ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN LIMA NEWSLETTER MARCH 1990 ^^^^^^^ NEVER RELEASED OFFICIAL TI MODULES: ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^PART 3 - SOME HISTORY quotations dug up and commented on by Charles Good ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^Lima Ohio User Group The following is quoted from the final issue of the TEXAS INSTRUMENTS HOME COMPUTER NEWSLETTER. This was sent by TI in late 1983 or early 1984 to all registered owners of 99/4As who purchased their computers prior to October 1983. "New software agreements reached with Walt Disney, Sierra-On-Line and Imagic. Five new educational software programs, developed for TI by Walt Disney, are planned to be manufactured and marketed by Sierra On-Line. Disney characters used in the programs include Peter Pan, Pinnochio, Winnie-the-Pooh and Professor Ludwig Von Drake. "Five new programs, originally to be manufactured by TI, will now be produced and marketed by Imagic. Included are: Demon Attack, Microsurgeon, Fathom, Wing War, and Moonsweeper." The following was written by John Koloen in the March 1984 issue of HOME COMPUTER COMPENDIUM, now called MICROPENDIUM. "Texas Instruments signed software production agreements with Sierra On-Line and Imagic in January....... "The agreement with Imagic means that the software developer will take over production of software that it had licensed to Texas Instruments last year. Last year TI introduced several titles, including Microsurgeon, Jaw Breaker, Fathom, and Moonsweeper. In addition to producing these titles, Imagic is expected to release a fifth game cartridge, Wing War. "The agreement with Sierra On-Line involves the production of education software that has been developed by TI and the Walt Disney company. Some half dozen programs will be released, using such familiar Disney characters as Professor Ludwig Von Drake, Pinocchio, and Peter Pan. The programs were developed by TI but all aspects of their continued development and production will be carried out by Sierra On-Line, assording to a TI spokesman in Dallas. The programs are expected to be marketed for other computers as well." This gem appeared the following month, in the April 1984 issue of HOME COMPTETER COMPENDIUM. "Walt Disney and Sierra On-Line are cooperatively developing three software chartidges for the TI99/4A. As reported last month in the Compendium, the two companies has digned agreements with Texas Instruments to take over development and marketing of several cartridges that were under development by TI before it left the home computer market. "According to Terry Bochanty, marketing manager for Walt Disney Personal Computer software, Disney had been working with TI to co-develop ten educational game cartridges. However, when TI quit producing home computers development of the software stopped. Sierra On-Line has taken over where TI left off and now some of the cartridges will be completed and marketed, Bochanty said. "Five of the ten cartridges were in the development stage before TI dropped out, Bochanty said, with three of the cartridges on the verge of production. Those three are expected to be marketed sometime by mid-year, he said. Although titles had not been determined by mid-February, Bochanty said, the games involve three subject areas: astronomy, chemistry, and language arts. "All three cartridges utilize popular Disney cartoon characters. "The astronomy cartridge, for children ages 8-11, used Peter Pan. The chemistry cartridge, aimed at children over 11 years old, features Professor Ludwig von Drake. The language arts cartridge, for children six years old and older, features Pinnochio. "Prices have yet to be determined. Bochanty indicated that the cartridges would be marketed through a catalog that will be mailed to some 1.2-1.5 million TI users. "These programs were originally designed to take advantage of the speech synthesizer, Bochanty said, but require nothing more than a console to operate. At this point there are no plans to develop any of the remaining programs, he said. However, that could change depending on how well the first three sell. Disney has been producing educational films and similar items for 30 years and, Bochanty notes, "we know how to reach and teach kids."" And this final note, which appeared in MICROPENDIUM in July 1988. "Ken Williams, president of Sierra On-line Inc., wrote Stephan Shaw of the U.K. TI99/4A Users Group that Sierra is no longer in the TI99/4 market and that Williams does not "forsee circumstances under which we would enforce our TI99/4A copyrights."" "Shaw has written Sierra regarding its Jawbreaker program." MY COMMENTS: I have seen Walt Disney educational computer software produced for the Commodore 64 and other computer systems based on the character Winnie-the-Pooh. The Peter Pan and Ludwig Von Drake software mentioned above were reviewed by me in part 2 of this series. I have never seen the TI software based on the Pinnochio character. I interpret the above statement by the President of Sierra On-Line to mean that the existing TI Disney software, and MOUSE ATTACK (described in part 4 of this series) are in the public domain. This being so, I will be glad to send disk files of MOUSE ATTACK, PETER PAN'S SPACE ODDYSEY and VON DRAKE'S MOLECULAR MISSION to anyone who requests them. PETER PAN requries a supercart or equivalent. VON DRAKE and MOUSE ATTACK require a GramKracker or other gram device and may also work on a Geneve. WING WAR is the only Imagic game never officially released. It is described in Part 4 of this series. Two of the Scott Foresman edicational modules that I described in Part 2 of this series have, in fact, apparently been released for sale to the public. In the Spring 1988 Triton catalog NUMBER BOWLING is listed for $11.95 as cartridge #1030. Only this particular Triton catalog lists NUMBER BOWLING. Several Triton catalogs, including Fall 1988, list a "MULTIPLICATION 2" which "picks up where MULTIPLICATION 1 leaves off." I suspect this is Scott Foresman's MIGHTY MULTIPLICATION, which I described in part 2 of this series. .PL 1