Choosing and Using a Microcomputer

ZX Computing

Patrick Cain

"Choosing and Using a Micro Computer" and not only that but also 18 original programs. Original programs like "Radius", "Patterns", "Compound interest" and all for £2.50. No I didn't think it was likely either; but what the heck it was a raining Saturday afternoon the type that made you wish it was Monday morning; Oh! and I had a cold as well and apart from darning some socks there was little else to do so I took a browse through the 140 page Fontana Paperback. The credits were certainly impressive; Alan Radnor is a journalist and producer of TV computer programmes, Howard Kahn lectures in computing at Manchester Polytechnic. The intentions are valid - "written for everyone who is thinking of buying a computer for the first time and wants to know what it can do, which one to chose, the rudiments of how it works, now to set it up and how much it will all cost" and 18 original programs as well. Special features includes: a questionnaire which tells you at a glance which micro is best suited to your needs, a sample text program to use in the shop, a micro comparison chart showing the capabilities of each make, an explanation of computer jargon and 18 original programs. There is, I am convinced a need for such a book. Difficult as it is to believe there are still people around who are looking for some basic, commonsense advice on computing and computer buying. The cover notes suggest that "choosing and Using a Micro Computer" might be it. Even on a rainy Saturday, cold and all I was not convinced that the text matched those intentions. Seventy pages cover who needs a computer, what one is what one can do, setting up the computer and information on software. Seven pages would have done. The text is vague and mostly irrelevant rambling, dated and largely useless. Am I being too critical, what of the 18 original programs. Any program for someone who doesn't already have a computer must be original. Those of us who do will recognise those listed above and the rest of the 18 O.Ps. to be the same as the ones that would fill these pages and excite us when we were still playing with ZX80's. Why they take up almost half of the book I do not know. The nicest thing that happened on the rainy Saturday afternoon, and this is original, was having the cold. "Choosing and Using a Micro computer" is written by Alan Radnor and Howard Kahn published by Fontana and costs £2.50. ISBN 0-00-036624-4.

Personal Computer News

Nickie Robinson

SUFFERING FROM KEYBOARD FINGER? TAKE A BREAK WITH A BOOK. 'Choosing and Using a Microcomputer' by Alan Radnor and Howard Kahn, published by Fontana paperbacks at £2.50 (paperback, 144 pages). If you are in trepidation about splashing out on your first micro, then Choosing and Using a Microcomputer will help give you the confidence to make the final plunge. Newcomers are advised to think carefully what they want the computer for, whether the right software is available. If the system is expandable and whether or not the keyboard and screen are comfortable to use, among many others considerations. The authors advise buyers to do a little detective work on the dealer to make sure he or she has a reasonable knowledge of computers, and to find what back-up services are available. They stress the importance of a 'hands on' test, and a buyer's sample test is included for shOp trials. To give a general understanding of the hardware, the book includes short descriptions of the main components of a computer, with each section emphasising the aspects that might be important to first time buyers. Printers are considered an extra and are not included. There's help, too, for using a micro at home, such as a plan of an ideal working area, and instructions on how to set it up. At the end there are useful charts and checklists, plus a questionnaire to indicate which model best suits your needs. These are followed by 18 programs ranging from the obscure (the distance travelled by a bouncing ball) to the useful (mortgage and compound interest.