CHROMA-SOFT from RUSSELL ELECTRONICS
More on WORD*
Replacement Ribbons
I bought the program “Chroma-Soft” from Russell Electronics. The program loads easily and the demo is self-running. He supplies a yellow filter to go over your screen (which should be packaged in a tube to avoid creasing). The good news is that one can actually appreciate color on the black and white screen. At least I could see the blue. The red appeared a little yellow and I had trouble with the green. The documentation is very thorough and does give ways to alter the program to improve color rendition. The program also allows you to “paint” by moving the cursor. The bad news is the colors are produced by stimulation of the retina (the nerve cells at the back of the eye) by carefully controlling the rate of flashing of the screen. The author includes a CAUTION (which I wish he had put on the front page) which tells you that flashing lights may produce symptoms such as nausea, headache, confusion, and even epileptic seizures. While he says the program as received will cause no symptoms, I became somewhat queasy after about 15 minutes.
While I agree that this is a fascinating experimental tool that does everything the author says it will, I would advise caution in its use: only use it a few minutes at first. I would not incorporate it in any other program, lest some sensitive individual accidentally uses it. I would hide the program from anyone known to have epilepsy. Clearly experimental neurophysiology/neuropsychology for the home is a new and exciting idea. Obviously one should observe appropriate care and respect when experimenting on living creatures, even people.
An additional note on WORD* for the ZX81: The only other type style available on the Seikosha GP-100A is double width. This can be invoked by using the Insert String command of Shift 3, I, graphics 7, Shift 3, I and cancelled with graphics 8 instead of 7. Graphics 7 and 8 are the Sinclair codes for ANSI SO and SI respectively. The only problem is that this sequence throws off the line commands. When using the double wides for a heading you have to insert spaces to get the letters to align properly.
The correct number of spaces is determined by experimentation, at some cost in paper. It’s even harder to insert double wides in the body of a letter . I actually gave up.
Replacement ribbons for the Seikosha cost around $8 at the Shack: Part no. 26-1424 for the DMP-100. If you open the box on the left end of the ribbon, there is a sponge which can be reinked. Ink is availble at $3pp for 2 ounces, which should last forever, from SAS Industries, 3091 N. Bay Drive, N Bend, OR 97459-5020 in black, red, blue, green, and yellow. This seems to be cheaper than buying new ribbons but if you do a lot of printing and really want to save money, the quart size is only $24.50. You’ll still probably want the small bottle to make handling easier. TSH