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Archive News 2019

19/12/2019

A number of Longman titles were added. These are from the Ladybird series written in conjunction with the Loughborough Primary Micro Project. The titles include;

  • Big, Bigger, Biggest,
  • Junior Maths Rally A
  • Junior Maths Rally B
  • Other Worlds 1: The Explorer
  • Other Worlds 2: The Inhabitant

 

   
06/12/2019

A mixed bag of updates has been made this time.

  • Added EMR MIDI Track Performer and associated documentation. Grateful thanks are given to StarDot Forum members for finding the title and aiding with hacking the software protection.
  • A cassette tape version of CEDRIC (Community Energy Display and Retrieval of Information and Calculation) published by British Gas was added. The package has been converted to run from disk. All the software is original except the MENU program which was written to provide an easy way of accessing the titles. Although readable the tapes were in a very poor condition as the package had obviously been stored in a damp environment for many years.
  • Another British Gas title, LABGAS 1&2, which needs a proprietary interface to work correctly. Unfortunately the interface was not with the package and without this the package will not work.
  • French Tutor from Salamander Software. This is the first title from this software house in the archive. The package was tape-based and has been copied across to disk for convenience of use.
  • MFA - a disk of programs to control the Microelectronics for All Interface Module. This is a title released by Hobsons under the MEP umbrella.
  • Energy from Central Software, designed to look at saving energy in a house.
  • Power Package, a simulation of an electricity supply.
  • Happy Numbers from BES.

 

   
21/11/2019

Added the ESM distribution of the Acornsoft title Missing Signs. This is a tape-based version for the model B.

Also added the original Acornsoft version of Number Balance and an amateur adventure title, Baron's Vaults, discovered by Lurkio from StarDot.

An eBay purchase included the Nuclear Reactor Simulation from Longman.

 

 

   
12/11/2019

Added Acornsoft micro PROLOG, complete with a scan of the reference manual, which appears to be missing from the internet, original software disk and a MITSI disk and worksheets, which were used for teaching up until 2014.

An ESM release of the Anita Straker titles Noticeboard and Chatter Box has been added. Although the programs are already in the archive, this package combines the two as well as documentation for their use.

Updated the MESU package Window to add extra documentation and keyboard overlays. Also added version 2.11a of the software.

Added the FSoft title Music Maker to the archive.

Thanks to Daniel J from StarDot a missing title from MAPE, Into Europe, has been added. This is a touch screen title, which needs both the touch screen interface and the documentation to be used.

   
31/10/2019

Continuing to add missing BBCsoft titles. Thanks to StarDot Forum members the missing Waves and Electronics in Action programs from the Science Topics series have been added along with A-Level Statistics and Espana Viva.

   
30/10/2019

The following BBCsoft programs were added today;

  1. Science Topics
  • Classification and the Periodic Table
  • Bonding
  • Ecology and Conservation
  • Electromagnetic Spectrum
  • Food and Population
  • Newton and the Space Shuttle
  • Polymers

There are two more titles for which I have the covers but no software and these are Waves and Electronics in Action.

  1. Secondary Science
  • The Mole Concept
  • Uniformly Accelerated Motion
  1. A Vous La France

And that brings the total number of packages archived to 1500, which is probably about 15% of those written!

 

   
24/10/2019

The latest update to the web site has been the creation of a searchable index for the Computing Today sub-site. All issues scanned so far have been included in the index. As issues are added in the future they will be added to the index.

   
12/10/2019

It has been a long time since the news section has been updated though this does not reflect the activity at the Archive.

A new addition was made to the Games Computing section - December 1984 was scanned and uploaded. There are now only three issues left to collect.

A number of issues of Computing Today from 1980, 1981 and 1984 were scanned and uploaded to the website. Grateful thanks are due to Paul Daniels for his sterling work scanning the new April and September 1984 issues.

A Projects section was added to the website in which various projects (completed or otherwise) will be added. Since the start of September a variable voltage power supply for thermionic valve projects was built and documented and added to this section.

Stardot member, FordP, has sent the Archive a number of floppy discs from the London Borough of Ealing. These discs were unprotected but had a lot of dirt on the reading surfaces and this had to be laboriously cleaned from each disk before archiving. Although some of the titles were already held by the Archive these compilations were different from those previously met and are therefore worthy of inclusion. Uploads from this collection include;

  • Music LOGO - a commercial add-on to Logotron LOGO to allow the programming of the BBC sound system via LOGO,
  • MicroFax - an emulation of the Teletext system; originally released by Acornsoft and later re-released by Ealing,
  • Intro Tray - an amended version of the original Developing Tray program distributed by MESU,
  • Our Facts - a MESU release of the Anita Straker software,
  • Data Handling - a MESU release of Noticeboard and Datashow by Anita Straker,
  • Information Handling - A MESU release of Branch and Sort Game,
  • My Maths - a custom middle school maths compilation

 

   
01/09/2019

The last week has been a little quiet on the archiving front.

The latest update has been for RESOURCE software. The documentation for Fairy Tales has been added as well as another version of the disc software. The huge Cateby Manor package was archived along with a database for young children, First Facts.

 

   
16/08/2019

Two more titles from RESOURCE were added today. These were Weather Studies and Place Names.

Although the titles were unprotected and would therefore archive easily their documentation needed extensive restoration as a result of the poor quality ink used by the printers.

   
14/08/2019

The latest update today is Henderson's A Computer Simulation from RESOURCE. This was a major undertaking. The disk was unprotected, which was good, but the documentation was in a dire state and took a good few days to rescue and restore.

A description of the restoration process can be found here.

   
10/08/2019

The latest update today includes a number of titles;

  • Pic Pop from Addison-Wesley which is a cross between a mathematics and a drawing program,
  • From PAVIC Publications two titles, Fun Phonics 6B: To the Rescue and Fun Phonics 8: 2,000AD; thanks to  billcarr2005 from the StarDot forum for the archive of the latter title, since the copy owned by the Educational Archive was damaged.

 

   
07/08/2019

Updated the Wilt package by adding the documentation, the full version of the software and amending the date of publication and programmer.

   
06/08/2019

A few minor upgrades were added today;

  • Vegetation and Climate from Cambridge Micro Software, which was in a box of about 10 copies of this disc sold as blank discs,
  • A BBCSoft title, Educational Demonstration Disc, sent to the archive by billcarr2005 of the StarDot forums,
  • A title from FormatPC Ltd, Top Class Curriculum; this was a massive title spanning two double-sided 80T floppy discs, that is 800K of software.

   
04/08/2019

This has been a busy time for the Archive. A large number of missing items were supplied by Stardot Forum member, Break, and these form most of the latest update.

The Archive was also contacted by Andy Pickford, one of the founders of Selective Software, who was able to provide insight into their operation as a software company as well as some images of their software.

New items added include;

  • Infant Maths Snap from Sherston, a program for 4-7 year olds,
  • Cuthbert Catches a Cold from Selective Software, a two disk title of adventure games, graphics and music for 6-9 year olds,
  • 3D-LOGO a series of LOGO programs and utilities provided by Homerton College; these require Logotron LOGO to be in the computer,
  • The BBC Buggy Software by Economatics; the manuals are included in the download courtesy of Stardot Forum member Simoni,
  • Emergency First Aid (CPR) a title produced by Birch Hill Hospital in Rochdale, probably for their own internal use,
  • A Gas Safety Quiz from British Gas, Thames Division; this was probably an internal training program for service engineers,
  • Grasshopper, a simple MODE 7 spreadsheet from Newman Software, the publishing department of Newman College, Birmingham,
  • Grass a MODE 7 data handling package from Newman Software; this also includes the data file The Orb of Zalibar,
  • From Paean Systems, Junior Spelling, a program to print spelling worksheets,
  • The Kingdom of Gold from Tressell Publications, a decision-making exercise based around the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs,
  • In Search of the New World also from Tressell Publications, a decision-making exercise based around the discovery of the Americas,
  • The LOGO Extensions disk which provides extensions to Logotron LOGO to operate their sprite board,
  • Lost on Mars an animated adventure game for young children by the Computer Aided Animated Arts Theatre based at Brighton Polytechnic,
  • Reading and Language Skills from MacMillan Software, a compilation of several literacy programs,
  • An amateur compilation of maths programs for young children entitled Maths with a Story,
  • An amateur compilation of programs for infants; this is Miscellaneous 1 in the archive,
  • An amateur Newspaper Program aimed at young children,
  • Two items from the Post Office, Post Office All Sorts and Lenny's Golden Rules,
  • SEMERC titles, Prompt 3, a simple word processor and a compilation from Redbridge SEMERC,
  • More amateur programs, Tables Expert, Wet Ones and Time Keeper,
  • The Designer Version of Developing Tray from MESU, which allows importing texts from other word processors.

   
31/07/2019

A big update today adding the following titles;

  • From the Osmiroid 5-14 Maths series - Angles, Four Rules and Fractions, Measurement, Multiplication Tables, Number Bonds and Shapes. These are all designed to print out a range of customisable worksheets on an Epson-compatible printer. They all had a new and interesting method of protection.
  • An amateur compilation of programs to complement the Peak Maths series of books, published by Nelson Thornes Ltd.
  • An amateur title, Angle Turner aimed at teaching estimation of angle size in primary schools.
  • Beat the Clock fromanother amateur source, a suite of three programs designed to help read analogue and digital clock faces.
  • A version of Our Facts released by NCET.
  • A compilation of Anita Straker titles aimed at 9-13 year old students.
  • An adventure game from Norfolk LEA, Treasure Island.
  • From BBCSoft in conjunction with Longman-Logotron an environmental adventure, Earth Warp and an Ecological adventure Sky Hunter.
  • Timetables from the Adult Literacy and Basic Skills Unit in Bath.

 

   
26/07/2019

Over the past couple of days a number of floppy disks were examined. Four missing titleswere discovered and added to the archive. These were;

  • Computer Concepts' LOGO 2 - a simple version of a LOGO graphics program. This was missing the documentation, which is needed to drive the program, unless one examines the program listing to work out the syntax.
  • Reversals from Chalksoft - a literacy program revolving around letter reversals frequently found in a young person's writing.
  • Profile Writer and Report Writer from S & GM Antczak - designed for teachers to profile and report on their students. This is missing documentation which would be needed to use these programs. The programs are notable for their close integration with View on the BBC Master series computers.
  • Image from Cambridge Micro Software - a complex drawing package using the cursor keys. The disks were clones of the original and quite ingeniously protected.

   
21/07/2019

A number of items were added today. These include the original Starspell by Fisher-Marriott (found on a primary school compilation disc), First School Programs Set1 and Set 2, an amateur compilation of original and copied software and Plane Designer from Dudley LEA. Plane Designer is a complex package for Technology Departments in schools and is based around designing, making and testing model aeroplanes.

   
19/07/2019

Added two more titles to the archive.

Firstly L: A Mathemagical Adventure from The Association of the Teachers of Mathematics
Secondly The Real You, a personality quiz from CollinsSoft, programmed by ASK.

The original package I had was the tape version and would only work on a BBC model B or B+. I later doscovered a copied disk. This, however, would not work on the model B or B+ as it required PAGE to still be at &E00 and with the facility of loading data files. It would not work on the Master either due to the user defined characters being used wrongly by the programmer.

This title was 'hacked' so that PAGE was moved down to &E00 for all modules and the character definitions were read from the definition file and used to define characters in the ranges 224 to 255 and 128 to 159 inclusive. The package now ran on a Master. It would not run on a model B.

Billcarr2005 from StarDot to the rescue! A disc-based version was provided which ran on the model B. It would not work properly on the Master. The Menu program was edited to redefine characters 128 to 159 inclusive if a BBC Master series machine was detected. The title appears to run on all variants of the BBC micro to hand.

   
17/07/2019

Added the Fernleaf package 'Games of Deduction'.

The documentation for the ITV Key package was updated and the system disk was re-imaged from the original since the previous version, a Teachers' Centre copy, was improperly copied back in the day. The Key data file 'Placenames' was also added to the archive.

   
15/07/2019

Added the Quest database package from AUCBE. The archive includes the tape version, the disk-based version running in BASIC and the ROM-based version. There is a machine code, disk-based version but this is missing at the moment. Unfortunately there are no databases available for this database in the download.

The Archive was contacted by the programmer of the package, 'Chatter', Tim Kitchen, who is now retired from his post as IT Advisor for Walsall LEA. Tim kindly provided more information about the package and how it was intended to be used. The package details have been updated in the Archive.

   
13/07/2019

Count with Oliver from Mirrorsoft and two titles from Storm Software, Ollie Octopus' Sketchpad and Amazing Ollie & Ollie Octopus' Sketchpad added today.

The compilation package appears to be a special version made for the Camberley Teachers' Centre in Surrey. The floppy disk had a hand-written label and was unprotected.

Also added a title, KinderComp, from Spinnaker Software Corporation, an American firm.

   
11/07/2019

The RISCOS section has been updated to include the following titles from Computer Concepts;

  • Spellmaster plus documentation
  • Interword including the Iconbar version
  • Intersheet the Iconbar version
  • Interchart
  • Wordwise Plus including the Iconbar version

Acornsoft ISO-Pascal and the Graphics Extensions pack and PROLOG X have also been added

   
09/07/2019

Nearly a month has gone by since the last news item but that does not mean that nothing has been happening.

A new section has been added to the website - Games Computing. This was a short-lived magazine of only 15 issues published during 1984 and 1985. The magazine contains numerous type-in games programs, many of which are for Acorn machines. Out of the 15 issues the archive has 11 issues preserved in PDF format.

The Calculators section has been updated to include the HP-15C scientific programmable calculator and some programming aids.

The Beebug Quick Calc package has been added to the educational software archive. This quirky little program was used in my school before the ROM-based Inter-Sheet made its appearance. The documentation for Linear Graphics' Plotmate A4 has had a revamp to include the ROM user guide and a guide for LOGO users.

Finally some behind-the-scenes changes were made to the look and feel of the website. A search function is now accessible from the archive page to help find that elusive title.

   
17/06/2019

Added the Yorkshire Television title "How We Used To Live". The archive is grateful to StarDot member Boydie for the kind donation.

   
02/06/2019

LOGOSOUNDS from AUCBE added today. This is another title from the Newman College BBC software library.

   
31/05/2019

Added a couple of packages from the Newman College software library, a collection of about 100 or so educational titles. The titles are Concept a provisional copy of a MESU package to help adapt existing programs to work with a concept keyboard and Inform 1 from Nottinghamshire County Council Computer Centre.

   
02/05/2019

Software and documentation for using concept keyboards has been added since the last update.

A new addition to the information provided by the archive is publisher's advertising material. This has been added to the individual publisher's page and can be viewed by following the publisher link from the package display page.

Acornsoft Chemical Structures was added today along with the June 1980 edition of Computing Today.

   
18/04/2019

Added the Logotron PrintBox package today.

This is a comprehensive, single page DTP package for the BBC Master computer. It will also work on the Master Compact and the BBC Model B and B+.

To work on the BBC B/B+ the ROM must be loaded separately into a vacant sideways RAM bank and initialised before starting the program disk. To work on a Master Compact the images will need to be copied onto a 3.5" floppy disk.

   
11/04/2019

The Walsall LOGO Project: Islamic Patterns package was uploaded today.

The package comprised a thick, A4 booklet intended to support teaching Art, Technology and Computer Science using the LOGO programming language. Included in the text were a number of sample LOGO programs. These were typed into the computer and saved on an 80T SSD image.

The package is just as relevant today as it was in 1987!

   
05/04/2019

Added Computing Today scans for April and May 1980.

Updated the documentation for the standalone ASK/Acornsoft version of Podd. Thanks to CMcDougall from the Stardot Forum for providing the scans of the documentation.

   
30/03/2019

The March 1980 edition of Computing Today was scanned and added to the website.

The Acornsoft title Algebraic Manipulation was added and the massive Library of Physical Chemistry Software from Oxford Electronic Publishing.

The latter title ran to six floppy discs and a ring-bound manual of well over 100 pages. Archiving this was a mammoth task. All the disks had to be individually cleaned with IPA before they would read and the disk drive heads cleaned after each disk was archived. The floppy disk surface looked to be in good condition but was covered with a thin layer of grime and loose oxide.

The manual also proved to be tricky to scan. The print was very small and there were a lot of grey panels and computer screen dumps in the text causing bleed-through from behind. The normal archive scanner could not produce an acceptable image at any setting. The backup scanner, a Canon LiDE 25, was called into service and adjusted to give a clean image using a grey scale scan at 300dpi. The scanner software was very slow but did give accurate renderings by scanning direct into MS Word 2010. (Yes, I know Microsoft in their ineptitude removed access to 'scan-into' from MS Word 2007 onwards but they left the function still active via the hot-key sequence ALT-I ALT-P ALT-S, thank goodness.)

   
26/03/2019

The February 1980 edition of Computing Today has been scanned and added to the website.

Also added were Adventure Playground from Widgit Software and Air Traffic control and Travel Agent, two more programs in the Granada Micros at Work series.

   
24/03/2019

Another Computing Today issue added - January 1980

The Key database package from ITV Schools, Beebugsoft's Painter (Joystick only version) and Jigsaw and Sliding Puzzles from ESM were also added.

   
21/03/2019

Added;

  • Graphito from Addison-Wesley: a complex programming graphics package,
  • Picture Builder from Hill MacGibbon: a simple drawing package using shapes,
  • Storyboard II from Wida Software: a full featured text reconstituting package similar to Developing Tray.

   
20/03/2019

Added Acornsoft titles including;

  • ABC - a text based riddle program
  • Chemical Analysis: perform virtual tests to analyse substances
  • Jars - an estimation and logical problem solving title
  • Linkword - French: learn to speak and understand French

Also added Instant Recall by Supersoft, an index card based database package.

   
16/03/2019 Acornsoft Talkback and Acornsoft Workshop and documentation added.
   
14/03/2019

Pip Goes to the Moon by Northern Micromedia was added today along with the November and December 1979 issues of Computing Today.

   
10/03/2019

Added the following titles to the archive;

  • The Language of Functions and Graphs, a compilation of Shell Centre titles,
  • Instat, a comprehensive statistical package produced by the University of Reading statistics department
  • Probability Programs for the BBC Micro from Capital Media.
  • Hex - a drawing program from AUCBE.

The September and October 1979 issues of Computing Today were scanned and added to the Computing Today archive.

   
06/03/2019

Added the August 1979 issue of Computing Today.

The following titles were added to the BBC Educational Software Archive;

  • Basic Music Composition by Helicon Press
  • Golden Eagle and Super Seed by Cambridge Micro Software
   
05/03/2019

Added the following packages;

  • DVLC from Resource - a data handling package simulating some of the functions of the DVLC. This was one of the packages I actually used BITD.
  • Maths Topics 1 from Cambridge Micro Software - programs to help understanding of symmetry and vectors. The disk is courtesy of billcarr2005 from the Stardot forums. My package was missing the floppy disk.
  • Maths Topics 2 and 3 from Cambridge Micro Software - programs to help understanding of percentage.
  • Tessellations from Cambridge Micro Software - design tiles and tessellate them; thanks to billcarr2005 from Stardot for providing an archive of this title as my disk was found to have a single sector damaged in the middle of a critical program.

Made updates to;

  • Movaword by Chalksoft - also added a later version of the software to the download courtesy of billcarr2005 from Stardot

   
26/02/2019

Updated the following packages;

  • Supergraph by Glentop: added the extensive documentation and disk scans
  • Zillion by Sherston: added the teacher guide and disk scans

Added;

  • Movaword by Chalksoft: This is a literacy program for young children. The original disk was physically damaged. However, a copy was found in a mixed box of disks obtained from a retiring teacher and was used to recover the programs.
  • Word Maze by Xavier Educational Software: another program targeting children with Dyslexia. This one has a Mech navigating a maze.

   
19/02/2019

Updated Facemaker by ASK to include the manual. Also added the ESM version to the database.

4Mation Dinosaur Discovery was updated regarding the protection mechanism on the ADFS Compact version and the 4Mation title Tele-Book was added.

Computing Today March, April, May, July 1979 have been scanned and added to the website.

The Calculators section has been added.

Several minor changes to the website were made.

   
14/02/2019

The following packages have been added/updated;

  • Added several titles from Harmony Educational Software. This is a company run by a Physics teacher. Their range includes programs to aid understanding of waves and mechanics. It is likely that this software will be super rare. The discs were unprotected but were in a poor physical state and needed much cleaning before they were readable.
  • Added Griffin Fairshare, a tape-based package recovered from tape and put onto disk.
  • Added LCL Primary Maths Course - A massive title covering 4 floppy discs. The discs were flippy ones, 40T on side 1 and 80T on side 2. The only protection was to hide the catalogue.
  • Mr T's Shape Games - updated release date, price and documentation

There have also been several minor updates to the web pages such as adding a link to the individual protection method on the package display page.

   
08/02/2019

Added January 1984 and June 1984 editions of Computing Today.

Updated the Acornsoft Linkword - Spanish, ASK Number Puzzler and ASK Table Adventures documentation to include the manuals.

Added the following Acornsoft/Acornsoft-ASK titles;

  • Hide and Seek
  • Hooked on Numbers
  • Linkword - Italian
  • Sentence Sequencing
   
03/02/2019

An update involving several publishers was made over the weekend.

Pazazz by ASK was added including the documentation. This was the first title met which was a 40/80T title and which had the 40T version on side 0 of the disk and the 80T version on side 2. Software determined what type of floppy drive was being used and switched sides as appropriate.

Other updates made were due to kind donations by StarDot members;

  • Resource titles, Christmas Tales and Whispy Wood, were donated by klintworth
  • Heineman titles, Longitudinal Waves, Symbols to Moles, Transverse Waves and Vehicle Design, were hacked and donated by billcarr2005
  • Geedoh Educational Software Music Reader 2 was provided by Lurkio who also provided the Sulis Software title, The Grammar Tree: Nouns and Adjectives.
   
31/01/2019

Finally worked out exactly how the Five Ways Software disk protection works for their Heineman titles!

Their method shows a clear evolution from the early days to their later packages. The method has now been hacked so that titles can be easily archived.

Two packages have been uploaded - Scales and Approximation, estimation and standard form.

A standard 8271 DFS BBC model B has now been set up for archiving those titles which cannot be handled by a BBC Master computer.

   
29/01/2019

Added two packages today. Firstly The Tycoon Itch from Jacaranda Software. This is an international trading game, originally for a Master Compact running ADFS it will also run under DFS on a Master.

The second package is from NCET, the Information Handling Pack. This is a suite of five data handling programs. The software was on several compilations and as copies of the original discs in a collection obtained from a teacher's centre in Scotland. The manual was in a collection of material from a retiring primary school teacher. The software and manual have been combined now in this package.

   
25/01/2019

Two updates today. Firstly Osprey! from Bourne Educational Software and secondly Advanced Folio from Tedimen Software.

   
24/01/2019

Archived the Jacaranda title 'Maths Bingo'. This was an unprotected 3.5" version suitable for the Master Compact and Archimedes series of computers. It was easy to produce archive versions for BBC model B computers from this disk.

Two very early issues of Computing Today were added to the archive. Originally these were inserts in Electronics Today International.

   
03/01/2019

Added the full Microtext package including the comprehensive manual and other documentation.

   
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ARCHIVE STATS
  4273 programs
 
  1788 packages
 
  385 publishers
 
 
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