Laser services availableM.I.T. will use orant monev from the Na­tional Science Foundation~to establish aNortheast regional center that will makelaser systems available to university andindustria! scientists fer experimentsLaser systems today are too expensive formany university and industriallaboratories, so the ne'N center \Nill alloweverybody to economize by sharing the in­struments.

The facility, to be known as the North­east Regional Center for Laser Spectros­copy and Dynamics, will provide state-of­the-art sources of laser radiation, from thefar infrared to the near ultraviolet. Userswill also get ancillary equipment, in­cluding optical devices and computers, aswell as technical advice from the center'sstaff.

Director of the center will be Dr. MichaelFeld, director of the M.I.T. SpectroscopyLaboratory, which will actually house thenew facility. Other staff members will in­clude Drs. Shaoul Ezekial, Robert Field,David Pritchard, and Edward Solomon.

Research at the center will cover suchtopics as laser chemistry, spectroscopy ofatoms and molecules, interaction of mat­ter and radiation; the structure of atomsand molecules; problems in biology andnuclear physics; and relaxation ofphysical systems. Further informationmav be obtained from staff members orWiliiam T. Struble of the M.I.T. News Of­fice-phone 617-253-2701.

engineer Hubert Bermont published hisown book, How to Become a Consultant inYour Own Field. Given professional com­petence, the consultant's successdepends, according to Mr. Bermont, onthe ability to manage the following items:

Never forget: You and your clients areequals; don't take the attitude that clientsare your superiors just because they aregiving you work. Never make :egar con­tracts with a client; it's better to stick withclients who need you, and break off withthose who don't. (Unconventional advice,to say the least.) Never take work fromGovernment agencies; the red tape is notworth it, and your 30-page proposals willinevitably go to the competition.

The book mal' be ordered from BermontBooks, 815 Fifteenth sr., N.W.,\'A.'3sh!~gt~~,D.C. 20005. It h~S 154 oaaes.double-spaced typed, and costs $20. - .

For just $2, however, you can bUY, Howto Start a Time-Sharing Service, a 32-pagebooklet published bv RTI ~nmnlJhH

Systems, which ~~-rl'uf~~·tu-res time­sharing computers. The topics covefed in­clude: Business planning-Setting up abusiness projection; marketing-marketresearch, analysis of competition, salesstrategies; product development-obtain­ing software to meet market needs, OEMsales, software sales: financiai-es­timating start-up and operating costs, andvGtQ;ii;~g f:ii~~~;iig; and seliing upmanagement controls. Send $2 to BTlComputer Systems, 870 Maude Ave., Sun­nyvale, Calif., 94086.

Become a consultantAdvice on running your own businesscomes from two new sources: A book bv aconsulting engineer, and a pamphlet fromBTl Computer Systems. Consulting

SuperCAPPComputer-aided policy planning is likehappiness; it's a good thing, but manypeople would like to know: When will itstart? Managers at Computer AidedManufacturing International Inc. thoughtit started some years ago, when they in­troduced the CAPP system-software forplanning mechanical and electronicassemblies, as weH as maintenance andrepair services. However, few customerscan use the new aid properly, according toa survey by Planning Institute Inc. of Arl­ington, Texas. The hang-up, says PU, isthat CAPP requires would-be users toalready have an extensive data fi Ieorganized by a special classification and""......... : ...,. ~""~,,~i"\ ~,... .. th,... "~~I "" ,..., .......... ~\JVUIII~ .;Ju"""lIv IVI "Iv ~QIIJUl VI I"'Qll.;J.

Few customers are so blessed-or theirHies were developed oniy I()f meCIi&iiicCi;parts-and so PII has introduced PI­CAPP, or Super-CAPP, as they call it,which is reported to be easier to use andmere ':-:r:=ti!c th~~ tho crig:na:.

Super-CAPP is a bootstrap opera­tion-automaticaiiy generating data fiiesas it interacts with users. A sprawling list0"1 applications is noted in Pil's publicityrelease. The new software can generategraphics of process operations, and it pro­duces sketches, allowing engineers todesign for cost or producibility. Multi­users can work from the same masterpia n , and W0 d\ Sc j-.euu it: 8 (; d.It ut:separated for departments or individuals.Progress reports may be generated frominteractively. updated tasks,

Other features include cost estimatinq,experimental plans, and softwarep!ans-all of which can be created,edited, and maintained in PI-CAPP.

Pi i personnei impiement the system forcustomers on the latter's computer-if ithas the right characteristics-and alsotrain the users and maintain the system.For more details, contact Ronald Wallace,Planning Institute Inc., P.O. Box 13585,Ar­lington, Texas, 76013;phone817-461-0144.

i EEB' ToolS I TOYS

I

I II I Transform your problems

Freelance software engineer Raymond D.Moore is selling pre-programmed cardsfor solving Laplace transform problems.The cost: $45. The rub: they are good onlyfor the HP-41C. Mr_ Moore says that theprograms will solve Laplace transformsfrom second to seventh order-providedthe numerator and denominator are ex­pressible as rational polynominals in thetransform variables, and the roots do notexceed seventh order. The solutions areexact, and they come out lust three to fiveseconds after the machine has read the in­put. An instruction booklet comes with thecards. Contact Raymond D. Moore, P.O.Box 72, West Covina, Calif. 91793.

I I

II

~IMPI it wilh IIIPUI:1!n U II ••1111 UUI

IIJ~ ~JnUUI I I&IIIIIY

nI IV II J.u-...I........ ;; II •••• .B.....-- ..,Data Delay Devices Inc. offersthe widest variety of Digiiai De­lay Units. 14 pins DIP and 16pins DIP. 1 to 10 outputs anddigitally programmable delaytime. These units eliminate theinterfacing in TTL circuits andsave PC board real estate.

With the following advantages:• TTL input and outputs

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ProgrammableRequest complete catalog

14 Circle No.8 IEEE spectrum JUNE 1(j~O

ow, with management tools,you can find a tnethodology

to software madness, -Software tools from SYSTEMS provide the total

system solution. They bring to YOUi operation thecorrect and complete cornbinatton of structuringconcepts and methodologies to develop or maintainyour minicomputer system effectively and efficiently.

In addition, only SYSTEMS offers softwaremanagement tools which allow you to quantify andcontrol your programmers' efforts, insuring projectschedules will be kept and budgets will be met.Management tools available include: design aids forstructured programming, inherent in PASCAL and theFORTRAN-77 + languages; a FORTRAN Formatter forclear, consistent and standardized program appearance;a Documenter for uniform documentation; and anInterface Documenter providing inter-relationships

between program modules. Other management toolsinclude methodologies for testing, integrating, andoptimizing (lnstrumenters), and for error detection andcorrection (Symbolic Debugger).

Many other software tools are available fromSYSTEMS. Language tools include PASCAL,FORTRAN 77 +, BASIC, COBOL, and MACROAssembler. A choice" of operating system and graphicstools are offered. Data Base Management Systems aswell as communications tools that can be ordered roundout SYSTEMS' complete software package.

Let SYSTEMS take the madness out of yourminicomputer system development and supportproblems. Write or call for more information. Don't gomad, go SYSTEMS.

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SYSTEMS toll-free product information service 1-800-327-9716Systems Engineering Laboratories, Inc., 6901 W. Sunrise Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL. 33313 (305) 587-2900

Circle No. 220