From: INFO@config.com (config.sys, Inc. Information Account) Newsgroups: alt.cd-rom.reviews Subject: [CD-ROM REVIEW] Walnut Creek's Hobbes OS/2 Date: Fri, 04 Nov 94 03:23:23 GMT I've had problems getting this review out. It has bounced back to me twice. I know for a fact that Hobbes OS/2 has never been reviewed and apologize to anyone who received this in their newsgroup twice. Best Net Regards, Joe Rinehart joe@config.com CD ROM Review : "Hobbes OS/2 Archived" (August 1994 edition) Publisher : Walnut Creek CDROM Reviewer : Steve J. Steinberg E-mail : stein047@maroon.tc.umn.edu System Requirements: Obviously if you intend to use the programs on the CD you need OS/2 and a CD ROM drive. The CD may also be used with a BBS system running from DOS to make OS/2 files available to callers. Archives are mostly in ZIP form though some ZOO files do appear. Archivers are included on the CD and are automatically invoked by the menu shell when a file is selected. Review: Hobbes OS/2 is THE CD for OS/2 fans. This disc is updated quarterly. I owned the Feb, 94 edition before receiving the August version for this review. The CD is available as a subscription with quarterly updates direct from the publisher. Subscribers will pay the list price, so this is not necessarilty the most economical option, street prices run $5-7 lower. Like any shareware CD ROM, there is always the issue of current files. The lag time between program updates and CD publication can often mean a newer version of a program is released before the CD is in your hands. Being updated quarterly, Hobbes OS/2 does not fall victim to this nearly as often as many shareware CD ROM disks. The files on the CD are accessible via a menu shell executable >from either DOS or OS/2. The CD is also BBS ready for sysops who would like to make this selection of OS/2 programs and files available on their BBS system. Over 3000 OS/2 files are on the CD. Files are broken down into sections on two levels. First, by the OS/2 version the program is written for, 1.x, 2.x, 2.1 or all. Within each of these sections files are grouped into topics such as games, graphics utilities, demos, programming, etc. The shell program allows you to navigate the directories on the CD quickly and easily, files are displayed by name and include a one line description via this menu shell. When the user finds a file of interest, simply highlighting it and hitting enter will extract the program into the directory of your choice. The directory structure of the CD makes sense, though it is a bit cumbersome if you need to navigate at the command line level. The basic directory layout is consistent from version to version, which as a sysop who had to manually install the directories to my BBS, made upgrading to the August release much easier. Of course, if you use a BBS system that has data files on the CD, or use a CD ROM door, this is probably not an issue. BBS ready files are included for RBBS, PCBoard, opus, Spitfire, Wildcat and Maximus with good multi-line descriptions. I found very rare cases where descriptions were missing. The most encouraging thing about the Hobbes CD is that they actually seem to keep current versions. Old versions of files were removed and replaced with new versions between the Feb and August issues. Some other nice aspects are included disk images for upgrading your OS/2 installation, for example 2.10 to 2.11. Lots of technical help files, and lots of files direct from IBM. This disk also includes files for programmers including full OS/2 implementations of GCC and EMX 08h C, GNU, EMACs, Ghostscript, and more. A good helping of games, icons, utilities and so on are also present in mass. ----- Steven J. Steinberg stein047@maroon.tc.umn.edu >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> APPENDUM NOTICE <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< This review was provided by the author along with authorization for redistribution by config.sys, Inc., in an unedited state above this appendum. Reformatting may have been necessary for various operating systems. The reviews provided by config.sys, Inc. reflect the opinions of the reviewer and not necessarily that of config.sys, Inc. They are provided solely to serve as a guide for information to determine the potential purchase of a CD-ROM disc. Any copyrights are retained by the author. Not all CD-ROM discs reviewed are available through config.sys, Inc. A catalog of over 3000 discounted CD-ROM discs is available upon request. The author(s) have not been compensated by config.sys, Inc. Enjoy! Joe Rinehart joe@config.com config.sys, Inc. CD-ROM Division P.O. 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