 x(L                                                                 ctober, 1989) ADAM's LEAF, newsletter of the Edmonton (Alberta,Canada) ADAM Users Group.
   Gleanings is a column of items of interest to the general club THE FOLLOWING MATERIAL WAS SUPPLIED TO THE ADAM NEWS NETWORK BY 
"The ADAM's LEAF of the EDMONTON (ALBERTA,CANADA) ADAM USERS GROUP" 
THE WRITER/AUTHOR OF THE ARTICLE IS INDICATED BELOW.  WE APPRECIATE THEIR COOPERATION AND CONTRIBUTION(S) TO ADAM NEWS NETWORK AND TO A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE CAPABILITIES OF ADAM BY OTHER ADAMITES.


     Gleanings...
      By Dave Sands. 
 This material originally appeared in the (October, 1989) ADAM's LEAF, newsletter of the Edmonton (Alberta,Canada) ADAM Users Group.
   Gleanings is a column of items of interest to the general club membership drawn from the newsletter exchanges received by the Edmonton ADAM Users Group.
   The exchange newsletters are bubbling with excitement this month on a variety of topics that all add up to real progress for the ADAM computer and its loyal fans.
   ADAMCON 1, the first-ever ADAM users convention, took place October 7 to 11 in Orlando, Florida. The editor of one of our exchange newsletters, David Cobley of ADVISA, has accepted an offer to do a report for the LEAF on his impressions of ADAMCON from a Canadian's perspective. Look for it in the next LEAF. In addition, the Ottawa and Toronto clubs will both have members at the convention and their reports will be available through their newsletters which will, as always, be with the librarian. Advance reports on the event indicated that major new ADAM products would be announced.
   Metro Toronto Adam Group (MTAG) has sent us the entire collection of the MTAG newsletter, and it is a gold mine of ADAM information for any member on practically any topic. This is a large club with many expert members, as I've said before, and there is too much to even list waiting for you. See the Librarians.
   We also have back issues of other newsletters available: AUFG, AIM, Adam's Family, and current issues as well. 
   The ADAM News Network has been launched by Barry Wilson, of the St. Louis (Missouri, USA) Adam Users Group. and the E.A.U.G. and the LEAF will be invited to participate.  Toronto and Ottawa are already in, and the possibilities for the rapid, comprehensive and accurate dissemination of news for and about the ADAM are enormous. I think it is the most positive thing that has happened for the ADAM this year.
   Richard Clee, president of the MTAG club says Wilson realized it was the lack of real communication between ADAM clubs, owners and suppliers that lead to the "mild hysteria" that surrounded "the Sol Swift affair" --when one of the leading lights of ADAM software development dropped out of sight with his major and long promised new operating system, GO-DOS, apparently irretriveable-- and Wilson conceived a centralized news exchange for ADAM clubs and newsletters. The same system works perfectly every day for our daily papers, it's called Canadian Press, and it can work for the ADAM as well.
   In other news from Clee and MTAG: Canadian ADAM hardware producer Syd Carter has created an ADAM format generator, which allows him to produce his 306K datapacks. Carter says a C-90 cassette can hold 395K, but there are two different ADAM datadrives, and one can't handle a C-90. 
   ADAM game fans who like strategy games --Temple of the Snow Dragon-- etc will be interested in Joseph Chen's article in MTAG. I liked his explanation of why you don't find strategy games in arcades, just the shoot-everything-that-moves kind:  "Arcade owners want you to die so you or some other poor soul will keep the change box full." 
   Finally, one of MTAG's president's observations regarding our "obsolete" ADAM: "..since we were new, the (IBM) PC and XT and AT and (Apple) Lisa and all those newest and greatest ultimate microcomputers have burst upon the scene -- and also become obsolete." 
   Hard disk drives are now a reality for the ADAM. Writing about his, the ADAM User-Friendly Group (Ottawa) president, Ron Mitchell sums up the present state-of-the-art harddiskwise with this hard-won (ouch!) conclusion:
   "My bottom line recommendation is neither black nor white. If you're a hobbyist CP/M user who can live with a few minor adjustments to the way you do business, then you'll not in the least regret buying this system. If you're chiefly an EOS (ADAM turn-on system; Editor) but aren't too hung up on pre-packaged software: ie you like doing your own programs and are willing to experiment a little, you too will enjoy working with the hard drive, and should seriously consider it over the addition of a second disk drive or so-called "big" memory expanader. You'll get a lot more for the extra $200 or so. Finally, if you're an EOS user who shudders at the mention of CP/M, and who depends exclusively on commerically available EOS software, especially that which requires a memory expander (64K or more), then you'd be better off to invest in the Megaram (E & T Software) or similar unit." 
   The AIM newsletter from Adam's House (Texas) has a great collection of tips on various ADAM problems in the current issue.  ### ho can live with a few minor adjustments to the way you do business, then you'll not in the le
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