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Welcome one, welcome all to 1990's very first BIOS CALL! !!!
This column will (I hope) be printed in the January, '90 issue of the newsletter, and yet here it is only the middle of November. I'm sure that as Christmas gets a lot closer, there will be a lot of exciting things happening in ADAMLAND; but in light of extreme procrastination tendencies on my part, I'm going to try to get ahead a little <gasp>.
This column is being written entirely from memory, as I have neither an ADAM nor a list of the STARTER PAK with me at the moment. I'm writing this column on a very ADAM-CP/M compatible laptop computer, the NEC PC-5000. To digress for a moment, the NEC is a really great companion for the ADAMITE on the go. It has ROM-based software which consists of Wordstar, Calcstar, Telecom and Filer. These are all very scaled-down versions of their parent versions, but it seems as though I do a lot of pretty good stuff utilizing them.
The NEC is the second CP/M laptop that I've owned, the first being an EPSON PX-8. Both have their good and bad points, but I would like to point out a few things about the NEC. First off, it has a full 80x25 LCD screen which is VERY unusual for the early laptops. Tandy's model 100, which is probably the largest seller of the NON-MS machines, has only a 40x4 screen. Secondly, the built-in software negates the need to carry around software cartridges or programs, and is very good for most uses. On the down side, the NEC has no built-in storage device, although it has a 64k ram disk and an additional 128k ram disk can be had for only $12. It comes with a standard RS232C port and a centronics parallel printer port, making transfers to and from the ADAM a snap with a null modem. In addition, the NEC also has a built-in 300 bps modem, allowing for those nights away from home when you can hear Compuserve calling your name.
NEC ceased production of the PC-8500 several years ago, but they can still be had through wholesalers (or, as in my case, pawn shops) for under $200. NEC did produce an external drive chassis that housed other hardware capabilities, including a disk drive and an external monitor. I don't have one of these yet, but if you know someone who does and who would like to get rid of it at a reasonable price, please mention my name.
Well, I think that I've used enough space on that; but I would like to emphasize that many of the programs for the ADAM CP/M will work on the NEC, including the two programs I am going to cover tonight.
The first program I want to cover is probably one that you'll find yourself using more and more as your use of CP/M progreses. The program is called UNERAS.COM. As its name suggests, it was designed to UN-erase a file that has been erased using CP/M's ERA command.
The proper use of ERA is covered in the CP/M manual, so I'll only mention that it's very similar to UNERAS.
The command line
ERA A:BOB.TXT
will erase a file called BOB.TXT from drive A:. You can use ERA from any drive to any drive, as it is what's called a "transient" command, which is always there as long as CP/M is in memory.
Well, let's say that in our case, we got mad at BOB just after we'd finished a letter to him, so we erased his letter. But then BOB calls and apologizes for not sending the right number of stamps to cover the disk mailer, so we decide that we really DO want to send him a letter, but we really DON'T want to re-type it! Now we have two options: 1) We could just scribble him a note on the back of an old DDP label, or (2) we could try to recover the file.
WHAT? Recover a File ? But we thought that only the sophisticates of MS-DOS could do magic like that! Nope. That hasn't been true for a long time. We ADAMITES can recover files just like the big blues; as long as certain things have/haven't been done.
First of all, we're hackers, not wizards. So if we've already re-formatted the disk that BOB's letter was on, we can pretty much forget it. (I hear that there ARE a few gurus who might attempt such a trick, but I sure wouldn't want to be around to see it. )
Secondly, the disk can't have been "packed (if you don't recognize that term, fear not ! We'll cover that later, and besides, if you don't know it you probably haven't done it.)
Assuming the medium hasn't been reformatted or packed, then let's see if we can retrieve BOB's letter.
First off, transfer URERAS.COM from your STARTER PAK to the ddp that had BOB.TXT on it; or, if you have 2 drives, put UNERAS in one and BOB in the othewr. From there it's as easy as entering the command line:
UREAS A:BOB.TXT <Return>
Now, in order for UNERAS to work, YOU MUST HAVE THE FILENAME SPELLED EXACTLY RIGHT. Let me reiterate this: THE SPELLING MUST BE THE SAME!! No problem if your friend is BOB. On the other hand, if you happen to be pen pals with a few Romanian nationals, well, we can only hope.
If you don't get it spelled right, UNERAS will tell you in the form of the message, "FILE NOT FOUND." Try again, using the spelling you think your fingers might have used, rather than the name you SHOULD have used.
As with most CP/M programs, UNERAS can be used from and to almost any drive. And (this is kind of neat) it can also be used to UNERAS a file that was on your RAM disk (drive M:) as long as the two earlier conditions have been met AND you haven't turned off your ADAM. There was talk awhile ago of battery backup for the RAM disk, but I think it was just more VAPORware.
The next utility I want to tell you about is FILTA.COM. If you are still in love with SmartWriter or are still heavily into EOS, then this one is for you!
FILTA.COM is a filter program for CP/M that will filter out many different problems from several different types of files.
For example, if you have written a really great article for MOAUG's newsletter, but want to upload it to a few different bulletin boards around the country, then your best bet would be to use the XMODEM protocol to transfer the file. Unfortunately, neither ADAMLINK I or II have that capability, so you would probably resort to a CP/M-based terminal program.
Well, the first thing that you'd want to do is transfer the files from the EOS format to CP/M using ADAM.COM. Unfortunately, this process will occasionally ADD character garbage to your text file. Well, FILTA will get rid of that! FILTA is also very adept at straining out extraneous characters from WordStar files that you want to convert to SmartWriter use.
FILTA is a very simple program to use. The command is:
FILTA A:BOB.TXT <Return>
...where BOB.TXT is on drive A:. Your drive will spin awhile and then a screen of text and numbers will appear, informing you of the status of the program.
When it's done running, FILTA will tell you that it's done, as well as what functions it has performed upon that particular file. From that point on, the file should be almost universally ASCII, and useable by almost any computer anywhere.
NOTICE: In the past several months, a lot of confusion has beset my
computer desk and it has come to my attention that there are still a
few copies of CATPRTV1.4 (discussed in the December issue) that are
incomplete. If your copy uncrunches to less than 10k, then you have
an incomplete copy. So I'll tell ya what I'm gonna do! If you have a
bad copy, send me a disk (formatted and SYSGENed) with your bad copy of
CATPRT on it, and I'll not only give you a good copy, but I'll also fill
up the medium with GAMES or UTILITIES (please choose only one!) I just
catalogued the library again, so I've got a real good handle on where
everything is. Fair enough? I thought so.
One thing I will ask is that any time that you write, PLEASE include a self-addressed envelope with the postage on it. I know that it's a pain, but with this method your response time is ALMOST guaranteed to be overnight. Otherwise it may take awhile.
Questions? Comments? (Ixnay on the criticisms!!)
JEROME HESS PO BOX 678203 ORLANDO, FL 32867 (407) 671-1063
Okay, now you have the can and the amulet, so head Up to the surface,
then South to the Southern shore. You can see a cave to the South,
and it looks kind of dark. In fact, it *is* dark in there, which is
why you have the repellant. So, spray the smelly stuff on yourself, and
go South, and you will find yourself in a Dark Place. Go South again,
then East, and you will be in the key room. Whew! At least there's some
light in here! And by the light you can see a strange key. Get the key,
then move the manhole cover and go down.
And here you are on an aqueduct. Since you can't go back <the Grue
repellant wouldn't have lasted that long>, you might as well go
forward. So, just head along North and you will come to the Water
Slide. Go North down the slide, and guess where you are? In the Damp
Passage! And there's the torch, so pick it up, because you're certainly
going to need a light source...especially when you think of where you're
going next.
So, from the Damp Passage hike along West to the Junction <you can't get
the sword out of the rock, so don't even try>, then South into Creepy
Crawl, and Southwest into the Shadow Land. Here we come to another
variable portion of the game. You will have to wander around in the
Shadow Land until a cloaked and hooded figure appears. When that happens,
the sword will suddenly materialize in your hand, and you will be able
to fight.
However, since there's no way of telling when that will happen, you just
have to keep moving around until it does. At least you will get a chance
to practice some elementary map-making! Also, this is the most dangerous
part of the game, as the figure is quite capable of killing you, too! So,
best to save before you enter Shadow Land.
When the mysterious figure finally appears, attack him with your sword
until he is badly wounded and cannot defend himself. At that point, get
his hood. The figure will then disappear, leaving the cloak behind. Get
that also. Now, you have to get out of here, and I can't tell you exactly
how, since there's no way of knowing exactly where you were when the
fight started. However, if you go Eastwards, you will exit the Shadow
Land at either the Creepy Crawl or the Foggy Room. From either place,
go North to the Junction.
ZORK III Part Two
From the Junction, it's West through the Barren Area, and West again to
the Cliff. Bet you just can't wait to climb down the rope, huh? Well, pick
up the bread first, then go down to the ledge. Well, well, a chest! Too
bad you don't have a key to open it. In fact, there's no way for you to
open it at all. But don't despair, there's a way of doing it.
Just wait around and someone will come along the top of the cliff. You
may not really trust him, but tie the rope to the chest when he asks,
and wait around some more. Eventually, he will return and help you back
up the cliff. He will also give you a staff, which is what you're really
after here. Take the staff, then go back down to the ledge, and from
there, to the Cliff Base.
Now trek South to the Flathead Ocean, and do a little more waiting. Sooner
or later a ship will come floating by. As soon as you see it, say:
"Hello, Sailor." The man in the ship will throw something onto the beach
for you. Take a look, and you will see it's a vial. It'll come in handy
later, so pick it up. Now comes the fun part: You have to wait for the
earthquake <notice how you've been doing a lot of waiting around? I
hope you're a patient person!>. While you're waiting, you might want to
wander around a little, although you've been to most of the accessible
places by now. In any case, wherever you are, once the earthquake hits,
make your way to the Creepy Crawl, and from there East into the Tight
Squeeze, then East again into the Crystal Grotto. Then all the way South
to the Great Door, and East into the Museum Entrance.
Now, open the East door, then go North into the Museum. Look at the gold
machine <it's a time machine, in case you were wondering>, then set the
dial to 776. Here comes the fun part: Push the machine South into the
Entrance, then East into the Jewel Room. Get into the machine, and push
the button. Aha! Now you're back in 776 GUE, but the time machine seems
to have vanished! No matter, wait for the guards to leave, then get the
ring <and *only* the ring!>, then open the door, go out into the Entrance,
open the North door and go North.
By golly, the machine is right there! Put the ring under the seat, turn
the dial to 948, get in, and push the button. Whew, you're back in the
right time period again. Get out of the machine, look under the seat
<you will get the ring automatically when you do this>, then back South,
and South again, to the Royal Puzzle. Okay folks, you are about to enter the absolute nastiest part of the game. You must follow the instructions *EXACTLY* as given, or you will never get out. And, since it would be easy to make a mistake here, I strongly recommend you save the game. 1. Go Down the hole, then push the South wall. Then go East, South, East, East. Push the South wall, get the book, and push the South wall again. 2. Push the West wall twice. Then go East, South, and push the East wall.
3. Now, go straight North until you come to the marble wall, and push the East wall.
4. Now, go West, South, South, South, South, East, East, North, North, North, and push the West wall. 5. From there, go East, South, South, South, West, West, West, West, North, North, North, West, North. Push the East wall three times. 6. Now, West, West, South, South, East, East, South, and push the East wall. 7. Okay, now West, West, West, North, North, North, East, East, and push the South wall two times. 8. From there, West, South, South, East, East, North, and push the West wall two times. 9. Now, South, West, and push the North wall until it won't move any more. 10. Then West and North. Finally! You have maneuvered the ladder under the hole <which was the purpose of all this pushing and running around>, and now you can just go up and out! WHEW!!!! ZORK III Part Three Okay, you've solved the Royal Puzzle and you have the book, so go North to the Museum Entrance, then open the East door and get your other stuff from the Jewel Room. Then it's back West to the Great Door, and from there back to the Junction. Now, East into the Damp Passage, and NE to the Engravings Room. Well, we have here yet another <!> of those variable events: Sooner or later, an old man will be sleeping here. If he isn't there the first time you arrive, walk around a little and return. When you finally do see him, wake him up and give him the bread. He will eat it and then make visible to you a secret door. He will then vanish.
Okay, you're getting closer to the end! Open the door, and go into the Button Room, then North to the Beam Room. Put the sword in the beam, then go back to the Button Room and push the button. Now, back North to the Beam Room and North again into the Mirror Room. There will be an opening in the Mirror, so go North one more time, and you will be inside. Now, don't let the long and complicated descriptions scare you! It's not really as bad as you think <it's worse! heheheheh..just kidding!>. First, raise the short pole. Then, push the white panel twice. Now, push the pine panel, and go North. Okay, so here you are, standing a little too close for comfort to the Guardians of Zork. If I were you, I wouldn't try going past them quite yet! Open the vial, then drink the liquid. While nothing seems to have happened, you have in fact become invisible. Now you can walk North until you come to the locked door. Knock on the door, and the Dungeon Master will open it and let you in. All right, hang in there, you have reached the end game! Go North, then West, then North again. The DM will be following you. Go North to the Parapet, set the dial to 4, and push the button. Now, go South, open the cell door, and step inside. The DM will not follow you in. Once inside, you will notice a bronze door in one of the walls. However, you can't open it yet! Something else has to be done. And it will have to be done by someone else. So, first tell the DM to go to the Parapet. Then tell him to turn the dial to 1, and then tell him to push the button. All right!! The magic moment has arrived! Unlock the bronze door with the key, open the door, and go South! ***** TA DA!! ***** Finally, Zork is finished! You have survived all the perils, pitfalls, and puzzles, and now, *YOU* are the new Dungeon Master. Have fun!
walk North until you come to the locked door. Knock on the door, and the Dungeon Master will open it and let you in. All right, hang in there, you have reached the end game! Go North, then West, then North again. The DM will be following you. Go North to the Parapet, set the dial to 4, and push the button. Now, go South, open the cell door, and step inside. The DM will not follow you in. Once inside, you will notice a bronze door in one of the walls. However, you can't open it yet! Something else has to be done. And it wils is not friendly, but you can deal with him effortlessly: Just type in "Ulysses" (or "Odysseus," if you prefer). Old One-Eye will tear out of there right through the wall! In fact, he will create a passage eastward from that room right into the living room! However, you don't want to go that way yet! Instead, go upstairs, and you will be in the Treasure Room, the thief's secret lair. Now, give him the egg, and go back downstairs, then East to the living room. Deposit the coins in the case, then get the knife (the thief needs a little time to open the egg). Okay, go back West to the Cyclops room. Again, at this point, saving is recommended; the thief will not be easy to kill! So, head upstairs and use the nasty knife to kill the thief. Once he's dead, all treasures in the room will be visible. This includes the egg, a silver chalice, and anything he may have been stolen from you before. Get everything, then follow these directions: Down, NW, South, West, up, down, NE, and you will be in the Grating Room. Unlock and open the grate (watch out for falling leaves!), then go up. You will be in a clearing. From there, go South and climb the tree again. Wind up the canary that's inside the egg. A songbird will come by and drop a bauble for you. Climb down again and get the bauble, then return to the living room. Put all the treasures in the case, making sure you *REMOVE THE CANARY* from the egg and put it in the case separately! You're almost finished! Just one more trip to make! Now, for the last time, enter the cellar and go North. From the Troll Room, go East until you come again to the Loud Room. Type in: "Echo," and you will now be able to get the bar. So, grab it and return to the living room. Once you place it in the case, you will get a message. Follow the advice of that message, and you will get a map. Take that, and return to the place where this all started, the mailbox West of the house. You should have no trouble getting to the barrow from there. Of course, once you enter the barrow.... You didn't really think it would end there, did you? Not when there's still Zork II and Zork III waiting for you up ahead! Ah, but it's too late; you can't turn back now! You'll just have to grit your teeth and follow through to the end (with a little help, of course). See you in Zork II!
in the case, making sure you *REMOVE THE CANARY* from the egg and put it in the case separately! You're almost finished! Just one more trip to make! Now, for the last time, enter the cellar and go North. From the Troll Room, go East until you come again to the Loud Room. Type in: "Echo," and you will now be able to get the bar. So, grab it and return to the living room. Once you place it in the case, you will get a message. Follow the advice of that message, and you will get a map. Take that, and return to the place where this all started, the mailbox West of the house. You should have no trouble gettinge Dais, a wildly cheering crowd greets you! Fools! Don't they realize you're not here to dedicated the Heart of Gold, but to steal it? Ha! Wait until Trillian shows up and starts the charade. As she grabs you around your neck, rifle-brandishing guards rush onto the scene! As calmly as you can, tell the guards to drop their rifles. Trillian may hiss nasty remarks about yourineptitude in your ear, but ignore her. Now then, to complete your plan, tell Trillian to shoot the rifles that the guards have dropped! The crowd, deeply impressed, cheers wildly! Don't take time to take any bows, though, just head east and you find yourself in the.... Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of hearing, then head aft twice and down. Here you find the tool box, key, and seat cushion fluff. Unlock the tool box with the key. Inside you find a magnifying glass and a wrench. Put these twotools, the key, and the seat cushion fluff in the thing. Go up, fore and up to the Bridge. Flip the switch and you find yourself in the.... Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of smell, then SMELL. Ugh! What a repulsive odor that shadow has! Look at the shadow and you find yourself face toface with the stupidest creature in the Universe: The dreaded Bugblatter Beast of Traal! (Consult the Guide for further information about its stupidity.) As itroars toward you, it demands to know your name! Tell it that your name is DENT, then beat feet east! No time to linger! Get the stones you see here and then putyour towel over your head. The Beast is so incredibly dense, it believes that ifyou can't see it, it can't see you! While it's trying to remember where you are,take this opportunity to add your name to the memorial that has the names of allthe poor souls who've been unfortunate enough to have been invited for dinner bythe Beast. After carving your name on the memorial, the Beast (still living up to its reputation) looks at the memorial; and seeing your name carved there, decides that it must've eaten you already and curls up in its lair for a post-dinner snooze!
Remove your towel from your head and go back west and southwest to the Beast's Inner Lair. Reposing here, in eternal rest, is an alien skeleton clutching a Nutrimat Interface in its hand! Get the Interface and wait. Suddenly you find yourself captured and placed in a cage in a zoo! Amazingly, you've been mistakenfor the Bugblatter Beast! The nerve! Eventually, the zoo's error is duly discovered and you're released. Unfortunately, instead of being returned to the HOG, you've been given work as a paint scraper! After several months of experience, you are allowed to leave your job and take with you the tool of yourtrade...a paint chipper! Suddenly your surroundings shift and you find yourself in the....
Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of hearing, then LISTEN and go aft twice and port to the Galley. Open the Nutrimat panel, remove the circuit board and put the Interface in the panel. Close the panel and go starboard and up to the bridge. Put the chipper in the Thing, flip the switch and you find yourself in the.... Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of feeling, then FEEL. Odd, you seem to have your hand in some sort of liquid. Taste the liquid and you take a sip ofa nice white wine. It seems you're at a party! "WHO AM I" reveals that you're Tril to the Nutrimat and get another cup of tea! Touch the pad on the Nutrimat. As it whirrs to life, it gets completely confused regarding what it is you want and asks Eddie, the ship's computer, to lend it a hand. Eddie, in the meantime, has issued a warning that he's becoming overloaded with instructions and starts to panic! All around you, you hear shouts of anger, fear, hostility! Don't wait around for your tea, though! Go starboard and back up to the Bridge. When you arrive, you see that the HOG has, indeed, reached Magrathea! But the planet's inhabitants aren't to thrilled with this supposed invasion. Out the viewing screen, you see hundreds upon hundreds of missiles headed toward the HOG! No wonder everyone's panicking! Put the large plug in the large receptacle and flip the switch! As you watch the viewing screen in horror, you see the missiles turn into giant, harmless sperm whales! Ford, Trillian and Zaphod congratulate you on your fast thinking and return to their sauna, leaving you alone once more. (Whew...that was a CLOSE call!)
Go down and port back to the Galley. Sitting in the chute is a cup of Real Tea!Obviously the previous circuit board didn't know the molecular structure of realtea and the new Interface did! Get the real tea. As you pick it up, you find you've dropped no tea. Get No Tea. Wow...this is truly amazing! Well, no time towonder about this for long, so go starboard and back up to the Bridge. Remove the long dangly bit from the tea substitute and drop your real tea. Put the longdangly bit in the real tea, drop everything except the Babel Fish and the Thing and flip the switch. Strangely, you find yourself in the.... Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of touch, then FEEL. Your hand seems to be in some sort of liquid. Taste the liquid. UGH! It tastes like Whale Juice!My God! You're in the tummy of a giant Sperm Whale! Sitting here is a flowerpot.Get the pot, put it in the Thing and keep trying to go north until you find yourself back in the.... Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of hearing, then LISTEN and go aft twice and up to the Bridge. By now you should have all four fluffs. Plant the fluffs, one at a time, in the pot. Wait until the fluffs start to sprout and yousee a tiny stem in the pot. (Consult the Guide about Fluffs and required growingconditions.) Hmmmm, warmth and moisture? That steam coming from port might just do the trick! Go port. In a couple of hours, you emerge a changed man with a changed plant! Examine the plant and you see it has, indeed, had a fit of furious growth! It has also produced a fruit! Take the fruit and eat it.
In addition to the wonderful flavor of the fruit, you find yourself having a dream about Marvin, the broken Hatch Mechanism and Marvin asking you to hand hima tool. Remember that tool (it changes from game to game). As your dream fades, drop everything except the Babel Fish. If you find that you haven't got the toolthat the dream told you about, Don't Panic! You'll find it in Marvin's Pantry (which is behind the Screening Door). If you do have it, though, get the required tool, the Real Tea (and pick up your No Tea!), and go up and aft to theScreening Door. If you fooled with trying to open this door at the beginning of the game, you know that it needs proof of your intelligence before it will allowyou to open it.
What better proof than the fact that you're carrying Tea and No Tea at the sametime!? Open the door. In your encounters with Marvin you have felt his waves of depression pouring over you whenever he enters the room. Well, right through this door is the absolute soul of his depression! Better drink something to calmyou before you enter here, so drink the Real Tea! Your quest for Real Tea was not wasted. The tea is the most calming, wonderful substance you've ever tasted!Go port through the door.
If you didn't have the required tool, you should see it here. Also here is Marvin, moross and despondent as usual. Tell Marvin to fix the Hatch. He'll grumble about nagging humans, but will tell you to meet him in the Hatch Mechanism Access in 12 turns. After he leaves (and you're sure you have the required tool), go starboard and down. Drop everything you're carrying except the Babel Fish and the required tool and go starboard again. After waiting awhile, Marvin will stalk into the room and look at the Mechanism. When he asks you to hand him the tool, do so. In short order, he repairs the Hatch Mechanism and leaves. Go port, open the Hatch and go down.
Timidly, you step down the steps. Eddie says something about humans who go out into strange environments without any clothing; but Zaphod, Trillian and Ford all urge your forward! As you plant your first step on the hitherto legendary planet of Magrathea, you wonder what fate awaits you! You'll have to wait to find out...in the sequel, perhaps?
THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY is copyrighted 1984 by Infocom, Inc.
The pi symbols are artifacts of the XMODEM download and should be removed or ignored.
ADAM Bios Patch V2.3
Introduction
The primary function of the ADAM Bios Patch program (ABP23.COM) is to modify the CP/M system provided by Coleco to properly support single-sided, double-sided or any combination of single- and double-sided disk drives. This software will also set up your system to fully support the new 3.5" 720K disk drives. For example, you can make Disk Drive 1 double-sided and keep Disk Drive 2 single-sided and CP/M will recognize that the two drives are different sizes. Other available double-sided drive patches do not allow this.
As a bonus, ABP23.COM makes other changes to the CP/M system to provide support for 2 serial cards (on user selectable I-O ports) and for a parallel printer port. It also fixes several errors in the original ADAM bios and adds a Hex/Decimal/Ascii/Binary
converter that is available whenever the WildCard key is presssed. As well, ABP23.COM provides support for Orphanware or Eve Electronic's 80 column display adapters. This support includes provision for SmartKey descriptions on line 25 of a 80 column monitor when permitted by the monitor or configuation of the display adapter. Finally, ABP23.COM provides support for large Ram Disks similar to the 256K unit supplied by Orphanware. Systems patched with ABP23.COM automatically adjust for the larger Ram Disk so that there is no need to repatch your CP/M system if you upgrade to a larger memory expander at a later date. Because the adjustment is automatic, you will not be asked about the size of your memory expander. As a by-product of the adjustment process, the effective size of the standard 64K expander will be increased from 56K to 61K.
The errors corrected by this program include:
1) The contents of the Ram Disk will remain intact through a Computer Reset though not through a power-down.
2) DIR will now report the correct directory whenever disks are changed.
3) CP/M's random write function will now work correctly under all circumstances.
4) The original Bios had an error that sometimes caused damage to the disk directory. This is now fixed.
Program Requirements
Adam Bios Patch has the following minimum system requirements:
One data drive and CP/M 2.2 for the Adam.
Of course, if you wish to make full use of the program, a double- sided drive such as those sold by In-House Service Reps or an upgrade to either 320 or 720K by Orphanware or Eve Electronics is highly desirable.
Backing Up Adam Bios Patch
It is strongly recommended that you create at least two backup copies of Adam Bios Patch before attempting to use the program. one of the copies will be your working copy of ABP23.COM while the other will be your primary backup copy. The distribution disk should not be used again unless some disaster destroys the working and the primary backup copies.
Adam Bios Patch is not copy-protected so making a backup is a relatively simple procedure. Use PIP.COM or COPY.COM to copy the ABP23.COM to two CP/M formatted disks that have at least 6K of free space available. STAT.COM can be used to verify that 8K is available on the destination disk.
Examples:
A>PIP C:ABP23.COM=A:ABP23.COM<return> or A>COPY A:ABP23.COM C:<return>
The two examples copy ABP23.COM from drive A to drive C. When the two backup copies are made, put the distribution disk away in a safe location.
Using ADAM Bios Patch
Insert your working copy of ADAM Bios Patch in the appropriate drive and at the CP/M command prompt, run the program as follows:
A>ABP23 <return>
Once the program is loaded, the screen will clear and you will be asked for the drive to be patched. You can either respond with a drive designation, A to D, or you can respond Z for no drive. The latter choice is used when you just want to patch the system that is already in memory, for example, if you want to temporarily reconfigure a double-sided drive for single-sided operation.
At this point you should remove the ADAM Bios Patch disk and put the disk with the system that you intend to patch in the appropriate drive.
Once you have selected the drive to patch, you will be asked to select the size of disk drive 1 (Check the switches on the back of your drives to determine which is disk 1 and which is disk 2). Note that the sizes presented in the menu are the amount of free space available on an empty disk...in other words, the disk size as reported by programs such as STAT.COM or SD.COM. The actual physical size of the disk is bigger but the space for the system tracks and directory has been deducted.
The 3 choices are:
0 - 145K (no change) 1 - 254K (medium-sized double-sided) 2 - 304K (full-sized double-sided) 3 - 720K (full-sized quad-density)
If disk drive 1 is single-sided or if you wish to reconfigure a double-sided disk to be a single-sided one, chose option 0.
If disk drive 1 is double-sided, select options 1 or 2. A disk drive configured according to option 1 can read from or write to conventional ADAM single-sided disks but it does not make full use of the double-sided drive. Option 2 does make full use of the double-sided drive but it cannot read from or write to a conventional ADAM single-sided disk. Under most circumstances, option 1 should be selected. Option 2 should be selected only when you are certain that you will not need to read from or write to a standard ADAM disk with the double-sided drive on a regular basis such as when you only own double-sided drives and all your frequently used standard format disks have been converted to the 304K format. The final option would only be used if you happen to own one of the new 720K 3.5" disk drive upgrades from Orphanware. This option will permit you to use it with your other drives whether single or double sided. The above considerations regarding inability to access other sized drives unless patched for them still apply.
Converting disks from single-sided to double-sided format is simply a matter of copying the files on the single-sided disk to a double-sided formatted disk in an appropriately configured double-sided drive. You must use PIP.COM, COPY.COM or another file copy utility such as the public domain NSWEEP.COM (highly recommended) for the copying process. Do not use BACKUP.COM. If you have only one disk drive, you must first copy your files to an intermediate drive such as your ram disk (M:) or tape drive with your double-sided drive configured according to options 0 or 1, reconfigure your disk drive to options 1,2 or 3, and then recopy the files back to the disk drive.
Once the size of disk drive 1 has be selected, you will be asked to select the size of disk drive 2 according to the same options as disk drive 1. Note the disk drive 2 can be larger or smaller than disk drive 1. The two drives do not have to be the same size.
The next two menus permit you to configure the default settings of two serial ports. Naturally, if you do not have a serial card or an 80 column display adapter, these steps can be skipped.
Serial port 1 is a general purpose port and corresponds to the CP/M physical device TTY:. It can be accessed by all of the CP/M logical devices (CON:, PUN:, RDR: and LST:). Serial port 2 is a special purpose port, intended for communication with a external terminal or another 80 column display adapter such as those supplied by Eve Electronics or Orphanware. It can be accessed by the logical devices CON:, PUN: and RDR:, not by LST:. Though serial port 2 is intended to be used with a terminal, it can be used with other peripherals such as a modem. However, it is not recommended for use with a printer since serial port 2 can not be accessed as the LST: device.
The serial port menu allows you to set the base port address, the baud rate, parity, number of stop bits, and the number of bits per word. The most important setting is the base port address. All of the commercially available serial cards for the ADAM use 4 consecutive I-O ports of the ADAM's Z80 microprocessor to control the operation of the serial card. The base port address is the first of those ports. Check the documentation of your serial card for the appropriate setting. Orphanware documentation refers to port 44H as port A, 54H as port B, 4CH as port C and 5CH as port D. 44H is the most common setting and is, for example, used by the Eve SP-1. If your documentation does not tell you what ports the serial card uses and 44H does not work, try the alternative port settings until the peripheral attached to the serial card gives an indication that the card is working. For example, seeing the DTR indicator on an external modem light up shows that the serial card is working. Trying to access the serial port through a wrong address will harm neither the computer or the serial card. Do not use port 5CH if you have an AdamLink modem. The AdamLink modem also uses this port and so your serail card should not use that port in order to avoid conflicts.
Now set the baud rate, parity, number of stop bits and bits per word according to the requirements of the peripheral connected to the serial card (check the peripheral's documentation for the correct settings). You will likely find that the settings already in effect (1200 baud, no parity, 1 stop bits, and 8 bits per word) to be satisfactory.
Repeat this procedure for serial port 2 if required. Once again check the documentation of your serial card or peripheral for the appropriate settings. The setings for Serial port 2 (base port 54H, 19200 baud, 8 bits per word, 1 stop bit and no parity) are already setup to work with the Orphanware 80 column display adapter. If you have the Eve version, change the base port to 4CH and the baud rate to 9600. 8 bits per word, 1 stop bit and no parity are fine for the Eve 80 column unit.
Once the two serial ports are configured, you will be asked to select the default IOBYTE setting. The IOBYTE determines where the ADAM gets its inputs from and where it sends its output. For a more complete description of the IOBYTE please refer to your CP/M manual. The following table summarizes the IOBYTE settings as supported by this patch program. Note that the LST: device supports a parallel printer port such as found on the Eve SP-1 or Orphanware's PIA-2.
Logical Physical Device
Device Input Output
-----------------------------------------------------------------
1) Console
CON: TTY: serial port 1 serial port 1 CON: CRT: keyboard television CON: BAT: keyboard serial port 2 CON: UL1: serial port 2 serial port 2
2) Reader
RDR: TTY: serial port 1 n.a. RDR: PTR: keyboard n.a. RDR: UR1: serial port 2 n.a. RDR: UR2: keyboard n.a.
3) Punch
PUN: TTY: n.a. serial port 1 PUN: PTP: n.a. television PUN: UP1: n.a. serial port 2 PUN: UP2: n.a. television
4) Printer (List device)
LST: TTY: n.a. serial port 1
LST: CRT: n.a. television
LST: LPT: n.a. ADAM printer
LST: UL1: n.a. parallel printer port
-----------------------------------------------------------------
For example, if you have an 80 column display using the ADAM keyboard and a dot matrix printer using the Orphanware printer port or the Eve SP-1, set CON: = BAT: and LST: = UL1:. If you want to use the ADAM with an external terminal including keyboard, set CON: = UL1:.
Next, you will be asked if you wish to display the description of your SmartKeys on line 25 of an 80 column monitor. Only respond yes if you have an 80 column display adapter that is set to a Heath H19 emulation mode and if your monitor supports a 25th line; most but not all do. Check your documentation. If your adapter does not come from the supplier in H19 mode, it can be generally reset through software or DIP switches to emulate a Heath H19 display. Also, your 80 column display adapter may have to be set to operate in the 50 Hz vertical refresh mode. Once again check your documentation for specific procedures.
If you reply yes, the 25th line will display the appropriate SmartKey number in inverse video, followed by the 10 character SmartKey description that was set by CONFIG.COM. Below you will find an assembly language subroutine that you can include in your own programs to provide custom SmartKey descriptions and responses.
Finally, you will be asked if serial port 2 is configured to run an Eve 80 column display such as the VD-MB. Only answer yes if you have an Eve unit set to run off serial port 2. Other ADAM owners, including those with the Orphanware video display adapter, should answer no.
After you have replied to this last prompt, ABP23 will read in part of the system tracks from the selected drive, modify the system and write the changes back to disk. The same changes will also be made to the system already in memory. If you replied "Z" to the drive to patch prompt, only the system in memory will be patched. This allows you to make temporary changes to try out various features of the patch program.
Hex/Decimal/Ascii/Binary Converter
Once your system has been patched, you will have a full-time Hex/Decimal/Ascii/Binary converter available to you whenever the computer is waiting for keyboard input. Simply press the Wildcard key followed by the appropriate entry and you will see its hex, decimal, ascii and binary equivalents as follows:
HH DDD AA BBBBBBBB where HH = hex equivalent (0-FF) DDD = decimal equivalent (0-255) AA = ascii equivalent (control characters start with a "^ and character beyond DEL are highlighted)
1) A hex number is entered by pressing <wildcard> followed by an "h" or"H" and a hex number between 0 and 7F. A bad entry will produce meaningless results but it will not crash the computer.
2) A decimal number is entered by pressing <wildcard> and any decimal number between 0 and 255.
3) An ascii value is entered by pressing <wildcard> followed by the single quote "'" and the appropriate key. For example, to see the equivalents of "M" enter <wildcard>'M<cr>.
4) A binary value is entered by pressing <wildcard> followed by a "b" or "B" and eight 1's and 0's. All eight binary digits must be entered to get a valid response. For example, to see the equivalent of binary 2 enter <wildcard>B00000010<cr>
Note that though the program that you interrupted to run the conversion doesn't know that it has been interrupted, your screen display has been affected ie the output of the conversion is still displayed. For most programs this will represent no problem since it will just continue where it left off. However, for full screen programs such as word processors, the conversion output covers up useful information and the cursor is no longer in the right space. The cursor can be returned to its correct place by pressing the cursor right and left keys (in Wordstar ^D and ^S) and the display can be corrected by displaying a new page and then returning to the original page.
Additions and Modifications to the BIOS Jump Table
The following is a list of the new routines added to the BIOS jump table to support the two serial cards and the 25th line SmartKey display.
Address Description-----------------------------------------------------------------
Input - address of new descriptions saved at memory locations 044/045H Output - none
0DA69H Output to serial port 1
Input - character to output in register C Output - none
0DA6CH Input from serial port 1
Input - none Output - character in register A
0DA6FH Status of serial port 1 output
Input - none Output - 0FFH in register A if ready to send 0 if not ready
0DA72H Status of serial port 1 input
Input - none Output - 0FFH in register A if character ready 0 if none ready
0DA75H Initialize serial ports 1 and 2
Input - none Output - none
0DA78H Output to serial port 2
Input - character to output in register C Output - none
0DA7BH Input from serial port 2
Input - none Output - character in register A
0DA7EH Status of serial port 2 output
Input - none Output - 0FFH in register A if ready to send 0 if not ready
0DA81H Status of serial port 2 input
Input - none Output - 0FFH in register A if character ready 0 if none ready______________________________________________________________
Note: the serial port input and output routines wait until a
character is received or sent before returning to the controlling
program. To prevent your program from hanging, use the status
routines to check to see if the serial port is ready.
Example Subroutine to Set Custom SmartKey Values
;The ADAM BIOS stores pointers to the SmartKey descriptions ; (what you see in your display) and the SmartKey values ; (what happens when you press a SmartKey) in two locations ; in page 0. Changing those pointers to ones pointing to ; your own descriptions and values allows you to put custom ; SmartKey displays in your own program. This subroutine ; makes use of those pointers and the new BIOS routine to ; set up a custom SmartKey display on line 25.
SmtOn: LXI H,smartkey ;get the pointer to the new smartkey
; descriptions SHLD 44H ;put it in page 0 LXI H,smartvalue ;get the pointer to the smartkey values SHLD 42H ;put that in page zero CALL 0DA54H ;call the new BIOS routine RET ;return to calling program ;This subroutine restores the system smartkeys
SysSmt:LXIH ,0DC9DH ;pointer to system SmartKey descriptions
SHLD 4H ;put in page 0 LXI H,0DCD9 ;pointer to system SmartKey values SHLD 43H ;in page 0 CALL 0DA54H ;call new BIOS routine RET ;return to caller ;custom SmartKey descriptions (fill in your own values)smartkey:
DB '1234567890' ;SmartKey 1 (10 characters long - must ; be space filled) DB '1234567890' ;2 DB '1234567890' ;3 DB '1234567890' ;4 DB '1234567890' ;5 DB '1234567890' ;6
;custom SmartKey valuessmartvalue:
DB '123456789abcdef' ;SmartKey 1 (16 characters - include ;the hex value for carriage return ;0DH as the last character in the ;return string only if you want the ;command to be executed immediately ;- fill any leftover space with hex 0 DB '123456789abcdef' ;2 DB '123456789abcdef' ;3 DB '123456789abcdef' ;4 DB '123456789abcdef' ;5 DB '123456789abcdef' ;6 ;to turn on and off line 25, refer to your display adapter's ;documentation. The standard ADAM procedure will not work.
ADAM NEWS NETWORK [A.N.N.] is a monthly service which makes available to Adam newsletter editors, BBS syops, AUG officers, etc. a pool or source of Adam information on disk.
This includes articles, reviews, product information, programs, news, etc. from many Adam sources. Most newsletters, BBS and AUGS are cooperating in this venture by supplying or making available Adam information for distribution by A.N.N.
A minimum of 250 K of material is distributed monthly on disk . Normally two disk sides are sent with each monthly mailing. This service previously only available to newsletters, BBSs, AUGS, etc. is now being made available to Adamites in general on a subscription basis.
A trial month is available for $4.00. 3 months for $ ll.00. 6 months for $ 20.00 and 12 months for $35.00. ADD $2.00/tape for DDP.
Contact A.N.N. % Barry Wilson, 12967 Weatherfield Dr. St.Louis Mo. 63l46. Checks payable to Barry Wilson .
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The various articles, reviews, information, etc. on the A.N.N. disks are also being collected and organized into special interest disks, which will include the following:
*Game Reviews, SW Reviews Logo CP/M Graphics (Basic) *Hardware *Telecommunications *BASIC BarryPatch (Humor) *INFOCOM Machine Language GoDOS * AVAILABLE NOW
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Specific authorization has been given to the participating newsletters, BBSs and AUGS to freely reprint and to distribute in accordance with the current A.N.N. distribution list & file.
A.N.N. disks are available at PD prices but are copyrighted.
This is necessary to help with the costs of media, postage, mailers, long distance, etc. necessary to both obtain the information for the A.N.N. disks as well as the costs involved in distribution of them.
A3 03:29 Oct-27-1989
TO: Dictionary FROM: Dave Tidman AWAUG 143
SUBJ: def.
CP/M : 1) Control Program Monitor.
A4 04:51 Nov-03-1989
TO: ANYONE
FROM: Dave Tidman AWAUG 143
SUBJ: tdos
Could some one please tell
me just what t-dos is ?
What I've heard is pretty
interesting, but I don't
really know how it differs
from CPM.
A5 11:08 Nov-04-1989
TO: Whom concern
FROM: Minh Ta AWAUG 16
SUBJ: TDOS vs CPM 2.2
CPM (Control Program
Monitor)is another OS
(Operating System) that
available for the ADAM
beside EOS (smartBASIC),an
OS is a collection of
machine language routine
that handle tasks (read
keyboard,print a
character...),it get
information needed from
you (keyboard) or a
program then figure out
what to do thought a
lock-up table (called OS
Entry table) . All the EOS
functions is loaded into
memory at BOOT time. On
CPM, most of the functions
is on the disk (or tape)
and get loaded into memory
as needed and cleared off
when done, that why CPM is
an DOS (Disk Operating
System). In CPM, CCP
(Console Command
Processor) is the part
that doing the interface
between you (from
keyboard) or from program
at TPA (Transient Program
Area) to the BDOS (Basic
Disk Operating System),
this BDOS is the same for
any computer that run CPM.
The BDOS then figure out
what to do and use the
BIOS (Basic Input/Output
System )to carry out the
tasks, this BIOS is
different between one
computer to another
because it's the part that
actualy doing all the
communication task between
CCP (computer) and the
peripherals which have all
the hardware differentlly.
The BIOS talking to the
peripherals through the
routines called driver,
this is where one OS is
better than another
because the way how they
handle (Continue next
message)
A6 11:08 Nov-04-1989
TO: Whom concern
FROM: Minh Ta AWAUG 16
SUBJ: continue TDOS
the task faster, getting
data to and from
peripherals faster.. and
support more peripherals,
additional devices. The
original CPM 2.2 from
COLECO (Digital Research
Inc.) does not support
newer RS-232 serial
interface, Parallel
printer, Double sides disk
drive... and a lot of
other newly developed
devices available for the
ADAM. that why one of ADAM
expert programmer had
wrote TDOS (Thanks a lots
to him), a new CPM for
ADAM that run faster,
built in more functions
and support much more
devices including new 720k
disk drive,20,30
mega-bytes harddisk and
the 80 Col. video display
terminal. MT
A7 12:10 Nov-06-1989
TO: Minn Tah
FROM: Dave Tidman AWAUG 143
SUBJ: tdos
that helps a lot Minn.
Thanks
A8 02:50 Nov-11-1989
TO: Minh Tah
FROM: Richard Bailey AWAUG 6
SUBJ: TDOS
Is it a good idea to use
TDOS even if you don't
have all the new things
for the Adam, like double
sided drive, parallel
printer, etc? I use CPM
most of the time with an
80-column monitor and an
Adam printer, Adam disk
drive, and 64K ram pack.
Do you think I should
switch to TDOS?
A9 11:00 Nov-11-1989
TO: Richard Bailey
FROM: Rob Friedman [CISOP] 47
SUBJ: TDOS
Yup.. you should switch.
Very few program will not
run under TDOS <Write-
Hand-Man is one of them>.
with TDOS's extra TPA, and
built in commands, it's a
lot nicer to use. Having
the DU: option like ZCPR
is a great boon. USER is
gone as a command.
A10 08:42 Nov-12-1989
TO: Richard bailey
FROM: Minh Ta AWAUG 16
SUBJ: TDOS
Hi there, I think Rod
Friedman is right on his
comment about TDOS, You
should switch (but do
throw the old CP/M 2.2
into the trash can, it may
be good for some things
else...). MT
A11 08:42 Nov-12-1989
TO: Richard bailey
FROM: Minh Ta AWAUG 16
SUBJ: mis spell
I am very sorry,in the
previous message, I mis
spell the word DO NOT to
A12 08:42 Nov-12-1989
TO: Richard Bailey
FROM: Minh Ta AWAUG 16
SUBJ: mis spell
I am very sorry,in the
pervious message, I mis
spell the word DO NOT to
DO Please DO NOT throw the
old CP/M 2.2 into the
trash can, it had it's
value in some other
application and you did
paid some money for it, so
I repeat, DO NOT throw it
away. MT
A13 10:50 Nov-12-1989
TO: Minh Ta
FROM: Ricki J. Gerlach 48
SUBJ: 300 Baud modem
Is it true that you have
been able to change the
ADAMLink modem to 1200 Bd
internal modem ? And if so
do you do it, or can
anyone do it? Thanks.
Ricki
A14 08:25 Nov-14-1989
TO: Min or Bob or anyone
FROM: Dave Tidman AWAUG 143
SUBJ: File extensions
The are several file
extensions like RLE, LBR,
etc that really I have no
idea what they're for or
about. Could someone take
a few moments and list
them out ? I do know about
.com,.txt, .doc, .lbr, but
the larger number of them
act like ".?????" for me.
I need a "Dave.HLP"
A15 06:20 Nov-14-1989
TO: Dave Tidman
FROM: Minh Ta AWAUG 16
SUBJ: FILE.EXT
Hi there, the files with
.RLE extension is a
picture files that have
been digitized from some
unknown source (best to my
knownledge). You can
display them on ADAM by a
program called VIEW.COM.
About the .LBR, you need
to delibrary it to figure
out what in there (unless
if some one have a
description file accompany
with that .LBR file. There
will be one day you may
see my picture (of my
self-image !) in MT.RLE (I
hope.!..) MT
A16 06:20 Nov-14-1989
TO: Ricki J. Gerlach
FROM: Minh Ta AWAUG 16
SUBJ: Modem
Hi there, I only converse
the ADAM 300 BPS modem to
be a programmable serial
(50 to 19200 BPS) adapter
for ADAM. The advantage is
you can use any External
modem (1200 or what ever)
with any software you
already had for the ADAM
300 baud without any
modification needed (no
patches..). However, I did
look at a posibility to
have a 1200 BPS MODEM made
by WORLD-CHIP in a single
chip, but it cost more
that way (the modem chip
cost 25 buck by it self)
while you could by a 1200
baud modem for 50 bucks.
MT
A17 01:43 Nov-15-1989
TO: Min
FROM: Dave Tidman AWAUG 143
SUBJ: .ext
Thanks Min. There's a few
others I still dont
undstnd and I'll note them
when I see them. If you
could define them too it'd
help lots. that way I'll
know what to do with some
of these files ... Dave.
PS... Are you feeling
better now?
A18 01:14 Nov-17-1989
TO: Anyone
FROM: Nat Eiseman AWAUG 123
SUBJ: file extensions
What is a CPM file
extension and what do you
do with it? Know I have
heard an answer to this
some time ago but don't
seem to have any notes on
it. Any and all help
appreciated.--Nat
A19 07:11 Nov-18-1989
TO: Nat Eiseman
FROM: Bob Blair AWAUG 3
SUBJ: file extensions.
They are the last three
characters of a CP/M file
name; eg. ANYFILE.DOC The
DOC is the file extension.
It's purpose is to
identify what type of file
it is. The most common
file extensions are COM
(command file), DOC
(Document or text file),
TXT (another identifier
for text file), LBR (a
group of files assembled
into a single "library"
file - can be disassembled
with NULU.COM and others),
ARC or ARK (like library
files but called an
"archived" file. UNARC.COM
extractsthem.
""SERIAL\LOGIC"" SYSOP
ID# is 3.
bob
A20 12:11 Nov-20-1989
TO: Bob Blair
FROM: Nat Eiseman AWAUG 123
SUBJ: myfile.cpm
Inmy last message I
was referring to CPM as a
file extension, e.g.
arcadd.cpm (the current
problem file), not to cpm
files in general. Sorry
for not being more
specific. Thanks. --Nat
A21 04:17 Nov-20-1989
TO: Nat Eiseman
FROM: Bob Blair AWAUG 3
SUBJ: myfile.cpm
Try renaming the file to
MYFILE.COM and run it as a
command program. It may
work. bob
A22 09:43 Nov-23-1989
TO: Nat Eiseman
FROM: Bob Blair AWAUG 3
SUBJ: .CPM
Did converting the .CPM to
.COM work?? Bob
A23 05:17 Dec-02-1989
TO: Anyone
FROM: Bob Blair AWAUG 3
SUBJ: CP/M
If you accidentally erase
(era) something, you can
get it back by using a
program called XRASE.COM
(sometimes is has numbers
after it, like xrase33 -
those are version
-improvement-
identifiers). Xrase is
located on this BBS. To
find it, us the L command
(for locate) in any file
section. Type L
xrase33.com and press
return. When you
accidentally erase
something, do not store
anything else (that is,
use xrase right away). To
use xrase just type
exrase, skip a space, then
type the name of the
program lost (full and
exact name) and press
return. It will restore
the lost file. Since all
that happens when you
erase something is a
directory change, which
makes the space used by
the body of the
document/program available
for reuse, the xrase
reenters the program name
in the directory as it was
previous to the erasing.
To exit from xrase, do a
control + C. Bob
A24 01:06 Dec-05-1989
TO: Bob Blair
FROM: Nat Eiseman AWAUG 123
SUBJ: myfile.cpm
I renamed the files
with .cpm extension to
.com files and they worked
fine. Thanks for the
tip!--Nat.
A25 07:53 Dec-09-1989
TO: CPM Buff's
FROM: Bob Blair AWAUG 3
SUBJ: Utility Program
the most versatile CP/M
utility program I have
found is called
NEWSWEEP.COM. It is public
domain and located here on
the BBS (use the L command
in any of the files
sections and ask for
NEWSWEEP.COM to locate
it). With it you can list
files on a drive
(alphabetically), delete
files, rename files,
switch from one drive to
another quickly, print
files, view files on the
screen, transfer files
singly or in groups from
one drive to another,
unsqueeze files, and use
wildcards to use these
functions on groups of
files. I find that I use
Newsweep daily. It has
it's own listing of
commands. Just type
Newsweep and press return
to activate the commands
on the current drive, or
type Newsweep B or C (no
colon needed) to use it on
another drive. Get to
know it - you won't be
sorry. Bob
A26 03:17 Dec-19-1989
TO: Anybody
FROM: Bob Blair AWAUG 3
SUBJ: ADAM Tip
One way to make a tape
stop spinning (like when
the dinner bell rings and
the tape would take 5
minutes to boot), is to
press reset and hold it in
the pressed position, the
tape normally stops.
Another tape matter is:
you may have tried to copy
a game tape with a block
copier (like Uncle
Ernie's Toolkit, JKL
Utilities, Backup 3+,
etc.) but the tape will
not work. Sometimes game
tapes are made using a
"right side directory" (on
the far right side of the
tape) ranther than a
normal "center directory"
as normally comes on the
blank formatted tapes you
buy. By the way, AWAUG
can provide you with rite
side directory tapes (club
members only, $2.00 each),
on request. Bob
A usually reliable but unnamed source has told this reporter that his brother's wife's second cousin who dates a security guard at the Court House, over heard two assistant prosecuting attorneys talking in the Men's room at the Court house and it appears that ..............................
Based on a complaint by the National Association of Women in Computers (NOWIC) the Justice department is seriously considering a full scale investigation of sexual discrimination by Adamites.
Citing the fact that NO BBS SYSOPS are women and ONLY TWO NEWSLETTER EDITORS are women, an investigation was considered. The fact which will apparently tip the scales and cause the actual investigation is of course, the fact that our computer uses a MALE NAME---ADAM rather than a gender neutral name.
As Adamites, AUG officers, Sysops and Newsletter Editors huddle together to attempt to head off this investigation, there are rumors that a goal of not less than 45% female participation will be required to head off this investigation. This means that 45% of the BBS Sysops will have their choice of (l) moving the letter "r" in the word Board (BBS) three spaces to the left turning the word Board into Broad and probably also turning control of the broad, I mean board over the board or I mean to the broad or something like that OR (2) male sysops will have to voltuntarily undergo a sex change operation.
COULD THIS BE THE REAL REASON BJ IS GOING TO JAPAN ????
Likewise the 2 present Newsletter editors will count towards the 45% goal but there are a few newsletter editors who will have to undergo sex change operations, as the alternative suggestion of just cross-dressing will probably not be sufficent to satisfy those critics of the male dominated Adam Computer.
The above two steps are probably the easiest of those necessary to resolve this problem.
The really hard step is to change ADAM to AEDVAEM or some other combination of the words Adam and Eve. This will mean new labels for hardware, software, documents, etc. Wherever the word Adam appears the new compromise word (I personally prefer ADEVEAM, which backwards is MAEVEDA, an ancient Indian incantation to the spirit of sex neutral gender netrual words).
In any case, this reporter will continue to keep you uptodate on developements in this area.
I would also urgently request that several of you female Adamites ( or Evites) consider becoming a reporter on our computer or several of you male reporters consider the sex change operation, as I fear for my own ........****..................
****[Editor: censored, a rough translation would have to do with parts of anatomy which are gender related].
[Reporter's name & whereabouts withheld at his request]
LOOKING BACK The Best Of AIM by Terry R Fowler
SmartFILER - Allows up to 1000 records, each with 32 fields, of which 4 may be designated as searchable.
SmartWRITER - Deletion of a file does NOT delete the stored material. It only erases the stored name from the directory menu. When the directory is area on the datapack is full, no more files may be stored EVEN when plenty of room exists according to the BLOCKS LEFT information displayed using SmartBASIC.
The 160K DISK DRIVE was originally sold for $289. MODEMS originally sold for $100, ADAMCALC sold for $75, CP/M2.2 sold for $80, as did SmartLOGO.
Versions of SMARTFILER before Revision 27d will not sort more than 255 entries. To see your revision number, after the program loads and SmartKEYS are displayed, press the CONTROL KEY and the "R" KEY together. This also works on SmartWRITER (R79 or R80), ADAMLINK (R12, R12X12, R13X15 depending on whether you have ADAMLINK II, III, or III+), DISK MANAGER (15.0) after the system is first powered up. A block will be displayed onscreen which lists the revision number of the Software. In SmartBASIC V1, type "? peek(260) to see your revision - 79.
DEATH SPIN - SmartWRITER begins a loop (indicated by the pointer on the left side of the screen scrolling down over and over again) when certain events are encountered while storing a file. If at first the "NO MORE ROOM" message is displayed, and then an old file is DELETED from the menu to provide space for storage, when the file is then saved it will attempt to store the file and then RESTORE the original data while displaying the message, "RESTORING FILE." The spin may continue for 10 or 15 minutes ending with control being returned to the operator, or the ADAM may freeze and require a reset --- loosing all the text in the workspace. This is the single most encountered BUG in SmartWRITER.
SmartWRITER will place a space and a half on any line with only the RETURN symbol. A nonprinting character can be placed in front of the RETURN to overcome this problem. Try using the CONTROL KEY and "6" together before the RETURN. Although you can see the symbol onscreen, it will not print and resolves the printer problem.
If it happens that you need to place a RETURN at the end of a line so that the next line can be INDENTED, but you find you get a Buzz, rather than using the INSERT function (time consuming), just go to the end of the line and use the backspace key. Then space over and you will be able to add the RETURN.
UNDERLINE BUG - Problems occur when you reset your left margin to 1 and begin the line with an underlined word. There is no fix other than to set the margin at 2 in this situation.
SmartWRITER will not recognize a disk drive unless power is applied to the disk drive FIRST before turning on the ADAM System. SmartWRITER will not recognize a SECOND Disk Drive because the software was not completely written. The information needed at the time was not available.
SmartWRITER will freeze if the PRINTER Platen and gear assembly jams. Generally a high pitch tone from the printer indicates a problem. Rolling the platen back and forth will free the jam.
APPLESOFT and SMARTBASIC are only compatible insofar as the words used in the command language. However, many programs contain more than just Command Words (like LIST or GOTO). The memory locations are completely different where the execution of each command takes place.
INITIATING a disk will not allow 255 blocks of storage space even though the disk directory indicates it. To properly INIT your disk, type this first (in the immediate mode): POKE 25305,160 followed by the RETURN KEY.
Transferring text files using ADAMCALC may result in the file having gaps throughout the document. This occurs due to the way SmartWRITER line wraps each line. Those spaces are created because the file is saved or stored with the spaces at the end of each line.
When you INITIALIZE a Datapack, the old directory is stored in block 0. In this way, a program can be used to restore the old directory back to block 1, returning the datapack back to its original form.
When a DATAPACK wears out, the Directory area located in block 1 is the area of the tape to first begin showing signs of trouble since it is the most used portion of the datapack. The dreaded message, "CANNOT ACCESS THIS DATAPACK" appears, and only repeated attempts may provide access. Immediately make a backup copy before it is too late!
When a specific FILE on a Datapack cannot be ACCESSED, editing the directory can recover at least part of the file. The procedure works by changing the length of the file just prior to the file named in the directory in block 1 so that when the file loads it will load all information specified according to the length. It will be necessary to delete the first file information, some codes or garbage, and possibly retyping a portion of the document.
When revising a SmartWRITER File and storing it, the first version of the file becomes a BACKUP FILE on the datapack. If you use the CLEAR SCREEN COMMAND to eliminate unwanted text, the file name information will ALSO be deleted so that attempting to store the file will result in the message, "FILENAME ALREADY EXISTS".
SEARCH (in SmartWRITER use) will not search beyond any END PAGE MARKER used in your document. If you wish to quickly reach the end of a long document, use the search command while searching for "###."
PRINT HEAD - If your printer head goes to the right, or if it beats against the side of the case on the left, the problem is in the REED SWITCH located either on the printer head or on the left side of the case. It can be cleaned or adjusted with small bends (contacts should be closed in the normal position).
When saving text to a datapack, save your material often. Break the document into small "chapters" or sections. When you are ready to print, append all files into one file.
In SmartWRITER the controller keypad can be used to input numbers into memory and the joystick can be used to move the cursor.
With multiple block DIRECTORIES, SmartWRITER will display the first part of the directory. To see the rest of the directory do the following: Move the ARROW across to the top left name, press the UP ARROW KEY (which moves the ARROW to the Bottom Left name), move the ARROW across to the bottom right name, press the DOWN ARROW KEY. The datadrive will run to load the second part of the directory.
To create your own 2 BLOCK DIRECTORY, Poke a 2 into location 25308 (POKE 25308,2 followed by the RETURN KEY). Then INIT your fresh datapack.
SMARTBASIC on datapack may be transferred to DISK using many copy utility programs (block numbers 0 - 29 are all that is necessary for the transfer). However, SmartBASIC is CODED for use only with the tape drive. To change the code for DISK #1 use, EDIT BLOCK #18 on the disk, the second byte (08) should be changed to 04. Disk drive #2 is coded 05, Datadrive #2 is 24.
SmartFILER 27d has a bug which improperly prints the spacing for labels. It also prints an extra line between records, wasting space. The problems have been corrected, available by sending your datapack and $5 for recopying. If you wish to edit your copy, load block 18 and change byte FB on page 3 from 01 to 02 (using Edit-Block).
One problem using SmartFILER to print multiple copies of letters or envelopes with the ADAM Printer is that it will not pause long enough to change the paper. The trick to give you that extra time is to press the VI STOP PRINT SmartKEY JUST BEFORE it pauses normally. It will stay paused until your press PRINT.
Another problem in SmartFILER arises when trying to print columns and rows of information uniformly in line. When typing in your field information, insert CONTROL "q" characters (press the CONTROL KEY and "q" key together) according to how you wish to align the data. These characters will not print (even though you see them onscreen), but will maintain spacing when typing your data.
Although SmartFILER has four searchable fields, you may find occasions when more searchable fields would be desirable. Use the searchable fields to code letters separated by commas and you can then search in MANY ways. For example, M could stand for member, N for nonmember, X for exmember, and groupings could be sorted by simply searching for these coded letters in one field. If you want alphabetized listings, try using INDEX first before searching a field.
BINARY files are created in SmartBASIC using the program "cruncher." These binary files use the "H" type designation in place of the normal "A" type as displayed when you CATALOG your directory. The advantage of binary files is that they load ten times faster. Use the terminology: "BRUN filename" instead of "RUN filename." One bug found when SAVING a new version of a binary file is that the first version type is changed from "H" to "h", but the command RECOVER cannot bring back the "h" type file. To correct this type (in the immediate mode): POKE 20619,72 followed by the RETURN KEY. Now you may recover those backup "h" files.
BINARY PROGRAMS may load, but not execute, giving an error message instead, "ILLEGAL FORM OF OS COMMAND." This is normal. Simply type RUN and the program will execute after the RETURN KEY.
DATA & REM STATEMENT BUG - In SmartBASIC everytime you load and resave a program, it places an extra space at the beginning of DATA and REM statements, eventually pushing data off the end of the line. Correct this by typing: POKE 15824,216: POKE 15830,8: POKE 15831,55: POKE 15832,19 followed by the RETURN KEY.
MERGING SMARTBASIC PROGRAMS - There is no merge command in SmartBASIC V1. To merge or load a new program into memory, writing over the same line numbers and filling in new line numbers, do the following: POKE 6356, 201 followed by the RETURN KEY. This keeps the NEW function from working to wipe out the original program in memory. Return to normal by typing: POKE 6356, 205.
CP/M2.2 FORMATTING - Any formatted disk or datapack may be used with CP/M2.2 without FORMATTING using the utility program FORMAT. Simply use SYSGEN to copy the system to the media from your original or backup CP/M DATAPACK.
You can INIT PROTECT any medium by creating a short dummy program, POKE 23925,2 (in the immediate mode), and SAVE BASICPGM to your media. SmartBASIC will NOT initiate any medium with BASICPGM thereon. POKE 23925,65 after you're done to restore the normal SAVE function. If later you decide to INIT the medium anyway, POKE 20435,2 and then DELETE BASICPGM. POKE 20435,65 to restore the normal DELETE function. Now INITIATE normally.
This takes us through 1986 issues of AIM. We will continue this article next month.
SmartBASIC V2.0 is available in different versions. To check your revision number, load Smartbasic and type, PRINT PEEK(260) <RETURN KEY>. You should have # 52.
SmartBASIC V2.0 uses different values for colors in HGR and GR Color Tables. To correct this, type the following: FOR X = 0 to 15 : POKE 25360 + X, X : POKE 25378 + X, X : NEXT X <RETURN>
SmartBASIC V1 also uses different values for colors in HGR and GR modes. The following POKES solve the problem: POKE 18728, 121 : POKE 18729, 0 : POKE 18730, 0 : POKE 18735, 121 : POKE 18736, 0 : POKE 18737, 0 : POKE 19256, 0 : POKE 19257, 0 : POKE 19258, 0 <RETURN>
In SmartBASIC while printing, the screen echos each character onscreen. This can be disabled by typing, POKE 12043, 201 (default 245).
SmartBASIC V1 has a bug which prevents you from BRUNning a program from another drive by adding the Dx at the end of the BRUN Statement. This BRUN DRIVE BUG may be eliminated by typing, POKE 21019, 11 <RETURN>. The BRUN STATEMENT LENGTH BUFFER is too small for use of location, length, and drive suffix. This is corrected by typing the following POKES: 16601,35: 16602,249: 16604, 73: 16605, 249: 19450,249: 19459,34: 19566,72: 19567,249: 19585,35: 19586,249: 19558,73: 19559,249: 19563,73: 19564,249: 19576,73: 19577,249: 19595,73: 19596,249: 21019,11.
The SmartBASIC INPUT LINE LENGTH may be increased to 239 characters and spaces for each line number by typing, POKE 12185,239 <RETURN>. You can eliminate spaces placed after periods and commas (placed there by the computer) by typing, POKE 13357,0 : POKE 13349,0.
SmartBASIC V1 & V2 have a limited POKE RANGE which may be unlimited by typing, POKE 16149,255 : POKE 16150,255 <RETURN> for V1, and POKE 1648,255 : pOKE 1649,255 <RETURN> for V2.
SmartWRITER CLEAR BUG - To clear the screen or workspace press the CLEAR KEY, followed by the SmartKEY choice, and Final Clear option. Pressing these three keys in rapid succession may cause the system to lock up or loose the sound. And as you type at the end of a line, the characters do not appear until you jump to the next line. At times, the condition will correct itself. Use the CLEAR function carefully.
SmartWRITER VERTICAL LINE SPACING BUG - When changing the vertical line spacing, it may be necessary to do the change twice. Notice whether the pointer moves. If there is no hesitation, the change was not made.
STORING DOCUMENT BUG - As you type a document, you should store the text workspace frequently in case of problems. The name you choose is entered into the directory. Later, you be required to use a NEW name for your document when you try to SAVE the workspace. This can be overcome by clearing the workspace after the FIRST SAVE, and GETTING the file back. Now you can use the same file name as ADAM makes your latest SAVE your primary file, while the previous saved files becomes the backup file.
SMARTFILER can GET forms you create using SmartWRITER to type letters and labels in different ways. However, if you use a multi-block directory tape or disk, SmartFILER will not access more than the first block of your directory. Use a fresh medium to save your forms.
SmartWRITER will GET a SmartBASIC program, but the line numbers will not be separated by a space from the first entry in the line. You can correct this prior to saving your SmartBASIC Program. Type, POKE 24100, 0 : POKE 24101, 0 : POKE 24102, 0 <RETURN>. (Default values: 50, 20, and 63).
SmartBASIC V1 has a FILE LENGTH BUG - when you delete a large file and save a smaller file having less length, the smaller program will have all the space dedicated to the deleted program. To see the actual number of blocks assigned to a file, first type: POKE 21370, 8 (6 is default) <RETURN>. Also, if you wish to see each file's START BLOCK location on the medium, POKE 21370, 2 <RETURN> before you CATALOG the medium. To see the ACTIVE FILES blocks left on your medium, type: POKE 21298, 0 (default 235) <RETURN> before Cataloging.
SmartWRITER documents should never be ended with an END OF PAGE MARKER. Doing so may produce the DEATH SPIN spiral of the pointer.
ADAM INTERNATIONAL MEDIA Published by ADAM'S HOUSE RT 2 BOX 2756 1829-1 COUNTY ROAD #130 PEARLAND, TEXAS 77581 (713) 482-5040 9 AM - 6 PM
ADAM'S HOUSE is a full time SALES and SERVICE company supporting the ADAM COMPUTER SYSTEM exclusively! For a 20 page catalog, send $1.00 or a stamped self-addressed envelop with 45 cents postage (USA, 52 cents to CANADA).
FEATURE VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE |Computer Shopper | PHYSICAL SAFETY GOOD | BAD, high risk of | hernia due to weight | HAS ADAM NEWS/COLUMN YES (Faye Deere) | NO. (Nothing Adam) | USE AS FLY SWATTER GOOD (weight is | BAD (too heavy to sufficent for good | (swat effectively) swatting speed,kill) | | DISCOUNT TO USER GROUPS YES* | NO | WHEEL BARROW REQUIREMENTS NONE (easy to move) | YES, Due to Size and | weight, wheel barrow | required to move) | EASE OF FINDING INFORMATION GOOD (enough pages | POOR (too many pages (to allow easy usage) | to find information & finding info) | easily) | DECISION MAKING FACTOR GOOD (enough ads | POOR (perhaps 28 ads to give a reasonable | for an item, makes choice) | for long drawn out | decision making ) | EYE STRAIN LEVEL ACCEPTABLE | UNACCEPTABLE (too | many pages to read) | TOILET TISSUE USE FAIR (slightly smooth)| POOR (Coarse to | rough) | PRICE GREAT* | HEAVY (like magazine) | *Special price to User Group members $8.95 for | 12 monthly issues. | | FAMILAR ADVERTISERS YES | YES (Found old favorites such as PANASONIC, COMPUTER--|--DIRECT, MICRO CONNEC- TIONS, COMPUMART, MEI/MICRO, MICRO STAR, SILICON--|--EXPRESS,US MICRO,ETC.) | LOW PRICE ITEMS YES | YES (Found low price disks, printer ribbons,printers, | monitors,supplies,etc.) | | HARD NOSE HARRY'S RECOMMENDATION | STRONG YES SUBSCRIBE NOW | NO ! WHY SUPPORT A | Magazine that doesn't | Support ADAM, NO WAY | COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE, POBOX 55886, BIRMINGHAM, AL. 35255 $8.95 for one full year BUT put down the Computer Group you belong to on your order to qualify for the reduced price (such as the BBS group you are reading this on or the newsletter you are reading this in, etc.).
R--|--DIRECT, M
THE FOLLOWING MATERIAL WAS SUPPLIED TO THE ADAM NEWS NETWORK BY "The ADAM's LEAF of the EDMONTON (ALBERTA,CANADA) ADAM USERS GROUP" THE WRITER/AUTHOR OF THE ARTICLE IS INDICATED BELOW. WE APPRECIATE THEIR COOPERATION AND CONTRIBUTION(S) TO ADAM NEWS NETWORK AND TO A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE CAPABILITIES OF ADAM BY OTHER ADAMITES.
THE CARE OF THE ADAM DIGITAL DATA DRIVE
by Claude Ferland
"Coleco data drives are prone to error." How many of you have heard this statement or read about it in assorted ADAM articles? My limited experience tells me that, on the average, this is true. Can anything be done to help minimize the error count? The answer is YES. Temperature control, routine maintenance and operating speed verification are the keys to attaining maximum performance from your data drives.
Temperature Control: can be achieved in two ways. Method #1 - Increase air circulation around your data drives. Do you have a small fan? If so, take the top cover off your ADAM console and point the air flow towards your data drives. I'm planning on cutting a round hole in my top cover directly over the drives and mounting a four-inch square fan (about $16 at Princess Auto). I should then be able to run my drives almost constantly. Method #2 - Duty Cycle. For every ten minutes of drive activity, let your drives cool down for twenty minutes. This will help limit how hot your drives get.
Once a program is loaded into your ADAM, if the program doesn't have to access the data drives for the next ten to sixty minutes, remove the data pack from the drive. When a data pack is installed in a data drive, the motors have some power applied to them to take up the slack in the tape.
When my ADAM was new, the console had four small rubber feet that would hold it a small distance above whatever flat surface I put it on. The console has many air slots molded into the case to allow passage of air though it. If the rubber feet fall off (three of mine did), and you continue to use your ADAM in this condition, the probability of heat-related problems and heat damage is greatly increased due to restricted air flow. You can buy self-sticking or screw-mounted cushion feet from popular electronics retail stores. You should install cushion feet that hold your console above the table or desk even higher than the original rubber feet.
If your ADAM console barely fits into the chosen location on your computer desk, get it out of there. The airflow afforded by such a set-up is probably unacceptably low. Operating your ADAM on a cloth surface such as a bed or pile of laundry or any cloth surface other than a thin, unpadded table cloth is an absolute no-no. You must not obstruct any air slots for any length of time on any piece of electronic equipment.
Routine Maintenance: Cleaning your data drives is a must. Magnetic particles on the surface of the tape inside all datapacks become loose and fall off regularly. This is known as SHEDDING. Brand new data packs are worse than old data packs for shedding. The most likely time that shedding takes place is when the tape is moving in either direction against the record/playback head in the data drive (normal wind and rewind). Therefore, the most likely place for these ferric oxide particles to accumulate is on the head itself. Some particles will cling to the rubber on the speed-transducer wheel and to the tape guide on each side of the record/playback head. These deposits must be removed regularly to ensure proper tape-to-head contact. This contact is extremely important when "reading" or "writing" is taking place (especially writing). How thick is a fingerprint? Would you believe thick enough to interfere with the record/playback process which must be 100% accurate within a computer environment?
Cleaning your data drives is a snap with almost any of the many products on the market. DO NOT use cleaner cassettes because they only clean what they come in contact with in the tape path and may take a path of their own. Most are advertized as non-abrasive but can become abrasive because they will contain foreign matter accumulated during previous cleanings. Solvents specially designed for head cleaning are perfect. Cotton-tipped cleaning sticks are just right for the job. Dip the cleaning stick only once into the container of solvent. Then, rub the cleaning tip back and forth over the record/playback head, concentrating on visible deposits. Next, clean the tape path guide on each side of the head. Hold the cleaning stick in the guide in approximately the same position as a loaded tape and slide it back and forth while exerting a small amount of downward pressure. Then clean the rubber speed-transducer wheel. Do this by holding the cleaning stick against the rubber wheel and turning the wheel with your cleaned finger. Finally, throw away the cleaning stick. DO NOT contaminate your remaining solvent by dipping a used cleaning stick into it. The cleaning sticks only cost about two cents each in hundred lots. I personally clean my drives at least once each computer day and after each datapack that I format and verify. I've taken the cheapie route. I bought a half-litre container of 99% ISOPROPYL ALCOHOL from an economy drug store and a 400-pack of Q-tip type economy cotton swab sticks. This route will cost me about two dollars a year. I store my "working" quantity of solvent in a two-ounce bottle that I refill from the half-litre bottle. The cheapie cotton swab sticks are too short to dip into the bottle once a couple of inches of solvent are gone.
Last and certainly not least, Data Drive Operating Speed Verification. Your data drives must operate reasonably closely to the original intended speed. If your drives have wandered off the original factory-set speed for whatever reason (components changing value or speed control played with), you should get hold of an ORIGINAL program similar to the SPEEDCHECK program, E.A.U.G. Lending Library tape #169. Upon loading this program, a scale that reads from +6 to -6 percent appears on the screen. After a few more seconds, a pointer will appear under the appropriate number indicating the operating speed of the drive. Many data drives have their speed asjustment control accessible only from the bottom of the data drive. You will need a Phillips screwdriver to remove three screws at the back of each data drive to allow removing the drive from its normal location. The two data drive connecting cables must remain connected to the console. Locate the speed adjustment control - about one tenth of an inch in diameter with a small screwdriver slot in it. You will need a very small screwdriver to adjust this control. Turn the control one full turn counter-clockwise and notice the effect it has on the pointer on the screen. You will also be able to physically see and hear the difference in the operating speed of the drive. Adjust the control so that the pointer appears under the "0" on the screen. Of the dozen or so data drives that I have adjusted, only one was operating more slowly than the correct speed prior to adjustment. Several drives were operating beyond the +6 percent indicator. Once adjusted properly, re-install the data drives in your console. -IMPORTANT- Be aware that if you are using a non-original copy of the SPEEDCHECK program, this copy of the program might not have been produced on a data drive that was not operating at the correct speed. This would cause an erroneous result and could leave you worse off than you were before attempting this procedure.
SUMMARY- Your data drives should now be ready to give you many, many hours of trouble-free operation. If, after following these steps, your drives have difficulty loading programs such as your original SmartBASIC V1.0, either there is a problem in your ADAM's console, or you could probably use a new data drive. I'm embarrassed to say how many replacement data drives I bought before getting around to applying the steps that I have just described. Happy computing. ###
ADAM'S HOUSE has been accumulating primarily COLECO and ATARI GAME CARTRIDGES for resale, many brand new in the box. We are currently selling each cartridge with original instruction sheet for only $10, but we are also swapping two of your cartridges for one from our list. The listing below is complete with those PRESENTLY IN STOCK UNDERLINED. Due to varying quantities of the different titles we suggest you offer optional titles when placing an order in case one of your selection has sold out. If you have cartridges to sell, we pay $5 each with documentation included. We reserve the right to change prices as costs rise or fall.
Coleco Cartridge List
2010 Graphic Action 9 to 5 Alacazar Alphabet Zoo Amazing Bumpman Antarctic Adventure Apple Cider Spider Aquattack Artillery Duel Astro Chase B.C.'s Quest for Tires Baseball Beamrider Blackjack / Poker Blockade Runner Blue Print Boulderdash Brainstrainers Buck Rogers Bump N' Jump Burgertime Cabbage Patch Adventure in Park Cabbage Patch Picture Show Campaign '84 Carnival Centipede Challenger Chess Challenger Choplifter Chuck Norris Superkicks Congo Bongo Cosmic Avenger Cosmic Crisis Dambusters Dance Fantasy Decathlon Defender Destruction Derby Destructor Dig Dug Dino Eggs Donkey Kong Donkey Kong, Jr Dr. Suess Fix Up Puzzler Dracular Dragonfire Dragon Stomper Dukes of Hazzard Earth Dies Screaming, The Escpae From the Mindmaster Evolution Facemaker Fall Guy Fathom Flipper Slipper Football Fortune Builder Fraction Fever Frantic Freddy Frenzy Frogger Frogger II Frontline Galaxian Gateway to Apshai Globe Grabber Gorf Grog's Revenge, B.C. II Gust Buster Gyruss H.E.R.O. Heist Horse Racing Illusions James Bond 007 Juke Box Jumpman Junior Jungle Hunt Keystone Kapers Lady Bug Learning With Leeper Linking Logic Logic Level Looping Lord of the Dungeon Lunar Leeper M.A.S.H. Madden Football Meltdown Memory Manor Miner 2049'er Mogal Maniac Monkey Academy Montezumas Revenge Moonsweeper Motocross Racer Mountain King Mouse Trap Mr. Do Mr. Do's Castle Mr. Turtle Nova Blast Oils Well Omega Race One on One Past Finder Pepper II Phaser Patrol Phoenix Pink Panther Pitfall Pitfall II Pitstop Popeye Porky's Power Lords Q-Bert Q-Bert's Qubes Quest for Quintana Roo Quick Step Rip Cord River Raid Robin Hood Robotron 2084 Rock N' Bolt Rock N' Roll Rock N' Roll, It's only Rocky Rolloverture Round Up Sammy Lightfoot Scraper Caper Sector Alpha Sewer Sam Short Circuit Sir Lancelot Skiing Slither Slurpy Smurf Paint N' Play Smurf Play 'N' Learn Smurf Rescue Smurfettes Birthday Soccer Space Fury Space Panic Spacemaster X-7 Spectar Spectron Spy Hunter Squish'em Sam Star Trek Star Wars Strike It Subroc Super Cobra Super Crossforce Sword & the Sorcerer Tac Scan Tank War Tapper, Root Beer Tarzan Telly Turtle Threshold Time Pilot Time Runner Tomarc the Barbarian Tournament Tennis Tunnels and Trolls Turbo Turmoil Tutankham Up N' Down Vanguard Venture Victory Video Hustler War Games War Room Wild Western Wing War Wings Wiz Math Wizard of Oz Wizard of WOR Word Fued Yokes on You Z-80 Macro Assembler Zaxxon Zenji
Atari Cartridges
Atlantis Combat Cosmic Ark Mrs. Pacman Reactor Rocky Space Jockey Star Voyager Swordquest
Odyssey 2 Cartridges
Alien Invaders Bowling & Basketball Casino Slot Machine Conquest of the World Cosmic Conflict Dynasty Electronic Table Soccer Freedom Fighters Invaders from Hyperspace I've Got Your Number Matchmaker, Logix, & Buzzword Pocket Billards Type & Tell UFO
Anyone having an Odyssey 2 System who wishes to sell it to ADAM'S HOUSE can call or write for further information! Cartridge supplies are limited!
The following select information is from a document of OVER l00 pages entitled: Solicitation of Acceptances of Chapter ll Plan of Reorganization for Coleco Industries, Inc. (Nov. 29, l989).
It is a part of the Bankruptcy Court file on the Coleco Bankruptcy.
l. Ranger Industries Inc. was formerly Coleco Industries, Inc.
2. Debtors (includes Coleco Ind.) has sold or otherwise disposed of essentially allof their non-cash assets which were associated with the operation of their toy and game businesses.
3. Debtors remaining assets consist of (l) cash, (2) payments due under an agreement with Hasbro, Inc. ; (3) proceeds to be derived from the liquidation of Coleco's usbsidiaries; (4) misc. inventory and other property held for sale; (5) misc. accounts receivable; (6z) prepaid expenses and security deposits; (7) tax refunds; (8) misc. real property; (9) misc. equipment and (l0) warrants to purchase one million shares of common stock of Hasbro, Inc.
4. The is a PROPOSED bankruptcy court plan for this matter which must be voted on and approved by the court. The following refere to the PROPOSED plan.
5. The bankruptcy court plan calls for the distribution of substantially all such property or the proceeds thereof to creditors and shareholders.
6. The bankruptcy court plan calls for payment in full in cash of all Administrative (Court costs, trustee fees, creditors committees, etc.), priorty claims (taxes owed, some wages,etc.) and Secured claims (those having a security interest, mortgage, lien, etc.) are to be paid l00% of their claim.
7. Holders of claims under $5,000.00 are to get 24% of their claim in cash.
8. Holders of other claims will receive 23-26 % of their claim.
9. There are other arrangements for other classes of claims.
l0. The Plan contemplates the emergence of a reorganized Coleco, now called Rangaer Industries, Inc. including the distribution of 4 million shares of common stock of Ranger to be distributed to unsecured creditors. The plan contemplates that Ranger will engage in the business of acquiring income producing properties or businesses.
ll. The Plan provides for 7 classes of claims and interests. See the following : Class l: Administrative & Priority Claims, Asserted $20,600,000.; estimated allowed $24,750,000. l00%.
Class 2: Secured Claims. $ll4,400,000. asserted; $2,300,000 estimated allowed. (Difference is payments already made to secured claims during bankruptcy to date.). l00%
Class 3: Insured Claims. Limited to amount of insurance coverage.
Class 4: Small Claims (Under $5,000.each) $l,000,000. asserted; estimated allowed $l,000,000. . 24%
Class 5 Qualifying Claims and
Class 6 General Claims.
Asserted $489,000,000.; estimated allowed $430,000,000. 23-26%.
Class 7: Pold Preferred & Common Stock. l7,800,000. SHARES asserted and estimated allowed.
12. Coleco was a publicly held Connecticut corporation organized in l96l, and is the successor to the Connecticut Leather Company which was found in l932.
13. Coleco had many subsidiaries including the following which did NOT file bankruptcy but none are currently operating entities and will be liquidated: Coleoc (Canada) Ltd.; Coleco Industries Japan KK; Coleco Far East Limited; Coleoc U.K. Inc.; Coleco S.A.; Spartan Industries; and Coleco Georgia.
l4. As part of the sale of substanially all of the non-cash assets of the Debtors (Coleco) to Hasbro pursuant to Court order dated July 7, l989, Hasbro acquired the right to use the names "Coleco Industries, Inc.", "Coleco". Concomitantly, the Debtors agreed to forbear from using those names except in certain limited circumstances set forth in the Purchase Agreement. As a result the debtors changed the Names "Coleco Industries,Inc.", "Coleco" etc.to Ranger Industries, Inc.
l5. During l988, Toys-R-US represented approximately l8% of Coleco's Sales.
l6. No other customer of Coleco represented more than l0% of its l988 sales.
l7. l986 & l987 losses were in excess of $ 215 Million. THese losses were due to a dramatic decline in sales of Cabbage Patch Kids products (from $600.5 million in l985 to $126.5 million in l987.
l8. In l987 Coleco was paying approximately $60 Million in interest.
l9. The larger creditors of Coleco included: Kader Industrial CO. of Hong Kong; Applied Electronics of Hong Kong; Sunshine Garment Factory of Hong Kong; U.S. Trust Co. of NY; D&E Packaging NJ; S.G.Warburg Soditic, Genevba Switzerland; MidAtlantic Nat. Bank of NJ.; and others.
20. Coleco also marked board games, principally Scrabble.
21. In a July 8, l988 agreement Coleco sold its pedal and battery operated rideon toy business and children's furniture and clubhouse products business to Hasbro for $l5.9 Million plus certain amounts for inventory.
22. In a July 12, l988 agreement Coleco sold its outdoor pool and plastic snow products business to SLM Action Sports for $5.4 million plus certain amounts for inventory.
23. Tonka Corp. paid Coleco $l.2 Million for the license rights (which Coleco apparently had) to market Trivial Pursuit.
24. Coleco terminated its Canadian operations and liquidated their distributon sudbisdiary, Coleco (Canada) Ltd. In Nov. l988 Coleco (Canada) Ltd. agreed to sell its inventory and accounts receivable to Irwin Toy Ltd. Irwin was to distribute Coleco Products in Canada. This sales relationship went to Hasbro in the Hasbro Sale.
25. In Feb. l989 debtors sold their corporate Headquarters in West Hartford Conn. for $ l3.2 million, realizing a net profit of $4.7 Million. Debtor relocated its headquarters to Avon Conn.
26. In June l989 debtors sold substantially all of their assets to Hasbro receiving $ 85 Million with another $ 20 Million estimated from sale of inventory and receivables.
27. The current directors of Coleco includes: Morton Handel; Philip Cohen; Mario Fromichella; Arnold Greenberg; Leonard Greenberg; Mary Anne Krupask; Geoffrey D. Lurie; Omer S.J. Wms. All of which will resign under the reorganization plan on the date of its confirmation.
28. Current executive officers of Debtors are Morton Handel and Michael S. Schwefel, who will resign on the Confirmation date but will be retained as consultants.
29. Ranger Industries will have Net Opeating Losses for Federal Tax purposes of $ 314,000,000 which can be used during l995-2003 to offset profit and cause no tax to be due.
30. Coleco's advertising expenses were: $34.7 Million in l988; $7l.l million in l987; $ 93.6 Million in l986.
3l. The l984 Operating Data of Coleco showed Loss from Disposition of ADAM to be $ ll8,602,000. A foot note indicates that the ADAM Family Computer was disconintued in l984 and the inventory was sold in l985.
32. In August l987 the Company issued 644,295 shares of common stock with a then market value of $6,000,000 in payment of the remaining liability for the l985 settlement of several class actions suits filed against the Company and certain of its officers and directors in late l983 and l984 relating to the introduction and manufacture of the ADAM computer.
33. The only shareholders owning more than 5% of the stock of the company are: Arnold Greenberg who owns l3.4% and Leonard Greenberg who owns 7/l%.
There is a great deal of additional information in the l00+ pages but the above appears to be what will be of most interest to Adamites.
There were very few references to ADAM as the bankruptcy was filed in l988, Adam was discontined several years prior to that. I found no references to Adam copyrights.
Barry Wilson
A REVIEW
By Hard Nosed Harry of Adam News Network. (See Quick Comparison Chart Also) This concerns a NEW NATIONAL COMPUTER MAGAZINE WHICH IS CARRYING ADAM INFO ON A TRIAL BASIS.
IT is upto us the Adam Community to make this a successful trial so that they will continue to carry Adam info. Please join in the campaign suggested in the following and help spread the word on this.
As you all know, The Computer Shopper has stopped carrying the ADAM articles. BUT................ ..a new computer magazine called the Vulcan's Computer Buyer's Guide has published its first issue and contains Faye Deere's ADAMCON 01 article . Further Vulcan's Computer Buyer's Guide has agreed to continue to run ADAM articles on a trial basis. If you can't find this new magazine on your newstand shelves, request that it be stocked. ALSO THEY HAVE A SPECIAL USER GROUP DISCOUNT PRICE IF YOU SUBSCRIBE AT THIS TIME AND INCLUDE THE NAME OF YOUR USER GROUP (the BBS or Newsletter you read this in/on can be used as the User Group name), the PRICE is ONLY $ 8.95 FOR ONE YEAR.
After reading it, if you would write a letter to the editor asking that the ADAM articles be continued, it may make a difference.
Address your letter to: Computer Buyer's Guide, Doug Kilarski, Editor, P.O. Box 2705, Titusville, FL 32781.
COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE A new publication (or at least new to me) has reached the market called VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE.
It is NOT just for buying computers but includes accessories, supplies, information and articles. YES, EVEN ADAM ARTICLES .
This one you can purchase and carry home from the store ALL BY YOURSELF, not like the Computer Shopper which due to its size and weight required a minimum of 2-3 adults to lift and carry.
If you want 28 choices for an item you will still need Computer Shopper but if a enough choices to satisfy a normal person while allowing you to make an intelligent decision between the several choices given you is sufficent then VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE will fill the bill. REMEMBER to properly evaluate your 28 choices you probably need an EZ-Evaluation Software Package costing several hundred dollars. With the reasonable number of choices present in VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE you can actually make a wise choice yourself in your head. Then you can take the money saved on buying an EZ-Evaluation Software Package and take a long vacation, buy a sterio, buy some accessories for your computer.
IS VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE ADAM FRIENDLY, YOU BET !!! It has an Adam News Column by Faye Deere and it offers a DISCOUNTED SUBSCRIPTION RATE TO MEMBERS OF USER GROUPS.
While Computer Shopper's price is as heavy as the actual publication itself, VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE on its special User Group price is ONLY $ 8.95 for 12 monthly issues. YOU CAN'T BET THAT!!
In VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE I found ads for generic (low priced) disks, ribbons, printers, etc. All the stuff that could be found in Computer Shopper IF one had the TIME, ENERGY and DEDICATION to search through Computer Shopper for it.
There are the old familar advertisers that we utilitzed in computer shopper are PRESENT in VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE, Panasonic, Computer Direct, Compumart, MEI/MICRO, etc. The only difference is that you can find them now, esepcially with the easy to use Advertisers Index in back, no hunting through hundreds of pages to find the one ad you are looking far, no more having to go through 3,345.8 ads before you finally find the one you want.
As noted in the CHART VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE is better than computer shopper as a fly swatter, having a good weight and feel, ease of swinging and sufficent kill power, while computer shopper always warns the fly ahead of time as you grunt and groan trying to lift it to swing it.
Other VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE ADVANTAGES include: less risk of hernia, less eye strain and objectively it is softer than computer shopper and therefore preferred for use as toilet paper should the necessity arise.
ALL IN ALL I FOUND VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE TO BE SUPERIOR TO Computer Shopper in almost all respects and only in a few catagories would I consider computer shopper equal to VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE. Computer Shopper was superior in NO catagory.
HARD NOSE HARRY'S RECOMMENDATION: A STRONG YES TO VULCAN'S COMPUTER BUYER'S GUIDE and a BIG NO TO Computer Shopper.
SYSOP, EDITOR, AUG INFORMATION & RULES
See other sheet for general information on contest.
THE PURPOSE OF THIS CONTEST IS TO TRY TO (l) INCREASE COMMUNICATION AMONGST ADAMITES; (2) PUBLICIZE AND INCREASE USAGE OF LOCAL BBS, AUG, NEWSLETTERS, etc.; (3) TRY TO GIVE ADAMITES A SENSE OF GROUP, BELONGING, FAMILY, ETC. YOU ARE INVITED TO PARTICIPATE, IN FACT URGENTLY REQUESTED TO DO SO.
SHORTLY PRIOR TO FEB. l l990 THE FINAL GROUP FOR THE COMBINED WEIGHT WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE TO YOU AND THE ADAMITE PUBLIC.
EACH SYSOP, NEWSLETTER EDITOR, AUG OFFICER IS ASKED TO PUBLICIZE THEIR OWN PARTICIPATION IN THIS CONTEST. The more publicity you give to it, the more people who will call your BBS, show up at your meeting, etc.
YOU MUST STAY WITHIN THE RULES AS INDICATED but you may offer reasonable inducements for Adamites to participate. In case of Sysops, you could offer an extra guess or two for each NEW caller to your BBS, after they signon they go back to the one guess per call rule.
Newsletter Editors can elaborate on my schedule of l guess per answer or question or short article, 3 guesses for a longer article, etc. for the newsletter.
AUG officers can indicate the guess for attending meetings, etc.
SYSOPS CAN USE A RUNNING SUMMARY SUCH AS LOWEST GUESS TO DATE & HIGHTEST GUESS TO DATE, ETC. TO TRY TO KEEP UP INTEREST AND PARTICIPATION.
IF YOU HAVE OTHER IDEAS, CLEAR THEM WITH ME FIRST BUT I AM SURE WE CAN USE THEM.
IT WILL BE YOUR OBLIGATION TO GET THE GUESSES TO ME AFTER FEB.28, l990. ONLY GUESSES PHYSICALLY IN MY POSSESSION AS OF MARCH l0, l990 WILL BE COUNTED.
PUBLICIZE THE CONTEST AND HELP MAKE IT WORK. YOU WILL HAVE AN IDEA OR PROJECT YOU WILL WANT HELP WITH IN THE FUTURE AND THEREFORE YOU SHOULD BE WILLING TO HELP WITH OTHER ADAMITES PROJECTS.
CONTEST STARTS FEB. l l990 AND ENDS FEB. 28, l990.
YOU MUST GET THE GUESSES FROM YOUR GROUP INTO ME BY MARCH l0, l990 OR THEY WILL NOT COUNT and IF YOU GROUP HAS A WINNER AND IT IS YOUR FAULT THEY DO NOT GET THEIR PRIZE THEY WILL BE UPSET WITH YOU.
Best regards, Barry Wilson FOR A.N.N.
A.N.N. [Adam News Network] ANNOUNCES A NEW ADAM CONTEST ........
Based on an idea by AL FITZGERALD (Sysop of St.Louis AUG BBS) and Sponsored by THE SOFTWORKS FACTORY (Tony Patterson & Sol Swift) AND AKRON BBS (B.J.)
YOU WILL HAVE TO GUESS THE COMBINED WEIGHT of a group of Adamites.
The group PRESENTLY includes the following but is subject to change upto date of Contest Start (FEB. l l990):
Al Fitzgerald (St.Louis AUG sysop) Adam System (Shipping weight of a complete Adam System). Bob Blair (AWAUG Sysop) Barry Wilson (St.Louis AUG, A.N.N.) Barry's Cat (who walks across his keyboard typing messages in code) BJ (Big John Lingrel) (AKRON BBS Sysop, hardware genius) Larry Overman (SOCA BBS sysop) (IEAUG) Tony Patterson (SOFTWORKS FACTORY) Rob Friedman (CIS Sysop--Compuserve) Ricki Gerlach (Voice of the Eagle BBS sysop, Gerlach Family Software) Sol Swift (SOFTWORKS FACTORY) Warren Foster (SOCA) 's Three PLUS grandchildren (there is one in the hangar) Allan Neeley (ADAM LINK OF UTAH BBS & Newsletter)
The person coming closest to the COMBINED weight in pounds, whole numbers final group is the winner. In case of ties, closest without going over weight wins. ONLY GUESSES WHICH YOUR LOCAL SYSOP, AUG, NEWSLETTER EDITOR GET TO A.N.N. WITHIN ten days after close of contest will count, SO BUG THEM TO GET THEM IN TIMELY.
The winner gets his choice of:
PIA2 (donated by BJ & AKRON BBS) OR $20.00 Coupons for SOFTWORKS FACTORY products (donated by Softworks Factory). 2nd Place gets remaining prize.
CONTEST STARTS FEB. l l990 AND ENDS FEB. 28, l990.
EACH TIME YOU CALL AN ADAM BBS DURING FEB. l990 YOU MAY LEAVE A GUESS. MORE CALLS............ MORE GUESSES.....MORE CHANCE TO WIN.
WHEN YOU GO TO YOUR LOCAL AUG MEETING IN FEB. YOU MAY LEAVE A GUESS. (l guess per meeting attendee with a minimum of 20 guesses for the meeting. So if only l0 people show up, each would get two guesses, etc.).
EACH TIME YOU CONTACT YOUR LOCAL AUG NEWSLETTER EDITOR with a question, an answer, a short article you get l guess,for a long article 3 guesses, upto 5 guesses per person).
EACH TIME YOU SEND A.N.N. (% Barry Wilson) $l,000.00 CASH, small unmarked bills, you get another guess.
REMEMBER CONTEST STARTS FEB. l l990 AND ENDS FEB. 28, l990.
IF YOU LOCAL BBS, AUG, ETC. ARE NOT AWARE OF THE CONTEST FORCE THEM TO CONTACT A.N.N. (Barry Wilson) FOR INFORMATION.
SUPPORT THE ADAM........SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL BBS......LOCAL AUG.
NEW CONTEST BY A.N.N. [ADAM NEWS NETWORK]
I apparently reported incorrectly that they give free upgrades on all products.
IF YOU PRINTED THIS MISTAKEN INFORMATION, PLEASE CORRECT AS INDIATED BELOW:
During the warranty period of 90 days for a shipping & handling charge of $2.50 upgrades will be given when the ORIGINAL datapack or disk is returned. It is suggested that you write FIRST before requesting an upgrade to see if any program changes have been made.
PLEASE PASS ON THIS CORRECT INFORMATION.
Thank you
Barry WIlson
MORE CP/M By Stan Wong Due to a recent increase in my workload, I haven't had much time to devote to ADAM.
However, because of popular demand, I'm back with a new article on CP/M. As I have mentioned countless times before, I am certainly no expert in CP/M, but with time, I have learned how to use a few of the more useful utility programs and I would like to share these lessons with you. If you have CP/M 2.2, you know that there is a file transfer program called PIP.COM right on the tape. It works fairly well, but it does have bugs which crop up from time to time. A much better program that does the same thing and more is a public domain program called NSWP.COM (newsweep). The appeal of this program is that it is a simple, menu driven program that allows quick and easy mass transfers. That's right...in one swoop, you can transfer as many files as you want from one tape to another.
When you first load NSWP by simply typing "NSWP" and hitting return, you are presented with a display that tells you the current user area, the total amount of space occupied by the files, the number of files there are and the amount of space left on the tape. It then gives you the name of the first filename in the directory. Hitting return repeatedly will cycle you forward through the directory and you can view all the filenames on the tape. Typing "B" will move you backwards in the directory. If you type a question mark, the program will list a menu of all the NSWP functions. You may exit the program by typing X. What follows is a brief summary of the NSWP commands. Hopefully, this will enable you to use the program more efficiently. C - This allows you to copy a given file to the drive of your choice. D - This will delete the file that is presently displayed on the directory. P - This will send the file to your printer and print out the file. You can stop this with Control-C.
R - This will rename the file displayed. V - If the file is an ASCII file, this will display it on your monitor with automatic pagination. Hitting return will take you to the next page. You can cancel this at any time by typing Control-X.
T - This is the function that I use the most. As you scroll through the directory, press T for each file you want transferred. This tags the file with an asterix for mass transfers later. U - This untags a file. M - This is what you use after you have tagged your files. Hitting this will begin the mass transfer process. It will prompt you for the destination drive. After the tagged file has been transferred, the asterix that had appeared next to the filename in the directory is changed to a "#" symbol to indicate that it has been sent. You can cancel the transfer process at any point by typing Control-C.
L - This logs a new disk.
There are a couple of other commands as well, but these are the ones that I understand and use the most. By using L, T, and M, I can usually accomplish what I want from NWSP. It sure seems easier to use than PIP.COM (at least to me it does) and it usually performs without a hitch. If you want, it will even verify the copied file to ensure that the transfer has been accurate.
I hope this helps out those of you who have this program. If you have CP/M but don't have this program, get it! It's really slick and best of all, it's free! ###
*****************************
** AWAUG BULLETINS **
** UPDATED 12/20/89 **
******************************
* AND NOW THE NEWS *
******************************
Big John Lingrel is going on a long term trip to Japan and we thought we might loose him as an ADAM benefactor. However, he has recently announced that while he is gone, his wife Jane will operate the BBS. We are all hopeful that when he returns (late spring, early summer?), he will resume active support of the ADAM.
Sol Swift and Tony Patterson have resumed operation of the Softworks Factory and have produced two Nibbles & Bits Newsletters. They are beginning a new BBS (called NEXUS) which is listed in the BBS section of this Bulletin.
Mark Gordon is now shipping the first orders for the POWERMATE hard drive system. If you are interested in getting information on his equipment, leave him a message in the PWRMATE message section on this BBS. (AWAUG BBS)
***********************************
*** A LIST OF YOUR FAVORITE ***
*** ADAM BBS Phone Numbers! ***
***********************************
Name : THE TRADING POST
Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 1200/300 Baud
Phone : (216)/791-4022 PCP/LINK
PCP/SLink#: OHCLE - 4222
Sysop : Herman L Mason (HERMAN)
Voice Ph. : (216)/231-8813
Name : UP - N - ADAM
Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 1200/300 Baud
Phone : (206)/859-2018 PCP/LINK
PCP/SLink#: WASEA - 2977
Sysop : Bart Lynch (ZONKER)
Name : PHONEX ADAM-LINK
Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 1200/300 Baud
Phone : (602)/936-3892 C/IK
C/Ln# ZH 52
yo ut ilt RSY
rs n e
Name : SLC ADAM-LINK BBS
Hrs/Baud : 6P-8A & WNDS 1200/300
Phone : (801)/484-5114 PCP/LINK
PCP/SLink#: UTSLC - 534
Sysop : Alan Neeley (ALAN)
Name : THE ST. LOUIS AUG
Hrs/Baud : THR-SUN 9P-6A 1200/300
Phone : (314)/773-1551 PCP/LINK
PCP/SLink#: MOSLO - 8979
Sysop : Al Fitzgerald (SHAMAN)
Name : LIL'E ORPHAN ADAM
Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 1200/300 Baud
Phone : (402)/455-8308 StarLINK
PCP/SLink#: N/A - 2521
Sysop : Steve Dawes OMAHA STEVE
Name : T.A.P.P.S. BBS
Hrs/Baud : 9A - 2A 24Hrs Wkn 300 B
Phone : (416)/741-2432
Sysop : Terry Cairns Name : CONNECTION BBS Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 1200/300 Baud Phone : (219)/422-6091 Sysop : Steve Major CONNECTION Name : THE TRADING POST Hrs/Baud : 24HR 1200/300 Baud Phone : (216)/791-4022 PCP/LINK PCP/SLink#: OHCLE - 4222 Sysop : Herman Mason Jr Name :AKRON BBS. Hrs/Baud : 24HR 300-1200-2400 Phone : (216)/883-4720. SLink # : 8740. Sysop : Ron Collins & J Lingrel Name : COMPUTER WISE GUYS Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 300 Baud
Phone : (404)/424-6258 PCP/LINK PCP/SLink#: GAATL - 8795 Sysop : SCOTT EARLEY Name : GARDEN OF EDEN Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 300 Baud Phone : (404)/445-0723 PCP/LINK PCP/SLink#: GAATL - 8795 Sysop : Sherman Murddock Name : TONY'S CORNER Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 3/12/2400 8 1 N Phone : (313)/754-1131 PCP/LINK PCP/SLink#: MIDET - 5968 Sysop : Tony Bauman Name : ADAM LINK IN NEW JERSY Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 300 Baud Phone : (201)/224-5764 PCP Sysop : Fred Vicente
Press any key Name : LAS VEGAS ADAMLINK Hrs/Baud : 24 HOURS 300 Baud 8N1 Phone : (702)/873-8056 Sysop : Harvey Seppala Lf-ON Name : THE GAS STATION Hrs/Baud : 24HRS 1200/300 Baud Phhone : (817)/265-8938 PCP/LINK Sysop : M. D. Henderson Name : MSB-BBS Hrs/Baud : 24/300-2400 Phone : (602)/395-9726 Sysop : MICHAEL BENEDICT Name : IEAUG-SOCA Hrs/Baud : 24HR 300/1200/2400 Baud Phone : (714)/775-1603 PCP/LINK PCP/SLink#: CASAC - 9184 Sysop : LARRY OVERMAN Name : MIDAS TOUCH Hrs/Baud : 24HRS, 2400/1200/300 Bd Phone : (407)/648-1133 StarLINK PCP/SLink#: N/A - 305 Sysop : DALE MALONE
Name : NEXUS Hrs/Baud : 300/1200 Baud 5pm-9am Mon-Sat all day Sun
Phone : (601) 875-7146 PCP/SLink#: not known yet Sysop : Sol Swift, T Patterson
Ricki Gerlach has set up a new BBS in Tenneessee. You are encouraged to call him on: WEDnesdays and THUrsdays between 8:30 pm and 5:00 am on 615-645-4317. Call at 300 baud.
MOST IMPORTANT!!! Perhaps the longest-standing BBS supporter of the ADAM has been COMPUSERVE. If you are not a member - maybe you should be? Call 1-800-555-1212 and ask for the COMPUSERVE number for your area! They are the major commercial BBS that offers full service for ADAM users. Please address questions about Compuserve services to Rob Friedman on the AWAUG BBS .
FOR SALE TO AWAUG MEMBERS ONLY (But membership is only $l5.00 per year and you get an excellent newsletter each month).. ADAM PRINTERS $30.00 (we have 6 printers in excellent condition).
ADAM Computer Consoles with one tape drive in excellent condition $55.00 each
ADAM KEYBOARDS with cord, $10.00 each.
DOT MATRIX PRINTER, $85.00 includes 6 new ribbons. (STAR, Gemeni 10x), very fast and works well with ADAM!
PARALLEL INTERFACES, $25.00 each, including the cable and software to work with your ADAM!! (attaches above printer)
SMART LOGO AND ADAM CALC (originals with manuals) $10.00 each.
SMART FILER (Tape), with manual in original box - $8.00.
256 K Expander $110.00, never used! Will mail without postage charge.
Game paddles: $1.00 each, brand new.
ADAM Printer Power Units: New, $12.50, Jim Howard
Note - there are 4 cables, including printer and standard rs-232 connectors. These cables were $30.00 each when bought - they are 1st class shielded, molded with gold tipped pins - no joke!)
80 column terminals $35.00 each !!!!! Act quick and get the last of these fantastic terminals!!!
GAME CARTRIDGES, $4.00 each all are guaranteed to work and any/all will me mailed to buyer with no postage charge.
#1. COSMIC AVENGER $6. SUPER ACTION BASEBALL
Order by name or number
Contact Bob Blair.
TO: Barry Wilson 114
FROM: mark gordon AWAUG 127
SUBJ: Powermate Info
All of the latest Powermate info is available on the Micro Innovations BBS - (703) 264-3908. I set up the BBS just to provide support for Powermate owners. It is up from 6 to 10 PM, Monday through Friday. I use my wife's business line for the BBS, so please do not call outside of those hours.
The BBS has the latest Powermate software and documentation, including press releases, price lists, installation instructions, etc.
A9707 01:12 Jan-15-1990
TO: all
FROM: bob langston AWAUG 107
SUBJ: printmaster
Has anyone had any experience with this program? I remember reading about it in some of the newsletters but have not heard any thing about it lately....any comments?
A9708 06:52 Jan-15-1990
TO: Any One
FROM: Gene Manning 7
SUBJ: File
Is there a file that I can view a LBR or a ARC file with and extract just the one that I want. Gene #7
A9711 11:01 Jan-15-1990
TO: Gene Manning
FROM: Rob Friedman [CISOP] 47
SUBJ: LBRs/ARCs
Yeah, Gene. you can see the files in LBR/ARC/ARK's with SD138 with the /LE option <that will let you see only what is IN the LBR/ARC/ARK's, and wont display the other files, unlike the /L option only <SD138 is on CIS>>. As for reading, for LBR's see LT29 using the help menu as a guide. it would be A0>LT29 D0:LBRFILE MEMBER.FIL . <that would display it to the screen.. add a D0: specifier before the MEMBER.FIL, and it will be extracted. This will work for regular files, squeezed, crunched, or CRLZH-compressed. For ARC/ARK's , use UNARC16 as this: A0>UNARC16 ARKFILE MEMBER.FIL . I've noticed that UNARC16 doesnt like to cross user areas. that should help. All files are on CIS <as I am too
<grin>>
Rob Friedman
TO: Gene Manning
FROM: Rob Friedman [CISOP] 47
SUBJ: CIS
Well.. an easy way is to go to your local computer store, or your local bookstore, and buy a CI subscription kit <It's $29.95, I think>. If not, you can also see Radio Shack. Or you can call CIS dire{ctly, at 800-848- 8990 and talk to customer service. the rates are <currently> $6.00/hr @ 300b, and $12.50/hr at 1200/2400b. there is NO prime rates, so you dont have to wait for evening to call. <also there are two additional charges <not including your own phone charges to your local node>, a $.30/hr communication surcharge <for using the CIS network>, and a newer $1.50/month maint charge. In regards to the main charge.. several sections are FREE on CIS now that used to be pay. Also.. you usually get 2 hours <or is it $25> free time wqith
the subscription kit. True.. it's more than GEnie at night <and MUCH less than anything else during the day> but it has a LOT more to offer, and I still think that the Forums on CIS are much easier to use than the RT's on GEnie. Those i know who go to GEnie.. just go to grab files.. never to participate in their RT's. They come back to CIS. Oh, yeah...<grin> ADAM is in COMPUTER CLUB FORUM <use GO CLUB at any "!" prompt> in sections 9
and 10. and we're VERY active in CLUB forum. Hope this answers your questions
TO: Gene Manning
FROM: George M. Koczwara 149
SUBJ: File extracts
Gene, you might also try QL.COM . It is quite user friendly and has worked very well for me.
A9717 12:07 Jan-18-1990
TO: Bob Langston
FROM: George M. Koczwara 149
SUBJ: Printmaster
Bob, printmaster is a very
fine graphics printing
program under CP/M. It
does take a bit of
understanding( not too
user friendly), but the
effort is well worth the
results. There are a
number of art galleries
and fonts available for
the program.
By Stan Wong This article originally appeared in the ADAM's LEAF, newsletter of the Edmonton (Alberta Canada) ADAM Users Group.
One of the things that I get asked about a lot is regarding parallel interfaces for the ADAM. There have been a number of these that have been around. I believe that Eve Electronics, which has since gone down the toilet, came up with the first one. Orphanware came up with the best known one, the now famous PIA2. A couple of other companies have produced interfaces as well, but it now appears as though their designs were swiped from Orphanware. In any event, there are a number of places where you can purchase an interface, including NIAD, M.W.Ruth and ADAM's House and the price generally runs around $30-$40 U.S. The interface is printed circuit board that plugs into the middle expansion slot on the inside of the memory console. Wherever you buy the interface, it is now standard practice to include software with it that will allow you to access your dot matrix printer from SmartWRITER, SmartBASIC and a few other Coleco programs. There is also software included that will allow it to run from CP/M. In addition to this, you also need a parallel interface cable. This can be purchased at any Radio Shack store. Just ask for the Model 100 parallel printer cable. The important thing to remember is that you must read all documentation that comes with the software so that you know what will and what will not work with your second printer. I've also been asked about running programs off the ramdisk. For those that do not know, the 64K memory expander can be set up as a ramdisk, an electronic drive on which you can store and retrieve with lightning speed (the drawback being that you lose everything on the ramdisk whenever you turn the computer off). When you first pick up one of these memory expanders and plug it into the far right expansion slot, it doesn't seem to do very much. It instantly increases your workspace in SmartWRITER, but that's about it. AdamCALC lets you use it as a printer buffer (it will store one spreadsheet and feed the data to the printer while you begin work on another spreadsheet). However, most other Coleco software simply does not make use of this extra memory. CP/M lets you use it as a ramdisk by designating it as drive M. It has only been over the last year or so when software has begun appearing that allows you to set up a ramdisk for EOS (ADAM's original operating system) applications. The one that comes to my mind is SmartDSK by Walters Software. I've never used it, but apparently it sets up a ramdisk for use with a few Coleco programs such as SmartBASIC and AdamCALC. They have now come out with PrBOOT as well. This allows you to transfer 6 self-booting Coleco programs to one tape and then gives you the option to transfer a program to ramdisk. Once the program has been transferred to ramdisk, it can be run via SmartDSK. For more information, contact Walters Software Co., Rd#4 Box 289-A, Titusville, PA 16354 (phone 814-827-3776). They will be able to tell you whether or not their programs are suited to your needs or not.
For those with dot matrix printers, as far as I know, there is no program available for the ADAM yet that will print out a graphic letterhead AND a form letter in one sweep. You can do it clumsily with PowerPAINT, but the quality of print will not be very good. Your best bet, so far, is to run a graphics program and print out a bunch of sheets with the letterhead, then run it through the printer again and use the word processor of your choice to enter the letter. With the tractor feeds on the dot matrix printers, getting things to line up shouldn't be too difficult, although it will take a bit of experimentation to get the spacing just right. Finally, people have asked me which printer I am using now. I have a Roland PR-1012 which I believe is the Canadian equivalent of the Panasonic 1080i. It is a good all purpose printer with near letter quality and graphics modes. The output from this printer, using the proper software, is phenomenal. I use it to make up signs and handouts for my office. I picked up this printer at Future Shop for under $300 a year or two ago. It works perfectly with the ADAM. Don't let the salesman try to sell you a higher priced STAR printer. I understand that some of those do not work properly with the current parallel interfaces that are available.
If you have any questions, write to the LEAF. There will be someone here that can help you. And remember, we're always on the lookout for new articles! ###
A636 13:07 Jan-06-1990
TO: Barry Wilson FROM: KEENE, Thomas J.CA 6
SUBJ: Problem files
Hi Barry! I read your reply to my comment about downloading the files on the contest. I was able to reconstruct the files into a usable document. I have gone further than that. I have written an article for this month's IEAUG newsletter based on the press handout. I am pretty sure of the nature of the file problem. I would guess that it was written in EOS (probably with SMARTWRITER) and then uploaded with a CP/M program. And more than likely the file was transferred to CP/M from EOS with ADAM.COM. My reason for this speculation is that the file, as downloaded, had en interminably long sentence line. This happens when an EOS file is sent directly to CP/M without certain precautions. SMARTWRITER doesn't require a line feed with each carriage return, so when you type a carriage return in SMARTWRITER, no line feed is issued. No problem in EOS, because EOS supplies automatically issues a line feed. And EOS has a wrap around feature which obviates the need for even a carriage return. So you can type an entire paragraph and never sens a carriage return. None of these features are
available in CP/M. When a
file is converted from EOS
to CP/M it is converted
EXACTLY as it was written.
So CP/M may get no line
feeds and maybe not even a
carriage return at
Continued on next message
A637 13:07 Jan-06-1990
TO: Barry Wilson
FROM: KEENE, Thomas J.CA 6
SUBJ: Continuation
Read (Y/N/Quit)>y
the end of a normal "EOS"
sentence. When it gets to
CP/M, the sentence maybe
be many lines long. And
even if a carriage return
was eventually sent, there
will be no line feed and
so the printer will just
print over the previously
printed line. Verstehen
Zie? The files I
downloaded looked as I
have just described. Once
I recognized the
situation, it was duck
soup to revise the text.
Now about that other
comment you made regarding
the Panasonic Printer
Control commands. Yes they
were there also. And I
have seen them in many of
the files in the ANN
newsletter. I recognize
them, but I don't know
what they do. For example,
What does ^A mean to your
printer. If it is
possible, could you send
me (on the BBS would be
fine) a list of the
control commands and their
functions. With this
information I might be
able to convert them to
WORDSTAR control commands
and thereby incorporate
them into my printer
operation. I expect these
commands do things like
indent text, center text,
change type fonts etc.
etc. But if this isn't
practical, just skip it.
But in any case, I have
always been able to use
your material. It's just
that I'm not sure that
others can decipher these
texts. Thanks for
listening, Kindest
re
gards,.................Tom
Comes to A.N.N. by way of VISA who obtained it from Ron Mitchell of AUFG.
The following is the fifth in a six-part series of articles on SmartBASIC written by Guy Cousineau of the ADAM User Friendly Group. The article was made available to us by Ron Mitchell, President of AUFG.
SCREEN FORMAT COMMANDS
The HOME command is used to clear the text window (even the 4 lines in GR and HGR mode). It also places the cursor at the top of the screen. If you want to home the cursor without clearing the screen, just PRINT CHR.
SPEED controls the delay between each character sent to the screen. It can be useful for special effects but should generally be avoided as it infuriates some experienced programmers, fast readers, or anxious game players. Don't try to guess how fast someone can read, fill up a screen and GET a keypress to move to the next screen. You can totally disable SPEED with:
- poke 12043,195:poke 12044,15:poke 12045,76
Note that these 3 POKEs must appear on the same line or BASIC will crash.
Before discussing INVERSE video, let's look at the way that BASIC handles the screen. There are 2 tables in VIDEO RAM which control characters. BASIC routinely alternates between these 2 tables regardless of the FLASH INVERSE and NORMAL settings. Normally, these 2 tables contain exactly the same thing ie. the characters to be displayed on the screen. If INVERSE is on, both tables are set to the inverse of the character being printed. When FLASH is on, one page has normal text, and the other page has reverse text. For those of you who may have experimented with direct writes to VRAM to place the characters on the screen, you may have already figured out that you must write the character in 2 places if you don't want to get funny results.
INVERSE and NORMAL complement each other. They affect the way that
characters are represented on the screen. INVERSE can be handy for
printing TITLES at the top of the screen. Note that INVERSE will print
regular characters in inverse video and inverse characters in normal
video:
10 REM inverse demo 20 PRINT CHR:REM this is an A 30 PRINT CHR$(65+128):rem this is an inverse A 40 INVERSE 50 PRINT CHR:REM this is an A 60 PRINT CHR$(65+128):rem this is an inverse A 70 NORMAL
The foregoing program prints an A and an inverse A. It then calls the INVERSE command and does the same thing again. Note the difference.
FLASH is used for emphasis. Depending on the colour selection, it can be very hard on the eyes. For this reason, it should be used sparingly and for short periods. The following program illustrates a good combination of FLASH and INVERSE for emphasis:
10 a$=" HEADLINE ":REM your message here 20 HOME: FLASH: PRINT a$ 30 FOR w= 1 TO 1000: NEXT: REM wait a bit 40 HOME: INVERSE: PRINT a$ 50 NORMAL: PRINT "continue"\A
There is one strange thing you can do with FLASH. Try POKEing powers of 2 in address 17006 (16,32,64) or any other number for that matter.
TEXT is a powerful command. Besides being used to exit graphics modes, it can be used to clear or set certain other screen parameters. The routine jumps around a bit but essentially starts at 18453 (4815H) where it resets the cursor value and the BLANK SPACE value, sets the cursor to FLASH mode, and clears FLASH/INVERSE. It then jumps to 17406 (4296H) where the VPD is initialized. You can patch in your default TEXT attributes as follows:\L
17054 492E border colour 17060 42A4 background colour 17115 42DB normal character colour 17126 42E6 inverse colour 17164 430C character to fill the screen with 17175 4317 character to fill alternate screen with 17198 432E number of lines 17199 432F number of columns 17201 4331 home line number 17202 4332 home column number
Every time you give a TEXT command, it is reset to the values in the addresses shown above. Be sure these values are the ones you want to live with. To temporarily reset the margins, POKE the values you want in the following addresses; you can then reset using TEXT.
16993 4261 number of lines 16994 4262 number of columns 16995 4263 home line 16996 4264 home column 16956 423C left margin 16957 423D right margin 16958 423E top margin 16959 423F bottom margin
There are a few other interesting routines that you may like to experiment
with:
17275 (437BH) is the start of the GET CHARACTER sequence which flashes the cursor while waiting for a keypress. Address 17291 (438BH) contains the wait value between flashes.
18112 (46C0H) scrolls the screen up one line. You may call this routine directly to push text off the top of the screen.
7884 (1ECCH) contains the ASCII value of the character printed between COMMAS in PRINT statements.
Next time out, positioning the cursor on the screen.
Guy Cousineau 1059 Hindley Street OTTAWA Canada K2B 5L9
YOU WILL HAVE TO GUESS THE COMBINED WEIGHT of THe FOLLOWING GROUP of Adamites.
The FINAL & OFFICAL GROUP includes ONLY the following, whose COMBINED WEIGHT MUST BE GUESSED, in pounds, whole numbers only.
Date of Contest Start (FEB. l l990):
Al Fitzgerald (St.Louis AUG sysop) Adam System (Shipping weight of a complete Adam System). Bob Blair (AWAUG Sysop) Barry Wilson (St.Louis AUG, A.N.N.) Barry's Cat (who walks across his keyboard typing messages in code) BJ (Big John Lingrel) (AKRON BBS Sysop, hardware genius) Larry Overman (SOCA BBS sysop) (IEAUG) Tony Patterson (SOFTWORKS FACTORY) Rob Friedman (CIS Sysop--Compuserve) Ricki Gerlach (Voice of the Eagle BBS sysop, Gerlach Family Software) Sol Swift (SOFTWORKS FACTORY) Allan Neeley (Sysop & Editor of Adam Link of Utah) Warren Foster (of SOCA)'s three PLUS grandchildren (l is in the hangar I am told).TOTAL COMBINED WEIGHT OF THE ABOVE IN POUNDS, WHOLE NUMBERS.
The person coming closest to the COMBINED weight in pounds, whole numbers final group is the winner. In case of ties, closest without going over weight wins. ONLY GUESSES WHICH YOUR LOCAL SYSOP, AUG, NEWSLETTER EDITOR GET TO A.N.N. WITHIN ten days after close of contest will count, SO BUG THEM TO GET THEM IN TIMELY.
The winner gets his choice of:
PIA2 (donated by BJ & AKRON BBS)OR
$20.00 Coupons for SOFTWORKS FACTORY products (donated by Softworks Factory).2nd Place gets remaining prize.
RICKI GERLACK of Gerlack Family Software & Voice of the Eagle BBS is offering an additional prize IF the winning guess was called into his BBS. Your choice of one of Happy Clips, Peeping Adam (Adult), German or Turkish software. CONTEST STARTS FEB. l l990 AND ENDS FEB. 28, l990.
EACH TIME YOU CALL AN ADAM BBS DURING FEB. l990 YOU MAY LEAVE A GUESS. MORE CALLS............ MORE GUESSES.....MORE CHANCE TO WIN.
WHEN YOU GO TO YOUR LOCAL AUG MEETING IN FEB. YOU MAY LEAVE A GUESS. (l guess per meeting attendee with a minimum of 20 guesses for the meeting. So if only l0 people show up, each would get two guesses, etc.).
EACH TIME YOU CONTACT YOUR LOCAL AUG NEWSLETTER EDITOR with a question, an answer, a short article you get l guess,for a long article 3 guesses, upto 5 guesses per person).
EACH TIME YOU SEND A.N.N. (% Barry Wilson) $l,000.00 CASH, small unmarked bills, you get another guess.
REMEMBER CONTEST STARTS FEB. l l990 AND ENDS FEB. 28, l990.
IF YOU LOCAL BBS, AUG, ETC. ARE NOT AWARE OF THE CONTEST FORCE THEM TO CONTACT A.N.N. (Barry Wilson) FOR INFORMATION.
SUPPORT THE ADAM........SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL BBS......LOCAL AUG.
NEW CONTEST BY A.N.N. [ADAM NEWS NETWORK]
INDEX to A.N.N. Game Reviews to 12/89. Also Index of the Game Review Disk from the A.N.N. Library.
Compiled by Dean Roades - 463 ADAM
File Name Issue Game Title Reviewer ----------------------------------------------------------- GAMETIPS H 07/89 Various SLAUG MYSTERY H 09/89 Mystery UNK DRAGON H 09/89 Dragonfire UNK DonkeyKong H 09/89 DonkeyKong UNK FACEMAKER H 09/89 Facemaker UNK WordFeud H 09/89 Word Feud UNK RobinHood H 09/89 Robin Hood UNK NOVABLAST H 09/89 NovaBlast UNK Artillery H 09/89 Artillery Duel UNK SpacePanic H 09/89 Space Panic UNK REV_BUMPNJ H 10/89 Bump N Jump Keith Jefferson SLAUG REV_CONTRO H 10/89 Super Action Controllers " " REV_SPYHUN H 10/89 Spy Hunter Keith Jefferson SLAUG REV_TAPPER H 10/89 Tapper Keith Jefferson SLAUG REV_DAMBUS H 10/89 Dam Busters Keith Jefferson SLAUG REV_STARTX H 10/89 Star Trek Keith Jefferson SLAUG REV_EXARC A 10/89 Excellent Arcade Jim Duffy SLAUG REV_ZAP_AD H 10/89 Zap ADAM Barry Wilson SLAUG REV_GROOV A 10/89 Groovy Graphics Jim Duffy SLAUG REV_ADDIC A 10/89 Addictus Jim Duffy SLAUG PINBALL H 11/89 Pinball Carol Tapia STORIES2 H 11/89 PSAN PD Carol Tapia TARZAN H 11/89 Tarzan Carol Tapia SQUISHEM H 11/89 Squish'em Carol Tapia ILLUSIONS H 11/89 Illusions Carol Tapia MONTEZUMA H 11/89 Montezuma Carol Tapia POPEYE H 11/89 Popeye Carol Tapia ExcelArcad H 12/89 Excellent Arcade Ron Mitchell AUFG GroovyGRAP H 12/89 Groovy Graphics Ron Mitchell AUFG SNOWMAN_SW H 12/89 Abominable Snowman Ron Mitchell AUFG
UNK = Unknown
Gleanings...
By Dave Sands.
This material originally appeared in the (October, 1989) ADAM's LEAF, newsletter of the Edmonton (Alberta,Canada) ADAM Users Group.
Gleanings is a column of items of interest to the general club membership drawn from the newsletter exchanges received by the Edmonton ADAM Users Group.
The exchange newsletters are bubbling with excitement this month on a variety of topics that all add up to real progress for the ADAM computer and its loyal fans.
ADAMCON 1, the first-ever ADAM users convention, took place October 7 to 11 in Orlando, Florida. The editor of one of our exchange newsletters, David Cobley of ADVISA, has accepted an offer to do a report for the LEAF on his impressions of ADAMCON from a Canadian's perspective. Look for it in the next LEAF. In addition, the Ottawa and Toronto clubs will both have members at the convention and their reports will be available through their newsletters which will, as always, be with the librarian. Advance reports on the event indicated that major new ADAM products would be announced.
Metro Toronto Adam Group (MTAG) has sent us the entire collection of the MTAG newsletter, and it is a gold mine of ADAM information for any member on practically any topic. This is a large club with many expert members, as I've said before, and there is too much to even list waiting for you. See the Librarians.
We also have back issues of other newsletters available: AUFG, AIM, Adam's Family, and current issues as well.
The ADAM News Network has been launched by Barry Wilson, of the St. Louis (Missouri, USA) Adam Users Group. and the E.A.U.G. and the LEAF will be invited to participate. Toronto and Ottawa are already in, and the possibilities for the rapid, comprehensive and accurate dissemination of news for and about the ADAM are enormous. I think it is the most positive thing that has happened for the ADAM this year.
Richard Clee, president of the MTAG club says Wilson realized it was the lack of real communication between ADAM clubs, owners and suppliers that lead to the "mild hysteria" that surrounded "the Sol Swift affair" --when one of the leading lights of ADAM software development dropped out of sight with his major and long promised new operating system, GO-DOS, apparently irretriveable-- and Wilson conceived a centralized news exchange for ADAM clubs and newsletters. The same system works perfectly every day for our daily papers, it's called Canadian Press, and it can work for the ADAM as well.
In other news from Clee and MTAG: Canadian ADAM hardware producer Syd Carter has created an ADAM format generator, which allows him to produce his 306K datapacks. Carter says a C-90 cassette can hold 395K, but there are two different ADAM datadrives, and one can't handle a C-90.
ADAM game fans who like strategy games --Temple of the Snow Dragon-- etc will be interested in Joseph Chen's article in MTAG. I liked his explanation of why you don't find strategy games in arcades, just the shoot-everything-that-moves kind: "Arcade owners want you to die so you or some other poor soul will keep the change box full."
Finally, one of MTAG's president's observations regarding our "obsolete" ADAM: "..since we were new, the (IBM) PC and XT and AT and (Apple) Lisa and all those newest and greatest ultimate microcomputers have burst upon the scene -- and also become obsolete."
Hard disk drives are now a reality for the ADAM. Writing about his, the ADAM User-Friendly Group (Ottawa) president, Ron Mitchell sums up the present state-of-the-art harddiskwise with this hard-won (ouch!) conclusion:
"My bottom line recommendation is neither black nor white. If you're a hobbyist CP/M user who can live with a few minor adjustments to the way you do business, then you'll not in the least regret buying this system. If you're chiefly an EOS (ADAM turn-on system; Editor) but aren't too hung up on pre-packaged software: ie you like doing your own programs and are willing to experiment a little, you too will enjoy working with the hard drive, and should seriously consider it over the addition of a second disk drive or so-called "big" memory expanader. You'll get a lot more for the extra $200 or so. Finally, if you're an EOS user who shudders at the mention of CP/M, and who depends exclusively on commerically available EOS software, especially that which requires a memory expander (64K or more), then you'd be better off to invest in the Megaram (E & T Software) or similar unit."
The AIM newsletter from Adam's House (Texas) has a great collection of tips on various ADAM problems in the current issue. ###
When I get a new package of goodies from an ADAM vendor, it's just like Christmas all over again! New toys! So join me, if you will, as we examine the contents of my latest package from NIAD (PO Box l3l7, Lisle, Il. 60532):
First there's MARKET MONITOR, the never-released Coleco program to keep track of your portfolio of stocks (and bonds?). It was developed in l986 by Coleco Canada Limited and is now in public domain ($4 disk or $6 Datapack from NIAD.) With MARKET MONITOR, you can maintain 50 buy-or-sell trans- actions on l5 securities.
In addition, it will compute your capital gains to help you with your income tax, and track prices automatically by modem link with Financial Post Data Service; or, you can look them up in the newspaper and enter them manually. The one shortcoming I found was that there was no documentation on my disk. I'm sure this was oversight, because a review in the NIAD newsletter, Nov. 89, page 6, states: "The manual has been typed into SmartWRITER for easier distribution and to avoid any extra charges for reproduction of the manual."
So I'm returning my disk and I'm sure our friend of ADAMCon 01, Jim Notini, will place it on there for me. It seems easy enough to run: pull reset, enter today's date, choose type of printer, get menu, etc. But if a doc is available, I want it. I need all the help I can get.
* * * * *
Next, another PD unreleased Coleco program, TAX PLANNER, also from Coleco Canada, l984 (also reviewed in NIAD, Nov. 89, p. 6.) Unlike MARKET MONITOR, I found TAX PLANNER to have more ReadmeDOCs than I wanted--not one, but three. Doc 1 gives the general instructions, but if you live in the U.S., you can cut your printer off after you complete the "Financial Modeling" section. Next comes Appendixes A thru F, all about Canadian tax provisions. This program was written by Canadians for Canadians.
And don't wear your printer out cranking out Docs 2 and 3 either. They're also Canadian. For our Canadian friends, this is a super program. And NIAD assures me that the program itself does perform admirably for the U.S. citizen as well. It doesn't figure your tax for you, but can answer a number of "what if" questions.
I haven't tried it yet. Would be interesting to get a review by MOAUG's own president, John Terry, who is a professional tax man. Or maybe John could rewrite docs with U.S. tax info. How about that, John? And NIAD's Notini also welcomes additions and revisions. * * * * * Then there's ADAM SUPPORT, a PD SmartFILER data base of vendors and user groups.
There are l80 entries, but a single source may be listed several times--once in each category such as software, hardware, repair, etc. A glance through the listings shows it to need updating. For example, Expandable Computer News is listed although it ceased publication some time back. And Sol Swift's Digital Express is still listed in Oak Hill, W. Va. (But then we've all had a little problem keeping track of Sol, haven't we?).
But you can update it easily enough and it's a handy way to keep all those addresses in order. An excellent addition to your data base library! (Note: My wife, Merlin, noticed that this bears a striking resemblence to the database developed by Hector Sanchez and distributed by the Saint Louis ADAM Users' Group. We got our copy from MOAUG. We are not absolutely sure that the two are identical.)
* * * * *
Next in the package is a copy of the NIAD PRODUCT REVIEW BOOK, (paper cover, 5 l/2x 8 l/2 inches, $l9.95) with reviews of l00 Adam products. A flip through this booklet tells me immediately that I'm in trouble. The print is so fine, cramped, and so light that my bifocaled eyes are going to be crossed after a few minutes of trying to read it. I finally hauled out the magnifying glass.
There's no index (and one would be helpful), but it's arranged alphabetically within sections on software, hardware and books. Well, almost. The tractor feed review somehow ended up in the book section. The book consists of reprints of product reviews from earlier issues of the NIAD newsletter. Therefore, it provides some very useful information on products released between l985 and June l987. But it hasn't been revised, and this is sorely needed. Important programs developed later, such as SpeedyWRITE, are not reviewed.
The book warns us that not all the products listed are available thru NIAD. But it doesn't tell us from whom they can be obtained or whether they're available at all. There's little point in studying a review of a product that's no longer available. The front cover lists it as "Book 1." So we'll look forward to Book 2, and hope that it will have a more user-friendly format.
Certainly the NIAD newsletter itself has a most attractive and easy-to-read format with its standard 8 l/2 x ll pages and crisp print. All that's needed is to simply use this same format for the book. Until then, I don't recommend this one.
HARRY DOES EXPRESS HIS APPRECIATION TO RICH LEFKO AND MOAUG.
THERE IS AN EXCELLENT REVIEW OF POWERTOOLS WHICH IS : THAT'S RICH column by Richard Lefko: "May the POWER be with you!" ...as printed in January, 1990 MOAUG newsletter
POWERTOOLS is a new utility available for our ADAM computer system. But you have never seen a utility program like this one (how could you if it is a new item; new means never seen before). POWERTOOLS is a utility for use with PowerPAINT by Digital Express. (You know Digital Express, the people who brought you GODOS, but now they are called The Softworks Factory or is it Z-DELTA SOFTWARE. I am not sure but they have almost as many names as BJ's various ventures have had. You need a score card to tell the players).
You must own PowerPAINT in order to use POWERTOOLS, this is because POWERTOOLS is a variety of graphic "tools" for use from within PowerPAINT. There are an incredible not l0, not 20, not even 30, you would pay more for only 40 files elsewhere but here you get 91 countem, yes I said 9l, not 89 nor 92 nor 90 but 91 files on the POWERTOOLS medium, including fonts, sprites, pixes, wood nymphs, brushes, clips, hair clips, bows, as well as full-screen graphics and the Christmas Tree Construction set. NOW I ASK IS THIS FAIR, NO IT IS DISCRIMINATORY. WHAT ABOUT OUR JEWISH ADAMITES, THERE SHOULD BE AN ALTERNATE SELECTION OF THE CHANNUKKA BUSH CONSTRUCTION SET. ALSO WHERE IS THE TURBIN CONSTRUCTION SET OR THE BUDDA IDOL CONSTRUCTION SET. THIS SHOULD BE REPORTED TO THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT. UNFAIR DISCRIMINATION HAS NO PLACE IN ADAMDOM. !!!!!!
Stand back and hold onto your hat as we see some of the most useful PowerPAINT tools you'll EVER own! (Short of having Pat Herrington or Tony Patterson who demo'd Power Paint at ADAMCON0l living with you as your personal paint advisor).
FONTS: There are three different font sets on the POWERTOOLS medium. Two of these are unique character sets, while the third, Detail.FNT, is ANYTHING but regular. Loading "Detail.fnt" is like filling your keyboard up with half-sized sprites, merely pressing different keys to use the various shapes, lines and shades.
SPRITES: The 17 sprite sets available give you over 500 different shapes and things with which to work! And as the A.N.N. combined weight contest will show, Adamites come in various different shapes. There are three alphabet-type sprite sets and 14 other sets consisting of things like Scroll, Ribbon, Hollowbox, Shadowbox, Rope, Footprints, Nudes, Semi-Nudes, Fully clothed, foolishly clothed, and my favorite, Arrows (bows & arrows, Indian arrows, arrows that point to the mens room, the ladies room, to exits, straight arrows, etc.). . Almost all of these sprite sets allow the user to "link" consenting and adult sprites together in all types of sick and perverted ways to form a multitude of various designs. The possibilities are endless, only limited by your own sick mind.
CLIPS: There are 55 clip art files, 39 of which are dedicated to "Gotham" clips which consists of large capital letters, numbers, and punctuation. These are great for making flyers and such. The remainder of the clip art files include demonstration examples of sprites and brushes and various pictures such as a pelican, left and right hands, other body parts which we cannot mention in polite society, and an excellent full color drawing of a gumball machine, not to mention many others. The problem with this is that YOU have to supply your own gumballs, talk about cheap, they could at least give you a couple of green gum balls and maybe a red along with the software.
BRUSHES: There are eleven brush sets, and these are easily the most powerful of your POWERTOOLS. There are "small" brushes (8x8 pixels) and "large" brushes (16x16 pixels.) There are three "airbrush" sets, as well as Pine, Seagulls, Laurel, TREETrimA, TREETrimB, and TinyTrim (for use with the Christmas tree. There are also two sets called "Speedball" which can give you all kinds of effects like calligraphy, "neon", or three-dimensional shadowboxes.
Finally, there is the Christmas Tree Construction set, which consists of various ornament sprites, and brushes. There is a full screen Christmas tree that you can decorate as well. NOTE This Christmas tree always stays fresh and looks like new, there is NO fire hazard with it, you do not have to replace each year and it stores on a disk, taking up little storage space or room. A GREAT IDEA !!! As with the rest of the package there are several ways in which to decorate your tree using the POWERTOOLS available. The ornament sprites and the TinyTrim brushes are literally delightful to look at and a pleasure to use. These, as well as any other sprites or clips, can be used to make great-looking labels, halloween masks,etc.
One of the best things about POWERTOOLS is the very thoughtfully done 14-page manual included. It not only explains in fine detail all of the included files, but it also gives INSTRUCTION on how to use the brushes, sprites, and other tools.
I've always felt that the Adultware Adult programs were ADAM were the best disks of software I'd ever bought for my ADAM, but now PowerTools makes me reconsider. (Naaaahaa, the Adult stuff still ranks high but for non-perverts I would think POWERTOOLS would be an absolute MUST. The folks at Eyezod Graphics should be VERY proud of their fine package of graphic tools! I can't wait for POWERTOOLS II, The Sequel or Son of POWERTOOLS, or the Return of POWERTOOLS, or the FURTHER ADVENTURES OF POWERTOOLS, or POWERTOOLS, THE BEGINNING, OR ............
If you own PowerPAINT by DEI then you simply MUST own POWERTOOLS by Eyezod Graphics! I can't think of a better way to put it! POWERTOOLS is simply awesome! POWERTOOLS is available from The Softworks Factory, or Reedy Software for $12.95 on disk or $14.95 on data pack.
IT IS ALSO AVAILABLE FROM PETER PIRATE FOR $ 6.99 BUT THEN YOU RISK THE CHANCE OF A FINE AND/OR JAIL SENTENCE AS WELL AS DRIVING MORE PROGRAMMERS OUT OF BUSINESS AND THE RESULTING LOSS TO ADAM.
YOU HEARD IT HERE FROM HARDNOSED HARRY. (who borrowed liberally from Rich Lefko's excellent article in MOAUG.
THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY
TIPS AND HINTS ON SOLVING THIS INFOCOM GAME BY
KEITH JEFFERSON of the St.Louis AUG.
Earth, Vogons, Babel FishPut your "DON'T PANIC!" button on your gown, grab your towel and get ready to don those peril sensitive sunglasses because you're about to go on one of the strangest adventures from Infocom to date: THE HITCHHIKER'S G UIDE TO THE GALAXY! You wake up and notice everything is dark...have you gone blind? No, just turn on the lights. Oooh, your aching head! Yourealize you must'v e had just one drink too many at the party last night. Time to get out of be d. Stand up, get
your gown and put it on. As you do, you notice something in your pocket. All this activity isn't helping your hangover any, so look in your pocket. Ah, an analgesic! Take the analgesic. Feeling better? Good! Now get the screwdriver andthe toothbrush. Oh! What was that noise? What's that big, yellow bulldozer doinamout there? Better go outside and find out! Go south to your front porch, collect your mail, and south to your front yard.
The big, yellow bulldozer is heading straight for you! And this lunatic is shouting at you to get the hell out of the way! Don't Panic! Humanity hasn't gone completely insane, just lie down in front of the bulldozer. The driver (who's getting Union Scale wages) doesn't mind this minor inconvenience and stops the 'dozer within inches of you!
As Prosser madly waves his arms about and shouts at you, you see your friend, Ford Prefect, hurrying toward you. Now what does he want? Oh, he's come to return the towel he borrowed from you. Nope, don't take it. As Ford insists on returning the towel, you tell him about your house and Prosser's intentions. Ford, who was about ready to leave the Earth (which is being demolished to make way for a new Hyperspace Bypass), decides, insanely, to take you with him! But seeing that you're not about to budge until your house's future has been assured, goes to Prosser, gesticulates toward you and the bulldozer, and convinces Prosser to take your place in the mud. What a friend! The bulldozer driver, in the meantime, sits calmly and dreams of overtime.
After you've regained your feet, take the towel from Ford and go south and westwith Ford into the Pub. Buy a cheese sandwich from the barman, drink the three beers Ford has given you, and listen as he explains what's about to happen to
the Earth. Somehow, the situation regarding your house keeps creeping back into your mind, and Ford's words make little sense to you. All of a sudden, you hear a crashing sound that can only be the death throes of your poor house being demolished! Get up and go east.
A small dog comes yapping up to you. It's obvious the poor thing hasn't eaten in several days. The humanitarian within you surfaces. Give the cheese sandwich to the dog. The poor, ravenous thing is in puppy heaven! As it devours the meal you've provided, it completely ignores a microscopic space fleet that just happens to be passing by at the moment! No time to wonder about this miracle, though. Go north and wait. Now look! Overhead, you see huge yellow machinery that amazingly resembles monstrously oversized bulldozers! Good God! What's happening? Suddenly, gale-force winds blow across the landscape, whipping trees around! Ford appears by your side and is fumbling around with a strange looking device! The thing your Aunt gave you tumbles away, but the wind is blowing so hard you can't get it!
Ford drops the device and it lands at your feet. He seems to be trying to tell you something, but the wind carries his words away! Pick up the device and examine it. You see red and green lights and note that it's curiously shaped. Itappears to be shaped like a hitchhiker's thumb! Quickly push the green button and everything goes.... Dark. You will find yourself spending a lot of time in the dark in this game, so get used to the series of events you have to follow in order to see where youare. Do "looks" (which takes fewer moves than "waits"). Each "DARK" sequence takes 4 looks until you regain one of your missing senses. When you recover thatsense, perform it. If you can see, type "SEE". If you can hear, type "LISTEN". If you can smell, type "SMELL". If you can feel, type "FEEL". If you can taste, type "TASTE". Right now, though, your 4 LOOKS will tell you that you have regained your sense of smell.
Smell the shadowy figure and then look at the figure. Ah, it's Ford and you find that the Sub-Etha Signalling Device has landed you a ride on one of the Vogon Construction Ships! Ford hands you some peanuts to replace the energy you lost during the hitchhiking transfer. Eat the peanuts then look around you. Whata disgusting place this is! But there are a few interesting items here which youwill explore as soon as Ford decides to take his nap. Before he does, he hands you an odd contraption and tells you it's THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY and that it contains all sorts of useful information. After Ford nods off, remove your gown and hang it on the hook, cover the drain with your towel, get Ford's satchel and put it in front of the panel and put your junk mail on top ofthe satchel. I've had you do this correctly so that you can get the Babel Fish the first time. You might want to save your game and try getting the Babel Fish without putting the junk mail on the satchel, just so you can see what happens. Now, examine the dispensing machine and consult the Guide about Babel Fish.
You learn that Babel Fish, when placed firmly in one's ear, are universal translating devices! Flip the switch on the glass case that's housing the Plotter. Strange words issue forth, but it's all garbled and you can't understand one syllable of it! Better get a Babel Fish pretty soon! Push the button on the dispensing machine and watch the circus! As the Babel Fish comes flying out of the chute, a tiny cleaning robot comes skittering across the room.The Babel Fish hits the gown, slides down the sleeve and lands on the towel (which is covering the drain). The little robot grabs the Babel Fish and goes tearing across the room toward its service panel. Just as it gets there, it smacks into Ford's satchel and loses its grip on the Babel Fish! The Babel Fish and the junk mail go flying up into the air where an upper-half-of-the-roomcleaning robot is frantically gathering up the junk mail! So intent is it upon the mail that the Babel Fish falls and lands in your ear! SQUISH! Who said junk mail was useless!
Now, flip the switch on the glass case again. It will tell you how to open the case so that you can get the Sub-Atomic Plotter. Poetry? Ah well, worse things could happen. Write down which word of the poetry you'll have to type in becauseit changes from game to game; and if you type in the wrong word, you'll blow yourself to teensy little bits! Get your robe and the towel. Ford will get his satchel. Put your gown back on and put everything you're carrying into the Thingyour Aunt gave you (yes, it came back...it will ALWAYS come back to you, no matter how many times you try to lose it!) and put the Thing in your robe pocket. By now, you should be hearing warnings about hitchhikers coming over theintercom system. Just wait until the guards come for you.
Eventually, the Vogons will find you and take you to the Vogon Captain, who is a cruel cuss! He'll subject you to his poetry, but don't panic! Just sit back, relax and enjoy it. Literally! Enjoy the Poetry. So gratified is the Captain by your enjoyment, that he decides to read you the second verse! Now listen carefully, and when he reads the word the glass case told you about, write it down. He appears impressed that you've been able to withstand his poetry; and instead of killing you and Ford outright, he decides to "space" you! Argh! This is better than death? You betcha!
Pretty soon, you're going to type something in wrong along the way. Your typingerror has been noted, and sometime soon, you'll get the results of your foolish error! It seems that those erroneous words have started some sort of space war that has destroyed an entire world! The remaining members of that doomed civilization are not happy about it either, and they're out gunning for you!
When you're returned to the hold, type the word from the poetry on the keyboardof the case. The case opens and the plotter is yours! Take the plotter. (If yourload is too heavy, put everything you're carrying into the Thing and put the Thing in your pocket.) Ford tries to talk the guard into letting you both go free, but the guard will have none of that and throws you and Ford into the Airlock. Ford sits pondering your respective fates and comes up with an equationabout the probability of being picked up by another ship in the vicinity. Unfortunately, the odds aren't too good and as you and Ford are unceremoniously sucked out into space, the Guide bleeps to life and says that you can hyperventilate in space for 29 seconds before you explode! Ugh! Just as you reach your 29 second limit, you're picked up by a passing ship and find yourselfin the....
Dark! Talk about miracles! Go through the "LOOK" routine and eventually you regain your sense of hearing. LISTEN. You hear a sound to port, but as you try to go port, you find that the program is lying to you! Instead go south. Aha! You find yourself on the Heart of Gold (HOG)! Ignore the brochure, it's not important, and letFord lead you to the Bridge. When you get there, you see two strangers (who begin to look familiar). Hmmm, Trillian and that two-headed guy with her were at that party last night! They greet Ford and eventually all threeof them head port, leaving you quite alone. Get the pincers, the Pocket Fluff from your gown's pocket, the handbag and put them in the Thing. Drop the plotterand the Sub-Etha Signalling Device and go down and aft three times.
As you try to go aft the third time, the program asks you if you really want togo in there. Tell it YES. It asks if you're serious! Tell it YES again! The program will decide you really didn't mean it and take you fore. Go aft twice. The program will ask you if you want to reconsider. Tell it NO. Be persistant and eventually, you will be allowed to enter the doorway. As if not letting you enter wasn't enough, now the program will tell you there's really nothing here to see. Again, it's lying, so look two times. Aha! There's a rasp, pliers and a Spare Improbability Drive here! Get the rasp and pliers, put them in the Thing, put the Thing in your pocket and get the Drive.
Eventually, you'll meet Marvin, the Paranoid Android. He'll depress the heck out of you, but there's nothing you can do about that. He wanders in and out, but just ignore him for now. His use will be made known at the end of the game.
Now go fore twice and port to the Galley. Look in the carton, get the gun and put the gun in the Thing. Now for some Brownian Motion (consult the Guide about this). Touch the pad and the machine whirrs a few seconds, then shoots a cup of Alternate Tea Substitute into the chute. Take the cup, go starboard and up to the Bridge. Drop the Drive and the Cup of Tea Substitute. Let's get this contraption going!
Put the small plug in the small receptacle and put the long dangly bit in the Tea Substitute. You're all set to begin some pretty far-out experiences! Since flipping the switch on the Plotter will take you to five random scenarios, they will be explained in separate sections of this walkthru. You may find yourself visiting one of the scenarios a second time, but you won't be able to do anything in them. You're automatically taken back to the dark and there's nothing to do but run through your "LOOK" routine. So flip the switch and you find yourself in the....
Dark. Do the "LOOK" routine until you find your sense of hearing then LISTEN. It seems you've been returned to the HOG because you hear a sound to port. Again, the program's lying, so go aft instead. Hey...this isn't the HOG! You seean awl laying here, so get the awl and put it in the Thing. Wait a minute...Who are these guys? They seem to be in deep conversation. Listen to their conversation. Uh-oh, YOU seem to the be the topic of discussion! Seems like thatsmall galaxy you wiped out with your careless typing has finally figured out what happened and is speeding toward Earth to do likewise! Just as the Vl'hurgs and G'guvunts arrive, they spy a huge dog tearing into a cheese sandwich! As thefleet gets closer, the dog ignores it and finishes its meal. The obvious happiness of the dog is not lost on the aliens and with softened hearts, they head toward home, forgiving (and depositing you) along the way. But WHERE are you? You seem to have materialized inside your own brain! The confusion in here is obvious because no matter where you go, you can't get anywhere. Just keep ploughing along (it doesn't matter which way you go, all directions are the same) until you find a dark particle. Examining it reveals it to be your Common Sense! Take your common sense and suddenly you find yourself in the....
Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of hearing, then LISTEN and go aft twice and up to the Bridge. Make sure that the Awl is safely tucked in the Thing. Flip the switch. As you do so, you find yourself in the....
Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of sight then SEE. A bright light is shining in your eyes. Look at the light and you find yourself looking at an alien sun! But IS it really? Type "WHO AM I" and you see that you're no longer Arthur Dent, but Zaphod Beeblebrox, President of the Universe! And you also discover that you're sitting in a speedboat which is currently heading toward some mighty rough looking rocks! Quickly steer the boat toward the spires. Now then, while you're waiting to arrive, look under the seat and get the key and the seat cushion fluff. Also take the tool box. Now, just wait until you get to the...wait a second! Those spires are getting closer and closer and the boat doesn't appear to be slowing down any! Just in the nick of time, the auto-pilot activates itself and brings you safely to shore! Stand up and get out of the boat.
As you step to the Dais, a wildly cheering crowd greets you! Fools! Don't they realize you're not here to dedicated the Heart of Gold, but to steal it? Ha! Wait until Trillian shows up and starts the charade. As she grabs you around your neck, rifle-brandishing guards rush onto the scene! As calmly as you can, tell the guards to drop their rifles. Trillian may hiss nasty remarks about yourineptitude in your ear, but ignore her. Now then, to complete your plan, tell Trillian to shoot the rifles that the guards have dropped! The crowd, deeply impressed, cheers wildly! Don't take time to take any bows, though, just head east and you find yourself in the....
Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of hearing, then head aft twice and down. Here you find the tool box, key, and seat cushion fluff. Unlock the tool box with the key. Inside you find a magnifying glass and a wrench. Put these twotools, the key, and the seat cushion fluff in the thing. Go up, fore and up to the Bridge. Flip the switch and you find yourself in the....
Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of smell, then SMELL. Ugh! What a repulsive odor that shadow has! Look at the shadow and you find yourself face toface with the stupidest creature in the Universe: The dreaded Bugblatter Beast of Traal! (Consult the Guide for further information about its stupidity.) As itroars toward you, it demands to know your name! Tell it that your name is DENT, then beat feet east! No time to linger! Get the stones you see here and then putyour towel over your head. The Beast is so incredibly dense, it believes that ifyou can't see it, it can't see you! While it's trying to remember where you are,take this opportunity to add your name to the memorial that has the names of allthe poor souls who've been unfortunate enough to have been invited for dinner bythe Beast. After carving your name on the memorial, the Beast (still living up to its reputation) looks at the memorial; and seeing your name carved there, decides that it must've eaten you already and curls up in its lair for a post-dinner snooze!
Remove your towel from your head and go back west and southwest to the Beast's Inner Lair. Reposing here, in eternal rest, is an alien skeleton clutching a Nutrimat Interface in its hand! Get the Interface and wait. Suddenly you find yourself captured and placed in a cage in a zoo! Amazingly, you've been mistakenfor the Bugblatter Beast! The nerve! Eventually, the zoo's error is duly discovered and you're released. Unfortunately, instead of being returned to the HOG, you've been given work as a paint scraper! After several months of experience, you are allowed to leave your job and take with you the tool of yourtrade...a paint chipper! Suddenly your surroundings shift and you find yourself in the.... Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of hearing, then LISTEN and go aft twice and port to the Galley. Open the Nutrimat panel, remove the circuit board and put the Interface in the panel. Close the panel and go starboard and up to the bridge. Put the chipper in the Thing, flip the switch and you find yourself in the....
Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of feeling, then FEEL. Odd, you seem to have your hand in some sort of liquid. Taste the liquid and you take a sip ofa nice white wine. It seems you're at a party! "WHO AM I" reveals that you're Tril to the Nutrimat and get another cup of tea!
Touch the pad on the Nutrimat. As it whirrs to life, it gets completely confused regarding what it is you want and asks Eddie, the ship's computer, to lend it a hand. Eddie, in the meantime, has issued a warning that he's becoming overloaded with instructions and starts to panic! All around you, you hear shouts of anger, fear, hostility! Don't wait around for your tea, though! Go starboard and back up to the Bridge. When you arrive, you see that the HOG has, indeed, reached Magrathea! But the planet's inhabitants aren't to thrilled with this supposed invasion. Out the viewing screen, you see hundreds upon hundreds of missiles headed toward the HOG! No wonder everyone's panicking! Put the large
plug in the large receptacle and flip the switch! As you watch the viewing screen in horror, you see the missiles turn into giant, harmless sperm whales! Ford, Trillian and Zaphod congratulate you on your fast thinking and return to their sauna, leaving you alone once more. (Whew...that was a CLOSE call!) Go down and port back to the Galley. Sitting in the chute is a cup of Real Tea!Obviously the previous circuit board didn't know the molecular structure of realtea and the new Interface did! Get the real tea. As you pick it up, you find you've dropped no tea. Get No Tea. Wow...this is truly amazing! Well, no time towonder about this for long, so go starboard and back up to the Bridge. Remove the long dangly bit from the tea substitute and drop your real tea. Put the longdangly bit in the real tea, drop everything except the Babel Fish and the Thing and flip the switch. Strangely, you find yourself in the....
Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of touch, then FEEL. Your hand seems to be in some sort of liquid. Taste the liquid. UGH! It tastes like Whale Juice!My God! You're in the tummy of a giant Sperm Whale! Sitting here is a flowerpot.Get the pot, put it in the Thing and keep trying to go north until you find yourself back in the....
Dark. "LOOK" until you regain your sense of hearing, then LISTEN and go aft twice and up to the Bridge. By now you should have all four fluffs. Plant the fluffs, one at a time, in the pot. Wait until the fluffs start to sprout and yousee a tiny stem in the pot. (Consult the Guide about Fluffs and required growingconditions.) Hmmmm, warmth and moisture? That steam coming from port might just do the trick! Go port. In a couple of hours, you emerge a changed man with a changed plant! Examine the plant and you see it has, indeed, had a fit of furious growth! It has also produced a fruit! Take the fruit and eat it.
In addition to the wonderful flavor of the fruit, you find yourself having a dream about Marvin, the broken Hatch Mechanism and Marvin asking you to hand hima tool. Remember that tool (it changes from game to game). As your dream fades, drop everything except the Babel Fish. If you find that you haven't got the toolthat the dream told you about, Don't Panic! You'll find it in Marvin's Pantry (which is behind the Screening Door). If you do have it, though, get the required tool, the Real Tea (and pick up your No Tea!), and go up and aft to theScreening Door. If you fooled with trying to open this door at the beginning of the game, you know that it needs proof of your intelligence before it will allowyou to open it. What better proof than the fact that you're carrying Tea and No Tea at the sametime!? Open the door. In your encounters with Marvin you have felt his waves of depression pouring over you whenever he enters the room. Well, right through this door is the absolute soul of his depression! Better drink something to calmyou before you enter here, so drink the Real Tea! Your quest for Real Tea was not wasted. The tea is the most calming, wonderful substance you've ever tasted!Go port through the door.
If you didn't have the required tool, you should see it here. Also here is Marvin, moross and despondent as usual. Tell Marvin to fix the Hatch. He'll grumble about nagging humans, but will tell you to meet him in the Hatch Mechanism Access in 12 turns. After he leaves (and you're sure you have the required tool), go starboard and down. Drop everything you're carrying except the Babel Fish and the required tool and go starboard again. After waiting awhile, Marvin will stalk into the room and look at the Mechanism. When he asks you to hand him the tool, do so. In short order, he repairs the Hatch Mechanism and leaves. Go port, open the Hatch and go down.
Timidly, you step down the steps. Eddie says something about humans who go out into strange environments without any clothing; but Zaphod, Trillian and Ford all urge your forward! As you plant your first step on the hitherto legendary planet of Magrathea, you wonder what fate awaits you! You'll have to wait to find out...in the sequel, perhaps? THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY is copyrighted 1984 by Infocom, Inc.
We appreciate the time and effort JEFF SYLVA has taken to prepare these "Home-Made" game Docs.
DRAGONFIRE
Dragons have driven the Royal Court from the castle! Without his vast treasures, the king cannot raise an army to defeat the scaly, fire-breathing invaders. His kingdom is ruled by lizards. Yet the young prince knows the castle's many bridges and storerooms better than anyone throughout the kingdom. He plots to loot the dragons of their plunder and regain the palace. "Brave boy," trembles his father, the king, as the prince leaves for the ramparts. "Please, I beg, for the sake of those who love you. Beware the dreaded Dragonfire!"
TO PLAY
When controller symbol appears select number of players, 1 or 2. When castle symbol appears, select skill level, 0 is easiest, while 9 is hardest.
When your seven lives are gone, game is over. Push reset button or fire button to start over.
STATUS ROW
Located at top of screen. From left to right it indicates: Bridge Screen, Level-Lives-Player-Score. Treasure Room Screen:Level-Score-Lives.
ON THE BRIDGE
Guide prince across from left to right by leaning controller in direction you want to run. Pull on controller knob to duck fireballs and press button on controller to jump over fireballs. Jump from a Crouching position by pulling down on controller and pressing button at same time.
The prince is safe from fireballs in doorway at right of bridge. Levels 3-5:Red section of bridge opens and closes. Prince must leap gap. Levels 6-8: Prince must dodge the Archer's arrows. Level 9: Beware arrows and the open bridge.
INSIDE THE CASTLE
In the storeroom, the prince is safe inside doorway at right side only. When certain of his course, he must collect every treasure, dodging the dragons fireballs. When all treasures are collected, escape thru door at far left corner. After escaping, prince reappears at the bridge ready for another raid.
If two are playing, a turn ends when the prince escapes. At levels 3-5, a magic troll appears. Beware him! He is the lizard's servant. If he touches the prince with his sword, he loses a life. But if the prince touches him, the troll is vanquished.
At level 6 and above, when the prince snatches a treasure, an arrow is fired at him. Beware these archers. They too are the lizard's servants!!
SCORING
Recover a treasure..100,200, or 300 Vanquish a troll....1000 Have Fun!!
We appreciate the time and effort JEFF SYLVA has taken to prepare these "Home-Made" game Docs.
MOONSWEEPER
U.S.S. Moonsweeper-Alert! Reach and rescue miners stranded on moons in the four galaxies of Quadrant Jupiter. Warning! Proceed with extreme caution. Deadly meteor showers, comets, alien vessels and space debris in the Quadrant are at lethal levels. Destroy them or take evasive action then land on all the moons in as many of the galxies as you can reach. Avoid colliding with lunar landmarks. Unidentified Orbital launchers patrol moons and send armed Surface Destroyers to the lunar surface. Survive at all costs, or the miners won't make it!
GAME OBJECTIVES
Pilot your ship to all the moons in each of the four galaxies of the Quadrant Jupiter. Avoid or destroy meteors, comets, alien ships, and space junk. Land on a moon as it passes. Rescue Five miners from each moon. Avoid towers, alien Surface Destroyers, and the missles they fire.
While skimming the moons surface, shoot towers, Destroyers, Ships and Lunar Satellites. When youve picked up five miners, fly thru accelerator rings to blast off into outer space. Then reach another moon or move to another galaxy and reach miners on those moons.
Moonsweeper is a One Player Only game
Use either controller. To fire, use either side button. When game is over, move controller stick or push fire button to restart game.
SELECTING A GALAXY
The higher the galaxy number you select the more likely you are to encounter more challenging moons. Once in a galaxy you must rescue five miners from each moon in that galaxy before you can go to another galaxy.
Consult your instrument panel for the number of moons you must reach before completing that galaxy. Once youve made a selection your ship appears in that galaxy.
PLANET SELECTION
To land touch a moon as it passes. Moon color indicates rescue difficulty. Blue-Easy, many miners. Green-less easy, fewer miners and more Surface Destroyers. Yellow-More difficult, scattered miners and more agressive Destroyers. Red-Most difficult. Good luck! Your instrument panel shows from the left, Velocity, speed at which your ship travels.
Bank Indicator-Shows angle of your moves. Remaining Moons-moons you still have to reach in this galaxy. Radar-Shows where next miner will appear. Reserve Ships-Shows how many more collisons you can stand. You begin with five, when the last ship is destroyed game is over.
Miners Rescued-Shows how many miners youve picked up on the current moon. Fuel-Your ship begins each Universe with a full tank. Each time you complete a moon you get 1/3 tank more fuel. If fuel runs out, your ship explodes and lose one ship.
FORCEFIELD-While in orbit you can protect your ship by activating the force field, by pulling back on the control stick. But be careful, use it sparingly as it drains fuel rapidly. Pick up miners on the moon by touching them.
ACCELERATOR RINGS-You must fly thru five rings to get up enough speed to escape the moons gravity. If you miss one or two wait for the next series of five...The number of rings you need to fly thru varies depending on your speed, but 5-6 rings usually gives you enough momentum to escape.
SCORING
50 points for each comet, meteor or debris destroyed.
On moons
100 points for each miner you pick up.
Destroy:
Towers-50 points
Surface Destroyers-100
Orbital Launchers-200
Satellites-200
Take off from a planet and earn points...
Blue-100
Green-200
Yellow-300
Red-400
BONUS POINTS
Complete rescue operationson all the moons in a universe and receive as a bonus the number of points corresponding to that Universe-For example complete Universe 1000 and get 1000 bonus points.
Have Fun!!
We appreciate the time and effort JEFF SYLVA has taken to prepare these "Home-Made" game Docs.
STAR TREK: Strategic Operations Simulator
Enterprise Battle Manual
Do you have what it takes to be a Starship commander? Captain the starship Enterprise through some of the most dangerous sectors of the galaxy and find out!! Welcom aboard Captain!! Captain the Starship Enterprise through embattled sectors of Federation space. The defense of this part of the galaxy lies squarely on your shoulders. Starfleet Command wants you to be on guard against marauding Klingon raiders and the rogue space-probe NOMAD!!
Fire your Phasers and Photon Torpedoes to defend your ship and Federation Starbases. Do your best to avoid tangling with the warp-draining anti-matter drone that coldly and mindlessly shadows your every maneuver!! Dock at starbases to repower your Shields, Photon Torpedoes and Warp Drive.
It will take all your skill to navigate through NOMADS web of space-mines! Be careful-don't detonate a mine or you could lose the Enterprise. Then when you have a clear shot, fire a searing Phaser blast to rid the galaxy of NOMAD!
For One or Two Player, Select from Four Skill Levels Instant Pause feature
Use regular or Super Action Controllers. Like most Coleco games, skill levels 1 and 2 are easier, level 3 is arcade level, and level 4 is harder than an arcade game.
* key is the pause button. Push again to restart game from wher eyou left off.
Control Stick (standard) Control Stick right to make Enterprise rotate closckwise. Control Stick Left makes the Enterprise rotate counter-clockwise.Press control stick up(away from you) to make the Enterprise thrust forward on Impulse Power.
Press control stick down(toward you) to make the Enterprise engage her Warp Engines.
Press control stick in any of the four diagonal directions, left-up, right-up, right-down, or left-down to make your ship perform a combination of moves. For example, if you press the stick left-up, your ship thrusts and rotates counter-clockwise at the same time. SIDE BUTTONS-Press the left to make the Enterprise fire one Photon Torpedo in the direction she is facing. Press the right button to make her fire a Phaser Blast in the direction she is facing.
(Super Action Controllers, the stick moved left or right rotates the ship. Up and down has no effect because you use the four fire buttons for these moves.)
On the Super action controllers, The Yellow button fires a phaser blast, The orange button is Impulse thrust, the Purple button is Warp Speed, the blue button is one photon torpedo blast. You can press more than one super actions button at the same time for more complex moves.
THE SCREEN
Your ship is fitted with a viewscreen that will give you a close-up view and an overall view of combat action and an insstant readout of the status of your Shields, Photons, and Warp. Damage to the Enterprise is shown by removal of segments of these indicators.
STARSHIP WEAPONRY
Fire your Phasers to defend your ship and attack enemies. Conserve your Photons, firing only to eliminate more than one enemy with each shot. Only Phasers are effective against NOMAD! Monitor your shield indicator-your shields will protect the Enterprise from damage! Damage to the Enterprise The Enterpirse can bye damaged by blasts from Klinon phasers or by collisons with White Klingon ships or space mines. Damage affects the shields first. WHen all the segments of the Shield Indicator are gone from the screen, then Photons get damaged. When the Photon Indicator is gone, you next lose warp drive. When all indicators are gone, then the Enterprise itself is in jeopardy. If you take any more damage, the Enterprise is destroyed and the simulation is over!(Remember you can repower by docking with a Working or Under Attack Starbase.)
STARBASE UNDER ATTACK
The Enterprise receives a distress call from a starbase in Subsector 1.1. The starbase reports heavy attacks from Red Klingon Starships. Purple Klingon Starships wait in battle formation around the starbase-ready to attack the Enterprise!
DEFENDING THE STARBASE
The Enterprise is the only starship in the quadrant. Use your Phasers to blast away at the Klingons. Keep an eye of their colors...WHen the purple ships change to white or the red ships to purple, they become more dangerous. White ships will attempt to ram the Enterprise, and you must dodge and fire to win.
STARBASE ALERT
The color of a Starbase indicates its status. A green starbase is a working base-If a starbase flashes red and green that means it is under attack. A Blue Alert starbase is depleted-power has been drained by docking. A Red Alert Starbase is in danger of immediate destruction and it flashes red and blue!
DOCKING
Your ship can dock at a starbase that is either working or under attack. To dock, move the Enterprise into contact with the Starbase. All screen movement will then stop while the Enterprise Repowers. Try to avoid docking-Youll lose bonus points with Starfleet Command if you do.
KLINGONS SECRES WEAPON
This is a warp power draining Antimatter Drone. Avoid contact with it.
NOMAD
Nomad, every few screens will try to trap you in his mines. Be careful, and use only your Phaser against him.
STRATEGY HINTS FROM STARFLEET COMMAND
Avoid Collision with Klingons or mines. They do twice as much damage to the Enterprise as does a Phaser hit. Conserve your Photons. Dock at a Starbase only when Neccesary. Take no chances with NOMAD. Fire only when you have a clear shot at him to avoid hitting nearby space mines.
Try to eliminate RED Klingons as soon as possible
SCORING
50 points for each Klingon destroyed Antimatter Done...5,000 points NOMAD.....15,000 NOMAD....30,000 points if you eliminate him before he plants all the space mines.
Also earn a bonus of 25 points times the number of subsectors completed for every Red Puprple or White Klingon you eliminate up to a max of 450 points each.
Starbases Saved Working-1000 Under Attack..1000 Condition Blue...250 Condition Red...250 points You earn a bonus of 1000 points plus 1000 points times the number of subsectors completed for every working or under attack starbase.
You earn one shield segment on the shield indicator, one Photon Torpedo segment on the Photon Indicator and 1/4 of a warp drive indicator for every 20,000 points you score.
Have Fun!!
We appreciate the time and effort JEFF SYLVA has taken to prepare these "Home-Made" game Docs.
WING WAR
Countless ages before humans walked the earth, great flying dragons fought to survive. The uncharted world was filled with their natural enemies. But the dragons had to go on danger-filled adventures, driven by irresistable primal need. Outside the safety of their underground den were the crystal elements of fire, air and water, sources of power and longer life. All these crystals gathered together created Super Crystals, with enough power to win the ultimate prize:the Diamond Treasure!!(Though why primitive lizard reptilian creatures like the dragons would prize diamond treasures is beyond me. After all, how many snakes or alligators do you know who collect jewelry, HMMM???)
GAME OBJECTIVE
Hunt and destroy natural enemies to score points and create valuable crystals. Gather Fire, Air and Water Crystals to gain more power and defensive strenth. Be sure to keep Fire and Water crystals apart or they cancel each other out.
Create Super Crystals by gathering all three elements. Then make a daring raid through the secret passage to capture a sparkling diamond. Find and bring back Dragon eggs to win extra lives.
CONTROLS
To Fly Press right side button to flap the Dragon's wings and gain altitude(each time you press the button the wings flap once)
The Dragon descends (drops like a stone in fact) when you don't flap his wings.(He even bounces when he hits the ground, wierd but funny) Move wheel down to descend faster. Move wheel left or right to set the Dragon's direction.
To throw fireballs push left side button. To pick up Crystals and Eggs: Move wheel up while the dragon's feet touch a crystal or an egg.
To Drop Crystals and Eggs: The Dragon releases them automatically when it reaches the den.
GAME PLAY
On the bottom of the game screen, from the left, indicators show you captured crystals, once youve brought them to your den, eggs in your den, each of which means an extra life, Your score, Your remaining fireballs, and your remaining strength.
Fly your Dragon to the outside world to get eggs and crystals. Flap it's wings and find your way out of the Den. On it's quest, the Dragon meets many kinds of enemies.... Destroy them with fireballs to score points. Most enemies turn into crystals when they're destroyed. When all fireballs are gone, the Dragon has no way to destroy it's enemies. Every contact with an enemy makes the Dragon lose some strength. When all the Dragon's strength is gone, the next enemy contact kills the Dragon, and he turns black, flips over and dies.
Each newly born Dragon has at least ten fireballs and enough strength to survive ten contacts with its enemies.
THE DRAGONS ENEMIES
Spider takes 1 Fireball to kill and turns into nothing and scores 75 points. Bat takes 1 fireball to kill and turns into an air crystal for 75 points. Bird take 1 fireball to kill and turns into an air crystal for 75 points. Bee Swarm takes 1 fireball to kill and turns into an air crystal for 75 points. Stalactite Cant be killed, get out of the way!! Griffin takes 1 fireball to kill and turns into a water crystal for 100 points. Roper(not a character in Threes Company) takes 2 or more fireballs to kill and turns into a fire crystal for 100 points.
Beehive takes 2 or more fireballs to kill and turns into a fire crystal for 100 points Fire Demon take 2 or more fireballs to kill and turns into a fire crystal for 200 points
Dragonfly takes 2 or more fireballs to kill and turns into a water crystal for 200 points Hydra takes 2 or more fireballs to kill and turns into a water crystal for 200 points.
Rock Demon takes six fireballs to kill and turns into nothing for 500 points
CRYSTALS: THE VITAL ELEMENTS
During your Dragon's adventures you will find three kinds of crystals. Pick them up and bring them back to the Den and the Dragon becomes stronger. To pick up a crystal, make the dragon touch it and push up on the wheel. If any enemy touches the Dragon while it's carrying a crystal, the crystal will fall.
If the Dragon reaches the top of the sky or flies into anything, the crystal will also fall.
To create a Super Crystal bring a fire, air and water crystal back to the den. IMPORTANT!!If fire and water are brought to the den, they will destroy each other unless you keep them apart with an air crystal. Get crystals in either of these sequences...Fire, Air, Water, or Water, Air, Fire..
FIRE-These burning embers come mostly from the volcano. They are also created when the Dragon kills certain enemies(see earlier list). When fire crystals first erupt from the volcano they are yellow and too hot to touch. If you touch a yellow fire crystal, your Dragon loses a life. Wait until fire crystals turn red.
Fire crystals brought back to the den give the Dragon more Fireballs, up to 99.
AIR: These crystals are nearly transparent and float down thru the sky. They are also created when certain Dragon Enemies are killed(see list).
You must have either a fire or water crystal in the den to store an air crystal. Air crystals must be caught in the air. Like bubbles, they disappear when they hit the ground.
WATER:
These blue crystals are found near the lakes. They are also created When the Dragon destroys certain enemies(see list)
Water crystals brought back to the den give the Dragon more strength letting it survive up to 99 contacts with enemies.
Super Crystals...These multi-colored crystals are created when the Dragon brings home a fire, air and water crystal, and Super Crystals increase the range of fireballs, giving the Dragon greater power over its enemies.
THE DIAMOND CRYSTAL: Find the secret passageway to the treasure cavern, where there is at least one exetremely valuable Diamond Crystal(But with no Pawn Shops in the Primeval World, who cares)
To reach the treasure cavern, the Dragon must get past the Rock Demon by destroying it-on the way in and the way out. The Rock Demon throws long-range fireballs, and the best way to give your Dragon an equal chance is to first capture a super crystal.
It takes six hits with your fireballs to kill the Rock Demon. When the Dragon brings the diamond home you score 5000 points. There is always one diamond to be found in the treasure cavern. There MIGHT be others. The only way to find out is to make additional raids.
SCORES
Scores for crystals brought to den Air, and Water, 50 points Fire, 100 Super,1000 Diamond, 5000
DRAGON EGGS
Even if your Dragon captures lots of crystals and becomes very powerful, sometimes its natural enemies will bring it to a sad end. When the Dragon dies, another is born as long as there is an egg back in the den.
The game starts with one live Dragon and two eggs. To give your Dragon extra lives, find and bring back more eggs to your den. Eggs are found above ground, flying on little wings. Capture it the same way you capture crystals. You also lose your grip on an egg if an enemy or anything touches you.
But eggs, bounce and dont break if they are dropped. The Dragon can pick them up again and continue taking it back to the Den. The more eggs you bring home the more lives, up to five.
HAVE FUN!!
Downloaded from the Libraries of AWAUG BBS, 24 hrs., 703-922-5497.
MEX-EZ2.DOC================================================================= Steve Sanders PRO-COM DATABASE 06/10/84 ================================================================= Continuing documentation on the use of MEX 1.0c STAT Command ------------ The STAT command allows changing MEX switches for: BAKFILE - If "ON" then same name files will be called .BAK BELL - Turn your console bell on/off CIS - Enables/disables CIS protocol INITFILE - This will stop MEX from looking for INI.MEX if "OFF" WTECHO - This is the "wait for echo" switch, it is used with the SENDOUT command, toggle on/off.
PAGE - Sets TYPE command to page/no-page RUB - Set backspace function to rub-out useage: [MEX] A0>>stat wtecho on turn wait-for-echo ON Tired of MEX always saying "++ NO INI.MEX file found ++" ?? Then try this:
[MEX} A0>>stat initfile offother switches available, enter " [MEX] A0>>STAT ?" for listing.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////The STAT command also sets the values for: ALERT - The number of times console bell will ring upon connection to remote from CAL dialing function
CLOCK - This is your CPU speed (4mhz=40 etc) for timing RETRY - Number of times to try SENDOUT command before aborting SEARCH - Sets the "search" path for files from the command line
0 = current drive/user only (do HELP SEARCH for info)useage: [MEX] A0>>stat clock 50 set CPU speed to 5.0mhz other valuse can also be changed, enter "[MEX] A0>>stat val"
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////The STAT command can also show the "status" of: BUFFERS - Display current buffer status (sizes) TERM - Display current terminal escape sequences and keys SWITCH - Display current switch settings (on/off) VAL - List current values ? - Displays complete list of STAT commands available useage: [MEX] A0>>stat buffers display buffers/sizes
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////The STAT command can set the characters for: ESC - Don't like CTRL-J as the main terminal mode escape character, then change it with
[MEX] A0>>stat esc "^I" now use TAB key insteadNOTE: MEX looks for the carat ^ chr to indicate CTRL in a string TRIGGER - This is used by the SENDOUT command to identify the character used to "trigger" the SENDOUT string.
[MEX] A0>>stat trigger display trigger chrThis should be 3eh which is the ">" CP/M prompt character used by most all remote CP/M systems. This would cause SENDOUT to be triggered when it received this character. After an XMODEM transfer is completed, MEX "senses" the CP/M prompt and begins the next SENDOUT operation.
[MEX] A0>>stat trigger ">"This will set the trigger character to be the CP/M prompt ">" chr other changeable values, characters, switches, and misc displayed by entering:
[MEX] A0>>stat ? <cr>Keystrings ---------- Want to set up a logon keystring? Try this:
[MEX] A0>>KEY L="firstname;lastname;xxxx-xxxx^M"This would send: firstname;lastname;user ID# <cr> Remember MEX strings "see" the ^M as a carriage return and must be used UNLESS you have set the SUFFIX = ^M. This SUFFIX is part of the keystring sent after the string associated with the special KEY. Do HELP STRINGS for more info on this.
NOTE: NON of the currently defined terminal mode escape characters may be defined as KEYS, an error message would be the result. EXAMPLE: CTRL-J/E is now return to command mode from terminal mode, therefore the "E" key cannot be used as a KEY unless re-defined in terminal mode.
The currently defined terminal mode escape keys can be displayed with entry of:
[MEX] A0>>^J? Enter CTRL-J followed by "?"CLONE command ------------- After you have spent an hour or so setting all the various switches and escape characters and keystrings, BE SURE TO CLONE A NEW COPY BEFORE EXITING TO CP/M. Once you exit to CP/M all the values and settings will return to their original settings.
[MEX] A0>>clone mex1.comThis would make a new copy of MEX with all the current settings as default. Check this new copy for correct operation and then REName it to MEX.COM NOTE: There seems to be a bug with the "COLD" command to return MEX to it's default parameters - DO NOT USE THE COLD COMMAND !!
MEX may be 'cloned' as many times as you like with no problems... More "goodies" later in MEX-EZ3.DOC
- Steve
NEW ADDRESS FOR MR.T SOFTWARE:
Bob Tarnowski writes: "I just had a copy of your newsletter forwarded to me, and I realized that I had not let you know of my move to Sunny Arizona! ...I'm just getting caught up with what's going on. ...I'm sorry I wasn't able to make it to the convention because of my move but I look forward to going in 1990..." New Address: Bob Tarnowski
MR. T SOFTWARE 6521 E. Camino Santo Scottsdale, AZ 85254 (602) 951-2973
QUESTIONS FROM READERS:
Q: When I press the disk drive "power on" switch before turning on the
computer, the drive starts and the "drive in opera- tion " light comes
on even though the lid is open. Is this normal?
A: YES. In fact, that's how you know that your drive is not communicating
with your computer. If, after you turn on your computer, the drive stops
spinning, you're in business. If the drive continues to spin and the
"drive in operation" light remains on, check your ADAMNET cable (the one
re- sembling a phone cord) to be sure it is se- curely attached to both
the computer and the "Input" port of the drive itself. The most common
problem is that the cable is attached to the Output port instead of the
Input port. Also, be sure that the drive selector switch is set to Drive
1, and not Drive 2, unless it is a second disk drive.
Q: Is there a better way to check a blank tape or disk for bad blocks? I'm using FileManager format option.
A: There may be a Public Domain program for checking blocks, but I'm not
aware of it. I have always used Backup+3.0 (by MMSG.) From the Main Menu,
you would se- lect Block Utilities, and then Block Stat. You then enter
a range of blocks to check, by entering a starting block and an ending
block. (Don't forget that the first block on the medium is Block # 0,
NOT Block #1.) If you wish to check the entire medium, your ending block
would be 255 for datapack or 159 for disk. The program will read each
block and print an onscreen chart, using the following code: E indicates
an EMPTY block, U for a USED block, and B for a BAD block. After the
operation is done, you may choose to print a hard copy of the chart
(but only to the ADAM printer.)
On rare occasions, you may get different results when you check the same medium more than once. According to Mike Graham, a "floating" bad block.. one that appears in different locations on subsequent checks... indicates a bad sector. You can usually save your files by copying them to a good medium, after which you should not trust the defective medium with any important files!
Anybody else have any input on this topic?
Pi symbols are from the Xmodem download and can be ignored when reading and removed for printing.
MOBILIZE! =========
Two years ago the FCC tried and (with your help and letters of protest) failed to institute regulations that would impose additional costs on modem users for data communications.
Now, they are at it again. A new regulation that the FCC is quietly working on will directly affect you as the user of a computer and modem. The FCC proposes that users of modems should pay extra charges for use of the public telephone network which carry their data. In addition, computer network services such as CompuServ, Tymnet, & Telenet would also
be charged as much as $6.00 per hour per user for use of the public telephone network. These charges would very likely be passed on to the subscribers. The money is to be collected and given to the telephone company in an effort to raise funds lost to deregulation.
Jim Eason of KGO newstalk radio (San Francisco, Ca) commented on the proposal during his afternoon radio program during which, he said he learned of the new regulation in an article in the New York Times. Jim took the time to gather the addresses which are given below.
Here's what you should do (NOW!):
1- Pass this information on. Download MOBILIZE.LZH (free download) which contains the text you are reading now. Find other BBS's that are not carrying this information. Upload the ASCII text into a public message on the BBS, and also upload the file itself so others can easily get a copy to pass along.
2- Print out three copies of the letter which follows (or write your own) and send a signed copy to each of the following:
Chairman of the FCC
1919 M Street N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20554
Chairman, Senate Communication Subcommittee
SH-227 Hart Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Chairman, House Telecommunication Subcommittee
B-331 Rayburn Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Here's the suggested text of the letter to send:
Dear Sir,
Please allow me to express my displeasure with the FCC proposal which would authorize a surcharge for the use of modems on the telephone network. This regulation is nothing less than an attempt to restrict the free exchange of information among the growing number of computer users. Calls placed using modems require no special telephone company equipment, and users of modems pay the phone company for use of the network in the form of a monthly bill. In short, a modem call is the same as a voice call and therefore should not be subject to any additional regulation.
Sincerely, [your name, address and signature]
It is important that you act now. The bureaucrats already have it in their heads that modem users should subsidize the phone company and are now listening to public comment. Please stand up and make it clear that we will not stand for any government restriction on the free exchange of information. Thanks for your help.
Jay Fox, Sysop S P A C E -- The Stanford Palo Alto Computer Exchange 415-964-9039
farthestnorthBBS By Dave Sands ADAM's LEAF, E.A.U.G. The most northerly BBS anywhere has to be the Arctic Information Exchange Service BBS in Iqaluit, (Frobisher Bay) Northwest Territories, Canada
No info on parameters, but the number is (819) 979-5270 and it's a 24-hour board. ###
MORE CP/M 2
By Stan Wong
Once you get into CP/M a bit more, you'll find that there are certain utilities that are just absolutely essential! For example, have you ever noticed CP/M files that have .LBR as an extension? This means that this file is actually a library made up of one or more smaller files. By using the appropriate program, one can compress a whole mess of files into one neat library that takes up less space on a tape than all the files would separately. The problem, however, is that unless you have the right utility, you cannot extract the files from the library. So if your friend gave a couple of really good .LBR files, they would be useless to you unless you open the library. There are several public domain programs available that will allow you to do this, but I will discuss NULU.COM and UNCR.COM as these are the two programs that I use. When you first use NULU, you will find that it is very similar to NSWP in both appearance and operation. Both are menu driven and both allow mass operations. I do have the entire documentation to NULU, but I don't bother with it. As long as I know how to use it to get the files out, I'm happy.
The initial NULU screen asks if you want to open a library on the drive you are presently logged onto. If you do, just type in the name of the library file. If the library is on another drive, type -U (all of the main commands are preceded by a hyphen) and it will prompt you for the appropriate drive. After it logs you onto the new drive, it will again ask if you wish to open a library and you can now type in the proper name. At this point, I usually type -F. This takes me to the filesweep mode which is almost identical to NSWP. The component files of the library are listed one at a time and you type T to tag the ones that you want extracted. Please note that once you are in filesweep mode, you start to use a secondary menu and you no longer precede your commands with a hyphen. After you have tagged all of the appropriate files, simply type M for mass operations and follow the prompts. It is that easy!
However, all is not over with yet! In order to save even more space, some of the files in the library have been compressed using a program called CR.COM (crunch) prior to being placed in the library. Using NULU to extract the files will not uncrunch crunched files. You can identify crunched files because the middle letter in the extension is a Z (for example, NSWP.DOC would be crunched to NSWP.DZC). While there are some utilities available now that extract and uncrunch at the same time, I have been using NULU and another utility called UNCR.COM (uncrunch). To use UNCR.COM effectively, you can employ wild cards. If you recall from my previous CP/M article, you can use an asterix (*) to represent any file name. This is an example of a wild card. Wild cards are useful for mass operations. For instance, say you have a program that performs file transfers that supports wild cards. If you wanted to transfer all of the files, you could simply transfer *.*, because the * means any filename and any extension. If you wanted to only transfer .COM files, you could transfer *.COM. Get the picture? Now, the other wild card used in CP/M is the good old question mark. Whereas * meant any name, ? means any letter. In other words, *.* would be equivalent to *.??? because extensions are always 3 letters long.
How does this pertain to UNCR? First of all, the syntax for using UNCR is as follows:
UNCR <source drive>:<file name> <destination drive>:
Don't forget the colons after the drive designations! Now, this is good if you have only one file to uncrunch, but it would be tedious if you had several, which is usually the case after you extracted everything you need from a library. Wild cards to the rescue! You can save yourself a lot of grief and misery by typing:
UNCR <source drive>:*.?Z? <destination drive>:
As you recall, crunched files have Z as the middle letter in their extension, so using the above wild card will automatically uncrunch all crunched files on your source drive.
I hope that this helps you out. It seems confusing at first until you've actually done it a few times. Try it, though. It may be easier than you think!
From the January 1990 issue of the 463 ADAM newsletter. By Dean Roades
I have suggested in the past that you should be able to convert a TV into a low cost monitor. All the equipment is there, it's just a matter of finding the right way to hook it up, right? I know that this is a simplistic view, but how do you know unless you ask? Anyway, Mark Wotring found a copy of 'Radio Electronics' from April 1983 which had an article titled 'Add a Video Input To Your TV'. It has complete instructions, circuit board layouts, parts lists, etc. If anyone would like to see this article, see me at the meeting. I was thinking of trying this modification myself until I read the caption under one of the pictures - "Power for the input section can be obtained by inductive coupling to the flyback transformer" I realized very quickly that this was way, way out of my league. BUT, it proves that my idea wasn't so crazy.
R-E also had a special section on computers and software. Remember 1983? These were the days of Commodore Vic-20, TI-99/4A, Atari 400, Timex/Sinclair TS1000, Radio Shack CoCo (Color Computer). Our ADAM was just being introduced around that time. There was an article about the ADAM, but all the information was based on Coleco's press releases. I have included a reduced copy of this article in the back of the newsletter.
The best part of these articles was where they talked about memory. We have become blase' about the memory available today. Our ADAM can be expanded up to 1 Meg, and many programs require at least a 64k expander. Here are some quotes from 1983:
"The Commodore Vic-20, which now sells at discount for about $179.00, is sheer dynamite for the money. ... It comes with 5k of RAM, which is more than adequate for a good amount of moderately advanced programming."
"The only difference between that computer (TS1000) and the Sinclair ZX81 is that the Sinclair version has 1k of built-in RAM while the Timex version has 2k. But that difference is more substantial than you might think - a skilled programmer can do a lot more with 2k of memory than he can with 1k."
Concerning the Radio Shack TRS-80 Model III, 48k, 2 disk drives, $2295.00 - "Some sophisticated programs, such as word-processing or spreadsheet programs, really require at least a 64k machine to run properly."
I know that 5 years from now we will be laughing at 1 Meg, but it's fun now to look back.
Mark also brought a copy of 'Electronic Games' from December 1983. It included a 4 page color advertisement form ADAM. I have included a reduced copy in the back. Both magazines will be available at the meetings for your review. Our thanks to Mark for finding and sharing these blasts from the past.
PowerMATE, the new 10 to 30 meg hard disk drive unit developed by Micro Innovations, is now available for ADAM from ADAM'S HOUSE. ADAM'S HOUSE uses the 20 MEG HARD DRIVE with an additional 720K 3.5" Disk Drive, the configuration we feel will be the most popular for the cost. The installation of PowerMATE is simple, and the instruction manual sufficient for getting the unit up and running quickly. Documentation usually lags the product, and this is not a special case since their are obvious areas where information is sparce. Hopefully this article will help as documentation catches up, but you have to admire the completeness and ease of use that PowerMATE allows with the present software.
The PowerMATE consists of the unit and drive(s), interface card, four ribbon cables, software, and instruction manual. The Interface Card plugs into the second expansion port under the console cabinet top cover. It faces to the left, opposite the PIA2 or PRINTER INTERFACE CARD. The PowerMATE Interface card provides the normal use of a parallel dot matrix printer, and a cable is provided (if you have a dot matrix printer and cable already, you may simply plug in the cable to the interface card where directed). Two serial ports are provided along with cables that provide RS232 connectors. One port is set for a modem and the other for a terminal, but the software may be changed as you desire. The card also provides the necessary addressing for the 256K or Megaram Memory cards, as usual by attaching one wire from the memory card to the post connector on the interface card. The fourth connector on the interface card connects via a cable to the PowerMATE Hard Drive Unit.
The PowerMATE Hard Drive Unit measures 5" X 7" X 15". The face plate is the 5" tall by 7" wide dimension. The ON/OFF switch is at the top left on back as you face the front of the unit (easily in reach). A power on light, hard drive RUN light, and floppy are visible on the front, the floppy is just above the Hard Disk Drive and drive light on the panel. The color matches the ADAM System perfectly.
Normal operation requires you to first turn on the ADAM system and drives, and then turn on the Hard Drive. We tested the 20 MEG Unit with 720K 3.5" Floppy drive. It takes the hard drive about 5 seconds to come up to speed on the 20 MEG drive, selftesting itself. The instruction manual tells you how to set up bootdisks using the provided software disk. Installing the disk provides a TDOS system that is not configured for the Hard Drive yet, but you quickly will create a boot disk. If you have the standard ADAM System, you use a version of TDOS that sets the screen for 40 columns. Answering the questions about your system drive sizes and choice of ports used will write the system to the hard disk and another drive you select. The disk you write your system to will from now on boot your Hard Drive right after you turn the system on. An 80 column version of TDOS is also on the provided disk, along with many programs. By getting the directory on A, B, and D of your hard drive you will find many more programs already transferred to the hard disk. TDOS provides four TDOS Volumes, and in our test configuration we had 2 Meg available in A, and 4 Meg in B, C, and D. 15 Meg was devoted to TDOS.
Next we prepared an EOS Boot disk by following directions, cloning the latest EOS Version 34 to a disk by itself. This program will selfboot when the reset is pulled, and the EOS Menu will be displayed providing many options. Maintenance functions will allow you to Install the system to your hard disk and a drive of your choice. This media now contains a boot block which when placed in your Coleco drive will boot the EOS Menu from the Hard Drive after you first turn the system on. It takes less than five seconds to bring up the EOS Menu.
MI HARD DISK V 3.4 Copyright AJM Software
I - Logical Drive 0
NAME: Hard Disk 0II - Use MI Floppy 1 III - Boot From Hard Disk IV - Boot Software V - Maintenance Functions VI - Install Parallel Printer sVI - Set Date
Press ESCAPE for Smartwriter
WILDCARD for MI TDOS
The EOS Menu screen provides six options so far, using the six
SmartKEYS to make each selection. SmartBASIC V1 is already provided
in patched form to boot from the Hard Disk. Press option III
provides the Directory of Hard Disk 0 which contains the following
files: HARDDISK, FILEMAN, SmartBASIC, BOOTCALC, BOOTSPLAT, BOOTMAC,
BOOTTYPE, BOOTLOGO, BOOTFLASH, and BOOTWRITE. Selecting SmartBASIC
with the arrow and pressing return brings SmartBASIC online within
2 seconds. Pressing the Shift and UNDO key together takes you back
to the EOS Menu within 3 seconds. SmartKEY I provides you the
ability to change drives. Our PowerMATE software was configured
such that EOS file space was set for five 1 Meg Drives: 0, 1, 2, 3,
and 4. You may use the Maintenance functions to provide as many
as 10 1 Meg drives for EOS use
CAUTION: Make a back-up disk of all TDOS Volumes before any Repartition of your Hard Drive!! EOS Files may stay entact, but backup of Drive 0 with all the boot patches is wise!
Pressing SmartKEY I changes the logical (or ON-LINE) drive that you will use between these five drives. In my case, I have SmartBASIC programs on Drive 5 after repartitioning the Hard Disk for 10 1 Meg Drives, with the remaining 10 Meg was split into the 4 TDOS Volumes (2050K and three 2788K size volumes). Selecting Logical Drive 5, followed by SmartKEY III to get the Volume 0 Directory allows me to boot SmartBASIC as before, but now Hard Disk 5 programs are at hand with all the same results you expect. A 16 block program like my VOLLABELER program saved in binary format loads within 2 seconds from the Hard Disk, almost 8 seconds to load from a 5 1/4" disk! SmartBASIC recognizes the Hard Disk as device 2, Drive 5 -- or 25> in place of the normal prompt. I use EZkeys to easily switch between the optional floppy drive (1>), Hard Disk drive with selected partition (2?>), ADAM Disk drive (5>), and ADAM Disk drive #2. Some programs may cause problems using the Shift / UNDO key combination to return to the EOS Menu. In this event, use the EOS Boot disk to quickly return to the Menu.
The EOS Menu also allows you to select your Optional Floppy (MI Floppy 1) mounted in the Unit. In this event, the boot program will select this drive to boot programs. You can also use SmartKEY IV to boot prepatched software from any drive. You may also select VI to Install a parallel printer prior to booting. Shift / VI key allows you to Set the Date (a function that will soon be automatic with a clock chip installed in your ADAM). You may also ESCAPE to SmartWRITER or tap the WILDCARD key for TDOS. The EOS Menu returns in SmartWRITER when you press the Shift / UNDO Key. In TDOS, type "EOS" to return to the menu.
As mentioned before, Drive 0 also contains FILE MANAGER. With this powerful program written by Tony Morehen for PowerMATE you can transfer files to the hard disk. To bring up File Manager, press SmartKEY III for the Directory of Hard Disk 0. Select FILEMAN and a second later the File Manager Menu is onscreen! To set up ADAMCALC, transfer the original boot program named BASICPGM from your ADAMCALC datapack, renaming it ADAMCALC. Press Shift / UNDO to go back to the EOS Menu. If you transferred ADAMCALC to Hard Drive 1, then select the Logical Drive as 1 and get the Directory of Hard Disk 0 (by pressing SmartKEY III Boot from Hard Disk) and select BOOTCALC. In four seconds ADAMCALC is loaded and waiting. Getting a program stored on HD Drive 1 (DRIVE 2) takes less than 20 seconds compared to 25 seconds from a 720K disk drive. You still have access to your Coleco Disk Drives and your PowerMATE floppy (DRIVE 2). Press Shift / UNDO for the EOS Menu.
From the EOS Menu we can press the Wildcard Key to enter TDOS. SmartKEYS allow you to I - Copy, II - Rename, III - Delete, IV - LIST, V - Type, and get the VI - Directory. TDOS allows you to configure for the type equipment you have where incompatibility exists. If you have an Orphanware or E & T 720K 3.5" disk drive, you can configure an optional 3.5" 720K PowerMATE Floppy to be compatible with one or the other type of drive. To find out what the program is configured for, type RDPARM10 to display the Cylinder type - the last line ends with either C3 or C7 -- C3 is for Orphanware and C7 is for E & T types. To change this, type STPARM11. Also note that FILE MANAGER is available directly from TDOS as file, FM30B.COM. Type FM30B and the first time you will be asked questions concerning your drives before the FM Menu appears. As with the EOS Menu version, you may select as your source ALL of the Hard Drive Volumes, HD Floppy, Coleco Disk Drives and Tape Drives. When a large memory expander is installed, the maximum buffer size reflects the size expander you have installed. This buffer works correctly from TDOS, but in EOS you must select SmartKEY IV to Ignore Expansion Ram when making copies. This restriction in the use of File Manager in EOS is due to the fact that the Hard Disk Driver codes overwrite the Ram Disk Driver codes. This is being changed, and also Walter's Software is writing a new EOS program that will return use of the Ram Disk to the user while in EOS. Additionally, the new EOS will allow software to boot without patches, we understand! More on this later. Pressing ESCAPE while in File Manager (FM30B) will return you to TDOS. Volume D's directory contains the many software boot patches and documentation available from the EOS Menu. File Manager instructions are also available to be typed from Volume D. To return to the EOS Menu, select Volume A and type "EOS".
The EOS Menu Maintenance functions include: I - Krunch Logical Drive, II - Init Directory, III - Install Boot Block, IV - Install System, Shift / V - Format Hard Disk, and Shift / VI - Partition Hard Disk. SmartKEY I takes out deleted files from the selected logical drive, II will initiate the selected drive (done after the disk is repartitioned), III - Install boot block (using the system disk), IV - Install the system on the hard drive and a boot medium, Shift / V - to reformat the hard disk (the hard disk is furnished formatted and there should not be the need to reformat unless a power failure crashes the disk during a write operation!), and Shift / VI allows you to repartition the Hard Disk (as explained above, requires you to back-up all programs contained on the hard disk TDOS. Newly created partitions must then be initiated -- creating a Drive with a four block directory for program name storage. Four block directories provide space for 150 file names, and we can expect the new EOS to provide additional buffers for increased directory size.
Thusfar, we have transferred SmartLOGO and FLASHCARDS in addition to ADAMCALC to three of the ten Hard Disk Volumes available, along with supporting programs. All available FlashFACTS fit along with FLASHCARDS on a single volume, and over a third of the 1 Meg of space remains for future additions. A volume is dedicated to ADAMCALC and financial records from last year and for 1990. One volume is for SmartWRITER files, two volumes for SmartBASIC. Soon we will add Expertype, Splat, MacADAM (drawing program), and others. Walter's new EOS system should open up the use of many popular software titles directly from the Hard Drive. Right now, however, you can continue to boot as usual all your software directly from your Coleco drives without conflict, leaving PowerMATE turned off. The interface will provide dot matrix printer and Ram Disk use without PowerMATE being turned on, if you so desire.
PowerMATE is a great addition to the ADAM System that affords many features that separately would cost much more. Two 720K 3.5" disk drives alone would cost as much as PowerMATE with 20 Meg HD and 720K Floppy (not to mention the interface ports). For many, PowerMATE will become the primary device on the ADAM System, organizing records and volumes of programs into one device. File Manager is provided to maintain files and backup copies, as well as print and edit files. With PowerMATE you can expand you system easily, adding an external modem, terminal, dot matrix printer, or 320K or 720K floppy (for only $100 more each). If you have a Coleco drive already, PowerMATE and optional floppy will work perfectly with it. You can even use your datadrive(s) alone with PowerMATE. And, the best part, PowerMATE installs in a few minutes, with everything you need to get started right away. We believe PowerMATE is the perfect add-on to ADAM, providing a safe, organized, and speedy way to access your complete program library. More reports will be forthcoming in the next months. Can we order your PowerMATE for you today? Call us if we can help or for the latest information. ADAM'S HOUSE is a distributor of all versions of PowerMATE, each one configured according to your specification. Call today!
A1 03:34 Nov-21-1989
TO: ALL
FROM: Bob Blair AWAUG 3
SUBJ: NEW MESSAGE SECTION
This section is dedicated
to the exchange of
messages on the POWERMATE
hard drive system offered
by Mark Gordon and Scott
Gordon of Micro
Innovations (and of
AWAUG). Bob
A2 11:33 Nov-22-1989
TO: P-mate Maker
FROM: George Harpster 152
SUBJ: Where it sits
Just a quick question on
the PowerMate.....Where
does it sit????? On the
side of the ADAM?....on
top of the ADAM?....behind
the ADAM?....beneath the
ADAM?.....and HOW BIG IS
IT? I have limited space
for my computer and I
personally think that a
unit that sits right
UNDERNEATH the ADAM is
IDEAL. This way the
computer only takes more
space vertically....where
I have plenty of room. So
where does the PowerMate
sit and how big is it? GRH
A3 12:24 Nov-24-1989
TO: all
FROM: Steven Dawes 041
SUBJ: DRIVE HEIGHT
WILL THE HD HOUSING
D FIT A FULL HEIGHT, AS
WELL AS A 1/2 HEIGHT?
ALSO, I KNOW YOU PROBABLY
HAVEN'T T LOOKED AT THE
NEW AIM UNIT, BUT DO YOU
THINK IT (THE AIM UNIT)
WILL WORK WITH THE POWER
MATE? THANKS LATER.
OMAHA STEVE
A4 09:21 Nov-26-1989
TO: George Harpster
FROM: mark gordon AWAUG 127
SUBJ: Powermate Location
The Powermate unit sits by
the side of the Adam. It
measures 7" wide by 5.25"
tall by 16" deep and
weighs around 10 pounds,
depending on config-
uration. The powermate
does come with a 6 foot
interface cable to connect
the external chassis with
the interface board inside
the Adam. It could be put
quite a ways from the
computer. The four drive
Powermate might be able to
fit under the Adam. One
of the chassis I am
evaluating holds the four
drives horizontally, two
high, two wide. There is
nothing stopping you from
building a stand for the
Adam and placing the
Powermate under it. It
draws it supply in the
front and exhausts out the
back, so something sitting
over it shouldn't cause
any trouble.
Mark
A5 09:21 Nov-26-1989
TO: Steven Dawes
FROM: mark gordon AWAUG 127
SUBJ: Full height drives
The Powermate 2 has
mounting positions for two
half height drives (or one
full height drive). The
Powermate 4 has mounting
positions for four half
height drives (or 1 full
height and 2 half height
or 2 full height). I
just got off the phone
with Gary Bowser
concerning the AIM unit.
He has prototypes up and
running, finally. And I
thought I had problems!
He tells quite a story
about getting it into
production. It sounds
like it will be a good
product....About
compatibility - he says
that he disables the
existing Adam video
controller and utilizes
the same addresses for the
new AIM unit. Since the
Powermate IO addresses are
in low IO space and his
are in high, we both agree
that there should be no
conflict. They should
work together. We won't
know for sure, however,
until someone tries it.
We don't expect any
problems, though.
Thanks for the questions.
Good luck.
Mark
A6 12:29 Nov-27-1989
TO: mistah gordon
FROM: Bart Lynch AWAUG 40
SUBJ: walters
any further conversations
with da walters boys ta
see if they are gonna take
a swing at da eos drivers?
A7 03:49 Nov-30-1989
TO: all
FROM: Steven Dawes 041
SUBJ: slot 1
I VOTE FOR A UNIT TO PLUG
INTO EXPANTION SLOT 1 (THE
MODEM SLOT). I HOPE TO GET
THIS LATE SPRING EARLY
SUMMER 90. ANYONE ELSE
LIKE THIS IDEA? LATER.
OMAHA STEVE
A8 08:51 Dec-07-1989
TO: Mark G./Steve Dawns FROM: Steve Major 61
SUBJ: interface slot
I agree with Steve Dawns,
an interface that plugs
into the first slot (modem
slot) would be great. Of
course Mark has said that
it can be configured for
just about anywhere, maybe
he'll have two different
versions?? What do you
think Mark?
A9 09:40 Dec-11-1989
TO: S. Dawes / S. Majors FROM: mark gordon AWAUG 127
SUBJ: Powermate Slot
Steves - This version of
the Powermate interface
board has already gone to
press for expansion slot
didn't get many responses
one way or the other....
sorry. Steve Major - your
unit will be coming with a
center slot interface
board....a future version
may be designed for the
other slot ... I can't
guarantee it as the only
feedback so far comes from
you Steves. We will be
starting to ship next week
(some prototype units have
been shipped but they
don't count). Please keep
in touch. Thanks. Mark
A10 04:55 Dec-18-1989
TO: Mark Gorden
FROM: Steve Major 61
SUBJ: Thanks
Looking forward to getting
it, it dosen't matter to
me that it goes in the
center slot... as long as
I can connect my Ram Card
to it I'm very happy.... I
hope you have instructions
on where to soder that Ram
wire to your interface!!!!
A11 04:01 Dec-27-1989
TO: Mark Gorden
FROM: Steve Major 61
SUBJ: My Address
Hi again Mark, a few
people have had problems
with my mailing address
(the new one I gave to
you). It's Steve Major/807
Three Rivers Apartments
EAST/Fort Wayne, IN
46802... THAT's EAST
BUILDING, not EAST FORT
WAYNE, should those bright
fellows at UPS or US Mail
not be able to figure it
out and you get my unit
back, please use the
correct address (If you
didn't already). Thanks a
buch, I will report to
everyone when I get my BBS
running with it, so keep
an eye out for me!!!! See
ya later!
A12 08:55 Dec-27-1989
TO: Steve Major
FROM: mark gordon AWAUG 127
SUBJ: Your Order
Steve - UPS picked up your
Powermate today. I got
the address right. Let's
hope that UPS can handle
the nuance. The Powermate
interface board does
provide the memory
expander board signal. I
talked to Jim Walters
today and he seems happy
with the unit I sent him.
Hope you like yours as
much. If you have any
difficulty getting your
software running on
Powermate, please give me
a call. Good luck and
happy computing. ......
Mark
A13 12:23 Dec-28-1989
TO: Powermate buyers
FROM: mark gordon AWAUG 127
SUBJ: Shipment of your unit
For those of you who are
waiting for Powermate
units - UPS picked up
several packages today, a
couple of days late for
Christmas, but hopefully
not before the Christmas
spirit dissipates. I'll
list those units that
shipped to members of this
board. If you happen to
come accross this message
and you're not on the
list, please give me a
call at (703) 620-1372.
The units going to AWAUG
BBS members are: Les
Eiseman, Steve Major, and
Tony Morehen. Other units
shipped to John Clarke,
Terry Fowler, and Gerald
Preston. Jay Bolton -
your unit is ready for
pickup. I'll call you
tomorrow if you don't read
this first. Jim Walters
of Walters Software
received one of the first
production units and seems
pleased with it. I
believe we'll see
Powermate drivers
integrated into their new
EOS operating system soon
(Steve Major - this should
get your attention!). In
the meantime we are
delivering Tony Morehen's
EOS drivers as a stopgap.
They work fine but require
EOS programs to be patched
to utilize the hard disk.
We are updating the
software on a daily basis.
However, don't be alarmed
- we're down to fixing
minor annoy- ances now -
no major problems left (as
far as we can tell). I'm
debating as to how to make
updated software available
to you on a regular basis.
Bob Blair has been great
to volunteer a forum for
Powermate on this BBS, but
if we start distributing
updated software on it, I
think his work load will
increase significantly.
I'm considering a BBS just
for Powermate. Please
give me some
fe
ed
ba
ck
..
..
..
..
..
....Thanks...........Mark
A14 12:27 Dec-28-1989
TO: Mark Gorden
FROM: Steve Major 61
SUBJ: BBS
A BBS would be great for
questions, but what about
downloading of programs? I
don't use CP/M and I think
neither does Jim W. or
Terry F. That may pose
some diffuclty.... Can't
wait for my unit to
arrive, you'll probably be
getting a call from me if
there is no instructions
on where to soder that
Memory Expander Wire,
other then that, with the
help of the A-NET master
(ALAN NEELEY) I should
have my BBS running with
you unit.
REVIEWED BY DEAN ROADES THE PRESENT OF 463 AUG IN INDIANA and a contributing Editor with A.N.N.
Quickopy 5.0 (QK) is the shareware program available from Larry Overman. At $6.00 it is one of the best values for a copy program and it includes much more. QK supports all currently available drives (DDP; 160k, 320K, and 720k disk), and can copy with a single drive or multiple drives. It has a 16k copy buffer if you do not have a memory expander. If you do have an expander the buffer is:
Expander Buffer 64k 80k 128k 144k 256k 272k 512k 528k
QK has both block and file copy options. The block copy can be used to make backup or working copies of you software. When making a block copy, you select the first block and the numbers of blocks you wish to copy, then select the first block on the destination media. This allows you to copy one tape to two disks and vice-versa. The only shortcoming is that is does not have an 'auto-copy function. Some copy programs will check the media and copy only those blocks which are used. With QK, you must tell it what you want. You can access the directory of the source media to find this out, so it's not a major problem.
The file copy option allows you to tag the files you want copied a QK will transfer all of these files with no further input from you. This is a real time saver for PD librarians, newsletter editors, etc., who want to transfer many, but not all, files from one media to another.
The information displayed for directories and individual files is extensive. Volume name, directory size, volume size. The file information is even more complete; start block, blocks allocated, bytes used, attribute, etc. This information, I assume, is of great interest to those knowledgeable in such things, but the rest of can use QK just fine.
My favorite part of QK is the Ramcopy (RC) option. If you have a memory expander, you can use all of the QK functions with the RAM. You set up the expander as a ramdrive designated as tape 1 or 2 or disk 1 or 2. You can then copy to the ram as if you are using a physical drive. A 256k or larger expander allows you to copy an entire tape or disk to the ram and make multiple copies using the RAM as the source drive. This will save time and wear and tear on you drives. It comes in very handy for making PD copies or distributing ADAM News Network disks. A real time saver!
But there's more! After setting up the RAMdrive, you can boot an EOS program like SmartBASIC or SmartWRITER, and keep the RAMdrive in place. This gives you the speed of the memory expander in you favorite programs. For example, you can set up the RAMdrive as Tape 2, copy a disk with newsletter articles on it into the RAM, and access these files from SmartWRITER. This is especially nice since SmartWRITER only recognizes one disk drive.
The docs for this package were on the flip side of the disk. They are quite complete (some 35 pages) and include information on data pack formats, and other subjects which make the process of file and block transfers easier to understand. The drawback is that they are in CP/M. I had no trouble printing them out, but I would have liked to format them differently.
Quickopy 5.0/Ramcopy 1.1 is easy enough for the novice, versatile enough for the advanced and you can't beat the price.
If you are interested in getting Quickopy 5.0, contact Larry Overman, 11820 Gloxinia Ave., Fountain Valley, CA, 92708.
RATING - A
Dean Roades - 463 ADAM User Group
BEST OF AIM - Collection of useful tips and dat for using the ADAM COMPUTER SYSTEM.
REVIEWS:
CHALK BOARD SMARTDSK CARTRIDGE VASE OF TURR DRAGON, THE CHINESE CHALLENGE ABOMINAL SNOWMAN
SURPLUS SALE INFORMATION - ADAM'S HOUSE
ADAM'S HOUSE CATALOG - PAGE 3 - POWERPAINT W/128K RAM STORED
To help solve the problems of Adam newsletters/BBSs having sufficent and current information to make available for their members/users and to help spread Adam information as rapidly as possible to as many Adamites as possible and to hopefully be able to unite Adamites when there are pressing problems and issues which lend themselves to united efforts this monthly disk mailing service has been created.
Presently the following REQUIREMENTS are in effect for using & being a part of this system:
l. YOU MUST GIVE PROPER CREDIT TO THE GROUP, ORGANIZATION AND THE INDIVIDUAL AUTHOR of any material taken from here. Failure to do so may result in your being excluded from this system.
2. To help cut down my time & expenses in producing these monthly mailings each person on the mailing list is REQUIRED to make copies and distribute to at least one other person or group (WHICH I WILL ASSIGN TO YOU) or upto THREE copies & remailings. Obviously, the more (3) you do, the more people we can reach. At this time I will assign these mailings, although you can make your suggestions as to who you would like to remail to or who you think should be added onto the list.
3. IF you would prefer to pay a cash fee rather than do a remailing, contact me and we will see what we can work out. However, this is NOT meant to be a profit making venture (& has costs me considerable in disks & postage upto this point), so I would prefer you do remailings rather than pay a cash fee at this time. But if the remailings are a problem, contact me.
4. BBS SYSOPS ARE ASKED TO UPLOAD TO THEIR AND OTHER ADAM BBSs ANY INFORMATION WHICH APPEARS TO BE OF INTEREST OR IMPORTANCE. This can take the place of your doing a remailing. YOU are invited to upload the entire mailing as one or two large files on your BBS for downing loading etc.
5. YOU ARE REQUESTED TO SHARE THIS INFORMATION WITH your newsletter editor, your BBS sysop, your members & officers.
6. WHILE it is felt that information included is correct and accurate, I take no responsibility for its accuracy, correctness, content, suggestions,etc. and you should use the same at your own risk.
7. I will try to indicate the source of the item in either the file name or internally in the file. Some things may have their own separate disk.
8. IF you do not wish to continue on the mailing list, please inform me so you name can be removed and someone else be added in your place.
9. WHILE IT IS NOT A REQUIREMENT AT THIS TIME THAT YOU SUBMIT ITEMS TO ME for this mailing, that is the ONLY way in which we can make this work.
l0. Miscellaneous: Each disk will have a file showing its (intended) distribution. Each disk will be marked to indicate when the material can be used. Usually it will be usable after the first day of the month shown on the label. Of course,material can be saved to fill in at future times when you are short of items. The initial distribution will be approximately the middle of the month for material to be used starting the lst of the next month.
I hope this will serve to encourage other Adamites to write for several different newsletters. Most of the newsletters do not have a large overlap of coverage or subscribers and therefore no newsletter is really hurt by the items appearing in several newsletters.
Your suggestions are always welcome. I encourage you all to support the ADAM BBS NET pioneered by BJ, Larry Overman(So.Cal) and Bob Blair A(AWAUG-Wash.DC) which is exchanging messages & information from the various BBSs on a weekly basis.
Best regards, Barry A. Wilson
ADD ADDRESS: Address for those on ANN distribution list.
AWAUG-LEARN: The Learning message board from the AWAUG BBS (24 hrs. 703-922-5497) which contains some very good Adam information on a variety of subjects.
BARRY PATC(H): This month's Barry Patch has an exclusive on a soon to be breaking story of a probable Justice Department investigation of ADAM.
***BUSINESS***: (IF this file is on the disk, read it as it contains important information on the ANN system and failure to read & respond where appropriate can mean you will no longer remain on the distribution list.
COLECO: Information from OFFICIAL BANKRUPTCY RECORDS on the Coleco Bankruptcy.
***CONRULES:*** Rules for the new A.N.N. Contest starting Feb. l, l990.
***CONTEST:*** Information about the new A.N.N. Contest starting Feb. l, l990.
****CORRECTION***** VERY IMPORTANT that some mis-information I apparently give on Practic Program Co. be corrected. Please read and take any necessary action to pass this info on. THANK YOU Barry Wilson
DCBUL-BBS: Late Dec.Bulletin from AWAUG (WASH DC) giving Adam info, sale items and a very complete lists of BBSs.
***DISTRIBUTE:*** The distribution list for the Adam News Network (ANN) monthly information disk.
EOSCPM: Some technical information on EOS/CPM.
EXPLORING SMARTBASIC: An excellent article on SmartBasic which was written by GUY COUSINEAU of Adam User Friendly Group (Canada).
GAME INDEX: An index prepared by Contributing Editor of A.N.N. Dean Roades which lists all game reviews on A.N.N. to 12/89 and is also the index for the speical game review disk of A.N.N. (Available from Dean Roades at a minimal cost).
HITCH(hikers Guide): Hints & Tips on the Infocom game Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy by Keith Jefferson of St.Louis AUG.
MEX.EZ2.DOC: More valuable information on the MEX program, downloaded from AWAUG BBS.
MODEMTAX: Information on a proposed tax on use of phone lines to transmit information. Downloaded from AWAUG BBS.
PAST: An interesting article by Dean Roades on Adam's past.
POWERMATE: Information on Powermate as it appears in the Powermate Message section of the AWAUG BBS.
QUICKOPY5: A review of Quickcopy 5.0 by Dean Roades of 463 AUG.
***README:*** Information on this Adam News Network service.
***READMETWO:*** This file which gives a summary or info on the other files.
ZORK I : Solution to the Infocom Game ZORK I which comes from a disk of such solutions. Unfortunately I am not aware of the origin of this disk.
ZORK II : Solution to the Infocom Game ZORK II which comes from a disk of such solutions. Unfortunately I am not aware of the origin of this disk.
ZORK III: Solution to the Infocom Game ZORK III which comes from a disk of such solutions. Unfortunately I am not aware of the origin of this disk.
downloaded from AWAUG BBS.
ABP.NN.DOC: From the AWAUG BBS, this concerns how to confirgure CP/M for your disk drive setup and size.
***ANN INFO:*** Information on the ANN distribution system WHICH I WOULD LIKE YOU TO PUBLICIZE. ANN is now available to individual Adamites on a subscription basis to help offset the costs involved in gathering & distributing the ANN material. PLEASE PUBLICIZE.
***BP CHART***: Both a humorous and serious article. Compares Computer Shooper (BOO BOO) with a new National Monthly Magazine (Vulcan's Computer Buyer's Guide) which features Adam information. PLEASE PUBLICIZE AND PUSH THIS NEW PUBLICATION WHICH SUPPORTS ADAM.
CAREdrives: this article deals comprehensively with the care of the ADAM digital data drive. This article is written in SmartWRITER and is formatted for a 35-character count column. The author is Claude Ferland and the article first appeared in the Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) Adam Users Group newsletter the ADAM's LEAF. Credit author Claude Ferland and the EAUG ADAM's LEAF, please.
COMPARE: An article similar to the BP CHART (See above) but in article form with MORE information.
***CONTESTRUL(es):*** Rules for Feb. Contest, please publicize.
CPM NSWP: this article describes the uses of the program "Newsweep" in CPM. Written in SmartWRITER, and formatted for a 35-count column.This article first appeared in the Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) Adam Users Group newsletter "ADAM's LEAF". Credit author Stan Wong and the EAUG ADAM's LEAF, please.
DCGENMESS(ages): Some of the general messages from the AWAUG (Wash DC) BBS which has news of general Adam information.
DMPs RMDSK; (Dot Matrix Printers and Ramdisks) basic level tutorial on using this hardware with the ADAM. Written in SmartWRITER and formatted in a 35-character-count column. Written by Stan Wong. This article originally appeared in the Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) ADAM User Group newsletter the ADAM's LEAF. Please credit when using.
***FINALCONT(est):*** Final information and final list of Adamites for the Feb. contest. Please publicize.
Gleanings: a column of items quoted from exchange newsletters receivedby the then editor of the ADAM's LEAF, newsletter of the Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) ADAM Users Group, Dave Sands. Editors are free to edit out material of local interest for their own use, but please retain the attributions: we all deserve to be quoted properly.
HARRIS FILE: From MOAUG comes this column by John Harris on various Adam Subjects.
HHPOWRTOOL: Review of PowerTools by Hard Nosed Harry who relied (stole) heavy on (from) Ric Lefko's MOAUG article.
JANBIOSCAL: The January MOAUG BIOS FILE Column.
JSDRAGONFR: The first of many "home-made" documents on various game programs by Jeff Sylva of PSAN, which made it to ANN by Bart Lynch of UPNADAM BBS. This one is on Dragon Fire.
JSMOONSWEP: See above. Moonsweep by Jeff Sylva of PSAN.
JSSTARTREK: See above. Star Trek by Jeff Sylva of PSAN.
JSWINGWAR: See above. Wing War by Jeff Sylva of PSAN.
MOAUGMAIL: Letters to MOAUG covering subjects of Adam interest.
NULU UNCR: this article describes the CPM programs NULU and UNCRUNCH> same credit details as NSWP.
NorthstBBS: most northerly BBS is in Canada's Northwest Territories, well beyond the Arctic Circle. Call only if your Long Distance bill can stand it.
Readme2: Article descriptions. (This file).
REVcashflo: a review of the Cashflow Financial Package produced by
Nickleodeon Graphics. Written by Tony Wong. This review first appeared
in the June, l989, ADAM's LEAF of the Edmonton, (Alberta, Canada) ADAM
Users Group. Written in SmartWRITER and formatted in a 35-character-count
column. Please credit author and newsletter when using.
SHORTANSWRS; Short answers to two questions; using RGB monitors and dot matrix printers. By Dave Sands. This article originally appeared in the Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) ADAM Users group newsletter, the ADAM's LEAF. Please credit when using. SmartWRITER and formatted in 35-character count column.
SurfNski: a hardware review of some hardware that never made it, and it's
too damn bad, because Barry Wilson would have loved this stuff. Written
by Joe Botto, originally appeared in the ADAM's LEAF of the Edmonton
(Alberta, Romania) ADAM Users Group. Please credit author, newsletter
and ANN if using.
The Abominable Snowman
by Terry R Fowler
The Abominable Snowman by Graftex Software is a text graphics game which allows you to search for this legend yourself. Once loaded, the screen displays a hi-resolution screen with text window at the bottom for more information. The graphics screen provides a snowy field in the trees. As you make selections from a list of six commands (Read more, Search, Proceed, Turn back, Rest, and Eat) by pressing the proper number, the clues appear on the screen in succession. Using common sense will guide you through this search.
The Snowman comes on two disks or 1 datapack, and information is continually accessed from the media so that disk versions run at a nice pace, but datapacks are somewhat slower. Since you don't have to type in commands, but make selections using numbers 1 - 6 from the menu displayed on the center of the screen, the program is easy for anyone to use. But, make a mistake and it will be deadly. Novice users, $13.95.
GAME REVIEW The Abominable Snowman by Terry R Fowler
Review by Tony WongThis article originally appeared in the Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) ADAM Users Group newsletter, the ADAM's LEAF. Title: Cashflow Financial Package. Distributed by: Nickelodeon Graphics. Price: $19.98 each or all 3 for $39.98 US. Rating: Recommended+
This is another series of software distributed by Nickelodeon Graphics. It consists of three different programs.
1. Bookeeping Record 2. Invoice/Inventory 3. Financial Data Calculations
The software I ordered came in Data Pack format. To use these programs, you have to boot-up SmartBASIC first, then run the HELLO program, you'll be presented with the title screen in Hi-Res graphic with sound, the initial set up is very similar to the Desk Master Series. You then can choose to run the program by pressing one of the Smartkeys or you can run each one separately. As these programs are quite long, it is advised to Bsave it to another Data pack or Disk, not only you'll have a backup but also cut down the loading time the next time you use it.
The instruction manual is well written and I say is quite easy to follow, but unless you spend some time to read it through, most likely, you will encounter some problem while using the programs. Like most of the data base programs, it is best to practise for awhile before you actually input important data, because if you accidentally hit the wrong key, you might wipe out all the information you just typed in before you have a chance to save it. I did learn the hard way,-- losing my 4 hours work in just a couple of seconds by pressing the wrong keys.
As I mentioned in the last months review of B-M-F Desk Series, this type of program is best for small business or if you run a Home office in your own basement. Of course you can't compare these programs with the big names, like the IBM or Apple, but let's be realistic, the price of this software is right, and it does what I want it to do, and the final result is very satisfactory. I think I've said enough about the good and the bad, let's get to the point of what these programs can do for you.
BOOKEEPING RECORD: It helps to keep a simplified account of every purchase made, using a check accounting method, also allows you to record every item sold, interest earned, stock, profits, and a profit and loss statement, there are 40 pre-set categories of expenses, allows you to select by number the account you want to add the expense to, the account name and the amount are automatically posted both to the individual file record and to the monthly and yearly accounts.
INVOICE/INVENTORY: As the name implies, it is for you to write up an invoice and to keep an inventory control of your stock, what ever that might be. The first time you use this program, you will be asked to input the date, name, or company, address, city, sales tax etc, and the name and address you type in will be printed out on all forms and invoices each time you use this program. If you use the same data file disk, the program will update its file for you automatically, all you do is type in the date. One of the function I like is the Calc Inventory; it prints out the whole listing of all items, their numbers, cost and their price. The screen output is very attractive. One special note is the Invoice/Inventory program I received had a bug in it, and after a year and a half, I ended up asking help from Nickelodeon Graphics and I've got an update version in a datapack in just a couple of weeks without being charged. My thanks to Nickelodeon Graphics for their excellent support.
FINANCIAL DATA CALC: Has the following options:
I. Breakeven Analysis II. Appreciation III.Depreciation IV. Projected Income/Sales V. Projected Volume/Gross
BREAKEVEN ANALYSIS:allows you to see the projected number of units you must sell before it becomes profitable, and gives you a breakdown of how increases of $10 will affect both volume and income
APPRECIATION AND DEPRECIATION:compute the value of an item (such as office equipment, real estate, etc.) over any number of years, just type in the value of your property when purchased, the estimated resale value, the year purchased, and a readout of yearly values and percents will be given.
PROJECTED INCOME/VOLUME: allows you to compute the values for projected income and projected volume of sales based on the percent rate of increase expected. The readout includes the volume increase necessary to produce the income as well as the income itself. By inputing the rate of inflation instead of the rate of previous increases in sales, you may project the effect of inflation alone on volume and profits.
The programs also allow you to make changes, review, search, save, recover, display and print. I think this is the easiest program to use I have seen. ###
SOFTWARE REVIEW Chalk Board II by Terry R Fowler
The Chalk Board is an easy to use drawing program for the ADAM Printer in a modified SmartLOGO language format. The program boots to a color screen that contains the chalk board in the middle surrounded by clip art within a picture representative of your study. Along with the clip art pictures which may be stamped on your chalkboard there are objects which select functions. For example, the printer can be selected by moving the turtle to the printer using the joystick, and pressing the side button. The Chalk Board also allows you to place shapes in your creation.
The picture may be printed on a Standard ADAM printer. The picture prints using the "*" character, sideways on a full 8 1/2 by 11 inch page. If you don't have time to finish your picture, whenever you Exit the program whatever is on the chalkboard will be saved to the drive in use. On next loading, the picture will be restored for continuation. You can also use the Logo command to "Savepic" any finished work before "washing" the blackboard using the towel icon.
The Chalk Board II is from the TWCo., operated by Tina White [RR# 1 Box 1106, Coopers Mill, ME 04341]. It comes with complete instructions on the media. $19.95. Other programs they offer are: SimpleWill, ADAM Psycho (tell ADAM your problem and he will answer in simplified Rogerian techniques), and Basic Bonanza -- each $19.95.
DRAGON is a new game from Reedy Software which consists of a board of 144 tiles that must be removed by matching pairs. "The Dragon" is a formation of tiles laid out on the screen, but stacked from one to five tiles high. The Dragon is built as the computer first mixes the tiles, and then paints each tile on the screen. You see 96 tiles with different characters and symbols revealed. The stacks are three dimensional in that the thickness of the lower right side allows you to tell how high the stack is. The program awaits your command.
A red selector may be moved about the tiles to select a match. Press the return key at each tile and the tiles will highlighted first and then removed from the board. If, however, a tile is surrounded by tiles of equal or greater height then the tile may not be removed. Of the 144 tiles are included some tiles with exceptions or that match more than one tile. The game is quite interesting and challenging, especially since it has been handed down from the Chinese game called Mah-Jongg, some call it Shanghai. Whatever, it is fun to play.
Special features are built in, too. Press ESCAPE key and a SmartKEY Menu pops up revealing the number of Tiles left and some interesting options. I - Control: gives you the choice of using the ADAM keyboard or the setting is keyboard. Press I and all control will switch to the hand controller. II - Start New Game. III - Restart Same Game. IV - Quit. V - Back Up One Move: you can repeat this option until all 144 tiles are back on the board. VI - Show All Moves: useful if you are stuck and can find no more free matches. It will systematically search out and display all free matches and display a message when it can find no more. When matches are found, both are highlighted. You then continue the game.
During different points in the game DIALOG BOXES are drawn on the screen. They may tell you something or ask a question, awaiting a reply, then disappear. Moving the highlight box over your reply (Yes or No) allows your input. This gives the game and player variety and freshness that keeps interest longer.
DRAGON, The Chinese Challenge provides several ways that two (or more) players can compete in DRAGON. Since the same game can be replayed the game can be played for most number of tiles removed. Or, the time between each move can be limited with forfeit of your turn the resulting penalty. However you play the game it will capture your attention. $19.95 in stock!
The SmartDSK CartRIDGE was developed by Walters Software Co. to make it easier for ADAM users to boot up the SmartDSK operating system. This system also includes ramdisk routines. The Cartridge installs in the normal GAME CART SLOT where it remains to be activated by pulling the Game Reset Switch. The program will immediately boot to the option screen where the size Ram Disk is shown, and key input provides the second menu which allows you to load a disk of programs into the Ram Disk, or you can save programs already loaded. The option to continue allows you to boot the ramdisk itself, boot any drive, or load a program. Booting the SmartDSK acts just like booting the disk you just transfered into the Ramdsk. Booting a drive will boot any media in the drive you select. Loading a program provides you the choice of running the SmartDSK CartRIDGE programs, providing a menu to select SmartBASIC V1 or 2, French Basic (SuperBASIC +), SmartWRITER, EOS Start, or reset the SmartDSK CartRIDGE. You can at any time pull the Game Reset Switch to bring back the Menu Screen.
The first step it to load your programs into the Ram Disk. I used the disk prepared for use with PrBOOT, since it contains all the major programs: SmartBASIC V1 and 2, ADAMlink, ADAMcalc, SmartFILER, SmartLOGO, and SmartWRITER. Now all I need to add is French Basic to provide the SmartDSK Menu's program completion. Once the menu returns after loading the disk from the selected drive, choose to boot SmartDSK. It will ask you if you are sure. Yes answers will present the PrBOOT menu screen and you may boot all the programs. When you are done, pull the Game Reset to select from the menu screen once again. Remember, you can transfer any programs you wish using SmartDSK or SmartDSK III. Once set up, SmartDSK CartRIDGE will provide instant access to them without need for a drive boot.
If you have SuperBASIC+, a short patch will allow it to boot from the Ramdisk. If you boot a program that uses the ramdisk, setting it up after the program boots, the contents of the ramdisk will be destroyed as the program loads. Otherwise all programs used with SmartBASIC 1,2, or Plus are compatible from the Ramdisk, as are SmartWRITER programs accessed using SmartDSK I and AdamCALC, Flash Card, and other programs accessed using SmartDSK II for device number two (Tape 2).
SmartDSK CartRIDGE makes easy work of setting up The Print Works with a ramdisk full of signs, clips, fonts, and border files. And Label Works can access address and clip art files. AdamCALC files, SmartWRITER files, SmartBASIC files, or your favorite program package can be stored in the ramdisk and accessed quickly. Once additions or changes have been made, save the new ramdisk to disk or datapack. Sure makes it easy to have a lot at your fingertips. $29.95 in stock!
GAME REVIEW The Vase of Turr by Terry R Fowler
From Walter's Software, The Vase of Turr is a nonviolent adventure game which is quite challenging, even for experienced players. You take the role of an archaeologist searching for the lost Vase of Turr which is said to be very beautiful and covered with emeralds. The vase is hidden somewhere in the caves of Wris which contain many traps and dead ends.
The game boots to a title screen and in a few seconds a picture of a talisman will appear in the upper left hand corner, followed by SmartKEY I and text scrolling across the screen telling the story. You can bypass the tale by pressing the SmartKEY. SmartKEY I and II will appear providing you the option of use the Memory Expander (speeding up the game considerably!). If selected, the game will load into the expander where it will stay until you quit, saving the ramdisk to media. If you have a previously saved game, you may select to continue it. Continuing to play a new game reveals the first room of the cave, the items list, and SmartKEYS for selection of many options. In this game you will not be required to type any command -- this is accomplished using the SmartKEYS!
When the game begins the screen will show your beginning score as 9999. Each time you command the program, a point is removed. Messages will scroll across the screen providing hints and help. The room scene changes with each move made by using the arrow keys. Each press moves you one room in the provided direction. You can turn around and look over the entire room. As you find objects, pick them up to be placed on your list of items you carry.
The Vase of Turr is written entirely in Z80 machine code, using a graphic smartkey interface, double high scrolling text message line, sprites, background music, and sounds. To use the Ram Disk requires a 128K or larger memory card. If you receive the disk version, two disks are provided -- one for the system, and one for the graphic screens which are loaded in sequence (the second disk can be copied for a backup).
Walter's SW has come up with a winner. The game is very detailed in both design and concept. And for those purchasing it now, a chance is available to win a $50 cash price. Before March 31, 1990, submit your high score to Walter's to possibly win. But there are 257 rooms, so you need to get started now. Fun and adventure await you. $29.95 in stock.
SURPLUS SALE From Adam's House Until surplus is depleted!
ADAM'S HOUSE has managed to find the following hard to find items in excess of our stock levels. Most items are new or like new condition! All components are complete as originally manufactured. All items are warrantied for a period of 30 days!
ADAM SYSTEM CONSOLE $99.95Original ADAM SYSTEM Console for addition of second ADAM or to back up your primary system. R80 revision, and includes one datadrive.
ADAM SYSTEM PRINTER $59.95Original ADAM SYSTEM Printer which has been improved with the addition of microswitches and new printhead. Completely inspected. ALSO, we have printer to console power cords for only 4.95.
ADAM SYSTEM KEYBOARD $14.95Original ADAM SYSTEM Keyboard, new with coiled cable. ALSO - We have a number of used keyboards tested in good condition with cables for only $9.95
3 PIECES ABOVE - ADAM SYSTEM $149.95All three key pieces of the ADAM SYSTEM with hand controller, rf cable, switch box, books, and two datapacks!
EXPANSION MODULE 3 CONSOLE $49.95Expands the Colecovision Game to a full ADAM Computer System. Newest revision and one datadrive.
DISK DRIVE 160K COLECO $189.95 DISK DRIVE 320K 5.25" FLOPPY $269.95 DISK DRIVE 730K 3.5" $289.95
DATADRIVE - NEW LATEST TYPE $22.50Never used. Latest manufacture with speed adjustment screw located on top for easy access. ALSO, we may have a few used, but tested datadrives for $15.95.
COLECOVISION GAME SYSTEM $39.95The original system in new or like new condition. Hand controllers, power supply, Donkey Kong Cartridge, rf cable and switchbox, plus instruction book.
BOTH ABOVE, PRINTER, KEYBOARD $139.95The original Expansion ADAM SYSTEM with books and two datapacks.
GEMINI GAME SYSTEM $39.95ATARI and SEARS Cartridge game compatible. Includes controllers, rf cable and switch box, manual, and free game cartridge.
DISK DRIVE MPI FOR COLECO $34.95The main drive in the Coleco Disk Drive. Includes read/write heads, motor, control circuit boards, and cables for direct and easy replacement. Resolves most common disk drive problems. Get a spare!
DISK DRIVE TRANSFORMER $9.95Original disk drive transformer used with the Coleco Disk Drive. We also stock a screw together transformer which permits replacement of fuse inside.
COLECOVISION GAME TRANSFORMER $3.95Original Colecovision Game transformer.
DELTA GAME REPLACEMENT BOARD $24.95The video circuit board in the ADAM Console which contains both the Z-80 and 9928 processor chips. Quick repair of most video problem.
MICROCHIPS FOR ADAM $10.00Controller chips on the main Logic Circuit Board: choice of U6, U7, U24. Printer Controller chip. Keyboard Controller Chip. Disk drive Controller Chip, U6.
FLOPPY DISK CONTROLLER 2793 $14.95Floppy disk controller chip, U11, in the Coleco Disk Drive.
COVERED POWER SUPPLY $29.95Power supply with case and power light installed replaces the printer. Especially desirable when a dot matrix printer has been added.
CASE AND LIGHT KIT $12.95Add a case and light kit to your ADAM's Power Supply. Instructions included.
ROLLER CONTROLLER SET $29.95 SUPER ACTION CONTROLLER SET $29.95 EXPANSION MODULE #2 DRIVER $29.95
CABLES
RF Cable (RCA plugs) $ 1.95 MONITOR (with audio) $ 5.95 KEYBOARD / DISK DRIVE $ 2.95 CENTRONIC M/M SHIELDED $14.95 DM PRINTER RIBBON CABLE $ 9.95 DM PRINTER SHIELDED CABL $14.95
HAND CONTROLLER BEIGE PAIR $ 4.95
320 DISK DRIVE CONVERSION KIT $99.95
MEGARAM MEMORY CARD WITH 256K $129.95
SOUND DIGITIZER CARTRIDGE $ 69.95
SMART CLOCK INTERNAL CHIP $ 39.95
BOTH ABOVE IN CARTRIDGE $ 99.95
Get the sound digitizer to record sound for use in your programs. Clock chip is enclosed within the game cartridge, stays active for 10 years. Programs and instructions.
SOFTWARE FOR SALE
ZAXXON on DISK $ 9.95 R SCARRY WORDBOOK $ 9.95 SMARTBASIC DATAPACK $ 2.50 BUCK ROGERS DATAPACK $ 2.50 BLANK LORAN DATAPACK $ 2.25
ORDER AND DELIVERY
MINIMUM ORDER $20.SHIPPING - For UPS GROUND, 10% with $3 minimum; UPS 2ND DAY, $5 minimum (call for heavier items); and US AIR MAIL (CANADA), $6 minimum. First come, first served. No shipping discounts to subscribers, but coupons will be accepted. Refer to items by name and price on your order form. We ship all orders the next day. We reserve the right to limit quantities purchased. Late orders will be limited to stock on hand purchases. MasterCARD and VISA add 4% to total cost, but checks with card numbers thereon will be treated as cash.. UPS GROUND COD FEE is $2.75 in addition to the shipping, pay cash to the driver.
SHORT ANSWERS TO COMPLICATED QUESTIONS: LONG ANSWERS LATER By Dave SandsWe have two questions from members that deserve longer treatment in the LEAF, and they'll get it soon, but for now, here's the short answers.
Attaching an IBM-type monitor to your ADAM: our information is that you can't attach an RGB color (Red/Green/Blue) monitor to an ADAM --the ADAM doesn't supply the separate color signals (the RGB) that the monitor needs. Its signal is composite or a mix of all the video information on one line. There are units that can divide up the composite signal into RGB for you -- try a good TV equipment outfit -- but the economics don't make it a great idea. Using a dot-matrix printer with your ADAM: the ADAM will work with a dot matrix printer, but you need the following additional equipment and software:
A parallel printer interface board that plugs into the ADAM. The board will plug into the interior slot section or to the expansion port and may or may not need an "addresser board" as well. A ribbon cable that attaches to the interface board and has the right plug for your printer's input connector.
Software, usually called a "printer patch" program, that changes the ADAM's internal printer output system to work with the new printer. And you may need a separate power supply for the ADAM, unless you want to continue to plug the ADAM printer into the console. Space and convenience are usually the considerations here.
SurfNski
By Joe Botto This article originally appeared in the ADAM's LEAF of the Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) ADAM Users Group and is supplied by ADAM News Network. Of all the interesting 'things' you can do with an ADAM computer, this has to rank right up near the top when it comes to 'OUTRAGEOUS'.
Yes it's true, now you can "SURF" with your ADAM...providing you have the necessary software and hardware accessories!.. ...Note: this is for surfing 'with' ADAM not 'on' ADAM (just in case the head line was misleading) And now, the rest of the story........
Earlier this summer, while I was exploring one of the 'used computer' stores in town, I came across a unique piece of equipment. It was a peculiar looking 'black box.' This black box had a cable with a joystick connector at the end. There were also two game cartridges attached with a rubber band. The clerk at the store was quick to point out this was a 'surf board' that you attach to your computer. You've got to be kidding ...right? Nope, that's exactly what it is.
This required further investigation: I quickly examined the cartridges and joystick connector and determined that this 'equipment' was of the Atari variety. No problem...It will work on my ADAM via the expansion module #1, so I bought it!
While completing the transaction, the clerk filled me in on just how they came into possession of this so-called 'peripheral' device...... Apparently it was traded in by a fellow who used to write game reviews for one of the magazines. As you might expect, all of the hardware and software developers would supply evaluation samples of their 'wares'. (can you imagine a job like that!) Apparently, this item never did hit the marketplace and it is unlikely that there are more than a handful in existence.
What exactly did I buy you ask? Well, there is the 'JOYBOARD' (that's what the label says) and the two game cartridges, one of which is a beta test version.
The 'Joyboard' is a rectangular box about 14"x16" and 1.5" thick. It has a long cable to reach your game port as well as grooves on each side to serve as treads so you don't slip! Underneath, there is a spring loaded disk that provides the motion transfer to the video screen. Sort of like an upside-down, oversized joystick knob used as a fulcrum.
As I mentioned earlier, one of the two cartridges for this unit is a beta test version called "Surf's Up." The other is "Mogul Mania" and looks as if it was ready for mass production and distribution. It has a full color label. Both the Joyboard and the the Mogul Mania cartridge are indentified as being part of The Power System(TM); 1983 Amiga Corporation. The Surf's Up cartridge has only a typewriter label on it.
Does it really work? (I had my fingers crossed all the way home...)
The answer is yes, both cartridges and the Joyboard work just fine. Here's how it does it; first you connect the expansion module #1 to your ADAM. Then you connect your 'SURF-BOARD' to the expansion module. Next, plug in the 'Surf's Up' cartridge and turn on your system. Hit the reset button and now, the difficult part..... GET ON THE SURFBOARD AND GO!!!!
Since there are no 'docs' with either of the game cartridges I just 'took the plunge' and did the best that I could. Naturally, I didn't score many points, but it was fun trying to figure it out.
"Surf's Up" starts out with a title screen that lets you select which world famous beach you want to 'surf' at. I selected Malibu Beach because I've never actually been there. Next, you are on your surf board and heading towards the shore. You seem to have to avoid such obstacles as rocks, sharks, and such on your way in. Also, you have to watch out for the waves as they 'crest' so you don't get swallowed up! All of these are accomplished by balancing yourself on the Joyboard and tilting back and forth or side to side, which ever seems appropriate. This is NOT easy!! I wiped-out more times than I care to count. Maybe surfing isn't for me.
Next up I tried the Mogul Mania cartridge. This is a downhill ski simulation complete with snow white slopes and a slalom course. You have to 'steer' yourself around the flags and you get points for this. There is a timer as well that counts down as you do the slalom. The method used here is the same as for Surf's Up, that is, you tilt yourself on the joyboard to steer youself. One more thing, if you get off the course you end up in the trees (naturally). This is NOT good, I gathered from the repeated buzzing sounds that were made as I 'passed' through or near the trees. Exit... stage left (or right) and try to find the slalom course again.
Can you imagine.. surfing and skiing without leaving your room? With computer peripherals like this outdoor sports may never be the same again! ###
ZORK I Part One
So, you're all set for The Great Underground Empire, eh? Okay, but before we begin, a few words about this walkthru. First, this is not the only way to solve the game. It's just one of the faster ones. Second, because there is no "wasted motion" in this game, you will not be visiting all the locations. So, you might want to play around with the game on your own for a while, mapping out as much as you can, without much regard for gathering treasures.
Actually, mapping is a good idea, since, if you make a misstep somewhere, you might find yourself in trouble! Be especially careful to follow the directions when in the mazes; a wrong move there, and you could be lost for quite some time!
Finally, you may not go through this in exactly the way it's written because of the thief. He is a variable item in the game; you never know where he will show up. Try to move out of the room he's in as soon as he shows up. But keep in mind that even if he does steal anything from you, you will get it all back from him in the end. Okay? Let's start the adventure!
You begin West of the house, and your first chore is to get inside. So, go South and East. Open the window and enter the house (you're in the kitchen), then go West into the living room. Get the lamp, then move the rug, revealing the trap door. Open the trap door, turn on the lamp, and go down. At this point, some mysterious person will shut the door on you; don't worry about that for now.
Okay, so here you are in the cellar. It's time to pick up your first treasure, so go South, then East to the Gallery. Get the painting, then continue North to the Studio. Go up the chimney (you can only fit with the lamp and the painting), and you will be in the kitchen again. Now, go upstairs to the attic, and get the knife and rope. Come back down and go into the living room.
Open the case and put the painting inside. Then, drop the knife and get the sword. Open the trap door again, and return to the cellar. Again, the door is shut by someone (you never will find out who's doing this, but it doesn't matter). Now you're back in the cellar, and since we're coming to one of the more dangerous parts of the game, you might want to do a save here. Gripping your trusty sword, head North into the Troll room. There's a nasty troll here with a bloody axe, and the only way past is to kill him. So, do just that: "Kill Troll With Sword." It will most likely take more than one attempt, so keep at it, and eventually he will disappear in a cloud of black smoke. Now, drop the sword, because you really don't need it any more, and it will hinder you in carrying other, more important items.
Having dispatched the troll, you move along East, East (into the Round room), then SE and East. You are now in the Dome room. It's a long way down, and too far to jump, so here's where the rope comes in handy. Tie the rope to the railing, then climb down the rope. You will be in the Torch room. Leave the torch for now; you'll be coming back this way again later.
From the Torch room, go South, then East and get the coffin. Return West, then continue South to the Altar. There's no way you're going to get down that hole with the coffin, and even the program will tell you that you haven't got a prayer. That's a hint, folks: Just "Pray," and you will find yourself in the forest again. Since it's daylight out, save energy and turn off the lamp.
Now, head along South, then North (I know, but it works!) to the clearing, then East to the Canyon View. Climb all the way down to the bottom, then go North to Rainbow's End. Drop the coffin and open it. Inside is a jeweled sceptre. Get that, and wave it. The rainbow will become solid (you'll need to cross over from the other side later). Now, "Look." You should see a pot of gold. Get that, and the coffin.
After that, go SW, then all the way back up to Canyon View. From there, it's NW to the clearing, and then West to the window. Once in the kitchen, open the bag and get the garlic (nothing else, just the garlic). Go on into the living room, and put your treasures in the case. Now, sit down and take a breather, because you're about to do a lot of traveling!
ZORK I Part Two
Once again, open the trap door, turn on the lamp, and go down. Watch carefully, and you will notice that this time, the door doesn't close! Whoever was doing it before must have gotten bored. Anyway, you're on your way to the dam, so move along North, East, North, NE, and East. You are now on top of the dam.
From there, go North to the Lobby. Pick up the matches, then go either North or East (doesn't matter) into the Maintenance room. Get the wrench and the screwdriver, then push the yellow button. Now, return to the dam, and you will see that the green bubble is lit. Turn the bolt with the wrench, then drop the wrench. You have opened the dam, and you will be coming back this way again to reap the fruits of your labors. However, right now, you're on your way to Hades, so let's get going!
Go South, then down into the Loud room. Leave the platinum bar for now; you'll get it later. Head West into the Round room, then SE and East (hmmmm, haven't you been here before?). Again, climb down the rope. This time, get the torch. At this point, you can turn off your lamp; the torch will provide light so long as you have it.
Now, continue straight South, getting the bell, then the book and candles from the altar. Go down the hole to the cave, then down again to the entrance to Hades. Your candles will have blown out by this time, but don't worry about it. Okay, here's where you have to be careful. First, ring the bell. It will become red hot and you will drop it. You will also drop the candles. Stay calm, and do the following, all in one command: Get the candles, light match, light candles with match (necessary, because of the torch, and *DON'T* use the torch, or you'll vaporize the candles!). Okay, strange things happened when you lit the candles, now read the book. Whew! The demons have been exorcised!
Drop the book, then go South and get the crystal skull. Now, back North, then up to the cave, then North to the Mirror room. By the way, better put out the candles. Rub the mirror, and you will now be in another Mirror room (this one is North of the dam, as the other one is South).
Now, go North, then West, then North, then West into the Squeaky room (well, I told you you'd be doing a lot of traveling this time!). Make sure you have the garlic with you, then go North into the Bat room. So long as you have the garlic, he won't bother you. There is a jade figurine here, but leave it for now. You'll pick it up on your way out.
ZORK I Part Three
Go East to the Shaft room. Put the torch into the basket, then turn on your lamp and head North to the Smelly room, then down to the Gas Room (best not to carry any open flames here!). Now, you are about to enter a small maze, so follow these directions *CAREFULLY*!
East, Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, down, and you should be at the top of the ladder (if you aren't, may God have mercy on your soul!). From there, go down to the Ladder Bottom, and then South to the Dead End for the coal. Get that, then return to the ladder top. From there, go up, North, East, South, North, and you will be back in the Gas room. Go up, then South to the Shaft room again.
Put the coal in the basket, and lower the basket. Now, guess what? You have to go back through the coal mine again! So, make your way to the Ladder Bottom, but this time, go West to the Timber room. Ignore the broken timber (not useful for anything), and drop all but the screwdriver. Now, you can squeeze through the crack to the West.
And here you are in the Drafty Room, which is also at the bottom of the shaft. There's the basket, so get the coal and the torch, and move South into the Machine room. Open the lid, put the coal in the machine, close the lid, and turn the switch with the screwdriver. Drop the screwdriver, open the lid, and get the diamond (well, no one ever said Zork was an *EASY* game!). Now, go back North, and put the torch and the diamond in the basket. Squeeze back East into the Timber room. Get the skull, lamp, and garlic. You won't be needing the matches and the candles any more, so you can leave them. (They were insurance in case the thief came along and stole the torch before you could get the diamond). Now, head East again to the Ladder Bottom, and from there up and through the coal mine (you know the way now!), to the Gas room. Pick up the bracelet, then continue on up and South to the Shaft room. Get the torch and the diamond from the basket, turn off the lamp, then go West into the Bat room. Get the jade, then go South, East, South to the Slide room.
Now, here's a fast way back to the cellar: Just go down the slide! Wheeeee! Then it's up to the living room (remember, the trap door is open now), and all the treasures go into the case. Huff! Puff! Bet you didn't know you'd be doing *THIS* much running around! But, don't get too relaxed, there's still plenty more to come (urk!).
ZORK I Part Four
Turn on the lamp, and return to the cellar. From there, it's North (ah, deja vu!), then East, North, NE to Reservoir South. Now that the sluice gates are open, you can head North, picking up the trunk of jewels, North again to Reservoir North, getting the air pump, and North one more time, getting the crystal trident. After that, go all the way back South again to Reservoir South, then East to the dam, and then East once more to the Dam Base.
Here you find a little pile of folded plastic; guess what it is? Right, it's an inflatable boat! So, inflate it with the pump, then drop the pump, then get inside the boat, say "Launch," and you're floating off along the Frigid River.
Now, just keep waiting until you see the buoy. Get that, then "East" to the beach. Get out of the boat, then get the shovel and move on to the Sandy Cave to the NE. You might want to save the game at this point, since you have to dig here until the scarab turns up, and I'm sure you don't want to get buried alive (it's been known to happen!). Okay, drop the shovel and get the scarab, then go back SW. Drop the buoy and open it; inside is an emerald. Get that, then continue South to the Aragain Falls.
Here you can cross the rainbow (so do that!), which brings you to the End of The Rainbow. Turn off the lamp, then go SW to the Canyon Bottom. From there, make your way back to the living room, and put all the treasures in the case. Your collection is quite impressive by now, but you aren't finished yet. Go East twice, then North twice. Climb up the tree and get the egg. Climb down again, and go South, East, and back to the living room. However, this time, you don't put the treasure in the case.
Turn on the lamp, and go down (once again!) into the cellar, and North to the Troll room. Now, you are about to enter a maze, so follow the directions very carefully!
West (this brings you into the maze), South, East, up, and you find
several items here. Take only the coins and the key, and be careful not to
touch the skeleton! From here, go SW, East, South, SE, and you will be in
the Cyclops room. The Cyclops is not friendly, but you can deal with him
effortlessly: Just type in "Ulysses" (or "Odysseus," if you prefer). Old
One-Eye will tear out of there right through the wall! In fact, he will create a passage eastward from that room right into the living room!
However, you don't want to go that way yet! Instead, go upstairs, and you will be in the Treasure Room, the thief's secret lair. Now, give him the egg, and go back downstairs, then East to the living room. Deposit the coins in the case, then get the knife (the thief needs a little time to open the egg). Okay, go back West to the Cyclops room. Again, at this point, saving is recommended; the thief will not be easy to kill!
So, head upstairs and use the nasty knife to kill the thief. Once he's dead, all treasures in the room will be visible. This includes the egg, a silver chalice, and anything he may have been stolen from you before. Get everything, then follow these directions: Down, NW, South, West, up, down, NE, and you will be in the Grating Room. Unlock and open the grate (watch out for falling leaves!), then go up. You will be in a clearing. From there, go South and climb the tree again. Wind up the canary that's inside the egg. A songbird will come by and drop a bauble for you. Climb down again and get the bauble, then return to the living room. Put all the treasures in the case, making sure you *REMOVE THE CANARY* from the egg and put it in the case separately! You're almost finished! Just one more trip to make!
Now, for the last time, enter the cellar and go North. From the Troll Room, go East until you come again to the Loud Room. Type in: "Echo," and you will now be able to get the bar. So, grab it and return to the living room. Once you place it in the case, you will get a message. Follow the advice of that message, and you will get a map. Take that, and return to the place where this all started, the mailbox West of the house. You should have no trouble getting to the barrow from there. Of course, once you enter the barrow....
You didn't really think it would end there, did you? Not when there's still Zork II and Zork III waiting for you up ahead! Ah, but it's too late; you can't turn back now! You'll just have to grit your teeth and follow through to the end (with a little help, of course). See you in Zork II!
ZORK II Part One
So, back for more, eh? Zork I wasn't enough...or did you get hooked? No matter, it's almost time to get started. However, first a few words of advice. The Wizard of Frobozz is a lot more troublesome than the thief ever was. This is due to his spell-casting abilities. Therefore, frequent saving of the game is recommended! Otherwise, you will be wasting a lot of time waiting for some spells to wear off.
Okay, let's go! Get the sword and lamp, and move along South, South, South, SW to the Shallow Ford. At this point, turn on your lamp, then continue South, SE to the North End of Garden. Enter the Gazebo, and get all items on the table. Then "Exit Gazebo," and go N, NE to the Shallow Ford and fill the teapot with water.
Now, head South, SW, SW, and you will be in the Carousel Room. This is a wonderful place that spins you around, so you can't be sure that you're going in the direction you specify. Fun, huh? The thing to do here is keep moving around until you get to the Riddle Room. That room is actually SE of the Carousel Room, but you aren't likely to get there by typing SE, at least not for a while. So, every time you move, and find yourself somewhere else besides the Riddle Room, you will have to return to the Carousel Room and try again. Also, before you start moving around, drop everything but the teapot and the lamp; you'll pick up the things again as you need them. These are the directions from the various other rooms to the Carousel Room:
Marble Hall - South
Path Near Stream - Southwest
Topiary - West
Menhir Room - North
Cobwebby Corridor - Northeast
Cool Room - Southeast
All right, you've finally made it to the Riddle Room. Now, all you have to do is answer the riddle! Actually, it's a fairly simple riddle; just enter: Say "A Well," and you will be able to move on to the East, which is the Pearl Room. Leave the necklace for now, and continue East into the Circular Room. There is a large bucket here, just big enough for you to enter, so do that. Then pour water into the bucket, and it will rise to the top of the well.
Get out of the bucket, then go East into the Tea Room, and get all cakes except the orange one. Eat the green cake, and you will shrink down. Now, go East into the Pool Room, and throw the red cake into the pool of tears. The water will be soaked up, and you can get the package of candies. Forget about the flask; there is no use for it.
Return West to the Posts Room, and eat the blue cake. Presto! You are returned to normal size. Stretch a little, then head NW into the Low Room. Aha, there's a robot here. Tell the robot to "Go E," then go that way yourself, and you will both be in the Machine Room. I wouldn't be surprised if the controls to the Carousel room were here! Tell the robot to "Push Triangular." There will be a thud in the distance (something fell), and the Carousel Room is now off.
Tell the robot to go South, and do likewise. You are now in a Dingy Closet, and a red sphere sits invitingly just beyond your grasp. Try getting it, and a steel cage will come down over you (uh oh!). Not to worry, however! Once the cage is down, just tell the robot (even though you can't see him) to "Lift Cage." Once that's done, you will be able to get the sphere.
ZORK 2 Part TWO
Now, getting back to the bucket may be a problem of sorts; pushing the button has caused strange things to happen in the Low Room. So, after going North and West from the closet into the Low Room, you may have a problem when trying to go SE back to the Tea Room. Keep trying however, and you'll get there sooner or later. Then, go West from the Tea Room, enter the bucket, get the water, and the bucket will descend again. Get out, drop the Teapot, head West, pick up the necklace, then West again and NW to the Carousel Room. There is a box here (the thud you heard before). Open it, and inside is a violin. You don't need to take it now, so just leave it here for the time being.
Drop the sphere, necklace and candy, then get the sword, place mat and letter opener. Move North to the Marble Hall, picking up the brick, then continue North until you come to the Ledge in Ravine. Go up to the Tiny Room, which has a locked door. Slide the mat under the door, then move the lid and insert the opener in the keyhole. Remove the opener, then pull the mat and get the key. Now, unlock and open the door and go North into the Dreary Room. Drop the key and opener, and get the blue sphere.
Now, it's South and Down to the ledge, then West and North into the Dragon Room (what would an adventure game be without a dragon?). He's not one of your nicer dragons, so be careful here. Hit him with the sword, then move South. He will follow you. Hit him a second time, and move South again. He's still following you, and you're almost where you want to be. Whack the scaly nuisance one more time, and head West into the Ice Room.
Okay, the dragon follows you in, gets silly over his reflection in the glacier, and proceeds to get himself drowned. You can drop the sword now, since you won't be needing it anymore. As his body washes away, go East and SE to the Carousel Room, then SW to the Cobwebby Room. Get the string, then go back NE and pick up the newspaper and the matches. Now move along NW, West, and West again into the Lava Room. Leave the ruby for now, and continue on Southward to the Volcano Bottom.
Aha, look what's here....a hot air balloon! All you need is a way to get it inflated, and you just happen to have the means to do that. Get into the basket, then open the receptacle and put the newspaper inside. Light a match, then light the newspaper with the match. Make sure you keep the receptacle open! Now, just wait until the balloon rises to the Narrow Ledge, then "Land." Tie the wire to the hook and get out of the basket.
On the ledge is a gold coin. Pick that up and head South into the Library. Get the purple book, open it, get the stamp, then drop the book. You can ignore the other books; they are all worthless. Now, back North and into the basket again. Untie the wire, and wait until the balloon rises to the Wide Ledge.
Again, "Land" and tie the wire to the hook. Get out and go South. Now, it's time for a few thrills. Put the string in the brick, then put the brick in the hole in the box. Now light a match, then light the string. Now, head North *IMMEDIATELY*. There will be an explosion, then you can safely go back and get the crown. But don't dawdle; once you have it, get back to the basket pronto! The explosion weakened the ledge, and it won't hold much longer. So, get in, untie the wire, close the receptacle, and wait until the balloon lands at the Volcano Bottom.
Well, you seem to be doing almost as much travelling around as in Zork I, and you aren't finished yet, not by a long shot! Go North, get the ruby, then East twice and SE to (yet again!) the Carousel Room. Drop off everything but the lamp, then go NW, North, North, West, and West again, and you should now be at the entrance to the bank.
ZORK II Part Three
The bank is tricky, so follow directions carefully here. Go NE, then East into the Safety Depository, then South into the office and pick up the portrait, and back North again. Now, "Enter Light," and you will be in a small room. At this point "Enter South Wall," and you will be in the Depository again. "Enter Light" a second time, and you will find yourself in the vault, with a pile of bills in front of you. Get the bills, then "Enter North Wall," and once more you are in the Depository.
Now, drop the bills and portrait, and go East to the East Tellers Room. Go East again to the Depository, pick up the goodies, and "Enter Light." This time, you are in the East Viewing Room. From there, go South and you will be at the bank entrance. You have robbed the bank, and kept the alarms silent.
Okay, head along East until you reach the Dragon Room, then North to the Dragon's Lair. Leave the chest for now; instead, say "Hello Princess," and wait until she leaves. Follow her, and continue to follow her until you are both in the Gazebo, then wait. The unicorn will appear, and the princess will give you the key from around its neck, and also a rose. You can drop the rose; it has no use in the game.
Well, you're getting closer to the end-game, but there are still a few things left to do. Exit the Gazebo, then move South, West, SW. Drop off some of the treasures, then go back NW, North, North, North to the Lair again. Open the chest and get the statuette, then return to the Carousel Room. From there, due South to the stairway. This is a good place to save the game, as you are about to enter one of the nastier mazes around.
Go down the stairs, and you will be in the Oddly-Angled Room. Things are not always as they seem here, and the exact direction to go at this point is not constant. Try East first, and if you can't go that way, then try West. Either way, you should find a club. Get the club, and from that point, go SE, NE, NW, SW. Watch the room descriptions carefully as you do this; the little diamonds on the floor should get brighter with each move you make (you are actually "running the bases" here). If they are not doing this, restore the game and try again.
When you have done it successfully, there will be a noise in the distance. Now, you should try to go either North or South (that varies also). If one way doesn't work, try the other, and if neither works, try East or West. There will be a staircase going down, but you don't want to do that yet, so go Up instead, and head North until you are back in the Carousel Room.
Get the blue and red spheres and the candy. Drop a few things if you have to, but hang on to the club! Now, SW twice, and you are in the Guarded Room, with a lizard head in the doorway. Give the candy to the lizard, then unlock the door with the gold key. Open the door and go South, then West twice into the Aquarium. Throw the club at the aquarium, then get the clear sphere. Go East into the Wizard's Workroom.
Put each sphere on the stand of the same color, then get the black sphere that appears, and go South into the Pentagram Room. Put the sphere on the circle, and the Demon will appear. You must give him *ALL* the treasures you have collected, as well as the gold key. This will mean at least one more trip to and from the Carousel Room to get all the stuff. When you have given everything to the demon, tell the demon, "Give Me The Wand," and he will take the wand from the Wizard and give it to you.
Now, you're almost finished! Go North, East, North, North, NE, South, and you are in the Menhir Room. You need to get the Menhir out of the way for a little while, so do this: Wave the wand at the Menhir and say, "Float." The Menhir will rise up, allowing you to go SW into the kennel and get the collar. After that, go NE, then South, then Down, and Down again into the Cerberus Room.
Cerberus is no problem; just put the collar on him. Now, go East, then South, and you are in the Crypt. Turn off the lamp, and you will notice a secret door in the south wall. Open the door and go South, and you will be on the Landing. The game is over!!
Or is it? After all, there's still Zork III up ahead!
ZORK III Part One
Well, you've come a long way since you first stood by the mailbox outside the house in the forest. You've defeated the thief, outwitted the Wizard of Frobozz, and now, you stand at the foot of the endless stairs, ready to embark on the final part of your journey. So, pick up the lamp, turn it on, and head along due South until you come to the shore of the lake.
Drop the lamp <say goodbye to it; you won't be seeing it again>, and jump into the lake. Brrrr!!! Pretty cold! So, don't stay in there long; swim west and then go South into the Scenic Vista. Kind of a strange place, with changing numbers on the wall and a bare table...not quite all that scenic, eh? Well, get the torch, and wait for the number to change to "II." Then, touch the table.
My oh my! You're in a room from Zork II....Room 8, as a matter of fact. However, you don't have much time to sight-see, so get the can of Grue repellant, then try moving East, and you will find yourself back in Scenic Vista again. Now wait for the number to change to "III," then touch the table again. This time, you're in a Damp Passage. Drop the torch, and just wait there until you're pulled back to Scenic Vista.
Okay, you're finished here, so move along North to the shore, and again jump in the lake. Splash! It hasn't gotten any warmer; in fact, you just dropped the can of repellant. So, go Down, and you will be on the lake bottom. Ah, there it is! But, could there be something else there, too? "Get all," and you will have not only the repellant but also an amulet. This is one of those "wonderful" variable things; it may take more than one try on your part to get both items. In the meantime, you can't stay in the icy waters too long, and sooner or later a hungry fish will come looking for you.
Therefore, it's best to save the game before you jump in from the Western Shore. So if you die in the water, or get eaten by the fish, or picked up by the Roc <while you're swimming on the surface>, you don't have to start all the way back at the beginning. By the way, this is the only one of the Zorks where you don't lose points if you die. But, all the items you've collected so far get scattered all around, and it's time-consuming to go look for them.
Okay, now you have the can and the amulet, so head Up to the surface, then South to the Southern shore. You can see a cave to the South, and it looks kind of dark. In fact, it *is* dark in there, which is why you have the repellant. So, spray the smelly stuff on yourself, and go South, and you will find yourself in a Dark Place. Go South again, then East, and you will be in the key room. Whew! At least there's some light in here! And by the light you can see a strange key. Get the key, then move the manhole cover and go down.
And here you are on an aqueduct. Since you can't go back <the Grue repellant wouldn't have lasted that long>, you might as well go forward. So, just head along North and you will come to the Water Slide. Go North down the slide, and guess where you are? In the Damp Passage! And there's the torch, so pick it up, because you're certainly going to need a light source...especially when you think of where you're going next.
So, from the Damp Passage hike along West to the Junction <you can't get the sword out of the rock, so don't even try>, then South into Creepy Crawl, and Southwest into the Shadow Land. Here we come to another variable portion of the game. You will have to wander around in the Shadow Land until a cloaked and hooded figure appears. When that happens, the sword will suddenly materialize in your hand, and you will be able to fight.
However, since there's no way of telling when that will happen, you just have to keep moving around until it does. At least you will get a chance to practice some elementary map-making! Also, this is the most dangerous part of the game, as the figure is quite capable of killing you, too! So, best to save before you enter Shadow Land.
When the mysterious figure finally appears, attack him with your sword until he is badly wounded and cannot defend himself. At that point, get his hood. The figure will then disappear, leaving the cloak behind. Get that also. Now, you have to get out of here, and I can't tell you exactly how, since there's no way of knowing exactly where you were when the fight started. However, if you go Eastwards, you will exit the Shadow Land at either the Creepy Crawl or the Foggy Room. From either place, go North to the Junction.
ZORK III Part Two
From the Junction, it's West through the Barren Area, and West again to the Cliff. Bet you just can't wait to climb down the rope, huh? Well, pick up the bread first, then go down to the ledge. Well, well, a chest! Too bad you don't have a key to open it. In fact, there's no way for you to open it at all. But don't despair, there's a way of doing it.
Just wait around and someone will come along the top of the cliff. You may not really trust him, but tie the rope to the chest when he asks, and wait around some more. Eventually, he will return and help you back up the cliff. He will also give you a staff, which is what you're really after here. Take the staff, then go back down to the ledge, and from there, to the Cliff Base.
Now trek South to the Flathead Ocean, and do a little more waiting. Sooner or later a ship will come floating by. As soon as you see it, say: "Hello, Sailor." The man in the ship will throw something onto the beach for you. Take a look, and you will see it's a vial. It'll come in handy later, so pick it up. Now comes the fun part: You have to wait for the earthquake <notice how you've been doing a lot of waiting around? I hope you're a patient person!>. While you're waiting, you might want to wander around a little, although you've been to most of the accessible places by now. In any case, wherever you are, once the earthquake hits, make your way to the Creepy Crawl, and from there East into the Tight Squeeze, then East again into the Crystal Grotto. Then all the way South to the Great Door, and East into the Museum Entrance.
Now, open the East door, then go North into the Museum. Look at the gold machine <it's a time machine, in case you were wondering>, then set the dial to 776. Here comes the fun part: Push the machine South into the Entrance, then East into the Jewel Room. Get into the machine, and push the button. Aha! Now you're back in 776 GUE, but the time machine seems to have vanished! No matter, wait for the guards to leave, then get the ring <and *only* the ring!>, then open the door, go out into the Entrance, open the North door and go North.
By golly, the machine is right there! Put the ring under the seat, turn
the dial to 948, get in, and push the button. Whew, you're back in the
right time period again. Get out of the machine, look under the seat
<you will get the ring automatically when you do this>, then back South,
and South again, to the Royal Puzzle.
Okay folks, you are about to enter the absolute nastiest part of the game. You must follow the instructions *EXACTLY* as given, or you will never get out. And, since it would be easy to make a mistake here, I strongly recommend you save the game.
1. Go Down the hole, then push the South wall. Then go East, South, East, East. Push the South wall, get the book, and push the South wall again.
2. Push the West wall twice. Then go East, South, and push the East wall. 3. Now, go straight North until you come to the marble wall, and push the East wall.
4. Now, go West, South, South, South, South, East, East, North, North, North, and push the West wall.
5. From there, go East, South, South, South, West, West, West, West, North, North, North, West, North. Push the East wall three times.
6. Now, West, West, South, South, East, East, South, and push the East wall.
7. Okay, now West, West, West, North, North, North, East, East, and push the South wall two times.
8. From there, West, South, South, East, East, North, and push the West wall two times.
9. Now, South, West, and push the North wall until it won't move any more.
10. Then West and North. Finally! You have maneuvered the ladder under the hole <which was the purpose of all this pushing and running around>, and now you can just go up and out! WHEW!!!!
ZORK III Part Three
Okay, you've solved the Royal Puzzle and you have the book, so go North to the Museum Entrance, then open the East door and get your other stuff from the Jewel Room. Then it's back West to the Great Door, and from there back to the Junction. Now, East into the Damp Passage, and NE to the Engravings Room.
Well, we have here yet another <!> of those variable events: Sooner or later, an old man will be sleeping here. If he isn't there the first time you arrive, walk around a little and return. When you finally do see him, wake him up and give him the bread. He will eat it and then make visible to you a secret door. He will then vanish.
Okay, you're getting closer to the end! Open the door, and go into the Button Room, then North to the Beam Room. Put the sword in the beam, then go back to the Button Room and push the button. Now, back North to the Beam Room and North again into the Mirror Room. There will be an opening in the Mirror, so go North one more time, and you will be inside.
Now, don't let the long and complicated descriptions scare you! It's not really as bad as you think <it's worse! heheheheh..just kidding!>. First, raise the short pole. Then, push the white panel twice. Now, push the pine panel, and go North. Okay, so here you are, standing a little too close for comfort to the Guardians of Zork. If I were you, I wouldn't try going past them quite yet! Open the vial, then drink the liquid. While nothing seems to have happened, you have in fact become invisible. Now you can walk North until you come to the locked door. Knock on the door, and the Dungeon Master will open it and let you in.
All right, hang in there, you have reached the end game! Go North, then West, then North again. The DM will be following you. Go North to the Parapet, set the dial to 4, and push the button. Now, go South, open the cell door, and step inside. The DM will not follow you in.
Once inside, you will notice a bronze door in one of the walls. However, you can't open it yet! Something else has to be done. And it will have to be done by someone else. So, first tell the DM to go to the Parapet. Then tell him to turn the dial to 1, and then tell him to push the button.
All right!! The magic moment has arrived! Unlock the bronze door with the key, open the door, and go South!
***** TA DA!! *****
Finally, Zork is finished! You have survived all the perils, pitfalls, and puzzles, and now, *YOU* are the new Dungeon Master. Have fun!
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