Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
Silicon Times Report Issue 0090
*---== ST REPORT ONLINE MAGAZINE ==---*
"""""""""""""""""""""""""
"The Original Online ST Magazine"
-------------------------------
June 02, 1989 Vol III No.90
========================================================================
ST Report Online Magazine
-----------------------------
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: #90 STReport¿
-------------------
- The Editors' Podium
- CPU REPORT
- TETRIS & FALCON - Oscars?
- CHINA Joins Fight Against Pirates!
- TOS 1.4 a Touchy Subject!
- Graphic File Structure Analysis
- Codehead Sets the Record Straight!
- Where is - Portfolio?
- COMPUTER SHOPPER Dropping Atari?
- GEnie Summer Splash Contest
- MIGRAPH DROPS DONGLE (PSK)!
- ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL
========================================================================
AVAILABLE ON: COMP-U-SERVE ~ DELPHI ~ GENIE ~ THE SOURCE
========================================================================
> The Editor's Podium¿
Ah yes, the sweetest time of the year, the "June Brides", summer
vacation from school, the deserved vacation from work, the well planned
trip and last but certainly not least, all the wonderful things from Atari
are to begin arriving at the many new dealers they have energetically
added since the first of the year. Can you imagine the great new goodies
we will be seeing available on the dealer's shelves as promised by Sam
Tramiel during his most recent online conference?
Online, we saw where a number of individuals were asking about the
status of TOS 1.4, actually, the reason for the userbase asking so many
questions is because of the OBVIOUS DELAYS surrounding TOS 1.4. As most
will agree, it has been rather trying on the patience of the entire
userbase. As a result, one of Atari's reps became somewhat emotional and
began mentioning 'lawsuits'. Mercy, at a time when Atari is busy trying
to enhance it's image and position in the US Market You can't help but
wonder whatever became of the old adage of "discretion being the better
part of valor". The bottom line in the issue is the fact that the
userbase is getting quite antsy over the constant delays. A wise and
prudent individual should realize that; at times like this, accommodation
and open information is the name of the game. Any other behavior would
appear to look like a smokescreen attempting to 'coverup' something.
(like an internal 'arm-wrestle' contest?)
Recently, we have received some mail asking why we are so "UP" on
Atari, the answer is quite simple. There is NO room to say a word
until the self imposed (by Atari) release dates (June-July-August) have
arrived and either we see all the promised hardware and software or, we
find we have been had one more time. We still feel confident that Atari
is back, doing well and will follow the delivery schedule as faithfully
as possible.
Ralph......
"ATARI IS BACK!"
**************************************************************************
NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE
FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY
COMPUSERVE WILL PRESENT $15.00 WORTH OF COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE TIME
to the Readers
ST REPORT ONLINE 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 - R.Mariano
Be sure to include your full mailing address so your
Compuserve kit can be immediately mailed to you!
NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE
**************************************************************************
> CPU REPORT
==========
Issue # 23
by Michael Arthur
Remember When....
In 1985, Apple sold the rights to it's MacBasic language to
Microsoft, after they threatened not to renew their agreement with Apple
for licensing Applesoft Basic (a version of Basic bundled with the Apple
II series), and how, in return, Apple managed to get Microsoft to agree
not to introduce an IBM version of Microsoft Excel until the Macintosh
version had been out for at least two years?
CPU Systems Roundup VIII
=========================
SPARCStation 1: ATW Killer on the Horizon?
-------------------------------------------
Sun Microsystems is generally associated with powerful, yet
expensive workstations. However, Sun has recently introduced a series of
low-end systems which have much of the power of their high-end systems.
One, the Sun 3/80, is a $5000.00 Unix system using the 68030 which, while
being priced towards the middle/high end of the microcomputer market, is
simply the latest in a line of Sun-3 workstations. The other, called the
SPARCStation 1, is a $10,000.00 RISC-based system with great implications
for both the microcomputer and workstation markets. In order to fully
understand the factors that made Sun decide to alter its product line in
this manner, let us take a look at the history of the workstation itself.
Before the 80's, there were generally 2 types of non-supercomputer
systems: low-powered, yet inexpensive microcomputer, and powerful, yet
astronomically priced mainframes. This meant that universities and
businesses had to either use a slow, underpowered IBM PC, or a DEC VAX
costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. In order to provide a middle
ground, Apollo Computer introduced the first stand-alone workstation,
called the Domain DN100, in 1980 for around $60,000 dollars. While this
may be exorbitant now for a 68000 based system, it became VERY popular
during its time, filling the gap between micros and minicomputers. In
1982, Sun Microsystems entered the market with the Sun-1. Over the next
several years, Sun and Apollo became fierce competitors, helping to give
workstations capabilities rivalling minicomputers in the $20k - $60k
price range, which were MUCH cheaper than similarly configured minis,
serving as the "Power Without the Price" choices in this market. While
workstations had MUCH better price/performance than its minicomputer
counterparts, they still were too expensive for large businesses to buy
on a grand scale, or, for small companies to afford.
Workstations would have remained in this situation had it not been
for the microcomputer. Even though in the early '80s they were nowhere
near the level of Suns or Apollos, with the advent of the Apple Macintosh
and the 80386 chip, microcomputers began to gain near-workstation
abilities, with the added incentives of ease of use, affordability, and a
large base of software (with products like Lotus 1-2-3 or WordPerfect)
that rivaled workstation software costing thousands of dollars. As high
end microcomputers became as powerful as some workstations, the
workstation vendors began lowering their prices to keep its customers.
Sun, reacting more quickly to this trend than Apollo, quickly became a
leader in the workstation market. However, as high-powered 80386 systems
finally put the microcomputer in the same league with workstations (in
both price and performance), workstation vendors needed to make systems
which, while still being more powerful than microcomputers, were priced
at the $10,000 dollar price range, so as to remain competitive with
high-end micros. This resulted in the market for low-end, or Personal
Workstations....
During this time, RISC technology has appeared on the scene, as a
combination of workstation companies who wished to make low-end systems
with the speed associated with RISC technology, and chip makers wishing
to duplicate Intel and Motorola's success in the computer industry
brought the technology into the forefront of the industry. Sun, seeing
these trends, developed the SPARC, or Scalable Processor Architecture,
as its new RISC architecture.
When the SPARC was introduced, Sun wanted to make it available to
multiple vendors, so as to both to create competition that would further
the SPARC standard, and to lure chip makers into helping make the SPARC
a popular RISC architecture, which would be controlled by the guiding
hand of Sun Microsystems. Currently Texas Instruments, Fujitsu Ltd., LSI
Logic, Cypress, and Bipolar Integrated Technology have licensed SPARC
technology.
But since each of these chip makers will be producing different
(and perhaps slightly incompatible) implementations of SPARC, the chaos
of having so many different vendors in such a small market could destroy
the SPARC's chances in the RISC industry. Seeing this, the 5 SPARC
licensees have chosen to form a non-profit organization called SPARC
International, which would make sure that binary compatibility between
the various manufacturers' versions of SPARC is maintained. However, the
main goal of SPARC International is to make the SPARC chip independent of
any vendors who support it. This especially includes Sun Microsystems,
SPARC's creator....
The SPARCSTation, S-Bus, and Open Look Unix
The SPARCStation 1 is one of the first systems to use the SPARC
chip, utilizing a 20 MHZ version which runs at 10 - 12 MIPS. It also
uses the Weitek 1164/1165 Floating Point Math Chip to achieve 1.5 MFLOPS,
or Million Floating Point Operations per Second. It has 4 Megabytes of
RAM onboard, and comes with an 1152*900 resolution with either a
monochrome or a 256 color display. It also has 2 serial ports, 1 SCSI
port, and 1 Ethernet Port for interfacing with Local Area Networks.
The SPARCStation features a new expansion bus, called the S-Bus,
which is intended to replace the obsolete VME Bus as the standard bus
architecture for future Sun workstations. Like IBM's MicroChannel, the
S-Bus has multimaster capabilities, which lets expansion boards take over
tasks ordinarily handled by the CPU, such as graphics operations.
However, the S-Bus can also transfer data at burst DMA rates of 60
Megabytes Per second, or about two to four times faster than current bus
architectures, and has direct channels for the SCSI, serial, and Ethernet
ports, so as to route their I/O to the S-Bus. The S-Bus has a 64K cache
to buffer these I/O operations, which would otherwise slow down system
performance....
The SPARCStation uses SunOs 4.0, an integrated version of AT&T Unix
5.3 and Berkeley Unix 4.2/4.3, as its operating system, and has, among
its system utilities, Sun's Network File System, for LAN Networking, the
SunView Desktop, which both simplifies the installation of Unix in a
system and provides SPARCStation Users with a graphical user interface for
Unix similar to the Mac Finder or NeXT Workspace. For a windowing system,
SunOs 4.0 provides a version of NeWS, Sun's windowing system, which comes
with the X/Windows V11 standard, and implements Display Postscript, a
version of Adobe's Postscript designed as an imaging model for graphics
displays which is also part of the NeXT Computer.
The SPARCStation's system software also comes with OpenWindows, the
Developer Kit for AT&T's new Open Look standard. Open Look consists of a
set of graphical user interface specifications for Mac-like Unix
applications. When it appears in the upcoming AT&T Unix Version 5.4,
Open Look will become part of Unix itself. There is also a modest amount
of software for SunOS 4.0, from desktop publishing programs to an MS-DOS
Emulator program....
The SPARCStation will undoubtedly have an effect on both the market
for RISC-based computers, and the low-end workstation market. However,
since the Atari Transputer Workstation (before called the Abaq
Transputer) is aimed at both of these markets, and has capabilities
similar to the SPARCStation, let us compare these two workstations, in
order to see their differences....
Graphic comparison of the features of the ATW and the SPARCStation 1:
ATW/SPARCStation Features List:
(Comparison of each Systems' Features)
_________________________________________________________________________
System Features| Atari Transputer Workstation | Sun SPARCStation 1
and Components | Cost: $5000.00 | Base System: $10,000.00
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
Features of | 20 MHZ Inmos T800 RISC chip | 20 MHZ SPARC RISC Chip
Main Processor | running at 10 MIPS | running at 10 to 12 MIPS
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
Megabytes of | 4 Megabytes of 32-Bit RAM | 4 Megs of 32-Bit RAM
Standard RAM |1 Meg of Dual-Ported Video RAM|
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
Description of | Helios Operating System with | SunOS 4.0 (Sun Unix)with
Operating | X/Windows V11, the standard | NeWS (Sun's windowing
Features | Unix windowing environment | system) and X/WindowsV11
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
Type of Bus | Proprietary 32-Bit Bus, with | 32-Bit S-Bus
Architecture | four Expansion Slots | with 3 Expansion Slots
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
| # of Displayable Colors | # of Displayable Colors
|Mode 0: 1280*960 w/16 Colors | 1152*900 with 256 Gray
Graphic Display|Mode 1: 1024*768 w/256 Colors| Scales
Resolutions and|Mode 2: 640*480 w/256 Colors |
Capabilities |Mode 3: 512*480 w/16 Million | 1152*900 with 256Colors
| |
|The ATW has a 24-Bit per Pixel| The SPARCStation has a
| (16 Million Color) Palette | 24-Bit per Pixel Palette
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
Standard Amount| 40 Megabyte Internal | 100 Meg Hard Drive
of Mass Storage| Hard Drive | As an Additional Option
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
Built in I/O | Uses Mega ST Motherboard for |[1] SCSI, [2] SerialPorts
Ports | an Input/Output Controller | [1] Ethernet LAN Port
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
Sound/Audio | Uses ST Sound Chip for | Single Channel Audio
Capabilities | 3 Sound Channels (Voices) | Interface Chip
---------------|------------------------------|--------------------------
Networking | None, except the T800 is made| Sun Network File System,
Capabilities |to perform Parallel Processing|TCP/IP, Ethernet LAN Port
---------------'------------------------------'--------------------------
Based on both this graph, and last week's System Descriptions, I
have made a comparative analysis of both systems, and made these standings
which are classified according to the above topics:
Main Microprocessor:
-------------------
First Place - Inmos T800 (used in the ATW). Since the T800 and the SPARC
are both RISC chips running at the same MHZ rate, a choice cannot be made
just on a chip's speed or architecture, but on the aspects which set one
chip apart from the other. In this area, the T800 has the advantage of a
built in floating point math unit, which performs calculations at a rate
of 1.5 MFLOPS, or 10 times faster than Motorola's 68882 Math Chip, and
has a great edge in that it is designed to be a parallel processor. On
the other hand, the SPARC chip is slightly faster than the T800, and has
multivendor support from many chip makers. However, this doesn't seem
enough to counteract the T800's special capabilities....
Operating System Features:
-------------------------
First Place - SPARCStation 1. In order to have full support of both the
T800's parallel processing features, and to provide powerful multitasking
multiuser operations, the ATW had to forsake Unix compatibility, and use
the custom-made Helios Operating System. While the SPARC is also a RISC
chip, it is not a parallel processor, meaning that Unix could be ported
without fear of wasting any of the SPARC's capabilities. And while
Helios does its function well, its lack of an adequate software base is
ultimately insurmountable....
ATW Comparison:
--------------
The Helios operating system was made to optimize the operations of a
parallel processing chip such as the T800, as well as letting it be as
Unix-compatible (through emulating Unix Version 7 calls) as possible.
Even though Helios has the potential of becoming the standard operating
system for parallel processing microprocessors, the fact is that it is a
new operating system, with only a small software base. It may have great
potential as a future operating system, but the Unix software base gives
the SPARCStation a great advantage.
SPARCStation Comparison:
-----------------------
The SPARCStation comes with SunOs Version 4.0, which is based on Berkeley
Unix (or BSD Unix) Version 4.2/4.3. It also includes NeWS, Sun's version
of the graphical user interface, along with X/Windows V11, the current
standard for Unix windowing systems, and Display Postscript, which holds
great potential for becoming a future image display standard....
Since Berkeley Unix has become a de facto Unix standard, and the ATW only
includes X/Windows with Helios, the SPARCStation outperforms it in both
software compatibility and windowing capabilities. However, the
SPARCStation also comes with OpenWindows, the Developer Kit for AT&T's
new Open Look standard. Although Atari has said that it may license Open
Look from AT&T, for use in both the ATW and the 68030 TTx, the
SPARCStation clearly has a dominant advantage over the ATW in this area....
Expandibility:
-------------
First Place - Since both the ATW and SPARCStation use new expansion bus
architectures, for which there are few expansion cards available, the
features of each expansion bus becomes the main issue, instead of merely
compatibility. Even though the ATW's bus is decent for a standard
expansion bus, the SPARCStation's S-Bus has some VERY interesting
abilities going for it, which may help it (if not the SPARCStation) become
an industry standard....
ATW Comparison:
--------------
The ATW uses a new, proprietary expansion bus with address, data,
interrupt and handshaking lines, along with transputer link lines, which
will have two connectors: one for your typical bus and the other for
transputer links. However, while this is exemplary for a standard
expansion bus, the S-Bus's advanced features cause it to outperform the
ATW's bus. But then, since the S-Bus has some features which are
unmatched by any other current expansion bus architecture....
SPARCStation Comparison:
-----------------------
The SPARCStation features Sun's new S-Bus, which is twice as fast as
any other current expansion bus architecture, and features the latest in
bus technology, including multimaster capabilities. The distinguishing
features of the S-Bus, though, are its I/O Cache and DMA capabilities,
which speed up system performance by handling many of the I/O operations
that the CPU would ordinarily have to perform, and its built-in Ethernet,
serial, and SCSI channels, which standardize the peripheral ports used in
a system. As no other expansion bus architecture can feature so much, the
SPARCStation has a GREAT advantage in the S-Bus...
Graphics Displays:
-----------------
First Place - Atari Transputer Workstation. While the SPARCStation's one
resolution is very good, it is only slightly better than the ATW's Mode 1
display, and since the ATW's other display modes are very powerful in
themselves, the ATW outperforms the SPARCStation in this area. However,
if one were to consider a system's graphical user interface in this
category, then the SPARCSTation would be a much closer contender....
I/O Ports/Networking:
-------------------
First Place - SPARCStation 1. Even though the ATW has a greater number
of peripheral ports than the SPARCStation, both systems have a similar set
of the necessary I/O ports, such as SCSI/DMA ports, serial ports, etc.
Also, since the SPARCStation also provides an Ethernet port for advanced
networking capabilities, as well as supporting Sun's Network File System
for compatibility with current LAN networks, that the SPARCStation has a
decent advantage over the ATW, which only supports network links for the
Inmos T800's parallel processing features....
Market Outlook for the ATW and SPARCStation
-------------------------------------------
ATW Outlook:
-----------
The Atari Transputer Workstation is a VERY unique machine, with excellent
potential. Featuring the state of the art in current workstation
capabilities, and Helios, a new Unix-like operating system, the ATW has
the makings to become a player in the workstation market. However, since
many major computer makers are introducing systems that, like the
SPARCStation and the NeXT computer, will be aimed at the Personal
Workstation market, it seems that the resulting competition will eliminate
the ATW's current chances in the business market. It is interesting to
note that Atari is not planning to market the ATW in this area, saying it
is not a mainstream computer system, and doesn't have features lending
itself to the general workstation market....
The ATW is most likely to establish a niche in Research Labs and
Universities, who need the ATW's parallel processing capabilities as well
as its workstation capabilities. Also, the ATW could become popular in
the image processing market, as well as a graphics workstation, as its
speed and graphics capabilities are almost custom-suited for this segment
of the industry. However, it is in Helios, which is especially optimized
to handle parallel processing operations efficiently, that the ATW has the
greatest potential....
While the computer industry is starting to realize the benefits that RISC
technology may bring, parallel processing has received relatively little
attention, due to a belief that it is a "future" technology, not to be
implemented until well into the 1990's. Because of this, the Transputer
is currently the only major parallel processing chip on the market.
Given that the ATW is also priced less than some high end microcomputers,
all this sets up an EXTREMELY good opportunity for the ATW, since we can
assume that in a few years, after the market for RISC chips has
stabilized, the computer industry will shift its attention to parallel
processing technology. When this occurs, if Atari has sufficiently
supported the ATW, concentrating on slow, but steady growth for it, then
the ATW (and the Helios operating system) should have a small, but
significant user base with a solid amount of good software, having had a
VERY long time to establish the only strong, feasible standard for a true
parallel processing system. Meaning that both the ATW and Helios would
become dominant standards (if not a true monopoly) in the computer
industry....
SPARCStation Outlook:
--------------------
Sun has designed the SPARCStation for many new and emerging markets.
One, the low-end Workstation market, is quickly becoming a billion-dollar
industry, as the differences between high-end microcomputers and low-end
workstations begin to fade away. As Unix will become an important part
of this market, and as the demand for speed causes more demand for
RISC-based systems, the SPARCStation has the potential to become a
dominant standard in this area, if the industry bias toward the 80386 and
68030 chips (as well as the amount of Unix software available for them)
can be weakened sufficiently....
The other arena, RISC-based computers, won't be so simple for the
SPARCStation to become dominant in. Since there are several different
types of RISC chips currently out on the market, it seems that this
market will be VERY much fragmented, due to the number of RISC-based
workstations that are being developed by companies like Motorola and
Intel, which will create a mix of fierce competition and general chaos
that may seriously damage such a small market. However, since the
SPARCStation has a jump on the companies developing RISC-based Unix
workstations....
But ponder, if you will, this question:
1) With the advent of low-end Unix Workstations like the SPARCStation
and Atari 68030 TTx, will Unix become an important factor in the
microcomputer industry?
-----=======***======-----
CPU REPORT CONFIDENTIAL
=======================
Lakewood, CO MacGuide Magazine has recently introduced MacGuide USA,
------------ a CD-ROM disk runnable on an AppleCD SC which has 450
Megs of Public Domain/Shareware programs, a HyperCard
stack containing full reviews of over 1000 Macintosh
products, and complete product listings of another 4000,
and a list of Macintosh User Groups and BBS's.
Cost: $100.00, you can also have either a 2 Year
subscription to MacGuide USA for $150.00, or a 4 Year
subscription for $250.00....
Austin, TX Texas Instruments and Hitachi Corp. are working in a
---------- joint effort to develop a line of 4 Megabit DRAM chips,
in which each company will have access to the other's
research. While work on this is continuing, given that
IBM, NEC, and several other companies are also sampling
4 Meg DRAM chips, and that Toshiba has already shown a
prototype of a 16 Megabit DRAM chip....
Wilmington, NC Even though the Mac SE/30's 32-bit '030' Direct Slot
-------------- expansion bus is faster and more versatile than either
the Mac SE's expansion bus or the Mac II's NuBus, one
problem with the 030 Direct Slot was since it had a
120-pin EuroDin socket, while the Mac SE and Mac II had
96-pin sockets, no expansion boards made for the Mac SE
or Mac II would work with the Mac SE/30. In order to
solve this problem, Dove Computer has recently
introduced the MaraThon 120/96 Bus Adapter Card, which
allows expansion cards made for the Mac SE to work with
the Mac SE/30. Cost: $200.00
Scotts Valley, CA Borland Inc. has stated that it has no plans to market
----------------- a version of their Turbo C Compiler for the Atari ST in
the US. Even though Turbo C for the Atari ST has
become a bestseller in Europe, Mr. Heimsoeth (the
developer of Turbo C for the Atari ST) also says that
they have no plans to make an English manual for the
European version, so as to sell Turbo C for the Atari
ST in either England, Canada, or the US. In case you
may want to express your support for a possible US
version of Turbo C for the Atari ST, Borland's phone
number is 1-408-439-1060.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
> TETRIS AWARDS STR FOCUS¿
=======================
A WINNING COMBINATION
=====================
Spectrum Holobyte's TETRIS¿, the first computer game from the Soviet
Union, was the top winning entertainment at the software industry's
version of Oscar night, taking four of the coveted awards:
Best Entertainment Program, Best Action/Strategy Program,
Best Original Game Achievement,
and ...the "Critics Choice" award for the Best Consumer Software.
The Software Publisher's Association (SPA)¿ which calls it's
annual honors the Excellence in Software Awards, announced the winners
Tuesday night in a ceremony at the historic Hotel Del Coronado in San
Diego. TV Actor and computer enthusiast Harry Anderson presided over
the black-tie affair attended by the software industry's top leaders and
entertained them with his humor and magic.
Thirty five Awards of Excellence covering all areas of software were
presented this year as result of the votes cast by over 400 members of
the SPA. Members of the general and trade press were included in the
awards process this year for the first time with the three 1988 Critics
Choice Awards. They singled out a top product in the Consumer, Business
and Education categories.
The four awards for Tetris were accepted for Spectrum Holobyte by Gilman
Louie, CEO and Phil Adam, President. Mr. Louie thanked all those in his
company who worked on the development and marketing of the game and,
alluding to the addictivness of TETRIS, thanked the SPA members for all
the time they've spent playing the game.
TETRIS was created by two Soviet computer Programmers. It was enhanced
by Spectrum Holobyte with many play features and beautiful background
graphics depicting lovely Soviet geographical scenery. Another enhancement
in many computer formats is an original musical score based on Russian
folk tunes. Versions of TETRIS are available for almost every personal
computer.
A game of skill, requiring fast thinking and quick reflexes, TETRIS
features moving shapes to be rotated positioned into solid rows. Points
are based on the player's maneuvering speed and agility. The game has
been referred to as "a puzzle in motion" and "the Rubik's Cube of
software." TETRIS quickly won critical acclaim from reviewers in the
media who used adjectives such as "compelling", "irresistible" and
"devastatingly addictive."
This is the second year in a row Spectrum Holobyte has been a multi-
award winner. Last year the company won three awards for FALCON¿, it's
F-16 Fighter Simulation. Spectrum Holobyte, a division of Sphere, Inc.
is a leading publisher of entertainment software. The company
specializes in developing and marketing simulations for all types of
personal computers.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
> INTERNATIONAL HOTLINE¿
=====================
Agreement Reached..
CHINA TO PROTECT U.S. SOFTWARE FROM PIRACY
==========================================
WASHINGTON, D.C.
----------------
China is moving to solve a major trade dispute with the United
States by agreeing to provide legal protection from piracy of imported
computer programs, or software, U.S. industry and government officials
said Tuesday.
A Chinese delegation last week signed a bilateral agreement with
U.S. Trade Representative Carla A. Hills to cover computer programs
by law, and indicated that by the end of this year the Beijing
government would submit a copyright law for legislative approval, the
U.S. Computer and Business Equipment Manufacturers Association announced.
In February, A CBEMA statement asserted that "piracy of computer programs
is rampant" in China.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> PIC File FormatSTR Feature¿
--------------------------
INSIDE A PIC FILE
=================
by Ron Brunk
One of the most confusing, and frustrating, aspects of computer
technology (especially to new users) is the wide variety of file formats
used. Although some programs use a standard format (i.e. ascii or gif),
many programs create and use their own specific format. Files in any
other format must be "imported" to be used. This is especially true for
graphics. Most scanned images, for example, are saved as IMG (image)
files, which are then imported to desktop publishing programs. But there
is a vast library of graphics already available in various other formats.
For the Atari ST, this library of graphics consists mainly of pictures
stored in neo, degas, tiny, and spectrum formats. With the advent of
serious desktop publishing on the ST, it would be nice to have this
library conveniently at our disposal.
The particular format each these picture files are stored can be
identified by the extension at the end of the filename. In some cases,
the last character of the extension is a number which identifies the
resolution of the picture. For example, all Degas and some Tiny pictures
end with:
1=Low rez, 2=Medium rez, or 3=High rez.
The most common picture formats and their file extensions are:
--------------------------------------------------------------
.CL# NVision .NEO Neochrome
.COL COLR .PAL Pallette
.DOO Dr. Doodle .PC# Degas compressed
.GEM Gem/Img .PI# Degas
.GIF Graph interchange format .PIC PC Paint, others
.GR# 8-bit screen dump .PG# NVision
.HAM Amiga .RLE Run length encoded
.IFF Interch File format .SC# NVision
.KOA Koala/Micro-ilustrator .SPC Spectrum compressed
.MAC MacPaint .SPU Spectrum uncompressed
.MAS Mac startup screen .TNY Tiny
.MPT Micro-painter .TN# Tiny
There are many public domain and shareware programs available that
will display pictures of one or more formats. Some are simple display
programs and show a single type of picture one at a time. Some are more
complex and offer a wide range of features. Many can display slideshows
of all the pictures of a single format that reside in the folder that
holds the program. Others can show more than one format, and/or can
range to all of the available drives/partitions in search of the chosen
format(s). Some utilize simple ascii "script" files which program the
order that pictures are displayed in and how long they are shown. These
scripts can be for just showing pictures, or can enable animation.
The following matrix includes most of the programs I've come across
that display pictures.
Along each row is a series of single character keys representing
how the program will the display the format, what type of monitor(s) it
supports, how to activate basic commands, and what features are included.
Some formats do not have a display program matched to them but are
included to maintain compatibility with a similar matrix of conversion
programs that is being developed.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
PICTURE SHOW PROGRAMS vs FORMAT EXTENSIONS, MONITORS, COMMANDS, FEATURES
|M|E|B|P|R|F
|C|C|D|G|G|G|H|I|I|K|M|M|M|N|P|P|P|P|P|R|S|S|S|T|T|O|X|E|A|E|E
|L|O|O|E|I|R|A|F|M|O|A|A|P|E|A|C|I|I|G|L|C|P|P|N|N|N|I|G|U|S|A
|#|L|O|M|F|#|M|F|G|A|C|S|T|O|L|#|#|C|#|E|#|C|U|Y|#|I|T|N|S|M|T
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
artgalry| | | | | | | | | | | | | |I| |I|I| | | | | | |I|I|B| |L| | | A
ashutter| | | | | | | | | | | | | |F| | |F| | | | | | | | |C|R| | | |
blast | | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| | |P| | | | | | | | |B|C| |S|S| F
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
clipview| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |I| | | | | | | | |M| |R| | | 3
dslide2 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| |P|P| | | | |P|P|P|P|B|R|M|L|L| NAF
flipperl| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |I| | | | | | | | |C| | | | | 1
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
flipperm| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |I| | | | | | | | |C| | | | | 2
gifgem | | | | |I| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |B|R|L| | | F
gifshow | | | | |F| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |B|C| |S|*| F
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
hdview3 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |I| | | | | | | | |B|U|H| | | 1,3
iffcnv | | | | | | |I|I| | | | | |I| | |I| | | | |I|I|I|I|C| | | | |
imgshow | | | | | | | | |F| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |B|L| |S|*| N
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
kview | | | | | | | | | | | | | |I| |I|I|I| | |I| | |I| |M| |L| | |
neoshow | | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| | | | | | | | | | | |C|S| | | | A
omvslide| | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| |P|P| | | | | | | | |C|U|H|S|S|1,2F
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
picswch7|I| | | | |I| |I| |I|I|I|I|I| |I|I| |I|I|I| | |I| |B|R|R| | |
picsx | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |?| | | | | | | |C| | | | |
showpic2| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |F|F| | | | | | | | |B|U|H|S|S| F
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
slideneo| | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| | | | | | | | | | | |C|S| | | | A
slideset| | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| | | | | | | | | | | |C|S|?|s|q|
specshow| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |I| | | |C|S|S| | |
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
spslide8| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| | | |C|U|H|S| | NF
spslidex| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |P|P| | |C|U|H|S| | N
--------|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-----
spx | | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| | |P| | | | |P|P| | |C|U|H|S|?|12FN
tinyview| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |P| |C|C| |S|*|
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
I- Individual Pics MONI- Monitors supported
F- All on File M- Mono
P- All on Partition C- Color
B- Both
FEAT-Features EXIT- Quits program
F- F1-F10 controls speed BEGN- Begins or restarts
A- Animates NEOs (color rotation) PAUS- Pauses slideshow
N- Names can be displayed RESM- Resumes slideshow
1- Low rez U-Undo
2- Med rez S- Spacebar
3- High rez L- Left click
M- Clear Home
R- Right click
C- Carriage Return
H- Help
q- Control-Q
s- Control-S
*- any key
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Most of the above programs can be found as arced files on the major
services and local bbs's. Many of these arc files contain text files
which describes the program and how to use it. Distribution of the
programs is usually encouraged as long as it is unmodified and the text
files left intact. Unfortunately, it is sometimes hard to tell if you
have the latest version because there is no version number, or someone
has changed the name of the program before re-arcing it and sending it up
to another board. For these reasons, along with the short notes on of
each of the programs below, I am including the file size and (if I have
it) the version number, date, and programmers name to assist in
identification.
-------------------------------------
Artgalry 4789 bytes Charles F. Johnson
CodeHead Software
Supports color rotation, including Degas Elite's multichannel
rotation. Runs as a program or accessory (like multidesk). Bug fixed to
work with mega roms. Must choose type desired which locks in extension,
but can get around this by selecting * (this also allows the display of
.TN#). New version (to be included with CodeHead Utilities Disk) will
support SPC and slideshow capability, and import directly to Degas Elite.
PI3 & PC3 only shown when in hi-rez.
-------------------------------------
Ashutter 5200 bytes Tom Punt
Slideshow pics fade in and out. Does not support color rotation.
Current folder pics only.
-------------------------------------
Blast v1.3 17522 bytes Willie Brown
Fastest slideshow I've seen. Pics literally flash on the screen with
a fast harddrive. PI# shown in hi-rez only.
-------------------------------------
Clipview 1988 5062 bytes David Lindsley
Magnetic Images
Only hi-rez supported (PI3).
-------------------------------------
Dslide2 v2.0 20Mar88 17910 bytes John Brochu
Advanced Software
Best all round slideshow, supports most formats. All pics (except spc)
viewable on any monitor. Scriptable with wildcards (advanced script help
on text file). Can install as TTP. Supports color. Advance/reverse
available. Max 256 slides (100 on script). Supports color rotation.
-------------------------------------
Flipperl 1988 66163 bytes Rupert Spencer
Create low rez slideshow or animation by renaming up to 25 PI1 pics
and specifying order and display time with a mouse driven menu.
-------------------------------------
Flipperm 1988 60417 bytes Rupert Spencer
Same as Flipperl, only for medium rez (PI2).
-------------------------------------
Gifgem 9984 bytes
Slow screen draws.
-------------------------------------
Gifshow 17Aug87 29022 bytes Zaphodyne
Slideshow but slow. Can install as application.
-------------------------------------
Hdview3 5930 bytes Walt Sullivan
Shows PI1 while in low and med rez, PI3 in high rez. Primarily for
loading extremely large Delta (.DLT) animation files too large to run
from ram by running them (slowly) from disk.
-------------------------------------
Iffcnv v3.1 33850 bytes Bruce Holloway
Similar to Picswch7 in that it displays and converts from and to many
formats. Can display color pics in mono/color and play with dithering.
New version is to support GIF, GEM/IMG, and SPC/SPU.
-------------------------------------
Imgshow v1.1 31Jan89 29741 bytes Migraph
Scriptable, shows file info. Option for black or white background.
Speed adjustable. Can install as application.
-------------------------------------
Kview Mar87 7341 bytes J. Seibert
Hirez only, mouse scrolls picture, reverse video with right mouse click
Prints.
-------------------------------------
Neoshow 5857 bytes
Slideshow of NEO only. Supports color rotation.
-------------------------------------
Omvslide 1989 15935 bytes Robert Jung
Handy store demo feature locks up keyboard forcing a reboot to clear.
Searches two directories down. Color rotation not supported. Function
keys control speed.
-------------------------------------
Picswch7 v0.7 19Apr87 40638 bytes John Brochu
Best all round individual viewer, supports most formats. S-saves to
another format, P or D-prints (can use degas printer drivers). Support
color or mono for all formats.
-------------------------------------
Picsx 8315 bytes
Some PIC files are actually many degas pics crammed into on file.
These types of slideshow files can be distinguished from normal pic files
(i.e. PCPaint) by their extremely large size.
-------------------------------------
Showpic2 1986 14360 bytes Tom Hudson
Degas slideshow. Current folder only. Function keys control speed. Can
show filenames.
-------------------------------------
Slideneo 1091 bytes
NEO slideshow. Supports color rotation/animation (i.e. waterfall).
-------------------------------------
Slideset 1280 bytes
Same features as Slideneo.
-------------------------------------
Specshow 29Dec88 15901 bytes John Hickey
Displays individual spectrum pics.
-------------------------------------
Spslide8 v.0.8 7497 bytes Boris Tsikanovsky
Trio Engineering
Can show picture names, but if path too long becomes illegible. Shows
all pictures one level down from current path and/or one level from roots
of partitions selected. Manual advance with carriage return. Stereo or
animation with script files. Escape followed by three keys locks
keyboard until same three keys pressed.
-------------------------------------
Spslidex 8090 bytes Spslide8 modified by
Keith Enge
Spslide8 modified to support SPU. Smooshes/unsmooshes ( SPC<->SPU )
-------------------------------------
Spx v1.05 4Dec87 10800 bytes Darek Mihocka
Carriage return advances to next. Converts. Can select formats. If
path other than current selected, must select one pic which locks in
format. Color rotation not supported. Can add text windows and save to
spectrum format.
-------------------------------------
Tnyview3 2048 bytes David Mumper
Tiny slideshow.
-------------------------------------
I started collecting all this info a year ago and whipped up a
similar matrix because I could never remember which programs showed which
pics, and often ended up banging all the keys on the board when I wanted
to try and stop it. I began updating it recently when I started to get
involved in desktop publishing because, unfortunately, most of these
formats are not supported by desktop publishers. Next will be a similar
article and matrix covering picture conversion programs that can be used
to get that favorite picture into your dtp or into a format that other
computers can use.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> CODEHEAD STR FOCUS¿
==================
REBUTTAL BY CODEHEAD SOFTWARE IN DEFENSE OF MULTIDESK
=====================================================
Recently, the E. Arthur Brown catalog printed headlines in no less
than three places proclaiming that "Flexcessory Beats Up MultiDesk"
including a "story" which displays a misleading comparison chart. We
were not amused by their claims and would like to take this opportunity
to defend MultiDesk against the unfair and biased half-truths presented.
Yes, "Flexcessory Beats Up On MultiDesk", but MultiDesk ducks and
Flexcessory misses. In fact, Flexcessory misses completely because it's
not even in the same ring. Flexcessory is an accessory that loads
programs and allows them to be accessed in a manner similar to
accessories. Unfortunately there are very few programs that will work
with Flex other than the ones provided with the package. MultiDesk is
an accessory that loads and runs all normal ST desk accessories,
allowing them to be accessed normally, as accessories.
In the interest of accuracy, the chart released by E. Arthur Brown
comparing Flexcessory to MultiDesk has been corrected. The entries
within the [square brackets] have been added by CodeHead.
FEATURE MULTIDESK FLEXCESSORY
------- --------- -----------
Loads/Dumps PRG, TTP, NO YES [SOME]
& TOS Utilities As If They
Were Accessories
Loads & Dumps Utilities NO [YES] YES
w/o Rebooting
Handles up to 15 Utilities NO [no limit] YES
Per Accessory Slot
"Unload All" or Individual NO [All, YES] YES
Utilities from Desktop or Application
Corner Clock Date NO [Clock, YES] YES
Adjustable RAM Disk NO [YES] YES
Adjustable Printer Spooler NO [YES] YES
Desktop Calculator NO [YES] YES
Control Panel NO [YES] YES
NotePad NO YES
PC/ST Compatible Disk Formatter NO YES
Printer Configuration Utility NO [YES] YES
RS232 Configuration Utility NO [YES] YES
Screen Grabber/Saver NO YES
Floppy Drive Stepper Speed Setter NO YES
Advanced Show File Capability NO YES
Other Utilities Included NO [YES] YES
Compatible w/Shareware/PD/ NO [YES] YES
Such as Twister or Fixdisk
10 Day Money Back Satisfaction NO YES
Guarantee
Price $29.95 $29.95
As you can see, only 6 out of 19 items are correct, and 5 of them are
questionable because they refer to utilities included with Flexcessory
and not to Flexcessory itself. Apparently E. Arthur Brown is unaware
that MultiDesk itself includes 8 accessories. It could also be argued
that since MultiDesk can load and use public domain accessories which
provide these functions, that MultiDesk should have a YES for those 5
items also.
To show the absurdity of this type of comparison, we've compiled a
checklist of our own.
FEATURE MULTIDESK FLEXCESSORY
Approximate number of known 150+ 20-25?
usable utilities/ACCs
Memory usage (with 0K buffer) 38K 51K
Utilities/ACCs retain settings YES NO
and data files upon returning
Loads/Saves setups of util/ACC YES NO
Runs as program or ACC YES NO
Will load its counterpart YES NO
(MultiDesk can load Flex)
Will load itself YES NO
Includes Melt accessory YES NO
Includes memory examiner YES NO
Compatible with Thunder! YES NO
Sorts names alphabetically YES NO
Change buffer size at any time YES NO
Persist option YES NO
Event timer control YES NO
Shrink-to-fit option YES NO
Show names while loading YES NO
Return option YES NO
Mouse snap option YES NO
Query option YES NO
Configurable menu title YES NO
At this point we could start listing all of the 150+ accessories that
work with MultiDesk and not with Flexcessory, but I think our point has
been made.
Yes, we must concede that Flexcessory indeed has a 10-day money back
guarantee. You are free to take advantage of this offer and try
Flexcessory for yourself.
This document was prepared in defense of the attacks made on MultiDesk
by E. Arthur Brown and is by no means typical of the way that CodeHead
Software prefers to promote its products.
John Eidsvoog
CodeHead Software
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Atari Stock ~ STReport¿
======================
THE TICKERTAPE
==============
by Glenn Gorman
Atari Stock dropped 1/8 of a point on Monday, 1/4 on Tuesday,
up 1/8 on Wednesday. Finishing up the week at 6 1/8 points.
Down 1/4 of a point from last Friday.
Glenn Gorman
+---------------------+
| ATARI STOCK WATCH |
| Week 05-22 to 05-26 |
+=======+==========+===========+=============+============+=============+
| | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
+-------+----------+-----------+-------------+------------+-------------+
| Sales | 290 | 679 | 818 | 236 | 121 |
+-------+----------+-----------+-------------+------------+-------------+
| Last | 6 1/4 | 6 | 6 1/8 | 6 1/8 | 6 1/8 |
+-------+----------+-----------+-------------+------------+-------------+
| Chg. | -1/8 | -1/4 | +1/8 | ---- | ---- |
+=======+==========+===========+=============+============+=============+
| From > THE CAVE ST BBS <> 609-882-9195 <> 300//9600 HST <> F-NET #351 |
+=======================================================================+
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
> TOS 1.4 STR Spotlight¿
=====================
WHAT'S THE DEAL???
==================
by R.F. Mariano
The COUNTDOWN has been extended so many times the clock is growing
hair and the calendar paper is now yellow with age! One can't help but
wonder what the holdup may be....certainly it (TOS 1.4) will operate very
nicely with existing software, Atari told us it would and that having it
do so is one one of the top priorities. For this they should be commended
..of this there is no doubt but, going on two years late? Nah... NO
excuse can cover this. For example, we were told during the Spring
Comdex Show (1988) at Atlanta, that the NEW TOS 1.4 would be available to
the userbase by fall of that year, it came and went with nothing. Now we
are looking at the coming of another fall Comdex and of course, by all
indications and assurances we should have TOS 1.4 before this Comdex.
Wonder what the odds are being posted at in Las Vegas?
Not talking about items that are truly vapor is one thing, but to
clam up about an item that is "so close to release" is a bit unreasonable.
Many a good principle was mangled, mutilated and destroyed by it's overly
zealous application. Moderation is the name of the game. Let us know
something, tell us to go fly a kite ..something but for goodness sake,
don't leave the userbase wallowing in the ole' mushroom patch!!
We have it on good information that the TOS 1.4 code is at the chip
manufacturer, but we have heard all that before, we had three different
people call Atari Customer Service to ask "when will TOS 1.4 become
available?", we received three different answers ranging from "about a
month", "about 6 weeks", and finally, "about 6 months"! Certainly,
STReport does not want to earn the reputation of "going to bed with Atari"
nor, do we wish to be thought of as an antagonist of Atari. In fact, we
even offer suggestions from time to time.
ie; Release TOS 1.4 to the userbase, forget holding it up for last
minute changes to accommodate new hardware/software etc.. If a change is
absolutely necessary, ship the new product with a NEW ROM CHIP SET! And
offer the new chipset to the userbase at that time. Of course, the cost
of such a 'service' should be built into the price of both the products
and the chipsets. These CONSTANT delays are doing nothing but frustrate
the userbase and wear down the patience of many loyal users.
We will however, continue to call the shots just as they are. And
right now, the delays are approaching the ridiculous level and could be
alleviated by nothing more than honest, straight forward communication
with the userbase. Tell us the straight story, stop with the "Stalag 17"
Sgt. Schultz answers; "We know nothing" etc..
Atari has come a long, long, way this year and now, with the raised
awareness of the general public, about "ATARI COMPUTERS", Atari must
seize the opportunity to lengthen the time span of the awareness of the
general public and make the product associated with the name be the
computer and not the 2600 etc. It is slowly happening, Atari must
accelerate this process. Now, before the fall season and the advent of
the holidays. Atari has no choice but to make an all out effort
beginning NOW if they wish to enjoy the fruits of Christmas 1989 sales
and possibly make 1990 the biggest and best year ever for Atari Computer
sales.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL¿
======================
- Sunnyvale, CA. ***** DEVELOPER TOS 1.4 NOW SHIPPING *****
-------------
Atari has begun shipping the Chipset Developer Version of TOS 1.4
and.. according to reliable sources the actual chipsets are at the chip
manufacturer's at this time. Just when the consumer version of TOS 1.4
will ship is anybody's guess, but serious money is on Aug. '89. Speaking
of money, the developer version is being shipped in E-Proms at a prepaid
cost of $60.00 per set (special Developer price) in a six chip version.
(6x256k)
- Cupertino, CA. ***** Apple Leads the Way in Developer Support *****
---------------
Apple Computers' Developer Support Division employs 240 people whose
sole duties are to advise, assist, and make sure ALL developers receive
the very latest information about new software or hardware innovations.
Those of you who are using Spectre or other Apple emulators have, no doubt,
enjoyed both the quality and abundance of software for the MAC. Of course,
Apple does NOT provide photocopied manuals etc.. The Developer materials
are all first rate and to be sure, it will only remain top notch or get
better.
- Chicago, IL. **** Portfolio Distribution Delayed ****
--------------
The hand held Atari computer, Portfolio, whose prototypes only
recently arrived, is rumored to be experiencing some type of delay due to
some minor design changes, no new ETA has been established. It was due
to make it's debut sometime in May 1989.
- New York City, N.Y. ***** WHERE IS LASERBRAIN?? *****
--------------------
Amid rumors of "on purpose shelving" ; "it's competiti
on for.." and
such. LaserBrain the "Epson Emulator" for the SLM 804 seems to be busy
growing a layer of obscurity as far as the US Market is concerned. Seems
it's been released as a PD ware in Europe and is slowly making it's way
into the states via the english speaking countries. Even with decent
translations of the documentation. Previous versions of Laserbrain were
rather troublesome, the newer version 1.3, is reported to be fairly
stable.
- Titusville, FL. **** COMPUTER SHOPPER DROPPING ATARI SUPPORT? ****
----------------
The 'new owners' of Computer Shopper, are considering dropping
support of the Atari line of Computers, this information was 'leaked' to
the public in hopes of developing enough of a reader reaction to give
Ziff-Davis an indication of the popularity of our favorite computer. In
our humble opinion, recent postings of extremely negative material
pertaining to the Atari Userbase has given rise to a very strong wave of
anti-Atari sentiment which is being capitalized upon by Atari's
detractors and competition. We find, once again we must strenuously
reiterate our request of Gilman Louie, CEO of Spectrum Holobyte, to kindly
post a positive letter in every location he posted his, "I hate Pirates",
mail over the course of the past three months. Why? Because he unfairly
hung a pointed attack upon the Atari ST userbase as a whole. And FAILED
to create a fair field of comparators across ALL the popular priced
computers. Thus, it becomes understandable when we now begin to hear
the stories of who is "leaving" the ST arena because of a sagging market,
internal unrest, highly organized pirates, or any number of other
convenient excuses made easy to use predominantly because of CEO Louie's
letter.
- Federal Way, WA. ***** MIGRAPH TO DROP DONGLE! *****
------------------
Migraph will issue a 15.00 credit to all those users who purchase
Touchup Version 1x - 1.5 for 35.00 (upgrade fee) and will issue a refund
check for 15.00 when they receive the PSK (Dongle) from you. This means
that from version 1.5 on there will be no hardware protection. This is
wonderful news we will now NOT see two or three feet of dongles hanging off
the back or our machines. Hat's off to Migraph! 1mb RAM needed
- Federal Way, WA. ****** EASY-DRAW VERSION 3.0 FOR 7/1/89 ******
-----------------
To obtain the new upgrade you must send your original disk containing
version 2.x or higher and $49.95 plus $5.00 shipping. The new Ver. 3.0 of
EasyDraw will feature B-splines, curves, to facilitate easier implementation
of complex illustrations and designs. This version will also allow the
display of a bit image on the work page and it will remain in a fixed state
and not redraw thus allowing the user to trace over a bit image and
reproduce it into an object oriented form. Look out Adobe here we come!
1 mb ram needed.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> GEnie CONTEST STR Online¿
==========================
GEnie SUMMER SPLASH CONTEST!
============================
The St Roundtable will be having a summer splash contest to kick the
summer off. A new contest EACH month will be introduced with great prizes.
We hope this makes your summer on GEnie much more enjoyable.
June brings us three very different contests. The first will be on
your writing skills. Be aware that this is on content and style. We need
an article on "How you get the most out of the GEnie ST Roundtable." The
best article will be selected and printed in GEnie Livewire and in the ST
Roundtable. Permission to reprint is granted by submitting an article.
Only paying users are qualified. No others will be reviewed. Paying
users are those that do not have any type of free flag or free account
on GEnie. By eliminating the free accounts, we feel that this will make
the cost of such the same for all users that enter. This will give a more
equal chance for all those that submit. The LiveWire Staff will decide
the winners from the top 20 finalists. The three finalists will pick
their prizes from the list below. First place winner will choose first.
Then the second place winner will choose and finally the third.
Submissions are to be sent to DARLAH
Please mark ALL submissions clearly as a contest entry.
Winners will be notified the 1st week of July.
The second contest will be on uploads to the library. As you know,
uploading on GEnie is free but you can reap some extra benefits by sharing
those quality files. First prize will go to the person that uploads the
most files in the categories below. There will be a second and third
prize for this division.
This is a list of the libraries that will be counted for this contest.
- Utilities
- Language/Programming
- Graphic Animation
- Games
- DeskTop Publishing (Fonts Only - Working completed ones)
- Hardware Projects
Be advised, that only paying accounts (NO FLAGS) may enter this contest.
- Duplications will NOT be counted.
- Files that do not function will not be counted.
- Demos will not be counted.
- The ST staff will judge this contest.
- Decisions are final.
- The winners will be notified the 1st week of July.
- Please upload your submissions to the ST libraries.
- Please mark these files with the keyword CONTEST
Non-GEnie users can send their entries to the PO box stated in the
3rd contest description. Please clearly mark what contest you are
entering. Your submissions WILL be posted on GEnie.
For the 3rd contest, there will be three winners. As the second
contest is, this contest will be on uploads to the same libraries
mentioned in contest two. The difference is this contest will be on
original work.
A)- It must be YOUR work.
B)- It must be CLEARLY marked in the description that it is your work.
This contest is open to non GEnie users as well.. We ask if you have
someone else upload your work, that you include a read me file stating
your name, address and telephone number where you can be reached.
Entries will be accepted via US Mail if you do not have access to GEnie.
The address to send your entry to is:
-------------------------------------
Darlah Pine
GEnie ST Roundtable
PO Box 811
Brookfield, Ct 06804
Submissions that are mailed will be posted on GEnie. Your name as author
will be stated clearly in the description. Winners will be notified the
1st week of July.
Prizes will be selected by the winners from the prizes stated in this
text file. First place winners will choose their selections first in the
order of the contests. Second place winners will choose next and third
place winners last. Prizes will be shipped by the companies offering these
prizes.
Our deepest thanks go to the fine companies involved for making this
contest a reality.
PRIZE LIST FOR THE (3) THREE JUNE CONTESTS
===================================================
5 hours of GEnie Online connect time
GFA 3.0 <--- From Antic
Cyberpaint <--- From Antic
HotWire <--- From CodeHead Software
MultiDesk <--- From CodeHead Software
G-Plus <--- From CodeHead Software
FleetStreet <--- From Michtron
Hi Soft Basic Pro <--- From Michtron
Calamus Font Editor <--- From ISD Marketing
Calamus <--- From ISD Marketing
Revolver <--- From Intersect
Interlink <--- From Intersect
Space Quest III <--- From Sierra Online
Thank you to all the companies involved. The support and information
on all the products offered in the contests can be found right here on
GEnie. They are the people that make this contest possible. The St Staff
wants to applaud these companies for the EXCELLENT online support they
offer to us all. We are proud to have them online on GEnie.
More prizes will be offered by our developers for the summer splash
contest on GEnie in the upcoming summer months.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
> A "QUOTABLE QUOTE"¿
==================
"Project Teams detest progress reporting because it vividly
portrays
their total lack of progress!"
AN AFTERTHOUGHT:
---------------
"Ridiculous portrayals and absurd representations in the name of humor
are nothing more than elemental manifestations of insane jealousy!"
Marvin Trottenberry, Pfft.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ST-REPORT Issue #90 "Your Independent News Source" June 02, 1989
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED copyright 1989
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Views, Opinions and Articles Presented herein are not necessarily those
of ST Report or CPU Report. Reprint permission is 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.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
