FAQS! FACTS! FAX! 035 (03/12/96)

WEIGHTY PROBLEM

I am considering buying a multimedia computer and I have a question. I subscribe to BT’s Call Waiting service and I’m wondering what happens if someone calls whilst the PC is connected to the Internet. Are there any programs that will flash up a message, to let me know there’s another call on the line?

R. L., Palmers Green

A

As far as we know there are no comms software packages that are capable of recognising a call waiting message. During normal use the subscriber hears a bleeping sound on the line, to indicate that someone else is trying to get through. Clearly this will interrupt the flow of data during an on-line session, but what effect does it have? There appears to be very little information on the subject, so we conducted a few experiments of our own

We called a line connected to a PC and fax, with call waiting, whilst it was connected to the Internet via CompuServe, a bulletin board, and during a fax transmission. In all cases it caused chaos. The Internet connection was dropped and the WinCim software gave a modem connection lost message. A connection to CIX (computer information exchange) resulted in garbled text and spurious messages, and the fax was so badly corrupted, it was practically unreadable. Clearly you should think about a second line for the PC, if you routinely get a lot of calls, otherwise drop call waiting or consider one of BTs message handling services.

CHIP CHANGE?

I have a 486 DX2 66Mhz PC with 8 megabytes of RAM. A friend has offered me a 120 MHz processor chip for £40. Can you tell me how much faster my PC will operate, and whether you think it is worth it?

A. M., Bognor Regis

A

That sounds like a rather poor deal, fast 486 processor chips are widely advertised in computer magazines for less than £40, and they would come with a guarantee. In any case processor upgrades are notoriously troublesome, it may even be impossible on your machine, depending on the type of motherboard you have, and whether or not it can be configured for the new CPU. Assuming it is compatible, and the chances it’s not, it is very difficult to say what performance gains, if any, you would get, without knowing a lot more about the rest of your system and the motherboard. On the other hand a memory upgrade, from your present 8Mb, to 16 Mb would definitely make a difference. It’s quick and easy to do, with little chance of anything going wrong, and it will cost you about the same as your friend’s CPU. One word of warning though, if you are going to upgrade you machine’s memory do it soon as RAM memory prices are on the increase again.

CONVERSION THERAPY

I am a new user and am looking into the process of setting up an Internet web page. I am trying to find out if it is possible to convert BMP and PCX files into GIF and JPEG formats.  If so how?

P. J. F., via e-mail

A

An excellent shareware program called Paint Shop Pro will do everything you need, and much more, including converting files to twenty of so other formats. It’s a powerful art and image manipulation package, rivalling some of the best commercial programs.  Paint Shop Pro V3.11 is currently being distributed on cover-mounted CD ROMs on a number of computer magazines, including the December issue of Personal Computer World. This is a 30-day trial version; the full program, complete with documentation and manuals, can be ordered from Digital Workshop on (01295) 258335 for £50.