OVER 2 YOU, 053 (25/10/01)

ROUTE PLANNER

I'm looking for some software to help me plan a long trip around England. I need two things - to be able to print out a map of England (and, if possible, maps of regions with more detail) with specific towns marked on it while ignoring other towns. Secondly, I would like to be able to do some route planning, specifying roads and calculating an approximate distance for these routes.
Jennifer Delaney,

I recommend Mapblast. www.mapblast.com/ I use it for the UK, France and it proved very useful when I drove 5000 miles in the USA last May, especially in cities. The beauty of it is you can use it for many different countries, several languages (including American English and British English e.g. traffic circles/roundabouts), miles or kilometres and, if you register you can store your routes and maps on the web. Route plans are also easier to follow than on some other programs and printing is simple. Additionally if you know postcodes you can virtually plan door to door.

David Riddick via e-mail

Try using the AA's Routeplanner which you can access via their website on www.theaa.com. It's a really good service, which allows you to search by city, region or road. It gives you a map and text directions with distances and times.  A really useful part is that you can specify to avoid motorways and toll roads or choose roads that are suitable for caravans and trailers.
Nicola,

CROSS STITCH SOFTWARE

I have been trying to reproduce a piece of cross-stitch worked by my mother in the 1930's.  It is now faded, and, in some parts, worn out. Two attempts to stitch the same thing have not really worked out, so I am now looking for a way to put it on screen, where I can adjust and correct it at length. Does anyone know of a suitable program?   Patterns like this are drawn on finely squared paper, each square representing one crossed stitch.   Printed patterns indicate different colours by different symbols, but I need a program where I can put in the actual colours.
Eleane Spence, via email

The Royal School of Needlework Definitive guide to Cross Stitch & Tapestry is an excellent product. The program allows you to select your fabric by type and thread count, choose embroidery threads from Anchor, DMC etc, calculates your thread requirements, prints charts, import and convert your own photos to charts and has video demonstrations if you are unsure of a stitching technique. The program is published by Focus Multimedia (www.focusmm.co.uk) and I bought my copy at my local Hobbycraft store (www.hobbycraft.co.uk)

Dawn Shilcock, Northolt, Middx

Try Jane Greenoff's CrossStitich Pattern Creator, which you can get fairly easily; PC World had it for £12.99 last time I was in there. You can create your own patterns, change colours and import scanned images, pictures and clipart.  I also use CrossStitcher, a similar program, which I prefer. Try the Focus Multimedia web site at www.fmselect.co.uk and look in Product Descriptions, Lifestyle.
Mary Tolcher,

I suggest that Eleane uses Excel or a similar spreadsheet program to plan her cross-stitch work. Reduce the row height and column width to a small size, to represent each crossed stitch.  Then format cells to the required colour to reproduce the design. Depending on your monitor settings there can be millions of colours to choose from.

Individually formatting each cell would be tedious, so once you have formatted a colour into one cell, use the Format Painter (paintbrush button) to copy that colour to any number of other cells.  Click on the coloured cell, and then double-click the Format Painter button to switch it on (single click only gives you a single use).  Click on each other cell that you want in that colour (or carefully drag across blocks of cells).  When you've finished with that colour, click the Format Painter button once to switch it off.  Then start the process again for the next colour.

David Penrose, via email

Eleane Spence should have a look at the Needlecraft link at: www.ilsoft.co.uk for solutions to her cross-stitch problem.

Sue Fletcher,

I think that what you need is the software produced by Aspire 2 (www.aspire2online.com). They produce the IDS Top Stitch program, which allows you to put cross stitch, tapestry Hardanger and Blackwork designs on charts and allows you to use colours inDMC, Anchor and Madeira threads.
Mary Nichols,

My wife does this sort of stuff. She uses a very good program called Cross Stitch, available from DP Software, 25 Western Close, Bradley Stoke, Bristol BS32 0BP (or from their website at www.dpsoftware.co.uk). Three versions are available, Standard at around £75, Plus at around £125 and Professional at a somewhat higher price.
John Penketh,

There's a program called Equation Illustrator V, which can do what you want. It might sound like an odd title for the problem in question but it combines a graphics editor with the many other functions. You'll be able to achieve what you want by drawing a grid of whatever dimensions you want and either placing a different coloured fill at each grid reference you want or drawing a small rectangle in the grid segment. A readout on the status bar tells you which grid reference you're at so you don't have to count all the time. If the grid has a huge number of squares you can zoom in to make life easier moving and editing your squares. If you don't want more than 500 shapes or fills (approximately 22 x 22 graph if all squares are filled) there's a free version, although even the five hundred limit wouldn't stop you as you can convert sections to images, clear the shapes and start again. You can find more information about the program on line at  http://www.mgcsoft.com. Equation Illustrator V is priced at £24.08,
Gordon Whittam, gordon@mgcsoft.com
  

Elaine Spence could find Easy Cross  (www.easycross.co.uk) suitable for her needs.

Howard Leaman

TV VIEWERS

Can you tell me how they determine the number of viewers looking at a particular television programme, and how can they tell how many switched off when the programme changes? These figures are regularly given in the press but I cannot see how they are arrived at.

Robin Morris, via email

I am currently taking part in one of the television viewer's surveys. The information is gathered by a data collector attached to the television set which records the channel being watched and the times on and off. The data is collected automatically via the phone line (permanently connected). The company carrying out this survey is Taylor Nelson Sofres, http://www.tnsofres.com/ 

David White,

MOUSELESS TEXT READER

Can anyone suggest the cheapest scanner and software that will get text from magazines and newspapers, put it into a Word document and then read it out without any proof reading? It is vital that all this be done without any use of the mouse, as our clients are blind. Obviously, it is also impossible to use the mouse even to select text. RNIB computer volunteers have been trying to crack this for months. We have ReadBack, Readplease and we have used Omnipage and Textbridge as well as various macros, but always, we get to the dreaded point where the mouse has to be used.
Brian Rhodes, via email

I have for several years been using the "Macro Express" program, which includes the facility to "move" and "click" the mouse using keyboard macros. I use the "Textbridge" OCR program without touching the mouse.  For example, when the program asks me to click on "More" for more pages or "Done", I use Alt-M or Alt-D -- which are macros I created causing the mouse pointer to go to the correct place on the screen and "click". Macro Express is produced in the USA by Insight Software Solutions. It costs £22.00 + VAT and is marketed in the UK by Oakley Data Services in Uttoxeter, www.macros.com.

Charles Lyons,

I recently came across a site http://trace.wisc.edu that contains various software programs to ease access for disabled and blind people. This group at the University is working to improve access for disabled people and may have or know of a solution to the problem.
Bryan McCormick,

I have been helping a blind friend to use exactly the equipment Brian Rhodes is looking for! It scans documents and speaks the text.  A keyboard and mouse are not required, but may be used.   A special 19 key keypad can be used instead. The software, called "Reading Advantage", is of US origin but is marketed by Pulse Data who are based in Northants. I've no idea of the price, but their website is www.pulsedata.com.

Bob Mould,

VILLAGE HALL BOOKINGS

I do the bookings for our Village Hall.  There are two rooms, and I have recently put the bookings diary on "Outlook".  It is not ideal, however, and I wondered if there was another program, which could separate the bookings for the two rooms, and also produce a written hire agreement for each booking.  Ideally, the booking program should also be capable of exporting data to Quicken, which our Treasurer uses to produce the invoices and to keep the Accounts.
David Jarman, via email

Village halls have to match low-frequency enquiries to instant flip-the-page diary reference. You cannot do this with a computer unless your PC is up and running with the diary file on, 100 hours a week. Our village hall has 3 rooms, which are booked singly or in any combination. About 30 years ago we designed a booking form set which copes with this and combines the booking/invoice/contract elements; the treasurer does not raise invoices, and in fact does not come into the process until the payment is to be banked. More recently we have put booking forms on computer, using nothing more complicated than spreadsheets. Our accounts are also on spreadsheets, because that is all a typical village hall needs. Back-ups and exchange of data between booking secretary and treasurer can be thus be done on floppies.
Laurie Mack, Bromley, Kent, via e-mail.

CAN YOU HELP?

Is there a CD-ROM, of interest to Crossword Puzzle players that gives classified lists, alphabetically and numerically, covering such subjects as Authors, Artists, Animals, Capitals, Counties etc.? There are many books, but the best ones I have are getting worn, and are difficult to find.

Yours faithfully,

R.A.Bown, via email

I inherited some very old records from my Grandparents. Some are single sided, some have original price labels attached (1p and a farthing) etc. I would like to catalogue these and if possible attach a value before it is my turn to pass them on.  Can anyone suggest how best to proceed?
I. Newlove, via email

I have some very important files backed up with what I believe was the Windows 3.1 version of Backup. The files on the floppies have names in the format Cc90217a.001 through to Cc90217a.010 and can no longer be recognised by the version of Backup now found on Windows 95 and 98. Does anyone know where I can get a copy of the 3.1 Backup or, failing that, how I can decompress these archived files?

Barry Riley, via email

I am an amateur singer, singing in local concerts and music festivals.  From time to time I find a piece of music which I would like to perform, but would prefer it in another key. Rather than having to go to an experienced musician and ask for it to be transposed up or down I would prefer to do this myself, but I do not have the knowledge to do this. Is there software available to enable me to produce instant key changes to any given piece, and hopefully a scale of keys from highest to lowest?                              

K.T Naughton, via email