New Modem Is A Real Bargain
Sydney Morning Herald
Monday March 9, 1987
PERSONAL computers are a modern marketing marvel. When they first made their appearance a decade ago, they did so, essentially, as high-status, expensive paperweights, gadgets that enthusiasts endeavoured, often in vain, to figure out what to do with. In a few years, a smattering of applications software became available for the machines, but they still sold in far greater numbers than their usefulness at the time would seem to dictate. They sold on a promise of wonders to come, a promise that in areas, such as business, but not in others, like the home, was, eventually, to be fulfilled.
In the shadows of this curious market stood Michael Shane, a purveyor of wigs, faded blue jeans and then_acting with an uncanny sense of what would be hot and what would not_Elephant's Memory floppy discs, Banana printers and Leading Edge computers, which are, arguably, the best-selling, low-priced IBM PC clones around.
Now, in classic "sell razors to sell razor blades" pursuit, he is selling modems, those avaricious scavengers of data, along with an, as yet, unfinished information system that he hopes will include information on everything from how to cook bluefish to the price of eggs in Peru.
Beneath this marketing scheme lies the vision of an international trading company that would match products with markets, eliminating economic dislocation, hunger and poverty.
Listening to his messianic theme, one is, for a moment, almost swept away by the fancy that, perhaps, given access to enough information, the world might solve its problems. But left with one's reflections on such a scheme, one soon returns to reality. The visionary dwindles to a Don Quixote with a computer for a lance.
Still, there are all those razors he is virtually giving away in the hope that blade sales will ultimately reach incalculable proportions. At $149, as compared with $495 for the Hayes equivalent, the Leading Edge Model L 1200 B internal modem may not be free, but it's a real bargain.
The modem is a full-feature one, complete with speaker, on a half-size, add-on card that fits easily into any slot on the IBM PC, PX-XT, PC-AT or PC Portable, as well as the Leading Edge computers.
One very attractive feature of the L 1200 B is that the switches controlling such functions as which communications port is to be used and the status of the carrier-detect signal (used by the modem to inform the computer that it has made contact with another) are all accessible from the back of the computer, even after the card has been installed.
So is the volume control for the speaker. There is no need to remove the computer's cover every time an adjustment has to be made. This is a particularly handy feature for advanced users who deal with a number of different communications packages, all of them invariably needing the switches set differently. Two telephone jacks are provided, one for the wall jack, the other for the handset itself, a convenience allowing a single line to be used for either voice or data.
The modem comes complete with its own communications program, Bitcom, from Bit Software Inc. This is a basic telecommunications package that, while lacking some of the super-specialised features aficionados like to talk about, provides all the essentials the average user needs, including a facility for setting up and storing a series of commands that are used to log on to different databases, say, or to control such functions as calling a certain number at a certain time, redialing at set intervals, if necessary, until a connection is made.
Both the modem and the software are relatively easy to install. However, even though Bitcom is one of the less complicated of the communications packages on the market, telecommunications software will have to be made even simpler before a first-time user can hope to conquer it with ease.
The 32-page hardware manual and the 64-page software manual are bound together into a volume that manages to remain far slimmer than those accompanying most communications peripherals.
On the whole, the manuals do an adequate job of supplying the details necessary to operate the modem, though at the expense of background and explanatory material on telecommunications. The bare-bones approach, evidence of a product orientation geared toward the more accomplished personal computer operator, becomes, perhaps, a little too Spartan at times.
For instance, when installing the card, one is told to "make sure the computer is turned off". This precautionary instruction is really inadequate, particularly where a monitor has its own separate power cord to the wall socket. The only safe course is to unplug all the equipment to be worked on, together with any peripherals connected to it.
Once the modem board has been slipped into a slot in the computer, it is ready for a series of self-tests. These are also simplicity itself. The first requires typing in the letters "ATZ" (they must be upper case), followed by the notation "ATS16(equals sign)1 C1 D," then any other character. The same character appearing on screen in response indicates that the modem is working
A couple more equally simple procedures complete one's preparations. One never really learns what "1 C1 D" and the like refer to. But as long as the modem is working properly, the ignorance imposed on the user causes no difficulties. If the modem is not performing as it should, well, then with any luck, the two-year warranty will take care of the problem.
As soon as the self-tests are done, one can run the software, selecting for an introduction to the world of telecommunications any of the bulletin boards or other pre-configured phone listings on the communications selection menu. The trial run provides a feel for how the menu-driven Bitcom program works without the necessity of mastering all of its more detailed features, such as terminal emulation. Together, the Leading Edge modem and Bitcom form a bread-and-butter communications package that is probably about as simple to use as personal computer technology will allow at the moment.
One does need some familiarity with computers for success in using it. But if it is not yet the modem for everyone that Mr Shane seems to have envisioned, he has certainly done it again where price is concerned. For a corporate buyer able to take advantage of quantity discounts and fortunate enough to have a staff member knowledgeable about computers, it's almost irresistible.
© 1987 Sydney Morning Herald