• Tag Archives apple

  • Compute! (October 1981)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: Compute! – Issue Number 17 – October 1981

    Compute! is a home computer magazine that got its start all the way back in 1979. Later on, it tended to be less technical than something like Byte but by today’s standards, all computer magazines were somewhat technical when this issue was published in October 1981. At the time, Compute! covered computers based on the 6502 processors such as the Commodore PET, Apple II, Atari 400/800, VIC-20 and others. This issue includes:

    Columns

    • The Editor’s Notes – Atari reduces prices in the wake of the introduction of the VIC-20 (they would ultimately lose the price war later on vs. the Commodore 64), IBM enters the personal computer market, Atari wins school contract in Minnesota, and more.
    • Computers and Society – Appropriate applications for home computers.
    • Readers Feedback – A commentary on the maturing of the computer industry and Computer Aided Instruction.
    • Ask the Readers – A question answered about the Apple II and TV interference and questions asked about video terminal options for an OSI computer, the 3040 Floppy Disk Unit for the PET, and more.
    • Basically Useful BASIC: Automatic DATA Statements For CBM and Atari – A type-in program that converts machine language code into BASIC DATA statements.
    • The Beginner’s Page – Organizing and processing data with computers.
    • VIC-20 News – The latest released for the new VIC-20 including the VIC Graphics Printer from Axiom, a new disk drive (this would become the 1540), various memory expansion cartridges, an RS-232 adapter for connecting a modem, plus lots of software including Blackjack, Slither/Superslither, Biorhythm Compatibility, Space Math, Car Chase, Blue Meanies from outer Space, Programmer’s Aid (adds new BASIC commands), and more.
    • Guest Commentary: A Software Publisher’s View on Software Pricing and Service Policies – A commentary on software licensing from a publisher’s perspective.
    • What is a Modem, and Why Do I Need One? Part II – Part II of this multipart series includes information on how to use a modem, what type of modem to get, and technical modem details.
    • More Machine Language for Beginners – A program that provides a way to secure private files is used as a way to teach machine language techniques.
    • Undeleteable Lines – A technique for inserting lines of code in a BASIC program that cannot easily be deleted. Works on the Apple II and Commodore PETs.
    • Inverting a Matrix – A program for the TRS-80 for inverting a matrix.
    • New Products – A brief look at new products including the new 300bps AUTO-CAT modem from Novation, a TV/Monitor stand for the Apple II and Atari, VisiFile filing/database program for the Apple II, a software development system for the Commodore PET, Apple II, and Atari 400/800 from Eastern House Software, and more.

    The Apple Gazette

    • Budgeting On the Apple – A type in program for the Apple II that helps with budgeting tasks.
    • Named GOSUBs – A machine language routine that allows you to use named GOSUBs (instead of just line numbers) in BASIC programs.
    • A Tape “EXEC” For Applesoft: Loading Machine Language Programs Part II – A program that allows you to load both a BASIC program and ML routines it uses from tape.
    • Switching Cleanly From Text To Graphics – Normally when switching from text to graphics mode on the Apple II, garbage will briefly appear on the screen. This bit of code that you can implement in your own programs prevents that from happening creating cleaner transitions.
    • Interfacing the CCS 7710A Asynchronous Serial Card – Instructions for building a printer interface for the Apple II using the specified serial card.

    The Atari Gazette

    • Cassette Boot-Tape Generation From DOS 2.0S Binary Load File – A technique for creating a bootable tape on the Atari 400/800.
    • Beware The RAMTOP Dragon – A technique for creating protected memory areas…especially from Atari’s memory management.
    • Documented Atari Bugs – A detailed description of bugs in Atari OS and BASIC software.
    • Graph It On The Atari – A type in program for creating plots and graphs.
    • Extending Player Missile Graphics – A machine language program for enhancing the capabilities of Atari’s Player Missile Graphics (sprites).
    • Atari 400/800 Variable Name Utility – A type in program that will display the contents of the variable name table which lets you know which variable names are already in use.
    • Insight: Atari – How to use calculated GOTO and GOSUB statements.
    • Overview: “Letter Perfect” Word Processing on the Atari – A review of Letter Perfect, a $149 word processor for Atari computers.
    • Atari Disk File Dump – A type-in program that will provide a hex dump of any program on disk. This works with Atari 810 and 815 disk drives.
    • Atari Program Library – A type-in program that helps you catalog your software by comparing disk contents with what is already in the database and adding whatever is missing.

    The Pet Gazette

    • Practical Pet Printing Primer for Perplexed Programmers – A type-in program that helps you to print out program listings in a reasonable format.
    • Odds And Ends: A Fat Forty Bug – Illustration of a bug that sometimes occurs when running BASIC 4.0 programs on a PET with 12-inch screens that was originally written for 4-inch screens.
    • Machine Language: What’s Your Sign? – Using signed vs. unsigned numbers.
    • Train Your Pet To Run VIC Programs – A technique for getting VIC BASIC programs to run on the PET.
    • Converting To Fat-40 – A tutorial for converting programs written for 9/10-inch PET 4032 to the 12-inch 40-column PET 4032.
    • High Resolution Bar Graphs For The Pet – A type-in program for creating bar graphs on the PET
    • Waking Up The PET Screen – A software routine that can create reverse field blinking anywhere on the screen at variable rates.
    • Interfacing A BSR X-10 AC Remote Control System – Long before Alexa, X-10 systems were a way to create home automation. This article describes interfacing such a system with a Commodore PET.
    • Using Non-Pin-Feed Forms In The 2022 – A way to print on standard checks and bank deposit forms using the 2022 printer.
    • How And Why You Should Use PEEK (155) Instead Of Get – A better way to detect key presses when multiple keys are pressed at the same time (e.g. as might happen in two player games).

    The SBC Gazette

    • AIM 65 BASIC Floating Point Arithmetic From Machine Language – How to use floating point numbers on the SBC.
    • A General Purpose BCD-To-Binary Routine – A type-in program that will convert a BCD number with any number of digits to a binary number.

    …and more!


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  • VideoGames & Computer Entertainment (September 1992)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: VideoGames & Computer Entertainment – September 1992

    VideoGames & Computer Entertainment was my favorite gaming magazine during most of its life. It went through a couple of transitions later on, eventually giving birth to Tips & Tricks but I never really cared for that one. The September 1992 issue of VG&CE includes:

    Features

    • Tokyo Toy Show Report – Some highlights of items shown at this show include a RAM backup card for the Turbo Duo, the Wondermega Genesis/Sega CD combo unit, the Teradrive which is a combo 286-based PC and Sega Genesis, Street Fighter II for the Super NES, Afterburner III for the Mega Drive/Mega CD, Lunar: The Silver Star for the Sega Mega CD, Soldier Blade for the PC Engine, Dodge Ball for the PC Engine, Musashi for the Mega Drive, Snatcher for the PC-Engine CD-ROM, Cosmic Fantasy 3 for the PC-Engine CD-ROM, and lots more.
    • Searching for the Dark World: A Player’s Guide to Zelda III, Part I – The first part of a detailed guide for A Link to the Past.
    • The 1992 Summer Consumer Electronics Show Recap – Highlights of the show include Super Star Wars (Super NES), Street Fighter II (Super NES), Dracula (Atari Lynx), Bart’s Nightmare (Super NES), Shadowrun (Super NES), TTI’s Turbo Duo, Centipede (Game Boy), Betrayal at Krondor (PC), Maximum Overkill (PC), Battletank 2000 (PC), Dark Sun: Shattered Lands (PC), and lots more.
    • Getting Into the Game: An Exclusive Look at Nick Arcade – Nick Arcade was a game show in Nickelodeon that featured virtual reality by putting players inside arcade games.

    Reviews & Previews

    • Video-Game Reviews
      • Dungeon Master – The classic 3D adventure game for the Super NES.
      • Taz-Mania – A platform game for the Genesis featuring the classic Warner Bros. character.
      • Danny Sullivan’s Indy Heat – A racing game for the NES featuring nine courses across the U.S.
      • Jackie Chan’s Action Kung Fu – Side scrolling beat-em-up featuring Jackie Chan before he became a household name.
      • King Salmon – Another fishing game, this one for the Genesis. I don’t like fishing games anyway and this isn’t one of the best.
      • DinoCity – A platform game for the Super NES in which you team up with a dinosaur to defeat some evil Neanderthals.
      • Andro Dunos – A side-scrolling shooter for the Neo Geo.
      • Side Pocket – Classic pool game for the Genesis.
      • WWF Wrestelmania Steel Cage – The last WWF wrestling game for the NES.
      • Ka-Blooey – A puzzle game for the Super NES in which you must set off all the bombs on a level without blowing yourself up.
      • The Terminator – An action adventure game based on the movie of the same name for the Genesis.
      • Adventure Island III – The latest iteration of this platform game for the NES.
      • Splash Lake – A puzzle game for the TurboGrafx-CD that bears more than a passing resemblance to a classic board game called Don’t Break the Ice.
      • King of the Monsters 2 – Fighting game featuring various monsters for the Neo Geo.
    • Gaming on the Go
      • Roger Clemens MVP Baseball – A reasonably fun baseball game for the Game Boy.
      • R.C. Grand Prix – A fun R.C. racing game. I never played this one but have fond memories of R.C. Pro Am on the NES and Re-Volt on the Dreamcast.
      • Tom & Jerry – A platform featuring the famous cartoon duo on the Game Boy.
      • Marble Madness – Conversion of the arcade classic for the Game Gear.
      • Steel Talons – Conversion of the helicopter coin-op game for the Atari Lynx.
    • Seven’s The Charm: A VG&CE Exclusive Preview of Wizardry VII – Eleven years after the original Wizardry was released, the seventh game in this classic RPG series, Crusaders of the Dark Savant, makes its debut.
    • Computer Game Reviews
      • Darkseed – An H.P. Lovecraft/H.R. Geiger inspired adventure game for the PC.
      • Mutant Beach – A puzzle/adventure game for the Macintosh.
      • Pinball Dreams – A pinball game featuring four different tables for the PC and Amiga.
      • Global Effect – A world building sim for the Amiga and PC featuring 14 different scenarios.
      • Aquaventure – An action game that plays like a 3D version of Defender for the Amiga.
      • Crisis in the Kremlin – A strategy game for the PC based on the Tom Clancy book of the same name.
      • Road & Track Presents Grand Prix Unlimited – A Formula One racing sim for the PC.
      • Gateway – A sci-fi game based on the Frederik Pohl book of the same name.
      • Gods – A run and shoot platform game. Think Contra.
      • Hong Kong Mahjong Pro – An actual Mahjong game for the PC, not the tile matching game that is usually associated with that name.
      • Wolfenstein 3-D – The granddaddy of all first person shooters. Welcome Id software to the scene…

    Departments

    • Editor’s Letter – A preview of this issue as well as a little about the upcoming October issue.
    • Reader Mail – Readers write in about game incompatibility with the new version of the Genesis, rumors of a new Super NES pack-in, controllers and Street Fighter 2, Neo Geo coverage, and more.
    • Tip Sheet – Game tips for Terminator 2 (arcade), Mission: Impossible (NES), and The Immortal (Genesis).
    • News Bits – Atari drops price of Lynx software, Galoob wins legal battle to keep making Game Genie, Nintendo and Sega lower 16-bit system prices, Sunsoft to release Road Runner’s Death Valley Rally and Tazmania for the Super NES, TTI lowers hardware prices, and lots more.
    • Easter Egg Hunt – Hidden secrets revealed in Street Fighter II (Super NES), Mike Ditka Power Football (Genesis), Awesome Golf (Lynx), The Guardian Legend (NES), Q*Bert (Game Boy), Sengoku (Neo Geo), MLBPA Sports Talk Baseball (Genesis), It Came From the Desert (TurboGrafx-16), OutRun (Genesis), and Steel Empire (Genesis).
    • Inside Gaming – A look at the near future of multiplayer gaming.
    • Q & A – Questions answered about unlicensed NES carts, software for the Apple IIgs, technical details of the Atari Lynx, the maximum number of Genesis controllers, the ext. port on the Genesis, the future of Sega CD, and more.

    …and more!


    📂This entry was posted in Retro Games 📎and tagged

  • MacAddict (May 1998)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: MacAddict – Issue Number 21 – May 1998

    The best way to describe MacAddict would be to compare it to boot/Maximum PC for the PC. It was a magazine for enthusiasts. If I had been aware of it at the time, this magazine probably would have made me want to buy a Mac. Sadly, it transformed into MacLife at some point which was perhaps more polished but also boring and almost…antiseptic for lack of a better word. MacAddict was so much better. the May 1998 issue includes:

    Highlights

    • Become a Mac Handyman – A guide to troubleshooting, repairing and upgrading your Mac. Includes tips on solving software issues, installing PCI, PDS and NUBUS cards, installing RAM, and much more.
    • AppleScript Boot Camp – A tutorial for AppleScript, the scripting language of MacOS. Includes steps for controlling Navigator, automatically creating aliases, file renaming, and more.
    • This Old Mac – I especially loved this series on upgrading and using older Macs. This month the PowerBook 100 is covered which was six years old at the time. The PowerBook 100 is a 16-MHz 68000 based machine. At the time, it could still be made useful for e-mail, word processing and other basic tasks. The RAM could be upgraded to 8MB but RAM upgrades were expensive and 4MB could be enough for those basic tasks. Alternatively, upgrading from 4MB to 6MB was a cheaper alternative then going to 8MB. The hard drive could also be upgraded from the standard 20MB or 40MB drive up to at least 1GB. External drives were also an option. If only modern MacBooks were as upgradeable. Other potential upgrade options include a modem (up to 9600bps external or 2400bps internal), upgraded System Software (up to 7.5.5), and there was plenty of Internet software available including MacPPP, MacTCP, NCSA Mosaic 1.0.3, MacWeb, Eudora, LeeMail, Pegasus, NewWatcher, Fetch, Anarchie, AOL 2.1, and more.

    How To

    • Switch to HFS+ – HFS+ was a new file system that came with MacOS 8.1. This tutorial guides you through upgrading from MacOS 8 and HFS to MacOS 8.1 and HFS+.
    • Know It All about Finder Views – A guide to configuring how Finder displays files and file info.
    • Avoid Stupid Webmaster Mistakes – Web 1.0 webmaster tips including tips about GIF interlacing, avoiding useless pages, correcting grammar and spelling, including alt image tags, linking back to the home page, and more.

    Every Month

    • Editor’s Note – Lamenting the end of the Newton MessagePad.
    • Letters – Letters from readers about the PowerMac 6100, Steve Jobs, and more.
    • Get Info – The latest Mac related news including new G3 vs. Pentium II benchmarks, better support from Iomega (including for Zip, Jaz and Ditto drives), IBM experiments with 1 GHz PowerPC chip, and more.
    • Cravings – A look at some of the latest tech gear, including the Kodak DCS 520 Digital Camera ($14,995 for 1728×1168 resolution), DirectCD (using CDs like floppies), DaynaStar FastHub 8 (an 8-port 100 Megabit hub for $269), Action Files (file manager/finder), and Lapdog (a lapdesk for your PowerBook).
    • Reviews
      • Dreamweaver 1.0 – a WYSIWYG HTML editor
      • Microsoft Internet Explorer
      • Elastic Reality 3.1 – morphing/warping graphics software)
      • Multi-Ad Creator 2 – a tool for creating small documents such as ads and brochures
      • Claris Home Page – an HTML editor

      • Mac Picasso with 3D Overdrive – a 2D video card with an optional 3D module based on the 3Dfx chipset…for $550
      • VideoShop 4.0/3D – A non-linear video editing app
      • PlusMaker 1.0.1 and PlusMaximizer 1.0 – Tools for converting to HFS+ without erasing data and for using smaller 0.5K block sizes
      • Racing Days R – Racing game from Feral Entertainment
      • Shattered Steel – A mech game from Logicware
      • …and more!
    • PowerPlay – Games coverange including a preview of Intellivision Lives!, a look at Quake conversions X-Men: the Ravages of Apocalypse and Malice, Diablo and Starcraft updates, and more.
    • Ask Us – Questions answered about RAIDs, reordering columns in Finder, Photoshop troubleshooting, ink for the Color StyleWriter 1500, invisible files, copying large files to multiple floppies, and more.

    …and more!


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