financial planning and analysis package for the Apple II Plus. Floppy disk, $1500. Addison-Wesley Publishing, Jacob Way, Reading MA 01867.

NET-WORKS, a bulletinboard and information-service system for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $124.95. Computer Station (see address above).

P-LISP 2.0, an implementation of the interpretive language LISP for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $99.95. Pegasys Systems Inc, 4005 Chestnut St, Philadelphia PA 19104.

Powertext, a word-processing program for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $199. Beaman Porter Inc, Pleasant Ridge Rd, Harrison NY 10528.

Professional Easywriter Version 4, a word-processing program for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $250. Information Unlimited Software, 281 Arlington Ave, Berkeley CA 94707.

Ultra Hi-Res Graphics, a utility program that plots as much as a full page of output for the Paper Tiger 460G to 560G series printers and the Apple II. Floppy disk, $49.95. Computer Station (see address above).

Word Handler, a word processor that does not re

quire hardware modifications for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $189. Silicon Valley Software, 652 Bair Island Rd, Redwood CA 94065.

Zork: The Great Underground Empire, Part I, Adventure-type game for the Apple II. Floppy disk, $39.95. Personal Software, 1330 Bordeaux Dr, Sunnyvale CA 94086.

Commodore VIC

Biorhythm Compatibility,

a program that compares biorhythm charts for the Commodore VIC-20. Cassette, $14.95. Commodore, 950 Rittenhouse Rd, Norristown PA 19403.

Space Math, a utility program that solves basic mathematical problems for the Commodore VIC-20. Cassette, $14.95. Commodore (see address above).

TI 99/4

Invoice Management, a

utility program that maintains a customer-invoice file for the TI-99/4. Floppy disk, $69.95. Texas Instruments Inc, Dallas TX 75265.

Saturday Night Bingo, a board game for the TI-99/4. Floppy disk, $29.95. Texas Instruments Inc (see address above).

Speak & Spell Program, emulates a TI Speak & Spell for the TI-99/4. Floppy disk, $29.95. Texas Instruments Inc (see address above).

Structural Engineering Library, five programs that solve engineering problems for the TI-99/4. Floppy disk, $29.95. Texas Instruments Inc (see address above).

Teach Yourself Extended BASIC, a self-help guide to TI Extended BASIC for the TI-99/4. Floppy disk, $24.95. Texas Instruments Inc (see address above).

TRS-80

B17 Disk/Bas, a utility program that saves and loads disk files to and from cassette tapes for the TRS-80 Model I. Cassette, $14.95. ABS Suppliers, POB 8297, Ann Arbor MI 48107.

CC Writer, a word-processing program for the TRS-80 Color Computer. Cassette, $30. Transformation Technologies, 194 Lockwood Ln, Bloomingdale IL 60108.

DC Circuit Analysis, a program that solves DC circuits for the TRS-80 Model I. Cassette, $11.95. Computer Heroes, 1961 Dunn Rd, East Liverpool OH 43920.

KWIK Cassette Operating System, for the TRS-80 Model I. Cassette, $24. KWIK Software, POB 328, Bolivar MO 65613.

Maxi Manager A.3, a database management system for the TRS-80 Model I. Floppy disk, $99.95. Adventure International, POB 3435, Longwood FL 32750.

New DOS/80 Version 2.0, a disk operating system for the TRS-80 Model I. Floppy disk, $149. Apparat Inc, 4401 S Tamarac Parkway, Denver CO 80237.

Stock Scoreboard, computes investment return and updates holdings for the TRS-80 Model I and III. Cassette, $15. Gary L Gilbert, 975 D Elgin, San Lorenzo CA 94580.

Wordsmith, a word processor for disk systems, for the TRS-80 Model I. Cassette, $14.95. ABS Suppliers (see address above).■

464 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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The Westinghouse induction heating system is so much faster than any type of surface heating, it enables the forge to produce parts at three times the old rate. That's because the controlled electric current flow within the bar stock heats to the precise depth required.

Such controlled heating from within significantly reduces the energy waste that accompanies surface heating. It also means an improved environment for employes involved with forging, forming, rolling, heat treating or curing of coatings.

Office productivity increased 6 percent when a Westinghouse "Open Office" System was installed by a major Eastern bank.

"Open offices" improved communications, provided efficient work stations and lowered noise levels for the bank's programmers and analysts. Productivity increased almost overnight.

Today, white collar employes represent half of the American work force, but white collar productivity has increased only 0.4 percent per year in the last five years. Installing "open offices" by Westinghouse can improve those figures.

Microprocessor-based production control increased productivity 300 percent for an agri-business.

A Westinghouse Numa-Logic™PC-700 programmable controller system replaced manual batching. Now a single 8-hour shift can mix 720 tons of 30 different types of feed requiring 41 separate ingredients. With only a 1 percent weight error in a given ingredient.

Before Numa-Logic, the same output required two 12-hour shifts, and there was a 20 percent weight error.

The Westinghouse Numa-Logic can increase productivity in a wide variety of process and manufacturing operations.

Ultrasonic Cleaning and Degreasing increased productivity by over 900 percent for a manufacturer of iron molds.

Instead of 1,300 man-hours and $21,500 to clean 100,000 units, now it takes 133 man-hours and slightly over $2,100.

Westinghouse Ultrasonic Cleaning does a faster, more thorough cleaning job than any other method. Using less harsh chemicals and no elbow grease, high intensity sound waves implode small vapor bubbles that blastoff dirt and residue.

If cleaning has been your productivity bottleneck, ultrasonics could be the answer.

Westinghouse technology saves energy.

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Energy Management will save over $800,000 per year in fuel consumption and labor costs for a 600-acre, 150-building chemical plant.

A Westinghouse Industrial Energy Management System replaced the plant's slower, traditional ways of monitoring and adjusting energy generation and use.

Now, over 1,800 sensors provide the central computer with continuous data for real time analysis of the entire plant's energy generation, distribution and process systems.

Result: Any deviation from optimum operational levels-anywhere-can be spotted and corrected in seconds. By one operator. At the press of a button.

Illumination costs were cut $233,000 per year for a 22-story bank.

The reason? Westinghouse Ultralume" lamps. Westinghouse researchers discovered that combining three particular wavelengths of light produced a fluorescent that gives better lighting for less money.

Two Westinghouse Ultralume Fluorescents provide the bank with a lighting environment which the employes agree compares to four standard fluorescents while using only half the electricity.

The bank has since installed Ultralumes in two other facilities. And is saving an additional $84,000 annually as a result.

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Combustion Control has cut the fuel bill of an Eastern chemical company 15 percent, saving it $75,000 per year.

The company installed a Westinghouse fully automatic boiler system on one of its four boilers.

Combining a probe-type oxygen analyzer with a microprocessor-based oxygen trim controller, the system optimized fuel consumption, increased safety, and decreased excess oxygen by 8 percent.

It has been so impressive that the company has ordered similar equipment for its three other boilers.

Modular escalators will save over $150,000 per year in energy costs for the mass transit system of a major East Coast city.

The 354 Westinghouse Moduline 100" escalators used there save 30 percent of energy costs when going "up" 60 percent when going "down" compared to the conventional type.

These advanced Westinghouse escalators can be connected in modular sections, giving architects a design freedom they never had before. These escalators can skip a floor, span vertical rises of 100 feet or more, and provide a nonstop 10-story ride.

That's right, 10 stories.

Westinghouse technology for the future.

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Electricity from sunlight is one step closer to economic reality.

The unique Westinghouse Dendritic Web process promises to significantly reduce the cost of manufacturing photovoltaic cells.

It produces long, thin, continuous strips of single crystal silicon, the main component of solar cells. The costly and wasteful slicing of silicon blocks has been eliminated.

Modules like the one pictured behind the dendritic strip above can produce up to 16 watts per square foot. Now, Westinghouse is working toward automated production facilities. And we've designed and installed systems for residential application.

Fuel Cells promise to be a highly efficient, compact, nonpolluting source of electric power.

Westinghouse is developing two types of fuel cells.

One is a phosphoric acid fuel cell targeted for the mid 80's. It converts any hydrogen-rich fuel such as synthetic gas from coal directly into electricity. It's environmentally benign, the only by-products are carbon dioxide, heat and pure water.

The other type is a solid oxide design. It's even more compact and more fuel efficient than the phosphoric acid fuel cell. With an 1800°F operating temperature, it's ideal for industrial cogeneration. It should be ready for use by the mid 90's.

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High Power Battery technology may soon give commercial vehicles such as delivery vans a 100-mile cruising range, take only 4 to 6 hours to recharge, and last 100,000 miles.

Westinghouse is developing a high power nickel-iron battery that offers the best combination of high energy density, long life cycle, longer time between charges and competitive life cycle costs.

Smaller and lighter than older types of batteries, the new Westinghouse nickeliron battery could also replace fossil fuels as the power source for industrial forklifts, mining machines, and airplane tow trucks.

It's already in limited production.

Super Small, Super Fast Processors will dramatically enhance America's military capabilities and ultimately revolutionize American industry.

Very High Speed Integrated Circuits (VHSIC) will increase processing capabilities by over 1,000 percent. It wi 11 be possible to put up to 500,000 transistors on a single chip.

The production and use of very pure silicon will enable such chips to process information at much higher rates of speed. And they'll require 1,000 times less power.

And advanced circuit pattern printing techniques will help deliver all of this capability in a package 400 times smaller than today's!

Through its technology, Westinghouse is ready to help American industry increase productivity

PRODUCTIVITY INCREASE IN MANUFACTURING, 1970-1980

United States

Japan

102.1'-;

the Netherlands

74.8%

France

60.6(/r

Germany

59.9%

Italy

59.0%

United Kingdom

25.5%

Source: Based on most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, United Stales Department of Labor, June, 1C)81

and...

Reestablish our worldwide industrial leadership. Improve our trade balance. Slow inflation, and help preserve and improve our quality of life. *

For more information, call toll free

800-245-4474

In Pennsylvania, call 800-242-2550

Or write: Six Gateway Center,

Dept. 10, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.

Clubs and Newsletters

Computer Publicity News for Publishers

If you're in the computer or electronic publishing business, Computer Publicity News could be exactly what you've longed for. Send the newsletter your yearly editorial schedule and information on how you would like product releases and advertising sent to you, and Computer Publicity News will publish it free. The newsletter is sent to marketing professionals in the computer and electronic industries. The subscription rate is $195 from Hi-Tech Publicity Consultants, 44 Monterey Blvd, Suite 170, San Francisco CA 94131, (415) 585-6102.

Computer Club Rides In Central Texas

The Computer Club of San Marcos has been formed to promote personal computing in central Texas. Correspondence from other clubs is invited, and all can attend meetings. For information, contact January Smith, POB 381, Martindale TX 78655, (512) 357-6762.

PacketSwitching Network

VADCG (Vancouver Amateur Digital Communications Group) is devoted to creating a packet-switching network via amateur radio. It is experimenting with highspeed protocol transmissions, and efforts are underway to connect a smart terminal node-controller board that interfaces any parallel or asynchronous serial device to the network. Other projects include an S-100 card to provide the centralized station node network control and a 1200-bit-per-second modem

for connection to VHF (veryhigh frequency) transceivers. Some public-domain software is available and more is being developed. Newsletter subscriptons are $10 from VADCG, 818 Rondeau St, Coquitlam, British Columbia, V3J 5Z3, Canada.

Computer Graphics Software News

The Computer Graphics Software News reviews computer programs in the public and industrial domain that deal with computer-generated graphics. Areas of interest are computer-aided design and manufacturing, animation, business graphics, image processing, and petrophysical-related software. The subscription rate is $50 a year (six issues). Contact The Computer Graphics Software News, 5857 S Gessner, Suite 401, Houston TX 77036, (713) 975-8509.

PET Users Meet In Golden State

The Southern California PET Users Group meets the first Tuesday of each month at 7 PM at the Data Equipment Supply Corporation, 8315 Firestone Blvd, Downey, California. For more details, call Lyle Phillips at (213) 693-3175.

CCAN

Construction Computer Applications NewsletterCCAN is a monthly publication from the Construction Industry Press. It has information and reviews on computer products designed exclusively for the construction industry. A one-year subscription to the Construction Computer Applications Newsletter-CCAN costs $48.

Contact the Construction Industry Press, 1105-F Spring St, Silver Spring MD 20910, (301) 589-4884.

Mall-Order Software Library

ESL (Educational Software Library) is a nonprofit, mailorder library of educational programs for the TRS-80 Models I and III. Members receive a bimonthly newsletter that describes current selections, which range from preschool to high school level.

A one-year membership costs $20 and entitles you to the newsletter, two educational tapes, the opportunity to borrow programs for twoweek periods at $2 per tape, and the chance to purchase software at discount prices. Contact ESL Inc, 262 Park Ln, King of Prussia PA 19406.

Mlcrosrv Newsletter

The Microsrv newsletter has short articles, technical tips, news, and programming help. It is primarily for Apple users, but much of the information can be applied to any system. For details on subscriptions or submitting editorial material, contact Microsrv, 20th Century Business Systems, 324 W 145th PI, Riverdale IL 60627, (312) 841-3400.

Librarians and Microcomputers

The University of Arizona Graduate Library School has announced the availability of the Small Computers in Libraries Newsletter. The newsletter acts as a clearinghouse

for the sharing of information on microcomputers in libraries. It offers glossaries, short tutorials, and reviews of programs and books pertinent to the subject. Subscriptions start at $20 from the Graduate Library School, Attn: SCIL, University of Arizona, 1515 E First St, Tucson AZ 85719, (602) 626-3565.

New TRS-80 Group In North Carolina

The Greensboro TRS-80 Group is a recently formed club that wants to learn all it can about TRS-80 equipment. Contact David K Bodman, POB 7785, Greensboro NC 27407, (919) 855-9155.

Sun Shines On New CBBS

A new CBBS (computerized bulletin-board system) has gone on line in Orlando, Florida. The system is positioned to service central Florida, and licenses are available for other areas. No particular subject dominates the board. The 24-hour telephone number is (305) 830-8166.

National Apple Newsletter

Owners and users of Apple II and II Plus computers now have a club publication devoted to their needs. The National Apple Newsletter will print anything members demand: Pascal programs, home control, computerized alarm systems, and other practical applications. For more information, contact Scott Summer, 27 Leicester Way, Pawtucket RI 02860.■

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 465

Event Queue

November 1981

November-December

Courses from Datapro, various sites throughout the US. Datapro Inc's educational program features seminars and one-day management briefings on a wide range of subjects. Among the topics to

be presented are "Structured Systems Analysis," "Introduction to Micro/Personal Computers," "Local Networks," "Evaluating and Selecting Computer Software Packages," and "BASIC: Introduction to Computer Programming."

Seminar enrollment fees are $595 for Datapro sub

scribers and $645 for nonsubscribers. The management briefings cost $360 and $395, respectively. Contact Datapro Research Corporation, 1805 Underwood Blvd, Delran NJ 08075, (800) 257-9406; in New Jersey (609) 764-0100.

November-December

The Master Method of Selling

We'll buy for you on the wholesale market using our expertise to get you the best available price. We have access to over 500 manufacturers. Our fee is one fourth of what we save you off the list price. Examples of total prices being paid by our clients (including our fee) are:

COMPUTERS

Alpha Micro 1030 $12,047.00

Alpha Micro 1051 17,634.00

Alpha Micro AM-1011 9,313.00

Altos 8000-10

$6,397.00

Altos 8000-15 Altos 8000-2 Apple 2 +48K Archives Model I Archives Model II Archives Model III CCS Series 300-1A CCS Series 400-1A Cromemco System 3 CromemcoZ-2H Dynabyte 5200-A2 Dynabyte5200-B2 Dynabyte 5615-A1 Ithaca C.B. 128KSS/0D Ithaca Sys. 2'A W7Panel NEC 8001A NEC8012A NEC 8031A North Star 64KDD North Star 64KQD

4,450.00 2,629.00 1,208.00 4,794.00 5,532.00 6,269,00 4,414.00 6,374.00 5,650.00 7,521.00 3,216.00 4,896.00 8,396.00 5,421.00 2,941.00 1,014.00 600.00 1,014.00 3,073.00 3,299.00

PRINTERS

Anadex 9000 Anadex9501 C. ltoh25P C. Itoh 45 P Diablo 630 Diablo 1640 Malibu 1650 Malibu200 NEC 3510 NEC 5510 NEC 5520 KSR NEC 5530 NEC 7710

1,100.00 1,278.00 1,325.00 1,700.00 1,975.00 2,444.00 1,796.00 2,320.00 1,980.00 2,345.00 2,645.00 2,345.00 2,345.00

Epson MX80

IN STOCK!

$468.00

Qume Sprint 9-35 Qume Sprint 9-45 Qume Sprint 9-55

CRT, DISK DRIVE, MODEMS

Alpha Micro AM-600 Anderson Jacobsen 1256

1,738.00 1,996.00 2,085.00

8,075.00 641.25

North Star Adv.

$2,995.00

DEC VT 100

$1,495.00

Televideo System I Televideo System II Televideo TS-800 Term. Vector 2600 Vector 3005 Vector 5005

SOFTWARE

Dbase II Spellguard Datastar Spell Star Wordstar Basic Compiler Fortran 80-CPM

$2,380.00 5,311.00 1,324.00 4,221.00 6,458.00 7,308.00

$500.00 200.00 230,00 180.00 305.00 277.00 375.00

Hayes Micromodem Apple Hayes Micromodem S-100 Houston Instrument DMP-2 Houston Instrument DMP-4 Houston Instrument DMP-7 LoboDual8 "DS/DD Lobo Dual Mini Drives Morrow 10 MEG Morrow 20 MEG Morrow 26 MEG

250.00

319.00

819.00

1,063.00

1,528.00

2,234.00

855.00

2,750.00

3,550.00

3,375.00

Assembly, integration and testing available from our computer REPAIR division.

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In Calif, call (415) 376-9020 International Telex 470851

CALI For latest

wholesale TOLL prices ____ and to rntt order

800-227-2288

Small Business Systems, various sites throughout the US. MWL Inc is offering a series of one-day seminars for manufacturers of small-business systems and software vendors. The price for a seminar is $135. Contact the Seminar Coordinator, MWL Inc, 32038 Watergate Ct, Westlake Village CA 91361, (213) 889-2607.

November-March 1982

Two-Day Seminars for Professional Development, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester MA. Courses on the fundamentals of data processing, data communications, and microprocessors are being offered by Worcester Polytechnic Institute at its campus and at selected locations in the Boston metropolitan area. The fee is $445. Contact Ms Ginny Bazarian, c/o the Office of Continuing Education, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester MA 01609, (617) 793-5517.

November 12-14

Accounting and Information Systems Expo '81, MGM Grand Hotel, Reno NV. This exposition is geared toward accounting experts and information-systems analysts, designers, and managers. The emphasis will be on technological advances in the field and ways in which these advances can improve efficiency and effectiveness. For more information, contact Leanne Stone, c/o the University of Nevada-Reno, Division of Continuing Education, College Inn, Reno NV 89557, (702) 784-4046.

November 13

The Impact of New Technologies on Information Service Environments, Battelle Columbus Laboratories, Columbus OH. The Ohio chapters of ASIS (American Society

466 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 352 on inquiry card.

for Information Science) are sponsoring this one-day seminar. Speakers and a panel will examine the impact of electronic publishing, videodiscs, and personal computers on libraries and corporate information centers. Registration fees are $40 for ASIS members, $50 for nonmembers, and $10 for students. For details, contact Katherine Frohmberg, Oberlin College Library, Oberlin OH 44074, (216) 775-8285.

November 13-15

The Los Angeles Computer Showcase Expo, Convention Center, Los Angeles CA. The Computer Showcase is designed to place vendors and their intermediaries in touch with small-computer-system users. For details, contact the Interface Group, 160 Speen St, Framingham MA 01701, (800) 225-4620; in Massachusetts (617) 879-4502.

November 16-17

Computer-Aided Graphics Systems: Design and Drafting Tools, Marriott Pavilion Hotel, St Louis MO. This course has been designed for middleand upper-level administrators who are responsible for planning, evaluating, selecting, acquiring, and implementing computer-graphics systems for industrial design and drafting purposes. The course fee is $295.

For technical information, contact Ralph E Lee, Mathematics-Computer Science Building, University of Missouri-Rolla, Rolla MO 65401, (314) 341-4491. Course or registration information can be obtained from Martha K Fort, Arts & Sciences Continuing Education, 105A Humanities-Social Sciences Building, University of Missouri-Rolla, (314) 341-4943.

November 16-19

The 1981 Electronics and Aerospace Systems Confer

ence (EASCON '81), Washington Hilton Hotel, Washington DC. The theme of this conference is "GovernmentIndustry Interchange." The exhibition will include displays from many electronics and aerospace companies. For details, contact EASCON '81, 608 H St, SW, Washington DC 20024, (202) 347-7088.

November 19-21

Business and Personal Com

puter Sales-Expo '81, Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia PA. The Sales-Expo is aimed at a wide range of computer users. The show features exhibits of microcomputers, business supplies, peripherals, and software. For more information, contact Produx 2000 Inc, POB 2000, Bala Cynwyd PA 19004, (215) 457-2300.

November 20-22

Symposium on Small Com

puters in the Arts, Philadelphia PA. The Symposium on Small Computers in the Arts (formerly the Personal Computer Arts Festival) is being held to bring together individuals interested in using small computers in the audio and visual arts. The Symposium will offer a range of presentations from introductory tutorials to sessions on advanced techniques. Workshops, exhibits, and demonstrations are also planned.

Tune up your LA36

The DS120 Terminal Controller makes your LA36 perform like a DECwriter® III.

The Datasouth DS120 gives your DEC writer* II the high speed printing and versatile performance features of the DEC writer® III at only a fraction of the cost. The DS120 is a plug compatible replacement for your LA36 logic board which can be installed in minutes. Standard features include:

• 165 cps bidirectional printing

• Horizontal & Vertical Tabs

• Page Length Selection

• 110-4800 baud operation

• 1000 character print buffer

• X-on, X-off protocol

• Self Test

• RS232 interface

• 20 mA Current Loop interface

• Top of Form

• Adjustable Margins

• Double wide characters

• Parity selection

• Optional APL character set

Over 5,000 DS120 units are now being used by customers ranging from the Fortune 500 to personal computing enthusiasts. In numerous installations, entire networks of terminals have been upgraded to take advantage of today's higher speed data communications services. LSI microprocessor electronics and strict quality control ensure dependable performance for years to come. When service is required, we will respond promptly and effectively. Best of all, we can deliver immediately through our nationwide network of distributors. Just give us a call for all the details.

data©

computer corporation

4740 Dwight Evans Road • Charlotte, North Carolina 28210 • 704/523-8500

See Us At .

November 19-22, 1981 Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV

firm «

Circle 130 on inquiry card

Event Queue.

Complementing the Symposium will be the Fourth Annual Computer Music Concert. Contact the Symposium at POB 1954, Philadelphia PA 19105, (215) 243-8109.

November 22-24

Data-Telecommunications Expo, Rhein-Main-Halle, Wiesbaden, West Germany. Exhibits of equipment and systems for applications in commerce and industry plus a conference program com

plementing these subjects will be presented. Details are available from Kiver Communications S.A., UK Branch Office, 171/185 Ewell Rd, Surbiton, Surrey, KT6 6AX, England.

December 1981

December 1-3

Legal Info, Shoreham Hotel, Washington DC. Automating legal-information systems is

the subject of this conference and exposition. Attorneys wishing to use computers in their work are invited to attend. Contact Legal Info, 1730 N Lynn St, Suite 400, Arlington VA 22209, (703) 521-6209.

December 1-4

Computer-Network Design and Protocols, Washington DC. Integrated Computer Systems (ICS) will be presenting a course on fundamentals

AlLApple products in stock—Call for prices

SAVE

BIG

BUCKS

Model II 64K $3395

26-4160 1 Drive Exp $1014,

26-4161 2 Drive Exp 1559.00

26-4162 3 Drive Exp 2099.00

26-4530 Scripsit II 259.00

26-4512 Profile II 159.00

26-4511 Visicalc II 259.00

26-4501 Gen Ledger 179.00

26-4506 Mail List 72.00

MODEL III

26-1061 4K I

26-1062 16K III

26-1066 48K III W/2 Drives, RS 232 26-1162 1st Drive ...

i 599.00 . 859.00

2225.00 . 765.00

IDS PAPER TIGERS

Dot Resolution Graphics quality print

IDS 445G 7 wire printhead, graphics (List $ 985) $ 795.00

IDS 460G 9 wire printhead, graphics (List 1094) 886.00

IDS 560G 9 wire, wide carriage, graphics... (List 1394) 1129.00

Model I

26-1140 Expansion Interface $249.00

26-1141 16K Exp. Interface 359.00

26-1142 32K Exp. Interface 469.00

26-1145 RS 232C Board 84.00

26-1160/1 Mini Disk Drive 419.00

26-1563 Scripsit-Disk 79.00

26-1566 Visicalc 83.00

PRINTERS

26-1167 9V2 Line Printer VII .... $ 360.00

26-1166 Line Printer VI 1080.00

26-1158 Daisy Wheel II 1798.00

26-1165 Line Printer V 1710.00

26-1401 Cable 36.00

Color Computer 4K $353

26-3001 4K $353.00

26-3002 16K Ext. Basic 533.00

26-3009 Joysticks 22.50

26-3010 Color Video 353.00

26-1206 Recorder 54.00

All prices are subject to change without notice. Freight, handling, and insurance charges are extra. Most items are shipped United Parcel Service. Model II and other hardware weighting over 50 lbs. is shipped freight collect by truck. Certified Check for immediate shipment from stock. Master Charge, Visa or Bank Card add 3% surcharge.

Vern Street Products 114 West Taft Sapulpa, Ok 74066 The Computer Store, Inc. 4949 South Peoria Tulsa, Ok 74105

918-747-9333

in computer communicationnetwork concepts, technology, and implementation. Emphasis is on the practical aspects of network design, interfacing, protocols, and packet switching. For a schedule of times and locations, contact Ruth Dordick, c/o Integrated Computer Systems, 3304 Pico Blvd, POB 5339, Santa Monica CA 90405, (800) 421-8166; in California (800) 352-8251.

December 2-3

Introductory Seminar on

UNIX, Key Bridge Marriott Hotel, Arlington VA. Human Computing Resources Corporation is offering this twoday seminar on the use of UNIX for programmers, analysts, and anyone needing to know about this operating system. For details, contact the Course Coordinator, c/o Human Computing Resources, 10 St Mary St, Toronto, Ontario, M4Y 1P9, Canada, (416) 922-1937.

December 3

California Computer Show,

Hyatt Hotel, Palo Alto CA. For details and a schedule of upcoming events, contact the Show Administrator, c/o Norm De Nardi Enterprises, 95 Main St, Los Altos CA 94022, (415) 941-8440.

December 3-4

Computer Graphics: Microprocessor/Personal Computer Systems, Marriott Pavilion Hotel, St Louis MO. This course has been designed for managers, educators, and graphics users responsible for evaluating and acquiring microcomputers and graphics systems. The course fee is $195.

For technical information, contact Ralph Lee, Mathematics-Computer Science Building, University of MissouriRolla, Rolla MO 65401, (314) 341-4491. Course or registration information can be obtained from Martha K Fort,

468 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 97 on inquiry card.

Arts & Sciences Continuing Education, 105A HumanitiesSocial Science Building, University of Missouri-Rolla, (314) 341-4943.

December 8

Computer Networking Symposium/National Bureau of Standards, Gaithersburg MD. This conference is being sponsored by National Bureau of Standards and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Contact Robert Toense, B226 Technology Building, National Bureau of Standards, Washington DC 20234, (301) 921-3516.

December 9-11

The 1981 Winter Simulation Conference (WSC 81), Peachtree Plaza, Atlanta GA. WSC 81 will feature papers, panel discussions, and tutorials on discrete and combined simulation and modeling. The conference will be organized into tutorial, methodology, and application sessions. For information, contact John Carson, WSC 81 Registration Chairman, School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta GA 30332, (404) 894-2308.

December 15-19

Gulf Computer Exhibition,

Dubai International Trade Centre, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. IBM, NCR, Apple, Honeywell, Philips, Wang, Hewlett-Packard, Data General, and other well-known manufacturers will be represented at this first exhibition of computer equipment in Dubai. The scope of the show takes in systems ranging from microcomputers to mainframes. Details are available from the Trade Centre Management Company, POB 9292, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Telex 47474 DITC EM, and from Diana Clifton Sewell, International Office, Seymour House, 17 Waterloo

PI, London, SE1Y 4AR, England.

December 16-18

The Twentieth IEEE Conference on Decision and Control (CDC), Vacation Village Hotel, San Diego CA. The CDC is the annual meeting of the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Control Systems Society. It is held in cooperation with the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. The conference will include contributed and invited ses

sions plus tutorials and presentations on all aspects of the theory and applications of systems involving decision, control, and adaptation. Other topics of interest include linear and nonlinear system theory, stability theory, large-scale system theory and decentralized control, estimation, identification, signal processing and stochastic control, and control systems. For more information, contact the Institute of Electrical and Electronics

Engineers Inc, 445 Hoes Ln, Piscataway NJ 08854.

December 28-30

Computer Modeling of Linguistic Theory, Grand Hyatt Hotel, New York NY. The ACL (Association for Computational Linguistics) is sponsoring three sessions on computer modeling of linguistic theory in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Linguistic Society of America. New models for grammars and new strategies

ATTENTION S-100 USERS, OEMs & ISOs!

MM-103 IS THE ONLY MODEM FOR YOUR NEEDS!

In previous issues, we listed more than 50 reasons why PMMI MM-103 modems

are superior, along with a list of satisfied users that is now too long to print.

Quality, integrity and low cost have made the MM-103 America's most popular modem.

PMMI was the first to gain FCC approval and meet IEEE-696 S-100 standards.

You won't find another modem for the S-100 bus with a wider range of Baud rates,

more extensive and controllable software and such an unbeatable warranty.

And since PMMI has eliminated the need for an acoustic coupler or an RS 232 adapter,

your connection is more reliable and you buy no unnecessary hardware.

SO DON'T DELAY!

GO WITH THE MODEM WITH EXPERIENCE!

kOj»

COMMUNICATIONS

[POTOMAC MICRO-MAGIC, INC.]

For further information, call or write:

Three Skyline Place

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|703]379-9660

Or dial into our 24 hour-a-day Modem Test Center: |703| 379-0303 |300 Baud]

AFTER ALL...

ALL MODEMS ARE NOT

CREATED EQUAL!

Circle 347 on inquiry card.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 469

THE

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SPELLING PROOFREADER and COMPUTER DICTIONARY

The WORD is out!

Works with the editor of your choice to find those lurking spelling errors and sneaky typos.

SPELLING CHECKER

1 45,000 word dictionary Checks over 10 pages/minute Handles apostrophes, hyphens Marks mistakes in file CDOS,m, CP/M® compatible Needs only 32K system

CP/M is a registered trademark of Digital Research

EXTRA FEATURES

• Automatic rhyme finder

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• 8" Single Density CP/M

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DIGITAL STORAGE OSCILLOSCOPE INTERFACES

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APPLESCOPE

Interface for the Apple II Computer

The APPLESCOPE system combines two high speed analog to digital converters and a digital control board with the high resolution graphics capabilities of the Apple II computer to create a digital storage oscilloscope. Signal trace parameters are entered through the keyboard to operational software provided in PROM on the Dl control board.

» DC to 3.5 Mhz sample rate with 1024 byte buffer memory » Pretngger Viewing up to 1020 Samples t Programmable Scale Select

• Continuous and Single Sweep Modes

• Single or Dual Channel Trace

• Greater that or less than trigger threshold detection

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for parsing will be the areas of most attention. Readings of contributed papers will also be featured. Contact Stan Petrick, IBM Research Center, POB 218, Yorktown Heights NY 10598.

January 1982

]anuary-ApriJ

Fundamentals of Data Processing for Administrative Assistants and Office Support Staff, various sites throughout the US. The American Management Association (AMA) has designed this three-day course for secretaries, assistants, supervisors, and other personnel desiring to learn the fundamentals of data processing and its use in offices. Computer hardware and software, programming languages, and technology will be covered. The team fee for AMA members is $470 per individual and $550 for nonmembers. Individual fees are $550 and $630, respectively. For a schedule of dates and locations, contact the AMA, 135 W 50th St, New York NY 10020, (212) 586-8100.

January 6-8

The Fifteenth Annual Hawaii International Conference on Systems Sciences (HICSS

15), Honolulu HI. This conference is cosponsored by the University of Hawaii and the University of Southwestern Louisiana in cooperation with the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). HICSS-15 is intended for medical information-processing researchers and practitioners. Among the topics to be covered are diagnosis by computer, computer-based medical instrumentation, computers and the handicapped, and the use of computers in individual and group practices, medical laboratories, and hospitals. Contact Dr Bruce D Shriver

470 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

Circle 358 on inquiry card.

Circle 370 on inquiry card.

and Dr Terry M Walker, c/o HICSS-15 Medical Information Processing, University of Southwestern Louisiana, POB 44330, Lafayette LA 70504.

January 7-10

The 1982 Winter Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Las Vegas Convention Center, Hilton Hotel, and the Jockey Club, Las Vegas NV. Conferences, workshops, seminars, sales meetings, press events, and exhibits of audio and video equipment, computers, telephones, and other consumer items highlight this show. For details, contact Consumer Electronic Shows, Two Illinois Center, Suite 1607, 233 N Michigan, Chicago IL 60601, (312) 861-1040.

January 12-25

Communication Networks Conference and Exposition,

Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta GA. The Communication Networks Conference is designed to bring users and the telecommunications industry together. The Conference features sessions, panel discussions, and tutorials on voice, data, and electronic-mail communications. For information, contact Communication Networks, 375 Cochituate Rd, POB 880, Framingham MA 01701, (617) 879-0700.

January 15-16

Microcomputers in Education, Uses for the 80s,

Arizona State University, Tempe AZ. The Tenth Annual Math/Science Conference will emphasize the microcomputer as a medium for instruction, as a tool for research, and as an information manager. Workshops, demonstrations, panel discussions, and problem-solving groups will be featured. Contact Nancy Watson, 203 Payne Hall, Arizona State University, Tempe AZ 85287.

January 19-22

Peripheral Array Processors for Signal Processing and Simulation, Sheraton National Hotel, Washington DC. The fee for this course is $795. For complete details, contact the Continuing Education Institute, 10889 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 1030, Los Angeles CA 90024, (213) 824-9545.

January 19-22

The Which Computer? Show, National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham, England. Information about this show can be obtained from Clapp & Poliak Inc, 245 Park Ave, New York NY 10167, (800) 223-1956; in New York (212) 661-8410.

January 20-22

Texas Computer Show, Dallas Convention Center, Dallas TX. Conferences, panel discussions, and seminars will be featured at this show. On display will be word- and data-processing equipment in addition to peripherals. For details, contact the Texas Computer Show, POB 214035, Dallas TX 75221, (214) 761-9108; in Georgia, (404) 452-0114; in Canada, (416) 252-7791.

January 28-30

Conference on Modeling and Simulation on Microcomputers, Bahia Hotel, San Diego CA. The Society for Computer Simulation (SCS) is presenting this conference. Papers, panel discussions, and tutorials on discrete and continuous simulation on microcomputers will be featured. Contact SCS, POB 2228, La Jolla CA 92038, (714) 459-3888.■

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□ 1981 Charter Subscriber (Issues 1 - 10). $20.00 for U.S. delivery. (U.S. $24.00 to Canada. U.S. $30.00 elsewhere.)

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□ 1982 Regular Subscriber (Issues 11 - 20). $30.00 in U.S. (U.S. $36.00 to Canada. U.S. $45.00 elsewhere.)

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 471

Linking a Pascal Microengine

to a Cyber 170

Steven M Sedlet 931 Pebblebrook Dr Lewisville TX 75067

Microcomputers now on the market offer the speed, memory capacity, mass storage, and programming-language support facilities formerly available only on large mainframe computers. As a result, personal computers give users a convenient, inexpensive alternative to computing on larger machines. Personal computers, however, cannot offer the wide range of software utilities and applications packages or the variety of I/O (input/output) facilities available on large systems. The desire to incorporate the finer qualities of both modes of computing has motivated us to establish a mechanism for information and resource sharing between a personal computer, the Western Digital Pascal Microengine, and a large Control Data Corp Cyber 170 mainframe.

We have developed a file-transfer system to allow communication between the two machines. The Pascal Microengine, a hardware realization of UCSD's (University of California at San Diego) P-machine, is a desktop microcomputer for developing and executing Pascal programs. It is driven by a 16-bit processor that directly executes UCSD's p-code. The operating system consists of a Pascal compiler, a file manager, and a screen-oriented text editor. Mass storage for the Microengine system is provided by two Shugart single-den

Jonathan Dust

c/o BYTE Publications

POB 372

Hancock NH 03449

sity, single-sided 800R floppy-disk drives. Two RS-232 serial ports allow communication with the Microengine. One port is used for connection to the console (a serial video terminal). The second one, the remote port, is used to connect other RS-232 devices to the system. In our configuration, the remote port is connected to the Cyber by means of a modem. The interface enables you to perform interactive processing on both the Microengine and the Cyber from the Microengine console. File transfers can be performed in both directions, allowing information and resource sharing between the two computers. The file-transfer system is written in UCSD Pascal and resides on the Pascal Microengine.

Why Have We Done This?

The value of interfacing two machines, such as the Pascal Microengine and the Cyber, extends beyond the ability to share data. You may take advantage of the finer points of each computer, consolidating their features to form an extended machine. For example, the interface between the Microengine and the Cyber allows you access to both the convenience of the screen-oriented editor on the Microengine and the power of the line-oriented editor, text formatter, and the fast central-processing unit

with extended word lengths on the Cyber.

The ability to share data also allows for storage flexibility. A Pascal program written for the Microengine might be too large to practically store on a Microengine disk, but it can be stored on the Cyber. On the other hand, if you have space available on Microengine disks, it will be cheaper to store programs there rather than pay for disk space on the Cyber. Using the interface, the Microengine can also use the I/O features of the Cyber, taking advantage of line printers, card readers, and plotters, for example.

File-Transfer System

The file-transfer-system program is stored as object code and executed on the Microengine. When run, the program establishes communication with the IAF (Interactive Facility) on the Cyber. You may log onto IAF and perform interactive processing on the Cyber under NOS (Network Operating System). The file-transfer program is initially in Emulator Mode. In this mode, you may perform interactive processing under IAF or return to the Microengine interactive system by entering a Control-E at the console keyboard. Processing under IAF can be resumed, without logging in again, by reexecuting the file-transfer-system object code. All file trans

472 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 158 on Inquiry card.

Circle 224 on inquiry card.

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BYTE November 1981

473

fers must be performed in the IAF NULL subsystem.

While in Emulator Mode, you may continue interactive processing on the Cyber, or may enter one of the Control-key commands. These include Control-E (exit), Control-R (receive), Control-T (transmit), Control-S (switch character-set modes), and Control-A (assistance). Receive Mode allows for the transfer of files from the Cyber to the Microengine. Transmit Mode enables the transfer of files from the Microengine to the Cyber. (The names of the two modes of transfer reflect the concept that file transfers are initiated from the Microengine, that is, files are either received at or transmitted from the Microengine.)

Control-S enables switching of character-set modes. There are two character sets recognized by the Cyber, Normal and ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange). You must transfer a file in the proper mode to insure conversion between Cyber and Microengine

character representations. In ASCII mode, the Cyber recognizes uppercase and lowercase ASCII characters. This mode of transfer is used only for text (nonexecutable) files. Normal mode must be used for transferring program files to the Cyber. In this mode, all alphabetic characters are interpreted as uppercase. Control-A may be entered to receive a menu of the above control key commands. Listing la demonstrates the use of the S and A control key commands.

Listing lb demonstrates the interaction between the user and the filetransfer system when transferring files from the Cyber to the Microengine in Receive Mode. The file-transfer system performs the transfer by fetching the file to be transferred from your Cyber disk space, performing the transfer, and then cataloging it on Microengine disk using the UCSD Pascal filer system.

To access Receive Mode, you must 'enter a Control-R from the console, while in Emulator Mode. You will then receive confirmation at the con

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sole screen and be prompted for the name under which the file is to be cataloged on Microengine disk and the name of the Cyber file to be transferred. The file must reside on your permanent file space on the Cyber. Files that are strictly local will not be transferred. In response to either prompt, you may enter STOP, in which case control will return to Emulator Mode without performing the transfer. If legal file names are entered, you will be asked if the file is to be echoed at the console screen while the transfer is being made. Once you have responded to this prompt, the transfer is initiated. You may abort the transfer while in progress by entering an S (stop) at the console keyboard. If the transfer is aborted, you will receive the message:

TRANSFER TERMINATED BEFORE

COMPLETION

-FILE NOT CATALOGED

and Emulator Mode will be resumed. Upon completion of a transfer, a message is written at the console and Emulator Mode is resumed.

Listing lc demonstrates the command sequence during a transfer from the Microengine to the Cyber in Transmit Mode. To effect the transfer, the file is fetched from Microengine disk, transferred across the link to the Cyber, and cataloged in your Cyber disk space. The file will exist as the primary local file on the Cyber upon completion of the transfer.

Once Transmit Mode is entered, you will be prompted for the name of both the file to be transmitted and the name under which the file is to be cataloged on the Cyber. As in Receive Mode, you may enter STOP in response to either prompt in order to resume Emulator Mode without initiating the file transfer.

Once the file transfer has been initiated, it may be aborted by entering S at the console keyboard, in which case the message:

NO FILE TRANSFERRED

Text continued on page 476

474 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 101 on inquiry card.

Listing 1: Sample runs of the various file-transfer-system commands. In listing la, the Control-A (assistance) and Control-S (switch character sets) commands are displayed. In listing lb, the Control-R (receive file from Cyber) command is shown. Listing 1c gives an example of the Control-T (transmit file to Cyber) command.

(la) (control-A) (* user wishes to see menu of control key commands *)

CONTROL-E—>EXIT TO UCSD SYSTEM.

CONTROL-S—>SHIFT TRANSFER MODES (NORMAL<~->ASCIl) .

CONTROL-R—>RECEIVE FILES.

CONTROL-T—>TRANSMIT FILES

CONTROL-A ASSISTANCE : DISPLAY MENU.

THIS INTERFACE OPERATES ONLY IN CDC NULL SUBSYSTEM. (control-S) (* user wishes to switch character set modes *)

PROGRAM FILES MUST BE TRANSFERRED IN CDC NORMAL MODE. TEXT FILES (U/L CASE) MUST BE TRANSFERRED IN CDC ASCII MODE. PLEASE ENTER TRANSFER MODE N=N0RMAL OR A=ASCII —> A ASCII MODE

(lb) (control-R) (* user wishes to transfer file, CYBER-Microengine *)

FILE TRANSFER - CYBER TO MICROENGINE

NOTE : CDC FILE TO BE TRANSFERRED MUST BE PERMANENT

ENTER MICROENGINE FILENAME , E.G. FILENAME.TEXT

OR ENTER "STOP" TO TERMINATE prime.text

ENTER NAME UNDER WHICH THE FILE IS CATALOGED ON THE CYBER primnum DO YOU WISH THE FILE TO BE ECHOED AS IT IS TRANSFERRED? (Y/N) Y

[listing of file]

EOT ENCOUNTERED

PRIMNUM CLOSED AND CATALOGED

He) (control-T) (* user wishes to transfer file, Microengine-CYBER *)

FILE TRANSFER - MICROENGINE TO CYBER

ENTER NAME OF FILE TO BE TRANSMITTED FROM THE MICROENGINE

OR ENTER "STOP" TO TERMINATE

E.G. FILENAME.TEXT prime.text

ENTER CDC FILENAME, OR ENTER "STOP" TO TERMINATE NOTE : FILE WILL BECOME A CDC PERMANENT FILE,

OLD PRIMARY FILE WILL BE LOST primenum DO YOU WISH THE FILE TO BE ECHOED AS IT IS TRANSFERRED ? (Y/N) N_

TRANSFER COMPLETE

PRIMNUM IS A CDC PERMANENT FILE

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 475

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Text continued from page 474:

will appear at the console. If the transfer is allowed to run to completion, a message will be printed at the console. In either case, Transmit Mode will be terminated and Emulator Mode resumed.

File-Transfer Program

The file-transfer program that interfaces the Microengine to the Cyber (listing 2) is written in UCSD Pascal on the Microengine. It consists of three basic modules:

• the emulator

• the file transmit procedures (Microengine to Cyber)

• the file receive procedures (Cyber to Microengine)

The main program, which is the emulator, performs the communication between the Microengine console and the Cyber IAF system. It does this, alternately testing for input to the Microengine from the Cyber (remote port) and from the Microengine console (console port), by testing the status bits associated with each port. The status register for the console port is at address —1007 (two's complement) and the status register for the remote port is at address —991 (two's complement). Access to the status bit (bit 1 of the status registers) is achieved through a variant record:

type STATRG = record STATREG : packed array [0..7] of

boolean end;

STATREC = record case BVAR : boolean of TRUE : (STATREGADDR :

integer ) ; FALSE : (STATPTR : STATRG) end;

The Boolean variable, BVAR, is originally set to true, and the variant field, STATREGADDR, is set to the address of the status register. This is done at the beginning of the filetransfer program. BVAR is then set false, making the variant field a

Text continued on page 486

476 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 269 on inquiry card.

Listing 2: The emulator program, as written for the Pascal Microengine. PROGRAM EMULATOR ;

(* JONATHAN DUST *)

(* STEVEN SEDLET *)

(* DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE *)

(* COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY *)

(* JUNE, 1980 *

(* THIS PROGRAM PERFORMS THE FOLLOWING TASKS : *

(* 1. IT SERVES AS AN EMULATOR BETWEEN THE WESTERN DIGITAL *)

(* PASCAL MICROENGINE AND THE CDC CYBER 171/172. THE MAIN *)

(* PROGRAM ALLOWS A USER AT THE MICROENGINE CONSOLE TO LOG *)

(* INTO THE CYBER. *)

(* 2. IT PROVIDES FOR THE TRANSFER OF FILES FROM THE CYBER TO * (* THE MICROENGINE, AND FROM THE MICROENGINE TO THE CYBER. * (* *)

(* IT IS INTENDED THAT THE PROGRAM WILL ULTIMATELY BE USED TO *) (* EFFECT THE TRANSFER OF FILES BETWEEN COMPUTERS CONNECTED TO *) (* RIAS RING NETWORK. MODIFICATION WILL BE REQUIRED FOR THIS *) (* PURPOSE. (*

(* THE PROGRAM MODULES CONSIST OF : *)

(* MAIN PGM - THE EMULATOR, ALLOWS USER TO LOG INTO CYBER. *) (* RECEIVEFILE - ALLOWS THE TRANSFER OF A FILE FROM THE CYBER * (* TO THE MICROENGINE. *

(* TRANSMITFILE - ALLOWS THE TRANSFER OF A FILE FROM THE *) (* MICROENGINE TO THE CYBER. *)

(* *)

(* PROGRAM EXECUTION : *)

(* THE PROGRAM IS WRITTEN IN UCSD PASCAL AND RESIDES ON MICRO-*) (* ENGINE DISK. TO INITIALLY EXECUTE THE PROGRAM, THE FILE, *)

:)

(* "EMULATOR.CODE" MUST BE FETCHED AND EXECUTED. THE FILE * "EMULATOR.TEXT" CONTAINS THE SOURCE CODE. ONCE THE PROGRAM IS RUNNING, A CR WILL SOLICIT THE LOGIN MESSAGE FROM

P

r*

(* THE CYBER. *)

(* *

(* ONCE LOGGED IN, THE USER MAY ISSUE ANY LEGAL TELEX COMMAND,*)

(* AS WELL AS *)

* CNTRL-E - EXITS EMULATOR AND RETURNS TO THE MICROENGINE *) INTERACTIVE SYSTEM. RE-EXECUTION OF THE PRO- *) (* GRAM WILL RESUME TELEX, UNLESS THE USER HAS *)

(* BEEN TIMED-OUT IN THE MEANTIME. WHEN *)

(* LOGGING OUT USING "BYE", HIT CNTRL-E AFTER *)

(* RECEIVING LOGOUT MESSAGE, THEN TURN OFF MODEM.*)

CNTRL-R - PASSES CONTROL TO THE PROCEDURE "RECEIVEFILE",*) ALLOWING THE TRANSFER OF A FILE FROM THE CYBER*) (* TO THE MICROENGINE. *)

(* CNTRL-T - PASSES CONTROL TO PROCEDURE "TRANSMITFILE", *j (* ALLOWING THE TRANSFER OF A FILE FROM THE *)

(* MICROENGINE TO THE CYBER. *)

(* IN THE LATTER 2 CASES THE PROGRAM WILL PROMPT THE USER FOR*)

(* NECESSARY INFORMATION. IN BOTH CASES THE FILE TRANSFER *)

(* CAN BE TERMINATED WITH A CNTRL-S. *)

(* *)

(* MAJOR DATA STRUCTURES : *)

(* STATREC - RECORD USED TO ACCESS INDIVIDUAL BITS OF AN *) (* ADDRESS LOCATION, NECESSARY TO ALLOW EXAMINATION *)

Listing 2 continued on page 478 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 477

i:

Listing 2 continued:

(* OF THE SERIAL PORT STATUS REGISTERS FOR DETECTION*)

(* OF INPUT FROM THE CYBER OR FROM THE CONSOLE. THE *)

(* STRUCTURE IS ALSO USED TO CHANGE CERTAIN BITS OF *)

(* THE SERIAL STATUS REGISTERS (PP. 34-42, PASCAL *)

(* MICROENGINE REFERENCE MANUAL). INDIVIDUAL BIT *)

(* ACCESS IS IMPLEMENTED BY USING A RECORD CONSIST- *)

(* OF A BOOLEAN FIELD AND A VARIANT FIELD. WHEN THE *)

(* BOOLEAN IS TRUE, THE VARIANT PART IS AN INTEGER *)

(* & IS SET EQUAL TO THE ADDR OF A STATUS REGISTER. *)

(* WHEN THE BOOLEAN IS SET FALSE, THE VARIANT PART *)

(* IS A POINTER INTO A PACKED ARRAY[0..7] OF *)

(* BOOLEAN, ALLOWING ACCESS INTO THE 8 INDIVIDUAL *)

(* BITS OF THE WORD. *)

(* THE RECORDS OF THIS TYPE ARE : *)

(* STATREG1 - USED TO DETECT IF A CHARACTER HAS *)

(* BEEN ENTERED FROM THE CONSOLE. *)

(* STATREG8 - USED TO DETECT IF A CHARACTER HAS *)

I* BEEN SENT BY THE CYBER. *)

(* PARITYON, PARITYODD - SEE PP. 37-42 *) (* T - A ONE ELEMENT ARRAY USED TO HOLD THE CHARACTER WRITTEN/*)

(* READ TO/FROM THE SERIAL PORTS. AN ARRAY IS USED, *)

(* RATHER THEN A CHAR VARIABLE, BECAUSE THE UCSD PASCAL *)

(* COMMANDS, UNITREAD AND UNITWRITE, REQUIRE AN ARRAY. *)

TYPE STATRG = RECORD

STATREG : PACKED ARRAY [0..7] OF BOOLEAN END ; STATREC = RECORD

CASE BVAR : BOOLEAN OF

TRUE : (STATREGADDR :INTEGER) ; FALSE : (STATPTR : sTATRG) END ; VAR T : PACKED ARRAY [0..2] OF CHAR ; FOREVER : BOOLEAN ; STATREG1,STATREG8 : STATREC ; SKIP : BOOLEAN ; ASCII : BOOLEAN ;

PROCEDURE ASCIIMODE ;

(* THIS PROCEDURE SETS THE CYBER CHARACTER MODE TO ASCII *)

VAR M : PACKED ARRAY [1..12J OF CHAR ; BEGIN (* PROC ASCIIMODE *)

M:='CSET,ASCII ';

M[11]:=CHR(13);

UNITWRITE(8,M,11,0,1);

UNITWAIT(8);

UNITREAD(8,M,11,0,1);

UNITWAIT(8);

WRITELN('ASCII MODE*) ;

WRITELN END ; (* PROC ASCIIMODE *)

PROCEDURE CHARMODE ;

(* THIS PROCEDURE ALLOWS THE USER TO SWITCH CYBER CHARACTER *)

(* MODES (NORMAL <—> ASCII) *)

VAR M : PACKED ARRAY [l..12] OF CHAR ; BEGIN (* PROC CHARMODE *)

478 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Listing 2 continued:

WRITELN ;

WRITELN('PROGRAM FILES MUST BE TRANSFERRED IN A CDC NORMAL MODE.') ;

writeln('text files (u/l case) must be transferred in a cdc ascii mode.'); write('please enter transfer mode n=normal or a=ascii —>') ; unitread(1,m,1,0,1) ; unitwait(i) ;

WRITELN ;

IF (m[i]='A') OR (M[l]=,a') THEN BEGIN

ASCII := TRUE ; ASCIIMODE END ELSE BEGIN

ASCII := FALSE ; M := 'CSET,NORMAL ' ; M[12] := CHR(13) ; UNITWRITE(8,M,12,0,1 ) ; UNITWAIT(8) ; UNITREAD(8,M,11 ,0,1 ) ; UNITWAIT(8) ; WRITELN('NORMAL MODE') ; WRITELN END ; WRITELN END ; (* PROC CHARMODE *)

PROCEDURE RECEIVEFILE ;

(* TRANSFER A FILE FROM THE CYBER TO THE MICROENGINE. *)

(* THE TRANSFER IS PERFORMED BY GENERATING A TELEX "TAPE" *)

(* COMMAND FOLLOWED BY A "LIST" COMMAND. TAPE *)

(* MODE IS ENTERED TO ENABLE DETECTION OF AN EOT (END OF *) (* TEXT) CHARACTER. THE CYBER FILE TRANSFERRED MUST BE THE *) (* PRIMARY FILE. THE FILE IS TRANSFERRED TO A BUFFER, THEN *)

(* ONTO THE MICROENGINE DISK. A "NORMAL" COMMAND IS THEN *) * GENERATED TO EXIT TAPE MODE. *WARNING : THE NORMAL COM- *) MAND WILL CAUSE CANCELLATION OF ASCII MODE. *)

P

VAR DONE : BOOLEAN ;

0 : STRING ;

N : PACKED ARRAY [l..13] OF CHAR ; P : PACKED ARRAY IJ--13J OF CHAR ; FILENAME : STRING ; RCVEFILE : TEXT ; USERTERM : BOOLEAN ; VERIFY : BOOLEAN ;

BUFF1 : PACKED ARRAY [l..32766] OF CHAR ; BUFFINDEX : INTEGER ;

1 : INTEGER ;

M : PACKED ARRAY [o..20] OF CHAR; BYE : BOOLEAN ;

PROCEDURE RCVEREADY;

BEGIN (* PROC RCVEREADY *) P[1]:=CHR(10) P[2J:=CHR(13) P'3J:=CHR(10)

P 4 := R l Listing 2 continued on page 480

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 479

isting 2 continued:

P

'5l

= 'E' ;

P

6

: = 'A'

P

Y

= 'D'

P

,8.

: = 'Y'

P

*9J

t 1 1

P

.10

1.-' • . • t

P

11

• f

P

"12

:=CHR(13)

1

P

13

:=CHR(10)

f

IF P = N

THEN BYE := FALSE

ELSE BEGIN

BYE :

= TRUE

WRITELN('ERROR-CDC FILENAME NOT FOUND-CHK DIRECTORY") END END ; (* PROC RCVEREADY *)

PROCEDURE LISTFILE ;

BEGIN (* PROC LISTFILE *)

M

0

= 'ip*.

M

V

= 'A' ;

M

Y

:= 'P' ;

M

y

= *E' ;

M

.4.

:= CHR(13) ;

UNITWRITE(8,M,5,0,1) ;

UNIT¥AIT(8) ;

UNITREAD(8,M,6,0,1 ) ;

U

YITWAIT(8) ;

M

V

= "L* ;

M

r

= 'I' ;

M

.2

= 'S' ;

M

y.

= 'J' .

M

.4.

= CHR(13) ;

UNITWRITE(8,M,5,0,1) ;

UNITWAIT(8)

END

»

<

* PROC LISTFILE *)

BEGIN (* PROC RECEIVEFILE *) CHARMODE;

WRITELN('FILE TRANSFER - CYBER TO MICROENGINE') ; WRITELN('NOTE : CDC FILE TO BE TRANSFERRED MUST BE PERMANENT') ; WRITELN ;

WRITELNCENTER MICROENGINE FILENAME, E.G. FILENAME.TEXT') ; WRITELN(' OR ENTER "STOP" TO TERMINATE') ;

READLN(FILENAME) ; IF FILENAMEO'STOP THEN BEGIN

WRITELN('ENTER NAME UNDER WHICH THE FILE IS',

'CATALOGED ON THE CYBER') ; READLN(O) ; WRITE('DO YOU WISH THE FILE TO BE ECHOED AS IT IS',

' TRANSFERRED ? (Y/N) *) ; UNITREAD(1,T,1,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(1); WRITELN ; IF T[0] = 'Y'

480 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Listing 2 continued:

THEN VERIFY := TRUE ELSE VERIFY := FALSE ; Ojr-'O' ; l1:-'L' ; 2 ^'D' ;

V . = * • .

J J • f t

FOR I :=1 TO LENGTH(O) DO "1+3] := 0[l] ; LENGTH(0)+4]:=CHR(13) ;

I:=(LENGTH(0)+5) ; UNITWRITE(1,M,I,0,1) ; UNITWRITE(8,M,I,0,1) ; UNITREAD(8,M,13,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) ;

FOR I:=0 TO 12 DO N[l+1] := M[l] RCVEREADY ; IF BYE=TRUE

THEN EXIT(RECEIVEFILE) ELSE LISTFILE ; USERTERM := FALSE ; DONE := FALSE ; BUFFINDEX := 0 ;

WHILE (NOT DONE) AND (NOT USERTERM) DO BEGIN

BUFFINDEX := BUFFINDEX + 1 ; UNITREAD(8,T,1,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8);

IF ORD(T[ol) = 17 THEN DONE := TRUE ; IF ORD(TLOj) = 13 THEN BEGIN

IF VERIFY THEN WRITELN END ELSE IF 0RD(T[0]) <> 10 THEN IF VERIFY THEN WRITE(t[o]) ; BUFF1[BUFFINDEXJ := T[o] ; IF STATREG1.STATPTRSTATREG[1] = TRUE THEN BEGIN

UNITREADO ,T,1,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(1) ;

IF ORD(T[OJ) = 19 THEN USERTERM := TRUE END END ; IF NOT USERTERM THEN BEGIN

M:='NORMAL ' ;

M[6]:-CHR(13) ; UNITWRITE(8,M,7,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) ; UNITREAD(8,M,9,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) ;

IF ASCII=TRUE THEN ASCIIMODE ; WRITELN('EOT ENCOUNTERED*) ;

REWRITE(RCVEFILE,FILENAME) ; FOR I := 1 TO BUFFINDEX DO IF 0RD(BUFFl[l])=13

THEN WRITELN (RCVEFILE ) Listing 2 continued on page 482

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 481

Listing 2 continued:

ELSE IF"ORD(BUFFl[l]) <> 10

THEN WRITE(RCVEFILE,BUFFl[l]) ; CLOSE(RCVEFILE,LOCK) ; WRITELN ;

WRITELN(FILENAME,' CLOSED AND CATALOGED') END

ELSE BEGIN

T[0] := 'S' ; UNITWRITE(8,T,1,0,1 ) ;

UNITWAIT(8) ; UNITREAD(8,T,15,0,1 ) ; UNITWAIT(8) ; WRITELN ; WRITELN ;

WRITELN('TRANSFER TERMINATED BEFORE COMPLETION', ' - FILE NOT CATALOGED') END ; END ELSE WRITELN('NO FILE TRANSFERRED') END ; (* PROC RECEIVEFILE *)

PROCEDURE TRANSMITFILE ;

(* TRANSFER A FILE FROM THE MICROENGINE TO THE CYBER. *)

(* TRANSFER IS PERFORMED BY CREATING A PRIMARY CYBER FILE, *) (* ENTERING TEXT MODE, AND TRANSMITTING THE MICROENGINE FILE*)

(* TO THE CYBER. AFTER THE FILE IS TRANSFERRED, A "BREAK" *)

(* (CNTRL-C) IS GENERATED, FOLLOWED BY A "PACK" COMMAND. *)

(* THE TRANSFERRED M.E. FILE IS THEN THE CDC PRIMARY FILE, *)

(* AND MUST BE SAVED IF THE USER WISHES TO RETAIN IT. *)

(* IF THE TRANSFER IS TERMINATED BY A CNTRL-S, THE REST OF *)

(* THE FILE IS READ AND BLANK LINES TRANSMITTED TO THE *)

(* CYBER. THIS IS NECESSARY DUE TO THE TIMING CONSTRAINTS *)

(* BETWEEN THE TWO COMPUTERS. *)

VAR DONE : BOOLEAN ; Z : INTEGER ;

X : STRING ;

FILENAME : STRING ; TRANSFILE : TEXT ; CDCFILENAME : STRING ; USERTERM : BOOLEAN ; VERIFY : BOOLEAN ; CH : CHAR ; I : INTEGER ; M : PACKED ARRAY [0..20] OF CHAR ;

PROCEDURE XMITRDFILE ;

(* THIS PROCEDURE TRANSMITS A CHARACTER FROM THE MICROENGINE *)

(* TO THE CYBER. *)

BEGIN (* PROC XMITRDFILE *) READ(TRANSFILE,CH) ; T[0] := CH ; IF NOT USERTERM THEN BEGIN

482 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Listing 2 continued:

UNITWRITE(8,T,1,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) ;

IF VERIFY THEN WRITE(t[o]) END ; IF EOLN(TRANSFILE) THEN BEGIN

IF (NOT USERTERM) AND (VERIFY)

THEN WRITELN ; T[o] := CHR(13) ; t[i] := CHR(10) ; UNITWRITE (8,T,2,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) ;

READLN(TRANSFILE) END ;

IF STATREG1.STATPTRSTATREG[1] = TRUE THEN BEGIN

UNITREAD(1,T,1,0,1) ;

unitwait(i) ;

if ord(t[o]) = 19 then userterm := true

END END ; (* PR0C XMITRDFILE *)

PROCEDURE REPLACEFILE ;

BEGIN (* PR0C REPLACEFILE *) X:='REP';

FOR I := 0 TO (LENGTH(X)-I) DO M[l] := X[l+1] ;

H[3] := CHR(13) ; UNIT¥RITE(8,M,4,0,1) ;

UNITWAIT(8) ; UNITREAD(8,M,13,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) END ; (* PROC REPLACEFILE *)

BEGIN (* PROC TRANSMITFILE *) CHARMODE ;

WRITELN(' FILE TRANSFER - MICROENGINE TO CYBER') ;

WRITELN('ENTER NAME OF FILE TO BE TRANSMITTED FROM MICROENGINE') ; WRITELN('OR ENTER "STOP" TO TERMINATE') ; WRITELN('E.G. FILENAME.TEXT') ;

READLN(FILENAME) ; IF FILENAME <> 'STOP THEN BEGIN

RESET(TRANSFILE,FILENAME) ;

WRITELN(FILENAME, ' OPENED') ;

WRITELN ;

WRITELN('ENTER CDC FILENAME, OR ENTER "STOP" TO TERMINATE') ;

WRITELN('NOTE : FILE WILL BECOME A CDC PERMANENT FILE, ',

'OLD PRIMARY FILE WILL BE LOST') ; READLN(CDCFILENAME) ; IF CDCFILENAME <> 'STOP ' THEN BEGIN

WRITELN ; Listing 2 continued on page 484

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 483

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Listing 2 continued:

WRITE('D0 you wish the file to be echoed

AS'IT IS TRANSFERRED ? (Y/N) ') ; UNITREAD(1,T,1,0,1) ; WRITELN ;

IF T[0] = 'Y'

THEN VERIFY

:= TRUE

ELSE VERIFY

:= FALSE

PI

M H

H

M FOR

= 'N' = 'E' = '¥'

I := 1 TO LENGTH(CDCFILENAME) DO M[l+3] := CDCFILENAME[l] ; M[LENGTH(CDCFILENAME) + 4] := CHR(13) Z := (LENGTH(CDCFILENAME))+5 ; UNITWRITE(8,M,Z,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) UNITREAD(8,M,13,0,1) UNITWAIT(8)

'm •

'E' 'R*

'B'

•l" •k' •e' •d*

<rn •

11,0,1)

.10] := CHR(13) 5 UNIT¥RITE(8,M,11 ,0,1 ) UNITWAIT(8) UNITREAD(8,M, UNITWAIT(8)

•m •

•E" ■X'

CHR(13) ; CHR(10) ;

UNITWRITE(8,M,5,0,1) ;

UNITWAIT(8) ;

UNITREAD(8,M,18,0,1) ;

UNITWAIT(8) ;

DONE := FALSE ;

USERTERM := FALSE ;

WRITELN ;

WHILE NOT EOF(TRANSFILE) DO XMITRDFILE;

m[o] := CHR(13) ;

MM := CHR(10) ;

M[2]:=CHR(3) ;

UNITWRITE(8,M,3,0,1) ;

UNITWAIT(8) ;

UNITREAD(8,M,18,0,1 ) ;

UNITWAIT(8) ;

M[0] := 'T' ;

M[ll := 'E' ;

484 November 1981 © BYTE Publicaeions Inc

Circle 121 on inquiry card.

Listing 2 continued:

'R'

= 'm'

= ■ q» •

= 'Y'

= CHR(13) ;

= CHR(10) ; UNITWRITE(8,M,9,0,1) UNITWAIT(8) UNITREAD(8M,10,0,1) UNITWAIT(8) M[0] := 'P' mM := 'A' M 2 := 'C M[3] := CHR(13) ; UNITWRITE(8,M,4,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) ;

UNITREAD(8,M,13,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(S) ; REPLACEFILE ; IF NOT USERTERM

THEN WRITELNCTRANSFER COMPLETE*)

ELSE WRITELN('TRANSFER TERMINATED BEFORE COMPLETION') ; WRITELN(CDCFILENAME, ' IS A CDC PERMANENT FILE') END ELSE WRITELN('NO FILE TRANSFERRED') END ELSE WRITELNCNO FILE TRANSFERRED') END ; (* PROC TRANSMITFILE *)

PROCEDURE PRNTHELP ;

(* THIS PROCEDURE PRINTS OUT THE MENU OF CONTROL KEY COMMANDS. *)

BEGIN (* PROC PRNTHELP *)

WRITELN ;

WRITELN ;

WRITELNC CONTROL-E— >EXIT TO UCSD SYSTEM.') ;

WRITELNC CONTROL-S—>SHIFT TRANSFER MODES (NORMAL<~>ASCIl) .') ;

WRITELNC CONTROL-R—>RECEIVE FILES.') ;

WRITELNC CONTROL-T >TRANSMIT FILES.') ;

WRITELNC CONTROL-H—>DISPLAY ABOVE CONTROL COMMANDS.') ;

WRITELN END ; (* PROC PRNTHELP *)

BEGIN (* MAIN PROGRAM - TERMINAL EMULATOR *) PRNTHELP ;

WRITELNC PLEASE TYPE RETURN FOR LOGIN MESSAGE IF NOT LOGGED IN.'); STATREG1.BVAR := TRUE ; STATREG8.BVAR := TRUE ; STATREG1.STATREGADDR := -1007 ; STATREG8.STATREGADDR := -991 ; STATREG1.BVAR := FALSE ; STATREG8.BVAR := FALSE ; UNITCLEAR(8) ; UNITCLEAR(l) ; FOREVER := TRUE ; WHILE FOREVER DO Listing 2 continued on page 486

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 485

Text continued from page 476:

pointer into a Boolean packed array. Since the memory address associated with this field has been previously set to the address of the status register, and because a pointer type is merely an address of a memory location, we now have a pointer into the individual bits of the status register.

In Emulator Mode, the status bits associated with the two ports are alternately tested. If input is detected at the remote port, a unitread instrution is executed to fetch the character, followed by a unitwrite command to the console. These instructions are UCSD Pascal low-level intrinsics for accessing a peripheral device. Linefeeds (ASCII character 10) are not echoed. At the end of a line, the Cyber transmits a carriage return followed by a linefeed. On the Microengine a carriage return implies a linefeed, so the linefeed from the Cyber is redundant. If input is detected at the console port, a "unitread" is initiated to fetch the character. The character is first checked to determine if it is one of the previously discussed control-key commands, in which case the appropriate action is taken. If the character is not a control character, the emulator assumes it is meant for the Cyber, and it is transferred to the remote port by execution of a "unitwrite" command.

Input to the remote port is given priority over input to the console port so that the stream from the Cyber is not interrupted. This is implemented by placing the code for testing the remote-port status bit in a "while" loop and the code for testing the consoleport status bit in an "if" statement in the main program. As long as characters are being received at the remote port, the emulator will continue to read them and echo them to the console. Only when there are no more characters detected at the remote port is the console-port status bit checked. Even then, only one character is accepted before the remote-port status bit is again tested. Consequently, characters entered at the console while information is being sent by the Cyber are displayed, but ignored.

Listing 2 continued:

:= FALSE ; TRUE

BEGIN

WHILE STATREG8.STATPTRSTATREG[1]=TRUE DO BEGIN

UNITREAD(8.T,1,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(8) ;

IF 0RD(T[0]) <> 10 THEN BEGIN

UNITWRITE(1,T,1,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(l) END END ;

IF STATREG1.STATPTRSTATREG[l ]=TRUE THEN BEGIN

UNITREAD(1,T,1,0,1) ; UNITWAIT(1) ; SKIP := FALSE ; IF 0RD(T[0])=05 THEN BEGIN

FOREVER SKIP := END ; IF 0RD(T[0])=18 THEN BEGIN

RECEIVEFILE ; SKIP := TRUE END ; IF 0RD(T[0])-20 THEN BEGIN

TRANSMITFILE ; SKIP := TRUE END ; IF 0RD(T[0])=19 THEN BEGIN

CHARM0DE ; SKIP := TRUE END ; IF ORD(T[0])=08 THEN PRNTHELP IF SKIP=FALSE THEN BEGIN

UNITWRITE(8,T,1,0,1 ) ;

UNITWAIT(8)

END END

END

END.

File transfer from the Cyber to the Microengine is performed by the procedure RECEIVEFILE. The transfer is implemented by generating an

OLD, filename

IAF command to fetch the file from your Cyber file space. The procedure

then waits for a READY response from the Cyber. If it does not receive the response, the routine assumes that the file was not found, that is, the Cyber actually generated a

filename NOT FOUND

response.

486 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

In the latter case, an error message is printed at the console and Emulator Mode is resumed. You must then reenter Receive Mode to reattempt the file transfer. It is because of this type of response by the Cyber that file transfers must be performed in the IAF NULL subsystem. The response made by IAF to commands differs between IAF subsystems, and the filetransfer program was designed to accommodate the responses made in the NULL subsystem.

If the file is successfully fetched, the routine generates a TAPE command, causing the Cyber to enter the TAPE subsystem under IAF. Performing the transfer in this subsystem is necessary since it is only in this mode that the Cyber generates an EOT (end-of-text) character to allow detection of transfer completion. The actual transfer is initiated by generating an IAF LIST command.

The transfer is performed by reading the listed output from the Cyber, at the remote port, into a buffer in Microengine memory, BUFFI, consisting of an array of characters. Upon completion of the transfer, BUFFI is written to Microengine disk. It is necessary to use this intermediate storage because of the activity of the Microengine disk-drive head as a file is written. At certain intervals as it is writing, the head must position itself to available partitions. In doing so, it misses a few characters, since the Cyber will not withhold its transmission to allow positioning of the disk head. This, of course, is allowed for when writing from Microengine memory to disk, and so the writing of the file to Microengine disk is postponed until the file transfer is completed. (Because of this use of intermediate storage, the size of Microengine memory places a limit of 32,767 characters on the size of files received from the Cyber.)

During the transfer, certain characters must be noted. If you have requested echoing of the file to the console as it is transferred, a "writeln" command must be generated if a carriage return (ASCII character 13) is detected from the Cyber. As in Emulator Mode, a linefeed is redun

dant and must not be echoed to the screen.

The detection of an EOT (ASCII character 17) indicates the completion of the transfer. If the transfer is terminated by detection of an EOT character, a suitable message is written to the console, BUFFI is written to Microengine disk, the file is cataloged and closed, and Emulator Mode is resumed.

If, during file transfer, an S is entered at the console keyboard, it is transmitted to the Cyber, causing the listing of the file to be terminated. A termination message is written to the console screen and Emulation Mode is resumed without writing BUFFI to Microengine disk.

Since IAF was placed in the TAPE subsystem in order to enable the detection of an EOT mark, it must now be returned to the NULL subsystem. This is done, before returning to Emulator Mode, by generating a Normal command to IAF. If, however, you have been operating in ASCII Mode, you will want to remain in

that mode. To this purpose, a Boolean variable, ASCII, is maintained to keep track of the character mode. If ASCII is true, the characterset mode is switched to ASCII before returning to Emulator Mode.

Transmission of a file from the Microengine to the Cyber is performed by the procedure TRANSMITFILE. After you are prompted for the name of the Microengine file to be transferred, the file is opened and you will be prompted for the name under which the file is to be cataloged on the Cyber. Keying in STOP in place of either file name will terminate Transmit Mode and resume Emulator Mode without initiating the transfer. The transfer is performed by generating a

NEW, Cyber filename

IAF command, thus creating a new primary local file on the Cyber and listing the Microengine file to the Cyber. Since a new primary file is created, the user must take care to

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Versions available for:

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

487

save the old primary file before entering Transmit Mode.

Before the transfer is initiated, BLKEDIT mode is entered in IAF by generating a

TERM, BLKEDIT

command. BLKEDIT mode is designed to allow multiple-line input from a terminal to the Cyber, rather than line-by-line transmission. In this mode, the file transmission can be viewed as a stream of characters instead of a series of lines. Thus, the Microengine does not have to wait for the Cyber to accept each line before transmitting the next. Following the command, a

TEXT

IAF command is generated to allow the file transmitted from the Microengine to be read into the newly defined CYBER file. Then, the nested procedure XMITRDFILE performs the transfer. When the transfer is completed, BLKEDIT mode is terminated and Cyber filename is cata

loged on the Cyber by generation of TERM, TTY, and REPLACE IAF commands.

In addition to the two transfer routines (with nested procedures) and the emulator (main) routine, there are two other procedures:

1. CHARMODE allows the user to choose the character-set mode (Normal or ASCII) for file transfer. It is accessed by entering a Control-S while in Emulator Mode.

2. PRNTHELP lists the menu of control commands available to the user in Emulator Mode. PRNTHELP is accessed by entering Control-A while in Emulator Mode.

Limitations, Tradeoffs, Extensions

Our file-transfer system has been used extensively at data rates up to 1200 bps (bits per second) and has proven successful in its intended purpose. The system does contain some limitations, however, either due to tradeoffs between versatility and simplicity or as a result of the inherent qualities of the machines. One such

limitation is the constraint that all file transfers must be performed under the Cyber NULL subsystem. As described earlier, this is necessary since the program must test for certain responses from the Cyber. Originally, a "busy wait," in the form of an empty Pascal "for" loop, was used to halt program execution until the Cyber had generated its response. In this way, the Microengine did not have to wait for a specific response, but only had to make sure that it gave the Cyber sufficient time to generate it. Because of the variation in response time by the Cyber, coupled with the rapid processing of the Microengine, the range of the loop bounds had to be made very large to insure that the Cyber had completed its response before the Microengine resumed execution of the file-transfer program. So instead of employing the "busy wait," the program was tailored to the responses made by the Cyber in the NULL subsystem. This approach was cleaner and more efficient but was chosen at the cost of

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versatility. The program can be extended to accept responses made under other subsystems as well, but this would lengthen the program size considerably.

Another such limitation is the restriction on the size of files transferred from the Cyber to Microengine disk, due to the use of a memory buffer. A large file can be transferred by dividing it into smaller files on the Cyber, transmitting the files separately and merging them at the Microengine. If more memory is available, the buffer size can be increased to allow the transfer of large files.

The file-transfer system might also be extended to allow the transfer of object-code files. Due to the incompatibility of binary codes on the two machines, a remapping of the codes would be required for file transfers in both directions. Again, this enhancement would considerably increase the size of the transfer program.

When we designed the file-transfer system, we intended it to be adapted, with minimal modification, to other microcomputers and minicomputers. The program was also designed for eventual use as a skeleton of a filetransfer system for a network of computers in the Department of Computer Science at Colorado State University.

At present, the system has been adapted to an Altair 8800 and an Intertec SuperBrain. The primary modification made to the program, in order to adapt it to the Altair, was in the emulator section. In the Microengine, the serial-port status registers are memory-mapped and can be tested using the Pascal record construct presented earlier. The ports on the Altair cannot be tested in this manner. The UCSD Pascal system allows assembly-language linking to Pascal programs, however, and so the adaptation to the Altair was made possible by the addition of two assembly-language functions, one to test the port to the Cyber and one to test the port connected to the system console. (The listing of modifications to the file-transfer-system program can be obtained from the authors.)■

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Books Received

Ada, An Introduction, Ada Reference Manual, Henry Ledgard. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1981; 26.5 by 18.75 cm, 373 pages, softcover, ISBN 0387-90568-5, $12.95.

Apple BASIC for Business, For the Apple II, Alan J Parker and John F Stewart. Reston VA: Reston Publishing, 1981; 17.5 by 23.5 cm, 301 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-8359-0226-1, $14.95; hardcover, ISBN 0-8359-0228-5, $17.95.

Beyond COBOL, Gary D Brown. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1981; 15.5 by 23.5 cm, 200 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0-471-09030-1, $17.50.

Computer Peripherals, Barry Wilkinson and David Horrocks. New York: Crane Russak & Company, 1981; 15.5 by 23.5 cm, 310 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-34032652-3, $19.75.

Data Processing with Applications, 2nd ed, Robert J Condon. Reston VA: Reston Publishing Company, 1981; 15.5 by 23.5 cm, 477 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0-8359-1254-X, $16.95.

Digital Circuits and Systems, Richard L Castellucis. Reston VA: Reston Publishing Company, 1981; 16 by 23.5 cm, 332 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0-8359-1297-3, $18.95.

Executive Computing, How to Get It Done on Your Own, John M Nevison. Reading MA: Addison-Wesley, 1981; 16 by 23.5 cm, 319 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-20105248-2, $8.95.

50 Programs in Basic for the Home, School & Office, Jim Cole. Woodsboro MD: ARCsoft Publishers, 1981; 14 by 21.5 cm, 80 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-86668-002-0, $9.95.

Finite Elements, An Introduction, Volume I, Eric

490 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

Circle 143 on inquiry card.

Becker, Graham F Carey, and J Tinsley Oden. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1981; 15.5 by 23.5 cm, 258 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0-13317057-8, $24.95.

Flight Deck Uses for the HP-41C, Volume I, Melvin N Peterson. San Francisco CA: MNP Star Enterprises, 1981; 13.5 by 21.5 cm, 59 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-93888001-2, $12.

The Hexadecimal Chronicles, Don Lancaster. Indianapolis IN: Howard W Sams & Company, 1981; 21.5 by 28 cm, 377 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-672-21802-X, $17.95.

How to Get Started with CP/M, Carl Townsend. Beaverton OR: dilithium Press, 1981; 14 by 22 cm, 127 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-91839832-0, $9.95.

Introduction to Computers and Information Processing, Language Edition, Don Cassel and Martin Jackson. Reston VA: Reston Publishing Company, 1981; 18 by 24 cm, 472 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0-8359-3150-1, $19.95.

An Introduction to Computer Programming and Data Structures Using MACRO-U, Harry R Lewis. Reston VA: Reston Publishing Company, 1981; 18.5 by 24 cm, 241 pages, hardcover, ISBN 08359-3143-9, $18.95.

Jewels of Formal Language Theory, Arto Salomaa. Rockville MD: Computer Science Press, 1981; 16 by 23.5 cm, 144 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0-914894-69-2, $24.95.

Knowledge and the Flow of Information, Fred I Dretske. Cambridge MA: The MIT Press, 1981; 16 by 24 cm, 273 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0262-04063-8, $18.50.

Microcomputer Power Series, Data Management Techniques, John P Grillo and J D Robertson. Dubuque I A: Wm C Brown Company Publishers, 1981; 21.5 by 28 cm, 208 pages, softcover,

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Books Received.

ISBN 0-697-09954-7, $16.95.

Microcomputer Power Series, Guide to System Applications. Same as above; 288 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-697-09952-0, $17.95.

Microcomputer Power Series, Introduction to Graphics. Same as above; 144 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-697-09953-9, $15.95.

Microcomputer Power Series, Techniques of BASIC. Same as above; 272 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-697-09951-2, $18.95.

Microsystems '81, Proceedings of the 4th Annual Conference (London, March 11-13, 1981). Westbury House, division of IPC Science and Technology Press (POB 63, Bury Street, Guilford, Surrey, England, GU2 5BH), 1981; 16.5 by 23.5 cm, 124 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-86103-046-X, £12.50.

Osborne 16-Bit Microprocessor Handbook, Adam Osborne, Gerry Kane. Berkeley CA: Osborne/ McGraw-Hill, 1981; 18 by 23 cm, 771 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-931988-42-X, $19.95.

Pascal Programs for Scientists and Engineers, Alan R Miller. Berkeley CA: Sybex, 1981; 18 by 23 cm, 374 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-89588058-X, $16.95.

Representations, Philosophical Essays on the Foundations of Cognitive Science, Jerry A Foder. Cambridge MA: The MIT Press, 1981; 16 by 24 cm, 343 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0-262-06079-5, $20.

67 Ready-To-Run Programs in BASIC: Graphics, Home & Business, Education,

Games, William Scott Watson. Blue Ridge Summit PA: Tab Books, 1981; 13.5 by 21 cm, 182 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-8306-1195-9, $6.95; hardcover, ISBN 0-83069660-1, $12.95.

Sociological Methods & Research, Volume 9, Number 4, edited by David R Heise. Beverly Hills CA: Sage Publications, 1981; 13.5 by 21.5 cm, 141 pages, softcover, ISSN 0049-1241, $5.50.

Structured Requirements Definition, Ken Orr. Topeka KS: Ken Orr and Associates, 1981; 15 by 23 cm, 235 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-96058840-X, $25.

Taming Your Computer, A Guide for Business and Professional People, Jerome Kanter. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1981; 18.5 by 24 cm, 246 pages, hardcover, ISBN 0-13-884403-8, $17.95; softcover, ISBN 0-13-8843953, $8.95.

Telecommunications Management for Business and Government, 2nd ed. Larry A Arredondo, edited by Harry Newton. New York: Telecom Library, 1981; 21.5 by 28 cm, 270 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-936648-07-4, $30.

32 BASIC Porgrams for the Apple Computer, Tom Rugg and Phil Feldman. Beaverton OR: dilithium Press, 1981; 13.5 by 21 cm, 284 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-91839834-7, $17.95.

The Year of the Robot, Wayne Chen. Beaverton OR: dilithium Press, 1981; 13.5 by 21 cm, 182 pages, softcover, ISBN 0-918398-50-9, $7.95. ■

This is a list of books received at BYTE Publications during this past month. Although the list is not meant to be exhaustive, its purpose is to acquaint BYTE readers with recently published titles in computer science and related fields. We regret that we cannot review or comment on all the books we receive; instead, this list is meant to be a monthly acknowledgment of these books and the publishers who sent them.

492 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Circle 320 on inquiry card.

Information Hiding in Pascal

Packages and Pointers

Michael B Feldman

Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

The George Washington University

Washington DC 20052

Information hiding is the principle that allows programs written at a high level to be insulated from messy low-level details. This principle fosters program reliability for two related reasons:

• Since low-level details are relegated to lower-level programs (procedures, functions, macroinstructions, etc), they can, in principle, be coded once, instead of once per program. Thus, the detailed code need be debugged only once. Moreover, the calling programs cannot disturb them because they cannot gain access to these details.

• High-level programs, being insulated from low-level details, can be written more cleanly, making them easier to maintain. Since higher-level programmers know that lower-level details have already been debugged, they can concentrate on their assigned task—writing the higherlevel material.

Information hiding is equally valid for single- and multi-programmer tasks. It is clear that even a single programmer can benefit from writing low-level code only once.

What Is a Package?

One important application of the information-hiding principle is in the definition, in some programming language, of new data types not already supported. Pascal, for example, does not support complex numbers—at least in the standard language. A package, also called a class or data abstraction, is an encapsulation of a new data type, together with a set of primitive functions or procedures that handles the details of creating instances of the new type and performing operations on it.

To continue with our example of complex numbers, a complex-number package generally contains the following parts:

• a definition of complex data as consisting of a real part and an imaginary part

• a method to be used by higher-level programs in creating new complex data, given two integers or real numbers to serve as the real and imaginary components

• a set of operations on complex numbers so higher-level programs can do arithmetic on complex numbers without needing access to the details of what complex numbers look like internally

Such a set of operations should ordinarily be minimal (without redundant operations) and complete (ie: calling routines don't need any additional operations to do everything required). For complex numbers, we would need sum, difference, product, quotient, and absolute value or magnitude operations, plus some comparison operations, such as equals, less than, greater than, etc. The general idea is that this extended data type "comes with" the same general level of support offered by the base language for integers and real numbers.

Ideally, a package should be defined by two pieces: a functional specification of the type and its operations, which gives a list of the legal operations and a description of what each operation does (not how), and a group of programs implementing the operations and responsible for handling the messy lower-level details.

Jean Ichbiah, developer of the new Ada language, explains the package idea by referring to a wristwatch—say, one of the new digital ones with many features. The owner's guide describes the watch's features, explaining what each button does (time, date, light, set alarm, and so on). The user receives a warranty from the manufacturer that the watch will perform as advertised. It is not necessary to know anything about how the watch works to use it effectively. Furthermore, the manufacturer would probably refuse to honor the warranty on a watch whose internal circuits have been tampered with. So, the internal parts of a watch are—we hope—packaged to discourage tampering. Indeed, more complex equipment is often packaged with a lock or seal. This way, only an authorized technician can get inside,

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Iric 493

or an attempt by a user to get in will be obvious and void the warranty.

Ichbiah asserts that software producers are going to be called upon more and more to guarantee their products. However, it will be difficult to give an effective warranty on products whose reliability has not been proven (at least to our own satisfaction; recalls occur in many industries). More important, it is difficult to guarantee a product whose internal parts can be tampered with by a user. Packages, then, are a way to foster warrantableness.

There are several programming languages that support variations on the package theme. The language SIMULA67, used more in Europe than in the United States, provides a similar concept called class; experimental languages such as Concurrent Pascal, CLU, and Alphard support the idea in one form or another, and Ada emphasizes packages by that name as an important principle of modular design. Standard Pascal does not support packages as such; let us examine how we can implement their principle in Pascal.

Packages in Standard Pascal

A package should consist of a functional specification—ideally recognized by the compiler—and an implementation module. Pascal has no facility for separating the specification part from the implementation part. Therefore, we write the specification part, in an ap

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propriate style, as a block comment.

Also implicit in the notion of a package is the fact that we can physically isolate the package from other packages and calling programs. Unfortunately, Pascal is not much help here, since neither a compile-time facility for copying separate pieces of source text into a source file nor a facility for separate compilation of packages is supported. Many implementations of Pascal provide one or both of these, but this discussion is limited to the possibilities of the standard language.

Another limitation of Pascal is that all type definitions must appear in one group following a "type" keyword, and these must appear before all code for functions and procedures. This hinders the ability to group a type definition with all its operations, another type to be grouped with its operations, and so on. Once again, there are some implementation-dependent relaxations of this rule.

A Pascal Complex-Number Package

To summarize the previous sections, Pascal does not permit the direct production of packages because of its lack of separate compilation facilities and its rigid syntax for defining new types. With some good programmingstyle conventions, however, and perhaps a bit of manual preprocessing of the source code, a fairly good approximation can be achieved.

How shall we implement a complex-number package? Let us define a Pascal type called COMPLEX as a record with real and imaginary components:

type COMPLEX = record REALPART: real; IMAGPART: real end;

We could then declare variables of type COMPLEX:

var A, B, C, D, E, F: COMPLEX;

and set A, B, and C as follows:

A.REALPART := 1.5; A.IMAGPART := -3.7; B.REALPART : = 2.0; B.IMAGPART : = -5.1; C.REALPART := 0.0; C.IMAGPART := 4.1.

How shall we do arithmetic on complex numbers? Suppose we defined a procedure:

procedure CADD(C1, C2: COMPLEX; var RESULT: COMPLEX)

The complex sum RESULT is a complex number that gives:

RESULT.REALPART := Cl.REALPART +

C2.REALPART;

RESULT.IMAGPART := Cl.IMAGPART +

C2. IMAGPART

494 November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc

Circle 438 on inquiry card.

Writing this procedure would be quite straightforward, and we could do the equivalent of saying D = A + B by writing:

CADD(A,B,D)

Things start looking messier when we try to emulate a more complicated expression like D = A + B + C. We would then have to write something like:

CADD(A,B,E); CADD(C,E,D)

As the expression gets longer, we need more separate calls to the CADD procedure, each doing only a single operation. It would be better if we could write an expression, as we would if we were dealing with integers or real numbers. In other words, can we turn CADD into a function, then write:

D := CADD(A, CADD(B,C))

which is much cleaner (especially in longer expressions)? Writing functions to do this operation, and others like difference, product, quotient, etc, would be easy if our Pascal functions looked like:

function CADD (CI, C2 : COMPLEX) : COMPLEX

that is, if functions could return complex numbers as value. Pascal sets up an obstacle here: functions can return only scalar types, and COMPLEX is a structured type, a record. What can we do?

Enter the Pointer

What is a pointer? It is an abstraction of the idea "the data at the address: ..." Pointers exist in many programming languages, notably PL/I. A pointer in Pascal is written in publication language as t. Since many implementations use the symbol @ instead, we shall use it as well.

In Pascal, you can declare a variable to be a pointer:

var P: ©INTEGER

which is read "P is a pointer to an integer." Pascal, differing from PL/I, for example, requires not only a declaration of all pointers, but also a declaration of the type of thing pointed to. This is a protection against using pointers indiscriminately to point to different things at different times and is a reflection of the Pascal "strongtyping" philosophy. P@ is read "the thing pointed to by P."

Pointers must be used with care. In fact, it is often said that "pointers are to data what GOTOs are to program code." But in appropriate situations, pointers in Pascal are extremely useful.

Pascal textbooks illustrate pointers as a way to link nodes in a list or tree structure, and many of you are familiar with this application. What is not usually

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc 495

discussed in the texts is, first, that pointers don't have to be used as that kind of link, and second, that pointers are scalar types, and thus may be returned as function values.

Listing 1: Pascal programming examples (see the text for details).

(la)

type COMPNUM = record

REALPART, IM AGP ART: real end;

COMPLEX = ©COMPNUM

(lb)

function MAKECOMP (R,I: real): COMPLEX; var P: COMPLEX; begin NEW (P);

P@.REALPART := R; P;. IMAGPART := I;

MAKECOMP : - P end;

(lc)

function RE( C: COMPLEX): real;

begin RE := C@.REALPART end; function IM( C: COMPLEX): real;

begin IM : = C@.IMAGPART end;

(Id)

function CSUM ( X,Y : COMPLEX): COMPLEX; begin

CSUM : = MAKECOMP (RE(X) + RE(Y), IM(X) + IM(Y)) end;

(le)

function CEQUALS ( X,Y: COMPLEX ): Boolean;

begin

CEQUALS : = RE(X) = RE(Y) & IM(X) = IM(Y)

end;

(If)

type COMPNUM = record

REALPART, IMAGPART: real; TEMPORARY: Boolean end;

(lg)

notion MAKECOMP (R, I

: real): COMPLEX

var P: COMPLEX;

begin NEW(P);

P@. REALPART

= R;

P@. IMAGPART

= I;

P@.TEMPORARY

= TRUE;

MAKECOMP

= P

end;

We can use pointers advantageously in creating our package for complex numbers. Instead of using the type COMPLEX to name our complex-number record, let us rename that record COMPNUM and use COMPLEX to refer to a pointer to a COMPNUM, as shown in listing la. Declaring variables as in:

var A, B, C, D, E, F : COMPLEX

does not create six records—only six pointers. The records come into being later.

We can give a calling program an easy way to create a complex number by noticing that the Pascal predeclared function NEW can be used to create instances of a type at execution time. A call such as NEW(P), where P is a pointer to some type, creates space for an instance of that type, returning the location of the new instance in P. We can now write a Pascal function MAKECOMP, as in listing lb.

MAKECOMP creates a new complex number with real and imaginary parts and returns a pointer to that new number as its value. A user can then write:

A := MAKECOMP(2.0,-5.5)

and, assuming that A is of type COMPLEX, never realize what is going on at the lower level.

We can further insulate the user from the "dot" notation of Pascal records and any concern with pointers by writing two functions that access the real and imaginary components (see listing lc). Given that Y is of type real, Y : = RE(A) looks much like the corresponding notation from mathematics.

At this point, we can start writing other functions to do complex arithmetic. All such functions can now be written with arguments and return values of type COMPLEX, and no further reference must ever be made to lower-level implementation details. For example, see the code for CSUM in listing Id. A function to determine if two complex numbers are equal might be written as in listing le.

Giving Back the Memory

This would all work very well, except for one problem. If we were to write the complex-expression equivalent of:

E = (A X B) + (C X D) [E: = CSUM(CPROD(A,B),CPROD(C,D))]

our scheme would call NEW to get space for the temporary results CPROD(A,B) and CPROD(C,D), as well as for the final sum of the two. What happens to the two temporary records we created7

They remain allocated and will not be reused. Continual use of expressions like this will allocate temporary space that will not be recovered. Eventually, our program will run out of dynamic-memory space (usually called heap space) and "bomb," even though we're not actually using all that space.

496 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

(lh)

procedure CASSIGN (var CI, C2: COMPLEX); begin

if CI <> nil then DISPOSE(Cl);

(* if CI already points to something *) CI : = MAKECOMP(RE(C2), IM(C2»; Cl@.TEMPORARY := FALSE end; procedure CRELEASE (CI: COMPLEX); begin

if Cl@.TEMPORARY then DISPOSE(Cl) end;

(li)

function CSUM(X,Y: COMPLEX): COMPLEX; begin

CSUM := MAKECOMP(RE(X) + RE(Y), IM(X) + IM(Y)); CRELEASE(X); CRELEASE(Y) end;

Pascal, in most reasonable implementations, has a built-in function DISPOSE(P) that, given a pointer P, returns whatever is pointed to by P to the heap. It's the inverse of NEW. The problem is for our system to be able to discern whether a given complex is temporary, as in the intermediate expressions above, or permanent, like A, B, C, D, and E.

One way to do this is to add to each record a Boolean field TEMPORARY that is set to TRUE by

MAKECOMP. This changes the declaration of COMPNUM to that shown in listing If. It also changes the MAKECOMP function to that shown in listing lg. Two questions remain: how to designate permanent complex numbers, and how to DISPOSE of temporary ones.

The first question is answered by noticing that the only time we need a permanent complex number is when we are assigning it to a declared variable. To do this, we write a procedure CASSIGN(Cl, C2), which copies C2 into Cl, replacing the assignment (: = ) operation and setting TEMPORARY to false.

To dispose of temporary structures, we can write a procedure CRELEASE(C) that calls DISPOSE if C is temporary. We have to call CRELEASE in each of our arithmetic functions so input arguments to these functions can be given back, if temporary. The CASSIGN and CRELEASE procedures are seen in listing lh.

This may be messy. But since Pascal will not "collect the garbage" automatically, it's about the only way to reclaim the storage. As an example of where to use CRELEASE, consider the revised CSUM in listing li. A typical assignment statement might be:

CASSIGN(A, CSUM(B, CPROD(C,D)))

which is equivalent to A = B + C X D.

We could go on and on, but you can fill in further details. We can summarize by reiterating that choice of a

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications tac 497

good implementation strategy (pointers and records) and the right low-level primitive functions (MAKECOMP, RE, IM) has given us a healthy level of insulation for higher-level programs from messy details. Even fundamental operations like sum and equals can be written using the notations of the application area, rather than the esoterica of the programming language.

An objection could be made that we are paying a price in run-time efficiency by insisting on all these levels of insulation, each imposing either a subprogram call (and its overhead) or an indirect (pointer) reference (also with an associated overhead). There is no doubt that a price measured in machine performance is exacted here. We counter by pointing out that almost any device used in programming to increase people efficiency (and this includes high-level languages) takes its toll in reduced machine performance. In today's world of fast and inexpensive hardware, it's a price worth paying.

The Specification Part

The routines shown previously constitute part of what is usually called the package body, namely, the implementing code for all the routines. Ideally, we should be able to write a section giving only functional specifications, and this would be the only part visible to a user or calling program.

Listing 2: The specification part of a package that states the complex-number data type. It is included in the Pascal program as a comment and explains what the attributes of the package are, but not necessarily how they work.

(* package ComplexNumbers type COMPLEX

function MAKECOMP ( R,I: real ) function RE ( C : COMPLEX ) function IM ( C : COMPLEX ) function CSUM ( X,Y : COMPLEX ) function CDIFF ( X,Y : COMPLEX ) function CPROD ( X,Y : COMPLEX ) function CQUOT ( X,Y : COMPLEX ) function CEQUALS ( X,Y : COMPLEX ) function CLESSEQ ( X,Y : COMPLEX ) function CGTREQ ( X,Y : COMPLEX ) ...and possibly some complex I/O routines.

detai

Is private COMPLEX; real; real;

COMPLEX COMPLEX COMPLEX COMPLEX Boolean; Boolean; Boolean;

Listing 3: A complex-number package written for the Pascallike language Ada.

function "*" (x,y; complex) return complex is R,I: float; begin

R := RE(x)*RE(y) - IM(x)*IM(y);

I := RE(x)*IM(y) + IM(x)*RE(y);

return (R,I); end; function "*" (x: float; y: complex) return complex is TEMP : complex; begin

TEMP : = (x * RE(y), x * IM(y));

return TEMP; end;

Since Pascal has no facility for separating these two important sections, we shall write the specification part as a block comment. A specification part for complex numbers is shown in listing 2.

Operator Overloading

In writing our complex-number package in Pascal, we were forced to use prefix-function notation (ie: CSUM(X,Y), and so on). Ideally, a higher-level program should be able to write X + Y when X + Y is meant, and the compiler should be able to invoke the addition routine appropriate to the declared types of X and Y. Suppose, for example, that X and Y were vectors of integers. If we had written a routine to add two vectors, there ought to be some way to inform the compiler that vector addition is what is meant by X + Y if X and Y are declared as vectors. In other words, instead of calling our complex-addition routine CSUM, we should be able to call it +, and let the compiler determine when its use is appropriate.

To give an example of how this can be done in Ada, here are two functions, both called *, to do complex multiplication and multiplication of a complex by a real scalar (see listing 3).

The two most important parts of this example are the two additional operators named *—the compiler can tell which one is meant, in an expression, by the types of the operands—and the fact that in Ada, unlike Pascal, structures can be returned as function values. The pointer scheme used in this article is thus unnecessary in Ada.

This technique of adding power to an arithmetic operation, extending its range to cover new data types, is known as operator overloading. Several experimental languages have supported overloading; SNOBOL4 is a major language in the "real world" that has supported it for more than ten years. But no widely used procedural language permits operator overloading. As the Ada language comes into wide use, many people will discover and appreciate its overloading facility, as well as other niceties that make packages easy to do.B

References

1. Brinch Hansen, P. "The Programming Language Concurrent Pascal." IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, volume SE-2, number 2, June 1975, pages 199 through 207.

2. Dahl, O J, B Myhrhand, and K Nygaard. The SIMULA67 Common Base Language. Oslo: Norwegian Computing Centre, Publication S-22, 1970.

3. Griswold, R E, J F Poage, and I P Polonsky. The SNOBOL4 Programming Language, 2nd ed. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1971.

4. Liskov, B H and S N Zilles. "Abstraction Mechanisms in CLU." Communications of the ACM, volume 20, number 8, August 1977, pages 564 through 576.

5. Wegner, P. Programming with Ada. Englewood Cliffs NJ: PrenticeHall, 1980.

6. Wolf, W A, R L London, and M Shaw. "An Introduction to the Construction and Verification of Alphard Programs." IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, volume SE-2, number 4, December 1976, pages 253 through 265.

498 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

System Notes

A Voice for the Apple II Without Extra Hardware

Robert A Payne

7437 Arizona Ave

Los Angeles CA 90045

With an Apple II computer and a standard cassette-tape player, I have been able to store human voices in digital form and recall them later with relatively good fidelity. In fact, my 48 K-byte Apple computer can store up to three minutes of digital voice data without additional hardware or disk storage.

My experiments in this area began after reading other articles concerning the application of home computers to voice recording (see reference). These prompted me to try simple hardware additions to a standard Apple computer and to experiment with various low-priced A/D (analog-to-digital) converters that were readily available from local electronics supply houses.

The problems I encountered fell into three general categories: first, most inexpensive A/D converters will not operate in the range of 10,000 to 12,000 samples per second. This is the minimum rate acceptable for reasonable word reproduction. Second, at higher sample rates the computer memory required to store the digital data exceeds the memory of the Apple computer after only a few seconds of actual operation. And finally, the hardware I was adding to the computer tended to be cumbersome and of relatively low quality. I would have to overcome each of these problems before I could store voices in my computer.

Recording the Voice

The idea for recording voice without additional hardware came from looking at commercially available software that digitizes voice

input to the Apple computer from a standard cassette-tape recorder through the cassette-input port. It is possible to monitor zero crossings of any analog signal, including voice, simply by making a recording of the signal on a cassette tape, then plugging the recorder into the Apple cassette-input port and playing the tape back while monitoring memory location C060 (hexadecimal), bit 7 (cassette input). Above a certain level of input signal, the cassette input will read high; below this level it will read low. The level of this transition is called the threshold.

If voice is thought of as being a simple sinusoidal function, it is readily apparent that each time the signal crosses the threshold, the state of the cassette-input bit changes. A history of these changes contains all of the frequency characteristics of the original analog input, assuming two threshold crossings per cycle. Since this method of data gathering really amounts to a 1-bit A/D conversion, amplitude information is not present and the stored voice will be reproduced at a constant volume depending on the hardware used for the actual playback.

It should also be noted at this time that the sampling rate must meet the Nyquist criteria. That is, the rate at which the cassette-input port is read must be equal to at least twice the frequency of the highest voice harmonic that we wish to store.

The ideal cassette recorder should have a volume and a tone control so that the user can input the correct amplitude and control the frequency

range to reproduce a given voice with minimal noise and to cause the midpoint of the input signal's peak-topeak amplitude to be set at the point where the Apple threshold ("0" to "1" transition) occurs. The quality of speech recorded will vary dramatically with changes in these parameters, and each individual will have to find the correct settings by experimentation. For my own voice and cassette recorder, I use relatively low volume settings with the tone control adjusted to its highest frequency.

Data Compression

At this point, by using the cassette input for data, I had solved the problems of not being able to find inexpensive A/D converters that could sample at a fast enough rate to record voice and of having to add wires and power supplies to my Apple computer. However, once I learned how to record voice and store it in memory, I found that about twenty seconds of data were all I could handle. This was the result of packing 8 bits of A/D data into each memory location.

On close inspection I found that the data that had been stored did not always change from sample to sample. This was true when low-frequency signals were being input and also during the times when no input was being sensed at the cassette-input port (eg: when the speaker stops to breathe, or at the beginning of a recording before the speaker has started talking). Since the data fluctuations had this characteristic, I decided to store data such that the first bit of each memory location represented

November 1981 © BYTE Publications lnc 499

the status of the A/D input and the next 7 bits represented a counter indicating the number of samples collected while that input remained unchanged. If the counter overflowed the alloted 7 bits, the same A/D bit would be stored in the next memory location with a new counter value.

Listing 1 is written in 6502 machine language and should load voice data into any Apple computer with 48 K bytes of memory. For machines with less memory, the operands in statements 849 and 810 (hexadecimal) can be changed to a smaller hexadecimal number representing the most-significant byte of the upper limit of memory.

At this point I had a computer memory full of A/D data that contained enough samples to reproduce between one and three minutes of reasonably understandable human voice. The exact time of playback is a

function of voice pitch and the setting of the inputs on the tape recorder. Also, certain sounds such as "sssss" tend to cause a great deal of change in the A/D data relative to the sampling rate and will therefore give less voice recording time for a given amount of memory.

Although it is difficult to analyze the efficiency of this new A/D packing technique by data inspection, I assume that it is five to six times more efficient than the method of packing 8 bits per word. I base this conclusion on the improvement in time for a given memory size. Reproducing the voice data for playback was the next logical experimental step.

Reproducing the Voice

The Apple computer has an onboard speaker that can be toggled by a read or a write to memory location

Listing 1: A/D input routine. Record your voice input on the cassette tape, then run the tape while executing this program starting at location 800 (800G). Voice data will be stored from location 1000 through BFFF in the form of data plus counter. Adjust the number at location 81F to change the sample rate of the A/D converter. The lower the number, the better the quality, but less time will be available for a given amount of memory.

Store zero

Increment storage LSB

Increment storage MSB

Check for end of memory

Restore storage LSBs and MSBs

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03

08

STA

$0803

819

A9

10

LDA

#$10

81B

8D

04

08

STA

$0804

81E

A0

0A

LDY

#$0A

820

88

DEY

821

DO

FD

BNE

$0820

823

AD

60

CO

LDA

$C060

826

29

80

AND

#$80

828

CD

A0

09

CMP

$09A0

82B

8D

A0

09

STA

$09AO

82E

DO

05

BNE

$0835

830

E8

INX

831

E0

7F

CPX

#$7F

833

DO

E9

BNE

$081E

835

8A

TXA

836

A2

00

LDX

#$00

838

4D

A0

09

EOR

$09AO

83B

8D

00

10

STA

$1000

83E

EE

3C

08

INC

$083C

841

DO

DB

BNE

$081E

843

EE

3D

08

INC

$083D

846

AD

3D

08

LDA

$083D

849

C9

CO

CMP

#$C0

84B

DO

Dl

BNE

$081E

84D

A9

00

LDA

#$00

84F

8D

3C

08

STA

$083C

852

A9

10

LDA

#$10

854

8D

3D

08

STA

$083D

857

00

BRK

Load sample rate delay counter

Get data from cassette input port

Use only the first bit

Compare to previous A/D sample

Replace old A/D value with new one

Branch if bit changed state

Increment counter

Compare counter to overflow value

Branch if counter < 127

Move counter to accumulator

Zero counter

OR bit with counter value

Store data plus counter

Increment storage location

Check for end of memory Restore program locations

End of storage routine

C030 (hexadecimal). The software shown in listing 2 will unpack the stored A/D data and toggle the speaker each time that the data counter reaches zero and the A/D bit changes state. This amounts to producing a "click" on the output speaker each time the original input voice signal had a zero crossing.

It may be hard to imagine how these clicks can reconstruct the human voice since they have no tones or amplitudes related to the original voice input. Try not to think about the individual clicks; instead, think of a series of clicks being output at a varying frequency which is a function of the original voice input. This varying frequency is an FM (frequency modulated) reproduction of that original input signal.

Although the reproduced signal is understandable if output in the above manner, there are several significant sources of noise that degrade the voice, one being the Apple's on-board speaker itself. The others relate to the method of sampling and reproducing the data. To reproduce any analog signal stored in digital format, it is very important to sample the A/D converter at a constant rate and to make the corresponding D/A (digitalto-analog) conversion at that same uniform rate. Any variance of these rates will cause high noise levels that will have to be filtered.

Unfortunately, the software that I had written to sample the input data had several different logical paths to follow depending on whether the counter was being incremented or whether it plus the data bit were being stored, and whether the least- or most-significant bit of the storage location had to be incremented. Each case took a different number of machine cycles to complete and therefore affected the time required to return and read the cassette-input port. When I modified the software to make each logical path use the same number of machine cycles, what I was really doing was slowing down each logical loop until they all ran at the rate of the slowest loop. This had the undesired effect of lowering the sample rate and reducing the bandwidth of the input signal, which at

500 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

tenuated the higher harmonics to the point where word recognition became extremely difficult.

Two solutions to the above problem were possible: the first was to use digital-filtering techniques on the stored data to remove unwanted noise. I rejected this due to the complexity of designing a bandpass filter which is not symmetrical with respect to a frequency equal to one half of the A/D sampling rate. The design of this type of filter requires the use of complex multiplying coefficients and is not practical for real-time microcomputer operations on large amounts of data.

Instead, I used the hardware filters controlled by the cassette-taperecorder tone control and sent the data back to the cassette to be either recorded on tape or output in the PA (public address) mode. To do this I changed the output software to toggle memory location C020 (cassette output) instead of the Apple speaker. The results were quite good when using this method to reproduce the stored voice. I used the cassette tone control to filter out unwanted noise.

Just to prove that anyone can understand a voice that had been recorded and then reproduced with the methods I have discussed in this article, I tried recording random passages from several different textbooks and playing them back to different listeners. Most had no trouble understanding the output once I had optimized the sampling rates and tone controls for my own voice.

Future Plans

The next step in my experiments will be to store digitized voice on the computer disk, which should allow approximately ten minutes of playback. I am also trying to find methods of packing voice data into more efficient patterns to minimize memory-size requirements. I hope this article helps others find inexpensive methods of bringing speech to their computers. ■

Reference

Anderson, James C. "An Extremely Low-Cost Computer Voice Response System," February 1981 BYTE, pages 36-43.

Listing 2: A/D output routine. First store data using listing 1 and a cassette recorder. After the data is stored in the Apple memory, it can be output to the on-board speaker by running this program from location 860 (860G). To send the data back to the cassette-output port, change location 874 to 20 and run the program from location 860 with the tape recorder in either the record or PA mode. The counter in location 877 should be adjusted until the optimal output is found. The number at location 892 is the most-significant byte of the upper limit of memory.

Get A/D data

Mask for counter only

Move counter to X register

Get A/D data

Mask for data only

Compare to previous data

Store current data

Branch if current data = last data

Toggle output

Programable delay loop

Decrement A/D counter Used only for initial value of zero Branch if A/D counter <> 0 Increment data pointer's LSBs

860

AD

01

10

LDA

$1001

863

29

7F

AND

#$7F

865

AA

TAX

866

AD

01

10

LDA

$1001

869

29

80

AND

#$80

86B

CD

A0

09

CMP

$09A0

86E

8D

A0

09

STA

$09A0

871

F0

03

BEQ

$0876

873

8D

30

CO

STA

$C030

87 6

A0

0D

LDY

#$0D

878

88

DEY

87 9

DO

FD

BNE

$0878

87B

CA

DEX

87C

30

02

BMI

$0880

87E

DO

F6

BNE

$0876

880

EE

61

08

INC

$0861

883

EE

67

08

INC

$0867

886

DO

D8

BNE

$0860

888

EE

62

08

INC

$0862

88B

EE

68

08

INC

$0868

88E

AD

68

08

LDA

$0868

891

C9

CO

CMP

#$C0

893

DO

CB

BNE

$0860

895

A9

01

LDA

#$01

897

8D

61

08

STA

$0861

89A

8D

67

08

STA

$0867

89D

A9

10

LDA

#$10

89F

8D

62

08

STA

$0862

8A2

8D

68

08

STA

$0868

8A5

00

BRK

Test for MSB increment Increment data pointer's MSBs

Test for the end of memory Branch to next sample Restore pointers

Need a

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November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 501

Circle 465 on inquiry card.

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RM-10 S-100

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ECT's RM-10 is a rack mount 10 slot Card Cage with Power Supply, consisting of an ECT-100 rack mount Card Cage (19"W x 12.25"H x 8"D), the MB-10 Mother Board (with ground plane and termination) all 10 connectors and guides and the PS-15A Power Supply (15A @ 8V, 1.5A @ ± 16V).

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502 BYTE November 1981

Circle 157 on Inquiry card.

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does it again!

The NEC™ 8023 matrix printer outperforms every printer in its price range! Unbelievable? Do a comparison and see for yourself...

FEATURES:

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ANAHEIM STORE

3150 E. La Palma, Suite I Anaheim, CA 92806 (714) 630-3622

©1981 Orange Micro, Inc.

1001

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333 pages, written in simple terms, of "what-to-do" and "how-to-do-it". Suitable not only for microcomputers, but for programmable calculators as well. Includes program listings, formulas, a glossary of computer terms and more! Definitely a MUST BUY!

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"OTHER MYSTERIES" VOLUME III

by Dennis Kitsz

Call now and place your order for this new book, "THE CUSTOM TRS-80™ & OTHER MYSTERIES", from IJG, Inc. More than 300 pages, with over 60 photographs, of projects for the hardware hobbyist. Includes schematics, PC layouts, software driver code, etc. for such do-it-yourself undertakings as high resolution graphics, reverse video, real-time clock/calender, music synthesis, ROM/RAM additions and more!

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META NOTATIONS...

MTC introduces its FREE computer "bulletin board" service. Set up your terminal or terminal software for 300 baud, parity disabled, S-bit word length, and 1 stop bit. Dial (216) 289-8689. After the connection is established, type LOGIN META. When asked for a validation code, type META. Have tun! * * #

In a couple of months MTC will introduce the successor to AIDS-III/CALCS. It is called AIDS/P® and is based on MTC's PRIMAL® (Practical Relational Information Management Applications Library), a powerful system for PRIME minicomputers. AIDS/P features the best of the critically acclaimed AIDS-III/CALCS but is probably an order of magnitude beyond It In power. It will be first made available to AIDS-III/CALCS owners (for an upgrade charge), then to the general public. Price will be in the $200-$300 range.

Effective September 1,1981, Metatronics Corporation became a subsidiary of MTC. Metatronics will carry the complete MTC product line in addition to its own. Order processing and fulfillment departments have been combined to improve service response levels. MTC's superior software and supplies marketing, and Metatronics exceptional peripheral offerings should prove to be a fomidable combination. (Sorry guys, if you can't beat us, join us ...)

MTC now offers a more complete selection of diskette products (ad deadlines prevented inclusion in anything but this column). New manufacturers are MAXELL and 3M. Definitely call for specific information. For example, MAXELL Brand 5% " diskettes in a PLASTIC LIBRARY CASE are only $34.95 for a box of 10! SCOTCH Brand diskettes are comparably value-priced. MTC is also introducing its own PARAGON® Brand media products. The intent is to offer a super-high quality product at a very competitive price. For example, a box of 10 single-sided, soft-sectored, doubledensity, 100% certified diskettes with HUB RINGS is only $24.95! A full line of products (including HEAD CLEANING KITS, etc.) will be offered. The PLAIN JANE® (almost 200,000 units sold) diskette line will become part of the PARAGON® MAGNETICS operation (but don't quote us verbatim).

Let your TRS-80™ Test Itself With

THE FLOPPY DOCTOR & MEMORY DIAGNOSTIC

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SYSTEM DIAGNOSTICS .$24.95 For MODEL III $29.95

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DISKETTES

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HUB RING KIT for 5V4" disks $10.95

HUB RING KIT for 8" disks $12.95

REFILLS (50 Hub Rings) $ 5.95

CLEANING KIT for 5W" drives . . . $24.95

S'/i-inch diskette case $3.50

8-inch diskette case $3.95

5Vi-inch File Box for

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TRS-80 is a trademark of the

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trademark of VERBATIM. PLAIN

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CALCSIV. MERGE 111 are

trademarks of MTC. 1981 by Metatechnologies Corporation, Inc.

MOST ORDERS

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PRICES IN EFFECT Nov. 1, 1981 THRU November 30, 1981, Prices, Specifications, and Offerings subject to change without notice.

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• Add $3.00 for shipping & handling

• $3.00 EXTRA for COD.

• Ohio residents add 5Vi% sales tax.

504 BYTE November 1981

Circle 251 on inquiry card.

What's New?

PERIPHERALS

Computer-Driven Typewriter

The Bytewriter operates as a letter-quality printer and as an office typewriter without any attachments. The self-contained mechanism uses electromagnetic actuators to interrupt the motion of a set of levers driven by a Smith-Corona 8000 office typewriter's motor. A microprocessor controls the operation of the Bytewriter and provides an automatic self-test.

The Bytewriter costs $795. For more information, contact Bytewriter, 125 Northview Rd, Ithaca NY 14850, (607) 272-1 132.

Circle 501 on inquiry card.

Sllentype Thermal Printer

The Silentype thermal printer offers 80-column, draft-quality copy and the ability to print highresolution graphics. The Silentype can be used with Apple II, II Plus, and III microcomputers. It prints upper- and lowercase text at up to 40 cps (characters per second). Graphics characters are printed at 60 dots per inch. Standard heatsensitive paper is used instead of aluminized rolls. With the Apple III, type styles can be specified.

The Silentype printer costs $395. For more information, contact Apple Computer Inc, 10260 Bandley Dr, Cupertino CA 95014, (408) 996-1010.

Circle 502 on inquiry card.

IBM or Apple?

The Apple II will soon have available for it an 8088 microprocessor card that will enable it to run software for the 8088/86 family. The 8088 is the same microprocessor used in the new IBM Personal Computer. The MetaCard is a secondary processor card featuring a 5 MHz 8088; 64 K bytes of programmable memory with parity checking, expandable to 128 K; 2 K bytes of ROM (read-only memory), expandable to 8 K; an external bus connector for expansion to 384 K bytes of memory; a realtime clock interrupt for multitasking; provisions for 8087 floating-point support; full-speed concurrent processing by both the 8088 and the Apple's 6502; interrupts in both directions be

tween processors; and access to the Apple's memory by both processors. In most applications when the MetaCard is active, the 6502 will be used as an I/O (input/output) processor.

For software, CP/M-86 will be included. MP/M-86 and UCSD Pascal 4.0 will also be offered for multitasking purposes. The MetaCard can directly address up to one half megabyte of memory. Software that will run under CP/M-86 will run on the MetaCard including software for the IBM Personal Computer. The price for the MetaCard, which will occupy one of the Apple slots, is $980. Contact Metamorphic Microsystems, POB 1541, Boulder CO 80306, (303) 499-6502. Circle 503 on inquiry card.

TRS-80 Model III Light Pen

The 3G Light Pen lets you bypass the TRS-80 Model Ill's keyboard and act directly on the information on the video display. It is fully assembled and comes with a demonstration game cassette, sample program, and manual. The pen sells for $39.95 and is available from 3G Company Inc, Rt 3, Box 28A, Gaston OR 971 19, (503) 662-4492.

Circle 577 on inquiry card.

Inexpensive Modem

The Model 1080 VersaModem offers the ability to converse with information utilities such as The Source, CompuServe, Dow Jones, computerized bulletin boards, and university computers. The direct-connect VersaModem operates at 300 bps (bits per second) using Bell standard 103 protocol and connects to your terminal or computer through an RS-232C serial port. The VersaModem costs $ 119. For details, contact Bizcomp Corporation, POB 7498, Menlo Park CA 94025, (415) 966-1545. Circle 504 on inquiry card.

Where Do New Products Items Come From?

The information printed in the new products pages of BYTE is obtained from "new product" or "press release" copy sent by the promoters of new products. If in our judgment the information might be of interest to the personal computing experimenters and homebrewers who read BYTE, we print it in some form. We openly solicit releases and photos from manufacturers and suppliers to this marketplace. The information is printed more or less as a first-in first-out queue, subject to occasional priority modifications. While we would not knowingly print untrue or inaccurate data, or data from unreliable companies, our capacity to evaluate the products and companies appearing in the "What's New?" feature is necessarily limited. We therefore cannot be responsible for product quality or company performance.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 505

What's New?

PERIPHERALS

Tractor-Feed Conversion

The Model 16 Fanfold Feeder allows continuous-form paper to be used with IBM Selectrics and other typewriters or printers. It maintains continuous-form alignment, installs easily, and requires no electrical or mechanical connections. The adjustable-width tractors accept form widths of up to 16/2 inches and can be used with single- or multiple-part forms. The price for the Model 16 Fanfold Feeder is SI49.95. Contact McAnn Company, POB 3173, San Mateo CA 94403, (415) 349-1229.

Circle 505 on inquiry card.

12-Inch GreenPhosphor Monitor

The Video-300 monitor features a 12-inch screen, 18 MHz bandwidth, and a resolution of 1000 scan lines at the center and 800 at the corner. Its green-phosphor display cuts down annoying reflection and glare. The monitor weighs 17 pounds and measures 29 by 37 by 34 cm (1 1% by 14/2 by 132/s inches). The suggested retail price for the Video-300 monitor is S249 from Amdek Corporation, 2420 E Oakton St, Suite E, Arlington Heights IL 60005, (312) 364-1180. Amdek was formerly known as Leedex Corporation.

Circle 507 on inquiry card.

Expand the TRS-80

The MDX-1 and -2 expansion interface boards are hardwareand software-compatible with the TRS-80 Model I computer. They feature 32 K bytes of memory expansion, provisions for a 2 K- or 4 K-byte EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory), a direct-connect, 300-bitper-second modem, a serial port, a parallel port, a dual-cassette option, and hardware for a real-time clock. The MDX-2 also has a floppy-disk controller. The MDX-2 bare board costs S74.95, and the MDX-1 costs S64.95. Manuals are $5.95. Parts kits and cabinets are available. Contact Micro-Design, POB 748, Manchaca TX 78652, (512) 282-0225.

Circle 509 on inquiry card.

TRS-80 Telecommunications

The Connection offers telecommunications capabilities on Model I TRS-80s with or without an expansion interface. This direct-connect modem eliminates noise and data loss or distortion. The unit features an RS-232C I/O (input/ output) port and runs at 300 bps (bits per second) in duplex or simplex modes. It can be connected to two-way radios and can provide computer-to-computer communications over the air. Software, documentation, a list of online bulletin boards, and operating procedures are included with the Connection. It is available for $249 from the Microperipheral Corporation, 2643 151 st PI NE, Redmond WA 98052, (206) 881-7544.

1200 BPS Dlrect-Connect Modem

The CM2020 is a 1200-bit-persecond single-card modem that saves valuable workspace because it measures only 30 square inches. Using a microprocessorbased design, auto-dialing, selftesting, and auto-answering are made available on the modem. Other features include self-testing or testing via the terminal, frequency-sensitive carrier-detect circuitry that will not trigger datacarrier detect unless there is true in-band carrier energy present, Bell 202S-compatibility, and selectable call origination that supports auto-dialing, dial-through, and conventional dialing. The CM2020 modem costs $200, in 50-unit lots. For details, contact Intertel, 6 Shattuck Rd, Andover MA 01810, (617) 681-0600.

Circle 506 on inquiry card.

Circle 508 on inquiry card.

Epson MX-100

The 136-column MX-100 dotmatrix printer uses matrices that range from 9 by 9 to 18 by 18 dots. It can print 12 different character weights and sizes. The printer also features Epson's disposable print head and GRAFTRAX, a high-resolution bit-image graphics capability. Using paper 15'/2 inches wide, the MX-100 can print up to 233 columns in the condensed-print mode. Bidirectional printing at 80 cps (characters per second) can be accomplished by using its logicseeking function.

The printer comes with a friction paper feed and adjustable tractors on a removable tractor mechanism. The suggested retail price for the MX-100 is $995. For details, contact Epson America Inc, 23844 Hawthorne Blvd. Torrance CA 90505, (213) 378-2220.

Circle 510 on inquiry card.

506 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

What's New?

PERIPHERALS

High-Resolution Light Pen for the Apple

The LPS II light pen makes use of the Apple ll's 280- by 192-pixel resolution. Applications such as computer-aided design, menu selection, graphics, circuit analysis, word processing, and game playing can benefit from the LPS II. It is compatible with all available languages. It works at a 60 Hz rate, which allows true animation and drawing. When the video beam passes on the screen, the LPS II uses video-synchronization information to determine the pen's location. The LPS W is available for $285 from Gibson Laboratories, Bldg 10, 406 Orange Blossom, Irvine CA 92714, (714) 559-8727. Circle 511 on inquiry card.

Housing for Disk Drives and Video Display

The Super Card Cage VI includes a four-slot Multibus motherboard and space for mounting two 8-inch floppy-disk drives, a video monitor, a switching power supply, and a separate keyboard enclosure. The unit is predrilled for a fan, connectors, fuse, power cord, and power switch. Optional configurations accommodate up to six Multibus cards or a six-slot S-I00 bus, an eight-slot Q-BUS, or twelve-slot STD-BUS motherboards. The Super Card Cage VI costs $495. Contact Psytek Inc. 1900 Pickwick Ave, Glenview IL 60025, (312) 729-3200.

Circle 513 on inquiry card.

Tractor-to-FrlctlonFeed Conversion

The Paper Tractor enables a tractor-feed printer to print with single-sheet paper. The device is made of sheet plastic into which standard or letterhead paper is inserted. The Paper Tractor is then fed into the tractor-feed printer, where it carries the paper into the print area. It can be used on front-, back-, and dual-tractorfeed printers and with Epson, Paper Tiger, GP-80M, and other popular printers. The device sells for $19.50 and is available from Paper Tractor, POB 4218, Santa Barbara CA 93 103, (800) 235-6967; in California (805) 966-5448. Circle 515 on inquiry card.

2-Megabyte 5-lnch Floppy-Disk Drives

The Megafloppy 1117 family of floppy-disk drives offers up to 2 megabytes of storage in a single 5-inch drive. There are two single- and two double-sided drives using 96- or 100-track-perinch double-track technologies in this family of floppy-disk drives. Data-recording density is 12,000 bits per inch. The 1117 provides 6 ms track-to-track positioning speed with transfer rates of 600,000 bps (bits per second). The drives are compatible with industry-standard interfaces, mounting dimensions, and bezels. Double-sided models provide 2.175 and 2.025 megabytes of formatted storage, and singlesided versions offer 1.2 and 1.1 125 megabytes. For pricing and availability, contact Micropolis Corporation, 21329 Nordhoff St, Chatsworth CA 91311, (213) 709-3300.

Circle 512 on inquiry card.

Plug-A-Bubble

The Plug-A-Bubble system features removable bubble-memory cassettes designed for harsh environments or critical data-storage applications. The system consists of a 128 K-byte bubble-memory cassette and holder. A chassis, containing two holders and an interface card, fits in the same space as a 5-inch floppy-disk drive. The cassette and holder can be designed to interface with any system.

Each Plug-A-Bubble cassette has a 48 ms average access time and reguires + 5 and + 12 V at 8 W for operation. Also available is a development kit that includes the bubble circuits, a prototyping board, and instructions for designing bubble systems. For information about memory-system products, contact Intel Corporation, 1302 N Mathilda Ave, Sunnyvale CA 94086, (800) 538-1876; in California (408) 734-8102.

Circle 514 on inquiry card.

Graphics and Photography System

The Professional Graphics System can generate graphics on large-screen televisions. Also, it can perform video titling and graphics on tape or simulate a General Electric Genegraphics system for the production of 4- by 5-inch transparencies, 35 mm slides, or Polaroid prints using the screen printer from Image Resource Corporation of Palo Alto, California. Professional Graphics can transfer any display from an Apple ll's high-resolution screen and output it as full NTSC (National Television Standard Code) video with interlace and meet SEMPTE (a time code broadcasting standard) criteria.

The Professional Graphics System runs on a 48 K-byte Apple II or Apple II Plus, with a disk drive. It costs $2950. Contact Symtec, 15933 W Eight Mile Rd, Detroit Ml 48235, (313) 272-2950.

Circle 516 on inquiry card.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 507

What's New?

SOFTWARE

More FORTH

Nautilus Systems is marketing a cross-compiler progam for FORTH. It automatically forward references any word or label. It can produce headerless code and ROMable (read-only memory) code with initialized variables. This cross-compiler has a load map as well as a full list of undefined symbols.

Machine-readable versions of the cross-compiler program are available for CP/M, TRS-80 Model I, Heath H-89, and North Star computers. Each includes an executable version of fig-FORTH 1.0, the cross-compiler source code, and documentation. The price for the program is $200 from Nautilus Systems, POB 1098, Santa CruzCA 95061, (408) 475-7461. Circle 517 on inquiry card.

VT-100 Terminal Emulator Program

ABT VT-100 is a Pascal program that uses the Videx 80-column card and the Apple communications card to emulate a Digital Equipment Corporation VT-100 terminal. It recognizes all the ANSI (American National Standards Institute) and VT-52 escape sequences. When used with Apple Pascal, this program can transmit Pascal text files from the Apple to another computer. Not all of the VT-100 features are offered.

The ABT VT-100 program costs $495. For more information, contact Advanced Business Technology Inc, 12333 Saratoga-Sunnyvale Rd, Saratoga CA 95070, (408) 446-2013. Circle 519 on inquiry card.

Custom-Design Your Own Character Sets

The Code Works has two programs to help Atari users design their own character sets. With the Fontedit program, users can create the Russian alphabet, APL characters, or special-purpose graphics symbols. Together with Fontedit, the Knotwork program assists users in designing patterns of Celtic Interlace, a technique used by seventh-century Irish monks to illustrate manuscripts. Both programs run on Atari microcomputers. They are available together for SI5.95 on cassette or S18.95 on disk. Contact the Code Works, POB 550, Goleta CA 93 ll 6, (805) 683-1585.

Circle 521 on inquiry card.

Software for the TRS-80 Voice Synthesizer

SAYIT is a program for TRS-80 Model I Level II computers with or without disk drives. SAYIT allows the Radio Shack Voice Synthesizer to add voice output to BASIC programs. SAYIT adds a SAY command to BASIC that makes the synthesizer speak string or numeric expressions or a combination of the two. Arithmetic expressions are also correctly verbalized. Phonetic spelling can be used to make difficult words intelligible. A talking keyboard feature echoes each key struck and can be switched on or off from BASIC. The program can also be used in experiments using the International Phonetic Alphabet and phonetic strings. SAYIT costs $125, including a manual. Contact Baysik Speech, Suite 289, 1259 El Camino Real, Menlo Park CA 94025.

Circle 518 on inquiry card.

WordStar for Z-89

The WordStar word-processing program is now available for the Zenith Model Z-89 microcomputers. WordStar allows users to print and edit simultaneously and has a tab feature that automatically lines up decimal points in columns. A hyphen-help feature asks users whether to insert a hyphen at the end of certain lines. Boldface, double strike, strikeout, subscript, superscript, overprint, and accent entry commands are also included. WordStar can interrupt itself, execute another program, and return. It will run on CP/M-based Z-89 or Heath H-89 computers with 48 K bytes of memory, but the simultaneous printing and editing feature requires 64 K bytes. The price for WordStar is $395. Contact your Heath/Zenith dealer or write Zenith Data Systems, 1000 Milwaukee Ave, Glenview IL 60025, (312) 391-8181.

Circle 520 on inquiry card.

Electronic Mall for Apple Users

Micro-Courier allows Apple II owners to transmit data to other computers over telephone lines. Transmissions can be sent automatically at a cost of less than $0.25 for 1000 words of text. The system also maintains telephone lists and sorts messages by individual users. Micro-Courier costs $250.

Micro-Telegram allows Apple users to access Western Union services and to send and receive teletypewriter exchange, Telex, and international cables. Apple users can access stock, foreign exchange, gold, and futures information, as well as sports reports and ski conditions from the Western Union data base. MicroTelegram costs $250. For more details, contact Microcom, 89 State St, Boston MA 02109, (61 7) 367-6362.

Circle 522 on inquiry card.

508 November 1981 © BYTE Publicaeions Inc

What's New?

SOFTWARE

The Micro Link

The Micro Link program lets computer users communicate with each other over telephone lines. Files can be prepared in advance and transmitted automatically. The program features a word-wrapped display fitted to any screen width. The Micro Link can scan The Source, data bases, and computerized bulletin-board systems and record segments of the displays. The Micro Link can serve as a host for another computer or a terminal, so it only needs to be present at one end. The program supports originate and answer modes, full- and halfduplex, and operates at standard data rates. Files can be transmitted in character-, line-, or memory-block protocol. To run, Micro Link needs a Z80- or 8080-based computer with a serial port and modem, 16 K bytes of programmable memory, and the Micropolis disk operating system or CP/M 1.4. The program comes on 16-sector, 5- or 8-inch disks. The price is S89 from Wordcraft, c/o Microcomputer Software Associates, 1122 B St, Hayward CA 94541, (415) 534-2212. Circle 523 on inquiry card.

FORTH for OSI

S-FORTH is a full implementation of fig-FORTH that runs on all Ohio Scientific (OSI) disk-based computers, from the C1P to the C3. It includes an editor, a virtualmemory disk subsystem, and compatibility with OS65D commands.

S-FORTH is available on either 5- or 8-inch floppy disks for S34.95 or for S49.95 including the source listing. Contact Aurora Software Associates, POB 99553, Cleveland OH 44199, (216) 221-6981.

Circle 524 on Inquiry card.

Program for Property Brokers

The Income Property Analysis System (IPAS) is a system of programs for investors, syndicators, and brokers of income properties. With IPAS, the before- and aftertax cash flows of income properties can be analyzed. Provisions are made for handling multiple notes with straight or negative amortization, interest-only notes, or wraparound notes. The program can also be used to analyze rates of return for income property that is already owned. A separate program allows the investor to project after-tax rates of return for up to 10 years, using individual inflation rates for income, expenses, and appreciation of the property value.

The IPAS runs on a TRS-80 Model I or Model III with at least one disk drive and 32 K bytes of memory. The price is S225. A manual can be purchased separately for S5. For details, contact Advanced Business Microsystems, 5801 Marvin D Love Fwy, Suite 103, Dallas TX 75237, (214) 339-2109.

Circle 525 on inquiry card.

Automatic Graphing of Functions

Automatic Graphing of Functions lets users graph equations in the form y = mx + b and y = f(x). It can graph formulas, multiple equations, summation, sine, cosine, and more. The axis is automatically scaled for the size of the scredn display. The program has manual or automatic range selection. It is available for the TRS-80 Model I Level II and the Model III. The cassette and manual cost $19.95 from David L Modney, 4144 N Via Villas, Tucson AZ 85719.

Circle 526 on inquiry card.

Telecommunications for the AIM-65

The MDA 2.2 program allows the AIM-65 to function as a fullduplex terminal for communication with a timesharing system or host computer. Utilities are provided for saving and loading BASIC programs or object files through the terminal simulator at speeds up to 2400 bps (bits per second). MDA 2.2 is available in EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory) along with a source-code listing and manual for $50. Contact Thorson Engineering Company, 6225 76th St S E, Snohomish WA 98290, (206) 334-4214.

Circle 527 oh inquiry card.

Dial-Up Software for Your Apple

Online will allow you to call your computer while you're away from home or let your computer take messages in the form of a private message system. It requires a 48 K-byte Apple II Plus with the Hayes Micromodem and at least one disk drive. Up to 50 user accounts, which require an account number and a password for log-in, can be set up. A guest account can also be arranged. Each account can be assigned different priority levels that determine which features or areas of the system may be accessed by that account. This makes Online useful for clubs or businesses that pass many messages and need privacy and security. The program handles mail between accounts and supports auto reply, read again, and delete modes. Online costs $89.95 from Southwestern Data Systems, POB 582, Santee CA 92071, (714) 562-3670.

Circle 528 on inquiry card.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 509

What's New?

SYSTEMS

Hewlett-Packard's New Business Computer

Hewlett-Packard's new desktop business computer, the HP 125, is designed for business managers and professionals. It is especially useful for financial decision making, planning, and analysis. The HP 125 provides word-processing and management communications capabilities. It can be used as a remote terminal to an HP 3000 network, or it can be connected to a mainframe computer through dual RS232C ports, at speeds up to 9600 bps (bits per second).

The HP 125 has twin Z80A microprocessors, 64 K bytes of memory, and a separate terminal processor. Most functions are performed by the use of eight "soft keys," whose functions are labeled on the screen. Editing keys are standard on the HP 125, as is the ability to store five pages of displayed information.

The CP/M operating system is employed, and Hewlett-Packard has already created five packages for the system: VisiCalc/125, Graphics/125, Word/125, BASIC/125, and LINK/125. The programs range in price from $125 to S500 and are designed exclusively for businesses and programmers using the HP 125 and CP/M.

There are two HP 125 modules from which to choose: the Model 10 and the Model 20. The Model 10 uses dual 5-inch floppy-disk drives with 500 K bytes of storage. The Model 20 offers 2.4 megabytes of memory on 8-inch disks. Both models can be expanded with additional drives.

The HP 125 systems start at $7460 for the dual 5-inch drives, two RS-232C ports, and an 80-character-per-second thermal printer. Contact the Inquires Manager, Hewlett-Packard, 1507 Page Mill Rd, Palo Alto CA 94304, (415) 857-1501. Circle 529 on inquiry card.

8086 Boards for the S-100

The Tec-86 is a 16-bit, 8086, S-100 microcomputer system. It includes vectored interrupts, 64 K bytes of dynamic memory (or 32 K bytes of static memory) that are expandable to 1 megabyte, two RS-232C ports, three 8-bit parallel ports, an EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory) boot for CP/M-86, a double

density floppy-disk controller; dual 8-inch Shugart floppy-disk drives, a metal enclosure, a power supply, and cabling. Software for the Tec-86 includes CP/M-86, Pascal/86, and Microsoft BASIC-86.

The Tec-86 costs $3990. For details, contact Tecmar Inc, 23600 Mercantile Rd, Cleveland OH 44122, (216) 464-7410.

Circle 530 on inquiry card.

510 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

What's New?

MISCELLANEOUS

64 K-Byte Memory Card for Apple II

Legend Industries Ltd's 64 Kbyte programmable-memory board for the Apple II switches 16 Kbyte banks of memory over the Apple's ROM (read-only memory) address space. The board is fully compatible with the Apple Language Card. Refresh signals are taken from the Apple motherboard by removing a 4116 memory circuit and inserting a jumper into the socket. The 4116 is then reinserted onto the 64 K-byte board. The board is priced at S300. For details, contact Legend Industries Ltd, POB 112, Pontiac Ml 48056.

Circle 531 on inquiry card.

Dynamic-Memory Evaluation Kit

A 64 K-byte Dynamic RAM Evaluation Kit to aid designers in evaluating the MCM6665 HMOS (high-speed metal-oxide semiconductor) programmable memory is available from Motorola's \C Division. The kit is comprised of ten 200 ns MCM6665L20 integrated circuits, a manual request coupon, two data sheets, a Motorola memory selector guide, and a notebook for the designer, and costs only S150. Contact Motorola IC Division, 3501 Ed Bluestein Blvd. Austin TX 78721, (512) 928-6660.

Circle 533 on inquiry card.

CBASIC/86 for CP/M-86 Systems

CBASIC/86 supports the complete CBASIC language for systems running under CP/M-86. It allows programs written in CBASIC for 8080- and Z80-based systems to be transferred to 8086-based systems without modification. Configured as a CP/M-86 compact-memory model, the system supports a full 64 K bytes of memory for both data and code segments. The suggested retail price is S325 from Compiler Systems Inc, 37 N Auburn Ave, POB 145, Sierra Madre CA 91024, (213) 355-1063.

Circle 535 on inquiry card.

COMMLOG

COMMLOG is designed to work with the Apple II and the Hayes Micromodem II. It transforms the combination into a "smart telephone" that displays approximate long-distance time and charges while you talk. It has a built-in calendar routine for logging the day and date. After a call, the person called, duration, date, time, and charges are logged to the disk. Cumulative charges for the month are displayed. COMMLOG has charge codes for attributing calls to different persons or office divisions. It allows standard or military time, and handles holiday rates. COMMLOG has file-maintenance functions for editing, printing, and initializing an auto-dial directory. The program works on an Apple II with 48 K bytes of memory plus Applesoft in ROM (read-only memory). The cost is S39.95 from Harvey's Space Ship Repair, POB 3478, Las Cruces NM 88003, (505) 522-1482.

Circle 532 on inquiry card.

In-Clrcult Emulator for S-100 Bus

The MICE-48 emulator for the 8048 family of single-circuit microcomputers is S-100-buscompatible. It can emulate Intel, or equivalent 8035, 8039, 8048, 8049, and 8748 parts; National 8040 and 8050 parts; plus CMOS (complementary metal-oxide semiconductor) versions. MICE-48 runs under CP/M and features trace, unlimited number of breakpoints, display/modify of program memory, external programmable memory, registers, input/output ports, and flags. A mapping command allows the user to map program memory to PROM/EPROM (programmable read-only memory/erasable PROM) or to the emulator's memory.

The MICE-80 emulator, supporting software, and an 8048 macroassembler cost $950. Contact Signum Systems, 726 Santa Monica Blvd, 21 7, Santa Monica CA 90401, (213) 451-5382.

Circle 534 on inquiry card.

Unlimited Storage for Local Networks

Your local Cluster/One Model A microcomputer network for the Apple II can now have virtually unlimited file storage with the addition of the Version 1.1 File Server from Nestar Systems Inc. Version 1.1 includes a real-time clock/ calendar, turnkey applications support, new file-access synchronization modes, and support of DOS 3.3 and Apple Pascal 1.1. It offers a 30% increase in disk speed, and allows 80 concurrently open files.

The Network File Server, Version 1.1 is being shipped with all new Cluster/One Model A orders. Current intallations can be upgraded in the field for a one-time fee. Software and hardware supplements to the Server permit a network of up to 65 Apple II computers to access disk memory in 16.5-, 33-, or 66-megabyte increments. For complete details, contact Nestar Systems Inc, 2585 E Bayshore Rd, Palo Alto CA 94303, (415) 493-2223. Circle 536 on inquiry card.

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 511

What's New?

MISCELLANEOUS

Simple Video-Display Timer and Controller

The CRT 5047 preprogrammed video-timer and controller integrated circuit is designed for the video-control function in display terminals. It is especially effective for terminals that use 80 by 24 display formats with a 5 by 7 dotcharacter matrix, although it can be preprogrammed for other display formats.

The CRT 5047 uses a fixed ROM (read-only memory) program that eliminates the software required to specify the display parameters. A two-integrated-circuit combination of the CRT 5047 and the CRT 8002B-003, a video-display-attributes controller, provides all of the electronics for a video terminal. In 100-unit lots, the CRT 5047 costs SI8. For more information, contact Standard Microsystems, 35 Marcus Blvd, Hauppauge NY 1 1787, (516) 273-3100.

Circle 537 on inquiry card.

FIFO from Programmable Memory

The 8X60 FIFO RAM Controller is an integrated circuit that converts programmable-memory circuits into FIFO (first-in, first-out) buffer memories. With it, two asynchronous systems can be interconnected for buffered-data transfer rates exceeding 8 MHz.

The 8X60 provides up to a 12-bit address to a user-selected programmable memory of the desired data width. FIFO depth is selectable to one of four values: 64, 256, 1024, and 4096. Logic is contained within the 8X60 to eliminate contention between read and write operations. Inputs and outputs are standard TTL (transistor-transistor logic), and all address outputs are tri-state. Specifications and pricing are available from Signetics, 811 E Arques Ave, POB 409, Sunnyvale CA 94086, (408) 739-7700. Circle 539 on inquiry card.

Single-Circuit CMOS

The Series 80 family of CMOS (complementary metal-oxide semiconductor) single-circuit microcomputers is composed of four microcomputer circuits, peripheral circuits, and a development-support system. The series operates on ISIS- or CP/M-based systems. Series 80 corresponds to the 8048/8049-type NMOS (n-type MOS) devices. In addition to the 8048/8049 instructions, 13 other instructions are offered, including two types of HALT and three types of FLOAT instructions. Eight instructions implement port moves and indirect-decrement functions.

Among the Series 80 family is a development tool, the MPB800,

Microcomputers

which is an evaluation board that provides real-time emulation and debugging features. Also, there is the MSM80C48 microprocessor, which offers 1 K bytes of ROM (read-only memory) and 64 bytes of programmable memory, and the MSM80C49, which offers twice the memory contents of the C48. Both units feature a timer/ event counter, single-level interrupts, 110 instructions, and operate from 5 V + 10% supply voltage with full TTL (transistor-transistor logic) compatibility. For more information on these products, contact OKI Semiconductor, 1333 Lawrence Expy, Suite 401, Santa Clara CA 95051, (408) 984-4842.

Circle 540 on inquiry card.

IEEE-488 Interface for the Apple

The IEEE-488 interface card enables Apple II and Apple U Plus computers to monitor productions lines, record and evaluate data, run test equipment, and interface with any apparatus compatible with the IEEE-488 bus. Voltmeters, spectral analyzers, disk drives, and speech synthesizers can be controlled by this card. Also, it can be used to attach non-IEEE-488-compatible peripherals to the bus. The card can be driven by Applesoft or Integer BASIC or any Apple ([-supported language. Up to three cards can be installed in the Apple, allowing control of as many as 42 instruments.

The IEEE-488 card costs less than $500. It is available from Apple Computer Inc, 10260 Bandley Dr, Cupertino CA 95014, (408) 996-1010.

Circle 541 on inquiry card.

ZX80 Enhancements

Sinclair Research Ltd has an 8 K-byte extended BASIC ROM (read-only memory) and a 16 Kbyte programmable memory-expansion module for its ZX80 microcomputer. The extended BASIC features 37 new functions that can be programmed by single key strokes, extended and improved graphics, floating-point arithmetic to 9-dlgit accuracy, and log and trig functions with their inverses. The BASIC ROM costs $39.95, which includes a new keyboard and a manual. The 16 K-byte expansion plugs onto the back of the ZX80. It costs $99.95. For more information, contact Sinclair Research Ltd, One Sinclair PI, Nashua NH 03061, or call operator 508 at (800) 543-3000.

Circle 542 on inquiry card.

512 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

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Memorex Flexible Discs...The Ultimate in Memory Excellence

Quality

Memorex means quality products that you can depend on. Quality control at Memorex means starting with the best materials available. Continual surveillance throughout the entire manufacturing process. The benefit of Memorex's years of experience in magnetic media production, resulting, for instance, in proprietary coating formulations. The most sophisticated testing procedures you'll find anywhere in the business.

100 Percent Error Free

Each and every Memorex Flexible Disc is certified to be 100 percent error free. Each track of each flexible disc is tested, individually, to Memorex's stringent standards of excellence. They test signal amplitude, resolution, low-pass modulation, overwrite, missing pulse error and extra pulse error. They are torque-lested, and competitively tested on drives available from almost every major drive manufacturer in the industry including drives thai Memorex manufacturers. Rigid quality audits are built into every step of the manufacturing process and stringent testing result in a standard of excellence that assures you, our customer, of a quality product designed for increased data reliability and consistent top performance.

Customer-Oriented Packaging

Memorex's commitment to excellence does not stop with a quality product. They are proud of their flexible discs and they package them with pride. Both their packaging and their labeling have been designed with your ease of identification and use in mind. The desk-top box containing ten discs is convenient for filing and storage. Both box labels and jacket labels provide full information on compatibility, density, sectoring, and record length. Envelopes with multi-language care and handling instructions and color-coded removable labels are included. A wrile-protect feature is available to provide data security.

Full One Year Warranty — Your Assurance of Quality

Memorex Flexible Discs will be replaced by Memorex if they are found to be defective in materials or workmanship within one year of the date of purchase. Other than replacement, Memorex will not be responsible for any damages or losses (including consequential damages) caused by the use of Memorex Flexible Discs.

Quantity Discounts Available

Memorex Flexible Discs are packed 10 discs to a carton and 10 cartons to a case. Please order only in increments of 100 units for quantity 100 pricing. We are also willing to accommodate your smaller orders. Quantities less than 100 units are available in increments of 10 units at a 10% surcharge. Quantity discounts are also available. Order 500 or more discs at the same time and deduct 1%; 1,000 or more saves you 2%; 2,000 or more saves you 3%: 5.000 or more saves you 4%; 10,000 or more saves you 5%; 25,000 or more saves you 6%; 50,000 or more saves you 7% and 100,000 or more discs earns you an 8% discount off our super low quantity 100 price. Almost all Memorex Flexible Discs are immediately available fromCE. Our warehouse facilities are equipped to help us get you the quality product you need, when you need it. If you need further assistance to find the flexible disc that's right for you, call the Memorex compatibility hotline. Dial 800-538-8080 and ask for the flexible disc hotline extension 0997. In California dial 800-672-3525 extension 0997.

Buy with Confidence

To get the fastest delivery from CE of your Memorex Flexible Discs, send or phone your order directly to our Computer Products Division, Be sure to calculate your price using the CE prices in this ad. Michigan residents please add 4% sales tax. Written purchase orders are accepted from approved government agencies and mosl well rated tirms at a 10% surcharge (or net 10 billing. Ad sales are subject to availability, acceplance and verification. All sales are linal. Prices, terms and speciticalions are subject to change without notice. Out of Stock items will be placed on backorder automatically unless CE is instructed dilf erently Minimum order S50.00. International orders are invited with a S20.00 surcharge for special handling in addition to shipping charges. All shipments are F.O.B. Ann Arbor. Michigan. No COO's please. Noncertified and foreign checks require bank clearance.

Mail orders to: Communications Electronics. Box 1002. Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 U.S.A Add $8.00 per case or partial-case ol 100 8-inch discs or S6.00 per case of 100 5'4-inch mini-discs for U.P.S. ground shipping and handling in the continental U.S.A. II you have a Master Card or Visa card, you may call anytime and place a credit card order. Order toll-free In the United States. Call anytime 800-521-4414. If you are outside the U.S. or in Michigan, dial 313-994-4444. Dealer Inquiries Invited. Alt order lines al Communications Electronics are stalled 24 hours. Copyright: 1 981 Communications Electronics"

_ __^_ MEMBER

VISA

MasterCard

Order Toll-Free! (800)521-4414

In Michigan (313) 994-4444

For Data Reliability—Memorex Rexible Discs

a

COMMUNICATIONS ELECTRONICS™

Computer Products Division

854 Phoenix D Box 1002 D Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 U.S.A.

Call TOLL-FREE (800) 521 4414 or outslda U.S.A. (313) 994-4444

Circle 466 on inquiry card.

What's New?

MISCELLANEOUS

Controller Board for Heath Systems

Users can double the 5-inch floppy-disk storage capacity of Heath 88/89 microcomputers with the FDC-880H floppy-diskcontroller board from CDR Systems Inc. The board runs under CP/M 2.2 and is capable of handling as many as four Shugartcompatible 5- or 8-inch drives simultaneously. In addition, the FDC-880H handles single- and double-sided operation and single- and double-density data.

The board converts 5-inch hardsectored disks to soft-sectored double-density.

The FDC-880H unit is supplied with a cable, zero-origin conversion PROM (programmable readonly memory), boot PROM with disk diagnostics, and hardware and software manuals. It costs S695 and is available from CDR Systems Inc, 7667 Vickers St, Suite C, San Diego CA 921 1 1, (714) 275-1272.

Circle 543 on inquiry card.

Upgrade Your Caslotone

Robin Whittle, 42 Yeneda St, North Balwyn, Australia, has a technical bulletin that contains extensive yet simple modifications for the Casiotone M-10 keyboard instrument. The M-10 is a handheld, four-voice synthesizer. With Robin's modifications, the M-10 can have 25 voices, two-octave drop switches, hold, sustain, a milder vibrato than normal, and adjustable tuning. The parts required cost approximately S20. Robin's bulletin, which includes the theory and construction notes, costs S3

Circle 545 on inquiry card.

North-Holland Catalog

Books and journals covering computer communications, simulation, artificial intelligence, programming languages and techniques, computing in medicine and biology,- and other related subjects are described in the North-Holland Computer Publications Survey 1980. Many of the publications are papers from conferences and seminars. For the brochure and price list, contact Elsevier/North-HollandJournals Information Center, 52 Vanderbilt Ave, New York NY 10017, (212) 867-9040.

Circle 546 on inquiry card.

New AMD PROMs

Advanced Micro Devices' (AMD) new family of PROMs (programmable read-only memories) uses a platinum-silicide fuse, which offers a 97% programming yield. Among the family members are the Am27S40 and the Am27S41. Both are 4 K-byte by 4-bit bipolar PROMs. The Am27S40 has open-collector outputs while the Am27S41 has three-state outputs. The devices offer 50 ns or 35 ns maximum access times, respectively. The Am27PS41 is a three-state,

power-switched PROM that relieves power problems by reducing consumption from 875 mW to 425 mW when deselected.

The platinum-silicide fuse is normally programmed with a single pulse. There have been no fuse failures reported in more than 13 billion hours of tests.

In 100-unit lots, prices for this family of PROMs begin at S44.90. For more information, contact Advanced Micro Devices Inc, 901 Thompson PI, Sunnyvale CA 94086, (408) 732-2400.

Circle 544 on inquiry card.

Handbook Explains EEPROM

The E2PROM Family Applications Handbook describes the operation and application possibilities of Intel's 16 k-bit EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory). The handbook shows ways to interface the device to a microprocessor and program it. The handbook is available free from Intel Corporation, Literature Department SV3-3, 3065 Bowers Ave, Santa Clara CA 95051. (408)

734-8102.

Circle 547 on inquiry card.

514 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

PrintersRus

...computers, peripherals, accessories and supplies!

APPLE ACCESSORIES

Apple II & 48K CALL

Disk II w/controller DOS 3.3 CALL

Disk II Add-On CALL

Microsoft Z80 Softcard 319.

16KRam Card 159.

CCS Parallel Card 109.

Async Serial Card 139.

Clock/Calendar Card 109.

IEEE Card 239.

AD Card 99.

Mountain Comp. Romplus 139.

KB Filter ROM 49.

CPS Multifunction Card 199.

Supertalker 259.

Paymar L/C Adapter - Mew 49.

- Old 39.

M&R Super Mod 25.

Superterm 319.

Videx Video Term 309.

APPLE SOFTWARE

Personal S/W Desktop Plan II $ 1 69.

CCA Data Mgmt 85.

Visicalc 169.

Visiplot 159.

Visitrend/Visiplot 219.

Visidex 169.

Visiterm 129.

Micropro Wordstar 299.

Super-Sort 159.

Mail-Merge 99.

Data Star 239.

Spell Star 199.

Muse Super Text II 129.

Address Book 44.

Form Letter Module 79.

Stoneware-DB Master II 199.

Microcom-MicroCourier 239.

Infotory 199.

RIBBONS

NEC $77.00/Doz.

Qume 45.00/Doz.

Diablo 66.00/Doz.

Anadex 135.00/6 ea.

Tritel 95.00/Doz.

TI/DEC/TTV 45.00/Doz.

Epson 13.95/ea.

MPI/Axiom/Base 2 10.00 ea.

MAGNETIC MEDIA

Premium Quality At Bargain Prices

5'A" Diskettes, all Formats

100% Certified with hub rings, box of 10

Single sided, single density 26.95

Single sided, double density 29.95

Double side, double density 38.95

8" Diskettes, All Formats, 100% Certified

Single sided, single density 29.95

SSSD Error Free 32.95

Single sided, double density 39.95

Double sided, double density 49.95

Complete. Stock of MX-80, MX-80 F/T

MX-100 Printers, Graphics Chip Sets

Cards and Cables

NEC-8023 A, 100 cps Matrix Printer

Hi-Res dol graphics, proportional spacing.

correspondent quality printing, bi-directional

tractor and friction feed. 80. 132 col. Greek &

Math symbols. Everything you need in a small

printer.

List $840 $699.

MODEMS

(IDS 103 LP, direct $169.

103 JLP Auto Answer 219.

202 LP 1200 BAUD 259.

NOVATION CAT, acoustic 159.

D-CAT, direct 169.

Auto Cat 219.

Apple Cat 339.

HAYES S100 Micromodem $ 349.

Apple Micromodem 329.

Smart Modem 249.

VIDEO MONITORS

Zenith 12" Green 5139.

NEC 12" Green $239.

Amdex 12" B/W (Leedex) $ 139.

Amdek 1 3" Color Lo-Res $439.

VIDEO TERMINALS

Ampex Dialog 80 $995.

Ampex Dialog 30 795.

Televideo 920C 845.

Televideo 950 995.

SEC

PC-8000 Series Microcomputer System.

INTRO

PRICING

$1099-00

• Z-80A CPU 4 MHz

• 5 user programmable function keys • 82 Keys with numeric keypad • 160 x 100 resolution • 80 character screen

PC-8001A Microcomputer w/32K RAM 1099.

PC-8012A I/O Unit w/32K RAM

Expansion slots 699.

PC-8031A Dual Mini-Disk Drive Unit 1099.

PC-8032A Add-On Dual Mini Disk

Drive Unit 949.

MPI 88G / 99G MATRIX

High resolution dot-addressable graphics foi I Apple. Enhanced "correspondence quality" I prinling. Tractor and friction feed. Serial and \ Parallel Input. 100 cps Bidirectional printing. 80. 96 and 132 column widths!

88 G List $749 $589.

99 G List $849 $660.

Apple Parallel I/O Card/Cable/Disk . . $ 1 10.

with Graphics Prom (Ap-Pak) $ 145.

IEEE I/O Card $55.

Single Sheet Feeder $25.

QT Cover $25.

NEC SPINWRITERS

5510/5530 RO w/tractor $2,550.

7710/7730 RO w/tractor $2,595.

5520 KSR w/tractor $2,850.

7720 KSR w/tractor $2,895.

3510/3530 RO $1,895.

Bi-directional tractor $225.

Pusher tractor $350.

<*>

^

OLYMPIA

Letter quality. Daisy wheel printer typewriter inlcifaces to Apple. Atari. NEC TRS80 and RS232 Serial ports. A truly cost effective letter i quality printer that functions as a typewriter. ESI00 RO Computer printer

List $1690 CALL

ESI00 Typewriter only

Interface Card Only "

(specify serial or parallel) I/O Cable (specify serial or parallel) ... "

Apple Serial Card

Print Wheels & Ribbons "

TO PLACE YOUR ORDER CALL:

TELEPHONE TELEX

(714)744-7314 697120

or write to:

PALOMAR

Computer Products

910-105 W. San Marcos Blvd., San Marcos. CA 92069 | TERMS OF SALE: Cash check mone\ order hank wire transitcredit card or pun haw? older*, from qualified firms an institutions Pleas** inr bde telephone numlici *ith order an^ expiration date on r redii tard orders California residents add fS? t Sales tfflt Advertised pn< es are for prepaid orders f OB shippmq

point Add vr-for shipping in (I s Pnnhgandavailanilir, subjecno ( harnje without notice

Circle 336 on inquiry card.

What's New?

MISCELLANEOUS

Type-Ahead Buffer

The Model 150 Type-Ahead Buffer for the Apple II features a 40-character type-ahead capability. It eliminates the need to wait for computer prompts before entering the next command or data. No software patches, circuit board cuts, or jumpers are required. The Model 150 costs $49.95 and is available from Vista Computer Company, 1317 E Edinger, Santa Ana CA 92705, (714) 953-0523. Circle 550 on inquiry card.

64 K-BIt ROM

GTE's 2364 is a 64 K-bit ROM (read-only memory) with an automatic power-down feature that reduces power requirements. The device operates with a 40 mA current in the active mode and an 8 mA current in the standby mode. It uses a single + 5 V supply.

The 2364 is organized as an 8 K-byte by 8-bit unit. The device has access times of 250 and 300 ns. All inputs and outputs are TTL- (transistor-transistor logic) compatible.

In lots of 250, the 300 ns 2364 ROM costs $21.20. Contact GTE Microcircuits Division, 2000 W 14th St, Tempe AZ 85281, (602) 968-4431. Circle 548 on inquiry card.

A Modem for the Atari

The Microconnection is an answer/originate, direct-connect modem for Atari 400 and 800 computers. The Microconnection features autodial/autoanswer operation (optional), which allows an unattended Atari to send messages, text, or other data to a host computer, and automatically answer the telephone and receive data, too.

The Microconnection is Bell 103 compatible and operates at 300 bps (bits per second). Models are available for use without the Atari 850 interface and provide a socket for connection to any serial printer capable of 300 bps operation. A cassette recorder can be plugged into the unit for storage and playback of received data.

With autodialing terminal software, power supply, and a cable, the Microconnection costs $199.50. The autodial/autoanswer option is $79 extra. For complete details, contact the MicroPeripheral Corporation, 2643 151st PI, NE, Redmond WA 98052, (206) 881-7544. Circle 549 on inquiry card.

FORTH for the Apple

TransFORTH II is a fully compiled, floating-point implementation of fig-FORTH for Apple II, II Plus, or III microcomputers. It has transcendental functions, strings and arrays, high- and low-resolution graphics, Turtlegraphics, and music.

TransFORTH II has a suggested price of $ 125. For details, contact Insoft, 259 Barnett Rd, Unit #3, Medford OR 97501, (503) 779-2465. Circle 551 on inquiry card.

Articles and Papers Compilation

The Battelle Memorial Institute has a booklet listing the titles of papers and articles from its staff. The booklet contains the names and dates of the publications in which an article or paper appeared and the author(s).

Copies of the booklet, entitled Published Papers and Articles: 1980, are free from the Reprint/Brochure Center, Battelle Memorial Institute, 505 King Ave, Columbus OH 43201, Attn: Jane Carr, (614) 424-7727. Battelle is an independent research and development institute.

Circle 552 on inquiry card.

516 November 19B1 © BYTE Publications Inc

NEC

Microcomputer

PC-8001A 32K Computer CALL

PC-8012A I/O Unit w/32K RAM CALL

PC-8013A Dual Mlnl-Dlsk Drive Unit CALL

1>C -8001 Multl Cardware (FDI/O & 32K) CALL

CP/M 2.2 Operating System for NEC 129

WordStar configured for NEC 299

SuperCalc configured for NEC 279

NEC Wordprocessor & Accounting Software CALL

Many more software packages and languages;

(Pascal, Fortran, Cobol, etc) are available configured for

the NEC 8001A Computer.

Please call or write for a product price list.

Please call for prices

- r'">nnMiiin;i!i™ni"i("i;

ATARI 800 16K

\$749

Atari 400w/16K 349

410 Program Recorder 65

810 Disk Drive 449

825 80 col. 7x8 Dot matrix impact printer 699

822 40 col. Quiet Thermal Printer 349

850 Interface Module 159

Atari 16K Ram Module 69

Axlon Ramcram 32K Module 189

Available Nowl!

Asteroids. Missile Command and Star Raiders. . .35ea.

WE STOCK ALL ATARI COMPUTER SOFTWARE AND

HARDWARE.

PLEASE CALL OR WRITE FOR COMPLETE PRICE LIST.

Video Monitors

Amdek/Leedex Video 100 12" B&W 155

Amdek/Leedex Video 100G 12" Green Phospher. . . 179

Amdek (Hitachi) 13" Color w/audlo output 389

NEC 12" Green Phospher Display JB-1201M CALL

NEC 12" LoRes Color Display CALL

NEC 12" HIRes RGB Color Display CALL

Sanyo 9" B&W Display 185

Sanyo 9" Green Phospher Display CALL

Sanyo 12" BStW Display 269

Sanyo 12" Green Phospher Display 285

Sanyo 13" Color Display 449

Zenith 12" Green Phospher Display 2VM-121 149

consumer totnpu'e,s

ZENITH

12" GREEN

$149

[apple computer

»Authorized Dealer

APPLE It PLUS

16K NOW $1025 48K NOW $1089

$1199

64K* now

'includes 16K Ramboard

APPLE k^^^ DISK DRIVES ONLY

■^^ $439

w/controller and DOS 3.3 $499

SEE OUR ADS ON PAGES 146 & 147

FOR MORE DISCOUNTS

16K RAMBOARD by ConComp

for Apple II Computers AVAILABLE

NOW FOR ONLY

$130

VIC20

$259

Personal Computer

Color ' Sound * Graphics Call or write for more info. Disk drives available soon!

S-100

California Computer Systems

Floppy Disk Controller $369

64K Dynamic Ram Board, 200ns $499 Z-80 CPU board w/ monitor ROM $269

16K Static memory board, 200ns 369

32K Static memory board, 200ns 599

S-100 12 Slot Mainframe 475

4-Port Serial Interface 299

2-Port Serial/2-Port Parallel Interface 299

4-Port Parallel Interface 229

ORDER TOLL FREE

800-854-6654

In California and outside continental U.S.

(714) 698-8088

Telex 695-000 Beta CCMO Printers

Epson MX-80 CALL

Anadex 9501 w/2K Buffer 1349

C. Itoh Starwrlter 25 CPS dalsywheel. 1449

C. Itoh Starwrlter 45 CPS dalsywheel 1649

Epson MX-70 CALL

Epson MX-80 & MX-80 F/T CALL

Epson MX-100 CALL

NEC 8023 Impact Dot Matrix 695

NEC Spin writers (Latest models) CALL

Paper Tiger IDS-445G w /graphics 699

Paper Tiger IDS-460G w/ graphics 949

Paper Tiger IDS-560G w/graphlcs., 1249

Silentype Printer w/Apple interface. 349

Qume Sprint Daisy wheels (Latest models)...... CALL

Ordering Information: Phone orders using VISA. MASTERCARD. AMERICAN EXPRESS. DINER'S CLUB. CARTE BLANCHE, bank wire transfer, cashier's or certified check, money order, or personal check (allow ten days to clear) Unless prepaid with cash, please add 5'T, for shipping, handling and Insurance [minimum f. 1)1)1 Calrfot nfa residents add 6% sales lax We accept CODs OEMs. Institutions and corporations please send for a written quotation All equipment is subject to price change and availability without notice All equip menl is new and complete with manufacturer's warranty (usually Wl days! Showroom prices may differ from mail older prices

Send Orders to:

G®[]Dgfflti00®L7

G@lffl[pQa,Ll,®i7§ Mailorder

8314 Parkway Drive La Mesa, California 92041

Circle 113 on inquiry card.

What's New?

MISCELLANEOUS

Programming

and EPROM Memory

on One Board

SSM Microcomputer Products' PB1 S-l 00 board combines programming and memory capabilities. Four on-card sockets provide a total of 4 K or 8 K bytes of memory, depending upon whether 2708 or 2716 EPROMs (erasable programmable read-only memories) are used. Two programming sockets are provided for a 2708 and a 2716. Separate on

card circuits allow programming of 5 V 2708 and 2716 EPROMs without board modifications. The programming voltage is generated on-board.

The PB1 board with software for programming and verifying EPROMs costs S265. A kit version is available for S179. Contact SSM Microcomputer Products Inc, 2190 Paragon Dr, San Jose CA 95131, (408) 946-7400.

Circle 553 on inquiry card.

Reversible Floppy Disks

Omni Resources has developed a reversible 5-inch floppy disk. Each Omni Flip/Floppy has two recording surfaces, two sets of write-enable notches, two index holes, and reinforcing hub rings. Each disk is rated for over 12 million passes without disk-related errors or significant wear. Omni's 5-pack sells for $21, and a 10-pack costs S40. For more information, contact Omni Resources, 4 Oak Pond Ave, Millbury MA 01527, (800) 343-7620; in Massachusetts (800) 252-8770.

Circle 554 on inquiry card.

MIcroCOMPOSER-ll

MicroCOMPOSER-ll is a typesetting system that is added to a Compuwriter II typesetting machine made by CompuGraphic. MicroCOMPOSER-ll consists of software and a hardware interface. The hardware interface is placed inside the Compuwriter and connected to a TRS-80 Model I or III microcomputer. MicroCOMPOSER-ll reads files created using the TRS-80's word-processing programs and feeds them to the Compuwriter II for a hardcopy printout.

Cove View Press, the marketing agent for this microApplications Associates' system, recommends using the Scripsit or Electric Pencil word-processing programs. The word-processing programs allow text to be formatted to fit MicroCOMPOSER-ll standards. The TRS-80 must have at least 32 K bytes of memory and one or more disk drives. MicroCOMPOSER-ll costs SI500. For details, contact Cove View Press, POB 637, Garberville CA 95440, (707) 923-3476.

Circle 555 on inquiry card.

Double-Density Digital Cassette

Magnetic Information Systems has introduced a line of digital cassettes that have been selected and certified for storing twice the normal bit density. Each cassette is certified for 0 errors at 1600 bpi (bits per inch) and is guaranteed for a year. To complement this line, MIS will also supply alignment tapes to help users calibrate their machines to this higher storage capacity. For additional information, contact Magnetic Information Systems, POB 806, 41 5 Howe Ave, Shelton CT 06484, (203) 735-6477. Circle 556 on inquiry card.

518 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

COMPUTER STOP

ORDER BY PHONE

MON.—SAT.

10-6

2545 W. 237 St. Torrance, CA. 90505

LOWEST PRICES IN THE WEST.NORTH. SOUTH & EAST

tippkz computer 1-800-421-1947

Sales and Service

NEC 8001A $1100

NEC 8012A $ 750

NEC 8031A $1100

NEC RGB Monitor $ 999

NEC General Accounting System $ 350

APPLE HARDWARE

Parallel Printer Interface Card 160

Communications Card 195

High Speed Serial Interface 160

Pascal Language System 425

Centronics Printer Interface 185

Applesoft Firmware Card 160

Integer Firmware Card 160

Disk ][ with Controller DOS 3.3 529

Disk ][ only 475

Graphics Tablet 625

OTHER HARDWARE

Alf Music Synthesizer (3 Voice) 245

9 voice 175

ABT Numeric Keypad 119

Micromodem ][ 295

Apple Clock 245

Rom Plus with Keyboard Filter 175

lntrol/X-10 System 250

Romwriter 150

DoubleVislon 80 x 24 Video Interface 245

CCS Arithmetic Processor 399

CCS Parallel Interface 119

16K Ram Card 145

Microworks DS-65 Digisector 339

SVA8inch Disk Controller 350

Sup-R-Mod 30

CCS Synchronous Serial Interface 159

CCS Asynchronous Serial Interface 159

Corvus 10 Meg. Hard Disk 4395

Corvus Constellation 595

MISCELLANEOUS/SUPPLIES

16K RAM (200-250 NS) 29

Verbatium Datalife Diskette(Box of 10) 30

Dysan Diskettes (Box of 5) 22

Apple Diskettes (Box of 10) 45

Verbatim Diskette Boxes (Holds 50 Disks) 18

Silentype Paper (Box of 10 rolls) 40

APPLE ][ Plus

16K $1075

48K $1193

Disk][Drive ..S529

with Controller & Dos. 3.3

MICRO MODEM II

$295

Z-80 Softcard

$299

MONITORS/DISPLAYS

Leedex Video 100 12" 140

Sanyo9" Monitor 195

KG-12C Green Phos. Monitor 275

Sanyo 12"Green Phosphor. Monitor 275

NEC 12" Green Phosphor. Monitor 275

Sanyo 12" B/W Monitor 250

PRINTERS

Apple Silentype with Interface 525

IDS 445 (Paper Tiger) with Graphics 650

IDS 460 with Graphics 1049

IDS 560 with Graphics 10) 1199

Centronics 737 795

NEC Spinwriter(RO, Serial) 2650

SOFTWARE

The Controller 525

Apple Post (Mailing List Program) 45

Easywriter Professional System 195

Apple Pie 2.0 110

DB Master Data Management 175

The Cashier 210

Apple Writer 65

Vlsicalc 175

CCA Data Management System 90

Full Screen Mapping for CCA DMS 59

Pascal Interactive Terminal Software (PITS) 29

Basic Interactive Terminal Software (BITS) 29

Data Capture 45

Data Factory DMS 110

Apple Plot 55

Apple Pilot 120

Magic Wand Word Processor (Needs Z-80 Softcard) 345

Dow Jones Portfolio Evaluator 45

Fortran 140

ORDERING INFORMATION: Phone orders invited using VISA, MASTERCARD or bank wire transfers. VISA & MC credit card service charge of 2%.

Mail order may send charge card number (include expiration date), cashier's check, money order or personal check (allow 10 business days to clear.) Please include a telephone number with all orders. Foreign orders (excluding Military PO's) add 10% for shipping. All funds must be in U.S. dollars (letters of credit permitted). Shipping, Handling and insurance in U.S. add 3% (minimum $4.00). California residents add 6% sales tax. Our low margins prohibit us to send COD or on purchase orders or open account (please send for written quotation). All equipment is subject to price change and availability. Equipment is new and complete with the manufacturer warranty. We do not guarantee merchantibility of products sold. All returned equipment is subject to a 15% restocking fee. We ship most orders within 2 days.

WE ARE A MEMBER OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. RETAIL STORE PRICES MAY DIFFER FROM MAIL ORDER PRICES.

PLEASE SEND ORDERS TO:

COMPUTER STOP, 2545 W. 237 St., TORRANCE, CA 90505

Circle 96 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

519

Circle 160 on inquiry card.

master charge

CALL TOLL FREE

Z28 4Q97

^y

Call For "Unbelievable" Low Low Prices , ^^mimmm^ Qn These Lines:

AMDEK

APPLE

ATARI

BASE 2

CENTRONICS

COMMODORE

DC HAYES

HAZELTINE

LEEDEX

MACROTRONICS

MAXELL

MICROSOFT

MOUNTAIN'HARDWARE

N.E.C.

NORTHSTAR

PANASONIC

SANYO

SYNCOM

youft

CUCTftONICS PLAYGROUND

1840 "O" Street Lincoln, Nebraska 68508 In Nebraska Call (402) 476-7331

STOP

DON'T TURN THIS PAGE. ..

. . .if you are tired of dealing with mail order houses that never have in stock what you need, when you need it. We are not a mail order house. Micro Source of Texas is a stocking wholesale distributor of microcomputer printers, video display terminals, and supplies. What makes us different? We don't just take orders!

Whether you're a dealer, systems integrator or first-time micro user, you expect help from your supplier in determining the best product to fit a particular application. We give that help, and more. Since complete documentation is essential, we provide it with every order we ship. And if you're located in Texas, stop by and we'll demonstrate our products without obligation. Try to do that mail order!

Don't waste valuable time. Talk to Micro Source. We can help.

LOOK LISTEN

AT THESE POPULAR. . .

. . .low cost, high quality products:

• EPSON MX-80 & MX-100 printers

• C.ITOH "Starwriter" WP printer

• TELEVIDEO Model 910 CRT terminal

• Tl SILENT 700 & OMNI 800 printers

Need supplies? We stock ribbons and accessories for EPSON, C.ITOH, DIABLO, QUME, NEC, AND DEC. printers. All products and supplies are in stock, available for immediate delivery.

Micro Source of Texas is a specialty distributor handling only peripheral hardware. We don't sell microcomputers or software. So if you're a systems dealer, consider us a dependable supplier, not a competitor.

Micro Source of Texas, Inc.

834 N Glenville Drive Richardson. Texas 75081

214-690-5111

TO WHAT WE OFFER.. .

LOW PRICES

The best in the industry! Because of our volume purchases, we offer attractive discounts to independent dealers and micro systems builders. Call or circle our reader inquiry number and receive a current dealer price list and catalog.

IMMEDIATE DELIVERY

We stock a variety of popular micro printers and display terminals including EPSON, C.ITOH, and TELEVIDEO. If your needs are immediate, we'll ship within 24 hours of receiving your order. And if you're nearby, just drop in and pick up your order the same day.

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

Micro Source offers in-depth application assistance to Apple, Commodore, and TRS-80 dealers, among others. We want you to buy the right product with the right interface at the right price. Product support and courteous service are "standard features" with Micro Source. Call today and make us prove it!

WE'RE IN TEXAS

Ask about our NO FREIGHT

CHARGE special offer to

Texas customers

520 BYTE November 1981

Circle 263 on inquiry card.

You'll like our service. You'll love our price!

Ohio Scientific Superboard II $329.

It's the first complete computer system on a board. Superboard II uses the ultra powerful 6502 Microprocessor 8K Microsoft BASIC-in-ROM

• 4K static RAM on board, expandable to 8K

• Full 53-key keyboard, with upper and lower case. Plus user expandability.

• Video interface and audio cassette interface.

The Ohio Scientific Superboard II at $329 — in today's economy — has got to be the best buy by far. It will entertain you with spectacular graphics made possible by its ultra high resolution graphics and super fast BASIC. It will help you in school or industry, as an ultra powerful scientific calculator. Advanced scientific functions and a built-in "immediate" mode allow you to solve complex problems without programming.

The Superboard II can be expanded economically, for business uses, or to remotely control your home appliances and security. Even communicate with other computers.

Read what's been written about Superboard II:

"We heartily recommend Superboard II for the beginner who wants to get into microcomputers with a minimum cost. A real computer with full expandability."

—POPULAR ELECTRONICS, MARCH 1979

"The Superboard II is an excellent choice for the personal computer enthusiast on a budget."

—BYTE, MAY 1979

Buy Now. Quantities Limited!

610 Board For use with Superboard II and Challenger 1 P. 8K static RAM. Expandable to 24K or 32K system total. Accepts up to two mini-floppy disk drives. Requires + 5V @4.5amps.

Mini-Floppy Disk Drive Includes Ohio Scientific's PICO DOS software and connector cable. Compatible with 610 expander board. Requires + 12V @ 1.5 amps and + 5V @ 0.7 amps. [Power supply S. cabinet not included.]

4KP4K RAM chip set.

PS-005 5V 4.5 amp power supply for Superboard II.

P5-00312V power supply for mini-floppies.

RF Modulator Battery powered UHF Unit.

C1P Sams C1P Service manual

C4P Sams C4P Service manual

S298

311 79 45 45 35 8 16

Ohio Scientific and independent suppliers offer hundreds of programs for the Superboard II, in cassette and mini-floppy form.

OS-65D V3.3 Operating System

Supports a command "KERNEL", Microsoft 9-digit BASIC, a G502 Assembler Editor and debugger utility. Available for C1P, C4P and C8P floppy disk computers.

• Expanded to a self-teaching operating system. V3.3 comes in a 6 disk set with an easy-to-follow manual which leads the first time user from the operation of simple menuized programs through programming in BASIC and storing data on disk to a complete program development system with advanced capabilities.

• BASIC feature expansions including a full feature screen editor, full upper/lower case compatibility with "Normal" typewriter operation, PRINT USING, and screen formatting capability.

• Improved graphics support including direct X, Y plotting and the ability to dump medium resolution [64 x 128] graphics directly to the AC-19A low cost printer.

• Enhanced utilities including greatly simplified Create, Initialize and Delete functions, new Single Disk Copier, a communications support utility for the optional modem and Resequences

• Compatible with OS-65D V3.2 files and programs but has greatly improved disk I/O throughput.

24K Ram Required Only S79

Freight Policies ah orders of $100

or more are shipped freight prepaid. Orders of less than $100 please add $4.00 to cover shipping costs. Ohio residents add Ohio Sales Tax.

Hours: Call Monday thru Friday. 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern Time TOLL FREE: 1-800-321-5805

Guaranteed Shipment

Cleveland Consumer Computers fi. Components guarantees shipment of computer systems within 48 hours upon receipt of your order. Our failure to ship within 48 hours entitles you to 835 of software, FREE.

VISA

33

TO Order: O to get our free catalog CALL 1-800-321-5805 TOLL FREE. Charge your order to your VISA or MASTER CHARGE account. Ohio residents call: [216] 464-B047. Or write, including your check or money order, to the address listed below.

CLEVELAND CONSUMER COMPUTERS & COMPONENTS

P.O. Box 46627 Cleveland, Ohio 44146

I I I I I

Order Form:

CLEVELAND CONSUMER COMPUTERS & COMPONENTS P.O. Box 46627 Cleveland, Ohio 44146

□ Superboard II $329.

□ 610 Board $298.

□ Mini-Floppy Disk Drive $311.

□ RF Modulator $35.

□ 0S-B5D V3.3 [Specify System] $79.

□ C1P Sams Service Manual $8. [Attach separate sheet for other items.]

NAME:

ADDRESS: CITY:

STATE:.

ZIP:.

PHONE:

Payment by: VISA

Credit Card Account # Expires

MASTER CHARGE,

MONEY ORDER.

Interbank # [Master Charge].

TOTAL CHARGED OR ENCLOSED $

Orders of less than £10 All prices quoted are U.S

(Ohio Residents add Ohio Sales Tax]

Orders of less than S100, please add S4.00 to cover shipping costs. Orders will be accepted from U.S. and Canada only, date of publication, standard UPS shipping FOB the factory.

PRICES SUBJECT TO CHANGE WrTHOUT NOTICE

Circle 69 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

521

Circle 278 on inquiry card.

SI DO 2032 32K STATIC RAM A & T.

450 NSEC...S579.00,300 NSEC .$585.00.200 NSEC...$629.00 2116 16K STATIC RAM A & T. 450 NSEC...S285.00,300 NSEC...S289.00,200 NSEC...S329.00

2065 64K DYNAMIC RAM A & T S548.95

2200 S-100 MAIN FRAM A&T $379.95

2422 FLOPPY DISC WITH CP/M 2.2'" $329.95

2802 6502 PROCESSOR A & T $282.95

2810A Z80 CPU A & T $249.95

2710* 4 SERIAL 1/0 A & T $291.95

27I8A 2 SERIAL, 2 PARALLEL A & T $305.95

2720* 4 PARALLEL A & T $214.95

PHOTO BOAflDS WW ... . $39.95, SOLDERTAIL .... $29.95

APPLE PRODUCTS

7114A 12K ROM/PROM $68.50

7424A CALENDAR/CLOCK S106.95

7440A PROGRAMMABLE TIMER $98.50

7470A A TO 0 CONVERTER $105.95

7490A GPIB (IE 488) INTERFACE $265.95

77I0A ASYNC SERIAL S125.95

7712A SYNC SERIAL $153.95

7720A PARALLEL STANDARD $98.95

7720B PARALLEL CENTRONICS $98.95

7B1 IB ARITHMETIC PROCESSOR W/DISC S342.95

7811C ARITHMETIC PROCESSOR W/ROM S342.95

7500A WW BOARD $22.95

75I0A SOLDERTAIL BOARD S23.95

SOFTWARE

2610 CP/M"MACR0 ASSEMBLER ON DISK $76.95

2620 CP/M'"SYMBOLIC INSTRUCTION DEBUGGER ... $64.25

2630 CP/M'"TEXT FORMATER S64.25

2640 CP/M'"BACKGROUND PRINT UTILITY $42.95

OTHER CCS PRODUCTS ARE AVAILABLE. CALL FOR PRICE

ssm

MICROCOMPUTER PRODUCTS

S100 PRODUCTS

CBIA 8080 PROCESSOR PCBD $32.95

KIT $155.95, AST $215.95

CB-2 280 PROCESSOR BOARD. KIT $198.95, A&T

. $269.95

VBIC 64 x 16 VIDEO, PCBD $32.95

KIT $153.95. A&T $199.95

VB2 64 x 16 VIDEO, PCBD $32.95

KIT $175.95, A&T $234.95

VB3 80 CHARACTER VIDEO 4MHZ.

KIT $345.95, A&T $425.95

UPGRADE RAMS FOR VB-3 S42.00

104 2 PARALLEL, 2 SERIAL, PCBD S32.95

KIT $155.95, A&T $194.95

PB-1 2708, 2716 PROGRAMMER BOARD.

KIT $13595, A&T $185.95

MB-IO 16K STATIC RAM.

KIT $299.95, A&T S339.95

APPLE PRODUCTS

A488 IEEE 488 INTERFACE S399.95

AIO SERIAL/PARALLEL INTERFACE

KIT $125.95, A&T $155.95

ASIO SERIAL I/O

KIT S87.95. A&T $97.95

APIO PARALLEL 10

KIT(W/0 CABLES).. . $67.95, A&T(W/0 CABLES) .. $87.95

OTHER SSM PRODUCTS ARE AVAILABLE CALL FOR PRICES.

uwu

MONDAY.FRIDAY, 8:00 TO 12:00 THURSDAYS, 8:00 TO 9:00 P.M.

(415) 728-9121 P.O. BOX 955 • EL GRANADA, CA94018

PLEASE SEND FOR IC, XISTOR AND COMPUTER PARTS LIST

NOV. SPECIAL SALE ON PREPAID ORDERS

(CHARGE CARDS AND C 0 D OR P.O. KOI AVAILABLE ON THESE OFFERS)

10% OFF ON WAMECO PCBD'S WITH MIKOS PARTS

rv JTlCJjnc, wameco inc.

BOARDS WITH MIKOS PARTS

MEM-3 32K STATIC RAM, PCBD $36.95

KIT LESS RAM S95.95. A&T $135,95

CPU-2 Z80 PROCESSOR, PCBD $32.95

KIT LESS ROM $109.95, A&T $149.95

EPM-2 16K/32K EPROM, PCBD $32.95

KIT LESS ROM S65.95. A&T S99.95

FPB-1 FRONT PANEL, PCBD $48.50

KIT $144.95. A& T $184.95

CPU-1 8080 PROCESSOR, PCBD $29.95

KIT $89.95, A&T $129.95

QMB-12 13 SLOT MOTHER BOARD. PCBD $39.95

KIT $95.95, A&T $135.95

OTHER WAMECO PRODUCTS ARE AVAILABLE. CALL FOR PRICES.

MIKOS PARTS ASSORTMENTS ARE ALL FACTORY MARKED PARTS KITS INCLUDE ALL PARTS LISTED AS REQUIRED FOR THE COMPLETE KIT LESS PARTS LISTED ALL SOCKETS INCLUDED

LARGE SELECTION OF LS TTL AVAILABLE.

PURCHASE S50.00 WORTH OF LS TTL AND GET 10% CREDIT TOWARD ADDITIONAL PURCHASES. PREPAID ORDERS ONLY.

VISA oi MASTERCHARGE Send account number, interbank number, expiration dale and sign your order Approx postage will be added Check or money order will be senl posl paid in US II you are not a regular customer, please use cbarge. cashier's check or postal money order. Otherwise there will be a Iwo-week delay tor checks tocleai Calif. residents add 6% tax Money back 30-day guarantee We cannot accept returned IC's that nave been spidered to Prices subject to change without notice SID minimum order SI.50 service chwje on orders less thin SIQ.OD.

FLOPPY DISK DRIVES

Qume Datatrak-8 $540

Virtually the industry standard. High quality/reliability. Full featured, double-sided, double density.

SA851R S540

Full featured drive, double sided, double density

SA801 R $430

Single sided, double density, very consistent

FDD100-8 $430

Qume Datatrak 5 514" $345

SA-400 5V $299

TandonTM-100 48TPI 5>/4." $350 96 TPI $425

NEW! Tandon 8" thinline drives. Call for details.

CONTROLLERS

Tarbell single density kit $195

Tarbell single density A&T $310

Tarbell double density A&T $425

CCS 2422 w/CPM 2.2 $350

Godbout Disk 1 $450

MDA MXV-21 LSI-11 controller

(RX-01, RX-02 compatible)

$1050

MISCELLANEOUS

CCS Mainframe $395

2 Disk drive enclosure $ 95

(fits Siemens, Shugart, Qume) CP-206 power supply $110

(powers two floppies)

Cable Kits 2 drives $ 35

3 drives $40

4 drives $ 45

Diskettes ss $39/10 - ds $59/10

CPU

CCS 2810

Godbout Z-80A . Godbout 8085A

$ 275 $ 275 $ 295

MEMORY

CCS 2065 64K dynamic . CCS2116 32K static . . . Godbout RAM 17 64K .

$ 625 $ 675 $ 995

I/O

CCS2710 4SIO

Godbout Interfacer 1 . Godbout Interfacer 2 .

$ 325 S 225 $ 225

Qume S/5 - Daisy Wheel Printer

Sprint 5/45 RO

Sprint 5/55 RO

Sprint 5/45 KSR

Sprint 5/55 KSR

Forms Tractor

Pinfeed platen

Paper Guide

Paper Basket

many print wheels, ribbons, & more available.

$2699

2829

3029

3159

210

155

30

50

Terms of sale: cash or checks, purchase orders from qualified firms and institutions. Minimum order $25. CA residents add 6% tax. Prices subject to change without notice. All goods subject to prior sale. Minumum shipping/handling charge $4.00.

Electrolabs

POB 1608, Palo Alto, CA 94302 (415) 321-5601

522 BYTE November 1981

Circle 156 on inquiry card.

WE WILL NOT BE UNDERSOLD

DISK DRIVES

FOR TRS-80* Model I

CCI-100 51/4",40Track(102K) $299

ADDON DRIVES FOR ZENITH Z-89 CCI-189 5Va",40Track(102K) $389

Z-87 Dual 5V*" system $995

External card edge and power supply included. 90 day warranty/one year on power supply.

CORVUS 5mg $3089 10mg $4489 Mirror $699

RAW DRIVES 8"SHUGART801R $399

51/i"TANDON $CALL POWER SUPPLIES $CALL

DISKETTES-box of 10

5Vt" Maxell $40

8" Maxell $45

PLASTIC FILE BOX-Holds505V*"diskettes

PLASTIC LIBRARY CASE SVa" $3.00

HEAD CLEANING DISKETTE

FLOPPY SAVER $10.95

16K RAM KITS

200ns forTRS-80,*Apple II, (specify):

COMPUTERS/SYSTEMS

ARCHIVES 64K, 2-Drives, 77 Track

ALTOS ACS8000 Series

ZENITH 48K, all-in-one computer

ATARI 400 $ 359

MATTEL INTELLIVISION

APPLE PERIPHERALS

SYSTEM SPECIAL

Apple II Plus 48K w/drive and controller. Epson MX-80 printer and

interface. SUP-R Mod RF Modulator: List $2965 You Pay $2295

BASF/Verbatim

$26.95

BASF/Verbatim

$36.00

$19.00

8"

$ 4.00

$25.00

RINGS

$ 6.95

2 for $37

$19

Jumpers

$2.50

$CALL

SCALL

$2200

800

$ 789

$ 259

$CALL

PRINTERS

} NEC SPINWRITER

7710 R O Par

$2395 $2595

^^w^^^^^

■ II lu i i.v. fa!

^H 7710 R.O. Par w/tractor

y^

jl 7720 KSR w/tractor

$2795

H^^^**'*

M 7730 R.O. Ser

$2395

S*^ 7730 R.O. Ser w/tractor

$2595

NEW 3500 Series

SCALL

EPSON MX-70 MX-80 MX-80F

MX100 $CALL

PAPER TIGER

IDS 445

Graphics &2K buffer

$ 639

IDS 460

Graphics &2K buffer

$ 799

IDS 560

Graphics

$1049

ACCESSORIES

$CALL

ANADEX

DP-8000 $849

DP-9500/01 $1295

OKI DATA

Microline 80

Friction & pin feed

$CALL

Microline 82

Friction & pin feed

$CALL

Microline 83

120 cps, uses up to 15" paper

SCALL

Call for new

Microline series!

CENTRONICS

739, new model with graphics

$ 739

C. ITOH

Starwriter I

25 cps, parallel interface

$1439

Starwriter I

25 cps, serial interface

$1495

Starwriter II

45 cps, parallel interface

$1770

Starwriter II

45 cps, serial interface

$1870

AXIOM

GP-80M

$ 319

DATA SOUTH

180 cps

$CALL

MONITORS

BELL & HOWELL 9"B&WBHD911

$155

LEEDEX

12"B&W $129 12' 13" Color $329

Green Screen $159

SANYO

9"B&W $149 12'

Green Screen $238

12"B&W $219 13'

Color $399

ZENITH

13" Color $349 12'

Green Screen $129

TERMINALS

ADDS Viewpoint

$CALL

ZENITH Z-19

$ 725

TELEVIDEO 910 $ 559

920C $729

950

$ 939

IBM 3101-10

$1189

S-100 CALIFORNIA COMPUTER SYSTEMS

MAINFRAME $359 Z80CPU $ 269

64KRAM $599 FLOPPY DISC CNTRL $ 359

TELECOMMUNICATIONS

LIVERMORE STAR MODEM 2-year guarantee $125 UNIVERSAL DATA SYSTEMS UDS103LP $149 UDS103JP $215

NOVATION CAT $139 D-CAT $149

AUTO-CAT $199 APPLE CAT II $339

D.C. HAYES SMART/STACK MODEM $235

MICRO-MODEM II $295

CCI Telnet Communications Package $135

APPLE ACCESSORIES

Mfr. by-Microsoft - Mountain Computers

AND SOFTWARE

- Videx - CCS - Personal Software

INTEGRATED SYSTEM W/INTERNAL CABLES, TESTED

$1975

VISICALC VISITERM

$185.00 $119.00

VISIDEX VISIPLOT

$159.00 $139.00

2P + 2SI/0

$ 269

Z-80SOFTCARD

$259.00

VIDEX BOARD

$249.00

4 PORT SERIAL I/O

$ 249

KEYBOARD ENHANCER

$110.00

16KCARD

$159.00

4 PORT PARALLEL I/O

$ 179

APPLE JOYSTICK

$ 49.00

SUP-R FAN

$ 39.00

CABLES

$CALL

SUP-R MOD

$ 25.00

CCS CARDS

$CALL

APPLE CARDS

SCALL

ASCII EXPRESS

$ 59.00

CASIO CALCULATORS

SUPERCALC

$199.00

ALF9 VOICE BOARD $149.00

POCKET COMPUTER

FX702

$199.00

CPS MULTIFUNCTION CARI

$199.00

DESK PRINTER/CALCULATOR

FR100

$ 79.95

SCIENTIFIC CALCULATOR

FX8100

$ 49.95

ENTERTAINMENT

GAME WATCH

CA90 Plastic

$ 49.95

Mfr. by:On Line - Broderbund

Sirius - California Pacific

GAME WATCH

CA901 Steel

$ 69.95

FLIGHT SIMULATOR

$29.00

SARGON II

$29.00

SPORT WATCH

AX210 Calendar

$ 59.95

WIZARD & PRINCESS

$28.00

ABM

$21.95

MYSTERY HOUSE

$24.00

GORGON

$34.95

BUSINESS SOFTWARE

HI-RES FOOTBALL

$35.00

MICROPAINTER

$29.00

WORDSTAR for Apple II

$ 329

RASTER PLASTER

$25.95

APPLE PANIC

$27.95

WORDSTAR for Zenith Z89

$ 329

SPACE EGGS

$17.95

MATTEL GAMES

$27.00

For fast delivery, send certified checks, money orders or call to arrange direct bank wire transfers. Personal or company checks require two to three weeks to clear. All prices are mail order only and are subject to change without notice. Call for shipping charges.

dealer (national/international) inquiries invited Send for FREE Catalogue

The CPU SHOP

TO ORDER CALL TOLL FREE 1-800-343-6522

TWX: 710-348-1796 Massachusetts Residents call 617/242-3361

5 Dexter Row, Dept. B11M Charlestown, Massachusetts 02129 Hours 10AM-6PM (EST) Mon.-Fri. (Sat. till

Technical Information call 617/242-3361 Massachusetts Residents add 5% Sales Tax Tandy Corporation TrademanV-'Digital Research

^^^^^^.

1

master charge

VtSA

. ^^^^^^^^^

Circle 116 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

523

PROFESSIONAL MICROCOMPUTER

THE BEST VALUE ON THE MARKET

• Z80 4MHZ • 64K RAM

• DUAL 8" DRIVES • 1.2 MB STORAGE

• 2 SERIAL I/O • 2 PARALLEL I/O

• OPERATING SYSTEM AND UTILITIES MICRO BUSINESS ASSOCIATES. INC. 500 SECOND STREET

SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107 415-957-1343

9 TRACK TAPE DRIVES

800 BPI

45 IPS

FULL MANUAL

$4850 VALUE

$2400

NEW IN

ORIGINAL

BOXES

PERTEC Model 8840A-9-45

INDUSTRY STANDARD INTERFACE

CAPABLE OF IND. STD. ANSI-IBM DATA FORMAT

l-IBM COMPATIBLE

• DUMP WINCHESTERS AND HARD DISKS; 10 inch reels hold up lo 3600' ni tape 34.56 Megabytes unblocked.

■ EXCHANGE DATA & PROGRAMS WITH LARGE MAIN FRAMES

AT SCHOOL. WORK. SERVICE BUREAUS ETC.

• BARGAIN PRICED MINI-COMPUTER UPGRADE. OEM Lisl S4BS0 A large OEM overstock makes IhOSS industry standard drives available at a fraction ol Ihtjir current list price Full Siie drives nandle up lo 10 5 inch reels of si use right

SPECIFICATION SUMMARY: 9-track. BOO BPI. dual head (read alter wnle). 45 IPS read/Write, 20O IPS rewind. BOT/EOT sensing, 110 VAC/60-H*. solid siaie. receni manufacture, all I/O signals TTL/DTL compatible, tension arm tape bullering. full control panel Call or wnle lor full set of technical specifications

INTERFACES: Eleclrovalue encourages Ihe development ot interfaces to popular systems Interlaces exist lor popular minis and arc being developed for several hoboy computers II you'd like lo develop and document an interlace to a popular small system call lo discuss

ELECTROVALUE INDUSTRIAL INC.

PO BOX 157-B ryj Pnonc

MORRIS PLAINS, NJ 07950 <-^ffiO queslio

Fo'n"'"Ei"'" <™« Cm s

CONTROL-Z

SINGLE BOARD Z-UUfr COMPUTER FOR CONTROL USES

USES: Industrial Tost Equipment Macfi.no Com.ol

Inieliigoni PnnpIior.il Controller Secuniy Systems OEM room

Automalic Dialing Eqmpmonl Traffic Signal ConiroJ Etc1

Solar Houtinn ft Power Systems AejHrance Control

FEATURES:-I MHj-2-80A* ion Board erysial). Ik RAM. sockets lor 2 2715s i4K PWDMi. 3-U Oil parallel t H nuiflut ports. 2-8 Lut parallel TTL mpui pons. B analog input

polls 1100 iisoc u:-HiviT-.iijii IhtimI. ti li.gli curit-ii! imfjiul -, (doiti collocltxl 4 0(ifi>

isolated input In"",. MM tingM H T'lL output to strut I O 280 conliol lines moughi lo edge conneclor. oilm imhI decodes brought to oofle c Bus far port expansion, on bo.vUSv regulator.«'-""

M. fully si

PRICE: 5295

o 10 m

1.500 m

. uses standard 72pin edge

Mmiilo PflOM SJ5Fuiltunciionmoniio'piogiam«i!'TO'o*riio.iU capacity sottwant serial driver & sett lest Icatuic

TERMS: CHECK. MC. VISA. orCOD Cal Res add 6". la

Firsl Class Shipping Included ■iu,]..i...»ii>iae™n*..«ki ■

COMPUTER-AID

1122DELAVINA SANTA BARBARA, CA 93101 (805)966-3077

Circle 255 on Inquiry card.

Circle 82 on inquiry card

LOWEST POSSIBLE PRICES BEST POSSIBLE WARRANTY

model III 16K

color

computer 4K

$310

call toll free 1 -800-343-8124

com

Write lor your free catalog.

$£

24SA Great Road Littleton, MA 01460

617 • 486 • 3193

NEW! for the '89 from

MAGNOLIAS

MICROSYSTEMS

DOUBLE DENSITY DISK CONTROLLER

for both 51/4" S. 8" drives

onlyipGyiD complete

including CP/M™2.2

MAGNOLIA MICROSYSTEMS, INC.

2812 Thorndyke W., Seattle 98139

[206] 285-72BB (800) 426-2841

CP/M is a trademark of Digital Research.

FREE!

1981

DISCOUNT

ELECTRONICS

CATALOG

JOIN THE PAK!

ilog and become a

.............. ._celve Poly Pak

exciting catalog several times a year. We offer: Penny Sales, Free

erals. Integrated Circuits, Speakers, Audio Equipmenl, Rechargeable Batteries, Solar Products, Semiconductors, and much, much more! Take advanlage ot our 25 years as Ar loremost Supplier ol discount electronics.

POLY PAKS, INC.

Circle 91 on inquiry card.

Circle 237 on Inquiry card.

Circle 346 on Inquiry card.

WANTED:

APPLE, PET, TRS-80, CP/M

SOFTWARE

Westico is a publisher and distributor of professional software for microcomputers. If you have a new program ready for distribution or want your existing programs to reach a larger market, contact

Phillip Woellhof. V.P. Mktg.

Westico, Inc.

25 Van Zant Street

Norwalk, CT 06855

(203) 853-6880 To increase your profits, take advantage of Westico's worldwide promotion and distribution.

WESTICO

The Software Express Service

SPECIALS of the MONTH

ATARI 800 Computers ( 750.00

ATARI 810 Disc Drives i 450.00

ATARI Software 25% off

APPLE II 6 48 K Computers (1,150 00

LODO Disc Drive for APPLE II S 395.00

8" Dual Drive Subsystems 2.4Mb

DS-DD complete $1,795.00

CDC LARK Subsystems 16Mb with 1

cartridge-power supply-cables. S5.200.00 Complete Word Processing System

with DIABLO Printer S4.200.00

CALIFORNIA Computer Systems 300 Dual 8" Drive Computer, 64K RAM. OASIS-2.4 Mb Disc memory. 25 serial ports, 1 Centronics compatible parallel port, a televldeo 910 CRT-COMPLETE!. S5.800.00

EPSON MX-70 Printers S 385 00

EPSON MX-80-F/T Primers S 685.00

IDS 460G Printers S 800.00

IDS 560G Printers S1.150 00

CITOH STARWRITER 25 Printers H.380.00

DIADLO 630 RD Printers t2,240 00

NEC 5PINWRITERS Coll for price

APPLE Peripherals Coll for price

MOUNTAIN HARDWARE CPS

Multifunction Cords S 180.00

DATA SYSTEMS

"THE COMPLETE SYSTEMS AND SUPPORT TEAM"

wabash

When it comes to

Flexible Disks, nobody

does it better than

Wabash.

MasterCard. Visa Accepted. Call Free: (800)235-4137

PACIFIC EXCHANGES

100 Foolhill Blvd San Luis Obispo. CA 93401 (In Cal call (805)543-1037)

Circle 246 on Inquiry card.

Circle 332 on Inquiry card.

California Computer Systems

• 2810 CPU

Only — $250.00

• 2422DskCont

Only — $300.00

• 2065C64K

Only— $425.00

• 2032C32K

Only —$620.00

• 2718 2x2

Only — $305.00

• 2200A Mainframe

Only — $349.00

• 2501 Mother Board

Only —$106.00

• 2116C16K Static Ram 200ns

Only —$309.00

• 2520K Extender Board

Only — $52.00

TERMINALS

• Televideo 910 — $575.00

• Televideo 912C — $665.00

• Televideo 920C — $740.00

• Televideo 950 — $950.00

• Ampex Dialog 80 — $950.00

• Zenith Z19 — $745.00

PRINTERS

• C-ITOHCometl

9x7 Dot Matrix .. .$450.00

• C-ITOH Comet II ..$810.00 132 Column Printer

9x7 Dot Matrix

• C-ITOH Star Writer* Call for best price

• EPSON MX 80 ....$470.00

• Anadex9501 ....$1,275.00 Graphic Printer

LEXICON LX-11, acoustic . .$145.00

S-100- CONNECTOR

Tl or Better

WmiiJruii/i:i:iMmiiihiiiiii SOLDER TAIL

11 EDISON DRIVE * NEW LENOX * ILLINOIS 60451

CALL TOLL FREE: 1-800-435-9357 • MONDAY thru SATURDAY

(ILLINOIS RESIDENTS CALL: 815-485-4002) • 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

TERMS: Prepayment — C.O.D. up to $100.00 — M/C Visa

$5.00 Processing and Handling added to each order PLUS

Shipping Charges.

Please allow personal check to clear before shipment.

S1 — MOD (KIT)

$199.00 (gggf

Complete S-100 12 Slot Main Frame. Ample system power with regulated power for drives. Excellent for Subsystem or Hobby use. Four hours to build. (6 conn., incl., less fans)

FLOPPY DISK DRIVES

S-100 BOARDS

EXPANDABLE RAM

This is the best all

around 64K board you

can buy. If after you see

it, you don't agree

return for full refund.

Bank Select by

extended address lines

or I.O. 40H • $400.00 A&T *

DUAL DRIVE SUBSYSTEM

$1,045.00

$245.00 w/no Drives Kl )

2 SHUGART 801R ^^ POWER SUPPLY

/

Shugart 801's Shugart 851's Qume DT-8's Shugart 400's Tandom 51/4 MPI B-51 —

$395.00 $585.00 $540.00 $255.00 $255.00 $255.00

TWIN VERTICAL DRIVE$T-Tn

5" $550.00 — 8" $980.00 Jill

- CHIPS

Z — 80 CPU

The first time this world

popular CPU offered in

Kit. Two serial, 3 parallel,

CTC, EProm Z-80 at

4 mhz. Software buad

rate, etc. (Less Prom. & Cable)

$250.00

U$ — D$K $275.00

Double Density 8" and 5" Disk Controller designed for S-100 IEEE standards. Uses Western Digital 1795. 1691,2143 Chip Set.

32K (Kit)

300NS Lo-Lo Power 4K by 1 Chips Extended Address Lines

Phantom Line 9 Regulators

$250.00

Z-80A — $6.95 Z-80A SUPPORT CTC — $6.55 SIO — $25.50 PIO — $6.50 DMA —$18.75

2716-$6.75

2708-$3.95

4116-$2.50

2114-$2.75

INTEL

2141-$4.00

S-100 CARD EXTENDER $12.50

$2.50

data systems

Quality Affordable ' Microcomputers

Z89FA $2,150.00

Z89GA $1,970.00

Z87 Dual 5V4 Disk Unit $960.00

Z47 BA Dual 8 Disk Unit.. .$2,750.00

Expansion Interface $128.00

CP/M® V.2.2for289 $140.00

Microsoft BASIC V5.1

forCP/M $150.00

Microsoft FORTRAN 180.00

Microsoft COBOL S365.00

Circle 418 on inquiry card.

HOBBY ROBOTICS'

Shoppers Mart

- For the SERIOUS Hobbyist

v.(ti \\ Hobby Robotics

\ Directory

Complete RU 2 Manual! Everyiliing you need lo build you: own robot

lion base up wilh Honby Robotics' highly

maneuver able 2-fl. per

rated al 15 lbs., gnp-li hands. Manual on $25.00, refundable wi

Hobby Robotics' Parts Supplier Dimelory. ChOCk-fUll of names, addresses, phone numbers you want for hard-tofind parts, systems, build-yourownrobot info. Only S3.50. Gel yours now!

HOBBY ROBOTICS

5070-E Butord Highway

Norcross. Ga. 30071 404/4480190

Please send items checked below:

QH NewMettei HU-2 Manual

FREE*

Hobby Rob

lies CalalofMFREt

Perac

Cashiers Check/MO Bank Americard

HOBBY

ROBOTICS' ROBOT BASE

Ready to roll!

ONLY $495 (include ihlppln

HOBBY ROBOTICS

5070-E Buford Highway ■ Norcross, Ga. 30071 • 404/448-0190

8035/9 BOARDS

CPU 1K RAM, 40 I/O lines Parallel I/O 2 8255s, 70 mil line drivers Serial I/O 3 8251s, RS 232C interface A/D-D/A 8/1 channel All boards 4x7, 86 pin edge connector Assembled • $125 Bare • $20 Hardware & Software Tools available Make check payable to: SKP ELECTRONICS 2211 Caper Tree Dr. Tustin, CA 92680 (714) 832-1732 California residents add 6% sales tax Please add $3.00 for shipping and handling COD charges extra

INSTANT PLATEN

FOR THE

EPSON MX80

PROFESSIONAL

LOOK FOR YOUR

CHECKS

INVOICES

LETTERHEAD

AND ENVELOPES

WITH TRACTOR ADJUSTMENTS ONLY

INSTANT PLATEN $9.00

PLUS HANDLING AND

SHIPPING 1.00

COMPUTEROOM DEPT SFC

PO BOX 895, MONTEREY CA 93940 DISTRIBUTORS/DEALERS WELCOMED

Circle 445 on inquiry card.

Circle 380 on inquiry card.

Circle 462 on inquiry card.

RAM

For ATARI

Get the most from your ATARI 400. Memory expansion to a full 48K is now possible with our 48K Board. Expand your ATARI 800 with our 32K Board.

48K Board 32K Board

$299 $199

INTEC

Suite #111 3387 Del Rosa Ave. North San Bernardino, CA 92404

(714) 864-5269

CA residents add 6 percent tax ATARI is trademark of ATARI, Inc.

UV EPROM ERASER

$49.95

LiVERASntiLFFPnOr.VM.-Vfiii 271G 2532. 2564. e

> OUICK FIFTEEN MINUTE ERASE TIME

i ERASES OVEfl FIFTEEN EPROMS M A TIME • LAMPLIFE ,7<)0 HOURS

> TIMER AND SAFETY INTERLOCK SWITCH OPTION ADD S30QC

THE BEST 6809 SINGLE BOARD COMPUTER AVAILABLE

t Floppy Controller « SWIPC compatible

• Printer Port • Runs TSC Flex

• RS-?32Poit • full Dacwncntitmn PRICE: FOR THE SS-50 AND S-100 BUS

ASSEMBLFD, TESTED. 18 HOUR BURN IN, flO DAY WARRANTY

$389.00

2114 RAM 300 ns S2.95

STRAIGHT FROM THE FACTORY

2716 EPROM 550ns 54.50 ^GUARANTEED.

EPROM PROGRAMMER lor 2716, 2732 S99.50

In Circuit Emulator for 68xx, 8085.280 S99.95

WE ACCEPT VISA, MASTERCARD. CO D. CHECKS

phone orders (305)974-0967 LOGICAL DEVICES INC.

781 W OAKLAND PARK BLVD • FT [ AUDERDALE. FLORIDA 333:1

ANALOG <■» DIGITAL DIGITAL** ANALOG

CONVERSION MODULES

SOFTWARE CAIN CONTROL

amplifier - custom board test — S-100 - 9 ro 15 khz conversion limp, - mixable high and low inputs - gain from 1 to 1024 - tg-bit '.nmplc and hold amplifier 3-chonnel differential - 16-chonnel - analog ro digital nigh ocajFOcy - programmable gain instrumentation amplifier - custom board tes! - S-100 - 2 to 15 khz conversion time - mixoblr. high and low inputs - gam :rom 1 to I0S4 12-bit sample and hold amplifier B-channel differential - 16 channel - analog to digital high accuracy - programmable gam instrumentation amplifier - custom board ir.M - S-100 - 2 lo 15 ktv

For additional details about the AD-100-4 and other fine California Data corporation 100°p individually tested, high reliability products, circle the reader service card number below or for faster response write or call us.

CALIFORNIA DATA CORPORATION

3475 Old Conejo Road, Suite C-10 Newbury Park, CA 91320

(805) 498-3651

Circle 199 on inquiry card.

Circle 230 on Inquiry card.

Circle 59 on inquiry card.

FULL PERFORMANCE CP/M* computer $1995 list

dealer-distributor discounts

^J^ Alspa Computer, Inc.

5215 Scotts Valley Drive

Scotts Valley, CA 95066

(408) 438-3326

'trademarks of Digital Research, Inc.

t~ QUARTZ CRYSTALS "~$

1 i .3MB

5.2428B

9.9336 B

20900 6 36-2SB5-B

42.851 B-B

468I2BB 1

1 5390 D

5.61 D-B

9-96408 B

2049B8-0 363636 B

425768 B

473766 8 ' ,

, ' I 000 A

6.7143-8

9.98960 B

22II84B 379628-B

42.92S6-B

478836 8 ^

( 1.8432 A

5.955 6

10000 B

22.6258 B 38.3 7GBB

42.96268

48(111) fl i '

1 fc 1.8437 B

6.982-8

102453-8

263686-8 384448B

43DO068

48.3006 B |

( ' 2.000 A

6.000 9

104968-8

26.5006 B 38.62S8-B

43H3788

48.6668 B < .

.. 2.0971 A

6.144 e

10.7755-8

266706-B 38.9258-6

430MB Ii

4B.700G B i

' ( 2.4576 A

6.15030 B

10.6255-8

27.800 B 39.3I28-B

43.IB56-B

4887GB-B 1

( 2.500A

6.297B0B

10.8386-8

27JU06-B 39.5038 B

43.2598 B

49.7006 B ' ,

, 1 2.6657 B

64008

111360 9

27.6506 B 39 6668 ii

43.3336-B

49 7338 fl (

1 2.9850 B

655368

11.156 B

28.4006 B 39.7538-8

43J708B

498128-8 , '

' . 3.QO0-A

6 72530 6

11.2186-8

28.6276-B 39BJ6BB

43.4078B

50^505-B 1

I 3.067 B

6.75840B

II 2890 8

28.75388 3996288

434378 B

5I055G-B '

. * 3.200 8

6.9003 8

114776-6

298758 B 40444B-B

434448B

5I3I28-B 1

' > 3.2768A

7.0063 B

11 6566 B

29.937BB 40592BB

43656S-B

5I.7778B , 1

1 . 3.500 B

7 0336 B

IIGBI6-B

30.0648-B 40.6128<8

43.6298-B

518506-B ' )

1 ' 3.579B

7.091GB

12.440 B

3036061! 40.833G-B

43.G66B-B

528128B 1

1 4.000B

7,1838-9

I4.3182B

30.6258B 40B75B-B

43.7778B

56.7506 8 , '

1 . 4.1943-B

7.25B6B

14 4308 B

30B768-B 40688BB

43.B128B

60.60068 )

( ' 4.3426-B

B.OOOB

15000 B

31437BB 40.925B-B

43JI48B

50.7508 B ' ,

1 44803-8

8U556B

15440BB

31.7538 B 41000B8

433518 B

GG.7506-B 1

\ t 4.6I03B

B1416 B

15.5066 B

319008B .111666-0

43.BB88B

704006 8 ,1

( 4.6503-B

B.I61B-B

16.0008

32000 B 413768-B

43925BB

75 0005B t

. ' 4.8303 B

B.3303B

1838488

33.2006 fi 41937BB

44.0008 B

W 8338-B < .

, 4.9152 B

8.4998-8

17.2248 B

33.6258 B 42.0008 B

440378 B

9991*8 i! | '

1, 5.000-e

8 5766 0

I72422B

34.5558 B 42.583G-B

44.3768 B

I0OG66B-B . 1

( 5.0688-8

B.6056B

ISOOO-B

34.7538B 42.626BB

44.777BB

101.4666-6 ' ,

. * 5.1203 8

B.9606B

184320-8

34.9776 B 42.7WG-B

45.1256-8

1030668 6 1

) 5.1850-B

B.9906B

19.46908

35 9256-B 42.7538 B

4G.3006B

1034668 6 , '

< . 5 IB56-B

9472088

19 750B-B

36.0008 42814BB

46.7006 B

10499IB-8 1

( ALL A

1299

ALL B -1199

OORMOBf nUlllCT 5 '|

<\DD $1.00 SHIPPING

CAL.

RES. ADD 6% SALES TAX

FREE OSCILLATOR SCHEMATICS '|

WITH ANY ORDER

l! QUALITY COMPUTER PARTS ]■

< PO

BOX 743 / CHATSWORTH, CA 91311 1

MEMOREX

FLEXIBLE DISCS

WE WILL NOT BE UNDERSOLD!! Call Free (800)235-4137

for prices and information. Dealer inquiries invited and CO.D.'s accepted.

PACIFIC EXCHANGES

100 Foothill Blvd San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 In Cal. call (800) 592-5935 or (805) 543-1037

Circle 17 on Inquiry card.

Circle 353 on Inquiry card.

Circle 333 on Inquiry card.

Best prices anywhere ! Now a Toll-Free"800"

COMPUTERS

•

NORTHSTAR HORIZON II

HRZ-2-32DD,Lisi $3695." CALL

HRZ-2-64DD, Lisl $4195

HRZ-2-Q32, LiSI $3995

HRZ-2Q64, Lisi $4495

NEW . . .NORTH STAR ADVANTAGE. CALL

DYNABYTE

List Less 30%

ALTOS

PLEASE CALL FOR PRICES

SUPERBRAIN

By INTERTEC

m

„. ; a \ *

64K DD $2695

64K QD $2995

DSS-10MEG $3195

INTERTUBE $725

Emulator $725

CROMEMCO

CS2, L si $4695 OUR PRICE $3549 CS3, Lsi $7995 OUR PRICE$6349

data systems

Z-89. . . . List

$2895

OUR PRICE

$2139

Intersystems CALL FOR PRICES

TERMINALS

TeleVideo

Televideo 910 $579

912C $659

920C $729

950 $945

SOROC

Soroc IQ120 $689

IQ130 $579

IQ135 $719

IQ135w/g $789

IQ140 $1049

HAZELTINE

1420 CALL

1500 $789

1510 CALL

HAZELTINE ESPIRIT

ZENITH Z19 $719

Most items in stock lor immediate delivery factory sealed cartons. wfull factory warranty NYS residents add appropriate sales lax Prices do not include shipping VISA and Master Charge add 3% CO D orders require 2b% deposit Prices subiect lo change without notice

PRINTERS

CENTRONICS

739-1 $749

739-3 $799

704-11 parallel $1569

709-9 $1519

TI810

810 Basic $1289

810 Full Option $1599

820 RO Basic $1545

820 KSR Basic $1739

NEC 7510. 7530.

$2395 $2395

Diablo 630 $2049

PaperTiger 445G $739

460 $799

460G $839

560G $1099

Epson CALL FOR PRICES

DISK SYSTEMS

MORROW

Discus 2D $849

Dual Discus 2D $1389

2 + 2 $1199

M-26 $3599

M-10 $2999

COMPUTERS WHOLESAL

P.O. Box 14a Camillus, N.Y. 13031

InN.Y. call 319-472-2582

Circle 282 on inquiry card.

Z-80 and 8086 FORTH

Z-80* FORTH—a complala program developmenl system. Usos standard CP/M* compatible random access disk files 1or screen storage. Package includes: Interpreter/compiler wllh virtual memory management, line editor, screen editor, Z-80 Assembler, de compiler, utilities, demonstration programs, and 80 pago user manual. System requirements: Z-80 microcomputer, 48 kbytes RAM,CP/M2.2orMP/M» 1.1. S50 00

Z80 FORTH WITH NAUTILUS SYSTEMS CROSS-COMPILER.

Extend/modify the FORTH runtime system, recompile on a host computer lor a dilfergnt target computer, generate heacm ■>■;code, generate ROMabio code with initialized variables. Supports forward referencing to any word or label. Produces load map and list of unresolved symbols. 107 page manual. System require' ments as for Z-B0 FORTH above. $200 00

80B6 FORTH with line editor, screen editor, assembler, and utilities. Uses standard CP/M compatible random access files for screen storage. Requires 8086 or 8088 microcomputer, 64 kbytes RAM, and CP/M86 operating system. $ 100 00

MACHINE TEST PROGRAM PACKAGE for Z-80 systems. Includes memory, floppy disk, printer, and terminal tests with all source code. Requires CP/M 2.2. $50 00

All software distributed on elghl-lncfi soft sectored single density diskettes. Prices include shipping by first clas3 or UPS within USA or Canada. COD charges extra. Purchase orders accepted at our discretion. (CP/M and MP/M are registered trademarks of Digital Research, Inc. ZB0 Is a registered Irademark of Zllog, Inc.)

Laboratory Microsystems

4147 Beethoven Street

Los Angeles, CA 90066

(213)390-9292

Circle 220 on Inquiry card.

Convert your TRS-80 into a

DEVELOPMENT SYSTEM

Z-80 In-Circuit emulation and EPROM/EEPROM programming in a single compact unit.

Debug stand-alone

systems with

program in

TRS-80 RAM,

then copy working program into PROM.

Only $329 including personality module for2716,2516,2758,2508,2532,2816, 2808,48016.

ORION INSTRUMENTS

-172 Otis Ave, Woodside, CA 94062 (415)851-1172

Circle 326 on Inquiry card.

SCR SUPER-BUYS

UPS ANYWHERE IN CONTINENTAL U.S.

©FREE DECODER PLANS plus a brochure

describing our new UHF-VHF Conversion Kit rrnrn

are yours just by sending us your name, riitt

address and an 18c stamp,

© VHF VARACTOR-TUNER. 300 ohms inpul.

Tunable for Channels 2-10-13. All solid-stale, jagc

Made by leading name manufacturer. New- t- ea.

surplus.

©BRAND NAME POWER SUPPLIES. ±5V/6A.

Voltage adjustable and 1C regulated. Ideal $23^

for CMOS, computer-based instruments, etc, ea.

New-surplus,

©6-FOOT TELEPHONE CORD with AMP

brand, modular phone-jack at one end. and **-* *

4-spade-lug leads a! the other. Normally cJaC ea.

priced at $2.49 each.

'Call us (or special large quantity pricing quotations.

^^#%P> (714)527-2554 • [213] 596-7553

OUK ELECTRONICS INC.

9533 Valley View Street. Cypress. CA 90630

$10.00 MIN. ORDER HANDLING/SHIPPING S5.00

Pay by CHECK, M.O., VISA, MIC, C.O.D.

For Free Buyers Guide Circle No. 375

Circle 375 on inquiry card.

PRIAM

Disk Subsystems

and

Accessories,

(SMD interface available) lowest cost and greatest established reliability for H.P., DEC, Apple, Z-80, 8085 ... and so on.

We can show you how to overcome "foreign disk" warranty worries. Special Opportunity:

14A. S-100 Power Supply Kit

Input: 95-220VAC, 50/60 Hz <t. o nqi

Outputs: 14A@

2A@

:8VDC $299

:18VDC

Includes: UL Spec. Transformer, Rectifiers, Computer Grade Capacitors. RFI line filter, and Schematics.

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY

735 Loma Verde. Palo Alto. CA 94303

415-493-5930 Send 36 ci SASE for our 16 page flyer

CP/M® Compatible $GOLD DISKS Z-80 Software

$175.

Z-80 Disassembler

ppd ceates assembly language source files

E-ZText $75

ppd unique text file word processor

Bower-Stewart Si Associates

POST OFFICE BOX 1389

HAWTHORNE. CALIFORNIA 90250

213/ 676-5055

Trademark

Digital Research

SOFTWARE AUTHORS

micro's-mini's-main frames

Take advantage of our exciting development program for new software in all fields!

20% Royalty!

For that professional push

contact: Michael L. Dean, V.P.

Research & Development.

InfoSoft Computer Systems

P.O. Box 562, Concord, CA 94522

(415)680-0202

111'

Innovative Solutions™

Circle 10 on Inquiry card.

Circle 51 on inquiry «ard.

Circle 195 on Inquiry card.

CP/M COMMUNICATIONS

LYNC

TM

THE BEST AVAILABLE PROGRAM

FOR CP/M COMMUNICATIONS

computers

TERMINAL MODE

In this mode your system acts as a terminal Can send to or receive liom a limeshanng system. When receiving data Irom a remote system, received data is bullered lo your maximum memory, then can be sav»d as a disk lile

LYNC MODE

Communicate on-line with another computer similarly equipped. Beth ends can type messages that appear simultaneously on botti screens.

SEND: AUTOMATIC ERROR DETECTION & RETRY

LYNC sends block of information with 1G bit checksums. In case of error ■: wili keep retrying until successful.

FETCH

Once both systems are in LYNC mode, either operator can FETCH files Irom other system

REMOTE AND LOCAL DIRECTORY

Can display both local and remote directories.

BAUD RATES: UP TO 9600 BAUD

SELF GENERATING I/O ROUTINES REQUIRE NO

PATCHING

PRICE $95 TERMS MONEY ORDER. CHECK. COD, M.C. OR VISA PLEASE SPECIFY DESIRED FORMAT; 8" Single Density; 5" McrOpols; TRS-80 Mod II with CP/M; North Star single or double density; Superbram 3 0 DOS or later. Cromenco 5" single density.

COMPUTER-AID

1128 DE LA VINA • SANTA BARBARA, CA 93101 (805) 966-3077

3M

®

Buy the finest in data recording products from your DISKONNECTION. Price/lO 5W (soft, 10 or 16 hard) $ 27°°

8 (single side / density)

8 (reversible, sgl. density)

8" (sql. side, dbl. density)

8 (dual side, dbl. density)

MC or VISA, add

Postage and handling Included

Send check, MO. MC or VISA to,

DISKONNECTION

POB. 538

Mpls. Minnesota 55440

/612/871-1677 before noon CST

27 oo

4000 35 °°

40 °°

|00

FORTH

FOR/MAT™

SCREEN EDITOR

A MUST FOR THE SERIOUS FORTH PROGRAMMER

• All code is Forth-79 standard. Each line of code is fully explained and flow-charted (Forth style) for easy modification.

• This editor works just like the popular word processors on the market except it is written in high level forth and is confined to the 1024 byte boundary of a forth screen.

• There are over 20 different commands for cursor positioning, text modification, tabs, relocating lines, spreading lines, and moving lines to other screens.

• Insert mode is toggled on and off for midstream insertions and deletions. Text ahead of CP is moved right during insertion and left during deletion if insert mode is on.

• Column position is displayed at all times.

• Bomb proof — all unused control codes are trapped.

• Must be used with a CRT that has cursor addressing or with a memory mapped video.

• Send check or money order in the amount ot $50.00 and receive complete source code, flowcharts, documentation, and instructions for bringing up on your system.

KV33 CORPORATION

P.O. BOX 27246 TUCSON, AZ 85726 (602) 889-5722

^^

Circle 83 on inquiry card.

Circle 144 on inquiry card.

Circle 219 on inquiry card.

SPECIALS on INTEGRATED CIRCUITS

6502 7.45 10/6.95 50/6.55 100/6.15

6502A/6512A 8.40 10/7.95 50/7.35 100/6.90

6520 PIA 5.15 10/4.90 50/4.45 100/4.15

6522 VIA 6.45 10/6.10 50/5.75 100/5.45

6532 7.90 10/7.40 50/7.00 100/6.60

2114-L200 3.75 25/3.50 100/3.25

2114-1300 3.15 25/2.90 100/2.65

2716 EPROM 7.00 5/6.45 10/5.90

2532 EPROM 14.50

Bl 16 Hlt*ckl 2K t B CMOS RAM 14.50

4116-200 II RAM (NEC) 8 lir 19

Zero Insertion Force 24 pin Socket 2.00

6550 RAM (PET 8K) 12.70

S-100 Wire- Wrap Socket 2.40

A P Products 15% OFF APHobby-Blox 15% OFF

THE STAR MODEM

Frm Pnitlct/UnnMri Did Syitimi

RS232 MODEM SALE $128

IEEE 408 MODEM SALE $199

RS232 CCITT $170

IEEE 488 CCITT $270

We carry Apple 11+ from Bell & Howell

fullFORTH ! lor Apple II $75

A lull-featured FORTH with enhancements Conforms to FORTH Interest Group standards.

FORTH lor PET by Cargile/Riley $50

Full FIG model with all 79 Standard extensions. Metacompiler lor FORTH for independent object code 30

KMMM PASCAL for PET/CBM $85

Includes translator for true machine language object code.

EARL for PET/CBM 65

Editor, Assembler, Relocator, Linkeditor.

SuperGraphlcs - BASIC Language Extensions 30

Fast Machine Language Graphics routines for PET/CBM.

SM-KIT - Super PET/CBM ROM based Utilities 40

SubSORT (or PET/CBM by James Strasma 35

Flexible general purpose machine language sort routine.

PiperMate 60 Command Word Processor (Riley) 40 Full-featured CBM/PET version with tape or disk text files.

FLEX-FILE Data Base/Report Writer/Mall List 60

Versatile PET/CBM data handling system by Michael Riley.

4 Part Music System for PET/CBM $60

Includes Visible Music Monitor and D/A Converter.

H commodore

CBM-PET SPECIALS

list SALE

8032 80 x 25 CRT. business keyboard (1495) 1100

Micro Mainframe (1995) 1600

8096 Board (extra 64 K RAM for 8032) (500) 400

8050 Dual Disk Drive- 1 megabyte (1795) 1375

8250 Dual Disk Drive - 2 megabyte (2195) 1760

CBM IEEE Modem (395) 199

4016 full size graphics keyboard (995) 795

4032 full size graphics keyboard (1295) 999

4040 Dual Disk Drive - 330.000 bytes (1295) 999

2031 Single Disk Drive - 165,000 bytes (695) 560

4022 Tractor Feed Printer (795) 630

C2N External Cassette Deck (75) 65

VIC 20 Color Computer (299) 269

VIC 1515 Graphic Printer (395) 315

Used CBM/PET Computers CALL

8024-7 High Speed Printer (1995)1345

WE WILL MATCH ANY ADVERTISED PRICE

~***1ducational discounts ***

Buy 2 PET/CBM Computers, receive 1 FHEE

WordPro 3 Plus - 32K CBM. disk, printer WordPro 4 Plus - 8032. disk, printer OZZ Data Base System for CBM 8032 VISICALC for PET, ATARI, or APPLE SM-KIT - Sapor PET ROM Utlllttii Programmers Toolkit - PET ROM Utilities PET Spacemaker II ROM Switch 2 Meter PET to IEEE or IEEE to IEEE Cable Dust Cover for PET IEEE-Parallel Printer Interlace for PET IEEE-RS232 Printer Interface for PET The PET Revealed Library of PET Subroutines

200

300

335

155

40

35

36

40

7

110

120

17

17

RAM/ROM for PET/CBM 4K or 8K bytes of soft ROM with optional Bittory Backup. Adds extra RAM which can be write protected like ROM. 4K Version - $80 8K Version - $120 Battery Backup - $30

EPROM Programmer for CBM/PET 79

Branding Iron with software/hardware for 2716 and 2532.

Watanabe

Intelligent

Plotter

WATANABE WX467I Plotter WATANABE WX4675 6 pen Pttttor

DISK SPECIALS

10/2.75 50/2.65 100/2.60

10/2.80 50/2.70 100/2.65

10/3.45 50/3.35 100/3.20

10/2.45 50/2.40 100/2.35 plastic storage box)

10/2.40 20/2.35 100/2.30

10/2.70 50/2.60 100/2.50

10/2.75 50/2.65 100/2.55

WE STOCK MAXELL DISKS

Diskette Storage Pages 10 for 3.95

Disk Library Cases 8" - 2.85 5"-2.15

Disk Hub Rings 8" - 50 for 7.50 5" - 50 for 6.00

SCOTCH (3M) 5" SCOTCH (3M) 8" Verbatim 8" Double Dens. Verbatim 5" Datalife (add 1.00 for Verbatim 5" BASF 5" soft Wabash 5" in Plastic Box Wabash 8" in Plastic Box

CASSETTES - AGFA PE-611 PREMIUM

High output, low noise, 5 screw housings. C-10 10/.56 50/.50 100/48

C-30 10/.73 50/.68 100/66

All other lengths available. Write for price list.

SPECIALS

EPSON MX-BO Prtater EPSON MX-BO F/T Printer EPSON MX-70 Printar EPSON MX-100 Printer

Centronics 739 Printer with dot graphics STARWfllTER Daisy Wheel Printer

Zenith ZVM-121 Green Phosphor Monitor Amdek Color Monitor

675 1445

115 355

ALL BOOK and SOFTWARE PRICES DISCOUNTED

OSBORNE/McGraw-Hill, HAYDEN, SYBEXetc.

ZENITH DATA SYSTEMS

Z19 Video Terminal (VT-52 compatible) 725

ZVM-121 Green Phosphor Monitor 115

Z89 with 48K 2150

Extra 16K RAM Board 115

Z47 Dual 8" Drive 2775

Synertek Systems

SYM-l Microcomputer SALE Z05

SYM BAS-1 BASIC or RAE 1/2 Assembler 85

KTM-2/80 Synertek Video and Keyboard 349

KTM-3/80 Synertek Tubeless Terminal 385

ATARI"

SPECIALS

800 Computer 400 - 16K 810 Disk Drive 825 Printer 850 Interface 822 Printer Paddle Pair Joystick Pair 16KRAM Assembler/Editor TeleLink

Write for

749

329

449

629

139

359

17

17

85

46

20

DOS 2 21

Pilot 68

Microsoft BASIC 68

Educ. Series 20% off

MISSILE COMMAND 32

ASTEROIDS

STAR RAIDERS

Space Invaders

Music Composer

Chess

Super Breakout

32 32

17 45 30 30

prices on other Atari items.

REVERSAL (Spracklen) 32K Apple 28.00

Data Manager (Lutus) 24 K Apple 40.00

Energy Miser - PET, Apple, Zenith 24.50

Histo-Graph (Boyd) 48K Apple 24.50

Data-Graph (Boyd) 48K Apple 40.00

Apple II User's Guide (Osborne) 12 00

Introduction to Pascal (Sybex) 10.30

Pascal Handbook (Sybex) 12.00

Musical Applications of Micros (Chamberlin) 20.00

Basic FORTRAN (Coan) 7.25

252 Bethlehem Pike Colmar, PA 18915

2158227727 A B Computers

WRITE FOR CATALOG

Add $1.25 per order (or shipping. We pay balance ol UPS surface charges on all prepaid orders. Prices listed are on cash discount basis. Regular prices slightly higher. Prices subject to change.

Circle 3 on Inquiry card.

A ATARI*

Atari 80016K 810.00 16K RAM 85.00

Atari 800 48K 950.00 Atari 050 Interface 176.00

Atari 810 Disk 460.00 Atari 830 Modem 156.00

Atari 400 16K 379.00 Microsoft Basic 72.00

TELECOMMUNICATIONS PACKAGES

Base Unit, A8S0, A830, TeleLink I

with 800: $1150.00 with 400: $710.00

PLUS FREE NOVATION SUPERMIKE!

The Bit Bucket is a company made up of computer professionals. We are able to provide low prices as well as technical support. Give us a call and find out why we consider the Atari the best home computer on the market today. You won't be disappointed.

The Bit Bucket

Specializing in Atari Home Computers

P.O. Box 365

Newton Highlands, MA 02161

(617)964-3080

TRY! OUR $99 PORT SELECTOR

Good tor APPLE, ATARI, PET, TRS 80, ALTOS. . as well as IBM, DEC, HIP, WANG, UNIVAC etc..

«w\mwww\ ssSsiSNSSS*^

Our $99 switch will save you money and aggravation. Share your printer, modem etc. The selection is made by turning the front panel knob. Our 2 Pos. "S8AB" can connect one printer lo two CPU's. It can also be used to connect one CPU to either a printer or a modem. We also have 3 Pos. units. In fact we have about 30 models to satisfy all the common applications. We offer a 5 year Warranty, and our units have a unique monitoring capability. Call us for a FREE colorful catalog. DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED! Call (415) 493-1300

450 San Antonio Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94306

Circle 49 on inquiry card.

Circle 176 on inquiry card.

Circle 5 on Inquiry card.

FULL

ELIZA

FOR YOUR MICRO!

AT LAST' A FULL IMPLEMENTATION of the original ELIZA program is now available to run on your microcomputer!

Created at MIT in 1966, ELIZA has become the world's most celebrated artiticia! intelligence demonstration program. ELIZA is a non-direclive psychotherapist who analyzes each statement as you type it in and then responds with her own comment or question — and ner remarks are often starthngly appropriate!

Designed to run on a large mainframe. ELIZA has hitherto been unavailable to personal computer users except in greatly stripped down versions lacking the sophistication which made the original program so fascinating.

Now. our new microcomputer version possessing the FULL power and range of expression of Ihe original is being ollered a! the introductory price of only $25. And if you want to find out how she does it (or teacn her to do morej we will include the complete Source Program for only S20 additional.

Order your copy of ELIZA today and you'll never again wonder how to respond when you hear someone say "Okay, let's see what this computer of yours can actually do!"

ELIZA IS AVAILABLE IN THE FOLLOWING DISK FORMATS:

$25 ft

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE RESEARCH GROUF

921 NORTH LA JOLLA AVENUE MBMB LOS ANGELES. CALIFORNIA 90046 VKA' I (213) 656-7368 (213) 654-2214 '' MC, VISA and CHECKS ACCEPTED

""""Heath Users

Double Your disk storage capacity without adding a drive.

Get twice as much from your H88 or H89 microcomputer. Our FDC-880H floppy disk controller, in conjunction with your 51/]" drives, for example, expands memory capacity from 256 bytes to 512 bytes per sector.

And it handles single and doublesided, single and double-density. 8" and 5'/j" drives — simultaneously.

Call 714/275-1272 today or write for details.

Ol

C.D.R. Systems Inc.

Controlled Data Recording Systems, Inc. 7fi67 Vickers St., San DieKo, CA 92111

PLOTTING SOFTWARE Calcomp compatible, for

EPSON and HIPLOT with CPM, FORTRAN, and BASIC

8 B 8 d

PLOTWARE-z 8" Manuals only PLOTWARE-z samples * Refundable on order

.390 ..35

ENERCOUP

P.O.BOX 28014

Lakewood, Colo.

B022B

303-988-164B

PLOTTaRE

OPTIOHa

Unpa Chart*

DrafUni

Scientific

Character*.

Terminal

Umilllt Inn

PLOTWARE-z draw thli ad

Circle 33 on Inquiry card.

Circle 63 on inquiry card.

Circle 166 on inquiry card.

QUAD SERIAL I/O CARD

S-100 Solder-Masked four-serial-channel I/O Interface Card with

•->4 "hardware" UARTS (no software initialization required).

->RS-232 printer handshaking on all four channels.

-- > Occupies any 8 consecutive ports starting at any eight port boundry from 0 to F8 hex.

~> Individually selected baud rate, word size, parity, number of stop bits, polarity of status word.

--> Timed, latched interrupt generator for system clock or type-ahead or multi-user polling system—ideal for Z80 mode 1 interrupt operation. Uses SINTA to clear interrupt.

-->Pre-jumpered for 9600 baud, emulating 8251 status, 8 bit data with 2 stop bits, no parity. Full documentation supplied to custom configure the card.

$250.00 wired and tested.

Oklahoma Buyers add 4%

Micronics, Inc.

2834 N.W. 39th Oklahoma City, OK 73112

MINI-DISK DRIVES NOW $219

Mini-Disk

Drives as shown

$219 each + shipping

& sales tax where

applicable

Manufacturer's Overstock of Tandon Model TM 100 5-V4" Single Sided Floppy Disk Drives

• Shugart SA 400 connector compatible

• Rated for single and double density operation

• 1724K bits (215.5K bytes) capacity

(unformatted MFM)

• 5 msec track-to-track step rate

• Write protect option included

• 48 tracks per inch

■ Plus more..

falDilB

CALDISK

Box 555, Provo, UT 84603

(801) 375-0000

TWX 9109715889

Phone orders welcome with MasterCharge and Visa.

OAE's PP-Series EPROM Programmers plug directly into any vacant EPROM socket and allow you to transfer data directly from RAM to EPROMs. No additional power supplies are required. All timing & control sequences are handled by the programmer. Each unit includes internal DC to DC switching regulator, ZIF socket and 4 ft. ribbon cable terminated with a 24 pin plug. Programmers are available for all EPROMs from 2708's thru 2532's.

Oliver Advanced Engineering, inc.

675 W. Wilson Ave., Glendale, CA 91203

(213) 240-0080 or Telex 194773.

PP SERIES PROGRAMMERS

Circle 270 on Inquiry card.

Circle 4B on inquiry card.

Circle 473 on inquiry card.

yc/t

P.O. Box 4430X Santa Clara, CA 95054

ELECTRONICS

INTEGRATED CIRCUITS

Will calls: 2322 Walsh Ave. (408) 988-1640 TWX 910-338-2139

Same day shipment. First line parts only. Factory tested. Guaranteed money back. Quality IC's and other components at factory prices.

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CMOS

C040M CDJOOl CD4003 C040O5 CDJO07 CO40OB CD 4009 Ca-iOiD C0401I CD4012 CD4013 CD40I4 CD40I5 CD4016 CD40I7 CD4Q1R CD40I9 CD4070 CD402I nr)40?2 cn40?.i

CD4024 CQ4D23

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?1!4L45Dns 4 00

4116 200ns 2 95 84!l6200riiia IP

MM576? 40

MM52B0 3 0!)

MM5370 9 95

MM5330 1 94

PD4MD-3 400

PD4I1D-4 5 00

PSiOIL 8 95

420OA 9 95

B2S25 2 90 91L02A WJ0165-S

f.!l,1:i7IOO GI AV.Ifi ;■(!!)

100 pm vilnr WW i 75

IC SOCKETS Solder Tin Low Profile PIN I UP PIN 1UP

KEYBOARDS

55 ley ASCII keyEoa'd ta

fully assemBied

53»ey ASCII keyboard «

lul>, assembled

tncinsine Plastic

Matal Enctosute

S67 50 77 50 60 00 70 00 14 95 29.95

fi 95

1100

350

WIRE WRAP LEI/EL 3

CLOCKS

MM 5.11! 530

MM5312 3 90

MM53T4 3 90

MM5369 7 10

MU5841 14 45

MM5E65 7 95

CT7O10 8 95

CT7015 8 95

MM5375AA'N .1 9U

MM5375AG/N 4 90 7205

7207 7708

7209

DS0026CN DS0056CN MM53104

6504 6572 6530 T.B00 6802

7 50 15 95

685D B080A 6085

B2I6 S224 8728 8251 8253 8255 B257 8759

1802CPp1as 13 95

1802DP pl.is 17 95

I8GTP 9 50

COP1802CD 78 95

CDP18020 ^5 00

20 MH? 1 W

32 MM/ J.90

32766 M? J 00

i K-:;;1 \v«: 4 50

3 5795 MH/ ! 20

7 0100 MM/ 195

2 097152 MR: 4 50

2 4576 M«: 4 50

3 2768 MM; 4 50 a oens MHl : SO 5 185 MH: 1 bit 5 714JMH; 4 50

•-, ssifi MM: 1 50

II IIHI8MH: 4 25

IH 4;i7 MH: 4 50

77I184MH: 150 KEYBOARD ENCODERS

AY5-2176 S12 50

AY5 1600 17 95

AY5-9100 10 50

AY5 9200 15 50

74C977 5 50

74C923 5 50

1 HD0165 5 6 95

■ AYfi 140U 10 50

0 Connectors RS232

. nB?5P 3 62

, DB2SS 5 2D

i Cove' 1 67

i OE9S 1 95

i DA15P 2 10

i DA15S 3 10

Cnrnpl.'lc <u'l 9 5(1

Gr«n Ofanqe Ye«o* Jumbo 25

Cliplile LED Mgunling Clips 8 51 25 ispeofy red amber green yednvir ctcjri

CONIINEHTAL SPECIALTIES 10 slock Cnmn'i-tt lr.ro' tire^Mtic.inl Tc.1 cniup

max I DO 8 digil Fteq Cli 1149 95

Complete line ol AP Ptoducls in

SPECfAL PRODUCTS

Smlchei Mam Pusnbullun 27

1 pns slide 75

Encoder H0Q165-5 6 95 P»r*ltonlcs Model ID Tiiggiir

E.panflerKil S229 00 Model 150 Bus

r,nmt' Kd 5369 OD

Clock Calendar Kil S23 95 2 5 MHi Freqoenty

Coonler Kil J37 50 30 MHi Fierjuency

Counter KM 147.75

TRANSFORMERS

6V 300 ma 3 75

17 Vol! ?amn j-jIi pliin 7 96

I7f.n?atnp 5 95

I? 6 CT 4 smp 9 4S

1? 6 CI 8 amp 17 45

U'uVCTSOOma 3 75

1?V 250 ma wall (fluo 2 95 12V CT 250 ms wall plug 3 75

74V CI 100 ma 3 95

10V 1 7 amp wan plug 4 85

1?VGamp 17 95

12V 500 ma *«il plilll 4 75

17V 1 amp wall pluq 6 50 IOI5VACaifiVAw.illplii(| 9 75 DISPLAY LEDS

CA CA 300 T

CC 300 I

D1707DL7O7R CA 300 1

8T13 BT20 BT23 8T24 8T25

2102AL-4 2I02AN ?L 2104A-4 21078-1

2111-1

2112-7

UARTJFIF0 AY5-1013 AY5-I0N

PROM

1702 A 4 &0

2532 19 75

7706 4 70

2716TI 8 50

2716 5 Volt 6.50

8.2716 5 Vol! 48 00 2732

Hickok3"iDigilLEOmui

89.95

Siopwalch Kil

2G.95

Auto Clock Kit

17.95

Digilal Clock Kit

19.75

OK'IEK Epiom Ki

MDlherbDirrJ

5 .- '

Eitendtr Board

$15 00

ni7?7?2fl m 747 75.0 FND3S9 FHD^OO 507 FND503 510 7HOBO0BO7 ilinil Bubble

CM CC 500 1

CA CC BOO I

CC 357

CC CA 500 I

CC CA 500

CCCA 800 ?

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0 Claire IIL3H Mt. MAII3540 MAII461D MAN4B40 ','•'■'.:■ MAN47iD MAM3M40 MAMi71(i MANB740

splay

CA 40 1 70

CC 40 1 20

CA 40 95

CC 40 I 70

CC 56 1 15

CA GO I 35

CC 00 1 35

S748

8743B

A755A

W82S23

N82SI73

7JB3S126

ri52Si:g

7482SI3I

n.'i:snn

N82S137 [1M8577 8223

14 55 00

DIP Switches 4-pn;ilion S 95 7

5-pn5ilion 1 On I 6-pnsition 1 00

MAI002A. C. E

MAI012A

102P3 Itamloimei

MAI0I2A Irafljloime'

Televideo Teimlr

8.95

MOO

972 S7B5 00 tl 970 SB85 00

4116 200ns Dynamic RAM 8/S18.40

PROM Eraser

assembled. 25 PROM capacity $37.50 (will, timer $69.50). 6 PROM capacity OSHA/ UL version $78.50 (with timer $108.50).

Z80 Microcomputer

16 bit I/O. 2 MHz clock. 2K RAM. ROM Breadboard space. Excellent lor control. Bare Board $28.50. Full Kil $99.00. Monitor $20.00. Power Supply Kit $35.00. Tiny Basic $30.00

S-100 Computer Boards

8K Static Godbout Econo IIA Kit 149.00 16K Static Godbout Econo XIV Kil 269.00 24K Static Godboul Econo XX-24 Kil 414 00 32K Static Godbout Econo XX-32 Kit 537.00 I6K Dynamic RAM Kit 289.00

32K Dynamic RAM Kit 328.00

64K Dynamic RAM Kit 399.00

Video Interlace Kit $161.00

Color Video Kit 129.95

81 IC Update Master Manual $79.95

Comp. IC data selector. 2 vol. master reference guide. Over 51.000 cross references. Free update service through 1981. Domestic postage $4.75.

Modem Kit $60.00

State of the art. orig., answer. No tuning necessary. 103 compatible 300 baud. Inexpensive acoustic coupler plans included. Bd. Only $17.00. Article in June Radio Electronics.

Gremlin Color Video Kit $69.95

32 x 16 alpha/numerics and graphics; up to 8 colors with 6847 chip; 1K RAM at E000. Plugs into Super Elf 44 pin bus. No high res. graphics. On board RF Modulator Kit $4.95

NiCad Battery Fixer/Charger Kit

Opens shorted cells thai won't hold a charge and then charges them up, all in one kil w/full parts and instructions. $9.95

Rockwell AIM 65 Computer

6502 based single board wilti full ASCII keyboard and 20 column thermal printer. 20 char, alphanumeric display, ROM monitor, fully expandable. $405.00. 4K version $450.00. 4K Assembler $85.00, 8K Basic Interpreter $100.00.

Special small power supply for AIM65 assem. in frame $54.00. Complete AIM65 in thin briefcase with power supply $499.00. Molded plastic enclosure to fit both AIM65 and power supply $47.50. Special Package Price: 4K AIM. 8K Basic, power supply, cabinet $625.00.

AIM65/KIM/VIM/Super Elf 44 pin expansion board; 3 female and 1 male bus. BoanJ plus 3 connectors $22.95.

60 Hz Crystal Time Base Kit $4.40

Converts digital clocks from AC line frequency to crystal time base. Outstanding accuracy.

Video Modulator Kit $9.95

Convert TV set into a high quality monitor w/o affecting usage. Comp. kit w/full instruc.

Multi-volt Computer Power Supply

8v 5 amp, ± 18v .5 amp, 5v 1.5 amp. -5v .5 amp, 12v .5 amp, -12v option. ±5v, :t12v are regulated. Basic Kit $35.95. Kit with chassis and all hardware $51.95. Add S5.00 shipping. Kit of hardware $16.00. Woodgrain case $10.00. S1.50 shipping.

RCA Cosmac 1802 Super Elf Computer $106.95

Compare features before you decide to buy any other computer. There is no other computer on the market today that has all the desirable benefits of the Super Ell for so little money. The Super Elf is a small single board computer that does many big things. It is an excellent computer for training and for learning programming with its machine language and yet it is easily expanded with additional memory, Full Basic, ASCII Keyboards, video character generation, etc. Before you buy another small computer, see if it includes the following features: ROM monitor: State and Mode displays: Single step: Optional address displays; Power Supply; Audio Amplifier and Speaker; Fully socketed for all IC's; Real cost of in warranty repairs; Full documentation. The Super Ell includes a ROM monitor for program loading, editing and execution with SINGLE STEP lor program debugging which is not included in others at the same price. With SINGLE STEP you can see the microprocessor chip operating with the unique Quest address and data bus displays before, during and after executing instructions. Also, CPU mode and instruction cycle are decoded and displayed on 8 LED indicators. An RCA 1861 video graphics chip allows you to connect to your own TV with an inexpensive video modulator to do graphics and games. There is a speaker system included for writing your own music or using many music programs already written. The speaker amplifier may also be used to drive relays for control purposes. A 24 key HEX keyboard includes 16 HEX keys

plus load, reset, run, wait, input, memory protect, monitor select and single step. Large, on board displays provide output and optional high and low address. There is a 44 pin standard connector slot for PC cards and a 50 pin connector slot for the Quest Super Expansion Board. Power supply and sockets for all IC's are included in the price plus a detailed 127 pg. instruction manual which now includes over 40 pgs. of software info, including a series of lessons to help get you started and a music program and graphics target game. Many schools and universities are using the Super Elf as a course of study. OEM's use it for training and R&D. Remember, other computers only offer Super Elf features at additional cost or not at all. Compare before you buy. Super Elf Kit $106.95. High address option $8.95, Low address option $9.95. Custom Cabinet with drilled and labelled plexiglass front panel $24.95. All metal Expansion Cabinet, painted and silk screened, with room for 5 S-100 boards and power supply $57.00. NICad Battery Memory Saver Kit $6.95. All kits and options also completely assembled and tested.

Questdata. a software publication for 1802 computer users is available by subscription for $12.00 per 12 issues. Single issues $1.50. Issues 1-12 bound $16.50.

Free 14 page brochure.

of complete Super Elf system.

Moews Video Graphics $3.50. Games and Music $3.00. Chip 8 Interpreter $5.50.

Super Expansion Board with Cassette Interface $89.95

This is truly an astounding value! This board has been designed to allow you to decide how you want it optioned. The Super Expansion Board comes with 4K ol low power RAM fully addressable anywhere in 64K with built-in memory protect and a cassette interlace. Provisions have been made for ail other options on the same board and it fits neatly into the hardwood cabinet alongside the Super EH. The board includes slots for up to 6K of EPROM (2708, 2758, 2716 or Tl 2716) and is fully socketed. EPROM can be used forthe monitor and Tiny Basic or other purposes. A IK Super ROM Monitor $19.95 is available as an on board option in 2708 EPROM which has been preprogrammed with a program loader/ editor and error checking multi file cassette read/write software, (relocatable cassette file) another exclusive from Quest. It includes register save and readout, block move capability and video graphics driver with blinking cursor. Break

Quest Super Basic V5.0

A new enhanced version of Super Basic now

available. Quest was the first company worldwide to ship a full size Basic for 1802 Systems. A complete function Super Basic by Ron Cenker including floating point capability with scientific notation (number range ±.17E"). 32 bit integer ±2 billion; multi dim arrays, string arrays; string manipulation; cassette I/O; save and load, basic, data and machine language programs; and over 75 statements, functions and operations.

points can be used with the register save feature to isolate program bugs quickly, then follow with single step. If you have the Super Expansion Board and Super Monitor the monitor is up and running at the push of a button. Other on board options include Parallel Input and Output Ports with full handshake. They allow easy connection of an ASCII keyboard to the input port RS 232 and 20 ma Current Loop for teletype or other device are on board and if you need more memory there are two S-100 slots for static RAM or video boards. Also a 1K Super Monitor version 2 with video driver for full capability display with Tiny Basic and a video interface board. Parallel I/O Ports $9.85, RS 232 $4.50, TTY 20 ma l/F $1.95, S-100 $4.50. A 50 pin connector set with ribbon cable is available at $15.25 for easy connection between the Super Elf and the Super Expansion Board. Power Supply Kit for the complete system (see Multi-volt Power Supply).

New improved faster version including renumber and essentially unlimited variables.

Also, an exclusive user expandable command library.

Serial and Parallel I/O included. Super Basic on Cassette $55.00.

Type-N-Talk by Votrax

Text to speech synthesizer with unlimited vocabulary, built-in text to speech algorithm, 70 to 100 bits per second speech synthesizer, RS232C interface $345.00.

1802 16K Dynamic RAM Kit $149.00

Expandable to 64K. Hidden refresh w/clocks up to 4 MHz w/no wait states. Addl. 16K RAM $25.00 Tiny Basic Extended on Cassette $15.00

(Added commands include Stringy, Array, Cassette I/O etc.) S-100 4-slot expansion $ 9.95 Super Monitor VI.I Source Listing $15.00

Elf II Adapter Kit $24.95

Plugs into Elf II providing Super Elf 44 and 50 pin plus S-100 bus expansion. (With Super Expansion). High and low address displays, state and mode LEO's optional $18.00.

Super Color S-100 Video Kit $129.95

Expandable to 256 x 192 high resolution color graphics. 6847 with all display modes computer controlled. Memory mapped. 1K RAM expandable to 6K. S-100 bus 1802.8080.8085. Z80 etc. Dealers: Send lor excellent pricing/margin program.

Editor Assembler $25.00

(Requires minimum of 4K for E/A plus user

source)

1802 Tiny Basic Source listing $19.00

Super Monitor V2.0/2.1 Source Listing $20.00

TERMS: $5.00 mln. order U.S. Funds. Calif residents add 6% tax.

$10.00 mln. BankAmericard and Master Charge accepted. $1.00 insurance optional. Postage: Add 5%. COD. $10.00 mln. order.

FREE: Send for your copy of our NEW 1981 QUEST CATALOG. Include 48c stamp.

Circle 356 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

531

Hu-aa inc.

v ■ i'/M

. «\ ^ ^/' ^

« ^ "i S « '♦»■.» • »sr '. i-*^

:. ,« < * •„„

- ' -■■BBg

7l% • •■■■Blffl

E-Z-80 ENTRY KIT

A Z-80 Micro Computer with CPU: CTC: PIO: Prom Programmer: Read Outs: Key Pad: Onboard ROM & RAM: Wire Wrap: DC Regulator: Manual & Instructions.

Kit Price 39(HS

P.O. BOX 501—KAUFMAN, TEXAS (USA)— 7;" 142 A Subsidiary of Palriek Computer Systems, Inc., manufacturer of the ic436 inlergrated business computer.

STD BUS

TIMER/COUNTER CARD

• Real Time Clock

• Event Counters

• Programmable Time Delays

• Stepping Motor Controllers

• Programmable Rate Generator

The Arcturus 8053 timer/counter card features nine 16-bit programmable registers. Each register may be used for timing or counfing. The card also provides RS-232 receivers and transmitters for serial communications with terminals, printers, data loggers, and other computers.

$175 Arcturus

P.O. Box 271, Wayland, MA 01778 (617) 358-4319

EPSON

DOT MATRIX PRINTERS SUPER DISCOUNTS ON

MX-80F/T loTr, NOW

MX-80 MX-100

£499"

LOWER'

IN

LOWERi b I ULI\

We also stock direct connect cables for TRS-80, Apple, Atari, Pet or RS 232

CALL TOLL FREE

1 -800-344-7493

In CA and for service (209) 667-2888

©

GRAPHICS ROM'S AVAILABLE

/VWCROTRONICS.inc.. IS

Circle 217 on Inquiry card.

Circle 8 on inquiry card.

Circle 236 on inquiry card.

Do you need software?

Call a Specialist!

Computer Software Specialists will write custom-designed software to meet your exact application needs. We deal with CP/M and other micro-mini operating systems.

Applications include: —Diagnostics, Utilities, Software Tools —Operating System Implementation —Custom Device Drivers —Unique User Applications

All software is written according to your specifications, and is reviewed by our qualified staff of computer professionals.

For a free evaluation and time/cost analysis, send your design specifications and requirements to:

I COMPUTER 5 SOFTWARE 5 SPECIALISTS

PO Box 57 Linthicum Md 21090 (301)789-2988

s

ful for quality comPonEivrs

ILUDER

»•* ELECTRONICS^

ORDERS CALL 8-5 PST TECHNICAL CALL 8-10

ALL ASSEM3LED 8 TESTED CPU Z Bfflz CSC $308 CPU Z Wz $ 179

CPU 8085/88 CSC 391 DISK 1 371

CPffSO FOR Dl 135 CPiT85 FOR Dl 235 SYSTEM SUPPORT 1 297 Ifflz 95LKINTEU 235 INTERFACER 1,11 187 INTERFACER 3 (5) 167 RAM 20 32K 125 RAM 17 61K 821

ENCLOSURE 2 DESK 619 ENCLOSURE 2 RACK 671 6MHz CPU Z SYSTEM 64K DUAL 8" DRIVES 3895 6Mfe CPU 8085/88 SYSTEM 6W DUAL 8" 3995 SYSTEMS HAVE 18 HOUR BOARD EXCHANGE 1 YEAR EPSON rKlOO 765 VISTA V1000 DR CAB 375 TELEVir£0 910,920J950,SYSTEHI,II,III CALL

AffEX DIAL, 80 WORD STAR

950 ADDS VIEW POINT 290 SORCIM SUPERCALC

519 235

ALL PRICES AND SPECS SUBJECT TO CHANGE *CPH IS A TRADEHARK OF DIGITAL RESEARCH

SHIPPING EXTRA

'PD box. qsi

•iHESTrhmsTEB en qabtJi^ ■ lit ■sis nib

DRV ELECTRONICS

FLOPPY DISK DRIVE SYSTEMS

CANADA'S No. 1 DISK DRIVE

CENTRE

Personal Computer Users—TRS80

DRV Electronics Offers

MP1 Drive 51 with power supply & case. Can $499

Percom Doubler II Can $250

Percom Data Separator Can $49.95

Percom Drive Kits for Model III also available. Full Warranty. Complete repair service. Immediate delivery on all mail orders.

^

Authorized Percom Dealer and Service Centre

am

ELECTRONICS

15100 -40TH AVE., SURHEY B.C. CANADA V3S4N7

Circle 93 on inquiry card.

Circle 381 on Inquiry card.

INTRODUCING

Epson® MX70/MX80

Replacement Ribbon

Cartridge

Aspen Ribbons, Inc. now manufactures the Epson® MX70/MX80 ribbon cartridge which is available in standard black and new colors: blue, green, red. and brown. Call for color details.

• Fast delivery

• Low price

• Order Toll Free 1-800-525-0646

aspen ribbons Inc. • 1700 n. 55th

boulder, Colorado 80301-2796 (303)444-4054 or 1-800-525-0646

## SUPER ## ISA's DATABASE

The only DBMS with all these features:

•k PROVEN in one year of test marketing

• TOUGH, reliable file structure

-k M ENU driven for simplicity and easy use

• ARITHMETIC with stored calculations -*- FAST set-up and report formating

■k CLEAR user-oriented documentation

• PRINTS totals & subtotals- mail labels

• REFORMATS and merges data files

• MULTI-DISK files: Up to 128K records

• SORTS full disks on up to 40 fields

• PRODUCTION input of repetitive data + COUPLES to word processor & statistics + POSTS transactions to master file

• SEARCH by strings, ranges, comparisons

• DATA COMPRESSION: Over twice as many labels as the other system

For TRS-80* Models I, II, 6 III - 250.00

Ask your Dealer or Write:

Institute for Scientific Analysis, Inc.

P. O. Box 7186, Dept. B-l

Wilmington, DE 19803 (215)358-3735

*TM. Tandy Corp.

JOE COMPUTER PRESENTS WORD GRINDER

80,000

WORDS!

WORD GRINDER IS A DATA BASE OF OVER ,000 ENGLISH WORDS IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER WITH SPACES DELIMITING EACH WORD. THE TRS-80f AND APPLE VERSIONS INCLUDE A BASIC EDITOR FOR DISPLAYING OR EDITING THE DATA FILES USING RANDOM ACCESS. WORD GRINDER IS AVAILABLE FOR TRS-80 MODEL I, II, OR III. APPLE, CP/M, RT-I l/HT-l I OR ANSI TAPES PRODUCED ON A PDP-1 I. PRICES START AT S89.95 FOR MODEL I, III OR APPLE. SI24.95 FOR MODEL II. CP/M, RT-1 I OR ANSI TAPES. MAKE CHECKS PAYABLE TO: JOE COMPUTER — PHONE ORDERS AND INFORMATION: (2131 992-0514 SEND TO: JOE COMPUTER. 22713 VENTURA BLVD., SUITE F, WOODLAND HILLS. CA. 91364

CALIF. RESIDENTS ADD 6/SALES TAX t TRS-80 IS A TRADEMARK OF TANDY CORP.

Circle 453 on Inquiry card.

Circle 446 on Inquiry card.

Circle 215 on inquiry card.

DIGITAL RESEARCH COMPUTERS

(214) 271-3538

32K S-100 EPROM CARD NEW!

Blank PC Board - $34

ASSEMBLED & TESTED ADD $30

SPECIAL: 2716 EPROM's (450 NS) Are $9.95 Ea. With Above Kit.

KIT FEATURES' 1 Uses +5V only 2716 (2Kx8) EPROM's. 2. Allows up to 32K of software on line! 3 IEEE S-100 Compatible.

4. Addressable as two independent 16K blocks

5. Cromemco extended or Northstar bank select.

7 Any or all EPROM locations can be disabled

8. Double sided PC board, solder-masked, silk-screened.

9. Gold plated contact fingers.

10. Unselected EPROM's automatically powered down (or low power.

11, Fully bulfered and bypassed.

6. On board wait state circuitry if needed. 12. Easy and quick to assemble.

32K SS-50 RAM

$29900

KIT

For 2MHZ Add $10

Blank PC Board $50

a.

Iw» ■»

.aiiiiiti

taaatiiHtifiH

Ufc-V

ainiHR

■ SliUUBiaU

l*r •'

-laiMiii

lllMIIBItl

iir'v

•4IIHMBI

HHUflliHBi

as

m x mAm : 1

For SWTPC 6800 - 6809 Buss

Support IC's

and Caps

$19.95

Complete Socket Set

$21.00

Fully Assembled,

Tested, Burned In

Add $30

At Last! An affordable 32K Static RAM with full 6809 Capability.

FEATURES:

1. Uses proven low power 2114 Static RAMS.

2. Supports SS50C - EXTENDED ADDRESSING.

3. All parts and sockets Included.

4. Dip Switch address select as a 32K block.

5. Extended addressing can be disabled.

6. Works with all existing 6800 SS50 systems.

7. Fully bypassed. PC Board is double sided, plated thru, with silk screen.

16K STATIC RAM KIT-S 100 BUSS

PRICE CUT!

$1699k5,t

'..!"!'.."!"!!!

PRICE CUT!

16K STATIC RAM SS-50 BUSS

Hill HI Hill Ell ;SJf illllilllllll.il

FULLY STATIC!

BLANK PC BOARD W/DATA-S33

LOW PROFILE SOCKET SET-$12

SUPPORT IC'S & CAPS-S19.95

KIT FEATURES: .

1 Addressable as four separate 4K Blocks.

2 ON BOARD BANK SELECT circuitry. (Cromemco Standard'). Allows up to 512K on line!

3 Uses 2114 (450NS) 4K Static Rams

4 ■ ON BOARD SELECTABLE WAIT STATES.

5 Double sided PC Board, with solder mask and silk screened layout. Gold plated contact fingers 6. All address and data lines fully buffered ASSEMBLED & TESTED-ADD $35 7 Kit includes ALL parts and sockets.

8. PHANTOM is jumpered to PIN 67 9 LOW POWER: under 1.5 amps TYPICAL from the+8 Volt Buss

10 Blank PC Board can be populated as any multiple of 4K.

FOR 2MHZ ADD $10

FOR SWTPC 6800 BUSS!

OUR #1 SELLING RAM BOARD!

ASSEMBLED AND TESTED - $35

■

KIT FEATURES

1 Addressable on 16K Boundaries

2 Uses 2114 Static Ram 3. Fully Bypassed

4 Double sided PC Board Solder mask and silk screened layout

5 A'l Parts and Sockets included

6 Low Pnwe'" Under 1 5 Amps Typical

BLANK PC BOARD—$35 COMPLETE SOCKET SET—$12

SUPPORT IC'S AND CAPS—$19.95

«6\NV STEREO! fW

S-100 SOUND COMPUTER BOARD

COMPLETE KIT! $8495

(WITH DATA MANUAL)

At last, an S-100 Board that unleashes the full power of two unbelievableGeneral lnstrumentsAY3-8910NMOS computer sound IC's Allows you under total computer control to generate an infinite number of special sound effects for games or any other program. Sounds can be called in BASIC. ASSEMBLY LANGUAGE, etc. KIT FEATURES:

* TWO Gl SOUND COMPUTER IC'S. « FOUR PARALLEL I/O PORTS ON BOARD.

* USES ON BOARD AUDIO AMPS OR YOUR STEREO

* ON BOARD PROTO TYPING AREA.

» ALL SOCKETS. PARTS AND HARDWARE ARE INCLUDED. » PC BOARD IS SOLDERMASKED, SILK SCREENED. WITH GOLD CONTACTS.

* EASY. QUICK. AND FUN TO BUILD. WITH FULL INSTRUCTIONS. » USES PROGRAMMED I/O FOR MAXIMUM SYSTEM FLEXIBILITY. Both Basic and Assembly Language Programming examples are included

SOFTWARE:

SCL'" is now available! Our Sound Command Language makes writing Sound Effects programs a SNAP! SCL'" also includes routines for Register-Examine-Modify. Memory-Examine-Modify. and Play-Memory. SCL™ is available on CP/M* compatible diskette or 2708 or 2716. Diskette $24.95 2708 - $19.95 2716 - $29.95. Diskette includes the source. EPROM'S are ORG at E000H (Diskette Is 6 Inch Soil Sectored)

BLANK PC

BOARD W/DATA

$31

SPECIAL PURCHASE!

UART SALE!

TR1602B - SAME AS TMS6011, AY5-1013, ETC. 40 PIN DIP

TR1602B

$2

95

EACH

4 For $10

00

CRT CONTROLLER CHIP

SMC #CRT 5037. PROGRAMMABLE FOR 80 x 24, ETC. VERY RARE SURPLUS FIND. WITH PIN OUT. $12.95 EACH.

4K STATIC RAM

National Semi. MM5257. Arranged 4K x 1. +5V, 18 PIN DIP. A Lower Power, Plug in Replacement for TMS 4044. 450 NS. Several Boards on the Market Will Accept These Rams. SUPER SURPLUS PURCHASE! PRIME NEW UNITS! 8 FOR $16 32 for $59.95

NEW! G.I. COMPUTER SOUND CHIP

AY3-8910. As featured in July, 1979 BYTE! A fantastically powerlul Sound & Music Generator. Perfect for use with any 8 Bit Microprocessor Contains 3 Tone Channels. Noise Generator. 3 Channels of Amplitude Control 16 bit Envelope Period Control, 2-8 Bit Parallel I/O. 3 D to A Converters, plus much more1 All in one 40 Pin DIP. Super easy inlerface to the S-100 or other blisses. $11.95 PRICE CUT!

SPECIAL OFFER: $*4^95 each Add $3 for 60 page Data Manual.

Digital Research Computers

9 (OF TEXAS) '

P.O. BOX 401565 • GARLAND, TEXAS 75040 » (214) 271-3538

TERMS: Add $2.00 postage. We pay balance. Orders under $15 add 754 handling. No C.O.D. We accept Visa and MasterCharge. Tex. Res. add 5% Tax. Foreign orders (except Canada) add 20% P & H. Orders over $50. add 85<t for insurance.

•TRADEMARK OF DIGITAL RESEARCH.

WE ARE NOT ASSOCIATED WITH DIGITAL RESEARCH OF CALIFORNIA, THE SUPPLIERS OF CPM SOFTWARE.

Permanent anti-shock feature in carpet-top. vinyl back mats and matting. Great colors.

Call or write today for complete information.

J. Hubbard inc

Box 1274 —Nashua, NH 03061 (603) 882-3231

SoftWare

APPLE, PET, ATARI, TRS 80

• BUSINESS • GAMES • EDUCATION

You know there is an alternative to Retail Software Prices. We offer a fast, easy method of buying quality software at excellent discounts. Your software needs are our only business.

Circle reader service number for our current catalog.

Software Supply Corp.

P.O. Box 24322 Tampa, Fla. 33623

Smartmodem

• Auto-Answer • Auto-Dial • Repeat

• Programmable - Use Any Language

• Touch-Tone and Pulse Dialing

• Audio Monitor - Listen to Connection

• FCC-Approved Direct-Connect

• Full or Half Duplex. 0-300 Baud

• RS-232C Interface • 7 Status LED's

• Two Year Limited Warranty

$249

Send certified check or money order Allow two weeks for personal check Florida residents add 4% sales tax

♦

flC€ COMPUT€fl PRODUCTS

of Florida Inc.

1640 N.W. 3rd STREET DEERFIELD BEACH. FLA. 33441

Circle 189 on inquiry card.

Circle 469 on inquiry card.

Circle 6 on inquiry card.

I-OR UCSD PASCAL* SYSTEMS

$125 - DISPEL*** - your spelling woes. An interactive spelling corrector with on-line word look up, and dictionary maintenance.

$75 - INTELLECT-UL** LISP Complete LISP interpreter. $1000 - PDBASE*** - Entity

Relational Data-base. To be released soon. Info, available.

IOTC Inc. 910/Sully/Laramie, WY 82070

'Trademark Regents University of Calif. '♦Trademark AIIS Inc. ***Trademark IOTC Inc. (307)721-5818

The Computer Co-op will NOT be undersold on

TCSH sortmarel—I

General Ledger Accounts Payable Payroll Accounts Receivable

$75 ea OR $250 all 4

IJFlMil Inventory Management

ffWE WW. 0r(jer Ent|.y $ Call

Co-Op also has best prices on required Z80,

80-column, and CP/M (Digital Research's

trademark) products.

FREE Shipping

2795 Southwood, East Lansing, Ml 48823 (517)351-2632

VISA

zapi

NEW! S-lOO BUS COMPATIBLE

SINGLE BOARD COMPUTER WITH VIDEO OUTPUT

card.

FEATURES:

MHZ ^W)AV up 1.1 HK ol FPRONr .* luiK S^n.-RAM. !*uH Hrr mpul |KJtts, (Hwd-BIT ulput prill, one 6 HIT sense mpm pt:rl with rnlemipt, Compotil ml™ mirpul iSO.vW). vidcu attributes (levettt video, underime, blinking), yrapliir copabiKtto

PRICE:

Bare board wilh documentation $49.95

Monitor and ndeo terminal sohuare (in hPKOMI S45.0O

Source Lsnngs (inlh Monnor purchase) $15.00

Hard to lind Parts Kit (crystal and (use link PROM's) $

CAUFQNNOV HtSiatNTS *U0 e

Educational 1t»jiliii1Tii*"n*e,a

Wei oiwiiipimi1

EMS!

) HOX I

1HVI>

Circle 206 on Inquiry card.

Circle 84 on Inquiry card.

Circle 155 on Inquiry card.

DIGITAL SPEECH PROCESSORS

FROM $25 TO $250

BARE BOARDS TO COMPLETE

PLUG-IN SYSTEMS

"Newly Patented Technique "Highly Intelligible Speech "Low Data Rates "Standard Components "Quick Delivery

Major Applications Include...

"User-Recorded Voice "Speech Playback "Speech Recognition "Music Synthesis

Interfaces lor...

"Radio Shack TRS-80 "STD Bus

"Cromemco TU-ART "S-100 Bus

"Apple II Plus "Sinclair ZX-80

"TTL Parallel Port "More to Come

Call or Write. . .

Mimic, Inc.

MIMIC ActonJVIA 01720 ' (617)263-2101

Heath/Zenith 89 Users

16K MEMORY EXPANSION CARD

4pSRfe|fe, to make a

H/Z89 a 64K

jn/Hj machine.

Assembled

and Tested

^^™^ $100.00

COMPUTER TABLES

60x28x28

$186.40 ""V---.-/

48x28x28 -\fcix 1t\

$162.40 i s^Wm

Shelves Available \ '

PRINTER Si AND $75.00

5""w, ' •/"

'jrtmrM data v^*^ | systems

AUTHORIZED SERVICE CENTER

SECURED C

:OMPUTER SYSTEMS

1201 1 Aclare St. • Cerritos, CA 90701

(213) 924-6741 Shipping not included

'4950

MSI-8085 Complete System!

A totally integrated system complete &

ready to run. Nothing Else to Buy.

List !5937°°

Special Introductory Price

OO Qty discounts available Dealers inquiries invited features: •8085 Based Computer with 64K

Memory and 3 Serial RS-232 Ports •Dual 8" floppy 1 Meg Storage •120 CPS 132 Col. Matrix line printer •80 x 24 Crt •CP/M*' includes manual •Microsoft Basic* includes manual Full Accounting Software with sources For full information call:

618 277-7990

MAYBERRY SYSTEMS, INC.

1710 Boul Avenue—Belleville, IL 62221

Circle 280 on inquiry card.

Circle 377 on Inquiry card.

Circle 242 on inquiry card.

Computers, Oisk System

data systems

_ Z89-FA

II List $2895 I OUR PRICE

■ $2395

•%

Z-89GA

List $2595, Less Disk $2149

A-87 Two Drive

Minifloppy System List $1195 $989

Z-47DA $3695

8" Two Megabyte Disk System

List $3695 $3059

IIMTERSYSTEMS

formerly ITHACA AUDIO

The new Series II CPU Board features a 4 MHz 2-80A CPU and a full-feature front panel. 20slot actively terminated motherboard, with 25 amp power supply (50/60 Hz operation, incl. 68cfmfan). DPS-1. List $2195 CALL FOR price

COMPLETE SYSTEM with InterSystem 64K HAM, I/O Board and double (lunsily disk controllei board, Lisl $3795

CALL FOR PRICE

NEW!

L*| Crofflgmco

SYSTEM ZERO/D

A complete 64K Computer with Double Density Disk Controller List J2995

OUR PRICES2545

Companion Disk drive for above —

Quad Density — TotaT of 780 Kilobytes of

storage on the two drives List $1295

OUR PRICE $1099

Only $3644 for a complete 64K Disk System

SUPERBRAIN

j\

64K Double or Quad Density units available. Uses two Z-80 CPU's. Commercial-type terminal with 12" monitor. Dual double density minifloppies. Over 350 kilobytes of storage (twice that with quad density drives). Two serial RS232 ports, I/O ports standard. Comes with CP/Mtm 2.2 operating system. MiniMicroMart can supply a wide rarkje of CP/M development and application software.

w/64K Doubie Density, List $3495 .. $2869 w/64K Quad Density, List $3995 $3395

DYNABYTE

DB8/1

DB 8/1-64 - 54K RAM SYSIfcM WIIH Z80 CPU and 2 serial and I parallel I/O, List $3396,

OUR PRICF $2695

HEWLETT PACKARD

E9

hp-4icv$259

HP-41C

$189

HP-125 $3149

HP-85A

List $3250

$2749

[P-83 'Special $1749

F.O.B, shipping point. All prices subject 10 change and all offers subject to withdrawal without notice. Advertised prices are for prepaid orders. Credit card and C.O.D. 2% higher. C.O.D. may require deposit.

MORROW

THINKER TOYS® DISCUS M26™

26 megabytes of formatted storage List $4495

$3w$3795

THINKER TOYS® DISK SYSTEMS

Now includes CP/M*1 2.2

Discus 2D, List $1095 $898

Discus 2D, dual-drive, List $1875 $1549

Discus 2 + 2, A&T, List $1495 $1239

Dual Discus 2 + 2, A&T, List $2575 $2137

All Morrow floppy disks Include CP/M' 2.2 and Microsoft Basic 80

MORROW

DISCUS M-10 10 Megabyte Wirchester

List $3695 OUR PRICE

$3095

NEW! CR0MIX FROM CR0MEMC0

A New UNIX Like Disk Operating System,

With true multi-user,

multi-tasking capabilities

List $295 OUR PRICE $249

NEW! DOUBLE DENSITY CONTROLLER BOARD

FROM CROMEMCO

With built-in diagnostics 16 FDC Controller,

List $595

OUR PRICE $499

WRITE FOR FREE CATALOG

Mini Micro Mart, Inc.

943 W.Genesee St. Syracuse, N.Y. 13204 (315)422-4467 TWX 710 541 0431

Circle 283 on Inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

535

RAMAGANZA MULTIBUS SALE

RAM 100+up SBC 86/12A $1500

2104A ' $ .65 SBC 80/30 $450 4116 2.00 SBC 604 or 615 $85

4164 13.00 BLC556 $150

2114(450) 1.85 BLC 80/11 $475 2114(300) 2.00 SBC 204 $475

4044-25NL 2.75 Much more in stock. 6104-3 1.50 We Buy/Swap/Sell

5101L 2.75 Multibus and other

2147 3.15 computer gear. Send

All goods subject for brochure. to prior sale & prices. Can be changed without notice. MCA/ISA O.K.

Add 2% for shipping/handling.

Note: We have a large qty of commercial video equip, for sale (refurbished). Send for complete listing.

— Oracle Electronics —

& Trading Co., Inc.

2257 Mora Drive

Mountain View, CA 94040

(415) 961-4920

STD BUSS CARDS

64KRAM $210

6MHz Z80 CPU floppy controller card

QUME45KSR $1650

45 char/sec daisywheel printer/terminal. RS232; ideal for word processing; will support TRS-80 and NEC protocols

QUME $700

45 char/sec OEM printer mechanism

SHUGART8"FLOPPY DISK DRIVES —USED

SA800 soft-sectored Single/double density

MICROSWITCH KEYBOARDS $85

Hall effect. ASCII MOD. 74SW12

INTERFACE KIT $180

OEM daisywheel printer interface. Interfaces diablo or Qume OEM printer to RS232 or Centronics parallel

$250

rD/DPUTER WNMITS, INC

105 S. Main St. Qreer. S.C. 29651 • (803) 877-7471

"ELF"interface^ Converts Your Typewriter Into Printer

• Finest print quality • low cost

• Easy Installation • Oulck delivery

• Fits IBM Selects and Electronic Typewriters

• Models for all popular computers

• call or write for more Information, todayi

- we export to all countries

|PU INTERNATIONAL INC.

fcJL 5115 Douglas Fir Rd.

calabasas, CA 91302 U.S.A.

Tel: 12131 710-1444 TLX/TWX: 910 494 2100

Circle 323 on inquiry card.

Circle 86 on inquiry card.

Circle 207 on inquiry card.

RS-232 PROBLEMS?

Need to keep a hard copy of the data on a RS-232 line? Need to look at the data for trouble shooting? Use the DATA TAP to tap a CRT or printer into any RS-232 line. DATA TAP $34.95 postpaid

Do you have a set of Modems that may not be working? Bypass them with the NULL MODEM adapter and find out. NULL MODEM $24.95 postpaid

Send for literature on these and other RS-232 problem solvers.

Pay by: VISA, M/C, Check, PC

B & B ELECTRONICS

BOX 475 / MENDOTA, IL 61342

IL Residents add 5% Tax.

' Find the glitlenng Orh. nncl gel out alive—Ihnt is . a yourquest.BullheOrliliessomewriereintheun- . . f known depths of a miiltr-level dungeon, and a ^^ V ft^! horde of monsters liar your way Each trip yon \r*t. make into the dungeon, if you survive, gains yon $ experience and magic—making you stronger, k ■J allowing you to go deeper, bringing you closer | [to the fabulous Ottj.

ORBQUEST is a simulation game that pre-" 9 sents you with ever-changing situations, and« J the ability of your character to survive de-r j pends upon its intrinsic and acquired abilities. ( j and your playing skill.

'ORBQUEST has been extensively play-' tested, and will offer you many hours of chal! lenging enjoyment. $ ORBQUEST requires 56K CP/M and a 24 x \ 80 cursor-addressable terminal. Now available on the following CP/M media: 8" single t 1 density, 5" NorthStar, 5" Xerox, 5" Osborne.

ORBQUEST

$35 for diskette * and manual from ALTERNATE WORLD SIMULATIONS'

PO. Box 941. Milpitas, California 95035

CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS ADO ffft SALES TAX CP/M IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF DIGITAL RESEARCH

COMPU

oo

TIE

Hi

/ \

S?e$4ttt Itec&ut&fi

r^X'\

^ot t4e

/ C\l

@ot4tjbutet £ttt6<t4i<z<it

vvA

$9.95

tel

Order:

vpJp)

^Cuc tfretj SroevH

\r

Send S9.95 plus S1.00

postage and

handling to COMPUTIE

. P.O. BOX 67

ROCKTON, ILLINOIS

61072

MM nois res idents inc

ude 55£ sales

(ax

Circle 47 on Inquiry card.

Circle 403 on inquiry card.

NORTHSTAR USERS

Add o

i SCAN COMMAND to your c 1 instantly display or print

linos thai contain a selected va

ipy ol NORTHSTAR BASIC and

'{J

occurences ol GOTO or GOSUB slntemenls lo a particular

e number

• Al

t(-le.rpt\r.(!s to any program line

number

• Al

occurences ol any character, irnuers or anyihing ihal is con

a.ned in

re number, group ol ONLY S29.S0 ON DISK

Add 01 BASIC

' BKMndOd RENUMBER capab ami you will beaDleto

Uytoym

r copy ot NORTHSTAR

oqioup

• Renumber only selected line numbers and mov in anolher area ol your program

• Keep specific line number sequences associated with designated areas oliipiogram

» Append program modules and rearrange them wiltiin your pro

• M.,l

1 move the subrouhnes ONLYS39-50ON DISK

Both programs aulomalically load lo any copy ol NORTHSTAR BASIC, your BASIC can be SINGLE DENSITY. DOUBLE DENSITY or QUAD DENSITY and be located al any address above 0E00 HEX These programs are machine; language addtlions lo NORTHSTAR BASIC Allor your copy ol BASIC is modified lo include these new features, you can save the NELW BASIC and have a punnanonl copy wilh 'SCAN" and/or RENUMBER ' Complete documentation included on each disk Please add S2 00 shipping charge for each program or order both programs and save S-> 00 plus shipping charges Bolh only S65 00

ppd Calilorri

residents should add 6% sales

Order Today—Send check, money order or credit card data to:

(^SOFTWARE SERVICES

^-—* 1072 Casltas Pass Road Carplnterla, CA 93013 (805) 68-1 -8253

MAGIC WAND' (1.1) THE BEST word processing package — there's nothing as powerful, useful or as easy to use. Requires 32K CP/M", MP/M*,CDOS' or Oasis' and CRT terminal with addressable cursor. 8" soft-sectored or 5" NorthStar*, Vector Graphic*Micropolls", SuperBrain' disks. Apple* II & ll-Plus w/ Microsoft 280. specify SupRterm or Videoterm board, 13 or 16 sectors. TRS 80' Mod II, specify your CP/M version. Delivered ready to run — custom configured to your CPU. terminal, printer and disk; includes lesson files on disk, fully illustrated Users' Manual and a Reference Card, $275.

10,000 WORDS PROOFREAD IN 1 MINUTE SPELLGUARD* THE BEST, most useful spelling package available. Requires 32K CP/M*, MP/M*. or CDOS*. Works with any console device. Compatible with Magic Wand". WordStar, Electric Pencil' and many more. Fully tested. Ready to run 8" softsectored or 5" DD NorthStar*, Micropolis*, SuperBrain* disk, $199.

Speltguard* and Magic Wand*, only $474.

We rigorously select, use and support the software we sell, orders promptly

acknowledged. Checks must clear before shipment Our low prices reflect full cash discount while maintaining quality customer service. Export orders welcome. " s trademark.

PELICAN PROGRAMS

49 Pelican Court, Syossel. NY 11791

(516)921-3083

EC0N0-KIT™

ftfiE YOU DSSI'aRATELY LOOKING FOR SOME SOPHISTICATED TEST / AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT IB THE FIELD OF MICROCOMPUTER TECHNOLOGY? CONSIDER FOUR OF OUR NF.7 PRODUCTS, EITHER IN KIT FORM / OH FULLY ASSEMBLED & TESTED:

CLIP-ONyWALYZERS*«

EPROM PROGRAMMER *H

ALSO WILL BE AVAILABLE SOON

LOGIC ANALYZER m PLA PROGRAMMER m

YOU WILL FIND OUR PRICES UNBELIEVABLE

AS COMPARED TO THE TECHNICAL LEVEL OF

THESE FEATURE-LOADED PRODUCTS.

THERE IS NOTHING EQUIVALENT ON THE MARKET!

SEND FOR DETAIL INFORMATION TODAY!

MICRO ENGINEERING ASSOC.

3527 GOLDEtl STATE DR SAIITA CLARA CA 95051 '

Circle 456 on Inquiry card.

Circle 341 on inquiry card.

Circle 457 on inquiry card.

943 W.Genesee St. Syracuse, l\I.Y. 13204

i

"hank you ...

... for making our expansion possible and for helping make us the leading distributor of microprocessor systems, terminals and printers.

We are showing our appreciation by producing a special catalog with thousands | of items at greatly reduced prices. Call or write today.

JOIN US IN OUR PRE-INVENTORY CLEARANCE

Mini Micro Mart, Inc.

943 W.Genesee St.

PO Box 2847

Syracuse, NY. 13220

[315]422-4467 TWX 710-541 - 0431

Circle 284 on inquiry card.

database manager

rbrTRS 80 Model I

• CREATE random access disk files 15 fields or 255 bytes/record Files can span 4 disk drives Password protected file access

• Database DIRECTORY displays all user files and their attributes

• Powerful TRANSACTIONS-add, edit, read, delete & list records Efficient binary tree sorts

• Sophisticated QUERY with multikey relational & logical operations

• REPORT formatter requires only for user to select desired fields Automatic sub & grand totals May be used with lower case

• Entirely MENU DRIVEN operation

• Extensive error trapping routines

• User oriented instruction manual

• Requires 32k —2 disk drives

Introductory price $59.95

mentor software"

816 McLane Ave- Margantown, UUV 26505 Tandy Corp. Trademark

5O0 TRS-80*

Cassette Duplication

1000 Qty. Minimum

Guaranteed to Load

MICROSETTE CO.

475 Ellis St., Mt. View, CA 94043 (415) 962-0220

Trademark of Tandy Corp.

LABELS

15/16"x3T6" white pressure

1 up - pin feed sensitive

PRICE INCLUDES SHIPPING

Packed 5M per box - Min. order 1 box $14.95 Check with order Mass Residents add 5% Sales Tax

CHECKMATE

P.O. Box 103, Randolph, MA 02368 Telephone: 617-963-7694

Circle 250 on inquiry card.

Circle 271 on inquiry card.

Circle 64 on inquiry card.

256K RAM

New 256K dynamic RAM card for S-100 bus. Meets IEEE 696 standard. Full parity, either 8/16 bit data path. Includes acknowledge line for use with asynchronous processors, such as the MC68000. Plus many more advanced features. 200nsec standard, 150 nsec optional.

$3795

OEM pricing available

Empirical Research

Group, Inc.

POBox 1176

Milton, WA 98354

206-631-4855

PRINTER SALE! SAVE 20-40%

Anadex 9500 $1295

C. Itoh Comet I 125cps $455

C. Itoh Comet II 15" parallel $795

C. Itoh Comet II 1 5" serial $875

Diablo 630 $2070

Tractor Option $245

Epson MX-70 $363

Epson MX-80 $477

Epson MX-80 F/T $599

Epson MX-100 15" paper $799

Serial board for MX-80 $58

Integral Data Systems 460G $840

Okidata Microline 80 $403

Okidata Microline 82 $522

Okidata Microline 83 $846

Starwriter 25cps parallel $1395

Starwriter 25cps serial $1495

Starwriter 45cps parallel $1795

Tractor option $199

CHECKS - VISA - MASTER CARD

Shipping extra. Michigan Add 4%

LYBEN COMPUTER SYSTEMS

27204 Harper - P.O. Box 131 St. Clair Shores, Ml 48080

FREE DATA BASE

On Computing' magazine article data base (1979 and 1980) FREE with purchase of IC-IRS Information Retrieval System. The best menu driven, multiple key word indexing, filing and retrieval system for trie money. (65 "and" ed; 32 "or" ed key words per query —search time In seconds.)

For 8080/Z80 computers with CP/tvV compatible op.

system, 32K memory and 2 disks.

DATA BASES available to run on IC-IRS:

Computer magazine article abstracts. 6 data bases. 6 major computer magazines from Vol. 1 thru 1980.

CP/M Users Group Programs • indexes of 50 discs.

Software Vendors — 950 names & add. with products.

IC-IRS w/manual & free data base $59.95 DATA BASES $29.95 • $49.95

8" SD and most 5V«" formats. MC/VISA (512) 258-6310

FYI, INC.,m P.O. Box 10998 #615 Austin, Texas 78766

Circle 165 on inquiry card.

Circle 234 on inquiry card.

Circle 173 on inquiry card.

A

ATARI

800 16K

400 16K

410 Recorder .

810 DISK

850 Interface .

830 Modem _ 16KRAM

820 Printer

822 Printer

825 Printer

. $740. . 319.

59. . 449. . 169. . 159.

75. . 260. . 349. . 570.

55. . 330.

Call or write for discount on software.

EMPIRE SYSTEMS CORPORATION

18604 Rolling Acres Way

Olney, Maryland 20832

774-7330 948-8588 Prices subject to change

483 The Programmer

484 The Communicator.

Aingioj

levei

-10 SilrTWATil^^

Saturn, a*

the

oroander of vcur spaceship on

assignment tc

saw

■ you

stranded crew near Saturn's

rings, you w:

11 f

ice a

tault bv enemy shins, ice

chunk* and ot

rier

a;: no

s. You have a limited fuel

supply and or

lv a

ahor

limt before their space

station blows

RitiRS of Saturn has t, skill levels.

3-D aniaatior

. Hi

-Res

olor graphics and sound effects.

Drafon Fire, sis

• th

LKVEL-10 SOPTwAJtE 1 dragon Salmadrjn and accumulate a

vast fortune

As

the Wizard, the V.i. the Uam^r. the

Huntress or

he Dwarf.

vou enter a mass of dungeons

which are act

till]

- the

ruins of 10 civilizations built

on top of on<

anc

her.

During your quest, you will

ding rooms and passages, each

with his own

trea

sure.

Be on the- lookout for red keys

a magical ke\

Is

the o

lv way to defeat Salmadon!

There is a t

r.dom

kev which automatically selects a

character, a

popu

,ar feature for children. There art

5 skill leve

s.

Kavciof KanVbarvsa

LEVEL • the wor

10 StlrTUAKE

d from the venomous rtaldamerc!

All the chari

eter

e fro

r Dragon Fire are reunited m n

brand new ml

slon

During his travel through the dungeon,

the Dwarf di

cove

red s

gem. Bv bringing it to th*

surface, • mi

levo

lent

orct escapes from the gen. and tries

to take over

the

world

The onlv wav tc quell Maldamtre

Is tc place

Pie

ce of

the gee on a bier at the top of

Ml. Karktian.

You

choo

se a character, hire a crew and

begin vour a

cent

. Hi

■Res color graphics and 3-D

animation simulate wal

»lnc up *nc down stairs and through

passages. DOK'T

PLAY

11 IK THE DARK! !

Dall us about our complete range of

-*, A

>

AVSTRALIAK SOFT-ARE products

jjxjs

*

COHTVTERUDR!-!

x.

INTERNATIONAL. INC.

St^

*

Suite 133, P. 0. Box 61 rfheat Ridge. Colorant 8003^-OOBi

ajjgl

t303; 4.25-H11

Sprint 68 Microcomputer

CONTROL COMPUTER DEVELOPMENT SYSTEM

6800 MPU, serial I/O, 4BK RAM, dual 8" drives, WIZRD multitasking DOS, editor, assembler, 16K BASIC, all for $3949.

OPTIONS

C, PL/W, PASCAL, FORTRAN, EROM programmer, analog I/O, parallel I/O, 488 GPIB interface, CMOS RAM/battery, power fail detect/power on reset

Lafayette. IN 47904 1 317-742-6428

Circle 162 on inquiry card.

Circle 454 on Inquiry card.

Circle 431 on inquiry card.

Here we grow again !!!

Grand Opening Sale

We're celebrating the latest addition to Jade's Retail Division - our new store located in Woodland Hills at 21800 Ventura Blvd.

New from Jade

The Bus Probe

Inexpensive S-100 Diagnostic Analyzer

yHWWTBHIltgyHBWTT1!

JfTTTSrTTTI.rrTTTf T t ! • '■>■ 1 ■> i %

So your computer is down. And you don't have an oscilloscope. And you don't have a front panel... You're not alone - most computers have their occasional bad days. But without diagnostic equipment such as an oscilloscope (expensive!) or a front panel (expensive!), it can be very difficult to pinpoint the problem. Even if you have an extender board with a superfast logic probe, you can't see more than one signal at a time. You're stuck, right?

Not anymore; Jade is proud to offer our costeffective solution to the problems mentioned above: THE BUS PROBE. Whether you're a hobbyist with a cantankerous kluge or a field technician with an anxious computer owner breathing down your neck, you'll find THE BUS PROBE speeds your repair time remarkably. Just plug in THE BUS PROBE and you'll be able to see all the IEEE S-100 signals in action. THE BUS PROBE allows you to see inputs, outputs, memory reads and writes, instruction fetches, DMA channels, vectored interrupts, 8 or 16 bit wide data transfers, plus the three bus supply voltages.

An on-board pulse generator can provide repetitive resets, interrupts, or wait states, for trouble shooting.

TSX-200B Bare board $59.95

TSX-200K Kit $119.95

TSX-200A A&T $149.95

ttSSSBH

W JIB

w s HH

NEC

■I MHz /.mi CPU, XII x 25 display with graphics and X colors. :I2K HAM. 2IK ROM. parallel/serial/cassette interfaces, upper Inner case, numeric keypad. It) special function keys, uses CP M 2.2.

NEC-H001A 32K CPU, keyboard .. $1095.00 NEC-H012A I/O with 32K RAM ... $695.00

NEC-8031A Dual disk unit $1095.00

VDM-651200 12" green CRT $269.95

NEC-1202D Hires RGB color CRT $1045.00 VDC-651212 12" color monitor .... $479.95 NEC-9010S CP/M 2.2 for NEC .... $150.00 NEC-90005 Gen. accting softwr ... $375.00 Circle 210 on Inquiry card.

Intersell

Sellum I

NEC Spinwriter w/ Intelligent Controller

Standard serial, Centronics parallel, and current loop interfaces • Selectable baud rates 50 to 19,200

• Automatic bidirectional printing • Logic seeking • 650 character buffer with optional 16K buffer • 55 characters per second print speed • Comes with vertical forms tractor, ribbon, thimble and cable • Diablo compatible software • Available with or without optional front panel

PRD-55511 IK no front panel .... $2795.00

PRD-55512 HiK no front panel . $2895.00

PRD-55515 IK w front panel $2995.00

PRD-55516 IKK w front panel ... $3095.00

Intersell NEC 3500Q

Intersell has announced that, available in September, they will offer a version of the new NEC Model 3500Q Spinwriter (30 cps) that will bring to the customer the same standard features as the Sellum I (except the tractor assembly which is optional on the 3500Q) but incorporating the added features of the NEC Model 3500Q

PRD-55351 3500Q IK $1995.00

PRD-55352 350QQ 16K $2095.00

PRA-55100 Deluxe tractor option .. $300.00

JADE

Disk Sub-Systems

Shugart, Siemens, Qume

pi ii'iH—

Handsome metal cabinet with proportionally balanced air flow system • Rugged dual drive power supply • Power cable kit • Power switch, line cord, fuse holder, cooling fan • Never-Mar rubber feet • All necessary hardware to mount 28" disk drives, power supply, and fan • Does not include signal cable

Dual S" Subassembly Cabinet

END-000420 Han' cabinet $59.95

END-00042J Cabinet kit $225.00

END-000 131 A&T $359.95

X" Disk Drive Subsystems Single Sided, Double Density END-000423 Kit W 2 FDlOO-SDs . $924.95 END-000424 A Si- Tic 2 FDlW-HDs $1124.95 END-000433 Kit w 2 SAHtllRs ... $999.95 END-000431 A& Tic S SASOIRs $1195.00

8" Disk Drive Subsystems Double Sided, Double Density

END-000426 Kit ic 2 DTSs $1224.95

END-000427 A & Tic 2 DTSs ... $1424.95 END-000436 Kit w/2 SASSlRs .. $1495.00 BND-000437 A & Tic 2 SA-851Ks- $1695.00

\ -Special jtik Sale Price

QUME DT-8

8" Double-Sided, Double-Density Disk Drive

1 Drive ... $524.95 each

2 Drives . $499.95 each 10 Drives $479.95 each

Jade Part Number MSF-750080

SIEMENS 8"

8" Single-Sided, Double-Density Disk Drive

1 Drive ..

2 Drives 10 Drives

$384.95 each $349.95 each $324.95 each

Jade Part Number MSF-201120

Shugart 801R

8" Single-Sided, Double-Density Disk Drive

1 Drive ... $394.95 each

2 Drives . $389.95 each

Jade Part Number MSF-10801R

MPI B-51

5'/i" Single-Sided, Double-Density Disk Drive

1 Drive ..

2 Drives 10 Drives

$234.95 each $224.95 each $219.95 each

Jade Part Number MSM-155100 END-000213 Case & power supply $74.95

Micro-Sci

Apple Disk Drives

Increased Capacity - Decreased Price

40 or 70 track drives • operates with DOS 3.2 and 3.3, Language System, and the Z80 Softcard • 40 and 70 track drives may be mixed on your Apple II • With two 40 track drives you get a 12.5% increase in capacity, 300% improvement in track-to-track access, and save about 15% • With two 70 track drives instead of four 35 track drives you get the same capacity, 300% improvement in track-totrack access time, and save about 45%).

IOO-2340A A-40 with cable $399.95

IOD-2370A A-70 with cable $529.95

IOD-2300A Micro-sci controller .... $89.95

Grand Opening Sale

****** San Diego ****** Hawthorne ****** Woodland Hills ******

Printers

BETTER THAN EPSON ! - Okidata

Microline 82A HO/132 column. 120 CPS. 9 x 9 dot

matrix, friction feed, pin feed, adjustable tractor feed (removable), handles A part forms up to 9.5" wide, rear & bottom feed, paper tear bar, 100"/,, duty cycle/200,000.000 character print head, bidirectional/logic seeking, both serial <£• parallel interfaces included, front panel switch & program control of 10 different form lengths, uses inexpensive spool type ribbons, double width & condensed characters, true lower case descenders & graphics PRM-43082 with FREE tractor .... $544.95

Microline 83A 132/2112 column. 120 CPS. handles forms up to 15" wide, plus all the features of the 82A. PRM-43083 with FREE tractor .... $774.95

PRA-27081A Apple card $39.95

PRA-27082A Apple cable $19.95

PRA-27087A TRS-80 cable $24.95

PRA-43080 Extra ribbons pkg. of2 ... $9.95

INEXPENSIVE PRINTERS - Epson

MX-70 HO column. 80 CPS. 5 x 7 dot matrix, adjustable

tractor feed. & graphics

PRM-27070 List $459 $399.95

MX-80 80 column. 80 CPS. bi-directional/logic seeking printing, 9 x 9 dot matrix, adjustable tractor feed, & 64 graphics characters PRM-27080 List $645 $474.95

MX-80FT same as MX-80 with friction feed added. PRM-27082 List $745 $574.95

MX-IOO 132 column, correspondence quality, graphics, up to 15" paper, friction feed & adjustable tractor feed, 9 x 9 dot matrix. 80 CPS. PRM-27100 List $945 $795.00

PRA-27084 Serial interface $69.95

PRA-27088 Serial intf & 2K buffer .. $144.95

PRA-27081 Apple card $74.95

PRA-27082 Apple cable $22.95

PRA-27086 IEEE 488 card $52.95

PRA-27087 TRS-80 cable $32.95

PRA-27085 Graftrax II $95.00

PRA-27083 Extra ribbon $14.95

Dual-Mode 200 - Malibu

200 CPS 9 x 9 matrix or 70 CPS, 19 x 18 matrix for letter quality, stores up to 12 different fonts, hi-res dot graphics, single sheet and tractor feed, RS-2II2C and parallel interfaces PRM-35200 Dual-Mode 200 $2695.00

16K Atari ... $359.95

ATARI 800 - Atari

(hnipli

te personal computer with high I

•solution color

graphu

s. built-in HI-' modulator. 1 controller

ports, internal

speake

. ItiK RAM & SK RDM

SYO-2080A /UK Atari 800

. . $759.95

Atari

800 with 32K of RAM ...

. . $799.95

Atari

800 with I8K of RAM ....

. . $849.95

SYO-2040A ItiK Atari 100

. . $359.95

MSM

330810 Disk drive

. $595.00

MSM

330815 Dual drive

$1395.00

K)X

5050A H50 interface

. $199.95

MKX

16853K HiK RAM module ..

. ... $69.95

SFI-241011005 Visicalc

. . $184.95

Accessories for Apple

16K MEMORY UPGRADE

Add lfiK of RAM to your TRS-80, Apple, or Exidy in just minutes. We've sold thousands of these 16K HAM upgrades which include the appropriate memory chips (as specified by the manufacturer), all necessary jumper blocks, fool-proof instructions, and our 1 year guarantee.

MEX-16100K TRS-80 kit $25.00

MKX-16101K Apple kit $25.00

MEX-16102K Exidy kit $25.00

16K RAM CARD - for Apple II

Expand your Apple to 64K. I year warranty MEX-16500A Save $70.00 !!! $129.95

Z-80* CARD for APPLE

Tiro computers in one. Z-80 <£■ 0502. more than doubles the notcer & potential of your Apple, includes Z-80* CPU card, CP M 2.2. & BASIC-80 CPX-30800A A & T $299.95

8" DISK CONTROLLER

Nete from Vista Computer, single or douhle sided, single or double density, compatible with DOS .12 '3.3, Pascal. & CPM 2.2. Shugar! & Qumc compatible IOD-2700A A & T $499.95

8" DRIVES for APPLE

Controller. DOS, two 8" douhle densisty drives, cabinet, power supply. & cables

Special Package Price Kit $1399.95

CPS MULTICARD - Mln. Computer

Three curds ill one! Real time clock calendar, serial interface.

<$!■ parallel interface - ail on one card.

[OX-2300A A & T $199.95

APPLE CLOCK - Cal Comp Sys

Heal time clock W battery back-up

IOK-2030A A & T $109.95

PRINTER INTERFACE - CCS.

Centronics type 1 O card w firmware IOI-20 11A A&T $99.95

AIO, ASIO, APIO - S.S.M.

Parallel A!- serial interface for your Apple {see Bvte pg 11)

IOI-2050K Par & Ser kit $139.95

IOI-2050A Par & Ser A & T $169.95

IOI-2052K Serial kit $89.95

1OI-2052A Serial A&T $99.95

IOI-2054K Parallel hit $69.95

IOI-2054A Parallel A&T $89.95

A488 - S.S.M.

IEEE -IHH controller, uses simple basic commands, includes firmware and cable, I year guarantee, (see April Byte pg III IOX-7488A A&T $399.95

Accessories for TRS-80

DISK DRIVES for TRS-80

23% more storage. 8 times faster. 40 troth with free patch. 120

day warranty,

MSM-12410C Save $125.00 !!! $325.00

8" DISK DRIVES for MODEL II

2 double density drives with cabinet, power supply, & cables

END-000433 Kit $1050.00

END-000434 Assembled $1250.00

WCA-5036A Cable (required) $29.95

EPROM ERASERS

/...s. Engineering IP/eraser far up to IK EPKOMs XME-3200 A & T $39.99

Speetronics hi intensity industrial eraser XME-3100 Without timer $69.50

Single Board Computers

!

AIM-65 - Rockwell

tiot)2 computer with alphanumeric display, printer. & keyboard, and complete instructional manuals

CPK-50165 IK AIM $124.95

CPK-50465 IK AIM $474.95

SFK-74600008E 8K BASIC ROM ... $69.95 SFK-64600004E IK assembler ROM $39.95

PSX-030A I'oiver supply $6-1.95

ENX-000002 Enclosure $51.95

IK AIM. SK HASIC. power supply. & enclosure

Special package price $659.95

Z-80* STARTER KIT - SD Systems

Complete Z-80* computer uith HAM. ROM. I I), display, keyboard, manual, and klage urea.

CPS-30010K Kit $.'169.95

CPS-3001OA A&T $ 159.95

SYM-1 - Synertek Systems

Single lioard computer tilth IKnfRAM. IK of RDM. Ley pad. I.Eli display. 2tlmu &■ cassette interface on hoard.

CPK-50020A A & T $2 19.95

Video Terminals

AMBER SCREEN - Volker Craig

Detachable keyboard, amber on black display, 7 x 9 dot matrix, 10 program function keys, 14 key numeric pad, 12" non-glare screen, 50 to 19,200 baud, direct cursor control, auxiliary bi-directional serial port VDT-351200 List $795.00 $645.00

VIEWPIONT-ADDS

Detachable keyboard, serial RS2.T2C interface, baud rates from 110 lo 19.200. auxiliary serial output port. 2'I xSO display. VI )T-501210 Sale Priced $639.95

TELEVIDE0 950

Detachable keyboard, split screen tilth line loch, etched ( 'R T. programmable function keys, on screen status line, buffered auxiliary port. 11 x HI dot matrix, self lest, serviced nation wide by (teneral Electric V1 )T-901250 List S1195.00 $995.00

Video Monitors

HI-RES 12" GREEN - Zenith

15 MHz bandwidth, 700 lines inch. Pill green phosphor, switchable 40 or 80 columns, small, light-weight & portable. VDM-201201 List price $1.50.00'.... $118.95

Leedex / Amdek

Reasonably priced video monitors VHM-801210 Video 100 12" H&W . . $139.95 VIJM-801230 Video 100-HO 12" B& W $179.95 VOM-801250 12" Green Phospor .... $169.95 VDC-801310 13" Color I $379.95

12" COLOR MONITOR - NEC

Hi-res monitor with audio <K sculptured case VDC-651212 Color Monitor $479.95

12" GREEN SCREEN - NEC

20 MHz, Pill phosphor video monitor with audio, exceptionally high resolution - A fantastic monitor at a very reasonable price VDM-651200 12" monitor $269.95

Grand Opening Sale

****** SanDiego ****** Hawthorne ****** Woodland Hills ******

S-100 PROM Boards

S-100 Memory

S-100 CPU

uuataoi.

r

PB-l -S.S.M.

2708, 2718 EPROM board with built-in programmer

MEM-99510K Kit $154.95

MEM-99510A A&T $219.95

PROM-100 - SD Systems

2708. 271K. 2732, 2768. <£• 25/6 EPROM programmer

M EM-99520K Kit $219.95

MEM-99520A Jade A & T $269.95

EPROM BOARD - Jade

IKK or 32K uses 2708's or 2716's, IK boundary

MEM-16230K Kit $79.95

MKM-16230A A & T $119.95

S-100 Video

VB-3 - S.S.M.

80 characters X 21 tines expandable to 8(i X .18 for a fill!page of text, upper it- lower case, 2S6 user defined symbols, 160 X 1112 graphics matrix, memory mapped, has hey board input.

IOV-1095K I MHz kit $349.95

IOV-1095A 4 MHz A & T $439.95

IOV-1096K 80 X 48 upgrade $39.95

VDB-8024 - SD Systems

80 \ 24 I O mapped video board with keyboard I O, and onboard Z-80A',

IOV-1020K Kit $399.95

IOV-1020A Jade A & T $459.95

VIDEO BOARD - S.S.M.

H4 characters x 16 lines, 12S x 48 matrix for graphics, full upper lower case ASCII character set, numbers, symbols. and greek letters, normal reverse blinking video, S-2QQ,

[OV-1051K Kit $149.95

IOV-I051A A&T $219.95

IOV-1051B Hare board $34.95

Motherboards

a

MBS MBS MBS

MBS MBS MBS

MBS

MBS MBS

ISO-BUS - Jade

lent, simple, and on sale - a better motherboard 6 Slot fSW'x 8%")

-061B Hare board $19.95

061K Kit $39.95

-061A A&T $49.95

12 Slot tt)</i" x 8%")

121B Bare board $29.95

121K Kit $69.95

121A A&T $89.95

18 Slot H4'A" x 8to")

181B Hare board $49.95

181K Kit $99.95

181A A&T $139.95

Mainframes

MAINFRAME - Cal Comp Sys

12 slot S-100 mainframe with 20 amp power supply

KNC'-l 12105 Kil $329.95

ENC-112106 A&T $399.95

DISK MAINFRAME - N.P.C.

Holds 2 X" dnrcs and a 12 slot 8 lull system. Ml rait ire

in. uil rahti. a a uli 11 slut mot licrhourd& card cage, power supply, dm.I pins, lighted snitch, anil other professional features

ENS-112325 ttilli 25 amp p.s $699.95

Circle 211 or Inquiry card.

MEMORY BANK - Jade

4 MHz. HI HO. hank selectable, expandable from 16Kto64K

MEM-99730B Hare board $49.95

MEM-99730K Kit. no RAM $199.95

MEM-16730K 16K kit $219.95

MEM-32731K 32K kit $239.95

MEM-48732K 48K kit $259.95

MEM-64733K (UK kit $279.95

Assembled & tested add $50.00

EXPANDORAM II - S D Systems

4 MHz RAM hoard expandable from IKK to KIK

MEM- 16630K 16K kit $275.95

MEM-3263IK 32K kit $295.95

MEM-I8632K IKK kit $315.95

MEM-64633K 64K kit $335.95

Assembled & tested add $50.00

64K RAM - Calif Computer Sys

■/ ,1///,- hank port bank bylc selectable, extended addressing. IKK bank selectable. PHANTOM line allows memory orerlay. 80811 Z-80 front panel compatible. MEM-64565A A&T $575.00

64K STATIC RAM - Mem. Merch.

MK static S-100 RAM card. -1-1KK hanks, up to 8 Mill MEM-64400A A&T $825.00

32K STATIC RAM - Jade

2 or I MHz expandable sialic RAM hoard uses 2114Vs

MEM-16151K 16K 4 MHz kit $169.95

MEM-32151K 32K 4 MHz kit $299.95

Assembled & listed add $50.00

16K STATIC RAM - Mom Merchant

/ Mil: IKK sialic RAM board. IEEE Slot), hank selectable. Phantom capability, addressable in IK blocks, "ihsithle-ahle" in IK segments, extended addressing, low power MEM-16171A A&T $174.95

S-100 Disk Controller

DOUBLE-D - Jade

Double density controller with the inside track, onboard Z80A*, printer port, IKKK S-100, can function on an interrupt driven buss

IOD-1200K Kit $299.95

IOD-1200A A&T $375.00

IOD-1200B Bare board $59.95

VERSAFLOPPY II - SD Systems

New double density controller for both 8" & 5' i"

IOD-1160K Kit $339.95

IOD-1160A A&T $379.95

DOUBLE DENSITY - Cal Comp Sys

.V <" and 8" disk controller, single or double density, with onboard hoot loader ROM, anil free CP. M 2.2* and manual set. IOD-1 300A A&T $369.95

V

Jll

CB-2 Z-80 CPU - S.S.M.

2 or I MHz 7.-80 CPU board with provision for up to 8K of ROM or IK of RA M on hoard, extended addressing. IEEE S-100, front panel compatible.

CPU-30300K Kit $239.95

CPU-30300A A&T , $299.95

2810 Z-80* CPU - Cal Comp Sys

2 I M/lzZ-SOA' CPU with RS-2II2C serial I 0 port and on hoard MOSS 2:2 monitor PROM, front panel compatible.

CPU-30400A A&T $269.95

SBC-200 - SD Systems

•/ MHz Z-80* CPU with serial & parallel I Oports, up to 8K of onboard PROM, software programmable baud rate generator. IK of onboard RAM. Z-80 CTC.

CPC-30200K Kit $339.95

CPC-30200A Jade A&T $399.95

THE BIG Z* - Jade

2 or I MHz switchable Z-80* CPU with serial I 0, accomodates 2708. 27IK. or 271)2 EPROM. baud rates from 76 to 9600

CPU-30201K Kit $139.95

CPU-30201A A&T $189.95

CPU-30200B Bare board $35.00

Novation Cat Modem

CAT MODEMS - Novation

CAT ',100 baud, acoustic, answer orginatc 1OM-5200A List $189.95 $149.95

O-CAT .'100 baud direct connect, answer I orginatc IOM-5201A List $199.95 $169.95

AUTO-CAT Auto answer orginatc. direct connect IOM-5230A List $299.95 $239.95

Apple-CAT - Novation

Software selectable 1201) or 300 baud, direct connect, auto

answer autodial, auxiliary .'{-wire RS282C serial port fur

printer.

IOM-5232A .Sore $50.00!!! $325.00

SMARTMODEM - Hayes

Sophisticated direct-connect autoanswer autodial modern, touch-tone or pulse dialing. HS-232C interface, programmable

IOM-5400A Smartmodem $269.95

Place Orders Toll Free

S-100 I/O

S.P.I.C. - Jade

Our new I O card with 2 SIOs. I CTC's. and I PIO IO1-1045K 2 CTC's. 1 SIO, 1 PIO .. $179.95

IOI-1045A A&T $239.95

1OI-1046K 4 CTC's. 2 SIO's. 1 PIO $219.95

IOI-1046A .4 & T $299.95

IOI-1045B Bare board w manual ...$49.95

1/0-4 - S.S.M.

2 serial 1 O ports plus 2 parallel I O ports

IOI-1010K Kit $179.95

IOI-1010A A&T $249.95

1OI-1010B Bare board $35.00

Continental U.S. 800-421-5500

Eur Technical Inquires or Custom,

213-973-7707

Inside California

800-262-1710

Computer Products

4901 It'. Hosecrans. Ilanlhorne. Ca 90250

TERMS of SAI.K: Cash, checks, credit cards, m Purchase < Jrders from (nullified firms and instilutiuns. .Minimum Order SI6.00. California residents add li1; lax. Minimum shipping & handling charge Sum. Pricing & availihilily subject to change

4 K STATIC RAM 8/$20.00

2114 LOW POWER 200 NS

74LS00

74LS00

.25

74LS123

.90

74LS259

2.80

74LS01

.25

74LS124

2.95

74LS260

.60

74LS02

.25

74LS125

.90

74LS261

2.45

74LS03

.25

74LS126

.80

74LS266

.50

74LS04

.25

74LS132

.75

74LS273

1.60

74LS05

25

74LS136

.50

74LS275

3.30

74LS08

.30

74LS138

.75

74LS279

.50

74LS09

.25

74LS139

.75

74LS280

1.95

74LS10

.25

74LS145

1.10

74LS283

.95

74LS11

.30

74LS147

2.25

74LS290

1.20

74LS12

.30

74LS148

1.25

74LS293

1.80

74LS13

.40

74LS151

.75

74LS295

1.00

74LS14

.75

74LS153

.75

74LS298

.95

74LS15

.30

74LS155

.90

74LS299

2.50

74LS20

.25

74LS156

.90

74LS323

3.95

74LS21

.30

74LS157

.75

74LS324

1.75

74LS22

.25

74LS158

.75

74LS347

1.95

74LS26

.30

74LS160

.90

74LS348

1.95

74LS27

.35

74LS161

.90

74LS352

1.50

74LS28

.35

74LS162

.90

74LS353

1.50

74LS30

.25

74LS163

.90

74LS363

1.35

74LS32

.35

74LS164

.90

74LS365

.90

74LS35

.55

74LS165

.90

74LS366

.90

74LS37

.50

74LS166

2.00

74LS367

.65

74LS38

.35

74LS168

1.70

74LS368

.65

74LS40

.25

74LS169

1.70

74LS373

1.15

74LS42

.50

74LS170

1.70

74LS374

1.75

74LS47

.75

74LS173

.75

74LS375

.65

74LS48

.75

74LS174

.90

74LS377

1.40

74LS49

.75

74LS175

.90

74LS385

1.85

74LS51

.25

74LS1B1

2.10

74LS386

.60

74LS54

.35

74LS189

9.95

74LS390

1.85

74LS55

.35

74LS190

.95

74LS393

1.85

74LS63

1.20

74LS191

.95

74LS395

1.60

74LS73

.35

74LS192

.80

74LS399

1.65

74LS74

.40

74LS193

.90

74LS424

2.95

74LS75

.50

74LS194

.95

74LS447

.35

74LS76

.40

74LS195

.90

74LS490

1.90

74LS78

.50

74LS196

.80

74LS630

75.00

74LS83

.75

74LS197

.80

74LS640

3.00

74LS85

1.10

74LS221

1.15

74LS641

3.00

74LS86

.40

74LS240

1.15

74LS642

3.00

74LS90

.60

74LS241

1.15

74LS645

3.00

74LS91

.80

74LS242

1.85

74LS668

1.65

74LS92

.65

74LS243

1.85

74LS669

1.85

74LS93

.60

74LS244

1.00

74LS670

2.15

74LS95 74LS96

.80 .80

74LS245 74LS247

1.95 .75

74LS674 74LS682

9.60 3.15

74LS107

.40

74LS248

1.20

74LS683

2.25

74LS109

.40

74LS249

.95

74LS684

2.35

74LS112

.40

74LS251

1.25

74LS685

2.35

74LS113

.40

74LS253

.80

74LS688

2.35

74LS114

.50

74LS257

.80

74LS689

2.35

74LS122

.45

74LS258

.80

74S00

74fauO

.40

74S163

3.70

74S02

.45

74S168

4.60

74S03

.45

74S169

5.40

74S04

.75

74S174

1.05

74S05

.75

74S175

1.05

74S08

.45

74S181

4.45

74S09

.75

74S182

2.90

74S10

.65

74S188

3.90

74S11

.80

74S189

14.90

74S15

.65

74S194

2.90

74S20

.65

74S195

1.85

74S22

.75

74S196

4.85

74S30

.45

74S197

4.20

74S32

.95

74S201

14.90

74S37

1.85

74S225

8.90

74S38

1.65

74S240

3.95

74S40

.40

74S241

3.70

74S51

.75

74S251

1.85

74S64

.75

74S253

7.40

74S65

1.20

74S257

1.35

74S74

.65

74S258

1.45

74S85

2.35

74S260

1.80

74S86

1.40

74S274

19.90

74S112

1.55

74S275

19.90

74S113

1.95

74S280

2.85

74S114

1.45

74S287

4.70

74S124

2.75

74S28B

4.40

74S132

1.20

74S289

6.95

74S133

.95

74S301

6.90

74S134

.65

74S373

3.40

74S135

1.45

74S374

3.40

74S138

1.05

74S381

7.90

74S139

1.20

74S387

5.70

74S140

1.40

74S412

2.95

74S151

1.15

74S471

9.90

74S153

1.15

74S472

16.80

74S157

1.15

74S474

17.80

74S158

1.40

74S482

15.50

74S161

2.80

74S570

7.75

74S162

3.70

74S572

7.75

4000CMOS

4000

.35

4040

.95

4501

.50

4001

.35

4041

.95

4502

.95

4002

.35

4042

.75

4503

.65

4006

.95

4043

.85

4505

8.95

4007

.35

4044

.85

4506

1.25

4008

.95

4046

.95

4507

.95

4009

.45

4047

.95

4508

1.95

4010

.45

4048

.75

4510

.95

4011

.35

4049

.55

4511

.95

4012

.35

4050

.55

4512

.95

4013

.45

4051

.95

4514

2.25

4014

.95

4052

.95

4515

2.25

4015

.95

4053

.95

4516

1.50

4016

.45

4055

2.75

4518

1.25

4017

.95

4056

2.75

4519

1.25

4018

.95

4059

9.95

4520

1.25

4019

.45

4060

1.25

4522

1.25

4020

.95

4066

.75

4526

1.25

4021

.95

4068

.40

4527

1.75

4022

.95

4069

.40

4528

1.25

4023

.35

4070

.40

4531

.95

4024

.75

4071

.30

4532

1.75

4025

.35

4072

.30

4539

1.75

4026

1.95

4073

.30

4543

1.95

4027

.65

4075

.30

4553

4.95

4028

.80

4076

.95

4555

.95

4029

.95

4078

.50

4556

.95

4030

.45

4081

.40

4558

2.25

4031

1.50

4082

.40

4568

5.95

4032

2.75

4085

.95

4581

1.95

1033

2.75

4086

.95

4582

1.95

4034

2.75

4093

.95

45B4

.95

4035

.85

4094

3.95

4585

.95

4037

2.50

4099

1.75

4702

9.95

74C00 CMOS

74C00 .35 74C195 2.20

74C02 .35 74C221 2.20

74C04 .35 74C240 2.20

K^'

74C08 .35 74C244 2.20

74C10 .35 74C373 2.70

74C14 1.45 74C374 2.70

74C20 .35 74C901 .80

74C30 .35 74C902 .80

74C32 .50 74C903 .80

74C42 1.70 74C904 .80

74C48 2.05 74C905 10.90

74C73 .65 74C906 .90

74C74 .85 74C907 .90

74C76 1.90 74C908 2.00

74C83 1.90 74C909 2.70

74C86 .90 74C910 9.90

74C89 4.50 74C911 9.90

74C90 1.70 74C912 9.90

74C93 1.70 74C914 1.90 1

74C95 1.70 74C915 1.90

74C107 .95 74C917 2.70

74C150 5.70 74C918 1.90

74C151 2.20 74C920 16.00

74C154 3.20 74C922 5.90

74C157 1.75 74C923 5.90

74C160 1.95 74C925 6.70

74C161 1.95 74C926 7.90

74C162 1.95 74C927 7.90

74C163 1.95 74C928 7.90

74C164 1.95 74C929 7.90

74C165 1.95 74C930 7.90

74C173 1.95 74C932 1.95

74C174 2.20 74C941 2.75

74C175 2.20 74C989 9.90

74C192 2.20 80C95 .85

74C193 2.20 80C96 .90

80C97 .90 88C30 3.95

82C19 4.95 88C29 3.95

800-426-2668 206-643-0792

■

. 1

l"J]

LINEAR

7805CT

.85

LM301V

.75

LM567V

1.25

LM308V

.75

LM723

.50

7812CT

.85

LM309K

1.50

LM733

.95

7815CT

.95

LM311V

.60

LM741V

.30

LM317T

1.90

LM747

.75

7805KT

1.40

LM317K

3.75

LM748V

.60

7812KT

1.40

LM318N

1.50

LM1414

1.50

7815KT

1.40

LM323K

3.75

LM1458V

.65

78L05

.65

LM324N

.60

DS1488N

1.00

78L12

.65

LM337K

3.95

DS1489D

1.00

7905CT

.95

LM339

.75

LM1889

2.45

7912CT

.95

LM377

2.25

LM3900

.60

7915CT

1.15

LM380

1.25

LM3909

.90

LM386V

1.25

LM3914

3.75

7905K

1.50

LM3915

3.75

7912K

1.50

LM555V

.40

LM3916

3.75

79L05

.75

LM556

.70

DS75451

.40

79L12

.75

LM565

.95

DS75452

.40

79L15

.75

LM566V

1.50

DS75453

.40

HANLEY ENGINEERING CORP

13400 Northrup Way #20

Bellevue, WA. 98005

1-800-426-2668 1-206-643-0792

Include 3.00 for Ups Ground Include 4.00 for Ups Blue Include 4.00 for 1st Class Mail Washington State add 5.4% Sales Tax

542 BYTE November 1981

Circle 181 on inquiry card.

16K Memory 8/$16.00

■

4116 200NS

■

^^^H

H

■

8200

8155

11.25

8185

29.95

8202

45.00

8205

3.95

8212

1.90

8214

3.85

8216

1.80

8224

2.50

8226

1.80

B99B

4.90

8238

4.90

8243

4.50

8251A

5.45

8253

9.80

82S5A-5

5.20

8257-5

8.95

8259A

6.95

8271

60.00

8272

39.95

8275

29.95

8279-5

10.00

8282

6.60

8283

6.60

8284A

5.75

8286

6.60

8287

6.60

8288

25.00

8289

49.95

8755A

45.00

CPU

8080A

3.95

8085A

8.96

8085A-2

11.95

8086

99.95

8088

39.95

8748

30.00

Z80

Z80

6.70

zboa

7.25

280B

19.00

280 PIO

6.00

ZBOA IO

7.10

Z80B PIO

15.50

Z80 CTC

6.00

ZBOA CTC

7.10

Z80B CTC

15.50

Z80 DMA

18.50

Z80ADMA

2250

Z80 SIO/0

18.50

ZBOA SIO / 0

22.50

Z80 SIO /1

18.50

Z80A SIO /1

22.50

Z80 SIO/2

18.50

ZBOA SIO / 2

2250

6800

3242

8.00

3480

9.00

6800

5.75

6802

11.00

6809

25.00

6810

3.50

6821

3.50

6840

9.00

6843

41.00

6845

22.00

6847

12.25

6850

3.50

6852

3.50

6875

7.00

6880

1.80

6882

4.70

6885

1.80

6888

1.80

6889

1.80

68488

1250

6502

6502

7.90

6502A

10.00

6504

8.45

6504A

9.30

6512

9.20

6512A

10.00

6520

4.40

6521

6.15

6521A

6.70

6522

8.75

6522A

11.70

6532

11.25

6532A

12.40

6545-1

2250

6545A-1

28.95

6551

11.95

6551A

12.95

AUGAT LOW PROFILE SOCKETS

These Are High Reliability Industry Standard Sockets

CALL HANLEY FIRST

800-426-2668 206-643-0792

EPROMS

2706

AMD

3 Supply

450NS

3.50

2716

Hitachi

+ 5

450NS

7.00

2716

National

+ 5

450NS

7.00

2716

Intel

+ 5

450NS

7.00

2716-1

Intel

+ 5

350NS

9.50

2716

T.I.

3 Supply

450NS

7.50

2716

Motorola

3 Supply

450NS

7.50

2732

NEC

+ 5

450NS

16.00

2732

Mitsubish

+ 5

450NS

16.00

2732

Intel

+ 5

450NS

17.00

2732A

Intel

+ 5

250NS

17.00

2732A-3

Intel

+ 5

30ONS

16.00

2732A-2

Intel

+ 5

20ONS

20.00

2532

Hitachi

+ 5

450NS

18.00

SPIN 208-AG29D 14PIN 214-AG29D 16PIN 216-AG29D 18PIN 218-AG29D 20PIN 220-AG29D 22PIN 222-AG29D 24PIN 224-AG29D 28PIN 228-AG29D 40PIN 240-AG29D

.10 .16 .18 .20 .22 .24 .26 .28 .42

4K x 1 STATIC RAM

4164 64x1 200 NS $21.00

MOTOROLA MCM6641-20 4044-200NS EQUIV.

$4.50

SOLID STATE SCIENTIFIC

HITACHI

256 X 4 CMOS RAM 450NS SCM5101E-1

$3.75

2K x 8 CMOS RAM 150NS

Pin Compatible with 2716

HM6116P-3 $19.00

■H^iiiypl'j:

'

l[htatl*fCardjl

Prices subject to change without notice

We reserve the right to substitute manufactures

HANLEY ENGINEERING CORP

13400 Northrup Way #20

Bellevue, WA. 98005

1-800-426-2668

1-206-643-0792

Include 3.00 for Ups Ground Include 4.00 for Ups Blue Include 4.00 for 1st Class Mail Washington State add 5.4% Sales Tax

Circle 181 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

I SN7400N

■ SN74QJN I SN7402N

■ SN7403N | SN7404N

SN7405N SN7406N SN7407N SN7408N SN7409N SN7410N SN7411N SN7412N SN7413N SN7414N SN7416N SN7417N SN7420N SN7421N SN7422N SN7423N SN7425N SN742fiN SN7427N SN7429N SN7430N SN7432N SN7437N SN7438N SN7439N SN7440N SN7441N SN7442N SN7443N SN7444N SN7445N SN7446N SN7447N SN7448N SN745DN SN7451N SN7453N SN7454N SN7459N SN7460N SN7470N SN7472N SN7473N SN7474N SN7475N SN7476N SN7479N SN7480N SN7482N SN7483N SN74R5N SN7486N SN7489N SN7490N 'SN7491N SN7492N SN7493N SN7494N SN7495N SN749GN SN7497N SN74100N SN74107N SN74I09N SN74116N SN74121N SN74122N

7400

SN74123N

SN74125N SN74126N SN74128N SN74132N SN74136N SN74139N SN74141N SN74142N SN74143N SN74144N SN74145N SN74147N SN74148N SN74150N SN74151N SN74152N SN74153N SN74154N SN74155N SN74156N SN74157N SN74156N SN74160N SN74161N SN74162N SN74163N SN74164N SN74165N SN74166N SN74167N SN74170N SN74172N SN74173N SN74174N SN74175N SN74176N SN74177N SN74179N SN 741 SON SN74181N SN74182N SN74184N SN74185N SN74186N RN74188N SN74igON SN74igiN SN74192N SN74193N SN74194N SN74195N SN74196N SN74197N SN74198N SN74199N SN74221N SN74251N SN74273N SN74279N SN74283N SN74284N SN74285N SN74290N SN74298N SN74365N SN74366N SN74367N SN 74368 N SN74390N SN74393N SN74490N

CMOS

CD4000

CD4001 CD4002 CD4006 CD4007 CD4008 CD4009 CD4010 CD4011 CD4Q12 CD4013 CO4014 CD4015 CD4016 CD4017 CD40IH CD4019 CD402O CD4021 CD4022 CD4023 CD 4024 CD4025 CD4027 CD4028 CD4029 CD4030 CD4031 CD4032 CD4034 CD4035 CD4037 CD4040 CD4041 CD4042 CD4043 CD4044 CD4046 CD4047 CD4048 CD4049 CD405O CD4051 CD4052 CD4053 CD4055 CD4056 CD4059 CD4060 CD4066 CD4069 CD4070 CD407I CD4072 CD4073 CD4075 CD4076 CD4077 CD4078 CD4081 CD4082 CD4085 CD4089 CD4093 CD4094

325 2.15 3.25

3.95 2.95 9.25 1.39

CD4098

CD4099

MC14408

MC14409

MC14410

MC14412

MC14415

MC14419

CD4501

CD4502

CD4503

CD4505

CD4506

CD4507

CD4508

CD4510

CD4511

C04512

CD4515

CD4516

C04518

CD4520

CD4555

CD4556

CD4566

74C00

74C02

74C04

74C08

74C10

74C14

74C20

74C30

74C32

74C42

74C48

74C73

74C74

74C85

74C89

74C90

74C93

74C95

74C107

74C151

74C154

74C157

74C160

74C161

74C163

74C164

74C173

74C174

74C175

74C192

74C193

74C195

74C240

74C244

74C373

74C374

74C922

74C923

MM80C95

MMBOC97

2.29 2.25

12.95 12.95 12.95 12.95 8.95 4.95

.95 3.75 1.19 1.19 1.39 2.75 1.45 1.39 1.25

1.79

5.95 1.19 1.19 1.49 1.19 2 49 3.50 2.10 1.65 1.55 1.65 1 55 1.35 1.35

2.19 2 19 2.39 2.39 5.39 5.65

74LS00N

74LS01N

74LS02N

74LS03N

74LS04N

74LS05N

74LS08N

74LS09N

74LS10N

74LS11N

74LS12N

74LS13N

74LS14N

74LS15N

74LS20N

74LS21N

74LS22N

74LS26N

74LS27N

74LS28N

74LS30N

74LS32N

74LS33N

74LS37N

74LS38N

74LS40N

74LS42N

74LS47N

74LS48N

74LS51N

74LS54N

74LS55N

74LS73N

74LS74N

74LS75N

74LS76N

74LS78N

74LS83AN

74LS85N

74LSR6N

74LS90N

74LS92N

74LS93N

74LS95N

74LS96N

74LS107N

74LS109N

74LS112N

74LS113N

74LS114N

74LS122N

74LS123N

74LS124N

74LS125N

74LS126N

74LS132N

74LS136N

74LS138N

74LS139N

74LS145N

74LS148N

74LS151N

74LS153N

74LS154N

74LS155N

74LS156N

74LS157N

74LS158N

74LS160N

74LS161N

74LS162N

74LS163N

74LS00

74LS164N

74LS165N

74LS166N

74LS168N

74LS169N

74LS170N

74LS173N

74LS174N

74LS175N

74LS181N

74LS190N

74LS191N

74LS192N

74LS193N

74LS194N

74LS195N

74LS196N

74LS197N

74LS221N

74LS240N

74LS241N

74LS242N

74LS243N

74LS244N

74LS245N

74LS247N

74LS248N

74LS249N

74LS251N

74LS253N

74LS257N

74LS258N

74LS259N

74LS260N

74LS261N

74LS266N

74LS273N

74LS275N

74LS279N

74LS283N

74LS290N

74LS293N

74LS295N

74LS29BN

74LS324N

74LS347N

74LS348N

74LS352N

74LS353N

74LS363N

74LS365N

74LS366N

74LS367N

74LS368N

74LS373N

74LS374N

74LS375N

74LS377N

74LS3B5N

74LS386N

74LS390N

74LS393N

74LS395N

74LS399N

74LS424N

74LS668N

74LS670N

81LS95N

81LS96N

B1LS97N

B1LS98N

1.69 1.69

1.75 4.40 .59

1.75 1.95 1.95

1.70 2.35 2.95

LINEAR

5.95 1.49 1.49

2.95

3.25

1.49

78H05

78M06

78M.G.

LM105H

LM108AH

LM300H

LM301CN/H

LM304H

LM305H

LM306H

LM307CN/H

LM308CN/H

LM309K

LM310CN

LM311D/CN/H .89

LM312H 1.75

LM317T 1.70

LM318CN/H 1.49

LM319N/H 1.25

LM320KXX* 1.35

LM320T-XX" 1.39

LM320H-XX* 1.25

LM323K 4.95

LM324N .95

LM337K 5.95

LM338K 6.95

LM339N .95

LM340K-XX* 1.75

LM340T-XX' 1.25

LM340H-XX' 1.25

LM344H

LM348N

LM350K

LM358CN

LM360N

LM372N

LM376N

LM377N

1.95 1.20

1.49

1.95 3.75 2.75

LM380CN/N 125 LM381N 1.79

LM383T 1.95

LM386N 1.25

LM387N 1.40

LM390N 1.95

NE531V,T 3.75 NE555V .39

NE556N .98

NE561T 19.95

NE565N(H 1.25 NE566I-WV NE5B7V/H NE592N LM702H LM709N/H LM710N/H LM711N(H LM715N LM723WH LM733N(H LM739N LM741CN/H LM741CN-14 LM747NCH LM748N/H LM760CN LM1310N MCI 330 MCI 350

1.50 2.75

MC1358

LM1414N

LM1458CN/N

MC1488N

MC1489N

LM1496N

LM1556N

LM1820N

LM1850N

LM1889N

LM2111N

LM2900N

LM2901N

LM2917N

CA3013T

CA3018T

CA3021T

CA3023T

CA3035T

CA3039T

CA3046N

LM3053N

CA3059N

CA3060N

CA3062N

LM3065N

CA3080T

CA3081N

CA3082N

CA3083N

CA3086N

CA3089N

CA3096N

CA3097N

CA3130T

CA3140T

CA3146N

CA3160T

CA3190N

CA3410N

MC3423N

MC3460N

SG3524N

CA3600N

LM3900N

LM3905N

LM3909N

LM3914N

LM3915N

LM3916N

BC4131N

RC4136N

RC4151N

BC4194TK

RC4195TK

ULN2001

ULN2003

SN75450N

SN75451N

SN75452N

SN75453N

SN75454N

SN75491N

SN75492N

SN75493N

SN75494N

TL494CN

TL496CP

"Retail prices may vary.

,CA92705 Showrooms. Retail. W , CA 95131 • (408) 946-7010

AEMVNCED

COMPUTER PRODUCTS

HP 7225 Graphics Plotter 1795 00

HP 16K Memory Module 265 00

HP 5 1/41' Dual Master Flex Disk Drive. 2100 00 HP 5 1/4" Single Master Flex Disc Drivc1295 00

HP Personality Module 700 00

HP POM Drawer 40 00

HP Ploller/Prmter ROM 130 00

HP Input'Output ROM 260 00

HP Matrix ROM 130 00

HP Serial Interface (RS-232C) 350 I

HP-83 S1895. HP-41: Powerful, Yet Easy lo Use

• The HP-41 communicates with HP 41-CV you m words as well as numbers

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HP-41 System I System I

HP-41CV HP-Card Reader ..

275.00 HP-Optical Wand .

HP-41C HP-Plotter/Pnnter .

19B00 HP-Quad RAM .

105 00 315 00 ..85 00

MINIMOVER-5 !§«**** ROBOTIC ARM

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i\

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00

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California Computer Systems 2200

SUPER S-100 BUY!

• 12 Slot Mainlrame

• 64 Dynamic RAM

• CP'M™ 2.2

• Z-B0 CPU 4 MHz w/Serial 10

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■ Interface to Vista V-1000 Chassis

SPECIAL PACKAGE PRICE

FOR COMPLETE SYSTEM

with (2) Shugarl Double Density

Floppys mounled, add 1495.°°

1899.°°

Proto Clips

t6-P,nC!iD PC-16 74-Pin Clip PC-24 40-Pin Did PC-40

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18 00 P8-203 17 00

21 00 PB-2G3A 14900

25 00 PB-203A-Kil 129 00 43 00

Novation^ AUTO-CAT™

Automatic Answer Direct Connect 0-300 Band

List 27995

acp24595

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Apple II® 64K

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299.00 299.00 299.00 349.00 2SS9.00 229.00 229.00 1250.00 t89.00

Stoneware Utility Pkg (For above) 89.00 ACS BASIC ACCOUNTI

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WORDSTAR-Tho Benchmark ot Wordprocessing sollware requires Z-80 & 80x24 349.00

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319.00 New MAIL-MERGE-A Wordstar Enhancement Pkg. allows lorm.ieiter generation & chained printing 169.00 SPELLGUARD-Wtll proolread Wordstar & VTS-80 Text dies against an expandable 20,000 word dictionary

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FORTRA 80-By Microsoft 195.00

COBOL 80 Bv Microsoft 749.00

NG SYSTEM. Total udes GIL, A/R. A/P, 699 00 New

Breakthru in Apple II' Mass Storage!

Vista A800 Quad_Density DMA 8" Disk Controller

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yourpne

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ATARI 800 Includes: Computer Console, BASIC Lang. Cartridge. BASIC Language Programming Manual. 800 Operator's Manual w/Notebook, 16K RAM Module. Power Supply. TV Switch Box

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MOO

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Circle 9 on Inquiry card.

DRIVER'S LICENSE « OR MAJOR CREDIT CARD * IS REQUIREDON ALL CHECKS. MONEY ORDER OR CASHIER CHECK WILL FACILITATE THE SHIPMENT OF YOUR PURCHASE.

T ~T>-CX)MPUTER

FIRST TO OFFER PRIME PRODUCTS TO THE HOBBYIST AT FAIR PRICES'

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CABIHET S 395

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#

MOSTEK MK4015 4K Dynamic RAM

Refresh while supply lasts only .49c Pin equivalent to MK4027 except has 1 ms.

S-100 WW

$2.99 each

FIRST QUALITY AT SURPLUS PRICE

2708 EPROMS

PRIME-450 Ns. 8 for $29.95

4K STATIC RAM SELL-OFF

TTTTTTTTT

Zilog 6104-4

Same as TMS 4044 but designed specilically tor 2-80 based systems. This is tull-spec 4Kx1 RAM, 450 Ns.

While supply lasts $1.49 each.

SPECIAL PURCHASE $59.95 Limited Supply $59.95

16K Altair RAM Boards. Fully Populated as is.

FLOPPY DISK DRIVES

QUME' Daiatrack 8

• Double Sided

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ACP LOW PRICE $569.95

TandomTMiOO-i 5V Can Drive. ,. ... 249.95

MPI B51-5VV.40 tracks 239.95

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SMmeni Shugart Compatible Model FOO I20-8D 429.00

PERSC1 Model 277 Dual 1195.00

MPI B52 5v*" Dual 348.00

WANGO/SIEMENS82 290 00

MPI 91 Double Track Danaily Single Slda. 60 Track* 375.00 MPI 92 CoLtbie Track Density Double Slda, 160 Track.... 475.00

6800 MICROMODULE

MODEL NO DESCRIPTION 9600A

PRICE LIST

PRICE Single Board Microcomputer S495 0O

Advanced Single Bd Coma (6809i 595 00

9601 16 SIOI Mother Boa'd 17500

9602 Card Cage 75.00

9603 8 Slol Mother Board 100.00

9604 Power Supply 275.00

9605 DC input Power Supply 325.00

9610 Utility Prolo Board 39.00

9611 Anth Prcc/Memory Module 495.00

9612 Buttered Utility Proto Board 49.00

9616 32K EPROM/RAM Module 25000

9617 EPROM Programming Head 250.00 9620 16 Channel Parallel I/O Module 295.00 9622 Serial-Parallel I/O Module 325.00 9627 16K Sialic RAM Module 470ns 39500

9629 32K Sialic RAM 450ns 695.00 9629A 32K Static RAM 200ns 895 00

9630 Card Egitender 68 00 9640 Multiple Programmable Timer 395 00 9650 8 Channel Duplex Serial I/O Mod 395.00 9655 Intelligent Tape Controller 550.00 96103 32/32 I/O Module 275.00 96702 Contact Closure Module 35000

UNPOPULATED BOARDS IAIso Available)

S24.95 TRS-80/APPLE S24.95

MEMORY EXPANSION KITS 4116's. 16K [200/250 ns.)

16K J^<~' RAM

Call For Volt.

CENTRONICS PRINTER

Model 737

• Centronics complete printer The 737 has everything. Check es $835.00

32K STATIC RAM BOARD

2 or 4 MHz Expandable uses 2114L's S-100

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NEW! from Zilog

Z-8 CPU comes with Tiny Basie & debug program on the I.C.

BIPOLAR CPU SALE

Signetics 8 x 300 8 bit CPU While stock lasts 14.95 ea.

UV "EpronV

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ModelS-52T... S325.00

NON-LINEAR SYSTEMS. INC.jflK

TOUCW-test 20

DIGITAL *»_.«.

MULTIMETER $31 995

* BECKMAN -v°# DIGITAL MULTIMETERS

V*c» TECH 300 Digital Multimeter S]10

^ TECH 310 Digital Multimeter $40

TECH 330 Digital Multimeter SI89

VC-201 Vinyl Carrying Case $10

DC 202 Deluxe Carrying Case 524

HV-211 Hiqh Voltage Probe £35

RP-221 RP Probe $35

Ct-231 AC Current Clamp $42

DL-241 Deixue Test Lead Kit S10

TL-242 Square Test Leads $6

INTERSYSTEMS

The Preferred S-100 Box The new Series II CPU Board features a 4 MHz Z-80A CPU and full-feature front

panel. 20-slot actively terminated motherboard, with 25 amp power supply (50/60 Hz operation, incl. 68 cfm fan). DPS-1, List $1795

SYSTEM 2A

with Z-80A CPU •

MHz, 64K RAM. I/O Board. 20 slots, front

panel, double density disk controller

board. Full 1-year warranty.

List $3795 acp Price $2995

SEC

^3±

PC-8000 Series Microcomputer System.

i^l NEW

■ ZBOA CPU 4 MH;

■ 5 usor programm.

■ 82 Keys with nurr

■ 160x100 resolutio

INTRO PRICING $1099.00

Expar

slots .

PC-8031A Dual Mini-Disk Drive Unil ... PC-8032A Add-On Dual Mini-Disk

PCS023A Impact Matrix Printer.

Tractor/Friction Food

PCFJ094A Cable lor PC-8023A Printer. . . JB-1201M(A1 High Resolution

Green Monitor

JC-1202DH(At High Resolution

Color Monitor w/RGB Inpul

PC-8091A RGB Cable for

JO 1202DH(A) Color Monitor

Basic Language Learning Guide ...

PC-8001A Microcomputer Reference Mai

PC-8012AKOUnil User's Manual

PC-8Q31A Dual Disk User's Manual..

1095 00

860 00 .49.95

265 00

1195 00

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949 00

769.00 44.95

239 00

1049 00

MICROPROCESSORS

Zftoot 16 bum 8Mb $189.00

Z8002 1*5 till lo64K 14900

Z80 .9.95

ZBOA 13.95

F-8(3BS0l '6 95

2650 16.95

CD 1802 9.75

8080A 4.75

8O80A-4MH] 19.95

SALE 8085 14.95

8008-1 1495

2901 9 90

2901A 14.95

2903 4-bil Siippishce 29 95

TMS9900.IL 49 95

CP1600 39 95

6502 9.95

6502A 16 95

IM6100 29 95

6BOO 11.75

680OB2O MHz 1995

B802P 17 95

8035 _H.?5

Hoaa 19 95

INS8073N 24 95

8755 49 95

8748 .... 6995

6B09 37 95

HOB6 ..... 6995

ADVANCED SUPPORT

AM9511 Arith. Processor 17500

95 1 2 Amu Processor 1 75 00

95i3Univ Timing 7995

AM9S17 DMA Controller IB 95

AM9519 Universal Interrupt 16 95

Z-80 SUPPORT CHIPS

Z80-PIO 2 5 MMi 6 75

Z60A-PIO 4 0MHi 12 35

Z80-CTC 2 5 MHz 8 75

Z60A-CTC 4 0MMi 12 95

Z80-DMA 2J5MH1 29 95

ZSOA-DMA 4 0 MHl 36 95

Z80-SIO/0 2 5MH: 35.95

Z80A-SIO/0 4 0 MHZ 39 40

Z80-SIO/1 2 5 MHi 35.95

Z80A-3IO/1 4 0 MM: 39 40

Z80-SIO/2 2.5 MHI 35.95

Z80-SIO.-2 4.0 MHi 39 40

8080/8083 SUPPORT

8'55'81561/0. ... 24.95

8755 l/Owfth Eprom 64 95

8202 Dyrv Ram Con! . ..34 95

8205;74S 138 Decoder 3 95

8212 fl bit I/O 2 75

82 T4 Priority im 5 25

B2i6BusDr.var 2 75

8224 Ciock Gen 295.

8224-4 I4MHH 9 75

8226 Bus Driver 2.95

8T26 Bus Driver 2.95

8228 Sys Control 4.50

8238 Sys Com 5.50

82431 OE»P 9.50

B250Asyn Comm 15.95

8251 Prog I/O 6.95

8253 1"! Timer 12.95

8255 Prog t/O 6 50

8257 Prog DMA 16 95

8259Prog Int 1595

8275 CRT Controller 45.95

B279 Prog Keyboard 15.95

6800 SUPPORT CHIPS

68iOi2B>8Ram 4 75

6820 6.5C

6821 6.5C 6B28 Pnorilv Int. . 10.75 6834-1 512 « 8 Eprom 16.95 6845IHD46505 CRT Cont 29.95 6847 Color CRT 29.95 6850 AC'A 5 95 6852 Senai Adapter 5.95 6860 Modem 1095 6662 Modulator it 95 6871A l OMHl OSC 25 95 6B75 6 95 6880 Bus Driver . . 2.19 MC684B8 ., 1995 68047 24.95

6302 SUPPORT CHIPS

6520 PlA 7 50

6522 Mul! 1V95

6530-002.003,004.005 21 -95

6532 1995

6551 1995

BIPOLAR PROMS

We do Custom Programming

B2S23r6330»5600f74S1B8 4.25

B2Sl15l512x8)TS . . 12.95 B2Sl23J5610r74S288(32x8)TS. 4.25 B2S126/5603r74S387(256x4)OC 4.25 B2S129/5623'74S2B7 (258x4,TS , 4.25 B2S13W5604/74S570(512x4]OC 6.50 82S13174S571 (512x4)TS 6.95

B2Si37/74S573(i024x4tTS . 12.95 B2S141'3624i74S474 (5l2x8)TS 12.95 B2Si47/74S472(512x8|TS 12.95 74S471/6309<256j<B)TS 7.95

MOS PROMS

2764 (8KxB,TS . . . 89.95

2732(4KxB)TS 16.95

2716'2516;5V|2KxB|TS 8.95

TMS2716, *5V. 12V .... 17.95

2758,5V. I450NB 7 50

2708 (4S0NSI 5.75

2708 (650NS) 5.25

1702A 5.75

MM5203AQ 14.50

MM5204Q 9.95

CHARACTER GEN.

25'3-COl |5ViUpper 950

2513-005l5V)Lower . 1095

2513-ADM3I5V) Lower 14.95

MCM66710 Ascli Shitted 12.95

MCM66740 Main Symbol 13.45

MCM66750 Alpha Control 13.45

UARTS/BAUD RATE

TR1602BI5V 12V| 395

AYS1013I5V 12VI 495

AY 51014A/1612 (5-14Vi 6 95

AV5101!>Ari863l5VI 6 95

IM 64 02 7.95

I MM 03 895

2350 USFIT 9 95

STATIC RAMS

2'}-M280«-MS^

1 1 .10

25-99

1 25

100

J L0?JB0n, PA02 l!l8.l KJ&

lin

Jb

|U

2I14NI450MS.)

3.75

3.50

3.25

2ll4L-450n5. [40J5I

4,75

4W

3.95

aO^il 2b0 nn

5 95

4 75

EMM4200A

0 75

8 75

EMM44D3

AMD9140/41

10 95

10 25

9 2fi

AUD9I^0'.11

1195

195

1 75

P?i;S.9.1425l45nM

3 95

8 35

B?5

6S18 IK . 1 CMOS

7 95

7147 Ln*Prwp'4KRt.-iip

B95

6 9^

93415

9 as

a ■■■

B.50

DYNAMIC RAMS

41C^116 16K(16Ptn)

2 49

Setol8 4i6's20O Ns

24 95

41158K(16Pin|

?49

4050 4K . 1 H8P.nl

4 95

■JOSSf. .IK . 1 (tSPinl

4027 4Kx 1(16PinWU!JD4l

4 95

52G1 195 CAU 5262 1 95 «^^

1103

.95

?i7° IS RAMS

660S

7 95

b?m J9SS19.95

SOCKETS

,Ns

| Who Wrap 3 Lavel

LoPro Soldi>rtnii

16 18 ?0 22

20 7-i 29

24 3K

60

36 38 59

85 1 10

140

,89

ZERO INSERTION FORCE

'*'■''» '-•■■■■'"' 1-''- *■■■■■'■> -'OP-- S'O.!:

LED READOUTS

Ka C*kr huraim

FNO503l*iO0i ".00 FW Co-:' Cir-irv

FNO507I510)

(NfJW8

I 500 Ral Cirnn A~ny

500 Bra Zaw K ... . M)D Gk^, Cmi Cj!mt>r

',(!■) OMiy <\>.irm CUtir*

iT-ifib) r HHOU !'

WlNSOfi?

KAHIMi:! KANIOW XAN3051

h-in.hw;'

WiM'i/tl XANl(Jr?4

4 ■ 7 Sq' I kit RHP Cr»mi Arntr

Murnnul DissUv

NUITWICJ! tlilpUl

!Ki Rat AipMNuncit

300 RM Cnmm Arm* Rqm tjl

,ioii Bed Comm

li CF«" Ccrrrr. 1^1* Lrtl C

0 &wn rMfIlm.CA trnDP

0 &efn Cmm Citnmr R<ir; OF1

0 VrllrJW Cwmi Hxtf Biqhi OP

n Htoi Comrti firant itil DP

0 Vei«r* Owrtimv C* let DP

0 Yellow Conn C.trtinlf. RigsiT DP

IC SPECIAL PURCHASE

82S09 64«9 Ram DP8304Cxlal Driver DAC86EX D(AConv. MC1650 Hi Speed AID MC6852 SSDA MC10145 16x4 ECLRam MK3850/F8CPU MK3853 Sialic Mem I'O SN75136 .46 7BM06

MC10210 .89 79M06

LM339 79 74157

LM710CN .29 74161

LM711CN .29 74C74

icm 704!. Precision Stopwatch

ICM 7207 Oscillator Conlroller

Seven Decarto Counter 7208

MC14433P 31ft Digit A/D Convf?rte. ICL 8211 Volraqe Reference LM 18S0N Ground Fautl IC

LM 290ON Quad Amplifier

LM2917NFreq lo Voll Conv AY-3-3550 4'« digil DMM AY-5-3507 40MHz DVM MEM 4963 Moslel Smohe Detector

...7 50 18 95 13 95

1 95 3" 00 2/1 00 2/199

24 95 9 95 795

2 95

27SOB 3? • li Ptom IIM 5600)

ULN 2O03A 7 cnannei Dnvei 99

MCM t450*i64 bil Static: Rom 695

MOC 1003 f4N28)Oplo Coupler . 3/1 00

SPX 33 Op to Coupler 3/1.00

IH 5045 CMOS Switch DBST 4.50

UA3045 Trans. Array 1.25

TR 1402A UART. 1.95

MK 1007 Dyn. Mem. Shilt Reg ...3.95

5318 TV Cli. Oisp. Circuit 4.50

8080A 8 B.I CPU . 4.95

8700CJB Bit A/D 9.95

MM5280/VPD4U/C2 107/TMS4060/

4Kx1 Dynamic 22 Ptn RAM 1.75

6604/VPD 414/4027/2660/MK 4096/

4Kx1 Dynamic 16 Pin

7520/25 50 LM 387

I48B/1489 2/1 99 LM 4558

LM323K 495 RC 4136

MC1372 895 RC4131

MM529&-4A7B -.2 95 COM 5027

.1.95

LM 377 LM360

FLOPPY DISK I/O

24.95

1771-01 8"R Minilloppy 1781 Dual Floppy 1791-01 Dual Floppy 1791 02 Dual Floppy 1793 DD. OS Floppy 1797 DD. DS Floppy . 1691 Data Separator 2143ClockGen

36 95 . 4495

. 44.95 54 95 1895

FLOPPY CHIPSET

579.95/set

A/D CONVERTERS

8700 8 bit Binary 13 St

it TS

B701

8703 B

S-100 Volt to Fret) i_

8750 3'iDrq.l FJCn

I40BL6 6 hit

t406L8 8b.r

DACOl D to A

DACOB

DAC 100

TV CHIPS/SOUND

AY3850O-1 6 Games B/W AY38515 Color Converter AY3B603-1 HoadraceGame AY38606-1 Wipeeut Game AY38607-1 Shooling Gallery AY3B910 Sound Generator SN76477 Tl Sound Generator 3 95 MM5320/21 TV Synrti Gen 995 MM5369 Prescaler

LU1B89 rf Modulator

MM571O0 NSC Color TV

MM57104 Clock Gen

MSR Modulator ?9 95

WAVEFORM GEN.

B038 Function Gen 4 50

MC4024VCO 2 95

LM566VCO 1 95

XR2206 Function Generator 5 25

SHIFT REGISTERS

2504V 1 49 MM500H 50 MW5056N 2 95 MM5060N 2 95 2510A 1 95

2847 4 95

3341 4 95

3351 17 95

3357 6 95

9403 24 95

■MOB 995

7 25 13 95 3 95 5 95

5 95 9 95 .9 95

295

8 95

9 50 895

12 9b

395 395

6 95

3517V 2524V 2525 2527

2528 .

2529 . 2533 . 3347

595

CTSDIPSWITCHES

CTS206-2 1 75 CTS206-7 1 75

CTS206-4 I 75 CTS2D6-8 1 95

CTS206-5 1 75 CTS206-9 1 95

CTS206-6 ' 75 CTS206'10 I 95

CONNECTORS (GOLD)

DB25P|RS232l 3 25

DB25S Female 3 75

Hood 1 25

Set w/Hood. Sale Sr 50

22/44 W/W 5/1 MM ?95

43/86 W/W. S/T. MOT 6 50

50/ ICO S-100 Connector m/w 4 95

50/1D0 s-100 Comedo' s/t 3.95

NAKED PC

S-100 Sound Board

BO80A CPU

32K Static RAM |2l !»

BK Eprom (2708)

2708/2716 Eprom

ACPProtoBit

Vector 8800 Prolo

il MB.

S34 95 34 95 3995 2495

. 34.95 22.95 22.20 29 95 1895

ACP Ex lender w/Conn. 13S1ol Molher8oard(WMC)32 95 9StolMolherBoanl(WMCl 29 55 8 Slol Molher(E»nant!able) ■ 34 95 Flooey PCB IB' SHUGAHt? 3995

S100{AY5-S910) Sound BO-34 95 Apple Sound Bd 24 95

SPRINTERS|

EPSON

$495.00

595.00

895.00

425.00

Centronics 739 799.00

VisiaV-3O0(25cps .. .1495 00

V-3O0(45cps 1795.00

Malibu165 1995.00

Anadex 9500/9501 1450.00

Base II BOO MST 549.00

MX-80 FT MX-100 .. MX-70 . .

4em'

TERMINALS

9i2c.'...:

S799

J849

AddS Viewpoitil ....

$599

Ampex Dialog 80

S1025

$699

IQ135

$899

IQ140

...1149.00

rn

WD t94i ggs

COM 501T. .., 16.95

INS 8250 15.95

KEYBOARD ENCODERS

AY5-2376 - . 13 75 AY5-3600 13 75

VERBATIM DISKETTES

100% CERTIFIED ERROR-FREE!

• 35 TRACKS DOUBLE DENSIH SIMGLE-SIQED S'ft

TYPE OESCRIPTIOK PHlCE'BOX 10

525-01 Soft Seftnred THS BO HC J25 951

525-tO 10 Hd« tta-fl NS Anp*> «C $2995

52MR Ifi IWr; HarrJ Micrrjpc*^ $29.95

• to S II TRACK QDUBLE DENSITY - SINGLE SIDED

5'. M/HUB KEINFORCEMENT RING 577-01 Soli Seriorefl TFtS fltl ttr S3? 25

577-1(1 X) Holt Hard NS Ajirjtc «C 322b

-577-16 If. Utile Hard McjOOOM 32 25

• 111 TRACKS. OOUBLE SIDED. DDUIIE DENSITY V,

550-01 Soli Secmred SA 450 MPI 5; $39.95

550-10 10 Hole Hard BASF WANGCO J39.95

550-16 16 Hole Han) Mcro' $39.95

• I lOdCENTHIEBOISKfTIES

FfiaOO-O! Soil Smq* Oeosily 3740 S3350

F0BO0-3? 3? Hlld Smgle Density Slxit] 335D

FD802-01 Soli. Double Denstly 3M ii 80

FDB500I Soil tlmitiV Sn!M Oimtil.- Ilrnsilv 3IK W

VOLUME DEALER PRICING AVAILABLE WE ALSO STOCK OYSAN-CALL

SANYO

_ MONITORS

kHBjajV VM4509 9~BW

7 Sale Price 159 95

DM5012 12'B/W 23900

DM511212'Green 24900

DM6013 13'Color 41500

NEC Green 259.00

AMDEK/LEEDEX Video 100149.00 AMDEK/LEEDEX 13" Color 399.00 AMKEKVLEEDEX 12" Green 17900

TERMS: Use check. M/C, VISA. AMEX, CB, or COD COD requires 25% deposit Charge Orders please include expiralion date Foreign pay US Funds. Order by phone, mail or TWX MINIMUM S100O Please include magazine issue and phone no. SHIPPING: USA add $2.00 lor lirsl 2 lbs. For surface add 30C lor addtiional lbs For air add 70c lor adr> Ironal lbs FOREIGN Add 10"^ shipping and handling CQD*s$l 85 extra Not responsible tor typos. Some

ilems subject to precious metal adder Retail pricing may vary from Mail Order We reserve the right to sub

RETAIL STORES OPEN MON-SAT

tTORS*1i 1310 "B E.Edinger. Santa Ana. CA 92705 Showrooms. Relail. I .TORE "2: 542 W Trimble Road. San Jose. CA 95131 • (408) 946-7010

'Retail prices may vary.

P.O. Box 17329 Irvine, Calif. 92713

Direct Order Lines: (714) 558-8813

(800) 854-8230 or (800) 854-8241

Circle 9 on Inquiry card.

FOR INTERNATIONAL ORDERS: 1310 E. Edinger (714) 953-06LM Santa Ana, CA92705 TWX:910-S95-1565

1858 EVERGREEN • DUARTE, CALIFORNIA 91010 • TELEPHONE (213) 357-5005

#

o

JUST WRAP KIT

Just Wrap tool for daisy chain wiring. Tool strips as it wraps and cuts. Includes one 50 foot spool of wire.

Part No.

Description Price

JW-1*

Just Wrap Tool $14.95

JWK-6

Tool w/4 Spools and

JUW1 24.95

R-JW"

50 Ft. Replacement

Wire 3.49

JUW-1

Unwrapping Tool 3.49

"Specify Color: Red, Blue, White or

Yellow.

Regular Modified

Wrap Wrap

IIJIILhand wrap tool

Part No. Description Price

WSU30 WSU30M

Regular Modified

$6.95 7.95

3gfelfel(P

igaaE i!ii:i«^=rym£=a

TERMINALS

• .025 (0,63mm) Square Post

—^—ZZl^, » * 3 Level

^sxipaap^ii o Wire.

w.,4 Wrapping

• Gold Plated 25 PER PKG.

WWT-4

Part No. Description Price

WWT-1 Slotted Terminal $4.98

WWT-2 Single Sided

Terminal 2.98

WWT-3 IC Socket Term. 4.98

WWT-4 Double Sided

Terminal 1.98

INS 1 Insertion Tool for

above 2.49

SOCKET WRAP - ID

• ••••••••••• Slipped onto

,,K,5.6.7 18I9 20 2I22 23 2< ^ before

Urop-ID

ht,tu<

12 II 10 9 8 7 6 5 < 3 2 1

wrapping to identify pins.

Bulk Bulk

Part # Price Price Part 8 Price Price

14ID 1.49/10 5.50/100 22ID 1.49/5 5.95/50

16ID 1.49/10 5.95/100 24ID 1.49/5 5.95/50

18ID 1.49/10 5.00/50 28ID 1.49/5 6.50/50

20ID 1.49/5 5.00/50 40ID 1.49/5 5.00/25

<^H> PRODUCTS

i'jP.C.B. TERMINAL STRIPS

The TS strips provide positive screw activated clamping action, accommodate wire sizes 14-30 AWG (1,8-0, 25mm). Pins are solder plated copper, .042 inch (1mm) diameter, on .200 inch (5mm) centers. Part No. Description Price

TS- 4 4-Pole $1.69

TS- 8 8-Pole 2.59

TS-12 12-Pole 3.49

TS6MD 2-Pole Interlocking 3/1.79

DESOLDERING PUMP

Easy one hand operation. Rugged all metal construction. Replaceable TEFLON5' Tip. Self cleaning on each stroke. Suction precisely regulated for reliable desoldering without damage to delicate circuitry. DSPI Desoldering Pump $9.95

LOGIC PROBE

Compatible with all logic families using a 4 to 15V power supply. Thresholds automatically programmed. Visual indication of logic levels to show high, low, bad level or open circuit logic pulses.

• 10 N sec. pulse responses

• 120 K input impedence.

• Automatic resetting memory. •Includes tip with protective cap &

coiled cord.

PRB-1 $36.95

LOGIC PULSER

Superimposes a pulse train (20 pps) or a single pulse onto the circuit node under test without un-soldering IC's.

• Automatic polarity sensing

• 2 us pulse width

• Finger tip push button actuated

• Includes tip with protective cap & coiled cord.

PSL-1 $48.95

VACUUM VISE

Unique vacuum-based light duty vise for precision handling of small components and «> assemblies. Rugged ABS construction. 1V4" (32mm)' travel for maximum versatility, features screw lugs for perm installation.

VV1

Vacuum Vice

$3.49

HOBBYWRAP TOOL BW2630

Auto-Indexing Anti-Overwrap Modified Wrap

Part No. Description

BW2630 Tool

BT30 #30 Bit (not incl.)

BT2628 #28 Bit (not incl.)

BC1 Batteries & Charger 14.95

Price

$19.85 3.95 7.95

INSERTION / EXTRACTION TOOLS

Part No.

INS1416

MOS1416

MOS2428

MOS40

EX1

EX2

Description Price

14-16 pin Inserter $3.49

14-16 pin MOS Safe

Inserter 7.95

24-28 pin MOS Safe

Inserter 7.95

40 pin MOS Safe

Inserter 7.95

14-16 pin

IC Extractor 1.49

24-40 pin

IC Extractor 7.95

WK-7 IC -INSERTION KIT

Complete IC Inserter/ Extractor Kit Individual ComJl |k ponents (listed H ' above) $22.95

IC DISPENSER

Allows IC's to be dispensed from their tube 1 at a time and picked up by insertion tools above.

• Dispenses 8-42 pin IC's • Compatable with all IC carrying tubes • Use with WK7 for MOS - 1 safe insertion. •

Part No. Description Price

MDD1 1 Chan. Dispenser $21.85

MDD5 5 Chan. Dispenser 83.43

MDD10 10 Chan. Dispenser 160.45

• * *No Discount.

TOLL FREE ORDERING NUMBER 1 (800) 423-7144

IDC CONNECTORS

RIGHT ANGLE HEADERS

SOLDER TAIL WIRE WRAP

Size

Part No.

Price

Part No.

Price

10

IDH10SRB

$1.20

IDH10WRB

$2.60

20

IDH20SRB

1.90

IDH20WRB

4.15

26

IDH26SRB

2.75

IDH26WRB

5.35

34

IDH34SRB

3.75

IDH34WRB

6.25

40

IDH40SRB

3.75

IDH40WRB

7.35

50

IDH50SRB

4.75

IDH50WRB

9.20

.1" Spacing. Mounts on with IDS Socket below.

PC Board & Mates Ejector Bars -4/1.00.

25 PIN

Solder Style Male Female Cover

'D"

CONNECTORS

Part No. Price DB25P $2.95 DB25S 3.95 DB25C 1.50

IDC Style

Male IDB25P 6.25

Female IDB25S 6.60

Cover IDB25C 1.60

Solder Style solders onto cable, IDC Style crimps onto cable with vise. 9, 15, 37 and 50 pin available also.

WIRE WRAP WIRE

#30 Wire Wrap Wire

Length 100/Bag 500/Bag IKIBag

2.5"

$1.38

3.0"

1.43

3.5"

1.51

4.0"

1.56

4.5"

1.63

5.0"

1.69

5.5"

1.74

6.0"

1.82

6.5"

2.11

7.0"

2.19

7.5"

2.29

8.0"

2.35

8.5"

2.40

9.0"

2.46

9.5"

2.53

10.0"

2.63

53.94

$6.81

4.25

7.46

4.57

8.11

4.88

8.73

5.21

9.39

5.54

10.04

5.92

10.69

6.23

11.34

7.08

12.99

7.44

13.68

7.78

14.40

8.12

15.10

8.46

15.80

8.92

16.51

9.15

17.22

9.58

17.91

EDGE CARD CONNECTORS

Size Part No.

Price

10 IDE10B

$3.95

20 IDE20B

4.35

26 IDE26B

5.00

34 IDE34B

6.05

40 IDE40B

6.90

50 IDE50B

7.50

.1" Spacing. Crimps onto cable

with

ordinary vise & mates with standard

.062" Card Edge.

W0

CABLE PLUGS

Size

14 16 24 40

Part No.

IDP14B IDP16B IDP24B IDP40B

Price

$1.45 1.65 2.50 4.15

.1" Spacing. Crimps onto cable with ordinary vise & plugs into standard IC Socket.

WIRE WRAP SUPPLIES

All lengths are overall, including 1" strip on each end. Choose from colors; Red, Blue, Black, Yellow, White, Green, Orange, and Violet.

ORDERING INFORMATION

Prepaid orders over $50 shipped prepaid via UPS. All others add $3.00 for handling. VISA, MC, COD's and open account orders will be charged freight. $15 minimum order. $100 minimum open account order.

#J|

1

Size

08

Part No.

ICN083WBSG

Each .44

Tube

52x .39 =$20.28

14

ICN143WBSG

.53

30x .46 = $13.80

16

ICN163WBSG

.58

26x .50 = $13.00

18

ICN183WBSG

.78

23x .68 = $15.64

20

ICN203WBSG

1.00

21x .85 = $17.85

22

ICN224WBSG

1.07

19x .92 = $17.48

24

ICN246WBSG

1.09

17x1.09 = $15.98

28

ICN286WBSG

1.43

15x1.23 = $18.45

40 ICN406WBSG 1.85 Selective Plating provides g

10x1.60 = $16.00

old in contact

whe

re it counts. 3-level wrap

. Save by buy

ing

sockets by the tu

be. All

gold available at

'/2C/pin extra charge.

• •

' No Discount

RIBBON CABLE

Solid Color Color Coded

Size

10 ft.

100 ft.

10 ft.

100 ft. V

10

2.90

17.00

4.00

30.00

14

3.40

23.80

5.00

42.00

16

3.70

27.20

5.60

48.00

20

4.40

34.00

7.00

60.00

24

5.00

40.80

8.00

72.00

26

5.40

44.20

8.60

78.00

34

6.80

57.80

11.00

102.00

40

7.80

68.00

13.00

120.00

50

9.50

85.00

16.00

150.00

SOCKETS

Size

Part No.

10

IDS10B

20

IDS20B

26

IDS26B

34

IDS34B

40

IDS40B

50

IDS50B

Price

$1.88 2.75 3.50 4.50 5.40 6.50

.1" Spacing. Crimps onto cable with ordinary vise & mounts to header sold above.

WIRE KITS

Kit No. 1

- $9.95

250

3"

100

4%'

200

V/l"

100

5"

100

4"

100

6"

Kit No. 2

- $24.95

250

2'/2"

250

5"

500

3"

100

5'/2

500

3'/i"

100

6"

500

4"

100

6'/a

250

4%"

100

7"

Kit No. 3

- $34.95

250

2</i"

500

4%

500

3"

500

5"

500

3y2"

500

51/2

500

4"

500

6"

Kit No. 4

- $59.95

500

2'/2"

1000

4'/2

1000

3"

1000

5"

1000

31/»"

1000

5Vl

1000

4"

1000

6"

DISCOUNT SCHEDULE

Order

Amount

Discount and the name of

$15 - 99

Net

this magazine must be men

100- 199

less 10%

tioned at time of order to get

200 - 499

less 15%

discount. Discount applies

500 - 999

less 20%

on all items except as noted,

1000 up

less 25%

"No Discount."

Circle 335 on inquiry card.

16K Memory

4116-200ns

8/15.95

ALL MERCHANDISE 100% GUARANTEED!

CALL US FOR VOLUME QUOTES

LS SERIES

8200

MPU'S

74LS00

74LSOI

74LS02

74LS03

74LS04

74LS05

74LSOB

74LS09

74LS10

74LS11

74LS12

74LS13

74LSI4

74LS15

74LS20

74LS21

74LS22

74LS26

74LS27

74LS28

741S30

74LS32

74LS33

74LS37

741S38

74LS40

74LS42

74LS47

74LS48

74LS49

74LS51

74LS54

74LS55

74LS63

74LS73

741S74

74LS75

74LS76

74LS78

74LS83

74LS85

74LS86

74LS90

74LS91

74LS92

74LS93

741S95

74LS96

74LS107

74LS109

74LS1I2

74LSI13

74LS1 14

74LSI22

74LSI23

74LS124

74LS125

74LS126

74LS132

74LSI36

74LS137

74LS138

74LS139

74LSI45

74LSI47

74LS148

74LS151

74LSI53

74LS154

74LS155

74LS156

74LS157

74LS158

74LS160

74LS161

74LS162

74LS163

25 .25 .25

25

.25 .25

35 .35

45 1 00 .35 .25

35 .25

.35 .55 .55 .35

.75 .75

.50 .40 50 .75 1.15 40 65

.85

.95 .40

.50

45

.95

2.99

.95

.85

.75

.55

99

75

.75

1.20

2.49

1.35

.75

.75

2.35

95 .75 75 90 .95

74LS164 74LS165 74LS166 74LS168 74LS169 74LS170 74LS173 74LS174 74LS175 74LS181 74LS189 74LS190 74LS191 74LS192 74LS193 74LS194 74LS195 74LS196 74LS197 74LS221 74LS240 74LS241 74LS242 74LS243 74LS244 74LS245 74LS247 74LS248 74LS249 74LS251 74LS253 74LS257 74LS258 74LS259 74LS260 74LS266 74LS273 74LS275 74LS279 74LS280 74LS283 74LS290 74LS293 74LS295 74LS298 74LS324 74LS352 74LS363 74LS363 74LS364 74LS365 74LS366 74LS367 74LS368 74LS373 74LS374 74LS377 74LS378 74LS379 74US385 74LS386 74LS390 74LS393 74LS395 74LS399 741S447 74LS490 74LS668 74LS669 74LS670 74LS674 74LS682 74LS683 74LS684 74LS685 74LS688 74LS689

LINEAR

LM301V

LM308V

LM309K

LM311

LM317T

LM317K

LM318

LM323K

LM324

LM337K

LM339

LM377

LM380

LM386V

LM555V

LM556

LM565

LM566V

LM567V

LM723

LM733

34

98

1.49

.64

1 95 395

1 49 4.95

59

395

99

2 29 1 29 1 50

99 1.49 1.29

LM741V

LM747

LM748V

LM1310

MCI 330V

MCI 350V

MC1358

LM1414

LM1458V

LM1486

LM1489

LM1800

LM1889

LM39O0

LM3909V

LM3914

LM3915

LM3916

75451V

75452V

75453V

1 PIN K =

.95

.95

2.40

1.75

1.75

1.75

.80

.95

.95

2.15

9.95

1.00

1.00

.85

.95

1.00

.95

.85

.85

1.20

1.85

1.85

.99

1.90

.76

1.25

.99

1.30

.85

.85

.85

2.85

.65

.55

1.65

3.35

.55

1.98

1.00

1.25

1.85

1.05

1.20

1.75

1.55

1.55

1.35

1.95

.95

.95

.70

.70

.99

1.75

1.45

1.18

1.35

1.90

.65

1.90

1.90

1.65

1.70

.37

1.95

1.69

1.89

2.20

9.65

3.20

2.30

2.40

2.40

2.40

2.40

.29 79 .59 290 1.89 1.29 1.79 1.59 .69 .99 .99 299 2.49

395 3.95 3.95 .39 39 .39

8202

8205

8212

8214

8216

8224

8226

8228

8237

8238

8243

8250

8251

8253

8253-5

8255

8255-5

8257

8259

8272

8275

8279

8279-5

8282

8283

8284

8286

8287

8288

8289

45.00 3.50 1.85 3.85 1.80 2.50 1.80 4.90 19.95 4.85 4.45 14.95 5.40 9.85 9.85 5.15 5.25 8.75 6.90 39.95 29.95 10.50 10.50 6.65 6.65 5.70 6.65 6.50 25.00 49.95

6800

6800 6802 6809 681 0 6820 6821 6828 6834 6840 6843 6844 6845 684 7 6850 6852 6860 6862 6B71 6875 6880

5.70

11.95

37.95

4.60

4.95

3.45

9.95

16.95

14.95

42.95

44.95

29.95

15.95

3.50

5.75

10.95

11.95

25.95

6.05

1.75

1702

2708

2758

TMS2516

2716

2716-1

TMS2716

TMS2532

2732

2101

2102-1

21L02-1

2111

2112

2114

2114L-2

2114L-3

2114L-4

TMS4044-4

TMS4044-3

TMM2016

HM6116

4027

4116-150

4116-200

4116-300

4164

8035

8039

8080A

8085

8086

8088

8155

8156

8185

8185-2

8741

8748

8755

16 95 19.95 3.95 12 95 99.95 39.95 11.95 1 1 95 29.95 39 95 39.95 69.95 4995

Z80

Z80

Z80A

Z80B

Z80-PIO

Z80A-PIO

Z80CTC

Z80A-CTC

Z80-0ART

Z80A-DART

Z80-DMA

ZB0A-DMA

Z80-SIO/0

Z80A-SIO/0

Z80-SIO/1

Z80A-SIO/1

Z80-SIO/2

Z80ASIO/2

Z80-SIO/9

Z80ASIO/9

8.95

6.00

18.95

6.50

5.95

5.95

8.65

15.25

18.75

17.50

27.50

23.95

28.95

23.95

15.00

23.95

28.95

17.95

22.95

TV. CIRCUITS

MC1330

MC1350

MC1358

LM380

LM386

LM565

LM741

LM1310

LM1800

LMIB89

EPROMS

1.89 1.29 1 79 1.29 1.50 .99

256 x 8 1024 x 8 1024 x 8 2048 x 8 2048 x 8 2048 x 8 2048 x 8 4096 x 8 4096 x 8

(lus) (450ns) (450ns)(5v| (450ns)(5v) (450ns)(5v) (350nsX5v) (450ns) (450ns)(5v) (450nsK5u)

STATIC RAMS

256 x 4 1024 x 1 1024 x 1 256 x 4 256 x 4 1024 x 4 1024 x 4 1024 x 4 1024 x 4 4096 x 1 4096 x 1 2048 x 8 2048 x 8

(450ns)

(450ns)

(450ns)(LP)

(450ns)

(450ns)

(450ns|

(200ns)(LP)

(300ns)(LP)

(450ns)(LP)

(450ns)

(300ns)

(200ns)

(200ns)

JDR MICRODEVICES, INC IS PROUD TO

ANNOUNCE THE OPENING OF OUR

NEW RETAIL SHOWROOM

BAY AREA RESIDENTS STOP BY 1224 BASCOM AVE.

MISC.

8T26

1.69

3242

7.95

8T28

2.49

AY5-1013 3.95

8T95

99

TH1602

4.95

8T96

.99

IM6402

7.95

8T97

.99

1771

24.95

8T96

.99

1791

36.95

1488

99

1793

49.95

1489

99

UPD765

39.95

DM8131

2.95

B272

39.95

14411

9.95

74C923

5.95

TRANSISTORS

PN2222 2N3904 2N3906 2N3055 IN4148 1N4004

10/1.00

10/1.00

10/1.00

79

6502

6502

6.95

6502A

12.95

6504

6.95

6505

0.95

6520

4.35

6522

9.95

6532

14.95

6551

11.85

4.95

4.50

3.95

3.50

9.95

8.95

7.95

6.95

5.50

5.00

12.95

11.95

9.95

8.95

19.95

17.95

16.50

15.95

1.95 89

1 29 2.99

2 99 8/17.95 8/22.95

8/18.95 8/18.95 349 3.99 CALL CALL

DYNAMIC RAMS

4096 x 16.384 x 16,384 x 16.384 x 65.536 x

(250ns) (150ns) (200ns) (300ns) (200ns)

LP=LOW POWER

2.50 8/18.95

8/15.95

8/14.95

CALL

lOOpcs 1.85 85 1.15 249 279 2.10 245 2.25 2.25 3.25 3.75

100pcs 2.00 1.95 1.80 1.75

100/8.99 100/8.99 100/8.99 10/6.99 25/1.00 10/1 00

We will beat any competitors prices

CALL JDR BEFORE YOU BUY! WE WILL BEAT ANY COMPETITORS PRICES.

800-538-5000 800-662-6233

{CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS)

DIP SWITCHES

4 position

.85

5 position

.90

6 position

.90

7 position

.95

8 position

.95

CONNECTORS

RS232MALE

3.25

RS232 FEMALE

3.75

RS232HOOD

1.25

S-100ST

3.95

S-100 WW

4.95

LEDS

Jumbo Red 10/1.00 Jumbo Green 6/1.00 Jumbo Yellow 6/1.00 5082-7760 ,43'CC .79 MAN74.3'CC .99 MAN72.3'CA .99

VOLTAGE REG'S

7805T

.89

7905T

.99

7808T

.99

7912T

.99

7812T

.89

7915T

1.19

7815T

99

7924T

1.19

7824T

.99

7805K

1.39

7905K

1.49

7812K

1.39

7912K

1.49

78I5K

1 39

79L05

.79

78L05

69

79LI2

.79

78L12

.69

79L15

79

78L15

.69

LM317K

3.95

LM309K 1.49 LM323K 4.95

LM317T 1.95 LM337K 3.95

T=TO-220 K^TO-3 L^TO-92

IC

SOCKETS

■100 100pcs

8 pin ST

.13 .11

14 pin SI

.15 .12

16 pin ST

.17 .13

18 pin ST

.20 .18

20 pin ST

.29 .27

22 pin ST

.30 .27

24 pin ST

.30 .27

28 pin ST

.40 .32

40 pin ST

.49 .39

ST = SOLDERTAIL

8 pin WW

.59 .49

14 pin WW

.69 52

16 pin WW

.69 .58

18 pin WW

.99 .90

20 pin WW

1.09 .98

22 pin WW

1.39 1.28

24 pin WW

1.49 1.35

28 pin WW

1.69 1.49

40 pin WW

1.99 180

WW = WIREWRAP

[masiei charge

V/SA°

JDR MICRODEVICES, INC.

1224 So. Bascom Ave. San Jose, CA 95128

800-538-5000 • 800-662-6233 (Calif.) 408-247-4852

TERMS: For shipping include $2.00 lor UPS Ground. $3.00 lor UPS Blue Label Air. $1000 minimum order. Bay Area Residents add 6V?% sales tax California Residents add 6% sales

tax. We reserve the right to limit quantities and substitute manufacturer. Prices subject to change without notice. Send SASE for complete list

548 BYTE November 1981

Circle 213 on inquiry card.

2716

EPROMS 450NS (5V)

8/5.00

ALL MERCHANDISE 100% GUARANTEED!

CALL US FOR VOLUME QUOTES

CMOS

74C00

.35

74C374

2.75

4019

.45

4098

2.49

74C02

.35

74C901

.80

4020

.95

4099

1.95

74C04

.35

74C902

.85

4021

.95

14409

8.95

74C08

.35

74C903

.85

4022

1.15

14410

8.95

74C10

.35

74C905

10.95

4023

.35

14411

9.95

74C14

1.50

74C906

.95

4024

.75

14412

12.95

74C20

.35

74C907

1.00

4025

.35

14419

2.95

74C30

.35

74C908

2.00

4026

1.65

4502

.95

74C32

.50

74C909

2.75

4027

.65

4503

.65

74C42

1.75

74C910

9.95

4028

.80

4508

1.95

74C48

2.10

74C911

10.00

4029

.95

4510

.95

74C73

.65

74C912

10.00

4030

.45

4511

.95

74C74

.85

74C914

1.95

4034

2.95

4512

.95

74C76

.80

74C915

2.00

4035

.85

4514

1.25

74C83

1.95

74C918

2.75

4040

.95

4515

2.25

74C85

1.95

74C920

17.95

4041

1.25

4516

1.55

74C86

.95

74C921

15.95

4042

.75

4518

1.25

74C89

4.50

74C922

5.95

4043

.85

4519

1.25

74C90

1.75

74C923

5.95

4044

.85

4520

1.25

74C93

1.75

74C925

6.75

4046

.95

4522

1.25

74C95

1 75

74C926

7.95

4047

.95

4526

1.25

74C107

1.00

74C927

7.95

4049

.55

4527

1.95

74C150

5.75

74C928

7.95

4050

.55

4528

1.25

74C151

2.25

74C929

19.95

4051

.95

4531

.95

74C154

3.25

74C930

19.95

4053

.95

4532

1.95

74C157

1.75

4000

.35

4060

1.45

4538

1.95

74C160

2.00

4001

.35

4066

.75

4539

1.95

74C161

2.00

4002

.25

4068

.40

4543

2.70

74C162

2.00

4006

.95

4069

.35

4555

.95

74C163

2.00

4007

.29

4070

.35

4556

.95

74C164

2.00

4008

.95

4071

.30

4581

1.95

74C165

2.00

4009

.45

4072

.30

4582

1.95

74C173

2.00

4010

.45

4073

.30

4584

.95

74C174

2.25

4011

.35

4075

.30

4585

.95

74C175

2.25

4012

.25

4076

.95

4702

12.95

74C192

2.25

4013

.45

4078

30

4724

1.50

74C193

2.25

4014

.95

4081

.30

80C07

.95

74C195

2.25

4015

.95

4082

.30

B0C95

.85

74C200

5.75

4016

.45

4085

.95

80C96

.95

74C221

2.25

4017

1.15

4086

.95

80C97

95

74C373

2.75

4018

.95

4093

.95

80C98

1.20

74S00 SERIES

74S00

44

74S74

.69

74S163

3.75

74S258

1.49

74S02

48

74S85

2.39

74S168

4.65

74S260

1.83

74S03

48

74S86

1,44

74S169

5.44

74S274

19.95

74S04

79

74S112

1.59

74S174

1.09

74S275

19.95

74S05

79

74S113

1.98

74S175

1.09

74S280

2.90

74S08

48

74S114

1.50

74S181

4.47

74S287

4.75

74S09

98

74S124

2.77

74S182

2.95

74S288

4.45

74S10

69

74S132

1.24

74S188

3.95

74S289

6.98

74S11

88

74S133

.98

74S189

14.95

74S301

6.95

74S15

70

74S134

.69

74S194

2.95

74S373

3.45

74S20

68

74S135

1.48

74S195

1.89

74S374

3.45

74S22

98

74S138

1.08

74S196

4.90

74S381

7.95

74S30

48

74S139

1.25

74S197

4.25

74S387

5.75

74S32

98

74S140

1.45

74S201

14.95

74S412

2.98

74S37 1

87

74S151

1.19

74S225

8.95

74S471

9.95

74S38 1

68

74S153

1.19

74S240

3.98

74S472

16.85

74S40

44

74S157

1.19

74S241

3.75

74S474

17.85

74S51

78

74S158

1.45

74S251

1.90

74S482

15.60

74S64

79

74S161

2.85

74S253

7.45

74S570

7.80

74S65 1

25

74S162

3.70

74S257

1.39

74S571

7.80

PROMS

74S188

(82S23)

OC

32 x 8

3.95

74S287

(82S129)

TS

256 x 4

4.75

74S288

(82S123)

TS

32 x 8

4.45

74S387

(82S126)

OC

256 x 4

5.75

74S471

TS

256 x8

9.95

74S472

(82S147)

TS

512 x 8

16.85

74S474

(82S141)

TS

512 x 8

17.85

74S570

(82S130)

OC

512 x 4

7.80

74S571

(82S131)

TS

512 x 4

7.80

7400 SERIES

7400

19

74128

.55

7401

19

74132

.45

7402

19

74136

.50

7403

.19

74141

.65

7404

.19

74142

2.95

7405

.22

74143

2.95

7406

22

74144

2.95

7407

.22

74145

.60

7408

.24

74147

1.75

7409

19

74148

1.20

7410

.19

74150

1.35

7411

.25

74151

.65

7412

.30

74152

.65

7413

.35

74153

55

7414

.55

74154

1 40

7416

.25

74155

.75

7417

.25

74156

.65

7420

.19

74157

.55

7421

.35

74159

1.65

7422

29

74160

.85

7423

.29

74161

.70

7425

.29

74162

.85

7426

.29

74163

.85

7427

29

74164

.85

7428

.45

74165

.85

7430

.19

74166

1.00

7432

.29

74167

1.95

7433

.45

74170

1.65

7437

.29

74172

5.95

743B

.29

74173

.75

7440

.19

74174

.89

7442

.49

74175

.89

7443

.65

74176

89

7444

.69

74177

.75

7445

.69

74178

1.15

7446

.59

74179

1.75

7447

.69

74180

.75

7448

.69

74181

2.25

7450

.19

74182

.75

7451

.23

74164

2.00

7453

.23

74185

2.00

7454

.23

74186

18.50

7460

.23

74190

1.15

7464

.39

74191

1.15

7465

.39

74192

.79

7470

.35

74193

.79

7472

.29

74194

.85

7473

.34

74195

.85

7474

.35

74196

.79

7475

.49

74197

.75

7476

.35

74198

1.35

7480

.59

74199

1.35

7481

1.10

74221

1.35

7482

.95

74246

1.35

7483

.50

74247

1.25

7484

.50

74248

1.85

7485

.65

74249

1.95

7486

.35

74251

.75

7489

4.95

74259

2.25

7490

35

74265

1.35

7491

.40

74273

1.95

7492

.50

74276

1.25

7493

.49

74279

.75

7494

.65

74283

2.00

7495

.55

74284

3.75

7496

.70

74285

3 75

7497

2.75

74290

.95

74100

1.00

74293

.75

74107

.30

74298

.85

74109

45

74351

2.25

74110

.45

74365

.65

74111

.55

74366

.65

74116

1.55

74367

.65

74120

1.20

74368

.65

74121

.29

74376

2.20

74122

.45

74390

1.75

74123

.55

74393

1.35

74125

.45

74425

3.15

74126

.45

74426

.85

74490

2.55

NEED FAST PARTS?

DYNAMIC RAMS

4116

150NS

16Kx 1

8/18.95

4116

120NS

16Kx 1

8/29.95

STATIC RAMS

2147

55NS

4Kx 1

9.95

6116

150NS

2Kx8

CALL

6116

120NS

2Kx8

CALL

EPROMS

2716-1

350 NS

2Kx8

12.95

2732A

250NS

4Kx8

25.95

2732A-2

200NS MPU's

4Kx8

32.95

Z-80B

CPU

6mHz

18.95

Z-80B

CTC

6mHz

17.95

Z-80B

PIO

6mHz

17.95

68 BOO

CPU

2mHz

10.95

68B21

PIA

2mHz

12.95

68B50

ACIA

2mHz

12.95

8085A-2

CPU

5mHz

16.95

■

APPLE OWNERS

EXPAND YOUR 48K COMPUTER TO 64K

SUPER RAM • II

PLUG IN SLOT 0 GOLD PLATED CONTACTS INCLUDES 5 JUMPER OPTIONS INCLUDES 5 RAM-ROM OPTIONS ENJOY THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS 16K RAM (RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY) THIS IS SOPHISTICATED FIRMWARE EXPANOS YOUR 48K APPLE TO 64K OF PROGRAMMABLE MEMORY

ELIMINATES THE NEED FOR APPLESOFT' OR INTEGER BASIC ROM CARD

ALLOW YOU TO RUN APPLE'S NEW FORTRAN PACKAGE. ALSO PASCAL AND PILOT

KEYBOARD CONTROL SELECTION OF RAM OR MOTHER BOARD ROM LANGUAGE

INCLUDES INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS AND APPLICATIONS NOTES

THE SOFTWARE DEVELOPED BY VARIOUS VENDORS FOR YOUR I64K) SHOULD NOW WORK AS THEY ADVERTISED THE MOST VERSATILE RAM EXPANSION ON THE MARKET TODAY UNIQUE 1 YEAR WARRANTEE! $168.00

APPLE FAN

"COOL-/T""

I

TAN COLOR SAVE DOWN TIME LONG LIFE MOTOR LOW NOISE IS A MUST SAVE REPAIR CHARGES INCREASES RELIABILITY CLIPS ON —NO HOLES OR SCREWS

MINIMUM QUIETNESS IS DUE TO THE DRAW EFFECT OF AIR THROUGH YOUR COMPUTER AND A SPECIAL FAN AND MOTOR DESIGN

THOSE EXTRA PLUG-IN CARDS CAN CAUSE EXTRA HEAT HOW TO HOOK IT UP Clip it on your APPLE

Unplug your 120V cable (you won't need il)

Plug shotl 120V cable Irom Super Fan II lo the back ol your computer Plug Ihe supply cable Irom Super Fan II lo your 120V power source Turn on Ihe rocker swilcfi and a buillin red ready ligm comes on You are all set "COOL IT" UNIQUE 1 YEAR WARRANTEE! $69.00

•APPLE IS A TRADEMARK OF APPLE COMPUTER INC

JDR MICRODEVICES, INC.

1224 So. Bascom Ave. San Jose. CA 95128

800-538-5000 • 800-662-6233 (Caiif.) 408-247-4852

TERMS For shipping include $2 00 lor UPS Ground, $3 00 lor UPS Blue Label Air $10 00 minimum order Bay Area Resi dents add 6W% sales tax California Residents add 6% sales tax We reserve the right to limit quantities and substitute manufacturer Prices subiecl to change without notice Send SASE tor complete list

Circle 213 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

SUNNY LOW LOW COST

POWER SUPPLIES

FOR S-100, FLOPPY DISKS.

KIT 1, 2 & 3 For S-100 R3 For Three 8" or

5V4" Disk Drives

S-100 POWER SUPPLY KITS (open frame with base plate, 3 hrs. assy, time)

ITEM USED FOR @ + 8 Vdc @ - 9 Vdc @ <• 16 Vdc @ - 16 Vdc @> + 28 Vdc SIZE W « D X

S3 2 in 1 Unit for S 100 and two 8" or 5%" Disk Drives. It fits most Disk System Mainframes.

H

PRICE

KIT 1 15 CARDS SOURCE 15A

KIT 2 SYSTEM SOURCE 25A

KIT 3 DISK SYSTEM 15A

2.5A 3A 2A

2.5A 3A 2A

4A

12" x 5" X 47/a" 12" x 5" x 47/a" 14" x 6" x 47/e"

52.95 59.95 67.95

DISK DRIVE POWER SUPPLY "R3" regulated, open frame, assy & tested 67.95

SPECS l 5V @ 5A OVP -5V @ 1A t 24V@ 5A. SHORTS PROTECT 2 SIZES AVAIL .1)9" (W) x 6V (D) x 4V (H), 2) 9" (W) x 4V (D) x 5'j" (H)

OPTION 1 ) REPLACE + 24V BY + 12V. 2 ) FOR SIZE 1 ONLY. ADD + 12V @ 1A. AT AN ADDITIONAL $12 00

IDEAL FOR THREE 8" or 5'j FLOPPY DISK DRIVES. SUCH AS SHUGART 801/851 SIEMANS FDD 100-8/200-8 OR 100-5 ETC

DISK SYSTEM PWR SUPPLY "S3" open frame, assy. & tested, compact size: iotwj ■ 6 (D) ■ 5 <h) 92.95

REGULATED OUTPUTS FOR DISK DRIVES +5V @ 4A. -5V @ 1A. +24V @ 4A (OR + 12V @ 4A) SHORTS PROTECT

UNREGULATED OUTPUTS FOR S-100 i 8V @ 14A, _l 16V @ 3A (OPTION ADD OVP FOR i 5V, ADD $5 00)

A COMPLETE UNIT FOR DISK SYSTEM WITH THE MAINFRAME CONTAINING 12 SLOTS & TWO 8" or 5V DISK DRIVES

POWER TRANSFORMERS (with mounting brackets)

ITEM PRIMARY SECONDARY #1 SECONDARY #2 SECONDARY #3 SIZE W x D -. H PRICE

T1 110/120

T2 110/120

T3 110/120

T4 110/120

T5 110/120

2x8 Vac. 15A 2x8 Vac. 25A 2x8 Vac. 15A 2x8 Vac, 6A 2x8 Vac, 6A

28 Vac, CT, 2.5A 28 Vac, CT, 3.5A 28 Vac, CT, 2.5A 28 Vac, CT, 1.5A 28 Vac. CT, 2A

48 Vac, CT, 2A 48 Vac, CT. 3A

33/4" x 35/a" x 3V8" 3%" x AW x 3V»" 3%" x 4W x 3Va" 3%" x 3V8" x 3V8" 3" x 3" x 2VS"

21.95 27.95 29.95 22.95 14.95

SHIPPING For each power supply $5.50 in Calif., $7.50 in other states, $14.00 in Canada For each Transformer $5.00 in all States. $10.00 in Canada. Calif. Residents add 6% Sales Tax.

MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. BOX 4296 TORRANCE, CA 90510

TELEX: 830-5010

ANSWER BACK FOR TELEX SUNYCO TRUC

SUNNY INTERNATIONAL

(TRANSFORMERS MANUFACTURER) (213) 328-2425 MON-SAT 9-6

SHIPPING ADDRESS: 22129V2 S. VERMONT AVE [ TORRANCE, CA 90502 I

3 ALTERNATIVE INTERFACES FORTHETRS-80

COMM-80

Featured in May/June 80 BYTE •RS-232-C port (50-19.2K baud) software/hardware selectable • Centronics printer port 8-bit •connects to keyboard or E. I. •chain up to 16 units •use with E.I. for 2nd printer •includes terminal software •only $179.95 complete

ALL INTERFACES ARE RADIO SHACK HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE COMPATIBLE AND CARRY A 60 DAY WARRANTEE INCLUDING PARTS AND LABOR. ALL UNITS INCLUDE USER'S MANUAL, POWER SUPPLY & AUXILIARY TRS-BUS CONNECTOR FOR FUTURE EXPANSION

DISK-80

Featured in March '81 BYTE

• disk controller^ drives)

• hardware data separator

• includes 16K of RAM provision for additional 16K

• buffered TRS-bus connector

• real-time clock

• printer port (optional)

ASSEMBLED & TESTED

with 16Kof RAM $329.95

Centronics Printer

Port add $ 50.00

with 32K RAM add. . . $ 50.00

DISK-80 pc board $ 48.00

Printer/Power Supply pc board $ 16.00

Complete Kit with 16K

RAM and Printer Port . $275.00

Dealer inquiries invited.

IHS H(l r. 1. Hlfm uk nl I .inilv [iil|l

CHATTERBOX

Featured in Aug. '80 BYTE •300 baud originate modem •Centronics printer port 8-bit •RS-232-C port (50-19.2K baud) •connects to keyboard or E. I. •received data automatically

routed to printer ports •includes terminal software •only $279.95 complete

Call 1-800-645-3479, in N.Y. 1-516-374-6793 or write: The MicroMint Inc.

917 Midway

Woodmere, NY 11598

SFwl

550 BYTE November 1981

Circle 475 on inquiry card.

^

VduVe GanE TDD FAR!

Go Back to Page 64

and

SAVE

UP TO 10%"

on any prepaid U.S. Mail or

retail store order

OVER $100.00

From our 60 Page Color Detachable

FALL 1981

ENGINEERING

SELECTION GUIDE

Just attach this coupon to the face of your order form

DISCOUNT COUPON

from our FALL 1981

ENGINEERING SELECTION GUIDE

\/ Appropriate Box

PRIORITY ConeJELECTRONICS

9161 DEERING AVE, CHATSWORTH, CA91311

Valid on Prepaid U.S. Mail Orders Received Before December 15, 1981

or Present This Coupon at Our Retail Store Before December 15, 1981

□ $100-$149.99 Deduct$10.00

□ $150 ■ $199.99 Deduct $15.00

□ $200 - $299.99 . Deduct $20.00

□ $300 - $399.99 Deduct $30.00

□ $400 ■ $499.99 Deduct $40.00

□ $500 & UP Deduct $ 10%

*Sorry, Discount Coupon Not Valid on Shipping Charges, Phone or Foreign orders

Circle 350 on inquiry card.

A-D & DA CONVERTER

Z80 MICROCOMPUTER

6522 APPLE II INTERFACE

J BE one channel A-D & D-A Converter can be used with any system having parallel ports • Interfaces with JBE Parallel I/O Card • D-A conversion time — 5 us • A-D conversion time — 20 ^s • Uses JBE 5V power supply

• Parallel inputs & outputs include 8 data bits, strobe lines & latches

• Analog inputs & outputs are medium impedance 0 to 5 volt range. _

79-287

Bare Board $39.95

ASSM. $79.95 Kit $59.95

6502 MICROCOMPUTER

JBE's 4V2X3V4 dedicated controller features: • 1024 bytes RAM (two 2114s) • 2048 bytes EPROM (2716) • Uses one 6522 VIA (comp. doc. incl.) • Interfaces with JBE Solid State Switches & A-D & D-A Converter • Uses JBE 5V power supply »2716 EPROM available separately (2716 can be programmed with an Apple II & JBE EPROM Programmer & Parallel Interface) • 50 pin connector included In kit & assm. 80-153 ASSM. $110.95

Bare Board $49.95 Kit $ 89.95

SOLID STATE SWITCH

Your computer can control power to your printer, lights, stereo & any 120VAC appliances up to 720 watts (6 amps at 120VAC). Input 3 to 15VDC • 2-14MA TTL compatible • Isolation — 1500V • Non zero crossing • Comes in 1 or 4 channel version.

79-282-1

Bare Board $6.95

79-282-4

Bare Board $24.95

ASSM. $13.95 Kit $10.95

ASSM. $49.95 Kit $39.95

APPLE II DISPLAY BOARD

JBE's 4-1/8"x3-1/4" single board dedicated computer is designed for control functions. It features: • A Z80 Microprocessor software compatible with the Z80i 8080 & 8085 Microprocessors • Uses a Z80 PIO chip for I/O which has 2 Independent 8 bit bidirectional peripheral interface ports with handshake & data transfer control • Uses one 2716 EPROM (2K) & two 2114 RAM memories (1K) • Single 5V power supply at 300MA req. • Clock frequency Is 2MHz, RC controlled • Board comes with complete doc. • 50 pin connector is included »2716 EPROM available separately.

80-280 ASSM. $129.95

Bare Board $49.95 Kit $119.95

PRINTER INTERFACE

■TiiinnfflMinr

JBE Parallel Printer Interface Interfaces your Apple ll® to Centronics® compatible printers. This 3" x 4" board features: on board ROM compatible with Integer Basic, Applesoft* and Pascal® • Has one 8 bit parallel latched output port with selectable positive or negative strobe and one bit input selectable for Ready or Ready • Cable and Connectors available separately.

80-297 ASSM. $79.95

Kit $69.95 4 ft. Std. Dip Jumpers 16 pin $ 4.25 Champ Connector $ 9.95

POWER SUPPLIES

• Use wall transformers for safety

• Protected against short circuit and thermal breakdown.

5 VOLT POWER SUPPLY Rated at 5V 500MA • Operates JBE A-D & D-A Converter, Z80 & 6502 Microcomputers, 8085 & 8088 Microcomputers.

80-160 ASSM. $20.95

Bare Board $8.95 Kit $16.95

± 12 VOLT POWER SUPPLY

Rated at ± 12V120MA • Can be used as a single 24V power supply • Ideally suited to OP-AMP experiments.

80-161 ASSM. $22.95

Bare Board $8.95 Kit $18.95

80-144

Bare Board $25.95

ASSM. $49.95 Kit $42.95

• Has run-stop, single step switch • Has 16 address LEDs, 8 data LEDs & 1 RDY LED

• All lines are buffered.

ICS

6502 $9.95

6522 $9.95

Z80CPU $9.95 Z80 PIO $9.95 2716 $14.95 2716 Programmed

• Interfaces printers, synthesizers, keyboards, JBE A-D & D-A Converter & Solid State Switches • Has handshaking logic, two 6522 VIAs & a 74LS05 for timing • Inputs & outputs are TTL compatible.

79-295 ASSM. $69.95

Bare Board $39.95 Kit $59.95

2716 EPROM PROGRAMMER

JBE 2716 EPROM Programmer was designed to program 5V 2716 EPROMS • It can also read 2716s. It interfaces to the Apple II using JBE Parallel I/O Card & four ribbon cable connectors • An LED indicates when power is being applied to the EPROM • A textool zero insertion force socket is used for the EPROM • Comes with complete doc. for writing and reading in the Apple II or Apple II + • Cables available separately. 80-244 ASSM. $49.95

Bare Board $24.95 Kit $39.95

2 Ft. Ribbon Cable $ 4.25

BARE BOARDS

APPLE II EXTENDER BOARD

31/j" x 2%". Price Includes 50 pin Connector. 80-143 $12.95

8085 3 CHIP SYSTEM

State-of-the-art system using an 8085, 8156 & either an. 8355 or 8755

• Instruction set 100% upward compatible with 8080A.

Bare Board $24.95

8088 5 CHIP SYSTEM

An 8086 family microcomputer system using an 8088 CPU, 8284,8155,8755A & an 8185. Bare Board $29.95

CRT CONTROLLER

This intelligent CRT Controller uses an 8085A CPU & an 8275 Integrated CRT Controller. It features: • 25 lines (80 Char./line) • 5x7 dot matrix • Upper & lower case • two 2716s (controller &. char, generator) • serial interface RS232 & TTL • baud rates of 110, 150, 300, 600, 1200, 2400, 4800 & 9600

• keyboard scanning system • unencoded keyboard is req'd • uses + 5V & ± 12V power supplies • Doc. includes program listing & composite video circuit.

$39.95 $19.95

Bare Board only (Doc. incl.) Programmed 2716s each

$19.95

MC

all products are available from john bell engineering • p.o. box 338 redwood city, ca 94064 • add sales tax in california • add 5% shipping & handling

(415) 367-1137 10% outside u.s.a.

VISA

JBEI MICROCOMPUTER

John Bell Engineering's lo w-cost JBE I Microcomputer - based on the po werful 6502 processor - is specifically designed for WORK, LEARNING, DEVELOPMENT AND CONTROL. The JBE I has a unique combination of features:

• 6502 Microprocessor

• 4 6522 VIAs (8 parallel I/O ports)

• 1 AY5-1013 (UART serial port)

• Cassette Interface

4K 2114 RAM Memory 8K or 16K EPROM Memory Monitor and Tiny Basic Variety of Support Cards

Use your JBE I to PROGRAM 2716s, TALK to you, CONTROL the world.

JBE I interfaces with JBE's EPROM Programmer, Parallel Input Speech Synthesizer, A-D & D-A Converter and Solid State Switches.

Save your programs easily and accurately using the cassette interface.

• Use your JBE I for:

CONTROL

• Home security and lighting systems

• Irrigation systems

• Model Tranis

• Solar heating and power systems

DEVELOPMENT

• Software for work and home

• Learning aids for children at home and school

• Development system for JBE 6502 Microcomputer

LEARNING

• Microcomputer Technology

• Machine language and Basic programming

• The three R's for children

JBE I is available fully populated, partially populated or as a bare board for OEM and the dedicated hobbyist:

The fully populated version includes:

6502 CPU 4K RAM

4 6522 VIAs Monitor EPROM

A Y5-1013 Tiny Basic EPROM

Partially Assembled Version includes: 6502 CPU IK RAM

1 6522 VIA Monitor EPROM

A Y5-1013

All versions include complete documentation. For information write: John Bell Engineering, P.O. Box 338, Redwood City, CA 94064. (415)367-1137. OEM Pricing available.

K FOR MASTER CHARGE, VISA AND C.O.D. ORDERS CALL (415) 367-1137 OR SEND CHECK TO THE ABOVE ADDRESS, 1 DEPT. JI. PLEASE INCLUDE 5% FOR SHIPPING AND HANDLING INSIDE USA AND 10% OUTSIDE USA.

7400

5N7400N SN7401N SN74Q2N SN7403N SN74Q4N SN7405N SN7406N SN7407N SN740BN SN74Q9N SN7410N 5N74UN SN7412N SN7413N 5N7414IM SN7416N SN7417N SN7420N SN7421N SN7422N 5N7423N SN7425N SN7426N SN7427N SN7428N SN7430N SN7432N SN7437N SN7438N SN7439N SN7440N SN7441N SN7442N SN7443N SN7444N SN7445N SN7446N SN7447N SN7448N SN7450N SN7451N SN7453N 5N7454N SN7459A SN746QN SN7470N

74LS00 74 L SOI 74LS02 74LSQ3 74LS04 74LSOS 74LS08 74LS09 74LS10 74L5U 74LS12 74LS13 74LS14 74LS1S 74LS20 74LS21 74LS22 74LS26 74LS27 74LS28 74 L 530 74LS32 74LS33 74LS37 74LS38 74LS40 74LS42 74LS47 74LS4B 74L549 74LS51 74LS54 74LS55 74LS73 74LS74 74LS75 74LS76 74LS78 74LS83 74LS85 >4LSB6 74LS90

74SO0 74S02 74S03 74S04 74SOS 74508 74S09 74S10 74S11 74515 74S20 74522 74530 74532 74S38 74540 74551 74S64 74565 74574 74SB6 745112 74S113 745114

SN7472N

SN7473N SN7474N SN7475N SN747GN SN7479N SIN7480N SN7482N SN7483N SN748SN SN7486N 5N7489N SN7490N SN7491N SN7492N SN7493N 5N7494N SN7495N SN7496N SN7497N 5N74100N SN74104N SN741Q5N SN74107N SN74I09N SN74116N SN74121N SN74122N SN74123N SN74125N SN74126N SN74132N SN74136N SN74141N SN74142N SN74143N SN74144N SN74145N SN74147N SN74148N SN7415QN SN 74151N SN74152N SN74153N SN74154N SN74155N

74LS

74LS92 74L593 74LS95 74LS96

74LS107 74LS109 74LS112 74LS113 74LSU4 74LSI22 74LS123 74LS125 74LS126 74LS132 74LS133 74LS13G 74LS138 74LS139 74LS151 74LS1S3 J4LS154 74LS155 74LS156 74LS15J 74LS158 74LS160 74LS161 74LS162 74LS163 74LS164 74LS165 74LS168 74LS169 74LS170 74 LSI 73 74LS174 74LS175 74LSiai 74L5190 74L5191

1.15 1.15 1.15 1.15 1.15 1.15 1.19 1.19 1.95

74LS192 74 L 5193 74LS194 74 L 5195

74LS197 74 L 5221 74LS240 74LS241 74LS242 74LS243 74LS244 74LS245 74LS247 74 L 5248 74LS249 74LS251 74LS253 74LS2S7 74LS258 74LS260 74LS266 74LS273 74LS279 74LS283 74LS290 74LS293 74 L 5298 74LS352 74LS353 74LS365 74LS366 74LS367 74 L 5368 74LS373 74LS374 74LS375 74LS386 74LS393 74LS399 74LS670 81LS95 81L597

74S

745124

3.95

74S133

.55

74 S134

.69

745135

1.19

745136

1.75

74 S138

1.35

74S139

1.35

74S140

.79

745151

1.35

74S153

1.35

74S157

1.35

74S158

1.35

745160

2.95

74S174

1.59

74S175

1.59

74S1BB

2.95

MS 194

1.95

745195

1.95

74S19G

1.95

74S240

2.95

74S241

2.95

74S242

3.25

74S243 745244 745251 745253 74S257 74S258 74S260 74S2B0 74S287 74S288 74S373 74S374 745387 74S471 74S472 7454 73 745474 745475 74S570 74S571 74S572 74S573 745940 74S941

CA3010H CA3013H CA3023H CA3035H CA3039H CA3046N CA3059N

2.15 3.25 2.49 1.35 1.30

CA-LINEAR

CA3Q60N CA3080H CA3081N CA3082N CA3083N CA3086N

2.00 2.00 1.60

CD4000 CD40Q1

CD4X2 CD4005 CD4Q0/ CD4009 CD4010 CD4011 CD4012 CD4013 CD4014 CD4015 CO4016 CD4017 CD4018 CD4019 CD4020 CD4021 CD4022 CD4023 CD4024 CD4025 CD402G CD4027 CD4028 CD4029 CD4030 CD4034 CD4035 CD4O40

LCD4

CD-CMOS

CD4Q41

1.49

CD4042

.99

CD4043

.89

CD4044

.89

CD4046

1.79

CD4047

2.50

CD4048

1.35

CD4049

.49

CD4050

.69

CD4051

1.19

CD4052

1.19

CD4053

1.19

CD4056

2.95

CD4059

9.95

CO4060

1.49

CD4066

.79

CD406B

.39

CD4069

.45

CD4070

.55

CD4071

.49

CD4072

.49

CD4073

.39

CD4075

.39

CD4076

1.39

CD4078

.55

CD4081

.39

CD4082

.39

CD4093

.99

CD 4098

CD450S

CD4S07

CD4S03

CD4510

CD4511

CD4S12

CD4514

CD4515

CD4516

CD4518

CD4519

CD4520

CD4526

CD4528

CD4529

CD4543

CD4562

CD4566

C D4583

CD4584

CD4723

CD4724

MC14409

MC14410

MC14411

MC14412

MC14419

MC14433

MC1453B

MC14541

2.49

2.49 2.49

2.95 3.25

2.75

2.95 10.95 10.95 10.95 12.95 12.95 5.95 5.95 9.95 9.95 3.15

CA3089N CA309GN CA3130H CA3140H CA3160H CA3401N CA3600JM

1.95 2.79 11.95

17.95

18.95 15.95 15.95

7.95 15.95 2.49

As Saan on "Good Morning America"

Replaces the Telephone Ringer Bell with a Selection of 30 Familiar Tunes

S-B-H

PT030 Wall Jai

• Rule BTltlania ■O Canada

• Colonel Bogey ■ Westminister Chimes

• Mexican Hal Dance

• Twinkle, Twinkle Little St.

• Deulschlandlied

> God Save the Queen

Each Unit will play any of the following tunes:

■ Gteensleeves «

■ Lorelei '

■ Eyes of Texas

• Slat Spangled Banner i

• Oranges and Lemons ■

• Wilhelmus ■

• Mozart Sonata

Wedding Mart Jingle Bells Auld Lang Syne Soldiers Chorus Sailor's Hornpipe Charge!

Pomp & Circumslance William Tell Overture Bach Toccala in D Minor Shave and a Haircul Blue Danube Waltz Beethoven's 5lh L;i Marseillaise

FEATURES

Replaces monotonous telephone ringor bull. Easily connects to any standard telephone. Can be used alongside regular phono or replace a remote ringor elsowliurt; in building or ouh.uie TCC approved. Can be used on any telephone system — worldwide Use a tlillQient tune to identify extension phones. Microprocessor controlled Adjustable volume control and variable tune speed control Operates on two 9-voi! batteries or AC Adapter (not included).

PT030 Phone Tunes $49.95

AP30 AC Adapter $8.95

DISCRETE LEDS

XC556R .200" red

XC556G .200" green

XC556V .200" yellov

XC556C .200" clear

XC22R .200" red

XC22G .200" green

XC22Y .200" yello\

MV10B .170" red

5/$l 4/tl 4/$l

4/$l

5/S1 4/S1 4/S1 VII

MV50 .085" red

XC209R .125" red

XC209G .125" green

XC209Y .125" yellow

XC526R .185" red

XC526G .185" green

XC52GY .185" yellow

XC526C .185" clear

C.A. — Common Anode D.D. — Double Digit

| .2001TI i.d) Rcd/Grt

Diffused Bi-Color LED Part Mq. 199 100+

RL-2 . ,$.39ea.or3/S1.00

Type

MAN 1 MAN 2 MAN 3 MAN 52 MAN 54 MAN 71 MAN 72 MAN 74 MAN 82 MAN 84 MAN 3620 MAN 3630 MAN 3640 MAN 4610 MAN 6610 MAN 6630 MAN 6640 MAN 6650 MAN 6660 MAN 6710 MAN 6740 MAN 6750 DLO304 DLO307 DLGSOO

Polarity C.A.-red

5x7 D.M.-red C.C.-red C. A.—green C.C. —green C.A.—rod C.A.-red C.C.-red C.A.—yellow C.C—yellow C.A.-orange C.A.—orange I 1 C.C—orange C.A.-orange C.A.—orange—DD C.A.-orange t 1 CC.-orange-DD C.C—orange £ 1 C.A.-orange C.A.-red—DD C.C—red—DD C.C.-red J 1 C.C- orange C.A.-orange C.C—green

UlbPLAY LEUd RHD - Right Hand Deci

Price 2.95

4.95

1.25 1.25

1.25

Type

DLG507

DL704

DL707

DL728

DL741

DL747

DL7S0

DLOB47

DLO850

DL33B

FN039B

FND357

FND500

FND507

HDSP-3401

HDSP-3403

HDSP-3406

5082-7751

5082-7760

5082-7300

5082-7302

5082-7340

4N28

LIT-1

MOC3010

Polarity Ht

C.A.- green .500

C.C.-red .300

C.A.-red .300

C.C—red .500

C.A.-red .600

C.A.-red .600

C.C.-red .600

C.A.-orange .800

C.C- orange .800

C.C—red .110

C.C. • 1 .357

C.C .357

C.C. (FND503) .500

C.A. (FNDS10) .500

C.A.-red .800

C.C.-red .800

C.C. red +1 .boo

C.A..R.H.D.— red .430 C.C.R.H.D.—red .430 4x7Numeric (RHD).600 4x7Numeric (LHD).600 4x7Hxdcl.(0-9/A-F).6Q0 Photo XslstorOpto-lsol. Photo Xsistor Opto-lsol. Optically Isol.Triac Drive

Price 1.25 1.25 1.25 1.49 1.25 1.49 US

1.25 22.00 22.00 22.50

SOCKETS

Test

RECEPTACLES

tcxtool sockets

ZERO INSERTION FORCE

Part No. Pins Price

214-3339 14 pin 5.95 216-3340 16 pin 6.49 218-3341 18 pin 7.95 220-3342 20 pin 8.95

* Nickel Boron Plating " G.F. PSF Plastic Body ► For testing IC's

Part No. Pins Price 222-3343 22 pin 9.95 224-3344 24 pin 9.75 228-3345 28 pin 11.95 240-3346 40 pin 12.95

LOW PROFILE (TIN) SOCKETS

8 pin LP

14 pin LP

16 pin LP

18 pin LP

20 pin LP

22p

i LP

24 pin LP

SOLDERTAIL (GOLD) STANDARD

8 pin SG 14 pin SG 16 pin SG IB pin SG 24 pin SG 2B pin SG 36 pin SG 40 pin SG

Nickel Boron PI; 'G.F. PSF Plastic Body • Wire Wrap Contacts

Pan No. Pi

214-3592 14 pin 9.75

216-3593 16 pin 9.95

21B-3594 18 pin 10.95

220-3595 20 pin 11.95

PartNo. Pins Price

222-3596 22 pin 12.95 224-3597 24 pin 12.75 228-3598 28 pin 13.95 240-3599 40 pin 15.95

SOLDERTAIL STANDARD (TIN)

24 pin ST 28 pin ST 36 pin ST

■10 pin 5T

¥

8 pin WW 10 pin WW 14 pin WW 16 pin WW 18 pin WW 20 pin WW 22 pin WW 24 pin WW 28 pin WW 36 pin WW 40 pin WW

WIRE WRAP SOCKETS (GOLD) LEVEL #3

1/4 WATT RESISTOR ASSORTMENTS -5%

ASST. 1

5ea.

10 Ohn 27 Ohn

i 12 Ohn i 33 Ohn

i 15 Ohr i 39 Ohn

i IB Ohm 22 Ohm l 47 Ohm 56 Ohm

50 pes.

$1.95

ASST. 2

5ea.

68 Ohn 180 Ohn

l 82 Ohn 1220 Ohn

i 100 Ohn i270 Ohn

) 120 Ohm 150 Ohm U30 Ohm 390 Ohm

50 pes.

$1.95

ASST. 3

5ea.

4/0 Ohn I.2K

i 560 Ohn 1.5K

1680 Ohn l.BK

i820 Ohm IK 2.2K 2.7K

SOpcs.

$1.95

4.7K

12K 33K 82 K

5.6 K 1SK 39K

100K

47K 120 K

50 pes. 50 pes.

$1.95 $1.95

180K 470 K_ 1.2M 3.3M

1.5M 3.9M

270K 6B0K UM 4.7M

330K 820K 2.2M 5.6M

$1.95 $1.95

ASST. 8R

Includes Resistor Assts. 1-7 (350 pes.)

$10.95 ea.

$10.00 Mm. Order - U.S. Funds Only Calif. Residents Add 6% Sales Tax Postage—Add 5% plus $1.50 Insurance

nsssnsnm

Spec Sheets — 25<i

Send 86ff Postage lor your

FREE 1982 JAMECO CATALOG

PHONE ORDERS

WELCOME (415)592 8097

MAIL ORDER ELECTRONICS - WORLDWIDE

1355 SHOREWAY ROAD, BELMONT, CA 94002

PRICES SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Part No.

70451 PI

7045EV/Kif

7106CPL

7106EV/KU*

7107CPL

7107EV/Kit*

7116CPL

7117CPL

7201IDR

72051PG

7205EV/Kit*

7206CJPE

7206CEV/KU*

7207 AIPD

72Q7AEV/KU*

7208IPI

7209IPA

72151 PG

7215EV/KH*

7216AIJI

7216CUI

7216DIPI

7217IJI

7218CUI

72241 PL

7226 AIJL

7226AEV/Kif

7240IJE

72421J A

72501JE

72601JE

7555IPA

75561 PD

7611BCPA

7612BCPA

7621 BCPA

7631CCPE

7641CCPD

7642CCPD

7660CPA

8038CCPD

804BCCPE

8069CCQ

8211CPA

B212CPA

Function

CMOS Precision Timer

Stopwatch Chip. XTL

3Vj Digit A/D (LCD Drive) IC, Circuit Board, Display 3Vj Digit A/D (LED Drive) IC, Circuit Board. Display 3'/i Digit A/D LCD Dis. HLD. 3V; Digit A/D LED Dis. HLD. Low Battery Volt Indicator CMOS LED Stopwatch/Timer Stopwatch Chip. XTL Tone Generator Tone Generator Chip, XTL Oscillator Controller Freq. Counter Chip, XTL Seven Decade Counter Clock Generator 4 Func. CMOS Stopwatch CKT

4 Func. Stopwatch Chip, XTL 8-Dlgit Univ. Counter C.A. 8-Digit Freq. Counter C.A. 8-Diglt Freq. Counter C.C. 4-Digit LED Up/Down Counter 8-Digit Univ. LED Drive LCD 4% Digit Up Counter DRI 8-Digit Univ. Counter

5 Function Counter Chip. XTL CMOS Bin Prog. Timer/Counter CMOS Dlvlde-Dy-256 RC Timer CMOS BCD Prog. Timer/Counter CMOS BCD Prog. Timer/Counter CMOS 555 Timer (8 pin) CMOS 555 Timer (14 pin) CMOS Op Amp Comparator CMOS Op Amp Ext. Cmvf. CMOS Dual Op Amp Comp. CMOS Trl Op Amp Comp. CMOS Quad Op Amp Comp. CMOS Quad Op Amp Comp. 10MV 7.50 Voltage Converter 2.95 Waveform Generator 4.95 Monolithic Logarithmic Amp 21.60 50ppm Band- GAPVolt Ref. Diode 2.50 Volt Ref/lndicator 2.95

Price 14.95 24.95 16.95 34.95 15.95 29.95 18.95 17.95 2.2S 12.95 19.95 5.15 12.95 6.50 13.95 17.95 3.95 13.95 19.95 32.00 26.95 21.95 12.95 10.95 11.25 31.95 74.95 4.95 2.05 6.00 5.25

2.20

5MV 2.25 SMV 2.95 5MV 3.95 10MV 5.35 10MV 7.50

Volt Rel/lnaicator

2.95

74CO0

74C

74C221

1.95

74C02

.39

74C9S

1.59

74C240

2.P5

74C04

.39

74C244

2.25

74C08

.39

74 C10

.39

74C14

.75

74C157

74C20

.39

74C30

.39

74C42

1.39

74C48

1.95

74C73

.79

74C74

.79

74C85

1.95

74C86

.99

74C925

7.50

74CB9

6.95

74C90

1.29

74C93

1.29

74C195

1.59

80C97

.79

LH0002CN

6.85

LMI0CLH

4.50

LINEAht

LM703CN

.89

LM11CLH

4.75

LM340T-5

1.25

LM709N

?9

LH0070-OH

4.95

LM340T-12

1.25

LM710N

.79

TL071CP

.79

LM340T-15

1.25

LM711N

.79

TL072CP

1.39

LM341P-5

.75

LM723IN

.69

TL074CN

2.49

LM341P-12

.75

LM733N

1.00

LH0082CD

35.80

LM341P-15

.75

LM739N

1.19

TL082CP

1.19

LM342P-5

.69

LM741CN

..IS

TL084CN

2.19

LM342P-12

.69

MC1741SCC

3.00

LH0O94CD

36.80

LM342P-15

.69

LM747N

.79

LM300H

.99

LM348N

1.25

LM748N

.59

LM301CN

.35

LM350K

5.75

LM1014N

?.7S

LM302H

1.95

LF351N

.60

LM1310N

1.95

LM304H

1.95

LF353N

1.00

LM1458C1M

.59

LM305H

.99

LF355N

1.10

LM1488N

1.75

LM307CN

.45

LF356N

1.10

LM1489N

1.75

LM308CN

1.00

LM358N

1.00

LM1496N

1.95

LM309H

1.95

LM3S9N

1.79

LM1556V

1.75

LM309K

1.25

LM370N

4.49

LM1S00N

2.95

LM310CN

1.75

LM373N

3.25

LM1871N

5.49

LM311/CN

.90

LM377N

2.95

LM1872N

5.49

LM312H

2.49

LM3B0N

1.25

LM1877N-9

3.75

LM317MP

1.15

LM381N

1.95

LM1889N

3.20

LM317T

1.75

LM382N

1.79

LM1896N

1.75

LM317K

3.95

LM384N

1.95

LM2002T

LM318CN

1.95

LM386N-3

1.29

LM2877P

2.05

LM319N

1.95

LM367N

1.45

LM2878P

LM320K-5

1.35

LM389N

1.35

LM2896P-1

LM320K-12

1.35

LM392N

.69

LM320K-15

1.35

LF398N

4.00

LM3900N

LM320T-5

1.25

LM399H

5.00

LM3905CN

LM320T-12

1.25

TL494CN

4.49

LM320T-15

1.25

TL496CP

1.75

LM3914N

LM323K

5.95

NES10A

6.00

LM3915N

LM324N

.99

NE529A

4.95

LM391GN

3.95

LM329DZ

.65

RC4136N

LM331N

3.95

NE536H

6.00

RC4151NB

.1.95

LM334Z

1.30

RC4194TK

6,95

LM335Z

1.40

NE544N

4.95

RC4195TK

5.49

LM336Z

1.75

1.30

LM4S00A

3.25

LM337T

1.95

NE555V

.39

ICL8038B

4.9S

LM337MP

1.15

LM556N

.99

LM13080N

1.79

LM338K

6.95

NE564N

3.95

LM13600N

1.49

LM339N

.99

LM565N

1.25

75138N

1.95

LM340K-5

1.35

LM566CN

1.95

75450N

.89

LM340K-12

1.35

LM567V

1.25

75451CN

.39

LM340K-15

1.35

NE570N

4.95

75492

,69

CAPACITOR CORNER

50 VOLT CERAMIC DISC CAPACITORS

1-9 10-99 100+

Value

1-9

10-99

100

.OQluF

.08

.06

.05

.004 7uF

.08

.06

.OS

.OlfiF

.08

.06

IIS

.022" F

.09

.07

M

-047UF

.09

.07

.06

Value 10 pf 22 p) 47 pl 100 Pi 220 pt 470 Rf

.0O22mf .12 .10

.0O47mf .12 .10

,01mf .12 .10 .07 i .22m( .33 .27 .22

+20% DIPPED TANTALUMS (Solid) CAPACITORS

.1/35V . 15/35V .22/35V .33/35V .47/3SV .68/35 V 1.0/35V

.39 .34 .29 .39 .34 .29

1.5/3SV 2.2/35V 3.3/2SV 4.7/25 V 6.8/2SV 15/25V 22/6V

.63 .56 .45

MINI. ALUMINUM ELECTROLYTIC CAPACITORS

1-99 100-499 500+ Radial 1-99 100-199 500+

.47/SOV 1.0/50V 3.3/50V 4.7/25V 10/25V 10/50V 22/25V 22/S0V 47/25V 47/50V 100/25V 100 /50V 220/25V 220/SQV 470/25V 1000/ 16 V 2200/16 V

.16 .14 .10 .19 .16 .12 .17 .15 .11

.41 .37 .34

.39 .34 .33 .49 .45 .41

.47/25V .47/50V 1.0/16V 1.0/25V 1.0/50 V 4.7/16V 4.7/25V 4.7/SOV 10/16V 10/25V 10/50V 47/50V 100/ 16 V 100/2SV 100/50V 220/16 V 470/25V

554 BYTE November 1981

Circle 212 on inquiry card.

aSSSSriuobrClock Modules

12V DC

AUTOMOTIVE/

INSTRUMENT

CLOCK

APPLICATIONS:

powered uiiuuuiim Feaiures:Bright 0.3" green display. Internal crystal timebase, i 0.5 sec./day accur. Auto, display brightness control logic. Display color filterable to blue, blue-green, green & yellow. Complete—just add switches and lens.

MA1003 Module <3.q5"lxi.7S"hx.98"d) .$16.95

CLOCK MODULES

MA1023 .7" Rod Digital LED Clock Module MA1026 .7" Dig. LED Alarm Clock/Thermometer MA5036 .3" Red Digital LED Clock/Timer MA1002 .5" Red Digital LED Clock a Xformer MA1010 .8" Red Digital LED Clock MA1032 CBA .5" Digital LCD Clock MA1043 .7" Green Digital LED Clock

102-P20 Xfo 102 P22 Xfo 102-P24 Xfo

TRANSFORMERS

sr MA 1023, 1043 & 5036 Mot or MA1026 Clock Modules or MA1010 Clock Modules

9.95 7.95 17.95 8.95

3.49

3.49 3.49

Sun Power Your Electronics! SOLAR CELL PANEL KIT

i hhi u.d ; Features:

• Output: 10VOC. to 100mA In Series 5VDC. to 200mA in Parallel

• Panel may be easily connected for Series or Parallel out

• Over 11 square Inches ol active cell surface

• Voltage line tap iff O.SV Increments

• Provision for charging batteries

• Overall panel size: *V."Lx4'/."H x WD

The JE305 Solar Cell Panel Kit contains 20 each solar cells. On the panel board ate power line taps which allow the user to select voltages (one voltage at a time) from 0.5VDC to 10VDC. The applications of each panel can be further expanded by coupling additional panels in series tor more voltage or In parallel tor more current. The premium grade solar cells provide the current necessary (or the operation of most portable transistor radios, small battery powered cassette tape players and unlimited experimental solar projects.

JE305 $39.95

B

EPROM Erasing Lamp

• Eraies2708, 2716, 1702A, 5203Q, 5204Q, etc.

• Erases up to 4 chips within 20 minutes.

• Maintains constant exposure distance of one inch.

• Special conductive foam liner eliminates static build-up.

• Built-in safety lock to prevent UV exposure.

• Compact - only 7-5/8" x 2-7/8" x 2"

• Complete with holding tray for 4 chips. UVS-11EL Replacement Bulb $16.95

UVS-11E $79.95

JOYSTICKS

o

JS-5K 5K Linear Tapar Pots $5.25

JS-100K 100K Linear Taper Pots $4.95

JVC-40 40K (2) Video Controller in case . . . $4.95

ALLIGATOR CLIP TEST LEADS

#ALCP (10 per pack) $2.95/pkg.

jflifr JE215 Adjustable IfipjlFDual Power Supply

General Description: The JE215 is a Dual Power Supply with independent adjustable positive and negative output voltages. A separate adjustment for each of the supplies provides the user unlimited applications for IC current voltage requirements. The supply can also be used as a general all-purpose variable power

supply.

FEATURES:

■ Adjustable regulated power supplies, pos. and neg. 1.2VDC to 15VDC.

• Power Output (each supply): 5VDC @ 500mA, 1QVDC® 750mA, 12VDC&500mA, and 15VDC@ 175mA.

• Two, 3-terminal ad|. IC regulators with thermal overload protection.

• Heat sink regulator cooling

• LED "on" indicator

" Printed Board Construction

• 120VAC input

• Size: 3-1/2"w x 5-1/16"L x 2"H

JE215 Adj. Dual Power Supply Kit (as shown) . . $24.95

(Picture not shown but similar in construction to above)

JE200 Reg. Power Supply Kit (5VDC, 1 amp) . . $14.95

JE20S Adapter Brd. (to JE200) ±5,±9 & ±12V. $12.95

lvJE210 Var. Pwr. Sply. Kit, 5-15VDC,to1.5amp. $19.95

MICROPROCESSOR COMPONENTS

OPB2H DPt2H

OPUS3 DMteSS

optesi

Prog. DMA Cot Proq. CUT Con

- 6800/6800 SUPPORT DEVICES

AM

AocoaojccN

SHU A/O Con.orte

r (8-Ch. M

s.a

J. 25

AIDC03I

CCN

8-Bll A/nCorwortB

(16-Ch.M

10.95

i.9i

LO'BltD/ACorw.M

cro.Comp

(0.05%

13.91

LCN

LO-BUD/ACorw. M

cro. Como

(D.20V.

9.95

3.'ft

DAC 1070L.CN

10-B.tU/A Convert

r (0.05V, LI

S.41

LM

UACIOWLCN

r 10.20% LI

1.1

5,%

1,95

DAC127JLCN

12-BllfJ/A Convert

r [0.20V, LI

9.95

CDOosirs

8-Chdimol Multiple

9,95

AV-S-IO

UK BAUD UART

fi9*i

1101

256»1 static

li#

1103

iQ24xl Dynamic

210J (oH.

S6k* Static

195

S

2102 21L02

1024x1 Sialic

LIS

i£

mi (an

211?

1

256*4 Static 256x* Static MQ5

3.95 4.95

MC6B2I MC6fl23 MCSODU

zao (rMc: zrwA oao-i)

CDP1B02

Peripnural Inter, AOjdi [MC68201 Priority Interrupt Controller 1024x8-Bll ROM [MCMA3M) Asynchronous Cumm. Adapter Syncnronous Serial Data Adapter 0-600001 Digital MODEM

Qua 3-Slate Bus. Trans. (MC8T26)

MICROPROCESSOR CHIPS

CPU (MK38MN) (?MH*l CPU (MKaSQKH) (*MHl]

CPU

DM290IADC CPU-4'BH5llce(Cam

NSB03SN-6 N5S039N-6 NSBC40N-6

S8073N PB0B5 TMS9900JL

CPU-Sql.CniDB-Blt[12ao' CPU 1256 BytflS RAW) CPU—W Bytes RAM CPU w/Baslc Micro Interi

— SHIFT REGISTERS

Dual 25-Bit Dynamic

1M510H

1M1102N 1M5013N 1MM16H 1MSQWN 1M50J5N

2529V 2S32N JM1PC

Dual 64-Bit Accur 256-BU Dynamic 1021-Bit Dynamic, 500/512-Bit Dynarr

Hb< B-BIt Static Dull 132-fllt Stat 512-Bll Dynamic lOy-BIt Dynamii Duil 246-Bit Stat Dull 250-BII Stat Dull 240-Blt Stat

0 80-Bit Stat (Dual 80)

-DATA ACQUISITION

LW334Z LM335Z LF356N LF398N

MB'BIl D/A Conve

H1C.) 16K Dynamic 250ns (MM52911N-4.

MMSM1 MM 5262 MM528O/210.

MM5298J-3A

UPD414/MK4027

TMS40M-45NL

TMS4W5

-PROMS/EPROMS

1702A

2;08

TMS2716

2758 BK EPROM (450ni

2364Q 64K EPROM (Hits

5203 2048 PROM

E2S23(74S1SB) 32*8 PROM (Oper

82S 123(745208)

2513(2140) criaracler Generator (upper Case)

2513(3021) Character Generator (Lower Case)

NMOS READ ONLY MEMORIES —

MCM66710P 128x9x1 ASCII Sullied w/Grsak

MCM66740P 128x9x1 Main Symbol A Pleural

MCM66750P 128x9x7 Alpha. Control Char.Gen.

MICROPROCESSOR MANUALS —

.1-2650

DSD025CN

DS0026CN

INS1771N-1

INS2651N

MM5B167N

MM58174N

COP402N

COP402MN

COP470N

AY-5-91M

AY-5-9200

AY-5-9500

AY-5-2376

HD0165-5

74C922

T4C923

MM53190N

MM 57499 N

- SPECIAL FUNCTION

Dual MOS Clack Driver (SM2) Dual MOS Clock Driver 15MZ)

Push Button Telephi CMOS Clock Genera

RADIO CONTROL CIRCUITS

Ideal lor remote control lanVn. olc.|. Features: lii 47MHI bands and low pc KB-4428 TRANSMITTER $4.25

Abs. man. rating (TAii(Z5'C). Supply volt.: Vccl 12VDC. Power Dissipation: PD: 300mW; Temp range: Oper. 0— + ECC — Storage -30— + 125'C. Recommenced oper. voll.: 7-1IV. Crystal or CR Oscillation circuils acceptable. KB-4429 RECEIVER S5.95

Abs. max rating (TAi(25*Cj Supply volt.: Vccl: 11V. Vcc2: 7 5V Powor Diaslpslion: 600W. Temp range: Oper. 0 ; 50'C. Racommonded oper. voll: VOP1 71IV — VOP2 3-6V.

JE608 PROGRAMMER

2704/2708 EPROM PROGRAMMER

GENERAL APPLICATIONS:

• To program EPROMS 2704 and 2708.

• Development!! system (or microcomputer circuits

• To read the contents of a pie-programmed EPROM

• To compere EPROM(s) lor content differences

• To emulate a progremmed EPROM ■ To store program In RAMS lor alterations

• Three separate Display Registers: 8 LED's lor Hex Key entries, 10 LED's (2°<2') for Address Register and 8 LED's lor Dal* Memory Register. The Oata Memory Register displays the conlenl ol Ihe RAMs from the EPROM Chip. Development of microprocessor systems by means of a ribbon cable from Ihe programmer panel lest socket lo the EPROM socket on the microprocessor board. Rapid checking verification ol program-mod dale changes. User may move date from a master to RAM's or write Into RAM's with keybosrd entries. Allows manual slopping manipulation (up and down) at any address location. Stand-alone EPROM Programmer consisting of: A 19-key Hexadecimal Keyboard aeaambly, Programmer Board assembly with 4 power supplies and a LEDHeit Socket Panel Board assembly. The Test Socket Is zero lorce Insertion type. Power requirement: ItSVAC, 80Hz, 6W. Compact desk-lop enclosure: Colorcoordinated designer's case with light Ian panels and molded end pieces In mocha brown. Size: 3'VH x 11"W x 8VD. Welghl: 5 lbs.

The JE608 EPROM Programmer is a completely selt-coniainad unit which is independent of compuier control and requires no additional systems lor irs operations, fno EPH0M can be programmed from tha Hoxadecimal Keyboard or from a preprogrammed EPROM. The JE608 Programmer can emulate a programmed EPHOM by the use ol its internal RAM circuits. This will allow the user to test or pretest a program lor a system, prior lo programming a chip. Any changes in the program can bo entered directly into the memory circuits wilh the Hexadecimal Keyboard so that rewriting the antire program will not be necessary. The JEfSOfl Programmer contains e Programmer/Board w/25 IC's Er includes power supplies of: -5V + 5V. + 12V and t 26V The Heiadocimal Keyboard and LcD/Test Socket Panel board ere separate assemblies wilhin the

JE608K Kit $399.95

JE608A Assembled and Tested $499.95

GENERAL DESCRIPTION! The JE608-16K Adapter Boer 2758 EPROMS. The adapter |

JE608-16K ADAPTER BOARD

FOR 2716/2758 EPROMS

Hows the JE608 Programmer to be modified for the addition

irogrammingofthe2716and locting the proper power and timing pulses to Oe applied lo Ihe EPROM. Progrenuning end emulating the 2716 (16KI EPROM is done separately to each half HD24xB) of the EPROM because of the enisling BK RAM capacity in the JE608 Programmer.

JE808-16K Adapter Board Kit $29.95

JE608-Upgrade (Send assembled J E608 10 factory for adapter installation $99.95

of the JE608-16K Adapter Board Kit) JE60BA-16KMod. Assembled JE608 w/Adapter(JE608-16K) Installed $599.95

$10.00 Min. Order - U.S. Funds Only Calif. Residents Add 6% Sales Tax Postage-Add 5% plus $1.50 Insurance

Spec Sheets - 25ef

Send 86j( Postage for your

FREE 1982 JAMECO CATALOG

J a * EHgj-Tjnnsa

PHONE

ORDERS

WELCOME

(415) 592-8097

MAIL ORDER ELECTRONICS - WORLDWIDE 1355 SHOREWAY ROAD, BELMONT, CA 94002 11/81 PRICES SUBJECT TO CHANGE

BOOKS >

National Semiconductor - Intersil — Intel

30001 National CMOS Onta Book H.96

(640 pages] 74C, CD4000, and A/D Converters

30002 National Interface Date Book 95.96

(704 pagesl DP, DS8000, DS3600, DS75000. etc.

30003 National Linear Data Book S8.9G

11376 pages) LM, LF, ADC, DAC. LH Series

30004 National Series BO- Board Level Computer 1224 pages) .. .$4.95

30005 National TTL Logic Data Book SB.96

1624 pagesl 74O0,LS.L,H,S, ami DMBOOO Series

30006 Buynbova (3)30001.3,Easaset »19.95Vlot

30009 Intersil Data Book (1074 pages) $6.96

010400 Intel Component Data Catalog $10.00

Full data sheets 'or Intel's products incl, memory devices, microproc.. peripherals & indusl./mil. products 11329 pages)

205610 Intel Peripheral Design Handbook $7.60

Full data sheets, atipl. notes (or Intel peripheral device components (644 pagesl

AC and DC Wall Transformers

9ldai! Inr ute with clocks, gjmei, -jowtr wppliel or jny olhti typr ill AC or DC ipjilicjliDn.

Part No. Input Outpi t Price

AC 250 117V;60Hz 12 VAC 25j;nA S3.95

AC 500 117W60Hz 12 VAC 500mA $4,95

AC1000 117W6QHZ 12 VAC lamp $5.95

AC1700 117V/60H2 9 VAC 1.7 amp S3.95

DV 9200 1 17V/60H* 9 VDC 200mA $3.25

DC 900 120V/6QHZ 9 VDC 5O0mA $3.95

CONNECTORS

DB25P D-Subminiature Plug $2.95

DB25S D-Subminiature Socket S3.50

D20418-2 ScrrjwLock Hdwr.(2) DB25S/P 2/S.99

DB51226 Cover for DB25P/S $1.75

22/44SE P.C. Edge (22/44 Pin) $2.95

UG88/U BNC Plug $1.79

UG89/U BNC Jack $3.79

UG175/U UHF Adapter $ .49

S0239 UHF Panel Recp $1.29

PL258 UHF Adapter $1.60

PL259 UHF Plug $1.60

UG260/U BNC Plug $1.79

UG1094/U BNC Bulkhead Recp $1.29

TRS-80 16K Conversion Kit

Expand your 4K TRS-80 System to 16K. Kit comes complete with:

* 8 ea. MM5290 (UPD416/4116I 16K Dyn. Rams ("NSI

* Documentation for Conversion

TRS-16K2 -150NS $29.95

TRS-16K3 «200NS $24.95

TRS-16K4 *250NS $19.95

JE610 ASCII Encoded Keyboard Kit

The JE610 ASCII Keyboard Kit can be interfaced into most any computer system. The kit comes complete with an Industrial grade keyboard switch assembly (62-keys), IC's, sockets, connector, electronic components and a double-sided printed wiring board. The keyboard assembly requires +5V @ 150mA end —12V @ 10 mA for operation. Features: 60 keys generate the 126 characters, upper and lower case ASCII set. Fully buffered. Two user-define keys provided for custom applications. Caps lock for upper-case-only alpha characters. Utilizes a 2376 (40-pin) encoder read-only memory chip. Outputs directly compatible with TTL/DTL or MOS logic arrays. Easy interfacing with a 16-pin dip or 18-pin edge connector. Size: 3'/*"H x 14«"W x 8%"D

JE6107DTE-AK itp^tJ^STbott) .. $124.95

IPfiin !/:♦ 6Z-Key Keyboard, PC Board, a -jq qc JbDlU Kit &. Components (no case) $ /y.y5

K62 62-Key Keyboard (Keyboard only) . . .$ 34.95

DTE-AK (case only - 3ft"HxlI"WxW'D)$ 49.95

jvvvVWl JE212 - Negative 12VDC Adapter Board Kit 2NEW!? for JE610 ASCII KEYBOARD KIT

Vw^1 Provides-12VDCfrom incoming SV DC . .$9.95

JE600 Hexadecimal Encoder Kit

FULL 8-BIT LATCHED OUTPUT 19-KEY KEYBOARD

The JE600 Encoder Keyboard Kit provides two separate hexadecimal digits produced from sequential key entries to allow direct programming for 8-bit microprocessor or B-bit memory circuits. Three additional keys are provided for user operations with one having a bistable output available. The outputs are latched and monitored with 9 LED readouts. Also included Isa key entry strobe. Features: Full 8-bit latched output for microprocessor use. Three user-define keys with one being bistable operation. Debounce circuit provided for all 19 keys. 9 LED readouts to verify entries. Easy interfacing with standard 16-pin IC connector. Only +5VDC required for operation. Size; 3VH x 8'/-"W x 8K"D

JE60Q/DTE-HK g$$u%2Y£Zi ....$99.95

K19 19-Key Keyboard (Keyboard only) .... $14.95 DTE-HK tease only -3Vi"HxBV."wx8V«"D) $44.95.

Circle 212 on inquiry card.

BYTE November 1981

555

CaIiFornia DiqiTAl

Post Office Box 3097 B • Torrance, California 90503

iu;i: i'i PU

.ASTIC ItCIIASl

LIBRARY CASK INCLUDED WITH THE OF EVERY BOX OK DISKETTES

fleane si»-ctrv cumuutw or required Ten boxes $22.75

2495

h m. box

One hundred boxes $21.50

, 7-|.!ii)Kli;)(lfi) $31.00 S20.00

HQirr INCH Scotch box 10 bx, PyBOT box lObs. MUX |lox to ,,

gin siilo/aitiKlo den. 740-0 J3S, *33. 374071 $4ti. S47. 3000 $-.S. fr.3. jilo BUWduttbUt dun. 741-0 45, 43. 3740/W 78. 7a. 3090 37. 35, die aiiIe/32 aatrtor 740-32 35. 33, nn. ott.

ibtc sl<W double l->. 743-0 65, 89. na. 3113 10.

UTCII brand licml cl«.inUis kit. •:'■!.OS WMfi-GW5X«t plenaes ^)«otfy 51/1 I - ■■■ ii ibli 1. routing) ton tape, cnrtrtdgea. rllskpacks, wdontn diskettes

MEMORY

26 Megabyte Hard Disk Drive

from

IGeorge Morrow's

Thinker Toys

s3495

ui»a ,i.■.■„.-. i '

MEMOREX $

8"DISKETTES

25

64K DYNAMIC

16K STATIC

•11.*

$13.95

4164 100-*9.75

2167 200ns.

16K DYNAMIC

2716EPR0M

$2.io

$4>95

4116 100-M.85

100.'4.50 1K.M.00

STATIC

211.02 450ns. 211.02 250ns 21MI.4 450ns 2114L3 300ns ■1014-4 450ns 4044-2 250ns 5257-.'! 300ns

1.1!)

1. 48 3.95 4. 25

4. 05

5. 50 4. 47

1.05 1. 45

3. 75

4. 5*0 4.95

4. 25

1. 39

2. 75

3. 00

2. 50 2. 75 4.00 4.35 3.75

EPROM

27011 450ns

271(1 5V. 271(1 tri-voll 2732 Intul 2532 I'I 2704

4.05 4. 95 9. 95

y. 00 21.50

4. 50

a. oo.

3.50

3.75 4.00 8. 25 8.00

Your Choice

direct connect

MODEM $169

Universal Data Auto Answer 103LPJ *2X9 Novation Auto Cat RS232 . '239

BSR

SYSTEM

X-IO

§65,00 AppH «co :.i uule >00 ft:. 513.85

34.8S Lamp Module 300 Waits I3.a3

ID.Bfi NEW full Qontrol wiUl jtwlteh 14.30

S-100 Mother Board $35

Quiet Buss

SWITCHES

■'■' »B

CONNECTORS

VISA

Circle 60 on inquiry card.

All merchandise sold by California Digital is premium grade. Shipping; First five pounds $2.00; each additional add $.40 Foreign orders 10% shipping. Excess will be refunded. California residents add 6% saleB tax. COD's discouraged. Open accounts extended to state supported educational institutions and companies with a "Strong Dun & Bradstreet. " Warehouse: 15608 Inglewood Blvd. Visitors by appointment.

GREEN

PHOSPHOR MONITOR

The new Zenith ZVM-121 features 'i P31 green phosphor tube along with 15 MHz bandwidth. Switch selectable for 40/U0 char' acter screen. Fully computable with tiO column Apple curtly. VDM-Z131 20 lbs.

$

119

10 4-'109 100 4-*99

<]■ Shugart Associates

801/ R Disk Drive 15 lbs

*795 U195

vat. 220V. 30M11* itld $50.00 per disk dri

SHUGART801R

$

NEW

from

Shugart

Technology

Megabyte Hard Disk Drive

Packaged in the same physical size us the industry standard 5 1/4" minifloppy dish drive. The micro-Winchester stores thirty times as much data (6.38 megabytes unformatted), accesses data twice as fast (170 milliseconds) and transfers data twenty times faster ("i.O megabits per second. )

The ST506 is Factory sealed to protect the media from environmental contaminates. Requires only DC voltage. Dual California Digital 5 1/4" enclosure, ST60S drive and power supply.

Shugart Associates SA400 removable media disk drive for above package, add:

*1500 *300

Regulated

Power Supply 5volt5amp

$1J95

ii. ' *»4

TOLL FREE ORDER LINE

800)421-5041

TECHNICAL & CALIFORNIA

213)679-9001

TWX 910325-6212

CAiiFoRNJA DiqiTAl

Post Office Box 3097 B • Torrance, California 90503

ONTROL DATA

:L416 matrix printer

1395

In a dark corner of a Control Data warehouse our scouts have recently located a small quantity of brand new, vintage 1978. Control Data CL-416 matrix printers.

The CL-416 was desifjned for extra heavy duty industrial applications. Please do not contuse this work horse printer with the new low cost imports.

The unit prints a full UG character ASCII sot at a conservative 175 characters / second. One kilobyte buffer accepts RS232 signals upto SJ600 baud. Vertical Forms control unit provides added flexibility for business applications. The CL-416 has a split primary power transformer to allow field voltages between 115 and 230 volts. Original cost of the printer is estimated at $5,000. California Digital blow out price is only $1,395. Shipped via motor Freight in factory sealed containers. SPC-CL416

World's Beat Soiling Printer

EPSO MX 80

Immediate Delivery Only $A 7C

I a :

Paper Tiger

560G ^ 395

/VlsCSpinwriter 55113 P/S

I l„- word proccBBlnH ]ii ilif. .Spinwri'er

iieicrs |t.-r »econd. I'm; Modu! iaHP/S

.„„! ih--.'.!.' - H .1 In er in ■ lap Inr mlnti, J en i #i»h prim ilm iltte -ttti rit»l Krvhoaitl (KSR'I Model M&P(S ava&abl'

RINTRONIX

P-300 $4500 P-600 $6150

PRINTERS

r.|j*u.

Epson Epson

Mad j Anatle Anscc

MXBfl

PREMX80

MX80F1

PREMX80I

MX 100

PREMXIQO

it 9500

PKA9500

* UJ01

PRA8501

n 150

I'HAISO

per Tgr.

PRG460G

ger 560

PRG560G

830

PRD830

18 SO

PRD1650

1640

PR0164O

nth mo

1'UDiao

mix :ioo

1'UPJOO

mix GOO

PRP6O0

i4~~

NEC

Sellum 1

PRN5510ps

2G95

59S

NEC/Sm 16K

PRNS5X6pa

27y5

[{■j

TEC/Starwril.

PR V 300

1395

- (Mil

ita 80

PR08Q

419

Okid

ita a 2

PROo2

619

Ukid

ita 83

PRO03

895

Tele

ype 43K

PTT4320K

1095

Texa

a Ins. 810

PRT810S

1450

TeJt.

ns 810C

PRT810C

1795

Cent

onics 730

PRC730P

529

Cunt

onics 7:i7

PRC737P

695

Cent

onics 738

PRC788P

795

Cent

nx 704-9

PRC704-8

0150

Cent

tot. 704-11

PRC704-11

SYSTEMS

■\ AIMPU

48K MEMORY

1150

2550

Iho% HEWLETT "KM PACKARD

HP85

Howl Pack BS 5YSHP85 2650 [Tew/Pack U3 SYSHP83 1888

Alios ACS8000 SYS ACS8O00 4785

SuperbraiA84QSYSSB64Q SupBrbraUi64DSYSSB64D NorthstartM Q SYSNS4Q Northstar 64D SYSN64D NliC/PCSOOO SYSPC8000 AppK II Plus SYSAP

: = = = 3101

== ==== Display

:^="=" = Terminal

IBM Direct Price »J29§ California Digital

$1195

discount price

AMPEX

DIALOGUE 80 CRT TERMINAL

J995

K« froni the Ampex Corporation. Tin- Dialogue fiO features removable fcey'lju.ird, display able two pages (four optional) iiu:d program keys, half intensity protected fields and status line. Transmits data either block, lint or character mode. Excellent value. VDT-Ijbo shippine 47 lbs.

VIDEO TERMINALS

ADDS Viewpoint VDT-RVP 5U5

ADDS Regent 25 numeric cluster VDT-ll2fi 850

ADDS Regent 30 25th status line VDT-R30 050

ADDS Regent 40 limited graphics VDT-R40 1195

ADDS Regent 60 Block mode VDT-RGO 1495

Ampex Dialouge U0 two pnge.detatch VDT-DfiO 995

Digital Equipment VT-100 VDT-V100 1595

Digital Equipment VT-132 VDT-V132 1895

Direct VP-800A emulator VDT-P800 call

Ilazeltine 1410 VDT-M1410 750

Ilazelline 1420 VDT-I11420 795

Ilazeltine 1500 VDT-II1500

Ilazeltine 1510 VDT-IU510

Ilazeltine 1520 VDT-H1520

Hewlett Packard 2621A VDT-1IP21A

Hewlett Packard 2621P VDT-IIP21P

IBM 3101-10 character mode green VDT-3101 1195

IBM 3101-20 block mode VDT-31012 1395

Lear Seigler 3A upper case only VDT-L3A 850

Lear Seigler ADM5 VDT-L5 945

Lear Seigler ADM31 VDT-L31 1385

Lear Seigler AD1I42 VDT-L42 1995

Visual 200 VDT-V200 995

IVlevideo 910C (new) VDT-TU10 595

Televideo 912C VDT-T912 665

Televideo 920C VDT-TSiO 745

Televideo 950C detatchable keybd. VDT-T950 U85

Zenith Z-19 VDT-Z-19 735

VIDEO MONITORS

BMC KG12C ItSMH? P-31 grn phosphor l.eedex/Amtlek 12"100 Lecdex 100 green Lecdex 100-80 Hitachi color 13" Zenith color 13" NEC green phosphor Panasonic color 10" Sanyo 9" BW Sanyo 12" green phos. Sanyo 15" BW Sanyo 13" color

$259 129 169 197 389 379 219

149 235 259 419

VISA

All merchandise sold by California Digital is premium grade. Shipping: First five pounds $2.00; each additional add $.40

i orders 10% shipping. Excess will be refunded.

nla residents add 6% sales tax. COD's discouraged. Open accounts extended to state supported educational institutions and companies with a "Strong Dun & Bradstreet. " Warehouse: 15608 Inglewood Blvd. Visitors by appointment.

Circle 60 on inquiry card.

Correspondence quality printing.

A lut of primers costing .1 lot more can't touch the MX-Hfs performance, It gives you .1 choke o\ 40, si). 66 or 132 columns of pruning in .is many .is four distinct printingdensrtj modes, .1 total of twelve different comWn.itions which can accommodate nearly any printing requirement.

Bidirectional printing Logical seeking 1 ot shortest lines. K0 CI'S. r>4 graphics characters. Forms handling. The list of standard features goes on and on. rhe f.K't is that there are few printers that can compete with the MX-SOai ANY price. And none—ZERO—in its extraordinarily affordable price range. ABCDEFSHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZABCDEFQHIJ

ACCESSORIES FOR THE

COMPUTER

CALIFORNIA CuMITTKli SYSTEMS Arithmetic Proces*or 7811 U/C 3319

Asynchronous serial Interface "710 129

Centronics Interface card 77211 95

I2K 1'HOM Module 7114 6<J

Calender/Clock. Et;il. back-up 7424 99

Parallel Interface 7720A 99

Programable Timer 7740A 99

Analog/Digital convener 7470A 99

MICROSOFT PRODUCTS

Apple lo Z-00 CPU card 379

D.C. HAYES PRODUCTS

Microintidiim for Apple 319

COMPUTER STOP PRODUCTS

Double Vision / HO Column VidL-u -iT.Q

IKTKRACTIVE STRUCTURES

ig Channel A/i) oard AIO/2 275

MOUNTAIN COMPL'Tl:H

Intro X-10 systen; for BSI1

Intro X-10 card only

1C channel AD/DA D bit

Apple Clock battery back-up

SuperUUker SD200

ROM Plus with filter

ROM Writer/Programmer

APPLE BRAND PRODUCTS

Apple Language card

lluppv disk willi controller

Floppy disk without coiiiriiller

Apple parallel interface

SSM MICROCOMPUTER

Dual serial parallel interface AlO

SOHUKNTO VALLEY ASSOCIATES

B" floppy controller (Pascal

S-100 BOARDS

Assembled • Tested • Burned in

CPU 1U1AHDS

C;aif. Computer 2810A 2>80 DMA. i\\i\/ ' HDC-C5810 S

Godbout Z-80 21 bit. 1MH*

[1DC-UZUD

i.tuiiiLiLn 8085/8088 tlunl lu bit proceasor nuc-tiaa

MeaBurotitent SyBtetna /.-!I0 •1 aortal 2 parallel real time clock. U vector I1UC-.M7-110

SD Systuina SBC-200 y.-U0 wiih aerlol *• parallel I/O ports BDC-SBC8

Tcletek tDG-1 jtonle board CPU ^ [loppy ilink controller plus I/O BDC-FDC1

ItAlKFSAilES

Calif. Coatpuwr aaOOA 12 slot *.

power supply KNM-C2300 TEI 12 slot table ENM-T12 TE1 22 slot table ENM-T22 Uodb<»n luainfrti'. IINM-OMI

MEMORY BOARDS

Calif. Computer 20(i.">.\ tilK

S089 f

SD Systems [■

IfiK dvnati lilK dvnaii

!01ii ItlK

BDM-C201B 1032 ,i2K

BDA1-C2032

■IK static

UDM-C17 1 idorani II

HDM-l..\lci

MDM-h.\o1

,ewia UKB640U

l-LOPPY DISK C( Calif. Computer 2122A v 2.2 CPM Hi H

k.ul.l.

iiv. i:,

Hill is VersuAoppy II density HD1--V1 2 )/D UD1--I1 -'i

<ealm I >i«k Jockev I density I1D1--DJ1 'esiun I lisk Jockev i density Hill -DJ2

ERI ACE BOARDS ;l'. Computer 271H \i • serial/2 par I BUT

■i.d,-lp.

■x.iilM'.

■• BUT •■I BUS

C2710

.MS'lt

M.MI!

Rotron Muffin Fan

1477

$12.00 (s 100 10.50 <9 1000

11 5 VAC. 7 Watts W1GA1 I-'actory Tresh Muffin fans NOT pull-outs. EMF-4M

TOLL FREE ORDER LINE

800)421-5041

TECHNICAL & CALIFORNIA

213)679-9001

Unclassified Ads

FOR SALE: Technico Super Starter System (9900 processor) with schematic, SwTPC keyboard, Phi-Deck variable speed, control board, remote-control box, digital head, and power supply. Full documentation on them all. Looking for Sinclair ZX80 or PET (trade?). Paul Bergson, 1413 N 1 Ith St, Superior Wl 54880. |7|5] 394-3101.

FOR SALE: TRS-80 Model I. Level I computer with 4 K programmable memory. Includes video screen and recorder. In very good condition. Comes with books, manual, software, and graphics sheets. Am asking S325 and will pay shipping cost anywhere in the continental US. Ron Campbell, 412 Woodley Rd, Savannah GA 31 406, [912) 925-6524.

COLOR PROGRAMS: Games, applications, and educational programs on cassette for the TRS-80 Color computer. Will trade for other original programs (or homebrew hardware designs) for the same machine. Send tape or information with your address and I will send my programs by return airmail. S W Li, 1 54 Curzon St, Toronto Ontario. M4M 3B5 Canada.

WANTED: TRS-80 Model II with read-only memory, expansion interface, disk drive|s), etc. R J Carlson, 1210 46 Ave, Meridian MS 39301, (601) 483-2459.

FOR SALE: Xerox 1730 (Diablo 6630) letter-quality printer with adjustable forms tractor and Televideo 912C video display. Both five months old and used only for a brief testing period. S2750orbestoffer.StevenGelles. 112-41 72 Rd, Forest Hills NY 1 1375, (212) 544-7030 evenings.

FOR SALE: TRS-80 16 K Level H: all components (processor, monitor, cassette, power supply, cables), line filter, manuals, over thirty programs (EDTASM, games, utilities], and books and magazines related to TRS-80s. All in perfect condition (original Radio Shack seal intact). Original value over S1000, sacrifice for S600 plus shipping. Albert M Berg, 1914 Ave O, Brooklyn NY I 1230, (212) 645-2397.

FOR SALE: New Intel SBC 86/12A 16-bit, single-board computer with 32 K dynamic programmable memory, RS-232 serial port, three parallel data ports, PIC, and interval timer. Also includes schematics and documentation. List S2600. Asking S 1300 or best offer. Helmars Ozolins. 59 Hagerman Landing Rd, Rocky Point NY 11 778, (5 I 6) 744-4204 after 6.

FOR SALE: Cleaned out ham/computer/electronics shack. Have two-page list of amateur radio equipment, automotive electronics, tools, scanner, paraphernalia; you name it, it might be there. All items for sale or trade, and purchasing list is included. SASE would be appreciated. Dave Miller. POB 9684, Birmingham AL 35215,

FOR SALE: 8 K PET with joystick, light pen, sound, RS-232 output, and seventy cassettes; $900. First ten issues of BYTE; S 15. Bruce Beebe, 2580 E 2100 South, Salt Lake City UT 84109, (801) 584-1287,

FOR SALE: KIM single-board computer. George Risk keyboard, and XITEX SCT-100 terminal board with power supply plus video monitor. Package includes documentation for keyboard, terminal board, and monitor. Also included are several KIM manuals. Everything works perfectly. S600 package, first offer over S250 takes it. Sue Livingston. 601 Pinchot Ave. Madison Wl 53716, (608J 221-8431 evenings.

FOR SALE: S-IOO boards removed from operating system. Documentation and shipping included. Ithaca Audio 280 processor board, 4 MHz without read-only memory; $ I 50. WMC FPB-1 front-panel board; SI00. DRC 8 K 200 ns static programmable-memory board; S100. Electronic Systems TIDMA with system-monitor cassette; $80,. California Digital motherboard with eight connectors installed; S45. Sunny International T3 transformer with capacitors; S40. WMC IOB-1, 2P+ IS ports bare board; S20. BYTE issues 1. 2, 3; best offer. John Fliegel. 112 Timberwood Dr. Mars PA 16046.

WANTED: Documentation for Processor Technology NKRA 64 K dynamic programmable-memory board. I need assembly instructions, schematic, and parts list. Please send a copy or I can copy and return your original. Michael Schirpke, 8 Champa Rd, Billerica MA 01821.

WANTED: Schematic and parts list for a SEAL 32 K SC memory bare board. Will pay reasonable reproduction costs plus postage. G S Meader, Jr. 1601 Greenbrier Ct, Reston VA 22090.

FOR SALE: TI-99/4 computer in excellent condition, with joysticks, tape recorder, large program library, light pen, three command modules, 16 K programmable memory, and 24 K read-only memory, S699 or make offer, David Rockower. (714) 456-0861.

FOR SALE: 1802 system, including Netronics 4 K programmable memory, Giant Board, processor board, 1 702 and 2708 EPROM board, SN76477N music board, two A-Ds, five extra l/Os, Hex-Dec decoder, address display, and processor status. Software includes CHIP-8. T BASIC, plus material from RCA, Quest, and Netronics. All for S300. T Constable, 130E 24th St, New York NY 10010, (2 12) 533-5 163 evenings.

WANTED: College student interested in computer experimentation. Due to limited funds, I would like information concerning used or discarded computer equipment and/or parts. If you have such, please send me your name and address with a list of the equipment. John M Hall, 1445 Royalwyn Dr, Box 602 LWW, Macon GA 31210.

FOR SALE: Over 1000 boards from IBM System 1 140 computer. All with gold-plated edge-connector pads. All boards loaded with parts. Other miscellaneous parts include edge connectors and card guides. Offers? Ken Cazakoff, RR §2, Bedford Rd, Nelson British Columbia, V1L 5P5 Canada. (604) 352-3898.

FOR SALE: Compucolor II Model 4 computer with 103-key keyboard. Cost $2000. will sell for SI300. Also. Olivetti teleprinter for S300. Robert Meader. 17721 140 NE, Woodinville WA 98072. (206) 483-8600 days.

FOR SALE: SwTPC 6800 processor board, motherboard, 4 K programmable-memory board, 16 K programmablememory board, MP-C serial board, parallel board, ACIA board, front-panel display, MIKBUG monitor, TSC BASIC, and Siemens 5-inch floppy disk. S750, you pay UPS. Will ship COD. Steve Griffith, POB 791, Safford AZ 85546.

FOR SALE: OSI C4P-DMF computer with 48 K programmable memory and dual minifloppies. Includes color monitor, printer, modem, and joysticks. Includes the following languages: BASIC. Pascal, FORTRAN, FORTH, and assembly. Extensive documentation and over 200 software programs. Excellent condition. Cost almost $6000, sell for $2000. Kevin Mucha, 10445 W Kiehnau Ave. Milwaukee Wl 53224, (414) 353-3683.

FOR SALE: 1 -megabyte hard-disk drive with documentation and interface information. First $350 takes it. I pay shipping. KSR35 ASCII Teletype. Excellent hard copy for Apple, TRS-80, etc. $300 plus shipping. Would like to buy the following: Cromemco Z-2 system, 64 K S-100 memory board with 16 K or less memory, I/O Selectric Heuristics Speechlab, Computalker speech-synthesis board. All letters answered same day. Fred Aker, Farmers Way, Carlsbad Springs Ontario, K0A 1K0 Canada. |613) 822-1443.

WANTED: The MEI (Merlin Extended Intelligence) read-only memory and manual for the Mini Term Associates Merlin Board. I need a listing of the software, the instruction manual for the software, and the 8316 mask read-only memory or a 2716 with the software or a Tarbell formatted cassette with the software. Dave Lamb, 3501 Kingston Cir, Ft Collins CO 80525, (303) 223-7131 collect.

FOR SALE: Expander Black Box (Mite) printer: 80-column, 10 cps, parallel l/F. friction/pin feed, and uses teletypewriter ribbons. Has seen light service, in very good condition. Runs on Sphere and TRS-80 processors. Manual included. Cost $450, asking $250. Chuck. (303) 986-9027 after 7 PM MT.

FOR SALE: Complete set of Popular Electronics from first issue (1954) to 1980; $200. Also, various model-aircraft magazines, and assorted Scientific Americans. Send for full list. Bill Schweber, JAFFA Engineering, POB 543, Sharon MA 02067.

WANTED: Back issues of OMNI magazine in mint condition. William Blair III, 909 E Emerson, Morton IL 61550.

FOR SALE: H-8 computer, one year old. Recently configured for O-origin CP/M 2.2. Includes H-l 7 dual disk drive and controller card. Trionyx 64 K memory, and WH 8-4 4-port interface equipped with three RS-232 rear-panel D connectors. Complete documentation and S600 worth of software, including CP/M 2.2, MAC, SID, FORTRAN 80, and space game. Best offer will be accepted and will ship at no charge anywhere in the US. Dennis Crouse, 125 Conant Rd, Melrose MA 02176. (617) 964-8360 between 9 AM and 5 PM, call collect.

FOR SALE: Heathkit ET-3400 microprocessor trainer, ETA-3400 interface, and EE-340) training course. Expertly constructed. Make offer, Doug DePrenger, 7800 Mockingbird Ln # 139, Ft Worth TX 76180, (81 7) 485-2904 evenings.

FOR SALE: QT SBC + 2/4 processor board; $ 150 or best offer. TV interface from Electronic Systems part 0107A; $ 10. Both boards are assembled and include complete documentation. Stephen Belisle, 701 Cavu Rd. Georgetown TX 78626, (512) 863-6205,

WANTED: Prisoner wants to write to pen pals with shared interests: computers, digital electronics, calculus, and Fibonacci numbers. Please use SASE. Kearney, B-88913, San Quentin CA 94974.

FOR SALE: California Computer Systems parallel interface Model 7720B, complete with cable and sockets for interfacing between an Apple II and an IDS 460 printer, I could not figure out how to write software patches to allow the interface to run the printer. The hardware is in mint condition. $80 will deliver the items plus manual, John Kundrat, 1622 21 st St, Lewiston ID 83501, (208) 746-3487.

FOR SALE: Heath H-8/48 K (16 Trionyx, 32 Heath) 4-port and H8-5 serial with dual Heath cassette. H-9 video display with 24 lines uppercase/lowercase. All for $888. Also, WH-14 printer; $555. R Jackson, 201 Mortimer Ave, Rutherford NJ 07070, (201] 939-2421.

WANTED: Original IMSAI 8080 system. Looking for mainframe with at least six connectors, 28 A power supply, original front panel, MPU-A 8080 processor board. SIO 2-2 interface board, approximately 16 K of memory, and all necessary documentation. Keith Headley, 1161 Statler St, San Pedro CA 90731.

FOR SALE: DC 300A tape cartridges. I have six, mixed brands, that were used for archival storage. I have no way of checking them, but all should be good. Make offer for ait six. jf you don't get at least three good ones, refund guaranteed. A W Du Rea, 101 Indian Ln, Oak Ridge TN 37830.

UNCLASSIFIED POLICY: Readers who are soliciting or giving advice, or who have equipment to buy, sell or swap should send in a clearly typed notice to that effect. To be considered for publication, an advertisement must be clearly noncommercial, typed double spaced on plain white paper, contain 75 words or less, and include complete name and address information. [

These notices are free of charge and will be printed one time only on a space available basis. Notices can be accepted from individuals or bona fide computer users clubs only. We can engage in no correspondence on these and your confirmation of placement is appearance in an issue of BYTE.

Please note that it may take three or four months for an ad to appear in the magazine.

558 November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

Reader Service

Inquiry No.

Page No.

1 47th STREET PHOTO 383

2 A B DIGITAL DESIGN 193

3 AB COMPUTERS 529

4 ABM PRODUCTS 156

5 ACCOUNTANTS MICROSYS 530

6 ACE COMP.PROD 534

7 ACKERMAN DIGITAL SYS 286

• ACTION COMPUTER 77

9 ADV.COMP.PROD. 544, 545

265 ADV.MICRO DIGITAL COMP. 204

10 ADVANCED TECH 528

11 AFTERTHOUGHT ENG. 320

12 ALL ELECTRONIC CORP 461 92 ALL SYSTEMS 187

13 ALLENBACH IND. 108

14 ALPHA BYTE STORAGE 50, 51

15 ALPHA BYTE STORAGE 227

16 ALPHA BYTE STORAGE 243

17 ALSPA COMP.SYS. 526

• ALTERNATE WORD STIMULT. 536

18 ALTOS COMP.SYS. 184, 185

19 AMDEKCORP. 69

20 AMER.SQUARE COMP. 124, 125

21 AMERICAN COMP.& ENG. 351

22 AMERICAN EXPRESS 96

23 ANADEX 232

24 ANADEX 233

25 ANCIE LABS 270

26 ANCRONA296

27 ANDERSON JACOBSON 411

28 APPARAT INC 265

■ APPLE COMPUTER INC 12

29 APPLE COMPUTER INC 13

30 APPLIED ANALYTICS 424

31 ARBA 214

8 ARCTURUS 532

32 ARTEC ELECTRONICS 419

33 ARTIFICIAL INT'L.RESRCH 530 471 ASAP COMP.PROD.INC 203

34 ASAP COMP.PROD.INC. 362, 363

35 ASC COMP.SYS. 388

36 ASHTONTATE 390, 391 453 ASPEN RIBBONS 532

38 ATARI,INC 127

39 ATLANTIC COMP.INC. 322

40 ATON INT'L. 382

41 AUSTIN E.BRYANT CONS. 404

42 AUTOCONTROL INC 432

43 AUTOMATED EQPTMNT. 78

44 AUTOMATED EQPTMNT. 142

• AVOCET 276

46 B&B ELECTR. 432

47 B&B ELECTR. 536

438 BAY TECHNICAL ASSOC 495

• BELL.JOHN ENGR. 552, 553

• BETA COMP.DEVICES 245

49 BIT BUCKET, THE 530

50 BLAT RESRCH & DEVELP. 450

51 BOWER-STEWART 528

52 BURKE.JAMES C. 277

53 BUSINESS OPERATING SYS 183

54 BUSINESS WEEK 387

' BYTE BACK ISSUES 254 BYTE BOOKS 287, 489

55 BYTE BOOKS 288

56 BYTE BOOKS 289

57 BYTE BOOKS 290

• BYTE SUB 495

• BYTE WATS 492 429 BYTEWRITER 72

58 BYTEK COMP.SYS. 368

48 CALDISK 530

59 CALIF DATA CORP 526

60 CALIF. DIGITAL 556, 557

61 CALIF.COMP.SYS. 109

• CALIF.MICRO COMP. 398

62 CAMEO ELECTR.INC 191

63 CDR 530

64 CHECK-MATE 538

65 CHECKS-TO-GO 134

66 CHIPS & DALE 430

67 CHRISLIN INDUSTRIES 295

68 CHRISLIN INDUSTRIES 343

69 CLEV.CONS.COMP. 521

70 CLINICAL ANALYTICS.INC. 354 73 CMC.INT'L. 65

71 CMC.INT'L. 219

72 CMC.INT'L. 442

75 CODEX CORP 409

76 COLONIAL DATA SERV. 293

77 COMMSOFT350

466 COMMUNICATIONS ELECT 513

78 COMPONENTS EXPRESS 394

Inquiry No.

Page. No.

79 COMPUMART46, 47

80 COMPUPRO/GODBOUT340, 341

81 COMPUTER AGE 488

82 COMPUTER AID 524

83 COMPUTER AID 528

84 COMPUTER COOPERATIVE 534 65 COMPUTER DISC.OF AM. 150 86 COMPUTER DYNAMICS 536

* COMPUTER FACTORY 403

89 COMPUTER FURN.& ACCSS. 300

90 COMPUTER MAIL ORDER 375

91 COMPUTER PLUS 524

92 COMPUTER SERV.CORP. 187

93 COMPUTER SFTW.SPECLTS. 532

94 COMPUTER SHOPPER 417

95 COMPUTER SPCLTIES. 132, 133

96 COMPUTER STOP, THE 519

97 COMPUTER STORE.THE 468

* COMPUTER WRHSE. 123

98 COMPUTERLAND 237 462 COMPUTEROOM 526

99 COMPUTERS ETC. 252 441 COMPUTERS ETC. 352 101 COMPUTERS ETC. 474

282 COMPUTERS WHOLESALE 527

103 COMPUTERWORLD INT'L. 120

454 COMPUTERWORLD INT'L. 538

104 COMPUTEX CORP 256

105 COMPUTIQUE353

106 COMPUVIEW PROD.INC. 66

107 COMPUVIEW PROD.INC. 66

108 COMPUVIEW PROD.INC. 67

109 CONCOMPIND. 205

110 CONCORD COMP.PROD. 380 465 CONDOR COMPUTER 502

111 CONSUMER COMP. 146

112 CONSUMER COMP. 147

113 CONSUMER COMP. 517

455 CORNSOFT344

114 COVER CRAFT 128

116 CPU SHOP, THE 523

117 CREATIVE LOGIC 122

118 CROMEMCO C11, 1

119 CROMEMCO 2

* CYBERNETICS INC 157

123 CYBORG CORP. 25

124 D & W DIGITAL 378 257 DANA INDUSTRIES 158

' DATA DISCOUNT CTR 170

125 DATA-ED 221

126 DATAFACE 34 261 DATAMAC176

128 DATASOFT131

129 DATASOUTH COMP.CORP. 73

130 DATASOUTH COMP.CORP. 467

131 DELTA PRODUCTS 313

132 DESERT COMPUTER 394

134 DESIGNER SOFTWARE 175 467 DESK TOP 272

135 DFSCOMP.FORMS52

136 DIGITAL LABORATORIES 445

137 DIGITAL MARKETING 6

138 DIGITAL MARKETING 303

139 DIGITAL RESEARCH 58, 59

141 DIGITAL RESEARCH 235

140 DIGITAL RESEARCH 281

* DIGITAL RESEARCH COMP. 533 480 DIGATEK CORP. 421

142 DIP INC. 253

143 DISCOUNT SFTW.GRP.THE 490

144 DISKONNECTIONTHE 528

145 DJ&"AI"SYS.LTD. 349

146 DMA 294

* DRV ELECTRONICS 532

147 DUAL SYS.CONTROL CORP. 28

148 DUAL SYS.CONTROL CORP. 30

149 DUAL SYS.CONTROL CORP. 32

150 DUPRE ENTERPR. 446

151 DYMARC IND. 410

152 DYNACOMP310, 311

153 ECLECTIC SYSTEMS 386

154 ECOSOFT 172

155 EDUCATIONAL MICROCOMP. 534

* EFFICIENT MNGMNT.SYS 422 461 ELCOMP PUBLISHING 420

* ELECTROVALUE IND. 524

156 ELECTROLABS 522

157 ELECTRONIC CONTROL 502

158 ELECTRONIC SPCLISTS 473

159 ELECTRONIC SYS.FURN 425

456 ELECTRONIC TECH SFTW 536

160 ELECTRONICS CENTER 520

161 ELLIS COMPUTING 440

Inquiry No.

Page No.

162 EMPIRE SYS.CORP. 538

164 EMPIRICAL RESRCH GRP. 426

163 EMPIRICAL RESRCH GRP. 458

165 EMPIRICAL RESRCH GRP. 538

166 ENERCOMP530

442 EPIC COMPUTER 61

443 EPIC COMPUTER 451

167 EPSON AMERICA 137

168 ESSEX PUBLISHING 427

169 EXPOTEK 220 ' FAIRCOM 24

170 FORETHOUGHT PRODUCTS 410

171 FREDERICK COMP.PROD. 437

172 FUTRA CO. 275

173 FYI INC. 538

174 GENERAL ELECTRIC CO. 149

176 GILTRONIX530

177 GIMIXINC285

178 GRAFFCOM SYS. 401

179 H&E COMPUTRONICS 323

180 H&E COMPUTRONICS 325 460 HAL COMPUTERS 259

181 HANLEY ENGNRING 542, 543

182 HAPPY HANDS 452

183 HAYDEN BOOK CO INC 393

184 HAYES MICROCOMP.PROD. 143

• HEATH COMPANY 16, 17

186 HEWLETT-PACKARD 103

445 HOBBY ROBOTICS 526

187 HOUSTON INSTRUMENTS 35

188 HOUSTON INSTRUMENTS 35

189 HUBBARD.J.INC. 534

190 I.B.C. 260

191 I/O TECHNOLOGY 148 193 IMS INTERNATIONAL 239

• INDEPENDENT BUS.SYS.INC 209

195 INFOSOFT COMP.SYS. 528

196 INNOVATIVE PROD. 100

197 INNOVATIVE SFTW.APPL 22

446 INSTITUTE FOR SCIENTIFIC ANALYSIS 532

198 INT'L.MICRO SYS. 251

199 INTEC 526

200 INTEGRAND 442

201 INTELLIGENT SYS. CORP 110

202 INTELLIGENT SYS. CORP. 111

203 INTERACTIVE MICROWRE 497

204 INTERACTIVE MICROWRE 497

205 INTERTEC DATA SYS. 153

206 IOTC 534

207 IPEX INT'L. 536

208 ITHACA INTERSYSTEMS 8

209 ITHACA INTERSYSTEMS 9 478 IV ASSOC. 421

210 JADE COMP.PROD. 539

211 JADE COMP.PROD. 540, 541

212 JAMECO ELECTR. 554, 555

213 JDR MICRODEVICES 548, 549

214 JINI MICRO SYSTEMS 211

215 JOE COMPUTER 532

216 KADAK PRODUCTS 501

217 KIT 80 INC. 532

218 KONAN CORP. 151

219 KV33 528

220 LABORATORY MICROSYS. 528 458 LADCO 254

221 LANIER BUSN. PROD.INC 241

222 LEADING EDGE PROD Clll

223 LEO ELECTRONICS 376

224 LEXINGTON BOOKS/D C HEATH 473

225 LIFEBOAT ASSOC. 155

226 LIFEBOAT ASSOC. 283

227 LIFELINES ASSOC. 355

228 LJK ENTERPRISES INC. 309

229 LNW RESEARCH 267

230 LOGICAL DEVICES 526

231 LOGO COMP.SYS. 371

112 LONG ISL COMP GEN STORE 484

233 LYBEN COMP.SYS. 408

234 LYBEN COMP.SYS. 538

235 MACROTRONICS 432

236 MACROTRONICS 532

237 MAGNOLIA MICROSYS. 524 239 MARYMAC INDUSTRIES 202

241 MAXTEK 329

242 MAYBERRY SYS.INC. 534

243 MCGRAW-HILL BOOKSTORES 392

244 MCGRAW-HILL BOOKSTORES 415

• MCGRAW-HILL COLL.DIV. 271

245 MCS 224

246 MEADE DATA SYS. 524

247 MEAS.SYS. & CONTROLS 31

To get further information on the products advertising in BYTE, fill out the reader service card with your name and address. Then circle the appropriate numbers for the advertisers you select from the list. Add an 18-cent stamp to the card, then drop it in the mail. Not only do you gain information, but our advertisers are encouraged to use the marketplace provided by BYTE. This helps us bring you a bigger BYTE. The index is provided as an additional service by the publisher, who assumes no liability for errors or omissions. "Correspond directly with company.

Inquiry No.

Page No.

249 MEMORY MERCHANT 145

250 MENTOR SOFTWARE 538

251 META TECHNOLOGIES 504

252 MICRO AGE COMP.STORE 105

253 MICRO APPL.GROUP 423

254 MICRO BUSINESS WORLD 139

255 MICRO BUSN.ASSOC 524

256 MICRO COM 307

258 MICRO DATA BASE SYS 107

259 MICRO DECISIONWARE 180 457 MICRO ENGINEERING ASSOC. 536

260 MICRO HOUSE 63

• MICRO MAGAZINE 429

127 MICRO MANAGEMENT SYS. 461

475 MICROMINT 550 447 MICRO MINT 291

262 MICRO PRO INT'L. 179

263 MICRO SOURCE OF TX 520

264 MICRO WORKS, THE 459

266 MICRO-TECH IND. 454

267 MICROCOMP.TECH.INC. 171

268 MICRODASYS 279

269 MICROMAIL476

270 MICRONICS 530

• MICROPERIPH.CORP.THE 408

271 MICROSETTE INC. 538

272 MICROSOFT (CPD) 263

273 MICROSOFT (CPD) 273

274 MICROSTUF.INC. 240

275 MICROTAX 314

276 MICROTECH EXPORTS 458

338 MICROTEK 299

277 MIDDLETON.WILSON 430

278 MIKOS 522

279 MILLER MICROCOMP.SERV. 138

280 MIMIC.INC. 534

281 MINI COMP.SUPPLIERS 459 102 MINI MICRO MART 418

283 MINI MICRO MART 535

284 MINI MICRO MART 537

286 MORROW DESIGNS 113

287 MORROW DESIGNS 20, 21

288 MOUNTAIN COMPUTER 19

289 MOUNTAIN SOFTWARE 44

290 MOUNTAIN VIEW PRESS 335

291 MPI 347

292 MSD 414

294 MTI.INC. 416

295 MULTI BUSN.COMP.INC. 428

296 MUSYS 405

437 NASHUA CORP. 332

297 NAT'L.DATA SUPPLIES 144 463 NAT'LMULTIPLEX484

298 NAT'LTRICOR 412

299 NCL DATA INC. 460

300 NEBS 407

301 NEECO 337

302 NEGATIVE ENTROPY 330

' NESTAR SYSTEMS INC. 195

304 NET PROFIT COMP. 80

" NETRONICS 102, 431,433

305 NORTH AMER TECH 56

306 NORTH AMER TECH 226

307 NORTH STAR COMPUTERS 199

308 NORTHEAST COMP.SALES 446

309 NORTHWEST COM PUTER 402

310 NOVELL DATA SYS 301

* NRI SCHOOLS ELECTR.DIV. 369

* OASIS SYSTEMS 470

311 OHIO SCIENTIFIC INSTR. CIV

312 OKIDATA CORP. 317 473 OLIVER ADV.ENG. 530

313 OLYMPIC SALES 473

314 OMEGA MICROWARE.INC. 29B

316 OMEGA SALES 229

315 OMEGA SALES 268, 269

317 OMEGA SALES 398

318 OMEGA SALES 436

319 OMEGA SALES 456

320 OMEGA SALES 492

321 OMNI RESOURCES 345

322 OPTIMIZED SFTW 319

323 ORACLE ELECTR. 536

324 ORANGE MICRO 164, 165

325 ORANGE MICRO 381 470 ORANGE MICRO 503

326 ORION INSTRUMENTS 528

327 OSBORNE COMPUTERS 33

328 OSBORNE/MCGRAW-HILL 201

476 OSBORNE/MCGRAW-HILL 247

* OWENS ASSOC. 366, 367

329 PACIFIC COMP BRK. 491

331 PACIFIC EXCHANGES 426

330 PACIFIC EXCHANGES 453

332 PACIFIC EXCHANGES 524

333 PACIFIC EXCHANGES 526

334 PACIFIC SOFTWARE 99

335 PAGE DIGITAL 546, 547

336 PALOMAR COMP.EQUIP. 515

337 PAN AMERICAN ELEC INC. 316

339 PC NEWSLETTER 471

340 PCD SYSTEMS INC. 94

341 PELICAN PROGRAMS 536

• PERCOM DATA 7, 14, 15

342 PERSONAL COMPUTERS 324

November 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc 559

Reader Service.

Inquiry No.

Page No.

449 343 344 345 346

347 348 349

350 351 352 353 354 355 356 357 358 359 360 361 362 363 364 365 366 367 459 368

PERSONAL SOFTWARE 216, 217

PHASE ONE SYS.INC. 3B5

PICKLES & TROUT 264

PKAY CORP. 408

POLY PAKS 524

POPULAR COMPUTING 257

POTOMAC MICRO-MAGIC 469

POWER ONE INC. 213

PRIME SOURCE 173

PRIORITY ONE 60 pg. insert

PRIORITY ONE 435\ 494

PRIORITY ONE 551

PROTECTO ENTERPR. 430

PURCHASING AGENTTHE 466

QUALITY COMP.PARTS 526

QUALITY SOFTWARE 119

QUASAR DATA PROD.INC. 181

QUEST ELECTR. 531

R K S ENTERPRISES INC. 462

R.C.ELECTRONICS 470

R.R. SOFTWARE 461

RACET COMPUTES 154

RADGO 402

RADIO SHACK 53

RADIO SHACK-GLNW.SPR. 412

RADIO SHCK FRNC J7079 447

RCA 68

RCE ELECTR. 182

REI 57

RENAISSANCE TECH 228

ROBOTICS AGE 441

Inquiry No.

Page No.

369 S C DIGITAL 462

370 S&M SYSTEMS 471

371 S-100INC414

372 SANDHU MACHINE DESN. 189

373 SCION CORP 5

374 SCITRONICS 487

• SCOTTSDALE SYSTEMS 258

375 SCR ELECTR. 528

376 SEATTLE COMP PRODS 297

377 SECURED COMP.SYS. 534

378 SELECT INFO SYS. 377

• SINCLAIR RESEARCH 74, 75

380 SKP ELECTRONICS 526

381 SLUDER 532

382 SMOKE SIGNAL BRDCSTG 231 474 SMOKE SIGNAL BRDCSTG 231 451 SOFTWARE DISTRIBUTERS 305

383 SOFTWARE HOWS 223

384 SOFTWARE PROD.INT'L. 159 469 SOFTWARE SUPPLY CORP 534

• SOLID STATE SALES 318

385 SORCIM 129

386 SORRENTO VALLEY ASSOC 359

387 SOURCE TELECOMM.CORP. 261

388 SPECIALIZED BUSN SYS 455

389 SPECTRUM SOFTWARE 333 468 SPRINGER-VERLAG 339

390 SSM MICRO COMP PROD 11

391 STANDARD & POORS 163

392 STANDARD MICROSYS.CORP. 356

• STANDARD MICROSYS.CORP. 357

Inquiry No. Page No.

Inquiry No. Page No.

393

STANDARD MICROSYS.INC 389

417

TSE/HARDSIDE 348

394

STATCOM CORP. 49

436

U.S. MICRO SALES 332

395

STATIC MEMORY SYS 315

418

U.S. MICRO SALES 525

'

SUNNY INT'L. 550

419

U.S. ROBOTICS 136

•

SUPERSOFT 115, 117, 162, 308

*

UNITED SFTW.OF AMER. 101

396

SURVEYOR SUPPLY CO 292

420

UVEON COMP.SYS. 23

397

SYBEX 85, 87, 89, 91, 93, 95

421

VECTOR GRAPHICS 79

398

SYNCTRONICS64

422

VERBATIM CORP 135

399

SYS.INTERFACE CONS. 262

*

VERTICAL DATA SYS.INC. 161

*

SYSCON CORP. 210

423

VID EX 71

450

SYSTEMS GROUPTHE 29

424

VISTA COMPUTER CO 55

400

SYSTEMS PLUS 361

425

VITAL INFORMATION 197

•

SYSTEMS SUPPORT INC. 372

435

VIXEL451

401

TAB BOOKS 321

•

VOTRAX 81

402

TARBELL ELECTR. 379

464

WARRENS 130

•

TECHNICAL SYS CONS 215

426

WASHINGTON COMP.SERV. 331

403

TECHNITIE 536

479

westbrooke search 421

404

TECMAR INC 365

*

WESTICO INC. 141, 524

4U5

TEI.INC. 225

*

WESTINGHOUSE 8 pg. insert

406

TELERAM COMMUNC. 413

427

WESTWARE 249

407

TELEVIDEO INC 207

428

WICAT SYSTEMS 82, 83

379

TERRAPIN 54

430

WINCHENDON GRPTHE 426

408

TEXAS COMP.SYS. 395

431

WINTEK CORP. 538

*

TEXAS INSTRUMENTS 160

432

X COMP 373

409

THREE M COMPANY 121

433

ZILOG INC. 168, 169

410

THREE-G CO. INC. 447 TINNEY.RBT.GRAPHICS 397

434

ZOBEX177

411

TNW CORP. 98

414

TRAK CO.JHE 327

415

TRANSNET CORP. 459

416

TRANSWAVE CORP. 255

BOMB

1

Ongoing Monitt

or Box

BYTE's

Article #

Page

Article

Author(s)

1

18

Writing with a Data-Base Management

System

Brent

2

36

Switching Power Supplies, An Introduction

Ciarcia

3

48

Fundamentals of Relational Data

Neeley,

Organization

Stewart

4

62

Build a Bar-Code Scanner Inexpensively

Bennett

5

76

Reversal, Othello for the Apple II

Friedman

6

84

The Microcomputer as a Laboratory

Instrument

Cosgrove

7

97

Data-Base Management Systems: Powerful

Gagle,

Newcomers to Microcomputers

Koehler, Whinston

8

126

The Exatron Stringy Floppy Data-Storage

System

Carlson

9

138

The Datahandler from Miller Microcomputer

Services

Richardson

10

152

Microsoft Softcard

Pelczarski

11

166

Courseware Magazine

Holden

12

174

DIF: A Format for Data Exchange between

Applications Programs

A Survey of Data-Base Management Systems

Kalish, Mayer

13

208

Barley,

for Microcomputers

Driscoll

14

236

PDQ: A Data Manager for Beginners, Don't

Reinvent the Wheel

Swanson

15

264

Orchestra-80

Cooper, Kolya

16

274

Apple II File-Management Systems

Blochowiak

1-7

312

The Atari Tutorial, Part 3: Player-Missile

Graphics

Crawford

18

342

ENHBAS

Kelly

19

370

Toward a Structured 6809 Assembly Language, Part 1: An Introduction to Struc

tured Assembly Language

Walker

20

384

PROLOG, A Step Toward the Ultimate Com

puter Language

Ferguson

21

400

PS—A FORTH-Like Threaded Language, Part 2

Motalygo

22

434

Five Spelling-Correction Programs for CP/M

Based Systems

Lemmons

23

472

Linking a Pascal Microengine to a Cyber 170

Sedlet, Dust

24

493

Information Hiding in Pascal, Packages and

Pointers

Feldman

Garcia Controls August BOMB

Steve Ciarcia cops first place again with the second part of his article, "Build a Z8-Based Control Computer with BASIC." Steve will, of course, receive the S100 purse. Second place goes to Stan fvliastkowski for his report on "The Japanese Computer Invasion." (As a staff member, he is not eligible for the $50 prize.) Third place goes to Adele Goldberg for her article, "Introducing the Smalltalk-80 System," an overview of the theme of BYTE's annual language issue.

560 Novtmbtr 1981 © BYTE Publications Inc

ORDSWORTH, TAKE A LETTER.'

\

&

l

r*S«SSSS§i5

THE FIRST SUPER-SIMPLE LETTER QUALITY WORD PROCESSOR

IN THE WORLD THAT CAN SIT NEXT TO YOUR SECRETARY

FOR LESS THAN $5,000.

"Wordsworth™" removes the fear and loathing many people have about things called "computers" and "word processing." Because Wordsworthjust sits at a desk and does what he's told. With unique new, simplified software, it can tell its typist what to do—step by simple step—to perform even the most complicated tasks.

It can not only "take a letter," but it can revise it, customize it in millions of ways (quite literally), personalize it, print it on your letterhead or business form so you can't tell it from hand-typed... in short, everything but put it in an envelope.

Moreover, it can perform all sorts of mundane business functions,

like general ledgers and accounting reports, using easily available industry-compatible CP/M™ software.

Installation? Plug it in. (Cable supplied.)

Size? Bigger than a breadbox— but not by much. It's about half as big, or less, than systems that can't do half as much. Definitely desktop—a subcompact 20" by 40".

Service? Available everywhere.

Price? About $4,995. Complete and ready to go.

For the name of your nearest dealer—and a free hands-on demonstration—just pick up the nearest telephone.

TOLL-FREE 1-600-040-6833.

In Massachusetts, call collect (617) 828-8150. Telex 951-624.

LEADING

edge:

Leading Edge Products, Inc., 225 Turnpike Street, Canton, Massachusetts 02021 DEALERS: For immediate delivery from the Leading Edge Inventory Bank™ on "Wordsworth" and other of the

industry's most popular products, just give us a call.

Circle 222 on inquiry card.

SEEMS THE ONLY

THING EXPANDABLE

ABOUT MY COMPUTER

IS THE LINE OF

EMPLOYEES WAITING

TO USE IT

I SHOULD

HAVE BOUGHT

OHIO SCIENTIFIC

All too often, a small business will make a major investment in a computer system only to find out, a year or so later, that they have outgrown that computer. The system can't keep up with all that's being asked of it. There's a need for more work stations, for more job functions, for more multi-user operations. But the new computer is at full capacity, unable to expand to meet these new needs.

If you're a first time computer buyer, you should know that expandability is a big advantage of Ohio Scientific computer systems. Our engineers have worked hard to design systems that do not become obsolete as your workload grows.

A business can start with a modestly priced floppv disk based computer to handle many office functions Later, as your business needs grow, you can easily anc economically expand upward to our series of hard disl based computers, adding more users, more storage faster processing, and state-of-the-art hard disl technology. In multi-user situations where man^, employees work simultaneously on accounts receiv able, general ledger, payroll, inventory, word processin; and much more — Ohio Scientific has the compute solutions you need.

There are dozens of different computer systems or the market today Don't catch yourself second guessins the one you buy Compare computers, and be sure tha the computer you buy is expandable. We're convincec that the more you compare, the better Ohio Scientifn looks. Ohio Scientific computer systems are sold b\ more than 400 dealers nationwide. For the one neares you, call 1-800-321-6850 toll free.

a /Ij^KDVi Company

1333 SOUTH CHILUCOTHE ROAD, AURORA, OH 44202 • [216] 831-560C

The expandable small business computer.

Circle 311 on incflnry card.