Shareware Solutions II Volume 1 Issue 2 1993 09 Kohn Joe US

Shareware Solutions II An Exciting Apple II Journey Into The Future Volume 1, Issue 2 September, 1993 From The Publisher’s Desktop Many readers took the time to provide feedback on the premiere issue of Shareware Solutions II, and many of those letters were heart warming and inspirational. The overwhelm- ing majority of readers were just incredibly supportive of my initial efforts. Several letters came from owners of IIe and IIc computers; some expressed concern that there wasn’t enough material devoted to those systems, and some expressed appreciation for the Ile and IIc coverage that was included. I would like to take this opportunity to assure everyone that Shareware Solutions II will attempt to provide a well balanced coverage of all the current Apple II models, including Ile, IIc and IGS systems. The proof of that should be seen in this issue. I was quite surprised at how many people misinterpreted how long a subscription to Shareware Solutions II would last; just about everyone assumed that a subscription was for one year. In actuality, a subscription is for 12 issues. When Shareware Solutions IT was first publicized, it was stated that it was going to be a 12 page bi-monthly newsletter, with the eventual goal of becoming a monthly publica- tion. As you've noticed, each of the first two issues has been 20 pages in length. Without an editor to hold me to strict word counts, and with so much Apple TI news to report, it would have been difficult, if not impossible, to just stop at 12 pages. Admittedly, I was also trying to make a good first impression. At some point in the future, I anticipate that Shareware Sol- utions II will become that 12 page monthly that I originally envisioned. In any case, you will receive a total of 12 issues. Several people wrote to express concerns about the layout and design of the newsletter. Some suggested that a two column layout might look better, and some suggested that using full justification caused uneven spacing. Several people actually took the time to create a “make over” of the front page, and retyped the words using a different design and layout. The most striking of those “make overs” was created on a Macintosh. As professional as the Mac generated newsletter looked, it’s important for me to share my philosophy; notably, Shareware Solutions II is dedicated to the Apple II computer, and it would seem counter-productive and hypo- critical to use any other computer system to design or create Shareware Solutions II. Tve recently been thinking a lot about the words that John F. Kennedy used, as he addressed Congress in 1961 to tell them of his plans to send an American to the Moon: “We choose to go to the Moon not because it is easy, but because it is hard.” Admittedly, creating Shareware Solutions II on a Mac would make my life as a newsletter publisher easier. But, that is just not going to happen! In order to support the Apple II, I will continue to use an Apple II. Tf it’s a difficult task, then so be it. Hopefully, you will notice that this issue of Shareware Solutions II looks a little better than the first issue. Td also like to thank all those readers who mailed me eval- uation copies of their freeware or shareware software. In all future issues, there will be two Shareware Solutions columns devoted to coverage of Apple Ile/IIc and IIGS freeware and shareware. In the next issue, expect to see a long article about the Internet. The Super Data Highway that we keep hearing about already exists, and millions of people in dozens of countries are already part of that global electronic village. You'll learn what the Internet is and how to access it using your Apple II computer. If you already own a modem, you'll be provided detailed infor- mation about using it to access the Internet, and if you don't already own a modem, you'll be provided with many reasons to purchase one. Until Issue #3, just remember: “Apple II Forever!” @ Shareware Solutions IT I Shareware Solutions II Volume 1, Issue 2 Shareware Solutions II is published bi-monthly by Joe Kohn, 166 Alpine Street, San Rafael, CA 94901. Writer/Publisher: Joe Kohn All contents of Shareware Solutions II copyright (©) 1993 by Joe Kohn. All rights reserved. Nothing may be reprinted or reproduced, in whole or in part, in any media without the prior written consent of Joe Kohn. Available by subscription only, the North American rate is $25 for a 12 issue subscription; for overseas air mail delivery, the cost for a subscription is $40. Shareware Solutions II comes with a pro-rated money back guarantee. Make all checks or money orders out to Joe Kohn. US Funds Only. Sorry, but no charge cards, purchase orders or COD orders will be accepted. This newsletter was created entirely with an Apple IGS. All articles written in AppleWorks v3.0. Page Layout prepared in AppleWorks GS. Printing was done on a Hewlett-Packard LaserJet IIP Plus, connected to the IIGS courtesy of Vitesse's Harmonie. The use of TrueType fonts is courtesy of WestCode Software's Pointless. All articles written by Joe Kohn. Apple II Forever. 2 Shareware Solutions IT Kansas Fest 1993 Before The Deluge July, 1993 has already entered the history books as the time of the Great Midwest Floods. Those floods displaced thou- sands of people and caused billions of dollars worth of damage, and they even caused parts of Kansas City to be inundated, but they had absolutely no effect on the nearly one hundred Apple II devotees who traveled to Kansas City in mid-July for the annual A2-Central Summer Conference. They came from as far away as England, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Germany and Canada, from the East Coast and the West Coast, and from all over the Midwest. Neither rain nor floods could keep them away. Some were teachers and some were in High School. Some were computer novices, and some were “power users”. Some were user group presidents and some have made their living for years developing products for the Apple II. Some came primarily to learn about the Apple II; others came primarily for the socializing. They descended on Avila College, a staid college located in the suburbs of Kansas City, and on the neighboring NOMDA Conference Center. It was the yearly gathering of the Apple II tribes; it was KansasFest! KansasFest 1993 was a relaxed affair; most attendees wore t- shirts and shorts and sneakers and many came with the idea of combining business with pleas- ure. No one came to sleep, and there must have been 100 jokes told about the conference really being a study on the effects of sleep deprivation. In two sepa- rate “roasts”, everyone was fair game for mockery and derision, and nothing was sacred. Noth- ing that is, except the computer that brought us all to Kansas- Fest: the Apple II. Now in its fifth year, Kansas- Fest 1993 was advertised as possibly being the last Apple II developer’s conference. When KansasFest was first held, Apple was still promoting and actively selling the Apple II, and sales of 3rd party Apple II hardware and software was skyrocketing. For four days in mid-July, those heady days of yesteryear returned. Surround- ed by 100 fellow Apple II developers and users, it was easy to feel, once again, that the Apple II really would last forever. KansasFest was started back in 1989 by Tom Weishaar of Resource Central strictly as a conference for developers, where computer programmers and hardware designers would gather to learn from each other. Although that is still a major component of KansasFest, this year’s event drew many who had never written a single line of code. Fearing that it might be the last KansasFest, many came to meet their heroes, only to find that they had become instant friends. Arriving in Kansas City on Wednesday afternoon, I imme- diately started running into old friends, people I’d worked with, and many people who felt like old friends but who I knew only from communicating with on- line. It was like going back to summer camp after a long cold winter. It was a grand reunion of old and dear friends, people who love and support and use the Apple II. For 96 hours, we were all one big happy family. We came to laugh and we came to learn. We came to eat at the world famous Kansas City Masterpiece and we came to shoot hoops with each other. We came to share software and information and good times. For 96 hours, business competitors talked and laughed and shared information. And, until the wee hours of the morning, everyone talked about the Apple II. For many of us, it was the highlight of the year. Having just picked up the premiere issue of Shareware Solutions II from the printers, I was eager to pass out compli- mentary copies to everyone in attendance, and was anxiously awaiting people’s reactions. I had, after all, spent two months writing it and editing it, but no one else on earth had seen that first issue before the first day of KansasFest. I didn’t know how it would be received, but before long, the compliments started flying, and I was able to really relax for the first time in two months. That first day, the best compli- ment came from a very well known Apple II developer who, after looking at Shareware Solutions II, asked me which Macintosh I used to create it. With great joy, I proclaimed that it was all done with an Apple II. Despite the best of intentions to get a good night’s sleep, I was up until nearly 4 AM, talking with many Apple II developers, shareware authors, user group activists and “power users”. I hadn’t been up that late since KansasFest 1992. Breakfast was served at Avila College on Thursday morning, and taking one look at the cafeteria style serving line, I remembered just how dreadful college dorm food can be. All too quickly, it was time to get to the NOMDA convention center to hear Tom Weishaar’s intro- ductory remarks and Mike Westerfield’s keynote speech at 9 AM. The Sessions: Day 1 Mike Westerfield of The Byte Works, a company that produces programming lan- guages and environments for the Apple II, welcomed the crowd with an hour long talk entitled “Amateur Program- ming for Fun and Profit”. He started by proclaiming that “anytime there is change, there is opportunity”, and proceeded to debunk some of the myths of what it takes to get started as a programmer. It does not, he said, require any courses in programming nor does it require a college degree. What good programming does require is a library of books and magazines and plenty of time. He stressed how important it is to have a supportive spouse or significant other and stressed that money and riches are not very effective motivators. A love of program- ming, above all, is the best motivation. After all, he asked, “What can be better than turn- ing a hobby into a job?” The second hour had Bill Heineman talking about his mythical low cost Apple IIGS clone, the Avatar computer. Unfortunately, the Avatar proj- ect had suffered a severe set- back when its prime funding source dried up. Now that Heineman has partially recov- ered from that major setback, he is hard at work creating a $299 product that will allow Apple IIGS software to be run on a Super Nintendo game machine. He reminded us that the heart and brains of both is the 65816 CPU. Heineman stated that he is busy recreating the Apple IIGS Toolbox so that JIGS software could work on other 65816-based systems, and he stated that he had been successful in getting Hyper- Studio to work properly on the Super Nintendo. He hopes to have his product completed by Christmas, 1993. With that, we broke for lunch. The meal at the NOMDA center was certainly better than the breakfast at Avila, but I doubt if anyone sent postcards home raving about the food. The afternoon sessions were held in two separate rooms, so it was only possible to attend half of the offered sessions. Guy Forsythe and Eric Bush, of Kitchen Sink Software, gave back to back presentations on “System II”, their Finder-like graphical user interface for ProDOS-8 based Apple Ile and IIc computer systems. Program- med in AppleSoft Basic, System Il is a development system that will allow Basic programmers to easily create software with pull down menus. Since Forsythe and Bush are both educators and Kitchen Sink Software is primarily involved producing software for fellow educators, the education market is a natural environment to adopt System II. According to Forsythe “There are a lot of Apple II computers out there. Schools want students to see the up to date methods of doing things. Individuals are tired of hearing about how the Apple II is just too out of date and being Shareware Solutions II 3 outdone by the newer systems. But, the Apple II can do the job!” He went on to say that “one place wanting a desktop is schools that have Mac LC’s with the Ie card. Students will see System II and know how to use it because it is similar to the Mac system.” System II will be offered in several different configurations. The Developer’s Kit will easily allow programmers to create Apple Ile/IIc programs that run with all the ease-of-use as those on the IIGS or on the Macintosh. The Full Desktop System will give Apple II owners a full set of mouse driven utilities and program launching capabilities. For more information about System II, contact Kitchen Sink Software, 903 Knebworth Court, Westerville, OH 43081. Or call 614-891-1211 or 800-235-5502. Additionally, Kitchen Sink produces an_ educationally oriented quarterly newsletter, “Creativity Update” that is available for only $2 for a 2 year subscription. Hyper HyperStudio Following the Kitchen Sink presentations, many of us went to listen to one of the most distinguished Apple II evangel- ists of all time, Roger Wagner. As the long time publisher of programming tools and lan- guages, Roger Wagner and his company had an unexpected change of focus after releasing HyperStudio, a program which is recognized as the premiere Apple IIGS hypermedia devel- opment system. Wagner now admits that HyperStudio was originally de- veloped for the home user and consumer market, and he was 4 Shareware Solutions IT caught completely off-guard when schools turned out to be the largest single market for HyperStudio. HyperStudio grants non- programmers the ability and power to create interactive application software that can combine text, graphics, ani- mations, sounds, music and movies, and it has proved to be so popular that Wagner recently released a Macintosh version of HyperStudio. But, it was not the Macintosh version of Hyper- Studio that Roger Wagner came to KansasFest to extol. His purpose was to try to convince developers just how easy it is to use HyperStudio to create pro- fessional software, and just how huge an after market there is for packages of clipart and digitized sounds that can be used with HyperStudio. As Wagner said, “Everyone has ideas, but implementing them is the key. If small children can use HyperStudio to create imag- inative software, think of the power HyperStudio has for programmers to drastically re- duce the amount of time it takes for a program to make it to market.” As usual, Roger Wagner's talk was inspirational and thought provoking. Running On Empty After Roger Wagner’s stim- ulating panel, we adjourned to the Avila College cafeteria for dinner and the annual Kansas- Fest Roast. The subject of this year’s festivities was none other than Uncle DOS, also known as Tom Weishaar, the owner of Resource-Central and the spon- sor of KansasFest. Resource-Central has become, in many ways, an Apple II pub- lishing empire, with many individuals helping to produce their great “magazines on disk”, including Script-Central, A2- Central-On-Disk, TimeOut-Cen- tral and Studio City. Resource- Central also manages the Apple II areas on the GEnie online information network, so there was an abundance of people in attendance who work directly for Tom Weishaar, and who were ideal to “roast” their boss. As it turned out, Tom proved to be less than an ideal subject for a roast, because no one had anything bad to say about him, and it was obvious that all the roasters respected and admired him. Dennis Doms, who had edited A2-Central for many years, said that every afternoon he worked for Resource-Central, Tom let him visit his ailing father in the hospital. Many others said that it was Tom’s column in SoftTalk that first got them interested in program- ming, and all of the people work- ing for him spoke in incredibly reverential terms. So, they joked mostly about Tom’s hair, and told funny stories about dead- line time at the Resource- Central offices. In conjunction with the roast, there was the “Creative Black Tie Contest”. Neckties are neck- ties, right? Wrong! Have you ever seen anyone wearing a 5.25" disk drive as a necktie? How about a 3.5" diskette necktie? As hilarious as the necktie contest was, it was nothing compared to some of the craziness that went on until the early hours of the morning. Many of us stayed outside and talked, and talked and talked. At one point, Roger Wagner had a crowd gathered around, and he tried to demonstrate his moun- tain climbing abilities. Kansas City is essentially flat, so Roger attempted to scale the front of the cafeteria building. Some called him Spiderman, and others called him crazy, but sure enough, he managed to scale the side of the building. Others of us talked about the state of the Apple II, and cornered the Australian contin- gent to find out how the Apple II is faring “down under”. As it turned out, the only employee of Apple Australia who provides Apple II customer support was in attendance, and he had some concerns about the stability of his job. But, he sure knew lots of Australian slang, and loved sharing it with the rest of us. As it was nearing bed time, I decided to make one more tour of the Avila dorm to see who was still awake. Upon walking into one of the lounges, I spotted at least ten people gathered around a paper bag, and they were taking turns trying to pick it up with their teeth. As I gazed at the craziness of the “Paper Bag Olympics”, and realized that none of the participants had been imbibing in alcohol, I took that as a cue that bedtime had arrived. The Sessions: Day 2 The second day of panels and conferences started out with Eric Bush of Kitchen Sink Software representing his “day job” and giving a talk about the Eisenhower National Clearing- house for Math and Science Education (ENC). Set up and managed by Ohio State Univ- ersity via a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, the ENC is expected to become the national clearinghouse for math and science educational re- sources. The ENC is currently collecting and compiling a com- prehensive listing of curriculum materials, and it will make all of the information available, free of charge, to anyone who wants it. The ENC is planning to distrib- ute databases of information in a number of different formats, including printed catalogs, CD- ROM disks, electronically via the Internet, and electronically via dial-up modem access to dozens of toll free 800 telephone numbers. The purpose of Bush’s talk was two-fold: he wanted to inform all the Apple II using educators about this wonderful new resource, but he also wanted to help those Apple II program- mers who were busy creating science and math software to have an opportunity for their products to be evaluated for inclusion in the resource database. For further information, contact ENC, Area 200, Research Center, 1314 Kinnear Road, Columbus, OH 43212-1194. Following that session, Mike Westerfield of The Byte Works thrilled a crowd of eager IIGS users and programmers with an introduction to the Byte Works’ newest programming language — 8D Logo. Long a mainstay of the edu- cational realm, Logo has been used for nearly 25 years to introduce children to computer programming. Logo is a simple to use, yet powerful, language that uses English in the form of commands that allows children to create onscreen graphics. The Byte Works first developed an implementation of Logo for inclusion with the Macintosh version of HyperStudio. From there, it just evolved into a 3 dimensional Logo for the IIGS. 3D Logo can be used to create movies. As Westerfield showed, a few simple commands can ani- mate a shape, rotate it or propel it across the screen. He showed an example of 3 dimensional effects that had four molecules all rotating in different dir- ections at once. By the time you read this, 3-D Logo should be available for less than $100. There should also be a half-price introductory offer that you can get details about from Byte Works. For more details, contact Byte Works, Inc, 4700 Irving Blvd. N.W. Suite 207, Albuquerque, NM 87114. Or call 505-898-8183. Luncheon Lunacy Following that session, we once again broke for lunch. Although the food wasn’t too memorable, the entertainment sure was! Arranged by Steve Disbrow, Publisher of GS+ Magazine, Disbrow introduced Matt Deatherage, of Apple Computer, who acted as Master of Ceremonies for a parody of a TV political talk show. With such illustrious panelists as Bill Heineman, Andy McFadden and Tom Weishaar, it was a half hour of nonstop wise cracks and one liners. At one point, Deatherage’s ques- tion was: “What’s with this guy Joe Kohn? He’s everywhere. He’s on all the online services, he’s active with a user group, and now he’s even publishing his own magazine. And, he even has the audacity to pass out his inCider business card, several months Shareware Solutions II 5 after that magazine died. What’s with this guy?” The responses were ad-libbed, quick, and pretty hilarious. Steve Disbrow’s response was, “LSD.” Andy McFadden’s response was, “Quaaludes.” Bill Heineman was quick to offer advice: “Hey Kohn. Get a life.” Well, maybe you had to be there? Quadriga After lunch, the most antici- pated presentation occurred when Randy Brandt showed off Quadriga, the most significant upgrade to AppleWorks ever developed. Listed in the pro- gram guide as: “Introducing <<shh: Still a Secret>>: The Mother of All Patch Disks”, this was the most crowded session of them all. Brandt passed out a three page handout that delineated many of the changes that we could expect, and by now you’ve probably seen some description of Quadriga. In the last issue of Shareware Solutions II, many of the most significant changes were listed (Quadriga wasn’t a secret to everyone); however, it’s important to point out that having already seen a listing of new features, I wasn’t quite prepared when I got to see the changes with my own eyes. The update is much more significant than a three page list can convey. Many of the functions performed by various of the Beagle Bros’ TimeOut series of AppleWorks’ add-ons have been incorporated into Quadriga, including the Init Manager, Ultra Macros, Path Finder, File Master, Total Control, Double Data, Cel Link, and Spell Copy. For those TimeOut modules that aren’t included, Quadriga will auto- 6 Shareware Solutions IT matically update most of them so that there will be no major TimeOut update costs, as there were when AppleWorks v3.0 was released. Brandt showed us how the word processor will have split screen capabilities, and how we'll be able to continue working with files that have been copied to the clipboard. He showed us pop-up menus in the Spread- sheet, and showed us how we'll be able to have multiple data entry screens for each record in the database module. He described how the AppleWorks’ database module will finally have relational database capa- bilities, allowing one database file to update another one. After an hour of showing off new features and capabilities, with- out a single problem, Brandt ended the Quadriga session by saying that a second disk, in- cluding screen blanking special effects, would be included with the Quadriga update. He then showed us his favorite; it was a PacMan symbol moving back and forth across the screen, eating all the characters, one by one. Seeing that PacMan in a souped up AppleWorks made the trip to KansasFest worth it. Shareware Code of Ethics Before I knew it, it was time for me to give my presentation. The topic was “The Secrets of the Stars: Maximizing Shareware Profits”. As I wrote in the program guide: “Why have some shareware authors made thou- sands of dollars while others have made thousands of pennies? Writing high quality shareware software is only part of the shareware programmer’s job. Once the program is written, a plan needs to be devised to get people to remit shareware fees. Learn what strategies work and how you too can maximize profits.” In preparing to give that talk, I’d gone onto several of the major online computer networks, and had asked programmers to share with me the secrets of their success. After a month went by and I had not received a single reply, I’d concluded that no one really knew what worked and what didn’t. But, over the years, I have communicated with most Apple II shareware authors, and I have also gotten numerous letters from Apple II owners who provided me with stories and feedback about what happened when they paid share- ware fees. I realized therefore, that I was probably the best prepared person to give a talk on what worked and what didn’t. As I started, I was quite concerned about how my talk would be perceived, as I had planned to give a harsh lecture to the programmers in attend- ance. I started talking about how, when the subject of share- ware comes up, it’s generally accepted that the computer using consumer shoulders the responsibility of determining whether a particular shareware program will be successful, and all too often, the measure of success is measured in dollars. “Hogwash,” I said, “to that traditionally held view.” I went on to say that shareware authors think that they can write a program, upload it to one online service, and wait for the checks to pour in. As I looked out over the assembled group of programmers, I saw that people were starting to get un- comfortable, and I knew that I was on the right track. I advised all shareware authors to make sure that all the online services, all the major distrib- utors of shareware software, all the major Apple II user groups, and all those who review share- ware software for Apple II publications got a copy of their software. I even suggested that shareware authors keep in contact with all their local Apple II user groups, and when they had a new product, that they visit those groups in person and give a demo of their software. also suggested that shareware authors keep people informed when they move, and I even volunteered to keep a shareware authors address registry up to date. I explained to shareware authors that many new people are trying out shareware for the first time, and that they, the programmers, were under an obligation, of sorts, to make a consumer’s first experience with shareware a positive experience. I suggested that all distributed shareware software be a com- plete package and that any program that is only a demo should be clearly labeled as a demo, and not as shareware. On the other hand, I proposed that it is ethical to provide a shareware version that had, for example, a “save game option” disabled or to provide a share- ware version of a game that didn’t have a “high score” module, and that upon payment of a shareware fee, those who paid would receive the com- pleted game by mail. A major point that I made was that all shareware authors should provide something via the mail to those who pay shareware fees. After all, it costs only $.19 to send a post- card, yet a $.19 postcard that says “thanks for sending in your shareware fee” is worth much more than a million dollars in good will. Of course, if a prog- ram is a_ serious utility program, printed documen- tation should be provided via the mail. In any case, whether it’s a postcard or a 200 page manual, the successful share- ware author does not just cash the checks and fail to send anything in return. Talso suggested that shareware authors who promise to send out a new version of their software should do so without hesitation or delay. I mentioned the special case of a soon to be completed update, and sug- gested that programmers send a note, thanking the person for sending in the fee, and writing that a new version would be available shortly, but that they leave it up to the customer to decide if he or she wants to receive the current version or the soon to be released version. All too often, a programmer feels that his work is done with the completion of the code, but that’s really when the work just starts. Some successful Apple II shareware programmers send out sample disks of new share- ware software to people who have previously sent in share- ware fees. Given the cost of disks and postage, sending a disk through the mail takes a very small investment. But, if there’s a personalized note of explanation included, chances are high that those who paid shareware fees in the past will do so once again. I kept hammering home the point that shareware is the future of the Apple II and that it is important to realize that in this day and age, it is imper- ative for Apple II consumers who had never tried shareware before to give it a try. I pointed out, after all, that only 15% of Apple II owners have modems or belong to user groups, and that it is important for shareware authors to reach the other 85%. I suggested that if someone wrote an educational shareware pro- gram that he should visit schools and give out sample disks. I suggested that share- ware authors might want to think about advertising their software. I suggested that shareware programmers should never assume anything, and that they make their software easy to use, and provide a way for even those who don’t own a word processor to read the documentation. I suggested that programmers fully test their software to make sure it works on all systems, even those that have minimal amounts of RAM or just one disk drive. In short, I spoke a lot about consumers and customers, and how programmers need to start treating those who use their shareware as valued customers who have rights too. As custom- ers, they need to receive periodic notices of the availability of low cost updates, and they need to know of new projects. If my talk could be summed up in one sentence, that would be: Treat your fellow Apple II users with dignity and respect, and give them value for their money. I was anticipating that many in the audience would be very uncomfortable because of my severe words, and I was shocked and thrilled when I received a rousing ovation. As a follow up to my talk at KansasFest, if you have had a particularly good experience Shareware Solutions IT 7 with a shareware author, or a horrendous one, please let me know about it. I hope someday to expand on the remarks I gave at KansasFest, and develop the “Apple II Shareware Code of Ethics”. I could sure use your help and feedback. And just remember, shareware is a two way street. If you use shareware, please respect the programmer and the entire Apple II community and sub- mit your shareware fees. After The Flood With that, the official part of KansasFest was concluded, and about 35 of us decided to celebrate a very successful con- ference with a steak and rib dinner at Kansas City Master- piece. We must have been quite a sight to the other diners. An extra day had been sched- uled for relaxation, and most of us visited the offices of Resource-Central on Saturday. Those offices were in a nearby industrial park and were much smaller than many of us had imagined. Resource-Central is currently downsizing, so those offices will soon move into Tom Weishaar’s home. For that reason, a sale was held to dispose of excess inventory, and lots of people ended up going home with very heavy suitcases. After the conclusion of the conference, Tom Weishaar was heard to say that everything worked out much better than he had expected, and that there just might be another Kansas- Fest in 1994. On the ride back to the airport, there was evidence of flooding everywhere, as the Missouri River had engulfed the roadway 8 Shareware Solutions IT and industrial parks and farms along the way. The flooding seemed to be very far away from Avila and NOMDA, but somehow, even if it had come closer, it would not have dampened the collective enthu- siasm that everyone felt for the Apple II computer, and it certainly would not have had any effect on the camaraderie and good times that were shared by the KansasFest attendees. @ Grapevine RAMFast Update Sequential Systems Inc (1200 Diamond Circle, Lafayette, CO 80025. 303-666-4549 or 800- 999-1717) is now providing all sales, service and technical support for CVTech’s RAMFast SCSI interface card. Apple Expo East The Apple II consumer oriented trade show, Apple Expo East, scheduled to be held in Boston from October 1-3, 1993, has been postponed until April, 1994. According to Bob Berkowitz of Events Specialists, the organ- izer of the show, support from Apple Computer Inc’s Boston office was withdrawn after the entire Boston marketing department was laid off in Apple’s latest series of re- organizations. Berkowitz feels that he will be able to gather additional support from Apple after it has recovered from the latest round of cut-backs. Looking Good In Print Hewlett-Packard has recently announced a major price cut on their DeskJet 500 ink jet printer. That printer can now be found in most computer “super stores” for only $299. The DeskJet 500, which can be connected to a IIe, IIe or IIGS computer, produces near laser printer quality for about half the price of an actual laser printer. When connected to a Ile or IIc, it is limited to printing text files, unless an optional Epson Emu- lation Cartridge is installed. With the Epson cartridge, the DeskJet 500 can print from any Tle/IIc application that supports Epson printers. This includes just about every Apple II program ever released. Add- itionally, with built-in DeskJet 500 support in the soon to be released AppleWorks Quadriga update, printing from Apple- Works to a DeskJet will be easier and more functional than ever. A DeskJet can be connected to a IIc using the Ilc’s serial port. A DeskJet 500 can be connected to a Ile using either a Super Serial Card or a Parallel Interface Card. To connect the DeskJet 500 to an Apple IIGS, all that’s needed is an “ImageWriter I to Mac Plus” printer cable, and a set of GS/OS drivers. There are currently two such sets of drivers available: Independence from Seven Hills (2310 Oxford Road, Tallahassee, FL 43304. 904-575-0566) and Harmonie from Vitesse (PO Box 929, La Puente, CA 91747. 818- 813-1270). If you’ve been thinking of replacing your aging Image- Writer with a higher quality printer, now’s the time to investigate the Hewlett- Packard DeskJet 500. Looking Great in Print Okidata Corporation (532 Fellowship Road, Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054. 609-235-2600 or 800-OKIDATA) has fired the first shot in what may well develop into a full scale laser printer price war. They have recently introduced the OL400e printer, which offers full Hewlett-Packard LaserJet II series compatibility, at the unheard of “street price” of $499. The OL400e, like all other Hewlett-Packard LaserJet II compatible printers, can be connected to the IIe/IIc or IIGS in the exact same manner as the HP DeskJet 500 as described above. There is. however, no Epson compati- bility offered; so, these printers are limited to printing straight ASCII Text from 8-bit Ile/IIc software. AppleWorks Updates Randy Brandt, author of the soon to be released Quadriga update to AppleWorks v3.0, says in his disk based TimeOut- Central publication: “In early August, Quality Computers received a signed letter of intent from Claris regarding a deal by which Quality would receive the rights to publish future versions of AppleWorks. Hopefully a final contract has been signed by the time you read this, and The Works 4.0 (aka Quadriga) can be released as an official AppleWorks 4.0. If not, you’re still going to get a great product.” In late August, Quality Computers (20200 Nine Mile Rd, St Clair Shores, MI 48080. 800-777-3642 or 313-774-7200) confirmed the signing of an agreement with Claris Corp that will make Quality the publisher of both AppleWorks and AppleWorks GS! Quadriga, therefore, will be officially re- leased as AppleWorks v4.0. The program is scheduled to begin shipping on October 1. AppleWorks owners who up- grade to AppleWorks v4.0 will receive new program disks and a new reference manual. If the order is placed before October 1, a free “Enhancing AppleWorks” video will also be included. The prices for the update have also been announced, and for those upgrading from Apple- Works 3.0 to 4.0, the cost will be $79. For those upgrading from AppleWorks 2.0 or 2.1 to 4.0, the cost will be $99. For those purchasing the complete Apple- Works 4.0 package, the full retail price will be $169.95. Quality Computers also plans to release a new version of AppleWorks GS within the next year, and is now soliciting user suggestions for that planned upgrade. Dramatic Price Reduction Bright Software has cut in half the list price of the only IIGS desktop application for numeric and symbolic math. Previously available for $140, Symbolix v1.81 is now available for only $70. Symbolix features dozens of unique functions such as animated 3D graphs, symbolic commands (derive, expand, collect, etc.), a complete set of scientific functions and symbolic constants. Both graph modules (in 2D and 3D perspectives) support autoscaling, colors, and printouts. Symbolix is the first program that supports true multitasking under “The Manager” from Seven Hills Software. Bright Software even offers a self-running demo version of Symbolix for only $5. For more information, contact: Bright Software — Europe PO Box 18 4153 Reinach 2 Switzerland gudath@ezinfo.vmsmail.ethz.ch fax +41 61 711 52 63 or Bright Software - USA PO Box 120 Exeter, ME 04435-0120 USA If ordering the demo from Bright-Europe, please send cash only. If ordering the demo from Bright-USA, please send cash, check or a money order. HardPressed Easter Egg HardPressed, from WestCode Software (15050 Avenue of Science, Ste. 116, San Diego, CA 92128. 619-487-9200) is an amazing new IIGS utility that quickly and transparently compresses files on disk, effectively allowing an 800K disk to store up to 1.6 megabytes of data, and expanding the capacity of a 20 megabyte hard drive to nearly 40 megabytes. If you own HardPressed, you can enter its secret menu by accessing the HardPressed Shareware Solutions IT 9 Control Panel, and while holding down both the Option and Open-Apple keys, double clicking on the copyright notice. The secret menu will allow you to set a new option so that the color of the IIGS border will flash whenever HardPressed is compressing or expanding files. Unlike most computer Easter Eggs, the HardPressed secret menu actually provides a useful function, since it gives the user visual feedback to an operation that is nearly invisible. @ Modem Madness Delphi Price Correction In the last issue of Shareware Solutions II, Delphi’s 20/20 plan was described as costing $20 for 20 hours. Additional time, over and above 20 hours, was incorrectly reported as costing $4 per hour. In actuality, after the first 20 hours, the cost drops to only $1.80 an hour. FutureNet Update Joshua Thompson, the system operator (sysop) of the Virtual Space Industries BBS and developer of the networkable freeware FutureNet Bulletin Board System, has transferred all of the network admin- istration functions for Future- Net to Tony Diaz, sysop of The Space Bar, an active FutureNet site that can be accessed by dialing 619-433-4653 with your modem. Tony Diaz is now the person to contact regarding the assignment of registration and identification for brand new FutureNet BBS sites just going online. Talk Is Cheap After more than a year without an update, Talk is Cheap v4 (TIC) is currently available. Already an excellent and dependable program, TIC v4 adds new features and enhancements to an already feature laden program. Among 10 Shareware Solutions IT some of the additions to v4.0 are a brand new manual, VT- 102 terminal emulation, and full hardware handshaking that supports high speed modems. For years, TIC has been recognized as having the most powerful scripting language available, and TIC v4 now even includes scripts that guide the novice user through the soft- ware installation process and these scripts actually handle all of the file copying and directory creation involved in the process. After having been sold for the past several years by Quality Computers, Talk Is Cheap is now being sold and supported by Don Elton, the program’s author. In order to entice users of other Apple II terminal programs, Elton is offering a $15 update from older versions of TIC or from any other currently available commercial terminal program. Otherwise, the cost for TIC v4 is $40. To take advantage of updating to TIC from any other currently available program, you must include your original labeled disk with your order. Checks or money orders should be made out to Don Elton, and sent to: Don Elton 14207 Glenhurst Way Orlando, FL 32837 Sequential BBS Sequential Systems Inc, of Lafayette, CO, has recently supplemented their efforts to provide customer and dealer support by setting up their own BBS. Their new BBS provides a method for users and resellers to discuss Sequential products and to get quick and responsive technical support. The Sequential BBS includes product information, a file transfer area that allows you to download Sequential software products, and a message area that helps you keep up to date on upgrades and new product announcements. You can access the BBS by calling 303-666-7797 at any baud rate from 300-14400, V.32bis/V.42bis. Use 8 data bits, No parity, and 1 Stop Bit (8N1). At the “login” prompt, type “bbs”, and at the “Password” prompt, also type “bbs”. Disability BBS If you are the parent of a child with disabilities, or if you are a special education teacher, you might want to have your modem dial the DCCG (Disabled Children’s Computer Group) BBS at 510-841-4521 in Berkeley, CA. The DCCG is part of the nationwide Alliance for Tech- nology Access, a grassroots organization that is involved in providing computer technology and resources to people with disabilities. The DCCG also maintains a huge library of more than 500 Apple II public domain disks that have been updated and modified to work with the Echo Speech Synthesizer. For more information, contact: DCCG 2547 8th Street, 12-A Berkeley, CA 94710 510-841-3224 (voice) Space BBS If you have an interest in the exploration of outer space, you might want to have your modem dial The Space Explorer’s Network BBS at 612-459-0892 in Minnesota. You can access the BBS at any baud rate from 300 to 57600 and make sure that when you log in that you have your ANSI graphic emulation set to “on”. Dedicated to education and research for the peaceful development of space, the BBS has an active message base and has a lot of NASA and space related news that you're just not going to find in your local newspaper. There is a lot of detailed information online about upcoming shuttle flights and information on all current planetary probes. There’s also quite a lot of information available about the Russian space program. After spending time on The Space Explorer’s Network BBS, you're bound to agree that the sky is no longer the limit. @ Some Great Deals All of the following offers are exclusively available to sub- scribers to Shareware Solutions II, and you must identify yourself as a subscriber when placing your order. Any special offer you take advantage of is strictly between you and the company involved. Shareware Solutions II makes no money from these special deals, and has no financial stake in any of the products. Rather, Share- ware Solutions II believes in supporting its readers and in supporting those who support the Apple II. By offering special money saving hints and tips to the readership of Shareware Solutions II, “Such A Deal” is provided as a public service. Seven Hills Software Update In the initial issue of Shareware Solutions II, Seven Hills Software made a special “Such A Deal” offer which allowed subscribers to purchase most of the Apple IIGS soft- ware published by them at an Such A Deal! unprecedented 50% off retail price. As it turns out, that was a time sensitive offer, and the offer expires on September 30, 1993. The Desktop Manager The Desktop Manager (TDM) is a package of full featured IIGS Classic Desk Accessories that can be accessed and used from within almost any application that runs on the Apple IIGS, including most ProDOS-8 based applications and GS/OS appli- cations. TDM includes a Note Pad, an Appointment Calendar, a Cal- culator, a Printer Manager, an Envelope Labeler, an ASCII Chart, a Disk Manager, a Com- munications Manager that includes a terminal program, a Find Files function, an Accessory Manager, and an Area Codes and Time Zone accessory. Additionally, there is a “hot key” accessory that allows single key graphic and text screen captures or screen printing capabilities from within such programs as AppleWorks Classic or Apple- Works GS. It also contains the ability to “Pickup & Paste” text from one application program to another. All of the TDM accessories offer help screens and the package comes with detailed manuals describing all of the features of TDM. TDM requires an Apple JIGS with a minimum of 768K of RAM and one 3.5" disk drive. However, 1 megabyte of RAM and a hard disk are preferred, but TDM will run on single floppy disk systems. TDM requires IIGS System Disk version 4.0 or later. TDM is normally priced at $29.95 but subscribers to Shareware Solutions II can take advantage of a special “Such A Deal” offer and acquire this utility program for only $14.95 plus $5 shipping. To get this useful set of desk accessories for your Apple IIGS, send a check or money order for $19.95 to: Shareware Solutions IT v0 Bob Consorti 179 Kent St., Unit B Brookline, MA 02146 617-731-0662. Twilight IL Twilight II (T2) is a IIGS screen blanking utility that provides an elegant way to prevent costly phosphor burn from ruining your monitor when the same image is left on screen for too long. Similar to the award winning After Dark program for the Macintosh, T2 allows a IIGS user to select from a variety of more than 40 dazzling full color animation and special effect modules that automatically display when no user inter- action has taken place for a user defined period of time. Some of the animated special effects included with T2 are 3-D fractal mountains, rotated and scaled 3 dimensional wireframe animations, worms taking over the screen, a simulated trip through the universe, plasma cloud generation, dazzling color fireworks, melting screens, analog and digital bouncing clocks, kaleidoscope type effects, moire effects, and a module that allows you to create the animation yourself with any IIGS paint program. It even includes a random mode that allows a different animation to be run each time the screen is blanked. T2 is a control panel device for use with System Disk 6.0 or 6.0.1. It requires 1.125 mega- bytes of RAM, but 1.5 mega- bytes of RAM or more is recommended for optimal per- formance. It also requires either two 3.5" disk drives or one 3.5" disk drive and a hard drive. T2 carries a suggested retail 12 Shareware Solutions IT price of $39.95, but subscribers to Shareware Solutions II can take advantage of a special “Such A Deal” offer and acquire this stunning program for only $25. For orders sent to a U.S, address, add $2 for shipping and handling, and for orders sent overseas, add $5 for air mail delivery. Payment may be made with MasterCard or Visa, or by check or money order. Contact: DigiSoft Innovations P.O. Box 380 Trumbull, CT 06611-0380 203-375-0837 Or, you can contact DigiSoft Innovations, electronically via your modem, at the following email addresses: America Online: DigiSoft Delphi: DYAJIM GEnie: DYA ProSel One of the most popular and powerful utility programs in the annals of Apple II software history is Glen Bredon’s ProSel. Mr Bredon refers to Prosel as “the best and most complete set of disk utilities you can buy”, and I just happen to agree wholeheartedly with him! There are 2 different versions of ProSel: Prosel-8 works with IIe, IIc, and IIc+ computers; Prosel- 16 is a IIGS specific version. They both operate in very similar manners, and provide the same useful set of utilities, although the component names may be slightly different in the different versions. Prosel is actually two programs in one: it is a complete, and I mean complete, set of utility programs, and it is a program launcher. As a program launcher, Prosel allows you to create screens with the names of programs that you commonly run. Using Prosel’s editor, you create a completely custom-built menu of programs on your disk, and all those programs can then be run by using the arrow keys and pressing Return, or by using a mouse. When you stop working with a program, you are returned to your Prosel menu screen. Prosel’s program launching abilities are tried and true; they let you create a customized “run list” of programs, and you only need enter pathname information once, when you first set up the run list. After that, everything is on auto-pilot. By using Prosel as a program selector and launcher, you can easily navigate through high capacity disk drives. A program does not even have to be part of your run list to be run; there is a File Finder utility that can search your disk drive for any program, and when it is located, it can be run by simply pressing the “R” key. In addition to its program launching capabilities, Prosel’s legendary utilities are the most complete set of Apple II utility programs available. Prosel allows Apple II or IIGS users to quickly batch copy files or disks, display the contents of any file on a printer or on screen, lock, unlock, hide, unhide or delete files, exhume a deleted file, verify the integrity of a file, perform an alphabetical sort of a directory or subdirectory, change file dates, move files, compare directories or compare files, locate a string or a file name anywhere on disk, display graphics upon bootup (Prosel-16 only), blank the screen after a certain amount of inactivity; and, it even allows users to add password protection to files. For programmers and those who are technically inclined, there’s Block Warden, a sector editor that allows you to examine a disk right down to each individual byte. If that isn’t a complete set of utilities, consider Mr Fixit in Prosel-8, or its Prosel-16 counterpart, Volume Repair, which addresses a problem that all of us unfortunately have encountered at some point; namely, a damaged disk. There are 12 different problems that these utilities can repair. These utilities are generally successful in fixing disks that have damaged directory structures or where bad blocks have occurred. They are so powerful that they can even retrieve information on a disk that has been acciden- tally formatted. Additionally, ProSel includes hard drive utilities that are without peer. When a hard drive is used for any length of time, files on disk become frag- mented, resulting in less than optimal performance. Over time, fragmentation really slows down all disk operations. To make disks as responsive as the first day they were used, it is necessary to defragment the disk. In Prosel, that is done by using the Optimization utility. There are two defragmentation methods available: Turbo, which operates on files, and Complete, a method that defragments all files in all subdirectories. In either case, optimization results can be very dramatic. If you have no idea whether you have sufficient fragmentation to slow down your computer’s performance, just access ProSel’s Info Desk, and with a single keypress on the file fragmentation counter, Prosel will tell you exactly how many files on your drive are in need of optimization. Another major concern of hard disk owners is protecting the data on the drive. If you are using 5.25" or 3.5" disks, it’s relatively simple to make a duplicate copy periodically of all disks you can’t afford to be without. On a hard drive, there is space for so much information that hard disk backup is a procedure that most hard drive owners follow scrupulously. If hard drive owners don’t take precautions, they could lose everything in an electrical storm, or if the hard drive develops mechanical problems. Prosel allows for several types of hard drive backups. It can back up the entire drive, or it can be used to back up incrementally only files changed since the last backup, or to back up only files added to the drive after a particular date. When backing up a hard drive, Prosel performs compression on the files, so that it is possible to store more than 800K of data on a 3.5" disk. When first running backup, you are informed how many floppy disks it will take to store all the contents of the hard drive. The process of backing up a hard drive is very straightforward. Prosel asks you to insert disk after disk, and it takes care of all the formatting of disks. Backing up a complete 32 megabyte partition takes less than 2 hours. Restoring a hard drive from the backup disks couldn't be easier. Just choose Prosel’s Restore option, and Prosel will tell you when to insert the next disk. Restoration takes a little longer than backing up the drive; yet, a 32 megabyte partition was restored in less than 3 hours. Apple II Users may not realize that they need Prosel, but, they could not find a more complete set of utility tools anywhere. There are programs that back up a hard drive and others that provide a full set of ProDOS utilities. Yet, there are no other programs that I’m aware of that do so much for so little. ProSel-8 is normally priced at $40, and ProSel-16 is normally priced at $90, but subscribers to Shareware Solutions II can take advantage of a special “Such A Deal” offer and acquire these exceptional programs for only $28 for ProSel-8 and $63 for ProSel-16. Contact: Charlie’s AppleSeeds 9081 Hadley Pl San Diego, CA 92126-1523 619-566-1297 Focus Hard Drives The Parsons Engineering team, consisting of Steve Parsons and Burger Bill Heineman, is currently offering internal hard disk drives that work on Apple Tle and IIGS computers. Available in 40, 80 and 120 megabyte configurations, their Focus Hard Cards are 2.5" IDE disk drives that combine the hard disk with a controller card into a single “plug and play” unit. With the Focus Hard Card, there’s no need to purchase an additional interface controller card; a controller card generally adds at least $100 to the cost of installing a hard drive on an Apple II. Each Focus Hard Card comes with system software already installed. All that is necessary Shareware Solutions IT 13 to use the hard drive is plug it into a slot, any except Slot 3 is fine, and turn on the computer. The Focus is a speedy hard drive, offering 18 millisecond access times, that doesn’t require any technical expertise to install. Focus Hard Cards are normally priced at $349 for the 40 megabyte unit, $449 for the 60 megabyte unit, and $549 for the 120 megabyte unit. Subscribers to Shareware Solutions II can take advantage of a special “Such A Deal” offer and acquire these hard drives for 15% off, making the drives quite affordable at $296.65 for the 20 megabyte unit, $381.65 for the 40 megabyte unit and $466.65 for the 120 megabyte unit. For orders sent to a North American address, add $15 for standard UPS ground shipping. For orders sent overseas, the exact shipping charge will be added to your cost. Payment may be made by check or money order, or charged to an American Express credit card. Contact: Parsons Engineering 5010 Rimhurst Avenue Covina, CA 91724 818-966-5538 ( new number) 818-966-5701 (FAX) C.E. Field Enterprises For many years, I had the honor of sharing the inCider/A+ masthead with an esteemed colleague, Dr Cynthia Field. Over the years, she contributed numerous articles to each issue of inCider/A+, and those articles always offered new and valuable information for Apple II novices and experienced pros. 14 Shareware Solutions IT Her articles were packed with information that wasn’t available anywhere else. I looked forward to reading her words of wisdom each month, just as I’m sure you did. After inCider/A+ ceased pub- lication, all the copyrights that were held by inCider/A+ reverted to inCider/A+’s parent organization, Mac World Pub- lishing. Since Mac World could not care less about the Apple II, it was very easy for both Cynthia and me to reacquire the copyrights for all the work that we had done for inCider/A+. Over the years, Cynthia Field produced a number of “special products” that were sold by inCider/A+ and are now available directly from her. A few months ago, each of these special products cost Apple II owners $30. There are now five of these special products available: AppleWorks 3.0 Productivity Pack 1 is a series of 10 Apple- Works word processing, spread- sheet and database templates, available on 5.25" disk, that will help you plan nutritional meals, automate your bank re- conciliation statements, create customized postcards, keep an inventory of all your valuables, print out forms that you might otherwise buy at a stationery store, analyze construction costs, keep membership organ- ization records, and calculate the annual deduction for mileage driven for your job. Included with the AppleWorks data files is a 125 page manual that is well written and contains a step by step set of instructions for using all the templates provided on disk. In order to use these templates, you must already own Apple- Works v3.0. AppleWorks Productivity Pack II is available in 2 different formats; one for AppleWorks v3.0 and one for AppleWorks GS. Both versions contain the same categories of templates, but each was created to best take advantage of the strengths of the two different programs. Therefore, if you own Apple- Works GS, get the AppleWorks GS version; if you own Apple- Works v3.0, get the AppleWorks v3.0 version. Productivity Pack II contains blank templates, set up for you to enter your personal data, and already completed templates with hypothetical information included. As an example, there are two templates devoted to helping you figure your taxes; one is set up for you to start entering information, and one is already set up with information, so you can see what a completed tax form looks like and examine the way the templates work. There are also forms that allow you to create family trees, a template to assist with the labeling of videotapes, several templates to help you make important car buying decisions, a template that will create an electronic cookbook, a template that will allow you to create a “Living Will”, templates that will create monthly and yearly calendars, and a template that will allow you to create a customized guide to potential colleges you’re thinking of attending. The AppleWorks 3.0 version comes with an excellent 75 page manual, and the AppleWorks GS version comes with an equally excellent 85 page manual. The A+ Home Organizer is another collection of Apple- Works GS templates designed to assist you in organizing your personal and family infor- mation. There’s a credit card registry, a personal balance sheet that allows you to create a statement of net worth, several mortgage related tem- plates that will help you through the maze of refinancing your home, a vacation planner, a template to create address labels, a template that lets you enter information about friends and family and serves as a reminder for important dates, a medical authorization form, a home inventory worksheet, and a template that tracks the details of your financial life. All documentation is provided on disk. Publish It Yourself is a series of templates that are for use with the popular Apple Ile/IIc desktop publishing program Publish It! With this series, you can use Publish It to create index cards, memo pads, certificates, memo forms, newsletters, disk labels, and business forms. It comes with a 95 page printed manual that offers step by step instructions. Keep in mind that many of these offerings from Cynthia Field grew out of articles she’d written for inCider/A+, and that they all come with a 30 day money back guarantee. Each set of templates carries a suggested retail price of $12.95, but subscribers to Shareware Solutions II can take advantage of a special “Such A Deal” offer and acquire each set of templates for only $9.95 each. There is also a shipping and handling charge of $3.50 per order. Make checks or money orders out to C.E. Field Enterprises. Contact: C.E. Field Enterprises 60 Border Drive Wakefield, RI 02879-3802 & Shareware Solutions [e/IIc/Igs Racing With The Sun In November, 1987, the eyes of the world were focused on the Australian Outback, as an event there sparked the imagi- nation of scientific investi- gators, students, and futurists the world over. That event was the World Solar Challenge, in which 24 solar powered automobiles raced 1,950 miles across some of the most desolate landscapes on earth. 5 1/4 days after the race started, General Motors’ Sunraycer was the first car to cross the finish line, averaging 41.6 miles per hour. Since then, numerous news- papers, magazines, television and radio shows have run features on GM’s Sunraycer. The car continues to attract attention, and wherever it is displayed, questions are asked: How does it work? What makes it go? How fast does it go? The continuing interest in the car inspired General Motors, Hughes Aircraft, and Aero- Vironment, the builders of the Sunraycer solar powered car, to fund the development of a comprehensive Apple II soft- ware package for classroom use. The software, created by science teachers and curriculum con- sultants, was produced by Tel Ed of Los Angeles, and was placed into the Public Domain. It is currently available from online services, BBS’s, and User Groups. It runs on any Apple II computer, and requires a 5.25" disk drive. Two versions of the software were developed; one for elementary students, and one for secondary students. The secondary software con- tains a four part interactive tutorial combining many aspects of physical science, applied science and technology. Through the use of text, graphics, music, and animation, the software demonstrates how the sun’s high temperatures and high pressures combine to release vast amounts of energy. That energy is transmitted to the earth’s surface as sunlight, and through the use of solar collection panels and photo- voltaic cells, that sunlight can be harnessed to produce sufficient amounts of electricity to power the Sunraycer. The Sunraycer, which measures 18 feet long, 6 feet across, and 3 feet high, weighs less than 400 pounds. Its 8,800 solar panels collect the sunlight, and the photovoltaic batteries convert it to electrical energy which powers the car. Various physical forces effected the design of the Shareware Solutions IT I5 vehicle and its streamlined shape minimized aerodynamic friction and resulted in one of the most efficient cars ever produced. A major component of this version of the software is the simulated Solar Challenge Race, and you're behind the wheel of the Sunraycer vehicle! The race course is a 60 mile stretch of hills and desert, and the weather, on which solar energy is so dependent, is unpredictable. You can always radio to the overhead radar equipped spotting helicopter which will send back information on the weather and road conditions ahead. Those conditions will effect the performance of your vehicle, and adjustments to driving style may be necessary. As you proceed with the race, feedback is available from the various on-screen dials and displays, including such famil- iar ones as a speedometer, an odometer, a clock, and a front view through the windshield. Drivers of solar cars rely on other information as well, including an indicator to show the amount of charge the battery is holding, how many watts of electricity are being produced by the solar panels, and whether that electricity is needed by the engine or the batteries. If you are able to maintain enough energy, you can complete the course, despite the clouds that diminish your solar race car’s efficiency. Upon completion, you will be notified of your average speed during the simulated race. The disk supplied for elementary students contains The Solar Race Car Construc- tion Kit, a stand-alone program. 16 Shareware Solutions IT It is this module that ties together all the other sections, and allows you to apply your new found knowledge of solar energy into building a solar powered automobile. Construc- ting a solar race car is an endeavor that is fun, educa- tional, and a rewarding ex- perience for students of all ages. The Solar Race Car Construc- tion Kit consists of three sections. The computer aided Design Center allows you to design and assemble your custom car by designating the major components to be used. Your choices determine what type of frame your car will have, what type of battery and engine will be used, and what type of solar panels will be employed. The Test Track lets you test your car under 14 different road and weather conditions. The Research Library can be visited at any time, and it provides useful information about the different design components. As you construct different designs, you are encouraged to enter the test track to see how well your custom design performs. As each section of track is driven, a computer analysis is provided showing the efficiency of your vehicle. At the conclusion of a test track run, a performance report is displayed that compares your design to the best possible theoretical design. If your performance rating isn’t high enough, you can always return to the Design Center to implement changes. After the successful completion of a test run, a personalized certificate of merit is issued to the designer. It has a ranking that provides feedback on how well you have been able to apply your knowledge of solar generated energy to the real job of building a solar race car. The Sunraycer series is a premiere example of corporate sponsored educational freeware, and it is so well done and informative that it deserves a spot in every classroom in the world, and in the library of all Apple II users with a curiosity about cars, science or solar energy. The Sunraycer series is available from Shareware Solutions II for $5. It is available only on 5.25" disk. Subscribers who order the SunRaycer series will receive both elementary and secondary school versions. The Mars Observer NASA has recently come under fire for having one mishap after another. In late August, the Mars Observer planetary probe speeding its way to Mars suddenly lost contact with ground controllers, and is now presumed to be lost. In conjunction with the Mars Observer, NASA produced a series of fact sheets and press releases that describe the mission in great detail. Prior to any hint of trouble, NASA also produced a detailed press release describing exactly what would happen when the Mars Observer attained orbit around the Red Planet. When contact with the probe was lost, NASA then produced a series of short bulletins that described the events of the day and what scientists at JPL had done to try to regain contact. As each day went by, the bulletins became less and less optimistic. Finally, NASA named a board of inquiry and started making plans for a return to Mars. Now, you can read the full heart-breaking story of NASA’s latest disaster. A 3.5" or 5.25" disk containing the entire story of The Mars Observer, from the optimistic start to the naming of the board of inquiry, is available from Shareware Solutions II for $5. Please specify disk size with your order. Legends Builder In one of the last issues of inCider/A+, I described a fun graphic based hi-res adventure game — The Legends of the Three Kingdoms. Written by Steven Swanson of SJS Software, this $9.95 shareware program is a colorful and imaginative swords and sorcery fantasy adventure game that casts you as the one person who can find the Orb of Truth and return peace to the warring kingdoms. In your quest, you will be crossing mountains and descending into deep dark caverns as you meet an assortment of criminals, ogres, flame ants, ice bats, cave bears, goblins and blood frogs. To assist you, you'll be able to cast magical spells and conjure up packs of wolves to attack your adversaries. When the game was first released, players were informed that upon payment of the shareware fee, they would receive an all-new Legends II adventure scenario, and the Legends Builder program which would allow them to easily create their own public domain hi res adventure games. Since then, Steven Swanson has written and requested that the Legends Builder construction set be added to the Shareware Solutions II library. He is hoping that many people will get hold of it and use it to create their own adventure games. The original Legends of the Three Kingdoms is available from Shareware Solutions II for $5. It is available only on 5.25" disk. And now, the Legends Builder is also available. It comes on 3 double sided 5.25" disks, and is available for $7. You may get the Legends game and the Legends Builder — that’s a total of 5 double sided 5.25" disks — for only $10. Operation Apple Storm In November, 1992 a number of San Francisco area Apple II user group officers met with the Apple II Product Manager, and were informed that Apple was going to discontinue the Apple TIGS computer. Unknown to most attendees, the entire meeting was tape recorded surreptitiously. Now, you too can vicariously attend the infamous meeting which has become known as Operation Apple Storm. You can read the entire transcript of that fateful meeting. The Operation Apple Storm disk is being offered by Shareware Solutions II for $5. It is available on either 3.5" or 5.25" disk. Owners of Apple IIGS com- puters that have 1 megabyte of RAM memory can get a third version of Operation Apple Storm that is in HyperStudio format. You do not need to own HyperStudio to use this version. The HyperStudio version does require that you have IIGS System 5.0.4 or later. Please specify which version of Operation Apple Storm you want. Ordering Disks When ordering any disks from the Shareware Solutions II Library, please order by disk name and specify the disk size you want. All prices include shipping and handling. Only checks or money orders, in US funds only, can be accepted for payment. Please make all checks payable to Joe Kohn. All disks are guaranteed to be free from any computer virus or physical defect. Disks damaged in the mail will be replaced free of charge. @ Shareware Solutions IIGS Bille Art Humor can often backfire. What one person finds funny, another may find offensive. Such is the case with Bille Art, a freeware TIGS strategy arcade game by Brutal Deluxe, a new French group of programmers. It’s a fun yet challenging game that requires good coordination and mouse mastery. The play screen looks like a standard billiards table, but game play is like a blending of bumper pool and Pong. The goal of the game is to Shareware Solutions IT I7 successfully ricochet a billiard ball off an increasing number of bumpers. With just one bumper, the game is easy; with two bumpers it becomes more difficult, and with three bumpers, it becomes a challenge of the first magnitude. The members of Brutal Deluxe thought it would be funny to include a “Panic Button” that when pressed would reveal a graphic of a nude woman. Unfortunately, that graphic could be viewed as pornographic by some, and it prevents Bille Art from being used in schools or played by children. If you already have Bille Art, but don’t want your children to play it because of the graphic, it’s pretty simple to substitute any other graphic instead. Start by making a copy of your Bille Art disk, so that if you make a mistake, you can always start over again. Once you’ve copied Bille Art, start up your IIGS System Disk, and once the Finder appears, access the Special Pull Down Menu and move your mouse to the Preferences option. There you will see an option to “Hide invisible files”. Set that option so that invisible files will be shown. Then, when you insert the Bille Art disk, you'll see 35 files that were previously invisible. The nude graphic is contained in the file named BAB. Use the Finder to change the name of that file to anything other than BAB. You'll now be able to substitute any other graphic you may have, by copying it to the Bille Art disk and giving it the name BAB. There is however, one slight problem; your new BAB graphic must be saved to 18 Shareware Solutions IT disk as a PackBytes format graphic. That graphic filetype is now considered to be obsolete, so only older IIGS Paint Programs, such as the original PaintWorks Plus, can save graphics in that format. However, SuperConvert, a graphics conversion program from Seven Hills Software, can save your graphic in the necessary PackBytes format. Once your graphic has been processed by SuperConvert and saved to the Bille Art disk as BAB, with a PackBytes file format, that new graphic will appear when the Panic Button is hit. If you don’t already have Bille Art, a sanitized version has been added to the Shareware Solutions II library, and it is available for $5. It requires an Apple IIGS with at least 1 megabyte of RAM memory. Jupiter Special Effects (F/X) Jupiter Special Effects (F/X) is the most incredible, amazing, stunning, creative, and mysterious IIGS paint program ever seen. It is a mystery because the title screen indicates that it was programmed by the Jupiter Systems programming team and it contains the Jupiter Systems logo. Yet, no one at Jupiter Systems has any knowledge of the program, and they deny that they created it. In fact, they'd never heard of this program until it was recently brought to their attention. There’s never been anything quite like Special F/X before. It looks like it’s a typical paint program, but it’s anything but typical. It is a graphic special effects generator and editor that allows you to design and create graphics of the modern art variety. Unfortunately, there is no documentation included with the program, but it shouldn’t be very difficult for those familiar with any IIGS paint programs to start using it immediately. It’s a deceptive program, because, at first glance, the vast majority of the special effects options aren’t displayed in the usual pull down menu, and the toolbox has only several tools to choose from. Upon double clicking on any toolbox item, many more options become available. Among some of the many options available in Special F/X is the ability to rescale, stretch, distort, rotate, bend or bulge an entire graphic or a portion of a graphic. Special F/X allows you to choose any section of your graphic as a brush, and provides ten different brush and drawing special effects that have to be seen to be believed. It appears as if an unlimited number of graphics can be opened at any time, depending on the amount of RAM memory available; I was able to load 30 different Super Hi Res graphics into Special F/X and copy special effects from one graphic to another. There are mirrored brushes, and you can choose a_ brush composed of 16 different colors, to create gradations of colors by simply drawing with your mouse. You can even add borders easily around all the various graphic objects on screen. There are even 8 fat bits magnification levels. Jupiter Special F/X is not an all-purpose paint program. For those who want to add dazzling special effects to IIGS graphics, it can’t be beat. If you know who created the program, please let me know! Jupiter Special F/X has been added to the Shareware Solutions II library, and it is available for $5. Exact memory requirements are unknown. Bilbo’s Icons As an avid collector of IIGS Finder Icons, I thought I’d seen everything; that is, until a package arrived with an Australian postmark, and out popped Bilbo’s Icons. Bilbo is Bill Agius, the Apple IIGS software librarian for AUSOM (Apple Users’ Society of Melbourne). His custom icons are pretty unique and artistically creative. They really add color and beauty to the TIGS desktop environment. Bilbo’s Icons come on a self- starting disk, so that you can see the desktop picture he uses. It looks like a tool shop. He provides instructions on how to adapt and customize the desk- top picture so that it will blend in beautifully on your system. Agius offers his icons as shareware, but asks for no set fee. He states that all money he receives will be used to pay shareware fees for programs he likes. The Bilbo’s Icon disk has been added to the Shareware Solutions II library, and it is available for $5. System 6.0.1 Patches Since the release of System 6.0.1, several small problems have developed. This disk includes patches that will make all well again. It includes a freeware patch from Softdisk that corrects the problems encountered by Pointless and System 6.0.1. It also includes two freeware files that will update WestCode Software’s HardPressed, allowing it to operate without any problems. It includes Sigma, a patch for Signature that will allow it to co-exist peacefully with Seven Hills’ The Manager and Procyon’s Switch It. Lastly, this disk includes a patch that will update Pointless from v2.01 to v2.0.2. For 90% of those who got System 6.0.1 from Shareware Solutions II, the Softdisk patch was included with System 6.0.1, so it is not necessary to order this disk. The System 6.0.1 Patch Disk has been added to the Shareware Solutions II library, and it is available for $5. If you received System 6.0.1 from Shareware Solutions II but didn't get the Softdisk patch, this disk is offered for only $2. @ Who Are You? Shareware Solutions II is your newsletter, and would like to be as responsive as possible to meet all your Apple II computing needs. In order to do that, you'll need to let me know about yourself and how you use your Apple II. Please take a few minutes and write a letter telling me about yourself, your Apple II, and your areas of interest. Specifically, please try to answer these important questions: © Which Apple II model do you use? ‘© What peripherals do you have? ‘© What is your computer skill level? ‘© Do you own a modem? © Do you own a hard drive? © Do you belong to a User Group? Are you a teacher? Are you a student? © Are you a programmer? © Do you use AppleWorks? © Are you a member of NAUG? © Do you use AppleWorks GS? © Do you use HyperStudio? © Do you subscribe to II Alive? © Do you subscribe to GS+? © Do you subscribe to Softdisk? © Did you subscribe to inCider? Feel free to let me know what types of articles you'd like to read, and provide any other pertinent information. When I get to know you better, I can better meet your needs! @ Shareware Solutions IT 19 til carpi Wl fect a a TM PW a4 Wa b CAA Th J Wy li A i ie Wy Wa iii i iin Il i Wy Wp y il Hil ) Wy i i yy, y / ip Heiiltallg aA if Hil iil | | hil iil) iil Wy Wh Hy i i! i i! Wy i Weil Hi il Ahi | By Hh | je a i i i yh / t i! ii iH ii A ih | i lin "i il | Wh Wy) i il Wy i Whe ili sitll HH Uf f iipavan i ih iA | i i! iil iil il Hl lll Hy Wo) “¢ any key to continue...) Mi WH Ht Joe Kohn Shareware Solutions II 166 Alpine Street San Rafael, CA 94901 FIRST CLASS - AIR MAIL