March 1984 — Vol 6 No 3
Source
Open original PDF • March 1984 • Vol 6 No 3 • 68 pages • $2
Overview
David Morganstein continues as President. "Biggest Scam Since Television" (Philip Noguchi, p55) — Noguchi's debut as a Pi voice with an opinionated piece on the consumer-computing market; he later returns as the long-running "Dr. No" / Phil Noguchi columnist. "Just What is Bernoulli?" (Lawrence Husick, p40) — Husick translates the Bernoulli disk drive technology (predecessor to the Iomega line) for Pi members. "Apple Tracks" (Richard Langston III, 38) — column launches. "Do It Better with a RAMDisk" (Alvin Neider, p42). "Intro. to Modula 2 - Pt. 3" (Robert C. Platt, p24). "Source vs. Compuserve" (Hunter Alexander, p58) — the two big online services compared side-by-side. "A Brief from the LAWSIG" (Robert C. Platt, p16) — Platt's legal-SIG voice. "FCC Assigned DNICs" (Hunter Alexander, p48). "Orbital Systems E-Z Card: Review" (Bob Hicks, p49). "PeachText WP: On the Other Hand" (Bob Trexler, p50) — counterpoint to Carl Eisen's positive Jan review. "Gumball: A Game Review" (Robert C. Platt, p53). "A Mouse for the Apple: A Reprint" (Jeff Billman, p49) — Apple's then-new mouse for the //e. "Interfaces for Anchor Mark 12" (George V. Kinal, p44) — continuing the Anchor Mark 12 thread from Jan-Feb. "The Apple //e in So. Mexico" (Norvan Meyer, p58) — international Pi member story.
Officers note
Sarah Lavilla now confirmed as Secretary; Lee Raesly listed as Public Relations and Publicity Chairman migrating to Hunter Alexander.
Table of contents (selected)
| Article | Author | Page |
|---|---|---|
| President's Corner | David Morganstein | 4 |
| A Page from the Stack | Robert C. Platt | 12 |
| Q & A | Bruce F. Field | 14 |
| EDSIG News | Peter Combes | 16 |
| A Brief from the LAWSIG | Robert C. Platt | 16 |
| Logo RandAreaPlot | Ron Murray | 17 |
| Intro. to Modula 2 - Pt. 3 | Robert C. Platt | 24 |
| 1001 Binary Tales | Raymond Hobbs | 26 |
| I Am What I Am | John A. Love III | 28 |
| Apple Tracks | Richard Langston III | 38 |
| Just What is Bernoulli? | Lawrence Husick | 40 |
| Do It Better with a RAMDisk | Alvin Neider | 42 |
| Interfaces for Anchor Mark 12 | George V. Kinal | 44 |
| Modification of CP/M "Modem" | George V. Kinal | 46 |
| Transend 2 and MagiCalc: Reviews | Bob Oringel | 47 |
| FCC Assigned DNICs | Hunter Alexander | 48 |
| A Mouse for the Apple: A Reprint | Jeff Billman | 49 |
| PeachText WP: On the Other Hand | Bob Trexler | 50 |
| Gumball: A Game Review | Robert C. Platt | 53 |
| Graphics Display Switches | Richard M. Rowell | 54 |
| Biggest Scam Since Television | Philip Noguchi | 55 |
| The New Microdisk: A Reprint | Charles R. Smith | 56 |
| The Apple //e in So. Mexico | Norvan Meyer | 58 |
| Source vs. Compuserve | Hunter Alexander | 58 |
Highlights
Biggest Scam Since Television — Philip Noguchi
Noguchi's first Pi byline (or at least one of his earliest), a polemic on consumer computing. He later becomes "Dr. No" in 1988+ — the cantankerous voice that defines a generation of Pi commentary.
Just What is Bernoulli? — Lawrence Husick
Husick lays out the technology that would become the Iomega Bernoulli Box, the dominant high-capacity removable storage of the late 1980s. Pi members were Bernoulli-curious early.
Source vs. Compuserve — Hunter Alexander
A side-by-side of the two big online services, predating Pi's deeper coverage of CompuServe in 1985+.
Entities
People: David Morganstein, Robert C. Platt, Bruce F. Field, Peter Combes, Jay Thal, Bob Oringel, Richard Langston III, Lawrence Husick, Alvin Neider, George V. Kinal, Hunter Alexander, Jeff Billman, Bob Trexler, Bob Hicks, Philip Noguchi, Norvan Meyer, Charles R. Smith, Ron Murray, Raymond Hobbs, John A. Love III, Cara Cira, David Stern, Ken Selk Topics: Bernoulli Storage, Modula 2, CP/M on Apple, Apple Mouse for IIe, Online Services References: Bernoulli Box, Anchor Mark 12, Transend 2, MagiCalc, PeachText, Gumball, The Source, CompuServe
Connections to other issues
- Modula 2 series continues: Pt II (1984-02 — V06 N02), Pt III (this), Pt IV (1984-04 — V06 N04)
- Philip Noguchi's "Biggest Scam Since Television" is his entry point; later Dr. No columns flourish 1988+
- Anchor Mark 12 thread continues from 1984-01 — V06 N01 through 1984-05 — V06 N05
- PeachText counterpoint to Carl Eisen's 1984-01 — V06 N01 review