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Silicon Times Report Issue 0062
ST REPORT WEEKLY ONLINE MAGAZINE
--------------------------------
Monday, NOV. 21, 1988
Vol. II No. 62
==========================================================================
ST Report Online Magazine Inc.
------------------------------
Post Office Box 6672
Jacksonville, Florida
32236 6672
R.F. Mariano
Publisher - Editor
====================['The Original Online ST Magazine']===================
Headquarters Bulletin Boards
----------------------------
North South
201-343-1426 904-786-4176
Central West
216-784-0574 916-962-2566
=======================================================================
CONTENTS
========
~ From the Editor's Desk.............~ COMDEX - COMDEX - COMDEX......
~ Thanksgiving is for Everyone.......~ Goodies Galore................
~ Pro GEM Windows #13................~ A Hard Drive for All..........
~....................... ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL.....................
========================================================================
AVAILABLE ON: COMP-U-SERVE ~ DELPHI ~ GENIE ~ THE SOURCE
========================================================================
From the Editor's Desk;
Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of the year, the great aromas of
delightful treats drifting through the house, the warmth of seeing loved
ones once again. It is a time to renew one's faith and trust in mankind.
Comdex has come and gone and for most, in the Atari community, a
bittersweet memory remains. Many had hoped to see much more from Atari,
there were the hopes of seeing the promises of SPRING COMDEX being kept,
the desires to see the 'new' Atari come forward and there were those who
had wished to see stronger more competitive machines "ready to go". As it
turned out, Atari once again has shown some definate prototype progress
but we are hard pressed to see more than a 'few' immediate, ready to go,
new items.
I firmly believe we are standing at the threshold of the future,
what Atari does in the next six months will profoundly effect all of us
and our status as Atari Users. My observations have shown that we have
already seen a 'quiet evolution' at Atari, Sam Tramiel Atari President
appears to have firm control of Atari. We shall see if he can bring
about the much needed revitalization. We, at ST Report pledge our support
and encourage the userbase to please do the same.
We wish all our readers and their families a Happy Thanksgiving
Ralph Mariano
ps, Thanks to all the readers for the new record D/L count for one month
(November) for ST Report Items on all three services: 3,753 accesses.
**************************************************************************
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FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY
COMPUSERVE WILL PRESENT $15.00 WORTH OF COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE TIME
to the Readers
ST REPORT ONLINE ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE
NEW USERS SIGN UP TODAY!
Call any of the St Report Official BBS numbers
(Listed at the top of ST REPORT)
or
Leave E-mail to St Report or R. Mariano
Be sure to include your full mailing address so your
Compuserve kit can be immediately mailed to you!
(offer available to only NEW users)
NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE
**************************************************************************
ST Report COMDEX Newsline No.1
The FALL, 1988
==============
COMDEX '88...THE BEAT GOES ON
=============================
A) The Nutshell B) Inside The Gold Room
by R.F.Mariano
The much "heralded" 68030 is NOT in sight. I guess our "SOX" won't
get blown off!
The portable was here.... but made only temporary appearances in the
"Gold Room". Could this mean that it is STILL only a prototype and only
a gleam in a production artist's eye.
Atari Corporation is currently showing:
---------------------------------------
~ PC4 (286 Based PC Compatible computer with 5.25 Disk Drive
and 30 Megabyte Hard Drive)...
~ PC5 (386 Based PC Compatible with 30 Meg HD)
~ ATW (Transputer Workstation)
~ Ultrascript (Postscript Interpreter for the SLM804)
~ Deskset II (DTP Program for SLM804).
~ Ultrascript is being shown along with Deskset II.
~ A robotics controlling kit is being shown that will allow the
ST/Mega computers to control robot devices through the Cart port.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
INSIDE THE GOLD ROOM
====================
****** Good News and Bad News from the Gold Room ******
(Atari's full room display).
Provided by Ron Luks SysOp, CIS-Atari Sigs
Bad News:
=========
1. Effective 10am 11/15 GFA has DROPPED MichTron to seek a new US
distributor or start its own. [I surmise that GFA had no idea how lucky
they were and made the mistake of assuming that the bigger US market was
being inadequately serviced by MichTron!<dgg>] Dave Small was approached
by GFA and declined to pick up the distributorship.
2. No Atari 68030 box was shown.
3. Supra management reports that they are focusing their
development time and efforts on the Amiga due to the strong support they
get there, vs. the *** lack of support from Atari. ***
4. The "laptop" is still in breadboard and designer's model stages.
5. Many of the developers are in a mood of GLOOM and DISMAY.
That's the bad news. In the main, it is discouraging but NOT fatal, and
the following Good News does tend to offset some of the problems.
Good News:
==========
1. Atari is holding a special developers conference tonight (11/16)
at 6pm (8pm EST). No one has been advised of the topic(s) or of the
reasons for the meeting, so some positive surprises could be in the works.
2. The Atari booth is _loaded_ with developers and products which
will be focused on in a subsequent report.
3. Although the "laptop" is a mere prototype at this moment, Atari
is targeting release of a whole laptop line with production runs starting
in 2-3 months. The model has a nearly ST sized keyboard, will have a
blue LCD screen (optionally backlit), a built-in track-ball mouse
controller, built-in 3.5" floppy (half meg with optional full meg drive),
and "at least 20 meg of HD" and 520 and 1040 RAM options. The target
price will be US$1,500.
4. The ATW (nee ABAQ) ATari Work station was shown. It should be
in production fairly soon.
5. MichTron is replacing GFA Basic with Hi-Soft Basic effective
yesterday morning. Hi-Soft Basic is extremely polished, fast, and
complete. It is Microsoft Compatible but also allows labeling [and
procedures?] and directly portable to/from Amiga as well as MS-DOS
machines. It has a great compiler and doesn't require manual translation.
6. Supra has completed a $149.95 suggested retail 2400b internal
modem for IBM machines and is considering doing one for the MEGA ST's.
7. Sam Tramiel has apologized for not responding to the many Emails
and messages since his CO. In an unusual move to show his good faith with
the existing user base, he has announced _official_ online affiliation
with CIS and the Atari Fora, and a direct EasyPlex line to Sig and him
will be operational shortly. He reaffirmed his desire to hold more CO's
with our users and seems to recognize that we are a potent and strongly
pro-Atari force!
The "goods" seem to outnumber the "bads" and tonight's conference
with the developers in Las Vegas should bring more news of note. It will
be posted here as soon as we have it.
*** Overheard in passing Sam T. to Sandy Small, "Well, it looks like we
will have a laptop MAC before Apple does!" ***
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Editor Note....
On a positive note, it's nice to see Ultra Script has become a reality and
I share the optimism that the future for Atari is STILL BRIGHT, the trick
is to make sure the userbase shares the same feelings. You say, why then
do I say the things I say about Atari? Basically, the hard bottom line
could be masked in flowery pablum...but then the powers to be at Atari
will think we accept the blunders, bluster and baloney as part of the
overall picture...we do not! We WANT the Atari to be the very best out
there for the general population..I am sure Atari wants this too. Only by
re-thinking their posture in this market and adopting a real marketing
strategy will they ever see the * real * horizons of market penetration.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ST Report COMDEX Newsline No.2
The FALL, 1988
==============
COMDEX '88...THE BEAT GOES ON
=============================
SOFT LOGIC ~ TIMEWORKS ~ ISD MARKETING
--------------------------------------
Atari "portable" nicknamed "The Inflatable"!
JR Innovations - GenLock on display....still no FCC approval (Type
Acceptance)
Soft Logic - showing PAGESTREAM, which, by the way, this author LIKES!
Timeworks - Nothing NEW
ISD Marketing - Showing Calamus..Predicted to be shipping in later this
month, shapes up to be another of the 'expensive' type
programs which definitely points to a very narrow market,
as in those who have a definite use for the program or
bux to burn. Calamus itself is very impressive, but then
so is the price! Ask W.P. about pricey software in the ST
marketplace.
INTERSECT - showing MASTERLINK a high powered version of the now
famous, Interlink. Masterlink incorporates all the fine
features of Interlink and an advanced script language
which allow you to custom coordinate the program the way
you wish. Also, multiple buffers and other high powered
editing features.
Nite Lite
Systems - showing an RS232 LAN (local area network) we, by the
way, have one of these systems and find it well made and
affordable.
Editor's Note:
Thank Goodness, The ST has held it's own in the midi world, just ask
Tangerine and Fleetwood Mac!
Passport Designs - showing Master Tracks Jr. and Master Tracks Pro
V.2.5..Version 3 will have SMPTE (no release date on
this one yet) Jr.
Legend Software - showing The Final Cut, A toolset for editing and
synthesis arrangements.
View-touch - is on Display, quite similar to the system used by
college students used to register for classes in N.Ca.
SEYMORE-RADIX - nothing new
Navarone - showing the new version of ST Scan, it prints straight
to the SLM804....works good.
Logical Design
Works - showing LDW Power, a fine spreadsheet for the ST
IBP - Showing all kinds of impressive goodies from GERMANY,
powerhouse STs (EST) in fact, this appeared to be the
machine so readily described for the last three weeks.
Hopefully, Atari will pick up on this one!
Precision
Software - showing SuperBase Professional Ver. 3.0 which is
light years ahead of it's competition, and far
superior to the previous release.
Word Up - Shelby Moore III showing the latest upgrades to Word Up
and the HP Deskjet driver.
FTL - showing all kinds of HOT promise for the very near
future, Revenge of Chaos (you saw that in last week's
STR) a preview disk, an Amiga version of DM, a HINT
DISK now this is slick, it knows where you are in the
game, and will show only those hints needs for
immediate help!
FTL CONTINUES TO SHOW OTHERS THE WAY TO DO IT TO IT!!
Regent Soft - showing Regent Base II and a kit for the STs (520 -1040)
all should want..SPRINGS TO STIFFEN THE KEY RESPONSE!
Way to go!
Moniterm Corp. - showing the marvelous Viking I 19inch; 1280 pixels x960
scan lines. There were 8 or 9 of these beauties set up.
For more info, read Start 12/88.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Editor Note:
There will be more information as we compile the tidbits into smooth
flowing info....We are elated to see the grand amount of activity on the
part of all the third party developers.
We wish to acknowledge the fact that there may be simularities
between ST Profile (Comdex) and ST Report's Comdex News Line No.2,
Clearly, this was unintentional except for our inclusion of prices,
which we felt was a very good idea. WE SHOULD HAVE HAD CREDITS THERE
FOR THIS! We have since removed the pricing......
To Sandy W. and Darlah I offer my profoundest and sincere "I'm
sorry"....
Ralph.....
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
ST Report COMDEX Newsline No.3
COMDEX 88 THE BEAT GOES ON
==========================
provided by Ron Luks, SysOp, CS Atari Sigs
DATELINE: Las Vegas, NV November 16, 1988
A rather spontaneous but well attended conference with over 300
ATARI ST Developers was held at COMDEX tonight. Sam Tramiel made several
announcements that are most encouraging:
1. The DRAM shortage is officially over at Atari. Production of MEGAs is
now 50,000 to 75,000 units per month. Although 90% of previous
production runs had been designated for the European Markets, Sam
indicates that this will change drastically and soon.
2 The Atari INFLATABLE (aka the STACY ) will be shipping in the late
first quarter of 1989 (that's March on my calendar). The STACY machine
(so-called for the specialty chips it uses) is the Atari laptop that is
showing in prototype at the show. Jokingly called the "Inflatable"
because the model is made from special designers sponge, the machine will
be a powerful laptop ST with 520-1040 ram, a choice of floppies, a minimum
(right _minimum) of 20meg HD, and a choice between two blue LCD screens.
Target price for the base unit is $1,500. The prototype screen shown is
a real dazzler, and the keyboard will be solid and nearly full size.
Again, target US release is late 1st quarter, 1989.
3. The Atari TT (Tramiel Twins, Thirty-two, Thirty-two/Thirty-two) a
68030 Atari Unix box will be released 2nd quarter 1989. The Unix box
will be TOS compatible and operate under Unix 5.x (probably 5.31). Atari
anticipates having an abundant supply for interested developers in the
1st quarter of 1989.
This is all great news, and the public statements on MEGA
production are very encouraging. Hopefully, all the Atari community is as
encouraged as the assembled developers were. Additionally encouraging was
the large number of German and other European Developers in attendance.
Apparently the sagging dollar has not quenched their thirst for the
American market, so domestic software production will likely be augmented
by substantially broadened continental support!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanksgiving is for Everyone
============================
By R.F.Mariano
For most families to have any type of a fond remembrance of the European
continent shortly after World War II would be just short of a miracle.
Perhaps finding beloved family members alive and well could count as a
miracle. Consider that nine out of every 12 families lost loved ones and
that half of those lost their homes to either destruction or confiscation.
In the span of time from 1946 till now many new families now living in the
United States have reason to thank the Lord for many blessings. Time
has driven the sorrow our hearts and minds and dulled the pain of the
great human tragedy called WWII.
Being old enough to remember the early 1950's, thus, able to recall the
many thankful refugees from War Torn Europe, and still young enough to
have actually grown up with one man's dream as a reality before my eyes is
an experience truly enriched by knowing this "young" man at the time, was
one of those refugees. Granted he did not realize his dream in an
overnight fairy tale. Only after the application of sheer determination
plus hard work and sacrifice did Jack Tramiel begin to see his goal
becoming a reality.
To show you just a few of the many fond moments will yield the reasons why
Jack Tramiel has the slogan of "Power Without the Price" associated with
high tech, high quality ATARI products. Jack Tramiel was born in Lodz,
Poland December 13, 1928, our story begins some twenty odd years later.
We shall begin in the Bronx, N.Y. from Fordham Rd. to Pelham Bay...
(how I loved my days in Pelham Bay Park practicing my x-country running).
After what seemed to be an eternity (25 yrs.) of driving a cab and picking
up typewriters for repair, (which he did himself), things began to happen.
Meanwhile, in a garage, on the opposite coast of the USA, another young
man with a dream, was fighting the odds to put an idea to work
and bring it to reality, his name was Nolan Bushnell. He and Jack Tramiel
would profoundly influence the futures of many people some of whom were
yet to be born. The Story of Nolan Bushnell (Selling Atari to Warner
Bros.) is known to every owner of an ATARI computer. Who is Jack Tramiel?
In the year 1983, Jack Tramiel was known as Mr. Commodore. In a scant
twenty five years he took this company from a mere typewriter repair
company to the world's largest and most successful home computer company.
This company was and is Commodore International LTD. The monumental
decision came in January, 1984 when Jack Tramiel, at a young age of 55,
astounded the computer community by his resignation from Commodore. He
did however depart from them a wealthy man (100m+).
Before the end of the year (1984) Jack spurned the idea of "Golden Years
of Retirement" and took over the reins of a former competitor, ATARI and
to this day continues being the aggressive competitor he proved himself to
be at Commodore. Long known and respected for his attractive pricing,
Tramiel continued to adhere to the "Power without the Price" slogan.
If one were to recall the apparition of the "Wizard of Oz" one could
easily see the physical attributes of Jack Tramiel, he is, without a
doubt, "The Cauldron of Energetic Plasma giving ATARI it's Pulse of
Boundless Enthusiasm and Life". He has with him his three sons, Sam, Len
and Garry, however, there is NO question about who makes the key
decisions. Some time in the future, we will see Sam Tramiel in the lead
and all of us will fondly remember Jack Tramiel as the man who built
TWO SEPARATE BILLION DOLLAR ORGANIZATIONS.
This time of the year has to bring a very warm and special feeling to the
hearts of all who have come to know and respect Jack Tramiel the man, as
well as honor the corporate wizard, Jack Tramiel.
Atari has some marvelous plans for the future, many of which are just now
being made public in the gorgeous Las Vegas Convention Center. The Fall
COMDEX show is here in Las Vegas, just head for the Rotunda and feast your
eyes on the latest from Atari including...the much heralded ST PORTABLE!
You can be sure, that whatever direction Atari takes, this is a computer
company that will blaze new trails of accomplishment and design with
uncanny accuracy for what the buying public wants... and at a time the
want is there along with the need.
Thanksgiving is known as the beginning of the "Holiday Season". It
represents to me a glorious time of year, the holidays renew my faith in
mankind and instill in me the urge to embrace life with a robust desire
to wish the very best of goodwill to all mankind and with that thought in
mind and heart, the time has come to extend our wishes to Jack Tramiel and
all the wonderful folks at Atari and their families a most wonderful and
memorable Holiday Season!
Happy Thanksgiving and.....Thank You for "POWER without the PRICE"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
GOODIES GALORE
==============
Drive Master
from Practical Solutions
------------------------
Drive Master is the latest in our Master Series of custom designed
switchboxes. This one switches between two external floppy disk drives
and is especially handy if use pc-ditto from Avant-Garde Systems. With
just a touch of a button you can safely switch between your 5.25" and 3.5"
drives, never swapping cables again!
The custom case (measuring approx. 4.25" X 3.25" X 1.5") is designed to
compliment your ST. A 3 foot detachable cable is provided. No power supply
is required. Convenience and style at a deal of a price!
Drive Master's price is $49.95, and is available from your dealer or:
Practical Solutions
1930 E Grant Rd.
Tucson AZ 85719
(602) 884-9612
M/C Visa accepted
Monitor Master
from Practical Solutions
------------------------
With Monitor Master, the hassle of switching cables to use the monitor
you want is over. Whether you are using a color T.V. and the Atari
monochrome monitor, or have a full blown system with Atari's RGB and
monochrome monitor and a VCR,you will want Monitor Master.
Monitor Master allows you to easily change monitors at the touch
of a button. If you have an RGB and monochrome monitor, you can
switch between them without swapping cables. Not only convenient,
this prevents damage to your cables and ST by eliminating the
constant unplugging and plugging that is usually necessary.
A composite video jack is provided so that you can use a composite
monitor or a VCR with your ST (both require a ST with RF
modulator) without swapping cables or giving up the use of your
RGB monitor. To currently use a T.V. or composite monitor (on
systems with RF modulators) your monochrome monitor must be
unplugged for the color modes to function. With Monitor Master
this is no longer necessary. An audio output jack is also provided
so that the ST's sound can be fed to a stereo while your monitors
are still in use (all ST's).
Monitor Master safely switches any Atari ST compatible monitors.
Included is a custom molded cable approximately 36 inches long.
The compact case measures 1.5" H x 4.5" L x 3.25" W.
For further info contact your dealer or:
Practical Solutions
1930 E Grant Rd.
Tucson AZ 85719
602-884-9612
Mouse Master
from Practical Solutions
------------------------
Are you tired of fumbling under or behind your computer to
swap your mouse and joystick cables? Are your cable and computer
connectors worn out from all the plugging and unplugging? Then
Mouse Master is a must for you!
Mouse Master, from Practical Solutions Inc., is another
innovative switchbox that allows you to instantly select either
your mouse or joystick (or other controller) in port 0. A switch
on top does the swapping for you! Additionally, port 1 is brought
out to make all the ports easily accessible.
Mouse Master requires no separate power supply and comes with
a non-detachable double cable that plugs directly into both of
your Atari's mouse/joystick ports. It's 26" length makes it
comfortable to set-up and use whether you're right or left-handed!
The stylish case (measuring approx. 4.25" x 2.5" x 1.5") is custom
molded and color matched to the ST. All at an attractive price!
Mouse Master is available now direct from Practical
Solutions for only $39.95 plus $3.50 S&H in the Continental U.S.
Also look for it at your local dealer!
Practical Solutions, Inc.
1930 E. Grant Rd.
Tucson, AZ 85719
Phone: (602) 884-9612
VIDEOKEY, THE RGB-COMPOSITE ENCODER
FROM PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS
-----------------------------------
Many ST users have been using the great animation software that is now
available for the ST. Most of them want to videotape the output, so that
they can show their masterpieces to their friends without ST's, or for
professional uses. Only problem is that most of the software requires
1 meg to run, thus most users have a 1040 or Mega. Since both of those
computers don't have composite video or RF, they have found themselves
in a bind....
Enter VideoKey:
The VideoKey converts the RGB output of the ST into color composite video.
We have put a lot of effort into making the colors brillant and true, the
picture excellent in low resolution. You now have the ability to record
the fantastic graphics of the ST.
The VideoKey has several nice features as well:
1. The exclusive Colorlock(tm) circuitry locks the color burst to the
ST's system timing with no modification needed to the ST, so that there
is no color flickering or crawl on sharp vertical edges.
2. The Auto power circuit detects when the ST is on, and in color mode,
and powers up the VideoKey as needed. No power supply required!
3. A 13 pin din socket is supplied (just like the monitor port
on the ST) so that a RGB monitor can be connected to the VideoKey
at the same time. Perfect for doing all of your work on the RGB
monitor, and viewing the composite monitor or TV for final
product! This causes no signal loss to the RGB monitor. In addition,
VideoKey is compatible with Monitor Master, our monitor switchbox. You can
still switch between your monitors with ease.
VideoKey is compatible with all low resolution software, and comes
with a limited 90 day warranty.
Note: Because of the ST's design, and the nature of composite video, the
VideoKey has been optimized for low resolution. The technical details are
too extensive to go into here, but rest assured that high quality 80 col.
color graphics on the ST are nearly impossible. You can view medium res.
with the VideoKey, but any characters displayed are hard to read. We will
offer a monochrome 80 column upgrade to the VideoKey in the near future.
Enabling (limited) 80 column color would cause the low resolution color to
suffer tremendously, and we (and you) wouldn't want that! We have found it
not to be a problem, as most people want the VideoKey to view/record low
resolution graphics, and it does a great job with that!
The VideoKey Has been designed to videotape well, and has NTSC
(RS-170A) standard luma and chroma levels.
Call Practical Solutions, or write for further details
(or better yet, order!):
Practical Solutions
1930 E. Grant Rd.
Tucson Az, 85719
(602) 884-9612
Mark Sloatman 74206,356
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANTIC PUBLISHING INC.
COPYRIGHT 1988
REPRINTED BY PERMISSION.
PROFESSIONAL GEM by Tim Oren
Column #13 - A New Form Manager
This is the 13th installment of ST PRO GEM, and the first
devoted to explaining a large piece of code. This article is also
the second in a series of three concerning GEM user interface
techniques. The code is an alternate form (dialog) manager for
GEM. It is stored as GMCL13.C in DL3 of PCS-58. You should go
and download it now, or you will have no hope of following this
discussion.
What is unique about this version of the form manager?
First, it implements all of the functions of the standard GEM
form_do routine, as well as adding a "hot spots" feature which
causes selectable objects to become mouse-sensitive, just like
the entries in menu dropdowns. The second (and obvious)
difference is that this form manager is provided in source code
form. This gives you the freedom to examine it and change it to
suit your own needs.
I have several purposes in presenting this code. It is
intended as an example of GEM program structure, and an
application of some of the techniques presented in earlier
columns. It is also relevant to the continuing thread discussing
the necessity of feedback when constructing a user interface.
Also, this issue represents the beginning of a fundamental
change in direction for ST PRO GEM. Since this column began last
August, Atari ST developers have increased not only in number, but
in sophistication. A number of books, as well as back issues of
ST PRO GEM, are now available to explain the basics of the ST and
GEM. Quick answers to common questions are available here on
Compuserve's PCS-57 from Atari itself, or from helpful members of
the developer community.
To reflect these changes, future columns will discuss more
advanced topics in greater depth, with an accent on code which can
be adapted by developers. The program presented in this issue
will be a basis for a number of these discussions. There will be
fewer "encyclopediac" treatments of AES and VDI function calls.
Finally, to give me the time required to create this code or clean
up tools from my "bag of tricks", ST PRO GEM will probably convert
to a monthly format around the start of summer.
ON WITH THE SHOW. Taking your listing in hand, you will
quickly notice two things. First, this program uses the infamous
portability macros, so that it may be used with Intel versions of
GEM. Second, the routines are arranged "bottom up", with the main
at the end, and subroutines going toward the beginning. (This is
a carry-over from my days with ALGOL and PASCAL.) You should now
turn to the form_do entry point near the end of the code.
One change has been made in the standard calling sequence for
form_do. The starting edit field is now a pointer to a value,
rather than the value itself. The new form_do overwrites the
initial value with the number of the object being edited when the
dialog terminated. Using this information, your program can
restore the situation when the dialog is next called. As before,
if there is NO editable field, the initial value should be zero.
There are several local variables which maintain vital state
information during the dialog interaction. Edit_obj is the number
of the editable object currently receiving keystrokes. Next_obj
is set when the mouse is clicked over an object. If the object
happens to be editable, next_obj becomes the new edit_obj.
Three variables are associated with the "hot-spot" feature.
If hot_mode is set to M1_ENTER, then the mouse is outside the area
of the dialog. If it equals M1_EXIT, then the mouse is currently
in the dialog. If it is in the dialog, hot_obj indicates whether
there is an active "hot" object. If its value is NIL (-1), then
there is no active object. Otherwise, it is equal to the number
of the object which is currently "hot", that is, inverted on the
screen. Finally, hot_rect is the current wait rectangle. If the
mouse is outside of the window, then the wait rectangle equals the
dialog's ROOT. If there is a current hot object, then hot_rect
equals that object's screen rectangle. If the mouse is in the
dialog, but not within a hot object, then the wait rectangle
defines the area within which no further collision checks are
necessary. This is arrived at through an algorithm explained
below.
Form_do's initialization code sets up the hot-spot variables
to trigger if the mouse is within the dialog. It also sets
starting values for edit_obj and next_obj which will cause the
edit startup code to be activated.
The main portion of form_do is a loop, exhibiting the type of
event driven structure discussed in the last column. Before
entering the evnt_multi wait, the status of next_obj and edit_obj
are checked to see if a new object should be initialized for
editing. If so, objc_edit is called with the EDINIT function
code. NOTE: the objc_edit calling sequence used in this program
differs from the one given in the AES manual, which is incorrect!
You should check the bindings you are using to be sure they will
work with this code, and modify as necessary.
The evnt_multi is set up to wait for a mouse click (single or
double), for a keyboard input, or for the mouse to make a
"significant" movement, as discussed above. Notice that since
form_do is used as a subroutine, it does not handle messages which
are normally processed by the main loop of your application.
Notice that this creates a mode, and that this routine as written
handles modal dialogs. You could, however, use this code as the
basis for a non-modal dialog handler by drawing the dialog within
a window, and combining the main loop of form_do with the main
loop of your application. (This possibility may be examined in
future columns. In the meantime, it is left as an exercise for
the reader.)
The event bit vector is returned to the variable "which".
Since events are not mutually exclusive, each possible event type
must be examined in turn before returning to the evnt_multi call.
The form manager's event handling routines are form_hot, for mouse
rectangle event, form_keybd, for character input, and form_button,
for mouse clicks. Form_keybd and form_button are allowed to
terminate the dialog by returning a value of false to the loop
control variable "cont". If termination is imminent, or the user
has clicked on a new editable object, objc_edit is called with
EDEND to remove the cursor from the old object. The normal flow
of control then returns to edit setup and evnt_multi.
A few cleanup actions are performed upon termination. If the
terminating object (stored in next_obj) is not the same as the
hot_obj, then a race condition has occured and the hot object must
be cleared with objc_toggle before exiting. After this test, the
final edit_obj value is passed back via the parameter, and the
terminating object is returned as the function value.
RELAXEN UND WATCHEN DAS BLINKENLICHTEN. Form_hot is
responsible for maintaining on-screen hot-spots, and correctly
updating the internal hot-spot variables. It is about halfway
through the listing.
The first action in form_hot is to determine if the mouse has
just exited an object which is "hot". In this case, objc_toggle is
called to unhighlight the object and reset the SELECTED flag.
The current mouse position is passed to form_hot by form_do.
It is checked against the root rectangle of the dialog to see if
the mouse is inside the dialog. If not, the program must wait for
it to re-enter, so form_hot sets the rectangle and waiting mode
accordingly, and returns NIL as the new hot_obj.
When the mouse is within the dialog, a regular objc_find call
determines the object at which it is pointing. For an object to
be mouse-sensitive, it must be SELECTABLE and not DISABLED. If
the found object meets these tests, the mouse will "hover" over
the object, waiting to leave its screen rectangle. Since the
object might already be SELECTED (and hence drawn reversed), this
is checked before objc_toggle is called to do the highlighting and
selection of the object, which becomes the hot_obj. (If the
object was already SELECTED, the hot_obj becomes NIL.)
The toughest condition is when the mouse is within the
dialog, but not over a mouse-sensitive object. The regular GEM
event structure will not work, because it can only wait on two
rectangles, and there may be many more selectable objects in a
dialog tree. I have found a way around this limitation using a
combination of the map_tree utility (introduced in ST PRO GEM #5)
with the principle of visual hierarchy in object trees.
In summary, the algorithm attempts to find the largest
bounding rectangle around the current mouse position, within which
there are no mouse-sensitive objects. It starts with a rectangle
equal to the dialog root, and successively "breaks" it with the
rectangle of each mouse-sensitive object. The next few paragraphs
examine this method in detail.
Since C lacks the dynamic scoping of LISP, from which
map_tree was derived, it is necessary to set up some globals to be
used during the rectangle break process. Br_rect is the GRECT of
the current bounding rectangle. Br_mx and br_my hold the current
mouse position. Br_togl is a switch which determines whether the
next break will be attempted horizontally or vertically. After
initializing these variables, form_hot uses map_tree to invoke the
break_obj routine for every object in the dialog.
Break_obj first intersects the rectangle of the object with
the current bounding rectangle. If they are disjoint, then
neither the object nor any of its offspring can possible affect
the operation, so FALSE is returned, causing map_tree to ignore
the subtree.
The object is next checked to see if it is mouse-sensitive.
As before, it must be SELECTABLE and not DISABLED, and it must not
be hidden (this was checked automatically by objc_find before).
If these conditions are met, then the object intrudes into the
current bounding rectangle. To maintain the desired condition,
part of the rectangle must be removed or "broken away".
In many cases, the break operation can be done either
horizontally or vertically. Since we have no prior information as
to which way the mouse will move next, break_obj uses the br_togl
flag to alternate which direction it will try first. This should
yield the most nearly square rectangle.
The break_x and break_y routines are very similar. In each
case, the segment occupied by the breaking object is compared to
the point occupied by the mouse. If the point is within the
segment, there is no possible break in this dimension, and FALSE
is returned. If the point lies outside the segment, then the
rectangle may be successfully broken by reducing this dimension.
This is done, and TRUE is returned to report success.
The break_y routine also employs a look-ahead test to prevent
a possible infinite loop. It is conceivable, though not likely,
that someone might nest a non-SELECTABLE object completely within
another SELECTABLE object(s). If the mouse point is within such
an object, the algorithm will not be able to select a break
dimension. In the current version, the mouse rectangle is simply
forced to a single pixel for this case. (Note that is is NOT
sufficent to simply wait on the non-selectable object's rectangle,
since other SELECTABLE objects may overlap it and follow it in
tree order.)
Since map_tree examines all possible objects, br_rect will be
the correct bounding rectangle at completion. Note that you can
readily adapt this technique to other uses, such as hot-spotting
while dragging objects. It is much less demanding of CPU
resources than other methods, such as repetitive objc_finds.
WHAT A CHARACTER! The form_keybd routine acts as a filter on
character input. When it recognizes a control character, it
processes it and zeroes the keyboard word. Other chararacters are
passed on to objc_edit to be inserted in edit_obj. If there is no
editing object, the character goes to the bit bucket.
The form_keybd given implements the standard GEM
functionality with two minor additions. First, a carriage return
in a dialog with no DEFAULT exit object is taken as a tab. This
allows <CR> to be used "naturally" in dialogs with several lines
of text input. Second, tabs and backtabs "wrap around" from top
to bottom of the dialog, and are done by "walking the tree",
rather than relying on the LASTOB flag to signal the end of the
dialog. This allows the new form manager to handle dialog trees
which are not contiguous in memory.
The code sets up several global variables for use by mapped
functions. Fn_obj is the output from both find_tab and find_def.
Fn_dir is an input to find_tab. Fn_last, fn_prev, and fn_last are
used while searching for tab characters.
A carriage return results in a search of the entire tree,
using map_tree and find_def, for an object with its DEFAULT flag
set. Its SELECTED flag is set and it is inverted on the screen to
indicate the action taken. Form_keybd returns a FALSE to force
termination of the main form_do loop. If no DEFAULT is found,
control passes to the tab code.
The tabbing procedure is somewhat complicated because the
same code is used for forward and backward tabbing. The old value
of edit_obj (the object being tabbed FROM) is placed into fn_last.
Fn_dir is set to one for a forward tab, and zero for a backward
tab.
The general strategy is to scan the entire tree for EDITABLE
objects, always saving the last one found in fn_prev. When
tabbing forward fn_last is checked against fn_prev. A match
indicates that the current object is the one desired. When
tabbing backward the current object is checked against fn_last.
If they match, fn_prev is the desired object. This procedure
requires two passes when the tab "wraps around" the tree, that is,
when the desired object as at the opposite end of the traverse
from the old editing object.
The result of the tab operation is written back into
form_do's next_obj parameter, and becomes the new editing object
at the beginning of the next loop.
BUTTON DOWN. The form_button procedure is lengthy because it
must recognize and handle mouse clicks on several types of
objects: EDITABLE, SELECTABLE, and TOUCHEXIT. The first section
of code rejects other objects, which cannot accept a click.
The next piece of form_button makes a special check for a
double click on a TOUCHEXIT object. This will cause the high bit
of the returned object number to be set. (By the way, this also
occurs in the standard form_do.) This flag allows user dialog
code to perform special processing on the object.
The largest piece of form_button handles the various cases in
which the SELECTABLE flag may be set. Setting the RBUTTON (radio
button) flag causes all of the object's siblings in the tree to be
deselected at the time the object is clicked. The do_radio
routine uses the get_parent utility to find the ancestor, and then
performs the deselect/select operation.
If the SELECTABLE object is not TOUCHEXIT, then graf_watchbox
is used to make sure that the mouse button comes back up while it
is within the object. Otherwise, the click is cancelled. Care is
necessary here, since the hot-spot code may have already set the
SELECTED flag for the object. (We cannot be sure of this, for a
race condition may have occurred!)
If the SELECTABLE object is TOUCHEXIT, then the application
has requested that form_do exit without waiting for the button to
go back up. In both this and regular form_do, TOUCHEXIT objects
are used when you want to provide immediate response (animation)
within the context of a dialog.
The final parts of form_button do cleanup. If the clicked
object was already hot-spotted, hot_obj must be reset to NIL,
otherwise form_do will carefully unselect the object which has
just been selected!
If the EXIT or TOUCHEXIT flags are in force, form_button
returns FALSE to force the completion of form_do. For EDITABLE
objects, next_obj is left intact to replace edit_obj during the
next loop. Otherwise, next_obj has done its job and is zeroed,
and form_button returns TRUE for continuation.
This concludes the tour of the alternate form_do. The best
cure for any confusion in this explanation is to compile the code
into an application and watch how it runs with different
resources, or attack it with a debugger.
OPERATORS ARE STANDING BY. I encourage you to modify this
code to meet your particular needs and incorporate it into your
application. I would like to request than anyone who comes up
with significant improvements (or bug fixes) send them to me so
they can be made generally available. You can do this via the
ANTIC ONLINE Feedback, or by sending E-mail to 76703,202.
Speaking of Feedback, I would also like comments on the
proposed change of direction for the column, and more suggestions
for future topics. The next installment will be a further
discussion of interface design. Topics now queued for future
articles include the file selector and DOS error handling, a new
object editor, and customized drag box and rubber box routines.
Discussions on VDI workstations and printer output are on hold
pending release of the GDOS by Atari. If there are items which
you want to appear here, you must let me know!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Effective November 17, 1988:
ST-Report Magazine is no longer affiliated with ZMagazine.
ST-REport is now under the control of ST-Report Inc.
For the last 4-5 months Ralph Mariano has been solely responsible for the
content of ST-Report. What began as my solo project, ST-Report became a
joint venture in June 1988. Since then, my involvement with ST-Report has
steadily declined to a non-active status.
With my status as non-participant, I can neither comment nor defend
ST-Report in the midst of several controversies surrounding it. I take
this opportunity to formalize the separation of ZMagazine and ST-Report,
a separation which has been informal for some time. Please direct
questions of ST-Report solely to Ralph Mariano.
ZMagazine will continue to provide weekly online magazines as we have
been for the last 3 years.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
A HARD DRIVE FOR ALL
====================
To: All
From: Richard Covert
Subject: ABCO 130mb Hard Disk System
Date: November 15, 1988
This memo describes my purchase of a 130mb hard disk system from ABCO INC.
and Ralph Mariano. I received prompt and courteous service from Ralph
Mariano and had my drive within three weeks from the time I ordered it.
I first decided to purchase a new drive to replace my Atari SH204 20mb
last August when i heard about Dave Small's new Spectre 128 cartridge.
The Spectre 128 allows an ST to run about 90% of the MAC SE software.
But as with any MAC computer, a hard drive is almost mandatory. So, I
want to purchase a drve large enough to allow for both ST and MAC files.
I called various vendors, both locally and out of state, (I live in
Phoenix AZ), and I finally decided to order my new drive from ABCO and
Ralph Mariano. I spoke with Ralph for approx. 30 minutes the first time
in August. Ralph seemed very knowledgable about hard disk systems. Ralph
indicated he had sold well over 70 systems in the Jacksonville FL.
metropolitan area and that many ST BBSs use his drives.
I waited another two months until I obtained my Spectre 128 Cart. and my
MAC ROMS before ordering the hard drives. So, on Oct. 21, 1988, I phoned
Ralph to reconfirm the price. He agreed to sell me a complete RLL system,
consisting of Seagate Drives, 4070 Controller and Supra Host Interface in
a single cabinet. I sent Ralph a check on Friday, 10/21/88 for the full
amount of the drive. Ralph promised delivery within 2 weeks. I explained
the problems of timing with UPS and deliveries and Ralph said 'not to
worry' it will be sent Federal Express. The delivery date was set for
11/5/88.
There was some difficulty with a batch of 4070 controllers and all of that
batch were returned for exchange, thus, delaying delivery by one week.
Ralph was therefore unable to meet the 11/05/88 delivery date and offered
to refund my money, but I decided to wait the week. On Sat.11/12/88 the
hard drive arrived at 11:30 AM, which is quite impressive since they were
shipped from JAX., FL the previous afternoon.
To summarize, I got my drives within three weeks of my initial verbal
telephone order with Ralph. The drives are mounted in a compact,
attractive all steel cabinet and performed flawlessly from the first
powerup. My total amount of storage is 132mb. The drives were
preformatted for me by Ralph, per our conversation, and the system
autoboots without the use of a floppy. All in all, I am very pleased with
my drives and.....I would recommend ABCO and Ralph Mariano to any of my
friends!!!
R.E. Covert
------------
~~~ ABCO Hard Drive Systems ~~~
After reading the nasty remarks on the Compuserve conference
concerning the "Ripoffs of Hard drives by Ralph Mariano" I couldn't sit
idly by and listen to this garbage. I bought a 65 megabyte Hard Drive
from ABCO and couldn't be happier with it. It performs as advertized and
was assembled with painstaking effort. As a matter of fact, I was able to
view the final stages of assembly and I can tell you right now that the
unit was produced with all internal cables and wires neatly arranged and
placed with meticulous care.
Speaking of Ripoffs, there is one place in this town that charges
almost as much for a 20 meg unit than ABCO charges for a 30 meg unit.
Now THAT'S A RIPOFF! Furthermore, ABCO hard drives are upgradable and
come with a 1 year warranty.
I have my hard drive partitioned to run Mac software as well as ST
software. I purchased my Magic Sac about six months ago with the
intention of using a hard drive and it works like a charm with my ABCO
drive system. Sometime in the future I may be purchasing an AMIGA and
when I do I will buy a hard drive from ABCO for it as well.
A Very Satisfied Customer,
Myles S. Goddard
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
___________________________
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------
ABCO COMPUTER ELECTRONICS INC.
P.O. Box 6672
Jacksonville, Florida 32236-6672
904-783-3319
HARD DISK SYSTEMS TO FIT EVERY BUDGET
-------------------------------------
20mb #SG20510 519.00 30mb #SG32610 649.00
40mb #SG44710 789.00 65mb #SG60101 949.00
80mb #SG840110 1019.00 130mb #SG3A1210 1449.00
larger units are available - (special order only)
*** Available for ST - Amiga - Mac - IBM ***
6 month FULL Guarantee
followed by
6 month Parts & Labor Warranty
(under normal usage)
--------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL
======================
London, UK The latest issue of "Atari ST User", A premium
---------- British Mag, has in the news section, an interview
with the head of Atari, England. Atari is airlifting
additional ST's to England, as well as regular
shipments, to be sure that there will be no shortages
during the Christmas Season. Also, dealers are
accepting orders for Atari's Transputer machine for
December delivery.
NYC, NY Informed sources here state there may be a wave of
------- impatience developing in the States that could induce
certain 'clone' supporters to speed things up.
Chicago Il Tourists from Austria, are saying most every college
---------- student in Austria wants an ST for a word processor.
Perhaps the marketing folks over there should be
"imported" to Sunnyvale!
Houston, TX Houston will not be the site for Atari at this time.
----------- This was an "off the record", don't quote me statement
resulting from a call to the C of C there.
Sunnyvale, CA The Squeeze is on! Much shuffling of space and
------------- furniture as Federated's Hdqtrs is moved in...and now,
where are the white goods and the brown goods? Anyone
for a blender or two?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
THIS WEEK'S QUOTABLE QUOTE
==========================
Dilemma of a Spokesperson
-------------------------
"Tis better to be thought a fool, than to
open one's mouth and remove all doubt."
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ST-REPORT Issue #62 November 21, 1988
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED (c)copywrite STR Inc.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Any reprint must include ST-Report and the author in the credits.
Views Presented herein are not necessarily those of STR Inc.
COMMERCIAL ONLINE SERVICES MUST HAVE WRITTEN PERMISSION
to offer ST REPORT for download and/or display in any form.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
