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Sound Blaster Digest 15
SOUND BLASTER DIGEST
Number 15
February 1992 Edition.
A newsletter for Sound Blaster Enthusiasts.
Edited and Published by Brad Barclay.
Assistant Editors: Todd Clayton and Karen O'Hearn.
Made possible by the contributions of Sound Blaster users.
/\
____________________________ / \/\
\ / \ ________________________________
\ / \ /
\/ \ /
\/
TABLE OF CONTENTS
=================
Title: Page:
----- ----
From the Desk of the Editor...............1
From the Desk of the Assistant Editor.....3
The Rumour that Flew......................4
Subscriptions.............................5
Shareware Review: Mod Play ver 2.10.......6
Advertisements............................8
Shareware Review: Pro Mod ver 1.0.........9
Readers Survey: 1991 Results.............10
Official Readers Survey Draw.............11
Next Month...............................12
Included Files...........................12
Wrapping it Up...........................13
FORMS
=====
Subscription Form........................14
SBD Demo Tape Order Form.................15
Advertisement Order Form.................16
SBD Registered BBS Form..................17
The Sound Blaster Digest (SBD) Copyright (c) 1992 Brad Barclay.
You may freely distribute this file, and all included files, to
whomever you wish, so long that it is not for profit, and that all
files are kept together. The use of the SBD, in whole or in part,
for any other purpose is a criminal offence, and is punishable by
law. This is not Public Domain text, nor is it Shareware. The SBD
is a free publication, distributed monthly. If you have any
questions or comments about our Copyright, or any part of the SBD,
please feel free to write to us at the address listed near the end
of this text, or call us at (416) 846-5599 between 18:00 and 23:00
Eastern Standard Time.
Page 1
FROM THE EDITORS DESK
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Welcome to another edition of the SOUND BLASTER DIGEST. This
is going to be one busy month for us here at the SBD, but one which
will benefit you, the reader, in the end.
First off, we will be getting our AT upgrade next weekend,
for increased power and speed. Secondly, and also in this first
week of February, we will be receiving the MultiMedia Upgrade Kit
(MMUK) from our friends at Creative Labs. This kit includes the
Sound Blaster Pro and all software you get with the regular SB
Pro, the MIDI interface kit and software (which also comes with
the SB Pro), a CD ROM drive and connector for connecting it to
both your computer and your Sound Blaster Pro, and finally 5 CD ROM
diskettes in which to use with the drive and the SB Pro. We will
be crash testing it all this month so we may review at least the
bulk of it for the March issue.
Also this month, we move into our new office, and along with
this move, we will be getting a new telephone number for you to
use. As this will probably happen before our next issue, we will
continue to take calls on the number listed in this and all
previous issues. The new line will include a 24 hour answering
machine, a modem connection (you'll still have to call voice to
arrange for a modem link, but if you're that desperate, you should
call the SBD Support BBS, listed later in this issue).
But not everything this month is as encouraging as this. The
world's largest dedicated Sound Blaster BBS has gone down,
permanently. The Musical Chair is no longer available. We here
at the SBD has thus taken out their telephone number from our
Registered BBS's list. By the time you read this the TMC's old
telephone number may have been assigned to someone else, so please
do not try and call: you won't get an answer (or at least not one
you'd expect).
We here at the SBD gratefully thank the Sysop of The Musical
Chair, Jeff Woods, for all his time and dedication he has put into
the Sound Blaster world, and he will be sorely missed. More about
the demise of The Chair from Todd in our next article.
Page 2
To help replace the Musical Chair, we here at the SBD will be
purchasing the CD ROM disc (provided everything works smoothly with
the drive, of course) entitled "The Compleat TMC", which you have
undoubtedly seen advertised here if you have read the SBD before.
This disc contains 600 Megs of Shareware, music, and public domain
files. Now as the CD ROM drive will not be attached to our system
running the Support BBS, readers will not have access to this disc
directly through us. But we are going to make available to the
Support BBS's users files contained on the disc, both upon request,
and randomly every few days.
Also, we are going to upload the SBD every month to the STAR-
LINK NETWORK BBS, which is located in New York, USA. They are a
very good, and very large system in general, with a lot of Sound
Blaster support. They are also a well respected advertiser here at
the SBD, so they are a BBS you can trust. See their ad in this
issue for more details on what their system has to offer.
Anyways, on with the news and reviews for this month's SBD:
this issue, we will present the results to our first Readers
Survey: you'll be able to read here first hand what other Sound
Blaster users from around the world have to say on the topics of
their favourite Sound Blaster software of the past year, their
favourite column in the SBD, and other categories. The results are
interesting to say the least. It seems that many people didn't
notice that it said on the form "Favourite *SB* Software", where
others ignored "Only one choice per category". Perhaps we were not
perfectly clear as to our intentions, or perhaps these people didn't
bother to read the form carefully.
One honour we received in the survey was that some people
actually chose this section as their favourite part of the SBD.
I'm glad that my little chat column is appreciated and enjoyed.
Anyways, to start this months issue, here's Todd, just after
this paid commercial advertisement...
Page 3
ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿
³ You Are Invited To Call: STAR-LINK NETWORK BBS - (718) 972-6099 ³
ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´
³ Multi-Line Access (9 Access Lines - 15 Coming Soon) ³
³ 3/12/24/9600/14.4K Baud Support (V32/V42/MNP5/HST/HAYES) ³
³ 3.0 Gigabytes of On-line Storage (3000 Megabytes) ³
³ More then 80,000 Files for Your PC, AT, PS/1 & PS/2 to Download ³
³ On-Line CD-ROM w/Complete PC-SIG Program Library (1400 Disks Worth) ³
³ 165 Active Conferences Areas - Member of ILink International Echo ³
³ On-line Edition of USA TODAY Newspaper - CB Simulator - 24 Hour FAX ³
³ 60 On-line Doors - Running On FAST LAN - PC Pursuit - Subscriptions ³
ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´
³ STAR-LINK NETWORK BBS has been featured in such publications as ³
³ Personal Computing, Computer Shopper, PC Computing and PC Magazine. ³
ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Dial (718) 972-6099 ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
An Official SBD Distribution Site.
--------------------
FROM THE DESK OF THE ASSISTANT EDITOR
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
By Todd Clayton.
Gee, it seems like it's been forever since I started out
writing here... And it also seems like it's been forever since I
wrote about anything besides the Support BBS. Well, not to break a
current record, I've decided to ramble on again, simply because we
do have a few announcements.
First off, simply the best Sound Blaster BBS in the world has
gone offline. Yes, sadly enough THE MUSICAL CHAIR has gone kaput.
Why would a BBS online since 1989 just die? Well, in the words of
the BBS's sysop, Jeff Woods, when a BBS isn't fun to run anymore,
it's not worth having up. So that leaves me picking up the slack
and trying to support the Sound Blaster world from my limited
system. No 38.4K dual standards here. No 2+ gigabytes of memory.
Oh well, it could be worse...
Next on the agenda is a bit more information about the
addition to the subscription for the special "Gold" access level on
the SBD Support BBS. A lot of people have asked me for specifics,
and I've done the best I can. After talking it over with Brad,
we've come up with this: For your extra $5, your daily access time
is upped from 45mins/day to 1hour/day. You get a total of 100 file
points to play with (plus whatever you upload) and a better
post/call ratio up/down ratio etc... Now after you've exhausted
that supply, then you can go on to send an additional $5 (or $10 or
$15 or $20.. whatever) and we'll give you another 100 file points.
Page 4
One little note here though, to get the initial 100 file
points, YOU MUST BE A SUBSCRIBER TO THE SBD! A small thing to ask,
but beneficial to us all... Until next month!
--------------------
ÄÄÄ¿ÄÄÄ¿Ä¿Ä¿ÄÄÄ¿Ä¿ÄÄÄ¿ÄÄÄ¿Ä¿ ÄÄÄ¿ÄÄÄ¿ÄÄÄÄÄ¿ÄÄÄ¿ÄÄÄÄ¿
ÄÄ¿ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ À ³ ³ À ³ ÄÄ¿ÄÄ ÚÄÙ Ä¿ À ³
ÄÄ ³ À ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ À ³ ÀÄ¿ ³ ³ÄÄ ³ ³ ÄÄ¿ ³ À¿
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ÜÜÜÜ ÜÜ ÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÜßßßÜßÜÜßÛÛÄÜÜßßÜßÜßßÛßÜßÜÄÛÛßÛÛÄßßßßÛßßÜßÄÄÄÄÄ
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÛÛÄÄÛÛÄßÛÛÄÛÛÄÄÄßÄÄÛßÜÄßÄÄßßÜßÄÄÄÄÛÛÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÛÛÄÄÛÛÄÄÛÛÄÛÛÄÜÜßÜÄÛÛÄÄÄÄÄÄÄßßÜÄÄÛÛÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÜßÜÜßÄÄÄÛÛÄÜßÜÄÜÜßÄÜßÜÄÛÛÄÛÛÄÛÛÄÄÄÛÛÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÜÜÜßÄÄÄÄÄßÜßÄßÜÜßÄÄÄÄßÜÜßÄÄßÜÜßÄÄÄÄßÜßÄBBSÄÄÄÄÄ
°±²°±² Providing The Very BEST In Soundblaster Support ²±°²±°
°±²°±² ù84o 2485ù ²±°²±° °±²°±² ùFREEù ²±°²±°
°±²°±² ù3oo-24ooBaudù ²±°²±° °±²°±² ùANSI/ASCIIù ²±°²±°
°±²°±² ù6o Megabytesù ²±°²±° °±²°±² SysOp: ²±°²±°
°±²°±² ù24 Hoursù ²±°²±° °±²°±² ùTodd Claytonù ²±°²±°
*THE* Official SBD Distribution Site!
--------------------
THE RUMOUR THAT FLEW:
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
By Brad Barclay
For a few months now, at least since the Sound Blaster Pro
card was released, rumours have flew about a new and improved Sound
Blaster Pro. This has many users confused as to whether they should
buy their Pro cards now, wait for something new to come out, or
perhaps buy another music system card. To help clear up some of
the confusion, I interviewed Mr. Goh at Creative Labs.
According to Mr. Goh, Creative Labs must continue to develop
its products to be able to keep them at a reasonable cost while
providing the best possible quality and performance. He wasn't
specific about any planned advances, only that Creative Labs is
researching the possibilities for the future, both near and
distant.
Page 5
Although Mr. Goh was vague about any future Sound Blaster
revisions, he promised me that Creative Labs will continue to keep
downward compatibility with all their products. Thus, if they
introduced some new technology to be better than the competition,
you will still be able to use all your old Sound Blaster software:
something which many of the competitor's improved cards can't do.
So should one buy their Sound Blaster Pro cards now, or should
they wait for something better to come along? Upon being asked
this question, Mr. Goh gave the analogy of whether one should buy a
33Mhz 80486 system now, or wait for something newer, faster, and
better. And he does have a point: we all gamble when we buy any
computer equipment: something better could be announced two months
after we buy anything. It's the nature of the advancement of
technology. Will there be an upgraded version of the SB Pro card?
Unless Creative Labs goes bankrupt anytime soon (which is highly
unlikely seeing how the Sound Blaster is the IBM standard in the
sound card business), the answer is definitely yes. When will this
be, and what changes will be made? Who can say? Do you think
you'll still be using a 33 Mhz 386 in ten years? Perhaps you'll be
like me (I still own an 8Mhz XT system at this time, to be upgraded
to a 286 machine in one short week) and you will be using a 386
machine, but with the technology that will probably be around then,
we may be looking at 586 and 686's as being the standard.
The best thing to do is to take a look at what applications
you need, and when you need them done. If you need good sound
quality for a really good price, the Sound Blaster Pro is the way
to go. Even if something new does come out in even such a short
time as 2 months, the Sound Blaster Pro you buy today will be a
very, very long way from being obsolete: it will more likely be
the standard.
--------------------
SUBSCRIPTIONS:
=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Having a hard time finding the newest copy of the SBD on your
favourite local BBS? Why not consider a SBD subscription? A
subscription entitles you to 12 great issues, one a month, packed
full of SB and SB Pro news and reviews. Subscribers also get
special bonus files not available anywhere else, plus special
offers on software and support! Nowhere else can you find this
sort of deal for your Sound Blaster needs.
Simply fill out the attached form, and enclose the required
amount...it's that easy!
Page 6
ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿
³ ÞÝ Furthur Microcomputers ³ Sound Blaster ³$ 145 ³
³ ÞÞ 63-203 Queen Street ³ Sound Blaster Pro ³ 242 ³
³ Þ Ý Guelph, Ontario. N1E 4R9 ³ ATi Stereo F/X with speakers ³ 152 ³
³ ÜÜÜÞ Voice: 519-837-3782 ³ 1.44M floppy with 5¬" adapter³ 65 ³
³ ÛÛÛÛÛ Fax: (call voice first) ³ Husky 2400 modem int/ext ³ 67/82 ³
³ ßßß Fidonet: 1:221/218 ³ Husky 9600 SendFax int/ext ³ 97/102 ³
³ ³ Husky 9600 Fax int/ext ³125/141 ³
³ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ Husky 2400 v.42bis MNP5 ³ 148 ³
³ ³ þ Most anything available cheap ³ ³ Husky 9600 v.32 turbo 12000 ³ 400 ³
³ ³ just call! GST# R130970585 ³ ³ 286-16 (no HD or video) ³ 435 ³
³ ³ þ Prices do not include taxes ³ ³ 386sx-16 ³ 547 ³
³ ³ þ All prices in Canadian funds ³ ³ 386sx-25 ³ 616 ³
³ ³ þ Shipment available anywhere ³ ³ 386-25 ³ 724 ³
³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ³ 386-25 32k cache ³ 757 ³
³ Also: Hard drives, video, archival, ³ 386-33 128k cache ³ 856 ³
³ UPS, memory, faxs, copiers, cables, ³ 386-40 128k cache ³ 894 ³
³ testers, adapters, laptops, mice, ³ 486-25 64k ³ 1098 ³
³ printers, scanners, all low markup! ³ 486-33 256k ³ 1362 ³
ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÁÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÁÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ
--------------------
SHAREWARE REVIEW: MOD PLAY VER 2.10
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
By Boris Sheikman
--Mod Play v2.10 by Mark J. Cox
[-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10]
==Ease of Use *********************
==Graphics *****************
==Sound Blaster *********************
==SB-Pro Support
Well, he's done it again! Mark J. Cox has released yet another
1st class Sound/Noise/Pro Tracker player. This version is the best
so far!
Page 7
If you've used Mod Play before you probably already know the
ease of use. There is a mode in Mod Play called Interactive Mode,
which is activated by the /I switch. This will display all of the
.MOD files in the current directory. There is a highlighted bar
that moves up and down through as many screens of .MOD files
as you have. Just highlight the .MOD you wish to play, and boom!
It plays. There is also some mouse support. By loading your
mouse driver, a little cursor appears that is controlled by the
mouse. You may move through all your screens of .MOD files by
clicking on the little up and down arrows at the top of the pages.
Once you play a .MOD, you may press the F1 key and get a short and
very concise Help screen that will tell you how to activate all of
the features. Some new features here is a *Real* spectrum
analyzer. I don't know what Mark means by that (I'm only a
freshman!), but I'm sure you'll be impressed by its 8 bands! You
may also have a text scroll showing the 4 channels and the notes
that are being played. This feature usually comes very close to
locking up my 386SX-16.
The music starts playing very slowly, but you can still quit
and activate other features.
In the next version Mark stated that he will incorporate Sound
Blaster Pro support which he said will sound just like the Amiga!
I can't wait! He also added that there will be Adlib Gold support,
yet I doubt that because the Adlib Gold cards are not out yet to my
knowledge.
All in all, this is a great program and a must for all Sound
Blaster users.
Page 8
ADVERTISEMENTS:
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Do you run a BBS? Have you written a piece of software? Do
you write custom music? If so, you may be interested in an
advertisement in the SBD. Thousands of SOUND BLASTER users read
the SBD every month, and many even have it delivered right to
their door. So if you give some sort of special support to those
people who use the SOUND BLASTER, advertising in the SBD would be
the logical choice!
Here's a list of our rates, effective January 1st 1992:
Number of lines: Cost:
--------------- ----
0 - 10 $3 / Month
11 - 30 $5 / Month
31 - 40 $10 / Month
41 - 50 $15 / Month
Lines are limited to a maximum of 80 columns. All costs are
in Canadian dollars.
--------------------
þþþ Welcome to the SuperSONIC Sound System þþþ
ÚÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÂÄÄÄÄÄ¿
³°±²Û°³ °°°±±±²²²ÛÛÛÛÛ Premiere Sound Base ÛÛÛÛÛ²²²±±±°°° ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Ü ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Ü ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜ ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Û Ü ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÛÜÜÜÜÜÛ Ûß ß ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛ ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÛ ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÛ ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÛÞÞÞÞ ÛÝÝÝÝÛÛÛ ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Û ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜÜ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Û Û ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Û Û ÛÛÛÛ ÜÜÜ ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛ ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÛ Û Û ÜÜÛÜÜÜÜ ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Û ÛÛÛ ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ Sound and Optics Net for IBM Computers. Wave Zone ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ °°°±±±²²²ÛÛÛÛÛ 416-225-8942 Tor.ON ÛÛÛÛÛ²²²±±±°°° ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°ÃÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ SuperSONIC BBS. SysOp: Brian & Brent Bourne. S ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ SoundBlaster Digest Distribution Site. O ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ Technical and Other support for the SB/ADLIB. N ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ Fido Net: 1:250/722 Home of the SONIC NET. I ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ 700+ ROL Songs. Online RPGS. 19200 bps! C ³°Û²±°³
³°±²Û°³ Growing selection of MOD/STM files. . ³°Û²±°³
ÃÄÄÄÄÄÅÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ´ÄÄÄÄÄ´
³°±²ÛÛ³ Ü Ü Ü ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Ü Ü ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ³ÛÛ²±°³
³°±²ÛÛ³ Û Û Û ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛ Û Û ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ³ÛÛ²±°³
³°±²ÛÛ³ ÛÜÜÜÛÜÜÜÛ Û Û ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜß ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Z O N E. ³ÛÛ²±°³
ÀÄÄÄÄÄÁÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÁÄÄÄÄÄÙ
Link your Modem Tracks with us and Hear the Superior Sound
Page 9
SHAREWARE REVIEW: PRO MOD VER 1.0
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
By Boris Sheikman
[-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10]
==Ease of Use *********************
==Graphics
==Sound Blaster *********************
==SB-Pro Support *********************
It's been done! A *Stereo* .MOD player that's under 6k!
Yes, it's true. A stereo .MOD player for the Sound Blaster
Pro has been made by David Lopez, and Angel Trigo. This program
(under 6k) will take any Sound/Noise Tracker file and play it in
stereophonic quality.
The use of the program is quite simple. You must type in the
name of the .MOD (i.e. PROMOD STARWARS). No extension is needed.
Once you load a .MOD, a screen pops up split in half. On the left
half you see the instruments and on the right half you see the
progress of the playing. You may use the arrow keys
to scroll back and forth between the tracks very smoothly unlike
TrakBlaster in a few situations. One the top left hand part of the
screen you see the title ("Titulo: ") of the .MOD, and below that,
you see the total number of tracks in a hexadecimal unit, which to
some is annoying.
The program uses no true graphics. It does however display
some text graphics using colours and characters.
In short, this program is start of a great blossoming field
of music. This what Creative Labs *should* have given the Sound
Blaster Pro owners, instead of that (in my opinion), lame Tetra
Demo Player.
--------------------
Editor's Note: As the author of this review has stated, the
version of Tetra that comes with the Sound Blaster
Pro is only a demo, and not a fully working copy.
And although I do agree with the reviewer as to the
Tetra Demo's quality and use, one can't expect to
get everything with the Sound Blaster Pro. Thus, if
you too are dismayed as to the quality of the Tetra
demo, but can't afford the actual version, try this
Shareware. Unlike the Tetra Compositor, you can't
use this Shareware on an XT machine.
Page 10
READERS SURVEY: 1991 RESULTS
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
By Karen O'Hearn, Assistant Editor.
The results are in! During the past few weeks I have assisted
Brad in tallying up the votes from Readers Surveys that were sent
to us at the SBD, and here is what we found:
Wing Commander received the most votes for the best commercial
software of 1991, followed closely by its sequel, Wing Commander 2.
Others that were represented in this category were the Tetra
Compositor, Prince of Persia, Leisure Suit Larry 5, Red Baron,
Kings' Quest 5, Secret of Monkey Island, Eye of the Beholder, Rise
of the Dragon, The Manhole, Space Quest 4, and a couple others. Of
course in both the Commercial Software and the Shareware Software
categories the software voted for had to have Sound Blaster support
in order to included in our survey results.
As for the favourite shareware of 1991, the one that received
the most votes was TrakBlaster. Blaster Master was a close
second, followed by Much Music. Also given a respectable showing
were Dark Ages, Jumpman, Sputter, Drum Blaster, Mod Play, Scream
Tracker, Music Master, Commander Keen, ProMod and others.
Another category was the reader's favourite column of the SBD.
A few were noncommittal and said they liked every column, or said
that they had no favourite (the difference between optimists and
pessimists I suppose!). Of those that expressed a preference, the
columns that were the runaway hit were the SBD's reviews. Many
never got more specific than just plain "reviews", but some people
voted for columns such as the Commercial Software reviews, the
Shareware reviews, and the Hardware Reviews. Since reviews are so
well liked we will try to be accommodating and include as many as
we can in future issues. You can help us out in this endeavour by
writing and sending us your own reviews of Sound Blaster supported
software and hardware.
The survey also asked the question "Will you continue to read
the SBD?" Everybody that answered this question said "Yes!"
although there were two conditional responses such as only if the
magazine continues to be of the same quality. It made us feel
quite popular to receive so many positive responses, yet as I
pointed out to the editor, people who think that the magazine is
not worth reading every month would not bother to send in the
readers survey in the first place! Well we got our answers
anyways.
Page 11
This is also the month that you will find out if you are one
of the SBD's prizewinners! All of the people who sent in reader's
surveys have been included in our draw this month. The names of
the readers who have won are posted below.
--------------------
OFFICIAL READERS SURVEY DRAW:
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Okay fellow Sound Blaster users, this is the moment you have
all been waiting for. If you sent in your Readers Survey form
before January 1st, 1992 then you have been automatically entered
into our special draw. The prizes are as follows:
Grand Prize: A 1 Year free Subscription to the SBD
Runner-up Prizes: 1 of 5 free copies of "The SBD Demo Tape",
or 1 of 4 free copies of the "Best of the
SBD"
And here are our winners:
Winners of copies of "The SBD Demo Tape":
R.J. Utley of Gaithersburg, Maryland
Kevin Enga of Valley Springs, South Dakota
Shane Ross of Anaheim, California
A.N. Bamford of Calgary, Alberta
James Chow of Gloucester, Ontario
Winners of copies of "The Best of the SBD":
Tom Dennison of Hackettstown, New Jersey
Chris Lebeck of Dallas, Texas
David Mackowski of Milwaukee, Wisconsin
S. Wenings of Donkerbroek, The Netherlands
And now, for our Grand Prize Winner, for an entire year of the
SBD for free (Drum roll please):
S. Itscovich of Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Congratulations to all of our winners!
Page 12
NEXT MONTH:
=-=-=-=-=-=
Next month's SBD should prove to be one of our best issues
yet! In March, we will give our review of Creative Labs MultiMedia
Upgrade Kit, information on both the MIDI and CD-ROM aspects of the
Sound Blaster and Sound Blaster Pro, news and reviews, and much
more of what you expect from the SBD. So tune in next month!
--------------------
INCLUDED FILES:
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
This month's included files are:
PHANTOM.CMF "Phantom of The Opera", as
transcribed by Kim O'Hearn.
OSSFM2.VOC First words said on the
moon (Subscribers Only).
Page 13
WRAPPING IT UP:
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Well, that's it for yet another edition of the SBD. This
issue was one heck of a lot of work, as right in the middle of
working on it we had system upgrades. Thus the first part of this
issue was written on an 8Mhz XT with a Sound Blaster Pro, 30Mb Hard
disk drive, and EGA, whereas the last half was written on a 20Mhz-
286 machine with a 52Mb Hard disk drive, Sound Blaster Pro with
MIDI interface kit, CD-ROM drive, and Super VGA.
Just as a preview of next month's edition, our new system
(which fully complies with Microsoft's MultiMedia PC standards),
has to be every Sound Blaster enthusiast's dream. Many thanks to
Mr. Goh at Creative Labs for providing the equipment for us to
review, and for the exclusive interview he gave us.
Also many thanks to all those who sent in their readers
surveys: your responses will help us improve the SBD over the next
year.
Also, a great thanks goes out to our Assistant Editor Todd
Clayton for his brave and cunning escape from Hard Disk drive (And
Support BBS) Purgatory.
Also, on behalf of everyone here at the SBD, many thanks go
out to Jeff Woods, the Sysop of the now defunct "Musical Chair".
his presence was partly responsible for the starting to the SBD,
and his BBS will be sorely missed. Best of luck in your new
endeavours, Jeff.
And finally, many thanks go out to Karen O'Hearn, who has had
her first ever article in this month's SBD. I thought she did an
excellent job, and I'll have to con her into doing more articles
for us soon.
Thanks for reading the SBD!
Page 14
SOUND BLASTER DIGEST SUBSCRIPTION FORM
======================================
Please enclose a cheque or money order (sorry, I don't accept
any major or minor credit cards) for $30 CDN for Canadian orders,
or $30 US for American orders. Overseas enclose $40 Canadian
funds, payable on a Canadian bank. Please fill out all the
spaces provided (except where marked optional), and mail it to
the address below. MAKE CHEQUE/MONEY ORDER PAYABLE TO BRAD
BARCLAY!
NAME:_____________________________
MAILING ADDRESS: Street address:_____________________________
City, Province/State:_______________________
Country, Postal/ZIP Code:___________________
PHONE NUMBER (don't forget the area code!):___________________
DISKETTE TYPE: (check one):
_ _
[_] 5.25" [_] 3.5"
BBS REGISTRATION:
By adding $5 to your cheque or money order and checking this box,
we will give you special upgraded access to the SBD Support BBS!
_
[_] Please give me your "Gold" Access Level on the SBD
Support BBS! Please make my password as follows:
Password:__________________________________
COMMENTS: Please fill this out also!
How would you rate THE SOUND BLASTER DIGEST (circle one):
POOR FAIR GOOD EXCELLENT
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Please mail this form, along with any additional comments to:
SOUND BLASTER DIGEST
c/o Brad Barclay
36 Sutter ave.
Brampton, Ontario
CANADA. L6Z 1G7
Page 15
ORDER FORM: THE SOUND BLASTER DIGEST DEMO TAPE
===============================================
Please enclose a cheque or money order (sorry, I don't accept
any major or minor credit cards) for $7.50 CDN for Canadian
orders, or $7.50 US for American orders. Overseas enclose $10
Canadian funds, payable on a Canadian bank. Please fill out all
the spaces provided (except where marked optional), and mail it to
the address below. MAKE CHEQUE/MONEY ORDER PAYABLE TO BRAD
BARCLAY!
NAME:_____________________________
MAILING ADDRESS: Street address:_____________________________
City, Province/State:_______________________
Country, Postal/ZIP Code:___________________
PHONE NUMBER (don't forget the area code!):___________________
DISKETTE TYPE: (check one):
_ _
<_> 5.25" <_> 3.5"
MUSIC FORMAT: In which Sound Blaster music file format are you
the most interested? (Circle all of interest).
.CMF .JMP .MID .MOD .NST .ORG .ROL .VOC
Please mail this form, along with any additional comments to:
SOUND BLASTER DIGEST
c/o Brad Barclay
36 Sutter ave.
Brampton, Ontario
CANADA. L6Z 1G7
Page 16
SOUND BLASTER DIGEST ADVERTISEMENT ORDER FORM
=============================================
Please fill out this form, and mail it, along with a cheque for
the correct amount (in US funds for American orders, and in
Canadian funds for Canadian orders), along with an ASCII only,
typed copy of your ad, and mail it to the address below. PLEASE
MAKE CHEQUE/MONEY ORDER PAYABLE TO BRAD BARCLAY!
NAME:_____________________________
MAILING ADDRESS: Street address:_____________________________
City, Province/State:_______________________
Country, Postal/ZIP Code:___________________
PHONE NUMBER (don't forget the area code!):___________________
BEST TIMES AVAILABLE:_________________________________________
Please mail this form, along with your cheque and a copy of the
ad as described above, along with any other comments to:
SOUND BLASTER DIGEST
c/o Brad Barclay
36 Sutter ave.
Brampton, Ontario
CANADA. L6Z 1G7
Page 17
SOUND BLASTER DIGEST BBS REGISTRATION
=====================================
This is a free service of THE SOUND BLASTER DIGEST, intended to
allow greater access to Sound Blaster files. Please fill out all
blanks (except where marked optional), and send to the address
below:
LIST INFORMATION:
Name of BBS:____________________________________________
Sysop's Name:___________________________________________
City, Province/State:___________________________________
Phone Number (remember the area code!):_________________
Min/Max Transmission speed:_____________________________
OTHER INFORMATION:
Although not included in the BBS listing, this information is
important for our records.
How long has the BBS been running:_________________________
Do you have a Music/Sound Card conference, message area, or
file area set aside?:______________________________________
Does your BBS support and Sound Blaster files?:____________
Anything else you can think of to say that would show off your
BBS, please write it down here:
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Mail this form, along with any extra comments to:
SOUND BLASTER DIGEST
c/o Brad Barclay
36 Sutter Ave.
Brampton, Ontario
CANADA. L6Z 1G7
