IIgs Buyers Guide 1988 Winter

y FoR . wi —— Ss, “ So "S ae a ~Apple NGS Product Peseriptions othe Sg) ] ‘e Sa a. & Ow wy © 6 eV ag ow aw’ vEX wv * = ¢ . 74 Qabdug <6 f _ eet * Joe) > Co fee? SCs = Paced Piss YE ee & ae : oy ie 2 Uo Gua w = Vay 39! wv wo sat = ae Travel Fir Without Being T stClass aken For A Ride. First, The Problem. data you can pack up and take qi ntroducing /’ Nomatter whether anywhere. you are working with But-what you get that really _ Our Latest Sider," Model C46. 40 Megs Primary Storage. ee Integral Tape Backup. $1995.00 Total. i the Apple II computer series or the powerful new Macintoshes, and no matter whether your applications are edu- cational or corporate, the ability to get down to business these days often has.as much to do with the peripherals you attach as it does to the ke Comes itself... This is particalatly true with mass storage, where serious users are often looking for nothing less than 40 megabytes of primary storage, at least an equal amount of backup storage — and ideally, both in the same subsystem package. A few packages do exist with those specifications. But the price tags are absolutely stratospheric — which for many schools and companies anxious to get down to business can be downright catastrophic. astounds is a price tag the others can _ only envy. It reads $1995. It also reads First Class Periph- erals, for those of you wondering how that price could possibly be attached to this product. For years, the names “Sider” and “First Class” have been synonymous with truly affordable, zero defect mass storage among Apple Il users. The expansion of that standard to encompass the Macintosh world has been accompanied by a parallel expansion of The Sider Series itself. Besides the Sider C46, the family First Class, The Solution. now includes both a 20- and 40- The Sider C46 changes all of that. megabyte hard disk Sider subsystem Sure, you get capacity, speed, perfor- and a Sider 60-megabyte tape mance, reliability, backup and restore. _hackup subsystem. You get a slim, smart-looking, easy- ~ Callus toll free for the name of to-install unit that is compatible with the Apple IH, Ile and Ics — and the Macintosh Plus, SE and Il as well. With our 40 meg tape, you get data you can back up and lock up for security. And thanks to total Sider cartridge interchangeability, you get the First Class Peripherals dealer nearest you. And find out for yourself how easy it is to get down the price of getting down to business. 800-982-3232 FIRST CLASS PE R ! P H E R ALS 3579 Highway 50 East, Carson City, Nevada 89701 Circle 1 on Reader Service Card CONTENTS The Buyer’ Guide Editor's Window Features Stars Of The'Show,. 2.5 sarctecentsristeien 7 ‘The Apple IIGS and the industry it spawned were evident everywhere at AppleFest. Mastering Numbers And Words 14 Not every Apple II educational software offer- ing takes full advantage of the Apple IIGS, but here are four that do. A Parental Primes 22 With so much going on in and out of class- rooms, it's hard for parents to keep track of their children's computer use. If you're falling bebind, read this insider's report of how computers and kids are working together. The Apple IIGS As A File Cabinet..............27 The Apple IGS loves to organize numbers and words. Here are four database manage- ment programs to keep you and your com- puter as organized as you care to be. Product Reviews PC Transporter .... FutureSound.... Turbo Mouse ADB MemorySaver. VIP Professional .. Instant Music ORCA/M and TML Pascal The Sensible Series .... e [[G Cover Photography by Greg Leary, Melbourne, FL. Design by P.N. Walker Comprehensive Product Directory Accessories...... Switch boxes, cleaning kits, dust covers, mouse containers and more AppleWorks........ Compatible programs for AppleWorks Books and Publications... ee Literature of interest to Apple IIGS users Business and Productivity .. saneeeeee Integrated software, accounting packages, vertical-market software, personal finance packages, word processors and more Paint, draw, animation software and more Desk Accessories Eman 54 Pop-up accessory software for home and business Desktop Publishing. Combined graphics and text software for personal publishing projects Education....... Reading, writing, arithmetic and more Entertainment Basketball, simulations, adventures and more 62 Extended memory boards, hard disk drives, graphics products, synthetic speech accessories, modems and more Hardware and Peripherals... ; Music. Training, writing and MIDI software for music On-Line Databases..... a Information utilities available on-line Programming and Utilities File recovery software, programming languages and programmer utilities Indexes Product Index..... Advertiser's Index.......... Entire contents copyright 1987 by Redgate Communications Corporation. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means, elec- tronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. The Apple IIGS Buyer's Guide is an independent journal; not affliated in any way with Apple Computer, Inc., but Apple Computer, Inc. has granted Redgate Communications Corporation the right to use the tile, The ‘Apple IIGS Buyer's Guide. Apple is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. Apple lle, Apple llc and Apple IGS are registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., used by per- mission. Redgate Communications Corporation is not responsible for the accuracy of product listings and descriptions. Some of the views expressed by contributors may not be repre- sentative of the views held by Redgate Communications Corporation. Unsolicited manuscripts and other materials wil be returned only if accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. The publisher is not responsible for unsolicited materials. Printed in the USA. The Apple lIGS Buyer's Guide is published quarterly by Redgate Communications Corporation at 660 Beachland Boulevard, Vero Beach, FL 32963, 305-231-6904. Subscription rates: $8.95 per year; Canada $14.95; foreign $29.95. All orders are payable only in U.S. funds. Redgate ‘Communications Corporation also publishes The Macintosh Buyer's Guide, COMPAQ — The Magazine For Compaq Computer Users, FYI — The Harris Magazine For Information Management, a series of computer books and other properties. The company also provides marketing communications services to a wide range of high-technology clients. For more information contact Ted Leonsis, Redgate Communications Corporation. 2° Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com Global communications. Down-to-earth price. Introducing the APPLIED ENGINEERING <convaitinir merry iti LELTTAUULL DataLink” modem. Get instant access to networks and databases —plus network memberships and discounts worth $177.95! Now you can tap into a world of information — without draining your resources. Our DataLink™ modem lets your Apple IGS, Ie or I+ communicate with other computers, download free software from networks and bulletin boards, access database services and more. For a remarkably low price. The world at your fingertips. With the DataLink modem, you'll be able to draw informa- tion from thousands of databases. Send and receive electronic mail — even overseas. Join clubs and bulletin boards to exchange software or solve computing problems with other Apple users. Download free public domain software. And share files with personal computers and mainframes. There’s nothing missing on DataLink. Unlike the Smartmodem®, DataLink comes with its own easy-to-use communications soft- ware in ROM and on disk that supports macros, file transfers, on-line time display, data capture and datascope mode. The soft- ware also allows you to store hundreds of phone numbers for auto dialing and log on. e DataLink is 100% Super Serial Card compatible, you can also run virtually all other communication software, includ- ing Point-to-Point, Apple Access and ASCII Express, to name a few. Smarumodent a reystered trademark of Hayes Micro Computer Products, The compact design allows DataLink to fit in any slot — including slots 1 and 2 of the IGS with a cooling fan installed. DataLink operates at 1200 or 300 baud. Built-in diagnostics check for accuracy of data transmission, and DataLink lets you track the progress of calls either elec- tronically or via an on-board speaker. Introductory offers from popular networks included. When you purchase DataLink, you'll get a fee-waived membership to The Source worth $49.95. $60.00 worth of free on-line time from NewsNet. A free $50.00 subscription to the Official Airline Guide. And a free subscription to the GEnie network worth $18.00! Order today! To order or for more informa- tion, see your dealer or call Applied Engineering today, 9 a.m. to Ll p.m. 7 days. Or send check or money order to Applied Engineering. MasterCard, VIS. and C.0.D. welcome. Texas resi- dents add 64% sales tax. Add $10.00 outside U.S.A. Hayes® Smartmodem 1200A Applied Engineering Datalink Applied Engineering The Apple enbancement experts. P.O. Box 798, Carrollton, TX 75006 (214) 241-6060 Circle 2 on Reader Service Card Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com The Apple IGS Buyer's Guide Publisher: Len Scaffidi Vice President/Editor-In-Chief: Paul Pinella Directory Editor: Paulette Siclari Quality Control Manager: Ron Errett Staff Writer: Linda Topoleski Editorial Assistant; Catherine L. Spencer Contributing Editors: Philip Chien; Gail Hodgkiss; Carol S. Holzberg; Ken Landis; Owen Linzmayer; Michael Meyers Other Editorial Management: Jordan Gold Editorial Intern: Eric Tenbus Assistant To The Publisher: Mary J. Spoto Vice President/Creative Director: Mark S. Ballard Art Director: Patricia N. Walker Assistant to Art Director: Barbara Struttmann Production Manager: Carolyn D. Sizemore Typesetting/Traffic Manager: Kathaleen S. Ross Typesetting Operations: Debra R. Siraco Pasteup Artist: Sharon Thomas Circulation Manager: Sandra J. Byrd Single-Copy Sales Consultant: Joseph J. Sparano Circulation Assistant: Karen Lindsey Advertising 5: Sandy Van Salisbury/Bill Jarvis, Redgate Communications Corporation, 660 Beachland Boulevard, Vero Beach, FL 32963, 305-231-6904 Response Services: Tammy Smith Redgate Communications Corporation President: Ted Leonsis Executive Vice President: Alfred J. Mandel Senior Vice President/Chief Financial Officer: Jeff Parsons Director of Finance: Nancy A. Birt MIS/Facilities Manager: Tim Duncklee Advertising Finance Coordinator: Conrad Smith Accounts Payable Administrator: Brenda Simmons Assistant To The President: Donna M. Philo Receptionist: Julie A. Van Gaasbeck EDITOR'S WINDOW square he first few months as a new computer user can either be a wonderful learning experience or an exercise in digital hell. Somewhere between the: you'll find computer dealers. In my book, their job (besides collecting sales commissions) is to help smooth the ra two extremes sition from computer novices to at least "white-belt' Apple hackers. rs have personnel who can provide real support to beginners and long-time Apple II users alike. These staff people understand the Apple IIGS, actually use the machine and enjoy helping others get the most from their computer investments. Unfortunately, not all dealers fit the description above. The following is a story of what can happen when things go wrong at the dealer level, submitted by reader Charles E. Hackwith, Jr., of Orange County, California. Scene I — A postcard from Apple Computer, Inc. arrives stating that the com- pany is pleased to extend a free read-only memory (ROM) upgrade chip to Apple IIGS users. "I call my dealer and attempt to explain the situation to a salesperson who sounds like a high school student and a recent graduate of an introduction-to-com- puters course," writes Hackwith. "The kid doesn't know anything. He can't locate the service technician and he says the parent company of the store was recently acquired by another firm. I feel a premonition of darker things to come." Scene I — "I phone the corporate office of the computer retail chain store. A pleas- ant, drowsy-sounding lady answers, and I have to reiterate my explanation of what the chip is, its name and so forth. She says she'll have to ask her supervisor, but doesn't know when she can call me back. I hang up after thanking her, but now my blood begins to simmer." Scene I —"I dial Apple Computer's toll- Many computer dea Dealers free telephone number. A lady answers, and I explain the problem, asking if she can give me the name of another dealer. She asks for my zip code. I give it to her, and she proceeds to give me the name of the company where I bought my IIGS, the one that can't provide the service. She then says she can't give me the name of another deal- er unless I can provide her with another zip code. I hang up." Epilogue — "After thumbing through the yellow pages for five minutes, I call another dealer on my own. A nice kid answers the phone, so I explain my problem. He says Apple hasn't begun shipping the chips to its dealers yet and a lot of people are waiting. I thank him and ask additional questions about memory boards and software. He gives me the straight dope on how to save money. He also says his store can install the chips when they get them from Apple!" This much-abridged version of Mr. Hackwith's drama may have a familiar ring. Fortunately, it also has a happy ending and amoral. Take the time to shop around for a competent dealer. A little hand-holding in the early stages of computer use may be worth whatever extra money such support demands, if any, Also, if | may suggest, familiarize yourself with this and future issues of The Apple IIGS Buyer's Guide. After all, where else can you get such complete and current informa- tion on more than 200 Apple IIGS products? As for the ROM situation depicted above: Any Apple IIGS manufactured after late September, 1987 should have the latest ROM chip already installed. If your machine does not — the chip's copyright notice appears on the bottom of the screen when your computer is booted — don't despair. Authorized dealers should now have the lat- est chips and system software available free of charge to registered Apple IIGS users. Unless, of course, the dealer's parent company has just been acquired by another firm — Paul Pinella, Editor-In-Chief 4 Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com Gs-RAM has an all new design. A design that delivers higher performance including in- creased speed, greater expandability, and improved software. More Sophisticated, Yet Easier to Use Gs-RAM works with all Ics software. In fact any program that runs on Apple's smaller memory card runs on the Gs-RAM. But with Gs-RAM you can have more memory, im- proved performance, and almost unlimited expansion capabilities. We've designed the new Gs-RAM to be easier to use too—you dontt have to adjust the size of your RAM disk every time you use a DMA device. No other RAM card with more than 4 banks of memory installed can make the same claim. More than Just Hardware Each Gs-RAM and GSRAM Plus includes the most powerful set of Ics software enhance- ments available anywhere. In fact, our nearest competitor offers only a fraction of the invaluable programs that we include with each Gs-RAM card. This software includes the most powerful disk-caching program available, the Gs-RAM Cache. The Cache will make most of your applications run up to 7 times faster: Also included is a diagnostic utility that lets you test your Gs-RAM by graphically showing the location of any bad or improperly installed RAM chips. And for AppleWorks | users, we give you our exclusive Expander program that dramatically enhances both the capabilities and speed of AppleWorks. Making AppleWorks Even Better Applied Engineering's Expander program eliminates AppleWorks intemal memory limits allowing it to recognize up to 8 megabytes of Desktop workspace. You can increase the limits from only 7,250 lines to 22,600 lines in the Word Processor and from 6,350 records to 22,600 records in the Database. The Expander allows all of AppleWorks, including print functions, to automatically load into RAM. The clipboard size will increase from 255 to 2,042 lines maximum. Gs-RAM will automatically segment larger files so you can | save them onto multiple floppies. And Gs-RAM provides a builtin print buffer that allows you to continue working in Apple- Works while your printer is still processing text. You can even load Pinpoint or Macro- Works and your favorite spelling checker into RAM for instant response. Grow by Kilobytes or Megabytes We offer Gs-RAM in two configurations so you can increase your memory 256K at a time (Gs-RAM) or a megabyte at a time (Gs-RAM Plus). Both are IIcs compatible and both come with our powerful enhancement software. GS-RAM can hold up to 1.5 MEG of 256K chips and Gs-RAM Plus can hold up to 6 MEG using 1 MEG chips And since both use standard RAM chips (not high-priced SIMM’), you'll find expanding your Gs-RAM or GS-RAM Plus easy, convenient, and very economical, For further expansion, you can plug a 2 MEG “piggyback” card into the Gs- RAM’s expansion port for up to 3.5 MEG of total capacity. Or up to a whopping 8 MEG. on Gs-RAM Plus. If a Gs-RAM owner outgrows 3.5 MEG, he can easily upgrade to Gs-RAM. Plus for a nominal charge. Permanent Storage for an “Instant On” Apple With our RamKeeper™ back-up option, your Gs-RAM or GsRAM Plus will retain both programs and data while your Ics is turned off Now when you tum your IIcs back on, your favorite software is on your screen in under 4 seconds! With RamKeeper you can divide your Ics memory into part “electronic hard disk,” and part extended RAM. Even, change the memory boundaries at any time—and in any way—you want Because “In qualiby performance, compatibility expandability and support, Applied Engineering's GSRAM and GSRAM Plus are number one.” Steve Wozniak, the creator of Apple Computer | © 6 RAM banks (most cards have 4) For Those Who Want the Most. From Those Who Make the Best. Gs-RAM." of ‘Instant On” memory with the allnew GS-RAM! Applied Engineering has the most experience in the industry with battery-backed memory | for the Apple, you are assured of the most reliable memory back-up system available. And in the world of battery Reliability is everything, Tha Engineering uses state-of the-art “GEL-CELL's” instead of Ni-Cad batteries (if Ni-Cads aren't discharged periodically, they lose much of their capacity). RamKeeper has about 6 hours of “total power failure” back-up time. That's 6 times the amount of other systems. But with power from your wall outlet, RamKeeper will back-up Gs-RAM, Gs-RAM Plus, or most other Ics memory cards indefinitely. Should you ever have a “total power failure,” RamKeeper switches to its G-hour battery. When power returns, Ram- Keeper will automatically recharge the battery to full power. RamKeeper incorporates a dual-rate charger, status LE.D.’s, and ad- vanced power reducing circuitry. RamKeeper comes complete with battery, software, and documentation. GS-RAM’s Got it ALL! 5-year hassle-free warranty * Memory expansion port ROM expansion port © Ulwa-fast disk caching on ProDOS 8 AND ProDOS 16. # Expands AppleWorks intemal limits Includes hi-res self test No soldered-in RAM chips Expandable to 8 MEG « No configuration blocks to set « RamKeeper back-up option allows permanent storage of programs & data 15-day money-back guarantee © Proudly made in the USA. See your dealer or call Applied Engineering today, 9 am. to 11 p.m. 7 days. Or send check or money order to Applied Engineer: ing, MasterCard, VISA and C.O.D. welcome. Texas residents add 7% sales tax. Add $10.00 outside USA. AE APPLIED ENGINEERING” The Apple enhancement experts. (214) 241-6060 P.O. Box 798, Carrollton, TX 75006 Prices subject to change without notice. Circle 3 on Reader Service Card Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com You never knew your Applellcs‘could sound so good. Buy a Bose” RoomMate” powered speaker system with your new Ics and Bose will send you an exciting music product—FREE. ‘Turn your Ics into a high fidelity musical tool. If you're a music maker, your system is not com- plete without the RoomMate powered speaker system from Bose—a world leader in innovative audio products. ‘The RoomMate system unlocks the full potential of the Ilcs’s digital sound synthesizer chip. Simply plug the RoomMate system into the Ilcs's earphone jack and your room is filled with faithfully repro- duced sound — from a symphony to a human voice toacrashing wave. We've taken some of the best features of our top- of-the-line audio products—a 4.5” full-range driver, an active equalizer, distortion limiting circuitry and put them into a self-contained, affordable system. It also brings out the best in portable CD players, key- boards and personal stereos. Choose the Special Edition Platinum RoomMate system. Since looks are as important as sound, we designed a Special Edition system with a platinum cabinet and grilles to match your Ics. Get a high quality music product free—up toa $79.95 value. Ifyou buy an Apple Ics and Bose RoomMate system before December 19, 1987, we'll send you one of the following free:* Activision's The Music Studio™ This professional-quality music composition tool is for amateurs and professionals alike. You can compose and edit mus using a library of 45 digitized instrumen- tal sounds, play up to 15 instruments at once, and print out sheet music. You can even play your composi- tions through electronic musical instruments like keyboards and drum machines, Electronic Arts’ Music Construction Set* Designed expressly for the Ics, Music Construction Set makes it easy to compose and edit music. You can write 15-voice music using professional notation found in no other Apple Iles software, then play your work on over two dozen new digitized instruments that sound sen- sationally real. When your work is done, print out high-quality sheet music. SSS Great Wave's KidsTime™ IT Created for children aged three to ten, KidsTime I! has two educational programs emphasizing creativity exploration and skil! development. KidsNotes allows children to explore ects of music and create their own songs on a piano screen keyboard. ABKey, a fun letter recognition/keyboard skill pro- gram, contains many levels of challenge. MDIdeas’ SuperSonic™ Stereo Card Hear your Apple Ilcs in true stereo! SuperSonic taps the powerful new Ensoniq™ sound chip of the IIgs so you can hear the exciting stereo sounds of popular music software, like the three mentioned above, in real stereo. Advanced circuitry and multi- stage filters assure distortion-free audio. Act now. Go to your authorized Apple® dealerand audition the Ics paired with the Bose RoomMate system. Or order a RoomMate system by calling (301) 796-3980. But hurry. This Free offer expires December 19, 1987. “This offer appli system pur December to Hos and RoomMate ’s between August 2, 1987 and sea AOS Better sound through research. Circle 4 on Reader Service Card com | Ay PaeP ae Eee ke ES Stars Of The Show The Apple IIGS and the industry it spawned were evident everywhere at AppleFest. ppleFest had been a long time coming. Before last fall's event in San Francisco, no one was willing to gamble that the Apple II market could support an exhibition of its own. Plenty of regional shows had been held for the 4 million Apple II users over the years, but not since 1983 had anything been done at the Massachusetts, to revive AppleFest. Smart move. Although AppleFest was billed as a show for the entire Apple II family, practi- cally the entire IIGS universe turned out to celebrate the machine's growing success. Of the 150 hardwai dors in attendance, me products on Apple IIGS computers. In fact, many chose AppleFest as the launching pad for new IIGS-specific hardware and software offerings, which the crowds loved. During the show's four-day span, it was obvious that many of the 22,000 attendees either 4 national level. owned IIGS personal computers or were ‘Then came the Apple IIGS, a whole new —_ considering one. sense of market excitement and a decision 1 from Cambridge Marketing, Inc., Lexington, The Word From Apple Apple Computer, Inc. chose AppleFest as a forum to discuss the past and future of the Apple II family. Plenty of Apple computer ‘The Apple IGS Buyer's Guide 7 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com pioneers delivered their messages to stand- ing-room-only crowds, including Steve Wozniak, company co-founder and inventor of the original Apple II; Alan Kay, a special breed of research scientist known as an Apple Fellow; and Del Yocam, chief operat- ing officer of Apple. During his keynote address, Yocam pre- dicted that Apple will continue supporting the Apple II for years to come. As evidence, he cited evolutionary improvements of the Apple II family over the last 10 years, includ- ing the move to higher-resolution graphics (the Apple Ie and Apple IIGS), the addition of built-in connections (the Apple IIc and Apple IIGS) and faster processors (the Apple IGS). Yocam also squelched rumors that the Macintosh now commands most develop- ment resources at Apple. His proof: Apple Computer's current revenues for the Apple II alone could qualify as a Fortune 500 compa- ny — hardly a business for Apple to ignore. Tom Virden, consumer marketing manag- er at Apple and one of the prime movers behind the IIGS' introduction, backed Yocam's remarks. "We're building a whole community behind the GS," says Virden. "We've seen a lot of continuity. In fact, all More than 22,000 visitors crowded the aisles and expo: of the same engineers who launched the GS project are still on the job. That's important, be complex machine." Virden admits that software for the IIGS has been slow in coming, but he says devel- opers now have the tools they need to intro- duce more applications, including print and sound managers. Version 3.1 of the IIG announced at AppleFest. This, together with the new IIGS ROM (read-only memory) introduced earlier, gives developers a stable software environment and enhances IIGS performance by reducing software loading time about 20 percent. What does Virden see happening in 1988? He predicts vendors will produce more edu- cational software that takes advantage of graphics and sound, more desk and the first integrated software packages specifically for the IIGS. "I expect to see a lot more features and a lot more speed in programs next year," he says. ase the IGS is a very inder was sssories Hardware Happenings The first stereo sound digitizer, stereo out- put board and editing package announced at AppleFest by Applied Visions, sitions at AppleFest, the premiere Apple II computer show held in San Francisco. ee Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts. Called FutureSound, the product includes separate amplifiers for microphone and direct line input and digitally controlled sampling. A microphone and instructions are included to help users develop sound-editing skills on their Apple IIGS computers. MDIdeas, Inc., Foster City, California, launched a similar product called Digitizer Plus, sentially a more powerful version of its SuperSonic digitizer. Digitizer Plus will retail for $149.95, but the product was not shipping at the time of AppleFest. On the graphics side, a full-color version of ComputerE as unveiled by Digital Vision, Inc., Dedham, Massachusetts. Although earlier black-and-white versions of ComputerEyes worked on the Apple IIGS, the latest hardware and software package supports all of the computer's color graphics capabilities, ComputerEyes connects between a IGS and a standard video video camera or VCR, and digitizes any video image. Once captured in memory, images can be adjusted for color and bright- ness and saved to disk in standard graphics formats compatible with paint programs such as Paintworks Plus, Deluxe Paint or source, such as a 8 Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 ¥¢ 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 Epic 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 Cpic 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 2400 World’s Most Complete 2400 Baud Multi Speed Modems for Apple® Computers. External and Internal ~_~ 2400 Baud Internal Modems e Macintosh” Il.........---+-++++55 Epic 2400 II e Macintosh SE.........-++-++++ Epic 2400 I © Apple II+, Ie, Ilas..........---+ Epic 2400 Classic e 2400 Baud External Modems 14 ° Compatible with any Computer’s... Epic 2400 Plus modem/serial port 1-800-634-9992 EPIC TECHNOLOGY, Inc. 46733 Fremont Blvd., Fremont, CA 94538 In California: 415-683-0932 FAX 415-683-0935 ‘Apple®, Apple If" and Macintosh” are regletered Trademarks of Apple Computer Ine. Ye07 ple Technology, Ine. Circle 5 on Reader Service Card Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com APPLEFEST The latest version of ComputerEyes supports all of the grapbics capabilities of the Apple IIGS. The product connects between a IGS and a stan- dard video source. 816/Paint. The new version of ComputerEyes sells for $249.95. A few Apple IIGS hardware suppliers departed from the graphics and sound band- wagon. MDIdeas, for example, introduced GSxX, an add-on board for the IIGS that increases the clock rate to 5.6 MHz — twice its normal rate. "The IIGS has a faster processor than the old Apple Ile, but —in some because of graphic-intensive applications — it has actually become slower and more cumber- some," says Mark Bain, director of engineer- ing at MDIdeas. GSX was not shipping at the time of the show The competitive extended memory board market also heated up during AppleFest with some new product entries. MemorySaver from Checkmate Technology, Inc., Tempe, Arizona, retrofits any existing memory board with an external power sup- ply, thereby allowing a IIGS to bypass the normally long software loading time. Meanwhile, Carmichael, California-based Parallax introduced what may be the most inexpensive expansion board yet: TopRAM, a1 MB board, which sells for $189.95. Many IIGS users interested in running IBM software on their computers crowded Applied Engineering's booth, maker of the new PC Transporter card. Engineers responsible for the development of the card, which allows an Apple IIGS or Ile to run IBM-compatible software at three times the speed of the original IBM PC, happily demonstrated their technical achievement. Representatives from the Carrollton, Texas- based supplier of Apple II peripherals seemed pleased with the attention. As For Software Much of what's been promised since the Apple IIGS first appeared one year ago last September finally surfaced at AppleFest, along with a few surprises. Predi software products using the graphics and sound capabilities of the IIGS attracted the most attention. Still, a number of productiv- ity packages equally suited for home or business made an appearance. Creativity was the one theme that many vendors seemed to follow. Style’ Houston, Texas, demonstrated version 3.0 of its MultiScribe GS graphic word processor. New features include an 80,000-word spell checker and thesaurus and enhanced built-in drawing, color editing and Apple Works word processing compatibility. Desk Works, a col- lection of Macintosh-like desk accessories for the IIGS, was also announced by StyleWare. Version 2.0 of GraphicWriter from DataPak Software, Inc., Sherman Oaks, California, also debuted at AppleFest. The latest version of this color desktop publish- ing package offers multipage printouts on the LaserWriter and enhanced drawing tools. Italso imports files from other IIGS word processors and drawing programs. "As far as I can see, the new Graphic Writer rivals the best desktop publishing products a able," says Gary Crandall, director of research and development for DataPak. e, Inc., ail 10 Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com After 7 years of gripes, complaints and suggestions from more than 50,000 DB Master. users you bet | know what you want in a data base manager! Sure DB Master was great back in 1980 when we first introduced it. After all, it was the first serious data base management program for the Apple //. In fact, two years later, Softalk magazine reported that “many Apple dealers are selling a copy of DB Master with every computer they ell.” And yes, we fixed it and added to it and improved it over the years, as we watched all of the serious software development move to other computers But when the time time, we decided it just wa me to improve the program one more n't worth it. If we were going to the trouble, then the only thing to do was throw it awa’ and start over. After all, we've learned a lot in the last seven years, and the Apple // has improved a lot, too. This time we'd really do it right. So we set out to write the ultimate data base manager for the Apple //! It had to be powerful, with features and capabilities exceeding any other program you could find. And it had to be easy to use. But not just ea: y—it had to be convenient to use. Fast. Efficient. Forgiving. And compatible. In a word, it had to be elegant. Specifications Hardware Requirements: Apple //e (Enhanced, with extended 80 ‘column card), //gs, ic or Laser 128. At least two 5 1/4" floppy disk drives, or any ‘combination of § 1/4" and 3 1/2" tloppies, ProDOS compatible hard disk, or RAM disk. NOT COPY PROTECTED. Capacities: 100 bytes/record * 200 fields/record + 30 screen pages/record 50 characters in alphanumeric fields Hard disk files—up to 40 Megabytes: + Floppy disk fles—up to 50 disks Field Typ Alphanumeric, to 260 characters + Numeric—3 type * Dolarcens, fo $99,999,000, 999,999.99 + Yes/No—only accepts ‘Y" or * Date—11 formats available ‘Add Date—date when record was added dit Date—last date when record edited ‘Add Time—time when record was added dit Time—time when record last edited * User Defined—for phione & social security numbers, part #s, ete 2-20 characters, control over type of characters allowed in each position * Label Oniy—no input area—usetul for customizing screens Computed Fields: Floating point numeric, dollar & date fields can be computed fields, Examples. (the F stands for Field) -F10}-FS50"(F50<F10) WND F20¢ 1000) OF (F27 > F26) Report Generator: * report width: 20 = 255 characters * up to 255 lines/record on up to 3 pages * up to 255 fields per report * print labels up to 5 across ‘header and footer lines: separate lines of text (including normal and computed fields) at beginning/end of report, page, ‘group of records, and/or column * column subtotals and totals, page #s, record #s, & date or time report is printed can be printed anywhere on the page or in header and/or footer lines + set justification, pintstyles, case con- version, number formatting, statistics, date farmats, etc. on feld-by-feld basis + statistics: count, total, average, min, ‘max. & standard deviation * complex computed field formulas, including calculations based on column totals and subtotals * sort on up t0 9 fields ata time: case sen- sitive/insensitive ascending/descending * print to printer, disk (text file), or screen Designer, DB Master we'd learned about report generators, don’t like in compu- So we took everything database management and about what you like and ter programs, about making © software easy to learn and convenient to use and as flexible as possible And we wrote DB Master Version Five—The Data Base Manager You’ve Always Wanted for Your Apple // ! You're going to love it! AppleWorks Users — Take advantage of DB Master’s higher power, capacity, and superior report generator. DB Master can convert your AppleWorks data base files to DB Master files. It’s easy! Coming Soon— DB Master Version Five Professional All the features of Version Five, plus multi-file relational capabilities, keystroke macros, and much more! Call or write for information DB MASTER VERSION FIVE The Ultimate Data Base Manager for the Apple // List price: $179. Demo version: $10. Available now from your local dealer or direct from: Stone Edge Technologies, Inc. P.O. Box 200, Maple Glen, PA 19002 (215) 641-1825 DDB Masters registered tademurk of DB Master Associates. Apple ist registred trademark and Apple Works ia trademark of Appie Computer. Ine le 6 on Reader Service Card Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com \ NEW FOR THE APPLE lics! Create Custom Calendars With Calendar Crafter.” Quickly and easily create professional-looking calendars for your family, sports team, school, or business. Enter personal days, dates, and events for each month. Choose to include national holidays, historical events — even phases of the moon! Illustrate special days with your choice of more than 120 ready-made icons— or design your very own. Order now! Calendar Crafter .. . No. A-194-302-539 3.5" diskette and manual included. Write: MECC 3490 Lexington Ave. No. St. Paul, Minnesota 55126 Call 800/228-3504 or 612/481-3500 Calendar Crafter requires an Apple lcs, one disk drive, a mouse, ImageWriter Il or LaserWriter printer, and 768K of memory. (All options, except printing pictures, can be run on 512K.) a = © Choose from twelve colorful pictures to deco- rate your calendar, or produce your own using an Apple lias paint package. Print in color when you use an ImageWriter II™ (or compatible) printer and color ribbon. Limited-time introductory price, $59 Add $3.50 for shipping. (MN residents add 6% sales tax.) Emecc Circle 7 on Reader Service Card APPLEFEST Many Apple IIGS developers chose AppleFest to announce their latest hardware and software offerings for the Apple IGS. The Personal Publisher, a 1IGS-specific desktop publishing pack- age from Milliken Publishing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, was also announced at AppleFest. The new package combines word pro- cessing with a clip-art library, thesaurus and 80,000-word spell checke: A surprisingly powerful desktop publishing package from Springboard Software, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota, was demon- strated at one of the largest and most crowded exhibits at AppleFest Called Springboard Publisher, this integrated page-layout and word processing system seemingly has much of the power of PageMaker for the Macintosh. Yet it runs on the entire Apple Il family, includ- ing the 8-bit Apple IIc and Ile. The program was not yet shipping during AppleFest. Electronic Arts, the San Mateo-based California maker of DeluxePaint II, Music Construction Set and The Bard's Tale, further bolstered its IIGS portfolio at the show. Among its new offerings: DeluxePrint Il, a creativity program for designing and printing ban- ne ds, invitations and signs; Instant Music, a music program for non-musicians; and DeluxeWrite, a graphics-based word processor compatible with DeluxePaint II. The new packages help position Electronic Arts as a IGS power- house. How does the company determine in advance what will sell? "It's simple," says Stewart Bonn, vice president of Electronic Arts! Creativity Division. "I build the stuff I personally want." Another leading publisher of Apple II programs, Broderbund Software, Inc, of San Rafael, California, also used AppleFest to launch three packages for the IIGS. Two of them, Fantavision and The Print Shop IGS, ae updated versions of earlier programs that now take advantage of new IIGS video modes. A new release, called ShowOff, was billed as an easy-to-use product for creating multimedia presentations, including on-screen slide shows and over- head transparencies. APPLEFEST Doug Carlston, president of Broderbund, predicts that the six or so IGS developers on Broderbund's payroll will have several additional products to announce during the next six months. As they gain experience programming the IIGS, their resulting soft- ware should be more capable and efficient. "GS people have been patiently waiting for good software. I think they will be reward- ed next year," says Carlston. Entertainment Today One of the more prolific entertainment vendors is Epyx, Inc. of Redwood City, California. The company showed five new TIGS titles at the show: Sub Battle Simulator, Destroyer, California Games, World Games and Winter Games. Activision, Inc., an Apple pioneer with one of the largest available IIGS product families, was at the show demonstrating sev- eral hit products, including GBA Championship Basketball. According to Richard Lehrberg, vice president of product development at Activision, future entertain- ment products will use more sound and graphics for realistic effects. "Our software will become more film-like and more cine- matic," he says. Sierra On-Line, Inc., a long-time Apple II developer located in Coarsegold, California, broke the silence on its IGS development efforts during AppleFest. The company announced that Thexder, an arcade game from Japan, would be shipping by Christmas. Space Quest, a three-dimensional animated adventure, was also announced for the IIGS. "By Christmas, we plan to have our whole line available for the IGS, includ- ing the King's Quest series," says Ken Williams, company president. Personal Productivity Of course, the Apple IIGS isn't all fun and games. Its 16-bit processor, expanded RAM capabilities and high-capacity disk drives can be put to work as a productive business personal computer. New productivity pack- ages announced or demonstrated at AppleFest made this fact especially clear. Last year's lack of programming tools for the ITGS seems to have created one of this year's new market opportunities. TML Systems, Jacksonville, Florida, was on hand at AppleFest demonstrating TMZ Pascal, a full-featured Pascal with pull-down menus and fast compile times. ‘The company was also screening TML BASIC. Although not complete at AppleFest, TML BASIC was far enough along to demon- strate cutting and pasting with the mouse, how four windows could be open at one time and access to the Apple IIGS Toolbox ROM. WordPerfect Corp., the Orem, Utah-based purveyor of WordPerfect for the Apple IIGS, was at the show demonstrating its powerful word processing software. The latest IIGS version offers a mouse-driven interface, built-in thesaurus and spell checker, on-line help, macros, footnotes and end notes and plenty more. The program seems an office natural, because it easily exchanges files with the popular IBM PC and soon-to-be- shipping Macintosh versions. Telecommunications products for the IIGS were also out in force — represented by such companies as Pinpoint Publishing, Emeryville, California (Point-To-Point), and United Software Industries, Canoga Park, California (MouseTalk and ASCII Express) Rob Williamson, president of United Software Industries, hosted one AppleFest session entitled "Having Fun (and Staying Sane): Telecommunicating on the Apple II Computers." His advice: heed the mouse. Even power users are beginning to appreci- ate the advantages of a mouse-driven interface, Williamson's company is working on a computer conferencing system that may eventually allow individuals and companies to establish information services that have the sophistication of commercial on-line counterparts such as CompuServe and The Source. Says Williamson: "We see this as being the next big step in telecommunications — being able to tie together a variety of people communicating throughout the country or world, and then allowing them to propagate information between different systems." ll — Paul Pinella Editor-In-Chief he Echo IIb speech synthe- sizer is compatible with the Apple®Ie, I+ and the new Apple IIGS. It offers both text-to-speech and natural sounding speech capabilities. Its unique text-to- speech program gives the Apple an unlimited vocabulary. The Echo Ilb also features distinctive natural sounding speech in a female voice. The fixed vocabulary of 720 words is supplied on disk and can easily be added to BASIC programs. The Echo IIb, like the Echo II, Echo +, and Cricket” is compati- ble with numerous educational and special needs programs from over 90 software manufacturers. Con- tact Street for a list of companies offering these talking programs. Street Electronics Corporation P.O. Box 50220 Santa Barbara California 93150 (805) 565-1612 z« Circle 8 on Reader Service Card Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com EDUCATION Mastering Numbers & Words Not every Apple II he collection of available edu- cational software for the educational software App TICS eee ovine This article reviews four of the offering takes full latest releases that take advantage of the sound, advan tage (6) of the graphics and mouse capabili- ties of the IIGS. Three are math products; Apple IIGS, but here the other is for reading and spelling. Each one reinforces the skills children learn are four that do. ness If you're thinking about making a IIGS investment, these programs are four good reasons to take the plunge. Math Blaster Plus By Davidson And Associates Math Blaster Plus, a comprehensive math package for students in grades 1 through 6, offers five activities designed to make study- ing math a positive experience: Countdown, Ignition, Lift Off, Orbit and Blasternaut. The program includes an editor for enter- ing math problems, a test maker to create and print out math tests (from a program file or one of your own), a record-keeping fea- ture to track students! progress, a certificate- of-excellence printout option for students with perfect scores and lesson reviews. Students may practice a variety of math problems, including addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions, decimals and percents. Each subject area is divided into six levels of difficulty. 14 Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.co File Activity Subject Stage Downloaded from www-Apple2Online.co D The most powerful AppleIIin history Hat THE PARTHENON §& ICTINUS & CALLICRATES FH 448-432 B.C. Acropolis, Athens. ff Plan of The Parthenon Ifthe idea of getting a computer for the family intrigues you, then there’ one subject you'd do well to study. The Apple lcs” There are more Apple’ Ils in more schools than any other personal computer. And the Ics is at the head of the class. Which is not surprising. After all, it has enough power to run virtually all 10000 Apple II programs. Up to three times faster than they've ever run before. What's more, Apple Ics graphics programs let you use over 4.000 colors with near photographic realism. And its music programs let you simulate anything from a human voice to a symphony orchestra. “Anyone that is, who an artistic genius. But take heart, all the colors and all the notes are there ©1987 Apple Computer Inc. Apple and the Apple logo are registered trademarks 5 riven ee ; Andevery other subject. In short, the IIcs runs programs that cover every area of human endeavor from writing a school paper to planning a company budget. Kids can study anything from ABCs to SATS. And anyone can learn to paint like Monet or compose like Mozart" All this on one of the easiest subjects in the world to master—the Apple Ics. Interested? Then why not pursue this subject with your nearest authorized Apple dealer. You'll find that once your family sees and hears what the Apple IIcs can do, the idea of owning any other kind of personal computer will be, well, history @ ‘The power tobe your best” of Apple Computer Inc. Apple HGS and “The power to be your best are trademarks of Apple Computer Inc. For an authorized Apple dealer near you, call 800-538-9696, ext. 600. EDUCATION Versions of Math Blaster Plus are available for the Apple Ile, IIc and 1IGS. The IGS version, however, offers features not avail- able to users of the other machines. First, the IIGS version is in color. Ona Ile ora IIc with an RGB monitor, the pro- gram is displayed in various shades of gray. Second, the IIGS version comes on a single- sided 3.5-inch disk. On the two-sided 5.25- inch disk for the Ile and IIc, you have to physically flip the disk over to access infor- mation on the other side. Third, because the IIGS has an internal clock, the program automatically date-stamps a file. This step can be accomplished on a Ile or Tic equipped with a clock/calendar card. If you have a "No Slot Clock" — as we do in our Ie — you're out of luck. You'll have to enter the date manually Finally, the IGS version of Math Blaster Plus runs well at the higher IIGS clock rate, meaning that the program executes more rapidly than it would on a Ile or IIc. Math Blaster Plus uses pull-down menus and icons for activity selection. A user can click the mouse or press the Escape key and an arrow key for menu access. Double- clicking the mouse or pressing the arrow and Return keys selects one of the five activ- ity icons on the main screen. The activities, designed to be played in sequence but playable in any order, build upon previously learned facts. The Countdown activity offers practice memorizing math facts. A solved equation is presented for study. Pressing the space bar makes the answer disappear. After that, a student must type in the correct answer. If correct, the student proceeds to the next solved equation. If incorrect, the student is given more " opportunities to answer the equation. Scores are not kept in this activi Ignition presents a problem and a missing answer. Once more, a student proceeds to the next problem if a correct answer is given. Incorrect answers result in a "try again" message. After a second incorrect response, the correct answ screen. Examples answered incorrectly can be repeated, but only after 25 problems have been attempted. is shown on ¥ Computer Learning Tools That Tak! Win Unites Syrmasizes Speech But |, MATHTALK’ One. of the Talting Nolebook Senes MathTalk uses synthetic speech to reinforce the teachings of the program's resident mathe- matics tutor, Professor Matt A. Matics, A number of activities are included on disk. Lift Off is similar to Ignition, except prob- lems are presented with missing parts rather than missing answers. Students must deter- mine the correct values of the missing parts In Orbit, students are presented with three rounds of randomly selected problems. The goal is to discover errors in certain equa- tions and determine the correct values. After completing a round of qu Ignition, Lift Off and Orbit, a scoreboard appears that shows a student's name, the date, subject, stage and activity just tested, number of correct responses and final score. This information can be printed out and — with an appropriately formatted ProDOS data disk — you can also save the student's performance to disk. Blasternaut, the most entertaining activity in Math Blaster Plus, is designed to help stu- dents build speed and accuracy by solving math problems that cover three difficulty levels. Using joysticks or mouse devices, students launch rockets at the corresponding tions in correct answers to equations displayed on screen. Bonus points are awarded for assist- ing an occasional distressed astronaut. Math Blaster Plus is a good program. Its graphics are colorful, its animation is well done and its sound provides positive student reinforcement. On-screen instructions make all the included activities easy to play. The accompanying manual is clearly written and includes a printout of all equations used in the program. We ran into problems with our version of the Blasternaut activity, however. On a number of occasions, the program froze and it was necessary to reboot to continue. ‘The vendor's technical representatives suggested that the problem might lie with our particular IGS hardware configuration. By the time this article appears in print, the problem — whatever it w. be fixed. Still, the vendor has a toll-free —will likely 18 Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com EDUCATION Computer Learning Tools That Talk! ‘Wo Unime Synesed Spesen But in MathTalk FRACTION © One of theTiltig Nelebrok Sees Z ~S ——Eleoes Giada L Helping students understand fractions, decimals and percents is the goal of MathTalk Fractions. Flashy graphics and sound help enbance the presentation of math facts. number it may pay to call and confirm that the program works properly with your setup. MathTalk By First Byte, Inc. MathTalk introduces Professor Matt A. Matics, a "private" math tutor on hand to assist students ages 5 to 13 with the math ments in this talking IIGS program. The professor is a kindly sort. He never tires, has endless patience and doesn't lose his temper. He won't do decimals or fi tions, but he'll talk attentive users through the steps necessary to answer a variety of ion, subtr: ad ion, multiplication and divi- sion problems. When done, the users can also print out their answers. VathTalk requires 512K or more of mem- so you'll need a memory card to run it on your IGS, It uses the IIGS Program Launcher and relies on the mouse as the input device of choice. The program's synthesized voice has a robot-like quality, but the words and instruc- tions are easy to understand. To hear the professor, the speech volume must be increased to maximum. You also have to enter the IGS Control Panel to increase the computer's sound volume. Remember to access the Panel before you boot MathTalk. Once it's in memory, accessing the Panel causes the program to hang; the only way out is to reboot the computer and start over. Turn the speech function off completely if you want no sound at all. A number of activities are included on the disk: Math Book, Whiz, Game Room and Scores. Each act: s represented on the main menu by pictures in a menu bar. Pointing the mouse at one of the pictures and clicking calls up the corresponding activity. The program also contains pull- down menus, icons and a dialogue box. In Math Book, you can ac he prob- lem-maker function and type in (using a simulated calculator) as many as 24 user-cre- ated math problems on a single page. After typing in the problems, you can save them on disk. If you have a printer, you can make a printout of your math page. Whiz offers a choice of two activities: Solve It and Scoreboard. In Solve It, you can call up any of the math pages made in Math Book and solve the equations. If your answers are incorrect, the professor will help you figure out the solutions. Hopefully, students will try to do the work themselves. Some individuals, howev- er, may figure out quickly that they can enter any incorrect value and let the profes- sor do the work. Scoreboard lets you take practice tests using the problems entered on any of your math pages. You can save your final scores to disk to keep track of your progress. Game Room offers two activities: Table Talk and Mystery Number. In Table Talk, choice of solving the equations in a table of addition, subtraction, multiplica- tion or division problems. Correct answers are chosen by clicking on simulated on-screen calculator numbers and pressing Enter. If you make a mistake before entering an answer, click the mouse on Clear and your incorrect response will be erased. If you make a mistake in a final calculation, an X will appear where the correct answer should have been, In Mystery Number, you can solve addi- tion, subtraction, multiplication, division or mixed problems. This game offers math problems with parts of the equations miss- ing. Your task is to enter the missing values. You can play against a clock or at your own speed, When the game is over, a score- board shows your score. The final activity on the disk is Scores, a utility in which you can save your scores from Scoreboard, Table Talk and Mystery Number, MathTalk comes on an unprotected 3.5- inch disk. Included in the package is a handbook of instructions, suggestions for helping students get started and ideas for mathematics activity reinforcement. you have a The Apple IGS Buyer's Guide 19 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com EDUCATION MathTalk Fractions By First Byte, Inc. Math Talk Fractions is aimed at slightly older children (ages 8 to 15) than its prede- cessor, MathTalk. In this next-generation program, Professor Matt A. Matics returns to introduce fractions, decimals and percents. He not only helps students solve their math homework assignments, he challenges their math skills with a number of fun-filled terrific games. Similar to MathTalk, the program uses the IIGS Program Launcher, synthesized speech and a picture-menu interface. Its six menu activities include: Problem Factor, Fraction Shuffle, Fun House, Team Challenge, Control Panel and Quit. Each activity is accessible via the mouse. If you want to hear the professor's intro- ductory remarks, it may still be necessary to cess your IGS Control Panel and increase the computer's speech volume prior to boot- ing MathTalk Fractions. Incidentally, you will not cause this program to crash if you access the Control Panel while MathTalk Fractions is in memory. Players can use MathTalk Fractions built- in control panel to increase or decrease speech volume, turn off speech entirely and reset game scores. MathTalk Fractions requires 768K of RAM or more to run, so you will need to have a memory card installed in your machine and plenty of patience while the program is loading. In the Problem Factory activity, students work on their own fraction and decimal assignments. Answers must be entered in the lowest common denominator form or to the nearest decimal thousandth. If students make mistakes entering their problems, there is no erase option. Correct answers receive five points on the first attempt. Each incorrect answer loses clue after a second incorrect answer and solves the equation after the third attempt. Unfortunately, stu- dents who do not understand how to do the The new Reader Rabbit offers 16-color graphics and digitized speech. calculations can turn to this module and have the professor complete their assign- ments for them. Fraction Shuffle is a learning game designed to give practice in adding, subtract- ing, multiplying and dividing fractions. The professor shuffles 12 fraction cards and lays them down, hiding their numbers. Players wager points that they will be able to choose a card and use its fraction to com- plete a problem at the bottom of the screen. If players wager all their points and answer incorrectly, the game is over. If players get the correct answers, they win the points wagered and get more challenging problems next time. With the goal of becoming the highest Fraction Shuffle scor- er, this game is a real motivator! Fun House offers three activities: Coin Drop, Popper and Laser. Students try to score as many points as possible in each game to beat the current Fun House high scorer. In Coin Drop, players choose to have the professor toss from 10 to 99 coins. Next, they decide whether they want heads or tails and must also estimate how many times their choice will turn up. The computer also gives its estimate Students win if their answers are closer than the computer's to the actual outcome or if they guess correctly. Players can obtain bonus points by determining, in fractions and percents, the number of times the coins come out heads and tails. Popper can be played at three different levels of difficulty. The higher the level, the more points it's possible to score. To play the game you must enter from two to 20 problems concerning fractions, decimals or percents. If you answer a problem correct- ly, you pop a balloon and score points Bonus points are awarded for converting your score into fractions, decimals and percents. Laser uses flashy graphics and high-tech sounds to give problem-solving practice at three levels of difficulty. Students must answer a true/false question about the equivalence of two fractions or decimals. Next they must enter a fraction that best describes a picture on screen. Bonus points are awarded for coloring in the portion of an object that best describes a given fraction, 20 Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com EDUCATION When all three games are completed, a scoreboard tallies the score from each activi- ty and indicates the Fun House high scorer. The final learning module in MathTalk Fractions is Team Challenge. This game lets you test your wits against three computer opponents, each of which has certain math skills. It is to the program's credit that the three computer "players" with the best math skills (Mattie Facto, Poppy Fraction and Amelia Brainer) are girls. Frequently, ado- lescent girls are taught that math is a subject for boys. Once a team of opponents is selected, you choose one of three difficulty levels. The professor then asks 12 questions. The object is to answer each question before your opponents do. If they answer incor- rectly, you get a chance to answer. If both you and the opposition miss the question, the professor will give the correct answer. Each of the games in MathTalk Fractions is designed to increase students’ understand- ing of fractions, decimals and percents. The acti succeed in their objective and are as much fun as they are educational. Flashy graphics, sound and animation are used to enhance the presentation of math facts. The program comes on an unprotected 3.5-inch disk. It includes an instruction handbook; definitions of important words; hints on working with fractions, decimals and percents; plus problem-solving tips and challenging word-problem teasers. Be careful when you do the problem teasers, however. The answer to problem number 2 should be 1/2, .50 or 50%, not 1/3, .33 or 33%. Reader Rabbit By The Learning Co. If you liked the earlier edition of Reader Rabbit, just wait until you try the new talk- ing IIGS version. It has added pizzazz and glamor and offers an enhanced color pre- sentation with 16-color graphics and digi- tized speech. The digitized speech gives the program a natural sound quality that makes its spoken 214-word vocabulary easy to recognize. ‘The instructions are also easy to understand. Many of the talking IGS programs on the market (including the ones reviewed here) have synthesized speech capabilities with robot-like sound. Digitized speech is an improvement, because the voices are crisp, clear and true to life. They help make the computer seem more like a friend than a machine. IIGS owners with 1 MB expansion cards have an added advantage over users with 256K machines. The new Reader Rabbit loads its entire 256K program into memory, bypassing the need to access the game disk during play. This results in faster program execution. This Reader Rabbit, like the earlier ver- sion, is aimed at beginning readers in kindergarten through the second grade. It offers four games with more than 200 three- letter CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words for youngsters to recognize, remem- ber and spell. Seventy-two of the words are accompanied by high-resolution graphics. Animation is used to reward correct answers. One nice thing about the talking version is that the words appearing on screen are also spoken. The four games are sequential. Each builds upon and reinforces the skills from the previous ones. In Sorter, students match words on a target pattern. Words that do not match are left to fall into a trash can. After five correct matches, a rabbit appears and does a tumbling act. Adults can modify program activity to meet the needs of individual players by changing the speed at which a word moves across the screen and choosing the target letter the player must match. Labeler is the second activity. Players must make word labels for each of the three pictures that appear on screen. Possible pictures fall into nine familiar categories, including animals, travel, house, outdoors, etc. Adults can choose the category for a student. In Word Train, a three-letter word "engine" pulls three empty train cars, Meanwhile, three trucks from the word fac- tory wait to unload their words onto one of the train cars. A player must select the truck with the word that differs by only one letter from the word in front of it. When all three words are selected correctly, the train toots its way out of the station with the three full cars in tow. Mistakes cause the train to pull away leaving the empty cars behind. The final activity on the disk, Matchup, offers six "Concentration-like" memory games that students can play either alone or with friends. The object of the games is to match pictures to pictures, pictures to words, pictures to letters in the words, or words to words. Adults can choose from nine word categories to provide words for the games. Reader Rabbit offers many options, such as playing the games with voice and sound, with sound only, with voice only or in silence — using the keyboard or a joystick. The home edition comes with an instruc- tion manual, ideas for off-line activities, and a complete list of the words and pictures used in the games. The school edition comes with a backup program disk and a Teacher's Guide that includes lesson plans, activity sheets and suggestions for non-com- puter activities, Without a doubt, this program is a model for computer-assisted instruction. As you can see from the products men- tioned, the pool of IIGS software continues to grow. With the addition of programs that have better graphics, more memory and vaice capabilities, it's easy to understand why the Apple IIGS is fast becoming the teaching computer of choice, i — Carol $. Holzberg, Ph.D., contributing editor The Apple IIGS Buyer's Guide 21 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com oa ae Peemmes z E ae a £ a = i ac ee 5 aonaet rs ms B 1 » from parents, fools now provide classroom com- sarents who bring computers into the extend the learning EDUCATION Parental Primer s every parent knows, from the media or from dinner table conversations, computers have arrived in classrooms. Recent figures indicate the number of computers used in American schools has risen dramatically during the last two years. The vast majority of those computers are Apple IIs. Parents have played an important role in bringing computers into schools. Convinced their children need to know everything pos- sible about computers to succeed in the "Information Age," they have pressed school boards to provide classroom computers and software. When school boards have been unwilling or unable to respond, some parent organizations have raised funds and pur- chased systems themselves. What are teachers and students doing with all those computers? A great many things. Computers As Teachers Computers are often used to help stu- dents learn or practice specific subject mat- ter. Using tutorial software, a student might learn the procedure for borrowing from the next column in subtraction. Tutorial programs break an explanation into small steps, which are presented on screen one at a time. Such programs check student understand- ing by asking frequent questions. Depending on the responses, the programs either proceed with the subjects being stud- ied or present other ways of looking at mis- understood topics. Tutorial software has not exactly replaced teachers' explanations. Rather, it provides additional flexibility. Slow students benefit by going over material again at their key- boards. Students who have been absent can make up missed work. Gifted students can use tutorials to work ahead at their own pace. Students who need practice memorizing facts can work with drill and study-aid pro- grams. This kind of software does not teach subject matter, but it does give students the opportunity to apply what they have learned. Drill and practice programs are useful for memorizing math facts, English or foreign language vocabularies and chemical symbols. An advantage of this software is that students are instantly made aware of their mistakes. With so much going on in and out of classrooms, it's hard for parents to keep track of their children's computer use. If you're falling bebind, read this insider's report of how computers and kids are working together. Leese cetera ‘The Apple IIGS Buyer's Guide 23 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com EDUCATION Students sometimes use drill and practice programs to take quizzes or tests. The pro- grams record student names and scores for teachers to look at later. Some software even tracks the kinds of errors made and prescribes remedial work. As useful as tutorial and drill programs are, they don't represent any changes in education. Some students may find it more interesting to get explanations from comput- ers than listen to their teachers. They may also like working with keyboards more than flash cards. Even so, the learning experi- ence remains much the same The Limits Of Sharing The excitement computers bring to educa- tion is only beginning to be explored. Educational computing is still in its infancy. Despite a huge increase in the number of computers in schools, most schools cannot provide a computer for each student, Few schools boast networked computer labs with frequent computer access in all subject areas. Often, five or six computers on movable carts must be shared by an entire school. Even with these limitations, many teachers are creating valuable comput- ing experiences for their students. Classroom teachers can use computers in a number of creative Seating each student at a computer is one way, but many teachers find that students do well in groups of two or three. Studies suggest that stu- dents who work together at computers learn more because they communicate among themselves. If a large-screen or projection monitor is available, a teacher may choose to demon- strate using a computer to a whole class. Sometimes a lesson can be illustrated more clearly with a computer than any other tool. In a classroom with one or two comput- ers, four to six students can work with the 11 Tips To Help Parents With Home Computing Whether your children work with com- puters at school every day or once in a while, there are things you can do at home to complement the computer experi- ences they have. 1) Set aside a time for each child to use acomputer. Often, one child monopo- lizes the equipment. A child who hasn't shown any interest may never have enough experience with a computer to become interested. 2) Encourage your children to use a computer for more than playing games. 3) Make a word processor, database and spreadsheet available to your chil- dren and help them learn to use the programs. Encourage your children to use a word processor for school assign- ments, thank-you notes and other letters, lists and creative writing. Suggest they keep track of collections with a database. Other appropriate uses for a database include keeping track of books they have read and places they have visited. Children can use spreadsheets to keep a record of their allowances, expenditures, birthday money and the like. Paper routes and Girl Scout cookie sales can also be tracked with a spreadsheet. 4) Invest in a good typing program to help your children learn good keyboard- ing habits. Use it to sharpen your own skills, too. 5) Don't just buy software and hand it to your child. Boot it yourself and work with the program a bit to discover what your child will learn. Be available and offer help using the program. 6) Without looking over their shoulders, stay involved in your children's comput- eruse. Ask them what they are doing. Listen as they tell you what they are learning and what they like and don't like about software. 7) Teach your children to respect copy- right laws. Don't allow them to exchange pirated software with other children. Seta good example yourself. 8) If your children show interest in your computer use, explain what you're doing in terms they can understand, 9) Ask your children's teachers to rec- ommend software to help remedy trou- ble spots or capitalize on strengths. If the teachers can't suggest specific pro- grams, ask what kind of extra work your child would benefit from and look for appropriate software. 10) Many public and school libraries are beginning to lend computer soft- ware. Take advantage of this service. 11) Don't make your children associate using a computer with drudgery by restricting them to educational pro- grams. Allow them to experience the full range of computer usefulness with games, puzzles and creative graphics programs. 24 Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com EDUCATION machines while a teacher helps individuals or small groups. With the right software, the teacher can be assured the students are spending their time productively. New Kinds Of Learning As the number of computers in schools grows steadily, innovative applications will continue to appear. As this happens, com- puters will be able to create learning situa- tions never before possible. Some of those situations are already taking place. Computer simulation programs provide experiences no other medium can match. Simulations, sometimes called "micro- worlds," provide approximations of real-life situations. These programs telescope time, allowing results — which may actually take years — to take place in a few minutes. An ecology simulation can, for example, allow students to make decisions about con- trolling air or water pollution. In the simula- tion, students see the results of their deci- sions immediately, not over a period of years or decades. Sophisticated simulations use animated color graphics and allow stu- dents to change variables. Simulations may be used in science class- es to expand laboratory experiences and save valuable class time. Using laboratory simulation software, an experiment can be carried out step by step on screen and the results graphically demonstrated. Students can try different versions of an experiment by changing the temperature — degree by degree, if desired — or any other variable. Even the best computer simulations can- not replace science laboratories or hands-on experience. They can, however, demon- strate a wider range of experimental out- comes than would otherwise be possible, enhancing the learning experience. Computer simulations are not new. Most adventure games are simulations. As com- puters continue to increase in memory and graphics capabilities, the sophistication and usefulness of educational simulations will also increase. The excellent sound and color graphics capabilities of the Apple IGS are already having an impact on the quality of forthcoming simulation programs. There's a world of educational opportunities available in programs not designed specifically Sor teaching. A word processing program, such as Writer's Choice elite, pictured above, can have dramatic results on a student's writing abilities. A major educational trend focuses less on using computers to convey knowledge and more on using them as tools for accomplish- ing learning tasks. This has two purposes: to facilitate a student's academic progress, and to teach the student how to use impor- tant computer applications. Students learn- ing writing skills with word processing, for example, are also learning important com- puter skills. Better Writing Through Word Processing The use of word processing to teach stu- dents to write well is having dramatic results. With a projection monitor, a teacher can demonstrate the process of copy editing and revising to a class. Using standard word processing functions, such as adding, delet- ing and moving text, the teacher can show how changing the organization or wording of a paragraph affects its meaning. When students use word processing to produce their own compositions, their writ- ing often improves. Essays composed on a word processor no longer have to be labori- ously recopied. Mistakes can be fixed or wording changed with little fuss. Students can experiment without having to write out each possibility in longhand. Relieved of the drudgery, many students begin to enjoy writing. Used with word processing programs, spelling and grammar checkers can alert students to errors in time to correct them before their teachers grade their papers. Some spelling checkers oper- ate on-line and inform students of mis- spelled words as they occur in typing. Software of this type also helps students recognize computer limitations. While spelling and grammar checkers are mar- velous tools, they can't judge meaning and, therefore, miss certain errors. Spelling checkers don't pick up mistakes such as "there" being used instead of "their." An incorrectly used word that's spelled correctly won't be caught, either. If a student means "cold" and types "fold," the computer won't notice. Other kinds of software also improve writing. Outline and idea processors help students gather and organize their thoughts prior to writing. Such programs can also be used to teach note-taking and listening skills. The Apple IIGS Buyer's Guide 25 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com EDUCATION Applications that analyze student manuscripts are beginning to emerge. These programs point out flaws in writing, such as sexist or ethnically offensive terms, and make suggestions to improve wording. Better programs of this type help students learn to vary their writing styles and sen- tence structure. Analytical programs cannot be used when composing. They provide editing assistance similar to that given by teachers. Such pro- grams allow students to concentrate more on the quality of their reasoning and ideas during the compositional stage and less on the mechanics of expression. Analyzing Information With Databases Database management programs help stu- dents examine and analyze information rather than merely memorize facts. A sci- ence class might, for example, create a database of living organisms. In the process of making up field names and filling in data, the students learn more than organism char- acteristics. Under the guidance of a skilled teacher, they learn the process of scientific classification. The same kinds of analyses are appropri- ate in other disciplines, too. As an example, social studies students can use a database to organize information about world cultures or geographical regions. The potential for using databases is virtually limitless. Some school libraries provide access to another type of database. By accessing on- line information services such as CompuServe, BRS and The Source, students can learn up-to-date research skills and tap immense sources of information. Learning Math With Spreadsheets Spreadsheet software is also a useful learning tool. With the right program, a math teacher can demonstrate relationships between numbers and allow students to experiment with columns of numbers. Spreadsheets with graphics capabilities can produce pictorial representations of fractions and demonstrate relationships between deci- mals and fractions. Science students can use spreadsheet pro- grams to record and graph data from labora- tory experiments. Computer Science Computer literacy classes teach students about computers. Students in these classes learn the history and capabilities of comput- ers and some ethical issues surrounding their use. Some computer literacy classes include simple programming in Logo or BASIC and minimal word processing, database management and spread- sheet skills. High school students enrolled in comput- er science courses learn more sophisticated programming skills. In addition to BASIC, they may learn Pascal or other program- ming languages. Career Preparation Students in vocationally oriented classes prepare for using computers in their career fields. Drafting students learn computer- aided design. Secretarial students learn word processing and typing skills. Accounting students learn spreadsheet appli- cations and traditional accounting practices. Will computers revolutionize education? It's too early to tell. Surely, great potential exists for technology to improve schooling. For now, however, there are many immedi- ate concerns. Most schools need to make computers available to all their students. While com- puter science labs may have adequate equipment, other departments have little or none. That's because many school districts cannot afford to buy more computers. Many teachers need help adjusting to the technology. While much is done to help them learn the value and limitations of using computers in class, more remains to be done. When more teachers use computers as instructional tools, more educational applications will evolve. How will using computers in school affect children? As with everything else, not all children will react the same way. While computers will motivate some children, oth- ers will be intimidated. While certain stu- dents perform better when their mistakes are corrected on screen, others respond more to human encouragement. Further research is needed to discover what the effects of computerized instruction are. Intellectual development is only one aspect. School also provides children with vital social experiences that must not be overlooked. It may be that collaborating with other students at a computer keyboard can promote social development. Clearly, time spent alone at a computer does little to promote social growth. While computers place amazing capabili- ties in the hands of teachers and students, schools must proceed thoughtfully. Computer use should be balanced with other educational tools and functions. Students should use computers to accom- plish specific learning goals, not just play with the technology. I — Gail Hodgkiss, contributing editor A free-lance writer, spokesperson on com- puters in education and computer consul- tant, the author is a former French teacher at Carman-Ainsworth Junior High School in Flint, Michigan: 26 Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com DATABASES The Apple IGS A File Cabinet The Apple IIGS loves to organize numbers and words. Here are four database management programs to keep you and your computer as organized as you care to be. ne of the most popular computer applications is a database program. It's also one of the most misleading, misused names. A database is an organized set of infor- mation. A dictionary, encyclopedia, directo- ty, set of jokes, mailing list, etc. — all of these qualify as databases, What most people refer to as a database program is actually a database manager — a program that manages databases. Nevertheless, the term database has evolved into meaning a database manager. For this article, I'll continue spreading the myth and use the word "database" to refer to what technically is a database manager Apple Il Assistance How can a microcomputer program manipulate a database? Large databases were once the providence of mainframe computers, but now they are available for micros. With large hard disk drives a reality on the Apple IIGS, and the possibility for compact discs (CDs) and their associated huge databases on the horizon, micros and databases go hand in hand. Already it's possible to get the Grolier's Electronic Encyclopedia and the Library of Congress Catalog on CDs designed for microcomputers. Other large information databases will become available as prices decrease. Today's database programs are designed for managing lists and records. Database programs can be used to store mailing lists, recipes, inventories, invoice generation, and record tracking, among other other popular applications. You can think of a database program as a sophisticated computer-based file card system, a high-tech Rolodex, file cabinet, or index card file. Unlike your normal Rolodex, it's quite easy to tell your database program to sort all of the names in your mailing list in zip code order for lower mail rates, find all of your delinquent customers or even keep track of your programs. | use a database program to catalog all of the reviews and articles I've written, and which companies produce which products, to name just two applica- tions. Database programs don't do anything that you can't do with a deck of index cards — they just do it faster and simpler. Early Contenders Apple File Cabinet was one of the earliest, simplest and most bug- ridden database programs for the Apple II market. It was distributed through Apple dealers as a freebie starting in 1979, just after the introduction of Apple's first disk drives. Although Apple File Cabinet was a fairly crude program by modern standards, it was popular simply because of its low price. Many of the bugs were removed, and a File Cabinet II is sold today by the A.P.P.L.E. user The Apple. IGS Buyer's Guide 27 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com DATABASES group in Seattle, Washington. While Apple File Cabinet wasn't very powerful, it did open the door for other more powerful programs. DB Master, one of the first powerful database programs, was introduced in 1980, and has gone through several revisions and enhancements. A new, completely rewritten release which can use many of the IIGS' enhanced capabilities has been recently introduced. Another early database pro- gram, ProFiler 3.0, has also been updated with the newest version supporting mouse functions and a large file capacity. Most early database programs saved their data onto diskettes and only loaded one record into memory at a time. This made sense due to the high cost of memory chips. In 1983 a different approach to data storage became popular with the introduction of Quickfile and its successor AppleWorks, one of the most popular microcomputer pro- grams for any computer. Although mostly used as a word processing program, AppleWorks also includes built-in spread- sheet and database modules. While the disk drive is still used to store the data in your file, AppleWorks loads the entire file into memory at once when you use it. Atfirst, AppleWorks and Quickfile were rather limited in how many records could be stored in the maximum 55K desktop limit of a standard 128K Apple Ile or IIc. Eventually several third-party companies (including Checkmate Technology, Inc. and Applied Engineering) produced programs that could enhance the AppleWorks desktop. The simplest AppleWorks expanders just loaded AppleWorks into a RAM card and didn't really upgrade AppleWorks maximum file limitations. Other programs expanded the 55K desktop to the size of the memory card available. The Applied Engineering version even modified AppleWorks so that it could accept over 5,000 records. Since AppleWorks keeps entire files in memory at once, you can view many records at the same time for comparison and make global changes easily. Even with all of the desktop expansions and enhancements, AppleWorks is still a rather limited program. The database is lim- ProFiler 3.0 uses the mouse or standard text entry to build records up to eight screens long. A field can fill the entire screen. ited to a maximum of one line of data (79 characters) for each field, a maximum of one line of data per record in the view mode, and offers limited report generation utilities In short, AppleWorks database function just isn't very powerful. Still, it's adequate for a small mailing list, phone list or similar application. Several companies have developed exter- nal enhancements to make up for its defi- ciencies, however. Sophisticated report gen- erators, mail merge utilities and programs that read AppleWorks databases into other programs are available from several manu- facturers. Still, keep this in mind — RAM- based databases like AppleWorks are much faster for small files (100 records or less) yet much slower for massive files (say, 1,000 records or more), and much less practical. Are you ready for more octane in your database program? Here's a quick look at four database programs for the Apple II fam- ily. Two of these are older programs that have been updated with recent releases, and two are new programs designed specifically for the Apple IIGS. Each of these programs has the capability of importing data from other programs like AppleWorks, and can create their own files for export to other packages, such as form letter programs. ProFiler 3.0 By Pinpoint Publishing ProFiler 3.0, from Pinpoint Publishing, is a text and mouse oriented program, although it's also designed to work on non- mouse Apple IIs, The program is disk based, and stores its records on any ProDOS-compatible drive (5.25-inch flop- pies, 3.5-inch diskettes, hard disk drives, RAM disk drives, etc.). It uses a special B- tree format which makes record retrieval very fast. Each record is loaded into memo- ry, one at a time, as you need it. For small databases, it's much slower than a RAM- based system; however for large datab: it is much quicker, especially for printer output. 28 = Winter 1988 Downloaded from www.Apple2Online.com DATABASES Each ProFiler 3.0 record can be up to eight screens long, and fields can fill up the entire screen if necessary, making very large entries (for example, encyclopedia entries) possible. One unique feature: While ProFiler 3.0. uses the text screen for fast input/out (I/O), it also uses the Apple mouse for menus and record selection. The mouse is optional, though, and you can use the keyboard exclusively if you prefer. Because ProFiler 3.0 stores data on the drive while it operates, a fast SCSI hard drive or large RAM drive is recommended for your data. The program itself resides partially in RAM and partially on diskette, with modules loaded as needed. If you use ProFiler 3.0 a lot, you may wish to copy it onto a RAM drive before using it. ProFiler 3.0 works on the enhanced Apple Ile, Apple IIc or Apple IGS. At least two drives, preferably with at least one high density drive (hard drive, 3.5-inch diskette, etc.) is recommended. The mouse is option- al and your personal preference will deter- mine whether or not you use it. If you don't have a 5.25-inch drive, you will have to ask your dealer to copy it over to a 3.5-inch floppy for you. DB Master By Stone Edge Technologies DB Master's latest version, number five, is a total rewrite of the popular early database program, with a variety of enhancements and new functions. Like ProFiler 3.0, it is designed to operate on the enhanced Apple Tle and IIc as well as the Apple IGS. It doesn't use the mouse, and menus are designed to use the tried and true text line input standard. A special "dynamic prompt- ing system" shows you the names of com- mon commands at the bottom of the screen. Yet this system doesn't give any clue of what each command does — for that, you must refer to the manual. There's little doubt that DB Master is the most powerful database program available for the Apple Il. It rivals, and even surpass- es, sophisticated database programming lan- guages (languages designed specifically for writing custom database applications) in many ways. However, it's also a complex and difficult to learn program. DB Master's main menu presents 33 sepa- rate functions, all grouped into four cate- gories: Data Entry and Search, Report Generator, Maintenance Functions, and Change Files or Exit. Instead of pull down menus, everything is displayed on the screen at the same time. This isn't as easy to learn as the Macintosh-style menus used by the other databases described in this arti- cle, or the even easier to master AppleWorks file folders. Once you get experienced in using DB Master, however, the menus will become second nature. Because of DB Master's menu system, you can create files easier than with database programming languages used on other com- puters (e.g., dBASE Il on MS-DOS comput- ers). With DB Master you can generate "turnkey systems" and train inexperienced users to input information fairly quickly. However, don't expect beginners to be able to automatically handle more complex oper- ations such as adjusting printouts or chang- ing file formats. A disadvantage to DB Master's menu scheme is that you can't create your own custom menus or commands. You'll be locked into the menus that DB Master defines forever. On the other hand, an advantage is that a user who has been trained to use one DB Master file can also use another with minimal retraining. One problem with DB Master is that it often assumes you know what the possible entries are and which ones you want. For example, the program will ask for the name ofa file without telling you the possible file names to enter. Technical phone support is available, and you can purchase extra support services on a yearly basis. If you're used to friendly, simple to use programs, then DB Master will appear to be as complicated as fixing or designing your own computer, However, if you're willing to learn how to use a sophisticated database generator and are prepared to wade through its 450 page manual, then you can tap DB Master's capabilities. 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To open a file, a picture of a file cabinet appears on the screen. development, and should be available by the time you read this article. The new ver- sion will be a relational database, a more sophisticated database design in which data from different files can interact. Here's an example of what this means: Say you have a sales order database made up of several component databases, including product description information, an inventory database and a customer contact database. When it's time to print an invoice, it will be possible to "relate" information from each of the smaller databases automatically inside the invoice. DB Master is copyable and is provided on both 5.25-inch and 3.5-inch diskettes. The program can use a large RAM drive either to store the program itself (to increase the speed of operation while moving between different modules), the data (to increase the speed of accessing the data), or to increase the sorting speed when necessary. If you have a large RAM drive, you can store both data and the program in RAM. Notes 'N Files By DataPak Software Notes 'N Files is an Apple IIGS-specific program designed for ease of use. The Notes 'N Files menu actually looks and acts like a file cabinet in an office. When you want to print a document, you send it to the pho- tocopier icon. When you want to get rid of a something, you toss it into the garbage can. When you open up a file, a picture of a file cabinet with two drawers appears on your screen. Each drawer is a separate file and stores your file folders. When you open a drawer (push the open button on the drawer with the mouse), it pops out, and several folders with their titles appear. You can scroll back and forth to choose the fold- er you want to look at, o