Little Bits
By Andrew Roughan
Copyright (c) 1997 Apple Users' Group, Sydney
Republished from Applecations, a publication of the Apple Users' Group, Sydney, Australia.
o Christmas saw the release of some new games for the Apple IIgs. Operation Lambda is a strategic action game in a similar genre as Rescue Rover. The aim is to rescue hostages on each level while avoiding the lasers that trap them by manipulating mirrors.
Operation Lambda is shareware ($25) and only available directly from the author, however, a ten level demo version is available on the Mac BBS in the Apple II Binaries Internet Conference folder (requires Binscii or GSCII+, and GS Shrinkit to unpack).
o Brutal Deluxe have finally finished LemminGS and have released a 10 level demo. This project took them eight months and it looks very impressive! The full version is available to those who have purchased Convert 3200 from Joe Kohn. Convert 3200 (US$15) is a graphic conversion utility also written by Brutal Deluxe.
ftp://ground.isca.uiowa.edu/2/apple2/apple16/Games/LemminGS.Demo
http://www.crl.com/~joko/convert.html
o A demo of Wolfenstein GS has also been released from Logicware. The demo has only three levels and no sound track, but hey, it's still awesome!
http://www.logicware.com/wolf3d_gs.html
o My internet mail address has changed. For the last two years I have been connected through the Australian Public Access Network Association (APANA) which has been cheap ($110 per year in Sydney - two hours per day) and also unreliable (various problems prevented News from flowing freely for much of this year).
My service provider has broken from APANA and now takes a faster connection directly from Connect.Com. I've moved systems with him and I have been impressed with the new level of service.
Triode is run by Paul Black in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. The rotary number for the new system is 93898022. Information about a trial login is available at the login prompt. The charges are $30 for three months or $150 for a years access with a limit of fourteen hours per week. Shell and PPP accounts are available now.
My new internet address is posty@triode.net.au. Send me some email when you get connected!
o I have recently come into possession of two Netcomm 2400bps modems. These are an ideal first modem. If you've been putting off a major investment in a fast modem, then try one of these to see what all the fuss is about. I'll loan one to you (you organise delivery both ways) with a cable and software. If you're interested in some personal help, I can arrange that too. So call now, operators are standing by! Well.... I do have an answering machine.
o In past issues of Applecations, there have been various questions and answers about using HP Deskjets and Deskwriters with Apple IIs. The conclusion has been that only HP Deskjets can be used because of the reliance on built in fonts. Apparently this is not quite the case. The Deskwriters actually have the same built in fonts as the Deskjets, however the serial port is locked at 57600bps and very few programs print this fast on an Apple II, hence the apparent lack of operation.
o Bugs in Appleworks 5? I've had my fair share of crashes while using the Spelling checker. Now Harold Hislop has stated that yes, there does appear to be a problem which affects Appleworks 5 running on Apple IIgs machines using a RamFAST SCSI card. Unfortunately no-one has been able to track it down so there is no fix yet.
o Clayburn W. Juniel has released version 4.0 of Music Composer which is a music creating, editing and playing program for the Apple IIGS. It is built around the MIDISynth tool. Notes can be entered via a spreadsheet, sheet music interface or a MIDI keyboard attached to the computer. Music Composer saves the sequence files in its own file type and it can save files as synthLAB or Standard MIDI file type. Music Composer can load Music Studio, Sound Smith, synthLAB and Standard MIDI files. Music Composer can receive and transmit all MIDI messages including system exclusive messages. It can also be used to store system exclusive messages sent to it. Music Composer can edit individual notes, chords, measures or tracks.
Price is US$50 which includes shipping, and a hard copy manual.
Shareware fees paid to Clayburn can be deducted from the price, but confirm this directly with Clayburn first.
Effective Software Solutions
1928 E. Camelback Rd #623
Phoenix, AZ 85016-4143 USA
Phone: +1-602-274-6905
Fax: +1-602-274-6851
Email: clay1@primenet.com
o I trust you all had a happy holiday season. Best wishes for 1997!

THIS CONTENT COPYRIGHT © 2007, APPLE MACINTOSH USERS' GROUP, SYDNEY
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PLEASE CREDIT THE AUTHOR AND THE SOURCE: Applecations, publication of the Apple Users' Group, Sydney, Australia

THIS PAGE COPYRIGHT © 2007, ANDREW ROUGHAN