RUSH SOFTWARE BULK REVIEW  by Darrell Keirnan   ¿? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿? If you read my review of Teachers' Markbook you'll know I'm an advocate of quality Australian-made educational programs which meet the needs of Australian teachers and their students. Rush Software (Gerroa, NSW) appears to adequately fit the description. Although I've used Teachers' Markbook on a regular basis at home it remained one of the few examples from the Rush Software stable that I was familiar with. I was so impressed with this and a demo program I received with it, Teacher's Test Kit, that I made a point of investigating them further at the recent World of Commodore (WOC) Show at Darling Harbour. I liked what I saw. Shortly after the WOC Show Tim sent me a selection of Rush demo disks. Using several of my students as a review team I was able to put these demos through their paces both in a classroom and a home situation. The results are recorded below. There are a few surprises. If you're a teacher or a parent read on...  ENDLESS STORIES  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. This simple program is virtually a text editor with training wheels aimed at the Middle to Upper Primary student (9 - 12 years) with one exception: students can load a story starter from a built-in database for completion and then hear their story read back to them. It has all the basic features you would need accessed via buttons at the top of the screen viz. NEW, CLEAR, HEAR, LOAD, SAVE, PRINT, VOICE & QUIT. A slider on the right of the text screen allows scrolling through longer documents. You may have noticed that CLEAR and HEAR are next to one another. So what, you say. One of the six children helping me to review this program clicked on CLEAR by mistake when he wanted to HEAR his story. You can guess what happened. I'd like to see HEAR moved over next to VOICE (controls the Say feature) where it seems more logical or the CLEAR button separated from the button bank and possibly coloured red. A small point but one that could save a bit of frustration. The novel (pardon the pun) feature about Endless Stories is the loadable story beginning aimed at encouraging students to write. It works! I put a reluctant writer onto this program and using one of only three beginnings on the demo version he wrote a couple of sentences to complete a simple story. Not much, I know, but a lot more than he'd done previously. There's something attractive about banging the heck out of a computer keyboard that makes kids and adults feel like they're achieving something. This is great for children, who tend to suffer the frustration of writer's block even more so than more-experienced adult writers. This would quickly grow boring if there were only a standard set of beginnings in the database but it's designed to be fully parent- or teacher-configurable. You can add, delete or change any of the story starters in the database easily.  MY IMPRESSIONS: A very simple but practical creative writing program which may be easily configured to maintain interest. Good use of the Say ability of the Amiga. Try setting Male...Natural...Pitch:110...Speed:140 for a reasonable listen.  KIDS' COMMENTS: "Even though it was simple, we thought it was enjoyable." Heather & Erin (Grade 5) "I like this better than Kids Write because it gives you a start to work on. I thought it was heaps easy to use." Christopher (Grade 3) "I thought this was too hard to use because it's for older children I think." Ben (Grade 3)  KIDS WRITE  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. Very similar to Endless Stories but aimed at a younger audience as evidenced by the 40-column display and the huge buttons at the top of the page which control all actions. There's no story starter feature with Kids Write. It is really a word processor for the littlies. The buttons include four pictures in round frames and two vertical text bars. From left to right they are a tractor loading a package onto a truck (LOAD), a goalie diving at a soccer ball (SAVE), a vertical bar that says VOICE, an alien with an arrow pointing at his (her?) ear (LISTEN), a vertical bar that says CLEAR, a printer (PRINT) and an exit sign above a door (QUIT). Pretty simple, huh? Unfortunately, only one out of the four children who tested this program recognised the LOAD and SAVE icons. I don't think we have a lower standard of intelligence here on the Central Coast than elsewhere in Australia so I can only assume that, initially, you can expect possible confusion with the control panel. Once the students knew what the LOAD and SAVE buttons represented they had no further problems. Remember that I only had a small sample - I'm sure most kids would work these buttons out pretty quickly.  MY IMPRESSIONS: Not bad for Infants or Lower Primary writers but I'd buy Endless Stories and get the best of both Text Editor and Story Starter.  KIDS' COMMENTS: "I like using Kids Write because it's not frustrating and it's easy to look at." Ben (Grade 3)  FIRST FLEET DATABASE - Amiga Version  Requires an Amiga with 1MB of RAM and one disk drive. At the risk of stating the obvious this program is a database of details concerning the convicts of the First Fleet. It's recommended for use with the NSW Department of School Education resources available on this topic which is a popular Australian Studies unit in Primary schools. There have been versions of First Fleet Database (FFD from here on) on other platforms, e.g. Microbee (Che??) and Apple II but until now the Amiga lagged behind. The Rush Software product contains data on all 777 convicts and includes 18 worksheets which may be customized for your particular use. The worksheets involve at-computer and away-from-computer research and appear stimulating and well-constructed if the demo examples are anything to go by. Considering the size of the database Rush state that most of the 777 records in 13 fields may be accessed in less than 30 seconds - quite a feat when compared to similar tasks on the other platforms using this software. Students may search forward or backward, specifying fields, take a quiz along the way and then print the entire quiz including questions and answers or save their unfinished work in the StudentData drawer. Whew! What a mouthful! The `HELP' button is used to provide assistance with the Key to Convict Details. It would be nice to see other programmers make use of the HELP button to make their programs more user-friendly. The worksheets used for the Quiz section are varied and excellent. On the whole, FFD is well-constructed and powerful for its size. A database of this sort (pardon the pun) doesn't require pretty graphics to make a point: it needs to store and process data quickly and efficiently. FFD does that admirally...er, admirably (sorry, another lousy pun). All of the Grade 5 students I let loose on FFD were initially confused and couldn't really get going. These are children familiar with the Amiga (we publish our own school newspaper using PageStream) yet they were perplexed because they were unused to manipulating a database. This must be the least-used type of software in Primary Schools at the present time (along with spreadsheets). It certainly showed me it is a skill they need experience with. I believe a program like FFD is worthwhile just for the benefit of database manipulation aside from the historical information contained in it. Once they were given a quick lesson the children found the going a lot easier.  MY IMPRESSIONS: About time someone thought of this excellent resource for the Amiga. Although it's probably more useful to teachers and students of Australian Studies it is also a very interesting and informative piece of software for the home history buff or for student project work. Highly recommended for the abovementioned groups.  KIDS' COMMENTS: "A bit hard to use because we're not used to using a database. It looks more like an adult's program." Heather (Grade 5) After a little tuition on database manipulation Heather became more interested in the content and believed it could be very informative if she was given more time to `play' with it.  KIDSBASE  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. This is a database management system designed for children and their parents. It adequately resolves my concerns regarding the lack of understanding of databases by the majority of Primary (and Secondary) School children. After struggling initially with the First Fleet Database I showed the sample group of students this program and they took to it like the proverbial ducks to water. They especially delighted in the straightforward Tutorial supplied with Kidsbase and learnt enough in just one brief overview to score 100% in the accompanying Quick Quiz. The layout of the screens and buttons provide clear, colourful displays for ease of use: the same children who balked at FFD revelled in Kidsbase. A sample database on Classmates provided a high degree of interest. My little reviewers were already planning a similar fate for their own classmates even before they had finished reviewing the program.  MY IMPRESSIONS: Designed for kids as a learning and hands-on tool, Kidsbase lives up to its goal perfectly. I have already placed my order for this program because of the potential I see in it for the home and classroom. Hopefully, by the time you read this Rush Software will be available through Megadisc. If so, reserve your copy for your own children and you won't regret it. No frills versions of this commercial program are available for nearly PD prices.  KIDS' COMMENTS: "It's an excellent program to teach you how to use a database. I didn't know what a database was before I looked at the tutorial." John-Michael (Grade 5) "I thought it was really good. It was very interesting and easy to use." Erin (Grade 5) "I liked how you could search through the information and find things like which kids like eating McDonalds or how many kids like listening to Madonna." Heather (Grade 5)  MILKY WAY CAFE  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. Reminiscent of the much-loved `Lemonade Stand' on the Apple II, Milky Way Cafe (MWC) is a small business simulation set in outer space. The children, as the Managers of MWC, must buy ingredients for Boggle Thirst Zappers, MWC's best seller. They must also plan advertising to take into account random factors such as the expected number of spaceships docking at MWC and the individual worth of the various aliens you may employ as your assistants in the cafe. After some early frustration we quickly sussed out the correct combination and amount of ingredients to buy so that we could manufacture the maximum number of Boggle Thirst Zappers. One of the most appealing features as far as the student reviewers were concerned was the ability to take part in an alien zapping game if you succeeded in getting into the Top Ten Managers category. I don't know how this would help interplanetary race relations but it seemed I was the only one concerned about this at the time.  MY IMPRESSIONS: I liked `Lemonade Stand', even on the green screen monitor of an Apple IIc. It has always been the case that playability will win out over pretty graphics across all platforms. Milky Way Cafe doesn't pretend to be a children's version of Railroad Tycoon®. Its pleasant graphics and cute sounds can't hide the inherent playability of a top quality business simulation. While not something you might expect your kids to play at home Milky Way Cafe is ideal for any unit on small business, consumer arithmetic or problem solving. It fits into many areas of the school curriculum and best suits Middle Primary to Middle Secondary students.  KIDS' COMMENTS: " Excellent...100%! If you get into the Top Ten you get to play an alien game. I like the funny graphics. I like the idea of the game where you buy things to make money." John-Michael (Grade 5) "It's a lot of fun. After we worked it out we really enjoyed playing it." Heather & Erin (Grade 5)  CROSSWORD WIZARD  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. Speaking of classics, does anyone remember Crossword Magic® on the C64? I'm sure there's still people out there using it today. I remember with affection how easy it was to create a crossword on my trusty Commodore 128D for any thematic unit I was planning for my class. It was a vital component of my English program. Since upgrading to the Amiga I've been bitterly disappointed with the offerings available - until now. Crossword Wizard possesses all the great features of the classic Crossword Magic® with the added refinements only possible on the faster Amiga. You may create, edit, play or print crosswords up to a maximum 20 x 25 characters. For the educationally lazy there is the ability to auto-create a crossword based on the word list you supply. I've tried it out and it works beautifully. However, the crowning glory is the printout quality you can expect with Crossword Wizard. I've found the blurb that accompanies Crossword Wizard to be totally accurate in this regard and I quote, "The print capabilities are extensive, with options for printing crosswords, clue lists, word lists and solutions." In fact, Rush Software have sold themselves short. You have the unique ability to choose between five different blackout styles for your individual crossword, including the basic black, the checkerboard and the smilie face. Every conceivable user-friendly feature has been employed to make Crossword Wizard the most attractive Amiga crossword-creator on the market.  MY IMPRESSIONS: I knew if I waited long enough a decent crossword-creator would appear for the Amiga. The old adage, `All things come to those who wait', has proven true once again. My order has already been dispatched. I now look forward to bombarding my students once again with top quality crosswords on a variety of themes.  KIDS' COMMENTS: "It was fun playing a crossword on the computer instead of writing it out on paper." Erin (Grade 5) "The best thing about Crossword Wizard is making a crossword from the very beginning - not having to use the one done for you." Heather (Grade 5)  KIDSPAINT  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. Another in a long line of paint programs for kids of all ages. The yardstick for Infants and Early Primary pupils has always been My Paint® in my opinion. Unfortunately, KidsPaint doesn't even come close. I found it uninspiring and lacking in features and general appeal. Just to prove I know nothing about childrens' tastes the bulk of my student reviewers loved it. Exit one adult with egg on his face.  MY IMPRESSIONS: Another paint program for kids. Ho, hum!  KIDS' COMMENTS: "It was excellent. I liked the movie and just how it was nice and simple to use." Heather (Grade 5) "Not as good as Deluxe Paint® because you can't do as many things." Ben (Grade 3) "It was a very enjoyable game and I could spend all day playing it." John-Michael (Grade 5)  KIDSCLOSE  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. Cloze passages, for the uninitiated, are text paragraphs with certain words blanked out so that the children, using their reading ahead and reading back skills, can decode the context of the passage and insert the proper word, or an acceptable alternative. Teachers use cloze exercises as reading lessons in themselves or to specifically treat certain weaknesses a group might have: for example, in adjective use or using words instead of `and'. Traditionally, teachers labour over typewriter or keyboard to re-type classic literature or invent their own epic and purposefully blank the words they wish to leave out. Others, myself included, have often taken liquid paper to a page in the old NSW School Magazine and then photocopied sufficient quantities for class use. I've often wondered how a cloze creator/player program would look and perform. Rush Software have given me the chance to check one out. I wasn't overly impressed with the demo disk I received but I must say that the program has potential. You can load a text file or write your own using the KidsClose Passage Creator before loading it into the Close Passage work page where selected words may be removed. A list of the words removed will be displayed for children to click on to insert into appropriate blanks in the passage. Alternatively, the cloze passage may be printed out as a master for photocopying purposes. There's a race-the-c lock feature and, in what has become a trademark of the Rush Software range, good use of the Say capabilities of the Amiga. You can adjust the speak button to say just one word, one whole sentence or the entire passage.  MY IMPRESSIONS: The idea of a cloze passage creator/player is a good one. In reality, the teacher is still left to do the typing of the basic passage while the program itself takes over the often time-consuming task of taking out the words to create the blanks. The speech and race-the-clock features are novel and certainly welcome. The ease of use means that the teacher, if so inclined, may quickly create a number of passages for individuals, small groups or the whole class. Recommended for teachers of all grades.  KIDS' COMMENTS: "We'd rather do this kind of reading on the computer than writing it on paper." Heather (Grade 5)  COSMIC ALPHABET  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. Quite simply, Cosmic Alphabet is a junior typing tutor program. Zapping aliens, a la Milky Way Cafe, is the name of the game. Kids do this by typing the keyboard button the alien is holding when he pops out of the crater. There are ten levels, each varying the number and positional grouping of the keys treated and the speed of popping aliens. Watch out for an expose on Hinch relating to certain Antipodean Software Developers cruelty to aliens... Shame!  MY IMPRESSIONS: What can I say? Cosmic Alphabet is a cute way for youngsters to learn their keyboard skills. End of story.  KIDS' COMMENTS: "I liked it because it teaches you how to use the keyboard and because it's fun to play." Chris (Grade 3) "I would try to go through to Level 10 because it would teach you coordination of the keyboard." Joshua (Grade 5) "It's very challenging to focus on the computer screen and to get your fingers moving on the keyboard. It was exciting because you had a time limit." Ben (Grade 3) "The best part was using the keyboard to zap the aliens." John-Michael (Grade 5)  TRADEWIND TRAVELLERS  Requires a 512k Amiga with one disk drive. Tradewind Travellers is an educational game for two players or two teams of players. The latter is always preferable in a classroom situation to encourage small group discussion and to develop problem-solving strategies. The object of the game is to circumnavigate a map of Australia, stopping in at the required ports along the way. Each player or team chooses a Captain for their ship and then controls its movement by entering a bearing and a scaled distance. This was found to be a great experience with estimation as the scale is in the centre of the map about where Uluru (Ayer's Rock) would be located. The students then had to transpose this scale to ocean distances. The further they went, the better they became at estimating. The entire journey is recorded in the `Ship's Log' which may be printed out at a later stage.  MY IMPRESSIONS: Rush Software state that Tradewind Travellers is one of their most popular titles and I can understand why. Pleasant graphics, appealing design and good gameplay make this a winner. It combines experiences with mathematics, geography, direction, estimation and scale in one enjoyable exercise.  KIDS' COMMENTS: "It was quite hard to coordinate the directions and the distance at first but you got better as you went." Heather (Grade 5) "It teaches you bearings and how to use distance." John-Michael (Grade 5) "We'd like to keep going to see how good we get at it." Joshua (Grade 5) CONCLUSION: Rush Software have a lot going for them: Australian-made and Australian content; commercial software at PD prices if you take advantage of their special `No Frills' versions; excellent support and back-up; a definite willingness to support the Australian education market through ridiculously low site licence and lab pack pricing; and an obvious effort to use the power of the Amiga in all the software they design. If you're interested in any of the quality titles outlined above (there are many others available) and you would also like to jump on the `Buy Australian' bandwagon then contact Rush Software directly or give Megadisc a call. The guys at Rush can only take direct payment by cheque at the present time but Megadisc will take plastic.  ¿? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿*? 35 ¿?