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The [[ZX Spectrum]]'s software library was very diverse. While the majority of the software produced for the system was [[video games]], others included programming language implementations, Sinclair BASIC extensions, databases, word processors, spread sheets, drawing and painting tools, and 3D modelling tools.
== Games ==
{{See also|List of ZX Spectrum games}}
=== ''Your Sinclair'' top 10 ===
Between October 1991 and February 1992 ''[[Your Sinclair]]'' published a list of what they considered to be the top 100 games for the [[ZX Spectrum]]. Their top 10 were:<ref>{{cite journal | date = January 1992 | title = The YS Top 100 Speccy Games Of All Time (Ever!) | journal = [[Your Sinclair]] | issue = 73 | pages = 34–36 | url = http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/ystop100_4.htm | access-date = 15 August 2006 | archive-date = 16 August 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060816053829/http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/ystop100_4.htm | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | date = February 1992 | title = The YS Top 100 Speccy Games Of All Time Pt 5 | journal = Your Sinclair | issue = 74 | page = 45 | url = http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/ystop100_5.htm | access-date = 15 August 2006 | archive-date = 24 September 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060924115959/http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/ystop100_5.htm | url-status = dead }}</ref>
# ''[[Deathchase]]''
# ''[[Rebelstar]]''
# ''[[All or Nothing (game)|All or Nothing]]''
# ''[[Stop the Express]]''
# ''[[Head Over Heels (game)|Head Over Heels]]''
# ''[[R-Type]]''
# ''[[The Sentinel (computer game)|The Sentinel]]''
# ''[[Rainbow Islands]]''
# ''[[Boulder Dash (video game)|Boulder Dash]]''
# ''[[Tornado Low Level]]''
=== CRASH top 10 ===
Between August and December 1991 ''[[CRASH (magazine)|CRASH]]'' published their list of the top 100 ZX Spectrum games, including in the top 10:<ref>{{cite journal |date=December 1991 | title = All Time Encyclopedia Top 100 Speccy Games | journal = CRASH | issue = 94 | pages = 45–48 | url = http://www.crashonline.org.uk/94/top100.htm | access-date = 15 August 2006}}</ref>
# ''[[Rainbow Islands]]''
# ''[[Chase H.Q.]]''
# ''[[RoboCop (1988 video game)|RoboCop]]''
# ''[[RoboCop 2 (video game)|RoboCop 2]]''
# ''[[Dizzy: The Ultimate Cartoon Adventure|Dizzy]]''
# ''[[Target: Renegade]]''
# ''[[Magicland Dizzy]]''
# ''[[Batman (video game)|Batman: The Movie]]''
# ''[[Operation Wolf]]''
# ''[[Midnight Resistance]]''
=== Techradar's "Top 30" ===
Techradar published their list of the best 30 [[ZX Spectrum]] games in 2012, underlining which games stood the test of time.<ref>{{cite web | last = Hartley | first = Adam | date = 23 April 2012 | title = 30 best ZX Spectrum games | url = http://www.techradar.com/news/gaming/30-best-zx-spectrum-games-594151 | access-date = 21 March 2016}}</ref>
# [[Elite (video game)|Elite]] – Firebird Games
# [[R-Type]] – Electric Dreams Software
# [[Chuckie Egg]]: A'n'F Software
# [[Manic Miner]]: Bug-Byte Software Ltd
# [[Knight Lore]]: Ultimate Play the Game
# [[Back to Skool]]: Microsphere
# [[Football Manager (1982 series)|Football Manager]]: Addictive Games Ltd
# [[Lunar Jetman]]: Ultimate Play the Game
# [[Horace Goes Skiing]] – Beam Software
# [[Boulder Dash (video game)|Boulder Dash]] – Front Runner
# [[Sim City]]: Infogrames
# [[Underwurlde]]: Ultimate Play the Game
# [[Super Hang-On]]: Electric Dreams Software
# [[Jet Set Willy]]: Software Projects Ltd
# [[Rainbow Islands]]: Ocean Software Ltd
# [[Tornado Low Level]]: Vortex Software
# [[Ant Attack]]: Quicksilva Ltd
# [[Chase H.Q.]]: Ocean Software Ltd
# [[Deus Ex Machina (video game)|Deus Ex Machina]]: Automata UK Ltd
# [[Lode Runner]]: Software Projects Ltd
# [[Gauntlet (1985 video game)|Gauntlet]]: US Gold Ltd
# [[Fantasy World Dizzy]]: Code Masters Ltd
# [[The Hobbit (1982 video game)|The Hobbit]]: Melbourne House
# [[Atic Atac]]: Ultimate Play the Game
# [[Tetris]]: Mirrorsoft Ltd
# [[Hyper Sports]]: Imagine Software Ltd
# [[The Way of the Exploding Fist]] – Melbourne House
# [[Daley Thompson's Decathlon]]: Ocean
# [[Skool Daze]]: Microsphere
# [[The Great Escape (1986 video game)|The Great Escape]]: Ocean
===
A number of current leading games developers and development companies began their careers on the ZX Spectrum. [[David Perry (game developer)|David Perry]] of [[Shiny Entertainment]] wrote ''[[Three Weeks in Paradise]]'' and ''[[Dan_Dare:_Pilot_of_the_Future|Dan Dare]]''. [[Tim Stamper (game artist)|Tim]] and his brother [[Chris Stamper]], along with Tim's girlfriend (later wife) Carole Ward and John Lathbury, published ''[[Jetpac]]'', ''[[Atic Atac]]'', ''[[Sabre Wulf]]'' and ''[[Knightlore]]'': and many others, as [[Ultimate Play the Game]], now known as [[Rare (company)|Rare]], maker of many famous titles for [[Nintendo]] and [[Xbox]] game consoles.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.filfre.net/2014/01/the-legend-of-ultimate-play-the-game | title = The Legend of Ultimate Play the Game | date = 14 January 2014 | last = Maher | first = Jimmy | work = The Digital Antiquarian}}</ref> [[Alan Cox (computer programmer)|Alan Cox]] wrote ''Blizzard Pass'', and is an ardent supporter of open source software.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.softpanorama.org/People/Cox/index.shtml | title = Alan Cox: and the Art of Making Beta Code Work | access-date = 18 January 2007 | last = Bezroukov | first = Nikolai | work = Portraits of Open Source Pioneers}}</ref>
Other notable Spectrum game developers include:
* [[Jonathan Smith (games programmer)|Jonathan "Joffa" Smith]] wrote ''[[Cobra (video game)|Cobra]]'', ''Hysteria'', ''Firefly'' and a conversion from the ''[[Rush'n Attack|Green Beret]]'' arcade among other games which prove that smooth scrolling was never a problem on the ZX Spectrum, as long as the developer had the necessary technical knowledge.
* [[Matthew Smith (games programmer)|Matthew Smith]] wrote the Spectrum titles ''[[Manic Miner]]'' and ''[[Jet Set Willy]]'', proving that it was possible to have continual music during game play on a Spectrum;
* Nigel Alderton was the 16-year-old author of ''[[Chuckie Egg]]'', published by A'n'F Software on the Spectrum and [[BBC Micro]];
* The first author of an isometric 3D game: ''[[Ant Attack]]'', published by [[Quicksilva]]: was [[Sandy White (programmer)|Sandy White]];
* [[Julian Gollop]] wrote ''[[Rebelstar (series)|Rebelstar]]'' and ''[[Laser Squad]]'';
* [[Jon Ritman]] was the author of ''[[Match Day (video game)|Match Day]]'' and ''[[Head Over Heels (game)|Head Over Heels]]'';
* [[Oliver Twins|The Oliver Twins]] wrote the [[Dizzy series]] of games;
* David and Helen Reidy wrote ''[[Skool Daze]]'' and ''[[Back to Skool]]'' for [[Microsphere (software company)|Microsphere]];
* Christian Penfold and [[Mel Croucher]], of [[Automata UK|Automata]], authors of ''[[Pimania]]'', ''[[My Name Is Uncle Groucho, You Win A Fat Cigar]]'' and ''[[Deus Ex Machina (video game)|Deus Ex Machina]]'';<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.filfre.net/2014/01/the-merry-pranksters-of-automata | title = The Merry Pranksters of Automata | date = 21 January 2014 | last = Maher | first = Jimmy | work = The Digital Antiquarian}}</ref>
* [[Paul Owens (games programmer)|Paul Owens]] and Christian Urquhart, developers of ''[[Daley Thompson's Decathlon]]'' for [[Ocean Software]];
* Philip Mitchell and [[Veronika Megler]] of [[Beam Software]], who wrote ''[[The Hobbit (1982 video game)|The Hobbit]]'' published by Melbourne House;
* Platinum Productions (David J Anderson and Ian Morrison), authors of the conversions of ''[[Lode Runner]]'', ''[[Beach_Head_(video_game)|Beach Head]]'' and ''[[Rambo_(1985_video_game)|Rambo]]'';
* [[Costa Panayi]], who wrote ''[[Android_One:_The_Reactor_Run|Android]]'', ''[[Android Two]]'', ''[[Highway Encounter]]'', ''[[Cyclone (computer game)|Cyclone]]'' and ''[[Tornado Low Level]]'' for [[Vortex Software]];
* [[William Tang (video game designer)|William Tang]] wrote the [[Horace series]] of games (''Hungry Horace'', ''Horace Goes Skiing'' and ''Horace and the Spiders'') for [[Beam Software]], published by [[Sinclair Research]] and [[Krome Studios Melbourne|Melbourne House]].
== Demos ==
Many [[demo (computer programming)|demos]] were made for the Spectrum and compatible computers.<ref>[http://www.techradar.com/news/computing/10-of-the-coolest-demoscene-creations-715166 TechRadar: 10 of the coolest demoscene creations]</ref><ref>[https://www.vice.com/en/article/idemoscene-the-art-of-the-algorithmsi-looks-at-the-history-of-a-digital-subculture/ Vice: Demoscene – The Art of the Algorithms Looks At The History Of A Digital Subculture]</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Collins|first=Karen|title=From Pac-Man to Pop Music: Interactive Audio in Games and New Media}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Reunanen |first1=Markku |last2=Silvast |first2=Antti |title=History of Nordic Computing 2 |chapter=Demoscene Platforms: A Case Study on the Adoption of Home Computers |series=IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology |year=2009 |volume=303 |page=291|doi=10.1007/978-3-642-03757-3_30 |isbn=978-3-642-03756-6 |url=https://hal.inria.fr/hal-01301652 |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Zone|first=Ray|title=3DIY: 3D Moviemaking on an Indy Budget|page=69}}</ref><ref name="Woodcock 28">{{cite book|last=Woodcock|first=Colin|title=The ZX Spectrum on Your PC|page=28}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Hacking Europe|page=146}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Michael|first=Flenov|title=Hackish C++ Games & Demos|page=9}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Video Game Industry: Formation, Present State, and Future|pages=139–140}}</ref> The [[demo scene]] on the Spectrum can probably be traced back to [[Castor Cracking Group]], [[The Lords (demogroup)|The Lords]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/quinquagesimademo.htm |title=Your Sinclair: Quinquagesima |access-date=23 October 2021 |archive-date=8 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160708222958/http://ysrnry.co.uk/articles/quinquagesimademo.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> and a few other groups and individuals back in 1986. The ZX Spectrum demo scene was slow to start,<ref name=zat25>[ftp://ftp.worldofspectrum.org/pub/sinclair/magazines/ZAT/Issue25/Pages/ZAT2500019.jpg Advanced ZAT Programming, issue 25, 1994: ''Demo&Co'']{{dead link|date=May 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> but it started to rise in the late 1980s, most noticeably in Eastern Europe<ref name="Woodcock 28"/><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/megademodfo.htm |title=Your Sinclair: Megademo |access-date=23 October 2021 |archive-date=8 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160708222947/http://ysrnry.co.uk/articles/megademodfo.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>[http://rhizome.org/editorial/2012/apr/10/new-full-length-documentary-demoscene/ Demoscene – The Art of the Algorithms (2012)]</ref> and southern Europe.<ref>[http://www.selda.se/sub/hemdatornytt/1990_03/#/70/zoomed Hemdatornytt nr 2 1990, p 70]{{Dead link|date=July 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Some demos were also released with magazines on [[cover tape]]s.<ref>[http://www.worldofspectrum.org/infoseekadv.cgi?what=2®exp=Sinclair+User&yrorder=1&year=0&type=demo&players=0&turns=0&memory=0&language=0&country=0&licence=0&feature=0&publi=0&release=0&format=0&scheme=0&scorder=1&score=0&have=1&also=1&sort=1&display=1&loadpics=0 World of Spectrum – Sinclair Infoseek]{{Dead link|date=July 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
Although there are many demos made for the 48K Spectrums,<ref>[http://zxdemo.org/ Demotopia]</ref> most current Spectrum demos require the additional features found in the Spectrum 128K, that is, 128 [[Kibibyte|KiB]] of RAM and the [[AY-3-8912]] sound chip. Also, many demos have been designed to run from a [[floppy disk]] rather than a [[Compact Cassette|cassette tape]]. In many eastern European countries, the various [[:Category:ZX Spectrum clones|Spectrum clones]] used to be more common than the original models, a fact that also reflects in the choices of hardware among the demoscene. For example, on most Russian demoscene events, the standard "compo Spectrum" is the [[Pentagon (computer)|Pentagon 128]] with a floppy disk drive. Since there are considerable technical differences between the Pentagon and the original Spectrum, particularly in the video timing, there are also many demos that require a Pentagon to run properly. Piotr Marecki, cultural studies and digital culture scholar at Jagiellonian University, argues that this makes the ZX Spectrum demoscene unique.<ref>{{cite web |title=Polish Scholar to Speak about the European ZX Spectrum 8-Bit Personal Computer |url=http://dtc-wsuv.org/wp/ell/2017/07/30/polish-scholar-to-speak-about-the-european-zx-spectrum-8-bit-pc/ |publisher=Electronic Literature Lab}}</ref> Nowadays clones and interfaces are being created that can run demos for various ZX Spectrum hardware accessories and clones, such as the ZX-UNO, the ZX Spectrum Next and the MB03+ Ultimate interface. The eLeMeNt ZX computer is specially designed to support enhancements used by demomakers, that includes 3 memory models of the Pentagon and the ability of switching, on fly, between various zx-clones timings, CPU speeds and gigascreen graphics.
The earliest demos were simple music players with music ripped from games and perhaps simple effects or text scrollers. Many scrolltext may contain rude words.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/shockdemo.htm |title=Your Sinclair: Shock |access-date=23 October 2021 |archive-date=2 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090502224201/http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/shockdemo.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> Many later demos feature so-called 'multicolor' effects (changing the color attributes of the ZX Spectrum's display configuration of 768 character blocks), which have to be fixed to a specific ZX Spectrum model. Megademos, demos with more content, usually split into several parts, appeared in the beginning of 90's, with the advent of ''The Lyra II'' by ESI. Most of the demos since 1996 have been "trackmos" (effects fixed to music), often featuring 3D objects, sometimes in low resolutions, to achieve more colours.
In the former Soviet Union and Eastern/Central Europe, the ZX Spectrum often has a cult status similar to the [[Commodore 64]] in the Western Europe: it was the most popular 8-bit homecomputer and also the first computer for many computer and demoscene enthusiasts. Therefore, whereas many major Western European demo parties organise demo, music and graphics competitions for the Commodore 64, the parties in the east often have the corresponding ZX Spectrum competitions instead.
ZX Spectrum demos have been shown at multi-platform demoparties such as Assembly, and there used to be various Spectrum-only parties, such as Funtop in Moscow. The largest party today that regularly features the ZX Spectrum is [[Chaos Constructions]] in [[Saint Petersburg]]. Outside of Russia there is the Forever demoparty.{{or|date=October 2021}}
==
Other software released for the Spectrum included:
; Programming language implementations:
* [[C (programming language)|C]]<ref>{{cite web | url = https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.php?cat=96&id=0008252 | title = ZXDB POWERED SOFTWARE SEARCH: HiSoft C | access-date = 6 March 2018 | website = SpectrumComputing.co.uk}}</ref>
* [[Pascal (programming language)|Pascal]]<ref>{{cite web | url = https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.php?cat=96&id=0008255 | title = ZXDB POWERED SOFTWARE SEARCH: HiSoft Pascal 4 | access-date = 6 March 2018 | website = SpectrumComputing.co.uk}}</ref>
* [[Prolog]]<ref>{{cite web | url = https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.php?cat=96&id=0008429 | title = ZXDB POWERED SOFTWARE SEARCH: Micro-Prolog | access-date = 6 March 2018 | website = SpectrumComputing.co.uk}}</ref>
* [[Forth (programming language)|Forth]]<ref>{{cite web | url = https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.php?cat=96&id=0008178 | title = ZXDB POWERED SOFTWARE SEARCH: Forth | access-date = 6 March 2018 | website = SpectrumComputing.co.uk}}</ref>
* [[Zilog Z80|Z80]] [[assembler (computer programming)|assembler]]s/[[disassembler]]s:
** ''[[OCP Editor/Assembler]]''
** ''[[HiSoft Systems|HiSoft]] Devpac''
** ''[[ZEUS Assembler]]''
** ''[[Artic Assembler]]''
* [[Sinclair BASIC]] extensions and compilers:
** ''[[Beta BASIC]]''
** ''[[Mega Basic]]''
** ''MCoder''
** ''COLT''
** ''[[HiSoft BASIC]]''
** ''[[ToBoS-FP]]''
; [[Database]]s:
* ''[[VU-File]]''<ref name="zappowboom">{{cite journal |last=Pearce |first=Nick |date=October–November 1982 |title=Zap! Pow! Boom! |journal=ZX Computing |page=75}}</ref>), word processors (e.g.: ''[[Tasword]] II''<ref>{{cite journal |last=Wetherill |first=Steven |date=June 1984 |title=Tasword Two: The Word Processor |journal=CRASH! |issue=5 |page=126}}</ref>
; [[Spreadsheet]]s:
* ''[[VU-Calc]]''<ref name="zappowboom"/>
; Drawing and painting tools:
* ''[[OCP Art Studio]]''<ref>{{cite news|last1=Gilbert|first1=John|title=Art Studio|url=https://archive.org/stream/sinclair-user-magazine-043/SinclairUser_043_Oct_1985#page/n27/mode/2up|access-date=6 March 2018|work=Sinclair User|issue=43|publisher=EMAP|date=October 1985}}</ref>
* ''[[The Artist (software)|The Artist]]''
* ''[[Paintbox (software)|Paintbox]]''
* ''[[Melbourne Draw]]''
; 3D modelling tools:
* ''[[VU-3D]]''<ref>{{cite journal |last=Carter |first=Alasdair |date=October–November 1983 |title=VU-3D |journal=ZX Computing |pages=76–77}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bioeddie.co.uk/Spectrum/vu-3d.htm |title=Psion Vu-3D |access-date=2007-01-18 |archive-date=2 February 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070202125355/http://bioeddie.co.uk/Spectrum/vu-3d.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>
== Media ==
===
{{more citations needed section|date=August 2012}}
Because most British home computer owners used tape instead of disk storage into the mid-1980s,<ref name="pountain198501">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/details/BYTE_Vol_10-01_1985-01_Through_The_Hourglass/page/n401/mode/2up | title=The Amstrad CPC 464 | work=BYTE | date=January 1985 | access-date=27 October 2013 | author=Pountain, Dick | pages=401}}</ref> most ZX Spectrum software was originally distributed on [[audio cassette tape]]s. The software is encoded on tape as a sequence of [[Pulse (signal processing)|pulses]] that sound similar to the noises made by a [[modem]]. Since the Spectrum has only a rudimentary tape interface, data is recorded using an unusually simple and very reliable modulation: similar to [[pulse-width modulation]] but without a constant clock rate. Pulses of different widths (durations) represent 0s and 1s. A "zero" is represented by a ~244 [[microsecond|μs]] pulse followed by a gap of the same duration (855 clock ticks each at 3.5 [[Hertz|MHz]]) for a total ~489 μs;<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.worldofspectrum.org/tapsamp.html#samplerate | title = Selecting a sample rate | access-date = 24 August 2006 | last1 = Heide | first1 = Martijn van der | last2 = Kopanske | first2 = Martin | last3 = Kac | first3 = Tomaz | year = 1997–1999 | work = Tape decoding with Taper | archive-date = 30 May 2013 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130530081001/http://www.worldofspectrum.org/tapsamp.html#samplerate | url-status = dead }}</ref> "one" is twice as long, totalling ~977 μs. This allows for 1,023 "ones" or 2,047 "zeros" to be recorded per second. Assuming an even proportion of each, the resulting mean transmission rate is ~1,365 average [[bits/s]]. Higher speeds are possible using custom [[machine code]] loaders instead of the [[read-only memory|ROM]] routines.
In theory, a standard 48K program may take about 5 minutes to load: 49,152 bytes × 8 = 393,216 bits; 393,216 bits / 1,365 [[baud]] ≈ 288 seconds = 4:48 minutes. In practice, however, such a program usually takes between 3–4 minutes to load (because of different number of 0s and 1s encoded using [[Frequency-shift keying#Audio FSK|audio frequency shift keying]], and not all memory needs loading), and 128K programs could take up to 11:23 minutes to load. Experienced users can often tell the type of a file, e.g. file header, screen image or main block of code, from the way it sounds on the tape.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gaminglives.com/2010/03/25/loader-bollocks/|title=Loader Bollocks|publisher=gaminglives.com}}</ref>
The standard method of storing files on tape uses a combination of header and associated data blocks. Both types of blocks are preceded by pilot and synchronization signals, used to accommodate numerous physical variations present such as tape deck speed and distortion arising from tape stretching. Headers have a short size of 19 bytes (1 zero-value flag byte, 17 header information bytes, and 1 checksum byte), where the header information consists of a type byte, a 10-byte filename, a word data block length, and two-word parameters. Depending on the type byte, the loader presents one of the follow messages: <code>Program: <filename></code> for programs written in BASIC; <code>Bytes: <filename></code> for machine code, screen dumps, ''etc.''; or <code>Character array: <filename></code> for an ASCII-encoded file.<ref>{{cite web | url =http://www.worldofspectrum.org/faq/reference/48kreference.htm | title = 48K ZX Spectrum Technical Information | access-date = 22 September 2013 | last = Heide | first = Martijn van der | year = 2005 | work = comp.sys.sinclair FAQ|display-authors=etal}}</ref>
During standard loading and saving processes, the border of the screen flashes with cyan/red stripes for the pilot signal and yellow/blue stripes for the header and data blocks; which colour of the pair is used depends upon the bit that was last read from the tape. Pilot and synchronization signals are usually represented with a thick stripe size; on header and data blocks, the stripes are thinner. Striped border effects, as used in the standard loader or more complex ones (see below) can also be found on games written for other 8-bit computers, such as the [[Commodore 64|Commodore C64]], and the [[Amstrad CPC]] 464/664/6128: which, as it used the same [[Zilog Z80|Z80]] CPU, often received ports of loading routines originally for the Spectrum{{Citation needed|date=December 2018}}.
The Spectrum was intended to work with almost any cassette tape player, and despite differences in audio reproduction fidelity, the software loading process was designed to be reliable; nevertheless it was still possible for tapes to fail loading with the message <code>'''R Tape loading error, 0:1'''</code>. One common cause was the use of a cassette copy from a tape recorder with a different head [[wikt:alignment|alignment]] to the one being used. This could sometimes be fixed by pressing on the top of the player during loading, or wedging the cassette with pieces of folded paper, to physically shift the tape into the required alignment. A more reliable solution was to realign the head, which was easily accessible on a number of tape players, with a small (jeweller's) [[screwdriver]].
Typical settings for loading were ¾ volume, 100% treble, 0% bass. Audio filters like loudness and [[Dolby Noise Reduction]] had to be disabled, and it was not recommended to use a [[Hi-Fi]] player to load programs. There were some tape recorders built specially for digital use, such as the [[SDI Technologies|Timex]] Computer 2010 Tape Recorder or [[Grundig]] CR 100 Data Recorder. The [[ZX Spectrum#ZX Spectrum +2|ZX Spectrum Plus 2]] and [[ZX Spectrum#ZX Spectrum +2A|2A]] models are fashioned after an [[Amstrad CPC 464]] and feature a built-in tape "datacorder".
{{main|fast loader}}
It is possible to alter the colours between which the border alternates during loading, and/or to use more than two colours, to obtain more flashy visual effects during the loading process.
Complex loaders with unusual speeds or encoding were the basis of the ZX Spectrum [[copy protection]] schemes, although other methods were used including asking for a particular word from the documentation included with the game – often a novella – or the notorious [[Lenslok]] system. This had a set of plastic prisms in a fold-out plastic holder: the idea was that a scrambled two-letter code would appear on the screen, which could only be read by holding the prisms at a fixed distance from the screen courtesy of the plastic holder. This relied rather too much on everyone using the same size television, and Lenslok became a running joke with Spectrum users.
One very interesting kind of software was copiers. Most were [[copyright infringement of software|copyright infringement]] oriented, and their function was only tape duplication, but when [[Sinclair Research]] launched the ZX Microdrive, copiers were developed to copy programs from audio tape to microdrive tapes, and later on diskettes. Best known were the Lerm suite produced by Lerm Software and ''Trans Express'' by Romantic Robot. As the protections became more complex (e.g. [[Speedlock]]) it was almost impossible to use copiers to copy tapes, and the loaders had to be cracked by hand, to produce unprotected versions. Special hardware, like Romantic Robot's [[Multiface]] which was able to dump a copy of the ZX Spectrum RAM to disk/tape at the press of a button, was developed, entirely circumventing the copy protection systems. "Snapshots" generated by these black boxes would later become the original filetype recognised by emulators: .SNA: although these memory dumps have been generally replaced by more complex files, incorporating original loading features and multi-level options.
=== ZX Microdrive ===
[[file:Microdrive cart.png|thumb|ZX Microdrive cartridge]]
The [[ZX Microdrive]] system was released in July 1983.{{cn|date=October 2021}} While the drives were cheaper than [[floppy disk drive]]s, the media was very expensive for software publishers to use for mass market releases (by a factor of 10, compared to tape duplication) and acquired a reputation for unreliability, with publishers reluctant to [[Quality Assurance|QA]] each and every item shipped.<ref name="CRASH22">{{cite journal | title = Microdrive revisited | journal = CRASH |date=November 1985 | issue = 22 | url = http://www.crashonline.org.uk/22/opinion.htm|access-date = 10 August 2006}}</ref>
The main use became to complement tape releases, usually utilities and niche products like the ''[[Tasword]]'' [[word processing]] software and ''Trans Express''.{{cn|date=October 2021}}
No games are known to be exclusively released on Microdrive, but some companies allowed, and even aided, their software to be copied over. One such example was ''[[Rally Driver (video game)|Rally Driver]]'' by Five Ways Software Ltd.<ref name="CRASH22" />
=== Floppy disk ===
[[file:Maxell Compact Floppy Disk CF2-D 20050125.jpg|right|thumbnail|160px|The CF has a harder casing than a 3-inch floppy; the metal door is opened by a sliding plastic tab on the right side]]
Several floppy disk systems were designed for the ZX Spectrum. The most popular (excepting Eastern Europe,) were the [[DISCiPLE]] and [[+D]] systems released by Miles Gordon Technology in 1987 and 1988 respectively. Despite becoming popular and being reliable (from using standard [[Shugart bus|Shugart]] disk drives), most releases were utility software. However, both systems had the ability to store memory images onto disk, ''snapshots'', which later on could be loaded back into the ZX Spectrum and execution would commence from the point where they were "snapped", making them perfect for "backups". Both systems were also compatible with the Microdrive command syntax, which made porting existing software simpler.
The ZX Spectrum +3 featured a built-in [[History of the floppy disk#The 3-inch compact floppy disk|3" disk drive]] and enjoyed more success when it came to commercial software releases.
Most Russian releases since 1989 are made for the [[Beta 128]] disc interface, the only system now in use there.
=== Others ===
In addition, software was also distributed through print media, fan magazines and books. The prevalent language for distribution was the Spectrum's BASIC dialect [[Sinclair BASIC]]. The reader would type the software into the computer by hand, run it, and save it to tape for later use. The software distributed in this way was in general simpler and slower than its [[assembly language]] counterparts, and lacked graphics. But soon, magazines were printing long lists of [[checksum]]med [[hexadecimal]] digits with machine code games or tools. There was a vibrant scientific community built around such software, ranging from [[satellite dish]] alignment programs to school classroom scheduling programs.
One unusual software distribution method were radio or television shows in e.g. Croatia (Radio 101), Serbia ([[Ventilator 202]]), Slovenia (Radio Študent), Poland, [[Czechoslovakia]], Romania, Lebanon or Brazil, where the host would describe a program, instruct the audience to connect a cassette tape recorder to the radio or TV and then broadcast the program over the airwaves in audio format. In former [[Soviet Union]], mostly in Russia and Ukraine unauthorised radio operators (so-called radio hooligans) often exchanged software from cassette tapes for Spectrum and other popular computers by broadcasting it.
Another unusual method which was used by some magazines were [[Unusual types of gramophone records#Unusual materials and uses|7" 33⅓ rpm "flexidisc" records]], not the hard [[gramophone record|vinyl]] ones, which could be played on a standard [[Phonograph|record player]]. These disks were known under various trademarked names including "[[Floppy ROM]]", "Flexisoft", and "Discoflex".
== Popular music ==
A few pop musicians included Sinclair programs on their records. The [[Buzzcocks]] front man, [[Pete Shelley]], put a Spectrum program including lyrics and other information as the last track on his XL-1 album. The punk band [[Inner City Unit]] put a Spectrum database of band information on their 1984 release, 'New Anatomy'. Also in 1984, the [[Thompson Twins]] released [[The Thompson Twins Adventure|a game on vinyl]].<ref>{{cite web | url = https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.php?cat=96&id=7104 | title = General Info for: the Thompson Twins Adventure | access-date = 10 May 2018 | work = SpectrumComputing.co.uk}}</ref> [[The Freshies]] had a brief flirtation with fame and Spectrum games, with [[Chris Sievey|Frank Sidebottom]] making an early appearance in ''[[The Biz (video game)|The Biz]]''. (Previously, Freshies frontman Chris Sievey's song [[Camouflage (Chris Sievey song)|Camouflage]] contained a ZX81 music video as a B-side.) [[Aphex Twin]] included various loading noises on his ''[[Richard D. James Album|Richard D. James]]'' album in 1996, most notably part of the loading screen from ''[[Sabre Wulf]]'' on Carn Marth.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://cl4.org/comp/spectrum/music/|title=Spectrum references in popular music|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061012105646/https://cl4.org/comp/spectrum/music/|archive-date=2006-10-12}}</ref> [[Shakin' Stevens]] included his Shaky Game at the end of his ''The Bop Won't Stop'' album. The aim of the game was to guide your character around a maze, while avoiding bats.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|author=[[Nostalgia Nerd]]|date=24 August 2020|title=Hidden Code|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zJWU1IR544 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211219/3zJWU1IR544 |archive-date=2021-12-19 |url-status=live|website=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Upon completion your score would be given in terms of a rank of disc, e.g. "gold" or "platinum". The game had a minor connection with one of his tracks, ''It's Late''. Scottish band [[Urusei Yatsura (band)|Urusei Yatsura]] included a Spectrum program that showed a satanic message in the beginning of the song<ref name=":0" /> ''Thank You'' (from the album ''Everybody Loves Urusei Yatsura'').
Other notable inclusions include the eighth studio album by [[the Stranglers]], [[Aural Sculpture]]. Track 7 of side B on the cassette release includes a game called Aural Quest. This was developed by the band's keyboard player, [[Dave Greenfield]], using the [[The Quill Adventure System|Quill Adventure System]]. It is notable for having two distinct versions, included on different masters of the album.<ref name=":0" /> In 2017, [[Radiohead]] released a special edition of their [[OK Computer|OK, Computer]] album, called [[OK Computer OKNOTOK 1997 2017|OKNOTOK]]. The included cassette tape features a ZX Spectrum program that generates random text and colours, while playing tones akin to a track included on the cassette.<ref name=":0" />
There was also a music program for the Spectrum 48K which allowed to play two notes at a time, by rapidly switching between the waveforms of the two separate notes, a big improvement over the [[Monophony|mono]] Spectrum sound. The program was branded after the popular '80s pop band [[Wham!]], and some of the biggest hits of this group could be played with the Spectrum. The program was called ''Wham! The Music Box'' and released by [[Krome Studios Melbourne|Melbourne House]], one of the most prolific publishing houses at the time.
== See also ==
* [[ZX Spectrum demos]]
* [[List of ZX Spectrum games]]
== References ==
{{refs}}
[[Category:ZX Spectrum software| ]]
[[Category:ZX Spectrum|Software]]
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