Informax Software for Acorn A-series computers to design Informatrix overlays, Pounds 30. Both from Northwest Semerc, 1 Broadbent Road, Watershedding, Oldham OL1 4HU.

Informal enquiries into how schools use overlay keyboards often indicate that they are safely tucked away in a cupboard. Is this because generating overlays seems too technologically demanding, or does it just take too much time?

Now, from the combined resources of Northwest Semerc and the Concept Keyboard Company, comes Informatrix. With a high- resolution surface, Informatrix is a sort of Concept Keyboard GtI.

The board has a robust and rounded edging and the connector is securely hidden away in the underside. Similarly, the lethal metal tabs that used to hold down overlays have been replaced by a sensible plastic alternative.You don’t need to fit a user port to your computer either; Informatrix plugs straight into the serial port of any computer.

The software to accompany Informatrix is similarly sophisticated, and soon to be available in Apple and PC formats, as well as the current Acorn version. Called Informax, it is both an overlay designer and driver, and is usable with any Concept Keyboard. It enables you to make your own overlays without a knowledge of programming, then print them out ready for use.

Creating an overlay takes a little time, but is made easier by ready-to-use templates on the disc. First you need to size the areas of your grid, then you double-click on an area to type in text or drop in a file. The file might be a picture from another application, or it could be another overlay, which will then “open” when that board area is pressed. Alternatively, you can draw your own pictures or trace them directly onto the board. Printing the overlay is done from the main menu.

A powerful feature of Informax is the ability to interact with third-party software. This means that you can send sound or pictures from your overlays to any software that can deal with these types of file. Check with Semerc for special price offers, and a competition for teachers to design some related software could win you an Acorn Risc PC. Perhaps this initiative will ensure that Informatrix is just too powerful to be kept in cupboard.

Concept Keyboard Company stand SN24 Northwest Semerc stands SN12a, SN13