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Z*NET Online Magazine Issue 533
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Z*NET ATARI ONLINE MAGAZINE - AUGUST 17, 1990 - ISSUE #533
Your Weekly Atari News Source
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Published by Rovac Editor: Ron Kovacs Asst Editor: John Nagy
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Staff Columnists: Jon Clarke, Terry Schreiber, Dr. Paul Keith
Advertising: John King Tarpinian
Z*Net UK: Paul Glover
Z*Net Germany: Michael Shutz
Distribution: Bruce Hansford
Contributors: David Plotkin, Ron Grant, Mike Brown
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CONTENTS
EDITORS DESK.................................................Ron Kovacs
Z*NET UK NEWSWIRE...........................................Paul Glover
Z*NET NEWSWIRE.........................................................
GENCON - FIRST REPORT....................................Dr. Paul Keith
GENCON - SECOND REPORT.......................................Mike Brown
GLENDALE ATARIFEST........................................Press Release
MIST ATARI SWAPFEST.......................................Press Release
A PERSONS PERCEPTION OF SOMETHING.........................David Plotkin
Z*NET DOWN-UNDER.............................................Jon Clarke
Z*NET ECHOS.............................................Terry Schreiber
PD/SHAREWARE UPDATE...........................................Ron Grant
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|*| EDITORS DESK |*|
|*| by Ron Kovacs |*|
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A new column debuts this week from Paul Glover of the ST CLUB NEWSLETTER
in the UK. Look for monthly UK Newswire reports from England.
The Z*Net BBS is under re-construction has you read this. This weekend
we hope to have our new FoReM set-up going. All users will probably
have to re-log on since entering over 200 passwords would be a rather
large task to complete. We hope to crossnet and get involved within the
F-NET areas in the near future.
ZMAGAZINE has returned!! September will bring Issue #184 and the return
of a weekly (we hope) 8-Bit Online magazine. Stay tuned for details...
Enjoy this weeks issue!
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|*| Z*NET UK NEWSWIRE |*|
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From the ST CLUB NEWSLETTER, ISSUE #29
Edited by Paul Glover
(Editor Note: PLEASE NOTE THAT NEWS CONTAINED IN THIS COLUMN IS DIRECT
FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM AND PRESENTS THE OPINIONS OF THE EDITOR AND
NEWS FROM ATARI UK.)
STE HARD DISK PROBLEMS --- Exclusive ---
Atari has finally made an official public statement that there is a
fault in the DMA interface in the STE that may result in hard disk data
becoming corrupted. Current Atari Megafile hard disks are reportedly
not affected, but Atari SH204/205 disks and some third party drives will
suffer from data corruption after the ST has been switched on for three
to four hours.
All affected machines will be modified by Atari at no cost. Users
should contact their dealer for details of the return procedure.
We ran into the problem with a 1040STE connected to an Atari SH205 hard
disk; after four hours use, files on partitions that had been written to
became corrupted. A standard Atari DMA cable was used along with Atari
driver software and with no un-tested software installed. On contacting
our supplier, a major dealer in Atari hardware, we were told that up to
30% of some batches of STEs were similarly affected.
The STE DMA problem is not recent; back in May Andy Quayle of the GFA
User Group found that his 520STE corrupted data on a Supra FD10 drive.
Although Atari had informed dealers that there was a problem with the
STE, in a confidential report (ST/HW/00070) dated 15th June, the Atari
Press Office found it difficult to understand our suggestion that STE
owners should have been informed of the problem at the same time! They
are now considering putting a warning in the manual advising hard disk
users who will not be using an Atari Megafile drive to have their STE
modified.
Atari has issued no details of which third party hard drives the STE is
incompatible with and could not confirm whether future shipments of STEs
will be similarly affected. Amazingly, STEs will not be modified before
they are sold; only when returned by a customer.
-------------------------------------
POST-PRESS UPDATE:
The Atari STE DMA fix does not - reportedly - work on most revisions of
the STE board. And to make things yet more frustrating: The STE boards
do not have revision numbers, just a legend reading "STE Rev---". The
only way to see if the fix will work is to try it and see.
In the UK things are yet more complicated; the new Non Disclosure
Agreement for developers prevents anyone from releasing the technical
details of the STE fix.....
Atari has really blown it this time.
We have confirmed reports of the STE being incompatible with hard disks
from Supra and Third Coast (using ICD boards). Any additional
information on this fiasco will be welcome!
ATARI NEWS UPDATE
Before disaster struck with our 1040STE we were planning a nice little
lead on the nice collection of software that Atari are bundling with the
1040STE Extra Pack. Serious software bundled with the pack comprises:
ST-Word, ST-Base, ST-Calc, ST-Graph, early versions of Kuma products;
Hyperpaint, STAC the adventure game programming language, 1st Basic, a
cut down version of HiSoft Basic; plus Prince, a game written to take
advantage of the enhanced sound and graphics of the STE. The 1040STE
Extra pack retails at 499.
It seems that the 16MHz TT displayed at the Atari 90's show wasn't the
final version; plans are now in hand to launch the machine with a 32MHz
processor. A rather fortunate move for Atari, as Pro-VME in Germany
have developed a 25MHz 68030 accelerator board for Mega STs that would
have out-run (uder-cut and out-sold?) a 16MHz TT. The price of the TT,
which remains unchanged at 2,270, will buy a TT with a 32MHz 68030, 2Mb
of RAM, a 48MB hard disk and a multi-synch colour VGA monitor. Atari is
planning to have the machines available in September of this year.
Atari has decided to stop shipping machines with TOS versions below 1.4;
all 520STFM machines will be fitted with TOS 1.4.
FSP3 FOR SALE
Mirrorsoft is negotiating to sell the rights to Fleet Street Publisher
3. At least a couple of companies have expressed a strong interest and
an official announcement is expected soon. In the meantime, Mirrorsoft
has finalized the software for FSP3, the disks are now being duplicated,
and the final product should be available in the very near future.
FONT DESIGNER
PCG has launched a sophisticated font designer for PostScript and
UltraScript fonts. Support for PageStream and Calamus font formats is
planned for future versions. Font Designer will retail at 50 and is
available from PCG on 0229-836-957.
EXTRA-RAM PRICE CUTS
Effective 1st August 1990, Frontier's new prices on their RAM upgrades
will reflect the recent falls in the cost of DRAM memory chips and
savings made by Frontier through larger volume purchases of components.
The new prices, which include VAT, are: Unpopulated board: 65 (was
69), 0.5Mbyte populated board: 79 (was 99), and 2Mbyte populated
board: 189 (was 299). STE upgrade prices have also dropped to 69 for
0.5Mbyte and 169 for 2MByte.
Martin Walsh, Marketing Manager for Frontier, commented "The Xtra-RAM ST
is into its fifth thousand now and with this new pricing structure we
expect to easily hit the 10,000 mark by the end of the year. We can
claim a minor victory for UK exports since we have sold over one
thousand Xtra-RAMs to our distributors in the United States, Australia,
and various European countries including Holland and Belgium."
In order to concentrate on the development of their own UK-designed
products, Frontier are planning to hand over the distribution of Supra
hard disks to a new distributor. The split with Supra is an amicable
one and Frontier will continue to honour all warranty obligations on
hardware sold by them.
PROTEXT 5
Arnor has announced that a major upgrade to their heavyweight word
processing package will be available in August. The nicest development
must be that all Protext options will now be available from GEM menus
as well as the powerful - but obscure to many - command line interface.
Other enhancements to Protext 5 include support for multiple
proportional fonts, up to 36 files open at once, automatic generation of
Index and Contents information and a 116,000 word Collins dictionary
with phonetic lookup. The new enhancements are reflected in the new
price of 125; which will increase to 149 from October 1990. Contact
Arnor on 0733-68909 for further details and upgrade prices.
QUICK ST II
Following the success of the Shareware version of Quick ST, the Canadian
publishers Branch Always Software have launched Quick ST II as a 19.95
commercial product. Quick ST II speeds up GEM drawing operations in the
same way as Turbo ST does, and its effects are particularly noticeable
on pre-blitter STs. Bundled with Quick ST II are: Art ST - a drawing
package, Quick View - a fast desktop text file viewer, Quick Index - a
benchmarking program, and a utility to load pictures in as an
alternative desktop background. UK distribution is being handled by
Advantage: 0242 - 224340.
UK MIDI ASSOCIATION
Midi users now have their own official organisation, UK Midi Association
(UKMA). UKMA offers members a monthly newsletter, free membership of
the Music Network bulletin board, discounts on books, access to the
complete MIDI and MIDIfile specifications, plus access to UKMAs problem
and solution database. UKMA will liaise on behalf of UK Midi users with
both the International Midi Association in the US and the Midi
Manufacturers' Association. Membership is 34.50 per year; for more
details contact: 081-368-3667.
ATONCE PC EMULATOR
Silica Systems have been appointed the UK distributor of ATonce, the AT
emulator from German ST peripheral manufacturer Vortex. ATonce fits
inside any ST and runs an 8MHz 80286 giving a Norton Factor of 6.5.
ATonce will retail at 199 and further details are available from Silica
on 081-309-1111.
SPECTRE UPDATE
Following our news item last issue, HiSoft have asked us to point out
that they will continue to supply Spectre 128 and offer full backup and
upgrades to users who purchased Spectre from them.
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|*| Z*NET NEWSWIRE |*|
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NEC INTRODUCES NOTEBOOK COMPUTER
NEC introduced the UltraLite 286V laptop, a 6.5 pound 12 mhz battery-
powered notebook computer, providing the connectivity, expandibility
and functionality of a desktop computer. The UltraLite 286V laptop will
begin shipping in September and will be available through NEC's
authorized dealer network. The suggested retail price is $3,999.
Standard configuration includes laptop, 2 battery packs, 20 MB hard
drive, AC adapter, external floppy disk drive and 1 MB of RAM.
MOTOROLA INTRODUCES TWO ADDITIONS
Motorola announced this week, two additions to the popular 8-bit 68HC11
microcontroller. The 68HC11K4 and 68HC711K4 double the bus speed of the
original 68HC11 and feature a variety of memory configurations. The
68HC711K4, primarily used for emulation, will be available September
1990 in sample quantities for $250 in 84 pin PLCC. The ROM-based
68HC11K4 will be sampling in early 1991 and will be priced at $25 in 84
pin PLCC.
PORTFOLIO AND MAC
Computer Friends Inc, at MacWorld Expo/Boston, announced the
availability of a configuration which links Portfolio to a Macintosh.
The package includes the Message Mover software which runs on both the
hand-held unit and the Macintosh and provides intelligent file transfer
between the two systems. The Ultimate Portable package contains the
Atari Portfolio, Power Supply, the Atari Serial Interface, Message
Mover Software for the Portfolio, Message Mover Software for the Mac and
a cable to connect the Macintosh and the Portfolio. The suggested
retail price for this configuration is $599.
MEDIAGENIC LOSES $608,000
Mediagenic announced this week that net revenues of $14 million for the
first quarter of its 1991 fiscal year, ended June 30, and a net loss for
the quarter of $608,000 or 14 cents per share. The company also
announced that it had reached an agreement with its bank to extend its
line of credit through Dec. 31, 1990.
MICROSOFT SHIPS SQL SERVER
Microsoft announced the shipment of Microsoft SQL Server, the
intelligent high-performance database management system for PC networks,
coupled with a range of support and promotional programs to accelerate
the development of new client-server applications. Enhancements made to
version 1.1 include: New DB-Library interface, Protocol-independent
architecture, Network operating system independent, More flexible
configuration, Easier administration, New BASIC Language Support,
Support for Microsoft Windows Environment Version 3.0., Improved support
for the SQL Server Database Gateway to DB2, and 30 days of free support.
COMMODORE OFFERS FREE MONITOR
Commodore has launched a limited-time offer to provide purchasers of a
new Commodore Amiga 2000HD or Amiga 2500/30 with a free 1084S color
monitor. The special offer applies only to purchases made at
participating dealers between Aug. 1 and Sept. 29. This offer is not
available in conjunction with any other Commodore promotion.
TEENAGE HACKERS
A 14-year-old hacker suspected of penetrating a Pentagon computer has
been arrested with 12 others on charges of breaking into a computer at a
university in Washington state. The boy was alleged to have broken into
the computer at the City University of Bellevue in Washington in May,
using a toll-free telephone number used by students and faculty,
according of Senior Investigator Donald Delaney of the New York State
Police. The boy, who signed into the computer as "Zod," allegedly set
up a program that gave other illegitimate users access to the university
computer. More than 40 hackers from across the country were believed to
have penetrated the computer using the system, which required hackers to
answer 11 questions to gain entry. "Zod" also was suspected of breaking
into an Air Force computer in the Pentagon last November.
MICHIGAN BELL "SMART" CALLING SERVICES
Michigan Bell customers in many Detroit exchanges soon can have the
first of a new generation of "smart" calling services, allowing them to
receive only the calls they want, return missed calls easily -- even
redial busy numbers while they're away from the phone. New services
include: Call Screening, Distinctive Ringing, Automatic Callback, and
Repeat Dialing. Call Screening is priced at $4.50 a month, the others
at $4 a month. During a 30-day introductory period, Michigan Bell will
waive a one-time setup charge of $7.50 for existing customers.
LOGITECH INTRODUCES SCANNER
Logitech announced an addition to its ScanMan line of hand-held
scanners, ScanMan Model 256, scheduled to ship in October at a suggested
retail price of $499 for the PC version and $599 for the Micro Channel
version. The gray-scale scanner includes Logitech designed Ansel Image
Editing Software, a high-performance scanning and editing software
application featuring 256 gray-level image manipulation and designed
specifically to run under Microsoft Windows 3.0.
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|*| GENCON |*|
|*|MILWAUKEE GAMING EXPERIENCE |*|
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by Dr. Paul Keith
Z*Net Correspondent
I have never been much for the D&D Adventures. At the risk of offending
some, I have always thought that D & D was just a little bit too close
to the edge for my likings. So, when I first heard of GENCON, I was
less than anxious to get involved. But when Z*Net asked me to pop up
and see what **Atari** was doing at the show, how could I resist? After
all, Atari isn't exactly a big name with the D & D crowd either! Just
what are *they* doing there?
My first surprise came with the size of the show. GENCON bills itself
as the largest gaming show in the world. I BELIEVE IT! I was surprised
to find that most of the local hotels were full, making the search for a
room something of a quest in itself. After I found a room, it was off
to GENCON.
The Mecca is Milwaukee's entertainment and convention showplace. In
recent years, it was home to the Milwaukee Bucks, the pro basketball
team. Linking across hotels and different buildings by an overhead
walkway, the Mecca provides excellent facilities for this huge show.
Entering GENCON, I found that there are a number of different ways to
go: I could just see the show (via a spectators pass, easily the
cheapest way to go) or I could PARTICIPATE in the show, via a games
pass. Being a little new to all this, I decided to go with a single day
participant pass, and just be a spectator for the rest of the show. The
players pass allows me to purchase additional tickets to play in some of
the activities that GENCON offers.
In the GREAT HALL of the Mecca there were over 150 exhibitors occupying
some 80,000 square feet of space. I found some great buys on some Star
Trek T-shirts that I couldn't resist, and there were plenty of other
fascinating items, like books, original art prints, computer software,
handmade figures, costumes, jewelry, music, out of print collectibles,
magazines, dice, and much much more. Over 500 role playing tournaments
were available to GENCON game fair participants. Events included
fantasy, espionage, science fiction, horror, military, historical,
humorous, and super hero game events. The Role Playing Game Association
sponsored more than 30 tournaments. Over 1000 players competed in teams
against one another.
As if to make me feel more at home, amidst all the fantasy was Atari's
booth. Atari was represented by a dealer from St. Charles, Illinois,
Computer Cellar, and personnel out of the Chicago area Lynx development
office.
The gang from Chicago were showing off some of the Lynx titles set to be
released "real-soon-now (TM)" including Slime World, Road Blaster, and
Klax. Lynx gamers have plenty to look forward to with these games, as
the Road Blaster game is a VERY faithful rendition of the arcade
classic. And although I am not familiar with the arcade version of
Klax, I found the sound quality of Klax to be VERY impressive. Atari's
Steve Ryno told me that Klax took up 2 Megs on the Lynx ram card!
Yikes! Slime World is an original game for the Lynx that is developed
by Atari's Chicago game pros, and looks to be tons of fun. In this
game, you assume the identity of Todd, while he explores the underground
caverns of slime. Another game that seemed to catch the eye of the D&D
crowd was Gauntlet, the Third Encounter.
Sales for the Lynx were disappointing though, as many people found that
only have six titles for a close to $200 machine a little disturbing.
Knowledgeable sources indicate that Atari has over 20 additional titles
readied for the holiday season. If Atari got those out earlier that
would help placate any further fears about software availability.
Atari wasn't alone on the main floor of GEN CON, though. A familiar
face was busy showing the Sega Genesis to show goers, none other than
Cindy Claveran, the former User Group/Developer coordinator for Atari
Corp. Cindy was doing a little test marketing for Sega at GEN CON, in a
booth that featured six large TV screens showing some of the more
popular titles for GENESIS. Not be overlooked was GEnie, stumping for
the TSR Roundtable in the Great Hall. Sysops from the TSR RTC were on
hand to show the many gamers all the advantages of being on-line (for
less!). Interest seemed to be good, and the gaming crowd could sign up
on-line at the show on the Mac II in the GEnie booth. Expert guidance
from the TSR Sysops was helpful in getting the new users comfortable
negotiating around GEnie.
The second floor of the Mecca was transformed into a huge playing field
for any of the gamesters in attendance. Open areas were set aside for
many impromptu games of Risk, The Hunt for Red October, and Starfleet.
Conference rooms were set aside for the attendees to enjoy some time
with favorite game designers, and over ONE HUNDRED conferences were
scheduled throughout the show. Also interesting to observe was a
formation of gaming clubs, perhaps better recognized in the Atari
Community as User Groups.
And speaking of user groups, I caught up with Bob Brodie from Atari long
enough to chat with him for a few minutes concerning the role that Atari
was taking at GENCON. It turns out that Atari has been supporting
GENCON for about three years now, albeit in a quiet fashion. The bulk
of Atari's display upstairs was in the form of a huge gaming area,
staffed by members of the MilAtari Ltd. User Group. Atari supplied over
55 color ST systems for this effort, as well as a stand alone Lynx tower
with four Lynx (Lynxs? Lynxes? Lynxi?). Thirty two of the STs were
used in two MIDI-Maze rings at the show. The balance of the STs were
set up on tables adjacent to the MIDI-Maze rings for open gaming. The
Lynx display was set up next to MilAtari's booth area. The whole floor
had a feel of an Atari area, as when one entered the area the six large
Atari banners caught your eye immediately.
MilAtari members had donated some of their software for use, and
MilAtari president Michelle Gross had convinced software developers like
Accolade to provide copies of their software to offer a true "State of
the System" showing of Atari game offerings. Among other popular
offerings were ReadySoft's "Dragon's Lair" and "Space Ace". All in all,
there were plenty of titles available for use on the ST. The quality of
the Atari's graphics were not lost on the gaming crowd. And neither was
the fun of MIDI-Maze! GENCON printed in their program that MIDI-Maze
had been 1989's most popular computer game, and 1990 proved to be no
exception. MilAtari members signed up people to play MIDI-Maze at set
times throughout the show, and it never looked like there was an opening
going to waste.
[After the show, Bob Brodie confirmed for Z*Net that MilAtari had filled
all but 15 slots for the MIDI-Maze schedule out of over 1500 slots for
use. With the addition of the open gaming that was being enjoyed by the
showgoers, we figure that Atari strutted it's stuff to over 2000 likely
NON Atari users! That's over 20% of show attendance had a hands on
experience with the ST! - ED.]
But so many of us feel like were fighting the "game image" that Atari
has, why should they appear at this type of show? Brodie replied that
the people that think of Atari as a game machine are usually referring
to the company's 2600/7800 line of dedicated video games, NOT to the ST.
"While it is certainly true that the ST is among the most effective
computers on the market for almost any task, it still can play some
really great games," he noted. "What we are really looking for is
opportunities to present Atari computers to the unconverted, rather than
just always preaching to the choir." Brodie went on to remind us of
Atari's recent involvement with a series of national DTP shows, with yet
another one coming up this week in San Francisco (National Quick Print
Show at Moscone Center). "We need to expose our products to non-Atari
avenues" he said. "Sure, the exposure at Atarifest is terrific! They
are almost always a fun time, and a great selling opportunity for our
dealers and developers. But we also need to expand our presence in
other markets. If all we did is go to Atarifests we would reach very
few people that don't already own Atari products. GENCON is great
opportunity to impress a specific group of potential buyers how good our
products are."
The Milwaukee Area Commodore Enthusiasts were also at the show, with 15
Amiga's courtesy of Commodore. Members also brought in their personal
machines, giving the Commodore group a full display of C-64s, C-128s and
various models of the Amiga. Surprisingly, none of the machines were
seen sporting stereo speakers, or any of the "hot" games like Dragon's
Lair. Instead, the Commodore crowd seemed content to play lots of
Populous and Falcon.
When I first caught up with Bob Brodie, he was busy showing a Stacy to
one of the Commodore user group officers. "Gee, it sure is nice to see a
68000 based laptop that costs less than a car..." the Amigan remarked.
When Brodie was asked by one visitor for the phone number for Atari's VP
of sales, he produced a Portfolio to look it up, the Commodore group
leaders said "What is it with you Atari guys! Your computers just get
smaller and smaller!!" While the Commodore crowd was clearly wishful
for a portable of their own, it turned out that they were even more
envious about getting a manufacturers representative to the show.
Despite persistent requests, none of Commodore's THREE user group
coordinators could manage to spend any time at GENCON. ("Nothin' but a
bunch of technocrats..." sniffed the user group officers)
The other big name in the game area was NEC, with a twelve station set
up showing off the NEC Turbo Grafix. The games were all shown on 20" TV
sets with some flyers thrown around for good measure. I couldn't find
anyone from NEC to chat with, but it hardly mattered. The display
bespoke quality, and the games were quite busy, with a crowd of
onlookers waiting for a turn. Many of the games shown rivaled the
graphics on the ST, although they appeared to be just one after another
repackaged shoot-'em up.
All in all, I found GENCON to be a 180 degree change for Atari. I never
would have imagined Atari participating in this type of venue. But
after seeing the huge crowd at GENCON, I have to agree that it was a
good move. This year attendance at GENCON was a whopping 11,800 people
over the course of the four days. That tops any Atarifest by a wide
margin. Coupled with the fact that these were NOT Atari fanatics, like
those who populate the typical Atarifest, one can easily see that this
type of exposure can only help our favorite computer company. Kudos to
MilAtari Ltd.! Under the leadership of their president, Michelle Gross,
hey gave Atari one of the best opportunities of the year to show off!
May there be many more!!
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|*| GENCON 1990 |*|
|*| AN OUTSIDER'S PRESPECTIVE |*|
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by Mike Brown (LCACE)
This past week, TSR, inc. sponsored the GenCon '90, annual gaming fair/
convention held in Milwaukee's spacious MECCA convention center. I was
invited to work and attend GenCon through the courtesy of Milwaukee's
Atari user group, MilAtari.
First, let me give you a little flavor for the size and scope of GenCon;
During the course of the show, there are at least a thousand seminars;
these include gaming sessions, game auctions, art shows, writers
seminars, the costume contest, training (from specific game playing tips
to "Game Master's Workshops"), movies (an average of 4 a day) and other
game and fantasy related events held on site. Two of these events were
heavily supported by Atari; the "Open Computer Gaming" and "MIDIMaze"
sessions.
To support these events, Atari supplied MilAtari with over 50 complete
ST and Mega systems, a LYNX show display that enabled attendees to
sample the various LYNX titles available, as well as Bob Brodie and
several members of the Atari Lombard (Chicago) staff (who never stopped
"working the crowd" long enough for me to get a word with!) to assist in
any way needed.
My first day at the show, I helped with MIDIMaze contest sign-up, which
sometimes seemed like feeding time at the zoo. It was incredible the
number of people that were interested in playing MIDImaze. MilAtari had
two full 16-player rings set up with 1 hour games starting every 30
minutes from 8:00 AM to 11:00 PM most of all four days of the show.
Waiting lists to get into a MIDIMaze game if a "reserved" player did not
show were staggering. I remember one waiting list for an already "full"
evening game opening was around 20 names long! In spite of the mayhem,
the MilAtari staff kept order and did a very professional job of running
the tournament. Individual game winners were awarded "MIDI Master"
buttons made right on the show floor using Casico Music's Calamus DTP
demo system, as well as show-provided gift certificates and valuable
prizes donated by Atari Corp.
The other big attraction in the Computer Concourse was the "Open Gaming"
area. For a paltry $2 an hour, a gamer could rent an Atari ST and
choose from a vast collection of game and strategy titles to play.
Many, many people were exposed for the first time to the ST's wonderful
graphics, sound and user-friendly features. One player that I remember
said (with some self-righteousness in his voice) that he was a "...Mac
user, but these 'taris were not *too* different (from the Mac)..."
(Apple had no involvement in GenCon, the only other companies in the
computer concourse were NEC, SEGA Commodore, and Bally/Midway). Atari's
area was by far and away the largest in terms of square footage, number
of machines, and participant interest.
Atari also supported an Atari dealer (Computer Cellar in St. Charles,
IL) exhibiting at GenCon with great deals on the LYNX. I entered my
name into their demo Portfolio, hoping to win it in their show drawing.
That was the closest I was able to get to their booth, as it was VERY
busy most of the time. I wonder how many LYNX systems went out of the
door during the 4-day show?
The saddest thing was that there was nary a demo ST unit set up on the
VAST vendor floor. It would have been nice to see "Lord British"
playing ULTIMA on an ST in the Origin booth, Advanced D&D on an ST in
the SSI booth or at least support from FTL for the ST version of Chaos
Strikes Back.
As mostly a non-gamer, I found GenCon to be a very eye-opening
experience, and education. If you are at all into any form of gaming or
science fiction/fantasy, I'd advise you to contact the GenCon organizers
at P.O. Box 756, Lake Geneva, WI 53147, for information on next year's
show. If you can't wait, maybe you can make European GenCon (Nov. 30th
to Dec. 2nd, 1990) to be held in the U.K.!
Thanks again to Atari Corp. for their support, Bob Brodie for his
guiding hand, and Michelle Gross' (MilAtari) show staff for their energy
and highly professional management of the Atari-related events.
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|*| GLENDALE ATARIFEST |*|
|*| Press Release |*|
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ATARI COMPUTER FAIRE version 4.0b *
* ...also known as "THE GLENDALE SHOW" *
* *
* September 15 and 16, 1990, at the Glendale Civic Auditorium, *
* 1401 Verdugo Road, Glendale, California. Hours are 10 AM - *
* 6 PM Saturday, and 10 AM - 5 PM Sunday. Admission is $5.00, *
* or only $3.00 with any Atari User Group membership I.D. *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Glendale Atari Faire is a User Group sponsored tradition in Southern
California, the West Coast's Premier Atari event since 1986. This will
be the fourth show in five years at the same large auditorium in
Glendale, California, just a few minutes from Burbank Airport and
convenient to all of the metropolitan Los Angeles area. An attendance
of over 4,000 is realistically anticipated, considering previous year's
performances. Last year's Glendale show was cancelled due to
conflicting dates with another show, which was then itself cancelled.
With one month left before the show, organizer John King Tarpinian says
that he is nearly sold out of the original floor space planned for use
in the Glendale Civic Auditorium. He adds that if demand keeps up,
convenient, quality additional space can be arranged. John says that
the developers that appeared at the recent San Jose World of Atari show
are booked for Glendale, plus lots more. Publicity for the Glendale
show, including the vendor list, has been low key until now to avoid
drawing attention away from that San Jose show.
Here is the Glendale Show List of vendors, both of confirmed and
unconfirmed "but likely" to attend. There are 45 of them so far, plus
at least five user groups, making Glendale perhaps the biggest US Atari
show of all time!
ATARI Corporation American Music
Best Electronics Bill Skurski Enterprises
Branch Always Software BRE
Beckmeyer Carter Graphics
CodeHead SoftWare Computer Network
C.O.P. D.A. Brumleve
Datel Double Click
FAST Technology Gadgets by Small
Gold Leaf Gribnif
Groves School of Music ICD
ISD King's Domain
Lexicor MegaMax
Michtron MicroCreations
Mid-Cities Migraph
Neocept Practical Solutions
Safari Fonts S.D.S.
Sierra Seymour-Radix
SliccWare STart
ST Informer ST Journal
Sprokits Supra Corp.
Talon WuzTek
XETOERIX Zubair Interfaces
Z*Net News Service ... and more to come!
Atari Corporation has promised major support including a very large
display of the entire Atari Computer line of products. You can expect
to see LOTS of the ST, STE, MEGA, STACY, PORTFOLIO, LYNX, and even the
TT030 computers. Many of Atari's employees will be on hand to show and
discuss the machines. Advertising and promotion of this user-group show
is being provided through the generousity of Atari.
User Groups will include HACKS, ACES, ACAOC, NOCCC, SBACE, BACE, and
more. Volunteers from the groups will be providing the support for the
entire show, including setup, loading and unloading, security, and
staffing. They will also be available for short periods to assist
vendors in their booths. All volunteers will be given a custom Canvas
Tote Bag and Sun Visor (this is California!) with the Atari emblem on
each. These are limited production and will be for volunteers only, NOT
for sale! There will also be three $100 drawings, one each day of the
effort, for volunteers only.
Many seminars are already booked, including several with ATARI's BOB
BRODIE, other officials, and technical support people. Other seminars
that are planned at this time:
* Desktop Publishing with CALAMUS - Nathan Potechin of ISD
* Software Speeding up the ST/TT - Darek Mihocka of BRA-SOFT
* Int. Assoc. of Atari Developers - Nathan Potechin, Chairperson
* INTRODUCING NEODESK 3 - Rick Flashman of Gribnif
* DAVE SMALL TALKS/MAC EMULATION - Dave Small of Gadgets by Small
* NEW FROM CODEHEAD - Charles F. Johnson of CodeHead Software
* Kids and Atari Computers -
* PC Emulation -
* ST Magazines and Online Newsletters -
...with more to be added and announced at the show.
Door prizes, including a wide variety of software, accessories, and
computer paraphanalia, will be awarded every hour, with some extra
special drawings as well.
Lodging information: The Burbank Hilton weekend rate is $59 per day.
This hotel is adjacent to the Burbank/Glendale/Pasadena Airport, and
will be where the Atari Corporation employees will be staying. Contact
the Burbank Hilton at 818-843-6000. The Glendale Holiday Inn is the
closest hotel to the show itself, and the weekend rate is $89 per day.
Contact the Holiday Inn at 818-965-0202. These rates and hotels are
neither endorsed or guaranteed by the organizers. Neither hotel is
within walking distance to the Auditorium. This is Los Angeles, folks..
expect to use CARS. Don't worry about traffic jams in this area,
however.
Directions to the show (once you have found Glendale, which is a
Northern central suburb of Los Angeles): Take the Mountain exit of the
"2" freeway and go West (down the hill) one block. Or, from the "134"
freeway, take the Glendale Avenue exit, and go North one mile (Glendale
Ave will become Verdugo Road). The Glendale Civic Auditorium, 1401
Verdugo Road, is on the NORTH side of Verdugo. Large parking lots are
on the WEST side of the building, with metered parking for TEN CENTS AN
HOUR.
The final booth sales, seminar schedule, and advertising space in the
program are being arranged now. More information is available from the
show organizer, John King Tarpinian, 818-246-7286, or by mail at 246
North Brand #321, Glendale, California, 91203.
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
|*| ATARI SWAPFEST II |*|
|*| Press Release |*|
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
MIST Plans Atari SwapFest II
Nashville, IN August 25,1990
For a second year, an Atari SwapFest is planned at Nashville Indiana on
Saturday, August 25, sponsored jointly by the user groups at
Indianapolis and Bloomington known as MIST (Mid-Indiana ST). The
SwapFest will be a meeting of minds and computers, in the beautiful
Indiana countryside. Nashville is only minutes from many lovely gift
shops, two state forests, and the Hoosier National forest.
MIST Atari SwapFest II will open at noon August 25 at the Brown County
Inn motel in Nashville at the corner of Ind. 135 and 46. Nashville is
about 40 miles south of Indianapolis, and 15 miles east of Bloomington.
Admission will be free.
For swap, for sale or just for display... whether it's 8-bit or ST...
even game machines... all are invited to bring software, hardware,
gadgets, accessories, books, magazines, etc. Commercial sales and
displays also are invited. There will be door prizes from local
vendors, and Atari Corp. Raffle tickets will cost $2.00. There will
also be a mini Midi-Maze tournament.
Tables will be available for set-up at 11 a.m. with commercial vendors
given first choice at that time. Closing time is 4 p.m. Table space
will be free to non-commercial attendees, on a first come, first serve
basis. Registration for vendors will be a whopping $10.00. Tables are
standard motel dining room type (capable of seating three on each side),
and covers will be provided by the motel. Our rental arrangement with
the motel, however, is a low-budget deal and you should supply your own
sign-holders and other fixtures. The motel will supply electrical
power, but it is from a limited number of wall outlets so exhibitors
will need to take along their own extension cords and plug strips.
For more information, leave mail on GEnie to WLORING1, or: Call the
BL.A.ST BBS at 812-332-0573 2400bps, 24 hours. Write us at BL.A.ST,
PO Box 1111, Bloomington, IN. 47401. Call me by voice at 812-336-8103.
Brought to you by MIST (Mid-Indiana ST), the merging of the ASCII
(Atari St Computers In Indianapolis) and BL.A.ST (BLoomington Atari
ST) user groups.
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
|*| A PERSON'S PERCEPTION |*|
|*| OF SOMETHING |*|
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
by David Plotkin
(Reprint by permission from ST-JOURNAL MAGAZINE. Copyright 1990, All
Rights Reserved. Do NOT reprint this article without the written
permission of STJ Editor)
Like most of you, I'm an avid user of the Atari ST, as I was of the
8-bit line preceding it. Although I've written programs in most of the
languages available for the machine, I'm not really a programmer. (Even
though my friend, David Small charitably refers to me as such.) Neither
am I a hardware guru; I like software, and enjoy experimenting with new
and exciting applications. And, while I review games, I don't play them
much. I prefer to write, draw, construct 3-D models and build database
applications. The ST, by far my favorite, gets more use than any other
appliance in the house.
As for personal statistics, I'm 36 years old, happily married to an
attorney, and have a parrot which is sitting on my shoulder right now,
whistling and saying, "hi there," in her most suggestive voice. I have
an MS degree in Chemical Engineering from UC Berkeley, and work, as a
data analyst in Human Resources, for Chevron Corporation.
A person's perception of something is often more important than the
facts concerning that which is perceived. Tom Peters, author of "In
Search of Excellence," is fond of saying that "perception is
everything." It isn't (as Peters is quick to admit), but it's close.
Perceptions color everything we do, the products we buy, the decisions
we make in life. As such, I recently had occasion to reflect on the
general public's perceptions of Atari.
What started this was a phone call from my brother-in-law, a salesman at
a first class stereo chain, which has an excellent selection of
equipment, knowledgeable salespeople, and irreproachable customer
service.
He had called me to state, "We're now carrying the Atari Portfolio and
the Lynx, though, heaven knows why." Apparently, he felt that these
Atari items didn't really fit in with the other high quality high
performance equipment that these stores sell. I found his comment
interesting, and began to think about how the Atari name is perceived in
the "real" world - at least, in the US. It isn't a pretty picture.
Before I launch into my commentary, I feel it's only fair to point out
the facts about Atari, as I perceive them: They're a tightly run company
with limited capacity for production and they've had to make choices
about what to do with that production - i.e., send most of it to Europe.
With limited engineering talent, they've also had to make some hard
choices as to what to do with that resource. They're aggressive cost-
cutters, sometimes to the detriment of people who depend upon a stable
computer.
The result of all this has been a public perception that Atari is a game
machine company, that their computers are too hard to find, not worth
the effort, lacking in support, etc. This image, even with the products
that Atari has brought or will be bringing to market, will be hard to
fight.
The ST is an excellent computer. Maybe not state-of-the art any more,
it's still a good value and easy to learn and use. The problem is that
not many people know that. We're the Rodney Dangerfields of the
computer world - we can't get no respect. I don't see that changing,
because Atari won't spend the money to advertise and there just aren't
enough of us evangelists to spread the word ourselves. Also, they won't
increase the production necessary to provide a large supply of computers
in the U.S. Despite the excellence of the machines, Atari's computers
have always been pariahs in this country.
A reputation as a game-machine company isn't necessarily bad. Atari's,
since they have been overshadowed by Nintendo, Sega, and NEC, is more-
or-less second rate. So the question remains: Will people buy an
unknown product, such as the Portfolio, from the company? Maybe - if
it's good and is presented correctly. In fact, it could even help
enhance Atari's reputation. Even though the screen is small, the
keyboard impossible to type on, and the machine costly (especially if
accessories are added) the Portfolio is still a pretty nifty little
computer; the built-in applications are nice, it's portable, and easy to
learn and use.
The problem, as I see it, is that the sales personnel who sell the
Portfolio must understand it. Their demonstrations must sufficiently
wow the customers so that they are willing to overlook the stigma
attached to the name of Atari. As an example, when the company began
selling their 8-bit line through mass merchandisers like Toys 'R Us,
the people selling the machines knew nothing about them. As a result,
buying decisions were colored by the reputation of the company,
commercials, and by many things other than the quality of the machines.
Atari's other great hope is the Lynx. It's small, with a high
resolution color screen, and some really challenging games. Nothing
else in its size range even comes close at the present time. So what's
the problem? At $180, it's expensive. Even the Sega Genesis, a pretty
impressive machine with more colors, sound, and a tremendous variety of
game cartridges, costs less. There's also the matter of cartridges for
the Lynx. Any avid gamer knows that the lifeblood of a game machine is
a steady supply of Carts. But will anyone be developing these for the
Lynx? That remains to be seen. In the meantime, Nintendo's sad little
monochrome Game Boy continues to do well, because people trust Nintendo.
They know there will be additional cartridges for the game.
I think that the future hope for rescuing Atari's reputation lies
neither with the Portfolio, a quality machine but one with a limited
audience, nor with the Lynx, an impressive but expensive game machine.
The answer lies with the ST and its successor, the TT. Market enough of
these, make the public aware of their excellence and support developers
of innovative software, and things will change. Until Atari gets back
to these basics, everything else is just patch on a reputation needing
more extensive repair. - DP
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
|*| Z*NET DOWN-UNDER |*|
|*| by Jon Clarke |*|
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
The changing face of the global networks
----------------------------------------
::The Humble BBS bites back::Part 3::
::Usenet::
::::::::::
Where do you find 'Usenet'.
===========================
'Usenet' is a mail system that can be found at work, school, university
or on a local BBS. Unlike the other mail systems 'Usenet' is normally
associated with 'Unix/Zenix/Vax (and many other)' sites. All we have to
do to find our local public 'Usenet' node is to logon to our local BBS
and have a look at the BBS list that it carries. In here we will see a
note saying that "XYZ BBS" carries 'Usenet'. Or if we have access to a
network at school/work/Uni check out the mail section you may see
reference to Usenet. The next step is to get validated on that system,
and we are into the world of 'Usenet'.
What is 'Usenet'
================
'Usenet' is a mail store and forward system. I enter a message into
one of the many message/news_groups, it is sent to the Host site where
it is sent to the Gateway (look in last weeks article for glossary).
From here it is forwarded to your system or a system close to you, where
it is then forwarded to your system. As I said last week "It is a
little like the game of 'Pass it on', we all played". One thing to
remember "Usenet' is truly _world_wide_. Of the mail I received this
morning only one message was from New Zealand , the majority of them
were from Europe and the United States.
Who runs 'Usenet'
=================
'Usenet' used to be associated with education facilities, and a few
large companies. However these days we see more and more public_access
systems caring the 'Usenet_news_groups/mail'. Usenet is run on a 'Vote'
or on majority consensus. If you wish to start a new message group or a
new node, those on the net locally have to vote on it.
What are some of the topic's / News Groups in 'Usenet'
======================================================
For Atari users there are Three main news_groups for our hobby.
They are.....
comp.sys.atari.st ::Atari ST news/messages::
comp.sys.atari.8bit ::Atari 8 bit news/messages::
comp.tech.atari.st ::Atari ST Tech news/messages::
Along with the messages we also have the send and receive files
these are avalible in the following groups....
comp.binary.atari :: Atari files ::
comp.source.atari :: Atari source code ::
Please note the files are transmitted in special format and you will
need a file called "uudecode" to turn them into a state that your ST or
8 bit will understand.
Below is a sample of some of the news groups avalible on 'Usenet'. Bare
in mind our local Gateway carries over a 1000 news groups so this
represents a small sample only.
aus.wanted
bionet.molbio.evolution
comp.binaries.amiga
comp.binaries.atari <- Atari files area
comp.compilers
comp.edu
comp.lang.c
comp.mail.uucp
comp.robotics
comp.society.futures
comp.soft-sys.andrew
comp.sources.amiga
comp.sources.atari <- Atari source code
comp.sys.amiga
comp.sys.apollo
comp.sys.apple2
comp.sys.atari.st <- Atari ST new/mail
comp.sys.atari.8bit <- Atari 8 bit news/mail.
A sample usenet message ::::
Path: aaron!comp.vuw.ac.nz!am.dsir.govt.nz!dsiramd!marcamd!mercury!kcbbs
From: STT@kcbbs.gen.nz (Jon Clarke)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: NZ_local echos' ??
Message-ID: STaTus_Mailer_552
Date: 01 August 90 13:58:01 GMT
Organization: STaTus BBS, The Atari sySTem in Auckland, New Zealand.
Lines: 16
I was reading the comp.sys.atari.st and I thought I knew that name, from
the southeren regions of the country.
Well we have _usenet_ implemented on MichTron BBS version 3, after all
the ho-har . STu has done it again! Unlike FoReM_ST we can not run
uucp or uuslave.ttp on the front end so we have to do THE call and uload
and dload the news. What are you using for uudecode.ttp Aaron? I
dloaded one from GEnie in the weekend "uucode.arc" which has uudecode.
ttp and uuencode.ttp in it. I love the 'uudecode.ttp', it sure deals
with the binaries in a _very_quick_rate_.
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
| o( ) Z*Net | ( )o STaTus BBS, the Atari BBS in Auckland,NZ |
| / /\ Down-Under | /\ \ :: Join the Atari Users Association :: |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+
Some sample sites on Usenet
===========================
Organization: University of Michigan Math Dept.
Organization: Koala Project, Bull Research France
Organization: University of Dortmund, Germany
Organization: USENET Public Access, Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Organization: Beckemeyer Development Tools, Oakland, CA
Organization: Michigan State University
Organization: Chinet - Public Access UNIX
Organization: Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA
Organization: Otter Lake Leisure Society
Organization: Orbital Mind Control Lasers, Inc.
Organization: The University of Dayton Computer Science Department,
Dayton,Ohio
Organization: Stuttgart Net Systems, FRG
Organization: Philips Information Systems, Apeldoorn, The Netherlands
Organization: Computing Laboratory, U of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK NE17RU
Organization: Edinburgh University Computing Service
Organization: STaTus BBS, The Atari sySTem in Auckland, New Zealand.
The Bottom line.
================
If you have the oppitunity to get into the 'Usenet' network, go for it.
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
|*| Z*NET ECHOS |*|
|*| by Terry Schreiber |*|
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
On the Positive
The Canada and United States are definitely two different marketplaces.
Atari is still going strong and has a following in Canada. Canada
sports more than double the dealer network with more coming online while
the U.S. dealers are deteriorating rapidly. Dealers in Canada again
came out strong for the back-to-school specials. Although dealers and
Atari have had their grumblings in the past the dealers are again
strongly behind the product.
In a discussion with Rob McGowan (Product Support Manager, Atari Canada)
I let my grumblings be known about the U.S. Atari market. What possible
things could Atari do to turn this all around? He didn't have an
answer. I suggested that the main reason for the failures in the U.S.
was the snatch and grab attitude that Atari has shown - "Here is your
computer, thank you for your money - good-bye" sort of like buying a
hamburger at a drive thru. If you are going to do business this way
then please let the public know. On the other hand you are telling
dealers to sell the computers on the idea of support and service against
the mass merchandisers. A combination of a first class restaurant with
a drive thru service window. Please take a path, set your goals and
stick to it! Is it no wonder the userbase is upset and doesn't know
where it stands.
Advertising has been sadly lacking in the North American market. Atari
needs dealers, dealers need customers, customers must be educated in the
positive points, the features, the benefits, and the rewards of owning
an Atari product. A basic course in marketing - Atari looks at the
consumer market and spots an opening for a computer product. They
produce the product and try sell it to dealers who will in turn sell it
to the consumer. The dealer will not buy the product if there is not a
demand for the product. The consumer must be educated and advised that
the product exists to create a demand at the retail level - this is
usually accomplished by advertising.
In advertising to sell a product you must be able to identify with the
product. Advertisers use a lot of words and visual effects to get this
point across to the consumers sometimes calling on the basics of sales.
Why do people buy?
- to reward themselves
- to identify with a group or lifestyle
- to appease a want or a need
- speculation
- impulse
Atari must come full circle and come back to basics. They must create
a want or need for their products in the U.S. to continue. Advertising
again will play a key role in Atari's comeback - to point out again the
features and benefits of the Atari product line. There is not a valid
reason why this computer is not selling in the U.S. other than poor
marketing on behalf of Atari itself.
As for changing the userbase attitudes in the U.S., I haven't a quick
answer. This is something that came to be over many years and perhaps
it will take that long to change again - then perhaps it won't.
During the last few issues you may have noticed that I have had a
tendency to give Atari the benefit of the doubt and taken a positive
attitude to the changes taking place. Atari has done very well in
support and service in Canada and I feel that this will eventually work
it's way in to the U.S. The end user attitude casts a giant shadow on
Atari and until Atari comes full circle and gets back to basics, the
userbase is generally un-approachable at this time. A quick and easy
answer on this dilemma avoids me as over the years there has been more
than one issue that Atari and the users have come to grips with. There
is one place where they can start and that is the area of advertising.
As with most end users I feel that if we had a larger userbase that some
of the other problems would fall into line.
On a personal note I do miss those reviews done by Alice and Mark so for
next week I do plan on adding two reviews to this column. Look-it and
Pop-it and Harlekin are at first glance excellent values - I will let
you know more next week. As well a review on a new MIDI network that
allows several keyboards to play together over the modem - In real time
no less...
Murray Brown, former Atari dealer turned Atari representitive is in my
personal books as this month's "Atari's Man on the Go"! In the last
year Murray has brought on-board not less than five new Atari dealers in
British Columbia, instituted sales training programs, Desktop Publishing
and Desktop Music seminars, and strenghthened the Atari userbase.
Murray also convinced Atari into using a westcoast warehouse for the
smaller dealers who could not afford to stock large amounts.
Well at least Canada doesn't have any revolving doors!
ISD Marketing and Atari have something big planned for the Desktop
Publishing market. Details at this time were very sketchy but remember
the "Pepsi Challenge".
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
|*| PD/SHAREWARE UPDATE |*|
|*||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||*|
by Ron Grant
VAULT201.LZH by: Robert Fischer **FREEWARE**
=======================================================================
THE VAULT is a complete TOS compatible backup system, including a
separate (included) RESTORE utility, called THE KEY. For those with new
hard disks, there are two types of backups; image and file backups.
Image backups, while fast and complete, create floppy disks that MUST be
restored using the original program, while file backup programs create
floppies that can be read from the desktop. THE VAULT is of the latter
variety. However, due to a disk caching scheme, THE VAULT is fast. It
is also entirely GEM-based and has a comprehensive help system.
Some initial tests with THE VAULT lead me to believe that I'll be using
it more and more often. It's easy, powerful, and has a very nice front-
end. I can personally testify to it's error-checking! <grin>. It has
a unique feature which allows you to backup subdirectories without
backing up the main directory. This can be useful for those who don't
particularly feel like backing up their programs every time, but need to
back up the data folders within the master folder.
The only nit I might have to pick is the LaTEX-formatted manual, which
few people will be able to print. Fortunately, it's possible to read
between the LaTEX codes in order to find out how to run the program, and
the HELP system is good enough to get you started with the program right
away.
VALGUS20.ARC by: James R. Glenn **PUBLIC DOMAIN**
========================================================================
If you're using your ST for business or other professional applications
which require you to have a monochrome only system, and have noticed a
dearth of monochrome games (either commercial or non) to help you
relieve your stress, then VALGUS is worth a look. It also runs on color
systems, and is admittedly better in color, but monochrome users have
learned not to be too fussy about games.
VALGUS is a Tetris clone, written in HiSoft Basic and DevPac assembler
(source code is available from the author for a small disk fee). Don't
look for the spectacular (and mostly cosmetic) graphics of the various
commercial releases of Tetris. The graphics are adequate to let you
find out why Tetris is considered such an addictive game, though! When
I first booted VALGUS I expected to fool with it a bit, and then put it
aside, but a few hours later I was still playing. Though not a Tetris
aficionado, I feel that this 'clone' is a good game.
U P G R A D E S ! !
---------------------
RAMPL122.LZH by: John Harris **SHAREWARE**
=======================================================================
Version 1.22 is a bugfix of the previous recent upload of v1.2. Those
of you with SHADOW and more than 1MB of memory can now utilize this
program. Also, some display problems are fixed, and the ERASE DISK
function now finds the RAMdisk properly.
RAMPLUS is a fast and memory-efficient RAMdisk with a built-in print
spooler which does not require a separate buffer. It works by using the
available disk space in the RAMdisk, so if your RAMdisk is empty, your
printer buffer grows without losing more memory. RAMPLUS also includes
a mouse doubler and screen saver, and an optional GEMDOS fix that allows
an extra 2K to be stored on every disk.
Included in RAMPLUS.LZH is DESKFMT.ACC, an advanced yet easy to use disk
formatter/copier/verifier that also installs a unique CALLFSEL accessory
that makes intelligent guesses about what path you probably want
displayed. This is handy for users of either UIS II/III or
C.F.Johnson's Little Green File Selector. The DESKFMT.ACC will install
two accessories, the formatter and the FSEL caller. I have found
that
when loaded into Multidesk, it does not install the CALLFSEL accessory,
but otherwise works fine. It will communicate with RAMPLUS' print
spooler, allowing you to abort any print job you may have going.
D T P W A T C H ! !
-------------------------
Here are some fonts and clip-art that I've noticed uploaded in the past
short while. None of these are reviewed at this time, but simply listed
as available. I make no comment as to their quality or suitability to a
particular purpose. Occasionally, some Public Domain or Shareware
Desktop Publishing utility, font or graphic will make news, but for the
most part these are just good, useful (and sometimes not so useful)
additions to the DTPer's library.
Calamus Fonts
-------------
OLYMPIA.ARC Sandy Cerovich
UNVRSITY.ARC R.Kalford
LET_GTHC.ARC R.Kalford
Pagestream Fonts
----------------
('FONTVERTED' from PD Calamus fonts, and uploaded by R.Walshe. Text
files in archives contain the text file by the original Calamus artist)
CHANCER2.ARC CALIGRA2.ARC FLASH2.ARC WESTERN_.ARC
DINGBAT2.ARC CELTIC3.ARC BURLOBLI.ARC OLYMPIC.ARC
SOUVMEDI.ARC SOUVMED2.ARC
Clip Art
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MARTART3.LZH, MARTART4.LZH from M. Spiller. Line art. Don't know what
happened to 1 & 2; we presume they're around somewhere.
BEARS_1.LZH, BEARS_2.LZH,.....BEARS_8.LZH from R.J.Brackett, these
rather large (average 125K per LZH file) .IMG Clipart pics are of Teddy
Bears.
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Z*NET Atari Online Magazine
Copyright (c)1990, Rovac Industries, Inc..
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