edited by JOHN
W. MOORE
Bits and Pieces, 15 Most authors of Bits and Pieces will make available listings and/or machine-readable version of their programs. Please read each description carefully to determine compatibility with your own computing environment before requesting materials from any of the authors. Revised Guidelines for Authors of Bits and Pieces appeared in the December 1982 issue of the JOURNAL.
tion with a machine that is always available, or from students' regular, convenient use of machines within their major departments or their dorms. We believe that experience with computers, especially micros, should he available to all students, and to all faculty as well. Any department, college, or university that is not working actively toward such a goal is likely to find itself left behind in the dust before long.
Microcomputers are Personal Tools
Chemical Applications of an Interactive Function Translator
by John W. Moore and Elizabeth A. Moore
Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti MI 48197 Computers used to be big, clumsy devices that could only operate in carefully controlled environments, had to he attended to by a priesthood of expert programmers, and could only he used by persons willing to contend with punched cards, job control languages, or timesharing operating systems. But all that has changed. Hundreds of thousands of microcomputers are now being used by businesspersons who have no programming experience and in many cases no technical expertise. These machines are tools-individual, personal tools-that are easy enough to use that almost everyone can apply them to one problem or another. No prior experience or rupwtise is ncceswr!. or parti,~~larly dcnirahle. \lme and murc rhen~isr-,dripitr lhrir lnck .,I i n t t w > r in programming or romputer hardu;~re.;ire uaing wniputrrs as rmlz. and using [hem et'rrcliwl)~.O11eoirhe t'trncviuns
