Compatibility
One of the most important factors in determining compatibility
of software is the version of the PC card software being used; different hardware
configurations will tend to affect speed rather than
compatibility. If no details are given, the hardware
used is either unknown, or an Acorn 33MHz 486 card with ARM610.
It is also assumed that software which will work on earlier versions of
the PC card software will usually work on the current release version; therefore, the
version of the PC card software used for testing is usually not listed either, except where (as in an increasing number of cases), software will only work with PC Pro. If in
doubt, use the latest free release version, or, if you really want as much to work as possible,
PC Pro.
It is also assumed that you have an adequate amount of RAM and hard disk
space to run the software listed. Finally bear in mind that, although a
great many demos are listed in the compatibility information, just
because a game demo works or fails on the PC card does not mean the game
itself will, as the programming involved can be radically different.
Speed
Except where otherwise indicated, software has been tested on an
original 33MHz ASIC 1 Acorn 486SX card, 30Mhz ARM610 processor, and 1MB
VRAM. (Most popular games now have details of performance under different ARM and PC processor combinations).
Where no comment is made on speed, all that is implied is that the game
runs fast enough on this basic configuration that someone, somewhere
might be prepared to put up with
playing it on a long-term basis. (e.g. Doom fits into this category on
the basic configuration, but Terminal Velocity does not).
Sound
Except where indicated, no implication is made about the compatibility or
quality of the sound produced by any of the software when run on a PC
card. Thankfully more and more information on sound compatibility, both with the standard drivers and with