Loadstar 128 #19/q19.d81/t.diskovery 19

Text File | 1990-01-01 | 7.5 KB | 131 lines

             D I S K O V E R Y : Quick Questions and Quick Answers

                               by Fender Tucker


     Letters to the Editor are probably the most popular part of any
publication.  It's a chance to see what other people, just like you, have to
say or ask.  If you look at the LOADSTAR menu for this issue you'll find
there is no FORUM -- there wasn't a lot of disk room on Side One (or Two).
So I decided to make Diskovery into a Q&D Forum where I'll paraphrase a
question from a reader and dash off an answer.  Here goes!

A. J. Parone of Philadelphia asks if we could update LOAN SHARK (from #4) to
handle weekly payments rather than monthly.  Check out the two financial
programs on this issue, A. J.  You can set the number of payments per year
to 52 and get what you want.

R. M. Einar of Wenatchee WA, and several others asked why there was no
LIBRARY update on LS 128 #18.  I felt that MASTER BASE (aka SEARCH MASTER)
on issue #17 was a more modern way to find which LOADSTAR a program was on,
so I proposed that it was going to take the place of LOADSTAR LIBRARY.  I
will create a master list of all of the LS 128s in LIBRARY format and put it
on the next LS 128 that has room for it.  But you know, with EDSTAR or any
PETASCII text editor and a minimal amount of studying, it's possible for
anyone to update their LIBRARY file in about five minutes.  Look at the
file, see what's on each line and just duplicate them for the issues I've
skipped.

N. A. Fulcher of Comox, British Columbia is having trouble with PEDIGREE
(the superb family history program from #6).  It insists on underlining
everything it prints out.  PEDIGREE uses the graphics mode but allows you to
set the printer codes.  N. A. has a Roland 1111 printer (Panasonic KX-P1091
in disguise) and a Telesys Turboprint/GT interface (v1.1).  If anyone has
any ideas, please write to N. A. at 1516 Comox Avenue, Comox BC V9N 7K1.  If
anyone knows the whereabouts of Lee O. Clinton, the author of PEDIGREE and
several other great 128 programs, please let ME know.

Gerald P. Sthay would like to see a program that helps with laying out a
room, furniture-wise.  Programmers?  Gerald would like it to work with a
mouse.  Maurice Randall's MOUSE 80 (on LS 128 #15) will take care of the
mouse if it's an 80-column program, but since the program seems to require
sprites, maybe 40-columns is the way to go.

Bob Jackson, 3910 Don Julio Blvd. North Highlands CA 95660, asks if anyone
has templates for GEOCALC 128.  There are probably plenty on GEnie or QLink.
If you want to share templates, write Bob a letter.

Richard Forgione of Methuen MA asks if we have a golf handicapping program.
We haven't had one on LS 128 but THE PRO SHOP by Barbara Schulak (on LS #77)
should fill the bill.  It keeps scores and does handicapping for you.

Darryld Lowen of Las Cruces NM (my old home town) asks for a 128 mode video
titler.  Programmers?  He also says he has problems copying LS to a 3 1/2
inch disk using SHELL COPIER (#10), RUNCOPY 128 or 1581 Uni-Copy.  Nothing
on the disks should be hard to copy -- no protection schemes or tricks -- so
the problems must be in the copiers or the equipment.  I use Maverick, CMD's
FCOPY or SUPER SNAPSHOT V5's file copier and rarely have problems.  I'd
recommend using FCOPY to copy all of the files on Side One into a 1571
partition on the 3 1/2 inch disk.  Then copy all of the files below the
first ---------- divider line (except divider lines) from Side Two.

Robert Cashon of Huntsville AL (my old Army post town) asks if Softdisk is
ever going to have a used 3 1/2 inch disk sale like we did for 5 1/4 inch
disks.  Sorry, Robert, I don't think we will.  We have a hard enough time
getting the 3 1/2 inch disks ourselves.

Joi Ball of Diggs VA asks why Rick Ferreira's TOTEM couldn't have been in
the 40-column mode since it was all graphics.  Joi, I agree; unless the
graphics screen is spectacular in the 80-column mode, why not just do it in
the 40-column mode where the programmer has all of those BASIC 7.0 graphics
and sprite commands?  Programmers, for most programs I think our readers
want 80 columns, but if you've got a good graphics-intensive program in
40-columns, send it in.

Kenneth Reese of Frankfort IN says he has a monochrome monitor and would
like a "patch" program that would fix all of the programs we've published
that use the wrong colors for monochrome.  I explained in Forum on #15 how
to fix HOUSE CAT and LOADSTAR LIBRARY and that explanation applies to any LS
program with an invisible cursor in monochrome.  The only programs that
can't be easily fixed are those that are in ML or those that are compiled --
unless we supply the source code, which we often do.  I realize this is a
touchy subject, but the main advantage of C-64/128 computers over IBMs is
that you, yes you, can change programs.  If you want a computer that
requires no user study, all I can say is, maybe in twenty or thirty years
there'll be such a thing.

Karl Schenk, 7610 W. Nob Hill #39, Yakima WA 98908, asks if anyone has any
clues to why IPAINT won't print on his KX-P1123 printer with Xetec Super
Grafix JR interface.  Can anyone help?  He also wants to know if we will
ever support CP/M.  The rest of his letter was total gibberish, obviously
the work of a disturbed computer genius.  In other words, good reading!
Karl, maybe one of these days I'll look into CP/M, but it'll have to wait
until I've finished reading Norman Mailer's HARLOT'S GHOST.  Maybe 1998?

Edward Matthews or Arnold MD asks if we could modify CAR EXPENSE to handle
tenths of a mile, HOME REFINANCER to handle home equity loans, and the
LOADSTAR file copier to work after LS has been copied to a 1571 disk.  (1)
If we could find Lee O. Clinton, maybe we could have him modify CAR EXPENSE.
(2) I wrote HOME REFINANCIER from specifications given to me by a person who
knows home financing.  I'll ask him if he can re-spec it.  I know I can't.
I'm fiscally illiterate and plan to stay that way. (3) Once you've got
LOADSTAR copied to a 1571, why would you want copier to work?  The 1571 is
an orphan and almost impossible to fix when it breaks.  I'm sorry, Edward,
but the 1571 mode is doomed to non-support these days.

     There are many more people I owe letters to.  For the past few months I
have been concentrating on the LOADSTARs themselves, trying to meet
deadlines.  For information about LOADSTAR programs, by all means, write or
call us and we'll try to help.  In general, though, my recommendation for
everyone is to join a national users' group like MEETING C64/128 USERS
THROUGH THE MAIL, 1576B County Road 2350 E., St. Joseph IL 61873.  There is
much more wisdom and knowledge in the minds of the 300 or so members than
will ever be found in the LOADSTAR Tower.  I bet they answer their letters
quicker, too.

     I expected to have a review of Randy Winchester's KeyDOS ROM (from
Antigrav Toolkit, P.O. Box 1074, Cambridge MA 02142) this issue but I never
got to it.  Sorry, Randy.  I have the chip installed in my second 128 at
work and it gives me many of the capabilities that JiffyDOS does on my main
computer, for less than half the price.  If you are using a stock 128, write
Antigrav and see about getting KeyDOS ROM.  I take my JiffyDOS/KeyDOS power
for granted these days and once you try them, you will, too.

     Next issue I plan to have a super utility from Alf Jonassen and maybe
even e. g. bell's latest blockbuster.  There are some 128 gurus out there
and LOADSTAR will do its best to bring you their masterpieces.

FT
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