Designer Castles

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Designer Castles was a pioneering software title for the BBC Micro and later Acorn Archimedes (RISC OS based) range of computers.

The software produced by Data Design in Barnsley, England, UK allowed its users to design a medieval style- castle by means of a WIMP based design environment.

In the design environment a number of pre-defined components, (For example, towers, walls and keeps) could be linked and minpulated to from a castle design.

The components of the castle could then be printed (along with wall elevations and plans) so that a card model of the designed castle could be assembled.

The paper, glue and model making tools required for assembly were not supplied with any version of the package, although assemebly instructions for components were provided in the extensive manual.

Contents

[edit] BBC Micro version

The WIMP environment provided as well as supporting keyboard input also allowed use of the AMX Mouse hardware in the BBC Micro version.

The package consisted of a software disc together with a ring bound manual, with the BBC Micro version also including a support ROM. This support ROM containing, WIMP and dot-matrix printer support routines

[edit] Acorn Archimedies (Risc OS) version

A Version of Designer Castles was also later developed for the Acorn Archimedies systems using Risc OS. On these versions the program utilises the existing RISC OS Wimp environment and printer routines as opposed to those in a separate support module.

[edit] Additional spin-off titles

As well as Castles, the design environment was later adpated in a separate software title "Medieval Villages" to allow construction of medieval villages. Castle designs could be added to designs produced by this program.

A second additional title "Designer Environment" utilised the design environment for modern buildings, although it was not possible to add Castle designs to "villages" created with this software.

[edit] Current situation

As of 2006 there have been no attempts to revive the program for modern PC systems, despite the porting of other programs originally Acorn based, such as BBC Basic and Tabs.

[edit] Sources

Drage,C & Evans,N;"Cut Out and Keep";March 1989;"BBC Acorn User".

[edit] External links


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