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Z*NET: ATARI ONLINE MAGAZINE Copyright (c)1993, Syndicate Publishing
Volume 8, Number 9 Issue #493 March 7, 1993 File:93-09
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Publisher/Editor..........................................Ron Kovacs
Writer............................................Michael R. Burkley
GEnie Online Editor........................................Ed Krimen
CompuServe Online Editor............................Michael Mortilla
Contributing Writer.........................................Len Stys
Contributing Writer........................................Bob Smith
AtariNet Coordinator\Telecommunications...................Bill Scull
Contributing Editor...................................Dr. Paul Keith
Z*Net News International Gateway - New Zealand............Jon Clarke
Z*Net News Service\AtariUser Magazine-Publisher\Editor.....John Nagy
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GEnie..............Z-NET CompuServe....75300,1642 Delphi.........ZNET
Internet...status.gen.nz America Online..ZNET1991 AtariNet..51:1/13.0
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CONTENTS
|#| The Editors Desk..........................Ron Kovacs
|#| Dateline Atari! With Bob Brodie.....................
|#| Kansas City AtariFest '93...............Announcement
|#| Perusing CompuServe.................Michael Mortilla
|#| GEnie Roundtable News...................John Hartman
|#| PMC Update..............................Announcement
|#| Perusing GEnie.............................Ed Krimen
|#| Z*Net Computer/Events Calender............Ron Kovacs
|#| Falcon030 Memory............................Len Stys
|#| The Unabashed Atariophile............Michael Burkley
###### THE EDITORS DESK
###### By Ron Kovacs
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
We are back after a short vacation. This year Z*Net will be taking
a few weeks off and NOT publish during the selected week. However, at
the present time there is NO planned date or timetable, but I will do
my best to let you all know before hand.
Next week:
AtariNet Update!
Z*Net Newswire Returns!
Z*Magazine Special Edition Coming!
Maybe an Article from Bob Smith and Paul Keith......
.....The Invisible Z*Net Writers!!!!!!!!
We'll see you next week!!
###### DATELINE ATARI! WITH BOB BRODIE
###### Transcript Courtesy of GEnie ST RT
###### Copyright (c)1993, Atari Corporation
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
(C) 1993 by Atari Corporation, GEnie, and the Atari Roundtables. May be
reprinted only with this notice intact. The Atari Roundtables on GEnie
are *official* information services of Atari Corporation. To sign up
for GEnie service, call (with modem) 800-638-8369. Upon connection type
HHH (RETURN after that). Wait for the U#= prompt. Type XTX99437,GEnie
and hit RETURN. The system will prompt you for your information.
Special Edition Friday Night Real Time Conference March 5, 1993
Dateline Atari! with Bob Brodie
Special Guest - Eric Smith
Host - Lou Rocha
<ST.LOU> Once again it is my great pleasure to welcome Bob Brodie,
Director of Communications for Atari Corp. to our monthly edition of
Dateline Atari! We also have the added honor of a special guest - none
other than the original author of MultiTOS, Eric Smith! Welcome to both
of our guests.
This is a special night for Atarians for another reason. Tonight we
expect to hear the long awaited news of Falcon030 shipping plans and US
prices. For several months we have followed the saga of Falcon
production and related software development. Last month we got an
excellent preview of Atari Works, the integrated wordprocessor, database
and spreadsheet.
Tonight we will hear about the long awaited (almost legendary) debut of
MultiTOS - Atari's multitasking operating system. Without further ado,
let's have the opening comments from Bob Brodie. <Bob told me there was
a TON of info, so settle back and enjoy> Go Ahead, Bob! Lou and the
rest of the gang here at the ST Roundtable!
<BOB-BRODIE> Once again, I'm delighted to be here for our monthly
gathering at Dateline: Atari! This month, I'm pleased to offer
something a little bit different from our normal fare. I've asked Eric
Smith, from the Software Engineering Group here at Atari, to join us
online to discuss MultiTOS. I know that you're all very anxious to hear
as much as possible about the capabilities of MultiTOS, and Eric is just
the man to answer all of your questions about MultiTOS. As many of your
may know, Eric developed a program called MiNT (which stood for Mint is
NOT TOS). Originally, MiNT didn't multitask with GEM applications, but
rather gave users a multi-tasking environment to operate TOS
applications from. MiNT is now incorporated into MultiTOS, and has
changed dramatically since Eric first wrote it. Obviously, we were
impressed enough with his efforts to offer him a position within Atari!
Before we begin with the MultiTOS portion of our CO, I'm sure that you
are all very interested in the status of the delivery schedule for the
Atari Falcon030 here in the US. We have had a small setback in the
manufacturing of the unit. One of our suppliers is running about 10
days behind in providing us with a couple of components that we need for
the US machines. This means that the machines will probably arrive in
late March to early April.
The reception that we've had for the machines has been nothing short of
sensational!! The phone has been ringing constantly, with many people
interested in signing up as Atari dealers. As you might expect, the
main interest is coming from the music field, as few other computer
systems can match the digital sound capabilities of the Atari Falcon030
right out of the box!! We have enough orders in hand that we expect to
be sold out quickly. This is the same type of reception that the
Falcon030 has gotten in the rest of the world, for instance in Germany,
where it was literally sold out in a matter of hours!!!
Much of our efforts here in Sunnyvale over the course of the last month
has revolved around finalizing plans for dealer agreements. It is our
hope that we'll be able to restore the value of an Atari dealership, and
help the dealers be able to be more profitable. We will be soon going
over the new arrangements with all of our current dealers, as we release
the pricing, and other sales related information to our current dealers.
Now, we'd like to tell you a little bit about MultiTOS! While this file
is a little bit long, it will give you a pretty good idea of what the
capabilities of MultiTOS are.
MultiTOS provides your Atari computer with multitasking, the ability to
run more than one application at a time. Since your computer spends
much of its time waiting for user input, multitasking makes more
efficient use of processing power--when one application, say, your word
processor, is waiting for input, the rest of your computer's attention
is turned to other tasks.
MultiTOS includes several important features that make multitasking
reliable and efficient. Adaptive prioritization gives the most
processing power to the most important program running--the word
processor you're typing into receives higher priority than the processor
-hungry compression program running simultaneously in the background.
Memory protection prevents one program from interfering with another
active program's data in memory. And if one program quits unexpectedly
or "crashes," MultiTOS protects other applications, which continue to
run; only in the most extreme circumstances will you need to restart
your computer.
MultiTOS runs existing, correctly-written TOS programs--as many as your
computer's memory allows. Some programs are already being upgraded to
take advantage of MultiTOS features, and more programs written
especially for MultiTOS are on their way, from Atari and third-party
companies.
MultiTOS can run as many programs simultaneously as will fit in memory;
GEM programs, Desk Accessories, and TOS programs can all peacefully
coexist under MultiTOS. You can move from one to the other, using
whichever you need. When one program is busy, you can set it aside and
work on something else until it's done. When you finish with a program
and exit it, the memory it occupied is freed for other tasks.
All running programs share the screen, each putting up its own windows;
with several programs running, windows may overlap or be hidden
altogether by one another. The application that receives input, like
keystrokes, from you is called the foreground or topped application, and
other programs running simultaneously are background, or untopped
applications.
Unlike TOS, MultiTOS allows you to operate any window's gadgets to move,
resize, or scroll the window, even if the window is not topped. When
you click within a window (but not on its gadgets), that window is
topped, and so is the application that owns it. The topped
application's menu bar is displayed, unless it doesn't have a menu bar
--in that case, the menu bar is unchanged.
Running GEM programs under MultiTOS is straightforward: simply double-
click the program's icon. The MultiTOS Distribution Kit includes two
simple GEM programs, "Clock" and "Lines." Double-click on CLOCK.APP, and
an analog clock appears in a window, but the Desktop's icons and menu
bar are still visible. Double-click on LINES.APP, and a graphics
demonstration appears in a window. Resize the Lines window so that you
can see the clock and some of the Desktop. Both programs and the Desktop
are running simultaneously! From here, you can run still other
programs, or perform Desktop operations like file copies.
Desk Accessories and MultiTOS
As with TOS, you can access your Desk Accessories from the "Desk" menu.
Unlike TOS, MultiTOS can load Desk Accessories as you need them.
Double-click on a ".ACC" file to run it, just as you would another GEM
application. You may want to keep only the essential Accessories loaded
at all times, and load others when needed. You can do this by putting
your ".ACC" files in a directory other than the root of drive C:\.
TOS programs present a special problem for multitasking, because they
usually assume they are the only programs running, and that they have
the whole screen to themselves. Since TOS programs don't know how to
share the screen, MultiTOS does it for them, by giving them their own
"screen," within a window. When you double-click a ".TOS" or ".TTP"
program, MultiTOS runs another program, "MINIWIN," which sets up a
window in which the TOS program runs. MINIWIN lets you select the size
of the window TOS programs are given, and the font they use. You can
change this information by choosing "Configure..." in the left most menu
when running a TOS program. Note: TOS programs assume they're using a
"monospaced" font, where all characters are the same width. MINIWIN
allows you to choose "proportionally spaced" fonts, where a "w" is wider
than an "i," for example. If you choose a proportionally spaced font,
the program may look strange, but is otherwise fine.
When several applications are running, the topped application presents
its menu bar and receives your keystrokes. The others are in the
background, where you can still move and resize their windows, but you
can't click on their menus or give them keyboard commands. MultiTOS
provides several ways to manage all the applications you may have
running, and to choose which of them is topped.
The leftmost menu in the menu bar is called the "Desk" menu, because
that's what it's called when the Desktop is topped. When another
MultiTOS-friendly application is run, and the application has its own
menu bar, the application's name replaces "Desk" in the menu bar--this
is one way to tell which program is topped. Some older applications
will not do this, but will otherwise work fine.
The Desk menu contains the names of all installed Desk Accessories and
below, the names of all applications currently running, with the topped
application indicated by a checkmark. You can top another program by
clicking on its name in this menu; its windows (if it has any) spring to
the front, and its menu bar (if it has one) appears.
You can run as many programs as your available memory allows, but there
are reasons why you may not want to. Often, there is very little
difference in system performance with several programs running, since
many of these programs are just waiting for input. When programs are
actively processing, or reading and writing data on a disk, they consume
more of your Atari's processing power. You may be tempted to leave
things running in the background because it's so easy, but if they make
too many demands on the system, performance will suffer. It's best to
shut down any programs you're not planning to use, just as you would
exit them in TOS. This makes the most memory and "computing horsepower"
available for the programs you really need. Experiment, and see what
combinations of programs work well together.
Shut programs down with MultiTOS the same way you would with TOS: save
whatever you're working on, then select "Quit," click the "close" gadget
on a window, type "exit," or whatever. This gives the program a chance
to save and close any files it has open and exit cleanly, returning your
computer to its normal state. As always, it's best to save your work
and exit from all running applications before restarting or turning your
computer off.
Occasionally, a program may "hang" in a state where it is no longer
running correctly, but does not exit. When this happens, you can shut
the program down from the Desktop. Select "Install Devices" under the
"Options" menu, then open drive U:\, and then the "PROC" folder. This
folder contains "files" that represent all the programs currently
running under MultiTOS, along with parts of MultiTOS itself. To stop or
"kill" a program, simply drag it to the trash. Be very careful with
this technique. Kill only programs which have not responded otherwise,
or are otherwise behaving incorrectly. Be careful what you throw away,
because it is possible to shut down a part of MultiTOS itself, after
which it can be difficult to recover without restarting. If you aren't
sure what something is, don't kill it.
Although Atari has made every effort to accomodate even ill-behaved TOS
programs, you may occasionally encounter programs that are not
compatible with MultiTOS. These programs may "crash," (exit
unexpectedly) or "hang," (keep running without accepting input, refusing
to exit). Usually when this happens, MultiTOS continues unharmed, along
with any other programs running at the time of the crash. Sometimes, if
a program crashes in an especially spectacular way, it can interfere
with other parts of MultiTOS operation, or other programs. If you see
error messages on your screen, or if you notice peculiar behavior from
other programs, save your work and reboot your computer. Try to isolate
the problem to the particular program and action that caused the crash,
and report the problem to the program's authors or publisher.
When you encounter a program which doesn't run under MultiTOS under any
circumstances but you need to run nevertheless, you can temporarily
disable MultiTOS, and restart your computer with TOS. To do this, save
any work in progress, shut down any running applications, and restart
your computer. You can use the Reset button, or hold down <Control> and
<Alternate> and press <Delete>. Immediately after restarting, hold down
the left <Shift> key. You will be asked, "Load MultiTOS? (y)es (n)o."
Press the <n> key, and your computer will start up without MultiTOS.
With the power of MultiTOS comes responsibility. Since some older
programs expect to be the only thing running, they may not guard against
some things which can happen "when their backs are turned." You can
avoid these problems by not using one program or the Desktop to
interfere with another active program. For example, don't move
configuration or open document files for your word processor while it's
running; the program may assume the files are in their original place,
and behave unpredictably. Similarly, be careful with programs that
manipulate disk data directly; don't run a hard disk defragmentation
program in the background and save a file to the same disk, or the
results could be unpleasant. As more MultiTOS-aware programs become
available, these problems will be minimized.
That concludes our opening remarks about MultiTOS, Lou. We're ready to
take on all the questions that our guests might have tonight!
Naturally, we're prepared to answer MultiTOS questions as well as almost
anything else they might want to discuss with us.
<ST.LOU> Thanks for the preview of MultiTOS. Several people have their
hands /raised so let's get to them right away. Our first question is
from B.AEIN.
<[Bman] B.AEIN> Bob, can you talk about new dealers, the Falcon 040, or
the Jaguar? Will there be coverage in mags like Popular Science? What
extras will be included with theFalcon? MTos on ROM? Thanks for being
here Bob.
<BOB-BRODIE> Hi Bman, we've gotten a number of enquirys from new
dealers. I expect to be able to expand our dealer network dramatically,
and quickly as well. Among the most exciting thing to the new dealer
prospects is the fact that they will actually make MONEY selling Atari
Computers, unlike the skinny margins that most clone dealers presently
have to live with. Re the Falcon040: Sorry, no comment about any 040
products. The Jaguar, our 64 bit game console machine is due out this
summer. The Falcon will ship with MultiTOS, Atari Works, Speedo GDOS,
and the other 8 applications that we previously indicated.
<[Dave] D.SHORR> Bob, what is the STatus of the dealer demo unit program
and Atari's service agreement with GE?
<BOB-BRODIE> The dealer demo program is going to happen, naturally
dependent on the dealer accepting our new dealer terms and conditions.
As for the GE program, there are legal issues that are impeding that
event from going forward. Unfortunately, I don't know when it will, or
if it will happen. However, the Falcon030 in reality only has about 6
components to it: The ram board, the floppy, the hard disk, the power
supply, the keyboard, and ... the motherboard. This makes it very easy
for just about anyone to be able to service the Atari Falcon030.
<S.MILLER58> Will MultiTos have the capability to open an individual
application multiple time? And will there be a unix style command line
capability? Or is MultiTos far from being anything like UNIX running an
x-windows type of envir.? and when it is going to be available?
<[Eric Smith]> Yes, you can open applications multiple times (assuming
the application supports this; most do). You can use most of the
available command line interpreters for the ST under MultiTOS, and they
will run (like any .TOS or .TTP window) in a window. Much like xterm
under X windows, if you're familiar with that. MultiTOS is going to
ship with Falcons, and will be available for users shortly aftwerwards.
(By "users" I meant "non-Falcon" users, obviously <grin>).
<S.MILLER58> Will, MultiTOS support SLIP so that I can use my
DECstation's graphics capabilities at home? err if I used the
terminology correctly.
<[Eric Smith]> We don't have SLIP support build into the OS, but people
could add this on with easily, using MultiTOS's loadable device driver
and file system features.
<C.CASSADAY> Bob or Eric: TOS and TTP programs sound like a pain. How
do programs like ARC Shell and XYZ shell work under MTOS? Concerning
the desktop environment while running several apps: Does the [B]ottom to
Top feature of TOS 3.06 work on windowed applications like it would on
normal directory windows? Also, can you use the right mouse button to
manipulate applications in the background in the same fashion?
<[Eric Smith]> Older versions of ARC shell didn't work under MultiTOS,
but perhaps there will be a new version that does. The [B]ottom to Top
feature works only on the desktop's windows; there is a new key (control
-alt-tab) for cycling between applications. Some applications (MultiTOS
aware ones) will let you manipluate them while their in the background;
for these applications you don't even need to hold down the right mouse
button, it all happens automatically!
<NEWDIMENSION> Evening Bob. Has Atari decided on how MultiTOS will be
distributed to owners of current Atari computers? MultiTOS is running
GREAT on our TT and Mega STE. Congrats to Eric on a job well done!!
<BOB-BRODIE> Jeff, it looks like we'll have to sell MultiTOS rather than
... upload it to the online systems. We have an arrangement with... DRI
that requires that we pay a licensing fee for the use of GEM on a per
unit basis. So we will be working on packaging and of course, pricing
for MultiTOS in order to sell it to the user base so we can honor our
contract with DRI.
<J.VOGH> I have a MIDI question. Is there any software which will allow
the falcon to have the capabilities of a sound module such as the Roland
sc-55?
<BOB-BRODIE> James, I'm afraid that I'm not familiar with the
capabilities of the Roland sound modules, and our music expert James
Grunke isn't in the office at this time. I'm afraid that I'm not up to
speed enough to answer that. My gut reaction is that it is possible,
but I don't think that there is such an application at this time.
<R.ALBRIGHT7> Eric, is there a feature in MultiTOS to allow minimising
of running-program windows, and if so, what does it require of the
program to allow this to happen.
<[Eric Smith]> No, minimization isn't built in to the OS. However, we
will be publishing a specification soon to allow programs to do this.
Basically, your program should just make its window very small and move
it to a corner of the screen. There are calls to allow you to check to
see if any other windows are at a spot, so that you can find an empty
place.
<JKUEHN> Bob, What is the current status of Atari Kodak and the Photo
CD?
<BOB-BRODIE> John, our contract is a done deal. We're awaiting the
final versions of the developer tool kit which is being ported to our
platform by one of the developers from Germany. We had expected to see
something in about January time frame, but there have been delays on his
end in getting the product finished. Naturally, we're very anxious to
see this completed.
<JKUEHN> Also will the multitos package come with .XFS CD-ROM drivers?
I Kodak developing the tool kit?
<[Eric Smith]> No, the MultiTOS package will not come with the CD-ROM
driver. It will be available later as an add-on, I think.
(Ed. Note - Due to a system problem, ST.LOU was disconnected and back up
RTC sysop Mike Allen assumed RTC leaderhip.)
<BOB-BRODIE> Well, let me finish up the question that John asked, and
lets' try to keep a QUIET demeanor in the next few minutes. John, in
answer to your question about Kodak...They provide the source code to
the Photo CD software system. From the source code that they have
provided, we port the code to our platform. This is the very same
procedure that is done with the port to MS-DOS, and to the MacIntosh
platform as well. Mike, take it formal, please. :)
<MIKE-ALLEN> Sorry folks - I don't have Lou's raised hand list. I'm
going to have to fake it for a while. hold on while I get a piece of
paper Ok, I have Craig Servin with his had up as well as a few others.
<C.SERVIN3> Is the new Desktop smart enough to deal with longer file
names? Also does MTOS give the 3D AES gadgets to TOS < 4.0 machines?
<[Eric Smith]> The desktop doesn't deal with longer file names yet
(future releases will, I hope) The 3D gadgets are built into MultiTOS
and will work on all machines.
<A.WARNER6> Thanks Mike, Good Evening Bob and Eric My question is : If
delays continue to persist will the Multi-Tos and other New Atari
programs ship? Sorry I meant delays with the Falcon
<BOB-BRODIE> MultiTOS is on the machines that are coming from the
factory. We indicated that in the beginning of the CO, sorry you missed
it.
<S.MILLER58> How much memory will I need to _realistically_ run multiple
apps.? The reason I ask, is I use PageStream a lot on my 4 meg TT and
it seems to GOBBLE memory. So, will I be looking at upgrading to 8+ to
mt btw PS and other programs? And does it look like any virtual screen
programs are going to work with MT?
<[Eric Smith]> Obviously it depends on the applications. I would think
that if you're already finding 4 megs tight, then upgrading to 8 megs is
a good idea. 4 megs is pretty much the minimum for doing "serious"
work. And yes, most "virtual screen" programs work with MultiTOS.
<S.DOUGHERTY1> Good Evening Bob & Eric, Does MultiTOS allow manual
adjustment of the priority, and does it display the current priorities?
Does the HD on the Falcon030's contain demos of software? Lastly, do
windows that are inactive still update?
<[Eric Smith]> The priority can be adjusted "manually", but that isn't
available on the desktop; I'm sure some enterprising developers will
release software to do it :-). Windows that are inactive can still
update, yes. Falcons ship with a variety of applications (which work
both with and without MultiTOS).
<BOB-BRODIE> Re the demo software... We will have a separate arrangement
with our dealers to get them.
<P.FORISTER> Bob, can you tell me a little bit about the surround sound
capabilities of the Falcon?
<BOB-BRODIE> Pat, most of that is not directly dependent on the Falcon,
but rather on the specific application that is running on the Falcon.
For instance, the Audio Fun Machine application that we ship with each
Atari Falcon030 uses the DSP chip to create a surround sound type of
effect. This is a capability of the DSP that is documented, and
available to anyone wanting to create those types of effects with their
Atari Falcon030.
<C.CASSADAY> I've been wondering about this particular question for a
LONG time. With MultiTOS, will it be better to run STalker as an .ACC
or a .PRG? Will the 'Favour Concurrency' option help at all? For the
new AES 4 icons features, is a new icon editor being written by someone?
And finally, is it now realistic to think of a TT030 as a file server in
a LAN using MTOS and Dragonware networking software? Seems like a
tremendous opporunity to sell Atari LAN set-ups with things like Atari
Works to use in the office environment.
<[Eric Smith]> I run STalker as a program. It seems to work very well.
(I'm not sure what difference the "Favour Concurrency" option makes; I
haven't felt the need to try it <grin>. I haven't tried out the
Dragonware networking software, so I don't know whether it would work
well or not.
<J.VOGH> I have a lynx question When will Eye of the Beholder be
released?
<BOB-BRODIE> James, I don't have a specific date for it at this time,
only that it will be available later on this year. Sorry I can't be
more specific for you at this time. We do expect to have more games
coming out for the Lynx at the rate of one to two titles a month through
out the rest of 1993.
<ARCHIVIST> Hi Bob and Eric! I have two qestions for you, not related to
MultiTOS, as much as I'm panting for it. Sounds like you've done a
super job Eric, Thanks! First Question, whats the status of MetaDos
2.0? we had someone looking for it, and I know I'm eager to see it.
<BOB-BRODIE> Charlie, I think it's a done deal, and we licensed it to
ICD in order for them to release it with their HD utilities. The
problem on our end was that the Atari host adapter didn't support the
full SCSI command set that was needed in order to be able to utilize the
CD roms. Since ICDs did, and their software/hardware is so popular, it
seemed like a reasonable decision to make. We'll have CD ROM drivers
for MultiTOS.
<ARCHIVIST> Oh that's what happened to it. I knew the Link handled CD-
Roms but I thought there was an Atari program still pending. Ok, second
question, I have a nice idea for a semi-regional marketing thing. Who
should I contact to pitch this at with Atari Canada sonambulant
<BOB-BRODIE> I'd approach a fellow Canadian who's residing here in
Sunnyvale right now. His name is Garry Tramiel. :) You can fax him at
408-745-2088, or send Snail mail. He won't come on-line.....YET.
<T.WILSON14> Hi guys, ok, kinda a two parter - one, does Atari in
general have plans for ethernet ports or options on their machines in
the future, and how about sockets or tcp/ip in multitos.
<BOB-BRODIE> Hi Tim, we'll both answer this one. Re the Ether net
ports, not on the current machine, although there are parallel and SCSI
ethernet adapters that can be used with the Atari Falcon030. All that
is needed is for software to be created to know that it is there. We've
discussed doing such a project here, and there is of course, also the
enterprising Chris Latham at Power Point Technology (PowerDOS) that is
very capable of doing such a project. I'll let Eric handle the TCP/IP
stuff.
<[Eric Smith]> As I mentioned, it's easy to add new devices or file
systems to MultiTOS; they can be loaded at boot time. I've heard that
some people in Germany are in fact working on tcp/ip software using this
mechanism; no doubt some other developers are too. I don't have any
dates or future details, though.
<B.CARNAHAN> Eric, Can a GEM app running under Mtos switch screen rez
without confusing Gem in using AES functions?
<[Eric Smith]> No, because other applications that are running would
still be using the wrong resolution. We have published a way to cause
a resolution change, but it requires shutting down all other running
applications, so it's not really a "nice" thing to do.
<D.A.BRUMLEVE> ST Format has recently reported that some 150 leisure
devs in the UK are working on Falcon games. Any truth to this? If so,
when will the first ones be out?
<BOB-BRODIE> Dorothy, I cannot confirm the exact number of developers in
the UK that are working on the games, that's more Bill's area.. and he's
snuck of to his home for the evening. I can tell you that at the last
meeting we had, he did say that there were over 35 Falcon "capable"
games, that would use DSP sound, etc, that were on target to be
delivered in June of this year.
<C.CASSADAY> Bob, so... MTOS won't be available until after the Falcon
is available? I'm REALLY looking forward to purchasing MTOS. (If you
couldn't tell already.) _Any_ idea of pricing on Atari Works, SGDOS, or
MTOS?
<BOB-BRODIE> Chris, at this point that is correct. MTOS won't be out
for the other users until after the Falcons hit. I'm pleased to hear
that you are so interested in getting it, though. The pricing for Atari
Works/Speedo GDOS is set. The suggested list price for Works with
Speedo GDOS and 14 Bit Stream fonts is $129. The price on MTOS hasn't
been set yet, but I'm sure that it will be under $100 US. We will also
be selling a HD kit for Falcon030 buyers that don't opt to buy the HD
version as an original component, and that HD will come with MultiTOS,
Works, and Speedo GDOS installed on it.
<MIKE-ALLEN> Bob when/where can I get the AW/Speedo package? I'd like
to support my dealer and can I trade gdos 1.1 in <g>
<BOB-BRODIE> Mike, it looks like we're about 30 days away from shrink
wrap on Atari Works, and it will ship with the Speedo GDOS/font set up
that I descriped previously. It really does look great, and I'm sure
that you will be pleased. I've abandoned every other word processor
that I ever used, I'm really, really happy with the capabilities of
Atari Works. We'll probably be having a CO with the author of Works,
Pradip, in the next few weeks here on GEnie.
<S.DOUGHERTY1> How do other applications see the U:\ directory, and what
would happen if one attempted to load a task into say, Atari Works or
1st Word?
<[Eric Smith]> Drive U: looks to applications like any other drive. If
someone tries to load a process into Atari Works or 1st word, they would
see a whole lot of garbage in their window :-). (Actually, a sensible
word processor would pretty quickly figure out that this wasn't a proper
document...)
<BRIAN.H> Hi Bob and Eric!!!! I have two quick questions. A developer
in the BBS stated that the TT is cancelled and this is the reason why he
is not continuing with a product for the TT. Is the TT gone???
<BOB-BRODIE>
Second, is the new developer contract out to dealers??? Thanks. Brian
we have only a few TTs left in stock at this time, and the amount of
interest in the product has dropped dramatically as the Falcon030 comes
closer to the actual shipping date. We would be very happy to continue
producing TT030s, as long as we have enough interest to make it
worthwhile to fire up the production lines. If there isn't sufficent
interest, then it doesn't make any sense to produce say, five thousand
TTs. Re the new developer contract to dealers, I think you mean the
dealer agreement to dealers...we don't have any reason to send the
developers agreement to the dealers! :) The dealer agreement will be
going out next week via our rep firms.
<W.PARKS3> First off, Thank you guys for staying so late- Don't worry,
though, there's not much snow on the roads :-) Will the Falcon ship with
a) a VGA monitor adaptor b) a ST monitor adaptor c) both d) that's
Bill's area :-)
<BOB-BRODIE> e) or a composite adapter f) none of the above. The video
adapter is a separate item that will be purchased at the time of the
sale by the customer, and HIS choice will depend on what he wants to do
with his Falcon030.
<C.CASSADAY> Just wondering... Specifically, do Aladdin and PageStream
co-exist peacefully under MTOS? Seems like I could be doing a user
group newsletter right now.
<[Eric Smith]> Aladdin has a nasty habit of locking the screen; while
the screen is locked you can't get to other applications. But otherwise
it works fine (i.e. there's no damage done, and once the screen is
unlocked you can get to your other programs). So I would say the answer
is probably "sort of". I haven't tried that particular combination yet,
though.
<MIKE-ALLEN> I understand that there is a version 2.0 of Aladdin coming
that should be friendlier with MTos.
<S.MILLER58> how will we go about getting MT? I would like to get a
copy _the_ day it is realeased, even if I have to drive to San Jose to
get it. It's only 180 miles from me. And is SGDOS easy to set up and
use?
<BOB-BRODIE> We will be selling MultiTOS to our dealers, so you will be
able to order it from your dealer with little problem. Speedo is very
easy to use. There is a diskette with an install program that works
just fine, and prompts you through about four disks to install your
printer driver, and the .ACCs for the fonts and the printer drivers.
<S.MILLER58> I have a dealer here in San Luis Obispo, but he told me
just the other day he has had _NO_ contact with Atari Corp. What about
that kind of thing?
<BOB-BRODIE> Who's the dealer?
<S.MILLER58> Computer Logic
<BOB-BRODIE> I have a feeling that he is buying everything from one of
our distributors, Pacific Software Supply, which by coincidence, is also
located in San Luis Obispo. :) He'll probably be able to continue
buying product like Works/Speedo from him.
BTW, we had Travis Guy, our editor of Atari Explorer Online just run the
PageStream/Aladdin combo. Worked fine, as long as he ran Aladdin first.
He said that PageStream likes to grab most of the ram right away. :)
<K.RICHARD2> About optional HD will it be available in different megs?
<BOB-BRODIE> Yes, basically it will be in 80 meg, 120 megs, and 200
megs. The price will vary according to market conditions on the HDs.
Virtually all of the machines that have been ordered at this... point
have been 4 meg/65 meg machines, so that's what the initial shipments
will be. Probably in April or May, I don't have a copy of the
production schedule in front of me. To be sure, we want to supply the
users with the one meg machine as well, and also make it easy for them
to get the HD kit in a sensible fashion. BTW, did I mention that we're
thinking of a Four Meg/No HD combo? Some of our dealers have thought
that it would be a good offering to have in the product line.
<MIKE-ALLEN> How about a 14 meg no HD combo?
<BOB-BRODIE> You can order the one meg machine and a fourteen meg ram
board to get that unit, Mike. We will have upgrade boards for four megs
of ram, and fourteen megs of ram. :) Then of course, you could order
the HD kit with the 200 meg HD!
<JKUEHN> Eric, What is the reason that MiNT Ver 0.95 and the ICDXX.XFS
combination only reads Kodak ISO9660 Photo-CD disks? Bob, ICD says that
they are currently waiting for a fix from Atari for a problem with
Metados 2.0. Comments?
<[Eric Smith]> I haven't seen the ICD .XFS file system, so I don't know
why it only reads Kodak disks. Probably it's based on an older version
of the .XFS driver (which was developed originally by the same developer
doing Photo CD, so he obviously had a certain focus :-). Also, MiNT
0.95 is very old; the version going into MultiTOS is 1.04.
<BOB-BRODIE> John, don't know...better check with Bill Rehbock on that
one.
<S.DOUGHERTY1> How much will the monitor adaptors cost (estimate okay),
and do you need both for a multisync monitor? Could you say if Alan
Skaggs of A-Online Computing in Tampa, FL is a real dealer? Sean, the
monitor adapter go for about $15 if memory serves me correctly. For a
MultiSynch monitor, you'll just need to VGA. A-Online in Florida does
have an account with us, mostly he just buys parts, and does service.
I don't believe that he sells new product, but I'm not 100% sure about
that one.
<S.DOUGHERTY1> Can you get the TV/ST resolutions on a MultiSync using
the VGA adaptor?
<BOB-BRODIE> I think that it depends on the monitor, not the connection.
<BRIAN.H> Hi again. What does/can ATARI offer to user groups to promote
the ATARI line of computers? I believe user groups are the the most
economical form of advertising for ATARI. Do you have press kits,
information packages, etc.? What about lending of equipement for mall
presentations, etc. I am amazed at the number of members in the user
group I am in, considering there is no dealer within 20 hours of
driving.
<BOB-BRODIE> Brian, in the past we have offered user groups a tremendous
amount of support in the form of free equipment on loan for their shows,
like mall presentations, etc. We have not, as a rule, sent out Press
kits to user groups, because the material that we send to the public vs.
the press vs. the dealers is all different. For example, in Milwaukee
every summer, we loan about 50+ systems to a user group for use at a
huge gaming convention, and they also manage to make a little bit of
money off of it. I feel that in the next year, we'll be more inclined
to do those things in conjunction with a DEALER as well as a user group.
Often, we're much better off working through the dealer than just the
user group. The user group is always very enthusiastic about the
product, but not always as sales oriented as we'd like. For example, in
Las Vegas this past COMDEX, we had (as we always do) a great group of
guys from the Las Vegas groups helping us out with the Falcon030 set up,
etc. But they were really having a great time checking out the machines
for *themselves* as well, if you know what I mean.
<BRIAN.H> I agree Bob a dealer would be best. But in our case A show or
proper presentation may attract a dealer. Thanks for the answers, I
really appreciate them.
<ST.LOU> Closing comments, Bob, Eric?
<[Eric Smith]> You're very welcome.
<BOB-BRODIE> Thanks again for a wonderful evening on GEnie. I hope that
it was as much fun for all of you as we had. This time we had a total
of four people online in my office for most of the night, and had a
terrific time! I'm looking forward to next month's CO already! Thanks
again, and goodnight!
###### KANSAS CITY ATARIFEST '93
###### Announcement
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
As we had a conflict of dates with two other long running shows, we have
moved our show date to remove this conflict. The new show date is
listed below, we are sorry for any inconvenience this has caused. The
location is the same.
The location for the show is Stadium Inn, 7901 E 40 Hwy., The date of
the show will be June 26th and 27th. Ticket prices at the door will be
5.00 dollars each day. Advance tickets will be 4.00 dollars each, for
advance tickets, please send 4.00 dollars per ticket to: Kansas City
AtariFest, P.O. Box 1653, Lee Summit, MO 64063 or if you belong to a
user group please mail a request for a user group information pack.
To make room reservations please call 1-800-325-7901, we are also
working with a local travel agent to get special airfares for the show.
You may call 1-800-874-7691 to take advantage of the special fares. For
more information please leave Email as follows; GEnie, B.welsch,
B.Frazier2, J.krzysztow, for CompuServe, Leave for Jeff Krzysztow at
74027,707, for Delphi, Bobtrow or you can call (816)224-9021, or mail to
the address listed above.
We hope you will join us to welcome the following companies; Cali-Co
software, ICD, MissionWare Software, Fair-Dinkum Software, Systems For
Tomorrow, New Dimensions Computer Center, Electronic Spinster Graphics,
Compu-Seller West, ChroMagic Software, Paul's Software, The Codeheads,
Clear Thinking Software, S.K.Ware, MegaType, Oregon Research, D.A.
Brumleve, Muller Automation, and a lots more!! Watch for updates to
this list or check our Genie topic (cat 11 topic 11)
Bruce Welsch
KCAC Special Events Coordinator
###### PERUSING COMPUSERVE
###### By Michael Mortilla
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the center cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
William Butler Yeats [1865-1939]
There is no hidden message or implied meaning I wish to relate with the
above quote. Simply a mention of the falcon (perhaps one of most
famous). There's no harm in repeating it, is there?
But speaking of Falcons, we hope to actually see one this weekend at the
open house over at Barefoot Software in LA. If so, you can be sure to
read about it here next week.
We'll skim over the philosophical news this week (between Yeats and last
weeks article, we won't be needing much more abstract opinion for
awhile). But it should be mentioned that the thread concerning the food
stamps and other public issues of welfare, etc, are still continuing in
the Ataripro Forum. And no one has lost their temper yet!
The for sale messages in the Atari pro and arts forums appears to be
increasing, albeit gradually. It would appear that some of us are
preparing our bank accounts for the arrival of the Falcon 030. No one
would actually be considering using a different platform, would they?
The new lower prices on CIs are very much in the messages this week.
Just which options to choose are a concern of the members, as well they
should be. SYSOP Keith Joins writes: "You can make the change anytime
by issuing the command GO CHOICES. However wait until the last day of
the month or you will be billed the basic charge for February." In a
later messages he continues by saying "The final Saturday of each month
is the end of the month as far as CIS' billing period goes so by waiting
until after that you make sure you don't get charged for the current
month." The nice thing is that you can change the option at any time
your needs change.
With an increase of Atari "officials" online, it's important that we
make them comfortable as possible <g>. When Dan McNamee of Atari had
some inquires, we all learned that it is possible to undelete an e-mail
message! Steve Ahlstrom, leaves these simple instructions:
"GO EASY
SET MODE COMMAND
SET RETAIN YES
SET (you'll get menu here)
Select option 1 (change your editor choice)
Select option 1 (restore the editor choice to what it was before)
Make the changes permanent
After doing that, from now on you can undelete email that has been
deleted in the last (approximately) 48 hours. To do so, GO EASY, at the
prompt type UNDELETE and you'll get a list of recently deleted emails --
select the ones you want to restore."
The final entry from the Ataripro message base is in the form of a
riddle, and if ever there was a riddle for programmers, this is it!
Toli Vavskos writes:
"Hi all
I know this is not the appropriate forum for a riddle, but I assume
there are a lot of good thinkers among you. So here goes:
You've got 12 balls. 11 of them weigh the same. One of them has a
different weight but we don't know if it's heavier or lighter than the
others.
You've got a balance that you may use three times only. How do you find
the different ball?
This riddle puzzled me for quite some time and I still can't find the
answer. Reply if you know it.
David D. Hagood replies:
"The way you solve this is to realize that the scale divides the balls
into three sets: those on the left of the scale, those on the right, and
those that aren't weighed. What you do is assign each ball an "address"
that is three trits (a trit is a trianary digit, analogous to a bit but
it may take on three values). Number the balls 1-12, the addresses are:
ball # t1 t2 t3 ball # t1 t2 t3
1 A A A 7 B A A
2 A A B 8 B A B
3 A B C 9 C B C
4 A B A 10 C B A
5 B C B 11 C C B
6 B C C 12 C C C
Now, do three weighings: for each weighing place the balls with A's on
the left of the scale, balls with a B on the right, and balls with a C
don't get weighed. For the first weighing, use trit t1, for the second
weighing, use t2, etc. For each weighing, record the result: A = left
was heavier, B = Right was heavier, C = balanced. Now, try to match
that to a result in the table. If you find a match, you're done (also,
the ball is heavier than the rest). If you don't find a match, change
all the A's into B's and try again (and the ball is lighter than the
rest).
And leave it Mr QCIS, Jim Ness to find the bug! Jim writes:
"David -
>> "if you don't find a match, ...try again."
But, if you've gotten to this point, you've already used up your max of
three weighings."
Let's give David the last word here:
"What I meant was, take the address you generated with the three
weighings. Convert the A's to B's in that address, and consult the
table again. No additional weighings are needed.
Incidentally, that is why the problem is stated as 12 balls: there are
twelve "addresses" that are unique when you allow A's and B's to be
equivelent. If you knew ahead of time that the ball was light (or
heavy) you could go up to 27 balls and determine the results in 3
weighings."
Brian G. at MacDonald Associates (the folks who bring you ST Informer,
writes in the Atari vendor forum: " As of Friday February 26, 1993, Tax
Wizard is shipping. This years program is a tremendous improvement over
the past ones, with a much nicer GEM environment.
Call 1-800-800-2563 for more information." Just in time for taxes
(ugh!). Maybe you can save a bundle on accounts fees this year?
As this article was being completed, news has just reached us that there
ws an explosion at the World Trade Center in New York City. There were
at least 5 fatalities, and an explosive device is all but certain. In
the immediate area of the blast was the limosiene used to transport the
President of the United States, who was due in the area (NJ) on Tuesday.
We extend our deep sorrow to those who have lost members of their
families and friends in this tragedy, and hope that the responsible
parties will be apprehended quickly and brought to justice.
###### GENIE ST RT WEEKLY NEWS #3.1
###### Compiled by John Hartman
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
NEW DARLAH'S TREAT CLUBDEMO.LZH
INFOworks presents Club Dominoes, the most authentic and realistic
dominoes simulation available for ANY computer. If you enjoy playing Mah
Jong, Ishido, Backgammon, Yahtzee or Cards, you'll like Club Dominoes!
For ANY Atari ST/STe/TT w/512k, low or med rez, and hard disk
installable. Download from page 475 Option 9 for FREE!!!!!
NEW DARLAH'S CLASSIC TREAT MJ30DEMO.ZIP Option 10 on THIS PAGE!!!
This DEMO of Mah Jong solitare from Cali-CO. is a PLAYABLE demo that
contains 3 layouts, 3 tablecloths and 3 tile sets. All the layouts are
winable, but they will all be the same! The REAL version has MANY
layouts, tile sets, tablecloths and ALL the Games are DIFFERENT!
Last two month's RTC transcripts
--------------------------------
27777 CODEHEAD.ARC X BRIAN.H 930218 16640 205 13
27614 BRODIE5.ARC X ST.LOU 930206 16896 520 13
27339 IAAD_RTC.ARC X BRIAN.H 930115 17152 140 13
27268 BRODIE4.ARC X ST.LOU 930109 17152 687 13
--------------------------------
Last Month's Top Downloaded Programs/Utilities:
-----------------------------------------------
27832 STZIP22.ZIP X E.JOLLEY 930223 123648 380 40
27568 CENTPED.LZH X GRMEYER 930202 92416 331 8
27737 DE102103.LZH X ORA.TECH 930216 119936 324 2
27634 MANDALA.LZH X J.EIDSVOOG1 930207 5120 298 21
27756 DROPOUT.LZH X J.EIDSVOOG1 930217 4224 274 21
27557 SAVERS12.LZH X J.DILLENBURG 930201 71936 265 21
27864 FLYSHP13.LZH X CODEHEAD 930226 7168 235 21
27669 NEOP302A.LZH X GRIBNIF 930212 240256 229 21
27829 PUZZLE.LZH X J.EIDSVOOG1 930222 3840 227 21
27697 STZIPMAN.ARC X D.CLARK59 930213 5120 195 40
-----------------------------------------------
Last Week's Top Downloaded Programs/Utilities:
----------------------------------------------
27832 STZIP22.ZIP X E.JOLLEY 930223 123648 380 40
27864 FLYSHP13.LZH X CODEHEAD 930226 7168 235 21
27829 PUZZLE.LZH X J.EIDSVOOG1 930222 3840 227 21
27873 FORTUN12.LZH X CODEHEAD 930227 30208 152 21
27830 SLAB11.LZH X ROB-G 930223 252416 110 29
27831 FIT_ACC.LZH X V.REINA1 930223 15616 103 8
27794 MOVPIC20.ZIP X OUTRIDER 930221 13184 100 21
27857 GROCRY21.LZH X R.HOEKSTRA1 930225 35968 95 2
27819 DRVSPACE.LZH X D.PANKE 930222 5120 84 2
27872 TRACE.LZH X K.LORD 930226 62848 82 28
----------------------------------------------
Last Month's New Demos:
-----------------------
27906 BBSXDEMO.LZH X C.SANCHEZ2 930301 242432 7 10
27856 TBX_DEMO.LZH X ABC.SOLN 930225 164864 52 10
27818 CLUBDEMO.LZH X J.HANLEY4 930222 98688 458 10
27799 PALMASTR.LZH X CYBERCUBE 930221 110208 81 10
27791 COPNROB.ARC X V.VALENTI 930220 39168 40 10
27703 FRAC_DSP.LZH X J.ROY18 930214 30464 37 10
27657 MT32EDT.ARC X L.WHITE17 930210 123648 12 10
27636 SOLUTION.LZH X P.DUBE 930207 233856 19 10
27608 MTW_DEMO.LZH X BPENNER 930205 76672 107 10
27529 MOUSEBT4.ZIP X P.LEFEBVRE 930131 54528 59 10
27520 PIANODEM.LZH X J.COLLINS22 930131 53504 99 10
------------------------
Last Month's Press Releases in the Library
------------------------------------------
27893 LOGICBLK.TXT X T.IHIRA 930228 3712 15 14
27870 SERMOUSE.PR X CYBERCUBE 930226 6272 66 14
27869 PALMASTR.PR X CYBERCUBE 930226 5504 58 14
27868 M161280.PR X CYBERCUBE 930226 3968 72 14
27842 SHOWKC.ASC X B.WELSCH 930224 1792 51 14
27833 SACEXPO3.TXT X A.STUDER1 930223 6656 41 14
27828 TOAD393.ZIP X TOAD-SERV. 930222 13824 193 14
27771 CAF93_01.TXT X B.GOCKLEY 930218 2816 66 14
27768 TOADNEWS.216 X TOAD-SERV. 930218 6656 178 14
27749 SINGULAR.LZH X C.FLUEGEL 930216 3072 55 14
27743 GEMUL21.TXT X BRASOFT 930216 7680 121 14
27658 SHOW2.ASC X B.WELSCH 930210 1792 53 14
27655 SHOWINF.LZH X B.WELSCH 930210 3712 23 14
27640 TOAD0208.LZH X TOAD-SERV. 930208 10496 291 14
27639 TOADBBS.TXT X TOAD-SERV. 930208 1664 78 14
27615 SACEXPO4.ASC X M.WARNER8 930206 7040 79 14
27609 MULTIWTR.DOC X BPENNER 930205 3200 157 14
27604 CTSWAPEX.TXT X D.FINCH7 930205 5376 15 14
27598 GLEAFNAM.ARC X WORDFLAIR 930204 2944 57 14
27565 CT_SWAP.TXT X D.FINCH7 930202 2432 28 14
------------------------------------------
###### PMC UPDATE
###### CompuCycle/CompuNews
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
CompuCycle (TM): Saving the Environment
CompuNews (TM): Informing the Community
Bellevue, WA - Purple Mountain Computers (PMC) has developed a recycling
program for computer books, magazines and software. Users can buy, sell
and trade their unwanted items for ones they do want. Trial testing of
the CompuCycle (TM) program has been a success. All computers are
supported including PC, Mac, Amiga, Atari ST and 8 bit, Apple, Commodore
64, CP/M, and others.
Book topics include a wide range of subjects including programming and
tutorials. Our inventory includes over 10,500 computer books/magazines
and 1,100 programs. Wharehouses are located in Washington and
California for quick delivery.
We believe that everyone can benefit from this program. Users will pay
less for software and can turn unused programs and books into cash or
wanted items. And society will benefit from the utilization of our
current resources, instead of wasting new ones.
PMC publishes CompuNews (TM) which includes the list of available
recycled software. It also has current news and fascinating articles
(the next issue includes an interview with members of the Floptical
Technology Association). CompuNews (TM) is free to anyone who requests
it.
Thousands of books are listed on disk to conserve paper; this disk
catalog is available for just $1. Software is listed in CompuNews (TM)
which is free. Users can make requests by contacting us:
Purple Mountain Computers, Inc. (PMC)
15600 NE 8th St. Ste. A3-412
Bellevue, WA 98008 (206) 399-8700
GEnie E-mail: PMC.INC
CompuServe: 72567,302
###### PERUSING GENIE
###### Compiled and Edited By Ed Krimen
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
HERE IT COMES!!
---------------
-=> In the "Atari Corporation Online" category (14)
-=> from the "FALCON 030 - Help and Questions" topic (41)
Message 89 Thu Feb 25, 1993
B.REHBOCK [BILL@ATARI] at 03:11 EST
Curt, et al, March is looking good, I agree with James. March, but I
don't know about the first week. It would make me happy too! The
dealer rep thing is in full swing and we are finalizing our new dealer
agreement and program right now. Things are really looking up.
Small announcement... now that things are starting to move with
Falcon030 and SpeedoGDOS, MultiTOS, Atari Works are "products", Jack has
requested that my attention now turn to North America. To paraphrase
Sam and Jack: "The U.S. is critical to our world-wide strategy; we want
things to go right in the U.S. and the more hands available, the
better." The main point is that Jack and Sam are _really_ serious about
this North American thing. That's really good news. I will be doing
more computer dealer relations, as well as working on dealer and rep
training with James Grunke. This is in addition, of course, to the U.S.
developer stuff that's on my plate now. :-)
----------
Message 140 Tue Mar 02, 1993
B.REHBOCK [BILL@ATARI] at 05:32 EST
The timeframe for Falcon's hitting North America always did work out to
mid-to-late March (my Birthday is March 26th, BTW. :-) Things are still
looking good, but naturally, we're all sweating big time here in
Sunnyvale, as having things scheduled to hit in that time frame means
that if they come in too close to the end, and the last week of March
being a half-week, doesn't give much margin for error, as the last week
of March is the first half-week of April and we _really_, _really_,
really, want this to hit "on time". :-)
I spoke with the V.P. of Manufacturing today, who is just back from
Taiwan making sure everything is "go" for the North American run, and he
assured me things look great. Let's keep our fingers crossed.
Regarding monitors... The JVC, Samsung, Goldstar, and Phillips monitors
all look great with the Falcon030. I use a JVC everyday to play, er...
demo and test Llamazap and Steel Talons.
Brad: If your Hard Drive has a ACSI host adapter, it needs to be
disconnected and you simply need the appropriate cable to go from your
drives to the SCSI II connector on the Falcon.
For instance, all I did was disconnect the cable from the H/A inside my
ICD FaST HD/Tape box, then connect a SCSI II to C50 cable between the
Falcon030 and the C50 connector that's on the back of the ICD box.
-Bill@Atari
Oh, the Falcon does work with SM124 monitors, also.
=====================================
WHERE'S THE STORM?
------------------
-=> In the "Double Click Software" category (30)
-=> from the "The STORM" topic (14)
Message 105 Tue Mar 02, 1993
T.MCCOMB [=Tom=] at 00:52 EST
What is the current status of Storm??
I was really looking forward to it.
-Tom McComb
{12:49 am} Tuesday, March 2, 1993
----------
Message 106 Tue Mar 02, 1993
POTECHIN [Nathan] at 09:36 EST
Once upon a time Alan had an arrangement with Double-Click. Then Double
-Click vanished into the twilight zone. I heard that Neil at Atari
Advantage got involved but not a thing since. I am not certain, but
sadly, I don't think Alan has heard anything either. :-( I will try and
remember to ask him next time I see him or perhaps he'll drop by and say
hi right here.
Nathan@DMC
----------
Message 108 Tue Mar 02, 1993
J.NESS [Jim] at 18:54 EST
Alan did not have a real job until just recently. He is now working for
a Canadian software company (Nathan's business partner, I think? or
something similar) called Ditek.
He has said he would not have time for awhile, to work on STorm, which
to this point is a VERY nice telecom program, especially for MultiTOS
users.
He has said that, as soon as his Ditek work load settles down, he'll get
back to STorm.
-JN
----------
Message 109 Tue Mar 02, 1993
POTECHIN [Nathan] at 19:05 EST
Alan is indeed working at Ditek International. Most people will
recognize Ditek as the developers of DynaCADD!
Has anyone heard anything from Mike Vederman or Neil Symms lately? I
did meet with Alan today briefly and I did ask. He hasn't heard a word
from them either. Sigh.
Nathan@DMC
----------
Message 111 Wed Mar 03, 1993
DITEK [David] at 02:59 EST
Close Jim... but no cigar. :-) Ditek and DMC are totally unrelated
companies. The workload at Ditek never seems to settle down. :-/
----------
Message 113 Wed Mar 03,
1993
SFRT-ASST [Kenne@SFRT] at 22:36 EST
For some reason "PAPERCLIP ELITE" just flashed in my mind...
----------
Message 114 Wed Mar 03, 1993
T.MCCOMB [=Tom=] at 23:40 EST
I wish another Dev would pick it up, it sounded dynamite.
-Tom McComb
{11:32 pm} Wednesday, March 3, 1993
----------
Message 116 Thu Mar 04, 1993
SFRT-ASST [Kenne@SFRT] at 19:53 EST
I saw Storm at Glendale and I liked it a lot. I thought it would end up
like this, too. So it goes. When it missed the December 7th release
date I started to worry. When there were no more news updates on it I
put it in my "it'll be nice if and when it happens" category.
Maybe I'll start a topic called ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST. Let's see...
there was Paperclip Elite, TT tower, ST expansion box, the Amy chip, ST-
Talk Pro (update), Zoomracks III, PC Ditto II... That's good for at
least a few messages.
Anyway, I saw STORM and it worked pretty well and Alan's efforts in
Flash! were great so I'll look forward to BUYING the program when it's
released.
I haven't given up hope yet.
----------
Message 117 Thu Mar 04, 1993
SANDY.W [sysop] at 21:21 EST
I haven't given up hope yet. Alan did say he intended to keep working
on Storm, but absolutely no promises as to time frame. The program does
have a lot of potential. Maybe some day.
=====================================
COUPLE O' TIPS FOR SL
---------------------
-=> In the "ISD/DMC Product Support" category (16)
-=> from the "Calamus SL" topic (20)
Message 55 Wed Feb 17, 1993
POTECHIN [Nathan] at 13:17 EST
Although the next version of Calamus SL released will contain an extra
pull-down menu for selecting document windows, this is also possible in
the existing version, albeit not quite so elegantly. I have a feeling
it is one of those undocumented features that we all missed. :-) Try
opening several document windows (7 is the maximum allowable) and click
on the close-box at the upper left hand corner of the window, while
pressing down the <CONTROL> key. Calamus will not close the document.
Instead, it will toggle between the existing document windows.
In the same vein, but discussed previously, holding down the combination
of <SHIFT> <CONTROL> <ALTERNATE> will interrupt a screen redraw. A new
redraw can be forced at any time by selecting the <CLR HOME> key.
Nathan
=====================================
UNICODE FOR ATARI COMPUTERS
---------------------------
-=> In the "Atari Corporation Online" category (14)
-=> from the "MultiTOS" topic (34)
Message 97 Tue Feb 23, 1993
J.FRENCH2 [James French] at 01:45 EST
In the February 1993 issue of Byte I read about a proposed standard
called Unicode. Unicode would be a 2-byte standard for character sets
that would "allow encoding of all the major world languages, including
Chinese and Japanese". Is Atari moving towards Unicode compliance for
Multi-Tos? As a customer I would certainly like to see this. The
article also implies that Windows NT will be Unicode compliant. (Byte
Feb.1993, "Correspondence that Looks Good Globally", pg.220)
----------
Message 98 Tue Feb 23, 1993
B.REHBOCK [BILL@ATARI] at 11:41 EST
One of the reasons for going to the Bitstream Speedo font scaler was its
inherent ability to handle 16-bit character sets. The VDI already
supports passing 16-bit values into the v_gtext and v_ftext calls. As
Unicode and the ISO-Shift Japanese standards pan out, we will be able to
easily support them.
-Bill@Atari
=====================================
###### THE 1993 Z*NET COMPUTER CALENDAR
###### Schedule of Shows, Events and Online Conferences
###### ----------------------------------------------------------------
### March 1993
CeBIT, the world's largest computer show with 5,000 exhibitors in 20
halls, is held annually in Hannover, Germany. Atari traditionally
struts its newest wares there, usually before it's seen in the USA or
anywhere else. In '93, the Atari 040 machines should be premiering, and
this is the likely venue. Third party developers also use this show to
introduce new hardware and software, so expect a wave of news from CeBIT
every year. Atari Corp and the IAAD coordinate cross-oceanic contacts
to promote worldwide marketing of Atari products, and this show is an
annual touchstone of that effort. Contact Bill Rehbock at Atari Corp
for information at 408-745-2000.
### March 5, 1993
RTC in the GEnie ST Roundtable. "Dateline Atari" with Bob Brodie. This
is a regular monthly conference held by Atari. Discussions usually
pertain to the latest Atari releases and updates. Conference begins
at 10pm EST. Type M475;2 at any GEnie prompt to attend.
### March 13-14, 1993
The Sacramento Atari Computer Exposition is to be sponsored by the
Sacramento Atari ST Users Group (SST) at the Towe Ford Museum in
Sacramento, California. A major two day effort, the SAC show is being
held in the special events area of the Towe Ford Museum, home of the
worlds most complete antique Ford automobile collection. As an added
bonus, admission to the museum is free when you attend the Expo. The
museum is located at the intersection of Interstates 5 and 80, just 15
minutes from the Sacramento Metropolitan Airport. Contact Nick Langdon
(Vendor Coordinator) C/O SST, P.O. Box 214892, Sacramento, CA 95821-
0892, phone 916-723-6425, GEnie: M.WARNER8, ST-Keep BBS (SST) 916-729-
2968.
### March 15-16, 1993
Lap & Palmtop Mobile Computing Expo at the New York Hilton Hotel in New
York City. Exhibitors will show the latest in mobile computing,
software, pen, peripherals and communications from the industry's
leading manufacturers. In conjunction with the exhibits is the Mobile
Systems Solutions Conference series. Featuring over 80 leading industry
experts speakers, the conference provides vital information needed to
build or improve your world of mobile computing.
### March 16, 1993
RTC in the GEnie HOSB (Home Office Small Business) Rountable.
"Multilevel Marketing". Conference starts at 10:00 pm EST.
### March 16-19, 1993
Image World - Washington DC at the Sheraton Washington.
### March 20, 1993
Philadelphia, PA area group PACS is holding their 16th annual Computer
Festival from 9 AM til 4 PM. It will be a multi-computer show with
Atari showings by the PACS Atari SIG's, NEAT, CDACC, and JACS clubs.
The Fest is to be at the Drexel University Main Building, 32nd and
Chestnut Streets in Pennsylvania. Contact for Atari display: Alice P.
Christie, 207 Pontiac Street, Lester, PA 19029, 215-521-2569, or 215-
951-1255 for general info.
### March 21-24, 1993
Interop Spring '93 in Washington DC.
### March 30 - April 1, 1993
Intermedia 93 at the San Jose Convention Center, San Jose CA.
### May 3-5, 1993
Digital Video New York/MultiMedia Exposition at the New York Sheraton
in New York City.
### May 4-5, 1993
The 3rd Annual Networks and Communications Show returns to the Hartford
Civic Center. Companies such as Intel, Microsoft, DEC, DCA, IBM, and
MICOM will be exhibiting. For more information, contact: Marc Sherer
at Daniels Productions, 203-561-3250; fax: 203-561-2473.
### May 11-13, 1993
SunWorld '93 exposition and conference, held in San Francisco at the
Moscone Center. The second annual event is the largest trade show in
North America dedicated to the Sun, SPARC and Solaris industry.
SunWorld '93 will feature a full day of in-depth tutorials, which are
being developed in association with Sun Educational Services, to be
followed by three days of conference sessions and an exposition. The
three-day exposition will feature more than 175 leading vendors in the
industry including Adobe Systems, AT&T, Computer Associates, Hewlett-
Packard, Informix Software, Insoft, SAS Institute, Solbourne, SPARC
International, Sun Microsystems, SunPro, SunSoft and WordPerfect. For
more information about attending SunWorld '93 call Lynn Fullerton at
(800) 225-4698 or to receive information about exhibiting contact David
Ferrante at (800) 545-EXPO.
### May 22-23, 1993
Pacific Northwest Atari show will be held in Vancouver Canada. The
Vantari User Group will be sending out developers kits in the very near
future with more details and pricing. The show will be held in the
Metrotown Centre Mall, which is the 2nd largest in Canada with over 400
stores. The traffic in the mall is amazing! In addition the Holiday
Inn Hotel is attached to the mall as well so travel time is nil. If you
have any questions in the meantime leave email (G.Norton) on GEnie.
### June 12-13, 1993 (NEW LISTING)
CT Atarifest '93 at the Windsor Court Hotel in Windsor Connecticut.
This year the Atarifest has relocated to a new hotel with excellent room
rates ($35.00 per room), free and plentiful parking, easy access from
Interstate 91, I-95, I-90, I-84, I-80, an in house Sports Bar, a bigger
ballroom and is located just 1 mile from Bradley International Airport
(free shuttle service for hotel guests). Tentative commitments from A&D
Software, Gribnif Software, Barefoot Software, Toad Computers, Computer
Studio, Baggetaware, Derric Electronics, E.Hartford Computer Repair,
MegaType Software, Wizztronics and GFA Software Technology. For further
information, call Brian Gockley at 203-332-1721 or Doug Finch at 203-637
-1034. E-mail can be directed to B.GOCKLEY or D.FINCH7 on GEnie or to
75300,2514 or 76337,1067 on CIS.
### June 22-23, 1993
Lap & Palmtop Mobile Computing Expo at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim,
California. Exhibitors will show the latest in mobile computing,
software, pen, peripherals and communications from the industry's
leading manufacturers. In conjunction with the exhibits is the Mobile
Systems Solutions Conference series. Featuring over 80 leading industry
experts speakers, the conference provides vital information needed to
build or improve your world of mobile computing.
### June 26-27, 1993 (DATE CHANGE!!!)
The Kansas City AtariFest '93. The location for the show is Stadium
Inn, 7901 E 40 Hwy. Ticket prices at the door will be 5.00 dollars each
day. Advance tickets will be 4.00 dollars each, for advance tickets,
please send 4.00 dollars per ticket to: Kansas City AtariFest, P.O. Box
1653, Lee Summit, MO 64063 or if you belong to a user group please mail
a request for a user group information pack. To make room reservations
please call 1-800-325-7901, we are also working with a local travel
agent to get special airfares for the show. You may call 1-800-874-7691
to take advantage of the special fares. For more information please
leave Email as follows; GEnie, B.welsch, J.krzysztow, for CompuServe,
Leave for Jeff Krzysztow at 74027,707, or you can call (816)224-9021, or
mail to the address listed above.
### August 3-6, 1993
MacWorld Expo at the Boston World Trade Center, Bayside Exposition
Center and sponsored by MacWorld Magazine. This event is titled Boston
'93.
### September 18-19, 1993
The Glendale Show returns with the Southern California Atari Computer
Faire, V.7.0, in suburban Los Angeles, California. This has been the
year's largest domestic Atari event, year after year. Contact John King
Tarpinian at the user group HACKS at 818-246-7286 for information.
### September 20-22, 1993
The third MacWorld Expo, titled Canada '93 at the Metro Toronto
Convention Centre, sponsored by MacWorld Magazine.
### September 21-23, 1993
Unix Expo '93 in New York City, New York.
### October 7-8, 1993
Lap & Palmtop Mobile Computing Expo at the Chicago Mart/Expo Center in
Chicago, Illinois. Exhibitors will show the latest in mobile computing,
software, pen, peripherals and communications from the industry's
leading manufacturers. In conjunction with the exhibits is the Mobile
Systems Solutions Conference series. Featuring over 80 leading industry
experts speakers, the conference provides vital information needed to
build or improve your world of mobile computing.
### October 27-29, 1993
CDROM Exposition at the World Trade Center, Boston MA.
### October 27-29, 1993
EDA&T Asia '93. The Electronic Design and Test Conference Exhibition
at the Taipei International Convention Center in Taiwan. Exhibit space
is still available. For more information contact: Betsy Donahue,
Chicago, fax: 708-475-2794.
### November 7-10, 1993
GeoCon/93, an international conference and showcase for software
products developed outside the U.S. at the Royal Sonesta Hotel,
Cambridge, Mass. The conference program will include three days of
workshops on topics of interest to overseas developers entering the
U.S. market. Workshop presenters will discuss such issues as how to
negotiate distribution and licensing contracts, setting up a business in
the U.S., manufacturing and fulfillment, technical support, packaging,
research sources, and how to market through direct, retail, and catalog
channels. For additional information, contact Tom Stitt, associate
publisher, Soft letter, 17 Main St., Watertown, Mass. 02272-9154;
telephone 617-924-3944; fax 617-924-7288, or Colleen O'Shea, director,
Soft letter Europe, 2 um Bierg, 7641 Chirstnach, Luxembourg, telephone
35.2.87119; fax 35.2.87048.
### November 15-19, 1993
COMDEX Fall '93. Las Vegas Nevada.
If you have an event you would like to include on the Z*Net Calender,
please send email via GEnie to Z-NET, CompuServe 75300,1642, or via
FNET to node 593 or AtariNet node 51:1/13.0. Show listings are also
published in AtariUser Magazine.
###### FALCON030 MEMORY - Is 1 Meg Enough??
###### By Len Stys
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
The Falcon030 "personal integrated media" system was designed to be a
contender in the home multi-media market. Atari's engineers made the
Falcon so that it is excellent at mixing high resolution graphics with
better than CD-quality sound. This is absolutely necessary for the
system to have any chance of success in this area. Multi-tasking is
another important part of multi-media and thanks to "Multi-TOS", the
Falcon030 now has this capability.
The Falcon030 is also the first low-cost personal computer to have a DSP
chip and port. The DSP will allow the Falcon030 to do things that are
impossible to do on other multi-media systems. And lastly, at $799, the
Falcon030 is priced as a mass market product to sell in large
quantities. Atari's management must have felt that the more systems
that sell, the more market share Atari captures. This is smart thinking
since the more market share Atari captures, the more systems that sell.
So, where's the problem? The problem is that Atari's mass market Falcon
030 at $799 only comes with 1 Meg of memory. The Falcon030 with 1 Meg
is pretty much the same as a Mega STe. Programmers cannot really use
the Falcon's enhanced graphics and sound with this amount of memory.
Let's look at what it would take to make a video game in the resolution
of 384x480 in "true color":
To display a still screen: 384 x 480 x 16 / 8 = 368,640k (369k)
Animation requires two screens to reduce flicker. This is called
"double buffering": 737k
The computer already uses 737k of memory WITHOUT any game logic code,
sprite data, sound effect data, and operating system overhead. If all
of this was taken into consideration, a video game in this resolution
would need close to 2 Megs.
Let's look at what it would take to make a video game in the resolution
of 640x480 (PC games) in "true color":
To display a still screen: 640 x 480 x 16 / 8 = 614,400k (614k)
Double Buffering: 1.2 Mb
Add the game logic code, sprite data, sound effects, and operating
system overhead. The minimum amount of memory needed to produce a game
in this resolution with these colors would be 3 Megs.
The only thing you could do with 1 Meg of memory in these resolutions
and colors is display still pictures. And even though a lot of people
do this, I am sure most people would like to use these resolutions for
other things besides viewing pictures.
The Falcon030 with 1 Meg is also incapable of multi-tasking. And as
mentioned previously, multi-tasking is a very important part of multi-
media. On Saturday, January 23, 1993, Eric Smith, author of MiNT and
programmer of Multi-TOS wrote in the "Atari Corporation Online" category
(14) on GEnie:
"Just to inject a bit more reality into this: even if MultiTOS is free,
it still won't be on everybody's machine right away or even at all. The
present version of MultiTOS is loaded into RAM, and that means in
practice that you need 2 megabytes of memory to use it (and 4 megabytes
is a lot more comfortable). Also, it's really targetted for the 68030
machines; on a 68000 it will be somewhat sluggish and will also lack
memory protection (i.e. it won't be as safe). Eventually we hope to
have a ROM version of it, but for now it *is* a memory hog."
Atari's mass market home multi-media system soon becomes just another
ordinary single-tasking, low-resolution, mediocre sounding, personal
computer. The argument that you can always add memory to take advantage
of these features is silly. Can you imagine a company selling a product
for a certain purpose with intent that the consumer get it expanded
before he or she can use it for what it was created for? Besides, most
of the consumers purchasing the Falcon030 will be people that are
unfamiliar with computers. How is a dealer going to explain to a
consumer that the computer he or she wishes to buy for $799 needs to be
expanded for an additional $200 before it can be used for multi-media?
Let's suppose that most of the Falcon030 systems sold were the 1 Meg
configuration. We can assume that many of these Falcon owners will not
expand to 4 Megs much like many 520 ST owners did not expand to 1 Meg or
greater. Most developers will write software for the 1 Meg
configuration since they will want their software to be purchased by as
many users as possible. The developer may have to use a lower
resolution or less sound then he or she wishes. The software may not be
fantastic, but at least it will run on a 1 Meg machine. The developer
then writes the same software for the Commodore A1200. But since the
lowest amount of memory that the A1200 is sold with is 2 Megs, the
developer can use a better resolution or add some things not on the
Falcon030 version. A consumer looking to purchase a personal computer
will see that the A1200 has better software and will purchase it over
the Falcon030.
What happens if developers ignore the 1 Meg Falcon030 computers and just
write software for the 4 Meg machine? The new computer user will find
that most of the software for their computer will not work without more
memory. What do you think their feelings will be towards Atari for
selling them a system that needs to be expanded?
In order to find out what Atari users and programmers thought of the
Falcon030 memory, I posted a questionnaire on the Usenet
comp.sys.atari.st newsgroup. There were 34 responses. These are the
questions and results:
Do you believe there should be a Falcon030 without memory?
No: 82.35% Yes: 17.65%
What do you believe should be the lowest amount of memory sold with the
Falcon030?
1 Meg: 17.65% 2 Meg: 17.65% 4 Meg: 64.70%
Do you believe there should be a Falcon030 memory configuration between
4 megs and 14 megs?
No: 23.53% Yes: 76.47%
If so, how much:
6 Meg: 5.88% 8 Meg: 64.70%
No: 23.53% Anything: 11.76%
What configurations would you choose?
Falcon030 1 Meg: 11.76%
Falcon030 4 Meg: 23.53%
Falcon030 4 Meg/65 Mg HD: 64.70%
(Atari Works & SpeedoGDOS)
Does the Atari Works package influence your decision?
No: 29.41% Yes: 70.59%
Please note that the memory amounts between 4 Megs and 14 Megs were
written in. There were no answers to choose from. Also, everyone that
replied knows how to program computers.
Many people felt that the Falcon030 should not be sold without memory
because it would confuse new computer buyers. But others commented that
this may not be a bad idea. If a user wishes to move from 4 Megs to 14
Megs then he or she can just sell their 4 Meg memory board to a friend
that just purchased a Falcon030 without memory. This way, no memory
boards are thrown away.
Most people felt strongly that 4 Megs should be the minimum. The
reasons given were similar to what was said above.
A large number of people felt that there should be a memory
configuration between 4 Megs and 14 Megs. The number that most people
suggested was 8 Megs. They claim that they could use more than 4 Megs,
but would not need 14 Megs.
Atari's marketing department seems to be making a smart move by
including Atari Works and SpeedoGDOS with the Falcon030 w/4 Meg/65 Meg
HD system. This is because the addition of this software will influence
70% of the people that responded.
About half the people commented about the hard drives that Atari is
including with the Falcon030. A good number of these people said that
65 Megs is too small for their needs, but they would consider buying a
larger Atari hard drive if they included Atari Works and SpeedoGDOS.
These are the sizes that were suggested: 65 Megs, 120 Megs, and 200
Megs. Though, Atari's hard drives would need to be competitively priced
with other hard drives.
The general feeling is that if Atari wants to sell the Falcon030 as a
home multi-media system, the company needs to sell it with more memory.
If Atari can lower the Falcon030 4 Meg version to $899, the computer
will most likely continue to be a mass market product.
As of now, there are no known Falcon030 1 Meg configurations on the
market. Maybe Atari's management has already thought of all of this.
And if they haven't, maybe you will consider all of this before
purchasing the Falcon030.
###### THE UNABASHED ATARIOPHILE
###### By Michael R. Burkley
###### ---------------------------------------------------------------
Do you remember a few weeks ago I told you about how I often push
against the deadline for this article? I said that I often worked right
up to (and past) the deadline before I finished. That was when the
deadline was on Thursday. You would think, wouldn't you, that since now
this article isn't due until Saturday night that I would be able to
finish on time? Noooo!
Did you wonder why I didn't have an article in last Z*NET issue? Well,
Dave Small talks about (and succeeds) in "pushing the envelope" on the
ST. I guess I pushed a bit too hard and missed the deadline! OOPS!
So...this week I'm bringing over a few of the games I reviewed last week
in the review which didn't make it into Z*NET. I'm also going to
mention most of the files I've downloaded this week. Let's get on with
the show!
First, files from two weeks ago:
CUDLEE is Cud Lee's Quest v.1.0 by Robert Dytmire (dated Feb., 1993).
------ This game is basically a platform game aimed at the younger (10
years old or so) generation. Use the joystick to move our hero, Mr.
Cudd Lee, through four different worlds (of 25 screens each). You move,
jump, fight, and explore your worlds, trying to reach the exit and move
on. By completing the game you save the poor lit'l elves (they need
your help!). But wait! This game is more than sheer entertainment. It
has an educational portion as well. The game can be configured to ask
you questions each time you open a door or move from one world to
another. It keeps track of your answers, too, and will return again and
again to those questions with which you have difficulty. You can use
the simple addition/subtraction questions that are included or create
your own questions on any topic you wish (R.D. uses it to keep up to
speed on his Calculus!). The game also has an Adult Mode, which
increases the difficulty significantly. Color only. Docs included.
SHAREWARE (and one which is going to cost me some money <sigh>). ST--
STE Compatible (at least). 512K RAM or more.
DROPOUT is Dropout, another Extend-O-Save Module for Warp 9 by John
------- Eidsvoog. Dropout randomly pops little pieces out of the screen
and drops them to the bottom. Then after all of the pieces have dropped
out and a configurable length of time has passed with a blank screen,
the original screen slides in from the top. After another pause, the
whole process starts again. You can configure the module variables to
your heart's content. ST--TT, any resolution. Docs included.
INS180 is "The Inspector" v.1.80 by Daniel M. Wallin, Jr. (dated Feb.
------ 10, 1993). This is a program designed to help diagnose problems
that may occur during the operation of your computer. Have you ever had
your boot-up fail (again and again). You suspect that it is an .ACC,
but you're not sure! The Inspector will tell you! It will will display
a report showing what was being looked for, where it was expected to be,
and the current subdirectory. It will also allow you to generate
reports on your system continuously. This allows you to monitor the
operating system when it is reading or writing files, or other disk
operations. A special feature useful for debugging is also included
that causes the operating system to totally ignore any desktop
accessories (and this is without re-naming them in any way). In the
Information Age, this program gives you information! Color or mono.
ST--TT compatible. Docs included.
JCCAL03 is JC-Calendar v0.3 by John Charles (dated January, 1993). JC
------- Calendar will print calendar pages to HP DJ500 printers or to
many 24 pin printers which support 360dpi. There is also a built in
routine to allow the use of 9 pin printers. This also includes a series
of 12 Degas .PC3 drawings for use with your calendars (or you can use
your own). You can include two lines of text at bottom of each
calendar, choose from three included fonts for text display (different
for the title and dates, if you wish), choose between a number of
different boarders, and shade the weekends to set them apart. Docs and
on-line help included. Mono only (or color with a mono emulator). I
really like this program.
JCCFNVU1 is JC-CFN-View v0.1 by John Charles (dated Jan., 1993). This
-------- is a program that allows you to easily view all the characters
in your Calamus CFN fonts which needs an ST running in high resolution,
or with a mono emulator. The fonts are shown in outline only but that's
enough to see if you want that font or not. It will only display non-
encrypted fonts. Excellent! Docs included. Mouse controlled.
JCLABL18 is JCLABEL v1.8 by John Charles (dated April, 1992) It is a
-------- SHAREWARE label printer which works with a color or mono
monitor (the download description says mono only, but trust me, OK?).
Suitable for single or double column labels of various sizes. You enter
up to 7 rows of 32 characters each. Save, sort, and print your labels.
Configure your printer and then print your labels using batch or single
label printing. There are spaces for up to 500 labels in a list,
depending on how much free memory you have and what other programs you
are running at the same time. Includes lots of disk utilities within
the program as well! Mouse controlled. Docs included. A previous
version of this program came to me with this endorsement: "Quite simply
the best ever label printing program written for the ST. Written with
a 'Frontend (TM)' interface [3D buttons and great looks,], it has a
whole host of features - database, cut, paste, etc etc - better than ANY
commerical offering." This version seems even better! ST/STe/TT
compatible.
JCVUE23 is JC View v.2.3 by John Charles (dated December 1992). If you
_______ remember, I reviewed this just a few weeks ago. The author has
gone and improved it tremendously, in my mind. This is a clip-Art
viewer and clip manipulation program for the Atari ST which needs 1 meg
of memory and only works in mono. With all the standard drawing tools
(and then some like clip rotation and resizing) you can manipulate
loaded files and/or create your own, and add text to your pictures
(using either the desktop font or a custom font [.fnt] of your choice).
You can even print them out (9 pin, DeskJet and other printer drivers
included. It will load the following files: Degas *.PI3, Degas Elite
*.PC3, STAD *.PAC, Tiny Stuffed *.TN3, Sticker *.ADD, Printmaster *.SHP,
Macpaint *.MAC, Doodle *.DOO, Public Painter *.DOO, Public Painter
Compressed *.CMP, Public Painter double Screen *.PIC, The Program's
custom picture format *.JCC. You can save your pictures as .DOO, .PI3,
and now .IMG (Yippie!). Docs included. This is one impressive program.
MDISK694 is M-Disk v.6.94. This is an excellent .ACC re-set proof RAM
-------- disk. Just uploaded but I've already heard several people
commenting on how useful and bug free it is (they're right!). It does A
LOT! M-Disk provides you with: a sizable removable multi-function
ramdisk; a floppy disk copy program (with virus detection logic which
Prevents viruses being transferred!); It will format _and_ copy a RAM
disk to floppy in 120 seconds--which is as fast as most format options,
and yet retains all verify features; a fast disk "wipe" option; a fast
ramdisk load/save program; a harddisk backup/restore program; a PS/2
compatible floppy disk formatting program; and a boot sector virus
destruction program; a "reverse" formatter, starting at a high track #
going down to 1 (this can save some of your data if you mistakenly start
a format) MiNT and MultiTOS (KAOS, too) compatible. ST--Falcon
compatible. Extensive docs that do a very good job of explaining even
the little details of the program are included. I have now moved this
file into the "boot up with" category. Excellent!
NEWPRTST is a new (dated Feb. 12, 1993) series of four printer drivers
-------- for PageStream 2.x. They are for the new HP LaserJet 4 (I wish
I had one!), the HP DeskJet 55c, the HP DeskJet 500c, and any PostScript
printer.
NODDYS is the Noddy's Playtime demo. This excellent program is designed
------ to encourage and enhance the creativity of any 3-7 year-old (and
a 37 year-old reviewer can have a fun time playing it as well!). It is
a fully-functional demo of three of the ten programs available in the
full commercial release (the limitation being that each game is limited
to 4 minutes--and that not much of a limitation since you don't even
quit the program. You can just re-enter the game module and start
again), the other being you can't save pictures from the drawing mode.
The first game, which acts as a menu program for the main set is Noddy's
Driving. Using the joystick, keyboard, or mouse, you guide Noddy about
ToyTown as he drives his little put-put car. Build coordination as you
negotiate the turns; see the police officer, the milkman, Boe Peep, and
more as you drive around. Pull into Noah's Ark and assemble jigsaw
puzzles of animals (easy, medium, and hard difficulties). Leave there
and drive to a very nice paint program with many of the tools of a full-
featured program, and yet tailored for little hands and skills (I really
like the ability to paste numerous different characters straight on to
your picture with a single click). One problem with this section is
that the fill patterns won't work on my STe (they will work on my TOS
1.0 ST). I like this program and will probably buy it if it ever shows
up in the US. Until then I recommend that any 3-7 year old play with
this demo! Color only. Docs included.
TERA_130 is Tera Desktop V1.30 by Wout Klaren (dated January 30, 1993).
-------- The Tera Desktop is a replacement of the ST (and TT) desktop.
This desktop offers many of the same features as DC Desktop, NeoDesk,
and the Atari NewDesk (TOS 2.06 and above), and then some. With this
program you can place files and programs on the desktop as icons, and
view files in a window. Buttons in dialog boxes can be selected with
the keyboard! There are really too many features to be listed here. It
will work with any TOS and from a floppy or Hard Drive (Hard Drive is
definitely recommended). It can be run from the AUTO folder or from the
desktop. Color or mono. Docs included (now program and docs are in
English and Dutch). This version is only for the ST line, TOS 1.0--
2.06. See TERA_TT for the TT specific version.
VAULTPRG is Vault v.3.02 by Robert Fischer (dated March 14, 1992). This
-------- is an excellent program, much needed by anyone who has a hard
drive. Backing up your hard drive is a painful chore, but an important
one. Backups are like car insurance: you hope you never need them, but
if you have a crash they are a blessing. Vault allows you to easily
back up your drives. You can do full backups, incremental backups
(based on criteria you select), partial backups of only the folders and
files you wish, and more. It takes advantage of setting the archive bit
if you so choose. Format floppies, wipe old floppies "clean" or append
the backup to a current floppy. This program has a pleasing interface,
with very useful online helps and offline documentation. Included with
this package is a restore utility, but that's not really needed (except
when Vault "splits" very large files over two disks), because Vault
backs up to TOS formatted disks so you can always easily access your
data. This program has lots of options and is intelligently organized.
If you don't have a commercial backup program, I recommend you give this
a try (another nice backup utility is TURTLE by George Woodside, the
author of Virus Killer v.3.84).
And now on to the brightest and best of this week's downloads:
93_CAL is a series of six Calamus .CDK files by Glenn Gorman that allow
------ you to print out a calendar for each month in 1993 (two pages per
.CDK). Don't worry about the year though, you can easily change the
data on the calender for another year if you wish.. One file for every
two months. ie: 1_2Cal.cdk is for the months of January and February
and so on. I did it this way, so that all of you with only one or two
meg machines, could still load and print this calendar. You'll just
have to do it two months at a time. Compatible with Calamus 1.09N or
SL.
AGG_0293 is the February 20, 1993 issue of the Atari Gaming Gazette:
-------- "The Lynx Specialists." This Month's Issue - Operation ACT
Now, Lynx Catalog, Gazette Newsfile, Batman Returns Strategy Guide -
Conclusion, Could it Be?, Trade Publication Round-Up, Easter Egg
Gallery, Lynx'n On The Line Adds GEnie Coverage, and Pit Fighter
Reviewed.
ATLAS is a .SEQ animation by Dan Bordonaro of the mighty Atlas holding
----- up the world as he spins through space with a galaxy, moon and
nebula in the background. Atlas was made with Cyber Sculpt and the
animation with Chronos 3D. It's viewed from a movie theatre with people
looking on (and occasionally talking with each other). Color only.
Requires ANIMATE4 to view with one MEG minimum RAM. Color only.
AUD_CD15 is CD AUDIO v.1.5(demo) by Nima Montaser (dated February, 1993)
-------- is an .ACC that allows you to play audio compact discs from a
CD-ROM drive in the background while working at another GEM application
(if you wish!). The code for the Sony DCU541 and the NEC machines is
already included, but you can now enter the correct SCSI commands for
your CD ROM player just by using a text editor (you have to know what
they are though!). It will allow you to Play all, Choose the track to
play, Pause, STop, and Eject your CD (gracefully, of course). This demo
is fully functioning, faster than ever before (but several delays are
incorporated in this demo to urge you to register--only $12). GEM based,
ST/TT MultiTOS compatible. This program will work in all resolutions.
SHAREWARE. Docs included.
CARYCASE is a a Degas .PC3 plan for his computer carrying case (drawing
-------- and text included). It allows me to carry his 14" multisync,
1040STe, shoebox hard drive, hand scanner, Omniswitch, mouse, Sony
SRS-17's, and a bunch of floppies. I hope it works as well for you. It
is an ingenious and safe design to carry all of your equipment (you just
won't want to carry it too far!). In a self-extracting .ZIP format (it
uncompresses to the directory from which it is run).
CDPLAY is a program by Brian J. Grier that allows you to play CD's with
------ audio tracks on your Chinon 431. This program has been designed
to work like most portable CD players. When you exit the program the
current song will play to completion. It will work on any ST/STe/TT
with the ICD Host Adapter and software (at least v.6.0). Color or mono.
CLUBCEMO is Club Dominoes by INFOworks. This game will run on any ST/TT
-------- with 512k of RAM (or more) and in low and med. rez. It is
billed as the most authentic and realistic dominoes simulation available
for ANY computer. This game provides you with creative and competitive
play (against the computer with three levels of difficulty) or against
another player (via the MIDI port, null modem, or modem), three game
variations (Muggins, Bergen, and Domino, excellent graphics, on-line
docs, and much more. Keyboard or mouse controlled. Hard drive
installable. Limited in that you can only play Muggins in this demo.
CONV_LDP is "Convert LDP." This simple program will convert your LDP
-------- files produced by LDW Power to an ASCII format delimited by
quotes and commas, which will readily import into FirstGraph and other
programs. The conversion process strips all control codes and spaces
from the input file. Freeware from ABC Solutions. Docs included.
COPNROB is the Cops and Robbers II demo by Kevin L. Scott (dated Feb.,
------- 1993). This is a two player game (there aren't enough of those
out there--and this is a good one!). In this game you and your opponent
are both trying to get the upper hand. As the robber you must find and
rob five banks in the city. As the cop, you must patrol your city
looking for the robber. The police officer has his/her radio and radar
to help locate the robber, but robbers have resources as well! The city
is divided up into 32 city blocks consisting of 8 across and 4 down. A
complete city is provided for you to play with. With the commercial
game you can modify or create your own cities with a built-in editor.
This game is a lot of fun, and only limited in ways that won't greatly
hinder your enjoyment of it (rather that the full version enhances the
fun!). Color only. Joysticks required. Docs included. I liked this
demo.
C_GINEER is v.5.02PD by Ph. Kraft (dated 1992). This mono only program
-------- is a 2D organic chemistry molecular structure modeler. This
interesting program is in English (but the docs are in German <sigh>.
You can choose all sorts of structural parameters, display modes, and
more. Rotate your molecules about any axis. Nicely done, and fast,
too!
DRVSPACE by Dan Panke (of ST PLUG--the exclusive distributor of Budgie
-------- UK Software here in North America) is a simple GFA basic
(compiled and GFA source included) program that will, when run, return
the free space on all available Hard drive partitions. Color or mono.
FIT_ACC is a TERRIBLE puzzle .ACC!! The name of the .ACC file is
------- HAVEAFIT.ACC and it's aptly named! It gives me FITS by providing
me with twelve blocks representing the twelve possible shapes you can
make with five square blocks (using all of them each time). Then, by
using your mouse you try to place these blocks in a 5 by 12 square grid,
not leaving any space free. It's impossible to do (I'VE never done it!)
and yet...there are several TRILLION different ways of positioning those
blocks so that they fit in that rectangle (I don't think I am
exagerating here--I remember reading an article in "Scientific American"
on the topic). ST--TT compatible. ST low, medium or high, but not any
TT resolutions. Don't try this unless you have LOTS of time available.
Excuse me while I try it again...!
FLYSHP12 is Flying Shapes v.1.2. This is a freeware Extend-O-Save
-------- Module for Warp 9 by Charles F. Johnson of CodeHead
Technologies. Flying Shapes simulates the movement of a line, box,
polygon or triangle around your screen. Many aspects of this module can
be altered, for an almost infinite range of excellent animated graphic
effects. ST--TT compatible in all resolutions. You won't want to touch
your computer again after watching this for awhile!
FORTUNES is "Fortune Cookie" v.1.0, an Extend-O-Save Module for Warp 9
-------- by Charles F. Johnson of CodeHead Technologies (dated Feb.
1993). Fortune Cookie clears your screen and displays random one-line
messages from an ASCII text file (and this includes almost 900 on-liners
for your use or for your modification). Fortune Cookie works in all
resolutions with 80 or more columns and on all ST--TT machines. Docs
included. (Editors Note: There is an update available, Version 1.2,
that now includes font loading.)
INSECTA is Insecticide by Peter Hague. This color only SHAREWARE game
------- is excellent! Play this to find out what insects do in the
winter when there's snow on the ground (they play Insecticide!). Now
you can join them! Joystick controlled (fly your Ladybug about and
blast away Watch out for those antimatter bugs!). Excellent graphics
and sounds. Multiple levels, interesting confrontations, frightening
diversions, and more. It reminds me a bit of Llamatron, but less crazy!
Requires at least one meg of RAM. Docs included.
MOVPIC20 is Moving Pictures v2.0 by Terry May (dated 93). This version
-------- is a DRAMATIC improvement over previous versions found in our
catalog. In the past you could select a ramdom picture to display as
your Warp 9 background picture or when Desk Manager loads (Tiny format,
.PNT, .PI3 and .SPC pics supported). This was handy to keeps things
interesting, and it still is. But NOW...you can randomize any file
type. Randomize Warp 9 background pics and Desk Manager boot pics (I
think I said that!) Extend-O-Save modules (Warp 9 v.3.7 and above), data
files for EOS modules, Beep samples, whatever! Now this will _really_
keep you on your toes! Color or mono. Docs included. ST/STe/TT
compatible.
PAYX_V22 is the Payroll Expert v. 2.20 by Randy Blain. Payroll Expert is
-------- a powerful GEM-based payroll program that provides you with all
all the features neccessary to handle large or small payroll
applications. I am really impressed with the look and feel of this
program. Everything is accessed via the standard GEM interface, so very
little instruction is needed in order to use the program. Also included
in this package is ACC-Time, his shareware time-clock accessory, since
Payroll Expert allows importing of the time-clock data to facilitate
easy payroll computation for all employees. You can easily pay all of
your employees without ever touching the keyboard. Complete reports are
available at any time to make all your federal and state taxes easy to
compute and file (of course, it doesn't make them any easier to pay).
It will allow you to print on any style of checks. It also includes a
perpetual calendar. Up to 64 employees are supported in the registered
version (only two in this demo). Floppy or hard drive. ST/STe (at
least) compatible. Any RAM configuration. The author has worked hard
on this program, often updating and improving it. Color or mono. Docs
included. SHAREWARE.
POKERSQR is Bad Baud's POKER SQUARES by Joel Shafer (Dated Feb. 21,
-------- 1993). Adapted from an 8-bit program by O'Laughlin and
Whitworth this STOS program pits you against a clock as you attempt to
create the best set of poker hands on a 5x5 grid, placing the cards as
they are dealt to you. It's harder than it seems for making that
straight in the vertical column might just ruin that impending full
house in a horizontal column. Your score is based on the ten poker
hands you create (5 vertical and 5 horz.). Fast paced and fun. Color
only. Docs included. Not STe compatible.
PUZZLE is the Sliding Puzzle an Extend-O-Save Module for Warp 9 by John
------ Eidsvoog of CodeHead Technologies. Sliding Puzzle divides your
screen into little blocks, randomly blackens one of them, and then
begins randomly sliding pieces around like the little "Sliding Puzzle"
that most of us are familiar with. You may select from 25--400 blocks
to be displayed on your screen and the speed with which they are moved
about. ST--TT compatible with all resolutions. Docs included.
SAVERS12 is a set of SHAREWARE Extend-O-Save Modules for Warp 9 by John
-------- Dillenburg. Compatible on an ST--TT in all resolutions, these
modules are excellent. The modules are: FRECKLE - Draw dots; RANDLINE
_ Random Lines; RASHAPES - Random shapes; ROAMSHAP - Roaming shapes;
PYRODLX - DeluPyrotech Deluxe fireworks, and SYMMETRY - Symmetric
fractals. I have only heard good about these modules.
SLAB11 is Sound Lab v.1.1 by Damien M. Jones (dated Feb. 1, 1993). This
------ is a very fast and capable sound editor that allows you to take
digitized sound samples and manipulate them to your heart's content. It
has plenty of features, and its edit functions are _very_ fast. You can
play and record samples from 5KHz to 30KHz, load and save in .AVR, .SPL,
.SAM, .WAV, .SND,. and .SMP formats, and it's easy to use. (Recording
samples requires either the ST Replay cartridge or DigiSound cartridge,
or a cartridge compatible with one of them.) It also lets you add sound
effects to your samples, like echo and fade, and more. It uses a ZeST
type 3D button interface that is a pleasure to watch and use. Now you
can access .ACC's, use the GEM fileselector (+ UIS or Maxifile), install
as an application, and more! LOTS of new features included. Color or
mono. 40 page ASCII manual included. There's a nifty on-screen help
system that takes you through the in's and out's of the program. Watch
the mouse move about all by itself! ST/STe compatible. You _can_ run
this program with only 512k of RAM, but it's not advised to do so.
SHAREWARE. You get printed docs and updates with your registration.
STZIP22 is STZip v.2.2 by Vincent Pomey (dated Feb. 12, 1993). This is
------- one fantastic compression utility, and he keeps on making it
better! It is so much faster than LZH that it's not funny. Most times
it compresses more efficently as well. It compresses and uncompresses
.ZIP files, just like PKZip on MS DOS machines. Use it with a command
line or with the built-in GEM shell program (easy to use!). This file
includes a program that creates self-extracting archives, and a small,
stripped down version that is accessed only through a command line
interface. I highly recommend this program for any of you who deal with
ZIP files. Docs included. Color or mono. ST--TT compatible. (Editors
Note: File compacted with ST_ZIP version 2.1 do not seem to extract
with version 2.2. CRC errors are present. However, file compacted with
2.2 do work satisfactory with 2.1.
TBX_DEMO is tbxCAD demo version 2.2 by Tony Biasutti (dated 1993). This
-------- is a full-featured GDOS compatible two dimensional drafting
package. This package features an infinite drawing plane, wide range of
drawing primitives, exact specification of locations, multiple layers,
scaling, dimensioning, measurement and much more (I don't have enough
room to tell about all the features--just to name one more-- Bezier
curves). The full program can print to Epson compatible dot matrix
printers, or through GDOS, almost any other printer. Included with this
file are several demo drawings. It also allows you to export GEM
METAfiles (like Easy Draw creates) allowing you to import your drawings
into a DTP program and thereby accessing a wide range of printers. It
allows you to import DFX format files. Color or mono. ST--TT
compatible. Docs included. 1 meg of RAM and a DS drive required. This
demo is save and print disabled.
X_GINEER is v.5.41PD of a program by Ph. Kraft that allows you to
-------- analyse structural data from X-RAY analysis of various
crystaline materials. Input the data and output possible structures
(as 3D projections). View them and rotate them about any axis. A nice
library of files is included. The program is in English, but the Docs
are in German. Mono only.
Well, I guess that's it for this week. It's time to fire up the modem,
send this file off, and then hit the sack!
Take care, Michael
All of these files can be found on one or more of the following on-line
services: GEnie (M.BURKLEY1), Delphi (MRBURKLEY), The CodeHead BBS (213
-461-2095), Toad Hall (617-567-8642), and The Boston Computer Society's
Atari BBS (617-396-4607) (Michael R. Burkley). Drop me a line!
Michael lives in Niagara Falls, NY. He is a former Polyurethane
Research Chemist and is presently the pastor of the Niagara Presbyterian
Church.
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