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Silicon Times Report Issue 0085
*---== ST REPORT ONLINE MAGAZINE ==---*
"""""""""""""""""""""""""
"The Original Online ST Magazine"
-------------------------------
April 28, 1989 Volume III No.85
=========================================================================
ST Report Online Magazine ½
------------------------------
Post Office Box 6672
Jacksonville, Florida
32236 ~ 6672
R.F. Mariano
Publisher - Editor
_________________________________________
Voice: 904-783-3319 10 AM - 4 PM EDT
BBS: 904-786-4176 12-24-96 HST
FAX: 904-783-3319 12 AM - 6 AM EDT
_________________________________________
** F-NET/FIDOMAIL NODE 350 **
Our support BBS carries ALL issues of STReport¿
and
An International list of private BBS systems
carrying STReport¿ for their users enjoyment
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Issue: #85 STReport¿
-------------------
- The Editors' Podium
- CPU REPORT
- EYEWITNESS REPORT >"World of Atari Show"<
- Extended Coverage of the Anaheim Festivities
- LUCASFILM'S Battle Hawks Reviewed!
- 16Mhz and 4096 Colors Available for STs and MEGAs!
- PIRACY IS THEFT - PLAIN and SIMPLE p.II
- ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL
=========================================================================
AVAILABLE ON: COMP-U-SERVE ~ DELPHI ~ GENIE ~ THE SOURCE
=========================================================================
> The Editor's Podium¿
STReport does listen and we do care about what our readers want in
their Online Magazine. Therefore, we extend to all our sincere thanks for
all the supportive E-Mail and suggestions from folks both online and off.
You can expect changes to be made here at STReport as we are concerned
with the wishes of our readers and continually strive to improve the
magazine. We take STReport Online Magazine very seriously just as we do
the positive success of Atari Corp. Your help is greatly appreciated.
The piracy article last week was the first in a series concerning
piracy and how it effects us on a daily basis, how we can minimize it's
harmful effects and (probably the most controversial) the various forms
that piracy comes in, both blatant and subtle. We stated we would identify
the individuals in the userlog of the Happy Pirate Ship BBS that was
recently busted, it appears that there were a number of very well known
folks in that list (besides XORG). We have decided that, in the best
interests of the Atari ST community and to allow those folks in that list
the benefit of doubt, we will not, after all, reveal the names.
STReport has been taken to task many times in the past for
instigating controversial and heated discussion of rather volatile issues,
we feel that we have many things to learn about communication via the
printed word and eagerly accept all criticisms. We will give sincere
consideration to all realistic suggestions and make an honest effort to
implement the better ideas. Admittedly, since the issues and facts we
present are real, and can, at times, be unsettling we realize it is only
human to see vociferous and emotional reactions being presented.
However, the fact remains the things we present are actually happening and
need to be addressed. Hopefully, as we learn how to better present these
particular items there will less mis-interpretation and more understanding
of the issues at hand. We are trying to bring you the very latest and
accurate information possible. Please bear in mind though, in keeping
the tradition of the confidentiality of our sources, there still is no way
we will reveal the identity of our confidants unless, of course, they
instruct us to do so.
In regards to the being biased toward certain products, we are only
human and as such, some favoritism is bound to show through, for this we
apologize. We will, in the future, attempt to be as unbiased as possible.
In the same breath however, we wish to point out that we have never
proceeded with purpose of mind to showcase one product and not another. In
the very issue in question, #84 we dedicated well over 10k to the MAC
emulators by Gadgets by Small, the first, a conference on GEnie and the
second a positive review of the Spectre 128 Cartridge. How convenient it
was that the few critics saw fit to ignore this minuscule fact. It appears
that biased opinions can selfishly come from many directions.
Again, to those of you who called, wrote and used E-mail to show
your support ..many thanks, and we will continue to present all the
information.
Ralph.....
************************************************************************
:HOW TO GET YOUR OWN GENIE ACCOUNT:
---------------------------------
To sign up for GEnie service: Call: (with modem) 800-638-8369.
Upon connection type HHH (RETURN after that).
Wait for the U#= prompt.
Type XJM11877,GEnie and hit RETURN.
The system will prompt you for your information.
THE GENIE ATARI ST ROUNDTABLE - AN OVERVIEW
-------------------------------------------
The Roundtable is an area of GEnie specifically set aside for owners and
users of Atari ST computers, although all are welcome to participate.
There are three main sections to the Roundtable: the Bulletin Board, the
Software Library and the Real Time Conference area.
The Bulletin Board contains messages from Roundtable members on a variety
of Topics, organized under several Categories. These messages are all
open and available for all to read (GEnie Mail should be used for private
messages). If you have a question, comment, hot rumor or an answer to
someone else's question, the Bulletin Board is the place to share it.
The Software Library is where we keep the Public Domain software files
that are available to all Roundtable members. You can 'download' any of
these files into your own computer by using a Terminal Program which uses
the 'XMODEM' file-transfer method. You can also share your favorite Public
Domain programs and files with other Roundtable members by 'uploading'
them to the Software Library. Uploading on GEnie is FREE, so you are
encouraged to participate and help your Roundtable grow.
The Real Time Conference is an area where two or more Roundtable members
may get together and 'talk' in 'real-time'. You can participate in
organized conferences with special guests, drop in on our weekly Open
COnference, or simply join in on an impromptu chat session. Unlike posting
messages or Mail for other members to read at some later time, everyone in
the Conference area can see what you type immediately, and can respond to
you right away, in an 'electronic conversation'.
>>>>> SPECIAL CONFERENCE PLANNED <<<<<
Computers, BBS and the Law....ON GENIE - May 3rd., at 7PDT - 10PDT
a Formal Conference featuring: Jonathan D. Wallace, Esq.
Author of: "SYSLAW - The Sysop's Legal Manual"
************************************************************************
> CPU REPORT¿
==========
Issue # 19
by Michael Arthur
Remember When....
Hal Hardenberg of DTack Grounded Software, after making DBasic, a
VERY fast and versatile language for the ST, decided to try an unusual
marketing strategy to differentiate DBasic from the other versions of Basic
available for the ST, and gave away the DBasic program for free, and chose
instead, to charge 40 dollars for the manual?
CPU INSIGHTS¿
=============
NeXT Performance
----------------
Ever since it was announced, one of the main disadvantages of the
NeXT computer is that it was only going to be sold to universities and
other institutions of higher learning. Recently though, it was announced
that NeXT Inc. had made an agreement with Businessland, a major chain of
computer stores, which gave Businessland sole rights to sell the NeXT
systems to the general computer market. While no one knows exactly how
much Businessland will sell the NeXT computer for, this event merits
another look at the NeXT, in order to both see the features it provides
for the business market, and to speculate on how much of an impact it will
have on the burgeoning low-end workstation market, as well as the high-end
microcomputer market....
The NeXT system is based on a 25 MHZ version of the Motorola 68030
chip, using a 25 MHZ Motorola 68882 Floating Point chip for math-intensive
operations, as well as the Motorola 56001 Digital Signal Processing chip,
which runs at 10 MIPS (Millions of Instructions Per Second), and enables
the NeXT to not only handle real-time signal/array processing required in
scientific applications, but can be used as a 10-band graphic equalizer for
compact-disk quality digital sound. The NeXT also comes with a 17-inch
MegaPixel Display, with a 1120*832 monochrome resolution supporting 4 gray
scales, and 8 Megabytes of SIMM DRAM's standard on the CPU motherboard.
Using VLSI technology, the entire CPU board (consisting of 45 support
chips, the main Motorola processors, and 8 Megs of RAM standard, along
with sockets for 8 additional Megs of SIMM RAM chips) has been compacted
into a single NuBus board. The NeXT comes with 2 serial ports, one SCSI
port, an Ethernet Port, a DB-15 DSP port for sending and receiving digital
data, a DB-9 serial printer port, two ports for the NeXT optical disk and
a NeXT hard drive, and a version of the NuBus Expansion Bus running at
25 MHz, compared to the Mac II's 10 MHz version of the NuBus. The SCSI
Interface has a peak 4 Megabyte/Per Second transfer rate.
The NeXT system has 4 slots. One is used by the NuBus CPU board, and
the others are left available to the user. The case itself is a black cube,
measuring a foot wide on each side. The display, keyboard and two-button
mouse are also black. The display has an integral adjustable height and
tilt stand, and is connected to the CPU box with a single 3 meter cable
which transmits the 100 MHz video, power, sound, keyboard and mouse
data. The back of the display has connectors for the keyboard and mouse,
along with a speaker, microphone and headphone jacks and gold-plated RCA
stereo jacks.
In order to differentiate itself from other computer systems, NeXT
chose to innovate in four main areas:
A mainframe on two chips:
-------------------------
The architectures of both workstations and personal computers contain
inherent bottlenecks to higher performance that cannot be resolved by
faster processors alone. To manage the flow of information within the
system to yield peak efficiency, NeXT designed the ICP and OSP, two
proprietary VLSI (very large-scale integration) chips that endow the
system with mainframe-like capabilities.
The Integrated Channel Processor (ICP) manages the flow of data among
the central processing unit (the 68030), main memory and all peripheral
devices. By offloading the 68030 and ensuring the efficient flow of data
within the system, the ICP allows the 68030 to run at its full rated
capacity of 5 MIPS.
The ICP provides 12 dedicated DMA (direct memory access) channels,
including channels for Ethernet networking and for disks, monitor, printer
and other peripheral devices. The single ICP chip replaces several
hundred chips performing similar functions on a mainframe computer, and it
raises sustained system throughput to a level impossible with either
current personal computer or workstation architectures.
The other VLSI chip, the Optical Storage Processor, controls the 256
Megabyte Optical Disk, making possible this new storage technology. The
Optical Disk combines the vast storage capacities, removability, and
reliability of laser technology with the fast access and full read/write
capabilities of Winchester (magnetic) technology.
(Note: A full description of the NeXT's Magneto-Optical Tape Drive is
in CPU Report Issue # 10.)
NextStep:
---------
Although UNIX provides powerful capabilities and is the most
prevalent operating system for higher education and research, the
complexity of UNIX-based computers has put them beyond the reach of almost
everyone except scientists and engineers. At the same time, developing
graphical application software has traditionally extracted an inordinate
amount of time and expertise.
NeXT includes an unequaled amount of software in the price of every
NeXT Computer System. The NeXT uses Mach, an advanced multitasking
operating system developed by Carnegie-Mellon University, which is
compatible with Berkeley Unix Version 4.2/4.3, a standard operating system
in most higher learning institutions. Mach also has support for
multiprocessing (to be implemented in a future revision of the NeXT
software), virtual memory, and the TCP/IP Networking protocol (both of
which are currently supported by NeXT). The NeXT system also uses Sun's
Network File System, in order to provide "network-ready" capability for
workstation use.
In addition, the NeXT Computer System includes NextStep, a complete
software environment consisting of four components: The Window Server,
the Workspace Manager, the Application Kit and the Interface Builder.
NextStep solves the two major problems with UNIX-based systems: that
they are too complex and difficult for most non-programmers to use, and
that they require developers to spend an inordinate amount of time and
expertise creating applications.
For users, NextStep makes the power of Unix available through the
Workspace Manager, a new Window-Based Graphical User Interface resembling
X/Windows or Open Look, which allows most Unix operations to be done
without a degree of knowledge in traditional Unix commands. However, for
Unix "gurus", or longtime Unix users, the WorkSpace provides the standard
Unix Command Line Interface through a special window called the Console.
Embedded inside the Window Server is the Display PostScript system,
an implementation of the Adobe PostScript language which was designed to be
a standard imaging model for graphical displays. Display Postscript not
only handles the displaying of windows and graphics on the screen, but is
also device-independent, meaning that when NeXT comes out with a color
display for its system, or a higher resolution monitor, all NeXT software
will automatically use its capabilities. For 3-D graphics, NeXT Inc.
intends to support the Renderman display system, a versatile and powerful
standard for three-dimensional imaging developed by Pixar Inc., NeXT's
sister company....
For developers, NextStep includes the Application Kit, a set of
interacting software "objects" for building applications. A large part of
this is Interface Builder, a completely new kind of software development
tool. Like HyperCard, Interface Builder works graphically, letting the
developer construct an application by choosing from a palette of available
objects and using the mouse and keyboard to modify the objects as needed,
define the layout and establish connections between objects. Unlike
HyperCard, however, Interface Builder can be used with standard programming
languages, generating binary code to be used for a NeXT program. This
process permits the rapid construction of graphical user interfaces and
makes application development accessible to a much larger community.
This new environment should also cut the time used in coding the
user interface of a program from 90% to 10% of the total coding time. With
the application builder Jobs said it would go to zero. The environment is
based on the object oriented Objective-C language. You can modify existing
programs with subclassing and inherit much of the base application.
The NeXT Computer System comes with many Development Tools, including
the Allegro CL Common Lisp language, Objective-C 4.0 (an object oriented
version of C), the standard Berkeley Unix utilities, a GNU C Compiler, the
GNU Debugger, GNU Emacs, the Interface Builder, a window-based text editor,
and a terminal emulator.
The NeXT also comes with three object-oriented software kits: The
Applications Kit, the Sound Kit, and the Music Kit, which have pre-made
objects having useful features that can be integrated into your own NeXT
programs. Also, there are a number of software libraries available that
can tap the capabilities of the Motorola 56001 DSP chip, including Fast
Fourier Transforms (FFT's), spectral filtering, and other scientific
applications.
Personal Optical Storage and the Digital Library:
-------------------------------------------------
A Digital Library can contain complete reference works, books,
images or musical scores. The Digital Library included with the NeXT system
has the Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary (including definitions,
pronunciations using actual sound, and illustrations) Webster's Collegiate
Thesaurus, the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, and the Oxford University
Press' William Shakespeare: The Complete Works. Also included is full
documentation for all bundled software, user manuals, and manuals for
NeXT programmers. All of this information can be accessed VERY quickly.
Also, in order to support full Digital Libraries, as well as to have
all of NeXT's software, development tools, and applications available in
the NeXT system, the NeXT Computer supports Canon's Removable/Erasable
Magneto-Optical Tape Drives, which allow 256 Megs of Data to be stored on
one NeXT Cartridge....
Maximized Overall Processor Output:
-----------------------------------
To accomplish this, the NeXT had to maximize the 68030 chip's memory
accessing abilities. To do so, the NeXT uses the 68030's read-burst mode,
in which 128 bits of data can be accessed in 9 clock cycles, instead of the
normal 12 clock cycles. Also, the Motorola 68882 Math Chip allows
applications to better perform at math-intensive tasks, while not utilizing
the 68030 chip, and the 56001 DSP chip allows other tasks requiring its
special capabilities to function more efficiently by not relying on the
68030 chip. Not only does this speed up application performance, but the
use of these coprocessors relieves much of the burden that the 68030 would
normally have to carry, and allows it to run at its peak rate of 5 Million
Instructions Per Second (or 5 MIPS)....
Bundled Applications, Market plans, and the PRICE for it all
The NeXT Computer System also includes a rich set of bundled
application software. These applications include WriteNow, a word
processor program that is owned by NeXT Inc., and distributed for the
Macintosh by T/Maker Inc., a powerful SQL (Structured Query Language)
Database Server from Sybase, Jot, a personal text database manager, and a
version of the standard Unix E-Mail system, which has a graphical front-end
that can attach voice mail to normal E-Mail. Also, WolfRam Research Inc.'s
Mathematica, a revolutionary software system available for the Macintosh
that can perform all types of mathematical computations, including symbolic
algebra and calculus, will come standard with the NeXT system.
NeXT has built its business plan and products to meet the needs of
higher education. The company determined these needs through close
collaboration with leaders at college and university campuses
nationwide, uncovering the gaps between current and ideal computer
technology for this marketplace.
During 1989, NeXT will market its computer system directly to several
dozen of the nation's top institutions and software developers, and while
Microsoft has announced that it will not support the NeXT computer, many
others, including Lotus Corp., have praised the NeXT system. NeXT Inc.
expects to appeal to higher education on the strength of its technology
tools and through the personal business relationships the company has
established with the higher education community.
Price and Availability
----------------------
(All prices quoted are for higher education)
NeXT computer: $6500
NeXT PostScript Printer: $2000
330 MB winchester disk: $2000
660 MB winchester disk: $4000
The system's basic hardware configuration includes the NeXT Computer,
a one-foot cube that houses all of the computer's highly integrated silicon
chips onto a single NuBus board, the 256 Megabyte Optical Disk for
editable storage and retrieval of vast amounts of information, the 17-inch
MegaPixel Display, and the NeXT 400 dpi Laser Printer, which is the first
low-cost laser printer to provide 400 dots per inch (dpi) resolution.
NeXT has already shipped systems to its key customers and developers,
and expects to ship systems with final software by June of 1989, so as to
make them fully available for college students, universities, other
institutions, and a broader base of software developers.
Other available options to the standard configuration include 4 Megabyte
SIMM RAM expansion modules, an Ethernet kit, blank Magneto-Optical Disks,
and printer toner cartridges.
While the NeXT system has always received praise for the many
innovations it will eventually bring to the computer industry, not many
people saw it as viable for a workstation standard, since NeXT Inc.'s main
emphasis was on the educational market. Since it will now be available as
a regular computer system, many pundits are starting to point out another
aspect of the NeXT that, while not being as obvious as market potential,
is far more insidious....
When it was introduced in 1983, Apple's Lisa computer, just like the
NeXT system, brought many innovations to the computer industry, such as
graphical user interfaces and bit-mapped displays. However, because of
many factors, like the Lisa's prohibitive cost, and some design flaws in
its makeup, it did not become widely popular. In fact, now it is only
remembered as the precursor to the Apple Macintosh, which was originally
designed to be a low-cost version of the Apple Lisa....
In many ways, one could say that the NeXT system is another "Lisa",
since it also has brought many innovations to the microcomputer industry,
such as WorkSpace, the first graphical user interface to be available for
Unix, Magneto-Optical Cartridge drives, and an object-oriented programming environment. However,
just like the Apple Lisa, there are some aspects of the NeXT system which
could use improvement. For example, the NeXT's Magneto-Optical drive is
relatively slow (as well as VERY expensive), many developers question
whether they will be successful in selling NeXT applications, as well as
the NeXT's lack of a color display. Given this, one could see the need for
a low-end version of the NeXT, which provided many of its capabilities
without some of its less beneficial aspects.
Seeing this need, NeXT Inc. has decided to make a lower-priced NeXT
system, which will have 4 Megs of RAM standard, come with a smaller monitor
and resolution, and will not have some of the things (read: luxuries)
provided by the standard NeXT System. This "small" NeXT will cost around
$3000 - $3500 dollars, and (at least in the educational market) will be
targeted towards college students. However, since Businessland is thinking
of selling the standard NeXT system for around 10,000 dollars, which is
about 1 1/2 times the educational market's price for a standard NeXT, one
could easily speculate that the general computer industry will be able to
purchase a "small" NeXT for around $5000.00, or the current price for a
20 or 25 MHZ 80386 IBM clone....
NeXT Inc. has also indicated that it is rectifying the NeXT's current
deficiencies, as production models of the NeXT's Magneto-Optical Drive are
expected to be much faster than the Beta revision models that were shown
at the NeXT's introduction, a future revision of the NeXT software will
support shared libraries, and NeXT has said that it will provide color
display capabilities for the NeXT system in the future....
But ponder, if you will, this question:
1) Will the NeXT computer be edged out in the business market because of
more established companies like IBM or Sun coming out with similarly priced
systems?
CPU Systems Roundup¿ VII
========================
Plug-n-Play, Standards R Us, and the Art of Non-Obsolescence
When deciding to buy an IBM Compatible system nowadays, PC Users have
a LOT of choices to make. First, one could either get a system using the
standard (but dated and obsolete) PC AT Expansion Bus, or use the newer IBM
MicroChannel Expansion Bus, which has not yet become a solid standard in
the IBM world. Then, one must decide whether the system will use the 8086,
80286, or 80386 chip, and whether it will run at 8 MHZ, 16 MHZ, 20 MHZ, or
25 MHZ. And this doesn't even include whether to use VGA, EGA, or CGA
graphics....
Although many of these choices are based on economics, the most
difficult aspect of this decision is that once a system is purchased, one
cannot upgrade to a more powerful system without selling the old computer
and looking for a new one, since many PC Accelerator boards are not
completely IBM compatible, and most PC Clone makers will not allow users to
trade in their old computers so as to upgrade to the new system. But a
solution to this dilemma has come from Wells American Corp., a company who
became known in the 1970's for manufacturing the Superbrain CP/M computers,
as well as other Multiuser systems....
Dubbed "the world's first and only multi-processor, convertible bus
microcomputer", the CompuStar is a new type of IBM Clone which uses a
radically different, modular design to allow a PC User to literally
custom-configure their own IBM system.
The CompuStar base system comes with a keyboard, a 26 inch aluminum
case, and a Wells American I/O Module, which has 2 serial ports, 1 parallel
port, mouse/keyboard connectors, a disk drive controller, and a VGA chip
which lets it support IBM VGA, EGA, CGA, and Hercules graphics. Costing
$1195.00, this is the basis of a CompuStar system, to which the other
options are added, through the use of Modules.
Unlike the usual PC, which has one expansion bus on the motherboard,
TWO Expansion Bus Modules (a Primary Module, and a Secondary Unit) can be
installed into a CompuStar. Wells American is currently making two models
of Bus Modules: an IBM AT Expansion Bus Module, which comes with seven
AT Expansion Slots, and a PS/2 MicroChannel Bus Module, having five
MicroChannel Expansion Slots and one AT Expansion Slot, which requires a
special PS/2 Adapter Module. These Bus Modules can be "mixed and matched"
in a system, enabling a CompuStar system to either have 14 AT Expansion
Slots (with the use of two AT Bus Modules), 10 MicroChannel Slots and two
PC AT Expansion Slots (using two PS/2 Bus Modules) or 8 AT Expansion Slots
and 5 MicroChannel Slots, if you use one AT Bus Module and 1 PS/2 Bus
Module. And given that although IBM's MicroChannel Bus may become a future
standard, literally thousands of PC AT Boards are now available, and that
besides the CompuStar, there is currently only ONE other PS/2 Clone now
shipping....
After a PC User has chosen their system's Expansion Bus options, the
next choice is in microprocessors. To this end, the CompuStar uses what
is called a CPU Module, which contains the main processor, a socket for a
math coprocessor, and 8 sockets for CompuStar Memory Modules, which contain
1 Megabyte of RAM each for system memory. Wells American currently makes a
number of CPU Modules, including a CPU Module using a 10 MHZ 8086 chip, a
20 MHZ 80286 CPU Module, and CPU Modules for 16 MHZ, 20 MHZ, and 25 MHZ
versions of the 80386 chip. However, to enhance the flexibility of this
method, CompuStar users can trade-in the CPU Module they currently own for
a more powerful one, and (if they have owned the module for less than one
year) use the old module's list price as a credit towards the purchase of
the new module. This means that the upgrade path for a CompuStar User is
not only easier than with other computer owners, but could be a lot less
expensive in the long run....
Wells American also sells a wide array of accessories for the
CompuStar, including a Zenith flat-screen VGA Monitor, tape backup systems,
and a variety of Maxtor hard drives, including a 1 Gigabyte Magneto-Optical
Removable/Erasable tape drive. Of course, most PC Users would tend to
wonder if the CompuStar's price corresponds to its flexibility. Here are
Wells American's list prices, so you can judge for yourself:
- CompuStar Base System: $1200.00
- PC AT Expansion Bus Module (Primary Unit): $200.00
- PC AT Expansion Bus Module (Secondary Unit): $175.00
- MicroChannel Expansion Bus Module (Primary Unit): $295.00
- MicroChannel Expansion Bus Module (Secondary Unit): $250.00
- MicroChannel Adapter Module: $995.00
- 10 MHZ 8086 CPU Module: $295.00
(with 512K of built-in RAM)
- 20 MHZ 80286 CPU Module: $695.00
- 16 MHZ 80386 CPU Module: $1695.00
- 20 MHZ 80386 CPU Module: $1995.00
- 25 MHZ 80386 CPU Module: $2495.00
- CompuStar 1 Megabyte DRAM Module: $435.00
- Zenith flat screen VGA Monitor: $895.00
- 42 Megabyte Hard Drive: $595.00
Even if the above prices seem a tad bit too expensive for the average
PC User, just consider what a CompuStar 80286 System using 1 PC AT Bus
Module would cost compared to a similarly configured Compaq 286 system. If
you want to get more information on Wells American's CompuStar, they can
be reached at 1-803-796-7800....
-----===-----
CPU REPORT CONFIDENTIAL¿
=======================
Mountain View, CA Adobe Systems Inc. has recently introduced a version of
----------------- its Illustrator 88 Postscript-based drawing program for
Microsoft Windows. However, while it costs $695.00, or
200 dollars more than its Mac counterpart, and comes
with basic features like autotracing and freehand
drawing, it oddly lacks many other features found in
Illustrator 88 for the Macintosh, such as full color
separations....
Cupertino, CA RasterOps Inc. is shipping the Colorboard 118, a new
------------- graphics accelerator board for the Mac II which runs the
Mac's QuickDraw graphics routines at speeds up to 62
times faster than a normal Mac. This board is aimed at
image processing and CAD applications. Cost: $2300.00
RasterOps is also developing a card which will allow the
Mac to use Adobe's Display Postscript graphics system,
presumably through specially written applications. But
while Apple has publicly denounced Display Postscript,
saying it will continue to improve its QuickDraw system,
many other Mac software developers are VERY interested
in Display Postscript....
Los Gatos, CA Award Software has started shipping a ROM-based version
------------- of Digital Research's DR-DOS operating system in a ROM
chipset, called the Award ROS. This package will allow
all types of IBM Clones, especially Laptops, to have
almost all of the 640K of RAM supported by DOS for use
in applications, as well as better operation than a disk
based DOS. Many IBM Clone makers are also considering
DR-DOS and the Award ROS because Digital Research is
letting OEM's license it for 50-60 percent of what
Microsoft's licensing fees are for MS-DOS....
DR-DOS is a FULLY MS-DOS compatible operating system
which not only supports 512 Meg Hard Disk partitions,
but allows for password protection of files and
subdirectories, and supports Novell Netware, currently
the most popular IBM LAN System. It also comes with the
GEM/3 Desktop as an option....
DR-DOS has many features found in IBM's PC-DOS 4.0, such
as LIM EMS 4.0 Extended Memory drivers which let IBM
programs support up to 16 Megs of RAM (using bank
switching), and a 32-bit FAT, or File Allocation
Table. Previous versions of DOS only used a 16-bit DOS
File Allocation Table. Strangely, though, DR-DOS cannot
run Microsoft Windows/386. But since Windows/386 won't
run with IBM PC-DOS 4.0 either....
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> W.O.A. STR Spotlight¿
====================
CAVALCADE OF STARS
==================
by Rocky Sgro
For the past few years, the Los Angeles area has had Atari shows
and festivals that attracted a fair number of people. This year, with the
added excitement of Disneyland as a tourist attraction and a large number
of new product debuts, World of Atari drew a response of better than ten
thousand attendees for the two day show.
The setting, the Convention Centre at the Disneyland Hotel, provided
outstanding facilities to the attendees of World of Atari 1989. Parking
was plentiful and fairly inexpensive. We parked at the Disneyland Park
and rode the Tram to the hotel.
ST World sponsored the show, they prepared a very nice brochure
detailing the locations of the booths, reviews and advertisements of the
products on display.
Now for the BIG NEWS, Spectre GCR, Dave and Sandy Small's new
product, was shown out of the case. It appears all of the undocumented
features have been removed or documented. Dave remarked that it runs much
better and faster than he expected. The GCR will retail at 299.95 and
will start shipping on or about August 1. The GCR reads and writes as
fast as a Mac Plus and it will run on both Mac and Spectre format. For
the owners of Spectre 128 Carts, Gadgets by Small will allow a 100.00
rebate for the Spectre 128 cartridge turn-in.
Avante Garde Systems also was showing their new PC Ditto II
hardware, a step up from PC Ditto to be sure. The new board also has a
socket for the 8057 math co-processor. The hardware will be fitted
internally patching through the 68000 chip (average install time 15 min).
The clock of the emulator is an astounding 3.0 (Norton SI) and close to 10
ala IBM. It is fully IBM XT compatible at AT performance levels. The
initial price of the new PC Ditto II is 299.95. Avante Garde will however
offer to the existing owners of Ditto a 50% discount towards the purchase
of PC Ditto II. PC Ditto II is expected to ship around the end of June.
Happy Computing discounted the Discovery Cartridge 100.00 and
offered it for the amount of 155.00 for the standard version and 220.00
for the #2 option model. In addition, Happy was debuting their new device
the the Q*VERTER, at 179.95. This new device from Happy will provide
fast, reliable conversions of Mac disks to and from Magic Sac, Spectre and
Gem format. It also provides access to high density disks (using the high
density drives). The Q*VERTER must be used with drives that have a
through port or with the internal drive. The Q*VERTER will begin shipping
in May.
Some of the other hardware shown were the Bernoulli Boxes, Streaming
Tape Backups and Astra had a virtual plethora of goodies to make even the
most experienced user drool. A fantastic space age touch screen
sale/inventory system was shown, more on this later....
SIG HARTMANN Vice President from Atari had what appeared to be 100x
the enthusiasm of any of the show's attendees. The effect of his
symposium at the show was immediately seen in the positive reactions on
the part of the users ..Sig was definitely telling them what they wanted
to hear in his detailing the "Future of Atari".
The turnout was excellent and the amount of business far exceeded
last year's Glendale Show was a remark that was heard over and over
again. Sig Hartmann emphasized that fact that the show was organized and
put on by Richard Tsukiji of ST World Magazine and that he hoped the shows
planned in the future would be as successful.
Mr. Hartmann also stressed the fact that Atari is fully engaged in
reviving it's US Market by enlarging the Dealerbase and stirring interest
and involvement of the consumers/users. When asked about the competition
from the Amiga, Sig noted that the Amiga is a games and graphics oriented
device. He also stressed the point that Atari is a Technology oriented
corporation and, as such, is aimed at few games, more business and
associated fields for their computer lines. The Atari, he continued, can
be used in the home, factory and office environment much like the
MacIntosh and other business oriented computers at 1/3 the cost. The
special offering by Atari for the Mega4, laser printer, 40mb hard disk,
PostScript & 50 Fonts and ST Publisher for $3995.00 is really quite a
bargain when compared to the prices one would find for just a Laser printer
alone, he noted.
The Show shutdown for a short while at about 6pm, enough time for a
shower and dinner, as the Concert began at 7:30pm Many thanks are
extended by both myself and the Editor of STReport for the gracious
welcome extended to STReport by ST World in providing the complimentary
tickets by Mr. Richard Tsukiji.
The concert began at 7:30 and..the ST began doing things even I had
not seen before. Micheal Pender of the Moody Blues hosted the show and
featured special guests Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac and Jimmy Hotz
(Developer of the Atari/Hotz keyboard). The show ran for a little over
two hours and absolutely cemented the fact that the Atari ST computer
line is the premier line in the midi field. The highlight of the evening
was the presentation of a GOLD RECORD to Atari Corp.'s Frank Foster on
behalf of the recording industry in recognition of the superb performance
of the ST in all it's functions in the chase scene and the sound track of
the movie "Colors". The rack mounted ST that is "responsible" was in use
at the concert.
A member of the L.A. Usergroup gave a marvelous solo guitar
performance accompanied only by the rack mounted ST and it was lovely.
All in all, World of Atari, nestled in the Disneyland setting,
coupled with the enthusiastic support of the hardware and software
developers and dealers provided Southern California with a show to
remember, perhaps even the finest so far....
I thank the editor of STReport, Ralph Mariano, for requesting me to
represent STReport at the WOA show and write this article. Also my
sincere thanks are extended to all the great folks who allowed me to
interview and videotape them.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
| |
| SPECIAL OFFER ----====---- SPECIAL OFFER |
| |
| A VIDEO TAPE - T-120 - WORLD OF ATARI SHOW |
| |
| $12.95 ea |
| Shipping and Handling Incl. |
| |
| See all the fun and faces! Attend the Concert! |
| |
| See why you should be at the NEXT show yourself! |
| |
| Send $12.95 for each copy of the VHS tape to: |
| |
| STReport Online Magazine |
| PO Box 6672 |
| Jacksonville, Florida 32205-6672 |
| |
| The Video tape was made by R. Sgro. |
| |
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
NOTE...this is not a commercial venture the 12.95 represents the cost of
the tape, duplication, mailer, postage and insurance.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> WOA GEnie STR FOCUS¿
===================
ON SITE COVERAGE BY GENIE
=========================
Reports forwarded
with permission
Category 11, Topic 14
Message 2 Sun Apr 23, 1989
PSINC [Mark S.] at 12:55 EDT
The World of Atari show, seen through the eyes of Mark Sloatman
---------------------------------------------------------------
There were two, count 'em _two_ accelerator boards for the ST. One by
Fast systems has a ram cache (32K) and a 16mhz 68000. It's switchable from
normal to high speed. Looks great (all surface mount) and cost: $399.00.
The other one is from JRI, it only costs $99.00! Haven't seen it,
but looks like it will sell well. They also have a 4096 color board, takes
another video shifter. It goes for $49.95 without the shifter. The Atari
looks great with all those colors. Of course software has to be modified to
show them. It has a example program. Seymour Radix announced a VCR backup hardware/software product, but
it was not ready for the show. It will go for $249.95.
Gadgets by Small demoed the GCR, looks like it will be out in August. It' s
going to be a hot product. We're doing the plastic case, so it will look
nice<grin>. I did see it working, it's a real product. Dave Small's new
addition (Jessie?) was cute, and liked attention just like her Dad.;-)
PC DItto II made it's debut, it's a PCB that's internally installed
in the ST, that has a header that fits over the 68000. It runs at about
10mhz I think, I'm not sure it uses a 8088 or a 80286. When I get to
talking to Bill we rarely discuss our products <grin>.
As far as software goes the neatest I saw was a hack that allows
one to change resolution without rebooting! We are evaluating it.
The codeheads at Codehead brought out Hotwire and Midimax.
There's a demo of Hotwire in the DL's here so I won't elaborate, Midimax
is a great program that provides "midi macros". You can store any number
of Midi events and play them back with a single key. It is a DA, so you
can use it along with sequencers etc.
As far as the show goes, I was a little disappointed, with all the
hype that was generated about it. There is no way that 15,000 people were
going to show up, indeed the show could not have contained them if they
did. At one point they were messing with the sound system and it was
shrieking "Godzilla Killer Noises" and had everyone covering their ears!
Great for sales. It was not a "Atari World" (on the scale of Amiga Expo,
MacWorld etc.).
It was a normal Atarifest, although with better than normal turnout.
I asked most of the vendors what they thought, their reponses ranged from
"seems like Glendale all over again" to "looks great so far!" Not wanting
to end on a negative note, Most of the dealers were there, and sales
seemed to be brisk.
For an Atarifest, it was a success I'm sure.
Oh, BTW Tweety Boards were selling like hotcakes<grin>!
Mark
Category 11, Topic 14
Message 3 Sun Apr 23, 1989
DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 13:26 EDT
Here are some show tidbits that I have gathered from Sandy. I am not sure on
spelling re: names so please don't take me to task. Time has been limited for
Sandy thus this is all we have.
Attendance seems to be at 7,000 for the 1st day of attendance.
Atari Booth was REAL cramped. It is a corner booth thus access was to say
very interesting.
JRI is selling their genlock. They also are selling a color board with a
1200 pallet (68 on screen at the same time). Price unknown. They are
selling their accelerator board for $100
In Sandy's opinion, if you have a Mega and a reason for GEnlock, it looks
very good. They demo'd Genlock at the concert last night.
Sam Tramiel showed STACY but when he tried to turn it on, he found out
the batteries were dead. He said availability will be in July. He said
August or September for the TT.
Though Sandy did not get a real close look to STACY, she said it appeared
to be wider than her Sharp portable. It had the same exterior color but
keyboard is light creme or grey. Sam appeared surprised when he found out
the batteries were dead when demoing. The LCD screen seemed to be more tv
shape than the Sharp screen, but as Sandy stated, that was her impression
from a distance. If Sandy remembered right, the LCD screen in it now is not
the finished version.
Atari will be selling the HOTZ Box with an Atari label on it.
The concert last night had Mike Pender from the Moody Blues MC'ing the
show and starring Jake Flader from the fusion group MAZE performing two
songs from his solo album he is working on. Marc Ritter and Greg Whelchel
from the POINTER SISTER's band did a short demo of how midi is used to lay
down tracks.
The show emphasized "ATARI and the MIDI commitment.". The score from the
movie Colors went GOLD and Atari was presented with the GOLD record. The
OSCAR winning BEST original score for the movie "Maligo Beanfield" was
scored on an Atari. There is a movie out called "Simpatico" (Sandy was not
sure of spelling) that was scored in his livingroom using the Atari. The
music is in the easy listening Category. Sandy's comment, "not bad." It
is supposed to be on the charts now. The author is James Lee Stanley and
he performed two of the tracks at the concert. Jimmy Hotz gave a HOTZ box
demo with the help of Mick Fleetwood from Fleetwood Mac. They asked for 2
volunteer drummers from the audience who never touched a keyboard. In
Sandy's opinion, the HOTZ demo was interesting, but it did not explain the
box or how it works at all. It is a device for people that hear the music
in their head, but can't play an instrument. A clip from the movie
"Colors" was shown while two guys who did the score, talked about doing
it.
GBS was showing their GCR. Sandy Small stated that they have a tremendous
amount of pre-orders in the mail already. Her gesture made one think that
they already had 3 to 4 inches of stacked preorders. It looks like this is
one popular item. The booth was set up with speakers along side a real Mac.
We presume they were comparing the two.
Avante Garde was displaying PC-DITTO II at the show. No advanced orders
are being taken at this time but it looked impressive.
Sam emphasized that Atari is BACK in the US market. He explained that the
chip problem was the reason they left ..but they are BACK to stay.
ICD was showing their tape backup system. This girl is getting one. <DAR>
Ultrascript is being shown. Sandy stated that the postscript output was
impressive but she needed to check if it was a 9 pin or 24 pin. The demo
was done on a NEC P5200 . <-- Anyone know anything about this printer???
Sandy is going to check what dot printers they support.
Gribnif was showing their latest NEODESK which displayed icons much like
the MAC. If you are a ICON person, this version seems like a must.
Seymour/Radix is showing a hard drive backup that goes to your VCR and
uses standard VCR tapes. The price is $249.95. It backs up to 360 megs at 8
megs a minute. It uses standard RCA cables.
Happy Computers is debuting a new product called Quick*Verter.
Quick*Verter must be used with drives with a thru port or with an internal
drive. It is toted as being a fast and reliable conversion of Macintosh
disks, to and from Magic Sac, Spectre and GEM format. It also provides
access to high density drives using high density drives. Shipment begins in
May and list price will be $179.95
CODEHEAD was selling all their products with two different varieties of T-
SHIRTS. Hey Codehead....can we buy them too??? :-)
Sierra-Online is there showing videos of sections of their games.
Wuztech is showing their monitor for all 3 resolutions (Omnimon).
Megamax is there................
In the Atari booth is GEnie of course and Deskset, Megafile 44
(removable HD), Calamus.
Astra systems, Westco Electronics debuted their Storage System One (SSI)
21.4 Bernoulli system (Ataris' is 44megs).
Michtron was showing the MicroDeal line and was selling Tailspin rather
quickly. Tailspin gives you the ability to create graphic adventures with
using sound files from ST-Replay. They were also showing their full line.
Reeve Software is showing Diamond OS though Sandy did not get a chance to
really look at it.
Beckemeyer Development is at the show. Sandy did not get a chance to view
what they had to offer.
Denny Hayes has a FAX Modem. It works as modem and fax receiver that runs
at 1200 baud. It could replace your 1200 baud modem. If remembered right,
this is a port over from the IBM world.
GEnie was getting a great deal of interest even though access was tough. My
hands off to Sandy for an excellent 1st time solo job.
More on Denny Hayes Fax item....It is great unless you need to use it to
send invoices and such that are only on hardcopy. In that respect, one
would have to have a scanner. It sends graphics in several formats as long
as they are not hardcopied only. One could send say a Degas picture etc. It
warns you when you have incoming data and asks you where to send it. It
could go to your printer, screen or be saved as a file. You can also set
it up in the background as an accessory. Sounds like this one has my
interest. :-)
Category 11, Topic 14
Message 5 Sun Apr 23, 1989
DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 13:42 EDT
Amended total for show according to Rich Tsukigi(sp) is 7400.
------------
Category 11, Topic 14
Message 6 Sun Apr 23, 1989
DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 13:51 EDT
Ultrascript supports Deskjet, Epson FX/LX/LQ/LQ950 and compatibles. The
Show price was/is $160.30 plus tax.
Category 11, Topic 14
Message 7 Sun Apr 23, 1989
S.XAVIER [Sandy] at 15:07 EDT
Amended report on the JRI ST4096C board. It has a color palette of 4096
colors available with the ability to put 64 colors on the screen at a time.
(I think I got it right this time...I don't get out of my cage for very
long at a time to check on things <grin>)
S.Xavier, aka Sandy Wilson, did a great job for all of us!!
-----
ED: Remember to get your copy of the VHS Tape of this show, see offer
above..
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Battle Hawks STR Review¿
=======================
Battle-Hawks: 1942
==================
by William Y. Baugh
This weeks review comes courtesy of Lucasfilm Games; a company I grew to
love on the 8-bit with Ballblazer and Rescue on Fractalus. Well, they're
making a grand appearance on the ST with recent releases of Zak McKracken
and now Battle-Hawks: 1942.
BH is a superb arcade/simulation set in the Pacific during WWII. It
covers the pivotal sea battles of the Pacific; Battle of Midway, Battle of
Coral Seas, Battle of East Solomons and the Battle of Santa Cruz Island.
Even though these are naval battles, the outcomes were determined by
airpower.
In BH, you have the opportunity to fly the carrier-based aircraft of that
time, in 16 different scenarios. One time you may choose to escort wounded
bombers out of the battlezone to saftey; or you may choose dive bombing or
torpedo raids on the Japanese carriers. Each scenario is well thought out
and in most cases, historic. There is one scenario in which you are
wingman with Lt. Richard Best as he descends on his infamous bombing run on
the carrier Akagi.
Other scenarios deviate from the actual outcome of the battle and take on
a "what if" plot line. For example, you may go on a dive bombing run on
the carrier Hiryu, which was missed in the initial attack of the Americans
on the Japanese fleet during the Battle of Midway. The Hiryu in turn,
launched a counterattack on the American fleet and sunk the Yorktown. If
you strike, and strike hard, you may change the course of history. No
matter which one you choose, they are all quite enjoyable (if not
frustrating...).
Once the game is loaded, you are presented with a great drawing of a F4F
Wildcat landing on a carrier with selection boxes blended in on the left.
Moving between the boxes is accomplished by mouse or keyboard. I recommend
using the keyboard during any of the pregame selections in that the mouse is
a little awkward. From the selections, you may choose the training mode
where you may try all of the missions, but with out the worry of being shot
down, crashing, etc..
In the actual mission mode, you fly the same missions as in the training,
but these are the real thing. When selecting the missions, you have the
four battles mentioned earlier with four scenarios per battle, with a brief
description of each scenario shown separately as you scroll through them.
After selecting the mission, you are then taken to the briefing room where
you'll receive a more in depth view of your mission along with the chance to
change the parameters of the mission. You may choose a better plane then
the one offered, change fuel consumption, select amount of ammunition,
starting altitude, armor of the plane and the experience level of the enemy
fighters. These factors allow you to either make the mission easier or
harder.
As with other simulations, BH keeps track of your kills and successful
missions, giving you promotions and awards at the end of a completed
mission. If you change the parameters, you forfeit the chance to receive
any commendations. Once you have the set the mission to your liking, its
time flame some zeros.
First thing you'll notice (of course) is the cockpit. As with the planes
of that period, the dash is simple with gauges for airspeed, fuel,
artificial horizon, etc. You may select differing views of the sky by
pressing the corresponding keys on the numeric keypad. Also, during
bombing or torpedo runs, you have a tail gunner. Control of the plane is
accomplished with the mouse; and I must say, accomplished very well. The
game is VERY responsive. It only slows down noticibly if there are around
four planes and a burning ship in view at the same time and you are firing
your guns. That is to say, it doesn't happen often and usually doesn't
last long. Another thing you'll notice right off is that you are
immediately in the action, no waiting around for the fun to start! The
graphics are great!
With flaming planes, pilots bailing out, tracers, exploding ships, flak;
this game has it all! You even have a nose camera to view your great air
battles at later time. It's a great instant replay in that it allows you
to view your latest battle at any perspective and allows you to see whether
that bomb or torpedo struck the ship. The missions last anywhere from a
minute to 15 depending on how long you stay alive and how many planes you
have to shoot down. This brings up the unrealistic side of the game. You
are the "main character" in these scenarios. You may have other planes in
the air with you, but you are responsible for the entire mission along with
your six. Lets say you select the mission to escort two bombers on their
run. Two zeros attack, you veer off to take the lead plane, but the other
sneaks by and downs the two bombers! (This happened to me). Well, you were
doing your job, and the other planes do defend themselves (though not
well), so you are reprimanded for a failed mission. There are other
worse-case scenarios, but this just shows that you, by your lonesome, are
responsible for everything.
I currently have 60 kills(!) and am at Lt. Commander ranking. You may
even get 9 kills in one mission! That's a little on the unrealistic side.
But then again, the game is not a simulation on its own, but a very
enjoyable arcade/simulation.
Presently, with all this information flying around, there is one more
surprise...you may play the game as the Japanese also. This creates a
truly fascinating twist to the game and allows you to view the battles from
the "other side". Game play stays the same but your planes and the
controls do change when you play the Japanese along with rankings, awards,
etc.
Now, to make a great program truly fantastic is the addition of the most
complete, accurate and just plain easy to read manual that I've ever seen.
It's actually a shame to call it just a manual, a "Brief History of the
Pacific Naval Battles" may be more in line. There are loads of historical
pictures with fascinating stories to back each one, along with useful
information and tips to help you along with the game. This could truly set
a standard for computer manual writing.
Battle-Hawks comes on two unprotected (manual protected) single-sided
disks. You may either install the program on your hard drive or put both
disks onto one double-sided disk. I run the program off of my hard drive
and have had no problems. The program will boot from medium resolution
with a full compliment of auto programs and accessories to fight with; and
will exit cleanly back to the desktop.
In closing, if you are looking for a truly fascinating WWII fighter game,
I suggest this game highly. I think we owe Lucasfilm a huge thank you for
writing for the ST and for producing such high quality software as this.
Hopefully, we will see many more in the future.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> PIRACY STR FOCUS¿
================
PIRACY IS THEFT - PLAIN and SIMPLE
==================================
PART II
In the beginning, there was a computer, (8bit), rather expensive
with little or no imaginative software readily available, so, naturally,
the enterprising software publishers decide to take advantage of the rather
virgin territory of the early Atari 8bit software market. Out came all the
fancy, cellophane wrapped, superbly illustrated packages that simply
enticed just about every new '800' owner to open the wallet and "go for
it". The years were sweet and innocent then..the Cowboys and Denver were
going to be in the Superbowl and just a few seasons before Miami had the
perfect season. The software publishers back then also had a party of
sorts. The reputation of the "fancy package - garbage program" came into
being. Thus, the first real excuse for software theft was "justified" in
the Atari community. It was a sad day for all concerned. Now comes the
days of the ST and the idea that "Well, the youthful pirates are all grown
up and we have a whole new crop of newfies", seemed to pop up. How many
can remember the cost of some of the very early programs for the newly
released ST computer? It really was rip-off city! The very same graduates
from the 8bit days were given cause to pirate all over again, only this
time, it appeared, with a vengeance.
Thoughtfully, we say the time has come to re-evaluate the entire
picture and all of us must say; "Is the try before you buy really needed?"
Even we at STReport have to admit that based on what we are told about
certain dealers and of course the sad fact that most software simply MUST
be mail-ordered, yes ..TRY BEFORE YOU BUY IS NEEDED in some form of a demo
or otherwise. Perhaps others will follow in Codehead's, SoftLogik's, ISD's
and a few (very few) other's footsteps and begin to realize that a strong
market for software is out there, and all that's needed is a little
creative marketing to get it going.
ON ANOTHER NOTE:
---------------
We were especially alarmed by a certain industry executive who found
it very easy to let us know that in certain respects; "one must realize
that many of the users who buy Atari computers have just enough dollars for
the hardware and really cannot afford to purchase the software".
Understandably, this individual emphasized he would deny having said this
to us. We think this type of thinking is a cleverly masked statement
that allows for software theft in the Atari marketplace. Thankfully, this
is not the case and should never be!
Take a good look at what this guy is saying, we feel it may point
to why there has not been a real effort at cleaning up the ST aren
a. Oh
sure, the software developers want it cleaned up and most third party
developers also want it done. Atari Corp. has realized this also and is
actively involved in educating the userbase about the old adage of "you get
what you pay for". But, based on his remark, it becomes quite easy to see
where, at one time in the past, the premise that the Atari market in USA
was not to be taken too seriously. That kind of thinking bordered on
becoming an insane journey of self destruction. Granted, there are a
number of younger and not so well heeled users in the Atari arena.
However, we at STReport refuse to sell them short, they may be young and
not have a pocket full of bux, but they ARE well educated and have a very
high degree of "street smarts". The young people of today fully understand
that to have the quality up to date software for the ST we all must share
the cost and allow the developers and publishers their rightful profits.
The majority of these young people are willing to go out and earn the
dollars to do so.
Which leads to our most recent observation, the ranks of Pirate
BBS' nationwide, has actually decreased. The migration to the Amiga is one
major factor, another is the education process undertaken, and lastly, the
prospect of identification and exposure to the rest of the computing
community is becoming a very strong factor. We never realized how many
would jump up and holler "if you print that userlog...." or, "oh no,
they're (STReport) gonna attack me"! Folks, we never realized how rapid
the reaction would be by those in the Happy Pirate Ship's userlog. Indeed,
the threat of exposure and disgrace looms large on the horizon for the
'two-faced phonies' out there.
Let us hear some of your ideas on this subject.
Send your letters to Ron Brunk or Lloyd Pulley.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> DATAVID STR Tech Notes¿
======================
by Martin Bethel
Is there a place for the ST in the video production process? It
would appear so by the way the good folks in the UK continue to forge
ahead with new and innovative products for use in the ST marketplace.
The latest in the video market is the DATAVID ST, a fine, well made
add-on device that enables the ST to produce an outstandingly perfect
composite video picture that is more than suitable for output to tape for
commercial uses.
In terms of both picture quality and stability, the Datavid ST
provides a very significant improvement in quality. As to it's potential
in the marketplace, one can only hope that more people will take an
interest in the use of the ST in the video production process, which in
turn will provoke other developers of hard and software to exploit the
ST's DTV power in a way, that, as yet has really been tapped, except
perhaps the notable exception, Cyber Studio. The picture of the past was
somewhat dark, now, with the advent of the resurgence of Atari in the USA
the brightness has returned to the picture and made it better than ever.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL¿
======================
- Sunnyvale, CA **** ATARI WISHES SUCCESS FOR ALL SHOWS ****
-------------
After the dust had settled in Anaheim, Atari execs expressed the
wishes that all the Atari oriented shows nationwide should be a resounding
success. Also made clear was Atari's intentions to support these shows
either by their presence or by supplying the necessary promotional
materials to assist in making the shows a success.
- London, UK **** KEMPSTON RELEASES HAND HELD SCANNER ****
----------
Complete with easy to use GEM based software, DAATAscan allows
images to be scanned from newspapers, photographs, books etc. then saved to
the most popular and widely supported graphics formats. Conversion
routines are also supplied for Degas, Neochrome, TIFF and MSP formats.
Bundled with this hand held scanner is Hyperpaint, the official UK Atari ST
Graphics package.
-Greenfield, Bedford UK **** HISOFT ANNOUNCES SPECTRE 128! ****
---------------------
HiSoft confirmed the availability of Spectre 128, the MacIntosh
emulator. It is available with or without the MAC 128k ROMs which have
become increasingly more difficult to obtain (one reason for the delay in
the UK). Hisoft will also handle the GCR which, for the UK is a few
months away at this time. HiSoft plans to offer a "Spectre Superpack" of
all the drivers and accessories developed for use with Spectre/GCR.
- Pittsburg, CA ***** JRI LEADS THE WAY ONCE AGAIN! *****
-------------
Two new and highly praised products were added to the fine lineup
from John Russell Innovations this past month, the J.A.T.O. Board and
the ST 4096C Board for the Atari ST and MEGA Computers. The JATO board is
a unique 8/16 mhz 68000 processor board that speeds up data processing
within the 68000 CPU to 16mhz while maintaining the standard 8mhz timing
with the other computer processing chips. The ST 4096C board expands the
color pallette of the ST and MEGA computers from 512 to 4096 colors and is
supplied with sampled software.
- Jacksonville, FL **** STReport Expands Format - Adds Personnel ****
----------------
As of this past week, Ron Brunk and Lloyd Pulley have joined
STReport. Mr Brunk, a Chemical Engineer and avid ST enthusiast, will head
up our special features department both for our Online edition and our Hard
Copy Edition. Additionally, Rocky Sgro will assume the duties as our West
Coast Representative, Mr. Sgro, who provided our coverage of the Anaheim
Show, is well known in the ST community and we welcome his ability and
experience to the staff of STReport. Mr. Pulley, a businessman, famed for
authoring Megamatic and Megamatic Jr., will manage the new "STReport Mail
Call" planned to debut within two weeks. Send your mail to Lloyd - c/o
STReport, via E-Mail/FNET/FIDONET or USPS to ST.REPORT PO BOX 6672, JAX
FL. 32205.
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> A "QUOTABLE QUOTE"¿
==================
"TRUTH IS THE MOST VALUED COMMODITY KNOWN TO MAN"
and
"MORE MEN HAVE DIED IN THE PURSUIT OF TRUTH THAN GOLD"
"1989 - ATARI'S QUEST"
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ST-REPORT¿Issue #85 "Your Independent News Source" April 28, 1989
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ½ copyright 1989
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Views, Opinions and Articles Presented herein are not necessarily those
of ST Report¿ or CPU Report¿. Reprint permission granted, unless noted
otherwise. All reprints must include ST Report or CPU Report and the
author's name. All information presented herein is believed correct, ST
Report or CPU Report, it's editors and staff are not responsible for
any use or misuse of information contained in this publication.
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