Toolkit [2]

ZX Computing

Nick Pearce

THE ZX81 SOFT SELECTION Nick Pearce looks over the latest (and some of the greatest) software available for the ZX81. Two new cassettes feature in this article, together with re-reviews of three popular cassettes to give new ZX81 owners an insight into the software available for their machines. All the cassettes are for the ZX81 with 16K RAM. TOOLKIT Artic Computing Toolkit provides a total of nine functions to ease the labour of program writing. After LOADing, it automatically lowers RAMTOP and sets itself up the last 2.25K of memory. This a definite advantage over some other toolkits which require the user to reset RAMTOP before loading - something that can easily be forgotten. Toolkit's facilities are obtained through USR calls. Prompts are given on the screen and the program is fairly straightforward to use. Special error codes are given to identify the problem if anything goes wrong. The original review cassette contained closely typed instructions on one side of a sheet of A5 size paper. Artic have since improved the packaging and presentation and the instructions are now included on an attractive insert card. In common with other utilities of this sort, Toolkit features a very useful renumber routine but Artic's is both quick and easy to use. The program also contains an impressive range of other programming aids, including facilities to delete groups of lines; to display the amount of memory available; to list the current variables of all string and numerical variables (except arrays and loop control variables) and find any string up to 255 characters in length and list every line in the program containing that string. The replace command allows any string to be replaced by any other string - eg. PRINT can be replaced by LPRINT throughout a program. By saving the current program below RAMTOP, another program can be loaded allowing two programs to be joined. Another useful function is REMKILL which removes all REM statements. This is especially handy if you are running short of memory or want to speed up LOADing or SAVEing. This must be one of the better toolkits around for the ZX81. It is easy to use, executes commands quickly and accurately, and all its functions are likely to have some value for both the novice and for the more experienced BASIC programmer. Toolkit takes up only 2K of memory and is quickly loaded which is pretty impressive considering the range of functions available: a highly recommended cassette. Toolkit costs £5.95 and is available from Artic Computing Ltd, [redacted].

Sinclair User

John Gilbert

SINCLAIR ACTS TO IMPROVE THE STANDARD OF ITS NAMED SOFTWARE John Gilbert looks at the latest group of cassettes issued by Sinclair and finds that it is now setting the standards. A new batch of Sinclair Research software for the ZX-81 and Spectrum shows a marked improvement in the quality of programs and a continuation of fine artwork on the cassette inserts. The reason is that the company is selling programs from other independent companies, such as Melbourne House and Artic, instead of continuing to rely on Psion, Mikro-Gen and ICL. The Hobbit which takes first place in the new releases for quality and value for money. This adventure game, which the makers claim uses artificial intelligence, is discussed in Mind Games on page 93. VU-3D, for the 48K Spectrum, is another good offering from Psion. It allows the user to create a three-dimensional representation of an object on the television screen. The object can then be rotated and viewed from any angle. The objects can be displayed as wirework figures or can be shaded. They can also be magnified and reduced. It is possible to store the figure on tape in a data file and re-load it to view again. The program costs £9.95 but even though it has some good features it still seems over-priced. Games feature strongly in the new tapes. Sinclair is selling the Artic range of adventures, A, C and D. Adventure A works on the 16K or 48K Spectrum and 16K ZX-81 and is called Planet of Death. You are stranded on a planet and must return to your spaceship. There is no guide to the keywords but with a little thought you can discover the help command. At times the suggestions can be very unhelpful and it is a good idea to construct a map, as some of the help suggestions may make you retrace your footsteps. The next adventure so far released is C, called Ship of Doom. It can be run on the 48K Spectrum and 16K ZX-81. Your ship is captured by aliens who are searching for humanoids to replace their brains with microchips. The object of the game is to escape from the alien craft by breaking the gravitational field. To do so you must find the control room of the alien ship. The help command is a little more useful in this game and it is easier to get further when playing the game. Adventure D, called Espionage island, can be used on the 48K Spectrum or 16K ZX-81. You must escape from an aircraft which is about to crash into the Atlantic. You must the reach the island safely, avoid capture, and try to discover the secret of the island. The game is more difficult than the others and many people have not managed to get out of the aircraft, even though there is a parachute. All the adventures cost £6.95. Leaving adventure games, Reversi, or Othello as it is sometimes called, can be played on the 16K Spectrum or 16K ZX-81. The game has nine levels, from novice to expert, and the computer is difficult to beat. The makers claim that Reversi reflects the strict contemporary morality of Victorian society but we believe that it can traced to Arabic origins. Reversi costs £7.95. An interesting addition to the range of software is the Artic 1K Chess. It takes some technical wizardry to squeeze this kind of game into the unexpanded ZX-81. The game can be played using one of two opening moves. Because of the lack of memory, castling, pawn promotion and capturing en passant are not allowed. The game loads in approximately 40 seconds and that is ideal for someone who wants a quick game of chess without having to load from a tape which takes several minutes. The computer also makes its moves very fast for the amount of memory available to it. 1K Chess costs £4.95. Super Glooper is an amusing game of Pac-man on the 16K ZX-81. Glooper must paint the maze before the aliens kill him. Unfortunately it is difficult to evade those aliens using the standard ZX-81 keyboard but it is not impossible. Glooper can also pick up one of the shields at the corners of the maze to protect himself and chase the aliens. On the other side of the tape is Frogs, a game of Frogger. You must get the frogs over the river via the moving boats to the jetties on the other bank. If froggie falls into the river, it drowns. You score points for each frog you get across the river and you can have eight frogs to send to their deaths. Super Glooper and Frogs cost £4.95. Another game with a familiar-sounding theme is Through the Wall. It is based on Breakout and is available for the 16K ZX-81. On the other side of the cassette is Scramble, also a familiar theme. Both games on one cassette represent good value at £4.95. A package for the 1K ZX-81, called 1K Games, has also been released. The games include Jackpot, in which you must try to win the 25 pence jackpot from a one-armed bandit; Etch and Sketch, where you can draw pictures on the screen; and Maze Game, where you must find your way out of the conventional maze. The release of this cassette, costing £4.95, is a good idea at a time when so many people are buying ZX-81s. A basic Toolkit is available for the 16K ZX-81. It provides a series of machine code routines to make the job of programming easier. It includes a re-number routine, a search and replace routine, a merge routine to put together two separate Basic programs, and a routine to put a Basic program above RAMTOP and out of the way of the NEW command. The Toolkit costs £5.95. Two database programs are available in the range for the 48K Spectrum. They are called Collector's Pack and Club Record Controller. Collector's Pack can be used to store information about coins, stamps or even records. The Club Record Controller will store information about people such as addresses and telephone numbers. It would be useful to schools or even someone who runs a private club. Both packages are easy to use and cost £9.95. Adventure B, Inca Curse, for the 48K Spectrum is an upgrade of an adventure which Artic wrote for the 16K ZX-81. The adventurer is exploring in the jungle when he finds an Incan Temple. The aim is to go in and drag out all the treasure, or as much a you can carry. It all seems so easy until you enter the game and step into the temple. The authors have managed to cram a good deal into this adventure and the Artic top score of 3,200 points will take some beating. We must admit that it is not one of the adventures in which we have made much progress. Adventure B costs £6.95. The latest release of tapes is certainly better than the previous one. The games, utility, and business areas have been covered well but there is still a lack of good educational software. The only tapes available tend to be multi-choice and question-and-answer sessions. The Psion tapes seem to be the best for quality at the moment and the ones with the most interesting concepts. None of the cassettes reviewed was bad but The Hobbit, Vu-3D, 1K Chess, and Super Glooper seem best.

ZX Computing

Nick Pearce

UNDER THE ZX-SCOPE Reviewer Nick Pearce takes a close look at a number of ZX81 programs, including Artic's Toolkit, a word processor program from Tasman software and Richard Shepherd's 'Super Space Mission'. For the basic programmer, Toolkit from Artic provides a total of nine functions to ease the labour of program writing, including the usual renumbering facility. After loading, Toolkit automatically lowers RAMTOP and sets itself up in the last 2.25K of memory - a definite advantage on some other toolkits which require the user to reset RAMTOP before loading, something which is easily forgotten. Toolkit's facilities are obtained through USR calls. Prompts are given on the the screen and the program is fairly straightforward to use, special error codes being given to identify the problem if anything goes wrong. The instructions that come with the cassette are closely typed on one side of an A5 sheet of paper, and although the facilities of the program are adequately explained, the presentation could be better. Some of the error codes, for example, are difficult to find, and a listing of the codes and their meaning would be helpful. RENUMBERING The renumber routine is most impressive. It renumbers a program, including GOTOs, GOSUBs, RUNs and LISTs from any start line and in any step size - the screen prompts the necessary commands. After renumbering any computed GOTOs or GOSUBs (eg GOTO 100 x LEN A$) are displayed so that these can be numbered manually by the user. The Toolkit will cope with jumps to non-existent line numbers by remembering the jump command with the number of the line next after the nonexistent line. Renumbering is carried out so quickly as to be almost instantaneous on even long basic programs. Apart from renumbering, the Toolkit includes the facilities to delete groups of lines in the program (prompting for the first and last of the line numbers to be deleted); to display the amount of memory available in bytes; to list the current values of all string and numerical variables (except arrays and loop control variables); and find any string up to 255 characters in length and list every line in the program containing that string. The replace command allows any string to be replaced by any other string, which need not necessarily be the same length, eg PRINT can be replaced by LPRINT. By saving the current program below RAMTOP, another program can be loaded, allowing two programs to be joined together. Another function is REMKILL which removes all REM statements from a program useful if you are running short of memory, or want to make your programs quicker to LOAD and SAVE. This must be one of the better toolkits around for the ZX81. It is easy to use, executes commands quickly and accurately, and all of its nine functions are likely to have some value both for the novice and for the more experienced basic programmer. Toolkit takes up only just over 2K of memory, quite impressive considering the range of functions available. Toolkit costs £5.95p and is available from Artic Computing Ltd., [redacted].