PUTTING IT ON PAPER

A Quick look at three Communications Books...

Alan Giles' Spectrum Micronet Book, published by Melbourne House for £6.95 has to be the definitive work on the VTX500 modem and Prestel. It is more of a technical manual than a readable introduction to on-line communications with a Spectrum, however.

It's an odd sort of book - annoyingly all the zeros have a slash through them, just like someone thought a proper computer book should have. And it has to win the 'Gumbo Fatgut Daftest Proofreading Error of the Decade' award for the boo-boo that crops upon page 6.

Page 6 contains four diagrams, and across the top of the page a message to the book printers art department appears: 'ART DELETE THE WORDS (side view) IN TOP HEADING'. Art read this messaqe, deleted the words 'side view', which duly didn't appear in the top heading, and then left the message asking for the deletion on the page. Tee Hee - how silly!

Despite its title, The Micronet Book isn't really all about Micronet, and if you bought it under the impression it would explain from scratch what Micronet is all about you might be a little disappointed. As the definitive guide to the possibilities of the VTX5000 modem, however, it can't be beaten in terms of technical content. Not really for beginners, but ideal for anyone who wants to get into their VTX5000, understand it and its relationship with Prestel fully, and alter the way it ticks.

CALLING ALL MODEM USERS

Price: £6.95
Publisher: Melbourne House

If you have ever had the urge to buy a modem and plug into Micronet, or want to know about getting around the network, then Micronet Book, by Alan Giles, is for you.

A complete rundown of the modem hardware and what you need to run it is given first, followed by an introduction to the Prestel databases and how to go through them to the Micronet information and telesoftware systems.

One of the most useful aspects of the book is how to convert functions of the VTX 5000 modem, which you need to make your Spectrum compatible with Prestel codes, in order that they work with Interface One and microdrives. That means screen pages of information can be downloaded from the system onto microdrive. Those screens can then be called up quickly without having to wade through reams of paper or find a particular screen on cassette tape.

Micronet Book, from Melbourne House, is a novel idea which has been well executed. A lot of information has been packed into such a small volume and no Micronet user should be without it.