Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1990 - 52

must be reached regarding the applicabiliry of this technology to the theater.
Then a committee must actually define a
standard based on rwo-phase commit
concepts. To further both these activities, I plan a companion article that will
be an initial attempt at rhe srandard definition.
!!1

dellelopmellt group. His hob~)1 is theatrical
lighting, which he pmetices at the Palaee
Theatre in/\1anclJesteJ; NH.

Acknowledgements
I wish

thank StJ.nlcy .LOnge .mJ EliZJ.bcth S.lOuti for

rcvic:wing this work. I .llso wish to dunk St('n~' Terry for

his advice on the possibilities .Inti problems of defining

stJmiJ.rJ protocol in this .lrea.

Ralph O. Weber is a cOlISultant software
engineer in Digital Equipment Corporations V.rlX/V/\1S operating system

,"lgh/hnt·s. July/Augmt 1989: 10.
2. Ch.ulie Richmond. "LigiH Convcfs.Hion.'· Thflilrc'
Dt's('{1/ G~ Tfdmo!0l...r. Summer 1989; --1.1-45.

3. ~,"\'e Grom Jnd Andy ~lddrum. ·.\11D1 ~!Jnia:' pand
discussion .It the 1989 Lightmg Design burm,uiol1ll1, 1-19 :"o\"cmber I C) l}. ~J.Sh\·ill('. T:'\:. :\ brief summary of
lhe pJnel di"(m~lon can be found III the .. how Repon"
\l,Ltion of Lighting Di1110liiow, .\1arch 1990:118-11- ((he
"\11 DI \1aniJ" pJnd is cOYt~red on pJg.es 11.)-11-4).
-f. JJI11~

Grey. ":'\otcs on D.lt.t B.Ise Oper'lting Systems:'

Endnotes

Opl'T(uing j)5[(111S: An .4.dl'll1lad COUfSt', eds. R. Bayer,
R.~l. Graham Jnd G. Seegmulkr. (19-8): 393-182 (r,,"o-

I. John Bracewell. -Sound Commissioner's Column:'

ph.lSC commit is discussed on

pJge~

46)---!-1,.

SHARE AND SHARE ALIKE: SOnwARE ALTERNATIVES
Larry Walters

common problem facing the novice computer-owner (especially for a small theatre
company or a private individual) is that,
haVing once exhausted the funds acquiring the
hardware, the cost of software is prohibitive. The
would-be operator is left to glare at the idle
machine, and the relationship is off to a bad
start. However, Public Domain software and
Shareware offer a potential solution to this digital catch-22.
Public Domain simply means that those
systems have been placed in the public realm by
their authors and may be copied or altered
freely by anyone. Shareware is user-supported
software. The outhors of Shareware retain legal
rights to their work under the copyright laws and
simply allow it to be distributed freely or with
few restrictions. The idea is that you can audition
the program, see if it works to your liking on
your machine and in your application circumstances. If you like the program and use it, then
you are morally (and legally) obligated to pay
the royalty. These registration fees range from
$5 to 590 and sometimes more, but most fees
fall in the low end of this range.
Anyone who has shopped for commercially
marketed retail software will recognize these
prices as extremely low. Paying the royalty also
gets you the documentation, qUick-reference
cards, keyboard templates, telephone support
for your technical questions and usually free
updates when new versions become available.
Comments from users are taken into account
when Shareware is modified for new versions.
At this writing I have not discovered any
Shareware that wos designed specifically for theatrical purposes. We are a very small market
and even small Shareware operations have to
make a profit. Many of our theatrical tasks are
universal-like word processing and
CADD-and these types of Shareware are readily available. I have readily adapted other systems for my theatrical chores. For example, a
program called Ample Notice (Granny's OldFashioned Software, 530) has served me very

1990 FAll

TD&T

well as a scheduling tool. It was intended to help
business people keep track of busy calendars,
and has a pop-up alarm dock that will remind
you of meetings in advance. Production schedules are really just a series of deadlines, like a
list of meetings.
Ample Notice will print your production
schedule in a list form or a seven-column calendar format, and has a compressed print mode
that shrinks the copy down to wallet or purse
size. It even has a "notes" heading that includes
space for lists of the names and phone numbers
of designers, directors and other key production
personnel. And, being electronic, it has the
advantage of being very easy to change and edit
as the production evolves. Ilike this program so
much that I have installed it on my office computer in two different sub-directories: one to
schedule the season and one to schedule me.
Another program, PC-Estimator (CPR, Inc.,
569) was designed as a tool for contractors to
estimate bids for construction and remodeling.
This one has great potential as a budgeting aid.
It has job categories like "Iaborer" and "concrete
finisher," but includes space for the user to add
jobs like "stage carpenter" and "audio technician." It will help you figure total costs of labor
and materials and even hos categories for renting equipment and tracking costs from various
vendors. There are also several programs available that will help you learn how to use your
computer.
Getting started with Shareware is easy. The
Association of Shareware Professionals is an
organization that attempts to assure quality and
fairness among its members. These people sent
me a disk with a 58-page catalog of Shareware
packages that their members are offering.
Public Brand Software has been another
wonderfully workable resource. It offers public
domain and Shareware disks for 55 per disk!
Just reading its 125-page free catalog is an education. More advanced users (or more impatient
people) can gain access to Shareware through
electronic bulletin board services such as

Compuserve or PBS-BBS (Public Brand
Software).
Rnally, Iurge those of you who are gener0ting software for theatrical applications to
make it available through Shareware.
Remember, "user-supported" works both ways.
Larry Walters is on associate professor
and director of technical theatre at the
University ofNevada-Reno.

Sources for Shareware
and Freeware:
The Association of Shareware
Professionals
P.O. Box 5786, Bellevue, WA 98006
CPR, Inc. (MS-DOS)
P.O. Box 3465, Berkeley, CA 94703;
415-654-B338
Granny's Old-Fashioned Software
(MS-DOS)
Route 4, Box 216, Boone, NC 28607; 704-2646906
Public Brand Software
(MS-DOS)
P.O. Box 51315, Indianapolis, IN 46251;
B00-426-DISK, 317-856-4144,
PBS-BBS: 317-856-2087
EduCorp (Mac)
531 Stevens Avenue, #8, Solana Beach, CA 92075
800-843-9497
CompuServe Information Services
(Moc/MS-DOS/other)
800-848-8199
America Online (Mac only)
800-227-6364
Prodigy (Mac/MS-DOS)
800-776-3449, ext. 333

http://www.pJg.es

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1990