ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN LIMA NEWSLETTER JUNE 1990
 
          'Drew's Views:  Picasso Enlarger 
          By:  Andy Frueh 
 
Documentation.....B 
Ease of Use.......A 
Value.............A- 
Final Grade.......A 
 
AUTHOR: Paul Scheidemantle 
Publisher:^^Asgard Software 
^^^^^^^^^^^^P. O. Box 10306 
^^^^^^^^^^^^Rockville, MD  20850 
 
     There is a fairly new utility out now for Picasso.  It is called Picasso
Enlarger, but don't let the title fool you.  It does FAR more than enlarging.
You can enlarge, shrink, and "ghost" images.  The manual that comes with this
piece of software has a cover featuring the horizontal and vertical enlarging
and ghosting (see below).  The manual I have (I got my copy from Paul
Scheidemantle, the author) says it's from Asgard Software, but I hope it's
pre-production and inspection.  The manual has quite a few typos.  They don't
really take away from the purpose of the manual:  to give instruction.  However,
it is the only bad mark for the whole program! 
 
     It is very easy to use.  The whole thing loads out of Extended BASIC via a
LOAD file.  It self-starts, as you expect it to.  It is a little slow, but
you have to expect that with almost EVERY TI graphics utility.  The effects
produced by Picasso Enlarger are far worth the wait.  IGd like to know how
Paul Scheidemantle DOES it! 
 
     As far as value goes, it really depends on whether or not you use Picasso.
If you use another "artist" program, this isn't worth the price, and I don't
expect that you buy it.  However, if you rather use Picasso (it's a whole
lot easier to learn than other "artists") than this is an invaluable tool, WELL
worth the cost.  So, what can this actually do?  Well, you can enlarge a
picture either horizontally, vertically, or in both directions.  You can also
reduce a picture in the same ways.  You can ghost a picture, which means that
the image will appear to be lighter.  What actually happens is that Picasso
Enlarger will strip out some of the dots from the picture.  You can also merge
a TI-Artist instance-type picture into a Picasso picture.  Very handy!  Also,
you can view this instance.  As the manual states, "Because of the limitations
of xbasic if it is an unusually large picture only a portion will be shown."
You can catalog a disk (self-explanatory, I hope!).  Finally, you can convert
an eight pixel-high Artist font into one to use with Picasso, or vice versa. 
 
     My only conclusion is that this is a great addition to the toolbox of
Picasso users.  It is worth it's price.  As I stated earlier, I only have a
problem with the manual, and maybe the speed it takes from loading to running.
Pre-scan commands should, in my opinion, always be used, memory permitting.  So
all in all, it's worth four stars.  A fine effort by Paul, and very wise of
Asgard to publish it. 
 
     Finally, does anyone know if Picasso resets the printer upon loading or
anything?  I set my printer to small line spacing, yet when I try to print a
Picasso picture through Picasso, it prints with the ol' familiar horizontal
lines.  HELP! 
.PL 1