C-64/128 Light Pens by Tom Haslehurst Light Pens, another alternative input device for the C 64/128, only become a serious contender to the input device contest when they are being used with graphics programs. All light pens work on the same basic principles, but you will find that not all light pens are created equal. Light pens send out an electron beam which hits the phosphor coating (the coating on the inside surface of the monitor) which then sends the signal back to the computer through the joystick port. The sensitivity of the light pen determines how well the computer recognizes the signal. I had three different light pens to compare, and each of them was activated in a different manner. The Madison Computer McPen was attached through a pen stand which had a sensitivity control dial on the stand. There was also the Tech Sketch Inc. light pen, which used a button attached to the pen itself. The button had to be depressed to activate the light pen. Last of all was the Inkwell Systems Flexidraw light pen which uses a pressure sensitive pen tip that compresses when pushed against the monitor screen to activate the light pen. Each of the light pens come with some form of graphics program and demo software. McPen: The McPen light pen looks very impressive with its stand and the holder where you can place the pen when not in use. The software for the pen is the major letdown. The graphics drawing program is very simple and unsophisticated in design. This program would be useful for young children to use but would not be beneficial to an adult beyond the very basic level of drawing. Anyone with a talent for good computer graphics, would be disappointed with this program. Even for a child the program may be somewhat difficult to use. The pen has to be placed to the screen before an operation of the program can be selected. Also the pen was a little too sensitive and would begin the screen manipulations as soon as the pen started to move. This would create imaging where it was not wanted. The sensitivity dial on the stand did not seem able to control this problem. The McPen's demo programs such as Hangman and TicTacToe worked quite well with the light pen. Again the children found Hangman fun and easy to play. The TicTacToe was good as well but the children got bored with it very quickly because playing against the computer was less of a challenge than if they had been able to play against each other. The other major drawback with this light pen is its inability to function with GEOS. This will probably be the biggest deterrent to anyone wishing to use this light pen. Tech Sketch Inc.: The Tech Sketch light pen works differently from the McPen. The Tech Sketch pen uses a button on the pen to activate and deactivate it. As with all light pens this one also comes with a graphics program. This program is similar in design to the Koala Pad drawing program. The menu is separate from the drawing screen. Even with the button control, this pen seems to be a bit too sensitive when used on the screen, which makes it difficult to control. The drawing program is more functional than the McPen program, but is still rather limited in its usefulness. There are some good demo pictures with the program but I believe it would take a fair bit of experience to achieve this level of work with the software. For printing purposes the software supports the CBM 1525 printer. This is obviously not going to be sufficient for most people especially if you have a color printer. I might recommend a Super Snapshot cartridge, so you can do a screen dump and then print your graphic out in color. The Tech Sketch pen has some other drawbacks as well. For example the program will not work with JiffyDOS activated. This is not necessarily a problem but it is an inconvenience. Also the light pen cannot be recognized by GEOS. Again this may not be a prime deterrent to anyone wishing to use this program for its limited graphics software only. Flexidraw: The Flexidraw 5.5 from Inkwell Systems is the only light pen for the Commodore still on the market today. It can be purchased from J P PBM Products by mail in Toronto at (416) 240- 8993 or from CMD, Inc., in East Longmeadow, MA 01028. Luckily for anyone interested in a light pen, the Flexidraw light pen is the most advanced of the three pens that were tested. The Flexidraw pen itself handles very well, and the pressure sensitive tip that collapses when pushed against the monitor screen works flawlessly. The pen comes with some good software as well. The demo programs have good graphics using color and sound. For example the memory teaser game called Follow Me will hold your interest for quite some time, and the Piano Keyboard demo works very nicely. The drawing program is also the best of the three tested. It will allow the use of other input devices such as the Koala Pad, the mouse, or the joystick, as well as the light pen. The program allows the use of the function keys also, for rotating, flipping, and disk operations. The only drawback with the program may be in the fact that the color must be added to the graphic after it has been drawn, but considering how good the program is, this is a very minor problem. The program also has a little larger learning curve than the other programs tested, and may be a bit more difficult or kids to use but it will benefit people with talent a great deal more Other pluses of the Flexidraw light pen are its ability to be fully functional with GEOS programs. It works flawlessly with them, and in some ways, actually excels over the mouse. With the light pen you just point to the function and click, instead of having to drag the cursor around with the mouse. (From TPUG, Spring 1998 newsletter via June 98 Computer Compendum of Basic Bits BG via Random Bits, newsletter of NOVACOM, via The Commodore Information Center web site (http://home.att.net/~rmestel/commodore.html) )