P701 CJEFA( 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:07/12 1/19 26 THE PAGE FOR Rjvjews......702 MICRO USERS Diary./......703 Edited bz Martin Cooper Telesoftware.710 Contact us: PRESTEL - 21999967 TJLECOM GOLD - 72:MAG104:6 POST - "NEXT", Room 7059, BBC TV Centre, London W22 7RJP701 CJEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:08/35 THIS WEEK MODEM WORLD "Dazzz" welcomes new- comers to the world of communications T TAPE TROUBLE M.C.Barton and Miles Potwell on kitting the best from a cassette plazjr HELP! * NASA database * Nascom users - NEWS ARbey National has its own big bang...n * WRINKLES Electron tip REVIEWS ON 702 P701 CJJFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 2):38/57 3/19 MODEM WORLD "Dazzz" A phone and a modem are the only two pieces of equipment you need to give you a gateway into a strange new world. @ With a modem you can chat to other computer owners around the country or play an adventure in "real time" with other users as your allies or enemies. You can visit one of the private BBs (Bulletin Boards* that are spread around the UK and abroad. Or you can join Telecom Gold and become part of the electronic mail revolution which is taking hold of British business. MoreP701 CEEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:17/23 4/19 MODEM WORLD ] "Dazzz" A Modem (MODulator DEmodulator) is a piece of hardware which allows one computer to communicate with others - mainframes or micros - over the telephone network. The telephone system is designed to carry the human voice, not the electrical pulses of computers. A modem converts the pulses into a form which the phone can handle. - If you could listen in on a "conversation" between two micros you would hear a high-pitched whistle called a carrier tone and a vbriety of buzzes. Prestel nextP701 CJEFA( 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:40/11 5/19 MODEM WORLD ] "Dazzz" The largest database in the UK is Prestel which includes Micronet 800 Pristel is a general information service and has everything jrom timetables to travel agents, home banking, sport, news and jobs. Micronet caters for computer owners and provides information and help for most makes of micro. - It is more interactive than the rest of Prestel, incorporating strategy games and a multi user game called SHADES, as well as chatlines, where people can leave mjssagjs for all to read. ] MoreP701 CEEFAX 701 Mon Q7 Nov 21:41/54 6/19 MODEM WORLD ] "Dazzz" If you want to explore further you can vjsjt one of the many BBs (Bulletin Boards* run bz private enthusiasts around the country. There are two types of BB. Viewdata boards are in pages like teletext, except that you have more control over what you see. On a scrolling BB the information moves up the screen much as it does in a text adventure game. Thjsj BBs act as mjusagj boards T where you can leave remarks on public view, or reply to other people's comments. Some have free telisoftwari. MoreP701 CEEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:49/18 7/19 MODEM WORLD ] "Dazzz" Calling long distance can be very expensive, so it may bj wise to use PUS (Packet Switch Stream). PUS works bz cutting the data you send down the phone line into very smbll chunks, allowing data jrom several users to bj sent at the same time. This makes very efficient use of the network and also cuts out most of the corruption that can occur on a normal telephone line. Many peoplu use PUS to play MUD, (Multi-User Dungeon*, a very large adventure that can bj plazjd bz up to 100 people at once.P701 CEEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:41/05 8/19 MODEM WORLD ] "Dazzz" For further information: Prestel 01-822 1122 Micronjt 800 01-278 3143 PUS G07 Lutyjns House, 1-v Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7LY Telecom Gold 01-403 6777 Bulletin Boards: Viewdata The Gnome at Home 01-888 8894 Scrolling The London Underground 01-863 0198 P701 CEEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:42/42 9/19 TAPE TROUBLES Last weeS Andrew Walker asked for help with his Saisho DR10 data recorder. M.C.Barton writes: I szmpathjsj m I had the same problem with mz DR10 and a BBC B. The output sjemjd muvfled comparud with a Tandz chjapie. Head azimuth adjustment helpjdn Further improvement was obtained "y snipping R26 at the lower ind and inserting a 4.7mf capacitor in series. Now saving and loading are always OK, but some bought software still gjvjs problems. MoreP701 CEEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:11/36 10/19 TAPE TROUBLES Miles Potwell Many tape-users experience loading difficulties but are nervous of trying to adjust their cassette plazjrs thjmsjlvjs. But head azimuth adjustment is a vjty simple operation which can produce a dramatic improvement in performance. If you are having trouble loading programs you can also try cleaning and djmagnjtizjng the tape heads. Gadgets to help with both thjuj can bj bought quite cheaply and are well worth the investment. Cleaning and djmagnjtizjng nextP701 CEEFAX 701 Mon Q7 Nov 21:13/15 1Q/19 TAPE TROUBLES ] Miles Potwell Many tape loading and saving problems can be avoided by regular mbintenbnce. In any tape recorder dirt and a magnetic charge gradually build up on the playback head, gjvjng a distorted signal. ] Cassette head cleaners can be found quite cheaply in most record shops. They are simply cassettes in which the magnetic tape has been replaced bz a strip of cleaning material. Demagnjtizjrs are rather more expensive, but again the most convenient kind can bj loaded into the plazjr like a cassette.P701 CEEFA( 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:13/41 12/1 TAPE TROUBLES Miles Potwill The most common cause of tape loading problems is misalignment of the playback head. Most cassette plazjrs have an adjusting screw, often accessible through a hole in the casing - you may Pave to remove the cassette and press "PLAY" to get at it. Note the position of the slot in the screw head, then turn it very slightly with a small screwdriver. Try loading a program after each adjustment. If there is no improvement after half a revolution try going the other way.P701 CJEFA( 701 Mon Q7 Nov 21:14/26 13/19 TAPE TROUBLES ] Miles Potwell One unexpected problem sometimes encountered after adjusting the playback head on a cassette ptazjr is that programs saved while it was out of alignment will no longer loadn Software which has "een stored on cassette for a long time sometimes suffers jrom "print through". This happens when magnetism jrom one layer of tape bleeds through onto the layer wound ag!inst it. To avoid this, simply wind and rewind cassettes every few months. T Help! next P701 CEJFA( 701 Mon Q7 Nov 21:14/52 14/19 HELP! P.G.Lowthjr asks whether NASA has a database for education or public relations purposes. If so, how does a UK micro user go about accessing it, and how much will it cost D T!zlor would like to contact other Nascom users with the AVC graphics board who write their own games... A bit of a tall order? * Got a computer problem Get it answered through NEXT P701 CJEFA( 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:14/17 15/19 NEWS The Abbey National had its own "ig crash this month when it switched on a new software system - bz 10am the same morning it had gone down. The system was based on 5,000 Olivetti terminals connected bz telephone line to a Sperry 1100/92 mainframe costing £4 million. As with the Stock Exchange'u Big Flop, the cause of the crash seems to have been overloading. By the ind of the first week officials were quite optimistic. "It's getting better all the time," one said. "It's only been down twice today..."P701 CEEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:06/40 16/19 MATTERS ARJSIVG Phil Bridges of AMRAC would like @ to remind anzonj writing to a user group or club that they cannot expect a reply if they do not enclose a stamped envelope. Most organisjrs cannot afford postage on 30 or 40 litters a week. T A list of clubs and user groups can bj found on 703. T Acorn wrinkles next P701 CEEFA( 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:06/04 Q7/19 WRINKLES A tip for Electron owners from J.E.McLaren: If the noise of your zapping is annoying the neighbours, enter *FX210,1 before loading. This will disbble the sound channels. ] ] ] ] ] ] ] This week's reviews next ^P701 CEEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:06/26 18/19 R REVIEWS Reviews on page 702 this week: SPECTRUM Heartland - Odin Street hawk - Ocean Bombscare - Firebird Glider Rider - Quicksilva ] Zythum - Mirrorsoft Galvbn - Imagine , UPDATED EVERY FRIDAY ^P701 CEEFAX 701 Mon 17 Nov 21:05/50 19/19 WRITING FOR NEXT If you are planning to submit an item on paper, do bear in mind the limitations of the teletext page. * Lines up to 35 characters long. T * Up to 18 lines on a page - 17 is preferred, to allow room for cross-referencing. * Short paragraphs of four or five , lines eachn * A single blank line "etween paragraphs. T Address in a moment...