Do you break out in a cold sweat even thinking about using your word processor for an important letter or document, because your spelling is not as good as you would like it to be? Maybe like me you can't spell. Well, banish those word processing day blues and get the Starspell spell checker from Slogger. It is available in a number of guises and I have Starspell and View in one cartridge. Slogger's catalogue will give you all the details of what is available.

I find it very easy to use, although you must remember to save your text file before going into Starspell, as the simple act of going from View to Starspell or vice versa will wipe the memory and the marvellous piece of literature that you have shed blood, sweat and tears over, will be lost forever in the mists of time. So speaketh the voice of bitter experience!

It is still necessary to sit with a dictionary as Starspell checks for spelling mistakes and then shows the word. Unlike spellcheckers on larger machines you will not be offered an alternative word, but that is no surprise as we don't have a Megabyte or two to play around with. If the spelling is incorrect, you can simply change it; if it is correct then there is the choice of saving to the Dictionary Disk, saving it temporarily or ignoring it.

One fairly minor thing I would have liked, is for the dictionary to be supplied on a double-sided disk as this would allow for a greater number of words. But perhaps I'm being a little greedy as it can be supplied in ADFS or DFS formats (both 3.5" and 5.25") with an ADFS disk holding up to 60,000 words and DFS 40,000 words.

The dictionary disk you are supplied with is by no means exhaustive, so you will be adding words right from your very first letter, or you can just add whatever words you think you may need in the future.

I am very happy with Starspell and View and I don't hesitate to recommend it. It is also compatible with Slogger's own Starword, but I have no idea how it compares with the version that runs with View.

Starspell is available in the following formats:

• Starspell 16K ROM and Dictionary Disk
• Starspell Cartridge and Dictionary Disk
• Starspell & View Cartridge and Dictionary Disk
• Starspell & Starword Cartridge and Dictionary Disk

Robert Hall, EUG #6