1st December 1995One of the good things about my set up is that, as now, I can have EUG #22 in my INTEBRA-B (Should really be Beta) set to OSMODE0 which mimics BBC 32K and page the text through bit by bit as I write this letter from my main Electron with Starword active; and switch from one to the other via the RGB switch.
Thanks for the comments on my problems and I think I can see how to modify the various disks to get them to run from the menu.
My view is to keep the current disk system. A very retrograde step to go back to the 'typing in dark ages'. After all, technology is advancing and via Micromart disk drives compatible with both the Electron and BBC are available almost every week at low cost (but see later about Parcel Force/Farce!). Interfaces for disk drives for the Electron do not come up so frequently now though I have noticed. Still, no problem if one goes to a BBC; also reasonably cheap to buy now.
Re: John Crane. I gave up on Bill Bradbury some time back when I got no response from him after a Slogger AP2 I bought wouldn't function with an AMX Mouse. Derek Walker sorted it out for me in the end. With negligible support for the Electron now I have bought up several Electrons, add-ons, disk drives and software to see me through the years ahead...or so I hope. Perhaps I was lucky with Parcel Force here for most of these were well-packed, mostly in their original boxes.
However, I even had to do a soldering job to repair the RGB switch from Derek Walker and return a printer switch for repair. But my worst experience was the delivery of the BBC INTEGRA-B - the only thing I could get out of it on first power up was a continuous noise and I still cannot get the disk drive to work that was supplied with it. A local one man firm, West Devon Electronics, got it going again for £37.
Moral: If buying via Micromart, the lesson is good packing in plenty of bubble plastic and a strong box. Better still, the original moulded packing. Even better, collect it!
Re: Richard Dimond. I get a lot of crashing with any of my Electrons connected to the same Slogger AP2 and Rombox+. Anything causing movement of the edge connectors will lead to a crash (The AP2 does not have any screw connection to the Electron or the Rombox). Also, without a AP2 and using the screws to connect the Rombox, Acorn Plus 3 or whatever, causes a crash if the wrong pressure is exerted on tightening the screws. I have less trouble not using the screws at all.
Another source of crashes I have found needs the interface unit or cartridge to be pushed to the right or left (The Romboxes vary!) of the socket now and again. Also, I have to waggle the edge connectors very slightly (and gently!) now and again. All these operations with power off, of course. I think that I have voiced my opinion before about the silvered fingers - they wear easily. My electronics friend at the firm mentioned above tells me that it is possible to recoat these fingers but I have not gone any further with it.
Having said that, I have decided not to expand my Elk or BBC system any further (although I have less crashing with the BBCs), but just to consolidate my ROMs (I have a lot!) into ROM128s and 256s - I'm about a year behind schedule with this aspect.
Just chat. Three of my computers on line have BBRAM and/or CMOS clock so I have to switch the, on quite often even if I am not going to use a particular computer. It can be a bit galling if Click crashes and the backup to disk is not quite up to date. More about Click next time - it's a very useful add-on.
I am giving serious consideration as to where I am going next with the technology changing so fast. Even notebook computers now talk in Gigabytes. When to step in, that's the question, it has to be a quantum leap!
Best wishes to all for Christmas and the New Year!
Tony Boarer
Bill Bradbury is semi-retired now. I have managed to get in touch with him at last. The edge connectors on Slogger products cause a lot of trouble but the products are worthwhile.
The market for the Elk is getting a bit difficult. We can only try to carry on as long as possible. I now have a Master 128 as well as my Elk but there are even problems with it.
I hope other members will write in with their views on PCs.
I may have said before that I have a Notebook PC which cost £1000 new. Within a year the company that made it said they would no longer support it re spares. At the moment it is being repaired by a friend who is trying to get a relatively simple part through the 'underground' as it is no longer available. This is really one of the big problems that I have with PCs. Although incredibly expensive, they are only designed to last a few years.
The latest DOS apparently uses 60+ Megabytes of disk space. Many programs use 10+ Megabytes. A 1 Gigabyte Hard Drive isn't so big with all this. CDs seem to be catching on but with each new development, more and more money is multiplied with £100! From an economics point of view it makes sense for manufacturers to raise their prices as high as the market will tolerate. After all, that is the foundation of capitalism - products attracting the highest demand attract the highest prices. But those of us with humble means will inevitably be squeezed out, or to put it another way, if we want to play the game we will find a way to pay the fee.
If you do buy a PC, I would suggest you avoid a Notebook and go for a Desk Top Model with the expansion slots for various cards (e.g. a Video card for a monitor, a Hard Disk card and so on). That way, cards can be replaced. Also go for at least a 486 as 386 are getting old hat now. You can still keep your Elk, of course. I think after the fun has died down, you'll want to anyway. You simply cannot have as much fun with a PC as with 8 Bit computers.
Gus Donnachaidh, EUG #23
