Amiga Computing - Commodore Is Awesome

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Pentiums, P6 chips, millions spent and vast fortunes in the making. 0 indows 95, Warp 0S2, pull 'n' play, The question is, does the buying public get a real bang for their buck, or simply end up engulfed in the aftershock of endless investment and upgrades? Given the money and marketing lavished on the new breed of so called 'user friendly' PCs, it would seem there's no choice when it comes to home computing. like a double seat on the train, you've got to get in first - stocks won't last, buy or be laughed at. The marketing pressure is intense. There's no rest byte, the all powerful PC sits in shop fronts across the land struggling to scroll a seemingly endless stream of virtues before the eyes of any would-be investors. If you want the best you've got to pay for it_ The question is, what's on sale here - the machine or the marketing? Just six months ago a friend of mine quite rightly tired of the seemingly endless wait for the Amiga to get back on its little rubber feet. After lots of reading and research he opted for IP a quality PC. Even after a lot of bartering his new baby still weighed in at a hefty (1400. PROBLEM CHILD At the time this new 'all singing all dancing' sibling was the apple of his daddy's eye. Unfortunately, just six months on this rapidly ageing 486 DXII has become something of a problem child. The Pentium is now well and truly ruling the roost, and his train spotting, acne ridden DX is rapidly becoming a computing wallflower. The glossy games that added so much attraction to the initial investment now demand a Pentium to deliver the promise so lavishly emblazoned in print and on the packaging. Like the average hot-hatch, his former pride and joy would be lucky to generate a third of its showroom asking price out on the street And yes, I know Amiga's depreciate as well, but the pain of depreciation is directly linked to the initial investment. And in relation to the PC, that's one area in which the Amiga certainly scores some points. Of course, pride and poverty doesn't entertain the idea of selling up. After all 'it's still a serious machine that can run everything a Pentium can.' The point is, did he really want a The 11( team • EDITOR DEPUTY EDITOR ART EDITOR NEWS EDITOR COYERDISK EDITOR PRODUCTION EDITOR GAMES EDITOR STAFF WRITERS ADVERTISING MANAGER AD SALES AD SALES AD PRODUCTION MARKETING MANAGER MARKETING ASSISTANT PRODUCTION MANAGER SYSTEMS MANAGER Paul Austin Ben Yost Tym Leckey Tina Hackett Neil Mohr Judith Chapnun Tina Hackett Andrew Maddock Dave Cuock Lisa Bracewell Jane Normington Sue Hursefie Barbara Newail Claire Ptawdsley Victoria Quinn-Harkin Sandra Childs David Stewart serious machine, or something that could play games and still be taken seriously. Man, machine and marketing in perfect turmoil. The question of keeping up with the Jones', Pentiums, P6s is a familiar tale across every platform, including the Amiga. However, the forgotten hero does have few distinct advantages in the dog eat dog wodd of the PC. Not least of these is a generic background, Every Amiga sold has a standard architecture and although this can be expanded upon with assorted accelerators and ad-ons, the basic structure remains he same. As a consequence, developers are forced to work within predefined guidelines which in the long term benefit all. It's true there's a fair amount of diversity within the platform as a whole, but as a general rule there is a degree of uniformity which goes a long way to combating the evolutionary frenzy that dogs the PC. The relaunch of the Al200 may not be a technological breakthrough, but at least it offers an alternative to confusion, unnecessary expenditure, and the marketing hype that surrounds the constantly changing landscape of the PC market Perhaps the most important question for any woulttbe buyer is not which machine is the most powerful, but which is the most appropriate. The gloss and glamour of the Pentium and Microsoft marketing machine leads many to overlook the real issues. It's all too easy to fall into the dinner party bore mentality and justify your investment by reassuring yourself and others that, if you wanted too, you could run Photoshop, Quadapress, Microsoft Word and so on. But in the cold light of day, are you ever really likely to? - especially considering that just one of these blue chip applications could buy you an CIRCULATION DIRECTOR COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR ools go DISTRIBUTION SUBSCRIPTION David Wren Denise Wnght COMAG (01195) 444055 0151-3S7 2961 Mtrobe of the Aidit &raw el CroAatcris 33,546 joneDec 1194 Plibitillett b I)G Media, Media House Mincer Park, Muciestied Sit 10 /MP Tet 0162511711888 ,Fu01h25 850652 EMal atom Editorkd editdoconcdemontauk Advertise% schigothenplernon.cook The ads are glossy, the hype is at feverish pitch, but is there really a safe distance when it comes to the PC explosion? CHAIRMAN Richard Meese MANAGING DIRECTOR Ian Bloomfield We regret Amigo Computing cannot offer technical help on a personal basis either by telephone or in wino/. All reader elsouries should be submitted to the address in this panel for possible pubhcaeon• Amiga Computing Cs on independent pubkotion and Commodore atIVICSS Machines Lid ore nut responsibk fur out of the talkies in this issue or fur ory of the options expressed. ©1995 IDG Media No material may be reproduced in whole or in part without written perunispon While every care is taken, the publishers cannot be held legally reponsible for any errors in articles, listings or advertisements AMIGA COMPUTING FEBRUARY 1996 entire Amiga. Admittedly, PC games and indeed some applications are pulling away from their Amiga counterparts, but so are their prices and the cost in hardware required to run them. No CHANGE Don't get me wrong. A 100MHz Pentium with 16Mb of RAM, a quad-speed CD-ROM and 17 inch monitor is a very respectable machine. But don't expect to get much change out of E2000. And be warned - this son of spec is rapidly becoming the entry point for a PC with more than a six month shelf five. Contrast that against the E350 asking price for an Al 2D0 and you have a real incentive to look long and hard at your reasoning. There are almost as many reasons for investing in a computer as there are computers on the market. However, if you are in the market make sure you're buying the machine and not just the marketing that surrounds it_ By the way, this shouldn't be a problem on the Amiga, as there isn't any.. Paul Austin 3 Editor 1 1 IDG 1 - 1 For six years Amigo Compiling has been the leading I magazine for Amiga enthusiasts. As a key member of the IDG C0111011111K110001 Agroup, Amiga Computing promises to inform, educate and entertain its readers each month with the most dedicated coverage of the Amiga avaiLthie 12 use ittbscription i44.9P (UK), 14919 (EEC) 124,99 1Wortd) Ongoing torte* diva debit Li 0.99 (Ullenly) Pinled and bound by Duncan Webb Oftsel PAadsiono 1 Ltd
1111•1•11n- ol o m pacha age for lk. beginners & experts alike who wish to create back-up copies of original floppy disks speedily and easity. ried Anti Virus ssional is a n tool for g virus attacks. It features powerful early recogni- / tion of viruses and includes provimdative measures syst 6 0 1 1 e P P e c O p Off •••••=k . is the Discology disk. Discology Cartridge and a 36 page printed manual Features a cartridge backup mode for heavily protected disk (Requires the use of an external disk drivel Two Nibble modes for coping with protected IBM and Atari disks Sync Scan checks for unknown protection systems Recognition of long and short tracks Modem users can backup disks via a modem to another Amiga anywhere in the world Fuly multi-tasking, copies with high density disk etc Ful update service is available for registered users Discology comprises all the functions that are demanded horn a top quality back-up program. toce f p o -.Are ellla , 9 L 9 . 4 0 on any device iliard disk, floppy e t c . tracing of link and file viruses etc. Block Test to search for viruses at the block level of a device Automated unpacking of compressed programs for virus checking st Recognition of Boottlock Viruses with analysis Safeguards hard drives Rigid Disk Blocks Includes a comprehensive 50 page printed manual Ful update service to registered users Includes many more features. DISCOL nal k 09.99 fapiktast _ ot e . 4 , 9 ; 8 ••••••• _ s o _•••••' --••••••• FOR MAIL ORD No.l. FOR AMIGA MANCHESTER Order NOW for immediate despatch FREEPHONE 0500 340548 (creclit/swttch card sales only; tel: 0161 796 5279 for enquiries or fax: 0161 7 3208 nd cheques postal orders [made payable to Siren Software] or credit card I EN SOFTWARE, 178 BURY NEW RD, WHITEFIELD, MANCHESTER M45 64)1F, ENGLAND Mo Satu ar right thi The d s, Visa. Switch, Delta n e t c accepted - we m Please Vine first to check availability o y • s Bury. on the er the ts. premises is n t h e florists • pposite the Maso , b. uro me ONS: 6pm to 12pm
Page 1 and 2: 11141 Issue 96 • February • 199
Page 3 and 4: RAM EXPANSION I I POWER SCANNER I I
Page 5 and 6: HE COVERDISKS IMAGEVISIG.II DEMO Pr
Page 7: k f i t t i r g i n s t r - . R E E
Page 11 and 12: • C i t i e s B o u r d i n , H e
Page 13 and 14: 1 ProG aft' Supports all recent Anu
Page 15 and 16: ALIEN BREED 30 SIM CITY 2000 19.99
Page 17 and 18: You have read the review, now you c
Page 19 and 20: which is situated on the right of t
Page 21 and 22: Investing in AM I GA" Li Li Li Magi
Page 23 and 24: W u a ... nm rt . u., ; Video VIDI
Page 25 and 26: • IC 1 r - English map that comes
Page 27 and 28: n C ine ma s sce ne conta ins the t
Page 29 and 30: The IJK 9leading Light s Wave and A
Page 31 and 32: matically in the background and you
Page 33 and 34: lv NEW - UPDATED VERSION New Search
Page 35 and 36: I l e 1 7 7 CAMERA / 2 3 4 AM I GA
Page 37 and 38: 3 and I'm on the track of the I new
Page 39 and 40: In _ a nd fully te xture d bricks ,
Page 41 and 42: ELF HELP .ammi I have owned my Amig
Page 43 and 44: RRIOUS PACK COMMODORE C64 113 ZX SP
Page 45 and 46: 0 ISSING MMU I own an Amiga 4000/03
Page 47 and 48: GlIGP-ED V3 Produced by: Oliver Rob
Page 49 and 50: SCANNER FOR AMIGA 1200 TO 4000 COMP
Page 51 and 52: Turbocalc v2.1 • ( O M P R I C E
Page 53 and 54: A SSASSINS ULTIMATE GAMES 2 3 " M r
Page 55 and 56: The Power CD-ROM for the Amiga 600/
Page 57 and 58: Amiga Al200 Compute 2Mb RAM ik t
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w E A U T I F U L 'Id roe hive the
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HAT'S NEW PUSSY CAT? Tiot indeed. W
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ou could not but help notice the pr
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E i >( ta.; a) t • 2 00- a) o vt
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Emplant - Macintosh and PC emulatio
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n the beginning the earth cooled, t
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ne of the most common problems most
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THE WORLDIs FASTEST AMIGAS ARE ON T
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\HIGA BACK CATALlOGUE Ti FLIE6 AVAI
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Reviewed , OMIS The best game of 1
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yen more Doom s. I'm afraid so. Jus
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you'll like it... but not a lot...
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CD32 too! The joys of Worming are a
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Meanwhile the mad scientist demonst
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it2.7.VLL, E05.9Bilizmi.111 SEASON
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The backroom boys The programmer fo
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Manual read I'm not really the sort
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Take your pick from the many shops
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K e i g i t 'ojanaent Pun NIde(thIn
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t, Fit for anyone, The first thing
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1 The space track is by the far the
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" am', amig 9" guiaGUIDE " riigc gu
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1 FALCON per i or performance. Full
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Paul Overac delves beneath the surf
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Paul Overaa explains how AlRexxis d
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el Mohr thinks some people really d
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ank \ord shows u how to avoid ows i
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HI South shows you ow to emulate or
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Paul Overaa looks behind the scenes
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Steve White explains how you can ma
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• • • • • , 5 1 Gary Whit
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Paul Austin explores the on-line of
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41,0 041.5 "Breathless has boldly t
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Amiga Computing - Commodore Is Awesome

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