Easy crasher
UTILITIES Package from Salamander features a Teletext designer,
a sound/envelope designer, a disassembler and an Epson screen
dump.
The software came on tape and has a 23 page booklet explaining
the programs.
The first program is Sound Shaper. The complexities of the sound
chip and its associated commands have always been a mystery to
me, and after this will probably remain so.
I managed to crash the sound definer after three key presses
but perseverence got me some exotic effects.
I didn't like the way that the program broke so easily, although
you could blame it all on user incompetence. But shouldn't the
program and the manual avoid such problems?
The Epson screen dump has a few nice ideas but the results aren't
all that good. So on to the next program, which to my mind is
the best of the set.
TText is a Teletext screen editor that allows the design of
Mode 7 screens. It has many excellent features and is a joy to
use.
The only problem is that it lacks a few capabilities that I'm
sure could be easily added.
The screen has a current state line at the bottom which gives
information about x, y position, whether you are in graphics mode
or not and a double height indicator.
Best of all, it tells you the otherwise invisible Teletext control
characters present as you move the cursor over them.
The cursor can be constrained to move vertically and there are
HELP and graphics pages.
The two major omissions are the lack of separated graphics and
the hold graphics control codes.
The final program is a disassembler, or should I say three disassemblers
located at &2800, &5800, &7800. There's not much to
say about these except perhaps that the ROM-based ones do it better.
I found this package a little disappointing although the Teletext
designer with the changes mentioned could be the best on the market.
Alan Plume
