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Z*NET Online Magazine Issue 92-15
| (((((((( | Z*Net International Atari Online Magazine
| (( | -----------------------------------------
| (( | April 10, 1992 Issue #92-15
| (( | -----------------------------------------
| (((((((( | Copyright (c)1992, Rovac Industries, Inc.
| | Post Office Box 59, Middlesex, NJ 08846
| (( |
| (((((( | CONTENTS
| (( |
| | * The Editors Desk............................Ron Kovacs
| ((( (( | * ACE '92 Exclusive Eyewitness Report......David Pischke
| (((( (( | * ACE '92 Report.............................Jerry Cross
| (( (( (( | * MultiTos Preview.........................David Pischke
| (( (((( | * Calamus SL - A First Look....................John Nagy
| (( ((( | * Perusing CompuServe......................Mike Mortilla
| | * Basic AT Commands - Part 2............................
| ((((((( | * Lynx Reviews........................AtariUser Magazine
| (( | * Z*Net Software Shelf....................Ron Berinstein
| ((((( |
| (( |
| ((((((( | ~ Publisher/Editor............................Ron Kovacs
| | ~ Contributing Editor..........................John Nagy
| (((((((( | ~ Z*Net Newswire Ltd..........................Jon Clarke
| (( | ~ Contributing Editor.....................Bruce Hansford
| (( | ~ PD Software Reviews.....................Ron Berinstein
| (( | ~ Reporter....................................Mike Brown
| (( | ~ Assistant News Editor.......................Mike Davis
| | ~ Z*Net Canadian Correspondent...........Terry Schreiber
| | ~ Columnist....................................Ed Krimen
| | ~ Columnist................................Mike Mortilla
| | ~ UK Columnist...............................Mick Jarvis
| | ~ Features Editor.........................Dr. Paul Keith
| |
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=======================================================================
* THE EDITORS DESK by Ron Kovacs
=======================================================================
A few birthday announcements... Belated birthday wishes to John Nagy
who recently celebrated his hmmmmmm, 30 something birthday and Bob
Brodie who also celebrated a 30 something birthday also.
======================================================================
* ACE '92 EXCLUSIVE EYEWITNESS REPORT by David Pischke
======================================================================
1992 will be remembered for several things: as the year of the
controversial 1992 US Presidential elections, as the first anniversary
of the Persian Gulf War, and as the year Johnny Carson retired.
But Atarians will remember 1992 for something far more important:
Atarians will remember 1992 as the year TAF hosted a dynamite
convention, the biggest Atari event in North America in 1992. The 1992
Atari Canadian Exposition, or ACE '92, was a success by all means. The
convention floor was well-travelled, the talent show was a success, and
the seminars were well-attended and well-presented. Sales appeared to
be brisk, and around 2500-3500 people attended the convention. If
there were any doubts that Atari is on an upswing, ACE '92 put them to
rest -- the atmosphere was definitely positive. Even June Rowlands,
Toronto's politically incorrect mayor, wished showgoers well in a
letter in the program.
There was a talent show, dealer and developer meetings, a gala banquet
and many seminars, but the "meat" of the show was the exhibitors; many
dealers and developers were there. Free copies of Atari Explorer, The
Computer Paper and Atari Advantage were being given out. There were
many deals to be had, and many new products were being demonstrated for
the first time. Unfortunately, Atari's new 68030 machines were
demonstrated only to developers, not to the general public, but
MultiTOS was being demonstrated.
EXHIBITORS
ABC Solutions
ABC Solutions of Mississauga, Ont., a newcomer to the Atari market, was
demonstrating the latest version of First Word Plus, the popular word
processing program. The latest version is fully TT-compatible and has
several enhancements. Timeworks Desktop Publisher 2 was also there;
Version 2 of Timeworks DTP is much more advanced than version 1, and
includes full WYSIWYG, paragraph tagging, manual control of kerning, a
wide range of text and graphics imports, and a variety of typefaces.
Updates were available for users of the older versions.
A new program, TBX CAD, by a local developer was also there, and First
Graph, a program devoted to graphing, was there. First Graph outputs
using GDOS and FSM/GDOS; can import ASCII and DIF files; can create
many different types of graphs, including pie, line, bar, column, area,
3-D and scatter graphs; interpolation, curve-fitting, and full control
of text and graphic placement are all allowed. All this without a
spreadsheet.
Atari
The Atari booth was always full. Bill Rehbock demonstrated MultiTOS,
and Bob Brodie spent much of his time there demonstrating products and
answering questions. There was a setup of Lynxes, and there were
1040STes, Mega STes, TTs and STBooks on display. There was also an
"Atari museum", featuring old Atari hardware from the 2600 to the 800
to the XE Game System.
Atari Explorer
John Jainschigg, Editor and Publisher and Editor of Atari Explorer was
in the Atari Explorer booth along with Peter Donoso, the managing
editor, and free copies of the February and March/April issues of Atari
Explorer were being given out. In addition, there were special
convention subscription rates.
Atari Interface
Bill and Patty Rayl were in the Atari Interface booth, selling copies
of the excellent Atari Interface Magazine and selling their PD disks
for Spectre/Mac, 8-bit and ST. A Lode Runner-type game, Gold Seeker,
was on display for everyone to play and was available on the ST April
1992 Disk of the Month. Also being shown was Silhouette, Maxwell CPU's
object-oriented drawing and autotracing program which can convert from
bitmapped images of many formats into vector images.
Branch Always Software
Darek Mihocka was in the Branch Always Booth, demonstrating his
GEMulator, which allows Windows users to run ST software. GEMulator,
which runs as a combination of software and a card which holds TOS
chips, is supposed to run at approximately half the speed of an 8MHz ST
on a 80386 machine; Darek Mihocka says that he is working on getting
the GEMulator to run at Mega STe speeds. GEMulator allows two versions
of TOS to be plugged in for compatibility, and will even allow two
different ST programs to be run at the same time, each with its own TOS
and monitor type. Many popular programs are compatible with GEMulator,
including PageStream, Calamus, GFA Basic, First Word Plus, Prism Paint,
Wordflair and Degas Elite.
Codehead Technologies
Codehead software was giving updates to Warp 9 for users of Quick STe.
For $25 Canadian ($20 US) plus the original Quick ST disk, one receives
the new Warp 9 accelerator. Extremely fast, it accelerates a greater
number of functions faster, has a better interface, more features and
fewer bugs than Quick ST. Warp 9 comes with a customiser program that
allows the system fills and the system font to be edited. Warp 9 can
load a picture as the desktop background, act as a mouse accelerator,
and provide keyboard shortcuts for alert boxes.
Codehead also was demonstrating their other popular products.
MegaPaint, an impressive bitmap and vector-drawing program, was shown
running on a 19-inch monitor. The TOS Extension Card was on sale and
TOS 2.06 was being displayed. MaxiFile was being demonstrated and
updates were being given out for the many other Codehead products.
Repro Sutdio and Avant Vector, Codehead's graphics packages were also
there, as were all the Cherry Fonts and the Genus font editor.
Clear Thinking Software
Clear Thinking Software was demonstrating EdHak, version 2.3. EdHak is
a ACC/PRG editor which edits not only text files, but disk sectors and
memory. EdHak offers margins, tabbing, word wrap, cut and paste, and
search and replace. The Atari Clipboard is supported, and EdHak even
can be used as a capture buffer for STalker. A stripped-down version
is included that occupies only half the memory.
Cybercube Research Limited
Cybercube of Thornhill, Ont. was there with the CyReL Sunrise M16-1280
graphics card. The CyReL Sunrise is a VMEbus card that gives not only
stunning graphics, but 20Mbit/s networking as well. The CyReL Sunrise
can display 32-bit graphics in resolutions up to 2048x1024 -- non-
interlaced. Resolutions are totally programmable from 256x200 to 2048x
1024 and Refresh rates range from 50Hz to 220Hz.
The CyReL Sunrise was shown running on a TT; the graphics were
impressive, to say the least.
D.A. Brumleve/Fair Dinkum
Dorothy Brumleve (pronounced "Brumlevy", and not "Brumleev") was busily
demonstrating her Kidprgs behind a background of Duplo blocks.
Kidpublisher Professional version 6.4 was being upgraded, and people
who bought 6.1 at the last TAF convention got upgraded free. Super
Kidgrid, Kidpaint, and Telegram were there, and the new Multiplay, a
program of "math exploration, discovery and practice" for children aged
5-11, made its debut. Multiplay adapts to the child's abilities and
features games, drills and puzzles.
In the same booth were Crossword Creator and Word search creator. The
two programs take the tedium out of crossword and word search creation
by automatically creating and printing crosswords and word searches
using point-and-click as well as keyboard commands.
Double Click Software
Mike Vederman and Paul Lee were in the Double Click booth, extoling the
virtues of Double Click's Data Diet automatic file compression
compression program. Data Diet can increase drive free space by
compressing files on the hard drive; the compression is good and is
extremely fast. Also on display was a game created with Double Click's
Game Workbench, a system which allows creation of arcade-quality video
games. Unfortunately, Game Workbench may take a few more months
getting to the public.
Double Click was selling copies of all their products. DC Shower, a
file viewer which replaces the Desktop's built-in routines; DC Desktop,
a replacement Desktop, and DC Utilities were all for sale.
DragonWare Software
DragonWare Software was actively demonstrating G_Man, its ASSIGN.SYS
file manager. G_Man asks a series of questions, then automatically
builds a flawless ASSIGN.SYS file. In addition, G_Man is also totally
FSM/GDOS compatible, and as such, will create the FSM/GDOS EXTEND.SYS
file. G_Man also checks the integrity of the font files, can group
disable up to 200 fonts at one time, can create screen font-only
ASSIGN.SYS files, and includes tutorial and help menus. DragonWare
also was demonstrating The Satellite Locator ST, a program which
locates geosynchronous satellites anywhere on the globe and displays
their path; and The Box, an 16 output MIDI Thru Adaptor. The Stacy
battery pack, which allows Stacy users more time on the road.
FAST Technologies
Jim Allen of FAST Technologies was showing this 68030 accelerators.
The TinyTurbo 030 was for sale, and it was being demonstrated running
running DynaCADD. The Tiny Turbo 030 uses a 40MHz 68030 and keeps an
8MHz 68000 on board for compatibility. A cache is included to speed up
operations, and Virtual Memory up to 128 megs and 60MHz 68882 math co-
processor running at 60MHz are optional. There was a special discount
running through to April 30 that brought TinyTurbo's price down by
almost half.
For those with less money, there were the Turbo20 and Turbo25, 20 and
25MHz accelerators which use the regular 68000. The Turbo25 increases
most processor operations by a factor of 300% over a standard 8MHz ST.
Gadgets by Small, Inc.
Dave Small hosted a seminar and tried to convince the audience that
they could program. Dave Small claims to get his inspiration from Neil
Diamond: he listens to Neil Diamond records while he tries to program,
until the sheer agony causes his brain to come up with an idea. He
also related the joy he experienced when he got his first program to
work. He dropped hints about a possible colour Mac emulator.
Goldleaf Publishing, Inc.
Goldleaf had its entire line of DTP "solutions" at the Show. On
display That's Write and Write On, two word processors which allow
advanced features such as paragraph tagging, mixing of printer and
That's Write fonts in one document, and password protection for
documents. Wordflair II, the document processor was being shown, and
Goldleaf's impressive Retouche was shown editing a picture of a bowl of
fruit on a large-screen colour monitor; Didot Professional was there
too. There was also MacRead, a Macintosh to ST file transfer program.
It reads HFS disks, automatically strips the Mac Resource header, and
stores the files on ST disks.
Goldleaf has acquired a new partner, Compo, and a new product,
CompScript, which replaces the now-unsupported UltraScript ST.
CompoScript is a PostScript interpreter. It comes with 30 Adobe Type 1
fonts, supports Bitstream fonts, has print preview and even uses a math
coprocessor if it is installed.
Goldleaf was taking photographs and scanning them for people. Goldleaf
was taking advance orders on its products, and the clipboard with names
and addresses was full.
Gribnif Software
Gribnif was demonstrating the Crazy Dots Card, which can do 256 colors
from 16.7 million in resolutions from 320x200 to 1280x800. Also
available were many of Gribnif's application and utility programs.
XBoot, an impressive boot manager which uses GEM from inside the AUTO
folder was on sale. So were old favorites such as NeoDesk 3 and the
NeoDesk CLI, STalker 3.0, STeno 2.0, and Gribnif's graphics products,
Arabesque Professional and Convector Professional.
Apparently Gribnif has obtained the North American distribution rights
to Pure C, formerly Borland's Turbo C. A totally English package may
be in the works.
ICD, Inc.
ICD and ICD's Canadian Distributor, Computer Software & Services were
at the show, and there were some deals. ICD's AdSpeed, AdSCSI and
Advantage Plus were for sale, as were pre-packaged hard drives ranging
in sizes from 52Mb to over 120Mb.
ISD Marketing
ISD was selling Calamus and all its accessories and companion books.
Calamus SL was on display, and ISD hosted a seminar in which the new
features of Calamus SL were not only demonstrated, but taught. Calamus
SL includes colour separation, 24-bit colour, auto-tracing, accuracy to
within 1/100,000th on an inch and magnification to 99999%.
Another unconfirmed story at the convention was that ISD is no longer
handling DynaCADD, and a new distributor will be found.
JMG Software International
JMG Software of Hamilton, Ont. had their impressive Hyperlink program
on hand. Hyperlink extends the database concept by allowing not only
text and numeric fields, but icons, graphics, buttons, and boxes.
Hyperlink is similar to the Macintosh's HyperCard, and allows users to
create their own applications with animation, graphics, sound, speech
and hypertext. Hypertext allows text to be linked; by double-clicking
on a topic in a table of contents, one can be brought directly to that
topic. JMG Software has released developer information which will
allow third parties to create their own extensions to Hyperlink.
Joppa Software Development
Straight Fax, a fax program, was at the Joppa booth. Straight Fax is
GEM works with fax modems and supports GDOS and FSM/GDOS to allow
sending and recieving of faxes. Joppa is considering releasing a
version that would work in the background.
Micro Creations
Micro Creations was showing off its GIME Term and GIME BBS at the show
and was gave a free copy of the GIME BBS to each club at the show.
GIME Term can transfer large picture files in seconds using a special
protocol, and allows user-friendly interaction with BBSes.
Missionware Software
Making its debut at the Missionware booth was Flash II, the long-
awaited successor to the original Flash terminal program. Flash II was
demonstrated to an eager crowd. Flash II is compatible with DO files
from the original Flash, supports TTY, Vidtex, VT-52, -100, -101, -102,
-200, -300, ANSI and Prestel. It uses a GEM text editor and includes
the "Silent Line" program to allow background file transfers. File
transfers include X-, Y-, and Z-Modem, CIS B, and Kermit. Also being
shown was LottODDS, a lottery number program that maintains a
historical database and can tell you which numbers have a higher
statistical chance of appearing. Printer Initializer, a printer driver
accessory which allows you to create and modify text drivers was there.
Phil Comeau Software
Phil Comeau Software had GramSlam and The Grammar Expert on hand. The
Grammar Expert is a grammar reference program, and it is very thorough;
it covers almost all topics of Grammar in the english language and
should answer almost any grammar-troubled person's problems. The
latest version of GramSlam, much improved over previous versions, was
being shown. GramSlam checks documents for common grammatical errors,
can distinguish American and British spellings, and gives a report on
the readability of the document.
SoftLogik
SoftLogik had their PageStream 2.1 DTP software in their booth, and
they were busy demonstrating it to passers-by. SoftLogik also had
seminars on PagStream 2.1 each day.
Step Ahead Software
Nevin Shalit was selling Tracker/ST version 3.0. Tracker ST is an
extremely complete mailing list program that handles labelling, mail
merge and an unlimited number of names. Version 3.0 includes phone
dialing, duplicate name warnings, and unlimited filtering. Tracker/ST
was also in the Atari both, shown running under MultiTOS. Upgrades
were available and there was a special show discount.
Sudden Incorporated
Sudden Incorporated was demonstrating the revolutionary new Sudden View
text editor. Sudden View treats text the wait paint programs treat
pixels. You can drag text, and as you drag, the document is
dynamically reformatted. The Search function searches at a rate of
over 100,000 characters per second. There are no insert or replace
modes -- if the cursor is over a space to the left of text, it inserts;
otherwise, it replaces.
Sudden Incorporated was selling a cut-down Student version as well as a
Master version. People with the Student version can upgrade to the
Master version at any time.
Toad Computers
Toad Computers was there, and they were selling their hard drives as
well as the Beetle Mouse and lots of software at bargain prices. A
computer was set up, and users were invited to type in their name and
address to be put into the Toad mailing list.
WizWorks
WizWorks had Mugshot and Image Cat as well as clip-art disks. Image
Cat prints out a catalogue clip art files so that you never have to
load hundreds of clip art files to find the one you need. Image CAT
handles ICE, NIC, GEM, IMG, Degas PC? and PI?, TNY, NEO, IFF, PCX and
Printmaster SHP files. Mugshot allows you to create faces and
caricatures by combining and editing facial features. Mugshot data
disks were for sale.
-- User Groups
There were several user groups at the show, and all of them were busy.
ASTMUM, Atari ST/Mega Users of Montreal; SAGE, ST Atari Group of Erie;
HBO, Hamilton, Burlington, Oakville; MTST, Metro Toronto ST Group; and
WAUG, Windsor Atari Users' Group, were all at the show in addition to
TAF. Shawn Smith was at the MTST Booth demonstrating the all-new GEM
version of his MaxiMiser offline reader to interested parties. HBO,
WAUG, SAGE and ASTMUM were all busy selling library disks.
-- Online Services
GEnie was trying to recruit new members, and was displaying its Aladdin
front-end software. Also present was Canada Remote Systems, a large
pay BBS covering Southern Ontario and now Detroit.
-- Music Exhibitors
Korg, the manufacturer of keyboards and music peripherals; Steinberg-
Jones, Steve's Music, Saved by Technology, Musicware and PI Precision
Imports were all there busily demonstrating their software and
hardware. Musicware was demonstrating C-Lab, Notator, Alpha MIDI, and
a range of librarians and editors. PI Precision Imports was
demonstrating its line of furniture which allows you to fit all your
MIDI equipment in one room. Ray Williams of Steinberg-Jones was there
showing off CuBase. There was a room set up specially for MIDI
seminars, and one vendor was trying to get rid of keyboards and was
giving good deals.
TALENT SHOW
There were not very many entries in the talent show, but all the
entries were of very high quality. One entry in the graphics and
animation competition was a slide show of beautiful Degas pictures;
another was an animation created with a ray tracer. One of the musical
entries was an impressive rendition of "Great Balls of Fire", done with
MIDI of course.
LYNX GAMING AREA
The Lynx Gaming Area was full all the time. For $1.00, people were
allowed to a timed game playing session. The high score for each
session was registered, and a prize of a Lynx, an AC adaptor and games
was awarded at the end of the day for the high score of the day. Users
could also sample game cartridges for $1.00. All proceeds from the
Lynx area went to the hospital for sick children.
======================================================================
* ACE '92 Atari CANADIAN EXPOSITION by Jerry Cross
======================================================================
The Toronto Atari Federation held it's 3rd Atarifest April 4-5. I have
attended a lot of shows around the country in the past few years, and I
must say that I was extremely impressed with ACE. It was plainly
obvious that a lot of work went into this show. I could only attend
one day (Saturday), but I had a fantastic time! I hope that anyone
planning to put on their own show in the future takes the time to study
this one.
ACE introduced two great new ideas for future shows. A MIDI & Graphics
stage was constructed just off the main showroom. During the day
attendees were entertained by a number of musicals, with graphic demos
being projected on a large screen in the background. Scheduled at noon
was the Talent show, where participants got to perform or demonstrate
their entries. The timing was great since it was lunchtime, and the
caterers were right next to the stage area. Eating that monster hotdog
and catching the talent show was great!
A Lynx Gaming area was offered too. For a $1 donation (given to
charity) you got to check out some of the Lynx games. That area was
pretty busy the whole time I was there, and was very popular.
One surprise to me was the lack of interest in the seminars. I
attended several on Saturday and there were only a few in each. One of
the most popular seminars at past shows was the Atari Corporation
conference, with a chance to meet Bob Brodie. However, only a dozen
attended while I was there. I think ACE may have slipped a little by
not handing out a seminar schedule with the programs. I had to search
around to locate one myself.
The actual list of seminars was very impressive. At any given time
there were at least two seminars going on. There was even some hands
on training sessions for Calamus and Pagestream (similar to those held
in Chicago). Trying to catch all of these seminars and trying to check
out the new products in the main hall really kept me running.
I won't give a booth by booth replay of the show. I'm sure that will
be covered by some of the other reporters at the show. But here are
some of the more interesting things I saw.
ACE had one of the best MIDI display areas I have ever seen at an
Atarifest. Now, I'm not a MIDI person, so most of what they were
showing was simply over my head. But the one product that was
constantly talked about was Cubase. This program has just been
upgraded to version 3.0. According to some of the dealers, it's a
realtime sequencer program that can do just about anything you want.
The flyer says that it can be anything from a linear MIDI recorder to
one of the most advanced compositional tools on the market. Cubase
works in realtime, and you can do anything with the sequencer running.
The program was constantly being demonstrated at one of the booths.
I think the serious MIDI users will want to check into this program.
There were a lot of dealers at the show. I didn't see a whole lot of
computers being sold, but software was a hot item. Programs such as
Sudden View were hot items. Codehead seems to have a constant crowd
near their booth too.
I checked with the TAF folks to see what the attendance was near the
end of the day and it was around 900. This seemed a little low but it
was still an impressive number. It sure seemed like a lot more people
were at the show. The only reason for this would be that more people
were spending more time at the show, which I thought was great!
Branch Always Software was at the show demonstrating their new product,
the Gemulator. A lot has already been written about this product.
Gemulator will let you run Atari ST programs on an IBM computer. Yes,
it does work! No, it's not perfect yet. There are still several
things that need to be worked on and optimized. The mouse movement on
the screen was a little jerky, and there was some slight problem with
disk reading. While I was there, several programs were demonstrated.
All of Codeheads products worked just fine. We ran Pagestream and it
booted up fine, but because we did not have any font or import modules
we couldn't actually do any layout work. One of the real nice features
is the ability to have true multitasking. While Pagestream was being
loaded we set up a solitaire card game to play. I think that once all
of the work is finished, this will have as much impact on Atari as the
Mac emulators have. One drawback was the lack of games to try out at
the show. It's not known how well Gemulator can read protected disks,
and some of the British imports may create some problems. More will be
known as future beta tests are done. Call Branch Always Software for
more information.
Canada Remote Systems was on hand to talk about their bbs service.
Billed as North America's finest BBS system, this service offers
400,000 programs and files and 3,500 conferences through a system of
nodes around Canada and the US. The cost is $129 a year. While it
does support Atari computers, it also supports IBM, MAC, and all the
rest. My experiences on similar systems left me a bit disappointed,
since most of the material and support was IBM related. I will have to
try these folks out and see what's available for Atari users. To join
up call CRS at 800-465-7562.
Micro Creations introduced their new bbs program called GIME BBS.
Being a bbs junkie and long time sysop, I naturally had an interest in
this product. It's main "gimic" is that it supports GIME graphics.
You can create very impressive screens that can be sent over the modem
in seconds, and the program can support mouse input. A very creative
sysop can make a system that could work entirely through mouse
commands. The software also supports the usual assortment of download
protocols and message base commands, and comes with it's own script
language so you can customize it to your own liking. The cost is a
reasonable $49.95. Their companion terminal program supports graphics
and many other features. Contact Micro Creations at 800-833-3963 for
more information.
The Atari booth was quite large, and very professional looking. Most
of the Atari products were on display, including the ST-Book. This was
my first hands-on experience with the ST-Book, and I was very
impressed. The usual comments about it was the mouse pad. It's tricky
to use, but I guess we can get use to it. And the ST-Book is THIN!
It's only 1.4" thick. I saw pictures of the computer before but didn't
realize just how thin it was. I hope I can scrape up some money to get
one.
Are you interested in getting some British Atari magazines like ST
User, ST Action, ST Format, or any of a dozen others? Sure you are.
But the stores in your area don't have them and it's very expensive
(around $95) to get them mailed to you. I ran into a company called
BMD, which is a world magazine distributor. For only $104 Canadian
(around $89 US), you can get any of a wide selection of magazines. For
the Atari they carry ST Action, ST Review, ST Format, ST User, and ST
Applications, plus an assortment of Amiga and IBM magazines (32 in
all!). If you order several subscriptions you can get a further
discount. It would be a great advantage for user groups to arrange for
a group discount, and possibly save as much as 30% off these prices.
For more information contact BMD at 800-668-4528.
It has already been reported that several new products would be
introduced at the show. Among these are Fast Technology's Tiny
Turbo030, which seemed to be getting a lot of attention. Codehead
displayed their new Warp 9 Software. Joppa software was showing
STraight FAX, a much improved upgrade to their fax send/receive
program.
Flash II was shown for the first time, and the program was demonstrated
during a seminar. The features that have kept Flash a long time
favorite are still there, and a number of improvements were made.
Including Ansi support, better buffer editing and z-modem transfers.
Other regulars at Atari shows were also showing their products,
including Gadgets by Small, D.A. Brumleve (sorry I couldn't get a
chance to chat with them), Atari Interface Magazine, and a host of
others. Brad from Best Electronics managed to get his hard to find
parts into Canada, and the usual crowd was always in front of his
table.
ACE set up a "User Group Alley" for the groups wanting to sell their
p/d disks and sign up new members. Most were from the Canadian area.
That's about it. I know I skipped a lot of vendors, but this show was
simply too big to cover all in one short article. I really regret not
spending two days at the show since I'm sure I missed a lot of things.
I ended up going home tired, happy, and very broke.
I didn't hear too many horror stories about getting across the border,
but I ended up my trip with the usual confrontations with the border
trolls. Seems that none of the customs agents on duty knew if computer
software was duty free or not (hard to believe, right?). I actually
had to explain to this guy what computer software was and I had to
actually open the package and show him the disk! I figure this guy was
either a complete idiot or a jealous IBM user just giving me a bad
time. I hope the rest of you got back ok.
======================================================================
* MULTITOS PREVIEW by David Pischke
======================================================================
MultiTOS demonstrated
Toronto, Ont. -- Atari demonstrated MultiTOS, the multitasking version
of the TOS Operating System, at the Atari Canadian Exposition on
Saturday, April 4. MultiTOS, which allows users to run several
programs simultaneously, was demonstrated at the Atari booth by Bill
Rehbock. MultiTOS is slated for release in the fall and will be
released "for the lowest price as possible", he said.
When asked whether or not the new MultiTOS will be compatible with non-
68030 machines, Bill Rehbock replied that it will, but there will not
be the safeguard of hardware memory protection. Hardware memory
protection prevents programs that are running from writing in other
programs' memory space. To increase compatibility with programs such
as STalker and STeno, which pass large chunks of information between
each other, PRGFLAGS has been modified to include a new flag which
indicates to MultiTOS whether that program's memory will be totally
private or whether it can be accessed by other resident applications.
The names of resident programs are listed under the desk accessories.
The Desktop is always present and is listed as a fuji symbol followed
by "Desktop". Applications can be brought into the foreground by
either clicking on their menu entry or by activating their windows;
MultiTOS was demonstrated running several applications concurrently
with no apparent slowdown; switching between applications is also
extremely fast. According to Bill Rehbock, MultiTOS, as well as
finally breaking the six-accessory limit, will multitask as many
programs as will fit in system memory.
As in Gribnif Software's NeoDesk, background windows can now be moved,
resized, scrolled and closed without being topped. In addition, the
windows of programs running in the background are updated. MultiTOS
has been reported to be running with 90 (ninety) windows on the screen
at once. As well, with the new MultiTOS, TOS and TTP programs are run
in a window; when these programs are run, three new menu headings,
Operations, Window, and Font appear in the menu bar.
According to Bill Rehbock, compatibility with earlier releases of TOS
is extremely high. MultiTOS ran STalker, STeno, PageStream, and
Tracker/ST successfully. Bill Rehbock warned, however, about
"dialogueware", or programs which run in one dialogue box; they will
not necessarily fail on the new MultiTOS, but may cause problems,
because they tend to assume that they are the only application present,
causing problems with redraws of windows. In addition, dialogue boxes
lock out users from accessing other programs.
MultiTOS may or may not be released completely in ROM. The version
demonstrated at the Atari Canadian Exposition was a beta version in
program form, and because the multitasking kernel is large, Atari is
considering releasing MultiTOS to the public as an extension to TOS on
disk. According to Bill Rehbock, Atari wants a machine that will
always come up with at least a single-tasking usable OS, even if both
the floppy and hard drives cannot be accessed.
MultiTOS is based on Eric R. Smith's MiNT multitasking Kernal, but has
been modified by Atari to allow multitasking of GEM programs. The
Desktop Info dialogue now states "MiNT Multitasking Kernal licensed
from Eric R. Smith", and MiNT now stands for "MiNT Is Now Tos". "I
like what they've done," Eric Smith said. When asked about the
licensing agreement and how profitable it was, Smith chuckled. "Atari
got a very good deal."
ST-Sutra: Integrated software for the ST
Toronto, Ont. -- In addition to MultiTOS in the Atari booth of the
Atari Canadian Exhibition but not being demonstrated actively by Atari
was a beta version of a program called ST-Sutra. Programmed by an
author in India, ST-Sutra is a Microsoft Works clone, an integrated
software package with Database, Spreadsheet, Word Processor and
Communications functions. ST-Sutra is fully FSM/GDOS-compatible and
data is interchangeable between the tools. When asked about a possible
release, Bob Brodie replied, "It's just something we're fooling around
with".
======================================================================
* CALAMUS SL - A FIRST LOOK by John Nagy
======================================================================
Two months ago, AtariUser compared Calamus 1.09N and PageStream 2, and
made some predictions about Calamus SL. Several of those predictions
were wrong.
Calamus S: According to Nathan Potechin of ISD, there WILL be a Calamus
S, someday, that will replace Calamus 1.09N. But apparently not soon.
The modular format of SL without the color capabilities (with resulting
speed increases) and a lower price were to be the reasons for S, but
development has focused on SL to date.
Upgrades for existing Calamus owners: Until May 1, 1992, owners of
Calamus 1.09N can upgrade to SL for $200. Retail for SL is $795, and
the upgrade path will not include some modules that are standard in the
retail version, but these can be purchased for about $100 more.
Speed: We indicated that SL would be slow, perhaps VERY slow on normal
ST computers, and that an accelerator or a TT would probably be almost
required. Wrong. SL turns out to be nearly as fast in screen redraw
and printing as the speedy 1.09N. Complex pages using color separation
and advanced features naturally take longer.
PostScript Output: SL will have a Dataformer output module "real soon"
to provide a PostScript conversion of output pages. But not yet. And
at extra cost when it comes.
Irregular text flow-around graphics: SL does not actually flow text
around irregular graphics, but text flow is now controllable via
definable "flow paths" and by positioning invisible raster or line
frames to restrict the text flow on command. Thus, diagonal or even
circular text borders can be achieved.
CALAMUS SL REVIEW
It's been only a couple weeks since ISD Marketing sent AtariUser
CALAMUS SL. In that time, I've barely scratched the surface of the
potential of this newest entry in the prestigious field of Atari desk
top publishing. I can say one thing with complete certainty and
conviction: WOW!
COMPLEXITY
My first clue to the depth and breadth of the new Calamus SL was the
manual. Over 600 pages and being added to daily (more on that in a
moment), the manual is nothing short of outstanding in length and
detail. And readability. A product of ISD itself, the SL manual was
done largely by Lou Rocha, who had but a 28 page command summary to
begin with--in German. I hope that if the Starship Enterprise ever
needs a manual for warp engine maintenance, Lou will still be around to
do it. He takes the incomprehensibly complex and makes it merely
obtuse. It works... with effort.
But can a beginner expect to go from zero to publishing using the
manual and Calamus SL? Maybe, given enough years. Calamus SL is not
for the faint hearted. It isn't even for the experienced user. SL is
for professional users.
POWER
Over 1,000 commands. That's without reaching into the myriad of add on
modules that enable Calamus SL to do just about anything. I have a
wall chart of the main menus and icons of SL. It boggles the mind.
Things that were one button in Calamus 1.09N are now a multi-step
process. That's because your options have opened by an order of
magnitude.
You used to set a text style to "outline" with a single click. Now,
you first decide if the text will be opaque, inverse, transparent, and
of what color or fill pattern. Next, select the outline functions and
determine the same things about it, plus the thickness. You have to
specify a different color or fill or the outline merges with the text.
Want a shadow? Start over with the same options there, too. You see,
color alone adds a whole new world to control. If you were cowed by
the icon forest of Calamus before, run, don't walk, from SL. But if
you want to have unmatched control of everything, SL simply sparkles.
Text control is now dramatic. Skew (like italicizing), compression or
expansion vertically, and mirroring are now available for any font.
And once you make a change in a font for any area, you have the option
of defining and saving it as a text style for later use, even in
another session or document. Tag any text with that style, and a
change to the style changes all the text. And the new editor, PKS
Write, allows editing of text styles and text rulers right along with
the text, making pre- or re-formatting text fast. And on-screen in-
frame changes are faster now too, due to smart re-write routines that
only clear and write areas of the screen that have changed.
The clipboard is now a major asset, allowing interactive transfer of
elements from up to seven active documents at once. Rotations of EVERY
kind of frame is offered. Virtual memory (caching to hard drive)
allows document sizes up to one hundred thousand pages! Adjustments
are available in 1/1,000 point increments. A macro record functions
makes repetitive functions execute themselves with a single keypress of
your choice. Yikes.
COLOR
Moving to color from monochrome is a system shock. Speed becomes
critical as four "plates" are being generated at once. Memory becomes
critical for the same reason. A letter size photo in full 24 bit color
at 300 DPI will take 22 megabytes by itself! Imagine that at 1,270
DPI. Yet, SL manages to move that data without major effort. It will
support most any color adaptor card or monitor that offers at least 640
X 350 resolution (therefore, not the ST's SC1224). But a color monitor
is not required for doing color--you just won't see real color during
layout. That'll complicate matters, but industry standard color
matching systems such as PANTONE (available on most PC and MAC high end
software) are being developed for SL. A PANTONE module will be
available someday, but a user (Dave Simmer) has independently generated
Pantone simulations that should serve most users well in the meantime.
More color discussion will have to wait for a later article.
BUGS?
Even though it has been over a year since first promised, Calamus SL is
still very much a work-in-progress. Bugs and crashes are plentiful,
although mercifully, most result in a dialog that allows you to save
your work as you go unwillingly back to the desktop. Others bring up
dialogs in German, prompting users to postulate what might be trying to
be said. My favorite: "Geladine standardeinstellung", which Todd
Johnson of Cherry Fonts guessed meant "Clutch the Chickens in the usual
manner."
A number of features simply don't work at all. Some are grayed out,
others await a fix that is promised in the next upgrade of the
software. The first of those upgrades is due in mere weeks, so these
should strike little fear in user's hearts. So I won't spend much time
telling you about them--they may be gone before you read this. Suffice
it to say that almost everything works, and still, there are more
things broken than most software has things in total. ISD will be busy
for some time.
As part of the process of making SL perfect, an unprecedented program
is being offered by ISD where users can gain discounts on future
purchases by assisting the userbase in work-arounds and innovative
techniques. It's called USER-TO-USER, and details are available from
ISD, and contributions have already added many pages to the manual for
everything from finding workable raster densities to page numbering
schemes. More data and fixes arrive daily on GEnie telecommunication
service in the ST Roundtable. At this time, GEnie is almost a required
accessory in order to use Calamus SL. I have the equivalent of 500
pages of messages and documentation for SL gathered through GEnie--and
I don't have it all yet.
MODULES
Since SL loads external modules for most functions, the future is open-
ended for Calamus. No import or export possibility is ruled out, and
the more varied of them include video input frame capture and
PostScript output. The DATAFORMER module will handle PostScript at
about a $100 cost. SPEEDLINE is an image tracing module available now
for under $50 that converts bit images to traced outlines in vector
format. Type Art will replace the font editors for Calamus and will do
some of what Outline Art does now. Crescendo will convert polyphonic
MIDI files to notated text-sheet music! A multimedia module will even
take digitized sound and video for animated and interactive
presentations. Nathan estimates that over 100 modules are now in
development by DMC and third party programmers.
SUMMING UP
There's more to Calamus SL than can be told in 600 pages. Too much, in
fact, for anyone to take in completely. Even the crew at ISD find new
things daily. The future looks incredible.
But should you buy it? The $795 price tag will let anyone know that
they are in for a professional level program, with professional level
learning curves, for professional level output. It is simply NOT for
casual users. If you are reasonably proficient at using Calamus 1.09N
and have discovered that you MUST have more power, you will find it
here at a reasonable upgrade price of $200. If you find 1.09N to be
more complex or to offer more power than you typically use or
understand, don't bother with SL.
I'll bet that 80% of the SL buyers will never use the power they will
have. But that's the nature of home computing, isn't it? If you DO
upgrade to SL, keep 1.09N on your system too. You'll find it to be a
joy to return to when you need simple layouts and want them fast. When
you want the ultimate... SL will be there, waiting.
======================================================================
* PERUSING COMPUSERVE by Michael D. Mortilla
======================================================================
Tortoise: Today's exchange may have served a little to right your
course. Good day, Achilles.
Achilles: Good day, Mr. T.
from Godel, Escher, Bach - by Douglas R. Hofstadter
Nary a week goes by on CompuServe that we don't see a message or two on
that dreaded ogre, the hard drive crash, and this week was no
exception. A lot can be learned from reading the messages in these
areas. In fact, you might even get some information or tips that could
help *you* survive a drive crash! Which, oddly enough, brings us to
the Telecommunications section of the Ataripro forum.
Actually, this is a continuation of last weeks saga, where a member
lost everything on his hard drive *and* his back up! It was no
surprise that this thread got quite a bit of attention from members.
Some of the points we felt were worth mentioning were the following:
Fm: Peter J. Joseph
"No truer words were ever spoken, except maybe:
BACKUP! BACKUP! BACKUP!
In my opinion, one of floppy disks greatest _virtues_ is the fact that
they can't hold much data, making it virtually impossible to lose
everything at once without a fire or act of God or something. I don't
care how removable a Syquest is, if everything you have is backed up on
one cartridge, it's as risky as a hard drive. I'll keep my floppies
for backups thank you. I'll shut my mouth now. Sorry about your
disaster..."
And from the "victim" we hear:
Fr: John Damiano[Transierra] 74575,60 (X)
"Another thing...I would recommend that people not store really
important things on the C partition. That seems to be what gets
trashed. I wonder if I had just re-partitioned C if I might not have
been able to save the next 5 partitions. Hummmmmmm."
And in response:
Fm: Dana P. Jacobson
"That's a good suggestion, John. But, what people have to remember in
order to do that is to make sure that when they format their hard
drive(s) that they only make it large enough to hold their "system"
files (AUTO folder, ACC's, etc.) and leave a little extra room for
expansion. Most people create partitions of equal size, or large
partitions as possible. If they create a large C partition _and_ follow
your advice, they've wasted a lot of unused space on that drive.
As John Barnes mentioned in his CN article recently, frequent back-ups
help minimize these problems. It is a wise idea to help yourself and
help the developers who provide these programs!
Dana
and an additional reply with "words of wisdom" and *experience*:
Fm: MYLES COHEN
"Hey, Now that you have all that room in your new hard drive...it might
be a good idea to back up your Root partition onto another partition
(as well as on floppies)...
That way you have quick access if your root partition is trashed...You
can use this as your every day backup and your floppies as your once a
week...or whatever... backup.
Any way that is what I do and it has saved my butt so many times that I
recommend it highly...
BTW when you reconstruct the root directory after it has been zapped...
be sure to reorder the AUTO folder or you'll not get the same results
you used to get before the accident...
Oh yes, you're right...you could have saved what was on the other
partitions by only working on the guilty one...You can think of each
partition as a separate individual hard disk drive."
And just when you thought "Aha! That's it!" Somebody jumps in...
Fm: john barnes
"Restoring simply the C partition while leaving the others alone is not
a trivial matter. ICD's Cleanup software does provide a mechanism for
restoring the partition information without reformatting the drive, but
the steps to do this must be taken prior to the crash. When building
a new set of hard drive partitions it is a good idea to save the
partition information to a floppy disc file so that it can be restored
later.
I agree that the C partition seems to be the most failure-prone, which
is one reason that I try to avoid storing documents there.
Applications I can always rebuild from the distribution media."
And finally, when asked "wasn't everything on floppies?" we'll give the
last word to our "victim":
Fm: John Damiano[Transierra]
"Hohoho..that's a good one. Why would I need floppies with my fabulous
Syzest removable media 44 Meg drive mechanism ready to go. What could
possibly go wrong go wrong go wrong."
Moving to the Hardware specific section, there is some interest among
the members in the new SM147 monitor from Atari, and it would appear
that the old SM124 can be traded in! But could there be another
solution? Let's see what George Richardson has to say:
"I wired up a standard SAMTRON flat screen mon VGA monitor to work with
the ST. It required that I readjust the size of the display, but only
cost about $120-$130 mail order. Since the new Atari monitor doesn't
have a speaker anyway, this could save quite a bit of cash.
George Richardson
Merlin Group, Inc."
Well, who would let *that* message just sit and age? John Damiano (he
was our hard drive crash victim above!) seized the thread:
"What needs adjustment. Was it too small? Was it a comparable
procedure to enlarging the SM 124? That's a great price. Do they
automatically scan 70 hz or do you have to configure them to that
freq?"
The next day, George replied:
"They automatically scan 70hz. The size was small, and the proportions
were off, probably because the 70hz VGA mode is 640 x480 rather than
640 x400. The procedure was pretty simple actually. The only problem
I have with it is that I never adjusted the neck magnets to correct the
linearity for the new size, so there's some distortion near the edge."
$130 by mail? That's less than it cost to fix an SM124 recently! This
is definitely 'gonna get filed away for future reference!
In the Programming area, Myles Cohen asks about a subject we mentioned
in this column a few weeks ago:
"Can anyone download from the ATARI archives at the umich? Do you have
to pay into a service? What's the phone number? Protocol? Any
information you can give will be much appreciated?"
And, as usual, the answer came back! This time from John Barnes:
"Miles, atari.archive.umich.edu is available to people who can access
the Internet, which is a worldwide communications network running on
dedicated lines. In order to access it you need a valid account on a
machine that is connected to the network. A number of Atarians on CIS
do have such access."
And finally, we leave your pallets salivating with a message from that
bastion of programming, Charles F. Johnson. In the Atarivend forum, he
proudly posts the preliminary benchmarks for Codehead's Warp 9 program.
Fm: Charles F. Johnson
To: All
"Here are some benchmarks I did with Quick Index yesterday afternoon,
on my Mega ST4 with TOS 2.06 (thanks to the TEC) and a T16 accelerator.
These benchmarks give an impression of the differences you can expect
to see with Warp 9 installed. The system used for testing had a fair
amount of TSRs (AUTO programs) and desk accessories installed, such as
HotWire, MaxiFile, and MultiDesk Deluxe.
There are four columns of numbers, representing the Quick Index
results:
1. With Warp 9 as the last program running in the AUTO folder, but
without the Warp 9 Control Panel accessory. (Which uses an extra
18K.)
2. With Warp 9 running early in the AUTO folder (right after
PINHEAD.PRG), and the Warp 9 Control Panel installed in MultiDesk
Deluxe. (This configuration outperforms all others.)
3. With Turbo ST 1.84 installed in MultiDesk Deluxe. (NOTE: Turbo ST
is not compatible with TOS 2.06, and will be deinstalled after
running any program; so these results were taken immediately after
loading Turbo ST in MultiDesk.)
4. With Quick STE 3.04 as the last program running in the AUTO folder.
Note that Quick Index does not directly support TOS 2.06 (yet?), so
these numbers are obtained with the "TOS 1.4" button highlighted.
These numbers are not intended to be taken as gospel. Your mileage may
vary.
WARP 9 QUICK INDEX BENCHMARKS
Monday, March 30, 1992
.Warp 9 Last . Warp 9
.in AUTO Folder .Early in AUTO .Turbo ST 1.84 . Quick STE
.Without Warp 9 .Folder, with .Loaded into . v3.04 Last
Test .Control Panel .Control Panel .MultiDesk . in AUTO
----------.-------------- .------------- .--------------. ---------
TOS Text . 351% . 456% . 468% . 332%
TOS String. 1907% . 2001% . 1854% . 1889%
TOS Scroll. 133% . 137% . 134% . 131%
GEM Dialog. 394% . 417% . 404% . 397%
. . . .
- Charles"
OOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooo! Next week!
======================================================================
* BASIC AT COMMANDS -=- Part 2 of 3
======================================================================
This article discusses configuration registers and result codes and
contains a comprehensive list of basic AT commands, as well as the
extended AT command lists for those modems equipped with MNP5 and V.42/
42bis. In addition, for your convenience, modem default lists have
been included.
* (&F) Fetch Hayes Factory Default Configuration:
The &F command configures the modem with Hayes factory default
settings, including:
AT Commands: B1; E1; L2; M1; Q0; V1; X4; Y0; &C0; &D0; &G0; &J0, &L0;
&P0; &Q0; &R0; &S0; &X0; and &Y0.
S Registers: S00,000; S01,000; S02,043; S03,013; S04,010; S05,008; S06,
002; S07,030; S08,002; S09,006; S10,014; S12,050; S14,AAH; S16,80H;
S18,000; S21,00H; S22,76H; S23,17H; S25,005; S26,001; and S27,40H.
* (&F1) Recall Microcom Factory Default Configuration:
The &F1 command configures the modem with Microcom factory default
settings, including:
AT Commands: B1; E1; L2; M1; Q0; V1; X4; Y0; &C1; &D0; &G0; &J0; &L0;
&P0; &Q0; &R0; &S0; &X0; and &Y0.
S Registers: S00,001; S01,000; S02,043; S03,013; S04,010; S05,008; S06,
002; S07,030; S08,002; S09,006; S10,014; S12,050; S14,AAH; S16,00H;
S18,000; S21;20H; S22,76H; S23,17H; S25,005; S26,001; and S27,40H.
* (&F2) Use Sierra Defaults, MNP Mode:
The &F2 command configures the modem with MNP mode Sierra default
settings, including:
AT Commands: B1; E1; L2; M1; Q0; V1; X4; Y0; &C0; &D0; &G0; &J0; &L0;
&P0; &Q5; &R0; &S0; &X0; and &Y0.
S Registers: S00,000; S01,000; S02,043; S03,013; S04,010; S05,008; S06,
002; S07,030; S08,002; S09,006; S10,014; S12,050; S14,AAH; S16,80H;
S18,000; S21,00H; S23,17H; S25,005; S26,001; and S27,49H.
* (&F3) Use Sierra Defaults, V.42bis Mode:
The &F3 command configures the modem with V.42bis mode Sierra default
settings, including:
AT Commands: B1; E1; L2; M1; Q0; V1; X4; Y0; &C0; &D0; &G0; &J0; &L0;
&P0; &Q5; &R0; &S0; &X0; AND &Y0.
S Registers: S00,000; S01,000; S02,043; S03,013; S04,010; S05,008; S06,
002; S07,030; S08,002; S09,006; S10,014; S12,050; S14,AAH; S16,80H;
S18,000; S21,00H; S22,76H; S23,17H; S25,005; S26,001; and S27,49H.
* (&G) Guard Tone:
&G0 (or &G) No Guard Tone (default)
&G1 550 Hz Guard Tone
&G2 1800 Hz Guard Tone
* (&L) Leased/Dialup Line Selection:
The &L0 or &L (default) command selects dialup operation (asynchronous
or synchronous and full or half duplex). The &L1 command selects
leased-line operation (asynchronous or synchronous).
* (&P) Make/Break Pulse Dial Ratio:
The make/break ratio for &P0 (or &P) is 39% make and 61% break, which
is the standard for the United States. The &P1 command sets the make/
break ratio at 33%/67%, which is compatible with the United Kingdom/
Hong Kong standards.
Example: AT &P1 <CR> Sets Make/Break ratio to be compatible with
United Kingdom/Hong Kong.
* (&S) DATA SET READY (DSR):
The &S and &S0 commands causes DSR to remain ON at all times while the
modem is turned on (default).
The &S1 command causes the DSR to operate in accordance with CCITT
V.22bis/V.22 recommendation.
* (&T) Test Commands:
The command &T0 or &T will terminate any test currently in progress.
The T command should be the last command in the command line.
The command &T1 will initiate a Local Analog Loopback. This command is
used to verify the path which includes the local modem, and the local
data terminal equipment. S Register 18 (test timer) or &T0 can be used
to end a test.
Test &T1 Example:
ATS18=0&T1 (S18 is the test duration timer.)
Test timer equal to zero will allow the test to run without stopping,
&T1 starts the test.
One small step for man... User message
+++ Escape sequence
OK Modem acknowledges +++
AT&T0 Ends test
OK Test complete
The command &T3 will initiate a Local Digital Loopback. This test
allows data being sent from the remote modem to be looped back, in the
digital section of the modem, and sent back to the remote modem. This
local mode allows the remote modem to run a remote digital loopback
test. Both modems must be connected before this test can start.
&T3 Test Example:
+++ Escape
OK Acknowledgement
ATS18=0&T3 Test started
OK Loopback mode
The operator completes any tests at this point.
AT&T0 Ends test
OK Test ended
The command &T4 allows the modem to grant a request from the remote
modem for a Remote Digital Loopback (default).
The command &T5 prohibits the local modem from granting a request from
a remote modem for Remote Digital Loopback.
The command &T6 is used to test the local data terminal equipment, the
remote and local modems, and the telephone circuit. The local terminal
sends a test message to the remote modem. If conditioned, the remote
modem will loop its receive stream back to the local data terminal.
The local terminal will compare the receive stream with its transmitted
stream to verify the connection. The complete connection and modems
are tested in this modem (the remote terminal is not tested). The &T6
command does not work at 300 or 600 bps.
&T6 Test Example:
The user must place both modems on line.
+++ Escape
OK Command mode
ATS18=0&T6 Test started
One small step for man... Test message
+++ Escape
OK Acknowledge escape
AT&T0 Test ended
OK Test complete
The command &T7 initiates a Remote Digital Loopback with Self-Test in
accordance with CCITT Recommendation V.54. During the test phase, an
internally generated data pattern of alternate binary ones and zeros at
the selected bit rate is applied to the scrambler. An error detector
capable of identifying errors is connected to the output of the
descrambler. At the end of the test, a three-digit error count from
000 to 255 is
displayed. If 000 is displayed, the modems and telephone
circuit passed the test.
&T7 Test Example:
The user must place both modems on line.
+++ Escape
OK Acknowledged
ATS18=0&T7 Starts test
AT&T0 Ends test
000 Test found no errors
OK Test acknowledge
The command &T8 initiates a Local Analog Loopback with Self-Test in
accordance with CCITT Recommendation V.54. During the test, an
internally generated data pattern of alternate binary ones and zeros at
the selected bit rate is applied to the scrambler. An error detector
capable of identifying errors is connected to the output of the
descrambler. If the modem is on-line when this test starts, the
carrier will be lost. This test is useful in checking the local
modem's transmit and receive circuits.
&T8 Test Example:
ATS18=0&T8 Starts test
AT&T0 Ends test
000 No errors
OK Acknowledgement
* (&V) View Profiles and Stored Numbers:
The &V commands allows you to view AT command and S Register settings,
as well as stored phone numbers.
* (&Wn) Write Configuration To Non-Volatile Memory location n:
The &Wn (n=0,1) command writes a command profile (the currently active
profile) in one of two nonvolatile RAM memory locations (1 or 0). The
0 profile is restored automatically whenever the modem is turned on, or
upon issuing the Z0 command. S Registers saved in the nonvolatile RAM
are S0, S14, S18, S21, S22, S23, S25, S26 and S27. Both regular and
MNP commands are saved.
A subset of the Register configuration is saved in NVRAM by the &Wn
command. If &Wn is issued while in the Escape State, the "Error"
message will be returned, and the current configuration will not be
saved. The &W command must be issued last.
Example: AT S0=1 &W1 <CR> Writes auto answer to NVRAM location 1.
* (&Yn) Choose Configuration Profile:
You set this command according to which configuration profile you want
to make the active profile when the modem is turned on or reset. &Y0
will make configuration profile 0 active; &Y1 will make configuration
profile 1 active.
* (&Z) Store Telephone Number:
The &Zn=x (n=0..3) command is used to store up to four telephone
numbers for dialing at a later time using the DS dial-stored-number
command (asynchronous) or under control of DTR (synchronous mode 2).
The x represents an ASCII string composed of dial digits and modifiers.
The dial digits include 0 through 9 for pulse or touch tone dial, and
A, B, C, D, pound and * for tone dial. The dial modifiers include T P
R W !, at sign and :.
Example:
Terminal: AT &Z2= T 1 (602) 961-2997
Modem: OK
Result: Modem stores T16029612997 in its nonvolatile
memory at location 2.
The number can be dialed from asynchronous mode by issuing the
following command:
Terminal: AT DS=2 Modem: T16029612154
Up to 30 symbols (dial digits and modifiers) may be stored.
Unrecognized characters, such as spaces and dashes, are ignored and do
not need to be included in the count. If more than 30 symbols are
supplied, the dial string will be truncated to 30. If &Z is issued
when NVRAM is not present, or if the modem is in the Escape State, the
"Error" message will be returned, and no dial string will be stored.
2) MNP Commands
Megahertz MNP modems provide three basic modes of operation.
*Direct
*Normal
*Reliable
A Direct connection is equivalent to any standard 2400 bps modem
connection. In a Direct connection, the maximum through-put is equal
to the connection rate, and the terminal (or Data Terminal Equipment,
DTE) rate must always match the connection rate. For instance, if the
DTE is set to 2400 bps and the modem connects at 2400 bps (CONNECT
2400), the through-put will not exceed 2400 bits per second. On the
other hand, if the DTE is set to 2400 bps and the modem falls back to a
1200 bps connection (CONNECT 1200), the terminal must be adjusted to
operate at 1200 bps, and the through-put will not exceed 1200 bits per
second.
In a Normal connection, the modem provides data buffers. This allows
the terminal rate to be different from the connection rate. However,
the maximum modem-to-modem through-put continues to be equal to the
connection rate. For instance, if the DTE is set to 9600 bps and the
modem connects at 2400 bps (CONNECT 2400), then as long as the DTE does
not overflow the transmit buffer, data will pass intact, and the
terminal is permitted to remain set at 9600 bps. Through-put will not
exceed 2400 bits per second.
In a Reliable connection, the modem provides data buffers so that the
terminal rate can be different from the connection rate. In addition,
it provides the MNP protocol, which provides error detection and
correction. The protocol utilized is MNP (Microcom Network Protocol),
developed by Microcom, Inc. Maximum modem-to-modem through-put is
determined by the Class of Reliable connection negotiated, but will
never exceed the slowest terminals rate. Flow control is provided in
the same fashion as for Normal connections.
AT COMMANDS FOR MNP
* (\A) Maximum MNP Block Size:
This command controls the maximum block size transmitted.
\A0 Maximum block size transmitted = 64
\A1 Maximum block size transmitted = 128
\A2 Maximum block size transmitted = 192
\A3 Maximum block size transmitted = 256 (default)
* (\B) Transmit Break:
\Bn n = 1 to 9, 300mS break always transmitted.
* (\C) Set Auto-Reliable Buffer:
\C0 Auto-Reliable Fallback character and buffer disabled. (default)
\C1 Buffers 200 character. If the buffer fills before a Reliable
link has been negotiated, the modem will make a Normal
connection.
\C2 If the ASCII code set by the %A command is received before a
Reliable link is negotiated, the modem will make a Normal
connection.
* (D/n) Dial Stored Telephone Numbers:
The D/n command will dial the number that is stored in &Zn. For
example, to dial the number stored in &Z3, specify D/3.
* (DL) Dial Last Dialed Telephone Number:
The DL command will dial the last ATD number issued.
* (En) Standard Link Data Mode and Echo Data:
\E0 Do not echo data during standard link Data Mode
\E1 Echo data during a standard link Data Mode
* (\G) Set Modem-to-Modem Flow Control:
\G0 Disables Modem-to-Modem flow control (default).
\G1 Enables Modem-to-Modem XON/XOFF flow control.
Determines flow control method during a Normal connection.
* (\J) BPS Rate Adjust:
\J0 Disables Bps Rate Adjust.
\J1 Enables Bps Rate Adjust (default).
* (\K) Set Break Control:
\Kn n = 0 to 5, indicating method of Break processing (default = 5).
Break processing is determined by this command and the condition of the
modem-to-modem connection, as shown by the following table.
Break Break Break \Bn command
received from received from received from received from
DTE while in DTE while in remote modem DTE while in
CONNECT state CONNECT state while in COMMAND state
during during Direct CONNECT state during a
Reliable or connection. during Normal Reliable or
Normal connection. Normal
connection. connection.
\K0 Enter COMMAND Immediately Purge buffers, Purge buffers,
state, do not send break, immediately immediately
send break to then enter send break to send break to
remote modem COMMAND state. DTE. remote modem.
\K1 Purge buffers, Immediately Same as \K0 Same as \K0
immediately send break to
send break to remote modem.
remote modem.
\K2 Same as \K0 Same as \K0 Immediately Immediately
send break to send break to
DTE remote modem.
\K3 Immediately Same as \K1 Same as \K2 Same as \K2
send break to
remote modem.
\K4 Same as \K0 Same as \K0 Send break to Send break to
DTE in remote modem
sequence with in sequence
data. with data
\K5 Send break to Same as \K1 Same as \K4 Same as \K4
remote modem
in sequence
with data.
* (\L) Block MNP Link:
\L0 Selects Stream Link (default)
\L1 Selects Block Link
Stream link is the Normal mode of MNP operation.
Note that this product does not attempt to emulate Microcom Block link
operation. When block link is selected, operation is identical to
stream mode operation, with the exception that the maximum block size
is 260.
* (\N) Set Operating Mode:
\N0 Selects Normal mode operation
\N1 Selects Direct mode operation (default)
\N2 Selects Reliable mode operation
\N3 Selects Auto-Reliable mode operation
* (\O) Originate Reliable Link:
This command directs the modem to initiate a Reliable link regardless
of whether or not the modem originates or answers the call. This
command is only valid in the "escape" state. If a Reliable link is
already in progess, the modem simply returns online.
* (\Q) Set Serial Port Flow Control:
\Q0 Disables flow control (default)
\Q1 Enables XON/XOFF flow control
\Q2 Enables uni-directional hardware flow control
\Q3 Enables bi-directional hardware flow control
Determine flow control method used to control DTE-to-modem data flow.
* (\S) View Active Configuration:
This command displays the state of the most important modem
configuration parameters 8 lines at a time. When "ENTER" is pressed,
the next group of parameters are displayed. There are two groups of 8
lines and a third with 6.
* (\T) Set Inactivitey Timer:
\Tn n = 0 to 90 minutes (default = 0)
Determines how long the modem will stay connected with no data
communications activity. When set to 0, the inactivity timer is
disabled. The timer is ignored when in the Direct mode.
* (\U) Accept Reliable Link:
This command directs the modem to accept a Reliable link request
regardless of whether or not the modem originates or answers the call.
This command is only effective in the "escape" state. If a Reliable
link is already in progress, the modem simply returns online.
* (\V) Modify Result Code Form:
\V0 Selects standard 89024 result codes (default)
\V1 Selects result codes modified for MNP operation
Standard result code Modified result code
Long form Short form Long form Short form
CONNECT 1 CONNECT 0300/REL 20
CONNECT 0600/REL 21
CONNECT 1200 5 CONNECT 1200/REL 22
CONNECT 2400 10 CONNECT 2400/REL 23
* (\X) Set XON/XOFF Pass-Through:
\X0 Recognize XON/XOFF characters but do not pass them through the
modem. (default)
\X1 Recognize XON/XOFF characters and pass them through the modem.
When \X0 is in effect, XON/XOFF characters sent from the DTE to the
local modem are not transmitted to the remote modem. Likewise, XON/
XOFF characters received from the remote modem control modem-to-modem
data flow, but are not passed on to the local DTE.
When X1 is in effect, XON/XOFF characters sent from the DTE to the
local modem are transmitted to the remote modem, and XON/XOFF
characters received from the remote modem control modem-to-modem data
flow and are passed on to the local DTE.
======================================================================
* LYNX REVIEWS
======================================================================
The following article is reprinted in Z*Net by permission of AtariUser
magazine and Quill Publishing. It MAY NOT be further reprinted without
specific permission of Quill. AtariUser is a monthly Atari magazine,
available by subscription for $18 a year. For more information on
AtariUser, call 800-333-3567.
Awesome Golf (Lynx)
Forget those 5:00 AM tee-offs. With AWESOME GOLF, you can now play the
links on the Lynx. This is a full featured golf game, allowing you to
play on one of three courses. Each hole features an overhead map where
you survey the course and aim your shot. You pick your club from a bag
of 14, then take your best stroke, done with a power bar using three
button presses: one to start the swing, a second to set the strength,
and a third to determine hooks, slices, and fades. To round things
out, hints are available to beginners, and a driving range reports
useful statistics.
AWESOME GOLF plays golf with detailed realism. Each club's range,
usage, and effect on the ball are accurately duplicated, and the
texture and properties of the terrain and green are crucial factors.
Games can be for either 9 or 18 holes, feature three levels of wind,
and handicapping of individual players. You can even select the
clothing, race and sex of your player, and women golfers are allowed to
tee off closer to the hole. The only flaw is the multiplayer option
(up to four); the ComLynx option is almost pointless, as it would have
been easier to allow multiple golfers to play on one Lynx.
Graphics on AWESOME GOLF are highly detailed and smoothly animated.
Swings are seen from behind your player, while the ball's flight is
viewed from overhead. Still images highlight events such as bogeys,
penalties, and birdies. The voice of your caddie is occasionally
heard, making remarks, congratulating strokes, and laughing at
blunders.
This is a very good golf game, capturing the details of the sport with
enough features to enhance its appeal. AWESOME GOLF should not be
missed. Atari Corp., $29.95. - Robert Jung
Tournament Cyberball (Lynx)
Welcome to the 21st century, where robots play in sports too deadly for
humans. This is TOURNAMENT CYBERBALL, the futuristic game based on
American football--to a point. The ball heats up during play, so the
offense must carry the ball far enough to cool it down, else face an
explosion. Smart coaches save game funds to replace the basic robot
players with enhanced models at any time during play.
Up to four can play TOURNAMENT CYBERBALL, against each other or one of
four computer coaches. On field, each player controls a robot, making
the passes and blitzes needed to win. But once play begins, weaknesses
appear in this arcade conversion. There is no difference in ability or
in plays among the six available teams. Handoffs are unpredictable,
reducing the value of running plays, and opposing passes are difficult
to intercept. Robots never suffer any damage, and the "turbo defense"
option has been removed. The game pace is too fast in some spots and
very sluggish in others.
Additional flaws are largely shortcomings of the Lynx conversion, a
loss only by comparison to the arcade version. While a player
unfamiliar with the original may be interested, the legion of arcade
TOURNAMENT CYBERBALL fans should avoid this title. Atari Corp.,
$39.95. - Robert Jung
XYBOTS (Lynx)
The robots are at it again. EarthBase 26-B has been overrun by alien
Xybots, and now you must infiltrate the station, battle the enemy, and
stop the takeover. XYBOTS is an adaptation of the Atari Games arcade
title, where one or two players explore a space station from a first-
person perspective.
This is a respectable conversion that retains all the features of the
original. You wander through each level's maze, grabbing coins and
keys, while fighting Xybots with unlimited shots or an energy-draining
zap. Reach the exit, and you can buy more equipment before going to
deeper levels with more surprises and dangers.
The game is easier than the coin-op--the robots aren't too bright and
you start off well-armed. Experienced players can use Warp Exits to
travel to higher stages quicker. About every tenth level is a fight
with a Master Xybot, but the main game is maze-running and robot-
blasting.
The Lynx graphics are almost identical to the arcade. The stations are
sparse, but your fighter, Xybots, and other items are animated and
detailed. A minor gripe is that rotating the view is done in harsh 90-
degree increments, which can be disorienting. Sounds effects are
copied closely, and although the mechanical voices have been removed,
in their place are several techno-rock background tunes.
While the difficulty has been scaled back from the arcade version,
XYBOTS on the Lynx offers enough of a challenge to keep the typical
player back for more. Atari Corp., $39.95. - Robert Jung
======================================================================
* Z*NET SOFTWARE SHELF by Ron Berinstein
======================================================================
So I was driving down the street yesterday when I observed one of the
promotions on a PC store window. The sign boasted the low price of
$79.50 for virus protection software. Hmm.. George Woodside's is
shareware. Then I thought of the other high prices that I would be
sure to find inside. Well, being that April Fool's day has past I
probably can't get away with awarding all Z*Net readers $500.00 gift
certificates for software, but, I can try and do the next best thing.
Contained herein is a wonderful collection of value oriented programs.
So.. it's up to you. Go out and buy the virus scanner for $79.50 and
give it to a friend who has a PC, or, put your MasterCard away, pour
yourself a cool spring time drink, turn on some music, and relax while
reading over all the choices you have to make.
And, while on the subject of choices, are you like me and have trouble
deciding on names? Well, rather than calling your cat Squirt, why not
look into ALPHA.LZH? Alpha (The Name Generator), may just be the right
thing for you if you still haven't chosen a name for the new baby, or
if you are trying to decide on the perfect name for the family iguana!
So, no longer do you have to use wimpy names at your next D&D game
either! This utility creates lists of names, thousands of them, and
you can use your own custom parameters. It is Monochrome freeware.
And if you really are like me, you can't make sense out of half of what
you read. Let alone that which is already scrambled on purpose! So,
select JMBL.TOS, a program that unscrambles 5 or 6 letter words for
jumble puzzles. It will check all the 5 letter combinations in about
15 seconds and all of the 6 letter combinations in about 1 minute.
This file is a self-extracting archive. Double click on the file and
it will automatically extract the files from the archive. It is TT
Compatible.
And for those who just don't want to read anything, cause they feel a
picture is worth....
MONOGIF.LZH MONOCHROME GIF VIEWER is a Monochrome GIF viewer. It
is fairly quick and has a few dither options. Works on 1/2 MEG
machines. It works as TTP program. TT Compatible in ST High
Resolution.
QGIF.LZH FAST GIF VIEWER W/SOURCE is a quick GIF viewer (.TTP), that
works on 1/2 meg machines. Two versions.. GIFcolor shows GIF's in
Color, and GIFscale shows GIF's in shades of gray. Two nice, fast
programs. See QG.LZH for assembly source codes. USE UNLZH172.PRG to
extract! (Quester LZH won't work). TT Compatible in all res., but
extended color capability is not available.
MOVEPICS.LZH Moving Pictures is in celebration of the official
release of Warp 9, the awesome new screen accellerator (and lots more!)
from CodeHead Technologies! Moving Pictures allows you to have Warp 9
random background pictures for all three ST resolutions and all three
TT resolutions! Gives Desk Manager users a random startup picture for
both color and monochrome systems!
RSHADE30.LZH RAYSHADE 3.0 is RayShade 3.0, an internet distributed
ray-tracer, similar to QRT. Outputs 24bit files to MTV or RLE formats.
Includes a ST 22 grey scale viewer. Seems to be more powerful than
QRT. Can also produce stereo pictures. TESTED->TOS 1.4 COLOR 2 MEG.
Docs talk about a 2 meg minimum.
But to put things back into the proper conTEXT... <smile>
1STVIEW.LZH is a German desk accessory allows you to view ASCII, First
Word, .IMG, and even .RSC files w/in any GEM program. Supports
different types of displays, and takes up about 50K of RAM. This is
from Germany, but not difficult to figure out how to operate. But, ALL
DOCS are in GERMAN.
DISPLAY.LZH Latest and greatest version of the Revenge Document
Displayer. It's much faster, and has some nice features too. Search
for any string, print out portions of text, auto-depack documents, and
more. Includes current version of Ice-packer and depacking source code
too. Custom versions are available.
This Special Software Shelf Section (Say that ten times fast) has
organizational programs... Mailing lists to hard disks!
JCLABEL1.LZH JC LABEL JC Label, a mailing label manager/printer
from the UK will organize your names for you. Search, create, edit,
and print mailing labels. Nicely done "AutoZest" interface, works in
both ST High and ST Medium resolutions.
PGSHEL10.ARC Page-Shell v 1.0 ~ This program is for users of Hi-Softs'
PAGE.TTP. It offers an easy to use graphic interface (ZeST), can save
configurations and can move/delete files + create folders. If you own
PAGE.TTP and have a MONO monitor this is for you...
DATAKEN.ARC DATAKEN 1.2 contains Dataken v1.2 The Binary File
Processor. Edit, analyze, and manipulate any kind of file. Display
and edit any portion of file in it's natural format. Comparison mode
for file analysis, database and C struct modes. This version is now a
fully functional shareware offering. Written by Tyson Gill, GT
Software.
ALIBI17.LZH is a small utility from Germany which creates "alias"
files, which are small executable files that serve to run another
program. Okay, so they're not like "alias" on the Macintosh, but it
may be of use in some situations. Freeware Documentation in .DVI
(Tex) format enclosed, but it's in German. Prg. is in Eng. TT
Compatible and remember there are GERMAN DOCS.
FKILL.LZH File Killer Version 1.20 The File Killer is a very small
AUTO folder utility that allows you to delete your precious files so
that others can't read them. This program couldn't be easier to use,
just place it in your AUTO folder and boot your ST. Now whenever you
delete a file while holding down the 'Alternate' key it will be
completely erased beyond recovery by even the best un-delete utilities.
WORM.LZH ST-WORM (Write Once Read Many) provides you with a 'delete
protection' utility. This stops you from accidentally erasing your
precious files from disks. ST-WORM is fully configurable and has been
thoroughly tested. Full documentation included. Don't miss this
essential utility.
VIDEOTECH VideoTech, a public domain video tape organization program
from Germany. Written by TigerSoft. Please note that this program,
and all documentation, is in German.
RE_BOT.LZH Re - boot From Mark Matts - Allows you to switch on both
your hard drive and ST together - the ST then waits for a user defined
period and then reboots , when the HD has got up to speed - very useful
and time saving.
GMAP_2.ARC Generates a graphical map of the data on your disks. This
new verion is smaller and fixes a bug in the previous version with some
HD configurations.
WHATIS.ARC is now up to 5.9. It identifies over 125 file types - ARCs,
LHarcs, PRGs, pics, ACCs, animations, etc... no more "what kind of file
is this?" problems! Runs as a PRG or ACC or a TTP-like program on any
ST/TT in any rez. Short docs included in the ARC. All the features of
previous versions, plus adds over a dozen new file types.
CAL 6.2A Cal v6.2a of the calendar accessory available for Atari
Computers. This version has more displays of alarm times, more scan
options, more date calculations, the ability to move dialog on screen,
and more! Also included is new version of CalShow v6.2a., which shows
and sorts alarm events, has new week and today buttons, and return to
menu instead of exit.
ZAP62B.ARC This ARC contains a Superzap file that will update Cal 6.2a
to version 6.2b.
And for folks that would rather listen to their text and not see it!
MORSE.LZH is a Morse Code trainer. Configurable in terms of speed,
tone, and practice contents. Will translate any file into Morse code!
I wounder if I could use it for a radio operator's license test? Nah..
But, it is Freeware. TT Compatible using 24BIT.PRG ONLY! ST Medium
and High Resolutions.
And for those who wish to see their text in different original styles.
* These files were contributed by Alan Font. :)
FELTMARK.LZH FELT MARKER CALAMUS FONT This Type 1 font is so superb,
& professional, that Nevin wrote that he had to convert it for Calamus
users. Originally a Type 1 PostScript font, it was converted to a CFN
with Didot Prof. This is an informal, "Felt Marker" typeface. Both
upper and lower case, punctuation, and smart quotes. It does not
contain forein characters. And.. it gives an incorrect serial # in
Calamus SL.
AARCOVER FONT Post Script type 1 font - AARCOVER
CALAMUS ST SCREEN FONT DEJA_VU.LZH This free font is complete (not
a demo.) It's a Calamus font format representation of the ST high
resolution screen font. It's drawn to precisely emulate the screen
font's proportions and spacing. Great for published program listings
or software manual illustrating etc. Requires Calamus.
By the way OBURST_2.ARC (also OUTBURST 2.0) is the new Demo of
OutBurST! v.2.0 now compatible with ST, STE and TT's. This prg. can
reduce the time it takes Pagestream to output to fast HP LaserJet and
Deskjet compatible printers. PRINTING PAGE time for a full page with
an HPIIIP and ADSPEED is about 19 seconds compared to 300 seconds with
TOS1.4. Also speeds up GDOS & all std. prin'r output even for non-HP
compatibles. HPLJHC.LZH was just posted as well.. HP Laserjet GDOS
drivers for 150 and 300 dpi.
And talking about Demos... several were posted this past week.
FEDEMO.LZH FRONTE.LZH FRONT END Demo ver. of Front End(tm), a GUI
that can be incorporated into programs written in GFA Basic. Front End
is like "Autizest" but with more features, it is a collection of
routines and procedures that allow the programmer to build an
attractive user interface with a minimum of fuss. This program
demonstrates some of the effects that can be achieved, and the code
needed to do so. UK Shareware
EZTXT1.LZH Demonstration version of Easy Text 1.4. Everything works
except print is setup to only print 1/4 page (unlike v. 1.2 which does
not represent the commercial version accurately but does print out
fine). Easy Text Plus is a Desktop Publisher at a low price.
SPRO_610.ARC Fully functioning limited entry copy of the popular
Sales-Pro from Hi-Tech Advisers. This VERSION 6.10 contains MANY NEW
FEATURES! Read the file 'SALEDEMO.DOC' for installation info and the
file 'UPDATE.DOC'for a list of what's been added since V6. Both
included. Add the files from the seperate ARC 'SPADD610.ARC' to make
this SUPER SALES-PRO.
SPADD610.ARC These are the Add-On Modules and Accessories for the
Sales-Pro demo system. Add these files to the main Sales-Pro point-of-
sale and inventory control and accounting system to add customer file
support, receivables, mail merge, payables, general ledger, kits, etc.
FZT_D212.LZH FREEZE DRIED TERMINAL V2.12 Demo of version 2.12 of
FreeZe Dried Terminal! Fixes some minor bugs from version 2.11. Too
many features to list. A great terminal program, well worth the
download, and it is apparent that Arron is doing his best to support
this program.
And two quick term program sidenotes, RUFTRN.LZH will translate RUFUS
version 1.06 to English. Included are ZAP files to do the translation
of the program and resource files and complete documentation in
English. Plus.. VANTERM 4.0 COMMUNICATION TERMIN (Vanterm 4.0) the
popular communications terminal's latest revision has been posted.
XFONTKIT.TOS Demo of Font Kit, a very full featured font editor.
Comes with a font uncompressing program and quite a few fonts. The
file is a self-extracting LZH... Copy it to an empty floppy and run it.
GRAMMAR EXPERT DEMO Limited but working demonstration of Grammar
Expert, from Phil Comeau Software. Grammar Expert is an online
reference for the rules of English grammar, punctuation, and effective
writing. It runs as a desk accessory, so you can use it from your
favorite word processor. If you aren't sure of the correct way to
punctuate a sentence, how to make verbs agree with subjects, or are
looking for advice on how to make your writing more effective, just tap
in to Grammar Expert.
PROTEXT DEMO This is the demo version of ProText, a full featured word
processor, being imported by Michtron! There is a good review of this
program in the latest issue of Atari Advantage. Now you can take a
'test drive' and see how you like it. This demo will only edit a 2K
file, but it is otherwise full featured.
PICCOLO PAINT PROGRAM Demonstration version of Piccolo, a drawing
program from Germany. It is said to be impressive stuff, and it
supports many picture formats, lots of options, neat interface with
"live scrolling", and much more. However, THIS PROGRAM IS IN GERMAN.
Even if you don't speak the language, there is enough here to interest
most ST users. Archive includes PRG and ACC versions, and many .IMG
pictures to enjoy. Monochrome only. Tested on TOS 2.05
DOSOUND This is a Demo version of two powerful sound chip development
programs. DoSound is a complete song editor desinged to create
interrupt driven music through the Atari's sound chip. Full MIDI
support is inculded. DoEffect is a sound effects processor utility
program that provides complete access to the entire range of sound chip
functions on one screen. Both programs feature an elegant GEM
interface and save their files in XBIOS(32) interrupt format. The
output files can be merged into your own programs to add music and
sound effects. Many sample songs are included as well as
documentation. If you're interested in music, sound or MIDI, this
package is for you! Not TT compatible.
And so you still haven't found anything that SOUNDS GOOD? (hint)
QUARTET PLAYER 3 might be right for you. Quartet Player 3: Now plays
Quartet songs with ease. New player displays a nice drum set while
giving song information. Works on any ST or STe in any resolution.
Contains 2 song files and voice sets. The file's description says it
has far superior sound to any other player such as TCB Tracker or
Noisetracker, etc.
PLAY20.ZOO This utility will play 8-bit sound samples. To call it
from a command shell (e.g. GULAM), type: play <pathname> <Hz> where
<pathname> is the name of the sample file, and <Hz> is the playback
frequency in Hertz. V. 2.0 includes support for STe's enhanced sound
capabilities. Looping and signed magnitude sample support as well.
COSH24.LZH Accompanist v2.4 by Henry Cosh. 16 track sequencer. It
now supports Standard Midi Files.
MMM201.LZH MIDI MUSIC MAKER 2.01 is the update to Midi Music Maker.
It will now play Cakewalk 2 as well as Cakewalk 3 as in version 2.0.
There are 14 different basic types of music files from 7 different
types of computers that the program will handle. The program gives you
control over volume, channels, presets, tempo, and you can create SMF
files in format 0 or format 1.
And while on the subject of Midi, RSXXMDXX.ARC can be used to install
an expanded RS232 and/or MIDI buffer from 1k to 31k in size. Useful
for high-speed modem's and programs that use the MIDI port. It is TT
Compatible. HSP232.LZH is a desk accessory that allows you to set
your RS232 baud rate to 38,400, 76,800 or even 153,600 baud! Docs are
in German, but the DA is simple... just 3 radio buttons. FREEWARE.
And, X_INCONT.TOS is In-Control, a program used for manipulating MIDI
sysex data from your ST. The thing that makes it interesting is that
you may configure it's 20 sliders however you like! There's a few
templates included. It can be a program or accessory. It is a Self-
Extracting LZH - file, so copy to a floppy and run... MUSICAL NOTATION
SYMBOLS IN IMG contains a 300dpi .IMG file of music notation symbols,
which can be used to add musical notation to all of your DTP documents.
This archive is FREEWARE from Custom Compositions.
For those who want even more Bang for their Buck!
X_BANG.TOS BANG Bang! is a game that runs on a color or mono
monitor. It's ported from the PC and is strategy oriented... It is
from the cover disk of Atari ST User April 1992: Bang! is a a variation
of Clayton Walnum's Demolition Man, so we know which came first!
Exploding mines are hidden on a grid and its up to you to figure out
where they are.
OTRPLACE.LZH OTHER PLACE "Other Place" is a basic, one person semi-
astroids like game with emphasis on shoot & dodge. Fun. It runs in
all ST screen resolutions. It has several levels of difficulty and
overall game speed to help accommodate different skill levels and
computer speeds. Instructions included. Freeware.
ROULET17.LZH ROULETTE RULET17.LZH This is the game of Roulette.
Learn how to win big bucks and how to place your bets. Good Graphics.
COLOR MONITOR REQUIRED TT Compatible in ST Low Resolution.
MUTCATER.ARC MUTANT CATERPILLARS From the April 1992 Atari ST User
cover disk: Geez, as if Jeff Minter's mutant camels weren't enough,
here come their cousins, the mutant caterpillars! This game
demonstrates the new STOS 3D programming language. It also comes with
a STOS demo. LOW RES ONLY.
NUKE101D.LZH STARNUKERS 1.01D StarNukers version 1.01D. This is an
updated version to 1.00. Fixes several bugs. Two player space war
game played on two ST's via modem or null-modem link. Also includes a
one player practice mode. Color monitor required. TT Compatible in ST
Medium Resolution.
PENGUIN Penguin! They're small, look like they're wearing tuxes and
they need to get through this maze. So it's up to you, pardner, to
round up these suckers. Remember, it's all in the mouse action! LOW
REZ ONLY.
Programmers can play with these!
MENUMK21.LZH MENU MAKER 2.1 Menu Maker v2.1 by M.J. Matts This
utility allows GFA BASIC programmers to easily create drop-down menus.
You can create, edit, save, load, and test menus from within this
program. A handy utility if you don't want to bother with a RSC file
for your program. Freeware from the United Kingdom. ST High/Medium
resolutions tested, might support more.
Z80 CROSS ASSEMBLER Z80 Cross Assembler: D&S Software of the UK have
released the ST Asembler as Shareware. Z80 has the look and feel of
DevPac in their opinion, but at a much lower shareware price.
MINT UTILITIES FOR .93 Here's the latest version of the MiNT utilites
for version 0.93, with source code included.
EDHOOK.ARC EDHOOKS2.ARC EdHak Hooks... How to let users use
EDHAK.ACC as an editor for your application. This explains the GEM
message pipe calls you need to use to see if EdHak is present, send
stuff to it, and receive from it -- all without any disk access.
Various options are covered. The transfers are virtually instant.
This is how QuickCIS interfaces with EdHak. It also allows a method
that uses a disk file if you need that. (for EdHak v 2.3)
GIF C SOURCE CODE This is MGIF, the PD monochrome GIF displayer
(source code only). This version includes a "flicker" display which
simulates 16 gray-scales for better simulation of color display.
STOS BLITTER EXTENSIONS These extensions allow STOS to access the
Blitter chip (if you have one...) for lightning fast memory-to-memory
copying, among other neat effects. The speed increase is stunning!
Works with STEs and Mega STs. Includes both language and compiler
files. Shareware from England.
And last but not least, another blitter file, an update, some packing
info., and your FIX for the week!
TOS 2.05 MONO FIX This is a fix for the TOS 2.05 MONO shift bug. It
goes in the AUTO folder. It also includes a program which can show off
the bug.
BLITSIM This program simulates a blitter on a regular ST without one
or a TT. Resolution independant, and should work on an SST (not
tested).
UIS PATCH 3.0 -> 3.32 Patch your Universal Item Selector from 3.0 to
3.32.
AFXTIP.TXT This text file is readable online. It explains (a little)
what AFX and PFX are all about. (NOT THAT you all need to have this
explained agined! <smile>). Since the GERMAN Docs are not easily
deciphered without some reading up, this may help some of you put these
excellent prgs to good use!
AFXTIP.ARC is a file comparison prg. demonstrating the use of the
AFX.PRG found in the LZH201j pkg.
The above files were compiled by Ron Berinstein co-sysop CodeHead
Quarters BBS (213) 461-2095 from files that were either directly
uploaded to CodeHead Quarters BBS, or downloaded from GEnie,
Compuserve, and Delphi online services.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To sign up for DELPHI service, call (with modem) (800) 695-4002. Upon
connection, hit <return> once or twice. At Password: type ZNET and
hit <return>.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To sign up for GEnie service call (with modem) (800) 638-8369. Upon
connection type HHH and hit <return>. Wait for the U#= prompt and type
XTX99436,GEnie and hit <return>.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To sign up for CompuServe service call (with phone) (800) 848-8199. Ask
for operator #198. You will be promptly sent a $15.00 free membership
kit.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Z*Net International Atari Online Magazine is a weekly publication
covering the Atari and related computer community. Material published
in this edition may be reprinted under the following terms only. All
articles must remain unedited and include the issue number and author at
the top of each article reprinted. Reprint permission granted, unless
otherwise noted, to registered Atari user groups and not for profit
publications. Opinions present herein are those of the individual
authors and does not necessarily reflect those of the staff. This
publication is not affiliated with the Atari Corporation. Z*Net, Z*Net
News Service, Z*Net International, Rovac, Z*Net Atari Online and Z*Net
Publishing are copyright (c)1985-1992, Syndicate Publishing, Rovac
Industries Incorporated, Post Office Box 59, Middlesex, New Jersey,
08846-0059, Voice: (908) 968-2024, BBS: (908) 968-8148, (510) 373-6792.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Z*NET: Atari ST Online Magazine
Copyright (c)1992, Rovac Industries, Inc...
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