It is pretty obvious that any owner of a Commodore 64 would simply love to write programs with graphics as good as those you can buy in the shops. However, as soon as you try to use any of the graphics the problems set in.

No graphics commands exist within the Basic and the manual supplied with the machine doesn't really help. Graphics for your Commodore 64 try to solve this problem by introducing the reader to each of the graphic subjects in turn. If you wish to use sprites then you'll find a section on using them; if you want user-defined graphics you'll find instructions on how to design them, and use them to ease your games programming.

Another subject that is explained is the use of interrupts. This is a subject that is only just touched in the manual, this book explains how to use the interrupts within your own programs. Once you understand their use you should be able to do such things as changing the screen mode at any point.

The book deals with one subject at a time, each section consisting of a discussion of the subject in question, includinhg how to use the associated system variables, and a program that demonstrates exactly how you use them.

Even though the sections are clearly defined, and the subjects are extremely well discussed, the book does hold one major disappointment - none of the programs is documented. This is a major failure as the only way really to learn what they are doing is to go through the programs line by line making your own comments - which should have been done by the author.

Even taking the gripe into account this book is good - a few hours reading and making notes on the programs should reap their own rewards.

Simon Clarke