Timex Sinclair User

Cover of the first issue.

Published by ECC Publications, who also published Sinclair User, the UK version, Timex Sinclair User was headquartered in Buffalo, NY. The print run on the first issue of the magazine was 100,000 copies.

The American magazine has a separate editorial and advertising staff but members of the British Sinclair User team came to the U.S. to coordinate the launch. They included John Sterlicchi, who acted as editor-in-chief, and John Ross, advertisement manager of Sinclair User.

Only seven issues of Timex Sinclair User were published before Timex left the market. In December 1983, Syntax magazine reported that:

”Organization of ECC’s North American magazine will be restructured, according to observers close to the scene, but no decision has been taken to stop printing. Changes will delay issue 8, for which ECC apologizes.“

In just seven issues, they published a nearly 250 articles, reviews, programs and projects for Timex/Sinclair 1000 and 2068 owners.

The magazine shared some staff with Gladstone Electronics, whose American office was just a few miles away on Kenmore Avenue. They also shared an address with Prism Microproducts.

Aftermath

After the American office of Timex Sinclair User ceased publishing the magazine, it was sold to James Povec in Camden, Maine, who intended to bring it back. In an open letter to subscribers, reprinted in the April 1984 issue of The Plotter, Mr. Povec promised that the ”April issue will be on press shortly.“

Timex Sinclair Shopper, published by the same group, was ”created to serve the needs of the Timex Sinclair computer owner and the vendors committed to that market. With the departure of Timex Corp. from the computer market, there is a greater need for information and support than ever before.“

Timex Sinclair Shopper contained an advertisement for Timex Sinclair News. It promised to keep readers ”informed of events at Timex here in the U.S., and bring .. news of Sinclair in the U.K.“

Behind the scenes, there was some confusion about Timex Sinclair User and TS User. The new owner of Timex Sinclair User changed the name to Timex Sinclair News and TS User ceased publication immediately after.

A month later, Povec threw in the towel and announced that subscribers to Timex Sinclair News would receive issues of K-Power.

Syntax magazine announced its purchase of Timex Sinclair News in its July 1984 issue.

Staff

Timex Sinclair User shared a number of staff with its parent publication, including Richard Hease (chairman), Terry Cartwright (president), John Sterlicchi (editorial director) and more.

Though headquartered in Buffalo, NY, much of the local staff were Canadian, including:

  • Joseph Gladstone, managing editor
  • Vladyana Krykorka, art director
  • Bill Gladstone, production editor
  • Andres Hannach, Don Kletke and Gwen Egan, art assistants
  • Robert Fraser, Igor Nowikow and Tom Perrone, technical advisors
Title Description Computers
... and snags award The British newspaper The Guardian has named Clive Sinclair as the Young Businessman of the Year. The award is made annually to people in Britain who have shown particular ability in business. Past winners have included Sir Michael Edwards, the man responsible for improving the ailing fortunes of Britain’s state-owned carmaker BL. The award has
... and software does too National software library set up as a research and reference facility for the microcomputer industry.
'Rithmetic Review of Supermath by Timex. Timex/Sinclair 1000
16 Pin Bowling Sixteen pins appear at the top of the screen for Bowling and the ball at the bottom. Use keys 5 and 8 to line up the two and press key 0 to bowl. The ball will be deflected by impact with the pins and thus make your task more difficult. For every pin hit you Timex/Sinclair 1000
2K games will please Starblaster is one of six 2k games on a tape sold by Softsync. The game uses machine language to scroll starts right to left across the screen. They player scores points by moving a based in front of the stars. The major problem with Starblaster is the instructions. The information with the games gives the Timex/Sinclair 1000
3 in 1: Mixed Game Bag 1 Review of the game from Timex. Timex/Sinclair 1000
3-D Xs and Os 3D Tic Tac Toe. Timex/Sinclair 1000
3-D Xs and Os Three dimensional tic tac toe. Timex/Sinclair 1000
3D Xs and Os Program was only partially printed in prior issue. Full listing in this issue.
6 Keyboards Compared: Which is the one for you? Add-on keyboards are available for your T/S — but which one should you buy? Timex/Sinclair 1000
A personal computer with many office applications Chicago's James P. Biers has discovered that his T/S1000 is a slide rule, calculator, desk-top planner, and more; and looks at business software. Timex/Sinclair 1000
A-maze-ing 3-D overview Description: Labyrinth is a game sold by Mindware that creates a maze which the player must go through. At the start of the game, the player must choose the width and height of the maze. Before entering the maze, the player is given the option of seeing it first This gives the player plenty of Timex/Sinclair 1000
Alien Lure A game which links the bugbaiting type of program with a battle against alien invaders has been produced by Sanath Yogasundrum. When the game begins, the player is asked for a skill level, A or P, which stand for amateur or professional. It is advisable to start on the amateur level while the player begins Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Aliens Attack In Galactic Invaders, seven alien crafts fly randomly around the screen, and fire at your laser base. The base can withstand seven hits before it is destroyed. After all seven crafts are destroyed, seven more appear and move at a higher speed. The player scores one point for each craft shot down. Evaluation: Although this Timex/Sinclair 1000
Aliens Attack Again Description: In Invasion Force, you control a laser base and must shoot through a moving force field and destroy an alien ship. If you hit a black blob in the moving force field, all your damage to the ship is repaired. Smaller ships fly by and drop bombs on vou. The game ends when you Timex/Sinclair 1000
Aliens earn top marks (3D-Orbiter) This space invaders game has superb visual effects that possess almost a three-dimensional quality. To defend yourself (and Earth) you must guard an area two screen-widths across using sophisticated tracking devices including forward radar, a proximity meter and an altimeter. The alien ships grow and display increasingly fine detail as they approach, and explode with Timex/Sinclair 1000
All about ROMs In Understanding Your ZX-81 ROM, by Ian Logan, the reader doesn’t have to contend with an update from the Sinclair ZX-80. Hold your joy, however, because since the book was published Sinclair has modified their original 8K ROM monitor. A two-page insert at the front of the book explains the differences, which are about a Sinclair ZX81
Also from Timex: a new printer
Amusement for Brainy Types Reviews of The Nowotnik Puzzle, Mega Mind and The Cube Game. Timex/Sinclair 1000
An Illuminating Idea Hardware and software to switch up to four 5-amp loads at up to 110v. Timex/Sinclair 1000
And Now the Comics Parent company of Timex Sinclair User has announced Load Runner, the “galaxy’s first computer comic.”
Angry Ape Review of Krazy Kong by Intercomputer. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Arcade Corrections Corrections to part 1 of Programming Arcade Games.
Assembler offers aid Description: Machine language programming is very slow and tedious without using an assembler program. International Publishing and Software sells ZX Assembler, a program that allows you to enter and edit machine language using mnemonics. ZX Assembler occupies 7K and is located at the top of memory. It stores the machine language in a REM statement Timex/Sinclair 1000
Back-up system for data This unit, called the ZX99 RS 232C & Tape Control System is designed for the person needing large data-base capabilities. It provides control for four tape recorders (they must have a “remote” plug). It will allow you to save up to 200K bytes on one C-90 cassette tape. Further, it gives you a visual indication Sinclair ZX81, Timex/Sinclair 1000
Beginner's BASIC book a beauty Review of David Lien’s Learning Timex Sinclair BASIC. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Binomial Distribution Display shows a ball falling through a triangular matrix of pegs. When the ball hits one of the pegs, it rebounds to the left or right, entirely at random. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Blabberman Animation of a Timex/Sinclair lover. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Blue No More Use a giant rubber band to prevent RAM pack wobble. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Book-cassette package teaches programming Review of Programming for Real Applications by Dilithium Software. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Britain's Software Pioneer Days are Over The market has become more sophisticated and selling a good cassette can be just as difficult as writing it.
British prices fall again Sinclair Research in Britain maintained its reputation when, with no more than a brief press statement, announced a massive cut in the prices of the two versions of Spectrum. Sinclair ZX Spectrum
Build your own EPROM blower without blowing a fortune Because most users of the T/S1000/ZX81 are software orientated, the hardware has been made simple in this design. The software needed to run it consequently will be large and some of it is in machine code. The heart of the design is the 8255 programmable peripheral interface device. This chip has 24 lines of input Timex/Sinclair 1000
Bulletins Updates from Hawg Wild, Silicon Valley North, Daydesign, T-S Systems, Intercomputer, Mindware, Micro Developments, DK’tronics, MicroSync, Florida Creations, Len Harmon, Filesixty, Data-assette.
Bulletins Updates from Sirius Ware, Lipinksi Software, Stuart Software, Barlog Software, C.R.C. Software, 2-Bit Software, Sync Master.
Bulletins Updates from ATC Software, Kentronics, Computech, SyncMaster, KIS Engineering, Gladstone.
Bulletins Second anniversary celebration of Sinclair-Timex User Group of the Boston Computer Society; user seeks triangulation software; query about using TS1000 as a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD). Timex/Sinclair 1000
Bulletins Updates from Intercomputer, Timextown, John Glazer, Warren Imports Group, KSOFT.
Bulletins: Software satirizes suburbanites 2-Bit Software of Del Mar California, has introduced a software four-pack that satirizes the suburban homemaker. Mad Dash tests your ability to race through the house when you haven’t had a break all day, while Carfool demands you figure out how to use the least amount of gas while running errands all over town. Harried Timex/Sinclair 1000
Can Timex maintain its image of clocklike efficiency? Editorial about issues Timex has had marketing its computers and touching on articles in the issue.
Capital Ideas Review of Home Computer Can Make You Rich by Joe Weisbecker.
Check our handy chess guide In a stalemate over which chess program to buy? Check here before you make your move and you won’t get rooked! To help you bring order to the wide array of software available For the T/S1000/ZX81, our writers will look at specific types of programs in each issue. This month we look at six different Timex/Sinclair 1000
Christmas Program Timex/Sinclair 1000
Circuit training helps to build good characters Expansion to allow user-defined characters. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Clearing system bugs Final article in series on programming in Bsci. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Clive runs up $200 million Clive Sinclair is now officially worth more than $200 million.
Clive sells 1.6 million computers... Sinclair Research has claimed to be the first company to sell more than one million home computers. Since it began selling the ZX80 three years ago it has sold 130,000 ZX80s, 750,000 ZX81s and 200,000 Spectrums, an upgraded version of which is to appear soon in North America as the T/S2000. And these figures do
Clive Sinclair is Knighted
Color Me Gorgeous! Description and demonstration of the 2068’s color abilities. Timex/Sinclair 2068
Comdex '83
Companies Battling For Survival Reports of troubles with the microcomputer market in the UK.
Compoetry Input a list of nouns, verbs and adjectives and computer produces a poem. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Computer Combat! The first question often asked about a new machine is “Does it play Space Invaders?” Though a 1K machine has considerable difficulty getting anywhere Computer Combat using only 1K, is a type of mini Space Invaders but with only one invader and one base and a much slower rate of firing. The object of the Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Computerized Dee-Jay Explains how one user created a database for 3,500+ records in The Organizer and some techniques he used to compress data. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Computerized Filing Cabinet ZX-DATA FINDER is a storage and retrieval program with some very advanced title and word search features. It is unique because you don’t have to set file sizes before you begin. Any length of file can be stored in the same program with no loss of precious memory. Computer magazines advertise quite a few different Timex/Sinclair 1000
Computers and Confusion Two new computers from Timex! That’s good news. The 2000 series is described on page 12. We looked at the 1500 in our previous issue. We’re glad these new machines are with us. Rut having said that, let’s look at the way Timex brought them to us. No sooner had we all bought our T/S Timex/Sinclair 1500, Timex/Sinclair 2000, Timex/Sinclair 2068
Computers as teachers: do they work? Computers are in our schools now, and students are using them every day. Are they dehumanizing? Do they teach anything? Will teachers reject them? Charles Durang, science and computer editor for Reston Publishing, explores some old computer myths. Can you remember, not too long ago, when no one thought computers would get into the education
Contest Winners Winners of the 2K program contest. Winning programs are: Timex/Sinclair 1000
Convert your T/S,ZX to Color Build an add-on to connect a 6847 video display generator (same as in Radio Shack Color Computer) to your TS1000. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Converting Your Computer Into An Octopus How Cliff Danielson expanded his MicroAce to a powerful home computer. Initially purchased to be the front-end to his home-built Z80 computer, he expanded the MicroAce with an 8K ROM, circuit to add FAST mode, 32K RAM, full-size keyboard, interfacing to a second computer. MicroAce
Copying More or Less than the Standard 22 Lines Define the number of lines printed via the COPY command to reduce paper waste. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Counting Demonstrates how fast machine language can count. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Crazy Words Madlibs on the computer. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Dealers Program to deal 52 cards at random without repeating a card. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Defend your planet Description: You are in charge of a missile launcher and must save Earth from invading spaceships. With 15 rockets, you must choose a velocity to shoot down the invaders. The direction of each rocket is determined by the velocity you choose for it. If that sounds like an exciting game, then you would probably like Timex/Sinclair 1000
Deja-vu (ZX Scramble) The object is to hit enemy installations before they hit you, while simultaneously maneuvering to avoid crashing into treacherous terrain. Unfortunately, the game moves very slowly, and the terrain repeats itself like a chase scene in a poorly animated cartoon. The enemy, seemingly unaware of your presence, fires haphazardly; though I made no effort to Timex/Sinclair 1000
Devices Delivers Review of L-Monitor. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Dial-A-Word Program to convert phone numbers into words/phrases. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Dice Simple program to roll six-sided dice. Timex/Sinclair 1000
DISA-Z: A Z80 Disassembler Disassembler for the TS2000, written and debugged on the 1000. Timex/Sinclair 1000, Timex/Sinclair 2000, Timex/Sinclair 2068, Downloadable
Disassembly book is complex, invaluable Review of The Complete Timex TS1000/Sinclair ZX81 ROM Disassembly by Ian Logan and Frank O’Hara. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Download from Radio Microperipheral Corporation developed a 4800 baud modem that could download software broadcast over the radio.
Eat the dots ... (GULP) In this maze game you move around any one of six mazes at any one of nine speeds while a hunter tries to capture you. Though the mazes take time to master and contain some difficult passageways, the game can be played at reasonably fast speeds. You may find the cursor keys difficult to use Timex/Sinclair 1000
Electric car, mini-TV, keep Sinclair's researchers busy Update on projects at Sinclair.
Exercise and Calories Program to show calories used per activity. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Fast Action In 2K Description: In TS Destroyer, you fly in the center of the screen, and objets fly toward you from the left; you must dodge or shoot them. At the same time, another spaceship is flying up and down to your right, taking shots at you. In Space Raid, you control a gun that moves horizontally across Timex/Sinclair 1000
Fast Aliens (Galaxia) Another alien invasion. You must protect the planet from hostile Thargon forces. The game features a high-score display, dive- bombing aliens, continuous play, smooth action, fast response, and good graphics. Each time you clear the screen the aliens are replaced, until you deplete your three lives. The game is not easy to beat — the Timex/Sinclair 1000
Filing and Inventory Systems Review of database programs The Organizer (Timex), Home Inventory (Orbyte), Data Storage and Display System (ZX-Panding), Business Inventory Control (Mindware), Inver Inventory Accounting (D. Lipinski) and ZX Pro/File (Thomas B. Woods). Timex/Sinclair 1000
Flash and Scroll Displays a string: flashes and scrolls it with machine language. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Flash Card Program to make flash cards into a game. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Flying High: Pilot Review of the game from Mindware. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Flying Your T/S1000 Description: In Night Gunner, you are the pilot of an airplane in combat with four enemy planes. At the center of the screen is your firing sight, a cross used for aiming. Using the cursor keys, you maneuver your airplane to get the enemy aircraft within your sights, and then you fire. The object is Timex/Sinclair 1000
Follow our golden rules for better SAVEs and LOADs Programming on the T/S1000/ZX81 can be frustrating. These 10 tips should help you get over some of the problems! For our first issue of Timex Sinclair User, we went to dealers, publishers and users for the most often asked questions about the T/S1000,ZX81. These questions and our answers are the contents of this column this Sinclair ZX81, Timex/Sinclair 1000
For Football Fans Review of Pick ‘Em by Stuart Software. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Fresh air from Reston If you’ve ever had to struggle through page after page of a boring book, you’ll really appreciate this breath of fresh air: in fact, customs officials should have bestowed it a personality award. It’s fun. The writing is very readable and will please both adult and child. The book (Making the Most of Your Timex Timex/Sinclair 1000
Fringe Benefits Review of ZXAK-MAN by Pleasantrees Programming. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Fun In The Carrotpatch Description: In the game called Packrabbit, you are a rabbit being chased by four hunters. You must eat all the carrots in a large, complicated maze before you are captured by the hunters. You score one point for each carrot you eat. Scattered around the maze are magical carrots. When the rabbit eats a magical Timex/Sinclair 1000
Glimpse of the Series 2000 To give you a head start on the Timex Sinclair 2000-series color computer, Fred Blechman explains how to use the keyboard of its prototype, the Spectrum from Sinclair. Timex/Sinclair 2000, Timex/Sinclair 2068
Go with the flow and no illogical jumps Last month I explained how to draw a flowchart of a program by splitting it into parts. Each part corresponds to an operation performed either by the user or the computer program. This month we take that a step further and examine a way of breaking a program code into easily-understood areas. There are three Timex/Sinclair 1000
Hampson's Plane Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Happy Simulated Landings Description: With the Flight Simulation program you must land your airplane successfully on the runway without crashing. Sitting in the cockpit, your control panel shows your speed, altitude, fuel and power. The top of your screen is your viewing window for the landing. The player is given the option of flying just the final approach. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Here comes the 1500! First they brought you the T/S 1000! Next they promised the T/S 2000! But from what we have been able to learn, the American public was not as accepting of the redone ZX81 (which is what the machine was originally called in the U.K.) and quite willing to wait for the more sophisticated machine. There Timex/Sinclair 1500, Timex/Sinclair 2000
HexDump Displays the contents of any portion of memory in hexadecimal. Timex/Sinclair 1000
HEXEDIT: A Simple Hexadecimal Machine Code Editor Short BASIC program that allows you to write, enter and debug hexadecimal machine code routines. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Hot under the Microchip Has your T/S1000 ever crashed? If so, chances are it was due to overheating – probabyl the most common cause. Timex/Sinclair 1000
How educational are the "educational" programs Kids do learn from using computer games. This does not make those games educational programs. To be educational, a program must teach something that somebody planned to teach. In the jargon of the schools, that is called a learning objective. Further, to be educational, a program must show somehow that the kid has learned that Timex/Sinclair 1000
How I started a user group A lot of people have asked me, “What is a user group and how does one get started?” A user group is a group of people who meet on a regular basis to share and discuss ideas and problems regarding the computer. There are many different types of user groups. Some are formed by owners
How to Build an Inexpensive Joystick Interface Simple circuit and software to interface Atari joysticks to the 1000. Timex/Sinclair 1000
In search of a golden memory The Most important hardware device you can add to your computer is a memory unit. In this article we analyse three memory units for design, flexibility, durability and cost: the Memopak 16K, the Sinclair !6K RAM and the Panda 16K. These connect to the T/S1000 via the expansion port at the rear of the computer. Timex/Sinclair 1000
In The Fast Lane Review of Timeblasters by Robotec. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Input/Output Board lets you add on peripherals This I/O (input/output) board is a must for any hardware oriented T/Sl000/ZX8i owner. It lets you add on such peripherals as digital to analog and analog to digital converters. All address and data lines are buffered in order to provide extended drive capabilities. All address lines are decoded for ease of operation and all internal Timex/Sinclair 1000
Inside the T/S1000, ZX81 If you get the chance, look inside an IBM PC. You’ll see acres of board covered with countless chips, resistors, capacitors and the like. It all looks very mysterious and impressive. Instead of staring open-mouthed in awe and dreaming wistfully of the day you own one, comfort yourself with the knowledge that your seemingly lowly Sinclair ZX81, Timex/Sinclair 1000
Instantaneous Keyboard Response Part III of Programming Arcade Games. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Joysticks to the World Review of the Zebra joystick interface and Atto Soft joystick, which solders directly to the motherboard. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Kaleidoscope Prints thousands of constantly changing patterns. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Kingdom Manage a rural realm, attempt to increase personal wealth and protect your people from flood, famine and the depredations of the ruthless local banditry. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Kingdom Reprint of the program that appeared in issue 3 with missing code. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Knight's Move Knight’s Move uses the movement pattern of the knight in chess to try to cover every space in a square. The program asks where you wish to start on the board, giving the vertical coordinate first, and then marks the moves as you make your way round the board. There is a check routine to Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Kwikplot: A program for investigating correlations Plots the correlation coefficient between two variables. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Lander Lunar Lander. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Laser Cannon A fleet of 20 "X” ships is attacking you. You must destroy at least 15 of them or be destroyed. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Lazy Monster: 3D Monster Maze Review of the game from Melbourne House. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Learning to Love the Beast Review of How to Cope with Computers, published by Hayden.
Let the structure flow and you are well on the way Part one of our step by step guide to help turn every one of you users out there into expert programmers. Any programs written by beginners to computing show a lack of what professionals call structure. The structure of a program is the way in which it is put together and the order in which Timex/Sinclair 1000
Let this software help you run your home Reviews and compares four programs specifically designed to help manage money; one to set home files straight (birthdays, recipes, phone numbers, and so on) and one full 16K program just for all those bonus coupons that accumulate. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Letters ON U.K. IMPORTS I need some assistance! It concerns all these helpful books written by the English for the English, then sold to unsuspecting Americans — like me. It seems no one has bothered to edit these programs to be useful to Americans. I hope your experts will warn us of software which is useful Sinclair ZX81
Letters Letters from readers about full-size keyboards, disk drives, learning Basic, the Spectrum.
Letters Letters about balance of articles between 1000 and 2068; 2040 paper; user support; overheating; program improvements; submitting programs; non-games programs; readability; improvement of the magazine.
Letters Letters about largest integer that can be stored; compatibility of TS1500 cartridges with 1000; saving memory; difficulty saving; differences between ZX81 and TS1000; tape recorders; inverse characters. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Letters Letters about articles in previous issues, Winky Board 2.
Letters: Lending an Ear, Keeping the Faith, Complaint Department LENDING AN EAR I purchased the Timex Sinclair to see if a 60-year-old retired gent could learn computer programming. I do have problems finding books that do more than teach one to input programs and play games. I have purchased five books on the T/S1000 and ZX81 and have yet to find an adequate explanation Timex/Sinclair 1000
Lifetime's obsession can easily be acquired Buying a T/S1000/ZX81 can be the start of a lifetime obsession with home computing. It is easy, however, to become discouraged if everything does not work according to the manual. For those with only a little knowledge of computers a riti their capabilities, the best way to approach the T/S10QUZX81 is to abandon any ideas Timex/Sinclair 1000
Limited mail-order availability for new ZX Microdrive Sinclair Research used a limited mail order system to launch the Microdrive.
Link to the real world Down East Computers of Greenville, N.C., has produced an allpurpose voltage and temperature measuring system designed to interface with the T/S1000, ZX81 computer or any Z80 based system. Sinclair ZX81, Timex/Sinclair 1000
Locking Up POKEs to prevent others from loading your programs. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Looking Back and Looking Ahead Editorial about the state of the magazine.
Machine Code Tape Offers Seven Utilities Review of Machine Code Test Tool from Oxford Computer Publishing. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Machine language simplified The lack of an author’s name on Machine Language Programming Made Simple For Your Sinclair ZX-80 and ZX-81 indicates it may have been prepared by a committee. We decided the author was probably a comic art character used throughout the book to enliven the text. Dressed in a court jester’s outfit, wearing a CPU chip Sinclair ZX80, Sinclair ZX81, Timex/Sinclair 1000
Making A Good Thing Even Better Review of dk’Tronics’ replacement keyboard. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Meet the man who clogged up Connecticut's phone system In our premier issue, Timex Sinclair User features an exclusive interview with Dan Ross, the man who heads up the Timex computer division. His decisions will hopefully make T/S computing ever more fascinating in the future. Managing Editor Joe Gladstone reports. Probably the man most difficult to reach in the computer business is Dan Ross,
Merging in BASIC Technique for merging two data sets. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Microdrives for T/S Machines? Sinclair Research is close to announcing the launch date for the Microdrive.
Minibreakout Breakout program in Basic. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Minotaurs Maze game: avoid the hungry minotaur. Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Mixed-Use 4-Pack is a Mixed Blessing Review of Powerpack 1 from Timex. Timex/Sinclair 1000
More Missile Madness Description: A missile launcher moves up and down on the left side of the screen in the program called Missile Launcher. You fire missiles at ammunition dumps on the right side of the screen. The player gets 25 shots and scores points for hitting the ammunition. Bonus points are scored for destroying an entire ammunition Timex/Sinclair 1000
More than Electronic Babysitting The man behind the camp program at Wesleyan College in Fort Worth, doesn’t like to make predictions. But one fact in the future of education Dr. Mark Wasicsko is sure of: computers. “I’m convinced education is going in that direction,” he says “Every state in the country has passed a resolution to aim for computer Timex/Sinclair 1000
More Than One Can Chew Review of Byteing Deeper Into Your Timex Sinclair 1000 published by Wiley. Timex/Sinclair 1000
National Listing Listing of user groups.
No Faire for Timex Fifty thousand people agreed that the 8th West Coast Computer Faire, held in San Francisco From March 18 to March 20, was fantastic. It boasted 500 different exhibitors ranging from the small single-booth entrepreneur selling tapes and books to the “big guns” like Apple, Commodore and I.B.M. No, we didn’t forget to mention Timex, they
Note Tester Program to print a note at a random spot on the musical scale; user names the note. Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Now in Canada TX Computers Canada (the official name of Timex Computers in Canada) will be launching the TS1000 in Canada this summer. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Now your computer talks back “Good morning! This is your friendly computer talking.” Your T/Sl000/ZX81 can now say words like that thanks to DCP‘s speech pack. It fits well onto the back of your computer and adds the excitement of sound to your programs. It can “say” all the letters of the alphabet, the numbers 0 to over one million, Timex/Sinclair 1000
Of Things To Come 1983 Summer Consumer Electronics Show included representatives from Timex.
On the Future of the 1000 Editorial about the direction of the magazine and continued support for 1000 and 1500 owners. Timex/Sinclair 1000, Timex/Sinclair 1500
Packrabbit With A Joystick POKEs to make Packrabbit, a program Timex Sinclair User sent to new subscribers, work with Righter’s joystick interface. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Paradox of the Twins Demonstrates the “Twin Paradox” of one person travelling through space at a speed near light versus a person who stays on Earth. The person on Earth ages faster than the one travelling. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Pattern Draws lines bouncing off the sides of the screen. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Points Lost for Program Flaw Description: By skillfully piloting your ship through space and firing at enemy craft, you must protect your convoy from destruction in Cosmos, You must direct your ship near an alien and fire your laser before it gets away. Points are scored by destroying alien ships. The player is presented with a black screen. The player’s Timex/Sinclair 1000
Preparing for Machine Language Programming Excerpt from Programming Arcade Games, to be published by Reston Publishing. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Previously Reviewed Short summaries of previously reviewed software. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Program Printout: Beethoven Beethoven is a remarkable program which allows you to produce music from your T/S1000/ZX81. Stephane Crainic of Paris has linked hex values to the tones available from the speaker of your television set and has produced a table allowing you to convert the notes of the musical scale into those values. When you have typed Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Program Printout: Lemonade The children are screaming, the sun is roasting, it is a perfect day for the beach. You are the budding entrepreneur on the lemonade stand, trying to outsell your rivals and lay the foundations of a fast food empire. You start with capital of $50 and have to decide how much to spend on advertising, Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Program Printout: London Bridge Most computer games require nothing except a quick finger on the cursor key. Most of the rest, those which require a bit of brain power, are adaptations of games when the word computer meant a person with an abacus. London Bridge is one of the few routines we have seen which is original, was written Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Program Printout: Phasor Remarkable graphics effects are the striking feature of Phasor for the 16K TS1000, ZX81. You are an infamous space pirate travelling home through hyperspace after a hard day’s murder and mayhem. Suddenly you find yourself wrenched back into real space/time by a squadron of Federation star-ships. You are hopelessly surrounded. Can you fight your last Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Program Printout: Probability Poisson’s formula is a method of calculating the possibilities of recurrence of an event, based on a number of occurrences in the past. For this listing, the time should be adjusted so that the number of occurrences is in the range 3 to 12. The range could be extended upwards if required, but 2 has Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Program Printout: Rear Gunner Rear Gunner is a program included specifically for the computer novice, to demonstrate the use of graphics mode and the maneuvering of a display under cursor control. The screen shows a graphic G, representing your target, and a plus sign which is your gunsight. Align the two with the cursor keys and blast your target Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Programming Arcade Games, Part I Tools and techniques. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Programming Primer a Peach Review of Programming Your Timex/Sinclair 1000 in Basic, published by Prentice-Hall. Timex/Sinclair 1000
RAMKIT: Build your own 64K RAM Build the RAM module with parts from Gladstone Electronics Timex/Sinclair 1000
Rebuilding the Pyramids Reviews of Gamestape 2, Pyramid, Artist, all from Melbourne House. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Regarding PEEK Overview and tutorial about using PEEK to reveal information about the TS1000. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Reviews Short reviews of Mothership, Gamestape 1, Graphic Golf, Mazogs, Wallbusters, Caves of Zulu, Combat Flight, Vault of the Centaurs, 80 Hours Around Europe Timex/Sinclair 1000
Roll up for the ZX circus Exhibitions have long provided the many suppliers in the British Sinclair market with a popular outlet for their products.
Save Program SAVEs itself ad infinitum. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Saving Memory Two methods of memory saving coding. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Screen monitor improves graphics, saves eyesight Review of the Gorilla monitor.
Screen Sort Fills screen with random characters then performs a bubble sort. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Screener: An 'Instant' Screen Display Routine Short utility program that will let you print an entire screen almost instantly. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Search and Destroy Review of Spacetrek from Beam Software. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Searching at routine speed Tutorial on programming search routines. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Setting Forth Overview of the Forth language, comparison to Basic and how Sinclair Basic uses Forth-like methods. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Sharp Shooter You are the black-hatted villain confronting a posse of lily-livered bounty hunters. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Shoot Your Way To Safety Description: Combat Flight casts you as the commander of a fighter ship, flying through mountainous terrain shooting at alien ships. Seven types of alien ships fly by. Points scored depend on the of alien you hit with lasers. A player gets three lives per game. After the game, the top five scores are displayed with Timex/Sinclair 1000
Shooting Range Fire at a range of constantly changing letters. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Shopper's Guide: About T/S Computers... Overview of the three Timex/Sinclair computers. Timex/Sinclair 1000, Timex/Sinclair 1500, Timex/Sinclair 2068
Shopper's Guide: Books Timex/Sinclair 1000, Timex/Sinclair 2068
Shopper's Guide: Hardware Timex/Sinclair 1000, Timex/Sinclair 2068
Shopper's Guide: Software Timex/Sinclair 1000, Timex/Sinclair 2068
Shopper's Guide: Suppliers List of hardware/software suppliers. Timex/Sinclair 1000, Timex/Sinclair 2068
Simple ways of sorting data How to program and comparison of sorts: bubble and shell. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Sinclair's searching for super software With much media ado last April, Sinclair Research Ltd. licensed the Timex Corporation to sell its line of personal computers and peripherals in North America. Their first joint product, the Timex Sinclair 1000, hit the stores in August of last year and has been anteing upmarket share in thousands of outlets nationwide ever since. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Sleeper (Demolisher) A mass of blocks grows beneath you; points are gained by dropping bombs on particular blocks, and lost by missing. The game ends when the mass of blocks reaches the demolisher. As you have little to do but drop bombs, this game is definitely a sleeper. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Softsync kit enhances graphics Review of Graphics Kit from Softsync.
Software Blues The program loads. 0/0 appears on the screen. The printed instructions tell us to type GO to 1 to start: not the most elegant beginning, but acceptable. Then we are asked level? but nowhere told how to enter it. Finally logic impels us to press 1, and the screen turns gray and stays that way,
Software Spooks You choose the number (from one to four) of ghosts you wish to evade — the difficulty increases with each additional ghost, and they pursue you with increasing speed in each subsequent play. Though the maze is not adjustable, it is well-constructed and features complicated turns and passages. The keys that control movement (6, 7, Timex/Sinclair 1000
Something for Everyone Review of What Can I Do with my TS1000? Lots! published by Wiley and Sons. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Squashed Variation on Breakout. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Star Gates Guide each ship through star gates to escape the impending super nova. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Stranded on Mars Reviews of Aardvark’s Mars, Softsync’s Super Invasion, Melbourne House’s Reversi. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Strong and Durable Review of Memotech’s keyboard. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Surround You will probably recognize Surround as soon as you RUN it. It is a version of a fairly standard routine in which you are required to surround your adversary before he can surround you. Both players are in continuous motion and are not allowed to cross their tracks or those of their opponent, or to Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
T/S Entrepreneurs Products that have come from the Central Pennsylvania Timex Sinclair User Group include the Winky Board, ZXLLR8, math packages, inverse video circuit, robot. Timex/Sinclair 1000
T/S Goes To Camp Computing is fast becoming the latest thing in both day and overnight camps, and many camps across the country already include it among some of their activities. Ah, summer camp. The smell of wood smoke at dusk, the tender-tight feel of a sunburnt nose and tiFed paddling muscles, the sounds of shouts and splashes from Timex/Sinclair 1000
T/S Goes to the Library “Fantastic! A great idea! I can think of no better way to show people what a great machine the T/S1000 is.” This excitement was generated when Greg Melko of Timex Computers of Canada discovered that two library systems in the Toronto area were allowing library users to become T/S users by borrowing a machine. The Timex/Sinclair 1000
T/S2068 Display Primer Explains how to get your computer to put things on the screen where you want them to go. Timex/Sinclair 2068
Tape does a variety of tasks Review of ZX-Toolbox by Melbourne House. Timex/Sinclair 1000
The 2040: Efficient, Fast and Affordable Review of the printer.
The Anatomy of a Microcomputer Review of The Ins and Outs of the TS1000 and ZX81 published by Melbourne House. Timex/Sinclair 1000
The basic route to a habit-forming hobby Buying a Timex Sinclair machine can be the start of a lifetime obsession with home computing. It is easy, however, to become discouraged if everything does not go according to plan from the beginning. For those with only a little knowledge of computers and their capabilities, the best way to approach the machine is to Timex/Sinclair 1000
The Binary Banner Article based on material later published in the book by Fred Blechman. Prints a banner on the TS2040. Timex/Sinclair 2068
The Great Connecticut Kit-Building Experiment New Haven's Chris Baldwin ignited young minds by introducing 28 students to the world of tech through his 10-week ZX81 workshop. Sinclair ZX81
The invasion of the U.K. softwarecrats When Timex and Sinclair introduced the affordable home computer, it was based on technology developed by Clive Sinclair and Sinclair Research.
The Microchip Demystified Review of Mastering Machine Code On Your Timex/Sinclair. Timex/Sinclair 1000
The Music Maker Program that plays music on the TS1000. Timex/Sinclair 1000
The New Arrivals Overview of the Timex Sinclair 2000 and 1500. Timex/Sinclair 1500, Timex/Sinclair 2000, Timex/Sinclair 2068
The Paradoxical World of Clive Sinclair Now 42, and with his company, Sinclair Research, recently valued at over 200 million dollars, Clive Sinclair can reflect on a 20-year career in electronics which has established him as Britain’s leading high-technology entrepreneur. He has many ‘firsts’ to his name, from the world’s first pocket calculator (1972) and pocket television (1977), through to the
These kids' books make learning fun There are many books on the market today aimed at teaching kids how to get the most from their home computers. Two of these are Computers for Kids, by Sally Greenwood Larsen, and Katie and the Computer, by Fred D’lgnazio. Both are From Creative Computing Press and both should delight young computer users everywhere. Katie
This book is clear, witty, useful Professor Ian Stewart is with the University of Warwick, England, while co-author Robin Jones is with the computer unit at the South Kent College of Technology, England. What kind of a book can we expect from two obviously intelligent gentlemen with a great knowledge of computers? Your first thought is a dry, dull, routine book Timex/Sinclair 1000
Timex introduces the 1500 Timex/Sinclair 1500
Timex needs higher profile Welcome to our second issue. Your response to our first was overwhelming and really gratifying. From all of us on this side of Timex Sinclair User to all of you, “Thanks”. Our contest editor is screaming for more help to deal with all the great games that are pouring in. In case this is your
Timex responds
Timex Speeds Up Timex has narrowed the TS2000 computers to one model, the TS2068, in an effort to speed up delivery. Timex/Sinclair 2068
Timexpectations: What Can You Expect? Welcome to the first issue … the collector's issue … of T1MEX SINCLAIR USER, the independent magazine which aims to help you make the most of your machine.
Tiny invention makes perfect saves & loads Review of the Winky Board 2. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Tips for Beginners Warning: using a T/S1000 can be habit-forming. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Totally Awesome Prints the name of the magazine as a graphic. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Treasure Hunt Maze game. Timex/Sinclair 1000, Downloadable
Treasure Hunter Find treasure hidden at a random position on the screen. Timex/Sinclair 1000
U.K. Aids the Handicapped Series of computer fairs to highlight what is being done in microelectronics to help the disabled.
U.K. Hoax Exposed Last April, the British counterpart to this magazine, Sinclair User, ran a program entitled “Machine Code Converter” that was amazingly economical — only 27 lines long. “Now a brilliant piece of programming enables the Basic programmer to convert his listing automatically into machine code by LOADing from a tape or by entering the program line
Universal Patterner Generates patterns at random. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Up or Down Displays a message upside-down in enlarged characters. One of the Clever Contest winners. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Usborne books are delightful & fun I have a friend who suffers from computer-phobia — fear of the chip. Whenever I try to interest him in a programming career, he replies, “I can’t learn that stuff. It’s too complicated.” Recently, I invited Dean to my home, gave him Understanding the Micro and a cold beer, and left him at the dining Timex/Sinclair 1000
Use It Eleven-yeah-old Keith Goode of Arlington, Texas, certainly gives you your money’s worth with this program. In the menu, Use It presents you with, you can choose one of seven options. The first turns your computer into a drawing board. Option two draws sine wave curves. Three, four, five and six convert your keyboard into a Timex/Sinclair 1000
Useful programming tips Review of The ZX81/Timex Pocket Book by Trevor Toms. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Vast database soon available to Sinclair users With the next new computer from Sinclair Research not expected until next year, attention in the U.K. is being focussed on expanding existing systems. The two major expansions for which Sinclair owners are eagerly waiting are the Microdrives and Micronet 800. Both have been announced but neither is yet available. The Microdrives are expected soon
Vast support network growing A vast support network exists for the T/S1000/ZX81: wherever goes the most popular computer in history, user groups are not far behind. Below is a list of many such groups in the United States; as new ones are springing up all the time, we make no claims that it is inclusive. Whenever two or more Timex/Sinclair 1000
Videographity Program to draw on the screen. Timex/Sinclair 1000
What'll They Think of Next? Review of Hand Saver and Octoputs, by Electrocomp; both are accessories for Atari joysticks.
When the lights go out ... The Cramic-81 is a low-power, battery-backup RAM. It uses up-to-date technology such as lithium batteries to maintain your RAM’s contents even when the power is disconnected. It is ideal for keeping large, often used programs, machine code routines or programs you are working on without the bother of having to load them from cassette each Timex/Sinclair 1000
Where to find everything Review of The Timex Sinclair 1983 Directory by E. Arthur Brown. Timex/Sinclair 1000
Who says that graphics have to be complicated? All you need to start is a simple understanding of the PLOT command, says professor and author Michael K. Barnett in this exclusive interview. Can you tell us some of the computers that you use for computer graphics? These include some very large IBM machines like 370s, 3033s and 3081s, some personal computers like the Timex/Sinclair 1000
Word processing potential THIS handsomely designed unit, put out by Memotech, allows the user to connect the T/S1000,ZX81 to a “normal” parallel printer. It contains all the software for code conversion to printers such as Epson, Centronics, SCM, and others* All Timex Sinclair printer commands such as COPY, LPRINT, LLIST are supported. All control codes for the printer Timex/Sinclair 1000
World's First Computer Museum One Year Old Brief overview of the Computer Museum in Marlboro, Mass.
You Could Be Your Computer's Worst Enemy Ways to manage problems using the TS 1000. Timex/Sinclair 1000
ZXAD: Assembler is full-featured, easy to use Review of the assembler program from Scientific Software. Sinclair ZX81, Timex/Sinclair 1000

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