Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
Atari Online News, Etc. Volume 01 Issue 02
Volume 1, Issue 2 Atari Online News, Etc. March 12, 1999
Published and Copyright (c) 1999
All Rights Reserved
Atari Online News, Etc.
A-ONE Online Magazine
Dana P. Jacobson, Publisher/Managing Editor
Joseph Mirando, Managing Editor
Atari Online News, Etc. Staff
Dana P. Jacobson -- Editor
Joe Mirando -- "People Are Talking"
Michael Burkley -- "Unabashed Atariophile"
Albert Dayes -- "CC: Classic Chips"
With Contributions by:
Siegfried Hartmann
John Hardie
To subscribe to A-ONE, send a message to: dpj@delphi.com
and your address will be added to the distribution list.
To unsubscribe from A-ONE, send the following: Unsubscribe A-ONE
Please make sure that you include the same address that you used to
subscribed from.
To download A-ONE, set your browser bookmarks to one of the
following sites (more to be added soon):
http://people.delphi.com/dpj/a-one.htm
http://www.icwhen.com
A-ONE #0102 03/12/99
~ People Are Talking! ~ Netscape Comm. 4.51 ~ PSX 2 News
~ Intel Case Settled! ~ AOL Hometown Woes ~ No MS Deal
~ A-ONE Feedback! ~ Employer E-Mail Spies ~ A Bug's Life
~ CoMa Update ~ Dino Crisis ~ Classic Chips
-* Y2K Can Be Good News For You *-
-* ATT Not Interested In Buying AOL!! *-
-* Sega Says Sony Is Abandoning Its Consumers *-
->From the Editor's Keyboard "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Well, the "opening day" nervousness is over with; we got the first issue
out without a hitch! Here we are again - we didn't bail out!
We received a number of letters and public postings regarding our premiere
issue. Before I comment on the general content of these letters, let me say
that the initial response to Atari Online News, Etc. has been better than I
had anticipated. By better, I mean that we received more feedback from this
one issue, in less than a week, than we've probably received over the past
year while doing the Atari section of STReport. I don't know what this
means, but it's exciting. But also, the overall response has been very
positive.
Has it all been positive? No, of course not. A couple of posts explained
why two readers were disappointed in A-ONE. Perfectly acceptable. You let
us know what you liked, and disliked. It gives us honest opinions which
should help us to improve for the future. While no one likes to have
himself, or his work criticized, I've learned over the years that
constructive criticism should be an acceptable part of life. So, keep the
comments coming, good or bad.
Although the feedback letters are elsewhere in this issue, let me make some
comments here. First of all, there are primarily _two_ people making A-ONE
happen each week: Joe Mirando and myself. We've chosen to do publish A-ONE
for two reasons: 1) we enjoy it, and 2) we want to give something back to an
Atari community who has done a lot for us over the years. We also chose to
make A-ONE a weekly publication. To us, news isn't news anymore if it's
old. A bi-weekly or monthly magazine of this nature just won't work.
We also do not receive a penny for doing the magazine. We both work 40-50
hours a week at our real jobs; we make the time to make A-ONE happen -
weekly. We both have families and other commitments.
Why the above? Well, I believe it's necessary for our readers to understand
what goes into putting A-ONE together. While I would love to do a lot of
research and make the magazine contain more Atari-specific news, time just
doesn't allow it for two people. But, on the other hand, it's always been
my observation that Atari users are extremely broad-minded. Rarely will you
find an Atari user who is only interested in his niche world of Atari. We
keep tabs on other platforms, for information purposes. Hey, most of us
_use_ other systems for either work or [additional] pleasure. Many of us
own multiple gaming systems, or have owned others in the past (and likely in
the future). On that basis, we've always felt that general news about the
technological [computing & gaming] world around us was important. I know
some readers who read our work just for that information. For me, it keeps
me aware of what's going on with regard to other platforms without having to
read a few dozen publications!
As we mentioned last week (remember, this is only our _second_ issue!),
we have lots of plans for A-ONE. We want to make this magazine your primary
source of online information. We're not going to compete with the hard copy
magazines such as Atari Computing - we can't. They're different types of
publications. We can, however, complement them. We do plan to compile an
up-to-date and accurate compilation of Atari dealers and sellers. We are
planning a listing of various sources of information, including active
developers, informative web sites, online services, and more. We're
planning on various software reviews and how-to articles. And there's
plenty of more to come. But don't expect it all to happen overnight!
<grin>
And we're also looking to you, our readers, to point us in the right
direction occasionally. And contribute. Always wanted to write a review or
article, but didn't have a venue for publication? Drop us a line. Have a
product announcement, or want an upcoming event publicized? Send it to us.
Have a great experience with a dealer, find a terrific piece of software?
Tell us about it. We'll be happy to read it and use it in A-ONE. We'll
even spellcheck it for you!
So, sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. We hear you. We understand your
wants and needs - we want the same things. We hope you stick with us while
we get to those goals, and beyond. And if you can help us out from time to
time along the way - even better. We're looking for to our journey that's
just getting started!
Until next time...
CoMa 4.9.0
CoMa 4.9.0 supports USR Pro Message Modem Self-Mode
From: Siegfried Hartmann <Hartmann@ThePentagon.com>
Programme-Name: CoMa for Atari Voice/Pro 4.9.0 (COmmunication-MAnager)
Purpose: fax & voice-mail-system, to send & receive fax,
answering machine, mailbox & terminal with internal
z-modem
Programme-Type: Shareware / Crippleware
Author: Siegfried Hartmann
Requirement: Computer with MagiC[Mac|PC] or TOS
Download: Softbaer-Mailbox: 030/62709-572 (ISDN X.75 & V.34)
or Homepage: <http://www.ThePentagon.com/Softbaer>
CoMa_Atari_4.9.0.zip (520 KBytes)
**************************************************************************
CoMa has the following common functions and attributes in all levels
- english documentation
- fax-class 2 & 2.0
- polling (send poll-request-tone only with class 2.0 and some class
2-modems)
- network-capable fax-job-management (3 jobs in 24 hours)
- Serial fax
- Display of the calling-number with ISDN-modems
- Display of call units with ISDN-Modems
- internal editor
- incoming pages are displayed during fax-reception !!
- text can be mixed with graphic-logos and signatures
- fax-voice-data-number management, including groups
- management for incoming fax/messages/mails
- administration of 8 telephone companies
- zone- & and time-dependent selection of telephone-company
- mailbox with internal send & receive-z-modem
- terminal mit internal z-modem
- support of the USR 56k professional message modem self-mode
* * * * * * * * * * CoMa Voice (additional) * * * * * * * * * *
- Answering machine for ZyXEL, Creatix, Elsa/TriStar,
Sportster VI/Voice/Flash and Smarty/Cybermod, kik & Lasat-Modems
- Day & time programmable answering messages
- Multiple outgoing messages for several ISDN-MSN
- Time dependent redirection of incoming calls
- Remote control / recall of new received faxes
- Recall of 7 special messages by DTMF-code
- Real time decoding of sound for Mac/Atari-Soundsystem of ZxXEL
ADPCM3/ADPCM4, Smarty/Cybermod u-Law- & Rockwell ADPCM4-Sounds
- Wave-Sound conversion in ZyXEL- & Cybermod- & Rockwell-format
* * * * * * CoMa Professional Version (additional) * * * * * *
- fax- and voice-on-demand-system
- any amount of messages via DTMF tone recall is possible
- each category can contain up to 100 messages and/or 100 fax-pages.
- statistic of category recalls
- first-level- and second-level-messages can be put together from multiple
voice-files.
- for the mini-mailbox you can assign personal passwords and
download-folders to as many users as you want
- personal message for each caller, who has an entry in the numbers-list
(with ZyXEL Elite & MicroLink ISDN, if caller MSN is displayed)
- unlimited fax-jobs
- Fax transmission via polling request (DTMF-PIN not needed -
only for Class 2.0 modems)
- permanent poll-sender possible (caller gets fax pages even without
sending a poll-request)
- time-dependent messages for 10 MSNs for ISDN
- connect-mode can differ for each MSN
* * * * * * * * * * * New in CoMa 4.9.0 * * * * * * * * * * * * *
- support of the USR 56k professional message modem self-mode
- enable and disable of the self-mode
- display of...
- free modem memory
- number of voice and fax files stored
- number of new voice and fax files
- modem clock
- loading all files in the calls-list
- loading all new files in the calls-list
- clearing the modem memory
- setting the modem clock
- setting the modem parameter
- handle voice-calls
- receive faxes
- ring intensity
- go off-hook after x rings
- toll saver
- maximum recording time
- monitoring while recording incoming message
- fax ID
- remote control enable and disable
- remote control PIN
- no more wait time (shareware memorial seconds)
- Mac: live scrolling in all windows
- Mac: in use serial port is still available (at own risk!)
- Atari: 2-Level- & Self-Mode-Window could be opened from 'Menu for ACCs'
- various bug fixes
******************************************************************************
<mailto:Hartmann@ThePentagon.com> or <mailto:SiggiH@gmx.de>
<http://i.am/Softbaer> oder <http://ww.ThePentagon.com/Softbaer>
Mailbox: 030/62709-572 ISDN X.75 (64000 bps) & V.34 (28800 bps)
Voice: 030/62709-466 Fax: -459 Voice & Fax-On-Demand-Test-System: -573
->From the Other Editor's Desk
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Joe Mirando, Managing Editor
jmirando@portone.com
I _told_ you I wouldn't editorialize every week! <g>
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
compiled by Joe Mirando
jmirando@portone.com
Hidi ho friends and neighbors. First of all, I'd like to thank everyone
who commented on our premier issue, which debuted last week. For all of
those who wanted to write to us but were afraid of getting 'slammed' for
their efforts, please, please, please write to us!
I've gotten quite a few e-mails about the first issue and a few posts in
the comp.sys.atari.st NewsGroup. Some of them were very complimentary,
some were critical. _NONE_ of them were met with anger or flaming. In
most cases I simply either agreed or disagreed with the e-mail or post,
and stated why. Since all of those who wrote to us were fairly courteous
I saw no reason not to reply in kind. Nobody here at A-ONE has a problem
with honest opinions (as you will see in our letters to the editor
section), and we really do appreciate feedback; and it's been interesting
that most of the comments about what other things people want to see in
an Atari magazine are things that we have already begun work on.
As I mentioned in one of the replies that's included in the 'letters'
section, what we really need is bodies. People who share our interest in
Atari computers and game systems, and want to write an article, review,
or column about their experiences. If you're interested, drop me some
e-mail with your ideas and we'll put you right to work. Trust me, there's
nothing like the feeling of having an article published.
Well, enough of this. Let's take a look at what's happening on the UseNet
From the comp.sys.atari.st NewsGroup
====================================
Daniel Schaller asks:
"Has anyone here had success in installing an Apache Web Server on the
Atari using MiNT? I got so far that I can view HTML documents in my Web
Browser, but CGI Scripts don't work generally. If the CGI Script is a
compiled binary one it works. But when it comes to Shell Scripts it
stops. My UNIXMODE environment variable contains the letter "s", so Shell
Scripts should be interpretable and thus be executable. As a test I
placed a compiled binary CGI Script as /bin/sh just to see if Apache
launches a Shell, but it doesn't seem like that. How can I tell Apache to
run a Shell to interpret my script? Just to add, the first line of the
Script is well
#!/bin/sh
Does anyone have some experience in installing Web Servers on Atari
MiNT?"
Martin-Eric Racine tells Daniel:
Yes [I've had success].
Let's check a few things, before we go any further:
First, do you run this on a full MiNTOS setup with Minix filesystem? If
not, it might explain a few things...
Second, do you have appropriate symbolic links to the hierarchy in your
MINT.CNF to point to the /bin /usr/bin and /etc hierarchies?
Do you have an /etc/shells file? Does it include SH and BASH paths?
Typically, we recommend: /brUs._"
Ronald van der Kamp tells Daniel to...
"Look at the sometimes appearing continuing story titled 'One of these
days...' in the newsgroup comp.sys.atari.st.
Soon I will tell the world about Apache with MiNT from the MiNT98 CD.
Until now I had only httpd in use, but that will change."
Jos Vlietstra asks for help with his new hard drive:
"I've got a Quantum Atlas XP31070W SCSI. It won't boot with HDDRIVER and
Hushi on my TT030. Is there anybody who did succeed with this model of
Quantum and Atari?? As second drive it worked with a Falcon, but I want
to use it as internal HD. Please any help would be appreciated!"
Dr. Uwe Seimet, the author of HD Driver, tells Jos:
"Like the Quantum Fireball drives the Atlas also might require initiator
identification. TOS doesn't provide this feature and thus can't load the
hard disk driver from this drive. So this is no a problem of your
drivers but of TOS. You have to patch your TOS in order to solve this.
Or simply boot from another drive."
Martin-Eric Racine tells Jos and Uwe:
"I recall hearing about some german utilities to create a patched TOS
image (embedding HS-Modem, WiNX, etc. into TOS), but the instructions were
sketchy at best.
Still, it would be nice to be able to upgrade parts of TOS 3 with a newer
AES (such as AES 3.40 from Falcon) and embed HS-Modem into TOS also.
If you can provide details as to how patching TOS is done and utilities
to help in performing the patch, please tell us."
On the subject of what WDIALOG is and what it does, Louis Holleman posts:
"I gathered NVDI needs it for certain printer functions, I can see
cosmetic changes to alert boxes using Wdialog. On my TT, MagiC 5.01 plus
Wdialog 1.97 (I went back to this one because of bugs in 2.0 but
meanwhile 2.01 or higher is out) is a Rock solid OS. Autofolder sequence
is essential though, one minor change and the solidness has gone. Reason
to use an Autoexec.bat with MagiC."
Galen (the Head YACcer) tells Louis:
"I've been using WDialog 1.98 with fair success, except that the old DA
Chameleon will not run with it (so, if Geneva is off, I can have DA
loading _OR_ printing). Are the higher versions of WDialog more stable?"
Louis tells Galen:
"Apparently I'm on 1.98 as well. No problems at all (with MagiC 5.01).
I got the 2.0 version too, including extensive docs in HTML format, but
it was reported to be buggy very soon after it was released, so I never
used this version. I believe (stressed, that is) that 2.01 is out,
perhaps a higher version. No experience with these.
Now, my tower with all the SCSI gear is producing irregular whining
noises and is vibrating more than usual, I gather the PSU fan is giving
up slowly after been running for around 3 years continuously (cheap
model...). Gotta switch it off when I go off to work just in case, but I
wonder what will happen on the next start tonite... I think I need to get
a replacement first thing tomorrow ."
Martin Byttebier adds:
"The latest version is, as far as I know, 2.04. You can find it on the
homepage of 2B http://home.t-online.de/home/ToBeHome/homepage.html. This
version should be on the Belgian FTP-site too. 193.190.205.13 atari V2.04
seems to work much better then the previous versions. Everything between
1.98 and 2.04 should be ignored."
Martin Wootton posts:
"I've never used an ST in my life, but a friend of mine is after a boot
disk I believe. (If it's anything like the workbench disk on the amiga?)
Does anyone know where I can find a site to download this, or get a disk
from? I'm based in the UK and any info would be muchly appreciated."
Adrian Bradshaw tells Martin:
"The ST had the whole of it's operating system on ROM. That consists of TOS
(the underlying OS) and GEM (the graphical interface).
A genuine ST will therefore not require either of these on disk!
If your friend is trying to run an ST emulator on PC such as the
Gemulator, PacifiST or Winston, he will need a TOS image (which is the
copyrighted part and therefore not supplied with the emulator).
You can find these on the net though - try The Little Green Desktop at
http://lgd.fatal-design.com/
This site has all you are likely to need."
Roger Cain tells Martin:
"He is mistaken. You do not need a boot disc for the ST as the TOS is
always there (in ROM). You had better clarify what he REALLY wants."
My guess is that Martin's friend is looking for the accessory or
language disk that came with most STs. We'll have to wait and see.
Brian van Tilborg (see that Brian, I even got your name spelled right
this time <g>) posts his thoughts:
"I don't know about anyone else, but here in Canada, in 1987 Atari
Manuals still claimed the ST had a BOOT DISK. Drove me insane, looking
for this missing disk that never existed after TOS was in ROM.
Only disk that came with an ST isn't worth having, unless you need a
disk and feel like formatting it and putting something good on it."
Steve Stupple adds:
"Well Atari did progress from supplying manuals that are as good as
toilet paper; anyone remember the XL/XE manuals!!! After that they
supplied frisbee's as well;) Seriously, there are some software on the
Language disks (Control Panel springs to mind).
The first ST's did have TOS on disk, and Atari hardly ever revised the
manuals. In my STE manual it has a picture of a single sided STFM, and a
card which gives the brief shortcuts etc. that TOS 1.6 (1.06) has.
If you have compatibility problems with TOS versions, it worth trying it
with the disk based TOS 1.09. I use this if any program that don't like
my E's. I only can use it for program that can be run from the Desktop, I
haven't sussed a way to get boot programs to use it."
Gerard Milmeister asks for information about his new ST:
"I got an Atari 1040ST, and everything works fine, but a certain program
needs ASSIGN.SYS, which is not on the HD. Unfortunately I have no System
Disks where this and maybe other needed files can be found. Can anybody
help me with this? I am a computer collector and an ST newbie."
Roger Cain tells Gerard:
"If it wants ASSIGN.SYS it will be using bit-mapped fonts. This means it
will also require GDOS (the OS extension which implements these).
You will need to download GDOS to get anywhere with this. When you do you
will find the package includes a template ASSIGN.SYS and (hopefully) some
bit mapped fonts."
Louis Holleman tells Gerard:
"Assign.sys is a system file needed by certain programs to work OK. The
Atari came with a so-called system font, which is displayed on your
screen. (Maybe you don't know what a font is: a certain type of
character). You can change the type by running additional S/W, together
with related system files. A lot of other software can make use of this to
display different fonts on screen/on the printer etc.
Basically, you need a GDOS program. Variants are called AMCGDOS.PRG,
GPLUS.PRG and one commercial variant is NVDI.PRG. These run from the
autofolder. They need a folder called "GEMSYS", where you put all
different kinds of fonts in. The other thing then you need is an
"ASSIGN.SYS", which is an ASCII-file telling the GDOS program where to
look for this "Gemsys" thing and what fonts there should be loaded. A
bit complex to set up for a beginner, unless you know what you're talking
about.
On the next boot GDOS or whatever variant is loaded, the Assign.sys is
read and the specific fonts are loaded. Then you can configure other
software to make use of this/these fonts.
Note that GDOS plus the additional fonts take memory, so with a 1040ST
with only one meg of memory you need to keep an eye on memory use. Now
first you better check whether or not your "autofolder" contains one
"GDOS.PRG", "GPLUS.PRG", "AMCGDOS.PRG" or "NVDI.PRG". If it does, you
may come back here, if it doesn't it's pretty useless to create an
"ASSIGN.SYS".
Note that NVDI is commercial, you gotta buy it. It not only enables you
to use different fonts, it speeds up your OS as well. If you ever use it
for one week, then loose the program, you'll be cursing for another week
:-) Just to be complete, ASSIGN.SYS is a file that normally sits on the
root of your boot disk, so either the floppy disk you're booting from or
the hard disk partition you're booting from (usually C:\)."
Here's an interesting question from Andy Blakely:
"My newest Atari came with MINT, but I don't know exactly what it's for
and what it can do (or how to use it for that matter). Isn't it some
kind of internet software? Is there a web site that explains what
programs do what? I've seen people talk about lots of software in this
newsgroup, but don't know what most of them do."
Jo Even Skarstein tells Andy:
"There is a really nice MiNT-page on http://yescrew.atari.org/. You can
also find some related stuff on http://atari.nvg.org/n.aes/."
Louis Holleman adds this nice little explanation:
"Let me jump into this... Atari's have a built-in OS, called TOS. Well,
some early models had the OS on a disk, but let's forget about those. The
OS sits in ROMS, inside the machine, so you'll never loose it (unless you
slam the ROM's with a hammer).
TOS normally is a single-tasking OS. One application at a time, plus
some desk accessories. Not enough for some people, so multi-tasking OS-es
saw the lite. Some of them commercial, some of them based on MiNT, which
in fact is the kernel that needs more items to become fully functional.
I guess you have a kernel. This might be called mint.prg or mintnp.prg,
and usually sits in the autofolder. Without anything else related to it,
it's pretty useless. It needs a GUI to be able to work with it, like the
desktop you get from TOS. The GUI could be anything, like the Atari
Multitos AES, or a commercial one (N.AES) or another open-source GUI
like XaAES. With those you get a desktop again and are able to run
multiple applications at the same time.
Now Mint comes in different flavors: the kernel alone plus a GUI gives
you a multitasking environment, which is pretty much TOS compatible. The
kernel plus a special partition with lotsa files gives you a Unix
environment, including networking/internet facilities. You can add a GUI
to get TOS compatibility at the same time.
With the kernel itself (mint.prg) you can do very little. It needs
additional files. Look for a directory "multitos" on your disk. If it's
there (with additional files in it), you may have a working Mint
environment already. Also look at the boot procedure, there should be a
message "Mint version so much booting".
If you only have a Mint.prg in the autofolder and nothing else, it's
just a waste of time/memory. Mint.prg is no Internet stuff, but together
with additional S/W you can have Internet access. For a beginner it's
rather complicated, but OTOH it offers features for free, since Mint is
an open source project and at the same time offers TOS compatibility.
Perhaps it's a good idea to mention what type your "newest Atari" is, how
much memory it has etc. If you have only 1 meg of memory, I'd say forget
about Mint and run the regular TOS. De-activate Mint by renaming the .PRG
file into ..PRX or something. Get familiar with the Atari and it's S/W
and you can always get back to Mint if it sounds interesting."
Well folks, that's about it for this week. Tune in again next week, same
time, same station, and be ready to listen to what they are saying
when...
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
->A-ONE Feedback!
"""""""""""""""
Here is a sampling of recent e-mails and postings regarding the first
issue of Atari Online News, Etc. Other than the removal of some of the
message header data, messages have not been edited.
From VM Labs' Don Thomas:
Dana,
Excellent job. I like the coverage and the fact that you have a lot of
pertinent data that I'm interested in... not just the status of
Battlesphere. <g>
I have added your first edition to he timeline and invited people to
download the first edition from hyperlinks on my cover and news pages.
Best Wishes,
-- Donald A. Thomas, Jr., Curator
curator@icwhen.com [http://www.icwhen.com]
don_thomas@vmlabs.com [http://www.vmlabs.com]
Re: Atari Online News, Etc. #0101
From: Alf Huckitt <jam@jambutty7.freeserve.co.uk>
Date: Sat, 06 Mar 1999 11:40:45 GMT (Page 1 of 2)
Responding to: <J5aWeGG.dpj@delphi.com>
While dpj@delphi.com was eating a Jam Butty.....
>A-ONE #0101
Why do you call this an Atari publication.
> ~ The Editor's Keyboard ~ Industry/Tech. News ~ JagFest '99!
1/3 about Atari Jaguar
> ~ People Are Talking! ~ Unabashed Atariophile ~ Linux Threat?
The "People Are Talking!" is you publishing postings to this
newsgroup. guess what? we read them when they are posted.
Even the much awaited "Unabashed Atariophile" was all PC
> ~ PlayStation 2 ~ Atari Computing #12 ~ New Tetris!
1/3 Press release saying AC12 is out. Just because Hasbro has the
license to Tetris is hardly Atari news
> ~ CompuServe Overhaul ~ Med. Records on Web? ~ Pentium 3?
In the UK they passed a law that you could not call the good old "Meat
and Potato pie" just that. because they always have more Potato than
meat. they had to be renamed to "Potato and meat Pie"
Sorry for this but considering the title of your publication it was a
total let down to the point of feeling conned into the download. On
the other hand if you have a Playstation or a PC then it is a dammned
fine read ;-)
From: IN%"pcarr@thedruid.demon.co.uk" "Peter Carr"
To: IN%"DPJ@delphi.com"
CC:
Subj: RE: A-ONE Atari Online Magazine
[Editor's note: the following was received after a request by Peter
to distribute A-ONE on his BBS and network]
Of course. I have received issue one today. Given the size of the
magazine it will likely remain as a ZIP file for download/file request,
and also be distributed via the FAN files network for the UK and Europe.
I've just had a quick look at it and it reads well. Congratulations.
Cheers
Pete
--
Peter Carr
Email: pcarr@thedruid.demon.co.uk
From: IN%"rmariano@ambcomp.com" "Ralph F. Mariano"
To: IN%"dpj@delphi.com" "Dana Jacobson"
Subj: RE: Atari Online News, Etc. #0101 Premiere Issue!
Congratulations!
It looks great! Keep up the good work.
- Ralph F. Mariano, Editor
- STReport International Magazine
- MCSP - MSDN - 192535 - EMail
- STReport Forums - STReport Website
9-MAR 03:04 Atari Online News, Etc.
Premiere issue!! (Re: Msg 80889)
From: BOBTROW To: DPJ (NR)
Dana,
I thought it looked great for the first issue.
Bob T.
9-MAR 09:27 Atari Online News, Etc.
Premiere issue!! (Re: Msg 80889)
From: DANAVC To: DPJ (NR)
Dana,
the issue looks great, takes me back to
the old Atari Explorer on-line days when I used
to download them off genie and the web.
(I still got a disk full of the AEO's too)
Dan Iacovelli
Atari Video Club Chairperson
Dan@AVC
From: madmax@bfree.on.ca (Brian Van TIlborg)
Subject: Re: Atari Online News, Etc. #0101
I was hoping for something BETTER than the old ST REPORT.
I know that you can do far better than this. I have seen your writings in
the past in other media. Clearly what you have here is ONLINE NEWS that
has some Atari Coverage which doesn't exist in a majority of other media.
If it is that difficult finding things to write about online for Atarians,
then perhaps you could lessen the QUANTITY of ATARI ONLINE and INCREASE
the QUALITY.
As for readers being interested in the other news. I don't think that is
true because being able to read it everywhere else makes it a dog's
breakfast in an Atari Online Publication.
I used to download ST report, but then it became of little value to me.
Obviously you have alot of NON ATARI readers who are interested in NON
ATARI subjects and you just happen to throw in some ATARI NEWS for them
to quickly bypass.
Heres what I am looking for in ATARI ONLINE.
The Quality of Mags such as the defunct:
ST INFORMER
CURRENT NOTES
I know your capabilities and you clearly haven't lost your roots to the Atari
World. But really, when you read the NEWSGROUP what 95% of the readers
are looking for is HELP.
HELP FOR:
1)LOCATING ATARI COMPUTER DEALERS
2)LOCATING ATARI SOFTWARE
3)LOCATING SUPPLIES FOR ATARI EQUIPMENT
4)USING SOFTWARE
5)INSTALLING HARDWARE MODS
6)LOCATING AUTHORS OF PROGRAMS
7)KEEPING CURRENT IN HARDWARE/SOFTWARE UPDATES
8)LOCATING SOURCE CODES release to PUBLIC DOMAIN
9)INTERACTING BETWEEN PCs/MACS/ATARIS and maybe Amigas:-).
10)USING INSTALLING/UPDATING INTERNET SOFTWARE
11)NEW SOFTWARE RELEASES
12)HADES/MILAN USERS
The List is ENDLESS. There is still ALOT to talk about for ATARI if that
is what you are interested in doing. Also there is an online alternative
platform magazine that is looking for a TOS/ATARI Editor.
If you just want to be an ST REPORT that is fine, but it is not my
interest. If you would like to be a more ADVANCED Atari Magazine then
that would be EXCELLENT and I would then have it arrive in my email.
That's my opinion.
And I would be curious to see if others in this NEWsgroup support it or
if I am wrong and they really like the look of AONE.
A-ONE's Joe Mirando responds:
Brian,
On 9 Mar 1999 01:39:37 G, Brian Van TIlborg wrote:
|Heres what I am looking for in ATARI ONLINE.
|
|The Quality of Mags such as the defunct:
|
|ST INFORMER
|CURRENT NOTES
[See above]
Brian,
Your points are all well taken. Although I _still_ believe that
information about what is going on in the rest of the computing world is
very important, we ARE working on listings like active dealers,
developers, software and hardware reviews, listings of current program
versions, tips and tricks, and several other things. The problem is
simply one of time and manpower.
Your high opinion of our abilities is welcomed praise. It's nice to be
noticed and appreciated. But in addition to talent, we need more fingers
for the keyboards.<g> We're looking for people who's love of the Atari
world equals our own so that we can actually make some of the things we
want to see come to life. We've already got several people lined up, but
it will take a while before we start seeing some of the features,
reviews and articles.
As for the UseNet/People Are Talking, there are many people who either
don't have access to the NewsGroups or choose not to wade through the
large number of posts. It's been quite well received since we started
the column back in STR. As with any feature in A-ONE, if we start
hearing that people are tired of it, of course we'll consider
discontinuing it. Of course, since you and many others are regulars here
in the NewsGroup, everything in People Are Talking is old news to you.
But we're going to find other things to keep your attention.
Take care,
Joe Mirando
Managing Editor, A-ONE Magazine
Re: Atari Online News, Etc. #0101
From: Doctor Clu <clu-da-bard@geocities.com>
Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 03:07:38 -0500 (Page 1 of 3)
Responding to: <7c4hat$e96$1@remarQ.com>
Hello gentlemen,
I have not looked at the A-ONE magazine, but being the editor of the
Atari Newsletter for Dallas, Texas, AUNT BYTES, I can say that I have
found in this day and age that there are all sorts of directions you can
go with a Atari publication.
We have been strictly a ST group for 13 years... and now this year
started opening our eyes to ALL things Atari (though we are a ST group
with quite a few TT users mixed in with a Hades and C-Lab Falcon user).
Even before this year, many things were touched on... developments in
the ST world, developments in local computer news, people's experience
with Atari, people's views of other platform's developments (usually
mixed in with a Atari viewpoint). Plus we had sci-fi stories in there
from some of our members. It's fun to look at the back issues. Hell,
it's fun to look at the current issues!
The point is, the writers of A-ONE *ARE* Atari users. Atari serves a
purpose in the REAL WORLD talking about issues other than Atari, and
shows the world that Atari still has a footing amongst everyone else.
We are not just geeks with a weird platform. We are regular people
using a computer. The fact that a Atari is used to make a newsletter
about anything other than Atari says a lot about the platform.
Recently the Atari Users of North Texas held a Y2K discussion on our
website. The chat room was packed with Atari users, PC users.. who
knows how many were there... our website activity monitor only shows ten
at any given time, and we at least had ten.
For Alan Campbell, our Y2k speaker, and the others there, they had a
great time on a ATARI related chatroom. Why would Atarians be concerned
about Y2K since 8-bits are unaffected and ST's don't have problems until
2017 or so? Because we live in a REAL WORLD with REAL PROBLEMS outside
our own desktops. The Atari may keep working, but what about the
computer setup at your bank?
So there you go. I think newsletters should supply just that...
...news.
And if a Atari platform makes that happen.. awesome!
Doctor Clu
CC: Classic Chips #1
= = = = = = = = = = =
by Albert Dayes
70007.3615@compuserve.com
It has been a very long time since I have written for any on-line
magazines and I would like to take the time to thank all of those editors
of the different on-line magazines that I have written for continually
getting a new issue out time after time without fail.
My column will focus on different technology sectors where I find
something new and exciting. The inspiration for this column comes from one
of the Software Development Conference classes [www.sdexpo.com] I took
last year by Scott Meyers called "Something cool in C++". The class had
no description and but was just to discuss some cool things that Scott
discovered in C++ that provide elegant solutions to real problems. The
concept is great so I will apply the same concept of "cool things" to
this column called Classic Chips.
>> The Web
It is amazing how much the Internet address has become almost the most
important method to get information. In addition to the web address it is
easy to search for something if someone did not give you complete
information. For example if someone gave you the wrong phone number you
would be hard pressed to find the right number easily short of the brute
force method of calling all the phone numbers. With the Internet search
engines you can work with incomplete information to find what you are
looking for fairly quickly.
>>Storage Technology
Burn that Disc:
In a past issue of AEO (Atari Explorer Online) Volume 2 - Issue 1,
January 1993 to be exact I wrote about CD-ROM technology on the Atari ST
platform. In one section of that article I had an interview with Scott
Brownstein - now former Manager of Advanced Projects at Kodak about
photo CD. In my notes which are not reflected in the interview he spoke
about the $200 CD-Recorder and that was a little over 6 years ago and
that is now a reality. Even more important than the low CD-Recorder
prices these days are the CD-R media prices at less than $2 for a single
disc holding 680 megabytes of data or audio.
In the premier issue of Atari Online News, Etc. I noticed in the ATARI
COMPUTING MAGAZINE #12 had a review of ExtenDOS Gold and a feature called
CD Writer. It is good to see such an important technology is still being
supported on the Atari platform.
The ORB:
I have not seen much mentioned of this product in the press but the ORB
is a really interesting for removable rewriteable media. The drive is
around $200 (IDE or SCSI) and each 2.2 gigabyte cartridge is around $30.
It is great price considering the price of Iomega's JAZ drives and the
media pricing of $100 per cartridge. I hope it does well since the demise
of Syquest the only player left (Iomega) needs some good competition to
keep their prices in check. For more information see
www.castlewoodsystems.com.
>> Telecommunications
This book might not be new to some of you but it extremely useful when
trying to figure out what all of the those telecommunications terms
really mean. The definitions are not defined in terms in other just as
technical language but the definitions are non technical. Newton's Telcom
Dictionary [currently on the 14TH edition (820 pages and approximately
$30) ISBN 1-57820-023-7 www.telecombooks.com] is updated approximately
every 6 months. Topics include Computer Telephone, The Internet, IP
Telephone, Intranets, LANs & WANs, Windows 95, NT, Netware, UNIX
Networking, Voice Processing, Wired & Wireless Telecommunications,
Carrier Telephony, The Intelligent Network, ISBDN & T-1, Voice on the
Internet & Intranets. It is the standard in the telecommunications
industry so everyone speaks the same language.
>> Video Games
For those interesting in classic games and history of computers and video
games Don Thomas of VM Labs (previously of Atari and Sony) visit his web
site at www.icwhen.com. There are some good links to different web sites
and newsgroups dedicated to classic games and computers.
>> Video Games Conference
Starting next week The Game Developer's Conference begins in Silicon
Valley for more information see www.gdconf.com. One of the interesting
classes is called Legends of Arcade Game Design which includes Eugene
Jarvis (Defender, Robotron, Cruisin' USA, etc) and Jack Haeger of Midway
Games, Mike Halley (I believe Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was
one of his games) from Atari. Also included are Elaine Ditton & Larry
Hodgson of Incredible Technologies.
It looks like it will be a really good conference with sessions for Visual
Arts, Programming , Game Design, Production, Business & Legal and Audio.
One name that looks familiar teaching the Sound Design Master Class is
Scott Gershin of Soundelux Media Labs. From what I recall Scott (did
audio for different films including Born on the fourth of July and Honey
I Shrunk the Kids) used to demonstrate Hybrid Arts ADAP II and Digital
Master at different music shows like AES (Audio Engineering Society).
If anyone does go to the Game Developer's Conference drop me some e-mail
to tell about what cool things you have learned.
->In This Week's Gaming Section - More PSX2!! Sega Dreamcast!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" "It's A Bug's Life"! "RugRats"!
"Baseball 2000"! "Rushdown"!
And much more!
->From the Editor's Controller - Playin' it like it is!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
On the gaming side of things, I just don't have a lot to say editorially
this week. However, I do see a lot of great things coming our way in the
coming months. The next generation game machines sound impressive! I can't
wait to learn more about them; and I'm dying to try them out! So, stay
tuned this week, and every week, for more news and information pertaining to
our current gaming world, and views of the future!
Until next time...
->A-ONE's Game Console Industry News - The Latest Gaming News!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Establishes New Company to Produce
Next Generation PlayStation Embedded DRAM Graphic Synthesizer
New Chips to Use 0.18 Micron Process Technology
Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Thursday announced the establishment of
a new subsidiary company to manufacture the Graphic Synthesizer(TM), the
main graphics processor for the next generation Playstation system
employing 0.18 micron embedded DRAM process technology.
Based in Nagasaki, Japan, the new chip manufacturing facility will be
responsible for mass production of the Graphic Synthesizer chips on 8-inch
silicon wafers.
Initial production capacity will be 10,000 wafers a month (multiple chips
are produced from a single wafer). The new chips will be available from
spring 2000. Until the establishment of the new facility, production will
take place at Sony's existing chip manufacturing plant based in Kokubu,
Japan.
The facility will be housed in a new building next to Sony's existing
semiconductor plant, Sony Nagasaki, and will be composed of new production
lines employing leading-edge 0.18 micron embedded DRAM process technology.
The manufacturing plant will operate in cooperation with Sony Corp.
Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.'s total investment in the new facility
will total 70 billion yen.
The next generation PlayStation is a new computer entertainment platform
that will further expand the market for digital entertainment created by
the PlayStation, the world's most successful TV-based video-game console
with global sales of more than 50 million units.
Company Outline:
Company Name: To be determined
Established: April 1999
Location: Nagasaki, Japan
Initial Capital: To be determined (100 percent SCEI ownership)
Sony Announces Dreamcast Killer
Mar. 08, 1999 (MULTIMEDIA WEEK, Vol. 8, No. 10 via COMTEX) -- Sony
Computer Entertainment in Tokyo last week unveiled its DVD-based,
backward-compatible next-generation PlayStation, targeting the mass market
beyond gamers and giving the competition a severe headache.
"The significant thing about this machine is that it is a family machine.
It takes it a step broader than a games machine," says Kathleen Maher, an
analyst with Jon Peddie Associates, tells MMW sister publication mmWire.
"Sony was in a pretty good position in terms of momentum. This just
shoots them way ahead."
Sony's unnamed machine (we'll call it PSX2) is slated to launch in Japan
by March 2000, and in North America and Europe in the fall of that year,
giving Sega about a year to gain a beachhead with Dreamcast. Sega's
console launched just before Christmas in Japan and is slated to ship
this holiday season in the US and Europe.
But whether Sega will succeed in the US in that time may be moot,
according to recent market research. Dreamcast lacks DVD support but
features a modem, and that's not in tune with consumer demand.
"In our studies, the presence of a DVD drive and the ability to play
movies was a significantly more attractive feature than an Internet
connection or even a modem to play with other people," Fairfield Research
President Gary Gabelhouse tells mmWire. Fairfield polled a nationally
representative sample of 1,000 gamers.
PSX2 may or may not feature a modem; Sony isn't giving details away. "It
would be premature to announce the adoption of any particular connectivity
standard," VP of Third Party Development Phil Harrison says. However, by
adopting IEEE 1394, USB and PCMCIA, Sony has the opportunity to make an
appropriate decision at a later date, he adds.
It was unclear at press time whether PSX2 will play DVD movies, a feature
implied by Sony (the machine supports MPEG-2 video, the DVD standard) but
not explicitly stated.
If it does, PSX2 could also spell trouble for VM Labs, which is promoting
its Nuon system as a DVD player-plus-games (Nuon also will find its way
into digital set-top boxes). Sony did not say whether the technology will
be integrated into all its future DVD players, but this seems unlikely.
VM Labs, whose Nuon is on target for a holiday 1999 launch, declined to
comment.
Another key to success will be cost. A launch price of $250-$400 is
rumored, but Sony would not disclose pricing plans.
Even at the lower end of that scale, such a price makes the machine
unattractive to gamers as an early buy. Based on Fairfield's survey,
there's a "significant drop-off in purchase intent at the $250 price
point," Gabelhouse says. At $150, more than a third of respondents (36%)
said they would buy a next-generation machine within a year. That figure
dropped to 14% at a price of $250.
Sega's Stolar: 'We Won't Turn Our Back' on Gamer
Mar. 08, 1999 (mmWire, Vol. 6, No. 45 via COMTEX) -- At the end of a week
in which rival Sony [SNE] made jaws drop with the new PlayStation's
technical prowess, Sega Pres./COO Bernie Stolar went on the PR attack,
casting his company in the role of gamers' friend, and Sony as a
fly-by-night set-top box maker.
While competitor Sony is "clearly" targeting an older demographic - the
set-top box consumer - with its upcoming PSX2, Sega will stick to its
core videogame audience with Dreamcast, Sega President/COO Bernie Stolar
said in a "listen-only" conference call Friday.
Sony announced that PSX2 will cost less than 50k yen, Stolar said.
"That's $400. We're not sure the consumer is willing to pay that much
money for a videogame console."
"It's clear that our competitor is no longer targeting the videogame
demographic," he continued. "Let them go head-to-head with the other
consumer electronics giants racing to make an all-in-one box...our
target has always been the videogame consumer and we won't turn our back
on them."
Stolar, in a fighting mood after a week of bruising Sony PlayStation
announcements, was bullish on prospects for Dreamcast. Many were
expecting him to announce an US launch ahead of the planned fall ship
date in a bid to gain headway on Sony, or perhaps to match Sony with
support for DVD, but he had few surprises up his sleeve.
Dreamcast will have DVD, "but only when the time is right," Stolar said.
As reported in mmWire last year (mmW, Nov. 13), the company opted to not
to support DVD initially, largely for cost reasons, but did not rule it
out in future boxes. Sega "won't do it until it makes sense for
developers and consumers," he said.
Retail and consumer enthusiasm for Dreamcast is strong, Stolar said.
Babbage's has taken 7k-plus preorders, and Electronics Boutique has
taken 4k-plus - with pricing and launch details yet to be announced.
Capcom Entertainment, Midway and Acclaim Entertainment are already
showing titles to retailers in the US, he said.
The first Dreamcast advertising, part of a $100m campaign, will begin in
mid-April, Stolar continued. This will be complemented by an aggressive
PR and cross-promotional campaign and a "whole new in-store look and
feel" at retail.
When the console launches, 8-12 titles will be available in "all the
popular genres," Stolar said, with nearly 30 titles available by
Christmas.
Acclaim Sports' All-Star Baseball 2000 To Ship in April
Acclaim Sports, a division of Acclaim Entertainment, Inc., a leading
worldwide interactive entertainment company, announced that All-Star
Baseball 2000 will be ready to ship at the beginning of baseball season
in April, just in time for the start of the Major League season.
Endorsed by two-time World Series Champion Derek Jeter, All-Star
Baseball 2000 features second generation Hi-Rez(TM) graphics and
Acclaim's award-winning 3-D sports engine. All-Star Baseball 2000 is
licensed by Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players
Association (MLBPA) and will be available for Nintendo 64 in April
1999. A version for the PC and Nintendo Game Boy Color will be
available in May 1999.
``With All-Star Baseball 2000, we've created the most accurate baseball
simulation to date'' commented Jaime R. Grieves, project manager.
``Between the second generation Hi-Rez graphics, the new 3D batting
interface, and our attention to detail in gameplay, our game stands
well above the competition.''
Developed by Acclaim studio, Iguana Entertainment, makers of the
blockbuster hits Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, South Park, and NFL Quarterback
Club, All-Star Baseball 2000 features second generation high resolution
graphics and realistic player animation unmatched in any Nintendo
baseball title. New features include a special 3-D batting cursor that
gives players unprecedented control, weather factors, an instant replay
feature, intelligent trading and fantasy draft options, and more than
twice as many frames of animation as the previous All-Star Baseball
game. All-Star Baseball 2000 supports Nintendo's N64 Rumble Pak(TM)and
Expansion Pak, and is playable by up to four players.
``All-Star Baseball `99 was heralded as the top baseball video game last
year on any platform,'' said Mike Jerchower, Acclaim Sports marketing
manager. ``All-Star Baseball 2000 exceeds last year's version in
graphics and gameplay, and the exciting edition of Derek Jeter
energizes our marketing campaign.''
Other key features of All-Star Baseball 2000 include:
-- All 30 Major League teams and over 700 players from the MLBPA
-- All 30 Major League stadiums 3D rendered down to the cut of the
grass
-- Scouting reports by New York Yankees All-Star shortstop Derek Jeter
-- Developed by Iguana Entertainment-makers of All-Star Baseball `99
and NFL Quarterback Club `99
-- Award winning 640 x 480 Hi-Rez(TM) graphics and 3D sports engine
-- Individual player models feature true to life sizes, faces and
team uniforms
-- Over 400 new motions include over-the-shoulder catches, breaking
up double plays, hook slides, swipe tags and fist pumping player
celebrations
-- All-new player graphics include sunglasses, high socks and
alternate team jerseys plus rain delays and airborne dust
-- All-new Instant Replay lets you to view that game-winning HR time
again
-- Over 100 unique batting stances: from the open stance of Andres
Gallaraga to Jeff Bagwell's crowding home plate
-- Authentic home run swings from the games' top sluggers
-- Advanced artificial intelligence simulates actual player
performance in various game conditions: day vs. night, grass vs.
turf, and home vs. away.
-- Adjustable 3-D icon for the ultimate batting control
-- Individual player streaks, slumps and errors based on real life
tendencies
-- 1500 play-by-play and color calls by New York Yankee broadcasters
John Sterling and Michael Kay
-- Authentic Major League game sounds for home and away
-- On screen matchup history for every pitcher and batter
confrontation
-- Customized Hot & Cold strike zones for each Major League Baseball
player
-- Future Throw Technology to turn lightning-quick double-plays
-- Roster management includes: Multi-player trades: creating,
signing and releasing players; and calling up minor league
prospects
-- Play the 1999 Major League Baseball schedule or a special 162
game non inter-league season
-- Track season-long player and team stats in over 300 categories by
STATS Inc.
-- Rumble and Expansion Pak compatible
-- Four game modes: Exhibition, Season, Playoff, and Home Run Derby
All-Star Baseball 2000 will be supported by a multi-million dollar
television, print, radio, on-line, and in-store marketing campaign
featuring Derek Jeter.
The 3DO Company's Award-Winning Baseball Game Picks Yankees Again
The 3DO Company's High Heat Baseball, winner of numerous awards
including Game of the Year, is poised with a new and improved version
High Heat Baseball(TM) 2000, for PC and PlayStation game console.
In a simulation of the 1999 season, the High Heat Baseball 2000 game
predicts the New York Yankees over the Houston Astros.
Last year in a similar simulation, the High Heat Baseball 1999 game
correctly predicted that the Yankees would win the World Series and
that Mark McGwire would shatter the home run record. In every
head-to-head comparison with competing baseball computer video games,
High Heat Baseball 1999 was named the No. 1 baseball game.
In the last month, ``Oscar season'' for video games has begun for
annual awards and so far High Heat Baseball 1999 has ``shut out'' its
competition and won six awards from various organizations and
publications for 1998 Game of The Year.
``High Heat Baseball 2000 is an amazing game and we are very passionate
about it being real baseball,'' said Trip Hawkins, chairman and CEO of
The 3DO Company. ``Last year one of the game reviewers complained
because in High Heat Baseball the Yankees kept winning the Series and
Mark McGwire hit 71 home runs. If it hadn't been for that umpire taking
a homer away from Big Mac we'd have been right on the money.''
For the upcoming 1999 season, the High Heat Baseball 2000 game is even
better with licenses from both Major League Baseball and the Major
League Baseball Player's Association, full management and career mode
features, and state-of-the-art 3D polygonal graphics. The all-new
version for PlayStation game console will bring the best gameplay in
baseball to the huge PlayStation customer base.
The PC version has been enhanced to provide outstanding high-resolution
graphics on a wide variety of PC hardware, including accelerated
performance for all major 3D graphics chips.
``High Heat Baseball already had the best gameplay, but now we've added
all the bells and whistles and expanded to the PlayStation platform. It
is truly now the baseball game for everyone. As a result, we are
offering an unprecedented 'satisfaction guaranteed' offer to our
customers,'' said Hawkins. ``And we will further expand our audience
by being the price leader among new baseball games. We want baseball
fans to feel comfortable that it is easy to try our game and find out
how great it is.''
To date, the list of awards for High Heat Baseball 1999 include:
-- 1998 Game of the Year, from "The Perfect Game" Web site
-- 1998 Baseball Game of the Year, WarZone.Com
-- 1998 Best AI in a Sports game, WarZone.Com
-- 1998 Best Hands-On Gameplay in a Sports Game, WarZone.Com
-- 1998 Top 10 Sports Games, Sports Gaming Network (only baseball
game in Top 10)
-- 1998 Top 10 Sports Games, PC Sports Games
``High Heat Baseball 2000 is right at the top of my
most-anticipated-games list for 1999,'' said Rob Smolka of PC Gamer
magazine.
``If you love the game of baseball and love playing computer baseball
games then you owe it to yourself to get this game once it arrives,''
said Karl Anderson of WarZone.Com. ``It has something for everyone no
matter how you like to play the game.''
In its first full simulation of the '99 season, the High Heat Baseball
2000 game predicted Anaheim, New York, San Francisco, and Atlanta as
the leaders in the AL West, AL East, NL West, and NL East, respectively
(see Table 1). And while predicting that Arizona will be one game back
in the NL West race may be cause for playoff celebrations in San
Francisco and ``no joy in Mudville'' in Phoenix, even mighty Casey
would agree that the predicted results are remarkably true to life.
The game features an innovative Pitcher-Batter interface with 9
different batting swings and the ability to ``Guess Pitch,'' which
allows players to bat the way real Major Leaguers do by predicting the
pitch, then timing their swing and choosing their bat location with
multiple discrete swing positions. On defense, 3DO's proprietary
TruPitch(TM) artificial intelligence features 9 different pitch types
and virtually infinite pitch locations.
The High Heat Baseball 2000 game also features wild pitches and wild
fielding throws, true-to-life base runner, fielder, and catcher actions
combined with special effects such as clouds of dust during a hard
slide. In addition to the new 1999 MLBPA team rosters and 1998 players
and stats, High Heat Baseball 2000 will feature 5 new stadiums that
include two classic stadiums (Ebbets Field and the Polo Grounds).
The PC version of the game also includes career mode functionality
(recruiting from the minors, multi-player trades, and player
development: Rookie, Double A, and Triple A Players), as well as a
player team management mode with an advanced player editor and
multi-player functionality over LAN, modem and the Internet.
The High Heat Baseball 2000 game for PC is expected to ship in March
1999 and the version for PlayStation game console is expected to ship
in the following quarter.
Table 1
AL EAST
W L PCT GB STRK
New York -A 119 43 .735 0.0 Won 3
Boston 103 59 .636 16.0 Lost 2
Baltimore 92 70 .568 27.0 Won 2
Toronto 77 85 .475 42.0 Lost 1
Tampa Bay 66 96 .407 53.0 Won 1
AL CENTRAL
W L PCT GB STRK
Cleveland 106 56 .654 0.0 Lost 4
Detroit 84 78 .519 22.0 Won 3
Kansas City 67 95 .414 39.0 Lost 3
Chicago -A 60 102 .370 46.0 Lost 1
Minnesota 48 114 .296 58.0 Won 1
AL WEST
W L PCT GB STRK
Anaheim 88 74 .543 0.0 Won 2
Texas 86 76 .531 2.0 Lost 2
Oakland 74 88 .457 14.0 Won 2
Seattle 68 94 .420 20.0 Lost 2
NL EAST
W L PCT GB STRK
Atlanta 103 59 .636 0.0 Won 1
New York -N 88 74 .543 15.0 Won 3
Montreal 83 79 .512 20.0 Won 1
Philadelphia 78 84 .481 25.0 Lost 1
Florida 44 118 .272 59.0 Lost 3
NL CENTRAL
W L PCT GB STRK
Houston 104 58 .642 0.0 Lost 1
Chicago -N 86 76 .531 18.0 Won 1
Cincinnati 83 79 .512 21.0 Lost 1
Pittsburgh 78 84 .481 26.0 Won 1
St Louis 75 87 .463 29.0 Won 1
Milwaukee 68 94 .420 36.0 Lost 1
NL WEST
W L PCT GB STRK
San Francisco 92 70 .568 0.0 Won 1
Arizona 91 71 .562 1.0 Lost 1
San Diego 77 85 .475 15.0 Won 3
Los Angeles 72 90 .444 20.0 Lost 4
Colorado 70 92 .432 22.0 Lost 1
Game review: Where Stealth Beats Strength
Solid Snake Hiding from the Gnome Soldiers
Pete Lane Reviews Metal Gear Solid for Playstation
Once upon a time, any game failing to feature copious amounts of
gratuitous violence would fail in the marketplace. But now there is a
new craze for games where avoiding combat is the key.
Metal Gear Solid is arguably the best of this new genre where stealth
beats strength.
This long awaited Playstation (PSX) title from Konami goes on sale in
Britain on 26 February and casts the player as mercenary Solid Snake.
You have to avoid guards and security cameras, collect weapons and
gadgets (you begin the game with nothing) and fight the members of
terrorist movement FOX-HOUND in a bid to stop them launching a nuclear
missile from a secret US government research base in Alaska.
From the start, Metal Gear Solid strives for a cinematic atmosphere. It
is what you would expect from a games director like Hideo Kojima - the
Japanese creator of the character which is now in its third gaming
incarnation.
Credits run during the start of the game, and cut-scenes are used to
inform the player of events occurring around them. These are not merely
movies pre-rendered for the occasion as in most games. Instead, the
game uses an impressive real-time system to
tell its own story. This
aids the sense of realism, since there are no lengthy pauses between
these scenes and the action.
Throughout the game you talk to your superiors using a James Bond-style
communications gadget. They inform you of much of the plot and reveal
game objectives to you. This lends the proceedings a significant level
of tension as you learn more about your mission, which turns out to be
far more complicated than expected.
Encounters with the terrorists are central to the gameplay - and most
lead to a battle.
Combat includes fist-fighting with a Cyborg Ninja, gun-fighting with a
psychic who can read your mind, shooting a helicopter out of the sky
with a shoulder-mounted missile launcher, and coming up against Snake's
nemesis - the immense nuclear-equipped weapon of the game's title,
Metal Gear.
Other parts of the game see the player abseiling down a wall and
steering a guided missile to destroy a power generator.
Metal Gear Solid excels by taking all these diverse elements, and tying
them all together with its convoluted story so that the game flows
naturally.
The difficulty level is well paced, and the attention to detail is
impressive. Even saving your game is integrated into the narrative, and
at one point the CD case itself becomes integral to achieving success.
The game's only real flaw is its length. Most people will finish it in
days rather than weeks, and while it does have two endings, there is
little replay value after these have both been attained. But while it
lasts, Metal Gear Solid is an exceptional title.
SouthPeak Interactive Lands Summer '99 Blockbuster
Company to Publish Games Based on "Wild, Wild West - The Movie"
for Christmas 1999
SouthPeak Interactive has been named the developer and publisher of the PC
and PlayStation games based on Wild, Wild West - The Movie, it was announced
today by SouthPeak Interactive President Armistead Sapp.
Wild, Wild West - The Movie, a film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and
starring Will Smith, Kevin Kline, Kenneth Branagh and Salma Hayek, will
be released by Warner Bros. July 2. It follows two wily government agents
sent to stop a brilliant and diabolical scientist who means to assassinate
the President. The agents, one a charmer and the other a master of
disguises, pool their talents even though they're not completely sure
they can trust each other. Romance, humor, fantastic weapons and devices,
and hair-raising confrontations and escapes enliven their adventures as
the two daringly outwit their enemies.
SouthPeak Interactive will debut the games based on Wild, Wild West - The
Movie at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles this May,
with the full retail version of the game reaching store shelves worldwide
in the fourth quarter of 1999.
``Developing these games based on Wild, Wild West - The Movie is a
tremendous honor and responsibility for SouthPeak Interactive," Sapp
observed. ``Warner Bros. has placed a lot of faith in us to deliver a game
that's as exciting and entertaining as Wild, Wild West - The Movie will
be, and we intend to deliver."
``SouthPeak Interactive has proven itself to be an up and comer in the
interactive marketplace and we are proud to have them develop and publish
a game based on the upcoming Warner Bros. action-packed 1999 Summer film,
Wild, Wild West - The Movie," said Rob Sebastian, Director, Warner Bros.
Interactive Entertainment. ``We are confident that SouthPeak Interactive
will deliver to the marketplace a game worthy of the property."
The PC game based on Wild, Wild West - The Movie is an action-adventure
title that will take game players on a brand new quest beyond the film.
Gamers will embark on missions as James T. West and Artemus Gordon as
they battle the conspirators behind the Lincoln assassination who plan
to murder another President, Ulysses S. Grant. Faced with a series of
puzzles and gun-toting enemies, players will be challenged to use both a
keen mind and a quick trigger-finger in a race against time to save
President Grant. SouthPeak will announce details on the completely
separate storyline and gameplay for the PlayStation game based on Wild,
Wild West - The Movie in the coming weeks.
Capcom Announces Dino Crisis
New Terror Unleashed From the Creator of Resident Evil
Capcom announced Dino Crisis, a new brand in the survival horror
game genre for the PlayStation game console.
Produced by Shinji Mikami, who created the award-winning Resident Evil
series, Dino Crisis showcases the talents of one of industry's most
talented producers. Dino Crisis delivers an unrivalled gaming
experience. It features all new characters and suspenseful story line,
huge 3D environments and, as the title suggests, the relentless pursuit
of predatory dinosaurs.
Dino Crisis will publicly premier March 19th through the 21st at the
Tokyo Game Show. The first public playable version will debut at the
E3 Expo in Los Angeles, May 13-15. Dino Crisis is scheduled to release
in North America and Japan this Fall.
``Dino Crisis is Capcom's newest creation in the survival horror genre,
a category we established with Resident Evil,'' said Bill Gardner,
president of Capcom Entertainment.
``Dino Crisis is absolutely terrifying. You feel the raw instinct and
vicious nature of dinosaurs when Velociraptors attack or while being
hunted down by the massive Tyrannosaurus Rex. In Dino Crisis, players
will experience the panic of facing off against the most terrifying
predator ever to walk the earth. Dino Crisis is for the millions of
fans that loved and played Resident Evil, and hungered for more.
Shinji Mikami and his team have done it again with Dino Crisis.''
Dino Crisis takes place in the not so distant future on Ibis Island.
Professor Kirk, a scientific genius, has set-up a secret laboratory to
complete his most incredible experiment after his country discontinued
funding for his project.
Though only 29 years old, Dr. Kirk's research focused on a revolutionary
experiment to compile the ``Principle of Clean Energy,'' the ultimate
energy source. When this new source of energy is released, it can provide
new life to a polluted planet Earth, starved for power.
In Dino Crisis, players assume the role of Regina, a member of a special
force operative team. Regina and her team of government agents have
orders to capture Professor Kirk and seize the details of his research.
Once a tropical paradise, the island now runs rampant with carnivorous
dinosaurs, including Raptors and T-Rex's that haven't roamed earth in
millions of years. Your mission is simple, find Professor Kirk, get off
the island ALIVE and discover if there is any relation between Dr.
Kirk's experiment and the dinosaurs.
Dino Crisis shows major advancements to the survival horror genre. The
enemies in Dino Crisis are extremely detailed, fully rendered dinosaurs
with the amazing ability to stalk, attack and toy with their human prey.
The game makes use of a fully 3D polygonal environment, which allow
players to interact in real time with their surroundings such as
activating and deactivating security tracking lasers on the walls and
floors that unexpectedly collapse. The games advance light sourcing and
graphical improvements add to its realistic look and feel.
The sheer size and speed of the dinosaurs add a dramatic new element to
the survival horror genre. The dinosaurs in Dino Crisis are capable of
disarming a character through vicious attacks; rendering the player
helpless until a new weapon is selected.
The game also incorporates an inventory and item system allowing the
player to utilize various methods of character healing and combine
weapons leading to the creation of a unique and potentially devastating
arsenal.
Dino Crisis introduces brand new chilling effects, such as trails of
blood when the character is severely injured, or walking in a cautious
manner when suspecting danger is near. In Dino Crisis, players should
prepare to be scared, startled and ready to face the ultimate terror
that lived before man.
The Ultimate Movie Adventure Comes to the Nintendo 64 When Activision
Releases Disney/Pixar's 'A Bug's Life' This Spring
Bugs will rule the Nintendo 64 when Activision, Inc., in collaboration
with Disney Interactive, Inc., brings Walt Disney Pictures' and Pixar
Animation Studio's blockbuster computer-generated animated film, ``A
Bug's Life," to the Nintendo 64 game console this spring.
An action-packed, free roaming third-person, 3D adventure game,
Disney/Pixar's ``A Bug's Life" for the Nintendo 64 lets players run,
fly and slide through an incredible interactive journey seen from a
bug's eye view. Players take on the role of the film's hero Flik, a
clumsy yet inventive ant, who enlists the help of a group of bugs who
are flea circus performers in order to save his colony from the hands
of the villainous Hopper and his legion of grasshoppers.
``We are very enthusiastic about bringing such a successful and
endearing property to the Nintendo 64," said Mitch Lasky, senior vice
president, Activision Studios. ``The game combines innovative gameplay,
unique level designs with a rich 3D look to create an immersive
experience that will appeal to a wide range of game players."
Disney/Pixar's ``A Bug's Life" for the Nintendo 64 lets players journey
through magical, fully-interactive 3D worlds that are brought to life
through cinematic quality animations and ultra smooth game controls.
The game challenges players to navigate through 15 dynamic levels and
plush environments as they solve challenging puzzles in order to defeat
an array of enemies -- from sneaky spiders to vicious wasps. During
the course of their journey, players interact with a multitude of
characters -- both good and evil -- from the feature animated film
including such favorites as, Heimlich, Francis and Hopper. Many of the
feature film's original voice talent enhance the overall gaming
experience.
Disney/Pixar's ``A Bugs Life" for the N64 features a unique constantly
evolving environment or ``living world" in which players are empowered
by using seeds to grow plants, thus gaining access to useful power-ups,
platforms and hidden areas within the lush world. Additionally, players
can determine and control the difficulty of the game experience based on
their individual pacing and actions.
The 3DO Company's Army Men 3D Game for PlayStation Game Console
in Stores Now
It's 'Saving Plastic Ryan' as Sarge Does Whatever It Takes To
Bring Down the Tan Army
The 3DO Company announced today that the Army Men(tm) 3D game has shipped
for the PlayStation game console. The Company's thirteenth game to ship
this fiscal year, Army Men 3D is the third title in the successful Army
Men series.
The game takes place in a completely unique 3-D world where Green and Tan
plastic soldiers have come to life. In the Army Men 3D game the player is
``Sarge," the Green Army veteran squad leader who's a ``shoot first, ask
questions later" kind of soldier. Whether dodging bazooka shots, melting
attacking infantry with his flame-thrower, or leading his squad into an
enemy bunker, Sarge must do whatever it takes to bring down the evil Tan
Army. It's Real Combat. Plastic Men.(tm)
The Army Men 3D game features three gigantic, all-new, high-resolution 3-D
worlds to conquer, viewable from both a ``chase camera" third-person
perspective and a ``dynamic combat camera," which can switch instantly
between third- and first-person perspectives, allowing for greater control
during the heat of battle.
Sarge controls all the weapons of the classic plastic toy soldier: Rifle,
Bazooka, Mortar, Flamethrower, Grenade, and Minesweeper. Players explore
and battle on foot as Sarge walks, runs, kneels, crawls, ducks, and rolls;
Sarge also hops into a half-track, jeep, cargo truck, or tank and fights
through over 20 trigger-happy missions. A first-of-its-kind Multiplayer
Deployment Editor allows for totally original two-player gameplay.
``The original Army Men game brought great fun, nostalgia, and
ease-of-play to the gaming community," said Trip Hawkins, chairman and
CEO of The 3DO Company. ``We are very excited to give PlayStation gamers
the opportunity to experience the fun of the Army Men 3D game, and will
be introducing them to the series with a high-impact, high-visibility TV
campaign at launch that will rival our successful BattleTanx(tm) TV
campaign with regard to 3DO's irreverent sense of humor."
The Army Men 3D game features twisted humor involving funny 3-D animations
such as flamethrowers melting plastic troops, rifle shots breaking plastic
arms off, and bazookas shattering hollow plastic vehicles. Two-player
split screen mode is fully supported. The Army Men 3D game supports
digital and analog controllers and is compatible with the Dual Shock(tm)
Analog Controller.
Acclaim's Re-Volt Races To Stores This Fall
Acclaim Entertainment, Inc., a leading worldwide interactive entertainment
company, today announced that its explosively-fun radio-controlled (R/C) car
racing game, Re-Volt, will arrive on store shelves this fall for the PC,
PlayStation, and Nintendo 64. Developed by Acclaim's Probe studio, Re-Volt
puts gamers in the driver's seat of over 20 R/C cars and sends them on wild
racing adventures in graphically-stunning and unique interactive
environments.
``The development team at Probe has created an amazing game that blends
the realistic physics of a simulation with the fun and action of an
arcade racer," said Noah Ullman, associate product manager at Acclaim
Entertainment. ``Probe's experience in developing innovative games like
Extreme-G and Forsaken clearly shows in Re-Volt's graphic quality and
original gameplay."
In an out-of-control racing effort, gamers can topple cans in the
supermarket, tear up neighborhood streets, and crash into each other in
over 20 R/C cars with unique personalities. Re-Volt contains incredible
multiplayer racing and battle modes in four different modes to test
gamers' skills. Re-Volt includes a wide selection of weapons and
pick-ups for true arcade-style racing and a Track Editor feature that
allows gamers to create, save and trade their own tracks. Shortcuts and
game secrets can be found when exploring each of Re-Volt's seven
spectacular environments: Neighborhood, Museum, Botanical Garden,
Cruise Ship, Wild West, Toy Store and Supermarket.
GT Interactive and Reflections Unveil 'Driver' for
PlayStation Game Console and PC
"You Are The Wheelman" on July 8
Placing gamers behind the wheel of the most sought-after getaway car on
July 8 is GT Interactive Software Corp.'s new game, Driver for the
PlayStation game console and PC. Developed by GT Interactive's newly
acquired Reflections studio, creators of the multi million-selling
Destruction Derby series, Driver delivers the adrenaline-pumping action of
a Hollywood-style car chase as it takes players on a careening thrill-ride
through the streets of four major U.S. cities.
``The phenomenal success of the Destruction Derby franchise clearly
established Reflections as an industry leader in innovative driving
games," said Tony Kee, Director of Marketing for GT Interactive.
``Driver's true automobile physics, ultra-realistic environments,
cutting-edge graphics and revolutionary Director's Mode provides this
franchise with the same blockbuster potential."
As an undercover cop named Tanner, players pose as a driver-for-hire in
order to infiltrate a powerful crime ring spanning four of the nation's
largest cities - New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Miami. Through
the use of extensive pre-production filming in each city, Driver boasts a
level of realism through which players can clearly pick out landmarks such
as the Empire State Building, Golden Gate Bridge and South Beach. In
addition, each city has working traffic lights, wandering pedestrians,
moving traffic and vigilant cops on patrol, all making getaways more
difficult and menacing.
Capturing all the excitement of a high-speed Hollywood-style car chase,
Driver comes fully equipped with a revolutionary Director's Mode that
gives players all the necessary tools to ``film" their own car chase.
After completing each mission, Driver allows players to go back through
a virtual recording of their slick getaway, reposition camera angles and
placements, and even re-cut scenes using editing tools.
What good is a great getaway Driver without the right equipment? To that
end, Reflections has equipped Driver with a selection of 70's-style muscle
cars that guzzle gas and burn rubber! Players experience realistic car
handling, complete with damage modeling and accurate physics on all cars.
Cars crash and deform, tires smoke and hubcaps fly off as players round
corners during high-speed pursuits. Further enhancing the white-knuckle
experience of Driver is the ability change views on the fly. Play from
behind the dashboard where players can look out both side windows for an
escape route, or check things out from a third person, behind-the-car
perspective.
Driver is slated for release on July 8 for the PlayStation game console at
a suggested retail price of $39.95, while the PC version is scheduled for
September.
THQ Takes Nickelodeon's `Rugrats' on a Scavenger Hunt With
New Nintendo 64 Board Game
THQ Inc. is breaking out of its playpen to bring the new Nintendo 64
board game, ``Rugrats(TM): Scavenger Hunt," based on Nickelodeon's
No. 1 kids show on TV, to kids of all ages this June.
``Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt" combines the most popular kids property with
the most popular kids gaming system and features the lovable characters,
voices and music from the Emmy award-winning children's series.
``THQ is bringing `Rugrats,' the hottest and most recognized characters
on kids' TV to the Nintendo 64, the sought-after game console for
children,"
said Germaine Gioia, vice president of marketing, THQ. ``What we love
about `Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt' is that it's a quality kids game created
especially for them. Additionally, parents trust the brand and kids love
the characters. It's a winning combination."
``We've had tremendous success with our initial `Rugrats' games in what
is traditionally an older-skewing market," said Steve Youngwood,
director, Software, Publishing and New Business, Nickelodeon Consumer
Products. ``In working closely with the creators of the show, THQ and
Nickelodeon are thrilled to extend and deliver a true `Rugrats'
experience to the Nintendo system."
THQ's and Nickelodeon's first PlayStation release, ``Rugrats: Search
for Reptar," debuted as the third best-selling video game during the
first two weeks of its launch, according to the NPD Group. The NPD
produces reports based on retail sales of video games, computer games
and educational games.
``Rugrats," the highest rated kids television program in the United
States, is Nickelodeon's animated series about life from a baby's point
of view. The ``Rugrats" are Tommy, the one-year-old hero; his best
friend Chuckie; the twins from next door, Phil and Lil; and Tommy's
bratty cousin Angelica.
Whenever adults are around, the ``Rugrats" act like real babies, but
when they're alone, they talk to each other with the vocabulary of
five-year-olds. As Tommy and his pals wobble through life, supported by
legs not yet used to walking, they show us the world as a baby views and
understands it.
The ``Rugrats"' world is one that exists below our knees; where mundane
things turn into grand, comic adventures. ``Rugrats" has won numerous
awards including the Emmy, CableAce and Parents Choice awards.
Furthermore, the feature film from Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon
Movies, ``The Rugrats Movie," debuted as the No. 1 in the United States
in its first week of release.
``Rugrats" was created by Arlene Klasky, Gabor Csupo and Paul Germain.
The game, aimed at the 6-14-year-old, lets kids of all ages play as
their favorite Rugrats character in one of the first interactive 3-D
board games for the Nintendo 64. Featuring the lovable characters and
voices from the Emmy Award-winning television series, ``Rugrats:
Scavenger Hunt" allows 1 to 4 players to go diaper-to-diaper in search
of hidden treasures.
The music is original ``Rugrats" music composed and recorded for THQ by
Mark Mothersbaugh, the composer of all ``Rugrats" music for the
television show and feature film.
Kids can venture to Angelica's Temple of Gloom, hunting for and
collecting broken ancient Aztec pieces before the evil Aztecca Queen
gets her hands on players. Kids can also journey back to the Pre-a-Stork
Era to help their dinosaur friend Reptar clean up a big candy mess on
Reptar's Island or scuba dive for hidden pirate treasure in Pirate
Treasure Hunt.
Electronic Arts Ships Rushdown for the PlayStation
REDWOOD CITY, CALIF. (March 3) BUSINESS WIRE - March 3, 1999 - Electronic
Arts, the world's largest interactive entertainment software company,
began shipping Rushdown for the PlayStation: a high-speed downhill
racing game featuring three popular extreme sports -- mountain biking,
kayaking and snowboarding.
It is the only game on the PlayStation where kayaking is featured.
Rushdown is an intense, delirious experience aimed at bringing the
excitement and adrenaline rush of these extreme sports into the homes
of video game enthusiasts.
"The release of Rushdown signifies a breath of fresh air in the sports
category," says producer Tarrnie Williams. "Players of all different
types will find that the game is as close to the real deal as you can
get, yet is very easy to learn and extremely fun to play."
The game is set in a variety of rich and immersive real-time 3-D
environments reflecting such locations as Africa, Europe, North and
South America, Southeast Asia and Japan. Players compete in all three
sports on a total of 15 challenging courses set in some of the most
fantastic spots in the world. For instance, gamers can experience
mountain biking at full speed through the dark and dense Amazonian
jungle, kayaking down the boiling and rapid whitewater of the Colorado
River or snowboarding down the sheer and treacherous Mount Kilamanjaro.
Rushdown features energetic arcade-style gameplay that includes three
distinct modes of play: Arcade, Championship and Multiplayer. Players
race against the clock in Arcade mode to hone their skills on each
sport as well as improve times for each course. In Championship mode
players race on each continent against the local champion in all three
sports. Defeat the champion, and the player advances.
As the player progresses, each continent becomes more difficult to
master culminating in a futuristic Japanese setting on the streets of
Tokyo. Gamers wanting to go up against their friends for bragging
rights can do so in the Multiplayer mode. Up to two players can battle
it out in vertical or horizontal split screened action. A
photo-realistic replay feature is available in all modes of play that
allows players to analyze their own performance as well as relive past
glories.
Adding to the realism of the game is officially licensed gear such as
Rossignol snowboards, Jansport and tuning tips from the world champion
Sunn mountain biking team. Players must select the right equipment for
the unique course challenges ahead. For example, a mountain bike with
more torque can be selected on a course with steep upgrades. This adds
a strategic element to Rushdown, as choosing the improper equipment
will decrease performance or worse. Having the right gear for each
situation may make the difference between victory and the agony of
defeat.
The game supports Dual Shock as well as analog controllers.
Syphon Filter "Shoots" to the Top of PlayStation Expectations
989 Studios, a Sony Computer Entertainment Group Company, reported that
initial sales of Syphon Filter, its all-new action adventure title for
the PlayStation game console, greatly surpassed Company expectations.
"Syphon Filter has had a phenomenal launch," said Jack Tretton, vice
president, sales, Sony Computer Entertainment America. "To accommodate
Syphon Filter's tremendous initial success, retailers have already
placed numerous re-orders to insure that consumers will be able to
obtain a copy of the game for weeks to come."
The unique gameplay in Syphon Filter navigates players through
interactive environments, dodging high-speed subways, deadly terrorists
and apocalyptic explosions. Adding to the action is the
carefully-designed third-person perspective that drops the player into
Special Agent Gabriel Logan's world, with eye-opening realism.
"To say that we're pleased with the first week sales of Syphon Filter
is a vast understatement," said Jeffrey Fox, vice president, marketing,
989 Studios. "Without looking too far into the future, we think that
Gabe Logan and Syphon Filter are one of 989 Studios' next franchise
titles and we think that the game has the potential to be a
million-seller."
Electronic Arts Ships Street Sk8er for the PlayStation
Electronic Arts, the world's largest interactive entertainment software
company, announces the shipping of Street Sk8er(TM); the first
PlayStation title exclusively dedicated to skateboarding.
Street Sk8er is an intense high-speed arcade-style game that will appeal
to gamers of all types and skill levels, especially those with a
voracious appetite for speed, authentic tricks and adventure.
``We are thrilled to say that Street Sk8er is the first title to deliver
PlayStation players the ultimate fantasy adventure in skateboarding,"
said Tarrnie Williams Jr., producer. ``Gamers will be able to ollie and
grind handrails, all kinds of ledges and benches, launch McTwists off
huge ramps and spin 1800's in giant bowls and halfpipes."
The game is set in a variety of rich 3-D street and park-style
environments -- the highly detailed street courses offer multiple ramps,
rails and stairs, which make the skateboarding experience extremely
realistic. Players can get huge air off the ramps or get some sick
grinds off the rails. Each course is designed to offer the player the
opportunity to exercise and master all of the skating styles and
combinations.
Players start off with four characters, then proceed to unlock four
additional characters for a total of eight different skaters from which
to choose. Each character has a unique set of skills and abilities that
differ from those of the other characters, resulting in a wide array of
varying gameplay experiences through the game. Additionally, gamers can
attempt more than 200 authentic moves and combinations.
Street Sk8er features over-the-top, arcade-style gameplay that revolves
around two separate modes: Street Tour and Free Skate. In Street Tour,
a competitive event that includes course levels in Los Angeles, New York
and Tokyo, skaters explore hidden routes as they race against the clock,
scoring points for tricks. Blow it and points will be deducted from the
total. A minimum point total must be gained in order to advance to the
next level.
Skaters are awarded points in bonus rounds in the Halfpipe, Big Air or
Bowl events of each Tour stop. Your score then translates into bonus
time for your next Street Tour course. Players also discover secret
characters and skateboards, while they gain additional character
attributes. To reveal more hidden bonuses, they can then play again
with the secret characters.
Free Skate allows gamers to navigate and explore the street courses
without the timing pressure of the clock. Since there are no time
restrictions, the player can seek out new paths and perfect new tricks.
Both Street Tour and Free Skate mode can be played during the day,
night, or in mirror mode -- where left becomes right and right becomes
left.
Additionally, Street Sk8er features a replay mode that includes pause
and slow motion options. In essence, the replay mode acts as a tutorial,
allowing gamers to closely analyze and improve upon their performance.
The game also features a VS. mode where you can challenge a friend for
bragging rights, and throw down on any of the courses to see who really
owns the road. Players can choose from 20 custom skateboard decks
featuring 1998 deck graphics from Powell Skateboards, as well as custom
boards from Eternal Skateboards and Warp Magazine.
Street Sk8er offers a unique soundtrack, which helps give the game added
verve and street credibility. Sporting their essential skatewear, gamers
will be able to ``skate" to the music of many well-known recording
artists popular in the skating community. The game will feature songs
from Epitaph and Capitol recording artists such as Less Than Jake,
Plastilina Mosh, Weston, H20, All, Straight Faced, The Pietasters, I
Against I and Gas Huffer.
The game will support one or two players and will feature Dual Shock(TM)
support. Street Sk8er was developed by Micro Cabin and is being
published by Electronic Arts in North America, Europe, Australia, and
New Zealand. The game will carry an ``E" (Everyone) ESRB rating and have
a MSRP of $49.95.
->A-ONE Gaming Online - Online Users Growl & Purr!
"""""""""""""""""""
Message from Hasbro/ re: Battlesphere
From: John Hardie <jhardie@pipeline.com>
Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 22:49:45 GMT
Hello everyone,
I got a call from Mark Goodreau at Hasbro today and he asked me to
pass along the following info.
Let me just say that I know Mark to be a straight shooter, NOT a b.s.
artist. He's been instrumental in working with us on Classic Gaming
Expo '99 and if he tells you he's doing something, you can rest
assured he is. He is absolutely a man of his word.
Mark assures me that he is working with the legal team at Hasbro to
come up with a solution for the Battlesphere problem. Some of the
business concerns that they have are that people will think that they
are involved in some way with Battlesphere and/or any future projects
(ie. Protector, etc.). This could lead to people calling them for
service as well as people looking at them if the product is defective
somehow. He states that they are doing everything they can to work it
out and that this is of importance to them; not something to look into
when they have time, etc.
He also states that they have received numerous letters and emails
about the subject. He asks if we can stop the emails and letters for
the time being as they are serving no purpose other than to distract
them from their work which includes working on the Battlesphere
problem.
While he can make no 100% guarantee that a solution can be reached, he
feels confident that something can be worked out and told me that they
are working diligently on it.
My personal feeling is that we should give them the time to work on it
(within reason). We've waited 4 years, what's another month or two?
I'll post any updates that Mr. Goodreau gives me.
John Hardie
jhardie@pipeline.com
Atari Gaming Headquarters
www.atarihq.com
Don't miss Classic Gaming Expo '99
www.cgexpo.com
Jaguar Game in the Making
From: "Ville Jdrvi" <ville.jarvi@pp.inet.fi>
Hi!
I have gathered team that's working on a Atari Jaguar shoot 'em up game.
Although the team looks quite good as for now, I am still looking for
more skillful members. There are few spots for:
-Programmers(C & ASM)
-Graphic artists(2D or 3D, raytracing, modeling, painting etc.)
-Sound editors and musicians
I don't think I am able to pay you anything, but if you want to be a
part of Jaguar's history, want to develop for a 64-bit machine, contact
me. Also, I'm sure this would help in future getting job in industry.
E-mail your applications to me, ville.jarvi@pp.inet.fi
Thanks!
A-ONE's Headline News
The Latest in Computer Technology News
Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson
U.S. Outlines Antitrust Charges In Intel Case
The U.S. government Monday laid out its charges against leading computer
chip maker Intel Corp. just ahead of the start of the second big
antitrust case against a high-tech industry leader.
Intel, the dominant maker of microprocessors that are the "brains"
inside personal computers, rejected the charges in a reply brief,
denying that it had sought to quash competition improperly.
The administrative trial opens March 9 -- a week after the antitrust
case against leading software maker Microsoft Corp. entered
a lengthy recess.
The two companies jointly rode the spectacular rise of personal
computers to great profits by establishing the most popular hardware
and software standards.
The Federal Trade Commission, in a 50-page filing, outlined its view of
Intel's rise, arguing that the company had abused monopoly power and
bullied three of its customers to maintain a stranglehold on the market.
``Simply competing on the merits was insufficient for Intel," the FTC
said. ``The company instead chose to exploit its monopoly to gain access
to the innovative technologies of others in order to maintain its market
dominance."
The Santa Clara, Calif. company replied that it did not have a monopoly
and was not seeking to limit competition when disputes arose with
Intergraph Corp., Compaq Corp., and Digital Equipment Corp., now a unit
of Compaq.
``This bizarre theory is easily shown to be contrary to the evidence,"
Intel said in its brief.
The government alleged that Intel forced the companies to turn over
valuable technology patents that could otherwise have boosted
competition in the markets for chips or related parts of personal
computers.
For more than a decade, Intel has been the dominant supplier of
processors for personal computers, collecting more than 80 percent of
the revenues and billions in profits.
But since the FTC complaint was filed last year, chip competitors
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and National Semiconductor Corp.'s Cyrix
unit have made great strides in stealing business from Intel in popular
low-end computers costing under $1,000.
Intel said AMD's growing sales to computer makers, called original
equipment manufacturers or OEMs, disproved the government's central
allegations. ``Two years ago, none of the top ten OEMs used AMD
processors," Intel said. ``Today nine out of the top ten do so...Even
(the FTC's) economic expert is at a loss to explain how Intel's conduct
stopped AMD from selling more microprocessors."
In Monday's filing, the FTC dismissed the importance of the shift at the
low end. The agency said the market segment was a tiny part of the
overall market and argued that AMD and Cyrix gained largely because
Intel had ignored the cheaper computers.
``It is questionable whether AMD and Cyrix can maintain their recent
gains," the FTC said. After seeing the success of other firms, ``Intel
took aggressive steps to capture the new segment and is widely expected
dramatically to gain share in the low-end segments."
Small, well-publicized chip start-ups like Transmeta and Metaflow also
will not restrain Intel's ability to monopolize the market, the FTC
said. ``These firms exert no competitive influence on Intel," the
agency said.
Despite reports in recent weeks that the FTC might broaden its case to
include other charges, the agency stuck to the three allegations made in
its June 8 original complaint.
The agency said Intel forced Compaq and Digital to turn over important
technology patents by threatening to withhold crucial private
information it shares with its PC manufacturer customers about upcoming
chips.
In the Intergraph case, Intel made the same threats but a federal
district court ruled that Intel had to continue sharing the information
with Intergraph.
Intel Now the Target of Antitrust
After a five-month Microsoft marathon, it is now Intel inside the
antitrust courtroom.
The microchip giant will take center stage Tuesday in an administrative
law hearing at the Federal Trade Commission, contesting government
charges it illegally used bullying tactics to quell competition.
The Intel case is not likely to have the entertainment value of that
OTHER antitrust case, now on a month's recess at U.S. District Court
down the block.
Unlike the Microsoft antitrust trial, there probably will not be any
smoking gun e-mails. Nor will there be bitter disputes over what
happened: Intel acknowledges it did most of what the FTC alleges; the
company just claims it acted legally.
Despite the lower profile, the Intel case carries high stakes that
ultimately could affect prices, quality and innovation in computers
millions of people now use.
The central issue in the government's complaint is whether Intel Corp.,
holds a monopoly in the market for microprocessors, the ``brains" of
computers. The FTC says yes, because Intel microchips run about 80 percent
of the world's computers.
Federal regulators must prove to the administrative judge hearing the
case that Intel used monopoly power to shut out its competition, hurting
consumers in the process. The government also must show how such actions
curbed innovation and barred other companies' potential entry into the
market.
Intel scoffs at the notion that it has ``chilled" innovation. Indeed,
the case opens as the company faces unprecedented competition from rival
chipmakers, specifically Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and
National Semiconductor Corp.
``It's kind of funny because the FTC has chosen to bring this case at
probably the one time in the last 15 years where Intel really was having
problems in the market," said Daniel Wall, an antitrust attorney in San
Francisco.
``It's a tough argument (for Intel) to say they don't have monopoly power,
but they're better positioned to make that argument now than they have
ever been."
In its complaint, the government claims Intel illegally used its industry
influence to withhold key technical information about future microchips
from three companies: Digital Equipment Corp., Intergraph Corp., and
Compaq Computer Corp.
The information was necessary for the businesses to develop computer
systems based on future Intel chips. The FTC claims Intel withheld the
data to punish the companies for refusing to license key patents to Intel
without charge. The patents are for microprocessors and related
technologies made by the three companies.
Digital, which makes hardware and software, and Compaq, the world's
largest computer maker, ultimately gave in to Intel. Intergraph, which
makes specialized computers for engineers, sued and eventually got a
preliminary injunction requiring Intel to turn over the information.
Intel is appealing.
The FTC, in court documents, calls Intel's actions ``a raw exercise of
monopoly power to muscle competitors into signing over intellectual
property rights."
Intel, which reported $26.2 billion in sales last year, acknowledges it
denied the technical data, but argues it legally can decide which secrets
to disclose to customers.
A recent industry report showed consumers bought more low-end computers
in January with AMD processors than Intel - knocking Intel from the No. 1
spot for the first time in that area.
Intel claims AMD's performance in the marketplace ``flies in the face" of
the government's theory. Two years ago, none of the top computer makers
used AMD processors, it notes; today nine of the top 10 do.
``The evidence shows that competition has intensified greatly since the
time of that conduct," the company said in court papers.
Even the FTC's economic expert, Harvard University professor Frederic M.
Scherer, found no evidence that innovation in the computer industry has
suffered, the company points out.
Scherer describes Intel's behavior as ``unfair" but agrees that its
actions have not directly affected chip prices, a factor in determining
monopoly power.
The FTC's antitrust case against Intel was filed shortly after the Justice
Department and 19 states sued Microsoft, the software giant accused of
abusing its monopoly power. The two federal agencies have overlapping
authority on antitrust and typically divide cases.
In the Intel case, the FTC seeks a far more limited remedy, if it wins,
than the ones contemplated for Microsoft.
The agency wants an administrative order requiring Intel to stop
withholding technical information from customers who develop rival
technologies. Either side can appeal the administrative judge's ruling to
the full FTC. If Intel loses there, it can go to a federal judge.
By comparison, a prominent technology industry group has suggested
splitting Microsoft into separate companies selling different products, if
a federal judges rules against the company.
FTC Antitrust Charges Against Intel
The Federal Trade Commission has accused Intel Corp., of violating
antitrust laws. In an administrative hearing on the case beginning
Tuesday, FTC attorneys must prove:
-Intel is a monopoly.
-Intel used its monopoly power to hurt competitors or to prevent potential
competitors from entering the market.
-Intel's actions hurt consumers, either by hindering innovation or through
higher prices for products.
Tyler Baker, an antitrust attorney based in Dallas, says monopolists often
are held to a higher standard than other companies because their actions
have a wider impact.
``If it's done by a little company that has no prospect of driving another
company out of business, that's one thing, but when it's done by a big
company that has 85 percent of the market, the effect may be to squelch
the competition,'' he said.
U.S., Intel In Surprise Pact On Eve Of Trial
The U.S. government announced a surprise settlement with Intel Corp
Monday, just one day before a major antitrust trial against the leading
computer chip maker was to begin.
The government had accused Intel of using its dominance in making the
chips at the heart of most personal computers to bully its competitors
and stifle innovation.
The Federal Trade Commission, which had brought the charges last June,
said the proposed agreement still had to be voted on by its full
four-member commission within the next few days.
``The commission set out to establish a principle and the staff believes
that the proposed agreement achieves that goal," an FTC spokeswoman said.
The agreement tracks much of the remedy the FTC had sought in the case,
according to persons with knowledge of it.
The FTC got Intel to stop withholding products or intellectual property
when it has a dispute with customers, according to persons with knowledge
of the case.
Intel won exceptions to that remedy in special circumstances. And it need
not admit that it holds monopoly power for the processors that run
personal computers.
Shares in Intel rose Monday, boosted in part by the accord with the FTC,
analysts said. Intel stock closed up $5.00 at $119.63, compared with
Friday.
The FTC had charged that Intel withheld information, prototypes and
technical assistance when computer makers would not surrender their
intellectual property for free.
The suit was one of two high-profile cases brought last year by the
government against the nation's leading high-technology companies in the
personal computing industry. The Justice Department's case against
software giant Microsoft Corp continues.
In Redmond, Wash., Microsoft counsel Brad Smith said: ``I don't think
(the settlement) has an effect directly on our case."
Smith said the Intel case is more closely related to an earlier Microsoft
issue, a narrow 1995 settlement over how it handled the licensing of its
software to PC makers.
Microsoft's stock closed up $4.06 to $159.
Santa Clara, Calif.-based Intel is still under investigation by the
government on broad allegations. But the FTC's top antitrust investigator,
William Baer, suggested the door was open to a settlement that would
resolve all charges.
``There are remaining issues under investigation by the commission," he
said. ``The commission's staff is committed to working expeditiously to
resolve those concerns."
The FTC has not discussed its broader investigation. But critics say Intel
is working to expand its chip so that it displaces most other chips in the
computer, such as those for the modem.
Eventually, such changes would have the twin effects of pushing out
competitors and minimizing the role of computer makers, the critics say.
Computer makers would be little more than sales forces selling boxes
containing Intel chips and disk drives, and perhaps some memory, with a
keyboard and a screen on the side.
But in the case that was settled Monday, the FTC had accused Intel of
coercing three major, established customers into granting access to their
technology free.
Those customers were Intergraph Corp a maker of high-end computers for
graphics, Compaq Computer Corp., the largest maker of personal computers
in the world, and Digital Equipment Corp., which owned the high-speed
``Alpha" chip that competed with Intel. Digital has since been acquired
by Compaq.
Intel president and chief executive officer Craig Barrett welcomed the
settlement. ``We view this compromise agreement as a win-win for both
parties and we are satisfied that the agreement gives us value for our
intellectual property rights," Barrett said in a statement.
Antitrust experts said by settling, Intel had avoided laundering its dirty
linen in public, even though Intel said there were few or none of the
embarrassing e-mails which showed up in the Microsoft trial.
The lack of a court decision also leaves the picture fuzzy for other
companies, because a consent decree sets no precedents.
``The underlying issues of how antitrust law interacts with intellectual
property law will have to be left for another day," said Howard Morse, a
lawyer with Drinker, Biddle & Reath.
Intergraph, which has a separate court case pending against Intel, said
it was ``hopeful that the settlement will protect the industry and will
assure fair business practices by Intel in the future."
Compaq welcomed the pact and said it would continue to work with Intel to
provide innovation in personal computers.
Justice, Microsoft Not In Talks
There have been no settlement talks between Microsoft Corp and the
government and any company offer to settle the antitrust case would face
skepticism, a source close to government lawyers said Tuesday.
``There's been no discussions, nobody has talked yet," said the source.
``There's a possibility that Microsoft might make some offer, but the
government is generally skeptical it would be a serious offer."
Microsoft suggested that the onus was on the government to come up with a
settlement proposal.
``The government has not made any good-faith attempt to settle this in a
way that did not violate our right to improve our products for our
customers," said Microsoft spokesman Dan Leach.
But an economist said that Microsoft was being unrealistic.
The antitrust trial has gone well for the government and it can
``reasonably seek a pretty strong remedy," said Carl Shapiro, a University
of California at Berkeley economist who was once chief economist for the
Justice Department antitrust division.
``Are they (at Microsoft) prepared to be realists?" asked Shapiro. ``So
far they haven't been."
Speculation that Microsoft might settle its antitrust case with the
Justice Department and 19 states was fueled by a surprise settlement
Monday between the Federal Trade Commission and chip maker Intel Corp.
That helped drive up Microsoft stock Tuesday and Wednesday, which closed
up $2.8125 at $161.8125.
The government has charged the software giant with holding monopoly power
with its Windows operating system for personal computers. The government
alleges that Microsoft has abused that power.
When the Microsoft trial broke last month for six or more weeks, District
Court Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson suggested the two sides should use
their time wisely. That was read as suggesting that settlement talks
should be held.
But it would be far more difficult to settle the Microsoft case than the
Intel case, experts say.
The Federal Trade Commission laid out specific proposed remedies in its
complaint. Intel agreed to those remedies, with some modifications.
The government case against Microsoft laid out no proposed remedies.
And while the outcome of the Intel trial was unclear -- it had not started
when the deal was cut -- the government has the edge in the Microsoft
trial. Most observers expect Jackson to rule against Microsoft after
hearing rebuttal witnesses and closing arguments.
Privately, people involved in the case have talked about the possibility
of a separate ``remedies phase," to take testimony from people hurt by
Microsoft and to consider the pluses and minuses of various solutions.
The remedies phase alone could take two weeks to a month, those people
close to the case have said.
Against this background, Microsoft would have to make an attractive offer
to the Justice Department to get things going, experts said.
There is no reason to expect the Justice Department to go to Microsoft.
The Justice Department ``had a kind of unpleasant back and forth leading
up to the trial," said Shapiro.
Microsoft proposed talks before the trial and the government agreed. But
the government lawyers were disappointed by Microsoft, which, in their
estimation, seemed to make no serious offer to settle.
Philips Launches Hostile Bid For VLSI
Philips Electronics NV Friday formally launched a $777 million hostile
bid for VLSI Technology Inc. and filed suit to block the California
chipmaker's ``poison pill" takeover defense.
The developments, which were expected, came one week after the
Netherlands-based electronics company disclosed an interest in buying
VLSI as part of a plan to expand in North America.
Philips is seeking to buy VLSI for $17 a share. The offer expires April 1.
In its first statement since Philips announced Thursday plans to start a
hostile offer, VLSI said it will review the bid and urged investors to
take no action with respect to it.
``The unsolicited offer has been referred to the VLSI board of directors
for its review," said the San Jose, Calif.-based company, which makes
computer chips for products such as cellular phones.
Federal rules require VLSI to make a recommendation about the offer no
later than March 18.
VLSI is considered vulnerable to a hostile offer because the six members
of its board of directors are up for election at the company's annual
shareholders meeting this spring. Philips has said it plans to nominate a
board slate in an effort to oust the current board.
The lawsuit, filed in the Delaware Chancery Court, contends the VLSI board
``had refused to redeem the (poison) pill despite the attractiveness" of
Philips' offer. The poison pill would make it prohibitively expensive for
Philips to buy VLSI if it acquired more than 20 percent of VLSI stock.
VLSI had no comment on the lawsuit.
Shares of VLSI closed unchanged at $18.31 on Nasdaq. The stock has been
trading above the $17 bid for several days on speculation VLSI will
eventually be sold at a higher price.
AT&T Says It Doesn't Want to Buy AOL
AT&T Corp. doesn't want to acquire the nation's largest Internet provider,
America Online, despite persistent rumors about such a deal, AT&T
Chairman C. Michael Armstrong said Thursday. "We are absolutely not
interested in, nor are we pursuing acquiring America Online," Armstrong
said, responding to a question about whether a deal between the two titan
companies is in the works.
There have been published reports that the two companies were thinking
about pairing up. AOL, meanwhile, had wanted federal regulators, as a
condition of approving AT&T's planned merger with cable giant
Tele-Communications, to make the merged company provide other companies
with access to TCI's high-speed lines.
Group Suggests Microsoft Should Restructure
The Software and Information Industries Association said Microsoft Corp.
should restructure if it loses its antitrust trial, the Wall Street
Journal reported Thursday, citing a confidential report from the trade
group.
The group represents 1,300 software and computer makers and publishers.
The report called for the court to contemplate a broad restructuring to
prevent the need for continuing oversight by the Justice Department or
the courts, "to effectively cure - once and for all - the competitive
crisis plaguing the software industry," the newspaper reported.
Netscape Rolls Out Communicator 4.51
Netscape Communications Corp. on Tuesday will roll out the latest upgrade
to its Communicator applications suite.
Communicator 4.51 adds enhancements to the Netscape/America Online Inc.
instant messaging client, along with a new utility for pulling stock
quotes off the Internet without having to switch back and forth between
applications, company officials said. The changes extend the integration
between Communicator and the company's Navigator browser that began with
the Communicator 4.5 release in July 1998, they said.
The new version of the instant messaging client adds the ability to click
on Web links from within the IM screen, along with single-click access
from the IM screen to a user's "My Netscape" Web page, Internet-based
e-mail, and Web search functions, said Eric Mann, group product manager
for Communicator.
The changes mark the first major IM upgrade for Communicator since
Netscape licensed the technology from AOL (last year, he said. (AOL went
on to buy Netscape in a blockbuster $4.2 billion deal in November.)
The new IM client also allows group chat sessions among as many as 23
users simultaneously, Mann said. A new privacy control setting on the IM
client lets users keep their name from popping up on others' "buddy
lists."
"You have fairly granular control over who sees what" in the new version
of the IM, Mann said. A parent can, for example, keep a child's screen
name from being seen by anyone when the child is online, or allow the
screen name to be seen only by a specific list of people, he said.
A new stock quote utility allows users to type real-language searches,
such as "quote Netscape," into Communicator and pull stock quotes off the
Web, Mann said. A search on "my stocks" will bring up quotes for all
stocks tracked in the user's pre-set portfolio on the Netcenter portal.
The 4.51 version also adds simpler access to the calendar and scheduling
functions in Netcenter, and includes fixes for Java-script problems and
other minor bugs in the earlier version, he said.
Communicator 4.51, a 14.7-megabyte file, will be available for free
download at Netscape's site Tuesday [March 9].
Oracle Ships Internet-Friendly 8i Database Program
Oracle Corp., the world's No. 1 database software company, Monday said
8i, its latest database program, designed to work seamlessly with the
Internet, was now available from dealers.
In January, Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Oracle postponed shipment of
8i to allow more time for integrating other software and development
tools with the product. It was originally slated to ship by the end of
1998.
``The Internet is not just a change in technology, it's a completely new
way of doing business," said Chuck Rozwat, head of Oracle's server
technologies division.
Oracle Chief Executive Larry Ellison has called 8i the only technology a
company needs to use applications that are accessible through the
Internet.
The program boasts tools such as a built-in Java Virtual Machine and a
so-called ``Internet file system," which will store and manage Web
pages, multimedia data, word processing files and spreadsheets.
The database runs on computers using operating systems such as Windows NT
from Microsoft Corp., the Solaris version of the Unix operating system
from Sun Microsystems Inc., and Hewlett-Packard's version of Unix, among
others.
No Hometown for AOL users
America Online Inc. users are fuming over continued problems with Hometown
AOL, a personal home page service introduced last fall.
Hometown allows AOL subscribers to build their own home pages using a
simple interface, but many users say getting their pages online hasn't
been so simple.
According to complaints posted on AOL message boards, and interviews with
ZDNN, the Hometown software either fails to save the Web page or can't
connect to Hometown's servers.
And since the problem was first reported last month, users say they
haven't noticed any improvements.
"When I try to publish [my Web page] I end up in this waiting process that
can go on for hours and hours at a time, and that never gets resolved,"
said Hometown user Margaret Bosch. "It's an ongoing thing. There are
hundreds of [complaint] postings every day."
Hometown is currently available only to AOL subscribers, but AOL plans to
make it available to anyone on the Web. That would bring the company into
direct competition with Geocities, which is being purchased by Yahoo!
Inc., and Tripod, owned by Lycos Inc.
AOL says the service is just too popular, and that even doubling the
capacity of its servers' Web connection hasn't solved the problem.
"What you may be experiencing is that occasionally, during peak hours,
the high number of people creating and updating their Web pages may
sometimes affect a user's ability to upload and publish their personal
Web page," wrote a Hometown representative on an AOL message board
Tuesday. "We have recently doubled the Hometown AOL access capacity and
plan to continue growing capacity in the coming months."
But users say the delays occur no matter what time they try to publish,
and that some of their screen name accounts are affected while others are
not.
"I have tried to publish at early morning hours, middle of the night, and
during midday," one Hometown user posted.
"I spent the whole weekend trying to publish a page," wrote another user.
"Starts to publish then ... gets stuck at five or 16 percent, then I get
booted."
America Online has had a spotty reliability record, partly because it has
the largest user base of any online service, with more than 16 million
members.
In 1997 AOL became notorious for its users' difficulties in even
completing a dial-up connection, a problem that took large infrastructure
investments to ease.
Gateway to Offer Free Internet Service
Personal computer maker Gateway Inc. joined forces with an online store
Wednesday and offered its customers free Internet access for one year in
an attempt to beef up sales.
Gateway, known for the bovine images on its packages, said Wednesday it
will launch a new Web site in conjunction with the e-commerce unit of
NECX, a privately held company based in Peabody, Mass., with an online
retail shop.
Sparks May Fly at Seybold Show
BOSTON -- A pair of keynote addresses by publishing archrivals Adobe
Systems Inc. and Quark Inc. should add drama to this week's Seybold
Seminars, returning here following a two-year sabbatical in New York.
Adobe plans to launch its professional publishing tool, InDesign, on
Tuesday. Officials at the San Jose, Calif., company say the
next-generation product has been designed with the goal to lure users
away from Quark's flagship QuarkXPress. Adobe expects to ship the
software, priced at $699, in the second quarter. Adobe will also
demonstrate Adobe GoLive 4.0, the first cross-platform version of
GoLive Systems Inc.'s tool. (Adobe acquired GoLive, of Menlo Park,
Calif., in January.) Formerly known as GoLive CyberStudio, Adobe
GoLive 4.0 is scheduled to ship for the Macintosh in March, followed
by version 4.0 for Windows in the second quarter, both selling for $299.
According to sources, Quark will roll out its publishing road map for
1999 in a Wednesday presentation that may include some details about
QuarkXPress 5.0, the next major rev to the Denver-based company's
desktop-publishing package.
Also vying for the show spotlight will be Silicon Graphics Inc., of
Mountain View, Calif., which will unveil a new digital asset management
system, called StudioCentral, on Tuesday.
Among the companies making Internet-related product announcements at the
show will be Worldweb.net, Banta Integrated Media and Marathon
Innovations.
Worldweb.net, of Alexandria, Va., will announce on Tuesday the
availability of Expressroom 6.0, an XML-based content management
system with a Java front-end, starting at $25,000. To date, Worldweb
has offered services to companies, but it will now hand off Expressroom
6.0 to customers such as Kiplinger's and U.S. News and World Report to
help them publish their sites internally.
Banta, of Cambridge, Mass., is launching its new BSolutions offerings,
which focus on the integration of content management and e-commerce
capabilities. The BMedia 2.0 enterprise content management system,
formerly Banta's Centrus tool, is scheduled for release in the second
quarter, starting at $75,000.
Marathon Innovations, of Morrisville, N.C., is introducing the SmartPath
MAS workflow software for Web-based media development and publishing.
SmartPath is available immediately, starting at $125,000.
The show runs from March 1 to 5. It is produced by ZD Events Inc., the
expo wing of Ziff-Davis, which publishes PC Week Online.
Linux Holds First U.S. Conference
The man whose computer software is quietly challenging Microsoft Corp.'s
industry-dominating Windows operating system doesn't have any interest
in being like the software giant's chairman Bill Gates. "Bill who?"
Linus Torvalds said Tuesday.
At times bashful, at times brash, Torvalds enjoyed his first major
coming-out party Tuesday as thousands of software developers, analysts
and computer users came to LinuxWorld. It was the first major conference
and exposition for the operating system, which was developed by Torvalds
in the early 1990s when he was a student in Finland.
Maybe Y2K Won't Be All Bad - Commentary
MARIETTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1999 MAR 2 (Newsbytes) -- By Jeffrey Kagan,
Newsbytes. Don't ignore the good things the y2k bug can bring. Maybe
Y2K isn't such a bad thing after all. What if?
What if, you woke
up one day and couldn't get CNN?
What if, your kids couldn't get the Cartoon Network?
What if, you couldn't check e-mail or they couldn't play Nintendo?
What if, you couldn't join your favorite chat room?
What if, you couldn't surf the Web and keep up with newspapers from
all over the country and the world?
What if you couldn't share documents with coworkers and continue to
work no matter what or where?
It would be awful. Or would it?
Finally, the Y2K issue that we've been debating about in technology
trade journals for years has reached the mainstream, and the media hype
apparatus is in full swing. All we hear about is the terrible wrath
we'll have to face in a few months. We are all focusing on the bad
stuff that could happen.
But like every cloud, Y2K could have a silver lining. In a case of
unintended consequences outnumbering intended consequences, Y2K could
herald in the longest "snow day" we've seen. This could be the biggest
human bonding experiment since the 60's.
We are becoming a society that finds it easier, and even preferable to
hide behind our computer screens and chat with a faceless, nameless
stream of words from across the country or across the globe, rather
than deal with people face to face, and all the complexities, good and
bad, of the human relationship.
Technology has allowed us to do more, contact more, accomplish more,
run faster and jump higher than ever before. But somehow in spite of
all this connectivity, we are more cut off and feel more alone than
ever before. Technology that was supposed to help us get work done more
quickly so we could spend more time with our family and friends has
instead simply allowed us to do more work.
Technology can be protective. How many times do you hide behind
technology and send an e-mail rather than make a phone call to avoid
the live interaction for whatever reason?
Technology can be addictive. How often do you want to run to check
e-mail on weekends or vacations?
It's a different world from the one we grew up in. Different
priorities. Different challenges. There's an urgency about everything.
Even the things that aren't important are still urgent. It's a frenzied
pace without time to think.
And as an observer, someone who has lived in both worlds, I'm not sure
it's all good. We seem to be lost in our technology and are losing our
humanity.
Maybe, if we're lucky, this Y2K thing could have some lasting benefits
to the human condition. What if the information avalanche we all deal
with on a daily basis stopped? Even for a short time. Just enough to
stop and smell a few roses.
What if AT&T, MCI WorldCom, Sprint and the Baby Bells didn't work for
a few days? What if we couldn't get a dial tone? Sure there are serious
sides to this question. But maybe. Just maybe, instead of constantly
reacting to the urgency of a ringing phone, we'd actually have time to
stop and think. To contemplate a sunset. To look at our kids playing or
our spouse glowing in the light of the fireplace. To count our
blessings and realize just how lucky we are.
Maybe, if we can't join that chat room with friends from across the
country, we'll wander outside and chat with our neighbors from across
the street.
Maybe, if there is no cable TV, we can find time to shoot the breeze
with good friends like we used to.
Maybe, if we aren't buried in a couple hundred e-mail messages each day
we'll find time to talk with our coworkers and clients, face to face.
Maybe, if we aren't so preoccupied, treading water in an endless deluge
of information, we'll have time to tell our kids we love them, and tell
our spouses how important they are to us.
Maybe, if we aren't so consumed with trying to read between the lines
of e-mails to determine if they were being funny, sarcastic or really
upset with us, we'd have time to talk to each other and hear the
inflections in voices.
Maybe, if we weren't so buried in the sterile information age we'd
have the time to get to know each other again and build relationships
with our friends and family.
Would that be so bad?
Maybe Y2K will give us some of that time. Maybe we would talk to our
kids more than ten minutes a day. Maybe as a result we would be better
parents and husbands and wives and sons and daughters and brothers and
sisters and friends.
Sure there is lots to be concerned about with the brewing storm clouds
called Y2K. Squirrel away a little food and water like you would if a
big storm is getting ready to roll into town. But like all storm
clouds, Y2K could have a silver lining which, if we are lucky, could
have longer lasting ripples than the obvious ones we are preparing for.
Jeffrey Kagan is a telecom industry analyst, commentator, provocateur.
His e-mail address is Jeffjeffkagan.com
Worker's E-mail Subject to Snooping
Like e-mailing dirty jokes? Don't try sending one to Texas Health
Resources workers. The Southwest hospital chain uses special software to
automatically track and detect unseemly electronic messages exchanged by
3,000 employees.
In a growing corporate backlash against inflammatory and potentially
incriminating messages, companies are cracking down on e-mail with
measures that go well beyond merely issuing bureaucratic warnings about
abuse. All in all, 20% of companies were regularly peeking at e-mails
last year, up from 15% in 1997, the American Management Association says.
Microsoft To Address Windows 98 Privacy
Microsoft Corp. will fix a flaw in Windows 98 that allowed the software
giant to collect unique computer identifying information without a user's
knowledge, company executives said Sunday.
But a software programmer who detected the problem said he remained
concerned Microsoft was amassing a huge database that theoretically could
be used to track down the authors of individual documents.
Rob Bennett, a group product manager at Microsoft, said the company
learned Friday that Windows 98 users were transmitting a unique hardware
identification number during the registration process -- even when they
specifically elected not to send data about their hardware.
The problem first was disclosed in Sunday's New York Times.
Bennett said the bug would be fixed in an update to the widely used
8-month-old operating system, expected to be released over the summer.
The issue affects only users whose computers have Ethernet adapter cards,
most common in office computers connected to a local area network, but it
raises new questions about privacy in a world in which people increasingly
exchange electronic information over the Internet.
Microsoft also said it plans to eliminate a feature in its Office 97 word
processing and spreadsheet software after concerns were raised about the
use of the hardware identification number to generate unique numbers for
each document.
``We're very, very concerned about privacy issues and the perception of
privacy issues, so this is not going to be there in Office 2000," said
Steven Sinofsky, a Microsoft vice president.
Richard Smith, president of Phar Lap Software Inc. in Cambridge, Mass.,
said he discovered the Office and Windows issues and brought them to
Microsoft's attention after privacy concerns were raised about
identification numbers on Intel Corp.'s new Pentium
III computer chips.
``I was explicitly looking for a problem like this," said Smith, whose
company produces industrial operating systems and software development
tools, including many that support Microsoft platforms.
He said he was concerned that Microsoft is building a database of Ethernet
addresses that ``allows them to track where documents came from."
And he said he suspected that the automatic transmission of Ethernet
addresses in the Windows 98 registration process was part of an effort by
the company to detect software piracy.
``I don't think this is a bug," he said. ``I think it's very
intentional."
Microsoft's Bennett denied the machine identification numbers were being
used in anti-piracy efforts.
And he said Microsoft's database of such numbers -- provided during the
optional registration process -- is used only when users call the company
for technical support.
``We're not using these IDs for marketing or for tracking user behavior,"
he said. ``It's not something were interested in doing. It's not something
they're designed to do."
Sinofsky, who heads up Microsoft's Office operations, said that because
anybody could use a given computer or change identifying information on a
document, it was ``not conceivable" that a specific document could be
linked to a specific person. But he acknowledged there was a legitimate
"emotional" element to such concerns.
``I would say most people don't quite get how computers work, and they're
suspicious of computers in general," he said. "That's probably why a lot
of these privacy concerns are happening."
=~=~=~=
Atari Online News, Etc.is a weekly publication covering the entire
Atari community. Reprint permission is granted, unless otherwise noted
at the beginning of any article, to Atari user groups and not for
profit publications only under the following terms: articles must
remain unedited and include the issue number and author at the top of
each article reprinted. Other reprints granted upon approval of
request. Send requests to: dpj@delphi.com
No issue of Atari Online News, Etc. may be included on any commercial
media, nor uploaded or transmitted to any commercial online service or
internet site, in whole or in part, by any agent or means, without
the expressed consent or permission from the Publisher or Editor of
Atari Online News, Etc.
Opinions presented herein are those of the individual authors and do
not necessarily reflect those of the staff, or of the publishers. All
material herein is believed to be accurate at the time of publishing.
