Amstrad User Group

Nederlandstalig

Add-ons and other peripherals

A monster of a PCW: not really visible from the outside, but on the inside... This converted 8256 has a total of 1 megabytes memory and the Z80 processor runs on 8 rather than 4 megahertz.

Next to it (to the right on the photograph) is a 3.5" disc drive as well as a 5.25" disc drive, switchable as designation B/A plus a serial RS232 and a parallel Centronics port on the back (not visible in the photograph). An impressive computer! The 5.25" drive has it's own power supply that also powers the 3.5" drive: a wise precaution when more conversions and/or add-ons are used on a PCW. A 5.25" disc drive always requires an additional power supply, an economic 3.5" drive could still be powered by the internal power supply of the PCW, although you will see the machine suffering when you hit the key stroke [EXTRA]+[PTR] to create a graphics dump... The internal power supply is just strong enough to take care of all required voltages (5, 12 and 24 volts) in the machine.

Straight on to the graphics area: the Create Technology ProScanner. A 400 dpi hand scanner for stand-alone use with the most common desktop publishing or drawing and graphics programs. Or, alternatively, it can be integrated in the well known MicroDesign (version II or III) programs from the same manufacturer.

As a true add-on interface, the ProScanner is fitted to the back of the PCW, on the expansion port. Fortunately, this device has a break-through connector (visible in the photograph). This is important because one of the many strong points of MicroDesign/ProScanner is the support of external printers up to a resolution of 600 dpi. I use an Epson EPL 7000 with lots of memory, which creates pretty graphics!. But nowadays I deal with graphics only on a PC (using a flatbed scanner) and export them to a suitable format for the PCW (usually BMP on the PC and MDA on the PCW, the format of MicroDesign). Scans made by a hand scanner are usually not as good as ones scanned by a flatbed and a flatbed is much faster in operation too.

The MasterScan, shown on the left, was the scanner that was replaced as the best when it comes to PCW graphics by the ProScanner (discussed above). The lower resolution of 300 dots per inch is not the real issue but the device does have other disadvantages: the head is supposed to be mounted on the bar of the PCW dot matrix printer: this immediately limits the use to the 8256, 8512, 9256 and 10 models. The other models are not accompanied by a dot matrix printer, so...

Besides, with a type like this (known as a roll bed scanner) you can only use materials that can be fed into the printer. So, it is not suitable for carton, thick paper or anything 3D!

Another limitation is the software that comes with it: from the printer-based operation you would have guessed that A4 would have been the maximum size of the scan. However, the scanner stores the output in screen format. And, although with 32x90 bigger than most computers, it still allows only for small graphics! To conclude matters, the Masterscan is an interface without a break-through connector: you cannot attach another interface to it's back.

Another graphics add-on, a Hegotron Robotics Grafpad II tablet. Often in the computer industry, a no model 1 is unknown but I recently (December 2006) learned that the Grafpad (without the addition of a model number, making you believe it is model 1) was produced for, amongst others, the PC 1512 and 1640. That would (more than) indicate that it actually is a later model...

This graphics tablet is dedicated to the PCW and can, besides the usual drawing and design capabilities, also replace the keyboard action. Not with LocoScript, though, only under CP/M: a nice gadget but the real use is technical design of electrical diagrams and printed circuit boards (PCB's).

A definite minus is the type of connector used: apparently this is based on a model for another type of computer and the connection between the expansion port of the PCW and the Grafpad II is not very solid (to make an understatement).

This is dangerous because a PCW can be damaged (beyond repair) when an add-on is removed or disconnected by accident while in operation! The break-through connector on the back does not fit on any PCW-type of add-on I know off and the use is not clear to me. This tablet is not very common and, as far as I know, the manufacturer did not produce other add-ons for the PCW.

The lightpen from Electric Light Studio. This manufacturer also produced the Fleetstreet NewsDesk International desktop publishing program, a bit outdated program (by now) that is outclassed by at least three other desktop publishers (DTP, StopPress and MicroDesign).

Their light pen, however, has not lost it's touch and the operation is easier and smoother than the Grafpad II's is. The connection of the device certainly is more solid and the break-through connector allows to the connection of another interface. Support (drivers) however is restricted and not universal: a driver for use with the GSX graphics extension system would have been nice, for instance.

Electric Light Studio also marketed a video digitiser and I should still have it, lying around somewhere. I used it quite often, years back, when I did not use the PC as an intermediary for graphics, scans and video-grabs yet. I hooked it to a Betamax videorecorder but the device was not very good at converting colour grabs to black-and-white.

The AMX-mouse, featuring three buttons, is one of several produced for the PCW. Along with the Kempston mouse with two buttons this is the most common and well supported by games and drawing programs on the PCW. Another well known mouse product is the German Gerdes company, who also manufactured a universal interface for mouse and joystick. The AMX has a break-through connector for fitting a second interface on the Joyce.

Creative Technology also produced a mouse for the PCW, the KeyMouse which intercepted the signals directly from the keyboard and therefore does not require special drivers or support. This mouse was put on the market relatively late and (unfortunately) not released in The Netherlands. It is one of the best. Several magazines published do-it-yourself diagrams so that you could use a standard mouse or a joystick this way. I used a joystick to complete the game Starglider this way. See the do-it-yourself section. This can be applied for a mouse as well and this has the great advantage that you do not require software drivers or program support. As long as the game, or program, controls the operation using the arrow keys you can use it (and, if not, you can usually patch the operation using the SETKEYS utility).

The LocoLink parallel cable that allows communication between a PCW and PC. The program that is supplied (nb: there are two versions around) connects the entire PCW as drive Z to a PC in a kind of a network and you can thus exchange files.

With this early version this is one-way traffic only: the LocoScript PC (which usually comes with the package) files can be send to the PCW but this has to be done using ASCII. On the other end, the LocoFile databases from the PCW have to be 'squashed' before they can be used on the PC version of LocoScript.

The new versions of LocoLink and Locoscript for Windows (called Script Professional) and LocoScript PCW as from version 2.50 allow for communication in both ways.

This (older) version of LocoLink is not very suitable for mass-conversion. The parallel cable is faster than a serial connection, true, and more useful than the conversion of discs, but the operation of the PC software is somewhat clumsy. One has to open each (LocoScript PCW) file individually in LocoScript PC (Easy) and then save into the LocoScript PC format. After that conversion you can convert the files to Word or WordPerfect. The individual actions of opening and saving per file would not be necessary anyway and the process should really support Richmond Text Format (RTF). But the real issue is the lack of a mass-conversion process to Word or WordPerfect: LocoMotive automatically assumes that you will start to use LocoScript PC and not just use it for conversion purposes... I have not seen the new version as there are other options (in the form of AILINK) available, but the new version should be better in this respect.

The most common example of an add-on on the PCW is this: a box containing a serial RS232 and a parallel Centronics port. The first one can be used to connect modems and certain types of printers, the other is typically used to hook up a standard printer.

Best known perhaps is the CPS-model from Amstrad/Schneider itself but there are dozens of serial/parallel interfaces, some featuring extras like more memory, a hard disc or a printer buffer. Others feature less and just provide the parallel Centronics port: the port typically most required (for upgrading to a standard printer). Shown here is the SCA Professional Plus that has the two usual ports and a battery backed-up clock for use in CP/M (and yes: there is a millennium patch for the software in circulation).

Well, it is part of the scope... The Intergem drive interface. Not really an add-on because it does not fit on the back of the PCW, on the expansion port, but has to be connected to the floppy disc controller cable, on the place where the B-drive usually is connected. The device itself is mounted in the bay of the B-drive so you cannot use it next to an existing 3" B-drive. The device functions as an interface to connect an 80-track, double-sided Shugart-compatible disc drive.

The connector mounted is one used for the Acorn BBC drive, not particularly common and less useful. It was fitted with this connector because the company only had access, at the time, to a BBC computer. The whole device is a bit vague though: as you can see on the do-it-yourself pages, it is not really difficult to connect a Shugart-compatible disc drive to the PCW, using a diy adapter. The 720kb 3" drive itself (drive B) itself is Shugart compatible, only the connector is not compatible or standardised. I therefore do not know what the functions of the chips and ic's on the pcb are, but I suspect commercial purposes, rather than technical.

Less common in The Netherlands, external memory expansions: this particular one contains 1 megabyte additional memory but they come in all sizes up to 1.5 megabytes.

In Holland you usually see the Sprinter 8mHz cards with additional memory fitted directly on them (internally, so fitted on the main board). The Joyce Computer Club marketed Sprinters back then, so they are not exactly rare here. The external memory expansions date from the 1990's when the PCW-business in The Netherlands was fading already.

This one may wandered off from the UK - since it is popular in England for use with the memory-greedy versions of LocoScript, as from version 3. Version 3 (as well as 4) uses soft fonts: these are loaded from the computer to the printer and thus consume memory: having additional RAM M-drive size available is handy in such cases. A minimum of 512 kilobytes of total memory is recommended for light use (which implies that the PCW 8256 and PcW 9256 would be too light to use with LocoScript 3 and 4). Version 4 of LocoScript can also handle columns and graphics.

When you work with multiple character set and fonts sizes, colours or landscape versions, you will run out of that kind of memory soon. I am not a great fan of external memory - too expensive and it takes up the expansion port.

A lot of users who do not want to open their machines (let alone mess around with chips and weld to their computers) will probably prefer external memory, because of the easy installation. And, of course, removal and changing to (to another machine) is also more easy. 

A Teqniche keyboard that can be used on all models, except the PcW 16 Anne naturally because that is incompatible with Joyce's (Anne uses a standard PS/2 keyboard connector). This keyboard has 102 keys according to the AT-layout.

The keyboard can be tilted, a feature for which a fitting was present with the original 8256, 8512, 9256 and 10 keyboards as well but which I never saw used, except for a diy application (two screws fitted to the bottom of the keyboard). As far as I know no commercial peripherals were marketed for this. Strange, because these particular keyboards were rather small and not always as comfortable as later keyboards.

Three peripherals, from the left to the right: an anti-reflection screen for use with the 8000-series, a 3" cleaning disc, the Marginmaker ruler for use with the dot matrix printers of the 8256/8512/9256/10 models. Obviously there are cleaning disks for the 3.5" and 5.25" disc drive models around too but I do not consider these to be PCW-specific.

To the main PCW-page.