Oisplags nems

sciences, which has enhanced or wi l l enhance the prestige and prosperity of the UK.

Mr. Fedida invented the concept of viewdata whi lst work ing at the Post Office Research Establishment. He was born in Alexandra, Egypt in 1918, educated in England and after gaining his BSc at Imperial College, served in the RAF as a radar off icer. After the War he joined Marconi becoming a development manager in 1960 and assistant director of research in 1965. He moved to the Post Office research department as manager of computer applications in 1970 and demon- strated the system's feasibi l i ty in 1974.

Prestel is the Post Offices's electronic in format ion service which combines a modi f ied tv set, telephone line and computer. A push but ton control panel calls up a 'page' of the infor- mation required by a subscriber on to a television screen using a tele- phone link routed into a computer data bank. The simpl ic i ty of operat- ing the system provides the potential for the mass marketing of in format ion on a wide range of general and technical subjects. The growth potential of Prestel is such that it is wi th in the grasp of every telephone user in the country.

Prestel was launched last year as the first publ ic viewdata service in the wor ld . There are currently 1,750 Prestel sets l inked to the system and some quarter of a mi l l ion 'pages' of informat ion in the storage bank provided by 800 British and inter- national organizations. The service, now centred in London, wi l l be extended to other centres this year. It is a jo int project in which the Post Office has co-operated w i th the country's television and electronics industries and informat ion providers.

The MacRobert Award Evaluation Commit tee required the project which they choose for the award not only to have achieved domestic marketing success, but to have made a contr ibu- t ion to the country's prosperity over- seas. Prestel technology has been sold to communicat ions authorit ies in West Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Hong Kong and the USA.

The Council of Engineering Institutions, 2 Little Smith Street, Westminster, London, SW1P 3DL, UK

Mr Fredida, 1979 MacRobert A w,~nl winner

Focusing on vdu eye strain

Fol lowing the paper 'VDU's - A Nightmare To The Operator?', the authors Sam Rosenthal and John Grundy have wr i t ten two broader based booklets on the subject of vdu's and their effects on eyes. Both are published by the Association of Optical Practitioners.

'Vision and vdu's' contains the original paper and is aimed at employers,

medical, safety and personnel officers, plant buyers and management in general. It costs £1.50.

'VDU's and you' is of a less technical nature, aimed at the operator, and should serve to allay fears about possible adverse effects on the eyes. It also shows how to avoid eyestrain and ensure op t imum use of thc equip- ment. It is available in packs of 10, 50 ,100 at £1.75, £8.00 and £15.50 per pack respectively.

The VDU Department, the Association of Optical Practitioners, Bridge House, 233 Blackfriars Road, London, SE 1 8NW, UK

Data books

Over 3,000 types of electron tubes are listed in the EEV/M-OV abridged data book for 1980/81. The 85 pages cover the complete range of devices produced by EEV and M-OV as well as an equivalent index. The publ i- cation is free to quali f ied engineers.

A 440 page data book on cos/mos memories, microprocessors, and sup port systems is available from RCA. The book includes technical data, application notes, classification charts, cross-reference, handling, and order- ing informat ion on the CDP1800 series of cosmac microprocessors and associated memory and peripheral circuits.

R CA Limited, Sunhury-on- Thames, Middlesex, England

EE V Waterhouse Lane, Chehnsford, Essex, CM1 2QU, UK

Printed circuit board catalogue

'Quik circuit ' and similar 'Circuit- st ik ' products are included in a cata- logue for printed circuit board proto- typing and bui lding. Pressure sensitive

14 DISPLAYS. APRIL 1980