VERSA COMPUTING
887 Conestoga Circle
Newbury Park, CA 91320
$299.00 Requires 32K + 810 Disk Drive
Reviewed by Mike DesChenes
Many programs can benefit from animated or high resolution graphics. Many times, the use of dramatic graphics will distinguish an outstanding program from an ordinary one. The Atari computer has what I consider to be the best graphic and color capabilities available in any micro computer on the market. However, it can take hours or even days to perfect that certain graphic image desired in a program.
A far better solution for plotting or drawing those graphic images is with the help of a Plotter, Graphics Tablet, or Digitizer. And of all the available units now on the market, when comparing price, performance, and construction, one unit seems to stand out above all the rest. The Versa Writer from Versa Computing. This graphic system also has the lowest list price along with simple and sturdy construction. The Versa Writer may look inexpensive with its 14" X 12" plastic bed, clear plastic overlay sheet (held in place with black masking tape), and double-jointed pantography type arm. But looks are not the most important factor when it comes to choosing a graphic system. It is how well it performs the required functions. The Versa Writer performs as well as, if not better than most tested, ranging in price from $500 to well over $1000.
At each of the two arm joints, there are potentiometers which are wired to a joystick-style plug, and connected to controller jack #4. No special interface or power supply is needed.
It is in the software that the Versa Writer excels. Many of the graphic units tested had very poor or nonexistent user software. This unit comes complete with two disks of well written user software which includes a demo program. There are over 63 total commands available, 25 commands in both the Medium-Res and High-Res drawing modes, and 13 Textwriter and utility type programs. All commands use simple one-letter mnemonics entered by the keyboard, such as "E" for Erase and "L" to Load a picture from disk. The drawing modes (Medium and High-Res) have the following commands and functions:
| P | - | POINT Cursor |
| Space Bar | - | Draw straight line |
| 1 | - | Draw foreground color (1) |
| 0 | - | Draw background color (0) |
| X | - | Draw with X Fixed |
| Y | - | Draw with Y Fixed |
| W | - | Re-center to current position |
| U | - | Change X and Y scaling |
| M | - | Change smoothing factor |
| B | - | Change BACKGROUND color (0) |
| C | - | Change foreground COLOR (1) |
| E | - | ERASE screen |
| R | - | REVERSE picture |
| / | - | Split/Full screen |
| N | - | NORMAL |
| F | - | FILL with color |
| Z | - | Draw/Edit paint brush |
| A | - | Draw AIR Brush |
| D | - | DISK directory |
| L | - | LOAD picture from disk |
| S | - | SAVE picture from disk |
| G | - | Run other Res GRAPHICS |
| H | - | HELP |
| Q | - | QUIT |
| T | - | Run TEXTWRITER |
All of the command routines work very well and are easy to remember. Some of the more interesting functions in the menu are the Paint Brush and Air Brush modes. The Paint Brush mode, as the name implies, is used to imitate the action of a paint brush. You must first select the desired brush size (0 for fine to 5 for broad), select the paint color (0 for background or 1 for drawing or foreground) and then paint the screen. You may also use this feature for editing your picture by selecting the background color for your paint color, and then going over the foreground lines. The Air Brush mode allows the use of shading in a picture. The area, which is covered with a color or colors in this mode, appears in the form of dots; the quicker the arm is moved, the sparser the dots will appear. The demos, included with the Versa Writer, show examples of the above painting techniques.
But that's only the beginning. You can fill in closed areas of drawings in any of three colors (in different shades). Text may be added to any high-res pictures with three fonts included in the software, plus the standard Atari font. Included are a Computer style, Greek, and Stylized version of the standard font. Nice.
All in all, the Versa Writer is a nice package with good documentation, great software, and an attractive price at only $299.00 (suggested retail). If you're in the market for a graphics system for your Atari, you must check out the Versa Writer.