Though few of us admit it, most people buy a home micro for two basic reasons - either to learn to program or to play games! It's because of this that Signpoint's Joyport is potentially the most useful interface developed for the Electron that I have come across.

Before you all jump from your chairs and wail about spreadsheets, home accounts, recipe programs and the like, let me explain.

To communicate with the outside world (That means you!) the micro needs some kind of interface, such as the keyboard. You "talk" to the programs through the keyboard. Whether you need to hammer the spacebar or type in thousands of figures on the Electron, you must use the keyboard.

Fine so far, but what if you can't type or don't have good use of both hands? Or if you want pinpoint accuracy to move a cursor to within a fraction of an inch of a point on screen? That's where a joystick comes in handy.

Like it or not, the joystick is a very useful piece of hardware. Unfortunately, the standard Electron doesn't have the ability to handle joysticks. This is where the Joyport comes in.

Housed in a neat little plastic box, the unit hands piggyback fashion on the Electron's expansion bus. This is the piece of printed circuit board that emerges from the back of the micro. I say "hangs" because the unit is supported solely by its connection to the micro, reminiscent of the early Sinclair computers.

This, of course, means that a micro with a Joyport is a bit tricky to sit on your lap. Don't forget though, this is a micro - not the pet cat!

The Joyport has been wired to accept most of the Atari-type switched joysticks. This is very much in its favour since:

• Switched joysticks are probably more suitable for playing games
• A wide range of switched joysticks is available
• Switched joysticks start from about £10 upwards for a single unit

The documentation supplied with the Joyport is adequate, though some people may find the printing a little too small to read. A nice touch is that the manual gives complete modifications to some of the programs on the Introductory Cassette, enabling them to be controlled with a joystick.

One point not made clear in the manual is that you must turn the Electron off before you insert or remove the Joyport. Otherwise damage will result to the computer and/or unit.

If by now you're wondering what the catch is, the answer is simple. As yet very little commercial software is yet compatible with the Joyport. However Signpoint have got the solution. A simple assembly language program, supplied as a listing with the package, shows how to patch many commercial games to the unit.

In conclusion, the Joyport is a terrific piece of hardware and well worth the money. But before you go and buy one, remember you will be lucky if it's compatible with all your commercial software.

This however is a problem that will face all joystick interfaces for the Electron and doesn't detract from an impressive piece of equipment.

Marcus Adams