AmigaShopper01-May91.pdf

EXPERT ADVICE • BEST BUYS • TOP TIPS • HOT NEWS

From the makers of AM IGA FORMAT

ISSUE 1 • MAY 1991

THE MAGAZINE FOR AMIGA BUYERS

PROGRAMMING

Get the best advice on programming in C

and assembly language............ page 71

HARDWARE

Cure that annoying drive clicking with our

easy-buiid hardware project.... page 60

page 105 __ ____

VIDEO SHOW

Find out if the VideoMaster can solve your

video production problems....... page 57

AMOS ADVICE

Make your programs sound great with our

guide to music and effects.......... page 98

REVIEWS VIDEO MASTER • BODEGA BAY

i_ 1

PROFESSIONAL PAGE 2

K-SPREAD 4 •'

ulyre

DISNEY ANIMATION STUDIO AND MUCH MORE

" I

770961

730001

• B5000-25 Faster than the CBM A3000-25 •

• 500-1000% Faster than your Amiga •

• Massive 4-32Mb of superfast mem ory •

• 100% Software compatibility •

• Plug-in up to a 50 MHz Maths Co-Pro •

• B5000 has advanced 32-bit Paged-Mode design •

• 32-bit Kickstart — five/ten times faster •

• Three models — A5000-16/B5000-25/B5000-40 •

A5000-16: 16.67 MHz Asynchronous MC68020RC 2-3 MIPS (8 MIPS peak)

B5000-25: 25.00 MHz Asynchronous MC68030RP 5-6 MIPS (12 MIPS peak)

B5000-40: 40,00 MHz Asynchronous MC68030RP 8-9 MIPS (18 MIPS peak)

FPU: 12.5 MHz-50 M Hz Asynchronous MC68881RC or MC68882RC

A5000-16 RAM: 4 M eaabytes of 32-bit RAM 256 x 4 80ns DRAMs

B5000-25 RAM: 16 M egabytes of 32-bit RAM 1024 x 4 80ns DRAMs

B5000-40 RAM: 32 M egabytes of 32-bit RAM 1024 x 4 80ns DRAMs

SHADOW ROM: Move your Kickstart into 32-bit SUPER-FAST-RAM

SOFTWARE: 68000 Fallback m ode for 100% software com patibility

HARDWARE: 100% Com patible with Am iga 500/2000 and add-on cards

INTERFACE 1: Plugs into 68000 processor socket inside your Am iga

INTERFACE 2: A/B2000 Co-processor (Zorroll) card (for B5000-40 only)

A5000-16

(Price includes 1Mb RAM)

B5000-40

(Price includes 4Mb RAM)

B5000-25

(Price includes 1Mb RAM)

(All prices inclusive of VAT)

S o l i d S t a t e L E I S U R E L I M I T E D

BQ FlNEDQN ROAD, IRTHLINGBDROUGH, NORTHANTS NN9 5TZ.

TELEPHONE: (D933) 6 5 0 6 7 7

INTERNATIONAL: + 4 4 9 3 3 6 5D 677

CONTENT S

WHAT'S IN STORE

FEATURES

TUTORIAL s

SHOPPING LIST

This is an alphabetically

arranged, quick reference list to

everything in the issue. just look

C Programming

Assembly Language

software, hardware or subject

heading and it should 3 e in this

list. Some things a e a 053 -

referenced under more than one

heading so you should have no

trouble finding what you re after

A1500

AmigaDOS

REGULAR s

News

Show reports, opinions, launches and revelations.

Advantage

AmigaDOS

Save time, save files, save money with a hard drive.

Hard Drives on Trial

AMOS

Amiga Answers

All your prayers answered and problems solved

by our team of experts who will tackle anything.

Answers

Anti-click board

Check out our comprehensive survey of hard disk

drives for both the A 500 and A2000.

Assembly language

Expansion Modules

Does your 500 need expanding to fit more in?

Bodega Bay

Desktop Publishing

In-depth review of Pro Page 2 from Gold Disk.

Books

Business

What is SCSI?

Just what is this 'scuzzy' business all about anyway?

All is revealed in this informative guide.

m l i s i l l ! b

Video

4S&57

Comms

Contriver mouse

Reviews of Simpatica and the VideoMaster.

C Programming

Hardware Project

You can stop that annoying disk drive clicking

with this easy-to-build hardware project.

Graphics

All you need to know about the Animation Studio.

DAATAMouse

. Desktop publishing

Disney Animation Studio

Education

8 30

Comms

Is CIX the on-line service you just have to log on to?

Questionnaire

Help make this an even better magazine by telling

us exactly what you want from it.

Frankfurt Music Fair

Music

Get to grips with MIDI and travel to Frankfurt.

Graphics

Hard disk drives

R E VI

21 1

Hardware project

Business

In-depth review of Advantage and an update on

the whereabouts of K-Spread 4.

K-Spread 4

Professional Page 2

The full low-down on the hottest new DTP program.

Mastering AmigaDOS 2

Mice

MIDI

Simpatica

A production tool that could transform your videos.

Music

Education

A mum's view of the world of educational software.

News

Professional Page 2

Contriver Mouse

Is this the brand new mouse for you?

Public Domain

105

Subscriptions

Questionnaire

Reader ad form

114

DAATAMouse

...or should you be going for this one?

Make sure you get your Amiga Shopper every month.

1 1 1 1 s m

Simpatica

Buyers' Guide

Crucial guide to which floppy disk drive you need.

Video

45&57

Big Alternative Scroller

Can this simple software satisfy your titling needs?

VM-2 VideoMaster

AMOS

AMOS fans get invaluable hints and tips.

Disney Animation Studio

Disney try to star in software as well as cinema.

< * •

CONTACTS

S®

Editorial

Bob Wade - Editor

30 Monmouth Street, Bath BAl 2BW

Buyers' Advice

Get our advice on buying stuff safely.

100

VideoMaster

Check out a new genlock from across the Atlantic.

® 0225 442244

Advertising

Margaret Clarke - Advertising Manager

2nd Floor, Rayner House, 23 Higher

Hillgate, Stockport SKI 3ER

B J L l

Public Domain

Everything you need to know about free software.

105

Advantage

Can this spreadsheet cure your financial headaches?

( Q t

■ 061474 7333

wtgm

Subscriptions

■*»

The Old Barn, Somerton, Somerset

Mastering AmigaDOS 2

Discover the latest in serious bedtime reading.

Till Next Time

Farewell, adieu, to yeu and yer and yuuuuuu.

114

TAl 1 7PY

« 0458 74011

A M IG A SHOPPER • ISSUE 1 • M A Y 1991

AMIGA NEWS

VISTA FROM AN

AMIGA SHOPPER

GETS SERIOUS

by Mark Smiddy

intervention. Using this, it

is claimed Vista could be

used to create stunning

transformations, such as the

'Genesis effect' seen in Star

Trek II, the Wrath of Khan.

However, 3D ray-tracing

freaks will be pleased to

know the program still

exports to Turbo Silver.

On the cards for later this

year are Vista 2 and Vista

Pro 2. These have even more

impressive features such as

trees and even realistic river

tracking. These help you

define the start of flow and

the Vista will calculate the

path of the river - even

accounting for variations in

the geological detritus (rocks

and stuff).

Included with the

program are predefined

scenes of Mt St Helens before

and after the 1980 eruption;

Half Dome and El Capitain

from Yosemite National Park;

Crater Lake and the Calera

Virtual Reality's much

vaunted Vista landscape

generator has received a

welcome upgrade in the form

of the stunning new Vista Pro,

which includes support for

24-bit frame buffering, giving

over 16 million colours.

The original Vista was a

stunning piece of software in

its own right, but this latest

version takes it into a new

world. A host of new features

has been incorporated in

the package, including

support for high-res, interlace

and overscan screen modes.

Phong shading has been

replaced with the more

realistic Gouraud technique

and it has had infinite light

control added.

Another welcome

addition is the animation

script control, enabling the

generation of progressive

landscapes

Welcome to the first full issue of

Amiga Shopper - the magazine

that's as serious about your Amiga

as you are. Many of you w ill have

seen the sneak preview issue that

was given away with issue 21 of

our sister magazine Amiga Format.

For those that are coming to Amiga

Shopper for the first time, we

should explain what's so special

about yet another Amiga magazine.

Amiga Shopper is totally

dedicated to the serious side of the

Amiga and completely excludes

games, except to refer to them in

terms of their programming. We've

launched it because that's what you

were crying out for - a magazine,

with no games coverage, that took

the Amiga as seriously as you do

and could provide the sort of in

depth back-up and information you

need to get the very best out of

your Amiga.

The team behind AS knows

what it is talking about too,

although it certainly doesn't know

everything. Bob Wade, the editor,

was in charge of Amiga Format for

18 months before launching AS and

knows the Amiga scene and what

you want from a magazine. The

three consultant editors Mark

Smiddy, Phil South and Jeff Walker

are all highly regarded Amiga

experts, all with great experience,

and know how to pass on their

knowledge to you. Add to that an

experienced team of writers - all

specialists in their fields - and you

have a team that can give you

absolutelym everything you need

for your Amiga.

Every month we w ill be doing

major comparison features on

hardware and software to help you

make the right buying decisions.

Already we have done floppy and

hard disk drives in the preview

issue and this issue respectively,

and in the next three we w ill

be covering 2D paint programs,

accelerator cards and mono

printers. As these comparisons are

completed they w ill be repeated on

a rota basis in the form of the

buyers' guide - you w ill find the

floppy drives' guide on page 97.

These w ill be changed as often as

necessary to include new releases

and updates.

Of course, we w ill also be

reviewing every new piece of

hardware and software as it comes

out, but not in the flimsy manner

you might be used to from other

magazines. When we review

something, it is put in the hands of a

specialist in that area and then

tested long and hard until we're

sure we've got it right. You may not

always see it reviewed here first,

but you w ill always find it reviewed

here best.

As well as reviews, we are

committed to providing you with the

best tips and tutorials to help you

get the most out of your Amiga.

We w ill be running regular tutorials

on the various programming

languages, individual programs and

more general techniques as well.

When it comes to tips and solving

problems, you w ill not find a better

place to come because, as well as

giving tips within each specialist

column and review, we w ill be

solving virtually any problem you

can throw at us through our Amiga

Answers pages.

If all this sounds too good to

be true for just 99p an issue, then

notice the fact that we have cut our

production costs right back by not

using any colour on the editorial

pages. We are not interested in

looking glossy, just in providing

the maximum amount of useful

information as clearly as possible.

These are the goals we have

set ourselves and we w ill be striving

to meet them. If you think we fall

short at any stage then we want

to here about it so we can do

something about it. Or if you think

we've got it just right, we would all

be chuffed to get a pat on the back.

Whatever your view, we want to

hear it. So why not let us know

what you think by writing to:

Bob Wade, Amiga Shopper, 30

Monmouth Street, Bath BA1 2BW.

without

user

ANGLO SAXON

by Phil South

Kree Store 88941589 Pase 6 of 6

SAXON PUBLISHER

Voy .i on 1.18

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UM*ortv4

Q L e t t e r 0 Le o ra l

0 B u s in e s s C a rd

[~Define B a c k g ro un d Te xture ‘

| CANCEL

Saxon Publisher , the latest contender in the DTP stakes.

A new contender in the DTP battle is Saxon Publisher from

Saxon Industries. The program features full PostScript

output, and a great many features not found in any other

Amiga DTP package, such as the ability to skew bitmaps

and text to interesting angles.

The program works in an original way, more like

Ventura on the PC than the usual run of intuitive,

graphically and mouse-driven Amiga programs, but is

surprisingly easy to use. Most pieces of text and graphics

are tagged and styles are chosen for them from a

requester rather than the usual highlight and choose

methods employed in the more mainstream programs like

Pro Page 2.0.

The program works in everything from a 1Mb Amiga,

and comes on just one thin disk. Saxon Publisher costs

£249.95 and is available in the UK from Surface UK.

Surface UK

®081 566 6677

AMIGASHOPPER • ISSUE 1 • MAY 1991

AMIGA NEWS

THE CDTV

O T H E R P L A N E T

DEVELOPERS

Conference report

As Amiga Shopper was going to press, a

group of the most influential Amiga

developers gathered at a secret location in

Maidenhead to hear the latest movements on

the CDTV scene

Developer

for "developer's eyes only" and cannot be

reported as of yet. A release date is said to

be imminent - backed up by Gail

Wellington's (Commodore's head of special

projects and the guiding force behind CDTV)

comment via satellite, "I think we are giving

birth to a baby elephant..."

Nevertheless, from what this observer

saw, when CDTV does arrive

it will almost certainly have a

software base unrivalled in the

history of computer launches.

For instance, a representative

from British Telecom was

spotted, aiding speculation

that the whole UK telephone

directory may soon appear on

CD-ROM - at a realistic

consumer price. This has got

to be good news for everyone

liaison

manager

Sharon

Rodrigo took the floor and the

expectant audience -

numbering almost 90 - awaited

news with keen anticipation.

After a brief welcome, the first

of the speakers, On-line's

Clement Chambers, was

introduced to demonstrate the

company's DUNE system.

Chambers keenly pointed

out how DUNE could help with

the creation of complete

packages without the need for

programmers. Anyone, he

noted, can use DUNE - from

the MD downwards - avoiding

the situation in which On-Line chief, Clement

programmers hold a company to chambers had bad news

ransom by threatening to leave for CDTV programmers .

part way through a project. This

gained a mixed reaction from the crowd

which contained, among others, members of

Jez San's highly respected Argonaut team.

By contrast, Ariadne's David Parkinson

showed how their ELK system could allow

programmers to create software with the

minimum of time and effort. This revealed the

cross-section of those attending, as Parkinson

went on to describe the programmer-friendly

resource management employed in ELK -

Owners of big RAMs will be able to get spectacularly lost

in Virtual Reality’s vaunted Vista landscape generator.

area of Mars - this truly is a

Vista from another planet. In

case you ever get bored with

those, Vista boasts four

billion fractal landscapes and

extra scenery disks with over

150 new scenes.

land of fun - but the bad

news is it needs at least 3Mb

to run and 3.5M b for full

features. The original Vista

software (which only needs a

measly 1Mb) is still available

at £59.95.

HB Marketing

® 0753 68 6000

not

only

it mean potential buyers

will be treated to a machine

with a future, but also

the developments are bound

to influence and improve

standard Amiga software.

Interestingly too, Commodore

has estimated the price point for complete

development systems will start from as little as

£3,000 excluding VAT. Compared to rival

systems,

£99.95,

Vista Pro

sounds

like a cost-effective

WHO ARE YOU?

So what do you use your Amiga for? Don't be shy, we

would like to know. If you are using it in a professional

capacity, as part of an interesting hobby or in some

unusual capacity then why not tell everyone else about it -

it could be the start of something big. You can either write

your own self-profile or we might be persuaded to drop in

on you and have a chat ourselves. W e are particularly

interested in profiles that will give other Amiga owners

bright ideas for things they too can do. Send your words

to: I Want to be Famous, A m ig a S h o p p e r, 30 Monmouth

Street, Bath BAl 2BW.

such

as CD-I,

this

is very cost-

effective and

has the added

bonus that

applications

can

developed

for

the

CDTV and Amiga on the same system.

• This

report

was compiled for Amiga

a registered (working) CDTV

with

glancing around, he commented: "I can see

Shopper

some eyes glazing over".

developer

and

the

approval

Unfortunately, most of what was on show was

Commodore UK.

HYPERMEDIA? CAN DO

b y Phil South

Checkm ate D ig ita l has announced it is to

be the sole UK d is trib u to r o f th e CanDo

h y p e rm e d ia a u th o rin g system fro m

In o va tro n ics. This system w a s p re v io u s ly

o n ly a v a ila b le in th e US a n d on im p o rt

in the UK. Checkm ate w ill be fu lly

s u p p o rtin g th e p ro g ra m , a n d indeed a ll

In o va tro n ics

SO WHAT'S THE STORY?

If you have a news story that all Amiga owners

ought to k n o w about, m ake sure you tell us

about it, because if you d o n 't tell us then w e

can't tell everyone else. W hat's newsworthy?

W ell, how about new hardw are, new software,

shows, services, overseas markets, Amigas in

odd places, unusual uses fo r the Am iga, famous

Amiga users, m ajor achievements and disasters

caused by the Amiga, bankruptcies, new

companies and anything else you th in k w ould

be o f relevance o r interest to Amiga owners.

W rite to: Shock H orror Probe,

Amiga Shopper, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath BAl

2BW or FAX us on 0225 446019.

subm ission th e y g e t e v e ry w e e k w ill

receive a CanDo T-Shirt. A ll th a t y o u

h a ve to d o is to send in a p ro g ra m a lo n g

w ith a p h o to c o p y o f y o u r invoice to act

as p ro o f o f purchase. For fu rth e r d etails

w h y n o t ph o n e up th e CanDo PD L ib ra ry

on 081 2 0 4 3 9 5 4 .

CanDo 1.22 costs ju st £ 1 2 5 n o rm a lly ,

b u t u n til th e n e w ve rs io n 1.5 comes

o u t th e p ro g ra m w ill be priced a t

a n in tro d u c to ry £ 9 9 . H y p e rH e lp e rs,

c o n ta in in g o n lin e Am igaDO S h e lp a n d

lots o f o th e r H y p e rte x t style u tilitie s , is

a lso on sale a t £ 4 9 .

Checkm ate D ig ita l o 071 9 2 3 0 6 5 8

In o va tro n ics o 0101 2 1 4 3 4 0 4991

p ro g ra m s

such

th e

a m a z in g H y p e rH e lp e rs.

C heckm ate is also s ta rtin g a CanDo

PD lib ra r y fo r c o n trib u tio n s fro m UK

users. The p ro g ra m is c a p a b le o f h e lp in g

create ju st a b o u t a n y A m ig a a p p lic a tio n

using a sim p le icon a n d requester

fo rm a t, so products on this PD lib ra r y

should be som e th in g to b e h o ld . The best

A M IG A SHOPPER • ISSUE 1

• M A Y 1991

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