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Bob Chappell asks some questions of BBCs and Spectrums

Although Samuel Johnson is reputed to have said that questioning was not the mode of conversation among gentlemen, there's no doubt today that questioning exercises a strange fascination over much of the population. The popularity of quiz books and magazines, together with such long-running radio and TV shows as Brain of Britain, University Challenge and Mastermind practically settles any argument on that subject.

The interest shown in question-and-answer entertainment is such that it was inevitable that they would find their way onto home computers. However, does a micro-based set of quizzes have any advantages over a book containing exactly the same quizzes, bearing in mind that the book is likely to be cheaper, quicker and more convenient to use? Like many questions, there are pros and cons.

One disadvantage with a micro-based quiz is that you've got the bother of loading in the program, and then further loading of the database of question and answers. Where a cassette has several quizzes, each of which must be loaded separately, there's the extra trouble of locating the correct start position on the tape rather than waiting around whilst the program searches for the desired section.

Some micro quizzes attempt to match your answers against the stored ones, and this can often lead to some silliness. For example, you could type in:

SAINT PAUL

as the answer to a question but receive the response:

WRONG, THE ANSWER IS ST. PAUL

The better programs give the answers and leave you to allocate the marks.

However, a computer-based quiz can set up and control a time limit for answering the questions. Even better, it might offer an automatic adjusting limit which sets the time limit for the next question at a lower or higher level, depending on how well you're doing. At the end of the quiz, it can provide the totals of both the marks and the time expended.

If the program has an option for two players to participate, it can keep track of whose turn it is, prompting as necessary. Also, you can't accidentally cheat by flipping over to the answer page and having your eye caught by the answer to a question you haven't yet been asked.

Acornsoft, in association with Ivan Berg Software, have published six programs in their Grandmaster Quiz series for the BBC micro and Acorn Electron. The programs are based on Weidenfield Quiz books and each one is devoted to a specific subject, backed by a famous name in that field. The topics are Crime and Detection (Julian Symons), History (John Julius Norwich), Music (Steve Race), Science Fiction (Brian Aldiss), Royalty (Anthony Holden), and Theatre (Sheridan Morley).

Each package consists of two cassettes, one holding the master program, the other the database of 30 quizzes. As each quiz contains ten questions, you will be given a massive test (at least 300 questions, some of which require multiple answers) on your chosen subject. All the programs work to the same format and offer solo play; duel play as two competing individuals or two teams; optional time limit; auto-adjustment of time limit; self-marking (maximum two points per question); a "Pass" feature; and totalling of scores and timings.

The questions are attractively displayed and are phrased in many different ways. They range over a wide number of topics within a subject, and may require more than one answer. Here's a few examples:

Crime and Detection - Quiz 1: Elementary, My Dear Reader; Quiz 11: The Film of the Book; Quiz 13: For Chandler Addicts.

History - Quiz 4: Not Upon Oath; Quiz 6: Gunpowder, Treason and Plot; Quit 11: Dumb Friends.

Music - Quiz 4: The Singer, Not The Song; Quiz 8: Operatissimo; Quiz 12: Instrumentally Speaking.

The programs are pleasingly presented, the contents thoroughly stimulating. It's not an examination - the quizzes are meant for pleasure, to amuse rather than instruct. Excellent entertainment courtesy of Acornsoft and your BBC B.

Much more scientific but equally entertaining is Professor Cattell's IQ Test, published by Sinclair for the 48K Spectrum. It is a fully standardised IQ test, the object of which is to test the general ability of adults of above-average intelligence.

The whole thing takes about 1.5 hours to complete and consists of six tests. These cover synonyms, classification (find the odd one out), opposites, analogies (a is to b as c is to?), sentence completion, and inferences (problems, puzzles and reasoning tests). Each test has a time limit for completion, such as 12 minutes to answer 25 questions. If you finish early, you get a chance to review and amend any of your solutions.

The possible answers to each question are given as a list; you merely have to pick out the one your think is correct. You are never told what the answer should be. Instead, at the end of the sixth test, you are given a report on your performance, your IQ score and a percentile rating. If you have an IQ of 147 and a percentile rating of 97, this means that 97 per cent of the population would have scored lower than you. Achieve this level of rating and the program will suggest that you apply for membership of MENSA.

An excellent program, though don't take the final results too seriously since you are not really being tested under standard conditions. Apart from the entertainment value, it will give the old grey matter a thorough shake-up.