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Silicon Times Report Issue 1019
SILICON TIMES REPORT
====================
INTERNATIONAL ONLINE MAGAZINE
=============================
from
STR Electronic Publishing Inc.
May 06, 1994 No. 1019
======================================================================
Silicon Times Report
International Online Magazine
Post Office Box 6672
Jacksonville, Florida 32221-6155
R.F. Mariano
Publisher-Editor
-----------------------------------------
Voice: 1-904-783-3319 10am-4pm EST
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______________________________________________________________________
> 05/06/94 STR 1019 "The Original * Independent * Online Magazine!"
"""""""""""""""""
- CPU INDUSTRY REPORT - QMPROWin v 1.1 - MS releases Access 2
- USR Sysop Deal - Canon + NEW LCD - Broderbund & EA OFF
- PhotoStyler 2.0 - Hayes & FTC - Family KidDesk Review
- SB Awe 32 Ships! - NEW TI Notebooks - Toshiba Cuts $$ 20%
-* CATCHING HIGH-TECH PEDOPHILES *-
-* XEROX, NOVELL FORM ALLIANCE *-
-* COMPAQ JUMPS TO 1994 LEAD *-
======================================================================
STReport International Online Magazine
The Original * Independent * Online Magazine
-* FEATURING WEEKLY *-
"Accurate UP-TO-DATE News and Information"
Current Events, Original Articles, Tips, Rumors, and Information
Hardware - Software - Corporate - R & D - Imports
======================================================================
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participate in the ITC/PROWL/USENET/NEST/F-Net/Fido Mail Networks. You
may also call The Bounty BBS direct @ 1-904-786-4176. Enjoy the wonder
and excitement of exchanging all types of useful information relative to
c o m puters, worldwide, through the use of excellent International
Networking Systems. SysOps, worldwide, are welcome to join the STReport
International Conferences. ITC Node is 85:881/250, The Fido Node is
1:374/147.3, Crossnet Code is #34813, and the "Lead Node" is #620. All
computer platforms BBS systems are welcome and invited to participate.
======================================================================
CIS ~ AOL ~ DELPHI ~ BIX ~ PROWL ~ ITC ~ NEST ~ EURONET ~ CIX
USENET ~ USPOLNET ~ CLEVELAND FREE-NET ~ INTERNET ~ FNET ~ GENIE
======================================================================
COMPUSERVE WILL PRESENT $15.00 WORTH OF COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE TIME
to the Readers of;
STREPORT INTERNATIONAL ONLINE MAGAZINE
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
"The Original 16/32bit Online Magazine"
NEW USERS; SIGN UP TODAY!
CALL: 1-800-848-8199 .. Ask for operator 198
You will receive your complimentary time
and
be online in no time at all!
"Enjoy CompuServe's forums; where information is at its very best!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
> From the Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""
Joe is on his Honeymoon, Duckie and Bob Dean are on vacation. When
it rains it pours. While I'm at it... if you are interested or know of
someone who might be interested in being our MAC editor, please let me
know. Spring Comdex is showing real signs of life already and the intros
of new goodies is going to be very exciting. New software and software
upgrades are already beginning to flow.
The "End of an Era" has driven home the premise that things change
all the time and that for progress to come about... things must change.
Commodore, once the sweetheart of the electronic junkies, is no more. The
whole nine yards hit the fan. In looking back.. all one can say is it was
nice while it lasted. Who's next? Anybody's guess. I'll say this much
though, the "name of the game" is colored blue with a generous helping of
Microsoft's emblem in clear view. At least that's where the "everyday
Joe" is going to be if not already. Mac is slowly swinging toward the PC
route and Atari is, for all intents and purposes, out of the computer
business and back into the "game machine" business. The next five years
will say it all.
Next week (hopefully)... we'll begin our series on the online
services each service's pro's and con's. A hard look at their "front-end"
software and their approach to the marketplace. It should be interesting.
Most of our material came from users like you. After all, it is the users
who keep these services afloat, so why not have a vehicle with which to
provide suggestions and "critiques". It can only help. There is still
time to send in your ideas and impressions. All the services are being
looked at CIS, GEnie, Prodigy, AOL, E-World, Delphi and NVN. Let's hear
from you!
Ralph......
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STReport's Staff DEDICATED TO SERVING YOU!
""""""""""""""""
Publisher -Editor
""""""""""""""""""
Ralph F. Mariano
Lloyd E. Pulley, Editor, Current Affairs
Section Editors
"""""""""""""""
PC SECTION AMIGA SECTION MAC SECTION ATARI SECTION
---------- ------------- ----------- -------------
R.D. Stevens R. Niles R. Dean D. P. Jacobson
STReport Staff Editors:
"""""""""""""""""""""""
Dana P. Jacobson Michael Arthur John Deegan
Lucien Oppler Brad Martin Judith Hamner
John Szczepanik Dan Stidham Joseph Mirando
Doyle Helms Frank Sereno John Duckworth
Jeff Coe Steve Keipe Guillaume Brasseur
Melanie Bell Jay Levy John Donohue
Jeff Kovach Marty Mankins Carl Prehn
Paul Charchian
Contributing Correspondents:
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Tim Holt Norman Boucher Harry Steele
Clemens Chin Neil Bradley Eric Jerue
Ron Deal Robert Dean Ed Westhusing
Glenwood Drake Vernon W. Smith Bruno Puglia
Paul Haris Kevin Miller Craig Harris
Allen Chang Dominick Fontana
IMPORTANT NOTICE
""""""""""""""""
Please, submit letters to the editor, articles, reviews, etc...
via E-Mail to:
Compuserve................... 70007,4454
America Online..................STReport
Delphi......................... RMARIANO
BIX............................ RMARIANO
FIDONET..................... 1:347/147.3
FNET........................... NODE 350
ITC NET...................... 85:881/253
NEST........................ 90:21/350.0
GEnie......................... ST-REPORT
Internet.............RMARIANO@DELPHI.COM
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> CPU STATUS REPORT LATE BREAKING INDUSTRY-WIDE NEWS
"""""""""""""""""
IBM/POWER-PC/PC SECTION (I)
===========================
Computer Products Update - CPU Report
------------------------ ----------
Weekly Happenings in the Computer World
Issue #19
By: Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr.
******* General Computer News *******
** Atari and Sigma Join Forces on Jaguar **
Atari Corp., the manufacturer of the award-winning Jaguar video game
system - the world's first 64-bit interactive multimedia home entertain-
ment system, the only video game system manufactured in the U.S. - this
week announced an exclusive licensing agreement with Sigma Designs.
Sigma Designs - a leading manufacturer of high-performance multimedia
computer products and document imaging display solutions - will incorpo-
rate the Jaguar's 64-bit technology with Sigma's Reel-Magic (TM) full-
motion video capabilities in a PC card that will allow more than 10 mil-
lion users to play Jaguar software titles on their IBM-compatible per-
sonal computers. It is hoped to have these cards available by the end
of the year.
According to Sam Tramiel, president of Atari, "Atari will once again
jump ahead of the market by bringing the world's most advanced game
technology to a new group of consumers in record time." "Knowing
there would be great demand for Jaguar on personal computers -- we
designed the system to talk easily to the leading computer architec-
tures. This has allowed us to move quickly to partner with Sigma
Designs to make this happen before Christmas."
Julien Nguyen, vice president of engineering and chief technical
officer of Sigma Designs said, "We are pleased to join Atari in its
mission to expand the industry standards for video game play."
"Jaguar's 64-bit technology will be extremely attractive to the MPC
customer base of more than 10 million users. By combining Sigma's
Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG) technology with Atari's 3D
animation, we look forward to bringing the hottest video game
technology and software titles to the desktops of users worldwide."
** Sega, MGM to Develop Games **
Sega of America Inc. and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. have announced
plans to jointly develop video games, interactive media, television
programs and films. While details weren't disclosed, it's felt that
both companies will collaborate in production and marketing of new media
products. The products will bear both the MGM and Sega names.
MGM and Sega executives said the products to be developed under the
agreement will be original concepts, but they may choose in the future
to develop interactive games on 1995 and 1996 movie releases from MGM
and United Artists.
The companies also plan to develop at least two interactive CD-ROM
titles for release this year.
** Nintendo Signs Deal with DMA **
Nintendo of America has signed a deal with high-end game designer DMA
Design Ltd. in a bid to develop a new, inexpensive and highly advanced
home video game system.
DMA of Dundee, Scotland, will make games for Nintendo's much antici-
pated 64-bit system called Project Reality. Sources say, "The move heats
up the already fierce competition among leading video game manufacturers
such as Sega and 3DO Co."
Reports say Nintendo will offer Project Reality as a $250 video game
player "that will surpass the computing power of some of the most power-
ful home computers. Its games will be interactive and have television-
quality pictures and audio." "Some market analysts expect it to rock the
computing world the same way personal computers forced mainframe-
builders to drastically reduce the scale of their business in recent
years."
Project Reality, an advanced home video system scheduled to debut in
fall 1995, is being developed for Nintendo by Silicon Graphics Inc.
** 3DO Disks Pass 1 Million Mark **
In the six months since the company's launch, 3DO says it has pressed
more than a million compact discs for its advanced home gaming system.
The company is quoted as saying more than 38 games have been completed
for the interactive multimedia system in the U.S. Thirty titles are
available in stores nationwide and 18 games have been completed for the
3DO system in Japan.
Officials at 3DO anticipate 43 titles will be available by the end of
this month and about 100 by the end of the year.
** Commodore International Liquidates **
Commodore International Ltd. is going out of business. Reports say
the firm will transfer its assets to unidentified trustees for the bene-
fit of its creditors and already has placed its major subsidiary,
Commodore Electronics Ltd., into voluntary liquidation.
In a brief statement, Commodore said, "This is the initial phase of
an orderly voluntary liquidation of both companies."
The company last month reported an $8.2 million loss for the quarter
ending Dec. 31 on sales of $70.1 million. A year earlier, Commodore lost
$77.2 million on sales of $237.7 million in the same period.
** Compaq Jumps to 1994 Lead **
The market analysts at International Data Corp. say that Compaq Com-
puter Corp. led all other computer makers in worldwide PC sales during
1994's first quarter. IDC's figures show Compaq selling 970,000 com-
puters world-wide in the first three months of the year, compared with
845,000 for Apple and 840,000 for IBM.
In the first quarter of last year, IBM sold 790,000 PCs, Apple sold
780,000 and Compaq sold 693,000. That is a 40% increase for Compaq, a
6.33% increase for IBM and an 8.33% increase for Apple.
** Epson Unveils Smaller Board **
Epson Inc. has unveiled a line of what it says are world's smallest
upgraded circuit boards, the Cardio-X86 "computer on a card" containing
a F8680A central processing unit and controllers for video, keyboards
and other peripherals. The Cardio-86 measures 85.6 millimeters by 54
millimeters.
To be sold to computer device manufacturers, the board joins a simi-
lar device already in production that features a clone of Intel's Corp.
'386 microprocessor.
** Superbase Line to Be Sold **
Software Publishing Corp. has signed a letter of intent to sell its
Superbase product line and related assets to Computer Concepts Corp.
Superbase is a Windows-based relational database.
** Compaq to Work on V-Conferencing **
A five- year strategic alliance for development of videoconferencing
products is being formed by Compaq Computer Corp. and PictureTel Corp.,
the world's largest videoconferencing products concern.
Officials with the companies hope to begin shipping products under
alliance next year. They also want to develop joint marketing programs
and promotions that take advantage of each others' established presence
in the PC and videoconferencing markets.
PictureTel and its chief rival, Compression Labs Inc. control most of
the video conferencing equipment market.
** Microsoft Releases Access 2.0 **
Microsoft Corp. this week said that Microsoft Access, Version 2.0
will be on store shelves on Friday. Reports say that the newest version
of this database management system is the first desktop database to
bridge the gap between the needs of end users and those of developers.
Microsoft is expecting a big demand for the new program and has al-
ready shipped 100,000 copies to fill initial reseller orders.
** Xerox, Novell Form Alliance **
Xerox Corp. and Novell Inc. have formed a strategic partnership to
develop technology that will allow users to more easily track down, use
and share documents.
The first product to be released under the new alliance is called
Document Enabled Networking for Novell NetWare. The two firms said DEN
will help software developers create programs that act as "document
detectives," allowing users anywhere along a Novell NetWare network to
quickly and automatically locate and retrieve documents, regardless
where they are stored.
** IBM Adds to PS/1 Line **
IBM has added four new computers to their PS/1 line. This includes a
486SX-33 MHz configuration and 486DX2-66/33 MHz systems. Hard drives in
the new models range from 170MB to 720MB. Prices on the computers range
from $1,299 to $2,599.
** Advanced Logic Aims at Low End **
A line of Express PCs desktop systems retailing for as little as $745
is being introduced by Advanced Logic Research Inc. Sources say "While
long a contender among builders of high- and mid-end computers, the new
ALR Express PC models are designed to compete with lines such as the
Compaq Prolinea and Hewlett Packard Vectra."
Features of the new PC include easily upgradable processors and disk
drive bays that allow quick access. All also comply with new federal
standards on saving energy, powering down to as little as 30 watts when
left idle.
** Canon to Unveil New Screen **
A new kind of liquid crystal display for portable computers that
retains data when the power is off is expected from Canon Inc. by the
end of the year. Reports say the displays are likely to be far easier
to make in large versions than LCDs currently available, and may be the
key to future large wall-mounted televisions.
** Broderbund and Elec. Arts Merger Off **
Broderbund Software and Electronic Arts announced this week the term-
ination of their agreement to merge the two companies. As part of the
deal to call off the merger, Broderbund has agreed to make a one-time
payment to Electronic Arts of $10 million.
** FTC Rules on Hayes Modem Ads **
The Federal Trade Commission is proposing a settlement in its two-
year probe of alleged false and misleading advertising by modem-maker
Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc.
The issue centers on Hayes' controversial 1992 advertisements in 14
magazines that carried the chilling claim, "A Time Bomb may be lurking
in your modem." The ad went on to assert any modem that didn't contain
the Hayes escape sequence technology put users in danger of losing data.
In an investigation, the FTC said Hayes had no reasonable basis to
make such claims as one that going with Hayes technology was "the only
way to be completely protected."
Sources said "Under a proposed settlement of the charge, Hayes does
not admit wrongdoing but promises not to engage in escape sequence ad-
vertising that it can't back up with 'competent and reliable evidence.'"
** Toshiba Cuts Prices 20% **
Toshiba America Information Systems Inc. has reduced prices up to 20%
on selected portable computers, effective immediately. Toshiba said
prices were cut on the entire Satellite notebook line, the T4700 high-
performance notebook and the Portege T3400 monochrome ultra portable.
** New TI Notebooks Unveiled **
Texas Instruments Inc. has unveiled its new line of TravelMate 4000M
notebook computers, four models selling in the U.S. for between $2,149
and $5,299. The units range in weight from 5.9 pounds to 6.4 pounds.
Hard disk drives are available with capacities from 120MB to 340MB.
Display options include monochrome, advanced color and active color
matrix.
** Microsoft Supports HP Printers **
Microsoft Corp. is now supporting the Hewlett-Packard LaserJet 4 Plus
and the LaserJet 4M Plus printers, a move that will bring improved
printing to users of Microsoft Windows 3.1 and Windows for Workgroups,
reports Business Wire.
The printers, based on a 12 ppm print engine, high-speed RISC pro-
cessor, advanced memory management and other enhancements, provide 30 to
40 percent faster printing than their predecessors. Bidirectional
communication allows users to monitor printer status from the desktop,
and, by using the optional Hewlett-Packard JetDirect card and JetPrint
utility, users can also get printer status in a networked environment
through a virtual-printer front panel.
** Novell Alleges More Piracy **
Network publisher Novell Inc. has sued another firm for allegedly
selling a pirate version of its flagship NetWare program. The suit con-
tends Aqua Systems, a Novell authorized reseller in Bellerose, N.Y.,
illegally upgraded Novell products on several occasions for its
customers.
The action by Novell comes a week after it brought another piracy
suit against a Southern California company called Digital Soft
Technologies, its owner Mohammad Shahzad Saleemi and employee Tony
Alvarez.
** Software Piracy Rampant in Asia **
According to a study by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) computer
software piracy in Asia accounted for more than $4 billion in losses to
the industry. Reports are that Asian software theft was most acute in
Japan with $1.9 billion of losses, second globally only to the United
States. Other countries with high losses are South Korea and China.
Asia accounts for more than 31% of worldwide losses, although Europe
is the worst offender with $4.9 billion in losses. The BSA says that in
China alone, more than 94% of all software is illegal.
Worldwide industry losses to software piracy in 1993 totaled $12.8
billion, an increase of more than $800 million over 1992, said the BSA.
** Catching High-Tech Pedophiles **
A Massachusetts organization has been granted $250,000 by the U.S.
Justice Department to train law enforcement personnel how to deal with
high-tech sexual exploitation of children.
The Newton, Mass.-based Education Development Center Inc. will create
a "model program" with an emphasis on how to catch pedophiles who use
computer networks to recruit young victims.
"This model program should go a long way to help prosecuting those
who victimize children," said U.S. Attorney Donald K. Stern, noting that
a growing number of kiddie porn rings rely on computer networks to find
youngsters.
EDC project director Debra Whitcomb said it is hoped the Massachus-
etts program will serve as a prototype that could be applied elsewhere
in the nation.
____________________________________________
> AWE 32 STR FOCUS! Sound Blaster AWE32
""""""""""""""""
Creative Launches Sound Blaster AWE32 -
The Next Generation Sound Blaster Audio Card
SINGAPORE -- March 1, 1994 -- Creative Technology, developer of the
Sound Blaster(TM) PC audio standard, today at Intermedia launched
Sound Blaster AWE32(TM), Creative's most advanced audio card to date.
Sound Blaster AWE32 combines the powerful features of Creative's
award-winning Sound Blaster 16 Advanced Signal Processing card with
the great sounding Advanced WavEffects(TM) digital sample playback
synthesis capabilities of E-mu Systems'(R) EMU8000 integrated audio
DSP. It has a suggested retail price of $399.95 and will begin
shipping to major distributors and resellers worldwide within the
next two weeks.
"The audio consumer has become extremely sophisticated. With the
introduction of Sound Blaster AWE32, Creative is furthering its goal
of offering consumers high-performance features at a great price
point and delivering the type of superior sound and speech quality
that they have come to expect from Creative," said K.S. Chay,
Creative Technology's president and COO.
Rich Sorkin, director of audio products for Creative Technology's
U.S. subsidiary Creative Labs, added that "in addition to providing a
solution for musicians who want to create professional quality music,
Sound Blaster AWE32 provides the ideal platform for developers to
create an emotionally engaging multimedia experience through the use
of multiple channel audio, downloadable sounds (E-mu's[R]
SoundFont[TM] collections) and state-of-the-art special effects. As a
result, Sound Blaster AWE32 owners will be able to benefit from a
great selection of entertainment software titles that take advantage
of our next generation audio technology."
Advanced Signal Processing
Creative's Advanced Signal Processor, a programmable DSP, performs
real-time compression and decompression of audio files. It also
features Creative TextAssist(TM) advanced text-to-speech synthesis
and QSound(TM) 180 degree virtual audio. For voice-annotating
documents, Creative offers two options for compressing and
decompressing speech data - FastSpeech 8 and FastSpeech 10.
FastSpeech 8 compresses data to one eighth its original size and
FastSpeech 10 compresses data to one tenth its original size.
Because FastSpeech compresses data in real-time, users do not need to
conduct off-line processing.
Advanced Audio Technology
E-mu's patented digital sample playback technology, which is
incorporated into Creative's Advanced WavEffects synthesis, is based
on the EMU8000 audio DSP and features CD quality, real instrument
sounds that surpass the audio quality produced by wave table
synthesis technology.
Many of the features of Sound Blaster AWE32 are traditionally only
available with high-end professional audio products that often cost
thousands of dollars. It supports multi-timbral MIDI channels with
32-voice polyphony as well as independent control of advanced special
effects (reverb, chorus or QSound), vibrato (pitch oscillation) and
tremolo (volume oscillation) for each of its 32 voices. Additional
advanced audio features include state-of-the art pitch-shifting
techniques, resonance filters that control the timbre of each
instrument when played at different dynamic levels, a six-part
amplitude envelope, and a six-part auxiliary envelope for independent
controlling of pitch and timbre.
Compatibility
As with Creative's entire family of standard-setting 16-bit audio
boards, Sound Blaster AWE32 offers 16-bit CD-quality stereo sampling
and playback up to 44.1 kHz. Sound Blaster AWE32 supports the Sound
Blaster platform and is fully compatible with General MIDI, Sound
Canvas and MT-32 specifications. The audio card also supports three
of the most popular single and double speed CD-ROM drives on the
market from Sony, Mitsumi, and Creative.
Sound Blaster AWE32 supports E-mu Systems' SoundFont audio library of
sampled sounds, which have been widely regarded as the finest musical
instrument and sound effects samples available. Additional samples
from the SoundFont library can be downloaded into AWE32's on-board 4
megabit DRAM chip (which can be expanded to 28 megabyte of RAM) to
bring added variety and flexibility of sounds to the user.
Bundled Software
Software bundled with Sound Blaster AWE32 includes Creative
VoiceAssist(TM), Creative's premier speech recognition software for
Windows applications; Creative TextAssist(TM), a text-to-speech
system based on Digital Equipment Corp.'s DECtalk technology; Qsound
Virtual Audio, a 180 degree sound localization technology;
WaveStudio, Creative's wave file editor; Creative Ensemble, a set of
software applications for playback of wave, CD and MIDI files that
resembles a home "hi-fi" system; HSC Interactive SE; Cakewalk
Apprentice, an easy-to-use yet powerful sequencer software program;
and a variety of other utilities specifically developed by Creative
for its family of Sound Blaster audio boards.
Founded in 1972, E-mu Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of
innovative digital audio products based on digital sampling
technology for the musical instrument and multimedia markets. The
company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Creative Technology, Ltd.,
and is headquartered in Scotts Valley, Calif.
Creative Technology Ltd. develops, manufactures and markets a family
of sound and video multimedia products for IBM-compatible PCs. The
company's Sound Blaster sound platform enables IBM-compatible PCs to
produce high-quality audio for entertainment, educational, music and
productivity PC-based applications.
Creative Technology Ltd. was incorporated in 1983 and is based in
Singapore. Creative Technology's U.S. subsidiaries include Creative
Labs, Inc., E-mu Systems, Inc. and ShareVision(R) Technology, Inc.
Creative also has other subsidiaries in the U.S., Europe, Japan,
Singapore, Taiwan and China. The Company's stock is traded on the
NASDAQ National Market System under the symbol CREAf.
Creative TextAssist Ships with Sound Blaster AWE32
Creative Technology's Text-to-Speech Software Based on
Digital Equipment Corp.'s DECtalk Technology
SINGAPORE -- March 1, 1994 -- Creative Technology (CREAf) today
announced that its Creative TextAssist(TM) text-to-speech software
will begin shipping in the next two weeks with Sound Blaster
AWE32(TM), also announced today at Intermedia. Creative TextAssist,
which is comprised of a set of five Windows-based applications,
utilizes Digital Equipment Corp.'s DECtalk technology and features
realistic voice-quality, flexibility and easy integration into the
Windows operating system.
"Creative TextAssist provides the finest text-to-speech technology
available on any platform today. When used in conjunction with
Creative's VoiceAssist(TM) speech recognition software, Creative
TextAssist creates a complete solution for hands-free, PC-based
conversational applications," said Rich Sorkin, director of audio
products for Creative Technology's U.S. subsidiary Creative Labs.
"While voice technology will continue to play a prominent role in the
home and assistive technology markets, we expect that the demand for
this technology in the business environment will continue to
increase, particularly with regard to document proofreading, remote
talking e-mail and talking faxes."
Creative TextAssist, which utilizes the added horsepower provided by
Creative's onboard Advanced Signal Processor, operates with any
Windows application that features text. Users can create their own
voices or choose from the nine predefined voices in American English
(four male, four female, one child). Future versions of TextAssist
will offer foreign language support as well as support for DOS, OS/2
and Macintosh platforms.
Included with TextAssist are five software programs:
*Texto'LE embeds text-to-speech objects into OLE client applications.
*TextAssist Control Panel allows users to create new voices or
associate existing voices with Windows Applications.
*TextAssist Reader reads aloud specified text.
*TextAssist Dictionary allows user to customize pronunciation
of application-specific words.
*Talking Scheduler verbally reminds user of their appointments.
Within the next month, Creative TextAssist will also begin shipping
with Creative's line of 16-bit Sound Blaster(TM) boards with Advanced
Signal Processing and the Sound Blaster DigitalEdge CD(TM) multimedia
upgrade kit.
TextAssist Upgrades
A TextAssist upgrade will be available to current registered owners
of Sound Blaster 16 with Advanced Signal Processing for $29.95. An
Advanced Signal Processor upgrade featuring Creative TextAssist will
be available to Sound Blaster 16 owners for $99.95.
A TextAssist developer kit will be available for $99.95 on March 15,
1994. The kit includes the TextAssist API in the form of a Dynamic
Link Library (DLL), which can be used to integrate sophisticated
text-to-speech capabilities into Windows applications. The developer
kit also comes with a royalty-free license for developers to
distribute the TextAssist API DLL with their applications.
Creative Technology Ltd. develops, manufactures and markets a family
of sound and video multimedia products for IBM-compatible PCs. The
company's Sound Blaster sound platform enables IBM-compatible PCs to
produce high-quality audio for entertainment, educational, music and
productivity PC-based applications.
Creative Technology Ltd. was incorporated in 1983 and is based in
Singapore. Creative Technology's U.S. subsidiaries include Creative
Labs, Inc., E-mu Systems(R), Inc. and ShareVision(R) Technology, Inc.
Creative also has other subsidiaries in the U.S., Europe, Japan,
Singapore, Taiwan and China. The Company's stock is traded on the
NASDAQ National Market System under the symbol CREAf.
# # #
Creative TextAssist, Creative VoiceAssist, Sound Blaster, and Sound
Blaster AWE32 are trademarks of Creative Technology Ltd. E-mu is a
registered trademark of E-mu Systems, Inc. and ShareVision is a
registered trademark of ShareVision Technology, Inc.
CONTACT INFORMATION
-------------------
Benita Kynn Diana Iles
Creative Labs, Inc. Cunningham Communication, Inc.
(408) 428-6600 (408) 982-0400
__________________________________________
> KIDDESK Family Edition STR Review
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
KIDDESK FAMILY EDITION BY EDMARK
================================
Kids' Computing Corner
Review by Frank Sereno
Before I start with my review of the new features of KidDesk Family
Edition versus the original DOS version of KidDesk, I would like to thump
my chest a bit. Three issues ago, I had a small review of a children's
educational video from Mazon Productions entitled "I Dig Fossils." If you
take a look at the TV Guide for the first week of May, "I Dig Fossils" is
given a mini-review in the video section. It is a very neat feeling to
have "scooped" a national publication on reviewing a very fine product. I
almost feel like Clark Kent! And if you have an interest in the video,
call 800-332-I-DIG.
Now... back to our regularly scheduled programming! I reviewed the
original DOS version of KidDesk earlier this year. KidDesk is a graphical
interface which allows children to operate a computer alone while
providing security for the computer system. The parent sets up all the
child's programs as icons on a desktop. The child can run the program of
his choosing by using the mouse to click on the corresponding icon on his
desktip. The security is provided by the option of running KidDesk from
the autoexec.bat file and setting KidDesk so a password will be needed to
quit to DOS or Windows. Each child can customize his own desktop.
KidDesk includes a calculator, a talking clock and a calendar as desktop
accessories.
KidDesk Family Edition requires Windows 3.1 being run on a 386 or better
CPU, 4 megs of ram, VGA display, a mouse and about 2 megs of hard drive
space. Also recommended is a sound card capable of digitized sound, a
microphone and a printer. If the child has special needs, Family Edition
works with a TouchWindow which Edmark sells directly to the consumer.
KidDesk Family Edition supports color printers if you have the proper
printer drivers for Windows.
Family Edition has many new accessories and features. Now included is e-
mail, voice mail, a note pad, and an address card file. Voice mail only
works if you have a sound card that can record sound with a microphone.
To send voice mail, click on the telephone on the desktop, then choose the
icon of the person to whom you wish to send a message. You may then
record a message. You can play the message to be sure it is perfect and
then hit the send button to end the e-mail process. Voice mail is
received on the answering machine. If a red light is blinking, this
indicates messages are waiting. Click on the machine and then you can
listen to the messages of your choosing. You can also record a message
for people to hear when they send a voice-mail message to you.
E-mail works much like a bulletin board. Click on the mailbox and you are
presented with icons for all incoming mail on one side of the screen and
on the other side are the icons for all the people installed on KidDesk
Family Edition. Simply click on an incoming letter icon to read the
message. Click on the icon of a user to send mail to that person and a
text editor will appear on the screen. Type in your message and then
click on the airmail icon to complete the message. You may print out
hardcopies of both incoming and outgoing mail. Each letter can only be
one page long. If Family Edition is properly configured, it is possible
to send the same letter to multiple users if you desire.
The notepad allows the user to leave one page messages to himself or he
can use the selection of borders to make stationery and send letters to
friends. The notepad can also be used for To Do Lists or for printing out
a daily journal. Four sizes of fonts are available so much information
can be squeezed onto the single page if necessary.
The final new accessory is the address card file. All entries are
automatically alphabetized by the first letter typed in the name. If you
wish to alphabetize by last name, you must enter the last name first and
then the first name. Fields are also available for the address, phone,
birthday and notes on each entry. This would be a very handy way of
keeping track of the birthdays of all your children's friends. Individual
entries may be printed or the entire address card file may be printed out.
The one major advantage of Family Edition is that it will run any Windows
program that will run under your system under Windows alone. In my review
of KidDesk for DOS, I mentioned that Alphabet Blocks did not run properly
under KidDesk. It now runs flawlessly under the Family Edition. DOS
programs are a bit of a challenge. Some of them will not run too well
under Windows because they want to grab system resources away from
Windows. In Family Edition, you have the option to run DOS programs from
DOS. By toggling a switch in the application setup, choosing that DOS
program will cause Family Edition to exit Windows and start the program in
DOS. When the child exits that program, Windows will restart and then
reload KidDesk Family Edition. This causes a delay in loading programs,
but it does insure that all DOS programs will work.
Family Edition is not limited to children. You can set up a "Kid" for any
friend or family member who will be using the computer. I have my wife's
favorite games set up for her under Family Edition. She has no interest
in learning the intricacies of DOS or Windows, but now she can play
Scrabble or Wheel of Fortune without needing to remember archaic DOS
command lines or the names of batch files.
KidDesk Family Edition comes with an excellent manual that is filled with
hints on using the program for educational purposes as well as a trouble-
shooting guide. All in all, this is an excellent product. One feature I
would like to see added would be a prompt to insert the correct CD-rom if
it isn't in the drive already. This feature should be optional for each
"Kid" as most parents would not want their 3 year-olds handling CDs. The
suggested retail price is $59.95 but I have seen it for around $35. If
you have young children and have Windows and DOS programs for them to use,
KidDesk Family Edition is the most user-friendly and compatible program
launcher around.
Contact Edmark by calling:
1-206-556-8484 or, write them at:
Edmark Corporation
P.O. Box 3218
Redmond, Washington 98073-3218
Next week, I hope to review "The Tortoise and the Hare" from Broderbund's
Living Book series. I will also be implementing a new, numerical rating
scale which will grade programs on graphics, play value, educational
value, overall economic value and perhaps a few more categories. I hope
to grade all the software I have reviewed in the past with this new
numeric rating scale. If you wish to comment or offer suggestions, please
send e-mail to me at these addresses:
Fidonet -- Frank Sereno at 1:2235/10
Internet -- frank.sereno@utibbs.chigate.com
As always, thanks for reading!
_______________________________________________
> QMPRO for Windows 1.1 STR InfoFile The Upgrades keep coming!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
QMODEM PRO FOR WINDOWS
ENHANCED WITH FAXING POWER!
Version 1.1 Now shipping!
Mustang Software (MSI) is introducing QMPRO for Windows ver 1.1
communications software, adding improved FAX capabilities to the
industry's first program that launched data and FAX communications from a
single dialing directory.
MSI introduced Ver 1.0 of Qmodem Pro for Windows this past January.
In addition to its data and FAX capabilities, the program is also the
first Windows-based comm package to support RIPscrip from Telegraphix Inc.
of Huntington Beach, CA., the defacto graphics standard for BBS systems.
(Bulletin Board Systems)
With the introduction of version 1.1, QmodemPro for Windows has the
ability to receive Fax and data calls in host mode, a limited feature BBS
program that allows users to set up their personal computers to receive
incoming modem calls. The host mode has a built-in message, file and
paging system, key elements found in many of the major BBS packages,
including MSI's own WILDCAT! BBS package.
For QmodemPro's Host Mode to recognize an incoming call as
originating from a FAX machine, all that's needed in a Fax-modem that
issues a "FAX CONNECT" result code. QmodemPro supports the "Call
Selection" feature used for returning FAX information on the "Courier"
line of high speed FAX/Data modems from U.S. Robotics, Skokie, IL..
Fax Modems from other manufacturers supporting the call selection
feature can be easily configured to operate with QmodemPro by easily
editing the Host mode script language. By not "hard coding" this feature
into the program itself, MSI has ensured that QmodemPro is able to support
any current or future modem that may appear on the market.
The Host Mode is written entirely using MSI's own Script Language
Interface for Qmodem (SLIQ) which is based on the BASIC computer language.
This enables the user to edit the Host Mode by changing the source code
and recompiling it using QmodemPro's Integrated Compiler and Debugger.
Sending a FAX from QmodemPro is greatly simplified with ver. 1.1.
The package now allows the user to configure QMPRO as a "Printer Driver"
thus, allowing documents to be faxed directly from any Windows
Application.
Ultimately, the user sends the fax by using the Windows application's
document print function and selecting QMPRO as the printer. This
procedure launches QmodemPro, pulls up the dialing directory thus allowing
the user to choose the phone number of the fax recipient. After prompting
the user for cover page information, QMPRO proceeds to send the fax.
QmodemPro for Windows 1.1 is available immediately from MSI at a
suggested retail price of $139.00
QmodemPro for Windows may download a free upgrade to version 1.1 by
dialing MSI's Support BBS at 1-805-873-2400. Additionally, the upgrade
may be downloaded from any one of MSI's Support areas on CompuServe,
America Online and GEnie. A new set of QmodemPro disks may be obtained
for the nominal fee of $23.00.
MSI may be reached at the following numbers:
1-805-873-2500 - Business Office
1-800-999-9619 - Order Line
MUSTANG SOFTWARE INC.
--------------------
Mustang Software Inc. (MSI) is the leading single source supplier of
bulletin board (BBS) systems and related software. MSI has well over
thirty thousand registered users of it's WILDCAT! Software and an
additional eighty thousand registered users of its world famous Qmodem Pro
for DOS and for Windows communications software. Formed in 1986, MSI is
headquartered in Bakersfield California at 6200 Lake Ming Road.
____________________________________________
> PHOTOSTYLER 2.0 STR FOCUS!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
77 Ways that Aldus PhotoStyler 2.0
Beats
Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1
Windows
About This Document
This document describes some of the ways that Aldus PhotoStyler 2.0
for Windows exceeds the capabilities of Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 for Windows,
and why a graphics professional would benefit from these differences. It
is not intended to be an exhaustive overview of the hundreds of features
and benefits of either product, but an illustration of some of the
strengths unique to Aldus PhotoStyler 2.0.
This material has been carefully reviewed and was as accurate as
possible as of March 22, 1994. However, because both applications are
complex and (naturally) undergo continuous upgrading, some descriptions
may become invalid at a later date. We therefore recommend that you do not
rely solely on this document for a purchasing decision, but that you also
carefully review the current specifications of each product to weigh the
features and benefits that apply to your particular digital-imaging task.
We welcome your comments and corrections. If you know of any
inaccuracy in this document, please write to: PhotoStyler Product
Marketing, Aldus Corporation, 411 First Avenue South, Seattle, WA
98104-2871, U.S.A. You may also fax responses to PhotoStyler Product
Marketing at (206) 343-4214. Comments may be sent via email to
rod.bauer@aldus.com on Internet or 75216,3137 on CompuServe.
Contents
--------
The Top 10 Ways Aldus PhotoStyler 2.0 Beats Aldus Photoshop 2.5.1
Unsurpassed Productivity
Accurate and Consistent Color That's Easy to Achieve
Superior Output Quality
Program and File Integration
Powerful and Customizable Interface
The Top 10 Ways Aldus PhotoStyler 2.0 Beats Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1
Feature----Number
Built-in color management system 46
Multiple previews for changes 1
Ability to load and edit portions of an image 2
Built-in image management tools 58
Multiple transformations at once 6
Tool ribbon 62
Quick Command palette 64
Harder working Open dialog box 20
OLE support 59
Image Navigator 3
Unsurpassed Productivity
1. MULTIPLE, SIDE-BY-SIDE PREVIEWS OF CHANGES
---------------------------------------------
Whether a user is trying out filters, effects, or color corrections,
PhotoStyler provides three previews of the image within each dialog box:
one with the original settings, and two test copies that can be adjusted
independently. This Multi-Preview capability allows users to try out and
compare changes before committing them to the original image. Moreover,
users can examine the previews at either a 1:1 or fit-in-window view. The
1:1 ratio provides an accurate, pixel-level representation of the effects
anywhere the user chooses within the image, while the full view provides a
way to check overall results.
For every effect for which it offers a preview, Adobe Photoshop
provides only one preview, with no option to compare original settings to
alternative ones before applying changes. (The only exception is the
Variations dialog box, discussed below.) When available, adjustments are
previewed on the main image window that's open on the screen, at whatever
ratio the image happens to be at, such as 1:1 or 1:4. For dialog boxes
without previews, the change must be applied to the actual image. If the
change isn't right, the user must undo the change and reopen the dialog
box for further adjustments.
Adobe Photoshop's Variations dialog box does show either two or six
before-and-after thumbnail previews of changes (depending on the effect
applied). Unlike in PhotoStyler, however, this multiple-preview option is
available only for adjusting the color balance, contrast, and saturation.
2. ABILITY TO LOAD ONLY PART OF AN IMAGE
----------------------------------------
To reduce image processing time and increase the amount of RAM
available for image manipulation, PhotoStyler users can opt to load only a
portion of an image into memory for editing. They can choose precisely
what portion they want as they open the file or at any time during
editing. Once editing is complete, the loaded portion can be saved back
into the original image or saved as a separate file. This capability
increases user efficiency and product performance by allowing image
editors to work on large images a
piece at a time.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability. Users must always
load all of an image, which can't help but increase image-processing time
and decrease available RAM for editing large images.
3. IMAGE NAVIGATOR FOR CONSTANT BIRD'S-EYE VIEW OF ACTIVE IMAGE
---------------------------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler 2.0 comes with an Image Navigator that provides a
thumbnail, bird's-eye view of the active image at all times. This optional
palette makes users more productive in three ways: by helping them keep
track of where they are in the full picture while they work at the pixel
level; by showing the overall results of up-close changes; and by letting
them quickly select exactly where to go in an image without panning,
scrolling, or zooming out from the current view. The Image Navigator also
provides shortcuts for going to fit-to-screen, 1:1, or any other
magnification level. PS Adobe Photoshop does not provide a feature
similar to the Image Navigator. Users must constantly rely on the grabber
hand, scroll bars, magnification tool, and many zoom commands to move
around in an image, check the overall results of a change, and keep track
of where they are in a picture.
4. MEMORY-USAGE INDICATOR
-------------------------
PhotoStyler has a memory-usage indicator to help users keep track of
the amount of free RAM and free virtual memory available to PhotoStyler.
The indicator provides numeric values of free memory, as well as a colored
dot that indicates how the memory is being allocated--using RAM only or
RAM plus the hard-drive memory (i.e., virtual memory). Based on this
information, the user may choose to adjust the memory usage and thereby
improve the program's performance by turning off the Undo function,
resampling the image, editing only a portion of the image at a time, or
performing similar actions that PhotoStyler supports. PS Adobe Photoshop
2.5.1 does not offer this capability, so the user doesn't have the access
to how memory resources are being used.
5. PRACTICE PAD FOR TESTING BRUSH SETTINGS
------------------------------------------
The Practice Pad in Aldus PhotoStyler enables users to test all paint
settings--such as brush width, paint flow, transparency, and so on--before
applying them to an image. Users can practice on the current background
color, on a standard color test pattern, or on a copy of any portion of
the actual image. The latter option is particularly useful, for it allows
image editors to practice with the tool precisely where they'll use it in
the image. And in case they get it just right in the Practice Pad,
PhotoStyler provides an "Apply" button to transfer the practice strokes to
the actual
image, saving the effort of trying to duplicate them. PS Adobe Photoshop
does not offer this capability.
6. ABILITY TO TEST AND APPLY MULTIPLE TRANSFORMATIONS AT ONCE
-------------------------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler 2.0 has an innovative Multi-Transform dialog box that lets
users try out multiple transformations on a low-resolution version of an
image, see the cumulative effect, and apply all changes at once to the
image. These transformations include re-sizing, skewing, rotating, adding
perspective, and similar functions. Multi-Transform also shows all changes
in real time--that is, PhotoStyler redraws the screen at the same speed
that the user makes adjustments, so that visual feedback is immediate.
This saves time by helping the user achieve the right results the first
time. Adobe Photoshop allows users to apply only one transformation at a
time, hampering experimentation and increasing the time it takes to get to
the final result. It does not provide real-time screen redraw for
transformations.
7. DRAG-AND-DROP COPYING OF SELECTIONS BETWEEN WINDOWS
------------------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler provides drag-and-drop copying between windows, bypassing
the standard copy-and-paste operation through the clipboard. In one
motion, the user can either cut or copy the selection from an original
image and transfer it to another, even without selecting the second image.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability. Moving selections
between images requires three steps: cut or copy the selection to the
clipboard, select the other image, and paste the selection from the
clipboard.
8. ELECTRONIC LOUPE
-------------------
Aldus PhotoStyler provides a unique magnification tool, called the
Magnification Loupe, that simulates a traditional loupe. As the user moves
the tool over an image, only the portion of the image that's beneath the
loupe is enlarged. This enables a user to check on details quickly,
without wasting time zooming and panning. Users can set the loupe's
magnification level from 1x to 4x, and can resize the loupe.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
9. ABILITY TO OPEN AND CLOSE MULTIPLE IMAGES AT A TIME
------------------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler lets users select and open any number of images at once
from either the "Open" dialog box or the Album. They also can close only
the active image, multiple selected images, or all images at once. Like
other Windows applications, PhotoStyler supports the ability to open
multiple files from the Windows File Manager by dragging and dropping
files onto the PhotoStyler application workspace or icon.
Adobe Photoshop users can select and open only one image at a time
from the "Open" dialog box. To open multiple images at once requires
multiple trips to the dialog box, or a return to the Windows File Manager
for drag-and-drop file opening. Adobe Photoshop can close images only one
at a time or all at once; it cannot close several selected images at a
time.
10. WINDOW MANAGER FOR HANDLING MULTIPLE OPEN IMAGES
----------------------------------------------------
Several standard operations such as saves, closes, changes in views,
and adjustments to image resolution can be applied to multiple images at
the same time using the Window Manager in PhotoStyler.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability. All similar
operations must be performed on one image at a time.
11. UNDO OF MULTIPLE PAINTING ACTIONS AT ONCE
---------------------------------------------
In Aldus PhotoStyler, several painting and image-editing tools
(airbrush, paintbrush, pencil, smudge, blur, dodge and burn, and so on)
provide the option of undoing all actions recently done with that tool, or
just the last action. (For example, when users draw four lines, they can
delete all four at once, or only the last one drawn.) This feature
provides greater flexibility when painting and retouching images.
Adobe Photoshop can undo only the most recent stroke made with its
tools.
12. SELECTIVE UNDO FOR PAINTING TOOLS
-------------------------------------
Using the right mouse button, PhotoStyler 2.0 users can selectively
undo (i.e., drag over to erase) any part of what they've added using a
painting tool, without losing the rest of the strokes. This selective undo
works for all painting tools and provides the flexibility needed to apply
an effect and then remove any part of it--valuable when correcting
painting mistakes or fine-tuning a dodge and burn, for example.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
13. BETTER ERASER TOOL
----------------------
Aldus PhotoStyler's eraser tool allows the user to erase an image to
white, black, or the background color, or to the last-saved version of the
image. Users can also control the opacity, edge softness, shape, and size
of the erasing tool. This flexibility provides a great deal of creative
control--for example, users can apply a series of effects to an image, and
then use a partially opaque, customized brush to selectively remove part
of
the added effects.
Adobe Photoshop's magic eraser tool provides only a fixed-size,
hard-edge eraser that can erase only to the current background
color or to the last-saved version, without any control over
opacity.
14. BETTER SPEED FOR STANDARD FUNCTIONS
---------------------------------------
Benchmarks on an 8MB image show that Aldus PhotoStyler 2.0 is an
average 33% faster than Adobe Photoshop in the application of filters and
effects. Tests on a 10MB image show that PhotoStyler is 10% to 500% faster
for general functions, such as painting, computations, and file handling
(including opening, closing, cutting and pasting, and duplicating). Out of
93 benchmark tests performed, Aldus PhotoStyler was faster in two-thirds
of the functions.
Although Adobe Photoshop's performance speeds beat PhotoStyler speeds
in a third of the tests, the program showed a significantly slower
performance than PhotoStyler as images got larger, due to slower handling
of virtual memory.
15. MORE VERSATILE BORDERS CAPABILITY
-------------------------------------
When creating a border from a selection marquee, PhotoStyler 2.0 lets
image editors control the border's width, position, and edge, as well as
preview the border before committing to the settings. They can set borders
from 1 to 256 pixels wide, and control the softness or sharpness of the
edges by a value of 0 to 150. They can create the border on the outside or
inside of the selection's marquee, or have it straddle the marquee evenly.
Adobe Photoshop users can control only a border's width (1 to 64
pixels), not also its placement and edge. The program always straddles the
border over the selection marquee (half the width inside, and half the
width outside). Adobe Photoshop does not provide a preview of borders.
16. ABILITY TO DISABLE UNDO FOR INCREASED MEMORY
------------------------------------------------
The Undo function in PhotoStyler can be disabled to increase the
amount of memory available to manipulate an image. An image that takes up
15MB of RAM, for example, might need an additional 15MB of memory to
support the Undo function. By turning off Undo, users regain that extra
15MB of memory. Undo can easily be turned on again right before a
comparativ
ely drastic change that the user might want to undo.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
17. ABILITY TO EMPTY THE UNDO BUFFER
------------------------------------
For those times when a user doesn't want to turn off Undo to regain
memory for image manipulation, PhotoStyler also provides a way to simply
empty the Undo buffer of its current contents. (The Undo buffer stores
what the image looked liked before the current change was made.) Much like
emptying a trash can, clearing the buffer "dumps" the memory reserved for
undoing the last action and releases the RAM for the next operation. Being
able to free this memory gives the user even more control over the
program's
performance when handling larger images.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
18. MORE FLEXIBLE MAGIC WAND
----------------------------
The PhotoStyler magic wand (a tool used for selecting areas within an
image based on the color or grayscale values of the pixels) provides more
controls and options than Adobe Photoshop offers. In PhotoStyler, the wand
can select colors or gray-scale values based on one specific pixel, or it
can take the average of the colors within any rectangular, freehand, or
straightline selection the user drags. The tolerance setting for color
similarity can range from 0 to 255, and the wand can work with a variety
of selection criteria (RGB, HSB, Hue Only, Saturation Only, Brightness
Only, RGB Range, and HSB Range). For times when a current selection isn't
quite right, PhotoStyler has an "Update" button that lets the image editor
quickly change the criteria and update the selection without first
deselecting the area. PhotoStyler can also add, subtract, and find the
intersection of multiple selections made with the magic wand.
Adobe Photoshop's magic wand can only select colors based on one
specific pixel or upon the average of an area that is 3x3 or 5x5 pixels.
Like PhotoStyler, it provides tolerance levels from 0 to 255 for color
similarity, but this is the only selection criterion it offers. Adobe
Photoshop has no way to reduce the current selection based on a new
tolerance setting unless the user deselects the area, changes the
criterion, and then starts the selection over again. The program can add
and subtract multiple magicwand selections, but it can't take the
intersection of multiple selections.
19. REMOVE HOLES COMMAND
------------------------
When created with several selection tools or cumulative criteria, an
active selection will often end up with "holes"--unselected areas in a
large field of active pixels. PhotoStyler has a Remove Holes command to
turn this kind of complex selection into a contiguous selection in one
step.
Adobe Photoshop cannot create a contiguous selection area from a
non-contiguous ones. The user must manually lasso or draw a marquee around
the holes, which can require extra zooming and careful drawing.
20. HARDER WORKING "OPEN" DIALOG BOX
------------------------------------
The "Open" dialog box in Aldus PhotoStyler provides much more than
standard file and directory listings. A thumbnail preview enables users to
see and crop an image before they open it, or to select just a part of the
image to load and edit. Sort and search functions help users locate files
by parameters such as creation date, file size, and filename. Other
options let them open an image at screen resolution, open a copy of the
image, or load multiple images at once. From this dialog box, users can
also gain information about a selected file (its size, color mode, format,
location, and so on), set several file options (such as which resolution a
Kodak Photo CD image will open at), and gain access to color management
controls and PhotoStyler image Albums.
Besides the standard directory and file listings, Adobe Photoshop's
"Open" dialog box provides only an image's name and file size. It does not
provide a thumbnail preview, nor any of the other quick-access features
that PhotoStyler offers.
21. SNAP-TO-EDGE FOR FREE SELECTIONS
------------------------------------
A PhotoStyler user can opt to make the free-selection tool find the
edges in an image automatically. This provides an easy way to isolate
objects from an image or an image from its background.
Adobe Photoshop's lasso tool does not offer this capability.
22. SUPPORT OF VIRTUAL MEMORY FOR ALL FILTERS
---------------------------------------------
All of the effects and image-correction filters that come with Aldus
PhotoStyler 2.0 can take advantage of a computer's virtual memory. Thus
users can apply these filters to an image that's larger than available
RAM.
Many filters that come with Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 do not support
virtual memory. Most notably, all the Distort filters (Displace, Pinch,
Polar Coordinates, Ripple, Shear, Spherize, Twirl, Wave, and Zig-Zag) can
work only with images that are small enough to fit into the computer's
available RAM. The Lens Flare, Pointillize, and Crystalize filters also
have some limitations based on available RAM. Such restrictions can
severely limit the size of images these filters can be applied to.
23. ABILITY TO BACKTRACK TO CORRECT A FREEHAND SELECTION
--------------------------------------------------------
When an image editor uses the free-selection tool to draw a
selection, it's not uncommon to go astray from the intended course.
Applying the Backspace key enables users to correct their in-progress
selection by backing up point by point or pixel by pixel, and then
continuing with the selection again.
The lasso tool in Adobe Photoshop provides no option for correcting a
selection while the user creates it. To achieve the same kind of
marquee-editing ability, an image editor must use the pen tool to draw a
path, and then convert the path to a marquee.
24. RATE OF FLOW FOR PAINTBRUSH TOOL
------------------------------------
Among several other options, the Aldus PhotoStyler paintbrush allows
users to set the rate of paint flow to more accurately simulate the
behavior of real brushes.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
25. AUTOMATIC TEXT SHADOWS
--------------------------
PhotoStyler provides an option for creating text shadows
automatically. Shadows can be offset in positive and negative values by an
amount equal to the size of the text, and can be given their own color.
Adobe Photoshop does not create shadows automatically. Users must
duplicate, offset, and recolor text to achieve the same results.
26. EASY EDITING AND UPDATING OF FLOATING TEXT
----------------------------------------------
In PhotoStyler, users have a choice of entering text as a mask, a
floating selection, or directly onto the image. When entered as a floating
selection, the text can be readily reformatted, resized, moved, and edited
until the user accepts it as final text.
All text in Adobe Photoshop is entered as floating but it is not
editable. To edit or reformat the text requires deleting it and starting
over.
27. ABILITY TO IMPORT AND PASTE TEXT FROM OTHER SOURCES
-------------------------------------------------------
Aldus PhotoStyler can import text files of up to 50 lines, and can
accept text pasted from the clipboard. These options save users from
typing all their text in place.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability. All text must be
typed from scratch into an image.
28. SKETCH OVERLAY FOR ADDING COMMENTS
--------------------------------------
Acting much like a tissue overlay, an optional Sketch Overlay in
PhotoStyler enables an image editor, art director, or reviewer to add
comments to an image, say, to indicate edits, corrections, or other
requested alterations. The overlay is also a valuable tool for verifying
that work on an image has been completed as originally envisioned.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
29. MORE EXTENSIVE IMAGE INFORMATION
------------------------------------
A single dialog box in Aldus PhotoStyler provides full information
about any image, including its format, resolution, name, and location on
the hard drive; its color mode and dimensions; and its actual file size
and file size on disk (these differ if the image has been compressed).
This Image Information box also indicates an image's current status--for
example, whether it's been modified, whether a current partial edit is
active, how many views of it are currently open, whether an OLE client is
using the image, and so on.
Adobe Photoshop provides only a smattering of the image information
that PhotoStyler gives--namely, an image's dimensions, resolution, actual
image size, color mode, and color channels in use.
30. SIMULTANEOUS HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL FLIPPING
-------------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler provides a time-saving command that will flip an image
both horizontally and vertically in one step.
Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 requires the user to perform each operation
separately.
31. MORE VERSATILE VIRTUAL-MEMORY SUPPORT
-----------------------------------------
PhotoStyler 2.0 supports up to four hard drives simultaneously for
swapping out virtual memory. This provides greater flexibility to the
user, as well as the ability to handle exceptionally large images. Users
can set up PhotoStyler to use a particular directory on a drive for memory
swapping, and can reconfigure the virtual-memory drives without leaving
PhotoStyler.
Adobe Photoshop supports only two drives for virtual-memory swapping
and does not let a user specify which directory to use for memory
swapping. Also, the user must exit Adobe Photoshop to reconfigure
virtual-memory drives.
32. ON-CALL SYSTEM INFORMATION
------------------------------
PhotoStyler provides access to complete information about the user's
computer and operating system from within the program. Users can find out
their system's configuration, the resolution of their devices (monitor,
printers, and scanners), which printers and scanners are active, the
amount of virtual and free memory in use, their monitor's aspect ratio,
and Windows information. They can also gain read-only access to all
configuration files, WIN.INI and other system .INI files, and the
PhotoStyler "ReadMe" files.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
33. MORE FLEXIBLE RESTORE
-------------------------
PhotoStyler gives the user a choice of how much information to
restore during a revert: the whole image without any mask; a selected part
of the image; only the mask; or the whole image plus the mask. These
options enable a user to retain specific changes and throw out the rest.
Restoring only part of an image also saves image-reloading time.
During a full revert, Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 always restores the
entire image, consuming the same amount of time whether the previous
changes were large or small. Version 2.5.1 users can also fill (in
essence, "revert") selected areas of an image using either the saved
version of the file or a "snapshot" they've previously taken of the image.
34. BATCH-CONVERSION OF FILE TYPES
----------------------------------
Using the Album, PhotoStyler users can convert any number of files at once
from one file type to another, such as from TIFFo to Targa, or from Kodak
Photo CD to BMP, with a single command. None of the files have to be
loaded to make the conversion.
Adobe Photoshop users can convert only one file at a time by first loading
it and then using "Save as" to give the file a new format.
35. REAL-TIME PREVIEWS OF IMAGE COMPUTATIONS
--------------------------------------------
Like Adobe Photoshop, Aldus PhotoStyler provides image computations
for controlling exactly how one image acts upon another when they are
subtracted, added, blended, composited, shifted, and so on. Unlike in
Adobe Photoshop, however, the computation dialog box in PhotoStyler 2.0
provides a visual reference of which images and masks are being
manipulated, as well as a real-time preview at either fit-in-window or 1:1
view of the results of the computations. Thus users can see precisely what
images and masks they're working with, and can also be sure that the
results are what they expect and want before they apply the settings.
Adobe Photoshop supplies only a text-based dialog box for the same
kind of calculations. The user selects filenames of the desired images and
masks, types in values or chooses settings from pop-up menus, and must
execute the calculation to find out the results (this feature has no
Preview option). Because there's no visual reference to go by while
selecting files, it's easy to insert the wrong image into a composite, or
to layer the images incorrectly. Every correction requires a trip back to
the calculation dialog box.
36. GREATER CONTROL OVER DODGE AND BURN
---------------------------------------
In Aldus PhotoStyler, the Dodge & Burn tool can adjust highlights,
midtones, and shadows simultaneously, with each attribute being given
different settings. The program comes with 11 predefined dodge and burn
settings, such as Increase Exposure, Increase Contrast, and Darken
Shadows, and users can name and save their own dodge and burn settings for
future use. A selective Undo can remove (erase) either all or part of a
dodge and burn action for precise control over the results.
Adobe Photoshop's dodge and burn tool can affect highlights,
midtones, and shadows only one attribute at a time. Thus it takes three
dodge and burn passes to achieve the same result as one pass in
PhotoStyler. The program has no predefined dodge and burn settings, does
not allow settings to be named and saved for later use, and has only one
level of Undo for dodge and burn actions.
37. MORE COLOR-SELECTION OPTIONS WITH EYEDROPPER TOOL
-----------------------------------------------------
The PhotoStyler eyedropper tool can select a color from a single
pixel or it can take the average of the colors within any rectangular or
freehand area or along any straight or freehand line. This gives the image
editor more control over precisely what color to work with when adjusting
or enhancing images.
Adobe Photoshop's eyedropper tool can only select the color of
a single pixel in an image or take the average of a selection area of 3x3
or 5x5 pixels.
38. UP TO EIGHT COLORS WITHIN A GRADIENT FILL (BLEND)
-----------------------------------------------------
Aldus PhotoStyler lets users include up to eight colors in the same
gradient fill. The colors can be chosen from the entire color palette.
Adobe Photoshop allows only two colors (the current foreground and
background colors) to be applied to the same gradient fill. Achieving the
effect of multicolor gradients requires several gradient-filled objects
side by side.
39. ON-SCREEN LEVELING AID FOR ROTATING IMAGES
----------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler provides an on-screen leveling aid (with rotation degree
display) that assists in rotating selections to a precise vertical or
horizontal alignment. The user selects any two points on the image that
should be level or plumb, and PhotoStyler rotates the image accordingly.
This one-step feature is valuable for adjusting crooked scans and
precisely aligning particular image elements, such as tables or walls,
with the top or side of the image.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
40. ABILITY TO SHIFT PIXELS WITHIN A SELECTION MARQUEE
------------------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler has a Shift command that moves all pixels of a selection
by a specified distance within the selection boundary. The user can shift
the pixels up, down, left, and right, and can control what goes into the
area vacated by the moved pixels (such as a fill of the shifted-out image
or of the background or foreground color). This feature extends an image
editor's options for artistic effects.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
41. MORE CONTROL WHEN CREATING NEW FILES
----------------------------------------
PhotoStyler comes with numerous predefined image sizes and
resolutions for new images, including sizes for common film recorder
formats, 35mm film, 4x5 film, and the current screen size. Users can
choose the resolution of new images based on the current screen, target
printer, active document, or custom resolutions. Image editors can also
manually define the height, width, data type, and color mode of the new
image.
Adobe Photoshop users must set the height, width, resolution, data
type, and color mode for each new file they create in the "New" dialog
box. The program has no predefined image sizes and resolutions.
42. AUTOMATIC SEQUENCE OF COMMANDS AFTER SCANNING
-------------------------------------------------
The PhotoStyler 2.0 user can set up a specific sequence of commands
to be invoked after an image has been scanned. This makes dialog boxes
open automatically in preparation for processing and color correction.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
43. IMAGES DRAW ON-SCREEN AS THEY ARE BEING LOADED
--------------------------------------------------
Because large images can take a bit of time to open, PhotoStyler
displays all loaded parts of an image as the image is being loaded into
memory. This way, users can verify early that it's indeed the image they
want; they can cancel the file loading at any time.
Adobe Photoshop does not display any part of an image until the whole
image is loaded into memory. Therefore users must wait before they can
verify it's the one they want. Users can cancel the file loading at any
time, in case they remember that they're opening the wrong one.
44. SAVES THAT CAN BE CANCELED
------------------------------
Occasionally, users save an image and then realize at the last second
that they're accidentally writing over the original, saving the image to
the wrong directory, or not quite done making all the changes they want.
PhotoStyler therefore allows users to cancel a save (or a "save as") to
reclaim the file; the user can then rename the image, change directories,
or make additional changes as necessary.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
45. SUPPORT FOR MATH COPROCESSORS
---------------------------------
PhotoStyler can take advantage of a computer's math coprocessor to
speed up interpolation and many filter operations. Without this support,
users would have to wait longer for the computer to process the results of
their changes.
Only the Lens Flare filter for Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 supports math
coprocessors.
ACCURATE AND CONSISTENT COLOR THAT'S EASY TO ACHIEVE
46. BUILT-IN COLOR MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (CMS)
------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler uses the KODAK PRECISION COLOR MANAGEMENT SYSTEM to bring
predictable color to a computer system. A CMS is a universal color
translator that interprets color among various devices, such as scanners,
color monitors, and printers. With a properly configured CMS, users get
consistent, accurate color through previewing, editing, and output.
Because the CMS makes on-screen color more accurate, the results of image
editing are more predictable in PhotoStyler, and the user ultimately
wastes less
time, money, and materials getting images right. CMS information can be
attached to images saved as TIFF files, so applications that support the
Kodak Precision Color Management System can use the information, too.
Because Adobe Photoshop has no color management capability built in,
it provides no automatic controls for ensuring that the screen
representation of an image accurately reflects what will end up in the
final output. Usually, an image editor must work by trial and error with
many controls to obtain accurate color results. Third-party CMS plug-ins
are available for separate purchase, but they lack the full CMS
integration that PhotoStyler offers.
47. BETTER COLOR FROM KODAK PHOTO CD IMAGES
-------------------------------------------
Because PhotoStyler uses the color management system that's produced
by Eastman Kodak--the creators of the Kodak Photo CD system--it can
optimize Photo CD images specifically for CMYK output and separations.
PhotoStyler also utilizes Kodak's own color-space conversions to translate
a photo's color space into the monitor's RGB color space.
Adobe Photoshop does not have access to all the information encoded
into Photo CD images, making it impossible for the program to approach the
color quality that PhotoStyler can provide for Photo CD images.
48. SUPPORT FOR THE HLS COLOR MODE
----------------------------------
PhotoStyler supports the HLS color mode (hue, lightness, and
saturation) in addition to the RGB, CMYK, and HSB modes. Using the HLS
mode lets image editors isolate and work with specific properties of a
color, say, to adjust only the hue of a color but retain its current
lightness and saturation to provide more realistic effects.
ADOBE PHOTOSHOP 2.5.1 DOES NOT SUPPORT THE HLS COLOR MODE.
49. ABILITY TO MERGE SEVERAL RANGES OF COLORS WHEN COMPOSITING IMAGES
---------------------------------------------------------------------
When merging two or more images, an image editor must have control
over the overlaid pixels--that is, whether the pixels within one image are
opaque or transparent in relation to the other's. For ultimate control
over this kind of merging, the PhotoStyler merge controls enable users to
adjust the transparency for any number of discontiguous color ranges along
the RGB spectrum (such as all colors between 2 and 54, 98 and 103, and 113
and 115).
Adobe Photoshop's composite controls allow only one range of colors
to be merged between images, which provides much less control over the
results of compositing.
50. ABILITY TO DROP OUT SINGLE COLORS WHEN MERGING IMAGES
---------------------------------------------------------
The merging controls in PhotoStyler let users drop out a single color
in an image--such as white, black, or any other solid color--by simply
clicking an option to make the color transparent. This is useful when
compositing images that have solid backgrounds.
Adobe Photoshop has no single command to accomplish this. Dropping
out a color can be done manually, but the task requires toying with slider
bars to find the right combination that will make a particular color
transparent.
51. MORE FLEXIBLE INDEXED-COLOR TABLES
--------------------------------------
An image that's in indexed-color mode has a color palette that
contains a fixed number of colors (256 is the most common). Like many
image-editing applications, PhotoStyler gives the user access to the color
definitions through "color look-up tables." Aldus PhotoStyler does,
however, provide numerous editing controls that Adobe Photoshop doesn't
have. Image editors can, for example, easily "walk" colors through the
table to analyze an image's component colors or to create special effects.
(This shifts the selected colors one entry to the right or left by moving,
say, the color in the 256th location into the first location.) Users can
edit colors, find and change all occurrences of a particular color or
range, quickly invert colors, and automatically redefine colors so that
they blend smoothly from one selection to another in the table. As for
most other alterations, PhotoStyler 2.0 provides a real-time preview of
the effect of color changes on the image. Being able to edit and preview
the changes this way gives image editors significant control over special
effects, image analysis, and how the pixels within images map to certain
colors.
Adobe Photoshop allows its indexed-color table to be edited, but
lacks the interactive capability to shift colors through the table. The
program also cannot invert colors, redefine colors so they blend between
two selected colors, or provide real-time previewing of changes to the
table (the user must execute the change to see the results).
52. FOUR COLOR-PALETTE LAYOUTS
------------------------------
PhotoStyler 2.0 provides four different layouts for its color
palette, suitable for managing screen real estate and controlling which
tools should be at hand. The palettes become progressively more complete,
providing information such as color-component values, the color spectrum,
color wells of most recently used colors, access to Help, and secondary
access to tools such as the eyedropper.
Adobe Photoshop provides only two layouts for its color palette. Both
offer the foreground color, background color, and color-component
percentages; the enlarged palette also adds swatches of custom colors.
53. FOURTEEN COLOR LIBRARIES
----------------------------
PhotoStyler provides 14 libraries of process colors: PANTONEAE*
(Coated, ProSim, Uncoated, PoSim Euro, Process, and Process Euro),
Trumatch Four Color Selector, DIC Color Guide (Dainippon Ink and
Chemical), Focoltone, Grays, Crayon, Munsell (High Chroma Colors and Book
of Color), and ToyoPC. Users can also apply custom color libraries created
in Aldus PageMaker.
Adobe Photoshop provides only eight color libraries: ANPA, Color,
Focoltone, PANTONE (Coated, Process, ProSim, and Uncoated), Toyo 88 Color
Finder 1050 System, and Trumatch. Users can also create custom color
libraries.
SUPERIOR OUTPUT QUALITY
54. PRINT PREVIEW
-----------------
In PhotoStyler, a Print Preview shows all elements that will be
printed on the page, including the image itself, printer's and crop marks,
labels, and tiling breaks. Users can instantly verify whether everything
will fit on the output. The preview is immediately updated whenever the
user alters the printing specifications, for example, to change the
image's scaling,
orientation, aspect ratio, or centering.
Adobe Photoshop can show only an x'd rectangle that indicates
where on the piece of paper or film the image will print. It does not show
the placement of labels and printer's and crop marks. Because users don't
know exactly what they'll get until they print, however, they can
sometimes waste valuable time and materials getting the results right.
55. TILING OF PRINTED IMAGES
----------------------------
Aldus PhotoStyler can automatically tile images when printing to fit
large work onto multiple pages.
Adobe Photoshop has no tiling capabilities. If an image is larger
than the print area, the image gets clipped during printing.
56. "SOFT PROOFING" OF COLOR OUTPUT ON SCREEN
---------------------------------------------
The Kodak Precision Color Management System allows the PhotoStyler
user to "soft proof" printed output to the screen for an accurate
representation of what the colors will look like on any CMYK output device
supported by the CMS. This softproof feature reduces wasted output and
improves the user's ability to achieve accurate color correction.
Adobe Photoshop does not provide this capability.
57. THUMBNAILS CAN BE PRINTED
-----------------------------
PhotoStyler 2.0 can print one or more thumbnails per page from its
Album.
Adobe Photoshop does not provide thumbnail printing.
Program and File Integration
58. BUILT-IN IMAGE MANAGEMENT TOOLS
-----------------------------------
PhotoStyler has a feature called Album, an integrated program for
cataloging, managing, searching through, viewing thumbnails of, and
tracking revisions of all images filed on a user's hard drives, CD-ROMs,
and disks. Album is available at all times from an on-screen icon, as well
as from the "Open" dialog box. Users can save images automatically into
the Album, and add comments, keywords, and descriptions to them. They can
search through or sort files by title, keyword, or file format, and can
load multiple images at once into Aldus PhotoStyler. The Album is valuable
for browsing through the contents of Photo CDs, which can name files only
by number (rather than with more descriptive labels).
Adobe Photoshop has no image management and cataloging capabilities,
and no way to view Photo CD images as thumbnails before opening them.
59. SUPPORT FOR OBJECT LINKING AND EMBEDDING (OLE)
--------------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler supports OLE as a server so that images can be placed
into other OLE client applications, such as Aldus PageMaker, Aldus
FreeHandAE, or Aldus PersuasionAE, and then updated automatically.
Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 for Windows does not support OLE.
60. ABILITY TO ASSOCIATE FILE TYPES FROM WITHIN PHOTOSTYLER
-----------------------------------------------------------
From within PhotoStyler, users can set up any compatible image file
format so that it recognizes PhotoStyler as its editing application. This
way, double-clicking on an image from the Windows File Manager
simultaneously launches PhotoStyler and opens the image for editing--a
time saver for those who want to get their work done faster. Users can set
up file associations for any image format that Aldus PhotoStyler supports,
including BMP, JPEG, Targa, and TIFF images. Like other Windows
applications, PhotoStyler also honors file associations created from the
Windows File Manager.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this built-in capability. Association
of file types can only be done through the Windows File Manager.
61. BETTER CONTROL AND INFORMATION FOR JPEG
-------------------------------------------
When saving an image in the JPEG format, PhotoStyler users can select
a compression level from 1 to 100, as well as decide whether to subsample
the chromatic resolution to achieve a higher compression rate. (The latter
option provides settings for None, YUV422, YUV411, or CMYK4114.) All
options provide better control over the degree of compression, in which a
lower level loses less data than a very high level. PhotoStyler also
provides access to information about the compression level and subsampling
that has
been applied to any JPEG image.
The only JPEG compression control that Adobe Photoshop provides is a
slider-bar continuum of settings between "Fair," "Good," and "Excellent."
It does not enable users to select subsampling options. There is also no
way in Adobe Photoshop to determine how much an image has been compressed,
or whether subsampling has even been performed.
POWERFUL AND CUSTOMIZABLE INTERFACE
62. TOOL RIBBON
---------------
PhotoStyler has an optional tool ribbon that provides quick access to
all the settings for the currently selected tool or brush. This
everything-at-a-glance palette provides more information in one place than
Adobe Photoshop can, and supports faster changing of attributes for every
tool.
Adobe Photoshop requires the user to double-click on each tool to
check or change its current settings, and to close the dialog box before
using the tool, even if the settings are OK. The program's floating
Brushes palette does update to show the current brush size.
63. MORE PREVIEWING METHODS
---------------------------
For almost every action, effect, or transformation, Aldus PhotoStyler
has a way to help the user preview the results before committing to the
settings. These previews include the Practice Pad for trying out paint
tool settings; Multi-Preview dialog boxes for comparing the effects of all
filters, effects, and color corrections between the original and two test
images; optional thumbnail previews in the "Open," "Save," and "Save as"
dialog boxes for examining files before loading or saving them; a
Multi-Transform dialog box to verify the cumulative effect of several
transformations at once; dialog boxes that show a graphical sample of the
current settings for text, tools, gradient fills, and similar attributes;
a Print Preview to show how all elements on a page will print; and a "soft
proof" for an accurate representation of an image's colors based on the
selected output device. Furthermore, PhotoStyler can provide real-time
previews for all effects, regardless of the type of monitor or graphics
card in use; the real-time setting is optional so that users who have
slower computers can turn it off if desired.
In general, Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 has only three types of preview
methods: a Preview button in some dialog boxes to show the outcome of that
particular effect on the actual image on-screen; low-resolution thumbnails
in the Variations dialog box; and select dialog boxes that show a
graphical sample of the current settings for text, tools, fills, and so
on. (In fact, most of the effects in Adobe Photoshop have no kind of
previewing capability.) Adobe Photoshop does not provide anything similar
to a Practice Pad, Multi-Preview, or Multi-Transform dialog box, nor does
it have thumbnails in its "Open" dialog box. It can provide previews of
only one action at a time, and--except for the Variations dialog box,
which shows multiple samplings for only color balance, contrast, and
saturation settings--it does not provide a way to compare "before and
after" changes. In addition, Adobe Photoshop can provide real-time, 24-bit
previewing--for those dialog boxes that support it--only on computers that
have an Adobe Photoshop compatible graphics board.
64. QUICK COMMAND PALETTE
-------------------------
To help speed their work, PhotoStyler users can create their own
floating palette of up to 16 menu commands of their choice, such as
oft-used filters, effects, and transformations. They can arrange the
commands in any order they like--for example, to reflect the sequence of
steps that tasks such as color correction may require. The Quick Command
palette also provides an automatic cache of up to 16 most recently used
commands. Image editors can create and save an unlimited number of command
palettes for use with other images or other tasks. Besides enabling faster
processing of images that need the same kind of enhancement, the palette
lets people customize PhotoStyler for others in the production team who
may not know the program's interface but who understand the editing tasks
required for an image.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
65. CUSTOMIZABLE TOOLBOX
------------------------
Using drag-and-drop actions, PhotoStyler users can create their own
custom toolbox within the standard floating tool palette. They can select
which tools to include and where to put them--useful, for example, when
grouping tools according to frequently performed tasks.
Adobe Photoshop does not have a customizable toolbox.
66. ABILITY TO ALIGN MULTIPLE VIEWS OF AN IMAGE SIMULTANEOUSLY
--------------------------------------------------------------
Frequently an image editor needs to have multiple views of the same
image open--for example, to view different channels or ratios
simultaneously. In this case, the user would want all views to be focused
on the same area of the image, no matter where the active window is
scrolled. PhotoStyler therefore provides an automatic alignment option
that can pan all of an image's open windows at the same time that the
image editor uses the grabber hand to move around in the active window.
This ensures that all views are focused on the area the user is working
on.
Like PhotoStyler, Adobe Photoshop can show multiple views of the same
image, but it can't automatically focus all the views on the same area
without the user manually scrolling each window independently to the
appropriate spot.
67. HARDER-WORKING "SAVE" AND "SAVE AS" DIALOG BOXES
----------------------------------------------------
In Aldus PhotoStyler, the "Save" and "Save as" dialog boxes provide
similar functionality as the "Open" dialog box, enabling users to search
through their hard drive, see a thumbnail preview of the active image, and
set up formats and file types for the file about to be saved. Even as
they're about to save a file, users can delete large files when disk
memory is low, easily find a particular drive or directory, attach
comments such as version notes to files as they're saved, and perform
other file maintenance tasks.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer similar capabilities in its "Save" and
"Save as" dialog boxes.
68. BETTER ONLINE HELP
----------------------
PhotoStyler provides a complete context-sensitive Help that's
accessible from every menu, dialog box, and tool ribbon. It includes an
on-screen quick reference of all keyboard and mouse shortcuts, as well as
hints at the bottom of the screen that briefly explain the purpose of any
tool, palette, palette item, or menu command the cursor passes over. A
visual Help reference shows the entire interface (complete with palettes
and tools) side by side with the Help contents; a user merely points and
clicks to see a complete description of a selected item. A full index is
also available as a side-by-side window to keep users from losing their
place in the index as they read among the entries themselves.
Adobe Photoshop's online, context-sensitive Help is available for all
of its menu items but for only two-thirds of its dialog boxes. It does
supply on-screen hints about tools that have been selected, but not also
for menu items, palettes, and palette items. It also lacks a visual
reference for interface items, a quick-reference of shortcuts, and a true
index (what it labels an "index" is more like the table of contents in
PhotoStyler's Help).
69. PRIVATE .INI FILES
----------------------
PhotoStyler supports private .INI (preferences) files for different
users, working styles, or types of jobs. The .INI file stores the
workspace settings and tool and palette preferences that were in place
when a user last left the program.
Adobe Photoshop does not support private preferences files.
70. COMPLETE "FILL" DIALOG BOX CONTROLS
---------------------------------------
Aldus PhotoStyler provides significantly more control over fills than
Adobe Photoshop. Image editors can set the fill color as black, white, the
background or foreground color, or one of up to eight custom colors
PhotoStyler saves for the user. In the same dialog box, they can set a
fill's opacity and color mode, change its component-color values, get to
the color picker to select a new color, and use an eye-dropper to select a
color from a thumbnail of the active image. A Preview button shows the
results of the current fill settings on the active selection. Being able
to control so many fill attributes from one place aids experimentation and
increases productivity.
Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 can fill an object with the current foreground
color, a pattern, or with the corresponding portion of either the saved
version of the file or a "snapshot" they've previously taken of the image
(the latter option in essence "reverts" selected portions of the image).
The user must reset the foreground color before opening the "Fill" dialog
box, where only the fill's opacity and color mode can be set. All other
color settings must be built into the foreground color.
71. CHOICE OF COLOR IN WORK AREA
--------------------------------
When an image window is sized larger than the image itself,
PhotoStyler lets users select from among seven background colors for one
that interferes least with the colors in the image. This improves their
ability to assess and correct colors accurately, with less distraction.
The choices include white, black, and shades of gray, including 18% gray,
the best choice for most viewing environments.
Adobe Photoshop gives no choice to the user, instead making an image
background of light gray or black.
72. MEASUREMENTS IN MILLIMETERS
-------------------------------
PhotoStyler lets users specify units of measurement in millimeters,
as well as in the standard inches, pixels, picas, points, and centimeters.
Millimeters are useful in Europe and other countries where the metric
system is in common use.
Adobe Photoshop cannot specify units in millimeters.
73. MORE FLEXIBLE PLUG-IN SUPPORT
---------------------------------
PhotoStyler supports both the PhotoStyler for Windows and Adobe
Photoshop for Windows plug-in specification. In addition, users can
configure PhotoStyler to load plug-in filters that support either plug-in
standard from up to nine separate hard-drive locations, providing users
with more flexibility in installing filters.
Adobe Photoshop for Windows supports only the Adobe Photoshop for
Windows plug-in standard, and can only load filters located in the
Photoshop PLUGINS directory.
74. ALL PAINTING ATTRIBUTES ALWAYS DISPLAYED
--------------------------------------------
PhotoStyler has a Painting Options palette that displays all
attributes for the current paintbrush or airbrush tool, including its
opacity, spacing, soft edge, rate of flow, and stroke length settings.
Showing all attributes at once and in one place allows for faster
double-checks and adjustments.
Adobe Photoshop requires the user to check in three places to find
out all current settings for a painting or airbrush tool: the tool's own
dialog box (accessible by double-clicking the tool), the Brushes palette
(which can always be open), and the Brushes Options dialog box (accessible
only from the Brushes palette).
75. CONSTANT FEEDBACK ABOUT WHETHER SELECTION AREAS ARE ACTIVE
--------------------------------------------------------------
The rectangular selection tool in the PhotoStyler tool palette always
indicates whether there's an active selection area in the image. By
"marching" in place in the palette, the tool alerts users when even one
pixel is still selected, or when a selection marquee has been temporarily
hidden. This saves them the aggravation of accidentally applying tools to
the selection instead of to another part of the image.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability; users must often
second-guess why a particular tool may not be working the way they expect,
when the tool is actually being applied to a selection they don't realize
is still active.
76. TWO SIZES FOR TOOL ICONS
----------------------------
Tool icons in PhotoStyler can be set at either 24x24 or 32x32 pixels
to govern the size of the palette and how well it fits on-screen. This
feature is especially useful for those who have small monitors.
Adobe Photoshop does not offer this capability.
77. ABILITY TO OPEN THE PROGRAM IN MAXIMIZED WINDOW MODE
--------------------------------------------------------
A preferences option can set PhotoStyler to always open in
maximized window mode. This was a popular request from version 1.1
users, many of whom would create a macro to perform this one task
during launch. Being able to open PhotoStyler into the user's
typical working configuration saves an extra step that is otherwise
a nuisance task.
Adobe Photoshop cannot be configured to open in maximized window
mode.
====
Copyright 1994 Aldus Corporation (in Australia, trading as Aldus Software
Pty. Ltd.--ACN 054 247 835). All rights reserved. Aldus, the Aldus logo,
PageMaker, Aldus FreeHand, and Persuasion are registered trademarks and
TIFF is a trademark of Aldus Corporation. PhotoStyler is a registered
trademark of U-Lead Systems Inc., licensed to Aldus Corporation. Adobe
Photoshop is a trademark of Adobe Systems Inc., which may be registered in
certain jurisdictions. Kodak is a registered trademark and Photo CD is a
trademark of Eastman Kodak Company. Other product and corporate names may
be trademarks or registered trademarks of other companies, and are used
only for explanation and to the owners' benefit, without intent to
infringe.
3/94
Produced in USA
Available from Aldus Corporation as document #988-929M
---End of document---
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
:HOW TO GET YOUR OWN GENIE ACCOUNT:
_________________________________
Set your communications software to Half Duplex (or Local Echo)
Call: (with modem) 800-638-8369.
Upon connection type HHH (RETURN after that).
Wait for the U#= prompt.
Type: XTX99587,CPUREPT then, hit RETURN.
GEnie Information copyright (C) 1991 by General Electric
Information Services/GEnie, reprinted by permission
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
___ ___ _____ _______
/___| /___| /_____| /_______/ The Macintosh RoundTable
/____|/____| /__/|__| /__/ ________________________
/_____|_____|/__/_|__|/__/
/__/|____/|__|________|__/
/__/ |___/ |__|_/ |__|_/____ Managed by SyndiComm
/__/ |__/ |__|/ |__|______/
An Official Forum of the International Computer Users Group
*** STReport available in MAC RT ***
ASCII TEXT
for ALL GEnie users!
MAC/APPLE SECTION (II)
======================
R. Dean, Editor (Temp)
> USR Sysop Deal STR InfoFile
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
PRODUCT PRICE
*******************************************************
Special Limited time offer from now until June 1. Order now to lock in
this price. Modems are scheduled to begin shipping the May to June
time-frame. The NEW Courier "V.FAST-"Dual Standard" utilizes FLASHROM
technology, so updates and V.34 are only a software download away!
COURIER HST DUAL STANDARD w/V.FC & FAX $ 249
*******************************************************
ComServer 486 for Ethernet w/V.FC & HST $ 995
INTERNATIONAL V.32terbo* $ 299
INTERNATIONAL COURIER HST DUAL STANDARD* $ 399
DOMESTIC POWER SUPPLY (INT'L USERS)* $ 10
INTERNATIONAL POWER SUPPLY (INT'L USERS)* $ 50
!HIGH SPEED DUAL ASYNC SERIAL BOARD $ 50
! Product subject to availability
* European Sysops must now order via our office in France. The BBS number
is +33 20-059945, voice number is +33 20-471210. Be sure to read their
EURODEAL rules as they differ from USR/USA.
**International version - a separate power supply must be ordered if the
modem is used outside the U.S. or Canada. International power supply is
220 volts; Domestic power supply is 110 volts. At least one (1) power
supply mustbe ordered with each international modem.
***For detailed information and technical specifications on the above
products, call the U.S. Robotics Technical Support Department at
800-550-7800. You can also FAX at 708-982-0823 or try our Fax on Demand
at 800-762-6163 or 708-982-9061. In Europe call +33 20-471210 or FAX +33
20-919927.
===================================
U.S. ROBOTICS SYSOP SUPPORT PROGRAM
General:
This section describes the rules of the U.S. Robotics SYSOP Program. U.S.
Robotics reserves the right to modify or change these rules at any time.
Scope:
The U.S. Robotics SYSOP Program permits QUALIFIED SYSOPs to purchase
current U.S. Robotics products at a reduced price. The purpose of this
program is to continue the close relationship established many years ago
between U.S. Robotics and the Sysop community. Participants should
recognize that our ability to continue the program is dependent upon the
strong position U.S. Robotics enjoys in the reseller channel, with the
distributors and dealers, VARs, etc. that continue to buy and resell our
products to home and business users around the world. It is our intent to
maintain the integrity of our channel relationships by closely
scrutinizing each SYSOP sale to ensure that we only sell products to
qualified SYSOPs.
Qualifications:
1. The SYSOP states that he/she is NOT in the business of reselling
computer products and/or related peripherals, including modems. Qualified
resellers may take advantage of other programs offered by U.S. Robotics by
calling (800) 342-5877 and asking for the dealer sales representative for
your area.
2. The SYSOP has been operating the bulletin board system for at least
six (6) months and that this activity can be verified by dialing into the
bulletin board system. Typically user logs, activity logs, and local
message bases are a good source for verifying activity.
*** The exception to this rule is as follows:
If you are a registered owner of any of the following software packages US
Robotics automatically waives the 6 month verification portion of the
qualifications. US Robotics is proud to have entered into this agreement
with:
**********************************************************************
The participating vendors are:
PC Board(Clark Development ) (800)356-1686 Voice Dos
(801)261-8976 BBS
Wildcat!(Mustang Software Inc.) (800)999-9619 Voice Dos
(805)873-2400 BBS
Power Board(NUIQ Software Inc.) (914)833-3479 Voice Dos
(914)833-1479 BBS
(914)834-7830 BBS
(914)833-3623 FAX
Searchlight (800)780-LITE Voice Dos
(516)689-2566 BBS
Roboboard (819)682-6670 Voice Dos
(819)682-7771 BBS
T.P Board and Front Door (201)941-1110 Voice Dos
Remote Access(Wantree Development) (800)648-9800 Voice Dos
(913)441-0595 BBS
The Major BBS (Galaticomm, Inc.) (800)328-1128 Voice Dos
(305)583-7808 BBS
First Class (SoftArc) (416)299-4723 Voice Mac(E-Mail)
(416)609-2250 BBS
TeleFinder (Spider Island) (714)669-9260 Voice Mac
(714)730-5785 BBS
AmiExpress Phone to be announced.... Amiga
DLG (TelePro Technologies) (403)341-7826 Voice Amiga
(403)347-3269 BBS
Celebrity/Alacrity (Lexicon Computing) (310)693-9405 BBS Dos
TEAMate (MMB Development Corp) (310)318-1322 Voice Unix
***********************************************************************
3. The SYSOP understands that the number of modems that may be obtained
under this program is limited to the number of working, VERIFIABLE data
lines. Data lines MUST be dedicated for modem use only and MUST be
available 24 hours a day for modem access. Modems purchased under this
program MUST be used on one of the stated lines. Furthermore, the SYSOP
understands that the number of serial cards that may be obtained is one
for each 2 modems ordered under the SYSOP Program. Participants in the
Sysop Program beginning 1/1/92 may purchase the Dual Async Card based on
these rules as well.
4. The SYSOP agrees to post an appropriate logon notice, visible to users
of the bulletin board, which states that said bulletin board uses and
supports U.S. Robotics brand products.
5. The SYSOP agrees that he/she intends to operate the bulletin board,
for which these products are purchased, for at least six (6) months post
purchase. The U.S. Robotics logon must remain in effect for six (6)
months to allow verification that the bulletin board is in place and that the
U.S. Robotics promotional message is being displayed.
6. The SYSOP agrees that, in order to avoid conflict with the U.S.
Robotics reseller channel, modems purchased under this program cannot be
re-sold without the expressed written consent of U.S. Robotics. Violation
of this policy will result in the SYSOP's being ineligible for future
participation in the U.S. Robotics SYSOP program. In addition, any
warranties on modems re-sold without U.S. Robotics authorization will be
null and void.
7. The SYSOP understands that initialization of the verification process
may take from one (1) to fifteen (15) days depending on the number of
orders being processed by the SYSOP Support Department, and difficulty in
verifying your bulletin board. Shipment of product will take from two (2)
to six (6) weeks pending availability of the particular product ordered.
U.S. Robotics will ship product(s) to QUALIFIED SYSOPs as soon as possible
after:
A. The SYSOP completes the order form and questionnaire found on the
U.S. Robotics BBS via the SYSOP command at the main menu. These
must be filled-out on-line as no mail-in orders will be accepted.
Prepaid orders will NOT be processed until payment has been received by
U.S. Robotics. After placing an order on the board, a SYSOP wishing to
prepay his/her order should send a money order or cashier's check for
U.S. funds to:
U.S. Robotics
SYSOP Support Program
8100 McCormick Blvd.
Skokie, IL 60076
It is imperative that the SYSOP name, voice phone number and BBS phone
number be indicated for identification purposes. A personal or company
check is acceptable, but shipping will be delayed for ten (10) working
days to ensure that the check clears our bank.
NO CHECKS OR MONEY ORDERS WILL BE DEPOSITED BY U.S. ROBOTICS
UNTIL THE SYSOP's BBS HAS BEEN VERIFIED.
*********************************************************
** Wire transfers MUST be pre-approved by the **
** U.S. Robotics Sysop Department. **
*********************************************************
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
$ U.S. Robotics will now accept credit card orders. $
$ To pay via credit card please call the 708-982-5151 $
$ and be prepared to provide the phone representative $
$ pertinent credit card information. Charges will not $
$ be applied to the account until the BBS has been $
$ verified by a SYSOP administrator. $
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
B. The SYSOP understands that once an order is placed, it cannot be
changed. If you are uncertain as to the product you want to
purchase, you may consult the Information & Text Files file area of
this bulletin board for product information. Or, you may call the
U.S. Robotics Technical Support Department at (708) 982-5151 or
call our Fax on Demand system at 800-762-6163 or 708-982-9061.
C. Your board will be verified by a U.S.R. Online Support Analyst.
We MUST be able to connect with your bulletin board to verify board
status. In the event that we are uncertain of your board status,
you will be notified by a U.S. Robotics representative. We will
advise you as best we can as to what you need to provide in order
to have your board verified (appropriate logon, copy of phone bill,
soft-ware registration, etc.). In no case will we verify a board
until we are certain that it meets the requirements of the program.
D. U.S. Robotics will not accept voice phone-in orders.
E. U. S. Robotics reserves the right to modify, change or cancel this
program at any time.
F. If you have any questions regarding this program, please call
(708) 982-5151 for clarification.
*** THANK YOU ***
ADDENDUM
--------
We realize that all Bulletin Boards are not the same and we are not always
able to ascertain their validity during our normal verification process.
In order not to exclude those Bulletin Boards from our program, we may
request additional information such as copies of telephone bills, proof of
software purchase and/or registration and network and association
membership. This information will only be requested by U.S. Robotics in
rare cases and can not be used solely as a means of qualification.
Before placing an order, please take steps to ensure the process goes as
easily as possible.
1. Create a login for U.S. Robotics
2. Ensure no questionnaires or voting is necessary
3. If your logon requires information other than password be sure to
include this information on the order.
4. Once this is established logon under the U.S. Robotics ID and look for
verifiable proof of six months activity. If you can't find it, odds
are we won't be able to either.
** US Robotics CAN NOT download special software to verify **
** your BBS. We support the basic communication platforms. **
U.S. Robotics is determined to provide a SYSOP Program which is fair and
equitable to everyone. Any requests made of SYSOPs in order to verify
Bulletin Boards are made in order to ensure that the program serves the
entire SYSOP community and protect the USR distribution channel as well.
We will make every effort to process each and every order in a
professional and courteous manner. Please help us to provide the type of
service you want and deserve by filling-out the order form as completely
and accurately as possible and responding to our requests for additional
information in a prompt manner.
*** THANK YOU ***
Contact Points for U.S. Robotics Inc., USA
BBS - 708-982-5092
FAX - 708-982-0823
Fax on Demand - 800-762-6163 or 708-982-9061
Compuserve - GO USROBOTICS 76711,707
FIDO - 1:115/500
RIME - USRUSA #174
PRIME - 98:212/1
Internet - support@usr.com
Voice Sysop Support - 800-550-7800
Sales - 800-DIAL-USR
----
03/17/94
USRobotics Inc.
**********************************************************************
IMPORTANT NOTICE!
=================
STReport International Online Magazine is available every week for your
reading pleasure on DELPHI. STReport's readers are invited to join DELPHI
and become a part of an extremely friendly community of enthusiastic
computer users there.
SIGNING UP WITH DELPHI
======================
Using a personal computer and modem, members worldwide access
DELPHI services via a local phone call
JOIN --DELPHI
--------------
Via modem, dial up DELPHI at 1-800-695-4002
then...
When connected, press RETURN once or twice
and...
At Password: type STREPORT and press RETURN.
DELPHI's 20/20 Advantage Plan
20 Hours for Only $20!
-----------------------------
Advantage Members have always enjoyed the lowest DELPHI access rates
available. On the new 20/20 Advantage Plan, members receive their first 20
hours of access each month for only $20. If you happen to meet someone
online or find some other diversion, don't worry because additional usage
is only $1.80 per hour.
20/20 Advantage rates apply for access via SprintNet or Tymnet from within
the continental United States during home time or via direct dial around
the clock. Home Time is from 6pm to 6am weekdays. Access during business
time carries a surcharge of $9 per hour. These rates apply for most
services, but note that there are some surcharged areas on DELPHI which
are clearly marked with a "$"sign.
Who is eligible to take advantage of the plan? Any DELPHI member in good
standing. Applications are reviewed and subject to approval by Delphi
Internet Services Corporation.
It's easy to join. If you meet the eligibility requirements, you can apply
online -- at any time -- for membership in the DELPHI 20/20 Advantage
Plan. Your membership becomes active at 4 a.m. Eastern Time on the first
billing day of the following month.
The $20 charge will be billed to you at the beginning of the month to
which it applies. Any portion of the 20 hours not used in any month does
not carry forward into the next month.
-- Advantage rates may be changed with 30 days notice given online.
TRY DELPHI FOR $1 AN HOUR!
For a limited time, you can become a trial member of DELPHI, and
receive 5 hours of evening and weekend access during this month for only
$5. If you're not satisfied, simply cancel your account before the end of
the calendar month with no further obligation. If you keep your account
active, you will automatically be enrolled in DELPHI's 10/4 Basic Plan,
where you can use up to 4 weekend and evening hours a month for a minimum
$10 monthly charge, with additional hours available at $3.96. But hurry,
this special trial offer will expire soon! To take advantage of this
limited offer, use your modem to dial 1-800-365-4636. Press <RET> once or
twice. When you get the Password: prompt, type IP26 and press <RET> again.
Then, just answer the questions and within a day or two, you'll officially
be a member of DELPHI!
DELPHI-It's the BEST Value and getting BETTER all the time!
************************************************************
ATARI/JAG SECTION (III)
=======================
Dana Jacobson, Editor
> From the Atari Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Well, it's certainly been a week of interesting news. First
Commodore announces it's liquidating its assets and out of business;
and then Atari announces "...that it has exclusively licensed Jaguar
technology to Sigma Designs to deliver PC cards incorporating the
award-winning Jaguar 64-bit technology with Sigma's Reel-Magic(TM)
full-motion video capabilities. This deal will expand Jaguar's market
reach by allowing more than 10 million users to play Jaguar software
titles on their IBM-compatible personal computers by year's end." Both
of the announcements, in their entirety, are included in this issue.
While the end of Commodore has probably not shocked too many
people, the news is unnerving. It could have easily been Atari,
instead. Commodore and Atari computer users have a lot in common with
each other. Both really never reached the levels of acceptance of the
public, though deserved. Both, however, maintained a profile of "non-
conformity" by not going with the PC/Mac "in-crowd" and purchasing
systems according to their needs/desires rather than a self-proclaimed
standard.
What impact will the shutting down of Commodore have on Atari and
its users? Probably the only thing it will do is give us a taste of
reality - that of finality. There will be little benefit as Commodore
users aren't likely to abandon their platform, least of all toward
Atari machines, if at all in the near future. There may be some
"benefits" by attracting buyers for the Jaguar over the 3D2.
As to the announcement of Atari licensing their Jaguar technology
to Sigma, this has a great deal of potential for Atari. Although the
announcement carries few specific details (cost, hardware requirements,
etc.), Atari can reap some terrific rewards by capturing another market
for Jaguar users. As we learn more of the aspects of this new venture,
we should be able to tell just how promising this new agreement will
become.
As mentioned last week, both STReport Editor regulars Joe Mirando
and John Duckworth are away this week; look for their return shortly!
Until next time...
Delphi's Atari Advantage!
TOP TEN DOWNLOADS (5/4/94)
(1) CANVAS V.1.7 *(6) PROFILE 1.5
(2) WHATIS 6.7 (7) LHARC 3.01
(3) PHOTOCHROME 4 (8) BOOTXS
*(4) GUIDE TO THE INTERNET (9) SPACE WARS 2000
(5) CPX MAKER PROGRAM *(10) EPS TO CVG
* = New on list
HONORARY TOP 10
The following on-line magazines are always top downloads, frequently
out-performing every other file in the databases.
STREPORT (Current issue: STREPORT #10.18)
ATARI EXPLORER ONLINE (Current issue: AEO - VOLUME 3, ISSUE 7)
Look for the above files in the RECENT ARRIVALS database.
____________________________________________________
> Atari Licenses Jaguar Technology! STR Spotlight
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
For Immediate Release
Contact: Lynn Thompson, 408/764-0740
Karen Magill, 617/494-8202
Cunningham Communications, Inc.
Bill Rehbock, 408/745-2000
Atari Corporation
ATARI and SIGMA DESIGNS PARTNER to DELIVER
JAGUAR for the PC
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- May 3, 1994 -- Atari Corporation (AMEX: ATC)
today announced that it has exclusively licensed Jaguar technology
to Sigma Designs (NASDAQ:SIGM) to deliver PC cards incorporating
the award-winning Jaguar 64-bit technology with Sigma's
Reel-Magic(TM) full-motion video capabilities. This deal will
expand Jaguar's market reach by allowing more than 10 million users
to play Jaguar software titles on their IBM-compatible personal
computers by year's end.
"Atari will once again jump ahead of the market by bringing the
world's most advanced game technology to a new group of consumers
in record time," said Sam Tramiel, president of Atari. "Knowing
there would be great demand for Jaguar on personal computers
-- we designed the system to talk easily to the leading computer
architectures. This has allowed us to move quickly to partner with
Sigma Designs to make this happen before Christmas."
"We are pleased to join Atari in its mission to expand the industry
standards for video game play," said Julien Nguyen, vice president
of engineering and chief technical officer of Sigma Designs.
"Jaguar's 64-bit technology will be extremely attractive to the
MPC customer base of more than 10 million users. By combining
Sigma's Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG) technology with Atari's
3D animation, we look forward to bringing the hottest video game
technology and software titles to the desktops of users worldwide."
Sigma Designs, headquartered in Fremont, Calif., is a leading
manufacturer of high-performance multimedia computer products and
document imaging display solutions. With the the release of its
ReelMagic MPEG controller in October 1993, Sigma Designs redefined
affordable video playback for the PC. ReelMagic allows users to
experience a new generation of realistic entertainment, education,
training, and business presentation software titles with full-screen,
full-motion video and CD-quality sound. All Sigma Designs products
are sold worldwide through a network of dealers, distributors and
system integrators.
Atari Jaguar is the world's first 64-bit interactive multimedia home
entertainment system and is the only video game system manufactured in
the United States. Jaguar, the most powerful multimedia system
available, was recently named the industry's "Best New Game System"
(Video Games Magazine), "Best New Hardware System" (Game Informer) and
"1993 Technical Achievement of the Year" (DieHard GameFan). Jaguar also
recently was given the European Computer Trade Show Award for "Best
Hardware of the Year."
Atari Corporation, based in Sunnyvale, Calif., manufactures and markets
64-bit interactive multimedia entertainment systems, video games and
personal computers for the home, office and educational marketplaces.
--30--
All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
___________________________________________
> Commodore Goes Under! STR Spotlight - CBM, End Of An Era!!
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
CBM, END OF AN ERA!!
====================
WEST CHESTER, Pa.--Commodore International Ltd., a pioneer in the personal
computer industry, said late today it is going out of business. The
company plans to transfer its assets to unidentified trustees "for the
benefit of its creditors" and has placed its major subsidiary, Commodore
Electronics Ltd., into voluntary liquidation.
"This is the initial phase of an orderly voluntary liquidation of both
companies," Commodore said in a brief statement. Company executives could
not immediately be reached this evening. The company last month reported
an $8.2 million loss for the quarter ending Dec. 31 on sales of $70.1
million. A year earlier, Commodore lost $77.2 million on sales of $237.7
million in the same period.
In the latest report, Commodore said financial limits had thwarted
its ability to supply products, leading to weakened sales. One of its new
products, the Amiga CD32 video game, had sold poorly in Europe, where the
company did most of its business.
The company's net worth turned negative in the fiscal year ended last
June 30. Its stock, which had traded at around $3 per share before the
quarterly results were announced last month, closed unchanged at 87 1/2
cents per share on the New York Stock Exchange today.
"This is a company that briefly captured the attention of the
American market and didn't go where the market was going," said David
Coursey, editor of the newsletter P.C. Letter in San Mateo, Calif. "They
just never managed to change with the marketplace."
While grabbing some market share and attention in the late 1970s,
Commodore's products were something between PCs and game machines "and
never quite became either," Coursey said. Commodore started 40 years ago
as a typewriter repair company in the Bronx. Its extension to the adding
machine business paved the way for it to make calculators and then
personal computers by the mid-1970s. Commodore competed with Radio Shack
for the first computers sold to homes and co-founder Jack Tramiel became a
highly-regarded figure in the fledgling PC industry.
By the early 1980s, it was overshadowed in the PC business by Apple
Computer Inc. and IBM. Software manufacturers didn't create as much
software for Commodore's Amiga line as it did for Apple and
IBM-compatible machines.
In recent years, most of Commodore's business was in Europe. NewTek
Inc. of Topeka, Kan., created a product called Video Toaster that
converted Commodore's Amiga to a video-editing system. The $2500 product
was popular with small advertising agencies and home hobbyists. The
company's phones were busy tonight.
Commodore Users Mull Options
(May 2)
Scores of concerned Commodore Amiga users and developers from around the
world gathered in the conference area of the Amiga User's Forum (GO
AMIGAUSER) Sunday evening. They met to discuss their options now that
Commodore International has said it plans to liquidate its operations.
Answering members' questions was Mike Levin, leader of the Commodore
Shareholders Movement, an organization representing the interests of
Commodore investors. "There will be no doom and gloom here tonight,"
promised Levin as he opened the conference.
Member John Horton asked a question pressing on the minds of many Amiga
users and developers: "Will the Amiga line continue?"
"There are several possibilities," replied Levin. "It is my belief that no
one will continue to make the Amigas which we are familiar with beyond
what the existing supply of chips will allow. But instead, someone will
pick up the technology and license it out to anyone who wants it, and you
will see an array of Amiga-ish products, including cable boxes, game
machines, and an Amiga-on-a-card for Pcs."
Member Carl Hansen asked, "What will a share of Commodore be worth
tomorrow and then next week?" "Friday's news is definitely bad for
shareholders," answered Levin. "First the large creditors will be paid
back, then the smaller ones, then the shareholders. We probably won't see
much at all when it's done." Member Mike Richard asked, "What do you
think this will all mean in the short-term?"
"In the short term, there will definitely be a dry period," answered
Levin. "But continue to buy third-party products from GVP, Macrosystems,
Scala, etc., so that when potential purchasers of the Amiga technology
look at the market, they will see something good. Above all else, the
market must not be allowed to go away."
"Don't you think that the professional Amiga market will discontinue to
exist immediately?" inquired member Ottmar Roehrig. "Which company will
buy machines which are not being produced and repaired anymore by its
maker?"
"Unfortunately, it is a confidence issue," stated Levin. "Sure, there are
customers who will not buy computers made by a dissolved company, but
there are also people who care about solutions more than support."
But member Paul Idol was skeptical. "I understand your hope that we all
buy Amiga products and announce that we WILL buy them and so on," he
stated. "But how do you answer questions in the minds of buyers to the
effect of `Where will we get parts and repairs?'"
"It depends on the supply of parts," replied Levin. "I can only guess that
part of the responsibility of the trustees is to maintain the value of the
products and the market. This is a hope, but responsible trustees should
do what they can to supply whatever parts might still be in warehouses."
In his final comments, Levin appealed to the users and developers
attending the conference to make their voices heard. "The tradition of
Commodore computers will only continue based on your activities and
letters and outcry in the coming weeks," he stated. "Let people know this
market exists and wants to continue to exist."
___________________________________________
>chro-MAGIC STR InfoFile! - MultiSync Gizmo for Falcon!
""""""""""""""""""""""""
Software Innovations
Announces
MultiSync Gizmo for Atari Falcon030!
The Atari Falcon030 offers more graphics modes than any previous Atari
computer. When you add the modes possible with video enhancers like
FalconsScreen*, SWABS*, ScreenBlaster*, & BlowUp030* the possibilities
are seemingly endless. Unfortunately, there is a problem in trying to
access all these wonderful graphics modes. Some require a VGA type
monitor to be connected to the Falcon030 while others require an
SC1224 (RGB) type monitor to be connected. Most "standard" VGA
monitors aren't capable of displaying some of the RGB modes and most
RGB monitors can't handle the VGA modes.
So, you say to yourself, I'll go and buy a multisync monitor (like the
NEC 3D*) that is capable of displaying all the video modes.
Unfortunately, the existing adapters for MultiSync monitors make the
Falcon030 think that a VGA only monitor is connected and therefore the
computer refuses to use all it's available modes. How can you get the
full use of your multisync monitor?
chro_MAGIC Software Innovations offers the MultiSync Gizmo as a
solution to your multisync monitor troubles. The MultiSync Gizmo is a
monitor adapter that has a switch to toggle between VGA and RGB modes.
Just plug in your multisync monitor and set the switch - that's all
there is too it. You can even switch between VGA and RGB "on the fly"
without having to reboot the computer. The MultiSync Gizmo is backed
by a full 1 year warranty & is available NOW from your local dealer or
direct from chro_MAGIC. Suggested retail price is only $24.99 (US).
chro_MAGIC Software Innovations
516 North Jackson
Joplin, MO 64801
United States
phone: +1-417-623-7393
Note: Requires an Atari Falcon030 and a multisync monitor with a 15 pin
connector. May also be used as a VGA adapter when the switch is set
to VGA mode.
Also available from chro_MAGIC
RAM Gizmo for Falcon030 - $99.00 suggested retail
Pianistics 1.20 for ST/STe/TT/Falcon - $79.00 suggested retail
Guitaristics 1.92 for ST/STe/TT/Falcon - $69.00 suggested retail
* NEC 3D, FalconScreen, SWABS, ScreenBlaster, and BlowUp030 are trademarks
of their respective companies. chro_MAGIC Software Innovations claims
no ties with said companies or their products.
_________________________________________
> View 2.5! STR InfoFile - New From "It's All Relative"!
""""""""""""""""""""""
Here is a partial list of the new features in View 2.5, which we expect to
release at the TAF'94 in San Antonio this June 4-5.
The text viewer updates:
- In version 2.0, the text viewer and control module were a single
program.
This is no longer true. [Note: this allows you to easily replace the
text viewer, if there is another viewer you prefer!]
- Can now call a text editor.
- Can call up a fileselector to load another file.
- Displays text in TT medium res, if this resolution is available. [For
you Falcon users, that's 640x480x16.]
- Supports graphics cards.
- Will optionally load the entire file into memory, rather than small
chunks.
- Will allow mouse selection of options from Help screen.
- Has a "slider" on the Help screen for fast access to any point in a
file.
- Displays text twice as fast.
- Has a multi-line scroll capability for faster scrolling on all
computers.
- Has a third, slower speed for better scroll control.
- Has adjustable mouse sensitivity.
- Can optionally use mouse buttons to scroll.
- Has an adjustable full-screen scroll amount.
- Can search backwards, as well as forwards.
- Now includes a case-sensitive search, to go with its case-insensitive
search.
- Has an extra hex display mode to display files as binary data.
- Will select hex mode by default if the file is non-ASCII.
Coming soon, we'll post the list for the picture viewer... we didn't want
to inundate everyone with the entire list all in one day. ;-)
~dmj - It's All Relative
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STReport's "EDITORIAL CARTOON"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
> A "Quotable Quote" What a Concept!
"""""""""""""""""
Two politicians took a long safari vacation in the African Bush. One
day, they took a rest, removed their packs, and leaned their rifles against
a tree. They were startled when a large, hungry-looking lion emerged from
the jungle and began eyeing them with anticipation. It was clear that the
politicians' rifles were too far away to do them any good. One politician
began to remove his shoes, and was asked by the other why he was doing that.
The man replied, "Because I can run faster without them." The first
politician told him, "I don't care how fast you can run, you'll never
outrace that lion." The now-barefoot politician told him, "I don't have to
outrun the lion..... I only have to outrun you!!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
AQUARIUM FRONTIERS JOURNAL
SPECIAL OFFER
As a special offer to members of the Aquaria Fish Forum (Fishnet) and
the Pet Products/Reference Forum (PETPRO), on CompuServe, subscriptions to
_Aquarium Frontiers, Quarterly_ are being made available at a very special
prices. You can receive a 1 year subscription for only $45.00 or 2 year
s u b scription for only $85.00. This offer applies to both New
subscriptions and RENEWALS, and represents a significant savings over the
normal subscription price of a 1 year subscription for $55.00 or a 2 year
subscription for $100.00.
To take advantage of this offer, send a check or money order to the
address provide below. You must include the subscription department in
the address in order to receive this special offer.
Aquarium Frontiers Journal
* Subscription Dept. Fishnet or PETPRO
Post Office Box 190957
Miami Beach, Florida 33119
* Please use the appropriate subscription Department, Fishnet if you are a
member of this forum, or PETPRO if you are a member of that forum.
Remember *YOU MUST* include the appropriate subscription Department to
receive this special offer. Also, please include the form provided below.
_____________________________________________________________________
Aquarium Frontiers Special Offer
MEMBER OF: [ ] FISHNET [ ] PETPRO [ ] Both
[ ] 1 YEAR (4 Quarterly Issues) for $45.00
[ ] 2 YEAR (8 Quarterly Issues) for $85.00
NAME:________________________________________________________________
ADDRESS:_____________________________________________________________
CITY:___________________ STATE:___________________ COUNTRY___________
ZIP CODE:______________________
Please allow 6 - 8 weeks for delivery.
_________________________________________________________________________
**************************
A NOTE TO ALL MEMBERS OF Compuserve's FISHNET AND PETPRO. The publishers
of Aquarium Frontiers Quarterly will be accessing all public message
sections on both forums, topics of interest regarding the aquarium hobby
and product evaluations of aquarium equipment will be selectively
reprinted in Aquarium Frontiers.
**************************
AQUARIUM FRONTIERS BRIEF: Leading Edge information for advanced Aquarist,
Product Evaluations, Environmental Perspectives. The advanced Aquarist is
the principal target of this publication.
Aquarium Frontiers is a NEW quarterly Journal written by the world's most
respected aquarists, scientists, and naturalists, such as:
Ginny Eckstein, J. Charles Delbeek, ALF Jacob Nilsen, Julian Sprung, Marc
Weiss, and many others! Whether you're a beginner or an advanced Aquarist,
Aquarium Frontiers is a source of the latest information from the experts
around the world.
TOPICS will include: Fresh Water Aquaria, Marine and Reef Aquaria. It
will also include discussions on Diving Expeditions and Research.
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
> DEALER CLASSIFIED LIST STR InfoFile * Dealer Listings *
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ---------------
ABCO Incorporated
=================
P.O. Box 6672
Jacksonville, Florida 32221-6155
Est. 1985
1-904-783-3319
1994 SPRING SPECIALS NOW IN EFFECT!
------------------------
ABCO manufactures custom storage devices!
INTEL 32 BIT 486/66, VLB w/Math Co-Processor
4MB ram upgradable to 32MB 1MB SVGA VESA VIDEO CARD
Sound Blaster Compatible Stereo Sound Card
DOS 6.2 - Windows for Workgroups 3.11 Included
128K CACHE - 1.44/1.2 FLOPPY Drives, Mouse & 101 deluxe Keyboard
250MB IDE hd - 2 SERIAL, 1 PARALLEL, 1 GAME PORTS
250W POWER SUPPLY TOWER SYSTEM
14" Non-Interlaced SVGA 1024x768, 28dpi Monitor
40Mhz VLB, S&H Incl 1695.00
695.00 with order, balance COD
other higher powered packages available
or, design your own! Call for value added pricing!
Call: 904-783-3319 Anytime, Voice Mail
=====******=====
Syquest Removable 44-105-270mb SCSI Drives
All Size Platters Available
Diamond Speed Star 24x SVGA/VGA Video Card w/1mbVRAM
Diamond Stealth & Viper 1mb & 2mb - Call for prices
Enhances Windows SPEED and EFFICIENCY
Diamond High Performance Sound Cards Available
Soundblaster Cards and compatibles 8 & 16 bit
Pro Audio Spectrum STUDIO 16 - 16bit - Midi - Audio Recognition
Top of the Media Vision PAS Line - True Multi-Media
IDE Super IO cards & 16550 UART 2 & 4 Port Cards
Call: 904-783-3319 Anytime, Voice Mail
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
COMPUTER STUDIO
===============
WESTGATE SHOPPING CENTER
40 Westgate Parkway -Suite D
Asheville, NC 28806
1-800-253-0201
Orders Only
1-704-251-0201
Information
FULL LINE COMPUTER DEALER
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
EAST HARTFORD COMPUTER
======================
202 Roberts St.
East Hartford CT. 06108
1-203-528-4448
FULL LINE COMPUTER DEALER
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
MEGABYTE COMPUTERS
==================
907 Mebourne
Hurst, TX 76053
1-817-589-2950
FULL LINE COMPUTER DEALER
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
SAN JOSE COMPUTER
=================
1278 Alma Court
San Jose, CA. 95112
1-408-995-5080
FULL LINE COMPUTER DEALER
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
CompuSeller West
================
220-1/2 W. Main St.
St. Charles, IL., 60174
Ph. (708) 513-5220
FULL LINE COMPUTER DEALER
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
(DEALERS; to be listed here FREE of Charge, please drop us a line.)
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
STReport International Online Magazine
-* [S]ilicon [T]imes [R]eport *-
AVAILABLE ON OVER 20,001 PRIVATE BBS SYSTEMS
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
STR Online! "YOUR INDEPENDENT NEWS SOURCE" May 06, 1994
Since 1987 copyright (c) 1987-94 All Rights Reserved No.1018
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
All Items quoted, in whole or in part, are done so under the provisions of
The Fair Use Law of The Copyright Laws of the U.S.A. Views, Opinions and
Editorial Articles presented herein are not necessarily those of the
editors/staff of STReport International Online Magazine. Permission to
reprint articles is hereby granted, unless otherwise noted. Reprints must,
without exception, include the name of the publication, date, issue number
and the author's name. STR, STReport and/or portions therein may not be
edited in any way without prior written permission. STR, STReport, at the
time of publication, is believed reasonably accurate. STR, STReport, its
staff and contributors are not and cannot be held responsible in any way
for the use or misuse of information contained herein or the results
obtained therefrom.
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
