And some new Ideas
The CATS TSUG advises that their library for the TS-2068 is on Cassette only. Three tapes are available with over 140 programs total. All three for $9.00 or $3.00 each. Be nice and send an extra buck for postage. Joe Miller CATS, 1704 Dayton St., Hyattsville, MD 20703.
ALL SYSTEMS LIBRARY: The Ontario, Canada TSUG has a broad Public Domain Sinclair Library, too diversified to list in detail. Covered are Cassette for the TS-2068, an extensive LARKEN DISK Library, and now a Sinclair QL library is being established. For details send SASE with two US Dollar bills for information. Save your US Stamp as Canadian Post needs their own revenue for postage. And dont send US coin or stamps. Returned will be a listing of their library and low prices. Its worth your buck. George Chambers, 14 Richome Court, Scarborough, Ontario M1K 1Y1, Canada.
SINCUS LIBRARY: TS-2068 Library on Cassette, Oliger Disk, or LKDOS DISK. Send $2.00 for information package to: John Colona SINCUS, 28 Guilfoyle Ave., Binghampton, NY 13903.
VISTA LIBRARY: TS-1000 and TS-2068 on Cassette, and TS-1000 and TS-2068 on LKDOS DISK. Send $2.00 for information package to: Tony Willing VISTA, Box 199, Vashon, WA 98070.
ISTUG LIBRARY: TS-1000 and TS-2068 Library on Cassette and Oliger Disk. Send $2.00 to: Frank Davis ISTUG, 513 East Main, Peru, IN 46970 or call (317 473-8031)
NOTICE TO TSUGS: Those TSUGS not mentioned above that desire public announcement of their services or programs are offerred space in Update free for such announcements.
Editorial Review of Public Domain Libraries
Update has most of the above listed libraries. They came by the bag at ridiculuous low prices, something like 5 cents or less per program. There are enough good and useful programs in every disk or cassette to be worth five times the TSUG price for the library. Each library will have some overlaps but each will have programs that the others do not have. These are put together with a lot of volenteer long hours contributed freely, thus the TSUG can be generous, and thus the low prices.
Generally, public domain software are programs and utilities created by individual programmers who donated their work to all. Some are lacking in application while others are quite extensive. About 30% are games. For even the lessor programs there are interesting programming techniques to be studied and used. The libraries on disk generally go beyond this scope and provide exceptionally useful disk management tool kits, and have programs that were designed for cassette opertation and then modified and expanded for disk operation. An example of this is the LKDOS Library by the Ontario TSUG which has an invaluable group of LKDOS Disk Management programs.
The Sinclair QL is lacking in Public Domain programs available in North America. One group, the Ontario TSUG is working hard to produce a QL PD Library. HELP is needed from programmers who are willing to donate useful utilities to Public Domain. Send your programs on disk or mdv to: Hugh Howie, Sinc Link, 586 Oneida Drive, Burlington, Ontario L7T 3V3, CANADA. Even the most insignificant of utilities will be appreciated. If it does a job for you it will be useful to others. CREDITS will be given to the author.
Suggestions to TSUGS
While on the subject of TSUGS and PUBLIC DOMAIN Libraries, I have the feeling that there is a need for an intermediate library effort of sorts in the TSUG programs. How about a “SHAREWARE LIBRARY” for both TS-2068 and Sinclair QL? Many programmers have become dormant because of the low level of buying activity in the Sinclar user group. This is of course because of our low numbers. A TSUG Librarian could rummage through past magazine issues and find dozens of programmers and small software businesses that are no longer active.
I’ll bet that letters to these non-active programmers can result in many of their excellent programs being assembled into a “SHAREWARE LIBRARY” that would be even more useful than our public domain libraries. Of course, the librarian would have to craft a “SHAREWARE NOTICE” for every single program so that the Author would have some chance of renumeration from honest users. My visualization of how this would work is: A TSUG Librarian would spend some of the clubs rich finances to write to the programmers and defunct software businesses, explaining the objectives and promising that a Shareware Notice would be attached to any program donated to the library.
The Shareware Library would be assembled and sold for a small fee to re-pay the TSUG treasury and perhaps make a nominal profit. Here we would have a level of professionalism in the Shareware Library that exceeds that of a public domain library. Most honest users woud respond to the Shareware notice and send the author his just deservings for the use of the program. An organized effort to serve the users with good programs could just entice some of our dormant programmers to begin producing again. A TSUG could set its own standards for “Read Me” doc files to enhance the value of the library. Some work in that area would justify the small profits to be realized by the Club treasury.
There is no reason why our active dealers shouldn’t pick up upon this idea and develop their own Shareware Libraries. Generally Shareware Software is fully documented within the programming by “Read Me” files, and is not supported by paper manuals. Thus the distribution of Shareware programs is simply one of supplying the programs on a medium. And, the distributor carries no responsibility for adequacy of either the programs or their documentation. The success of the Author in receiving payment for his work depends upon his prowess in explaining his program in the Read-Me files.
If the (honest) user finds the program to be useful, then his conscience works on him to send the Author what the user feels that the program is worth. Here-to-fore the Shareware concept has not been very successful. This is because it has been a singular effort by single progammers who have had difficulty in letting the public know about their product availibility. A combined disk with several author’s programs, distributed by a TSUG or Dealer, could be of benefit to all. Update Magazine will help to publicise such an effort by the TSUGS and our Dealers.