Cover of the April 1985 issue of Amstrad Computer User
The Amstrad CPC was a line of 8-bit personal computers based on the Z80A CPU that was popular in the U.K. and other parts of Europe. For the most part, nobody in North America has ever heard of it so looking through a magazine dedicated to it has a bit of an alternate reality feel. Like the Commodore 64, The CPC line in large part was though of as a games machine. However, it could also run CP/M software so there were tons of business related apps as well. Having said that, CP/M was already well on its way out in 1984 when this line was first introduced. The Commodore 128 introduced in 1984 also had CP/M capabilities but it was really little used. The CPC 464 was the first and most popular model. It included 64KB of RAM and a built-in cassette deck. Amstrad Computer User was a magazine originally dedicated to this machine and the April 1985 issue includes:
Regulars
News - A detailed look at the L.E.T. microcomputer show (a trade only event not open to the public). Some new products shown include Ghostbusters, Master of the Lamps, The Music Studio, Defend or Die, Lords of Midnight, The Rocky Horror Show, The Hobbit and more. Many of these were not available in CPC form yet but conversions were in work.
Letters - Various comments from readers on the magazine itself, the use of GOTO statements, Grand Prix Driver, alternative Amstrad computer names, Lords of Time, and much more.
Software Reviews - Reviews of Sorcery (game of the month), Mutant Monty, Cubit, Splat, Laswerwarp, Star Commando, Codename Mat, Sultan's Maze, Xanagrams, Crazy Golf, and Blagger.
Table of Contents from the April 1985 issue of Amstrad Computer User
Features
Book Reviews - Reviews of BASIC Programming On The Amstrad by Wynfor James and The Working Amstrad my David Lawrence and Simon Lane.
The Joy of Sticks - Reviews of several joysticks for the Amstrad CPC including the Amstrad JY-2, Wico Red Ball, Wico - The Boxx, Wico Three Way Deluxe, Quickshot I, Quickshot II, Kempston Junior Pro, and Kempston Competition Pro 5000.
Screen Squashing - A programming technique for getting more characters on a line in the lower res graphics mode 0.
Intro to Music - Part two of an introductory series on creating music with the Amstrad CPC.
Forth - Part two of an introductory series on the Forth programming language. This part covers the Forth stack and reverse polish notation.
Machine code Programming - A type-in machine language utility for creating simple sprites.
Programs
Missile Attack - A type-in CPC version of Missile Command.
Competition
The Ins and Outs of the Amstrad - A competition in which you must identify the screen shots on the cover for a chance to win a copy of this book. 30 copies are up for grabs.
Back cover of the April 1985 issue of Amstrad Computer User
