Classic Replay

Company: Acorn  Model: Archimedes  Was it any good?  Acorn first released the 300 and 400 series of 32bit RISC technology in 1987. These early models used what’s known as the ’Arthur OS’, but was later replaced and renamed to the newer developed RISC OS 2.  The 8MHz ARM 2 was about 25x faster than the BBC B, 15x faster than an original PC and 6x faster than a PC AT on benchmarks.  On performance alone, Archie had the Atari ST, and even the mighty Amiga well beat. The CPU uses the wonderful ARM chip, which is still in use today. What’s that? It only has one hardware sprite? Who cares! Especially when you have this much processing power! Resolutions available range from 320 x 256 or 640 x 256 with normal monitors, but higher resolutions are possible. There’s a colour palette of 4096 available, with 256 available on screen, depending upon resolution. Models such as the 310 included (1MB), 3000 (512K), 410 (1MB), 420 (2MB) and 440 (Includes 4mb Ram and...

Regardless of the generation, this is still, the best place for a fight! Capcoms second game was a completely different beast when compared to its low-key predecessor. I felt the original was highly unplayable, especially the 8bit versions, but it was the graphics, animation and control scheme that all felt somewhat ancient.      With a huge array of options, the game’s overall priority remains focused on drawing you into the fight, as quickly as possible. The glitz, glam, and slick presentation spill over into every aspect of the game. This makes it easy to sift through the multiple game modes, and more importantly, the two player option. I couldn’t believe Capcom included twelve potential fighters, and even though I never managed to unlock three or four, Bison being one of them, the more I played, it was quickly evident that each and every challenger exhibited different strengths and weaknesses, and a unique style of play.    As for the look an...

Are you still working with computers? In 2000 I came back to Cambridge to do a PhD in the Computer Laboratory.  I've remained an academic since then, in the Security Group. What qualities have you found most important throughout your journey? I've always found it useful to concentrate on the details. That's how  you understand what's important about the big picture, and why that big  picture is shaped the way it is. What’s the worst job you’ve ever had? I've always found work to be fun. Running our own software house for 13  years certainly helped, but I've enjoyed my other jobs as well. Was your time with Alan Sugar as traumatic as it for the contestants in the Apprentice, did the partnership work out for you? I only met Alan Sugar a handful of times -- and I found him to be  extremely sharp and very focused on what mattered. Why Amstrad? They found us. The people they'd chosen to do their CPC project had let  them down,...